Before the Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze was completed, we travelled across China from Beijing in the northeast to Tiger Leaping Gorge in the southwest. We started in Beijing & explored the Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Tiananmen Square, went to Opera & Acrobatic shows, ate fantastic banquets. At Simatai, Jinshanling, walked on a remote but spectacular section of the Great Wall. At Xian, met lifesize Terracotta Warriors & cycled atop its city wall. Saw the huge Buddha carvings at the Longmen Caves, Laoyang.
We travelled down the Yangtze visiting villages, cities & gorges before they became submerged by the dam waters. At Fengdu, we took cable car to the top of Pingdushan mountains, our boattrip ended at Chonquing.
In southwest China, we explored the Karst Peaks, Moon Hill and the Li River at Yangshao. At Kunming enjoyed ethnic tribal dancing show, went to the Shilin Stone Forest to see incredible limestone formations, walked around an interesting zoo with Giant Pandas & about 700 other animals. After exploring the ancient walled city Dali, went Cormorant fishing & the Shaping farm market. Lijiang is on the Yu-He river, has cobblestone streets, Lion Hill and has the famous Naxi historic orchestra where many players are over 70 years old. Nearby is Black Dragon Pool and Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.
We trekked through Tiger Leaping Gorge staying overnight with farmers. Tiger Leaping Gorge is one of the deepest and most spectacular river canyons in the world, its 3790 meters (12,434 feet) from the Jinsha River to the mountain peak. The Jinsha River (Golden Sands River) is a primary tributary of the Yangtze.