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Trip Report

My trip to China !

My time in China was just amazing! This very huge country is full of surprises and has so many extraordinary landscapes! Little overview of Shanghai and and two other places in the south

  • Yuyuan Garden+ 6
  • The Bund
  • The amazing NanJing Road
  • My trip to China !
laura
About Me:
AtlasGuru Contributor

AsiaChina9 days / May - June 2018

Highs & Lows

China's noodles are simply the best

If you can prioritize the plane, it's in the same country but with huge distance

Itinerary Overview

  • 5 Nights: Shanghai
  • 1 Night: Huangshan City
    Hike on the top for a breathtaking view
  • 3 Nights: Guilin
    Little tour around the rice fields
Shanghai - null
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Shanghai

Shanghai - null - The Bund
The Bund
Shanghai - null - The amazing NanJing Road
The amazing NanJing Road
Shanghai - null - Yuyuan Garden
Yuyuan Garden

Shanghai is an amazing city mixing a modern side with a conservative side full of history. You cannot go to Shanghai without walking along the Bund, a magnificent point of view of an extraordinary skyscraper along the Huangpu River. You will find the Oriental Pearl Tower, the Jin Mao Tower, and the Shanghai Tower, the second tallest tower in the world. I advise you to go up to Jin Mao tower to have a breathtaking view of the city but also to be able to walk on a glass floor, very impressive!

If you are looking for a place more typical of China, you absolutely have to go to the Yuyuan garden. This garden dates from the Ming Dynasty and is very charming. Without too many tourists it is a calm and peaceful place.

If you want to get confused in the crowd and feel the density of the population, I recommend going for a walk on Nanjing road, the commercial street of Shanghai.

Around Shanghai, there is a lot of small charming water villages that you must go see, like Zhujiajiao for example.

Nocturne life in Shanghai is also very crazy with a lot of huge nightclubs.

Huangshan City - Hike on the top for a breathtaking view
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Huangshan City Hike on the top for a breathtaking view

Huangshan City - Hike on the top for a breathtaking view - HuangShan point of view
HuangShan point of view
Huangshan City - Hike on the top for a breathtaking view - Pikes sticking out of the ground
Pikes sticking out of the ground
Huangshan City - Hike on the top for a breathtaking view - Stairs to go up with carriers of good
Stairs to go up with carriers of good

Huangshan, literally meaning the Yellow mountain is a mountain range, in the west of Shanghai. Nowadays, thanks to a high-speed train it is easily reachable from Shanghai in only 3 hours. I have seen a lot of mountains in my life but those ones are very particular and unique. It’s like pikes sticking out of the ground.

I went there with a couple of friends for one night and we found a place to pitch the tent because the hotels are quite expensive at the top. It can be only a one-day trip but I advise staying one night there because the sunset and sunrise are astonishing. 

We walked up to the top. It's a long climb of stairs, tiring and trying, but the effort is really worth it. The landscape is magnificent. If you are a bit less athletic you can take the elevator but you have to be ready to queue because it is full of Chinese tourists.

I definitely recommend getting up for the sunrise. Very peaceful moment in the mountain before the arrival of all the tourist groups.

Guilin - Little tour around the rice fields
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Guilin Little tour around the rice fields

Guilin - Little tour around the rice fields - On top of Xianggong mountain
On top of Xianggong mountain
Guilin - Little tour around the rice fields - Cycling in Yangshuo
Cycling in Yangshuo
Guilin - Little tour around the rice fields - null

The region of Guilin and Yangshuo is a region of landscape mixing mountains and rivers. It is a known region because the landscape is drawn on the 20 yuan note.

We went there by train but I deeply recommend taking the plane because it took us 25 hours to go there. 

We stayed there for 3 full days and it is barely enough because there is a lot to see and do. One must-see is the Longji Rice Terraces. We made a one-day hike there and rest in a hostel over there. It was a divine hike. Then the second day we went to Yangshuo. There, I advise you to rent a bike and just go cycling enjoying the landscape and also take a small bamboo raft along the Yulong River. On the last day, we rent a scooter to go to Xianggong Mountain and enjoy the panorama on the top of the mountain. The road to go there is very charming too.

Q & A

  • What would you have changed?

    If you can, I recommend spending more days in Guilin/Yangshuo, it is a very beautiful city
  • Restaurant recommendations?

    The Chinese food is just divine so enjoy it as must as you can! You can find weird stuff on the street, don't be afraid to try !!
  • Tips you would give a friend?

    In Shanghai, I recommend going to the bar rouge for a beautiful sunset over the bound.
  • Packing tips?

    Bring clothes for the rain! It rains often and unexpectedly in China
  • Any surprises?

    In Guilin, we went to a little nightclub but actually there were not used to have foreigners in that bar. So we were the attractions, everyone wanted to talk with us, buy us drinks and taking photos of us. Unforgettable moment