Chow Fun Tours Travel Blog - Chow Fun Tours, LLC

Madid: Retiro Park

3/29/2020

Note: I am organizing trips to Spain and Portugal. Please let me know if you would like to hear about upcoming trips or if you would like me to help you customize your own trip.

Today's topic: Parque del Retiro. The gardens here are about as beautiful as any I have seen with exquisitely pruned trees and landscaped green spaces. In the center of the park is the Palacio de Cristal (built in 1887) which was originally built as a winter garden, but which now houses art exhibits. In the summer of 2019 when I was last there, the was a sculpture exhibit.

In the 17th century, King Felipe IV laid out the park as a space for kings and queens to relax and enjoy. In 1868, the park was opened to the public and has been a space for all residents and visitors to enjoy. In addition to enjoying the beauty of the gardens, including lots of peacocks and other birds, the manmade lake is a lovely place to sit, have coffee and rent a rowboat.

"Overlanding" Through China

3/24/2020

Photo from: https://overlandsite.com

Are you interested in learning about OVERLANDING? Here is a description of overlanding from overlandsite.com: "Overlanding often takes you through rough terrains and off-road trails, but tackling a steep hill which resembles a wall is not a primary objective when overlanding. Overlanding can go straight through cities as well...A road trip has a destination, whereas overlanding is about the journey itself. Besides that, the primary mode of accommodation for overlanders is camping with all of its fun and challenge."

The people at overlandsite.com had an amazing journey through China. If you want to read about it, check out their blog which "...[focuses] on traveling through China from an overlander perspective."

Check out the blog post, including a cool video, here: https://overlandsite.com/blog/overlanding-through-china/

Running Panda

3/19/2020

The words "running" and "panda" are not generally seen together in the same blog post, let alone sentence. Nevertheless, the last time I was in Chengdu, one of the adolescent pandas put on quite a performance, as evidenced above. The above 10 seconds are just a snippet of the more than ten minutes of this panda's running in circles. It was fascinating because I have been to the research bases five other times and on every occasion, every panda was laying down and eating or sleeping!

Pandas of Chengdu

3/9/2020

There is not much to write that cannot be understood from looking at pictures of pandas. They are beautiful creatures. Lazy, sleepy roly-poly furry friends. They do have big teeth. They are bears after all. But they are vegetarian for the most part, with a diet that consists of bamboo. Lots and lots of bamboo...over 50 pounds each day. Basically their days consist of eating and sleeping.

For many years, pandas were one of the most endangered creatures in the world. Thanks to the breeding programs at several panda research bases in China, however, their numbers are increasing. There are still fewer than 2,000 pandas in the world.

Although there are some zoos in the US where we can visit pandas, there is nothing like the research bases of the Chengdu area in Sichuan Province. Join me on a Chow Fun Tour or let me help you plan your own customized adventure, including some up close and personal time with pandas!

Danba

2/29/2020

Danba is located in far western China, high on the Tibetan Plateau. The area has three villages that are worthy of serious exploration: Zhonglu, Jiaju and Suopo. One gets the feeling that the people who live there have lived the same way for hundreds of years...because they have. This part of China is spectacular. In addition to the inspiring beauty of the landscape, the architecture is different from anywhere else in the country. The trapezoid-shaped windows, the white-washed walls, the colorful paintings and checked patterns create an almost fairytale-like feeling.

The food in this part of the country is also different from much of China. Sichuan cuisine is generally some of the spiciest in China. It is similar with most of the country, however, in terms of the farm-to-table vegetables and meat. And yes, they do kill the chicken as soon as you order it. It's the freshest chicken you'll ever eat.

Tibetan Plateau Part II

2/19/2020

The Tibetan Plateau is in far western China. Due to the high altitude, we made sure to ride horses out to the nomad families' tents; walking would have taken too much energy when the air is so thin. The views were breathtaking. We all enjoyed riding over the undulating hills of the plateau. The altitude only allows certain flora and fauna to survive.

We had a lovely picnic with our guides mid-way through the ride. Due to the language barrier, we could not communicate with our guides, but we used hand signals and a lot of laughter to get our points across. The Tibetan Plateau is an adventure. It is fun, inspiring and breathtakingly beautiful, but not for the faint of heart.

Tibetan Plateau Part I

2/9/2020

I brought a small group of students and a best friend from college to far western Sichuan Province last year, to the Tibetan Plateau. I had never traveled this far west in China before. I was equally surprised and inspired by the landscape and the people. We spent an overnight with a nomad family that raises and herds yak. We learned about their lives and contributed what little we could to doing chores. I shoveled yak dung into piles so that the family could use the dry dung for fuel. (The community basically has no carbon footprint.) I tried my hand at yak milking, but was mostly unsuccessful. There were three issues with my being able to contribute: 1. I do not know their local dialect and therefore could not understand them; 2. I am uninformed on farming; and 3. I had an altitude headache and dizziness. I had no idea that the Tibetan Plateau is over 13,000 feet above sea level. I drank a lot of water and moved slowly, but that was not enough to avoid symptoms.

Despite a little sickness and my ineptitude, this was one of the most exhilarating and inspiring trips of my life. It was China, but it was also not China. The lives of the people here are so vastly different than those of other families I have visited. If you are interested in an adventure, this is a trip for you.

Moxi

1/29/2020

Moxi is the small town that is the gateway to Hailuogou Glacier Park. Although the glaciers are the main draw, the town is adorable and worth a visit, in and of itself. Old buildings are interspersed with newer cafes and bars. The shops house really cool gift items. I have a pair of slip-on shoes that I often wear back in the US. Some of the shop owners paint with bright colors and bar owners decorate with painted bottles. At breakfast, some small restaurants make fresh noodles (noodle soup is a popular breakfast item here and in many places in China). There is a dichotomy between the old and the new, but it all seems to work together in this quaint village.

Children of Western China

1/19/2020

One of my favorite photography subjects is children in China. They are not only adorable, but they are rarely sad. They have a great respect for their parents and elders, which shows in their genuine happiness to be in their company, a welcome change to western culture. I think their happiness is tied to their love of family. Although in the cities, kids have the same exposure to technology as western children, they respect their elders enough to not let their phones or video games distract them from family (at least, not in my observations). In the countryside, there are no distractions and the kids are even happier. Happy with a stick or piece of cardboard. The good old days.

Hailuogou Glacier Park Part II

1/9/2020

After taking the cable car up to the glaciers, we disembark SLOWLY. The altitude is high, about 12,000 feet. But the views of the glaciers, the surrounding clouds and greenery and the serene Buddhist temples and statues counterbalance the lack of oxygen.

Buddhist prayer flags dot the landscape. The flags are used to promote peace, wisdom and compassion. The flags are believed to be blown by the wind to carry prayers and mantras to spread goodwill and compassion. A lovely sentiment that feels real in the presence of nature, with the colorful flags blowing in the wind.

The five colors of the flags represent the elements, which, when balanced, bring health and harmony: blue = sky and space, white = air and wind, red = fire, green = water, and yellow = earth.

Lauren Drazen

I have traveled all over the world, including adventures in China, Uganda, Taiwan, Thailand, Cambodia, Argentina, Vietnam, Israel, Jordan, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Spain, France, Switzerland, England, Denmark, Sweden, Russia, Costa Rica, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Dominican Republic, Mongolia, Netherlands, Canada and Mexico! My greatest love is introducing Americans to the sites, traditions and people of China. My hope is to give travelers a new lens through which to see the world.

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