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Shanghai is an absolutely beautiful city, but sometimes it seems almost too perfect. I have a feeling in the back of my mind this is some sort of utopian Sci-Fi city, a movie set, Disneyesque – or even the fictional “Capital” of the country of Panem in The Hunger Games. Basically, it’s a city that has been built from the ground up in the last 20 years. So everything is new, and… Read More

We began this day with a 1 AM call from our daughter back in NYC – telling us there had been an earthquake in Chengdu. We are a few hours away from there and thankfully have not been impacted by this deadly quake. Chengdu is where the famous Chinese Panda Preserve is located, and a popular spot to visit. News reports indicate the Pandas are OK; it was only about five years… Read More

We are spending the next three days on the M.S. Yangtze Explorer, reputed to be the most luxurious ship on the river. The 124 passenger ship is home to our group as well as A&K, Nat Geo and a few independent travelers. It is nice and very comfortable, our cabin having 333 sq. ft, a king bed and a balcony. Wi-fi is slow and intermittent, but we do have CNN, and can… Read More

We left beautiful Guilin this morning on Xiamen Air headed for a rendezvous with Pandas in Chongqing. The long drive out of Guilin showed off even more of the city’s parks, landscaped medians, and clean, attractive commercial areas. As with all the Chinese airports, this one was built with future expansion in mind and located a fair distance from the center of town. They say Chongqing is the largest city you never… Read More