April 2008 Archives

On April 19^th, 2008 at 11:00am, the staff of the Marketing 

 Department of China Odyssey Tours went on a hiking  tour through Guilin’s picturesque countryside. In he morning we were taken by bus to Changming Village. Our group hiked for six hours and climbed six mountains. The weather was sunny, and hot, but everyone brought enough water along, so we had no problems.

After climbing to the summit of the highest mountain of the trip, we were rewarded with a spectacular view of the beautiful Li River. Upon arriving at the Li River, we took a small cruise down the river. The scenery was spectacular. We live in Guilin and see the mountains in Guilin every day, but we are still awed by them.

At 7:00pm we arrived in Caoping Village, where we stopped for dinner. We were very tired, and so the delicious dinner tasted even better. It consisted of local Guilin cuisine including the famous local beer fish. It was an unforgettable trip, and one that made our already strong friendship even stronger.

 

 

On Sunday April 20th the Marketing Department of China Odyssey Tours went to see a production of "An Imperial Secretary Retires", a traditional Guilin Opera (GuiJu). The opera was performed in downtown Guilin in a theatre on Guilin's Pedestrian Shopping Street. We had a wonderful time! The Opera was very well performed, and the costumes and make-up were very beautiful. Before the performance, the actors sat in the front to apply their makeup giving audience members a rare chance to see how actors in Guilin Opera prepare for a performance.

 

Chen Hongmou the lead protagonist was an official of The Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). He was retired by Emperor Qianlong, and on his way home to Guilin, he stops at Shanxi province where he was once an official. While he was an official there, the Emperor  is retired sent home to Guilin to retire by the Emperor. When Chen Hongmou was an official in the province, Emperor Qianlong decided that a large number of trees should be planted in the province. One man who was Chen Hongmou's student told the Emperor that the trees could not survive in that climate. Angered by this, Emperor Qianlong ordered his execution. Chen Hongmou pleaded with the Emperor to recind the order. The Emperor refused and had his former student executed. Chen Hongmou adopted the man's son as his grandson and was then promoted to the imperial capitol. His former student's daughter believing that Chen Hongmou was the cause of her father's death swore to kill the him. When Chen Hongmou returned to Shanxi Province, she attempted to murder him, but was stopped by Chen Hongmou's adopted grandson, who unbeknownst to her was her brother. Her father's ghost informed her that Chen Hongmou was an honest man, and she should respect him. She then decided not to kill him, and Chen Hongmou decided to adopt her as well. They then all returned to Guilin where Chen Honmou could live out the remainder of his life.

 

Guilin Opera originated in Guilin and is sung in the local dialect. It is far less formal than PekingOpera and rarely uses any sort of face painting. Guilin Opera came into being in the mid Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Visitors from Anhui introduced their traditional operas and music to Guilin, and the ancient people of Guilin transformed it by using their own local style. Guilin Opera has a long list of repetoires: Stealing Umbrellas, Mu Guiying, Meeting on the Broken Bridge. Like Peking Opera Guilin Opera's characters are divided into four basic types including Sheng (male role), Dan (female role), Jing (painted face male role), and Chou (clown or comic relief). The singing in Guilin Opera is sung much more naturally than Peking Opera making it more pleasing to the ears.

On March 23rd I left Guilin City for my inspection tour of China Regal Cruises' Yangtze River Cruise. No one on

board knew I worked for China Odyssey Tours so that I could get a real feeling for what our client's experience. I landed in Chongqing where I would spend the day before being taken to my boat. My ship was the Princess Sheena and I was quite impressed with the overall appearance of the ship. It has a very sleek design. It is not big or blocky, as most cruise ships in China are. This is due to the fact that it was built in Germany and is the only cruise line on the Yangtze that has foreign built ships.

I had a single room. The room was small, comfortable, and very well designed. Everything was placed very well. My room had all of the amenities that could be found in a 5 star hotel. I had my own air conditioner, refrigerator, television, telephone, bathroom with shower and western style toilet, and plenty of storage space.

One of the first things I noticed about the ship was the friendliness of the staff, and their excellent use of English. There was no communication problems whatsoever during my trip. The crew members I dealt with all remembered my name and went out of their way to say hi to me and to make sure that my every need was looked after. They did not know that I work for China Odyssey Tours, so I did not get special treatment. This is how they treat all their guests.

The ship itself was extremely comfortable. I could barely feel we were moving. Motion sickness will not be a problem for anyone riding on this ship. The interior of the ship is very easy to navigate and well laid out. The ship features a bar, observation lounge/library, ballroom, sundeck, two dining rooms, a gift shop, photo center, business center, medical clinic, sauna, massage parlor, and hair dresser. Each facility is well designed, and very

comfortable.  The bar and observation room/library was located in the bow of the ship and had windows on three sides which gave excellent views of the Three Gorges scenery, while sitting in comfort out of the weather. The bar features a large selection of western alcohol and wine, as well as China's famous Maotai Alcohol. The bartenders do not skimp on the alcohol either. The dining rooms feature very comfortable chairs and have large windows running down each side. The meals were buffet style and offered both Western and Chinese cuisine. Soft drinks, tea, coffee, and juice were complimentary. The food was very good. The ballroom was where all of the performances and parties were held. It features a state of the art sound and lighting system. I have to mention the performances. They were excellent. They featured the crew of the ship, and they were extremely talented. The costumes were very beautiful as well. It is definitely something that should not be missed. I got to know some of the crew members, and was surprised to see several of them performing. Even the girl who cleaned my cabin sang a song beautifully. At the beginning of my cruise, the ship's doctor gave a seminar on traditional Chinese medicine. I made an appointment with him, so he could look at my

tendonitis and he performed acupuncture on me which really helped a lot with the pain I have been having. The sundeck located on the top deck of the ship was the perfect place to watch our ship go through the Three Gorges Dam's 5-stage ship locks. Each deck has its own exterior walkway that encircles the ship, so that visitors wanting a little exercise can walk around the ship. Most ships cruising on the Yangtze to not have this, and visitors are only able to walk back and forth on each deck.

The excursions that we took were very well set up and run. We visited the Shennong Stream and had to switch to a smaller ship, and eventually to small wooden boats. Our guide was waiting for us, and took us through all parts of the excursion. The Three Gorges Dam was also very well done. Our guide was waiting for us as we disembarked, and personally took us to our bus and gave us a tour of the whole site. There English and knowledge of each site was exceptional. They were able to answer any and all questions we had.

One of the nicest parts of the cruise other than the ship, excursions, and crew, was my fellow passengers.

Everyone on board soon got to know each other, and we really had fun sharing this experience with each other. It made my cruise on China Regal Tours' cruise down the Yangtze River much more enjoyable.

Before my inspection tour of the Yangtze River, I did no research. I wanted the experience to be as real as possible. I found the ship and her crew to be extremely professional. It was a wonderful experience that I will never forget, and I will keep in touch with the new friends I made onboard for years to come. It was a truly unforgettable experience.

China Odyssey Travel is proud to announce, that as of March 29th, we have a new home. We have moved to a new office which is still in Guilin. Our new office is much more spacious and well designed. Our company has expanded so much, that our old home couldn’t handle our needs anymore. Each department now has its own meeting room, and we have a room designed specifically to meet with guests who come to visit us. All of our furnishings are new, and the offices have been designed by local interior designers and feature traditional paintings and Guilin minority embroidery. Besides being more beautiful, our new office will allow for further growth.

Our mailing address:
China Odyssey Tours
Guilin Tang Dynasty Tours Co. Ltd.
Room 218, Building 6, No.11 Huixian Road, Qixing District, Guilin, China 541004