It was early December when I was sitting with my coffee and reading
the UT San Diego newspaper. I happened to notice an article about a
ten-day trip to Beijing and Shanghai for $899. This included airfare,
transfers, hotel and breakfast. It wasn't difficult to convince Ron,
who likes a good deal, that maybe we should venture off to China to
see what it's all about. I called the trip sponsor, SmarTours, the
next morning to confirm the details and to ensure they were
legitimate. We decided to book the trip (adding $100 to travel in
early March rather than January).
Planning was easy because the flights and hotels were prearranged by
the tour company. We depart from San Francisco, and we will drive up
the day before. I booked a hotel near the airport that includes ten
nights of free parking using the website hotelnparking.com.This will
allow us some flexibility on the return, in the event we decide to
drive back leisurely or stay in San Francisco for a night.
Travel to China requires a visa. I spent many hours completing the
required forms and supplying the necessary documents. Our tour
company recommended we use the services of CIBTvisas which proved helpful. I needed to
call them a number of times because the questions on the Chinese
application were not all that clear. Finally, $380 later (China
Consular visa fee: $140, CIBTvisa Service fee: $50.00—all times
two) mission accomplished.
We plan to book a full day tour to the Great Wall and Ming tombs.
The rest of the time we will venture out on our own. My husband, the
expert in logistics, has been perusing the maps for nearby
transportation and walking destinations close to our hotels. One
thing I know for sure—we won't run out of things to do. I picked up
a couple travel guides to bring along: Top 10 Beijing, DK
Eyewitness Travel and Beijing & Shanghai, National
Geographic Traveler. Our hotel offers free bikes to guests—could we
really bike in Beijing?
In addition to the travel guides, I found a couple of novels about
China that I enjoyed: All the Flowers in Shanghai by
Duncan Jepson and Yeh Yeh's House by
Evlina Chao. I am currently reading Oracle Bones by
Peter Hessler, which I highly recommend. Historian, I will never be;
however, I am attempting to better understand the hardships of the
Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989 and the Cultural Revolution which
lasted from 1966 to 1976.
Communicating
in a foreign country is always a challenge, but even more so when it
is based on a language that uses characters instead of an alphabet.
I normally put some effort into learning a language before I visit,
however, I must confess to not even attempting Chinese. My solution
is to carry a small red book titled Me No Speak which
contains lots of pictures and Chinese words for “no-speak 'ems”
like me. I've already highlighted the picture for “Not Spicy.”
Hopefully, we won't lose the book.
The ten day forecast for Beijing, so far, looks like an acceptable
sunny and 50 degree high. I am on my way with a Minnesota winter
coat, warm hat, gloves, scarf, and, as always, my tennis shoes (a no
no, but they are the only comfortable shoes I've ever found, and I am
much too old to trade comfort for looks). I am not expecting to love
China, but it is a place in the world I have never been to and I am
thankful for the opportunity to visit.
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| Found on weheart.co.uk |
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