The following guest post is from Alexander Barrett, who recently published This is Shanghai, a guide to living in the world’s most populous city. Alexander is a writer and illustrator who is constantly baffled by the human experience. From his home in Shanghai, China, he uses ink and words to try to make sense of …
Introducing: China’s Xishuangbanna Region Though part of Yunnan, one of China’s most beautiful and interesting provinces for travelers, the Xishuangbanna prefecture in the south of the province sees nowhere close to the number of visitors of favorites like Lijiang and Tiger Leaping Gorge. There are wild rainforests, abandoned tourist towns, delicious food, and enough cultural mixing …
We hadn’t slept longer than an hour when the disinterested, pale-shirted, tired-eyed Chinese airport security guard padded over and shook us awake. I knew immediately that our plan had failed. When you travel like this, very rarely do things go as expected. Flustered by interrupted sleep at 1:30 a.m. and a lack of any Chinese …
Chinese Cooking Lessons in Dali, China Taking a cooking class is a great way to enhance your short holiday or long-term travels. Almost every place that I travel to, I see cooking classes available—be it in Thailand or Italy, Argentina or Vietnam, Mexico or Morocco. I had been lingering in the laid back town of …
By Stephen Bugno Spend any amount of time in China and you’ll start noticing ridiculous signs like these. Usually it’s the English translations that make that it so odd or even unintelligible. I’m not sure why we’re protecting CircumStance or why that should begin with me. Chinese people are so obsessed with playing cards, that signs need …
About 45 minutes down the road southwest from Jianchuan, along the busy Lijiang-Dali road is a town where most travelers fail to stop. No one pays too much attention to Shaxi these days. Its heyday is long gone. Once it stood on the busy Tea Horse Road—a less famous trading route than the Silk Road, …
For some this is the quintessential China experience. I must admit, after countless bus rides, hotel check-ins, and big city headaches, this river’s foggy stillness came as a relief. It may be extremely popular and touristy, but there is no denying the beauty that this river and the Three Gorges possess. Choose your Cruise There …
By Stephen Bugno The Good The sights—Where else can you see the Great Wall of China, panda bears close up in their hometown, or a gorge the likes of Tiger Leaping Gorge? Nowhere. That’s why you come to China, for these heavy hitters. I won’t deny that I’ve seen some cool sights here. Climbing Emei …
Dear GoMad Nomad, I am wondering if you can advise me on good places to visit in China, off the beaten path, where the prices are low, the people are friendly, the women are beautiful, and the scenery is breathtaking. Sincerely, Symour in Pasaic Dear Symour, Great timing on this one—I’m in the middle …
A Walk through Lijiang China It’s not easy to navigate the streets of Lijiang’s old town. Timeworn cobbled streets follow steams, bending over ancient stone bridges forming a centuries-old maze. Lijiang is the capital of the Naxi Kingdom, set beneath the spiky Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The Naxi are an ethnic group descended from the …
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