Oct

28

Thursday, depart USA.

Oct

29

Friday, Beijing, Jian Guo Garden Hotel, D. Arrive Beijing after crossing international dateline. Transfer to hotel. Dinner included if you arrive in time.

Oct

30

Saturday, Beijing, B/L/D. Morning visit to Dirt Market (aka Pan Jia Yuan Market), afternoon visit to Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City including the jewelry rooms.
If you have visited China before, you may wish to shop at Pearl Market, Silk Street, and Yashow Cotton Market in the afternoon. Local guides can be arranged at your own expense for shopping, guide fees, taxis, etc. Lunch not included for shoppers. Shoppers may visit Post Office at Silk Street to mail purchases home.

Oct

31

Sunday, Beijing, B/L/D. Mutianyu Great Wall with cable car ride and Ming Tombs and Sacred Way. There will be time for one hour hike on Great Wall.
For those of you who have already visited Wall and Tombs on previous tour, I would like to arrange hutong cooking class and visit to morning market to shop for ingredients used in the recipes. After cooking class, we would ride by pedi-cab to Prince Gong mansion. Those not going to Wall and Tombs would pay any expenses for the day including fees for local guides, cooking school, entrance fee to mansion, pedi-cab drivers, taxis, tips, etc. Lunch is included in the cooking class. The cooking class is a great way to experience real hutong life..............not the "tourist hutong tour" that most experience.

Nov

1

Monday, Beijing-Guiyang-Anshun, Grand Waterfall Hotel, B/L/D. Mid-day flight from Beijing to Guiyang. Visit to Zen Xianyang Museum if time allows, then drive to Anshun.

Nov

2

Tuesday, Anshun, B/L/D. Morning visit to Caiguan Old-Han Chinese village to enjoy their traditional Ground Opera which is several dances performed by the village men with hand carved masks used to tell their history. Han People are the majority ethnic group of China. We will see the men of the village carving and painting masks. Afternoon visit to Suoga Long Horn Miao village where we will have a ceremonial rice-wine greeting and will see the women wrap their hair around the wooden horns that are worn to support their hair style. The hairstyle is tied into symbolism of the wild pheasant and is related to totem respect. The women will also demonstrate wax painting (batik) fabric. The village is also home to a Norwegian government sponsored small cultural antiquities collection. Late afternoon return to Anshun.

Nov

3

Wednesday, Anshun-Kaili, Heaven Sent Dragon Hotel, B/L/D. Morning drive from Anshun to Kaili,lunch in Kaili. Visit to Bank to cash traveler's checks. Afternoon visit to Weng Xiang village for performance and embroidery demonstration.

Nov

4

Thursday, Kaili, B/L/D. Two hour plus drive to Gulong Lusheng Festival, starts about 11:00 am and ends about 18:00. Many ceremonious activities such as Lusheng pipe music (these are bamboo reed pipes), dancing, buffalo bull fights, horse racing, and bird fights. Many Miao people attend this festival. Parking is limited, we may have to walk 1/2 to 1 km, but that is normal when attending this kind of festival.

Nov

5

Friday, Kaili, B/L/D. Morning visit to Textile Market and Matang Geija village for singing and dancing performance and batik demonstration. The Geija people are another ethnic minority with their own language and customs. However, the government of China has not yet recognized them as separate from the Miao people. Afternoon visit to Yang Jian Hong's new textile museum and shop. She has a law degree but gave it up to pursue the goal of preserving the culture and the needle art of the ethnic minorities of the area. She has an extensive collection of men's and women's costumes and will teach us about the styles of clothing worn by various minority groups.

Nov

6

Saturday, Kaili, B/L/D. Morning visit to Upper Langde village (the village of our local guide) and see performance. Afternoon visit to Jidao village for singing and dancing performance and demonstration of spinning and weaving. On the way back to Kaili, visit Ms Xu's Textile Shop and learn the art of making pleated skirts. Visit to local food market if time allows.

Nov

7

Sunday, Kaili, B/L/D. Morning visit to the Sunday Market where locals shop for all kinds of supplies needed for daily living. We will also see another market to learn more about the making of silver ornaments. Afternoon visit to Xijiang
Miao village and enjoy long table lunch. This village has stunning scenery, a museum, and outstanding architecture...............legged houses on stilts and local shops in the street. Xijiang consists of 12 small villages and is regarded as the largest Miao village in China.

Nov

8

Monday, Kaili-Conjiang, Auyue Hotel, B/L/D. Drive to Conjiang via Leishan and Rongjiang with visit to Datang village in route. Datang is a short skirt Miao village where we enjoy a great performance. Here, their storage buildings for grain are on stilts to protect the buildings from fire and rodents.

Nov

9

Tuesday, Conjiang-Zhaoxing Hotel, VIP section, B/L/D. Morning visit to Yin Tan Dong village with textile demonstrations and performance if the road is accessible.
If not, we may consider walking up to the village, depending on weather and how far. We will observe weaving demonstration. After weaving the cloth, it is dipped into the special indigo dye several times, then beaten with huge wooden mallets to help make the fabric shiny. Then eggs whites are brushed on with chicken feathers to add shine. This village is high in the mountains with beautiful views. Afternoon visit to Basha Miao village with performance and hair cutting demonstration. Our hotel is riverside location.

Nov

10

Wednesday, Zhaoxing, B/L/D. Morning visit to Tang'an Dong village and its Museum. Then, two hour hike back to Zhaoxing, visiting Xiage Dong village along the way. (If you don't hike, you can ride bus back and have more time for exploring the village and shopping). Zhaoxing is charming a charming village with five drum towers, an outdoor market, indigo fabric dyeing along the river, etc. Afternoon free time to explore the village and its shops. Optional night musical performance.

Nov

11

Thursday, Zhaoxing-Sanjiang, Sanjiang Hotel. B/L/D. Morning drive towards Sanjiang, with a stop for lunch at Yangxi. Previous groups enjoyed outstanding lunch of at least 10 dishes prepared by one woman with one large wood burning wok in mere minutes, amazing! We will try to arrange brief visit to tea farm at Tongle and visit to Chenyang Wind and Rain Bridge before arrival in Sanjiang. This hotel is great place for both foot and body massages.

Nov

12

Friday, Sanjiang-Guilin. Guilin Sheraton Hotel, B/L/D. Morning drive to Longsheng and have opportunity to hike to top of the Longi Terraces or you can ride up in sedan chair at your expense or stay at lower level. Afternoon stop at Huangluo Red Yao village with performance of their style of hair wrapping. The Yao are another of the 55 ethnic minority groups recognized in China. Sheraton Hotel is a treat to enjoy western comforts after the remote regions. The Sheraton offers fantastic evening buffet dinner, but not every night. Cost of buffet dinner is not included in cost of tour. If buffet is not offered, we will eat at local restaurant, which is included in tour cost.

Nov

13

Saturday, Guilin-Shanghai, Pacific Hotel, B/L/D. Late morning flight to Shanghai, maybe visit Nankeen Batik facility or drive by the Bund. We could actually visit the museum until closing time if we arrive in time (we have done that before), but we won't know until arrival in Shanghai.

Nov

14

Sunday, B/L/D. Full day of touring, suggestions would be Shanghai Museum, Jin Mao Tower, Yu Yuan Garden, maybe Magnetic Levitation Train of special interest to the men in the group.

Nov

15

Monday, B. Depart for USA. You will take taxi to airport on your own to airport, at your expense. Airport transfer with guide and driver is costly and not necessary.
Arrive in USA same day after crossing international dateline.