2008 China Trade Mission Trip

First off, let us say that we thoroughly enjoyed the whole trip.  It was definitely well-organized and well executed.  The tour guides were great, the hotels were great, the food was wonderful.

That said, our favorite things were the Grand Canal/old Chinese market tour, the Forbidden City, and the Hutong Tour.  We both also enjoyed the people - especially the children.  Fred was particularly taken by the way that the "old China" exists right alongside the 21st century China.  Somehow it all seems to work, which is amazing!  I also enjoyed the visit to the Lingyin Temple.

Mary and Fred Thurman

 I was thrilled to see the site for the 2008 Olympic Games.  China is such a beautiful country and after being closed for so many years, even though still under Communist Rule, we were welcomed.

Our two escorts, Dan and Celery, were examples of well educated and extremely knowledgeable about their country’s history.

The children were smiling and saying “hello” everywhere we went.

Without a doubt, if the occasion arose to go to China, I would be the first to raise my hand.

Barb Lester

I think the highlight of the trip for me was the Buddhist temple. I have always been fascinated by that religion. I was also very pleased with the friendliness and helpfulness of the people. The silk factory was another of the things I found very interesting.  

 Reta Leslie-Boise

One thing that stands out on our trip to Xi’an is that we had a great tour guide, Lilly, who really made our time together great. She was very good about explainingeverything to us, she never sat down on the bus, she consistently gave us info on what we were seeing, where we were going, what were going to eat, the history of China and just great stories. She was a real delight.

The Terra cotta Warriors were outstanding, well worth the additional $450 we were charged for the side trip. Once we walked into the excavation site it really took my breath away. It was such a huge area and only the first pit we were to see. The soldiers were so amazing. It was educational and just an overall fabulous site.

The best part of being there that day was seeing one of the farmers who discovered the site by digging a well on their property, he was there signing books! That just added to the already incredible day of sites and history.

At the end of our tour we all met at the Tea House on the museum grounds and were treated to a Tea tasting, it was a wonderful way to end our tour of the Warriors.

When I signed up for this trip I thought it would be a trip of a lifetime and I would probably only be going to China once, but if the trip were offered again I would definitely go again. The service, the food, the company, the guides, the sites and the laughs were all fantastic!

Jill Bellis  

We really began our "trip of a lifetime" at Grays Harbor College with Mr. Lerych who took us all on a journey throughout China every Sat. morning for a month.  So, right from this beginning our trip was thoughtfully planned out.

Beijing Airport was something to behold - so futuristic really.

All our hotels were 5*s with beds so comfortable and breakfasts sumptuous, including Chinese breakfasts as well with beautifully prepared food.

Lunch and dinners were all very nice with diversified dishes, some old favorites and some new and different.  Especially memorable was our rickshaw ride to a private family luncheon held in their outside room.  They were so warm and kind to us and we felt as though they were old friends welcoming us home.

We loved experiencing the local people doing their everyday activities like tai chi, playing chess, singing, dancing, hockey soccer, and taking meticulous care of their grounds, constantly sweeping and keeping everything clean and orderly and quite beautiful.

Kunming Lake, the Temple of Heaven, all the parks and incredible gardens, the boat ride on the Grand Canal and that local market where we saw eels, turtles, chickens,  outside stoves and people cooking on their woks, were some of the things that stand out.  Also the Bullet Train which only lasted a short while but certainly was an experience we will never forget.

The "hands on" silk factory where we could observe the entire process (including stretching the silk from the cocoon), the mind-boggling embroidery art, the Chinese rugs, cloisonné, pearl and jade factories and the tea plantation were all amazing to us.

I will still never forget that 90-minute full body massage.

I guess we could have done without the pharmacy and Chinese Medicine harangue but I suppose if it is important to them we can at least listen - not so long though!

Loved the people and especially the children.  Mike says he thought there was too much shopping but I loved it!

We had great guides, Nelson and Anne, and our small group of 14 was such fun and enthusiastic and we became a little family for 10 days.

And we also liked meeting up with some of the other groups from the Harbor sharing our experiences with them. 

And most of all our Helen was such fun and a real trooper and Leroy took such good care of everyone.  We all felt as though we were kids at camp on an exciting field trip and he was our head counselor!

Thank you to Leroy and Helen and Rosie and everyone else who planned this trip for us.  It was the best trip we have ever been on.

With this being my first trip to China, the whole trip was a new experience for me. ..even though I've been overseas before to other countries.

 Jane and Mike Cagan

My first impression was how organized the trip was!  Every hour was planned from the time we left, to the time we returned home.  My thanks go to the Chambers, the Trade Commission, and the Chinese for this.   When flying into Beijing, I was impressed with the neat grids of fields, houses, skyscrapers and water ways.  On our initial arrival at the Beijing Airport, we were whisked through the lines and very quickly connected with our guides.  As a newcomer to this country, this gave me a better sense of comfort.  Our guide said we could take pictures of anything we wanted to (there were only two instances during the trip where we asked not to take pictures.)

The second impression was how much building was going on, especially from Shanghai to Suzhou.  China is booming!  Tons of  high rises and cranes erecting them. 

The food was awesome (never a missed meal and I gained 5 lbs!), the hotels were the best of what they seemed to have, the people were friendly and many of them seemed fairly happy even if they did not live in the best circumstances by our standards.

I was surprised we were taken to the Hutong and on the boat ride in Suzhou.  However, most people seemed satisfied and a lot of building and remodeling was being done.  I did enjoy and appreciate the fact that we were able to enjoy these areas 

It was wonderful to see the Great Wall, (one of the wonders of the world), The Imperial Palace, the Temple of Heaven, a Ming Tomb, and my favorite in Beijing, the Summer Palace ( we were lucky while there, the weather was perfect!)

In Suzhou my favorites were the beautiful Tiger Hill Park and the boat ride.  The Lingering Garden was nice, but not that colorful at this time of year and since we were there during a 3 day Chinese Holiday, there were people everywhere.

In Hangzhou we all enjoyed the Lingyin Temple, the tea plantation, and the West Lake boat ride (I wish could have spent the rest of the day at this lake as the weather was good and I could have taken more pictures.)

Shanghai was huge, but not my favorite.  We were lucky in that we arrived there in the evening and stopped at The Bund as it was getting dark.  Our guide Serena said there were usually more lights, but due to the big winter storms in China not all the electricity was back.  It

was still a lovely night scene.  Our full day in Shanghai included a lot of RAIN!  It wasn't noticeable until we had to catch our bus for the last show.  Since the street we were shopping at was for tourists, etc, the tour buses were not allowed down this long street.  Most of us were

soaked when we went to the show, but we dried off fast and forgot all about it because the show was fantastic!!

Our group also went on the fast Magley Train, it wasn't on the schedule, but those of us who went were glad we did.

Everyone enjoyed all the factories, jade, pearl, silk, embroidery, silk rug making, and cloisonné.  I was looking forward to the silk factory and wasn't disappointed.  Even though they did not have what I wanted, I really enjoyed it and was impressed.

If I were to go again, I would want to shop more in the local markets or stores.  We only had about 2 hrs to do this on the last day.

However, I want to say I enjoyed almost every hour of this trip and I'm glad I went.

Carolyn Kramer

 My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed the China Trip   We traveled with 21 others in a group that dubbed itself “ China Clan 5”  from the Grays Harbor Chamber of Commerce (CC).

 In Xian and the surrounding area, we saw not only the Terra Cotta Warriors but also walked on the wall built around the old city, learned about the Banpo people, and watched the making of the famous Chinese noodles.  An evening was spent enjoying Classical Chinese Cultural Show … fabulous dancers and instrumentalists.

Emperor Quin Shihuang’s Terra Cotta warriors were discovered in 1974 by farmers digging a well.  Seven thousand  warriors, charioteers, horsemen, bowmen, horses etc. representing full battle formation have been restored and stand in pit no. one where they were discovered.  All three pits are protected by massive buildings built over them.  It is hard to overstate the scale of this “exhibit”.  Considered the 8th Wonder of the World, the Chinese hope to discover the emperor’s tomb and believe it would be the 9th Wonder of the World.  Prior to visiting the site itself, we toured a workshop where reproductions are being made and had every opportunity to bring back miniature to full-size reproductions … some made with terra cotta, others in jade. 

Near Xian we visited restored “village” of the Banpo people and viewed their archeological dig.  A Neolithic village of 6000 years ago, the  Banpo were a matriarchal society where the women picked their concubines from the nightly promenade in the village center.  The women organized production and made pottery, did weaving and raised domestic animals while the men did the hunting, fishing and fighting.  During the “cultural revolution” artists had to move to that area.  The result was that the farmers begin painting.  Numerous reproductions and originals were available.

 At our noon meal that day we watched noodles being made from dough and had the opportunity to sample them.  Wheat grows in that area, so noodles rather than rice are more prevalent.

A real treat was to walk on the wall built around the “old” city of Xi’an.  Three story buildings are on top as well as numerous small buildings.  It’s probably 50 feet across the top.  One can bike or ride the wall if there is time.  It was surrounded and is still partly surrounded by a moat.  The Chinese are in the process of moving the people outside the city wall in the effort to restore more of the old city as well as build hotels for the tourists they expect to come. 

Ellen Pickell

My most memorable (and spiritual) experience was visiting the Lingyin Temple and having the opportunity to be present during the monks morning chanting. So beautiful it brought tears .

The entire trip was amazing.

The food was delicious, accommodations excellent, and tour guides/bus drivers a pleasure. The only downside was, speaking from a photographer's point of view, there was not enough time allotted for photos, in particular at the Lingering Gardens and Summer Palace.

I would recommend this trip tp anyone who wants to see as much as possible in 8 days.

Sue Messenger