Essence of China

Our three decades of travel in, fascination with, and affection for China have come together in this 14-day journey that captures much of what endlessly excites us about this huge and galactically diverse country. We visit the icons—Beijing, Xian, Guilin, Lijiang, and Shanghai—and are treated to special-access visits, distinctive performances, and innovative cooking sessions, not to mention brilliant restaurants and some of the country's finest, most intelligently conceived hotels.

After good looks at the Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, and other Beijing wonders, we're off to Xian's Terracotta Warriors, who look keyed up and ready to rush out the door any minute. Then we embark on an overnight Li River cruise, craning our necks at Guilin’s lyric limestone karsts. Continuing to Lijiang, on the green verge of the Tibetan Plateau, we gaze at the exquisite Black Dragon Pool and recall Ezra Pound's tribute in "Canto 112": "And over Lijiang, the snow range is turquoise . . . a thin trace in high air." Finally, we explore Shanghai, in all its shiny, bubbling, proud, and problematic glory.