The seas, roads, railways and rivers from Hong Kong to Xian. The first 24 hours of our trip around central and eastern China were spent on a ferry, then a bus, then a sleeper train before a final bus to the town of Yangshuo. After travelling independently for so long, we werent too thrilled about the prospect of a group tour, but language and red tape make travel outside of HK, Beijing and Shanghai almost impossible. As we were so keen to see this part of the world, it had to be done. Fortunately our companions were all likeminded backpackers, and thankfully our tour leader didnt hold a flag for us to follow. We were given stickers to wear on the first day which were quickly disposed of by all. There were plenty of reminders on the first leg of our journey that we had indeed done the right thing. It would have taken us a week to cover the same ground the tour did in a day, that's if we made it at all. Nobody speaks English, all signs are in Manadarain script only and the people seem to at best tolerate rather than welcome foreigners. The information that is translated, is done so into Chinglish, a strange language created by government translators without any English language skills, other than knowing how to open a Mandarin - English dictionary. The translations would leave us, if anything, more confused than before. Check out the photos. Anyway, our first stop on the tour, Yangshuo is a town set along a river amidst countless towering limestone pinaccles. It was a really relaxed place, and a great spot to unwind. We wandered the town, went on the river and spent a day cycling through the surrounding countryside. A good start. What wasnt so good were the Chinese people. This was a huge shock. Rude, filthy and loud, and there are 1.3 billion of them! Elsewhere on our travels, there have been a few miserable souls, but the people have generally been great. Not here. Awful! The worst is the national pastime - spitting. The stuff really flies, and they all seem to be at it. Men, women and children. You walk along the street, and there are people all around hoiking up the lining of their throats and spitting it out anywhere and everywhere! Apparently, despite foreigners being disgusted by this when China opened its doors 15 or so years ago, it took for SARS to hit for the government to try to discourage people that gob flying everywhere was not a good thing. Whilst it is now illegal to spit in public in some of the country's provinces, it seems to be ignored by all. They must have improved though. On buses, they now gob into plastic bags, wheres it previously went onto the floor. Nice! As I type, someone has just gobbed inside this internet cafe. Lovely people. From Yangshuo, we caught a bus then a sleeper train (signs on board saying no spitting. Cant imagine what a journey was like before they banned it) then another bus to Yichang in central China. From here we boarded a ferry for a three day trip upstream on the Yangtzee River. The reason for the trip was to see some of China's most impressive scenery, much of which is to disappear in 2009 when they flood the area behind the recently completed Three Gorges Dam - the worlds largest. This is something China is very proud of, despite being condemmed around the world, and the World Bank refusing to support it. The dam is impessive, no doubt about it. But, 2 million people will lose their homes (and their jobs) as whole towns are submerged. In addition to the immediate loss of stunning scenery, due to the country's poor environmental controls, it is suspected that the reservoir will become a giant cesspit. The journey was fascinating and thought provoking. Glad we came when we did though. Other than a few hours ashore each day, we appreciated being back on terra firma when the boat docked in Chongquing. From there it was a bus to Chengdu. This was the perfect example of the 'new' China. High rise office and apartment blocks everywhere, with shopping malls to give the country's noveau riche somewhere to spend their money. The Chinese have a saying that you cannot bring in the new until you get rid of the old. So, all the history and heritage of places like this has been virtually destroyed. A sign we saw translated into English proudly proclaimed that a huge area of a city that had over 1,000 years of history was being demolished to be replaced with modern high rises!! One piece of history that remains in Chengdu is ancient theatre. Whilst in town we checked out a show. Impressive stuff. Check out the photos. Whilst in Chengdu we visited the national Panda research and breeding centre. It seems funny that the Chinese, who really do eat anything (including dog - seen it on menus) go mad for this half bear half racoon. They seem to be well treated and have been successful in breeding the thing. Had a load of Red Pandas at the centre, which has more life than the idle black and white version, and got my vote. From Chengdu, we caught (another) sleeper train to Xian, home of the Terracotta Warriors. It is at a site an hour out of town that almost 10,000 lifesize clay figures of soldiers, horses and carriages were found buried 30 years ago with all their weaponry, guarding an emperors tomb. Much of the find is on display and is an impressive sight to be seen. From Xian, a sleeper train (getting quite used to them by now) delivered us to the capital of the People's Republic of China, Beijing.