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China Attractions

Vegetarian Restaurant at the Wenshu Monastery

This restaurant is the only vegetarian restaurant that I know of in Chengdu. It is located within the Wenshu Buddhist Monastery, hence it is vegetarian. I’ll have to agree with the Lonely Planet’s review which labels the cuisine as excellent. There is an enormous menu full of veggie and tofu dishes as well as many offering faux meat. The menu is in English too! Don’t be afraid of the spicy dishes which are measured with 1, 2, or 3 red peppers on the menu. I tried a few dishes that were of supposedly ’medium’ level spice and they were barely spicy at all.

Directions: The restaurant is inside the Wenshu Monastery on Xizhushi Jie, just off of Renmin Zhonglu. Entrance to the monastery is only 5 yuan. Once inside, walk towards the east side of the grounds (the right side) and you will find the restaurant in a few minutes. Buses 16 and 99 run along Renmin Lu, so hop off once you see the red walls of the monastery or see Xizhushi Jie (street).

 

Kohinoor Restaurant – Indian and Pakistani Cuisine

The fairly new Kohinoor Restaurant sits above the lobby in the Ramada Hotel. The food is typical Indian and Pakistani fare although not as spicy. However, the kitchen can surely add ...
The fairly new Kohinoor Restaurant sits above the lobby in the Ramada Hotel. The food is typical Indian and Pakistani fare although not as spicy. However, the kitchen can surely add some heat upon request.
 
As should be expected from a reputable hotel chain, the restaurant and hotel bathroom appear quite clean. Servers are attentive, perhaps due to the fact that this small restaurant was almost empty during our visit. Hopefully they become better known soon.
 
A typical meal for two costs about 100 to 150 yuan not including drinks.
 
How to Get There
 
Take the subway to Gulou (鼓楼) station and walk northwest for a few minutes on Zhongshan Bei Lu (中山北路) until you see the Ramada. Kohinoor is on the 2nd floor directly above the hotel lobby. 
 
Kohinoor offers free home delivery within 3 kilometers of their store.  If delivery is further than 3 kilometers away, the taxi fare will be added to the bill.

Pulse Health Club

The Pulse Health Club is managed by Kempinski Hotels & Resorts. There are two locations in the Beijing Lufthansa Centre, one on the 18th floor (with a great view and a swimming pool), and the other in the basement in an adjacent building. The basement location has a bigger w...
The Pulse Health Club is managed by Kempinski Hotels & Resorts. There are two locations in the Beijing Lufthansa Centre, one on the 18th floor (with a great view and a swimming pool), and the other in the basement in an adjacent building. The basement location has a bigger weight lifting area, more machines, and a studio for classes.   
 
Yoga at Pulse Health Club
Pulse is suitable for those looking for a club that has regular yoga classes, as classes are currently offered daily except for Tuesdays (many clubhouses only have one or two classes a week). The Vinyasa flow yoga classes are suitable for beginners as well as more advanced students. Most of the instruction is in Chinese, however, it is relatively easy to follow other students as the studio has wall-to-wall mirrors.    
 
In addition to yoga classes the club also offers Latin dancing, Kung Fu, aerobics, kickboxing, Taebo, pilates and Taekwondo.  Other facilitlies include a sauna, steam room, jacuzzi, and tennis and squash courts. 
 
Membership fees for a single person are as follows:
Monthly: 1050 Yuan
Quarterly: 2800 Yuan
Biannually: 4500 Yuan
Annually: 7500 Yuan
 
There is also an off-peak membership offer, as well as memberships for couples or families. If you do not want to become a member, but do want to attend some of the classes, you can pay on a class-by-class basis (90 yuan per class), or buy 10 classes for 800 yuan.

Tribeca

Catering to the upscale partier, this is one of the bigger party venues in town. The 8,000 squar...

Catering to the upscale partier, this is one of the bigger party venues in town. The 8,000 square foot club is divvied up into three spacious areas, with each room radiating its own vibe and music. The entrance martini oval lounge has a dark sexy feel about it with dangling golden chains and a musical focus on hip hop and r&b music. Step on through into the main room and you’ll gravitate towards the long bar, which seats up to 30 people. It’s the ideal place to perch on a barstool and chat to an attractive patron or two whilst enjoying a glass of champagne. The dance floor was definitely the highlight of the club, definitely something to go and experience for yourself. Slick white arches surrounding the circular dance floor house cozy niches, an ideal location to sit and talent spot. For the exhibitionist amongst us, Tribeca comes equipped with a glammed up stage befitting only the most striking of dancers. If this isn’t your scene, try the third late night lounge where the décor embodies sophistication. The dark wood fittings and leather sofas are reminiscent of salons where gentlemen sip their single malts.

The club’s playlist is eclectic but agreeable, with nods to what’s hot on the world’s trendiest dance floors. Drink options are plentiful and the martinis delectable. Nightlife in Hong Kong often lacks variety, but at Tribeca we were spoiled for choice. 

Indalo - CLOSED

This fantastic Spanish restaurant opened up in June of 2006, but still has quite a buzz about it. I have been to Indalo twice now, and was highly impressed with the décor, service (rare for Shanghai) and food both times! Although In...

This fantastic Spanish restaurant opened up in June of 2006, but still has quite a buzz about it. I have been to Indalo twice now, and was highly impressed with the décor, service (rare for Shanghai) and food both times! Although Indalo sits at a notoriously unlucky location, I think Indalo will survive in this hidden and serene spot on Sinan Lu, directly behind Fuxing Park and the craziness of Guandi and Park 97. Try Indalo for a romantic date, or with out of town visitors, this place is bound to impress!

 

Some of my favorites dishes include:

Shrimp and garlic tapas

Calamari

Boar stuffed mushrooms

Chicken and sausage Paella or “Paella de Pollo y Chorizo” (135RMB): If the staff asks you how you would like it cooked, go with the authentic Spanish style and leave it a little under cooked by Chinese standards.

 

With a couple classes of sangria or wine, (Indalo boasts an excellent selection with about 25 well priced wines by the glass), a hearty dinner for two will cost about 400RMB.

 

How to get there: Indalo is smack in the middle of the Huangpi and Shaanxi Lu stations on Metro Line 1. From either stop to the restaurant will take about 20 minutes. I recommend a cab, but if you are determined to walk, Sinan Lu is one block east of Ruijin Lu and Indalo is located on Xiangshan Lu, one block north of Fuxing Lu.

Top China Tours

$150 Per Day

Guangzhou

Day 1 Arrive in Guangzhou

Arrive in Guangzhou in the morning, you will be met and transferred to hotel, then visit Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall. The Memorial Hall is a very famous historical scenic spot. It is in memory of Sun Yat-sen, the great revolutionary forerunner. After that proceed to visit the Ancestral Temple of the Chen Family. It is a unique site for offering up sacrifices to worship ancestors of 72 Chen families in Guangdong. This ancestral temple is also the largest, best preserved and best decorated ancient architecture existing in Guangdong province.

Day 2 Guanzhou Tour 

After breakfast, you will go to Yuexiu Park first, the largest and the most famous park in downtown Guangzhou. There are three artificial lakes and seven hills of Yuexiu Mountain. Then you will visit Temple of Six Banyan Trees, which is one of the four best Buddhist temples in Guangzhou and located on the Liurong Road (meaning the Six Banyan Trees Road). The Nanyue King Tomb Museum is a must-see Guangzhou attraction, which dates back to 2,000 years ago, is the earliest large scale painted stone chamber tomb ever found south of the Five Ridges. Buried with the tomb owner in a jade shroud are a gold seal and a lot of exquisite jade adornments. It has become a world famous museum. After the day tour you will be transferred to airport for your next destination.

$53 Per Day

Pingyao Highlights Walking Tour

Pingyao Highlights Walking Day Tour

With our guide to know the Ancient Pingyao better!

Our guide will meet you at your hotel lobby at 08:00 or 08:30, then show you the ticket office to get the ticket for the museums we will visit later.

First we will visit the 700 years old City wall, We will climb up from south gate and have a walk on the wall. We are not sure how many km we can walk, because of the renovating of the wall. Normally we will walk from south gate to the Yunlu Exit.

Then visit the Confucius temple, there is a old building named Dacheng Hall which is over 840 years old. From outside, we can see the big wood joints to lift the big roof around the building which is named Dougong. Due to this design, there are less columns inside the hall for giving the big space for the statues and the prayer. We have chance to see the Confucius statue and learn the philosophy of Confucius. If you like, you can pray for you and your children to get better study.

There is the Paper Cutting master named Wentao nearby the exit of Confucius temple. She is very smart and create the new style paper cutting with much more details and good wishes on it. Her products are made by hanks. It is worth to visit and buy as a souvenir from Pingyao. From the table standing and wall hangings. Please remember, take the red one because of red is the traditional and happy color. But the white one is the best. It is really difficult to choose, because of all of them are really nice.

Then you can have coffee break or tea break if you need at Chummy coffee, after this, visit the City god temple (ChenghuangMiao) which is most beautiful temple inside the wall. Because of the roof is covered by the colorful glazed tiles. There is not only city god and also the three money gods, Now you know why pingyao was the financial center.

Next we will visit the Ancient government building, to see the pingyao politics center in the ancient time. It is the complete building with officials bed room, kitchen and private garden. Follow the guide to look the official’s life from the 250km far away from the hometown.

Have a stroll in the alley to the Rishengchang exchange bank, which is the first bank all of china.You can not miss it.

After lunch, walk to the Ming and Qing street, this is the shopping street full of the stores on the both side of street. You can find alot things here , from post card to lacquered boxes, and wall panels. One more place to see, it is the Armed escort agency also named security and transport service for the business man before the bank founded.

Inlcusions

1.private english speaking tour guide servcie

2.bottle water for the tour

 

$310 Per Day

3- Day Popular Tour In Zhangjiajie

Day 1    Zhangjiajie National Forest Park

Full day trip to Zhangjiajie National Forest Park,take Bailong Elevator up Yuanjiajie,Bailong Elevator is the said to be the worlds tallest full-exposure outdoor lift,double-deck sightseeing elevator.Yuanjiajie is the inspiration for Hallelujah Mountain in AVATAR , Where you will also find the aptly named First Bridge under Heaven, Lover Peaks and so on.

Continuing to Tianzi Mountain, it takes you 40 minuts from Yuanjiajie to Tianzi Mountain by public bus, after arriving in Tianzi Mountain, you will have a bird’s-eye view of all the mountains and valleys of the Wuling Mountains. Visit Western Sea, Helong Park, Viewing Terrace etc.Take Tianzi cablecar down and check in hotel for a rest.
Accommodation: Wulingyuan Downtown

Day 2    Baofeng Lake & Glass Bridge

After breaking in the hotel, we head to Baofeng Lake where is the masterpiece of nature and human beings’wisdom. Baofeng Lake is pure just like a big crystal among Bao feng mountain Range.When you cruise, you can hear authentic song from Tujia minority people,you can fully understand the harmony and peace between human beings and nature.

Transfer to Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon, have a walking on the Glass Bridge, Glass Bridge is the highlight of Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon, located in Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon, Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon Glass Bridge is the highest and longest transparent glass bridge with a length 430 meters and a width 6 meters. It is 300 meters above the ground level and it can bear 800 persons standing on it at the same time. (need to book the tickets in advance)
Accommodation: Wulingyuan Downtown

Day 3    Tianmen Mountain

Full day to explore Tianmen Mountain,take the longest cablecar in the world up Tianmen Mountain,have a walk on the mountain plank road built along the face of cliffs. You will feel like walking in a fairy land when the mist is still heavy.The must-visit scenic spots are: Tianmen Cave, Glass Road, Tianme Temple.

See you off in the airport and looking forward to seeing you again in Zhangjiajie.