Travel Planning: First stop, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

While Guiyang is feeling more and more like home, Lizzy and I are ecstatic to see more of China.  Spare moments are now devoted solely to travel planning.  We have ambitious travel plans and with the help of friends we've met during our local adventures and Lizzy's friends from years past, we are confident we can cover all of the sights on our China bucket list in the 29 days we have to travel.

Here's a sneak preview of what we have planned:

We will spend the first week of the trip exploring Yunnan Province.  Friends, locals, and our cooperating teachers all recommend seeing Yunnan.  Today, we booked our first flight for May 1:  Guiyang to Kunming.  From Kunming, we will take an overnight train to Old Town Lijiang, a UNESCO World Heritage Centre.  While in Lijiang, we plan to hike the Tiger Leaping Gorge and spend time wandering the crooked cobblestone streets.

Lizzy and I are perfect travel buddies as we're accustomed to working as a team.  We also have the similar travel ideologies: if it's a UNESCO site, it's a must see; if there's a minority group, explore their village, and just like in the U.S., the more National Parks, the merrier!

From Lijiang, we will take a bus to Shangri-la.  Shangri-la is the closest we can get to Tibet and with an average altitude of over 9,800 feet, it is only accessible by motor vehicles.  I have no doubts that this will be one of our most adventurous bus rides.  Visiting Shangri-la will give us a chance to experience Tibetan culture.  We will explore Songzalin Monastery, Yunnan's largest Tibetan Buddhist Monastery and will take in this remote location's natural beauty.

Here is a map of our itinerary.  As you can see, we will cover a lot of ground.  


Guiyang to Kunming to Lijiang to Shangri-la to Chengdu to Xi'an to Beijing to Guiyang to Shanghai

Thank you for following along with us on this epic adventure.

Natalie

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