Executive Summary - Yunnan Province (Kunming, Dali, Lijiang, Tiger Leaping Gorge) Saw: Kunming city centre, Dali Old Town, Torch festival, Lijiang canals & wells, Tiger Leaping Gorge, waterfalls and bamboo forests along the trek, fields of corn & sunflowers, 4.5 million stray dogs & cats, a chicken's head being cut off (dinner!), marijuana growing freely around the gorge Did: Found Lonely Planet Tibet!, took a wild rickshaw ride fr...

Executive Summary - Guangxi Province (Guilin, Xingping, Ping'An) Saw: The inside of far too many bus terminals (and buses), many picturesque limestone mountains, the site of the 20 yuan note (and, it would appear, a packet of cigarettes), rural villages going about a (very) hard life in the rice fields, the 'frist village of the long hairs' Did: Knocked back 400 offers for 'bamboo? bamboo?' raft rides, walked from Xingping to Yangdi over the ...

Chinglish Oh it's a cheap laugh but often a good one. First off, a disclaimer - I am imminently grateful for any attempt the Chinese people make to translate their pictorial language into something resembling a familiar alphabet with which I may decipher what it is they are selling/instructing/guiding/etc. Especially if it keeps me out of trouble with any type of Chinese authority, or prevents me from ordering dog/tripe/pig snout/etc. And I am particularly ...

Executive Summary - Xi'an Saw: Big Goose Pagoda, Bell Tower, Drum Tower, Terracotta Warriors, Muslim quarter Did: Played foosball & air hockey at the terracotta warrior-themed hostel bar, tried all manner of street food, purchased my 3rd and 4th lens-cleaning pens, crossed traffic using locals as human shields in a manner reminiscent of the "Frogger" arcade game, negotiated public transport, danced at the 1+1 nightclub, avoided Kevin...

Executive Summary - Pingyao Saw: Confucian and Taoist temples, ancient residences, ancient walls and guard towers with engraved quotes from 'The Art of War', an man that surely was about 900 years old riding a bicycle picking up rubbish, a wedding parade of cars with firecrackers going off in front, some fantastic Chinglish examples since Beijing was disappointingly void of them after being Olympified. Did: Managed to get myself from Beijing to Ping...