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Attractions |
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Beijing |
If your visions of Beijing are
centred around pods of Maoist revolutionaries in buttoned-down
tunics performing taichi in Tiananmen Square, put them to rest: this
city has embarked on a new millennium rollercoaster and it's taking
the rest of China with it.
The spinsterish Beijing of old is having a facelift and the
cityscape is changing daily. Within the city, however, you'll still
find some of China's most stunning sights: the Forbidden City, the
Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven Park, the Lama Temple and the Great
Wall, to name just a few. |
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Hong Kong |
Hong Kong has the big city
specials like smog, odour, 14 million elbows and an insane love of
clatter. But it's also efficient, hushed and peaceful: the transport
network is excellent, the shopping centres are sublime, and the
temples and quiet corners of parks are contemplative oases.
Hong Kong has enough towering urbanity, electric streetscapes,
enigmatic temples, commercial fervour and cultural idiosyncrasies to
utterly swamp the senses of a visitor, and enough spontaneous,
unexpected possibilities to make a complete mockery of any attempt
at a strictly organised itinerary. |
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Macau |
Macau may be firmly back in
China's orbit, but the Portuguese patina on this Sino-Lusitanian Las
Vegas makes it a most unusual Asian destination. It has always been
overshadowed by its glitzy near-neighbour Hong Kong - which is
precisely why it's so attractive.
Macau's dual cultural heritage is a boon for travellers, who can
take their pick from traditional Chinese temples, a spectacular
ruined cathedral, pastel villas, old forts and islands that once
harboured pirates. A slew of musuems will tell you how it all came
about. |
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Shanghai |
Although the lights have been
out for quite some time, Shanghai once beguiled foreigners with its
seductive mix of tradition and sophistication. Now it is reawakening
and dusting off its party shoes for another silken tango with the
wider world.
In many ways, Shanghai is a Western invention. The Bund, its
riverside area, and Frenchtown are the best places to see the
remnants of its decadent colonial past. Move on to temples, gardens,
bazaars and the striking architecture of the new Shanghai. |
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Xi'an |
Xi'an was once a major
crossroads on the trading routes from eastern China to central Asia,
and vied with Rome and later Constantinople for the title of
greatest city in the world. Today Xi'an is one of China's major
drawcards, largely because of the Army of Terracotta Warriors on the
city's eastern outskirts. Uncovered in 1974, over 10,000 figures
have been sorted to date. Soldiers, archers (armed with real
weapons) and chariots stand in battle formation in underground
vaults looking as fierce and war-like as pottery can. Xi'an's other
attractions include the old city walls, the Muslim quarter and the
Banpo Neolithic Village - a tacky re-creation of the Stone Age. |
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Western
China
