China

China – Ancient and Modern Empires

Open yourself to an experience you thought you could only dream about. And while China is changing faster then time, you can still visit a world that is mysterious and simple. While traveling in an unhurried pace, trace our Jewish Heritage in Shanghai and see glorious, truly Chinese sights such as the legendary Terra Cotta figures, the Great Wall and the picturesque region of Yangshuo.

We have included a spectacular shows of Yimou Zhang – Creator & Director of the opening ceremony at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. If you wanted to experience the delights of China, this tour has it all – comfort, cultural richness, elegant pacing, good food and a Tour Director who will enhance every day while touring China.

Day 1 Monday Arrive Beijing

Arrive in Beijing. Meet your Chinese group leader at the airport and transfer to the Hotel. At dinner, your group leader will brief you about the entire trip in China. Crowne Plaza Hotel.

Day 2 Tuesday Beijing

Breakfast. This morning, visit the 600-year-old Temple of Heaven, see local people doing all kinds of morning excercises in the vast park, as well as the master pieces of Chinese ancient architecture. After lunch, visit the extravagant Imperial Palace in the Forbidden City. This evening join a special local delicacy dinner for Beijing Duck. Crowne Plaza hotel.

Day 3 Wednesday Beijing

Breakfast. Today experience one of the highlights of your trip as you visit the renowned Great Wall of China. On the way, take a look at the iconic “Bird’s Nest”- the National Stadium – host to the 2008 Olympics (traffic permitting). Then arrive at the amazing Great Wall, and walk along its ramparts as emperors and his soldiers once did. After returning to the city, take a walk on the Tian’anmen Square, the heart of the Chinese nation. The rest of the afternoon is at leisure to explore on your own. Crowne Plaza hotel.

Day 4 Thursday Beijing / Xi’an

Breakfast. This morning visit Hutong area, representing the traditional way of life in Beijing. Sip tea in the most beautiful 600-year-old Bell Tower in the center of the city. After a home-hosted lunch, take fast train to historic Xi’an, ancient capital of China for many dynasties. Check-in at the hotel in the heart of the city. Dinner. Grand Noble hotel.

Day 5 Friday Xi’an

Breakfast. View the extraordinary life-sized Terra-Cotta Army, no two alike, buried for over 2200 years; Circle Vision Movie and Bronze Chariot. In the afternoon, continue to the city’s landmark building, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, enjoy a fountain dance with music in front of the beautiful 1,300-year-old structure. Afterwards, visit university teaching staff’s home in those typical high-rise apartment buildings. Learn about average Chinese life in the cities. Dinner. Grand Noble hotel.

Day 6 Saturday Xi’an

Breakfast. Time to give those muscles some exercise, as we will start the day with a traditional Tai Chi lesson led by your Chinese group leader. You will appreciate to learn about this graceful ancient healing art. After breakfast, continue on a waking tour in the historic Xi’an, including a visit to the Muslim Quarter. It is here one can feel the history of bazars and market of the Silk Road, which once upon a time began in Xi’an. After Lunch, enjoy free time to explore Xi’an further. In the evening, time for the mesmerizing Tang Dynasty Dinner Show. Grand Noble hotel.

Day 7 Sunday Xi’an / Yangshuo

Breakfast.This morning fly to Guilin and drive to Yangshuo, a small county town diverse in culture and exotic flavors. Check-in at the hotel beautifully located on the bank of the Li River. After a lunch, exprience the tranquility while float on small bamboo rafts down the more peaceful and scenic parts of the river, surrounded by the green limestone hills. Next meet your open electric carts for a tour into the countryside for a visit to villages hidden among the mountains. While China has developed rapidly, here the people still use water buffaloes to work in the rice fields, which, for many people, is “what I expect China to look like”. Dinner. Green Lotus hotel.

Day 8 Monday Yangshuo

Breakfast. In the morning, continue your Taichi lessons with your group leader in this most ideal setting. Then, we will start our new learning experiences. In a nearby village, Chinese cooking lessons begin with grocery shopping in local free market, followed by hands-on culinary practice with instructions from the local gourmet. For lunch, eat what you just have cooked! In the afternoon, join the local artist for a lecture and demonstration of Chinese landscape painting. Yangshuo is just the perfect place to learn it. In the evening, watch the most spectacular and unique water and light show on the Li River “Impression Sanjie Liu”, directed by Zhang Yimou, the No.1 movie director in China, also the director of the opening ceremony of 2008 Beijing Olympics. Green Lotus hotel.

Day 9 Tuesday Yangshuo / Guilin / Shanghai

After breakfast drive to Guilin’s airport and fly to the cosmopolitan city of Shanghai. Take the meglev train from the airport to the city, experience the 270 mile/hour speed, like the speed of Shanghai’s development. After check-in at the hotel, enjoy free time followed by dinner. The remainder of the day is at leisure for you to explore this international city on your own. Equatorial hotel.

Day 10 Wednesday Shanghai

Prior to breakfast, join local people in the quaint Jingan Park right outside the hotel and continue with your Tai Chi lessons. After breakfast, visit the Shanghai Museum, showcasing priceless collections. Next, drive to the outskirts of the city for a special visit to the 1,700-year-old Longhua Temple. Here you will be served a strictly vegetarian lunch based upon Buddist traditions. En route back to the hotel, stop at a renowned silk factory, an ancient industry that started from the Yangtze delta. Equatorial hotel.

Day 11 Thursday Shanghai

Breakfast. This morning, head for the Bund river front. Here begin a Jewish-themed tour guided by the most knowledgeable Jewish resident in Shanghai to learn about the city’s colonial European past, as well as the arrival and contributions of Jews who made Shanghai their home. After lunch, visit the elegant 400-year-old Yu Garden, the masterpiece of southern Chinese gardening and landscaping. This evening, meet for farewell dinner. Equatorial hotel.

Day 12 Friday Journey Home

After breakfast, transfer to Shanghai airport for your international flight home.