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I was munching on my chicken salad sandwich when my colleague popped into my office, “ Oh, sorry. Here you go. Conde Nast Traveler Magazine issue you’ve been waiting for!”.

I probably didn’t look my best in my small office in an old house on East West Highway.  At least, the munching image didn’t quite live up to the dream brought alive on the cover of the magazine:

“135 Travel Experts who can change your life (Trust Us!)”

“FANTASTIC GETAWAYS! Living the Dream in Italy, India, Kenya, Eypt….”

I wiped away the crumbs, and turned the magazine to page 120.  Yes, there I was, for the first time, chosen by Conde Nast’s Wendy Perrin as one of the travel experts for China.

“Zhang wants to show you the “authentic China” beyond anything you’ll read about in guidebooks, and—as a Yunnan Province native, Harvard MBA, and former consultant for The Nature Conservancy—her vast Rolodex of in-country experts in nearly every field can make this happen…and get you farther off the beaten path than any other company can. Her cultural connections run deepest in Southwest China—Yunnan, Szechuan, and Guizhou provinces—where you might find yourself having tea with a practicing shaman, catching a private Naxi music concert at the home of the village head, or camping in luxury mobile tents on the Tibetan Plateau ”

This news reached me last week by email. So, the initial excitement has since settled, but never the less, the pride brought by this listing is still ringing.

It was exactly, almost to the date, 10 years ago that I started AsiaTravel. At that time, I was a couple years out of business school, still owning a couple of black suits that I wore to glassy office buildings in Hong Kong, New York and Beijing. Still was quite used to flying business class.

Somehow, Travel changed my life. I took some time off McKinsey to travel around the world. Puff, 4 months was gone without a blink. I was sitting in the cabin of an oil tanker truck (only choice for a hitchhiker), rocking my way up to the Tibetan Plateau from Kashgar. We rocked and rocked, I fell asleep and woke up. Wow, a whole night was gone. The snow-covered landscape replaced the desert where we started. But the milestones said, 125 km!! A whole night, we covered 80 miles in distanced, but close to 15,000 feet in elevation.

My heart started to beat faster, breathing became more labored, the landscape increasingly looking austere and moonish. The Tibetan antelopes galloped in the distance. I started to cry, for no reason. One was just touched by being so close to pristine nature. I knew there were risks, for me, being the solo woman traveler on that route. But I knew I was one of the lucky few, who had the money, the time, and the right passport (Chinese) to travel to these remote corners of Tibet.

Sometimes, I, woke from sleep in that rocking truck, stared out the window, and asked myself, “What if the truck tumbled over the edge? Is there one thing I would regret for not doing?”

The answer came back loud and clear, “Building my own business”.  That was the beginning of AsiaTravel.

Travel, somehow, has had magic powers over me. I met my husband hiking the sacred pilgrimage trail around Mt. Kawagebo in Yunnan, I took my wedding party to hike from Salween River to the Mekong.

Then travel helped to change other people’s lives.  Recently, two clients got married on a AsiaTravel trip. Two clients got engaged on a AsiaTravel trip. We’ve helped families retrace the Burma Road commemorating their father’s journey in WWII.

After all the years of traveling, I think I am starting to understand the magic of travels. Somehow, when one’s on the road, one’s attention is so outwardly focused, that all you notice are people and things around you. After the outward focus, the inward reflection of oneself is much gentler, and not so judgmental of whether my office is in an old house or a shishi building downtown, or whether my munching is embarrassing.

Travel elevates one above the daily routine, and allows one to see the beauty of other people’s daily routine. One of my favorite moment recently was jogging in front of Shangrila’s Songtsam Lodge, while watching the Tibetan farmers shepherding their cattle to the fields. I am sure they didn’t think of their life was poetic and charming, as it was just hard work. But as a traveler watching them, I was loving that moment. That’s the illusion of distance- distance of reality, distance of geography, and distance of time. That’s probably the art of travel.

Anyway, back to my sandwich. I didn’t think my munching a sandwich at desk was any bit poetic, but more embarrassing. But, I know, give it another 10 years, I will reflect back on this moment, as one of the defining moment of launching AsiaTravel in America.

Who needs a time machine when you’ve got frogs?

Secrets of the development of the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau have recently been revealed to us by Popeye-forearmed frogs whose evolutional divergences coincide with major tectonic events connected with the raising of the “roof of the world”.

Scientists from the University of California, Berkeley and Kunming studied 24 different groups of the tribe Paini, gaining new insights into the collision of India and Asia, which led to the formation of spectacular peaks of the Himalayas and the breathtaking landscapes of the Tibetan Plateau. MSNBC reports:

“Geologists know a lot about that area, but what they haven’t been able to do is give a sequence to the timing of the rise of particular mountain masses and particular ridges and pieces,” David Wake, a herpetologist and evolutionary biologist at the University of California, Berkeley and a co-author of a new paper detailing the findings, said in a UC Berkeley statement.

“We use these frogsas a surrogate for a time machine.”

The rather unique frogs live in fast-flowing streams, requiring the male frogs to have strong forelimbs and coarse chests so that slippery females don’t get swept away by swift currents during mating.

The team of scientists found that the Paini originated in the Indochina region of Southeast Asia before moving into western China 27 million years ago, when a divergence occurred creating two new groups of frogs: the lowland Quasipaa frogs of South China and Southeast Asia and their high-altitude cousins, Nanorana in Tibet.

The Quasipaa frogs diverged into South China and Southeast Asian groups with the raising of the Truong Son mountain range on the border between Laos and Vietnam. But the real action was taking place in Tibet roughly nine million years ago, where the Nanorana subgenus was adapting to cold, dry and oxygen-poor conditions. A third group of spiny frogs was also isolated on the Himalayas 19 million years ago as the Tibetan Plateau pushed higher.

As tectonic events separated the frogs, each group evolved different features from other groups, becoming less and less alike.

The story of these frogs illustrates the inseparable relationship between geographical diversity and biodiversity. As Asia’s surface transformed, so did its animal and plant life. This variety of topography, flora and fauna in Tibet, as well as Yunnan and Sichuan, is one of the main reasons that this part of China is where several of AsiaTravel’s most popular tours take place.

AsiaTravel’s Family Adventures in Tibet and Soul of Tibet tours offer unforgettable experiences in this land of diversity. If the roof of the world is a little too high for your tastes, you can always explore the incredibly biodiverse foothills of the Himalayas through our South of the Clouds.

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Photo credit: Flickr

 

Around a decade ago Yunnan was still a bit off most travelers’ radar, but today it is one of China’s top draws for both international and domestic travelers.

For international travelers, it wouldn’t be difficult to argue that the main factor that put Yunnan on the map toward the end of the 90s was the opening paragraph of the province’s chapter in Lonely Planet’s China guidebook:

“Yunnan is without doubt one of the most alluring travel destinations in China. It’s the most geographically varied of all of China’s provinces, with terrain as widely divergent as tropical rainforest and icy Tibetan highlands. It is also the sixth-largest province in China and the home of a third of all China’s ethnic minorities and half of all China’s plant and animal species. If you could only go to one province, this one might well be it. [emphasis added]”

It was one of the most succinct (and accurate) summaries of what is one of China, Asia and the world’s most topographically, biologically and ethnically diverse regions. It was only a matter of time before the world realized how unique Yunnan is. Domestically it is already well on its way to becoming a “brand” of sorts like California or Tuscany.

Which brings us back to domestic tourism – and again to the Lonely Planet, who recently published it first Chinese-language guidebook introducing a part of China to Chinese people. What was it? Not surprisingly, Yunnan.

Former Lonely Planet contributor Chris Taylor’s recent review of the LP’s Chinese-language guide to Yunnan captures the through-the-looking glass feeling we had when we got our hands on a copy of the book:

“There is perhaps no greater irony of modern travel than being photographed by the natives with digital SLRs. Times have changed and now foreigners are part of the colorful backdrop for Chinese on personal journeys of discovery in their homeland. Add another layer of irony: in Yunnan, some of those Chinese travelers are now armed with a Chinese-language Lonely Planet guidebook to the province.”

As recently discussed in this blog, the popular destination of Lijiang is now held up as a model of how to not use tourism to develop a city. But that’s not to say Lijiang isn’t worth visiting. It’s all about knowing where and when to go to avoid the crowds.

The LP Yunnan guide won’t affect Chinese travel habits the way it did with laowai (foreigners) but it is still noteworthy in that it shows how important Yunnan already is to China’s domestic travel market.

This no doubt means that there are plenty of destinations overrun by unsustainable commercial tourism, but these places are all connected to a tight network of agents, shops and “scenic areas” operating on a code based upon kickbacks. Unfortunately for the Chinese market, there are no domestic AsiaTravels offering real off-the-beaten path options.

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Photo credit: Amazon

As another summer draws to a close, we find our mind drifting to one of our favorite places to enjoy fall scenery in China – Shangri-La and the surrounding Tibetan areas. Although it is doubtful that it is actually the place James Hilton described in his novel Lost Horizon, Shangri-La taps into many of the themes that have enchanted readers of the book since it was first published in 1933.

 

Every autumn, we are drawn to this corner of Yunnan near the Tibetan border, where the Songzanlin Monastery looks down upon a valley where yaks graze in meadows crisscrossed with crystal-clear streams and the leaves of the trees in surrounding hills are ablaze with color.

Songzanlin is only the beginning of what this area has to offer. Towering snowcapped mountains, the headwaters of the Mekong River, alpine forests and massive glaciers combine to make this one of the most breathtaking areas in one of China’s most scenic provinces. Bringing it all together is the otherworldly holy mountain known to Han Chinese as Meili Snow Mountain and Tibetans as Mt. Kawagebo.

Just as with Hilton’s Shangri-La, this sacred geography is removed from the trappings of modern life, with time moving at its own pace. The days are characterized by warm sunshine and cool breezes while the nights are crisp and intoxicating.

Regardless of which journey you’re on, this corner of the “roof of the world” never fails to invigorate and rejuvenate.

On the ‘Roof of the World,’ the sky is the limit when it comes to exploration. Given Tibet’s diverse cultural, historical and religious marvels, it is no wonder that travelers from all over the world flock to this intriguing plateau.

 

High-altitude autumn landscapes in Lhasa, the region’s capital, provide the perfect backdrop for all-age discovery. After a decade of visiting the area, we have a few favorite sites in the area.

Of particular note are Ganden Monastery and Sera Monastery, two of Tibet’s ‘great three’ university monasteries. After touring the different academic centers within these ancient centers of study, don’t forget to visit Sera’s printing center to create your own prayer flag.

 

If you’re looking to get out of Lhasa to witness religious life, head to Pabonka Hermitage – now part of Sera Monastery and located northwest of the city.

Feeling a bit lightheaded from the altitude, or simply curious about local remedies? We suggest that you visit a Tibetan Traditional Medicine hospital to hear healing secrets directly from a local Tibetan doctor.

Finally, on your way out of town en route to Shigatse, carve out time to learn how to make incense with a local family.

In eastern China, it’s easy to think that the country’s provinces to the West – namely Tibet, Xinjiang, and Qinghai – are a world away.

 

But, recent developments at the Shanghai Expo are bringing these two regions of China closer than ever. During Tibet Week at the Expo, a new tourism agreement signed between Shanghai and Lhasa, Tibet’s capital city, confirmed that visitors will soon be able to enjoy “luxury train travel and short-stay trips” between the two cities.

To accommodate increasing visits to the plateau province, government officials, local tourism bureaux and travel agencies will collaborate on increased Tibet-bound tourism. Officials are discussing more efficient train stops and connections, airlines are developing more routes from Shanghai, Xi’an and Xining, and travel agencies are in talks to promote more 3-5 day trips to the area.

Shanghai, a perennial tourist favorite, will also share its tourism knowledge and expertise. As Tibet is one of our favorite fall destinations, we are excited to see what this agreement will mean for western-bound tourism here.

China travelers, stay tuned for developments pending the outcome of this cross-country travel agreement.

AsiaTravel prides itself in taking its clients to unspoiled, unseen corners of the country, but we also recognize that we wouldn’t know about these places had it not been for the efforts of the old-school explorers that came before us.

One of those explorers is Joseph F. Rock, an Austrian-born American botanist who worked at different times for the US Department of Agriculture, Harvard University and National Geographic magazine from the 1920s through the 1940s while based in western China, primarily Lijiang.

We were reminded of Rock today when we stumbled upon a review of the book Joseph F. Rock and His Shangri-La by Jim Goodman. We read the book a couple years ago and found it fascinating, despite already having been familiar with Rock’s story.

Rock’s story is the stuff of movies. He traveled in a large caravan of men and mules across rugged inhospitable terrain and was often the first white man who had set foot in many of the places he visited. Rock hobnobbed with the local elite wherever he went, but preferred to dine alone, eating European food prepared especially for him by his private chef.

Rock wrote extensively in his diary about his adventures in Yunnan, Sichuan, Gansu and Tibet, and Goodman adds good background to his story with his thorough knowledge of the people and places of western China. Rock’s photos of these regions are an invaluable archive of this area as it once was.

One of our favorite parts of the book is when Rock first comes across Minya Konka the spectacular mountain in western Sichuan known in Chinese as Mount Gongga. Astounded by its massive size, Rock miscalculates the mountain’s height and reports to his editors at National Geographic that it is higher than Everest.

His doubtful editors prove him wrong, and the proud explorer and scientist is humbled, never again to let his emotions get the best of him in his work.

It may not be taller than Everest, but Minya Konka – and nearby places such as Kangding, Yading and Shangri-La – are awe-inspiring nonetheless. Our Western Sichuan to Yunnan journey takes in all of these unforgettable destinations. As the seasons prepare to change, this part of China is at its most spellbinding.

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Photo credit (for first photo): Arnold Arboretum

To find out how to find your own Shangri-La in Western Sichuan and Yunnan, contact us today.

Local governments of Tibet, Yunnan, Sichuan and Qinghai have recently signed a strategic cooperation agreement to create what is being called the Shangri-La Ecotourism Region.

Officials from Tibet’s third-largest city, Changdu, reached the agreement with Yunnan’s Diqing, Ganzi in Sichuan and Yushu in Qinghai. All participating areas will remove barriers in areas including policy, transportation and services.

Although details are still not very clear, we are hopeful that the agreement will bring ecotourism that is both sustainable and beneficial to local residents to this beautiful part of China.

We especially hope it assists Yushu, which was struck by a deadly earthquake in April of this year, with its rebuilding efforts. To get a feel for Yushu, check out this video of its annual horse festival, which takes place in July.

Today at AsiaTravel, we received one of the greatest gifts that one can in the travel industry: a beautifully-written, heart-felt, and interesting account by a client of their recent Chinese Treasures journey with AsiaTravel to Beijing, Xi’an, Yunnan province, and Shanghai. Below is Chuck and Kathie’s story:

“You have to understand, Chuck, economically we are capitalists.  Socially we remain communists.  And, that’s not easy to reconcile.” We look at our guide as we approach the front gate of our Tibetan hosts for the evening.  It is not the first time we’ve heard sentiments such as this.  During our nearly 10 days in China, multiple AsiaTravel guides have done their best to show us life through indigenous eyes and provide us context to Chinese thinking.  We learned of generational divides – where Mom cannot understand why a 30-something guide prefers to be an entrepreneur rather than wish for the days when Chairman Mao “provided for us and we did not have to worry about anything.”  We heard of collateral fallout from 4-2-1 (4 grandparents, 2 parents and only one child), a result of the one child policy.  We silently chuckled as we listened to concerns about the “younger generation”, this from a 35 year-old, no less.  Being 60+  years ourselves, we wisely kept our mouths shut.

 

As we arrive for tonight’s dinner, our focus shifts to the family who will open their home and their hearts to us.  We stand at nearly 11,000 feet in Zhongdian in the Yunnan Provence, surveying the courtyard where in the winter animals are brought from the hills.

There is a small tractor and a barn on the ground floor that in the coldest months helps heat the rooms above.  Our host for the evening, a 14 year-old girl with timid eyes, escorts us to the second floor, where we enter a large room with beautiful lacquered wood corbels and intricate painted details.  A wood-burning cooking area with smoke escaping through the ceiling captures our attention while two bare light bulbs bracket low couches and a table where we will eat.

Standing in the corner is 84 year-old great-grandma.  Her eyes are anything but timid. After our young host finished showing us additional rooms and a storage area for mounds of yak butter, great-grandma catches Chuck’s eye and she pats a space beside her on a low bench by the fire.  When we sit down she motions with gnarled hands as she speaks to us.

Our guide is in another part of the room.  But it is okay as we smile and great-grandma goes right on talking. Dinner is accompanied by yak-butter tea and Baijiu [a Chinese rice-based alcohol].  We refuse nothing and enjoy it all.  Chuck shows our young hostess his camera, which immediately breaks down what’s left of her reserve, and she laughs when seeing pictures of friends taken today in the city.   The room has filled with mom, dad, sister and cousins.  Our guide tells them Kathie dances ballet, so a trade is arranged.  They will dance for us if Kathie hoofs her way through a few steps. And then they dress us.  With rough-skinned hands the women wrap and cinch us while everyone laughs at how we look.

Following more pictures, the women, generations four, three and one (two is not there), perform a line dance that shines with tradition.  Kathie joins them and, along with the youngest, soon matches the footsteps while soft Tibetan words are sung by the elders.  Dad stands to the side with a warm smile as he watches his family with seeming amusement.  Chuck catches the 8 year-old sister, with huge wide-open eyes and lips set in a firm line, as she stares hard at him through the barrel of his camera lens. On the way back to the hotel, our guide is moved to comment that something unusual happened here tonight.  We are not the first to be brought to this home, but before, our hosts did not dress the guests and great-grandma remained strictly in the background.

There is a message here: what you give can determine what you will receive. AsiaTravel presents opportunities.  They put you in position to experience something special but if you want it, you have to put a bit of yourself out there; you must be the one to build a platform that supports everybody to open themselves. Consider this from the host’s perspective.  By sharing a bit of yourself, you become something more than a tourist there to be fed and watch the Native Show.  You interact with them “as people” and that raises the level of how meaningful this is for everyone.

Whether it is a Tibetan night of extending hands of friendship – or listening to a proud father in a Beijing hutong home tell you about his successful martial arts instructor son living in Houston – or two weeks’ worth of cultural immersion with warm and eager guides – if you want to maximize the value of what you paid just to get here, you must go beyond simply seeing what is around you.  You must jump in.  And, as you say goodbye you too can hear, “I’m very western.  We can hug.”

Chuck & Kathie Neuenschwander

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Photo credit: Kristen Kuan, a AsiaTravel traveler

We were saddened to hear of the passing at age 78 last week of Liang Congjie, a pioneering Chinese conservationist to whose legacy we owe a great deal.

Though unheralded and relatively unknown outside of China, Liang played a central role in the development of the contemporary Chinese environmental movement and protection of some of our favorite pristine wilderness areas in China.

In 1994 Liang founded Friends of Nature, China’s first environment-focused non-governmental organization (NGO). Over the next 16 years he and the staff of Friends of Nature worked tirelessly to educate the Chinese public about environmental issues and encourage the government to strengthen conservation laws and enforcement.

It is hard for us to imagine losing the mile-high cliffs of majestic Tiger Leaping Gorge, one of the great natural wonders of not only China, but also the world. But that might have happened if Liang’s organization had not campaigned against a hydropower project in the gorge and won a last minute reprieve from China’s top leadership.

Friends of Nature won other practical victories in areas such as a dam project on the upper Salween River, the poaching of Tibetan antelope and illegal harvesting of virgin forests. But it also left a less tangible impact by inspiring and paving the way for the thousands of environmental groups that operate in China today.

We offer our condolences to Liang’s family and friends and our deepest thanks to all those who have followed his call and are working to keep China wild.

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Photo credit: Rangichangi Roots