US Tariffs, Sigh!

[Ewan yu]

ewan yu, what's the 3 best cities to visit in China for a tourist? i'm planning on going there this summer or fall. i'm thinking shanghai, chongqing and maybe a third?

Where did Xu Fu end up?

The most widely accepted theory:

He went to Japan.

You can find temples and tombs dedicated to Xu Fu in many parts of Japan.

 

[Ewan yu]

Second choice: Guilin.
This city in northeastern Guangxi is the best example of karst landscape in the world.
But a word of warning:
You have to go on a nice day.
Otherwise, you won’t see the scenery like in the photos.
That’s really important.

 

[Ewan yu]

Third choice: Suzhou.
Suzhou is right next to Shanghai. It takes just over 20 minutes by high-speed train.
It’s a city of classical gardens and water towns. You should definitely visit the Suzhou Gardens.

 

[Ewan yu]

Fourth choice: Nanjing.
Ten dynasties made this city their capital, including the Eastern Wu, Eastern Jin, Song, Qi, Liang, Chen, and the early Ming Dynasty. Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty also set his capital here.
You can see many old houses and buildings from the Republican era on its streets.
It’s a city that feels ancient, profound, elegant, and peaceful.

 

[Ewan yu]

Fourth choice: Zhangjiajie.
It’s a world-class natural attraction in the northwest of Hunan Province.
It’s a kingdom of quartz sandstone peaks formed over 300 million years of geological evolution.
It’s also the real-life inspiration for the Hallelujah Mountains in the movie Avatar.

 

[Ewan yu]

IMPORTANT TRAVEL TIPS!! Please read carefully!!
Please download apps like Trip.com or Klookto book your tickets. You can buy all attraction tickets directly on these apps.Don’t trust local salespeople, especially tour guides who approach you right after you get off the train or out of the airport. You can easily book everything by yourself.

If you have any problems, just ask people on the street. Most people will help you. It’s better to ask young people.

For taxis, download DiDi. It has an English version, and the price is clear and fair.

You can also ask your hotel front desk for recommendations on where to visit. Some hotels even offer translation help.

 

[Ewan yu]

What ever you do... Don't bring anything Winnie the Pooh with you

View attachment 181190

why?..

 

[Ewan yu]

Nanjing is unique and close to Shanghai.

Hong Kong is also unique and good...I haven't been since China became more strict, but it was like a completely different place 10 years ago. Shanghai has a nice Disney land for kids too, it's very pact... But was fun, lots of marvel stuff and the trim ride is good.


It all depends what you're after! I'm doing Nanjing and Shanghai in March again - but we stick to Nanjing only because my wife's parents are there.

Chengdu was fun too.

Most places in China are good to goto, if you're not in a major city like Shanghai... Expect everyone to stare at you though. Nanjings a huge, rich city - and I think I saw 1 other white guy when I went there for a month.... And every single time I went out, people would just stare without even trying to hide it - it was awkward, but also kind of fun since the kids run up to you and try to practice English.... Which is pretty much the only English conversation you get down there!

Haha, don’t worry. Most people are really friendly.
There just aren’t many Americans in Nanjing, so people get excited and curious when they see new faces.
Ikarasu is totally right. Hong Kong is amazing.
Nearby countries like Japan and South Korea are great too. You could even stop by Singapore for a few days on your way back.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

well, looks lik

IMPORTANT TRAVEL TIPS!! Please read carefully!!
Please download apps like Trip.com or Klookto book your tickets. You can buy all attraction tickets directly on these apps.Don’t trust local salespeople, especially tour guides who approach you right after you get off the train or out of the airport. You can easily book everything by yourself.

If you have any problems, just ask people on the street. Most people will help you. It’s better to ask young people.

For taxis, download DiDi. It has an English version, and the price is clear and fair.

You can also ask your hotel front desk for recommendations on where to visit. Some hotels even offer translation help.

well, looks like we might be going in a few weeks. had a trip planned to middle east but those plans just blew up......

going to fly into Shanghai cause they have a non-stop from Dallas, have to go home from Korea because of the 240 hour china visa rules. i've been to japan and korea before so maybe we'll stop in hong kong on the way out.

im going to sign up for alipay and get didi. i read that foreign cell phones can get around the internet block in china?

 

[ikarasu]

why?..

Because western media tells everyone Xi banned everything Winnie the pooh due to people posting side by side photos and saying he looks just like pooh. And while it may be somewhat true... if I recall the word was banned on wechat for awhile.. It's funny because you see thousands of photos of Pooh at Shanghai's Disneyland.

 

[Stacey K]

had a trip planned to middle east but those plans just blew up......

Literally,..

 

[Stacey K]

Haha, don’t worry. Most people are really friendly.
There just aren’t many Americans in Nanjing, so people get excited and curious when they see new faces.
Ikarasu is totally right. Hong Kong is amazing.
Nearby countries like Japan and South Korea are great too. You could even stop by Singapore for a few days on your way back.

Very informative posts, I love learning about different countries, very beautiful destinations by the photos!

 

[Boudica]

We've got a foodie thread, a music thread (Initial theme was earworms, then took on several directions, but the point is music).
We should have a travel thread... For those of us who can't get away or can't afford it. We can live vicariously through others sharing beautiful and interesting places to visit. Learn about other cultures, within the States, and the rest of this beautiful planet.
Oh, it would also be cool to see pics of interesting/funny signs while folks are on their adventures.

 

[TradeBalanceBoss]

obama was the master of manipulating statistics.
he took cars that made a wrong turn, ending up on the wrong road, heading towards the us boarder check-in, and making a Uturn as deportations.

in much the same way when they wanted under biden to say that americans committed more crimes per capita than illegals, they stopped counting whether a prisoner was native born, illegal or migrated legally, they eliminated2 database fields so they could honestly answer "numbers are not available"

there is a small book, "how to lie with statistics" that shows all the tricks regular people do not recognize

obama could have written it & biden admin continued all his practices

Wow, so the data is all manipulated. I conservatively estimated the cost of just the illegals that came to the USA during the 4 years of Biden to cost the USA citizens about 1 trillion per year adding up all of the things that 12-14 million illegals would do to the economy as a whole. Medical, insurance, housing, food, etc.

 

[TradeBalanceBoss]

I love history. Thank you so much for this story. I want to learn more about the Chinese accounts of history. What is the oldest Chinese history that you know of?

 

[TradeBalanceBoss]

why?..

My guess is because XI and Pooh look alike a little bit? I'm not sure of the exact details of how this came about.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

Third choice: Suzhou.
Suzhou is right next to Shanghai. It takes just over 20 minutes by high-speed train.
It’s a city of classical gardens and water towns. You should definitely visit the Suzhou Gardens.

View attachment 181212 View attachment 181213 View attachment 181214 View attachment 181215 View attachment 181216

thanks for the info. i might be able to do this since it's close to shanghai. looks nice.

 

[Ewan yu]

well, looks lik

well, looks like we might be going in a few weeks. had a trip planned to middle east but those plans just blew up......

going to fly into Shanghai cause they have a non-stop from Dallas, have to go home from Korea because of the 240 hour china visa rules. i've been to japan and korea before so maybe we'll stop in hong kong on the way out.

im going to sign up for alipay and get didi. i read that foreign cell phones can get around the internet block in china?

Before you come, you can check with your mobile phone provider. Tell them you’re traveling to China, and ask if your phone works there. Also ask them to help you activate an international roaming plan for China.
If they don’t support it, you can buy a temporary data card from a Chinese carrier at the airport when you arrive. But I don’t recommend this I’ve never done it myself, but I’m sure it’s pretty expensive.
The best idea is to get everything set up before you leave the US. Apps like Airalo, Holafly, Nomad should let you buy a China data plan in advance. Just tell customer service you’re traveling to China and want a data plan for here.
Yes, you can download Alipay and link your bank card or credit card. It will cover almost all your daily payments. If your card has Visa, you can also use it directly, but some small shops may only take Alipay or cash.
After you land, you can exchange some cash you don’t need much. Around $100 USD is enough for emergencies. You might not even need it at all. Most payments in China are made with Alipay or WeChat Pay. I haven’t carried cash with me for at least 15 years.

 

[Ewan yu]

well, looks lik

well, looks like we might be going in a few weeks. had a trip planned to middle east but those plans just blew up......

going to fly into Shanghai cause they have a non-stop from Dallas, have to go home from Korea because of the 240 hour china visa rules. i've been to japan and korea before so maybe we'll stop in hong kong on the way out.

im going to sign up for alipay and get didi. i read that foreign cell phones can get around the internet block in china?

My WhatsApp is +852 633 441 58. Feel free to add me. Once you arrive in China, I’ll be available anytime to help you.

 

[Ewan yu]

I love history. Thank you so much for this story. I want to learn more about the Chinese accounts of history. What is the oldest Chinese history that you know of?

<《the croods》 ?