From Vietnam To China
From Vietnam To China
Day 1
Day 1 – Tuesday, April 10, 2012 – Depart Denver, CO to San Francisco, CA
We spent a beautiful day in Colorado getting the house ready for our friend Tim who will stay with Buddha while we are on this new travel adventure. We had planned to leave at...
Day 2
Day 02 - Wednesday, April 11, 2012 - Overnight Flight to Taipei, Taiwan; International Date Line
We were able to cool off a bit and calm our nerves in the Dynasty Lounge compliments of China Airlines. The atmosphere was very quiet and set the tone for the Asian Culture we...
Day 3
Day 03 - Thursday, April 12, 2012 - Flight from Taipei, Taiwan to Ha Noi, Vietnam; Take a Cyclo Ride; Visit Local Market; Cheo Musical Performance; Dinner.
At 7:50 we boarded our A330 at Gate #9 and were greeted by Teresa, our China Airlines flight attendant, with a steaming cup...
Day 4
Day 04 - Friday, April 13, 2012 - Tai Chi at Hoan Kiem Lake; Tour of Hanoi; Temple of Literature; Dao Quan Bich Cau Temple; Visit Private Home; Ethnic Museum
Good Morning Vietnam! We had pho for breakfast, a traditional Vietnamese rice noodle soup made with a clear broth. We...
Day 5
Day 05 - Saturday, April 14, 2012 - Boat Through the Trang An Grottoes; Visit Hoa Lu, Leisurely Dinner, Train to Lao Cai
Pho for breakfast, listening to Creedence Clearwater Revival, and sitting next to four cheerful ladies from Sydney, AU… where are we? What a diverse culture we are...
Day 6
Day 06 - Sunday, April 15, 2011 - Train Arrival in Lao Cai; Drive to Bac Ha; Visit the Local Market; Lunch at a Tay Community and Visit Neighboring Homes; Drive to Sa Pa to the Hotel
For some reason neither of us slept very well on the train; “clickity-clak”...
Day 7
Day 07 - Monday, April 16, 2012 - Visit Hill Tribe Villages; Meet People in Native Costume; Interact
After a great night’s sleep, we woke up at 6:00 to a heavy fog and the temperature was 65°. The humidity was 94%.
Our hotel is located high above the city so...
Day 8
Day 08 - Tuesday, April 17, 2012 - Visit the Market in Cốc Ly; Wander Ta Phin in the Afternoon; Dinner in the Evening
Our day began early; Gennie woke up at 5:30 after a dream that she was going back to Lao Chai to teach kindergarten.
We had hung...
Day 9
Day 09 - Wednesday, April 18, 2012 - Morning Drive to Lao Cai; Cross the Border with China; Drive to Mengzi; Continue to Jianshui
We were up with the birds again today. At 5:45 we checked our mail and finished packing. After breakfast we put our bags out in the...
Day 10
Day 10 - Thursday, April 19, 2012 - Early Morning Visit the Zhu Family Garden Mansions; The Chaoyag Gate and Tower; The Walled City; The Sea of Learning Lake; and Pottery Production
A note from Day 9 -The power came on about 10:45 last night so we got up and...
Day 11
Day 11 - Friday, April 20, 2012 - Visit Old City Market; Tuan Shan, Village from Qing Dynasty; Explore Shuan Glong Bridge; Dragon Boat ride through Swallow Nest Caves
We met at 8:30 to go for breakfast. We sat at the tables of the noodle café right next door to...
Day 12
Day 12 - Saturday, April 21, 2012 Depart Jian Shui and Drive to Tong Hai to Experience the Mongol Heritage; Drive to Kun Ming
The hotel had advised Tashi that the power would be off beginning at 7:00 this morning and then for the rest of the day. We got...
Day 13
Day 13 - Sunday, April 22, 2012 – Visit the Lu Feng World Dinosaur Valley; Drive to Dali; Visit the Valley Between 13,000' Peaks, Discuss the Trading History with Nations to the South
April 22, Happy Earth Day! The temperature was 67° and the humidity was 63%. We left the...
Day 14
Day 14 - Monday, April 23, 2012 - Drive to Lijiang; Visit Xizhou; See the Old Town Lijiang and Ming Dynasty City and the Canals
We woke up to sunny skies and the air was very fresh from the rain the night before. The temperature was 67° and the humidity...
Day 15
Day 15 - Tuesday, April 24, 2012 - Explore the Lijiang Market; Yuhu Village; Naxi Museum; Black Hat Stupa; United Nations Heritage Site of Lijiang with the Matriarchal Naxi people and their Tibeto-Burman Language
The day began with breakfast in the hotel. The temperature was 55° and the humidity was...
Day 16
Day 16 - Wednesday, April 25, 2012 - Visit to the Tibetan Plateau Seeing Fertile Fields, the Yangtze and Shudu Rivers to the Tiger Leaping Gorge and then on to Gyalthang
We woke to cool weather; it was 57° and the humidity was 57% - that combination does not happen...
Day 17
Day 17 - Thursday, April 26, 2012 - Ganden Sumtseling Monastery; Zhongdian; Ringha Temple and Tibetan Home Visit
This morning the skies were gray, but there was no rain early. The breakfast room was very crowded so we took a walk and came back later to eat. The temperature was...
Day 18
Day 18 - Friday, April 27, 2012 - Drive to the Yangtze Gorge; Visit Nishi to See Black Pottery; Travel to Gonjo for Wooden Bowls; Return to Gyalthang
The hotel was very quiet this morning. There were just a few people in the breakfast room and all of the dishes...
Day 19
Day 19 - Saturday, April 28, 2012 - Extra Day in Gyalthang, China - Duane's Birthday; Valley of the Blue Moon Cable Car Ride; Visit Tibetan Family Home
There was a glimpse of sunshine when we woke up; the temperature was 47° and the humidity was 73%. Today was an...
Day 20
Day 20 - Sunday, April 29, 2012 - Flight from Gyalthang to Kunming to Taipei, Taiwan
We could see a little glimpse of the mountains this morning when we left the hotel at 8:30. After our 15 minute drive to the airport, it was raining heavily.
We said goodbye and...
Day 21
Day 21 - Monday, April 30, 2012 - Flight from Taipei to San Francisco and San Francisco to Denver
While we waited for our China Airlines flight to board, we talked with Joanne and Duane about our trip and the past 20 days we have spent together. Each of us...
Day 22
Myths and Mountains
FROM VIETNAM TO CHINA: ETHNIC PEOPLE OF THE BORDER
Le Van Cuong and Vietnam
Trip Evaluation
As we arrived in Hanoi we were met by Le Van Cuong and we were greeted warmly and a big smile. I asked for him to point me to an ATM...
Day 23
Myths and Mountains
FROM VIETNAM TO CHINA: ETHNIC PEOPLE OF THE BORDER
Tashi Lamasang and China
Trip Evaluation
Before we discuss the individual days in China with Tashi Lamasang, we should briefly mention the accommodations. Below I will list the hotels we used during the 11 full days in Yunnan...
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Day 13 - Saturday, April 22, 2022 - Depart for U.S.
The hotel prepared a box breakfast for us as we had to be in the lobby way before the breakfast room was open.
Last night we found out that our departure flight back to...
