Your Adventure

1 Beijing

• Meet your tour director and check into your hotel Description

2 Beijing

• Beijing guided sightseeing tour Tiananmen Square visit, Forbidden City visit, Temple of Heaven visit
  Explore the landmark sights of ancient and modern China with a licensed local guide. Covering the area of 90 football fields, Tiananmen Square can hold over 300,000 people and has always been the site for public proclamations and demonstrations. It has been China’s historic heart of celebration and also turbulence for almost a century. The gate at the southern end of the square marks the old city walls, not removed until 1958. See the nerve center of modern China in the adjoining People's Hall, the legislative building, where each of the 32 reception rooms is lavishly decorated in the style of a different province or city. In the main hall, 500 light bulbs illuminate the enormous red star on the ceiling. Move into ancient China in the Forbidden City, the formidable 9,000-room palace complex - protected by a 170ft. wide moat - that housed China's emperors from 1421 until 1923.
• Local teahouse visit
• Participate in a traditional tea ceremony

3 Great Wall

• Great Wall of China visit The Great Wall of China, one of the greatest wonders of the world, was listed as a World Heritage by UNESCO in 1987. Just like a gigantic dragon, it winds up and down across deserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus, stretching approximately 21,196 kilometers (13,170 miles) from east to west of China. With a history of about 2,700 years, some of the Great Wall sections are now in ruins or have disappeared. However, the Great Wall of China is still one of the most appealing attractions all around the world owing to its architectural grandeur and historical significance.
• Great Wall of China restoration volunteer activity Students will be given an introduction to the restoration work that has been done on the Great Wall before bricks and tools are handed out so they can get to work themselves. Upon completion, certificates will be issued by the Great Wall Administration as a thank you for the support.
• Kung Fu show

4 Chinese Art

• Conversational Mandarin language class In this language class, students will study conversational terms for everyday use.
• Enjoy a traditional Chinese lunch with Hutong families
• Hutong tour A hutong is a unique form of traditional Beijing living quarters with a small street or a lane between two courtyards. There are thousands of hutongs in Beijing, most of which were built in the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties.
• Traditional Chinese art classes During this art class, students will participate in activities such as kite making, paper cutting, and face painting.
• Peking Opera perfomance Tonight, enjoy the Peking Opera! Watch the actors apply the face paint you studied earlier.

5 Chinese HIstory and Heritage

• Conversational Mandarin language class In this language class, students will study conversational terms for everyday use.
• Yonghe Lamasery visit It is the largest Buddhist temple of the Yellow-sect in Beijing and has been completely preserved. Built in 1694 as the residence of Count Yin Zhen, the fourth son of the Emperor Kangxi, it was called "the Palace of Count Yong." After Yin Zhen became the Emperor, he continued to use it as an imperial palace for short stays away from the capital. In 1744, it was converted into a lamasery. Yonghegong is the most renowned Tibetan Buddhist temple in China outside Tibet and holds treasures of both the Han and Tibetan cultures.
• Temple of Confucius visit It was first built in 1302 and served as an altar where intellectuals from the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties offered their respects to Confucius. Now it has become a museum exhibiting engraved stones, old Chinese doorbells and drums, bronze and jade utensils, paintings and calligraphic works, antique musical instruments and ancient Chinese currencies. Every September, a ritual celebrating Confucius’s birthday takes place here, in which a music and dance ceremony from the Qing dynasty is performed.
• Guozijian visit Visit the imperial college from the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties.
• Calligraphy lesson

6 Daily Life in Beijing

• Conversational Mandarin language class In this language class, students will study conversational terms for everyday use.
• Tai Chi lesson Discover the history of the Chinese martial art, Tai Chi. Learn the moves from an experienced instructor, then practice what you've been taught.
• Pearl Market visit

7 Chinese Culinary Traditions

• Conversational Mandarin language class In this language class, students will study conversational terms for everyday use.
• Visit a local food market Interact with the locals at a traditional food market. Use this opportunity to purchase some items for an afternoon cooking class.
• Chinese cooking class and dinner Continue your Mandarin lessons while learning to cook the local cuisine.

8 Chinese Culture and Education

• Conversational Mandarin language class In this language class, students will study conversational terms for everyday use.
• Local school visit Build relationships with local students while attending classes. Leave with a new pen-pal!
• Play ping pong with local students Learn to play China's most popular recreational sport. Students will have the opportunity to leave with a new pen-pal!

9 Beijing - Xian

• High speed train to Xi'an

10 Xi'an

• Xi'an guided sightseeing tour Ancient City Wall, Greater Wild Goose Pagoda visit.
  The modern capital of Shaanxi, Xi’an served as capital to 11 dynasties over a period of 4,000 years, including the powerful Tang Dynasty, which marked the city’s peak. With a rich history and stunning location, the Qinling Mountains to the south and the Weihe River to the north, Xi’an is one of the most popular destinations in China.
• Terracotta Warriors Museum visit Uncover the history from the Qin Dynasty, with the Terracotta Army. First discovered in 1974, these 6,000 life-size terracotta warriors were formed and buried with the first emperor of China in 210–209 BCE, with the purpose of protecting him in his afterlife. This remarkable discovery is still considered one of the biggest in archeological history.
• Banpo Village Ruins & Museum visit

11 Xi'an - Shanghai

• Fly to Shanghai
• Acrobatic show Forget Cirque de Soleil -- Shanghai's Acrobatic Troupe has been performing for more than 50 years, and their combination of superb acrobatics, juggling, magic, and more has made them the world's best acrobatic ensemble.

12 Shanghai

• Shanghai guided sightseeing tour Yu Yuan Garden, Jade Buddha Temple visit, Silk factory visit, Bund, Tian Zi Fang visit.
  Shanghai combines European elegance with Asian flair, transforming its colonial history with a unique modern outlook. See the highlights with a local licensed guide. Surrounded by a busy bazaar, the Yu Yuan Garden offers an amazingly peaceful escape into a sixteenth-century garden with fountains, bridges, and tile dragons undulating along the walls. More peace reigns at the temple of the Jade Buddha, where two exquisitely carved Buddha statues, each carved from a single piece of jade, keep watch over a community of monks.
• Huangpu River cruise

13 Depart China