China

No, we didn't sail to China. It might be possible, but it's just too far from Langkawi. This is a straightforward tourist gig. However, our family asked for pictures, so we took over 4,600, not including video clips. Naturally, there was much chaff so we have spent many hours culling through the harvest to find only the choicest bits for our faithful readers.

Here our lovely admiral models China's latest fashion statement, the surgical mask, in Tianjin airport. China is very concerned about the H1N1 virus and many people there are taking no chances. Our departure from the plane in Tianjin was held up for some time as teams of examiners took everyone's temperature (twice) and had us fill out health questionnaires in Chinese, which we admit to being rather weak in reading.

To be honest, the H1N1 scare is not limited to China. As we write this is Thailand, many locals here are equally cautious and whole families can be seen wearing masks.

Admiral: Visiting China with Stanford University 25 years ago was an amazing experience which I had reservations about duplicating. Wanting to share a highlight of my ingénue cultural adventures with my husband was foremost on the travel itinerary for this area of the globe. It was not a let down! We just wish more time could have been given to the subject!

Once we arrived, it was a matter of getting from Tianjin to Beijing, about 130km away. This was greatly aided by the bullet train seen above, which whisked us along at 340km/hr (about 200mph). The train is made in Germany. The ride is totally smooth, which is handy when going faster than some airplanes. Because we had researched the 'Net on many 'howtos' we were able to navigate the train station.

Although we are normally not adventure-averse, we were concerned that touring China entirely on our own would be problematical. Combined with the fact that traveling to Tibet is not possible without a guide made us sign up for a series of "private" tours in the places you see listed on the left. These tours were linked by train trips to the different destinations, which is at least a little adventuresome. Naturally, we would have done things differently if we'd known how things would transpire, but on the whole we did feel that using guides and drivers in most places was worthwhile. Maybe we're just getting old.

Well, before we get any older, let's get busy in Beijing.