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Category: Nature & Parks

Journey to Lhasa and the Roof of the World

Journey to Lhasa and the Roof of the World

Lhasa and the world-famous Potala Palace marks the final destination on my quest to see all the sites depicted on the back of the Chinese bank notes (the Palace is on the 50-yuan bill). What started as a fun personal goal ended very well as Lhasa and Tibet are certainly at the top of my list of favorite places. Tibet is called the “roof of the world” for good reason as the plateau rises sharply with an average height of 4500…

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The Rainbow Mountains of Zhangye, China

The Rainbow Mountains of Zhangye, China

The Rainbow Mountains within Zhangye Danxia Landform Geological Park are a spectacular display of Earth’s beauty. The mountains are famous for their bright palette of colors of alternating strips similar to a rainbow. The site was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010 and it is very popular destination for Chinese and foreign tourists. The Zhangye Danxia National Park is located in the Gansu province about one-hour car ride from the Zhangye train station. In recent years the site…

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Awesome Yangtze River Cruise

Awesome Yangtze River Cruise

The Yangtze River is China’s longest river at 6380 kilometers from western China to the Pacific ocean and the third longest in the world. The river has a long cultural and economic importance for China and was prone flooding and fast flowing rapids prior to the Three Gorges Dam project completed around 2009. The river also forms a natural dividing line between North and South China lending to quite different climate and culture. For our cruise we started in Chongqing…

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Christmas in Picturesque New Zealand

Christmas in Picturesque New Zealand

New Zealand surprised me. Before going I did my research, watched videos, and looked at photos of stunning landscapes. None came even close to what we actually experienced. The mountains and countryside drives were simply stunning and beyond anything I imagined. The people seem rather chill and have an interesting sense of humor. Overall, the vibe is very relaxed and natural. Our time was spent on the South island mostly in Queenstown, Milford Sound, and Arthur’s Pass. These areas often…

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Day Trip to Lake Kawaguchiko for Best View of Mt. Fuji

Day Trip to Lake Kawaguchiko for Best View of Mt. Fuji

Lake Kawaguchiko is one of  the Five Lakes near the base of Mt. Fuji. I think it’s the best place to get great views of the mountain and spend a day. Last year I climbed Mt. Fuji and seeing the mountain from Lake Kawaguchiko was really cool. The lake is fairly large and there is a boat tour you can go on. There’s also biking, hiking, good eats, and spectacular views of Mount Fuji as the backdrop. If you only…

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Indonesia So Much Relax and Beautiful Scenery

Indonesia So Much Relax and Beautiful Scenery

First time we go to Indonesia and the biggest surprise to me is how spectacular the water and scenery was. Around every corner awaits a perfect photo opportunity.  I expected the beach and ocean to be nice but wow, it is way pretty colors of blue, green, turquoise, white, red, and all the others your eye can perceive. Everything during our stay was just right. Everyone was so friendly and nice and we always felt welcome. The food is spicy…

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Hike Up Mount Fuji

Hike Up Mount Fuji

Some years ago I was on my way to Kyoto, Japan traveling by train and out the window, we could see Mount Fuji off in the distance with its iconic snow-capped peak. I thought about how cool it would be to climb up there and put the idea away in my mental bucket list then forgot about it. Last year I again thought of climbing however I had missed the opportunity as the season was too late. But this year, September…

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Fun and Easy Day Trip to Sheshan Park

Fun and Easy Day Trip to Sheshan Park

Sheshan Park 佘山 is a hill of about 100m high west of Shanghai, China. On top are an old Jesuit observatory (a museum now) and The Sheshan Basilica. The observatory complex was founded by French Mission Catholique in 1872. Sheshan Basilica is the largest Catholic cathedral in Southeast China and was built around 1863. Shanghai is flat as a pancake so this hill, although only 100m, sticks out. Sheshan Park makes for a fun day trip to go hike about, check…

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The Eastern Steppe of Inner Mongolia

The Eastern Steppe of Inner Mongolia

Inner Mongolia has been on my bucket list for quite some time and I finally had the opportunity to go. We joined with a tour group through Travelers Society which turned out wonderfully as our guides took care of all the details. We spent a fun day and spent the night in the sandy desert near Baotou city. Kids loved running up and down the large sand dunes. We had BBQ, beer, and a bonfire then slept in our tents…

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Guilin, Yangshuo and the Money Shot

Guilin, Yangshuo and the Money Shot

Guilin is a scenic city in North Guangxi, China and very well known tourist destination and starting point for the Li River cruise. Guilin means “Forest of Sweet Osmanthus”, owing to the large number of fragrant sweet osmanthus trees located in the city. We flew into Guilin city and stayed at the Shangri-La Hotel for a couple nights. Afterward we drove to Yangshuo to spend a few nights at Zen Garden Resort. Andy of Yangshuo Private Tours was our driver…

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