Curtis Family Yunnan Tour

Dear Shawna,

I just got back from my 7 day Yunnan tour, and my wife Wendy, daughters Donna and Marie, and I wanted to thank you guys at China Odyssey Tours for doing such an amazing job in arranging and executing it. Everything went off without a hitch, and we had the time of our lives. It is something we will never forget, and I feel a great learning experience for my two girls. Your guides did an exceptional job. They were extremely patient, and their English was fantastic! You asked if I would send you a copy of my travelogue. I am sending you the condensed version because the full-length one is really long. I hope you can use it. Thanks again for a wonderful experience.

Sincerely,

William Curtis

Curtis Family Yunnan Tour

Day 1:
Early this morning, we arrived in the Beijing airport. We fortunately made good time on the flight because we left New York’s La Guardia Airport about an hour late because they had to replace a fuel sensor. A little nerve-wracking to say the least. We only had an hour to transfer planes, but we made it with time to spare. We were really impressed by the airport. It was very modern, and everything was written in English and Chinese, so we had no trouble getting around. The girls wanted to do a bit of shopping at the airport’s shops, but we just didn’t have the time. We arrived in Kunming around 11:00 in the morning, grabbed our luggage and found Jean, our tour guide waiting for us with a sign with all of our names on it. She greeted us very politely, took my wife’s luggage from her, and walked us to the car that was going to drive us around Kunming. It wasn’t a car, it was actually a conversion van. It was really comfortable, and my girls were delighted with the little refrigerator filled with drinks for us. They’d never seen a refrigerator in a car before. We were then driven to our hotel, the Kunming Jin Jiang Hotel. On the way to the hotel, my travel consultant from China Odyssey Tours called Jean’s cell phone to make sure I had made it and we had been picked up. This impressed me a lot. It really made me feel like they cared. The drive only took a couple of minutes because the hotel is located right next to the airport. After arriving in the hotel, Jean asked if we wanted to head out into the city for lunch, but we all decided we just wanted to crash for a while. That’s a lot of time in the air, and none of us slept very well. After a long nap, we decided to try to see what the city might have to offer. Sadly, I left the map of Kunming that I got at the Chinese Embassy sitting on my dresser, so we really had no idea where we were going. I asked directions from the concierge and he gave me a map of the city and pointed out where the downtown area was. He then walked us to the doorman and told the doorman to get us a taxi and tell the driver to take us to the downtown area. He also handed us the hotel’s business cards which have a map and directions on the back in Chinese, so when we wanted to return, we just needed to hand it to a taxi driver and we’d get back. We strolled around the downtown area. Wendy, Donna, and Marie had fun shopping. I enjoyed people watching. We didn’t know where to eat, and being afraid of the language barrier, we ended up in a supermarket where we bought some snacks. We found Lay’s Potato Chips, Doritos, Snickers, Kit Kats, M&M’s and a lot of pops we recognized. We also found chicken feet in vacuum packed packages. We ended up with just the stuff we recognized. How sad is that? We travel halfway around the world to eat western snacks. Pathetic huh? We know the hotel staff speaks English and there are several restaurants there, so we decided to head back there to eat. The hotel has a revolving restaurant on the roof. My kids loved that. Sadly, they ate hamburgers for dinner. My wife and I tried what the waiter suggested. It was really good. The girls wouldn’t try it though. After, we went to the hotel’s bowling alley for a few frames and then headed back to our room and almost passed out upon hitting the pillow.

Day 2:
This morning we got up around 7:30 and went to the hotel’s buffet for breakfast. We ate like pigs! We actually talked the girls into trying some Chinese foods. They admitted it was ok. Kids huh? If it’s not hamburgers or pizza, they’re not interested. At 9:00 Jean met us and took us to see Kunming’s Stone Forest. We really had no idea what to expect. It is the one thing that I forgot to look up online before leaving. I asked Jean exactly what it was and she said it was an area filled with grotesque rocks. That didn’t sound too interesting, but happily I was wrong. The Stone forest was really fantastic! I don’t know how they were created, but it is a huge area and it is filled with pillars of stone carved by the weather. They were really fantastic! I wouldn’t say “grotesque” though. We wandered off the beaten track a bit, where there were no people, and it was really something! I think it’d make a great movie set. I can’t really describe it well, you’ll have to look at my photos. After the stone forest, we were driven back to our hotel and according to our itinerary, we were on our own for the rest of the day. Jean asked if we needed some suggestions of what to see. We definitely did. First she took us to a local restaurant for lunch. It didn’t offer any western dishes (at my request), so the girls had to eat Chinese food. The restaurant had forks and spoons, so they didn’t have to try to fight with chopsticks. Although they were hesitant at first, and wanted to know what every single ingredient was, eventually hunger took over and they gave in. They really liked it and asked for another plate of this leafy vegetable with a garlic sauce. Amazing!!! Imagine them asking for more vegetables at home. I think I’m gonna need to get my hands on that recipe. I think we cook vegetables wrong in the west. Here, they all are very flavorful. The carrots are not cooked until they are mushy. They are still a tad bit crisp and keep more of their original flavor. I think we might need to rethink our cooking methods. I hate cooked carrots, but here, I actually enjoyed them. I mean come on, my daughters actually asked for seconds when it came to vegetables. Unbelievable! I’m still in shock. Jean suggested that we check out the Green Lake Park. I’m glad we asked for suggestions. The Green lake Park is a really beautiful park located in Kunming City. It’s like a huge Chinese garden. It was very nice and we got a chance to stroll at our leisure and take breaks. We had fun watching the groups of old women chatting. We had no idea what they were saying, but it was fun to watch them. There was one group of elderly who were performing opera. At least I think it was opera. There was a group of men playing instruments, and an old woman was singing. It was really nice. They invited us to sit down and listen, which we did. After visiting the park we went for dinner at a small local restaurant. They had photos on their menus, so we just pointed. We did well. Everything we pointed to turned out to be delicious. I am surprised how easy it is to survive and get around when you don’t speak the language. Body language and gestures can go a long way. After, we back to the hotel where the girls watched movies on cable. What a great day this has been.

Day 3:
This morning was the same as last, we got up early and went to the hotel’s buffet breakfast, and today, to my joy, my girls ate Chinese food by their own choosing. I was worried about that because I think in the states, kids are not open to trying new things, and exposing themselves to new cultures. They only know their own little corner of the world and have no interest in broadening their horizons. My girls are doing really good. They are trying new things, and asking questions. After breakfast, Jean met us and took us outside to where our car was waiting. Having our own private car makes all of the difference. It is so nice not to have to deal with taxis. Just hop in the van and be driven where we need to go. We went to the Yunnan Nationalities Village. It is a bit theme parkish, but it was pretty cool. My wife and girls really liked the clothing. The park is a representation of some of China’s ethnic minority groups. They have built 20 different villages within the park and each village represents a different minority group. It shows representative architecture and culture, and all of the employees are dressed up in their own minority’s costumes. There were dances performed by the different minorities. At first I was a bit skeptical because it did seem too much like a theme park, but once there, I did have a lot of fun. It is probably the only place in China where all of these minorities can be seen in one place. We then hopped in the car again and headed to Dian Lake. As I have found, most places in China have interesting legends about their creation and names and Dian Lake is no exception Jean told us the legend. She said that a princess tired of palatial life escaped the palace. She fell in love with a commoner and got married. They lived happily until the king found out where they were hiding, and in a fit of anger had her husband killed. The princess cried day and night and her tears formed Dian Lake and eventually her body turned to stone and became West Hill. The hill does look like a girl lying next to the lake. West Hill was quite beautiful. It was covered with flowers when we went. We climbed up the mountain’s staircases to go to Dragon Gate. The views from the mountain were spectacular. We could oversee Kunming. The mountain has several pavilions which offer the best views. Dragon Gate is a gate built of stone. You can’t walk through it or you would plummet to your death. Don’t worry, there is a railing so you won’t. There were a lot of carvings near the gate of deities and dragons. It was quite nice. When we finished climbing all over West Hill, we were driven back to Kunming where we had a nice dinner in a local restaurant. We had steamed pot chicken. We also had many other dishes. Every time we eat Jean orders enough food for a small army. By the time I finish sampling everything, I am stuffed. We never finish our food. The chicken was really good. It was served in the pot it was cooked in. The pot is made of clay and has a tube sticking up through the middle. I guess when the lid is put on it, the steam comes up through this tube and cooks the soup. It was really wonderful. After dinner we just went back to the hotel. We were shot after climbing all over the mountain.

Day 4:
This morning after breakfast Jean took us outside where our car was waiting and we then were driven to Lijiang. We stopped by a village famous for its tie-dying. The minority group that inhabits the village is Zhou. I hope I spelled that right. It sounds like “Joe”. They were dying indigo colored cloth when we got there. My wife and daughters were happy because they got to do a bit of shopping. They make clothing, table cloths, bandana, bags, etc. out of the cloth. We arrived at the Lijiang Ancient Town at around noon. The girls wanted to eat western food so Jean took us to a western restaurant in the ancient town. It wasn’t too authentic, but it was quite good. The Lijiang Ancient City was pretty cool. At first I was unimpressed because it seemed so touristy, but after exploring a bit more, I found it had a lot to offer. The city is quite large, and once I started exploring the back alleys, and smaller lanes, I found ancient buildings, and old people sitting around drinking tea or watching opera on TV. I took a lot of great photos. If they were black and white, they could have been a hundred years old. It doesn’t look like life has changed too much in the last hundred years. I kind of envy them their pace of life. They seem quite poor, but so happy. The kids liked following me around. There was a group of five that would follow me. They wouldn’t follow me closely, they would peek at me from around a corner, and every time I would spin around, they would scream and run away giggling until I turned the next corner and there they would be again watching me. After an hour of this, they finally got bold enough to follow me in the open. They were so cute! I think the Chinese babies are absolutely adorable. It seems that the grandmothers watch the babies so the parents can work. If I look at a baby and smile, the grandmother beams with pride. After exploring the city for a while, we climbed Lion Hill located in the center of the Ancient City. There is a pagoda on the top of the hill and it offers really incredible views of the ancient city. On the ground the ancient city seems like a labyrinth, but from the top of the hill, it looks even more confusing than it does from the ground. I was really impressed with how clean the ancient town it. It is almost sterile. There aren’t even cigarette butts on the ground. I saw some people with long tongs walking around looking for garbage. From the ancient village, I could see a mountain called Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. It is a beautiful snow capped mountain. It has a legend about it, but I can’t remember what it was. I gotta say this trip has been quite a workout. We are so busy exploring all day that we don’t even notice how tired we get. As soon as we get back to the hotel we pass out. Don’t get me wrong, it is absolutely wonderful, but we sure get tuckered out.

Day 5:
This morning after breakfast we were taken to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. We rented some thick winter coats and got our tickets. Tickets come complete with oxygen bottles due to the high altitudes. We took a cable car up to an altitude of about 3,000 meters. Sadly, it was misty, so we couldn’t see too much. There were many stairs leading even higher, but it was so cold and with the low oxygen content we decided to head back down the mountain. Jean then took us to visit the Baisha Mural Paintings. The murals were really impressive. I don’t know much about Chinese religions, but that notwithstanding, I was quite impressed. The paintings were beautifully done. Jean told us that the murals were created hundreds of years ago and that they blend the cultures of many of China’s minority groups as well as different religions. We then went to visit the Black Dragon Pool Park in Lijiang. I was told it was just a pool, and wasn’t thrilled about going. I was pretty tired, and wanted to rest. I’m really glad I went though. It was really quite nice. The Black Dragon Pool was literally that, a pool. The landscape surrounding it reflected in the water was beautiful. There is a large palace complex in the park called the Black Dragon Palace. It was built hundreds of years ago as was everything in this country. The temple was very nice. It was built on different levels and had many courtyards and beautiful buildings. There were some really ancient trees in front of the temple. They were twisted and bent. I am sure they were the topic for many Chinese paintings. They were huge! I’ve never seen trees like them. One of the trees’ trunks had actually died, but its lower branches were still alive and producing leaves. There was also a plum orchard, which has 6,000 trees in the park, which according to Jean create an ocean of colors when they bloom. We also visited the Naxi Dongba Culture Museum inside the park. That was neat. I am a sucker for museums. This one focused only on the Naxi minority. Their written language is hieroglyphics, apparently the only living hieroglyphic language in the world. Their writing was really appealing. I had a scroll painted for me to hang in a narrow spot in our dining room. The museum was filled with costumes and tools used by the Naxi people. The clothing varied from very beautiful, to the garish and ornate. After the park we went back to the hotel where we all took a nap before heading out downtown to eat and do a bit of shopping. We met a group of students who sat a table near us. They looked like they wanted to talk to us, but were too nervous. After about a half an hour, one of them got up the nerve to talk with us. He asked us if our food was good. I told him it was and asked him if he liked his. He giggled and ran away, so I followed him to his table and talked to his group. They were terrified, but after a few minutes, they started responding. After a while, some of them came back to our table and we started chatting. It was really fun. They asked if we wanted to go shopping after dinner and invited us to come along with them. They took us to all sorts of wonderful little shops and translated for us and told us about school life in China. We really had a ball. Once they had gotten over their fear of talking with us, they couldn’t talk enough. We took photos with them and we exchanged emails so we could keep in touch. It really brought it home that people are people no matter where you are in the world. They wanted us to go to a Karaoke place, but we politely declined. We then went back to our hotel. Oh, on the way we stopped by a little convenience store and picked up a bunch of snacks. We all sat on the bed watching Chinese movies and munching. It was a great day!

Day 6:
This morning we had breakfast in the hotel. We ate at the buffet and the girls ate only Chinese food. There is this stuffed bun called Baozi that they have become addicted to. It is a soft bun stuffed with meats, vegetables, or beans, or a combination. They are really good and my wife has been asking Jean for the recipe. I don’t think she knows how to make them. After breakfast Jean met us in the lobby and we hopped in the car. We went to Tiger Leaping Gorge. I have been all over the world, and it still amazes me how nature seems to be able to create its own unique forms in each country. Tiger Leaping Gorge was absolutely humbling and stunning. It was carved by the Yangtze River. In some places the water smoothly flows between rocks, and in other places it roars and seems to be intent on destroying the rocks around it. It was really spectacular. I would love to come back and spend days here. It seemed so primitive and yet spectacular. The gorge was named after an event in its ancient times when a tiger escaping a hunter jumped across the Yangtze River. The rock he used can be seen. The leap must be at least 25 feet. Apparently the river is unnavigable and only one group has ever successfully made it through. Although many have died trying. I could spend a week there. All too soon we had to leave and we all got back in the car and were driven to Shangri-La. After arriving in Shangri-La we checked into our hotel and Jean took us out for dinner. While we were eating dinner, the travel consultant from China Odyssey Tours called again to make sure everything was going well. I didn’t expect that. I gotta say I’m pretty impressed with them. Not only was the planning and designing of our trip painless, but she took the time to call me twice to make sure everything was all right.  

Day 7:
Today was spectacular. We got to experience a bit of China’s minority culture first hand. After breakfast we went to visit two lakes. One was called Bitahai and the other Shudu. Bitahai Lake was spectacular. We were driven to the area, and had to hike in the rest of the way. They don’t allow vehicles to go to the lake because it would spoil the natural surroundings. A good idea I think. The lake lies between a number of high hills. The hills come down right into the water. The lake is crystal clear and deep blue. The water was like a mirror it was so calm. In the middle of the lake is an island. We took a little boat out to the island and hiked around. Jean told us that the shores are covered with azalea plants and when their blooms fall, they cover the water. The fish will occasionally eat the petals and because of their toxicity, they appear drunk. The azaleas weren’t in bloom, so we didn’t get to see it. After hiking around the lake for a while, we walked back to the car and headed to Shudu Lake. Shudu Lake was also very beautiful. The water is very deep and is extremely clear. Jean said that you could see the cracked-belly fish meters below in the water. I saw some fish, but don’t know if they were that variety. After visiting the lakes, we went to visit a monastery. It is called the Gedan Songzanlin Monastery. It is a Tibetan monastery. It was very beautiful. The architecture and design is very different from the other temples we have visited. As we rode in the car towards the monastery we rode amongst hills, and all of the sudden, we entered a vast plain, which was flat as a board. In the distance on a hill we could see the monastery perched on a hill overlooking the valley. As we drove through the plain, we watched the locals working in their fields. It was interesting to watch them because their farming techniques are so primitive, yet beautiful. It looks like their farming methods haven’t changed in centuries. When we arrived at the base of the hill we got out of the car and had to hike up the stairs to the monastery. It is a huge sprawling complex that takes up the whole hillside. The roof is gilded metal and we could see well before we got to it. It was shining in the sun. The monastery is like a big maze. We didn’t see any monks chanting or anything, but we did see them doing household chores. They were sweeping, or working with the plants. The younger monks were running around. I guess kids will be kids, even aspiring monks. The monastery was gorgeous. It is painted with intricate patterns and designs in bright colors. They had a shop there and we each bought Buddha beads. They are a bunch of round beads on a string that is worn as a bracelet. The monks use them like rosary beads. They were pretty and my wife and the girls liked them, so we each got one. It’ll be a nice reminder of our trip. Jean told us that in the evening we would visit a Tibetan family. I was confused why there are Tibetans living in Yunnan. I assumed to be Tibetan you needed to live in Tibet. She said that Tibetan is a minority group and many have migrated from Tibet to Yunnan and neighboring provinces. After we left the monastery we went to visit the family. That was an experience! They were wonderful people. We were welcomed in by the whole family, and treated like old friends. My daughters have blond hair and they all wanted to touch their hair. My girls took it in stride and said if they wanted to touch their hair, they had to let them touch their hair, so they exchanged hair touching. It was funny. I figured this’d be very touristy like hanging out with a tour guide, but it seemed to me that they were just a local family hanging out after a day of work. They were so gracious and the food was wonderful! They were wearing traditional Tibetan clothing which was really beautiful. The ladies all went to the kitchen to cook food. My wife accompanied them to watch. They made so much food! After we gorged ourselves, we sat around while they sang and danced for us. It was really fun. They seemed to have no shyness whatsoever and just burst into songs and dancing. We were all laughing so hard. It was a really nice experience. It was like visiting relatives. When it got late, we sadly had to head back to our hotel. Time flew by too quickly. When we got back to the hotel, we realized how tired we were and all just crashed.

Day 8:
I’m writing this on the plane back home. Sadly our adventures in China are over. This morning we slept in late and relaxed until Jean showed up to take us to the airport. My wife is leaning on me sleeping and my girls are chatting to themselves. We had such an amazing time! I have a feeling we will come back to China. The experience really opened up my girl’s eyes to other cultures, my wife got a chance to do a lot of shopping for things we could never find back home. She bought so much that she had to leave some clothing she brought with her behind. She gave them to Jean who seemed thrilled to have actual foreign clothing. I got some wonderful photos, and got to spend time with my family bonding. This was a priceless experience that we will never forget. Soon we will be back in our home and go back to work and school, but we will never forget the time we had in China.