After two days of sightseeing in Lhasa, the fifteen of us headed to Shigatse which was  a much smaller town. We were headed to the Tashilhunpo Monastery (also called 'Tashilumpo'), home of the Panchen Lama. On the way there, we were coming up on one of the highest passes we would make that day at 4,790 meters (15, 715 ft). The road…

So how did I end up traveling in Tibet, the rooftop of the world? Well, my original plan from the very start of my trip was to go to Everest Base Camp, and the idea was to access it from the Nepalese side as Everest is divided between China and Nepal sitting right on the border between the two countries. The…

Since this marks the end of my time here in mainland China, I can't help but post some of the funniest Lost in Engrish Translation signs I've come across while traveling here. In no way do I mean any disrespect from posting these (although you would think they would simply ask someone if their sign makes any sense or if it…

With China having so much to offer outside of their main cities, we decided to head to Mount Emei Shan - 1 of 4 Sacred Mountains in China. It would also be great since we had been looking for a chance to get out into the smaller towns and spend time in the countryside. We decided to spend a couple days…

Upon leaving from Xi'an, we embarked on a backpacking journey to see the temples and pandas in Chengdu, China. We took another overnight train to get to Chengdu but going back to the experience I had from Beijing to Xi'an, this time we booked hard sleeper tickets. They are a bit more money but there are just 6 beds in one…

As mentioned in my last post, the main reason a lot of people make a trip to Xi'an is to see the Army of Terracotta Warriors which is about an hour and half by bus from the city. They were discovered in 1974 by local farmers while drilling a well. The Army of Terracotta Warriors is also said to be the…