The Wu Gorge and the Goddess Stream

This morning we woke up at 6:00am and found that we were cruising through the Wu Gorge. Around 7:00am we docked at Wushan where we will have an excursion this morning. We went to the dining room around 7:30am for some breakfast and coffee and then returned to our cabin around 8:00am. I worked on some journaling until 9:30am when we left the ship for our sampan ride along the Goddess Stream. We had to walk for a while to get to the sampans. Once on board (there were 17 of us on our sampan) we started our tour of the gorge with a local guide. We spent an hour and a half floating along. The area was beautiful and full of history. We saw one of the hanging coffins that is high up on the cliffs. I really enjoyed the ride – it was peaceful and relaxing. After our ride we walked back to the ship and returned to the cabin. I edited more photos and then got a few uploaded to Facebook.

At noon we headed to the dining room and had some lunch. The choices today were better than yesterday. Thomas had soup & pasta and I had fish & chips. We didn’t linger in the dining room, we both wanted to get away from everyone and relax a bit. Thomas decided to hang out in the room and read and I decided to go up to Deck 6 and sit in the computer room. I edited all my pictures and then posted some of them onto Facebook. Once all of that was done I returned to the cabin where I worked on some journaling and did some blog post.

Around 5:30pm Thomas and I decided to head up to the Observation Lounge on Deck 5 for a drink. Then at 6:30pm there was a talk about the disembarkation process for day after tomorrow. Then after the talk we sat with our group and talked a little more about our flight and visit to Tibet. Our group ended up staying a little longer than the other groups and by the time we left the lounge and got to the dining room the tables were mostly full. But we found a table with only one couple so six of sat with them.

The meal was pretty good. It was more of a Chinese menu. I had the spring rolls and seabass. Thomas decided he didn’t want the Chinese meal so he opted for chicken. We had a pleasant visit with everyone at our table and one of the guys was celebrating his birthday – so they came out and sang happy birthday to him and we all got a piece of birthday cake.

After dinner we went straight back to the room. Thomas brushed his teeth and went straight to bed. I decided I wanted a shower and then I worked on finishing my blog post for the day. Tomorrow we have one excursion in the morning but then we need to spend the rest of the day packing because our bags have to be in the hallway tomorrow night. Now it is time to get some sleep – I need my rest since we still have two more weeks on this trip.

Headed to the Three Gorges

We were up early again this morning. Not sure why we keep waking up early but I guess our bodies are good with the amount of sleep we are getting. I ended up editing pictures and organizing the room a bit. Then we showered and dressed and were in the dining room for breakfast by 7:30am. We spent about an hour in the dining room visiting and relaxing then returned to our cabin. When we arrive they were cleaning our room so I grabbed my laptop and journal and we went to the lobby to wait for them to finish. While in the lobby I was able to connect to the internet and get some pictures and a blog post uploaded. Thomas ended up returning to the cabin but I decided to stay in the lobby since I had a good connection. After a little time in the lobby the ship stopped. We were getting ready to enter a lock so I went to the cabin and got my camera and Thomas and I went up to Deck 5 and watched as we entered the lock. We ended up staying and watching it fill up and then us exit at the end.

Afterwards, we returned to our cabin and Thomas sat and decided to read for a while. I got my things and went back in to the lobby. The internet works better there.

By going through the locks we were entering the first of three gorges. We are now in the Xiling Gorge. The landscape has changed dramatically and is beautiful with all its hills and greenery. Unfortunately, we are still having overcast skies, with fog and a light drizzle. So our visibility is limited but it is still a bit magical.

At noon we went to the dining room for a little bit of lunch before we headed out for our afternoon excursion. Lunch was just so-so and neither Thomas nor I ate very much. We left the ship around 2:00pm and made our way to the bus for the excursion to the Three Gorges Dam. We had a local guide who joined us on the bus and she told us about the dam as we drove to the entrance and security checkpoint. We stopped at a couple of areas and we learned about how the dam operates and the power it supplies. It is an amazing structure and does an amazing job of helping to control the Yangtze River. We spent around two and a half hours at the dam before returning back to the ship. It was close to 5:00pm when we returned and shortly thereafter the ship left the dock so we could make our way to the dam to begin going through the five stage locks. The process takes about four hours to go from one level to the next. We enter the locks on the Xiling Gorge side and then exit into the Wu Gorge. I spent the time before dinner editing photos and doing a little journaling. There was a cocktail party at 6:00pm but we didn’t feel like going. So we just relaxed in our cabin until dinner.

 Dinner started at 7:00pm and it was not the best dinner we have had. Thomas ended up ordering the beef tenderloin and then I had the chicken. Neither of us ordered from the special menu for the night. We did enjoy the company and had a good time visiting with the people at our table. After dinner we went up to the lounge on Deck 6 and listened to some music and visited some more. We lasted until 11:00pm and then we headed back to the cabin to get some rest. I didn’t have nay energy to work on anything at that time of night so I just went to bed. Tomorrow we have a morning excursion and then we are cruising for the rest of the day.

Visiting Jingzhou

Had a really good sleep last night and woke up around 4:30am. Did some reading and played a little on my iPad. At 6:30am I took a shower and got dressed and ready for the day. At 7:00am the ship docked in Jingzhou and a little after that Thomas and I went and had a quick breakfast and some coffee. Once we were done eating we went back to the cabin to brush our teeth and get our things ready for our day in Jingzhou. We had about an hour before we needed to meet our group so I worked on some journaling.

At 8:45am we left the ship and made our way to the bus for our first excursion of the day. We were on our way to visit a school that Viking sponsors – Genhe Primary School. When we arrived we went to an outdoor stage and the students put on a show for us. After the show we went to visit one of the classrooms. As we walked in the students started grabbing our hands and taking us to their desk. They had us sit in their seats and they were showing us different things. Our group had a class of second graders. They only speak Chinese, they haven’t learned English yet. They will start learning English in third grade. The little guy that I was with was energetic, he was always moving. They recited a poem from the Tang Dynasty and then sang us a song. Then we sang three songs for them – Old MacDonald; Row, Row, Row Your Boat and Hokey Pokey. When we got to the Hokey Pokey I used my hands to guide his arms and legs as we went through the song. I was trying to harness his energy. He was showing me how he writes some of the Chinese characters and then I wrote my name for him and he copied it. This turned out to be more fun than I could have imagined. The kids were so happy and energetic and it was contagious. Finally, around 11:00am we left the school and returned to the ship.

Once back on the ship we had a little time to relax before lunch. So we did a few things in our cabin and then headed to the dining room to get something to eat. It was a pretty standard lunch but it was good. Then after eating we returned to our cabin and I worked on editing pictures and journaling until it was time for our afternoon excursion.

Then at 1:30pm we made our way back to the bus and we headed for the Jingzhou Museum. When we arrived at the museum and the first thing we did was attend a bronze bell musical performance. They performed four songs for us. They used the bronze bells, tiles, the zither, pan flutes and drums. It was actually a wonderful concert. After the concert we had about an hour to wander around the museum and see the exhibits. They had exhibits on bamboo slips, pottery, jade and bronze. We all met back at the bus at 4:00pm and we traveled to a park so that we could see the ancient wall that surrounds the city. We also were able to climb to the top and walk along the top of the wall and see some views of the city. So Thomas and I took a little walk along the top of the wall and I was able to take a few pictures. The views weren’t all that great because the entire day has been overcast, foggy and drizzly.

It was around 5:30pm when we returned to the ship. We went to our cabin and got cleaned up for dinner. We had a little time before dinner so I edited some photos. At 7:00pm we headed for dinner and we had a Western menu to choose from. Thomas had minestrone soup and beef tenderloin and I had scallops and cashew shrimp. It was all very good. We ended up sitting with George and Mario and then two other couples – one from New Jersey and one from Chicago. We had a great time laughing and talking – it was one of the more enjoyable evenings. One of the women was also a physical therapist (and I had met another woman who is a physical therapist). At 9:00pm Thomas and I left the dining room and returned to our cabin. It had been a long day and we both wanted to get some sleep.

Cruising the Yangtze

For some reason I was up at 3:00am – oh, I know the reason, we have a rule at our house that also seems to apply when traveling – ‘When Thomas is awake, everyone is awake.’ So since I was awake and couldn’t for the life of me get back to sleep I worked on editing photos. I am having a hard time connecting to the internet so I am unable to post pictures on Facebook or post any blogs. So I decided to type out my blog post on a Word document and them when I have internet connection I can just copy and paste them. I also did a little reading and enjoyed the quiet that seemed to engulf the ship. Once it got light outside we found our view obstructed by fog. There was also a mist hanging in the air and our balcony was damp. I took a few pictures and enjoyed the hazy morning. I got all the posts typed up and then tried the internet again. This time I got a connection but it was slow and spotty. So I got one post uploaded with pictures and then I decided to take a shower and get dressed. Once dressed I straightened up the cabin while Thomas showered. When he was done we headed out to breakfast. We had a nice relaxing meal with some friends we made on this trip – George and Mario (from Philadelphia). After about an hour we left the restaurant and returned to our room. I was able to get on the internet and upload yesterday’s blog post and also post some pictures on Facebook. After getting this done I did some reading until 9:45am when we had to participate in a muster drill. The drill lasted about 20 minutes and then we returned to our room. I decided to continue reading my book until it was time to go to lunch. So far the fog has persisted all morning and we aren’t getting any views – at times we can’t even see the shore line.

At around 12:30pm we headed to the dining room for some lunch. There was pasta and salad at the buffet and there was a small menu of items you could order. Thomas had pasta from the buffet and I had a salad. After my salad I ordered a chicken quesadilla. We didn’t eat much, we were still full from the wonderful breakfast buffet this morning. After eating we returned to the room to relax some more. There are some lectures and activities this afternoon that we may attend.

I decided to attend a lecture this afternoon at 2:15pm on the Yangtze River. It was a very informative and interesting talk. It was given by Angie who is the program director on the ship. The Yangtze is an amazing river and is important to everyday life in China. When the talk finished I returned to the cabin and worked on a few things before heading out again at 4:00pm for an afternoon tea. Just a little before 4:00pm we headed to Deck 6 and went to the afternoon tea. We had tea with finger sandwiches and some pastries. We visited with another couple and relaxed for about 45 minutes. Afterwards we returned to the room and ended up reading for about an hour and a half. Then we got ready for dinner.

At 7:00pm we made our way to the dining room and had a wonderful Chinese meal. There was a choice of four starters and seven main dishes. Everything was brought out and put on lazy susans in the middle of the table and you could take what you wanted. We tried everything and most of it was delicious – there were a couple of dishes that I didn’t really care and probably wouldn’t want to have again. Dinner lasted about and hour and a half. We then returned to the room. I took a shower and then worked on editing pictures and this blog post.

Today was a nice relaxing day but I was getting a little bored. So I am glad that tomorrow we have some shore excursions but nothing starts until 9:00am so no need to get up early. Looking forward to seeing more of China. The weather today has been overcast with a light mist and a little chilly. Tomorrow the forecast calls for a light drizzle. I am hoping that we see the sun soon.

Flight to Wuhan & Boarding the Viking Emerald

This morning we woke at 6:00am to get showered and dressed and to have our checked baggage outside our hotel room for the porters. We are flying to Wuhan where we will board the Viking Emerald. Once we had our bags outside the room we got a few other things organized and then we went down to the restaurant for breakfast. I really loved the breakfast buffet – lots of choices and all delicious. After eating breakfast we returned to our room to get any last minute things done. Once our carry on bags were packed, Thomas read and I worked on editing photos and writing blogs.

At 8:00am we went down to the lobby to meet our group. At 8:30am we left the hotel and headed to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (SHA). Viking handled all of our flight details and Arnold handed out our boarding passes. Once we had our boarding passes we had to go through security and then make our way to Gate 63. Going through security was quick and easy. First, they checked your boarding pass and passport, then, you went through the metal detector. You didn’t have to take off shoes or belts but you did have to empty pockets and put any electronic devices in a basket. It was so easy! Then we made our way to the gate. We only had a 20 minute wait before we started boarding flight MU2506 on China Eastern Airlines [We were in seats 51AB]. The flight was to be one hour and fifteen minutes. It was a short flight but they still served us a light meal consisting of fried rice, some vegetables and a cookie. I read during most of the flight and Thomas ended up visiting with the woman sitting next to him. We landed in Wuhan at their new airport [Wuhan Tianhe International Airport (WUH)] – it was enormous, clean and beautiful. We made our way to baggage claim but we didn’t have to handle our bags, Viking did that for us. Once all the bags had been collected we made our way to the bus. We couldn’t board the ship until 4:00pm so we had a little outing before heading to the ship.

When we left the airport it was drizzling a bit but it wasn’t bad. We were taken to Qingchuan Pavilion Scenic Area. We learned a little history about Wuhan and the park and then we had free time to explore the area. We spent about an hour at the park and then headed back to the bus so we could make our way to the port.

The line to board the Viking Emerald was short and it didn’t take long to get through security. On our way to board the ship we were greeted by drummers and a dancing dragon - a wonderful way to start the cruise. After security we checked in at the front desk (where they took our passports) and got our room keys. We were escorted to our cabin [212] and give a quick orientation. We then unpacked and organized the room and relaxed for a bit before heading out to explore the ship. At 6:15pm we left the cabin and made our way to Deck 6. We walked around checking out the areas and we went out on deck to marvel at the light display on the buildings of Wuhan. While we were doing this the ship left port and we began our cruise on the Yangtze River (the longest river in China and the third longest river in the world). We slowly made our way down to each deck, checking our the area on each one before continuing down to the next. When we reached Deck 2 we found a place to sit and relax while we waited for the dining room to open for dinner. When they open the doors we waited for the small line to clear and then we entered and found a table. It is open seating at round tables that seat eight people. We found an empty table and eventually it filled with six other people. We had a Western menu to choose from and Thomas had a beef tenderloin with vegetables and I had roasted pork. The meal was delicious and the company was enjoyable – we all raved about how Viking has everything organized and ready and all you have to do is sit back and enjoy. Around 9:00pm Thomas and I left the dining room and returned to our cabin – it had been a long day and we needed some rest. Tomorrow it is a full day of cruising as we make our way to Jingzhou.

A Day in Shanghai

After yesterday’s grueling airport and airplane adventure we arrived in Shanghai and were exhausted. Finally, around 9:30pm (Shanghai time) we went to sleep. I don’t know if I am excited, nervous, energized or whatever but I was awake at 3:30am. I couldn’t seem to get back to sleep so I started a new book (I finished my other book on the flight to Shanghai) and have already read about 35%. So at 5:15am I got up and got some things organized for the day and straightened up my suitcase and backpack. I am trying to keep things organized because we are going to be moving around a lot and we have six internal flights in China so I need to make sure everything fits and that my luggage doesn’t weight too much.

At around 7:00am we went down to breakfast. They had the most amazing breakfast buffet with traditional Chinese foods and Western foods. The choices were overwhelming. So we had a nice relaxing breakfast and prepared for the busy day ahead. We tried some fruit we had never heard of – dragon fruit and longan – they were both delicious. After eating we returned to our room to brush our teeth and wash our hands. We then gathered our things and went down to the lobby to meet with Arnold (our tour guide for the trip). Before we boarded the bus Arnold handed out the QuietVox. These are receivers with earbuds so that you can hear what he says without having to be right next to him. Then it was time to head out for a day in Shanghai.

The bus took us to Old Shanghai – what our tour guide called their “Chinatown”. We got off the bus and walked a few blocks while Arnold told us some of the history and explained the culture. He pointed out things with daily life (like hanging clothes out to dry on pipes hanging in courtyards) and architecture and adornments. It was interesting and overwhelming (so much history for thousands of years). He also stopped at a food shop and pointed out some “street food” that they pick up as they go about their day. Some of it looked delicious and some of the things I was skeptical of whether I would actually eat it. We spent about 45 minutes walking around while at the same time heading in the direction of our next destination. Eventually, we arrived at Yuyuan Garden. To get there you cross a bridge that has nine angles (they believe that ghost can only travel in a straight line and so this prevents them from crossing the bridge and the number nine is good luck). So after crossing the bridge we entered Yuyuan Garden (or Yu Garden as the locals call it). The garden was actually the home of Pan Yunduan who created the garden over his lifetime. We saw some amazing ponds filled with extremely large carp, beautiful architecture and some interesting rocks placed around the five acres. The time we spent here was relaxing and so enjoyable. After the garden we had about 40 minutes of free time to walk around and explore the area. At 11:10am we met up with the group and went back to the bus which took us to a silk embroidery gallery. At the gallery they showed us a demonstration of how the separate the silk threads and how they use different thicknesses to do the embroidery. Then we got to look around the gallery and enjoy the amazing work on display.

After the gallery we headed to a local restaurant for lunch. They served the dishes on a large lazy susan in the middle of the table and you just took what you wanted. We tried everything and we loved most of it. There were two dishes we tried but we didn’t like them at all. It was a great lunch and we enjoyed the family style sharing. Then after lunch we headed out to the Shanghai Museum. The museum had four floors of collections. We started on the fourth floor and worked our way down. We visited the collections of jade, currency, minority clothing exhibit, sculpture and furniture. They had some items in the collections that dated as far back as 4000BC. We were given an hour and 40 minutes but after an hour Thomas and I had enough. So we left the museum and went hang out on a bench outside and just people watched until it was time to return to the bus.

From the museum we headed back to the hotel. But before heading into the hotel we walked across the street to the river for a talk about The Bund which was across the river from us. Then we had some time to walk around and take some pictures. Thirty minutes later we were done and we could do whatever we wanted until 5:00pm which was dinner time. We decided to return to our room and freshen up and relax before dinner.

At 5:00pm we made our way to the eigth floor for dinner. It was a set menu of garden salad, roasted chicken with steamed vegetables and cheesecake. It was a good meal, delicious. Then at 6:30pm we met in the lobby to out to see the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe. The show lasted about an hour and fifteen minutes. Some parts of the show were excellent and other parts kind of hokey. But overall it was a fun outing. It was about 9:30 when we arrived at the hotel. We finished packing and got our checked baggage ready to be put out in the morning for the porters. Time for bed so we can be ready for our flight to Wuhan in the morning.

We are Off to China!

We leave today for our Roof of the World tour with Viking River Cruises! Our alarms went off at 3:30am, we got up and dressed, did a few little things to finish up and then we loaded the car & headed for the Albuquerque Sunport. Yesterday I tried to do online check-in but I got a message we had to check-in at the airport with a ticket agent. We left the house around 4:00am and by the time we parked at Airport Parking and then took the shuttle to the airport it was 5:00am. We got checked in and found out why we couldn’t do online check-in – it was because we had to have a visa to visit China and they have to check your passport. Then we headed for security. Everything there went quickly and in no time we were at Gate B1 waiting to board our first flight to Dallas/Fort Worth airport. We only had to wait about 25 minutes before boarding and then we were off. [We were in seats 23BC]

During the flight I read (started a new book called Haunted on Bourbon Street by Deanna Chase) and visited with the woman next to me. Her name was Sandra (from Belen) and she was heading to Cancun to meet up with her sister and niece. Other than that the flight was uneventful and went by quickly.

We landed at DFW at Terminal A and had to make our way to Terminal D for our connecting flight. It was a quick and easy trip on the tram and in no time we were at Gate D30 for our flight to Shanghai. As we arrived at the gate they said that boarding was delayed for about 20 minutes. Finally, we boarded our 787 for China. The plane is configured with two aisles with 3 seats on one side (A, B, C); 3 seats in the middle (D, E, F); 3 seats on the other side (G, H, I). We arrived at row 33 and there was a man in seat A, I was in seat B and Thomas was in seat C. Then suddenly the flight attendant asked the man in seat A if he wanted to move to a row with only one other person. So he moved and now Thomas and I had all three seats. We are very comfortable now!

I did a little journaling and then I watched a movie (Zoo – it takes place in Ireland during WWII). Twenty minutes into the flight they served us drinks and snacks (pretzels) and now they are getting ready to serve lunch (beef or chicken). At noon we got our lunch (salad, shrimp with noodles, bread, chicken, quinoa, carrots and an Aztec Cinnamon Bar (chocolate covered brownie with cinnamon oat crunch on top) for dessert. While eating my movie ended and I started watching Hotel Transylvania 3. The lunch was only okay – but what did I expect – it was airplane food. I finished lunch and now I am enjoying my second movie. Once the movie ended I went back to my reading and read for about two hours. Then I took a break from the book and played a couple of games on the TV screen. I quickly got bored with that and went back to reading. A half hour later they brought us more food. This time we had a ham sandwich, some chips and ice cream. While eating I started watching Priscilla Queen of the Desert. We still have about seven hours left on this flight before we arrive in Shanghai. When the movie finished I went back to reading. An hour later I finished my book. So I took a break to stretch my legs and walk around the plane and went to the bathroom. [This is the first time I have left my seat the entire flight.] When I returned to my seat I played a game for about 20 minutes and then I started watching Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

I have been pretty miserable the whole flight. My allergies are acting up and I keep sneezing, have a runny nose, my eyes itch and I have pressure between the eyes. These long flights always do me in. I took some medicine and it has helped a little but not entirely. I have not felt tired so I haven’t tried to sleep yet. And as it closer to us landing in Shanghai I guess I should just stay awake and I will really sleep well tonight. We get into Shanghai around 4:00pm and then by the time we go through customs and get to the hotel I can probably just take a shower and go to bed. We will see what happens.

After the movie I got some things organized into my backpack and cleaned up around our seats. Then they served us a quick breakfast meal and by the time we finished eating we were making our decent into Shanghai. We landed and it seemed to take forever to get to the gate and then to get off the plane. Finally, we made it to customs and passed through there quickly. Then we headed to baggage claim to get our bags. After we grabbed our luggage we found a currency exchange and got some yuan. Next we met up with the Viking representative and then were shuttled to our hotel. We are at the Fairmont Peace Hotel. It was an hour ride from the airport to the hotel. After getting checked in we went back down to the lobby to get something for dinner at the restaurant in the hotel.

We are so tired. We have taken showers and now we just want to get a good night’s sleep. We have a busy day in Shanghai tomorrow.