Afternoon: Depart from the U.S. on overnight flights.

Afternoon: Arrivals. In the late afternoon, begin with a program overview and welcome.

Dinner: In the hotel.

Evening: At leisure.

Lodging: Qianmen Jianguo Hotel

Meals Included: Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: Discover the Forbidden City, the former seat and residence of Qing rulers and forbidden to all others. Explore this vast "city" from its formal reception halls to the residential chambers of the Emperor and his family of wives, concubines, and attendants.

Lunch: at a local restaurant

Afternoon: Walk through Tian'anmen Square. Meaning "Gate of Heavenly Peace," the square, set in the heart of Beijing, serves as the location of formal celebrations and ceremonies. More commonly, this huge piazza is where families come to stroll and chat and where kites and balloons abound. The rest of the afternoon is at leisure. Choose to return to the hotel or explore independently.

Dinner: Experience a Beijing specialty at a welcome banquet in a Peking Duck restaurant.

Evening: At leisure.

Lodging: Qianmen Jianguo Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel after early morning tai ji

Morning: Drive out to the Great Wall at Jin Shan Ling -- sometimes referred to as 'the Wild Great Wall' as it is not overly restored. Take a gondola lift to the upper part of the wall, then walk along its battlements and through watchtowers to experience magnificent views of the wall as it climbs and descends over the distant mountains.

Lunch: A picnic lunch is provided to enjoy in a spot of your choosing on the Wall.

Afternoon: Return to the hotel in the late afternoon.

Dinner: In your hotel.

Evening: At a nearby theater, enjoy a taste of Beijing opera, a unique art form that uses brilliant costumes, mannerized make-up, acrobatics and martial arts, various types of falsetto singing, and exuberant percussionists. The performance is presented with English and modern Chinese supertitles above the stage. Chinese Opera is an ‘acquired taste’ for Western ears.

Lodging: Qianmen Jianguo Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Before breakfast, tai ji instruction will be provided for those interested. Breakfast is in the hotel.

Morning: Explore an old hutong - the traditional residential lanes and alleys - to visit with local families in their courtyard homes. Walk or pedicab around the district that houses many historic residences, including the former home of Song Qing Ling, political activist and wife of Dr. Sun Yat Sen.

Lunch: Enjoy a simple family-hosted lunch.

Afternoon: The afternoon is at your leisure.

Dinner: Your choice to explore local fare.

Evening: at your leisure

Lodging: Qianmen Jianguo Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Breakfast: At the hotel.

Morning: This morning, explore the 15th century architectural masterpiece, the Temple of Heaven which symbolizes the relationship between heaven and earth. Walk the extensive grounds to the Temple itself or stay in its environs and enjoy the activities of local people practicing calligraphy, tai ji, musical instruments, dancing, or flying kites.

Lunch: a light lunch served on your flight to Luoyang.

Afternoon: Fly to the small city of Luoyang in Henan Province. Luoyang was one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is home to the extraordinary Longmen Buddhist cliff carvings.

Dinner: At the hotel or a nearby restaurant.

Evening: Enjoy a private introduction and demonstration of Chinese musical instruments at your hotel.

Lodging: Friendship Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel after early morning tai ji in the People’s Square just opposite your hotel.

Morning: Discover the Longmen Grottoes, 1,500-year-old Buddhist cliff carvings that overlook the Yi River. Learn about the creation and the meaning of one of China’s “three treasures” of stone carving.

Lunch: With families in Huaishuwan, an agricultural village.

Afternoon: Explore this Han village. Visit its primary school and speak with its teachers and students. If time permits, on your way back, stop at Luoyang’s old section in town.

Dinner: Your choice to explore local fare.

Evening: Practice Chinese conversation with your group leader.

Lodging: Friendship Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Breakfast: In the hotel after early morning tai ji

Morning: Travel by train to Xi’an.

Lunch: A box lunch is provided for the train.

Afternoon: Enjoy the views of rural life as the train ascends China's Yellow Soil Plateau. Here, the land is covered with a thick layer of wind-blown loess soil, that masks the original geography. The deeply-eroded landscape is marked by deep ravines and almost-vertical cliff faces. Observe holes and caves in the faces of cliffs, known as 'yaodong' and used locally as dwellings. Arrive in Xi’an mid-afternoon to explore Xi'an's nearby bustling Muslim section with its historic and beautiful mosque built in Chinese temple style.

Dinner: Dinner is at your hotel or nearby restaurant.

Evening: After dinner, visit the campus of Xi’an International Studies University to join their ‘Thursday English Corner’ – a weekly gathering of students and some local citizens who want to practice spoken English and with whom you can have informal chats.

Lodging: Grand Noble Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel after early morning tai ji.

Morning: At Xi'an International Studies University, one of China's key universities, you learn about Daoism, Buddhism and Confucianism as a way of understanding Chinese character and customs. After, visit the campus with students from the university's renowned English Department and learn about student life in China.

Lunch: at Xi'an International Studies University

Afternoon: Explore Xi’an History Museum, one of China’s finest and which provides an enlightening window into China’s dynastic history.

Dinner: Taste a selection of unique dumplings with amusing shapes and delicious variations in fillings -- a Xi'an specialty.

Evening: Join your Program Leader for informal instruction in useful Chinese conversational phrases.

Lodging: Grand Noble Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel after early morning tai ji.

Morning: Experience the unparelled wonder of an army of terra cotta warriors and graceful archers buried with a Qin Emperor and only uncovered in 1974 -- considered one of the most astounding archeological finds of the 20th century.

Lunch: at a nearby restaurant

Afternoon: Get together with your Program Leader for a discussion of Chinese government structure.

Dinner: at hotel or nearby restaurant

Evening: Meet with your group leader for a Orientation Session on High Altitude

Lodging: Grand Noble Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel after morning tai ji.

Morning: Depart for flight to Lhasa, the ancient capital of Tibet.

Lunch: a light lunch will be served in flight.

Afternoon: This afternoon, At Tibet University, learn about Tibetan Life, Culture, and Religion. Then explore Norbulingka, the summer palace of the Dalai Lama which contains his residential quarters. (Note that although Tibet uses ‘Beijing time,’ it is actually about 2 hours ‘later’ than Beijing. Your itinerary adjusts for this time difference.)

Dinner: In the hotel.

Evening: Practice Chinese conversation with your group leader.

Lodging: Tibet Dekang Hotel Lhasa

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: Explore the heart of Lhasa - Jokhang Temple, built in the 7th century. This is the most revered temple in Tibet, and the destination of pilgrims who journey by any means, even on foot, to worship here. Surrounding the temple, the Bokhor Bazaar offers an exciting array of Tibetan goods both old and new: Tools, cloth, thangkas, jewelry and yak hides.

Lunch: At a restaurant overlooking the bazaar, serving Tibetan and international dishes.

Afternoon: Walk to the nearby traditional Tibetan Medicine Hospital for an introductory talk by Dr. Chiwang, who explains the precepts of Tibetan medicine and treatments. Enjoy the hospital's colorful array of medical thangkas. Choose to return to the hotel or continue to the outskirts of Lhasa to experience the magnificent Drepong Monastery, Tibet's largest.

Dinner: In the hotel or nearby restaurant.

Evening: Discuss Tibetan culture and religion with your Tibetan guide.

Lodging: Tibet Dekang Hotel Lhasa

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel. Before breakfast, meet in the hotel courtyard to learn Gorshay, an exuberant circle dance.

Morning: Travel to Nomadic grasslands beyond Lhasa where pastoral families raise yak, sheep, goats and horses. If it is grazing season, visit with nomadic families and then observe Tibetan rural life in a small village. Visit its primary school and meet with its dedicated director.

Lunch: a picnic on a knoll beside the village.

Afternoon: On the way back, stop at the Tibet Museum, home to a rich collection of cultural relics, antique thangkas, scriptures, costumes, and folk art. For those who would like to continue on to your hotel, feel free to do so.

Dinner: Your choice to explore local fare.

Evening: Practice Chinese conversation with your group leader.

Lodging: Tibet Dekang Hotel Lhasa

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: Explore the Potala Palace, seat of the Dalai Lama and one of the most awe-inspiring princely residences and palaces in the world.

Lunch: At Lhasa cuisine restaurant

Afternoon: Learn about traditional Thangka painting (Tibetan religious scrolls) through a talk and demonstration by a Master at Tibet University.

Dinner: at your hotel

Evening: Enjoy a private Farewell Tibetan Dance and Singing party.

Lodging: Tibet Dekang Hotel Lhasa

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: Depart for flight to Chongqing, an independent municipality situated inside Szechuan Province and at the head of the navigable Yangtze.

Lunch: a light lunch will be served in flight.

Afternoon: At Chongqing Zoological Gardens, meet its giant pandas, indigenous to Szechuan Province only.

Dinner: at a restaurant near the Yangtze piers.

Evening: Board your Yangtze vessel and, as you depart, view the hill city of Chongqing at night.

Lodging: Victoria Cruise Lines

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Ship's Buffet

Morning: Discuss traditional Chinese medicine and consider the Yangtze's influence on China. Where possible, your national guide will also continue instruction in Tai Ji and Chinese conversation.

Lunch: ship's buffet

Afternoon: Visit a new village for relocated families. Explore their agricultural market and visit with a local family.

Dinner: Before a set dinner on board, the Captain invites you to a welcome reception.

Evening: Evening entertainment includes performances of Chinese music and dance

Lodging: Victoria Cruise Lines

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: ship's buffet

Morning: Today, pass through the magnificent Yangtze Gorges and cruise in sampans up a mini-gorge on a pristine tributary of the Yangtze where you can catch glimpses of red monkeys amongst the trees, goats clinging to the craggy cliffs, and 'hanging coffins' secured in the cliff face by the Ba people centuries ago.

Lunch: ship's buffet

Afternoon: Free afternoon to enjoy sailing on the river, ship's presentations, or Chinese language learning with your program leader.

Dinner: Set dinner in ship's dining room.

Evening: Enjoy an on-board performance of Chinese music and dance.

Lodging: Victoria Cruise Lines

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Ship's buffet

Morning: This morning, take a short coach ride to the Three Gorges Dam site. From an observation deck, you have a bird's-eye view of the dam, five-step ship lock, diversion canal, and power station. A nearby exhibition displays a dam model; a briefing will explain this project, one of the largest construction ventures ever.

Lunch: early lunch on board

Afternoon: Disembark in the Yangtze town of Yichang for a late afternoon flight to Shanghai.

Dinner: at a nearby restaurant.

Evening: If time permits, join your Program Leader for Chinese conversation.

Lodging: Four Points by Sheraton Daning Hotel Shanghai

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: in the hotel. Tai ji is offered before breakfast.

Morning: This morning, explore Shanghai Art Museum which houses China’s finest collection of ceramics, painting, sculpture, and bronzes. If you like, join your local guide for a ride on the Shanghai metro to the Museum stop – or take the coach.

Lunch: Coach to Shanghai's fashionable Xin Tian Di (New Heaven Earth) section. Explore its lanes, cafes, shops, and a small restored residence/museum independently. Take lunch of your own choosing.

Afternoon: Learn the background of new Shanghai at the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center. View archival photos and a vast scale model of Shanghai as projected in 2020.

Dinner: in a local restaurant

Evening: Acrobatics is considered one of China's performing arts 'treasures'. It has a history of thousands of years and figures in other genres such as Chinese opera. This evening, enjoy a performance by the famed Shanghai Acrobatics Troupe.

Lodging: Four Points by Sheraton Daning Hotel Shanghai

Meals Included: Breakfast, Dinner

Breakfast: at your hotel

Morning: Explore the Ming Dynasty Yu Garden in Shanghai’s historic district. The garden’s classical pavilions, fountains, and arching bridges exemplify traditional Chinese garden landscaping.Continue on to the riverfront Bund beside iconic art deco and neo-classic buildings stemming from Shanghai's history as a foreign 'concession'. View across the river 'new Shanghai' -- until recently undeveloped farmland and now a forest of glittering skyscrapers.

Lunch: Experience a delicious and imaginative vegetarian meal, supervised by monks at the active Longhua Temple.

Afternoon: Free time.

Dinner: Farewell Banquet in nearby restaurant.

Evening: At leisure.

Lodging: Four Points by Sheraton Daning Hotel Shanghai

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: In the hotel.

Morning: Departures. This program offers a post-program extension in Hong Kong. See program #19409.

Meals Included: Breakfast