Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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This is China
The central civilisation of the Far East and historically the dominant culture of
the region, China is a traveller's treasure box: colossal palaces, sacred moun-
tains, cliff-top temples, roaring metropolises, spectacular scenery and much,
much more. A nation enjoying an exuberant and energetic coming of age, Ch-
ina is the country everyone's talking about.
China is modernising at a head- spinning pace. But the slick skyscrapers, Lam-
borghini showrooms and Maglev trains are little more than dazzling baubles.
Let's face it: the world's oldest continuous civilisation is bound to pull an artefact
or two out of its hat. You won't bump into history at every turn, but travel select-
ively and rich seams of antiquity crowd around. Tumbledown chunks of the
Great Wall, creaky historical residences, mist-wreathed and temple-strewn
mountains, quaint villages and delightful water towns make travel in China both
unique and astonishing.
China is vast. So you must get outside: island-hop in Hong Kong, size up awe-
some sand dunes in Gansu, trace the Great Wall as it meanders across moun-
tain peaks, sail through awesome river gorges or cycle through otherworldly
landscapes of karst peaks in Yangshuo. Ponder the desiccated enormity of the
northwestern deserts and the preternatural mists of China's sacred mountains.
Hike into a landscape richly flecked with seasonal shades, from the crimson
leaves of autumn maples to the colourful azaleas of spring Huangshan or the
ice-encrusted roofs of mountaintop Buddhist temples.
China is food obsessed. Treat yourself and swap local Chinatown menus for
the lavish Middle Kingdom cookbook: sample Peking duck, gobble down Lan-
zhou noodles, sweat over spicy Sichuan dishes, and don't forget what's cooking
in China's frontier lands - an excuse to get off the beaten path. Impress your
friends as you
ganbei
(down-in-one) the local firewater, sip a beer in a slick
Beijing bar or survey the Shanghai skyline through a raised cocktail glass.
Culinary exploration is the most enticing aspect of Middle Kingdom travel: you'll
return with stimulated taste buds and much-cherished gastronomic memories.
