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The Old Burma Rd Departing 11 April 2006 With Goddard & Howse For Helen Reynolds & Margaret Boccanfuso
Depart Canberra on QF 564 at 0850 to arrive in Sydney at 0940. Make our way to the International Terminal for SQ 232 departing at 1130 and arriving in Singapore at 1745. On arrival in Singapore follow the signs to the Singapore Airlines stopover counter. Here you can exchange your voucher for accommodation and transfers. Own arrangements this evening
Accommodation: The York Hotel 21 Mount Elizabeth Rd Singapore Ph: 65 67370511
This morning you will be met and transferred to Singapore Airport for our Silk Air service to Yangon, MI 516 departing at 1025 to arrive in Yangon at 1145. On arrival we will be met by your local guide and transferred to our hotel, a 30-minute drive depending on traffic conditions.
Accommodation: The Stand Hotel 92 Strand RD Yangon, Myanmar Ph: 95 1 243 377
A full day excursion to Mawlamyine by private air conditioned vehicle with your own guide. Your first chance to see the countryside scattered with rice fields, local shops, Longyi clad locals everywhere. On arrival check into the Nagwe Moe Hotel.
Accommodation: Nagwe Moe Hotel
A full day visiting the war graves and other sites in the area.
Accommodation: Nagwe Moe Hotel
This morning you will drive back to Yangon. The rest of our group will arrive around lunchtime that day so I will be in touch when you arrive.
Accommodation: The Stand Hotel 92 Strand RD Yangon, Myanmar Ph: 95 1 243 377
Yangon is a bustling city with wide streets and a garden atmosphere in the outer suburbs. Today we will visit the Shwedagon Pagoda for an extended stay. This magnificent pagoda is reputed to be the largest in the world and holds special significance for the people of Myanmar and indeed all followers of the Buddhist teachings. The atmosphere is relaxed and inviting, a perfect start to our journey.
Accommodation: The Strand Hotel 92 Strand Rd Yangon, Myanmar Ph: 95 1 243377
After breakfast we will be transferred to the airport for domestic flight to He ho Upon arrival, transfer to NYAUNG SHWE (25 km 1 hour). An excursion by boat on Inle Lake will include sights of the famous leg rowers, typical floating gardens, and local methods of fishing, village life and magnificent scenery. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant on the lake itself (to own account). Visits are made to PHAUNGDAW OO PAGODA; the weaving village of INPAWKHON and to one of the local markets in the Inle Lake region (on market days only).
Accommodation: Lake View Hotel, Deluxe room
After breakfast, depending on the water level, board a boat to the Western Shore of Inle Lake, where you will find the beginning of a stair path leading to the hidden and unknown INN THEIN PAGODA complex. After lunch, continuation sightseeing on Inle Lake by boat (visit to the orphanage)
Accommodation: Lake View Hotel, Deluxe room
After breakfast, you will be transferred by boat to NYAUNG SHWE and proceed to Heho Airport (25km 1 hour) for domestic flight to MANDALAY. Upon arrival at Mandalay airport, transfer to your hotel. Experience the sights and sounds of Mandalay including one of the most revered religious monuments in Myanmar, the MAHAMUNI PAGODA; the SHWE INBIN MONASTERY; the GOLDEN PALACE MONASTERY, a superb example of a traditional wooden building and KUTHODAW PAGODA the worlds largest book, made of marble. Mandalay is also a major crafts center. Visit a Kalaga tapestries craftsmens shop before proceeding to MANDALAY HILL for sunset.
Accommodation: The Sedona Hotel Mandalay breakfast included
After breakfast we take an excursion to Amarapura , the former capital some 15 kilometers from Mandalay to visit the Mahagandayon Monestery where more than a thousand monks live and study . Our morning visit coincides with the second meal of the day as the monks line up with their bowl to accept offerings of rice, vegetables and soup. From here we visit the 200 year old teak bridge that links a small island in a backwater of the Ayayarwaddy; the island is home to the former Royal palace before it was moved to Mandalay. We take a leisurely stroll on the bridge, made from solid teak and over 500 meters long. We head back to the hotel to freshen up before lunch then take the two hour drive into the hills to the north of Mandalay and the former British Hill station of Pyin Oo Lwin.
Pyin Oo Lwin is situated just 100 kilometers from Mandalay at an elevation of 1150 meters. The town has a delightful mix of colonial houses and state buildings and was a favorite haunt for the British during their occupation. Here the weather is pleasantly cool most of the year, the meandering streets with overhanging trees, hedgerows and the odd tall Karri eucalypt. We head for our hotel and check in.
Accommodation: The Kandawgyi Hill Resort Pyin Oo Lwin Mandalay Division Ph: 95 85 21839
Close to our hotel are the National Kandawggi Gardens .In 1915 Lady Cuffe , a botanist from Kew Gardens in England , enlisted forest researcher Mr. Alex Rodger in the task of establishing a botanical garden on a 240 acre site to turn the land into tiers of lakes , garden beds and lawns .
This noted botanical garden is still in fine shape after many years and you will see seasonal flowers, orchid gardens (over 178 species), rock gardens dahlia and rose gardens. We will take an extended stroll around the area.
The township itself is a fine collection of colonial and contemporary Burmese architecture. Many fine houses remain form the British time and we will take some time to visit these houses as well as the local market.
Accommodation: The Kandawgyi Hill Resort Pyin Oo Lwin Mandalay Division Ph: 95 85 21839
This morning we leave the comfortable surround of the Kandawgyi Hill resort and head for the train station, continuing north to Lashio along the Old Burma Road. Our train will wobble and shuffle at a stumbling pace stopping at numerous stations to pick up and drop of passengers. As we pull into a station the scene is a little like a carnival , greeted by swarms of Tanaka painted women, trays of pineapples , fried chicken wings and jackfruit, all displayed on top of their heads! Hands reach out from carriages, grabbing food, exchanging handfuls of grubby notes. The train has timber floors and seats that are bearable, open windows with shutters in case it rains and antiquated electrical system that has light bulbs hanging from the roof.
The track cuts through open farm land of corn and rice fields, local people in the fields tending their crops. We approach the fabulous Gokteik Bridge, built in 1900 by the Pennsylvania Steel Company, a grand sight as we edge onto the bridge and over a spectacular gorge, a towering waterfall at one end and exposed cliffs on the other side. We spend about four hours on the train then meet our driver and continue to Lashio.
Accommodation: Lashio Guest House
Lashio is a quiet town set at 900 meters above sea level. It was the furthest point of the British built rail way and struck deep into Shan State. The town itself is a dusty combination of some public buildings and numerous street sellers, the market is vibrant and colorful where trade is high on the agenda being so close to the Chinese border.
After breakfast we will visit a typical village of Shan minority the Palaung. Here we will need to walk for about an hour on a track, slightly up hill to Nam Kyan Village and meet some of the locals and exchange greetings. We continue on towards the border, passing fields of peanuts and corn where Opium poppies grew in abundance until only recently. We will pass through a number of military checkpoints where we will need to be patient with the local administrators. It is actually an entertaining spot with all types of goods and food available for sale, truck drivers waiting for their approval to move on, officials chewing beetle nut. We reach the border late this afternoon at Muse on the Burmese side and clear customs, stepping into China and the border town of Ruili.
Accommodation: The Jingcheng Hotel Maohai Rd, Ruili City Yunnan, China 0692 4159999.
Ruili is an old trading post that has a nice feel about it. Change is evident everywhere from our time in Burma. The buildings here are modern and prolific; the streets wide with gutters and curbs, broad footpaths and a bazaar column of Palm trees make the city look like some lost oasis. There will be time this morning to look around the town before heading on towards Tenchong via Munschwe. Along the way we will visit the Dai Chieftans House from the Qing dynsasty, at Lianghe .Most area administration was left in the control of the local chief until 1949 who became the magistrate, lawmaker and sheriff. This chief was most generous to his guests with a well appointed opium smoking room adjoining the main greeting hall. We push on for Tenchong, into the mountains and river valleys of south west Yunnan.
Accommodation: Sightseeing Hotel Tenchong
Tenchong is one of the last outposts in south west China, close to the border with Burma it has a reputation as a frontier town, a place for traders, merchants and I suspect the odd vagabond! Tenchong also saw a major battle between Nationalists Chinese troops and the Japanese invaders resulting in the deaths of thousands and the complete destruction of the original town. The Chinese prevailed and we will visit the war cemetery and attached museum during our stay.
Today we visit the walled village of Herschwin which miraculously survived the carnage in 1945. The village is a wonderful collection of narrow alleyways, adjoining roves and cobblestone streets still relatively untouched by mass tourism. We will visit the library, built by overseas Chinese in early colonial style and take an extended walk through the old village, visiting various local houses.
Accommodation: Sightseeing Hotel Tenchong
We set off today along the Old Burma Rd , winding up and down mountain passes , through forest of pine tress , rhododendrons and azaleas . As we head north east for Dali we cross the Nujang River (or The Salween in Burma) in the Goligo valley and stop for lunch at a local restaurant, the drive is spectacular with soaring mountains either side of us and the valley floor busy with all sorts of agriculture including mangoes, bananas, sugar and lychees.The drive will take around seven hours but we will have plenty of time to stop for photographs or to hopefully chat with the local Dai and Lisu people , the girls dressed in their traditional clothes very similar to the longyi we have seen in Burma . Here the farm houses look prosperous and well kept, with neat gardens and hedgerows. We arrive at Dali
Accommodation: The Asia Star Hotel The Old Town of Dali Yunnan, Ph- 86 872 2679999
Dali is home to the Bai people (over 1.3 million) and has a long history of civilization dating back some 1500 years. The Tang and Song dynasties made Dali the centre of politics, culture and economy for Yunnan before these responsibilities gradually moved to Kunming. The weather is spring like most of the year and the city itself is set in a valley by the shores of Lake Erhai. This morning we will visit the ancient village of Xizhou, a collection of stone houses once owned by wealthy merchants. We will walk through the streets visiting various homes and the local market. We will continue to the Three Pillar Pagoda, the main tower standing ten stories high and built during the Tang dynasty some 1500 years ago. Later two more towers were added of lesser size. The architecture is unusual (its called Dali style) and there is a museum with a fine collection of Buddha statues and carvings. This afternoon we will have an extended time in the Old Town of Dali, where ancient Chinese houses have been turned into shops, cafes and restaurants. The atmosphere is engaging and relaxed, the mountains soaring in the background.
Accommodation: The Asia Star Hotel The Old Town of Dali Yunnan, Ph- 86 872 2679999
We depart Dali for the four hour drive to Lijiang over mountains and through river valleys before arriving into Lijiang by lunchtime. Lijiang is an enchanting spot, set at the foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, an ancient village and a World Heritage Cultural site. On arrival we will take a walk through the old town visiting the Mu Chieftans house, a lavish series of buildings, hidden by a large gate and encompassing courtyards, gardens, reception halls and living quarters. The last Chief made it to 1949 before the Maoist revolution swept through. It is more like a palace than a house and a winding stone path leads to the top of a hill where a Taoist temple sits. The view is commanding, the roof tops of the old town spreading out below, mountains in the distance.
Accommodation: The Grand Lijiang Hotel Xinyi St, Dayan Town Lijiang Ph: 88 888 5128888
A full day of sightseeing around Lijiang as we head for the Jade Dragon Snow mountain, an enormous peak that reaches over 5000 meters above sea level. The drive takes around forty minutes past local villages of Yi and Naxi people. We continue to the small village of Yuhe where there is a magnificent temple to the Goddess of Mercy. The temple is constructed from wood in a series of joints and angles with no nails used. It dates back some 500 years and its walls are decorated with well preserved frescos of the Goddess of Mercy.
After lunch we will visit the Black Dragon pond at the foot of Elephant Mountain. This natural spring was the original water supply of the old town of Lijiang and is known for its purity. The water from this spring still gushes through the old town in a series of open culverts and drains. This evening we will attend a performance of the local Naxi Orchestra in traditional songs and dance.
Accommodation: The Grand Lijiang Hotel Xinyi St, Dayan Town Lijiang Ph: 88 888 5128888
We depart this morning from southern Yunnan for the road journey to Zhong Dian in Tibet. The drive will take around five hours and along the way we will see Yi people with their magnificent kite headdresses, we are climbing in altitude and the countryside is spectacular as we cut into river gorges and mountain peaks. We reach Tiger Leaping Gorge by lunch time and take an extended walk along the side of the Yangtze River. The cliffs rise, sheer from the river bank, our path cuts its way along the side leading to Tiger Leaping rock. Legend has it that a tiger, being chased by a hunter, traversed the river in two mighty leaps, using the rock as a springboard. Further on from the Gorge we notice the houses change to a more Tibetan style, with thick mud brick walls and three levels, for livestock, people and storage. We reach Zhong Zian and our hotel for the evening at the foot of the Songstam Lama Temple
Accommodation: The Songstam Hotel Diqing Prefecture Tibet
The landscape of Zhon Ziang has an immediate impact. Broad, green fields interspersed with the yellow of Rape seed. Soaring Mountain peaks once again. Here we are at 3500 meters so the air is cool and clean.
We start our touring with a visit to the Songstam Lama Monastery. The monastery was originally built in 1679 and is one of the largest Lama temples in Diqing Prefecture. There are over 700 Buddhist monks in the temple, located on top of a small hill with panoramic views to the valley. We will spend as much time as we need to discover the nooks and crannies of the temple, chat with monks and enjoy the views. Later today we will visit a local Tibetan house and try some Yak milk tea, fired tofu and barley powder.
Later this afternoon there will be time to wander in the meadows behind our hotel and reflect on our journey from Yangon to Zhong Zian
Accommodation: The Songstam Hotel Diqing Prefecture Tibet
Morning at leisure before being transferred to the airport for our flight to Kunming. On arrival we will be transferred to our hotel. This evening will be our farewell dinner at a local restaurant.
Accommodation: Harbour Plaza Hotel 20 Hong Hua Qiao Kunmimg PH: 86 87 1538 6688
Free day in Kunming
You flight departs from Kunming to Xian at 2205 on HU 7850, arriving in Xian at 23.50. On this day you will need to make your own way to the airport. On arrival you will be met by a representative of China Holidays who will transfer you to your hotel.
Accommodation:
City Hotel Xian
Day 25 May 5 (breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Full day tour to Terracotta Warriors and Banpo Neolithic Village. Enjoy special Jiaozi (Chinese dumpling) dinner and Tang Dynasty cultural show in the evening.
Accommodation: City Hotel Xian
Day 26 May 6 (Breakfast & Lunch)
Full day visit to Bell Tower, Great Mosque, City Wall and Big Goose Pagoda. Private car transfer to the airport for your flight to Kunming on HU 7849 at 1920 to arrive at 2115. On arrival you will be met and transferred to your hotel.
Accommodation: Kunming Silver Sky Hotel Kunming
You will be met and transferred to the airport for Silk Air flight 913 departing at 1305 to arrive in Singapore at 1720. We connect with SQ 221 at 2020 to arrive in Sydney at 0540. Transfer to the domestic terminal for QF 1413 at 0915, arriving in Canberra at 1005, May 8.
End of arrangements.
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Last changed: Saturday October 18, 2014 |