http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Asia , China , Hubei , Three Gorges Dam en-us Mon, 07 Dec 09 15:40:32 +0000 Mon, 07 Dec 09 15:40:32 +0000 Day OneWe arrived for our cruise at about 6pm even though we'd been told from 6 to 9pm. Typical Prompt Canadian stylee We were given the option of upgrading for 600Y but as we'd paid a small fortune anyway we decided to stick with our balconyless twin beds. The danger of a Drunk Terri falling overboard also influenced our decision somewhat. We ate noodles and had a rave to the class Chines http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-447275.html As I type this we are sat on the deck of a cruise boat sailing down the Yangtze River. The boat itself is not up to PO standards but the scenery definitely makes up for what the boat lacks in luxury. The route we are taking is famous because of the stunning Three Gorges it passes through as well as being the site of the Three Gorges Damn which opened last year. To get from either side of the http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-445650.html So we headed from Xi'an leaving behind the terracotta warriors and the friendly fellow travellers. We have come to realise that our domestic tour of China has allowed us to learn more about the customs and traditons of a chinese culture. the fellow travellers we met seemed to have a lack of knowledge in certain areas such as birthday traditions and pop culture in China which we hadmanaged to acq http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-417680.html Le barrage des Trois Gorges est un norme projet qui est trs controvers. C'est le plus grand barrage du monde et le plus grand projet entrepris par la Chine depuis la construction de la Grande Muraille. La ralisation du barrage est une dcision prise par le gourvernement pour canaliser le dveloppement conomique de la cte Est vers les rgions plus retires de l'Ouest. Bien que la majorit du http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-346073.html Three Gorges Cruise 03 http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-339893.html Three Gorges Cruise 02Breakfast onboard. Fryupish YumYum.Lunch.Vist to City of the Dead. Mr. Lee.Caberet show onboard. Card game for suite.Annette and here musical chairs.Karoke Gary and his Vindaloo and Blueberry hill.Ondeck with James 'till 4am. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-339892.html Three Gorges Cruise 01Arrive in Chong Quin by bus from train.Onboard and off into city to get Pizza Hut Back onboard and sleeeeep.Susan Boat Guide.Bad Karoke in the bar.Party Beer 20 for 25RMB http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-339891.html Day 90 on the road From Chongqing I headed for a trip on the Yangtze River and through the famous Three Gorges. At 6300km the Yangtze is the third longest river in the world after the Amazon and the Nile and the longest in Asia. It starts in the Tibetan mountains and runs all the way to Shanghai and into the East China Sea.Most tourist cruise the Yangtze starting in Chongqing and ending in http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-293411.html We safely arrived in Yichang a fairly nondescript town with what seemed a disproportionately large Red Light District we were looking for an internet cafe honest. Our plan was to book a Yangzi river cruise to Chongqing but in the end we opted for one which would return us to Yichang. The main reason was that this was considerably cheaper by a factor of three in fact. The disadvantage was th http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-287588.html We left Chongqing on a bus at 4pm heading for Wanzhou arriving there at 8pm in time to meet the cruise boat. The bus journey consisted of two crazy Chinese movies and lots of people hocking and spitting in the aisles yes really We arrived on the boat and found our cabin not bad though it did have a squat toilet great We went to the information counter to ask some questions but immediat http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-275690.html We had a long weekend at the beginning of May for Labor Day. We decided to go on another ldquofamily vacationrdquo to get out of Wuhan and see another part of China. The final verdict was to go check out the Three Gorges Dam. For those of you unfamiliar with the Three Gorges project Irsquoll give a brief introduction. The dam itself is one of Chinarsquos most expansive and expensive http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-272646.html Well we spent the night in Yichang after our cruise up the Yangtze but it was fairly uneventful and not that interesting...until we left Yichang on a sleeper bus to Xi'an. First we get on and think it may be a pretty good deal since it's not too crowded and we each get a nifty little lounge type seatbed bedding included. The timing was better than the train as well so it seemed like a no b http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-268636.html The Yangtze river is the third largest river in the world and the Three Gorges between Chongqing and Yichang are one of the most visited sights in China. There are various cruise options for this route the cheapest being the Chinese tourist boat where hardly any English is spoken cabins are basic and food is notoriously bad. Being backpackers this is the one we had opted for.We had both read th http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-260266.html The mist and sun are up and the river is smooth. Master Chin led those gathered in a basic tai chi sequence. I finished with some yoga poses facing downstream in the bow of the boat.Breakfast was sumptuous as are all the meals it is a 5star cruise. Afterwards we went to the upper deck to look at the Xiling Gorge followed by our entry into the lock system. This is a bit of a repeat here http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-258612.html I spent so long on the phone with the insurance compnay this morning never mind the hours last night that I missed breakfast. I have an hour before the bus leaves for the airport so I am going to hunt down a bakery. I think I deserve some baked goods. I am going to follow my nose.I cannot believe how packed some of the buses are but then no worse than the Bee Line in Vancouver especiall http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-257691.html Its been a while now and so much has happened As i said in my last blog i have been particularly loking forward to the Yangtse river cruise as we booked a 4 luxury liner for our 3 day4 nighter. We actually spent a lot of money on this and wondered if we should have taken the chinese cruise instead which basiclly meant spending the time with loads of chinese people a chinese speaking guid http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-223743.html . http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-222493.html The Yangtze River journey down stream from Chongqing to Yichang was an experience Our home for 3 nights was what we nick named 'Rusty Old Bucket'. A boat full of Chinese tourists competing for the best view and boasting with enthusiasm to go on all the tours available. Every morning we were woken by tour girls knocking on all the cabin doors at 530am followed by loud speaker instructions and m http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-215709.html In the early hours we passed through the locks at 3 Gorges Dam.It took about 4 hours for the boat to get through it.....We watched and took pictures as we went through the first set of locks.But then had to give up through tiredness.These organised tours are pretty intensive and you seem to be on the go all the timeAfter a 7.15am breakfast and having bid farewell to some of our new friend http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-209387.html We arrived in Yichang early morning as usual Irene grabbed a taxi man told him to bring us to a travel agency wait while we booked our tour and then bring us to flight centre and then on to our hotel. We went out and about in Yichang that eveninghelliphad nice dinner etc. Seemed that we were living in the Harlem end of Yichang so we felt a low key presence would be good. We found our way http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Hubei/Three-Gorges-Dam/blog-88254.html