1. The country’s unbelievably rich historic and cultural heritage, and the opportunity to learn a lot about one of the major pathways of human civilization, as well as seeing the background to what will soon be the world’s most powerful nation
2. Seeing the Great Wall is an unforgettable experience
3. If you’re smart, you can buy cheap and spend relatively little money
4. Discovering the many different, exciting styles of Chinese cuisine
5. Spending some time exploring the more obscure corners of the Forbidden City
6. Exploring the hutongs, or alleyways, in the few parts of Beijing which have not been modernized
7. Cycling by the city walls of Xi’an on a rented bike, and of course the Terracotta warriors
8. The surprise, when it turns out that not every Chinese person scowls at foreigners
9.The Bund in Shanghai, with its colonial-era buildings, and the French quarter
10. I really liked the fact that in China, tipping is not the norm! (Both at home and abroad, I always stress about how much to give)
1. The pollution, both in the air and on the ground, is appalling – the smog in big cities
2. At this density, the crowds of people become a real headache, especially when travelling by bus or metro at rush hour
3. Hawking and spitting on the street, constant cigarette smoke, the loud way locals talk, the begging, shoving, jostling and general lack of manners
4. The disgusting public toilets, and the fact that the tap water is not drinkable
5. The linguistic difficulties of communicating with locals, especially outside of big cities
6. The size of the country makes it impractical for tourists to see everything of interest
7. Rip-off taxi drivers, aggressive car drivers, and pickpockets in crowded areas
8. A lot of serious problems and complications for tourists travelling individually
9. For some reason Chinese food tastes better outside of China
10. They don’t just stare at tourists, but sometimes even follow you (unless that was the secret police)
11. China is getting more expensive, and you notice it!
人非圣贤孰能
