China is the country that after Italy has the highest number of UNESCO sites. The historical and architectural heritage of this country is amazing. Its thousand-year history, its cuisine, its traditions will quickly fascinate the traveler.
I came to China, driven above all by curiosity, by the desire to discover such an important Asian country, being me so attached to this Continent. During my years in Asia, I met several people who had been there, and having lived in Japan for a short time, I wanted to observe and see with my own eyes what I had often heard, that is, how different these two countries, China and Japan were. It is incredible how much China and Japan, linked originally and in the past by history, language, and culture, have almost nothing to do with each other in culture, behavior, traditions, and cuisine. Another curious aspect is due to the fact that in almost every big city in the world, there is a “China Town” and with this trip, I had the opportunity to get to know that country and that people who emigrated to almost every corner of the earth.
WHAT IMPRESSED ME MOST ABOUT CHINA? WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR GOING THERE?
-
Beijing. This city really surprised me. I expected to find a gray and polluted city, but it will be for the favorable climate, characterized by blue skies and fresh air, I found a city, with many people on bikes, or electric scooters, with different green areas, a lot of history, a city really interesting for to stay at least three / 4 days.
-
The Great Wall of China. Spectacular. I chose to go to Jinshanling, quite far from the city, and not easy to reach where we didn’t meet many people! Walking on the great wall on a beautiful autumn day was one of the highlights of my travel month for me. Worth the whole trip!
-
Pingyao a beautiful city suspended in time, where you feel to be living in old times.
-
Xi’an. The ancient capital of China. People go to these parts especially to reach the famous terracotta army, certainly fascinating, but definitely invaded by too many people and not very enjoyable. Xi’an is a modern city that is trying to promote and recover its past, its history and its traditions made of famous temples and the ancient walls of the old city, in my opinion, one of the most interesting parts of the city. In particular, I found the way of Calligraphy special and authentic, an area where the buildings have been restored keeping the traditional look and where many artists have settled who sell their works of calligraphy and classical painting. Another interesting place is the food market, the right place to taste street food! The food market is certainly the part of my visit that most excited me and that made me enter even more into the spirit and culture of the country.
-
One of the places I most wanted to visit during my stay in China was Zhangjiajie National Park. Here, it seems that James Cameron took inspiration for his Avatar movie, so how could I not have visited “Pandora”? I spent two days in this National Forest Park, Unesco heritage, and China’s first national park. My expectations were really high and this, in general, is very risky, but my expectations were not disappointed, because this place is simply magical … I had the opportunity to be surrounded by nature and all the silence, something really rare in this country! This park, unique in its kind with breathtaking views, is certainly one of the most beautiful natural areas I have ever seen so far!
-
Yunnan province. Finally the kind of China I was looking for… a bucolic image of a China that is increasingly difficult to find. If I were to return to China, I would certainly return to these parts and stay there for a while. No more tourist sites, only nature, ethnic minorities, and nature. I started from Dali, and although people have said that this ancient city has changed a lot and that many houses have been rebuilt, you can enjoy a nice, authentic atmosphere and you can meet some of the many ethnic minorities of this Province. From Dali, I decided to head to Shangri-La or Zhongdian (the real name). The Chinese government, with the aim of encouraging tourism, changed its name following the Shangri-La novel. Its territory was part of Tibet before the Chinese annexation, after which it was assigned to the Yunnan province. I have seen many Buddhist temples and monasteries, but the Songzanlin Monastery or “Little Lhasa” that I have visited here is one of the ones that touched me most. I dare not imagine how wonderful Tibet can be!*
-
There is another area of this immense country that has been honored by writers, poets, and painters for its rural and bucolic landscapes, the Guanxi province. Before heading to the famous Yuangsho, I decided to stay one night in Xinping on the advice of other travelers met in other stages and it was a really good idea because this location is much smaller than Yuangsho but it is just as beautiful, and still quite authentic, despite the number of tourists. From here you can make beautiful excursions on foot in the mountains or along the river where you can take a photo of the landscape imprinted on the 20 yen banknote (be prepared to queue sigh). Despite the bad weather, Yuangsho was the perfect ending for this long journey for me, cycling on the hills in a green and relaxing landscape with the other travelers I met on my way … Here, I spent my last evening eating noodles and delicious dumplings, drinking Tsing Tao beer, talking about how amazing Italian food is, and listening to good music like Eddie Vedder, all this on a roof in front of Li River, I couldn’t have asked for anything better!
It was the most tiring, difficult, even tiring journey, for the language barrier, for long-distance travel, for the huge stations such as airports, for all the rules to follow, for a culture so different and sometimes so demanding to deal with, but in the end, I survived, also thanks to the Chinese people who despite the inability to speak with me have helped me on several occasions …
Overcoming many difficulties and being able to learn makes you even stronger and above all makes you
Xièxiè
* China is a very controversial country, for which I have been fighting until the end whether to go there or not, because of governmental political issues within the country but also towards other territories such as the Tibetan issue to which I am very close. I decided to leave anyway, because I came to the conclusion that if we were to exclude countries for their political choices, then we should really exclude many.