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Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 02:59 AM UTC
the region around guilin is absolutly amazing when it comes to nature.
also lijiang in the yunnan prvince has amazing natural scenery.
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 03:08 AM UTC
Oh great, I was thinking about both Lijiang and Guilin/Yangshuo as possibilities, so good to hear some positive feedback on them!
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Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 03:30 AM UTC
Yunnan. Definately Northern Yunnan. Have not really travel around Asia yet, but so far with the places I've been to, I found Shangri-la and Deqin are the most beautiful, regarding natural beauty as well as the friendly people. Mountains, geroges, Mekong river, glacier, yaks, medows...
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 03:33 AM UTC
yoangshuo is very green and very scenic with the lime stone rocks and the li river running trough it.
an ideal place to rent a bike and go out and explore on your own.
lijiang is very tibetan looking and has lot's of minorities living there.
the main tribe, the naxis, are very interesting to study.
only women can own land and ask for divorce in that tribe.
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 03:42 AM UTC
3 areas that are commonly 'grouped' together are Guilin, Halong Bay (Vietnam) and Krabi (Thailand). Haven't been to the first, but Ha Long bowled me over, and that's after visiting Krabi. Advantage for you is that Vietnam borders China. The Vietnamese/Chinese border is also spectacular - area round Sapa something of a 'pilgrimage' for travellers looking for hill tribes, rice terraces etc (and which therefore is becoming a little overdeveloped).
Keith
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Wonderful China, naturally! Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 03:45 AM UTC
May I suggest Jiuzhaigou National Park in northern Sichuan for some of the most spectacular natural scenery that China has to offer. I went there in 1988 and was pleased that the attractive young Chinese woman who accompanied me found the setting so romantically inspiring.
Less amorous but still glamourous are the dormant volcanos near Tengchong in Yunnan province, glamourous because they are located in close proximity to several small villages of the colorful Lisu ethnic minority.
A Yunnan-Sichuan combo will give you dazzling glimpses of China's best natural wonders. There are more that I haven't mentioned yet, such as the Stone Forest near Kunming and the tree fern and bamboo forests near Chishui just outside Sichuan in northwestern Guizhou province.
I also haven't mentioned the ones that failed to impress me, but it's more fun to post about those places after somebody else tries to persuade you to go there.
Have fun!
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 04:31 AM UTC
Yeah, seems there's LOTS of stunning options in North Yunnan! And yaks are a definite plus...!
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Yunnan. Definately Northern Yunnan. Have not really travel around Asia yet, but so far with the places I've been to, I found Shangri-la and Deqin are the most beautiful, regarding natural beauty as well as the friendly people. Mountains, geroges, Mekong river, glacier, yaks, medows...
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 04:33 AM UTC
Interesting comparison of those 3 regions, could be interesting to experience all of them in one trip...! Also, I will be primarily based in GZ so Viet Nam border is not far...
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3 areas that are commonly 'grouped' together are Guilin, Halong Bay (Vietnam) and Krabi (Thailand). Haven't been to the first, but Ha Long bowled me over, and that's after visiting Krabi. Advantage for you is that Vietnam borders China. The Vietnamese/Chinese border is also spectacular - area round Sapa something of a 'pilgrimage' for travellers looking for hill tribes, rice terraces etc (and which therefore is becoming a little overdeveloped).
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 04:49 AM UTC
Excellent suggestions! (no surprise from VT's top sinologist!)
Sichuan and Guizhou must be really stunning...!
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May I suggest Jiuzhaigou National Park in northern Sichuan for some of the most spectacular natural scenery that China has to offer. I went there in 1988 and was pleased that the attractive young Chinese woman who accompanied me found the setting so romantically inspiring.
Less amorous but still glamourous are the dormant volcanos near Tengchong in Yunnan province, glamourous because they are located in close proximity to several small villages of the colorful Lisu ethnic minority.
A Yunnan-Sichuan combo will give you dazzling glimpses of China's best natural wonders. There are more that I haven't mentioned yet, such as the Stone Forest near Kunming and the tree fern and bamboo forests near Chishui just outside Sichuan in northwestern Guizhou province.
I also haven't mentioned the ones that failed to impress me, but it's more fun to post about those places after somebody else tries to persuade you to go there.
Have fun!
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Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 06:32 AM UTC
I just came back from a week in Yunnan; I must recommend going to Stone Forest - since you mentioned karst. The view along Lijiang to the airport also impressed me a lot, with lots of terraced fields, and the old sand homes.... The snowy mountain near Lijiang reminded me also of my recent trip to south island, New Zealand.
But the best terraced fields that I ever saw in my travel experience will be the hike to Batad in the Philippines...I vote it 8th wonder!!! and there is some nice waterfalls there as well.
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 10:32 AM UTC
Don't know much about South China, but I've been around SE Asia last august. In Vietnam you shouldn't miss:
- Halong Bay, in the north, near Hanoi, is an area like Guilin but in a bay, there are cruises of 2 days (choose the "sleep on boat option) cruising around the bay, from Hanoi, all included.
- Sapa mountains. Didn't have time to visit it this time, but I have heard reports from others travellers in Vietnam and is an excellent area for trekking and visiting interesting remote tribes. Is in the northwest, near the Yunnan border.
- Luang Phabang, in Laos, by the Mekong River, is in a beautiful mountanious area and is also a cultural heritage site, with many temples and buddhist monasteries.
- Angkor Wat in Cambodia is not a Natural Wonder, but definetly worth the visit if you happen to be near the area...
Have a nice trip!
Joaquin
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 11:10 AM UTC
Hello! I was in SW China in 2002. For natural wonders:
- Yangshou is UNMISSABLE!
- Anshun in Guizhou province (Overnight train from Guilin). Nearby you'll find the 3rd largest cave system in the world - Longgong caves. Also the largest Waterfall in China - Huangguoshu Falls! Hows that for a start?
- The Shilin Stone Forest near Kunming is amazing.
- I must also reccomend Tengchong, in west Yunnan. If you go there, you must visit my half-tibetian, friend (and travel guide). He can arrange for you some spectacular trips, for very reasonable prices which we simply could not have done on our own. In fact I'm sure he did not make any profit, just from the beers while we sat and planned our trip with him. This tour (in private taxi) took us to extinct volcanoes (we went in a hot air ballon above them!), incredible, unique, rock formations near the river, and finally to beautiful marshland where we could walk on the marshes barefoot - an incredible experience and so beautiful. At the end of the day I changed hotels and stayed at the Rehai hot springs. The hotel pool was fed by the springs - gorgeous!
THIS IS HIGHLY RECCOMENDED!
E-mail me if you'd like more details...
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 12:21 PM UTC
2nd to Confucius (Plenty of photos of Jiu Zhai Gou under my Chengdu page to prove what he said). In addition, Huang Shan national park not far from Shanghai is a must for a person who likes nature.
If you do go to the stone forest near Kunming, go to the Nai Gu stone forest, not the big one.
Also south of Kunming, the rice terrace area (not 'natural', but spectacular scene).
Have a great time!
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Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 12:55 PM UTC
I agree with all others. Yunnan Province is just beautiful!
I want to add the graslands near Xiahe and the wonderful landscape between Xiahe and Tongren. Lovely Tibetan temples and stunning landscape especially near Tongren. There are gorges with red stones, deep rivers and some forest.
Have a great trip!
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Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 03:05 PM UTC
I agree with the above suggestions. My top choice would be Yunnan-Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia-Thailand circuit.
Personally think that you should not miss China's grand capital Beijing as well, even though there's no so much natural wonders.....
Your mention of volcanos, crater lakes, mountains, karst, waterfalls, exotic forests etc.......I think except deserts, Indonesia has them all.....
Cheers and happy travelling!
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Yuan Yang rice terrace south of Kunming Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 03:17 PM UTC
http://natureproducts.net/Ecotourism/rice_terraces.html
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Mon February 9, 2004 03:30 PM UTC
Read the UNESCO world heritage report for the areas you are interested (there are reasons why everyone recommended certain places!):
http://whc.unesco.org/heritage.htm
Have a good time!
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Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Tue February 10, 2004 12:46 AM UTC
Glad to see that you are coming back *home* . Here are what I can share based on what I've observed and love about my travels :
Malaysia : The cultural mix of 3 major races, the Malays, Chinese and Indian, is (to me) THE major pull factor. Seeing the locals just hanging out together doing about their own thing, observing their idiosyncrases and discovering how thier mind ticks, is really truly amazing. Of course, if you like the beach and the islands, my personal favourite is the Perhentians. So much more to discover here ~ a walk through many of the VTer's pages always surprises me about my own country :-) Oh, don't forget East Malaysia ~ Sabah & Sarawak. A whole new world out there ~ lush and green and away from the madding crowds !
South Thailand islands : My focus at the moment, clear cool waters, white powdery sands, lovely romantic beaches, near deserted islands, coconuts, fantastic local food, friendly people .. and so much more.
Have fun !
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Tue February 10, 2004 02:53 AM UTC
Wow, lots of great ideas... Only now wish I had more time!
Thanks everyone, for contributing!
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Tue February 10, 2004 02:55 AM UTC
no worries mate.
helping out a travelling person is only an honor.
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Re: Re: Natural Wonders of the Far East Posted: Tue February 10, 2004 10:15 AM UTC
Always a pleasure, Guantanamera, especially if I can help out 'old skool' VT such as yourself! ;-)
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