7/21/2013 - Xi'an, China
Bicycling around the city wall showed us the variety in Xi'an. We saw old pagodas and new construction. We heard traditional Chinese music in public places, and we heard contemporary dance music from shopping malls. We saw kites flying above city parks. We saw mobs of people moving through markets.
It reminded me of Robert Pirsig's book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. He says motorcycling across the United States is his preferred way to see the country. Driving a car is worse because the rider's panoramic views are constricted by windows, and the driver doesn't feel the environment as much. Biking around the top of Xi'an was certainly a highlight of China.
Pictured: The market crowd in Suzhou, viewed from the city wall (see top right).
Incredible blog. Can you let us know what tours you went on?
ReplyDelete-yori
Thanks, Yori!
ReplyDeleteI did two tours: both with G Adventures, a Canadian company (formerly Gap Adventures). I enjoyed both, and heard mostly positive experiences from everyone else who has used them. Only a couple of people had a bad experience once: they had a poor tour guide in Egypt. But it wasn't so bad that they stopped using G Adventures.
My tour in China had pretty rough travel and accommodations (cramped night trains and cheap hotels). Of the 14 of us, only 2 or 3 were older than me. Most everyone was early 20s or younger. It was this trip:
http://www.gadventures.com/trips/beijing-to-shanghai-adventure/ACBI/2013/
My tour in Turkey was much nicer, but more expensive. The travel was nicer (flights instead of night trains), and the hotels were all nice. It was this trip:
http://www.gadventures.com/trips/turkish-treasures/ETTTD/2013/