China 2006: The Ritz Tours itinerary is in italics.
6 May, Day 1, Saturday, Onboard (left 1:30am, arrive 5:30am -13+hour flight):
We start our vacation by boarding an international flight bound for Beijing, the capital of modern day China, cross the international date line and spend the night aboard our plane.
7 May, Day 2, Sunday, New Otani Hotel:
Arrive at Beijing. After clearing customs and baggage retrieval, we are met by our guide and transferred to our five-star accommodation. With no
sightseeing planned for the evening, what is left for the rest of the day is spent at leisure.We arrived in Beijing at 0530, 13-hour flight - little sleep- and went to a nice hotel, big breakfast, rooms ready 8:15. No blue overnight bag - must have left it on the bus. We would walk, rest, walk, rest - all day. Felt terrible. It is bad to be out of sync. Since no overnight case, bought hairspray, but other cosmetics too expensive. Also bought extra water at grocery store. Had our evening meal at the Noodle Restaurant. Big bowl, some drank the soup, too. Edie had pork and I had one prawn with noodles. Noodles were like fine spaghetti. Blue Bag was delivered to our room about 8 pm, so Edie slept better. All her pills were in the blue bag…
8 May, Day 3, Monday, New Otani Hotel:
A full day tour of Beijing, the capitol of China. We visit Tiananmen Square. Built in 1651, it is the world’s largest public square. The next stop is the forbidden City, home to the emperors during the Ming and Qing dynasties. We then proceed to the Summer Palace and Kunming Lake to stroll amongst the beautiful and regal pavilions. Enjoy a Peking Duck
Feast tonight.Guides are Rick, the Beijing guide who picked us up at the airport, and
Ocean, who will be with us for the whole tour. Both are well informed and good.
The entire group is the eight of us plus the two guides and bus driver. Jim and
Barbara are from St. Augustine, FL, Bruce and Chris from Venture, CA, Mary and
Homa from San Diego, CA. and Edie and I from NC.
First
stop, Tiananmen Square. Tiananmen means Gate of Heavenly Peace. Officially named in 1949 by Mao when he became Chairman of the PRC. He served until 1976. Just beyond the Square is the Forbidden City and the Imperial Palace, built 1406-1420. There were lots of Dragons. They make dragons with great imagination - add antlers, hooves, etc., etc.-, each symbol adding some meaning. The buildings were framed with wood. Much Sandalwood brought from Burma. The Palace had 3 main buildings, each named for some phase of harmony. The emperor would dress in one, practice in another, and give his proclamation in the third. Education was deemed very important by Confucius, and there are now many degrees to achieve higher status. Saw a huge rock carving. Rock was brought into the Forbidden City by sliding it on ice. Gets to about 0 degrees F here.
Nice lunch, over 14 item on a big Lazy Susan in the middle of
the table. On to the Summer Palace, a place revered by one Empress, the Dragon
Lady. The stones in gardens are limestone from Tai Lake at Wuxi, Jiang Su
province. The statues were of Dragons for men and Phoenix, the mythical bird,
for women. Got pictures of the Blue Iris Stone which was big, and the Marble
Boat on Lake Kunning. 
Boat ride on the lake and bus to hotel. Went to a Peking Duck
specialty house for dinner. Six floors if a big building with nothing but dining
for Peking Duck. Pretty good hors d’ oeuvres. One small glass of ultra sweet
wine, even sweeter than the original Scuppernong back home. Saw duck sliced ,
and then we put duck slices into a tortilla and made a burrito with some soy
sauce. 
Not much to it. Skin was overly greasy and tasteless. Another tourist food. Soup served later, and three pieces of leftover cake. Not too impressive, and then I left my plastic fork….. Couple of the girls went for a foot massage tonight.
9 May, Day 4, Tuesday, New Otani Hotel:
Today’s highlight is the Great Wall. It spans thousands of miles across China’s northern region and was built as a defense against marauders. We walk atop a section of the Wall and appreciate its imposing wonder. Our afternoon destination is the Ming Tomb Museum. This evening we dine at our hotel.
The peony is the national flower of China, also called "China
Rose". Stopped at Changlin Mausoleum (1436) on the way to the Wall.
Stopped at the Friendship Store and toured and shopped there before lunch. Saw
vases made using copper and copper wire, which they solder, then added color and
glaze (Cloisonné). Bought a vase. Lunch was best yet. Very good. Went to
the Great Wall, first built in Confucius’ time, about 2500 years ago. Got to
be 10,000 miles long. Dirt mound first. In the Warring Period, about 221, they
wanted to unify China, so tore it down. It was later rebuilt using stone and
mortar. Genghis Khan, Mongol, broke through the wall in 1234. In the Ming
dynasty it was rebuilt again. Needed to protect from the Manchurians, who were
hunters. 
On mountain ridge for the most part. Dammed steep in places. Walked up for an hour, back in 20 minutes.
Got some dresses and suits for the girls. Lost my pencil and pen…. To the Jade factory, government run. Got lecture on quality of jade. Bruce from CA got a frog for his wife. Homa got a nice necklace. Traffic was terrible at 6:30 when we went back to the hotel. Buffet dinner with shrimp, salmon, etc. in hotel.
10 May, Day 5, Wednesday, New Otani Hotel:
Two full days of sightseeing has left us in need of some free time. Enjoy a full day of leisure. Take time to explore Beijing at your own pace or perhaps take an optional tour to the Hutongs of Beijing Old Town.
Took the Hutong Tour with a rickshaw ride into an "Old Town" area.
Visited a kindergarten, ages 2 to 6. Had lunch with a local family, but
special for us. Lots of good food, and had a good discussion of family life
there after lunch. 
Visited Prince Gong garden and had demonstration of making several kinds of
tea. 
Rock was both slate and Lake Tai limestone. Visited Lama Temple built in 1694. It has a wooden Buddha 26 m high carved from one Sandalwood tree. Much, much incense burning….
11 May, Day 6, Thursday, Sheraton Hotel:
We complete our Beijing tour by visiting the Temple of Heaven;, the site where emperors prayed to the heavens for a bountiful harvest. Board a flight to Xian, the historic starting point of the famed silk Road. Upon landing at Xian, we head to our hotel and enjoy our dinner at the hotel tonight followed by an entertaining stage opera of the Tang Dynasty.
Temple of Heaven, 1420. Place for Emperor to pray for good harvest. Glazed,
blue tile roof. Elaborate paintings in trim. Had animal (calf) and jade
sacrifices, bells, music, fire (for calf), and burned incense. 
Outside many, many current retirees were singing, dancing, and playing games. Big, happy crowds. Another good lunch. Flight to Xian was hot. Xian is an old capitol, now has 8 million people. Came in rain. Had a great buffet dinner, excellent beef, too. Always have a free beer or sprite. On Thursday evening, we went to an opera about the Tang Dynasty, and it was a day earlier than scheduled. Had a live classical Chinese orchestra. It was very spectacular. Sometimes there were over 100 actors on stage in elaborate costumes.
It is a restaurant, too, and many tourists ate there first. In the opera we were very sleepy, a shame…
12 May, Day 7, Friday, Sheraton Hotel:
An army of 6,000 Terra-Cotta Soldiers guard the tomb of the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. We witnessed this incredible archeological discovery firsthand. Afterwards, we go to see the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. Tonight we are served a delicious Imperial Dumpling Banquet.
Rain quit today, but cloudy. We went to the Big, Wild Goose Pagoda. It is
seven stories high and has simple Tang architecture. The Japanese copied the
architecture and language. Monk studied Buddhism for 13 years in India,
translating books. He brought them to Xian and built the temple to store the
books. The temple had nice wood carvings on the wall. 
At the Craft Center, we saw silk carpet made with 120, 300, and 500 knots/ft. carpet. There was also a jade factory there Then we had a hot pot lunch and cooked various foods in our own pot of hot water. We went to the Terra Cotta Museum, the main feature for the day. It had three sections and is very impressive.
We had a dumpling banquet for dinner, about 20 kinds. We had hors d’ voures before, too, so were very full. We had rice wine, like coconut milk, and beer made from melons…. Tomorrow we have free time in the morning, then fly to Guilin.
13 May, Day 8, Saturday, Royal Garden Hotel:
Morning last visit of Xian including the massive City Wall and Bell tower. Board a short flight to Guilin, a city of unrivaled natural beauty. Karst limestone formations imbue Guilin’s landscape with a mystical quality
Free morning. Went for a walk along the street. There were many restaurants.
Also, car dealers and repair shops. Had a big firecracker occasion. It was a
wedding, a Saturday affair here. They have them in restaurants, or at least the
reception, and the guests dressed very casually. Even had one at our hotel. 
We then visited the Bell Tower, and passed through the city wall a few times.
Edie found a sort of Chinese clock. Not the right one yet… Had a late lunch, and then went to the airport. Flight to Guilin was full of tourists. Ate again on the plane, and then once more when we reached the hotel which was right along the Li River. The Karst topography is all over the landscape.
14 May, Day 9, Sunday, Royal Garden Hotel:
A meandering river cruise down the Li River is a delightful way to savor the serene, fairy-tale scenery of Southern China. We may even catch the fascinating sights of fisherman with cormorant birds! Enjoy lunch aboard. We return back to Guilin and explore the Reed Flute Cave where fantastic stalactite and stalagmite formations impress us as magical and otherworldly. Tonight, we are treated to a dinner show of China’s Minority Folklore Dance.
It is Mothers‘ Day and a special day for a lot of Moms at the hotel who are
adopting children from the area. There were a lot of them, with their children,
waiting for clearance. We are going to Li River tour today, and passed a brick
factory and lots of rice. Two crops a year here. Just planting the first now.
Some nurseries and truck farming, too, trellised beans or
something. The Li river tour was great, lasting about four hours with lunch.
Very unique, shear hills. 
Lunch only fair for Edie. Lots of beer for Fred. Then we went to the Reed Flute Cave. Stalactites and stalagmites, etc., some big rooms, too. It was pretty spectacular. Good lighting. Then we went to Elephant Trunk Park - not much there. Then we went to the University Art Museum which had a nice campus. Then we went to dinner at the hotel and afterwards to a folk dancing program.
15 May, Day 10, Monday, Renaissance :Hotel:
Board a flight to Shanghai where upon arrival we board a bus that takes us to the picturesque canal town of Suzhou. Suzhou’s many excellent gardens have entitled it the name of "garden City" and "Venice of the East".
Leaving Guilin. Many scooters and motorcycles on the way to the airport. They
use helmets with little visors, sometimes a face shield. Took the plane to
Shanghai. At lunch, we had our own room, special tea pouring and a couple of
folk dances by two girls. 
Shanghai has seventeen million people, 6 million bicycles, on 6,300 km2. We took the bus to Suzhou; 6 million people on 8000 km2. Suzhou = Su City, or Watertown. Is also known as a Garden City.
16 May, Day 11, Tuesday, Sheraton:
Our sightseeing tour of Suzhou this morning takes us to the Humble Administrator’s Garden and the Grand Canal. A stop has also been scheduled at a Silk Factory where we see firsthand how the excellent Chinese silk is produce. Continue on by bus to Wuxi, where we overnight.
Most fantastic hotel, and next to a nice park. 
The streets were wide and the city clean, a high-class town. We went to the
Garden of the Humble Administrator. It has three parts,
built first in 1509. We went on to the Silk Factory and saw the process from
silk worms on mulberry leaves to spinning, and weaving. Did not buy the
comforter or sheets, but did succumb to a silk shirt. Crossed the Grand Canal
started 2500 years ago. It was 2500 km long at first and is still 1700 km. Many
canals make Suzhou the Venice of China and they live on these canals. 
Water from Tai Lake keeps the canals supplied and flushed. On to Wuxi.
17 May, Day 12, Wednesday, Sofitel Oriental:
In the morning we tour Lake Tai, a large fresh water lake containing over forty small islands and known locally as a producer of the most excellent fresh water pearls. Later we board our bus for our ride back into Shanghai.
Wuxi is a big city and we are downtown. Poorest hotel yet, but okay. Wuxi = No tin. They had a tin mine and fought a lot. When the tin gave out, then there was peace. Now it is a high tech town, IT stuff, home of Sony. It ranks 8th in China n GDP and is beautiful, not crowded.. Very old, over 3000 years. The Grand Canal is here, too. Its population is about 5 million. Lake Tai, short for Taihu, is 2400 km2, 3rd largest in China, is misty much of the time. Lake stones were collected for 1000 years and are now gone. The lake averages only 2 m deep. They raise clams for fresh water pearls, harvesting 650 T/yr worth $170 million and they export 70%. We went to Turtle Neck Park.
There was a monastery here 1400 years ago. Along the entry there were some
beautiful Coreopsis, now wild as they were spreading. Quite a few other flowers,
too. Couple of Lake Tai stones in garden. Rock on the edge of the lake is
different. We visited a pearl factory. It takes 20 years to get a 10 mm pearl.
They had both natural and cultured pearls. Had white,
pink, purple, black, and gold, the latter the most rare, pearls. If you rub a
pearl on a mirror, it will leave a streak, fake pearls will not. We went on to
Shanghai, The hotel room has a nice bath, but the room is dark, ill-arranged,
and not too clean. But the lobby had beautiful flowers and live
entertainment. 
We walked a bit before another great buffet dinner. Lots of seafood, caviar, etc. Afterward we, with Homa and Mary, went to the 46th floor for a night view of the city.
18 May, Day 13, Thursday, Sofitel Oriental Hotel:
Shanghai is China’s largest metropolis and its cosmopolitan center. Our tour of Shanghai takes us to Yu Garden, bustling Nanjing Road and the picturesque waterfront Bund. Continue our tour to see the famous Shanghai Museum. End the day by attending a special performance of Chinese Acrobatics.
Last tour day. We had rain on the reaches of Typhoon Chanchu, or "zhen
zhu" as it is called in Mandarin. The name means "pearl". Gentle
rain all day. Bought one of those $1 umbrellas and it worked great. We went to
the Bund first. Got pictures from across the Huang Pu River. 
It is fed from Tai Lake, too. Took pictures across the river, one with an Abbott sign. No picture on the old side which looks like Europe. We then toured the Hu Garden. It had a special Tai Lake rock, so porous that smoke from the bottom would come out the top or water in the top would come out the bottom, but my film had run out…… We stopped for shopping and found a better clock and a small Tai Lake rock for souvenirs. Heavy stuff to carry home. Had another nice lunch. Slower service this time. Then went to the Shanghai Municipal Museum. Big. Got in about three rooms: Minority group costumes, Jade, and Ceramics. We were out before five, but the traffic was terrible. Had quick dinner after driving over an hour. Best meal yet, though. Had a big plate, fork and knife, and chopsticks, of course. More veggies this time; broccoli and beans, plus the usual broccoli, celery, cucumbers, and cabbage. Several meals, too. To the theater for a Chinese Acrobatic show. Good show but we were pretty tired. Back to the hotel before 10.
19 May, Day 14, Friday, Onboard:
Bid a fond farewell to China as we board our homebound international flight.
Left hotel by 12. Flight out at 3pm. Arrived LA about 5:30pm same day. Into Phoenix just before 11. Bruce waiting.