Take A Trek On The Wild Side Forget the Great Wall. Crystyl
Mo reports the way to see China these days is to hook
up with an adventure travel agency and explore the country's
remote hinterlands, far from the madding souvenir sellers
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New Wave: A growing flood of Chinese travelers
is not only changing the face of Asian tourism but the
complexion of their own country By CRYSTYL MO
Mention China, and for many foreign tourists two images spring
to mind: the Great Wall and a billion or so Chinese. Rosthwitha
Vogel was no different - until she signed on for a tour of
Guizhou, a remote, sparsely populated province in southwestern
China. "I saw China from a totally new perspective," she says.
"I had to revise many perceptions I had about China and its
people." Vogel, a German housewife who lives in Manila, was
struck by the friendliness of those she met - not Han Chinese
but colorful mountain tribesmen. "And the landscape!" recalls
Vogel. "The bright yellow of the flowering rapeseed fields was
breathtaking."
These days, travelers like Vogel are becoming more common: those
who eschew the predictable and opt for an alternative way to
view China. Realizing there's more to the country than the Great
Wall - with its hordes of camera-wielding tourists and obstreperous
T-shirt sellers - many foreign visitors are turning to a small
batch of adventure travel agencies specializing in itineraries
that wander far off the beaten path. Tours offered by these
groups include riding a camel along the Silk Road, bird watching
in Jilin near the Korean border, hiking in mountainous Sichuan
province, and cycling in Yunnan, whose diverse geography features
both tropical rain-forests and freezing highlands.
For her Guizhou trip, Vogel chose Wild China (http://www.wildchina.com/), an online
travel company founded by Harvard MBA graduate and Yunnan native
Zhang Mei. Wild China leads tours to some of the most pristine
regions in the country; travelers can expect to find themselves
in arduous hikes through rugged, sparsely inhabited terrain
- whether the mountain forests of Guizhou, the desert dunes
of Xinjiang or the windswept plateaus of Tibet - with nary
a souvenir stand in sight. But even at 3,300 meters (11,000
feet) above sea level, the company tries to maintain a certain
level of service. The tour guides pitch the tents, cook all
meals and even bring hot lemon tea right to the travelers' tent
flaps at the morning wake-up call.
Wild China's adventures are not limited to just taking in breathtaking
natural scenery far from the urban degradation of Chinese cities.
"One of the 'wildest' trips we have is a trip to a Catholic
area in northwestern Yunnan," says Zhang, describing a far-flung
district where Christian missionaries had preached 100 years
ago. "You can find these villages where they still do prayers
twice a day and sing hymns to God and Mary in Tibetan. Encountering
this type of cultural phenomenon is a very powerful experience
and makes you wonder about the power of faith."
Another popular adventure travel operator is Where There Be
Dragons (http://www.wheretherebedragons.com/).
Founded in 1992, Dragons started off as an educational tour
company, organizing academic programs in China for high-school
and college students from overseas. But when the students' parents
clamored to join in the adventure tours, the company expanded
to include adult-oriented trips. Among its offerings is a visit
to Mongolia for fly-fishing and rafting on the Onon River. The
trip includes a helicopter journey deep into the Gobi Desert
for safari camping.
Or you could choose to head farther west. This summer, Dragons'
director of admissions, Ben Macrory, is leading a 19-day exploration
of the Silk Road. In Kashgar, the travelers will ride camels
and drop by the legendary bazaars. Then they will visit the
nomads, sip the local brew of yak-butter tea and hike around
Heavenly Lake, a turquoise lagoon surrounded by alpine meadows
and the towering Tianshan mountain range.
Macrory says the last time he visited this region, his group
stumbled upon a remote nomad village while hiking in the mountains.
"Virtually no one spoke Chinese, except for one man who had
spent some time in the city," he says. That night, Macrory's
group stayed with the local families in their yurts. "The family
I stayed with had a few kids and at night they brought a couple
of yaks into the hut. It was a completely extraordinary experience
for our group."
Still not wild enough? Then you could try customizing your own
trip. In a bid to attract tourist dollars, Chinese authorities
have been opening up more of the country's remote regions to
outside visitors, and adventure travel operators can organize
an expedition to almost anywhere you care to explore. The trip
may last several days or a month and involve large or small
groups. Depending on the destination and the number of participants,
tour prices can range from $700 to $7,000 per person.
Or if you prefer something a little more conventional, the guides
can take you to . . . the Great Wall. Both Dragons and Wild
China lead groups to remoter parts of the edifice untrodden
by package tourists. There, you can hike, picnic and even camp
out for the night. Just don't expect to pick up an "I've been
to the Great Wall" T-shirt.
Commentary
2003-12-06
Coming soon to the commentary column--behind the scenes stories of the how the articles are really put together--the difficulty in getting anyone to accept an interview in China, the political sensitivities, the great stuff that got cut because of space, and much more about the joys and frustrations of writing in China
