9 th april DAYS

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1 INCLUSIONS Return group economy airfare Australia Shanghai Internal flights Hangzhou / Zhengzhou and Beijing / Shanghai Air-conditioned motorcoach throughout Deluxe accommodation for 19 nights Breakfast daily, 13 lunches and 12 dinners Guided tours of Beijing, Xian, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Suzhou Entrance fees to all gardens and sightseeing detailed in the itinerary Gratuities for local guides, porters and drivers Hotel porterage (one piece per person) Visa for Australian passport holders Fully escorted by a Chinese National Guide & our horticultural Guide - Paul Urquhart Journey back in time to the Middle Kingdom, a place where child emperors ruled, wonders of the world were built and the exquisite peony was the flower of royalty. Today s China is an oriental mix of old and new, join us to discover why. Please note: This tour requires a moderate level of fitness Your Horticultural Guide - Paul Urquhart Paul is an immensely experienced horticulturist and lifelong garden lover. He has a contagious enthusiasm for China and peonies! He will be joined by our Chinese National guide Sam Lui. PRICES DEPARTURE CITY TWIN SOLO adelaide $7999 $10,429 brisbane $7999 $10,429 melbourne $7999 $10,429 perth $7999 $10,429 sydney $7999 $10,429 Walk the Great Wall of China, the Sacred Way, Forbidden City, Terracotta Warriors and Temple of Heaven Catch the best of China s collections of ancient treasures Shop for silk, cloisonné, pearls and jade Marvel at millions of blooms at the National Peony Festival TOUR HIGHLIGHTS See the famous architecture from the Beijing Olympics Enjoy the peace and composition of 2000 year old Chinese master gardens Travel in a small group and make new friends Relax we ll take care of everything!

2 YOUR TOUR DAY BY DAY ITINERARY DAY 1 Meet your Tour representative Paul Urquhart in Shanghai. On arrival transfer to the 5 star Broadway Mansions hotel. We ll enjoy a welcome banquet in our hotel tonight. meals: Dinner DAY 2 We ll travel by coach this morning to Venice of the East, Suzhou. This ancient city is sited in a network of stone canals, bridges and meticulous gardens. We ll visit the picturesque 1000-year-old ancient water village of Tongli. Garden of Seclusion and Meditation and the UNESCO Heritage-listed Tuisiyuan Garden are also part of our morning s exploration. We ll sample some Chinese delights at a local restaurant for lunch. This afternoon check into your 5 star hotel, the Pan Pacific. stay: Pan Pacific Hotel, Suzhou DAY 3 Three excellent examples of ancient Chinese garden design today from different dynasties. The small masterpiece called Master of Nets Garden is a favourite with all our travellers; it dates from the Song Dynasty ( ) and features gardens within gardens and harmonious architecture. The arrangement of pavilions and gardens is very clever, so that a small area gives the impression of great size and variety. And we love the moon gates here! The wisteria and bamboo filled Lingering Garden, from the 16th century Ming Period, is considered one of the four classic gardens in Suzhou for its artful representation of nature in miniature scale. Wander over the wisteria-covered stone bridge to enjoy the views of mountain, lake and cloud shaped river worn rocks. This afternoon we ll visit Tiger Hill and the oldest pagoda in the city. Yanyansai Pagoda was first built in the Sui Dynasty ( ) and re-built in 961AD in the Song Dynasty. Nearby an ancient collection of bonsai is not to be missed. stay: Pan Pacific Hotel, Suzhou DAY 4 We step back to the 16th century with our morning visit to the Humble Administrator s Garden. Through lacy curtains of early spring willow overhanging cool green pools are timber pavilions and bright azaleas and wisteria. There are perfectly composed pictures at every turn. This complex garden was built by the Imperial Inspector Wang Xianchen from the Ming Dynasty. Visit the Penjing bonsai collection. This afternoon, relax and enjoy the scenery on the drive to one of the most beautiful cities in east China, Hangzhou, situated at the southern end of the Grand Canal in the Yangtze Delta. There is an old Chinese saying:

3 In heaven there is Paradise, on earth there is Suzhou and Hangzhou. We have visited this lake for more than 25 years and find it more beautiful every year. Fertile land and plentiful waters have brought the city an abundance of rice, tea and fish, which we will savour at tonight s banquet. Our hotel for the next two nights is a five-minute walk from West Lake. stay: Grand Metro Park Hotel, Hangzhou DAY 5 Today we get to understand what makes up the Chinese garden aesthetic: bridges, walkways, pools, cloud rocks and gardens. Our first visit is a garden that faces West Lake. It s the elegant private garden of a wealthy silk merchant from 1861, Guo Zhuang. This afternoon we visit the most beautiful and significant Buddhist Monastery in China, Lingyin Monastery, which dates from the 4th century. It s a sensory celebration of Buddhism with incense, chanting and golden-cloaked monks in reverent prayer. Watch out for the laughing Buddha carved out of the stone mountain in the Cloud Forest. stay: Grand Metro Park Hotel, Hangzhou DAY 6 Our floral fun begins with a flight to Zhengzhou, then a coach to Luoyang in the Henan Province for the annual Peony Festival. The peony, huawang, is the floral symbol of China, the flower of riches and honour. Throughout Chinese history the peonies of Luoyang are said to be the finest in the country and we wholeheartedly agree they take our breath away! Tonight a local delicacy Shui Xi, the water banquet. The name for the water banquet comes from the dishes being served and removed smoothly one after the other, as smooth as flowing water! stay: Luoyang Yaxiang Jinling Hotel, Luoyang DAY 7 Celebrate the exquisite beauty of the peony today there will be thousands on show at Luoyang s National Peony Festival. An afternoon visit to another peony garden. stay: Luoyang Yaxiang Jinling Hotel, Luoyang & Dinner DAY 8 Take a trip to see why the spectacular, UNESCO-listed Longmen Grottoes, the finest and most extensive examples of Buddhist art in the world. Thousands of perfectly preserved stone Buddha s were carved into the mountain between 316 and 907 and they represent the pinnacle in Chinese stone carving. This afternoon a high speed train will take us to the ancient capital of China, Xi an. This walled city at the eastern end of the Silk Road is home to the Terracotta Warriors. Our hotel for the next three nights is the 5 star Golden Flower Shangri-la Hotel, a modern bookend to the day s ancient wonders. DAY 9 One of the Great Wonders of the World today: a visit to the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang where Terracotta Warriors and Horses have symbolically guarded his burial place for 2,000 years. Meet one of the nine local farmer brothers who found pieces of a terracotta head while digging a well. Careful excavations revealed 8,000 terracotta figures of soldiers, archers and charioteers, buried since 221BC. Lunch today to sample a local specialty: wheat noodles. We ll watch them being made by hand before practicing our slurping technique!

4 DAY 10 Before we leave this ancient capital we delve into the rich cultural history of central China at Shaanxi Provincial Museum and the Drum Tower. Shaanxi was the seat of Imperial China for 13 feudal dynasties. Over 300,000 truly wondrous items have been slowly unearthed in the province and displayed in the museum. We love the murals, paintings, pottery, coins, as well as bronze, gold, and silver objects. Or take the time for a quick course in Chinese calligraphy. DAY 11 We take a morning flight to the modern capital of China and the home of the 2008 Olympic Games, beautiful Beijing. During the last 20 years we have seen towering residential skyscrapers take over the city so we always enjoy visiting the old part of town, the hutong. Here, the residences centre around an interior courtyard and house multiple generations of the one family. We ll meet a local family and see more of the fascinating hutong area by rickshaw a convoy of them! Out hotel for the next five nights is one of China s top ten hotels, the elegant, five-star Regent Hotel, which has a great indoor swimming pool and is within walking distance to food markets and shops. DAY 12 Wake up in a vibrant city that is home to 20 million people. After a late breakfast, we delve into the heart of Beijing and explore The Forbidden City. This was the residence of the Ming and Qing dynasty Emperors and looks familiar to viewers of the Last Emperor! Visit some of the 9999 rooms, magnificently decorated halls and finally, the secluded garden of the Last Emperor, Puyi. He was taken at the age two years and 10 months into the Forbidden City to become the country s twelfth and final emperor. We learn that Chairman Mao eventually allowed Puyi to live out his days in Beijing, where he worked in the Botanic Gardens. Lunch is included today and so is dinner, when we celebrate with Peking Duck, the national dish of China. The duck is prepared at the table by the chef and enjoyed wrapped in a pancake with scallions and hoisin sauce. DAY 13 A star-studded day today, starting at the 800-year old Summer Palace, (known as Qingyi garden). This palace and temple is built around a beautiful lake lined with willows, peach blossom and crab apples. The Empress Dowager spent her later years loving this garden. Kunming Lake occupies two-thirds of the total space of the Summer Palace and we take a cruise across its silvery surface to view the Palace from the water. Lunch today is Imperial style in a private room in the Summer Palace. To get there, we ll walk the 728m Long Corridor, decorated with thousands of small classic Chinese paintings in the ceiling. Beijing Botanic Garden this afternoon, with its many horticultural and historical features. There s a glass pavilion Crystal Palace with a fascinating collection of tropical and sub-tropical plants; theme gardens featuring peonies, roses, lilac, magnolia, bamboo, flowering peaches and crabapple. We get to know the Chinese woodland trees like gingko, linden and willow. DAY 14 Two beautiful short walks today, to journey back in time. We walk the Sacred Way; an avenue of giant stone sculptured animals set in serene landscaped grounds and visit the Ming Tombs, the mausoleums of the 13 Emperors of the Ming Dynasty ( ). Time this

5 afternoon to experience the gravity of another wonder of the world, the Great Wall of China. With its origins in the 7th century BC, but mostly dating from 14th and 15th centuries, the wall was built for defence. Discover the ongoing restoration process of this world heritage site. A cable car takes us to the wall and then we walk, taking in the expanse of flowering pear blossom. DAY 15 The day begins at the ethereal Temple of Heaven, a postcard moment, with its distinctive architecture and unique lapis lazuli tiled roof. This is one of China s finest masterpieces, classified World heritage by UNESCO. Dating to the first half of the 15th century this dignified building is set in gardens and surrounded by historic Chinese cypress forest, where locals can be seen playing, dancing and flying kites. Next stop is Tiananmen Square. It s flanked by red flags and overlooked by Chairman Mao Zedong. On one side is his Mausoleum and on the other his huge portrait at gates to the Forbidden City. The square has been used for hundreds of years to commemorate, protest and mourn. Today locals practice tai chi and fly kites in its expanse. DAY 16 Travel to the modern bustling city of Shanghai, population 13 million. Our hotel for the next four nights is five-star Broadway Mansions located in the heart of the city and overlooking the pride of Shanghai, the Bund (embankment) alongside the Huangpu River. We suggest a morning walk to see thousands of locals during their daily tai chi. DAY 17 Head into the ancient centre of the city, through red lantern-lined streets, street stalls and tea houses to the green jewel of Shanghai, Yu Yuan. Enter via the Zig Zag Teahouse Bridge, which built to keep out evil spirits, then feed the swirling carp, and cross the threshold into a 16th century Ming Dynasty landscape surrounded by dragon-topped walls, lakes, plants and cloud rocks. There s free time for shopping this afternoon before we head out to enjoy the death-defying acts of the Spectacular Shanghai Acrobatics Show. DAY 18 At this time of year Shanghai Botanic Gardens has worldclass orchid exhibitions, bonsai and floral displays. It was built by its late Director, Wang Dajun, after the original was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. It has now returned to international recognition and has established an extensive collection of conifers, roses, and orchids. Its bonsai collection is worldrenowned, especially for conifers and pine trees. We ll make an afternoon visit to Jade Buddha Temple, to see two precious jade Buddhist statues, carved from sparkling white jade. DAY 19 This morning we visit the prestigious Shanghai Museum with its collection of priceless antiques, and relics of ancient Chinese dynasties. Then we ll take a step into the future, rising 88 storeys into the 420m high Jin Mao Tower, which literally means Gold Luxuriance Building. We get a jaw-dropping view of the metropolis of Shanghai across the Pearl River. Time for sharing tales and our favourite moments tonight during a farewell dinner at the hotel beautifully located in the old French Quarter. DAY 20 Free time this morning. This afternoon we transfer to the airport for our flight home. DAY 21 Arrive back home in Australia where your tour concludes.