New York Times reporter Edward Wong unknowingly traced WildChina’s first-ever trip in the piece he recently wrote for the Sunday Travel section. Edward travels throughout Yunnan, from the valley of the Mekong River, (called the Lancang in Yunnan), to the secluded Tibetan village of Lower Yubeng, then to several sacred sites including Mystic Lake and Mystic Waterfall.

Mt. Yubeng in Yunnan

The journey he takes is a beautiful one that visits sites sacred to Tibetans. Buddhists arriving at the Mystical Falls  circumambulate them 13 times with the belief that this act will accumulate merit.

In WildChina’s early years we ran this trip quite often, and promoted it heavily to guests interested in hiking, nature and Tibetan culture. In the past few years we’ve stopped visiting so much because the region has become quite touristy and lost some of its natural charm and secluded appeal. Read the rest of this entry »

The New York Times has some really interesting pieces on travel in China right now, including:

• The Perils of Hong Kong Jade on tricks and tips for buying jade in Hong Kong

I thought this piece was really interesting, and love the candor of the jade seller (Come on, this is a $2 cellphone charm, of course it’s not great jade!). There are great deals on all kinds of souvenirs in China, but with everything, caveat emptor.

• The Surf’s Always Up in the Chinese Hawaii about new surfing trends and the tourism boom in Hainan

This reminds me of a similar trend that’s happening with snowboarding and skiing developing in China. I haven’t personally been to Hainan, but would definitely be interested in some face time (and, no doubt, falling time!) with a beach and a surfboard. Anyone care to join?

Read the rest of this entry »