Went out for the night with my two boses...

So Hangzhou is a beautiful city that has been known as a resort village for Chinese people for over a hundred years.  It is srounded by a big river and then the West Lake!  Although it is a three hour drive away from Shanghai, the air is not even clear there! It is unbelievable. ...

There is not much new in Shanghai.  I went shopping on Nanjing Dong Lu today with my boss (Roy) and one of my coworkers (Chris).  It was a wopping 95 degrees and I was dying; but it did not seem to phase the Chinese people at all.  My only impressions from shopping was that Shanghainese...

Write in!

So I am slowly getting acquainted with this montrous city...or at least the few areas that I have explored. I still managed to get lost today while trying to find a bookstore.  I found the store just fine, but then got on the wrong bus and had to take three metros just to get home. ...

I took another tour today to Zhouzhuang (The Water Village) and Suzhou. I was only with 3 other people, so it was very intimate and a nice, small group.  We began by driving to Zhouzhuang.  I still remain terrfied by driving in China!

Zhouzhuang (our first stop) is said to be China's...

The mighty Min flows down from the Tibetan Plateau, through Dujiangyan, passing by the birthplace of Daoism  -- Qingcheng Mountain. Here, the River meets the 2000 year old irrigation project that splits the river into two parts: one headed south to Chengdu and the other, which rushes along...

I have survived my first day of sight-seeing.  In the morning I was the only one on the guided tour, so I got a one-on-one experience.  It was spectacular because the tour guide kept giving me her opinion and side stories of her experiences. 

In the morning, we started out by going to...

I am currently residing in East China Normal Univeristy dormitories.  To find out more: http://www.ecnu.edu.cn/2005english/English.htm.  I live in the international student dormitories (but I believe I am sharing the floor with the Chinese professors). 

My single is nicer than...

In Hanyuan County, just south of Yaan in the middle of the Tibetan foothills, there was once a great battle between the Taiping rebels and the Qing Imperial Troops. The rebels were routed by the Dadu river and fled into the hills. Many of them were gong fu masters from the eastern provinces. INstead...

As the dragon of the Himalayas snakes its head down through Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces all the way down to Chiang Mai, it runs into the rolling green hills of Guizhou Province. The deep valleys and fertile uplands of this region nurtures and protects the last of China's ancient peoples. There are silversmithing...

As a traveler, I love taking photographs. While scenery and landscapes are well and gorgeous, my favourite pictures are shots of local people in everyday activities. To me, these photos are intimately telling of a culture; an old woman selling live eels in a market; men playing checkers in a shaded...

This article first appeared on my travel blog at tylerbell.net.

Traveling to Tibet is about to get a little more comfortable... for the rich that is. Tangula Luxury Trains will be offering luxury train journeys from Beijing to both Tibet’s capital of...

The Shanghai tourist tunnel. An eccentric and somewhat “cheesy” tourist site in Shanghai connects Shanghai with the Pudong side of the bund by going under the HuangPu river. Do you really travel half way around the world to discover the mysteries that lay beneath the HuangPu river in a five minute...

Having been in Shanghai for over 5 months, I figured it was time to set the record straight. The question has often been asked with the beginning statement: "What is the fastest way to....". As much as I want to go out on a limb with the first blog entry, be bold and make some wild assertion,...

Matador is a great community and excellent concept, but I cannot blog in so many different places...!

You can find my published travel blog here: www.gregoryrodgers.com

Cheers,Greg Rodgers

Provocative, lavish, bawdy, and elegant, Shanghai is the stuff of legends. It has a reputation that lures travelers of every ilk, that whispers diverse, contradictory promises of the treasures concealed in its secret alleys: the richest, most delicate Dongpo rou of your life; one last opium sanctum...

Well, we've rounded the halfway mark of our Silk Road tour and are
nearing the finish line. So far it's been an exciting and eye opening
experience, one that I would recommend to anyone that likes to travel.

Our tip began April 29, when we left Shanghai for Urumqi. We spent
one night in Urumqi,...

Day 01 to Beijing (D)
Arrive in Beijing Capital International Airport. Met at airport by local tour guide and transferred to your hotel.
Afternoon tour to Temple of Heaven, an exquisite example of Ming architecture served as an exclusive altar for Chinese emperors during the Ming and Qing dynasties
Dinner...

Day 01 to Beijing (D)
Arrive in Beijing Capital International Airport. Met at airport by local tour guide and transferred to your hotel.
Dinner in local restaurant.
After dinner, transfer back to your hotel.
Overnight in Beijing.

Day 02 Beijing (B L D)
Breakfast in hotel.
Morning tour to...