Described as the land of beauty and
fascination, China captivates adventurous travelers from all over the world.
This is a massive country, covering 6,000,000 square miles and covering 60
longitudinal degrees. The country also has an innumerous variety of people,
enchanting natural landscape, glorious history, a culture that is among the
most ancient in the world and fascinating destinations to bewilder and
bewitch the tourists.
China is a place of great contrasts, with scenic rural landscapes and
congested cityscapes, and natural beauty that ranges from the untamed to the
peaceful - from the windswept plains of the Gobi Desert to the mighty Mt
Everest standing there to engulf the tourists in awe and amazement. One can
state that China is huge and wild to satisfy the explorer instinct in the
traveller from all across the globe.
Fact File
Official name: People’s Republic of China (PRC).
Government : Communist Republic
Nationality : Chinese
Ethnic groups : Han Chinese (93%), plus 55 ethnic minorities
Location : In the east of the Asian continent, on the western shore
of the Pacific Ocean.
Continent : Asia
Currency : Chinese Yuan(CY); 1 CY = 5.2633 Indian Rupee = 0.1203 US
$ = 0.1001 Euro(subject to change).
Capital city : Beijing
Population : 1.28453 billion
Languages : Standard Chinese or Mandarin
Religion : Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism (no stats available);
Islam (14 million), Christianity (7 million)
Area : 9.59 million sq km
Famous for : great wall of china
Major cities : Beijing, Macau, Shenzhen
Clothing : Summers : cotton ;
Winters
: heavy woolens
Neighbouring countries : Korea, Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Tadzhikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan,
Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam.
Major
events : Chinese New Year (or Spring Festival), Lantern Festival Tomb,
Sweeping Dragon Boat Festival. Guanyin's Birthday (late March to late
April), Mazu's Birthday (May or June), Water-Splashing Festival (mid-April),
Ghost Month (late August to late September), Mid-Autumn Festival (September
or October) and the Birthday of Confucius (28 September).
Things to Buy : Carpets, wood-block prints, cloisonne, porcelain,
glass items, silk, cinnabar lacquer, hand-painted snuff bottles, stone and
jade carvings, books, Mao buttons, reproductions of old art.
Things to Do : Bowling (Ho Chi Minh City), Biking, Bathing Beaches,
Camping Camel Rides, Caving, Greyhound Racing, Go-Karting, Hiking, Horse
Riding, Martial Arts such as T'ai Chi, Mountaineering Opera.
Cuisine : The cuisine can be divided into four regional categories:
Beijing/Mandarin and Shandong (with steamed bread and noodles as staples),
Cantonese and Chaozhou (lightly cooked meats and vegetables), Shanghainese
(the home of 'red cooking' and wuxi spare ribs) and Sichuan (spicy, with
lots of chilli).
Beverages : Tea, beer, Wine, rice wine and wine containing lizards,
bees or pickled snakes. maotai, a spirit made from sorghum.
Visa Permit
Visas are required by most foreigners entering mainland China although, at
this stage, visas are not required by Western nationals visiting Hong Kong
and Macau. Visas are available from Chinese embassies and consulates in most
countries.
When to go
Spring (March-April) and autumn (September-October) are the best times to
visit China. Daytime temperatures range from 20°C to 30°C (68°F-86°F)
in these seasons - but nights can be bitterly cold and it can sometimes be
wet and miserable. Major public holidays, in particular Chinese New Year, as
its extremely crowded during this time.
Climate
Extremely diverse; tropical in the south to subarctic in the north. China's
climate varies from bitter cold in winter to unbearable heat in summer.
In winter, northern winds coming from high latitude areas are cold and dry;
in summer, southern winds from sea areas at lower latitude are warm and
moist. Climates differ from region to region because of the country's
extensive and complex topography.
North : Winters (December to March. Beijing generally
experiences temperature of -20C, dry and no sun. Further north, temperatures
reaching -40C. Summer(May to August), temperatures in Beijing can hit 38C
(100F), coinciding with the rainy season for the city. The best time for
visiting the north is spring and autumn. Daytime temperatures range from 20
C to 30 C (68 F to 86 F) and drop a lot at night. Precipitation is 6370cm
(25-28 inches) per year.
Central : The Yangtze River valley has long and humid
summer with high temperatures from April to October. The city of Wuhan,
Chongqing and Nanjing on the Yangtze are the hottest places. Winters
temperatures drop well below freezing It can also be wet and miserable at
any time apart from summer. Spring and Autumn are probably best time to
visit. Rainfall is 76 cm (30 inches) per year.
South : Summer (July and September) where temperatures can
rise to around 38 C. Winters are short, between January and March. It's not
as cold as in the north, but you'd better bring warm clothes with you while
visiting. Autumn and spring can be good times to visit, with day
temperatures in the 20 C to 25 C (68 F to 75 F) range. Rainfall : 76 cm (30
inches) per year.
Northwest : Summer are hot, dry and sunny. Turpan, is the
'hottest place in China' with maximums of around 47 C. Winter are severely
cold as the rest of northern China. Rains are scanty. Summers temperatures
can exceed 40 C, while winters may drop to -10 C. Rainfall is less than 10
cm (4 inches) per year.
Getting there
By Air : Air China, the national carrier also known as the Civil
Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).
DragonAir, can be booked through Cathay Pacific worldwide.
There are several international airports in the city and some of them are:
Beijing Airport - Capital (PEK) Capital International
Airport
the airport is 17 Miles(28 km) North East of City. Travel time is 40-60
minutes.
Shanghai Airport - Hong Qiao International Airport (SHA)
the airport is located 8 miles(13 km) South West of Shanghai. Travel time
is 25-40 minutes
Shanghai Airport - Pudong International Airport (PVG)
the airport is 19 miles(30 km) from Shanghai and 25 miles(40 km) from Hong
Qiao International Airport.
Hong Kong Airport - Hong Kong International Airport (HKG)
the airport is 21 Miles(34km) North West of Hong Kong Island. Travel time
is 20-35 minutes.
By Train : Trans-Siberian railway is the main railway in the
country. Other railway services operates from Vietnam-China, Tibet-Nepal,
Pakistan-Xinjiang and Kazakstan-Xinjiang.
Other entry points to the country are Zhuhai-Macau, Kashgar-Islamabad
(Pakistan) via the Karakoram Highway, Urumqi-Almaty (Kazakstan),
Kashgar-Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan), Beijing-Pyongyang (North Korea),
Pinxiang/Hekou-Dong Dang/Lao Cai (Vietnam).
By Sea : Port of call includes Shanghai, Xiamen (opposite Taiwan),
Tanggu (near Tianjin), Macau and Hong Kong.
Getting
around
By Air : CAAC has assumed the role of 'umbrella organisation' over
airlines including China Eastern, China Southern, China Northern, Great
Wall, Yunnan Airlines and several others. It provides an efficient air
travel within the country.
By Road : Long-distance buses, Taxis, Motorcycle taxis and
motor-tricycles provide safe and reasonable to get around the city.
By Train : An even better mode is the train, which reaches into
every province (apart from Tibet) along a 52,000km (32311mi)network. It's
cheap, relatively fast and a safer proposition than buses.
By Sea : There are a number of popular boat trips to be between
various cities in the country. The best known river trip is the three-day
cruise along the Yangzi River from Chongqing to Wuhan.
Major attractions
Beijing : The term literally means 'Northern Capital' and is the
capital of the People's Republic of China and the capital of bureaucrats.
The whole country runs on Beijing time and speaks the Beijing dialect
reflecting upon the importance of the city and its impact on the entire
nation. The city is the political and commercial centre of China from where
the Chinese Communist Party rules over its enormous empire. Today Beijing is
a modern city with the usual high rising buildings and shopping malls but
definitely retains its oriental touch. Beijing, the starting point to visit
the great wall also houses the buildings based on Chinese architecture.
The Great Wall of China : The Great Wall has gone through a few
restorations in its time. It was initially built 2000 years ago by the Qing
dynasty when it was a 'No Trespassing' sign directed at neighbouring
kingdoms. For centuries after that it remained neglected and forgotten until
18th-century Europeans took steps to restore it. This beautiful structure is
an ancient masterpiece known world wide for its rugged charm and novel
architecture.
Other Attractions :There are several other captivating cities in
China and without travelling those destinations the tour to China would be
incomplete. Hongkong, Shanghai, Macau, Xi'an are some of the most
exceptional cities of not only China, but of the entire world and travelling
to them will make your trip to China absolutely complete.
