Beijing: The Beijing International Flower Port

Lying in Yangzhen Village in Shunyi District, the Beijing International Flower Port is the only one professional flower industry zone in Beijing that planned by Beijing Municipal Government. Being the window of the development of Beijing’s flower industry, it was one of the most important function groups of the 7th China Flower Expo 2009 sponsored by Beijing City.

During the expo, the Beijing International Flower Port was used to demonstrate Beijing’s flower industry zone and outdoor flower show, at the same time, it was responsible for spreading and propagating flower culture of Beijing. Currently, the flower port has become the center for flower producing, research, exhibition, sightseeing and cultural communication.

The Beijing International Flower Port is a flower farm that specializes in growing and breeding flowers and selling seeds and fresh flowers. Fresh flowers are popular as gifts or for decoration, and they are also a profitable business. There are various kinds of landscaping and several special locations of the park such as the Cherry Avenue where there are cherry trees, the Metasequoia Forest, a place for gingko trees, and a pond for water plants and a garden. The 1.5 mile area has a lot you can do and see including picking up fruits, attending several different flower fairs, and attending horticultural exhibitions.

Shanghai: Moller Villa — A Castle of Fairytale

It comes to weekend again. Although it is autumn day, but the hot and humid air still make me feel restless. Having been tired of the noisy shopping mall, in this weekend, I especially find a quiet and graceful corner to spend this leisurely day, just letting the time and life pace slower and slower again. If you are obsessed with a slower life, why not list Moller Villa into you Shanghai Xian tour?

 There are a great deal of elegant and quiet place in Shanghai. After searching on the Internet, I decided to go to a place where I used to go very often — Moller Villa.

Situated in the junction of Yan’an Middle Road and Shaanxi North Road, Moller Villa is a garden villa of Northern European style and has a history of 75 years. With the Norwegian-style spire, gothic style pinnacle and gorgeous colors, the villa is called as “the castle of fairytale” in Shanghai.

It was built by a Swedish shipping magnate, Eric Moller, in 1936. He came to Shanghai in 1919. Legend has it that Moller’s daughter had dreamed about a big house like those in the Hans Andersen fairy tales. After that her father Moller built this fantasy Norwegian-style castle for her according to what she saw in her dream. Now it serves as a boutique hotel to bring guests a fairy-tale fantasy castle life. Compared with the international metropolis Shanghai, Xian tour will give you a total different experience.

Shanghai: Summer Night Rush

With half a month’s high temperature, Shencheng City was heated up like a stove. In the hot summer days, great pieces of white cloud flutter from the sea, like ten thousand horses galloping. In this moment of beauty, I can’t help to go to the Bund and enjoy and sea breeze and night scene of the Huangpu River. In the beautiful color of the night, the whole day’s fatigue had disappeared. And my mood seems to get better too.

Speak of the Bund, it is a must-see place for those who join a Shanghai to Xian tour. It attracts a great number of tourists from both at home and abroad with its unique landscape, and particularly the night scene. In this hot summer days, after the last glow of the setting sun, the Bund is flooded in the great piece of dim light. Standing on the pedestrian causeway and looking forward, the European-style buildings are ablaze with colorful lights, just like crystal palaces standing along the bank of Huangpu river and quietly telling the passing stories. When you turn around, the breeze from the river kisses the faces gently. In the opposite of the Huangpu River, lights are twink in a myriad of households and the Oriental Pearl Tower reaches into the sky. Now and then, there will be several barges boating on the river, which looks very fabulous.

The most beautiful night scene of Xian is in the Great Tang All Day Mall (Great Tang All Day Mall is the continuation and upgrading of the Tang-Dynasty culture. Great Tang All Day Mall demonstrates culture through modern signs and elements, such as floor decoration, lighting art, and architectural art and landscape furniture. It strives to reflect the charm of the Tang-Dynasty culture in slight places and to show the beauty of the Tang-Dynasty art in a concise and plain way ). It is also a must-see place in your Xian tour.

Beijing: Peach Blossom Sea Scenic Spot of Pinggu

 Pingu, a suburb district of Beijing, is the most famous town of the big peach in China. The 220,000-mu garden of big peach is can be said as the largest peach garden in the world, the largest peach town in China and the largest fruit planting area in China’s capital city of Beijing. So far, Pinggu, Beijing has consecutively held 13 International Peach Blossom Festival successfully. And it has been a famous spring tourism activity in Beijing-Tianjin region.

It is time for peach blooming in Pinggu in mid April (15th - 25th) of every year. The over 220 thousand mu colorful peach blossom sea presents tourists a majestic and spectacular scene, which attracts numerous visitors from Beijing, Tianjin city and Hebei provinces etc to flock to enjoy the vaporing and rosy cloud. When I attend the Beijing Xian tour in April this year, I was lucky to be taken there by my friend in Beijing and had a witness of the magnificent pink peach blossom sea.

With high in the east and low in the west, the full-bloom stage of every peach orchard differs a little. In some peach orchard, tourists can appreciate the peach blossom even in early May. In the peach orchard, a purple flower which called is “Eryuelan” can be seen everywhere.

It is said its florescence is even longer than peach blossom. It is free for appreciating the peach blossom during the Festival. As the local tourism is now under the initial stage of development, therefore some tourists facilities are still incomplete. On the one hand, the local villagers expect tourists to view the blossom and buy their subsidiary agricultural products; on the other hand, they don’t want tourists to step back and forth in their orchards. You may see some villagers shout at these tourists sometimes.

My friend took me to the Xian Agriculture Expo Park in the spare time of my Xian tour, it was indeed an interesting experience!

Beijing: Ditan Temple Fair

The Ditan Temple Fair was first held in 1985, so far has been held for 26 years. When I joined the Beijing Xian one day tour this year, I had went there for the 27th Dian Temple Fair. With a high artistic tastes, it enjoys a famous reputation both at home and abroad. The magnificent scene is hailed as a modern Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival (a famous ancient painting in China is a long, painted scroll 528 cm long and 24.8 cm wide, which portrays street scenes of Bianjing, today's Kaifeng City, Henan Province, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) ) and Chinese Carnival.

Ditan (Temple of Earth) Park is the site of the altar where sacrifices were formerly offered to the earth god. The performance reenactment of a Qing Dynasty sacrificial ceremony to worship the God of Earth is an unique traditional program. In addition, there will also be a range of folk performances, children's puppet shows and fashion shows, art exhibitions, ice lanterns and snow sculptures, and traditional Beijing snacks.

Going to Ditan Temple Fair in Spring Festival has been a traditional custom for Beijing citizens. As the first recovered temple fair, Ditan Temple Fair of Spring Festival attracts thousands of visitors every year with its authentic folk arts and customs. Such temple fair also can be found in Taoist Temple of Eight Immortals druing your Xian tour.

A Bite of Beijing: Weet Italy Restaurant

"La Dolce Vita Italy Restaurant" is one of the first group Italy Restaurant in Beijing. The restaurant not only provides you with sterling Italy gourmet but also offers you a romantic dining environment. I went there for the first time when I joined a Beijing Xian one day tour, I eat my lanch there.

As of now, the restaurant has been open for almost ten years. Several years ago, it was selected as the winner of “the Most Outstanding Italy Restaurant Prize”, which has been encouraged “La Dolce Vita” to provide the most authentic Italy gourmet for its visitors. It has attracted food lovers from all over the world with its unique Italy style.

"La Dolce Vita" Italy Restaurant is located in Xindong Road on the airport expressway. The pure white building is surrounded by verdant trees, which makes it look very beautiful. When you open the door of La Dolce Vita, you will be overwhelmed by the strang Italian flavor. The austere wood roof and floor present a romantic feeling. Simple decorative style is used here, but it still give you a feeling a elegance. No matter of the pictures of famous artworks or the displayed artistic sculptures reveals a kind of ambiance of literature and art. If you are planning a tour to Xian, some famous Italy restaurants also can be found there, like Milano’s Italy Restaurant.

A Bite of Xian: Snacks Guideline

I have heard a lot of compliments for snacks of Xian, and some of my friend who have been Xian also have mentioned about it, therefore, after a long time of planning, I decide to go to Xian, together with my wife. Last time when I traveled in Beijing, I had a lot of famous snacks in Beijing, but Xian bite is the first time.
1. Cruded Pancake in Mutton Soup of Mi Family. A Medium size meal for 15 yuan RMB, including a bowl of mutton soup and a pancake. Generally, it is enough for one person. But id it is not enough, you can buy another pancake with 0.5 yuan.

2. Bingfeng soft water. It is a local brand which is 1.5 yuan for a bottle. Similar to Beibingyang soft water in Beijing, Bingfeng is nothing special, just from my point of view. But Bingfeng is well-known by everyone in Xian. For Xian citizens, it is probably a taste of childhood, and even a kind of precious memory. Bingfeng to Xian is what Beibingyang to Beijing. If you want to join a Beijing to Xian tour, you can try the Beibingyang, and then you would see it.
3. Persimmon Osmanthus (also Crystal Persimmon Cake). It is a kind of dessert which is made of persimmon and flour. PS: the best seller is Yiguzhai.
4. Jia San Dumplings Restaurant. It is one of the most famous snacks in Xian. Jia San is a Hui people. He is a genius in business and finance management. If you join a Xian package tour, the tour guide will recommend many delicious snacks, Jia San Dumplings will be definitely in the list.

Heilongjiang: the First Cliff Diver in China — Di Huanjie

When the feature program The First Cliff Diver in China—Di Huanjie broadcast on August 14 on CCTV-4 this year, I was just travel in Jingpo Lake Scenic Spot in Mudan River, China’s northeasternmost Heilongjiang Province, and I was so lucky to have witnessed the amazing cliff diving performed by Di Huanjie in Diaoshuilou Waterfall.

Jingpo Lake is the second largest alpine barrier lake in the world. And Di Huanjie perhaps is the name card of the lake, he is known by most of people as the first cliff diver in China. Di Huanjie is 56 years old this year, and he has kept jumping down from the 20 meters high cliff and diving in the 60 meters deep Heilong Pool(Black Dragon Pool) every day for the past 30 years. On Oct 5 of this year, he won the the Guinness World Record certificate and was hailed as “the First Cliff Diver”. In winter, the lake is coated with ice, but he still keeps diving every day, in the environment of minus 20 ℃.

After the performance, I interviewed him briefly. He also told me that he was not a professional diver and never had dive training. Diver is only his hobby. He told me that he also had dived in Wenchuan Bridge, Mudanjiang Bridge, Yellow River’s Hukou Waterfall and Harbin’s Songhuajiang Bridge etc.

Hubei Suizhou: the Ancient Ginkgo Valley

Ginkgo biloba is the oldest relict plants of the existing seed plants. Known as a living fossil, it was born hundreds of millions years ago, with species of the same contemporaries has been extinct. So far the living ginkgo is scarce and dispersed in the world. In Luoyang Town, Suizhou in the world. However, in Luoyang Town, Suizhou City, Hubei Province, there is a most intact and the the most well-preserved thousand years old Ginkgo tree group across the country and even in the world.

The Ginkgo Valley stretches for 12 kilometers with 308 Millennium ginkgo trees, and 17,000 over100-year-old ginkgo trees more than 17,000 trees. The ancient ginkgo trees in the region forms a community which has become one of the four largest assembling ginkgo community.

When autumn falls, the ginkgo valley is covered with golden leave, presenting a spectacular scenery, which attracts numerous visitors from surrounding areas.