China

China – from the hectic subways to the Great Wall of China, this is a place guaranteed to excite the cultural travellers. I travelled to Beijing and Shanghai in May 2013, this was my first international travel and it was definitely a culture shock for a traveller brand new to the scene. Needless to say I loved the place and the people were surprisingly friendly. I wasn’t sure what to expect once we arrived (had some drama with delayed flights on the way in) but Beijing astonished me with its huge buildings, and landmarks at each turn, this place oozes culture and history. The street food markets and Great Wall of China were a cool experience, in the hot May weather the fog of the city clears once you get further out towards the wall, and if you’re blessed with blue skies and few tourists the wall is an incredible experience. From Beijing we caught the bullet train to Shanghai – I would highly suggest this opposed to the overnight train if you can afford it – where we had a few more days to explore. We ended up hiring a "limo driver” for the day and he took us to Shu Zhou a small village outside of the city, here we picked up an English speaking Chinese Tour Guide and saw some beautiful Gardens. We decided to ask our guide to show us around the town further (for only around $100AUD for the entire day she lead us to the best spots), we visited the silk factory, pearl markets and had lunch in a traditional Chinese restaurant – very interesting food choices – this was by far the best day of the trip. Our guide "Happy” her name was, was so fun to be around and knew so much we wouldn’t have known on our own.

 China is such a beautiful country I believe anyone who loves culture and history could visit and fall in love!

To book your China adventure please contact our DeparturePoint consultants.