Day 01 USA - Beijing
"Embark on our China vacation by boarding an international flight bound for Beijing. Spend the night aboard as we traverse the International Date line."

- Discovered that the DFW to LAX flight was pushed from 8:20AM to 9:40AM and are glad that we bought a ticket with more than two hours layover.

Day 02 Arrive Beijing
"Evening arrival at china's capital city, Beijing. After clearing customer and baggage retrieval, we are met by our tour guide and transferred to our five star accommodations."

Day 03 Beijing
"Enjoy a full day tour of China's capital. Today we visit Tiananmen Square (the world's largest public square), the emperors. Tonight we are entertained by and Acrobatics Show."

- Tiananmen Square
- Forbidden City
- Emperors Garden
- Pottery Factory / Craftsman
- Chinese Acrobatics

Day 04 Beijing
"Perhaps no other symbol more famously represents China then the Great Wall. Winding majestically over 4,000 miles, it is at once an engineering marvel and cultural treasure. We spend the morning hours walking on the Great Wall and appreciate its vastness. Descend in the afternoon to visit the Ming Tomb Museum. Taste authentic Chinese cuisine tonight as we are treated to a special Peking Duck Banquet." - Ming Tomb
- Great Wall
- Jade "Factory" (we become aware of tour control)
- Table Tennis in the hotel
- Peking dick dinner

Day 05 Beijing
"Enjoy the full day at leisure. Use the opportunity for rest or to get some shopping done."

- Skateboarding in public square
- Wedding photos
- Boy with bottomless pants
- Street scam by "artists"
- Almost hit by bus

Day 06 Beijing - Xian
"Depart for Xian by air. On the way to the airport we stop to visit Beijing's solemn Temple of Heaven. Xian boasts a full resume of achievements: A cradle of accent Chinese civilization dating back to 4,000 BC, capital of empires until the 9th century, and starting point of the Silk Road. Depending on the arrival time, we may tour the City Wall."

Day 07 Xian
"Qin Shi Huang was the first emperor of a unified China. He was entombed with thousands of life size terra cotta soldiers and horses. After spending generous time at the dig, we tour the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. In the evening we dine on a delicious Imperial Dumpling Banquet and are entertained by a Stage show of the Tang Dynasty."

- Art gallery - reproduction pictures of what was uncovered in tomb - Tan Dynasty
- Womens clothing styles
- Caligraphy art
- Another "factory" lacquer shoppe
- Terra Cotta Museum
- Dumpling Banquet
- Stage Opera

Day 08 Xian - Chongqing - Yangtze River Cruise
"Depart for Chongqing by air. Chongqing is a bustling city in the Sichuan province, home of spicy Sichuan cuisine. We take a brief sightseeing tour to Chongquing Zoo. Later in the eveing we board our Victoria Cruise Ship. Spend the night aboard."

- Xian City wall for view (south gate)
- Pandas in Chongqing
- Mountain view of Chongqing
- Bought horses painting in museum gallery

Day 09 Chongqing
- Walked in Chongqing city
- General Stilwells home
- Board boat

Day 10 Yangtze River Cruise - Fengdu
"Our exciting river cruise starts with the morning departure. Our first stop is at Fengdu, known as the Ghost City or at Wanxian. Return to the ship and sail toward the beautiful and timeless Three Gorges. Sampan in Yangtze River"

Day 11 Yangtze River Cruise - Wushan
"We enter the Qutang Gorge. Our cruise ship cautiously pilots its way through the narrow course. At Wushan we disembark the ship and board small motorized sampans to explore either the Daning River or Shengnong Stream. Reboard the ship and sail through the Wu Gorge where towering mountains of lush green gaze down at us. We arrive at Zigui and attend a local evening show."

- We skipped Wushan due to flooding and visited Zigui rainforests instead.
Day 12 Yangtze River Cruise - Three Gorges Dam
"Our ship sails through the Xiling Gorge, the longest and historically the most dangerous of the Three Gorges. Proceed to the massive Dam. Disembark to visit China's largest dam project at Sandouping Village."

- Thought I lost my camera's battery - (no shots of damn project)
- Long bus trip to Wuhan
- Museum with Bells / burial artifacts
- Back on boat in evening

Day 13 Yangtze River Cruise - Mt. Lushan
"Disembark at Jiujiang for our excursion to Mt. Lushan. Tall peaks, waterfalls, deep gullies and a misty shroud inspire a sense of peace within hearts of onlookers. Reboard the ship and depart for Mt. Huangshan."

- Very cloudy at Mt. Lushan
- Walked in city streets near Jiujian dock
- Wedding ceremony on boat (story tellers, magic show, kareoki, etc)

Day 14 Yangtze River Cruise - Mt. Huangshan
"Our ship arrives at Guichi and docks for the night. We take 2 days/ 1 night excursion to Mt. Huangshan to take in the "four beauties": grotesque rocks, strangely shaped pines, seas of clouds, and hot springs. Overnight in Huangshan's mountaintop hotel."

- no clouds - rare scene!

Day 15 Yangtze River Cruise
"Descend Mt. Huangshan in the morning to rejoin our ship at Guichi. Our ship set sail later in the day for Nanjing, the old wartime capital of China."

- Scrabble game (girl kicked boy's butt)

Day 16 Yantze River Cruise - Nanjing - Shanghai
"Early morning arrival at Nanjing marks the end of our Yantze Adventure. After visiting Dr. Sun Yat Sen's Mansoleum we journey by motorcoach to Shanghai. Shanghai is by far China's largest and most cosmopolitan city. Our city tour includes visits to Yu Garden, Nanjing Road, and the Bund."

- The Bund in Shanghai

Day 17 Shanghai
"Full day is free for optional activities on our own. Do last minute souvenir shopping or take an optional tour to the Garden City of Suzhou."

- Visited Yu Garden (still on tour)
- Little boy crying - mother thrown in back of police truck
- Walked through chinatown china
- Out at night - Peace Hotel

Day 18 Shanghai - USA
"The morning is free at leisure until we board our international homebound flight and bid a fond farewell to China."

- Left early in the morning for our trip home