Beijing's Jingshan and Beihai Parks

Almost everyone who comes to Beijing visits the Forbidden City, one of China's highlights. Afterward, most people go back to their hotel, or at least to a different part of the city. But if you cross the road to the north, you can visit lovely Jingshan Park (景山公园), in the exact center of Beijing. Not only is the park beautiful, with great views of the city and mountains, but is has some interesting history, as well. This is where Congzhen, the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty, fled after Beijing fell in 1644. Out of options, the emperor hung himself from a tree near the park's entrance.

Shui Dong Gou

While traveling through the Ningxia semi-autonomous region in north-central China, I had the opportunity to check out a unique site. Shui Dong Gou (水洞沟) is one of the oldest Paleolithic excavations in all of China. It features ancient skulls and tools, as well as some models of old houses. But mostly, Shui Dong Gou has become a tourist haven, with nonstop fun for everyone. Sometimes it was hard to tell what was original and what was a recreation, but Shui Dong Gou still made for an interesting day away from the big city. Did I mention there were tractor rides?

A Stroll Through Yinchuan

After seeing the Genghis Khan Mausoleum, I left Inner Mongolia for Ninxia Hui, a small autonomous region in north-central China. My first stop was Yinchuan, Ninxia Hui's small capital, with a population of 800,000. Being a Chinese city, everything there seemed interesting to me, from a lake on the city's northwest side, to a smallish mosque, to a pedestrian shopping street. Here are a few photos from my stroll through Yinchuan:

The Mausoleum of Genghis Khan

During my first few months in China, I traveled with Katie to northern Inner Mongolia, where we learned a lot about Genghis Khan and his legacy. I couldn't get enough, so a year later, when I heard about a giant memorial to Genghis Khan in the middle of nowhere, I decided that I couldn't miss out on the opportunity to see it.

Hiking on the Great Wall

The Great Wall is a highlight of any visit to China. What a lot of people don't know is that the wall doesn't exist in one continuous stretch. Instead, the Great Wall has many sections, some totally restored, others original. In many sections, you can walk for hours without seeing anyone. You can even camp on the wall. Beijing (my current home) is less than two hours from the wall, so I've had many chances to go, to different sections and in different seasons.

Beijing's Summer Palace

The Summer Palace undoubtedly is one of Beijing's highlights. It has nearly 900 years of history, during which many emperors have used the park and its fabulous pagodas as a summer retreat.

Beijing's Lantern Festival Fireworks

The New Year fireworks in China make the largest Fourth of July displays in the US look like child's play. And rather than just one or two nights, the festivities continue for over two weeks. The fifteenth day of the new year marks the Lantern Festival. Supposedly this is a traditional holiday where people carried red lanterns to temples, symbolically letting go of their past selves. But this year in Beijing, all I saw were fireworks. Lots of them, spread all over the city. The rumbles and explosions echoed off of buildings for six hours straight. Here's a short video to give you an idea of what it was like:

Xian's Muslim Quarter, Part I

Xian's Muslim Quarter is a fascinating place. Located in the heart of the city, pedestrians pour into the streets every night to buy food and to people-watch. Some vendors shout to get your attention, others blast music from outdoor speakers. Not many cars brave the streets, but plenty of rickshaws and motorcycles force their way through the crowds, honking their horns the entire time. It's a loud and brash environment, and the energy is intoxicating. Most tourists only come to Xian to see the Terracotta Warriors, but you should also take some time to walk through the Muslim Quarter.

Seeing the Terracotta Warriors

In 1974 some farmers were digging a water well near Xi'an, China. They accidentally made one of the greatest archeological discoveries of the twentieth century, the terracotta army of China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang (秦始皇). Construction of the necropolis began shortly after Qin Shi Huang rose to power at age 13 in 246 BC. By the time of his death in 210 BC, the three pits containing the Terracotta Army contained 8000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 510 horses and 150 cavalry horses. This army was built to accompany the emperor in the afterlife.

I spent most of a day visiting the Terracotta Army. For me, the site lived up to the hype. The most impressive part was the minute level of detail. Every soldier had a unique face. Each strand of hair was individually carved. There was even tread on the bottoms of their shoes. Besides the opportunity to look at the soldiers themselves, there was a lot of information about the history of the army and its discovery. In fact, the Terracotta Army was one of my favorite sites in all of China.

The Pandas are Ling-Ling-Liscious!

The more I travel, the less I like zoos. The magic of seeing animals in cages is gone, especially when said cages are far too small for the megafauna they're housing. So it was with much reservation that I decided to visit the Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Chengdu, China. I just couldn't resist the draw of so many pandas in one place.

Luckily, from the moment I stepped inside, I could tell this was more than just a zoo. There were lakes and gardens and wide walkways, lined with bamboo. There was even a museum that informed visitors of the history of giant pandas and of conservation efforts. But of course, I had come to see the pandas. What were they like?