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Yangzi River Bridge
Opened on 23 December 1968, the Yangzi River Bridge is one of the longest bridges in China – a double-decker with a 4.5km-long road on top and a train line below. Stirring socialist-realist sculptures can be seen on the approaches. Odds are that you’ll probably cross the bridge if
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Western Monastery
This Buddhist monastery is a tranquil complex in which to pass the time, observing points of interest both architectural and spiritual. After being greeted by a Bodhisattva statue in the entrance, the main building lies behind, styled as a classical Chinese palace. Further behind i
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Tǎchuān
Only 3km northwest of Hóngcūn is the tiny little village of Tǎchuān, set at the base of a valley and famed for its stunning autumn scenery. Each year, the leaves on old-growth trees in and around the village change colours for anywhere between 10 to 30 days. The entire valley comes
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Ming Palace Ruins
The Ming Palace Ruins lie scattered around peaceful but maudlin Wǔcháomén Park . Built by Zhu Yuanzhang, the imperial palace was reportedly a magnificent structure and template for Běijīngs Forbidden City. Clamber atop ruined Meridian Gate (Wǔ Mén ), which once had huge walls jutti
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Former Marine Police Headquarters
Built in 1884, this gorgeous Victorian complex, is one of Hong Kong’s four oldest government buildings. It was used continuously by the Hong Kong Marine Police except during WWII when the Japanese navy took over. The complex is now a nakedly commercial property called Heritage 1881
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Changbai Waterfall
From the bus stop, walk up to a small hot spring where you can soak your feet or buy delicious boiled eggs (cooked in the spring). Past that a 1km trail leads to the viewpoint for the magnificent 68m Changbai Waterfall. In the past you could follow the dramatic-looking caged trail
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Dàzú Buddhist Caves
The superb rock carvings of Dàzú (Dàzú Shíkū) are a Unesco World Heritage site and one of China’s four great Buddhist cave sculpture sites, along with those at Dūnhuáng, Luòyáng and Dàtóng. The Dàzú sculptures are the most recent of the four, but the artwork here is arguably the be
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Mei Lanfang Former Residence
Place of pilgrimage for Peking opera aficionados, this former sìhéyuàn (traditional courtyard house) of actor Mei Lanfang (1894–1961) is on the corner of a hútòng that’s named after the nearby remains of Hùguó Temple (护国寺; Hùguó Sì; only one hall remains, and its not open to the pu
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Sayram Lake
Vast Sayram Lake, 120km north of Yīníng and 90km west of Bólè, is an excellent spot to get a taste of the Tiān Shān range (Tengri Tagh in Kazakh). The lake is especially colourful during June and July, when the alpine flowers are in full bloom. In the height of summer there are Kaz
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Běihóngcūn
With Běijícūn on the tourist radar, intrepid travellers and enterprising locals have opened up a route to the even more northerly village of Běihóngcūn, 100km away. There’s nowhere to go but back south here and while theres not much beyond wooden houses and swathes of farmland, it
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Guōyù Ancient Village
This enchanting walled village is, for some, the highlight of a trip to this part of Shānxī. Theres no entrance fee and no tourist nonsense, just the genuine charm of a still-inhabited Ming-dynasty settlement. Its best simply to wander the streets aimlessly, but dont miss Tāngdì Mi
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Lu Xun Former Residence
Lu Xun buffs will adore ferreting around this three-floor domicile on lovely Shanyin Rd, where an excellent English-speaking guide can fill you in on all the period bits and bobs, including the authors tea cosy and the clock that stopped at his time of death. Don’t overlook wander
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Oriental Pearl TV Tower
Love it or hate it, it’s hard to be indifferent to this 468m-tall poured-concrete tripod tower, especially at night, when it dazzles. Sucking in streams of visitors, the Deng Xiaoping–era design is inadvertently retro, but socialism with Chinese characteristics was always cheesy ba
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Old Dragon Head
Famous across China (although a little over-hyped if were being honest), Old Dragon Head, 4km south of Shānhǎiguān, is where the Great Wall meets the sea. Its photogenic for sure, but bear in mind that what you see now was reconstructed in the late 1980s – the original wall crumble
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Broken Bridge
In 1950, during the Korean War, American troops ‘accidentally’ bombed the original steel-span bridge between North Korea and China. The North Koreans dismantled the bridge less than halfway across the river, leaving a row of support columns. You can wander along the remaining secti
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Helena May
The Helena May was opened in 1916 by the wife of a governor as a social club for working, single European women, for whom the colony had little to offer by way of ‘respectable’ entertainment like ballet lessons and tea parties. The colonial building with features of the Palladian a
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Hebe Haven Yacht Club
The very small bay of Hebe Haven (白沙灣) , which Cantonese speakers call Pak Sha Wan (White Sand Bay), is home to the Hebe Haven Yacht Club, which has a large fleet of yachts and other pleasure craft all but choking Marina Cove. To swim at Trio beach , opposite the marina, catch a sa
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Pingjiang Lu
While most of the town canals have been sealed and paved into roads, the pedestrianised Pingjiang Lu (平江路) offers clues to the Sūzhōu of yesteryear. On the eastern side of the city, this canal-side road has whitewashed local houses, many now converted to guesthouses, teahouses or t
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China Art Palace
This 160,000 sq metre five-floor modern-art museum has invigorating international exhibitions and the inverted red pyramid building is a modern icon of Shànghǎi; however, the permanent Chinese art collection is prosaic and theres lots of propaganda. Occasional quality surfaces, suc
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Museum of Ethnology
The Tai Po Kau Nature Reserve is a thickly forested 460-hectare ‘special area’ and is Hong Kong’s most extensive woodlands. It is home to many species of butterflies, amphibians, birds, dragonflies and trees, and is a superb place in which to enjoy a quiet walk. The reserve is supp
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