Viking River Cruises' Century Star
Exotic culture, fascinating history and luxury cruising are all on board Viking River Cruises' new Century Star on its opening season of Yangtze River cruising programs.
The adventure kicks off with a 3-day stay in the five-star Beijing Hotel, situated not too far from the sprawling Tiananmen Square in this, the second largest of China's cities, the seat of its government and home to its ancient rulers. Afternoon arrivals from West Coast cities can use the hotel's facilities for a little R&R after the lengthy flight across the Pacific and take time to adjust to the time difference with a good night's sleep before heading off on rightseeing tours the next day.
The Summer Palace
First thing in the morning, guests will enjoy a scenic drive to Beijing's world-famous Summer Palace. It was first built in 1153 as an imperial palace for short stays away from the capital and rebuilt in 1888 by the Empress Dowager Ci Xi. The lady utilized her royal prerogative and did a little creative financing for her very expensive re-modelling job by appropriated to build a Chinese navy. Kunming Lake takes up to three quarters of the garden's more than 700 acres and the garden itself is divided into three parts: a political activity area with the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity as its center; the living quarters of the Empress with the Hall of Jade Ripples and the Hall of Happiness and Longevity Hill at the center; and a scenic area featuring Longevity Hill and the Kunming Lake. The groups of buildings, hills and lakes, together with the background of West hills, afford an ever-changing scenery. At the foot of Longevity Hill is a 2,388-foot covered passageway that links the three areas together, decorated by a series of literally thousands of paintings. The Summer Palace, a World Hertiage Site since 1998, was opened to the public in 1924.
Next, it's on to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. but warn clients that everywhere they go in this massive city, they'll be stalked by an army of street hawkers selling everything from hats and souvenirs to tourism guides and informational books on attractions. Should you decide to purchase any of these items, we recommend you to check your change carefully. The vendors are fond of using worthless Russian currency as change for hapless tourists.
In the heart of Beijing, the Imperial Palace remained the residence of the emperors for nearly five hundred years, from the 15th century to the early 20th century, and was the actual and symbolic seat of imperial power. Popularly known as the Forbidden City, it was built the Ming Dynasty in the early 15th century. Many of the buildings of the Palace have been repaired and rebuilt, but their basic form and layout remain in their original state.
This magnificent complex covers an area of over 2,350,000 square feet with 9,999 rooms. It's surrounded by 10-foot-high walls topped by four observation towers and protected by a deep moat. Four large gates provide entry, each with three openings and a pavilion perched on top. The overall layout is centered on the three primary Halls of State: The Hall of Supreme Harmony, The Hall of Middle harmony and The Hall of Preserving Harmony. State ceremonies were held in the Outer Court of Forbidden City. here, the emperors governed from their thornes, holding court sessions with their ministers, generals and important visitors, as well as royal birthdays, weddings and official meetings. The Inner Court was the residential area of the emperor and imperial household, as well as the place where the emperor dealt with routine state affairs. Today, the Forbidden City's palaces and halls are filled with works of art and cultural artifacts.
On Day Two, it's time to head out of town again for a trip to the Great Wall in the Badaling Hills. Here, visitors can browse the myriad shops that line the main road before or after they make their way up to the wall itself. The winding and sometimes steep surface at the top of the hill - obviously, the wall must conform to the topography of the land itself - offers an invigorating exercise and some pretty expansive vistas. Next on the agenda is a unique lunch offered at a jade factory respldendent with an enormous assortment of jade products, as well as an informative and interesting exhibition of how the various pieces are designed, cut and polished. Still another stop is at the Sacred Way of the Ming Tombs for a tranquil walk down a broad avenue lines with statues of lions and firece-looking imperial warriors.
Just prior to heading off for the airport and the 90-minute flight to Chonqquing to board the Century Star, there's time for a visit to a traditional Beijing neighborhood, one of the few remaining as a massive building boom eats away at the traditional structure of the city. Here, vegetable, bread, meat and fish vendors offer their wares to wary-looking shoppers as cruise passengers ride by on efficient pedicycles.
Chonqquing and the Yangtze
An important inland port since its inception, Chonqquing was the starting point for an abbreviated 3-day cruise that officially launched Viking River Cruises' new, 186-passenger Century Star. On its regular itineraries - Chonqquing to Wuhan and reverse - the river cruise portion is seven nights. On this particular sailing, the inaugural festivities at the port included lion dancers, fireworks and visits by local dignitaries and tourism officials before heading east toward Wuhan.
This ship itself is roomy - it boasts five decks - and is beautifully decorated throughout with all outside cabins and private balconies. Guests can enjoy cocktails, soft drinks or coffee on the observation deck or under a covered portion of the sun deck topside. There's also a well-equipped gym, Internet facilities and a spacious dining room. Dining is truly a pleasure on board and Viking River went out of its way to ensure its menu offerings would be geared toward western tastes, something that's not readily available on other ships that cruise the Yangtze.
The first stop was Shibaozhai Temple, a beautiful, multi-storied, pagoda-style wooden edifice built in 1650 and perched on a cliff. here, passengers had the opportunity to go ashore and climb a series of wooden steps to the top where still another smaller temple is located.
The next day, the ship arrived at the Three Gorges, where passengers boarded a smaller craft for a side trip up one of the Yangtze tributaries and some of the most beautiful scenery anyone will ever see. here, lush farm land gives way to mistshrouded high peaks, caves, waterfalls and small villages that line the tributary. In the afternoon, guests disembarked at a way station built specifically for Viking guests that is surrounded by several vendors selling food, soft drinks and a variety of souvenirs and crafts at quite reasonable prices. The reason for the stop is an elegant barbeque, which the Century Star crew had brought eariler and prepared for guests as they sailed up the tributary.
Back on board, the entertainment for the last night of sailing was provided by the crew itself, all decked out in the traditional costumes of the regions from which they came. In the morning, the ship arrived at the recently completed Three Gorges Dam and became one of the first ships to traverse the 5-stage locks that will bring ships up a total of 328 feet so they can continue their voyages up the Yangtze. It was here where the inaugural guests disembarked and headed off to the airport for a flight to Shanghai and a 1-night stay at the beautiful Shanghai Sheraton before returning home.
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