Day-by-Day Travel Plan

Sun. 10.7       Depart Atlanta International Airport in the morning, flight to                                  Shanghai via Chicago O’Hare International Airport.

 Mon. 10. 8     Arrive in Shanghai at 4:30 pm.  Proceed to Hangzhou in the evening

 Shanghai is situated on the estuary of Yangtze River of China. It is the largest industrial, trade, and financial service city in China. Covering an area of 2,239 square miles,  Shanghai has a population of 18.7 million, including two million floating population.  Originally, Shanghai was a seaside fishing village and in time its gradual development led to its being granted county status on August 19th, 1291, during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). Hence this day became the anniversary of the founding of Shanghai. Today's Shanghai is a multi-cultural metropolis with both modern and traditional Chinese features. Bubbling Shanghai shows off every aspect of her unique glamour.

Hangzhou is the capital of Zhejiang Province, located 180 km southwest of Shanghai, and the population in the city proper is now around 1.75 million. By the end of 2003, Hangzhou had a registered population of 6.4 million including an urban registered population of 3.9 million. As one of the most renowned and prosperous cities of China for much of the last 1,000 years 

Tue. 10.9       Visit: One hospital in Hangzhou, meeting and speech

                        Visit: Xuejun Schools

                        Tour: Lakeshore of West LakeLake

                        Dinner hosted by a local government agency

 Wed. 10.10    Tour: Yaolin Cave and Countryside – Fuyang County

 Yaolin Cave is about 70 miles from Hangzhou city. The cave is natural limestone cave with rich stalactites and is a place of natural beauty under ground.

 Thu. 10.11     lv. Hangzhou, Proceed to Chengdu, Sichuan Province by air

pm: Visit: Sichuan Bureau of Disease Control and Prevention

                        Dinner: Welcome hosted by Chengdu Provincial Foreign                                     Experts Bureau

 Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan Province in the southwest and  has been the economic and cultural center of China's most populous province since 400 B.C.  During the Eastern Han Dynasty (35-330 AD), the imperial court appointed an official to supervise the fast-growing brocade industry in the town. It was then known as Jincheng or Brocade Town. When it was discovered that the brocade turned brighter and fresher after being washed in a nearby river, the river was given the name Jing Jian  or Brocade River.  During the Five Dynasties era (907-960 A. D.), it was for a time the capital of China, and hibiscus was planted all along the city wall. Because of this, it then became known as the City of Furong or Hibiscus. Today, flowers and trees grace the wide streets and its many parks. Agriculture and light industry are the mainstays of the region. Brocade is still manufactured along with other textiles and handicrafts. The Sichuan Opera has been in existence for many years and is slowly winning nationwide fame.  The National Panda Research Center is established nearby.  Most pandas we see in the U.S. come from this area.

Fri. 10.12       Am: Visit a local high school or kindergarten

                        Pm: City tour and Chengdu Panda Breeding Research Center

Eve: Dinner at a citizen’s house and followed by a visit to a tea house with folk show

Chengdu Panda Breeding Research Center is located just six miles from downtown Chengdu.  Giant pandas are found only in Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces. In total there are fewer than 1000 of which 80% are distributed within the territory of Sichuan province.  Chengdu Panda Breeding Research Center has been created and imitates the pandas' natural habitat in order that they might have the best possible environment for breeding and rearing the offspring. The Center also cares for other rare and endangered wild animals. The Research Center covers an area of 92 acres, 96% of which is verdure. Giant pandas, lesser pandas, black-necked cranes, white storks, as well as over twenty species of rare animals, are fed and bred there throughout the year. Verdant bamboo, bright flowers, fresh air, a natural hill scene, and a beautiful artificial view are merged ingeniously at the base.

 Sat. 10.13      07:00 Lv. Chengdu, flight to Jiuzhaigou, tour Jiuzhaigou's nature beauty

 Jiuzhaigou, literally the Nine Village Valley, is known as the "Fairyland on Earth."   Here is a fine example of the primitive, natural beauty of China.  Its lakes, waterfalls, beaches, snow-capped mountains, virgin forests, as well as the fascinating local Tobetan customs and villages, all add to the fairy land feel of the place.

 Sun. 10.14    Continue Tour of Jiuzhaigou

                        16:20 flight to Xian

                        Eve: Dinner hosted by Shannxi Provincial Department of                                     Public Health

 Xian was famous in the past as Chang An, and it is the capital city of Shaanxi Province.  It has served, at different times, as the capital of 11 dynasties.  During the powerful Han and Tang dynasties, the imperial palaces were built.  Xian was also the starting point of the famous “Silk Road.”  Today, Xian has a population of 3.25 million.

 Mon. 10.15    All day tour of Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses Museum; Xian                           City Wall

                        Dinner: Northwest Chinese Family Food

 Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses Museum is the most significant archeological excavation of the 20^th century.  Upon ascending the throne at the age of 13 (in 246 BC), Qin Shi Huang, later the first Emperor of all China, had begun to work for his mausoleum.  It took 11 years to finish.  It is speculated that many buried treasures and sacrificial objects had accompanied the emperor in his after life.  A group of peasants uncovered some pottery while digging for a well nearby the royal tomb in 1974.  It caught the attention of archeologists and the public immediately.  Since then, over 7,000 pottery soldiers, horses, chariots and even weapons have been unearthed.  Most of them have been restored to their former grandeur.  The museum was listed by UNESCO in 1987 as one of the World Cultural Heritage sites.

 Xian City Wall stands 40 feet tall, 40-46 feet wide at the top and 50-60 feet thick at the bottom.  It covers 8.5 miles in length with a deep moat surrounding it.  After the establishment of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), the first emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang began to enlarge the wall built initially during the old Tang dynasty (618 –907), creating the modern Xian City Wall.  It is the most complete city wall that has survived in China, as well being one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world.

Tue. 10.16   A.M: tour of Shannxi History Museum, shopping at local market

                        21:05: Take train from Xian to Beijing (or may take flight to Beijing)

Shannxi History Museum is a comprehensive museum with more than 370,000 exhibits of different  kinds.  Shannxi province is the birthplace of the ancient Chinese civilization.  Xian City was the capital city in thirteen dynasties which in total lasted over 1100 years.  Consequently, the ancient history of Shaanxi is to some degree the ancient history of China.  The Shaanxi history Museum considers it an obligation to be a showcase of ancient civilizations.

Wed. 10.17    08:41 arr. In Beijing; proceed to hotel

All day excursion to Yonghe Gong and Great Wall

                        Eve: Welcome dinner

Yonghe Gong is a famous lamasery located in the northeastern part of the old city of Beijing.  It was a palatial residence built in 1694 by Qing Emperor Kangxi for his fourth son, Prince Yinzheng who later succeeded to the throne.  After Yinzheng became the emperor, he continued to use it as an imperial palace for short stays.  In 1744, it was converted into a lamasery.  Yonghegong is the most renowned Tibetan Buddhist temple in China outside Tibet and holds treasures of both the Han and Tibetan cultures.

Great Wall is the symbol of the Chinese ancient civilization.  Its history goes back 2,000 years.  The Great Wall stars as Shanhai Pass in the east and ends at Jiayu Pass in the west, and it is 3,920 miles long!  The Badaling section, 46 miles  north of Beijing city, is representative.  The Great Wall has been listed as one of the world’s natural and cultural heritages.

Thu. 10.18     A.M: Attend Georgia International Trade Office in Beijing   opening  

P.M.: Tour of Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City

Eve: Beijing Opera Show

 Tiananmen Square is a large plaza near the center of Beijing named after Tiananmen (literally, Gate of Heavenly Peace) which sits to its north, separating it from the Forbidden City.  It has great cultural significance as a symbol because it was the site of several key events in Chinese history such as proclamation of the PRC by Mao Zedong in October 1, 1949; as well as all Chinese mass military displays and  mass rallies during the Cultural Revolution.  It has also been the site of a number of protest movements, most notably the May Fourth Movement of 1919 for science and democracy, protests in 1976 after the death of Zhou Enlai, and the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.

Forbidden City was built from 1407 to 1420. It was the imperial palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties and 24 emperors lived in it.  The Forbidden City has 9,999 buildings and houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities.  It is listed by UNESCO as the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world.  The Forbidden City was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987. 

Fri. 10.19       All day: Happy Farmer’s Family Tour

                        Shopping at local market

Sat. 10.20      A.M.: tour of The Temple of Heaven

                        16:00  Lv. Beijing Capitol Airport, back to the Atlanta via                                        Chicago, Arr. Atlanta around 21:00

The Temple of Heaven was the place where the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties worshipped heaven and prayed for good harvests. It is the largest complete temple complex of the country.

Note:  The plan will be more specific when the details are worked out.  We will add more school visits and interesting points closer to the date of departure.