Introduction file= China2015
We had not done a trip to China
and were reluctant to try a self
drive trip there. A travel company,
Wendy Wu, based in Australia,
came very highly recommended.
They provided an ALL INCLUSIVE
trip with an experienced Chinese
tour guide, which seemed very
suitable for ALL our needs.
Every thing apart from personal
expenses were provided, including
all Airlines, International/domestic,
all accommodations, 4 star + (good)
all meals, taxes, visas, some extra
optional excursions were additional.
Our group size was 25 people,
mostly from Oz, & mostly couples
generally aged 60 to 70.(retirees)
The tour included all the must see
items in China, including :-
Shanghai city, 25 million.
Yangtze cruise and 3 the Gorges,
lasting 3 days, cities : Chongqing,
and Chengdu, including the Panda
reserves. Then fly to city of Xian,
with the Terracotta warriors...great.
 Then fly to Beijing to see the city
and visit the Great Wall of China.
This served no useful purpose !
As soon as we got to China, we were glad we had selected the Wendy Wu guided tour. Most towns
had directional sign also in English, but the traffic was VERY heavy, so our usual mode of self drive
cars, as we do in Europe and Nth America, was impracticable. All the pain of finding and booking
hotels and meals was eliminated, making the tour a pleasant experience.
Shanghai, 25 million, very modern Commercial Centre Parj was very impressed with the modern
buildings in Shanghai, having been a Project manager on many High Rise buildings in Australia. The
quality, especially rooftop designs which hid the ugly plant and machinery was excellent, and I am
advised the speed of construction was comparable to the best in Australia. It is difficult to digest  that
most of what we saw, has been achieved in the last 30 years, since the Communist regime was
relaxed to allow enterprise and reward for effort. They were very proud of what they had done.
We visited the CBD and the top of a tall lookout high rise, and travelled on the Mag Lev railway, between
the city and the airport. The standard of the hotels was at least 3.5 to 4 star, with good Chinese buffet
meals. Many Chinese in Shanghai spoke/understood English, and where required, our tour guide,
called Link, made arrangements. Link was a veritable "treasure" as he looked after all of us "OLDIES"
and called us Link's family.
The High rise buildings and numerous modern bridges over the Yangtze, were very impressive. We had
seen some of the recent bridges being built on Pay TV, but were still impressed by their planning and
quality. When we did the Mag Lev train trip, from the City centre to the Airport and return, the train
reached speeds of 431 kph. Bit faster than any of my old motorbikes, or old Porsche, BMW and 350Z ! 
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Some of the modern high rise towers in the
Hazy view of Shanghai, from river bridge. CBD, impressive. Rooftops were well done.
Hazy view from the top of one of the High rise towers
<--- Modern slender tower. The wind effects on this
building could be quite interesting. (slender aerofoil)
Garden walk in Shanghai, Parj got lost !
<--- Good view of Shanghai CBD.
During the Garden walk in Shanghai, we had 2 Wendy Wu groups, ours with LINK and the other with
GEORGE. At one stage, Parj got into Georges group in front, discovered his error, and waited for the 
LINK group which was behind. WE finally established contact by mobile phone and Parj re-joined the
LINK family. LINK was not amused, claiming he had not lost a family member in 5 years of guiding tours.
On this trip, the 1st day, he lost 2 people, other group members giving me "sullen" looks.
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