Aug 8, 2006

Hi Travel China Guide! Sorry for the long delay on this, but I have been busy catching up on things following my two weeks in China!

Guides:

- I was happy with all five guides that I had during my trip (Jason for one day in Beijing, Rose for the rest of Beijing, Pasang in Lhasa, Lily in Xi'an, and the girl in Shanghai [whose name I can't remember at this moment]). All spoke excellent English, and I don't think that any had problems with their command of the English language. All knew the background and history of the places that we visited, and most went out of their way to show us the places that were either on the tour or that we asked to be shown. On the whole, though, I found the female guides to be more energetic and attentive than the male guides. The guys tended to sleep at every opportunity, while the women were usually engaging and quite willing to discuss China and that made the trip more pleasant and informative.

Cars:

- The cars were all clean and had great air conditioning (a must for China in June and July)! I have no complaints about the vehicles or the drivers, all of whom were very helpful and attentive.

Overall:

- Lily did a fantastic job with our group in Xi'an, facilitating all of our needs and desires. She helped us bike around the city walls, and arranged for me to travel out to Hua Shan to see the beautiful sights there. That was a highlite of the trip, and her wonderful attitude and attentiveness made that aspect of the trip both memorable and more enjoyable! In the future, I'd recommend considering that as an optional event for the Xi'an area. While I am sure that there is much to see and do in Xi'an, at that stage in the trip I was ready to leave the city and see something of natural, rural China. China is an exceptionally beautiful country from what I have heard and seen, but without getting people out into the countryside to experience that, they will think that China is a country characterized by crowded, smoggy cities. Hau Shan is an event I would encourage you to consider adding in the future.

- Your company did a good job of providing shopping opportunities while not forcing them upon us, and accommodating specific desires that were outside of the normal itinerary. Pasang was helpul in that regard in Lhasa. I was happy about that aspect of the trip, as some companies force those opportunities upon you at every sight and at every stop.

Again, thank you for a wonderful China experience! I'll certainly consider your company - Travel China Guide for future trips I make to China!

Regards,

Bryan