swanny727

Hi, My husband and I are leaving in a week and a half for our Imperial Jewels of China trip. Please let me know your opinions on the Yang Dynasty Show and the Peking Duck Dinner and Opera. I would appreciate it.

 

Rita

Hi, we will be on the IJ tour, leaving Beijing on June 4. Is that your trip as well?

I would like to take something for the school. What is advised as far as school supplies? Or any other suggestions. I'm making my list and checking it twice..... Leaving next Saturday!!!

Thanks

I'm just piping in here to clarify. There are three shows. One included as part of the program (the acrobats in Shanghai) and two optional dinner shows that you pay for (the opera/Peking duck in Beijing and the Tang Dynasty show in Xi'an).

 

IMHO, the acrobats in Shanghai are not to be missed, even if you have seen such shows before.

Thanks for clarifying. I was confused thinking the acrobats were part of the Tang D show. Still undecided about the shows at this point.

The only thing I have decided is to try and have Poking Duck on my own, maybe Day 1 in Beijing.

Candy was quite worried the first night that somehow I would have told you about Jacky and not included her;-) Ask Lois to break out the pistachios...ask to see photos of her son to warm her heart. We really enjoyed hanging around with her!

 

Had I known earlier I would have arranged for you to go on a tour with the crew in Shibaozhai...unfortunately that is the only stop that works on the IJ tour.

We leave on the IJ, Jun 4 trip, Beij - Shanghai. I am intrigued with the thought of a crew tour! Could you please, give me more details as what the regular tour involves and what we could see differently with the crew. So far, no other CC folks have indicated they are on our trip so you wouldn't be deluged with requests. There are 4 in our group if that makes a diff.

Theater binoculars work great in the museums where barriers or crowds keep you from seeing the intricate details of the antiquities. Here are a two of examples of a shore line view. Our cameras double as binoculars...

Wow what a difference! What size lens / zoom was used? My hubbie is thinking of a new camera and I want to be sure it is "big" enough for good photos.

J-9 since you commented about the language lessons...if you provide an e-mail address to rebdjb@aol.com I'll send you a spreadsheet which contains the English phrase, Chinese characters, and Chinese pronunciation of a lot of words to show good manners and the like. We find it very useful at the school to communicate with the children. The spreadsheet consists of 2 pages. Make sure to plant yourself in one of their desks and have some fun! The staff on the ship or your TE can help you with pronunciation.

 

I would like to jump in and get the Chinese phrases as well. And for the school visit, I was thinking of crayons and coloring books or do you have a better (more useful) suggestion.

The procedures for intra-China flights are the same as flying within the US except a little more lax in certain areas...we didn't remove shoes, belts, coats, or uncase laptops in most airports and 3oz liquid containers are perfectly acceptable. Water or drinks in general are a different issue though...obviously no water through security, but there is another checkpoint at the gate that will confiscate any water that you may have bought inside the secure area of the airport which may have lead to the confusion about no liquids at all.

Thanks that is what I was hoping. I want to travel with contact solution and hand sanitizer in my purse

I did a search for liquids and the most recent seems to be from Oct 2011.

roothy123 (#76) says that small amounts of liquids is Ok on the intra-China flghts. I recall another post about No liquids, not even drinks bought inside security. Any recent travelers that can clarify if small liquids can be inside carry-ons? I am thinking of the quart size baggie with 3oz containers that is allowed in US planes.

Laundry: We were vagabonds for 25 days this trip so doing laundry was inevitable. We fashioned an elastic clothesline from the balcony railing secured using the inside door handle to dry our shirts and other small items. For pants we secured them over the railing with large safety pins and some twine. Then we flew our flags as we sailed the Yangtze much like the Chinese. The smaller items dried quickly and all of it wearable that day. Temps were in the 60s with scattered sunshine.

 

If you have questions concerning anything ship related, we are friends with Capt Morgan...Asst Hotel Manager, Jay...dining room supervisor, Lois...bar manager and a number of other crew members. It is quite interesting reading the Chinese perspective of the antics of some passengers...like the couple who were complaining their room was too hot while wearing sweaters;-) I think the Chinese post was...Out the balcony and into the Yangtze;-). Or a lady who ordered salmon but wanted steak then broke down in tears because the waiter tried to appease her by providing both...Chinese, do you want the fin or the cow... Confucius doesn't know this saying;-). So what happens in China usually ends up on CC.

 

I asked Morgan this morning about using an iron...not as easy a question as you might think. I received the reply "some can iron, some can not iron." Translation...the ship's policy is to not allow passengers access to irons.

 

Cameras: We now bring 4 Canon cameras on most of our trips. A simple pocket sized P&S for a quick shot, an underwater camera for the rainy days, and two with high zoom capabilities for close ups and distant shots. For years it looked like I never vacationed with my family since I took all the photos. Since two people don't compose a photo the same, we have the opportunity to look at two different perspectives of most shots.

 

I've had people ask me to take their photo with a camera that requires a lengthy explanation to be able to push the button. Chinese want to take your photo if you look accessible to them so bring a camera that they can see you in a viewfinder and just push the button.

 

Another suggestion is to be courteous of the other people in your group, everyone wants photos of the places we see...I take my shot then move to the back so the next person has a chance to take a nice photo instead of the back of my head. Nothing more frustrating then trying to watch a demonstration with the same people standing in the front the entire time. Also have the courtesy to wait until they are done taking the shot. Attached is a photo of us with some of the dining room staff...the young ladies are all looking at another passenger who decided it was important to have a photo of us and told them to look at her as our photo was taken.

 

I have a very detailed gallery of photos from our 2009 trip at www.bobanddeb.smugmug.com/china and will complete our 2012 trip shortly for anyone wanting that would like to see them. We did the Cultural Delights trip both times.

Thank you for the informative posts. I laughed at the 'Iron" answer. I assume I am one that cannot iron.

Yes, denim will not dry. Even in May, it took Julie's jeans a couple of days to dry when she washed them in the sink. But on the other hand, a smaller area can be helped along with a hair dryer.

 

Clothing that has already been dried in a machine should not shrink any more than it already has. We used the ship's laundry and did not have any shrinkage problems with our cottons. Not my dresses and tank tops and DH's Dockers or cotton polos.

 

I believe ironing service is available from the laundry but I don't remember if irons were available to to pax. Check the price list on the Viking website.

The Viking website shows a choice of Laundry and Press or Press Only. Also an option for Folded or On Hanger. I put my 100% cotton clothes only 2 minutes in the dryer and then air dry. That is why I am afraid of shrinkage. I think the best is to take a cotton blend.

Hey there Bayerisch

We always download our photos after each day incase the camera goes wacky (we had this happen after photographing 250+ headstones) and if something happens to the camera we won't lose all our photos. It also helps to keep the photos seperated incase we forget where we were when one was taken. I use the Canon point & shoot it also takes movies and is great for when you need to be fast to get a photo. We have not found yet a small camera that takes movies and allows you to zoom in while filming and keep the shot clear. Ruth Ann in an older post suggested a harness type holster that the larger cameras just attache to between shots making it easier to carry, we have ordered one to try it out before going in Sep then if it works for us we'll get another one.

 

I agree on not wearing jeans if hot they chaf, I wear the light cotton pants that will dry out if I sweat or get wet. I don't do skirts but skorts might be a good choice if they can be found.

 

I got the MMR they are having an outbreak in China right now it is on the State page and recommended you get a booster if born before 1957. If I was going to the open market where they have chickens I would be concerned about SARS but then again I have been told I should work for the government doing safety checks in restaurants.

I am trying to figure out my wardrobe. I usually do take 2 jeans and just wash the, how to say politely..., well the crotch area. Denim takes forever to dry. Cotton pants will be all wrinkled when they dry, if washed in your room, right? Or, is there an iron that can be used? I suspect if I send clothes to the onboard laundry, they will be thrown into the dryer - can't do that with my cotton/denim because then they would shrink. I am packing several golf-material shirts which should be fine either in ship laundry or in the sink.

I just went to the travel clinic last week and MMR was not mentioned. I was born IN 1957 so maybe that small disctinction makes a difference. I better call and ask though. So much to think about.

Thanks everyone, for all the camera and phone info too.

Just did our shots and they tried to get us to do one called Japenese something for the brain. We skipped it since that is in rural areas but did the MMR booster and thypoid, too long since Egypt when we had our last one. Yes very sore but pain reliever and working it shortens the time. They wanted us to do the malaria meds too but mmmm some have bad side effects like Hallucinations.

 

We are thinking of making some postcards of our home states and handing them out to people who approach us. We won't write anything on them in English incase someone gets upset thinking we are spreading propaganda. Any thoughts on this? Also thinking of taking packaged flower seeds for the school and thoughts on this? So far only items from infected areas for plants are not allowed and these will be packaged.

Since nothing is required, I guess each clinic makes their recommendations for vaccines. You are talking about the one for Japanese encephalitis - a serious illness carried by mosquitos, but, my clinic advised it only for camping and traveling in rural areas. DEET seems to be the suggestion for the trips we are taking.

And MMR booster was not mentioned to me.

As for typhoid, I was offered the pills, $55 or the shot, $70. 4 Pills are taken every other day for a week (e.g. Day 1, Day 3, Day 5 and 7). No alcohol during this week. Side effects can be nausea, vomiting, diarrhea. This affords 5 years of 70% (I think) immunity. Shot is once and done, rare side effect of headache, same amount of immunity but, only good for 2 years. I took the shot and had arm soreness for 4 days - not as bad as a tetanus shot.

As for skipping the tours, you cannot do it on the days when you wake up in one city and go to sleep in another; those days you will have to stay with your escort. You can tour on your own in Shanghai and Beijing. But honestly--and file this under food for thought--one of the things that you are paying premium for is the expertise and knowledge of the Viking escorts, so why blow them off, especially if this is your first time in China.

 

Imperial Jewels only has four stops along river: the morning you visit the school; the Three Gorges Dam observation area (just a few hours); the Lesser Gorges cruise where you don't even leave the dock to board the smaller day cruisers; and finally Shibaozhai Tower (which you can actually do on your own).

 

If you are not planning on staying with your group, let your escort know.

We have been to China for one day - a train trip from Hong Kong. We did this on our own, 2002, with a stop along the way at 10,000 Buddha temple. We crossed the border, received a 3-day economic visa (which was good for 3 days although we just stayed that one day) and walked around Shenzhen. Dim sum lunch was point and hope it tasted good. No one spoke English. Totally fun, exciting and made us want to come back for more. Side note, we ended up being in Shenzhen, the origination of SARS, the exact week that SARS started. Luckily we did not get sick.

Sorry, didn't mean to give the impression of blowing off the escorts. I should have paid more attention to the itineraries. With Imperial Jewels, we wont have as many factory/shop tours. My thought was that hanging around that village, for one day, would be a different cultural experience to be enjoyed.

Sorry, don't check the site that often. Will try to address several questions in one reply.

 

According to my wife the non Western toilets are not a big issue. Some of the ladies indicated they preferred them as you don't have the sanitation issues of sitting on a seat. Our Tour Escort Larry always warned us when it was not advisable to drink a lot of water in the morning and he did a GREAT job on directing us to the Western toilets. As caribill indicated you won't encounter them that often and if you do just think of it as part of the adventure.

 

The plugs are labeled 110/120v and 220. I charged my camera batteries with no problem in the 110 outlet but my wife's flatiron wouldn't heat up in the 110v outlet. Not sure why as everything else worked. I researched her model flatiron on the internet from the ship and it indicated it was dual voltage. I then sent an email to the company just to be sure and they replied it was only 110v. Go figure. She was desperate so she plugged it into the 220 outlet using an adapter and it worked fine. It got hot really fast and she kept it on the low setting. I initially had a concern about frying it but we never had a problem. In hindsight that may not have been the smartest thing to do so she is going to buy a true dual voltage one for future travel.

 

I agree with Peregrina651 about taking advantage of the tours as it's part of the experience. However, in this case we had absolutely no interest in the ceramics, I had been to facilities like this in the past and most of all didn't want to endure the 4 hr round trip bus ride. The bus rides for other tours were 20-30 minutes which is fine. As it turned out our five hours roaming the city was one of the highlights of the trip.

 

Hope this helps

Yes this helps, thank you. After a similar experience as your wife, I bought a straightener in UK so it is 220v. Peregrina651 has said the ceramics tour is not part of the Imperial Jewels, which is the one we are taking. 4 hour bus ride did not appeal to me. I was interested in seeing the village, as also described by Kohola.

Are there restrooms om the bus? If not, I will monitor my fluid intake ;)

I went to the travel clinic and received a vacine for polio, flu vacine, Hep A, and typhoid. I also received a prescription for the anti-malaria drug Malarone. We are traveling through areas where malaria is possible, but the doctor recommended calling Viking and asking them what they think. Also, avoidance by wearing long sleeves and repellant with DEED is recommended. I also received a prescription for cipro and doxicyclene. The flu vacine is because of the bird flu. The malaria drugs are started right before the trip, so you wouldn't take them now anyway.

I talked with the travel clinic and they recommended the same as yours.

I had Hep A vaccine 10 years ago but I should get the polio and typhoid.

Did you have reactions? I expect some soreness.

(sorry for the 3 posts in a row.....I'm catching up on the last few pages here)

Thanks Ruthlynn...we embrace China warts and all. It's easy to smile in a place where the people treat you like a celebrity if you just take the time to say NiHao. I am so looking forward to traveling as a relative and living in a "soil" house with an actual Chinese family...the ultimate honor in my opinion to create a relationship where you're considered family and not another tourist...now I just have to convince my wife it will be just like camping;-).

 

Hey Mtlycrew1 enjoyed reading your report...we traveled with Jin and sat with Candy and Jacky at the forward stbd table for most meals. Nice to see you explored JinJiang, that place was amazing! Hope you ventured over to the lake and mingled with the locals.

 

A lot of the Chinese will say MeiGuo which is Chinese for the USA when they try to talk to you...pronounced like May then like Guave minus the "ave" and add an "o." Or ChangJiang which is the Chinese name for the river the English speaking people call the Yangtze because they want to know if you're traveling on the river and where you're going.

 

We also think Larry is an incredible guide...he is one of those guides that is always available when you have a question even if he isn't your tour escort.

 

The vendors will not bother you if make it clear it's a waste of their time...no eye contact and a verbal, but polite BuYao...boo yow, rhymes with how, then a little sterner if required and normally you won't see another one. BuYao translates as "don't want or don't need." There are more than enough tourists that will smile and make eye contact for them to pounce on.

 

Another change for those who have traveled before...Lesser 3 Gorges boat tour has been shortened, they now turn around at the hanging coffin.

Thanks for the Chinese phrases. I always travel with an index card with useful phrases.

Good information mtlycrew1. I have 2 questions:

re outlets # 11...Is the bathroom outlet labeled "shavers only"? I have tried my straightener in these before and it fried my appliance.

re silk/pottery etc # 18.....so, we have a choice to take the daily tours or go off on our own?

Kohola, thanks for the photo links. You are truly getting me excited. This will be our first tour-group vacation and I'm sort of nervous. Never thought myself to be the "group" type. We like to eat with the locals. We have been to Europe, Hong Kong and Tokyo by oursleves. Even visited Tunis, Tunisia by ourselves during a Med cruise. (Crusie director wanted our name and cabin number because he said "no one ever does that".) You have given me hope that we can make this trip work.

Received our visas!! Now it is official. Monday I will call a travel clinic to see if any vaccines are recommended. I had the Hep A in 2002 and wonder if a booster is needed? Did anyone take the malaria pills? I read, here, about taking along Cipro so I will ask about that as well.

trying to follow Peregrina instructions for links. if this doesnt work, i won't keep bothering you with my attempts :)

Diane

June 4, 2012 Viking Emerald Roll call

Thanks for the info Peregrina, caribill and kohola. I will use my regular email and hope for a good connection. We are doing the June 4 trip and haven't found any others going at that time :( I started a roll call to no avail.

Oh well, I am getting excited reading all the tips/reports here.

 

 

 

Internet connection is slow and slower moving along the river...currently I can't access my e-mail...don't know if the Chinese are ensuring I only see "good" news for my well being or what??

I use Yahoo mail and was wondering if it would be accessible. Are other pax having the issue as well? If there is a "preferred" email provider, I should get an address to use for this trip.

Diane

I would like to add to what roothy wrote above the suggestion, made in fact by our Viking tour guide, that you tip the bus drivers and the local guides in Chinese currency. Unlike the Viking guide who is likely to get (and deserve!) a good bit of cash, including USD and can readily deal with exchanging that in Beijing or Shanghai, the bus drivers and the local guides will be getting far less, and it's not that easy for them to deal with USD (especially in the smaller towns along the river).

 

And to answer one other question -- you cannot charge the tip to your Viking guide to your shipboard account. You won't be aboard ship the last night of the trip.

 

Looking at caribill's great image of the steps in Chongqing (where you will embark or disembark the Emerald), one note: if you are traveling from Beijing to Shanghai, you'll be going down the steps; if traveling in the opposite direction, you'll be climbing up. And how many steps you have to deal with will depend on the water level.

Good point about the local people having difficulty with USD. I will remember to get smaller bills from the hotel when we first arrive.

We will be climbing down those steps then. :D

caribill, thanks, after seeing this photo, I'm definitely taking my backpack!

Thanks for the tipping info too. You are right that some will tip below the recommended rate. I don't want to be that person, at the end of the trip, that says, "oh sorry I don't have very much cash left....".

BTW is anyone else on this trip - Beijing to Shanghai?