Category: Travel

Keeping songbirds in China is a tradition that dates way back to the Han Dynasty. All over the country, at 7:00 a.m. visit to the local park rewards early risers with a cacophony of delicate bird song from the teems of caged songbirds, whose owners bring them for a morning outing. Shamian Dao in Guangzhou.…

Ever stumble across a China blog that had stunning pics, great writing and a dedicated webmaster? Ever wonder how in the heck that blog only had 2 comments over 10 years—all from family?Well a lot of that has to do with the exploding number of China-related blogs and content sites out there run by people…

Long a backpacker favorite, the ancient trade route known as the Tea Horse Road connects southwest China with Tibet, Southeast Asia, and India. And as domestic and international tourism boom throughout China, points along the old trail are becoming increasingly popular destinations, both with trekkers willing to bed down in local guest houses and hostels,…

Picture Venice: The narrow streets, stone bridges ancient architecture and gondolas gliding along smooth canals. Got it? Now jump 6,000 miles, replace Venice’s Gothic architecture with pagodas and the gondolas with wooden canopy boats, and you’re in one of China’s famous water towns, all of them claiming to be the “Venice of the East.” Don’t…

A Chinese local imparts his wisdom about which areas of Shanghai are most prone to pickpockets with Shanghai’s 15 Pickpocket Hotspots. Shanghai is undoubtedly one of the safest-feeling megacities on the planet, but that doesn’t mean you won’t get robbed. As many-a-foreigner (and local) can tell you, there are pickpockets all over the place. How…