Three Months in China
The ultimate 90-day voyage through China. Riverboats, dragons, wildly varying food, loooong train rides, and blood sugar checks abound on this exploration of one of the world's most incredible destinations.
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The big grey skies of Xi'an, China
DAY 1 — The grimy air of China can actually enhance the distant, ancient feel of some of its modern cities. That's how we found magnificent Xi'an in central China.
The ancient clay army and the small wild goose
DAY 5 — How travel can show you places you'd only ever dreamed of visiting – like the Terra Cotta Army near Xi'an, China, a real trip across time.
The amazing food stalls of Kaifeng
DAY 7 — The food at Kaifeng, China's nightly market is so good we stayed a few extra days, just to eat more of the cheap, delicious dishes there.
Saying "yes" to a Chinese tout was a good choice
DAY 12 — About a tour of Kaifeng, China with a local named "Jason", a.k.a. Golden Phoenix, a great guy who showed us the city on his bicycle rickshaw.
Laundry service plus vomit: The tale of Hefei
DAY 14 — Hefei is a growing Chinese city that still feels old. We managed to find laundry service on a rural back street and I overcame a spell of throwing up.
The secret misty mountain town of Tangkou, China
DAY 24 — Tangkou, China is an obscure mountain town that feels like it was made just for you. Travel should mostly be remarkable destinations such as this.
Struggling up China's sacred Huangshan mountains
DAY 26 — Striking out on your own as we did on the Huangshan Mountains in China is much more rewarding than the comfort and stability of package tours.
Lose yourself on "Old Street" in ancient Tunxi
DAY 31 — Most people pass through Tunxi, China because they're on their way elsewhere. But here's what you find if you stick around and explore Tunxi instead.
Shaoxing and the mysterious yin-yang of travel
DAY 36 — There is a "yin-yang" aspect to travel: you see some things and you miss others. Shaoxing, China showed us that that is how it should be on the road.
Gulangyu, a Chinese community like no other
DAY 46 — Quiet and relaxed Gulangyu is a peculiar island in south China that feels a lot more European than Asian. It's easy to forget time on "Piano Island".
Fujian tulou houses and the perfect kindness of strangers
DAY 47 — After a bus ride to the famous tulou in China we found no facilities at all, and fell in with a group of Taiwanese cyclists who took us under their wing.
Tea leaves and local families in Taxiacun
DAY 49 — An extra day in tiny Taxiacun, China let us explore the town and even get a surprise invitation to a local family's house, where they gave us tea cake.
Overnight stay in Zhuzhou, a town I can't remember
DAY 51 — Funny how some places you visit leave no impression on you whatsoever, like ghost towns of your memory. Zhuzhou, China was like that for me.
Eight days in a backpacker's oasis in Wuhan, China
DAY 53 — A stay at a hostel on a wooded lot in Wuhan, China gave us the opportunity to rest up, book a Yangtze cruise, and engage in some fierce music wars.
Three nights on the smoggy, majestic Yangtze River
DAY 64 — How we became the only English-speaking non-Chinese tourists on a three-day cruise up the famed Yangtze, which is as beautiful as its reputation.
I left my jaw in Chongqing's hotpot
DAY 68 — Chongqing, a humongous urban area in central China, gave us the opportunity to rest up after the Yangtze River cruise. And, we ate food spicy enough to sear holes in the Earth's crust.
Xining, the high and dry fulcrum of central China
DAY 72 — Xining is an ancient crossroads on the Silk Road in central China, a high, arid city that acts as a gateway to the rowdy west: it readjusts your focus.
Golmud, dusty crossroads on the edge of nothing
DAY 74 — We spent a few days in Golmud, a town in the middle of the Tibetan Plateau where we secured permission to continue through the rugged desert. How fun!
Through the desert to Dunhuang with special permission
DAY 75 — With an Aliens' Travel Permit we took a bus through high desert from Golmud to Dunhuang, China, a trip that featured camels, snow, and (eventually) peeing.
Sand dunes and street food in distant Dunhuang
DAY 79 — How to visit the Gobi Desert for free and keep insulin cool while you're climbing among the huge dunes. This is Dunhuang, a distant but remarkable place.
Three days in Beijing without sightseeing
DAY 87 — How is it possible to spend three days in Beijing and see NO tourist sites? It's easy when you learn you have to make sudden plans to get out of China.
