One of the most recognizable symbols of China is the Great Wall, which actually consists of numerous walls and fortifications, many running parallel to each other. Emperor Qin Shi Huang (c. 259-210 B.C.) originally conceived the wall as a means of preventing intrusion from barbarian nomads into the Chinese Empire. The Great Wall is one of the most extensive construction projects ever completed.
The Great Wall visible today largely dates from the Ming dynasty, when much of the wall was rebuilt in stone and brick, and portions were extended through challenging terrain. Some sections still remain in relatively good condition or have been renovated, while others have been damaged or destroyed, deconstructed for their building materials, or lost due to the ravages of time. For long an object of fascination for foreigners, the wall is now a revered national symbol and a popular tourist destination.
The California Native has been leading tours to exotic destinations for more than 30 years and people are always asking what our favorites are. One of our favorite trips is this wonderful journey which begins in Beijing, China, travels through Tibet and hits its high point at Mount Everest Base Camp at the top of the world. California Native’s own Lee & Ellen Klein recently revisited this adventure which now includes a visit to the Great Wall.
Lee & Ellen Klein at the Juyong Pass of the Great WallVisitors at the Great WallEllen Klein at the Juyong Pass of the Great Wall
The Terracotta Army is an amazing collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. The figures were buried with the emperor in 210–209 BC to protect him in his afterlife.
The figures were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong District, Xi’an, Shaanxi province, dating from approximately the late third century BC. Each figure varies in height according to their roles including warriors, chariots and horses, the tallest being the generals. Three pits have been discovered containing the Terracotta Army estimated at holding more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which remain in buried pits located by Qin Shi Huang’s mausoleum. Other pits have been discovered including terracotta non-military figures–officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians.
Terracotta Warrior restored to it’s original color.Other statues were part of the Terracotta Army including war horses and carriages.Side view of the Terracotta Army in one of the pits still being excavated.More than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses have been discovered.Discovered in 1974, China’s Terracotta Warriors are regarded as one of the most significant archeological discoveries of the 20th century.
We appreciate it when our guests share their stories with us and allow us to post them on our blog. Recently, Ted McGrath who lives in Vancouver, Canada, returned from our California Native adventure in Copper Canyon and wrote:
California Native sent Rob Aikins from San Diego as our guide, Rob was excellent. Great personality, loaded with local knowledge, an awesome wit and ability to deal calmly and politely with any off the wall situations. Rob spoke perfect Spanish and at every stop knew just about everyone we met. He worked diligently to make our trip a seamless time where all we had to do was enjoy the experience while he attended to the detail of herding cats. He left nothing to chance!
El Fuerte Hotel Torres del Fuerte has big rooms, high ceilings, air conditioning, bottled water, wi-fi in the hotel lobby area. Each of the 25 rooms decorated uniquely. Nice large inner courtyard. Lets call the place “charming”.
El Fuerte to Divisadero
The train ride from El Fuerte to Divisdearo was as awesome a train ride as one can find. The ride through the canyon has to be seen to be appreciated. 86 tunnels, 36 bridges with interesting rock formations. The train was great. Air conditioned, good seating and the meal at lunch very tasty.
A Tarahumara woman is selling baskets and small items at the shore of Lake Arareko.
The Hotel Mirador at Divisadero sits right on the edge of Urique Canyon and the view is stunning. We took a gondola ride across the canyon where three of the main Copper Canyon complex of canyons join – cool!
Divisadero to Creel
From Divisadero, the train on to Creel is not as scenic. The hotel (Best Western Creel) has nice rustic western themed public space. One could think you were on vacation in Montana–western themed rooms too.
Creel to Batopilas
After one night in Creel we departed to Batopilas. Along the way we stopped at a Tarahumara cave home, and then two stops at unique rock formations. One with “mushroom” like outcroppings and one (the valley of the monks) with a proliferation of tall (really tall!) rounded rocks. About noon we stopped at a roadside home for a classy picnic lunch.
Batopilas
In Batopilas we walked to Mision Del Sataveo. On the way to the mision we stopped at a Tarahumara school and handed out school supplies and visited the nearby cemetery. We also visited the local museum in Batopilas and the crumbling previous property (Hacienda) of a silver mining company.
Batopilas to Creel
On the return trip to Creel we stopped again at the roadside home for lunch and went to the waterfall near Cusarare. Nice diversion, neat waterfall.
Ruins of the Shepherd Hacienda in Batopilas, at the bottom of Mexico’s Copper Canyon. It was once one of the richest silver mining cities in the world.
Creel to Chihuahua
After leaving Creel for Chihuahua we stopped at a Mennonite home for lunch. There’s a huge Mennonite presence in Chihuahua state, they are very successful farmers and it shows in their opulent homes and ample modern farm implements. On the drive into Chihuahua we passed many fields of apple orchards. The state is the major apple growing region in Mexico. Arrived in Chihuahua around 2:30 pm, checked into the lovely Holiday Inn & Suites in Centro. Next we were given an introductory tour of the city centre–the Zocalo, cathedral and drive by Hidalgo’s museum and a gorgeous early 20th century home now belonging to the University of Chihuahua (Mansion ‘Quinta Gameros’). This was the end of the California Native tour except for a farewell dinner at a Centro restaurant, El Retablo.
We appreciate it when our guests share their stories with us and allow us to post them on our blog. Last week, Jean Dook who lives in Almeria, Spain, returned from our California Native adventure in Costa Rica and wrote:
We had a fantastic time. I don’t know how you do it! Every connection, transfer, and trip arrived and delivered. Never had to make a call to check anything. Now I think that this is VERY GOOD given how many things seem to go wrong when I book a flight from Spain to UK.!!!!!! I have told everyone who will listen how good you are.
It’s hard to pick out a highlight from our trip, we all loved different things, the young people loved the zip lines in Monteverde, couldn’t drag them away. (I enjoyed it too but the zip lines in Copper Canyon [are hard to beat]).
For me Tortuguero was the highlight, loved the hotel and the riviera. All guides excellent, kind, caring and very knowledgeable. All spoke good English but is was nice for me to chat in Spanish, so much easier than here in Spain where everyone talks so fast. We saw a sloth with a baby, a spider monkey crossing the river with her baby, and a large group of howlers, who were as interested in us as we were in them, and so many other wonderful things.
We changed a horse riding trip for a paddle down the river and coffee with a local family, that was a highlight for many of us. The hot springs were an unexpected success with us all, after the long trip sitting in the rain in those springs was mind blowing.
The start of my trip alone was great fun on the white water rafting, wonderful day, wish I had booked the two day trip. Great people who took care of this old lady really well. Hotel Santo Tomas was a super hotel for us all but I loved it when I was alone—it had the personal touch. I could see the Holiday Inn and was so pleased not to be there. I thought San Jose was underrated in the books—I loved it.
I want to go back, cannot remember when I last said that about a trip (oh yes, it was Copper Canyon) but I would like to see the same things at the end of the rainy season when the rivers will be high and everything different. I loved the rain, it’s very dry where I live. I may not find another friend to go with me, words getting around about long days and rough roads!!!!!! I live 30 minutes from a tourist beach so want something different. Costa Rica is so beautiful.
Thank you all very much and look forward to traveling with you again.
Jean Dook
Almeria, Spain
An exciting day rafting down the Reventazon River in Costa Rica’s rain forest.California Native travelers pose nearby Costa Rica’s Arenal volcano.
California Native founder Lee Klein on zip-line over rain forest in Veracruz, Mexico.
Last week California Native’s founder and president, Lee Klein, attended ATMEX, the Adventure Travel event in the State of Veracruz, Mexico. It was a great opportunity to meet again with adventure tour providers in Mexico and develop future partnerships for providing California Native adventures in this exciting and beautiful state.
Along with friends in the adventure travel industry, Lee rafted down the Rio Antigua, zip-lined over the canopy, and hiked and kayaked in the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas, a secluded rain forest located in the shadow of a volcano. In addition to it’s wonderful opportunities for outdoor recreation, The State of Veracruz offers a treasure chest of historic and cultural sites.
California Native’s Lee Klein (5th from right) with group at Los Tuxtlas waterfall.
We appreciate it when our guests share their stories with us and allow us to post them on our blog. A few months ago, Gloria and Ned Krier, from Tucson, Arizona, traveled with us to Myanmar and reported this:
We recently returned home from our trip to Myanmar (formerly known as Burma). The highlights included several days in the archaeological area of Bagan, visiting hundreds of old temples. We also enjoyed seeing numerous religious buildings, covered in gold leaf and jewels, containing many sculptures of Bhuddha. It was a thrill to walk along the streets of the fabled cities of Mandalay and Rangoon (now known as Yangon) and see the fascinating culture on Inle Lake.
We were pleased with the pace of the trip. Often we are scheduled for too much “rest” time and we were happy to be “on the go” almost all day. The hotels we stayed in were very nice. The location of the hotel in Bagan was so convenient to walk and discover temples on our own.
Our guide, Simon, was with us for 13 days and AK was with us for three days. They were both very professional and friendly. Simon was charming and always wrote down the names of the places we visited during each day. They both always arrived on time and even came early. The drivers were polite and drove well.
We appreciate it when our guests share their stories with us and allow us to post them on our blog. Last month Jean Dook, from Felix, Almeria, Spain, traveled with us on our Copper Canyon 11-day Ultimate Tour and had this to report: A young Tarahumara girl carries her little sister, in Mexico’s Copper Canyon.
I had the trip of a lifetime. Will recommend your organization to everyone who stops to listen to all the wonderful stories I have to tell about the trip. I am trying to encourage some friends on the same trip so I can come again! If Rob [our California Native guide] had said on the last day lets turn round and start again I would have been the first in line to say YES!!!!! Lets do it.
I am now thinking about Costa Rica, it sounds wonderful too. But I may have fallen in love with Mexico.
Thank you so much I feel I have found a gem in the travel world.
This month, President Obama will become the first U.S. President to visit Myanmar (Burma). This historic visit will focus even more attention on this Southeast Asian country and its efforts to rejoin the international community.
For the last eight years, The California Native has been conducting tours in Myanmar. We invite you to join us before too many tourists discover the beauty and serenity of this destination.
The Shwedagon Pagoda, located in Yangon, is the most sacred Buddhist site in Myanmar. The pagoda, purported to be 2,500 years old, enshrines strands of Buddha's hair.In Myanmar, a family celebrates a young boy's becoming a noviate monk. Most young boys between the ages of 8 and 12 in Myanmar spend time wearing monk's robes and living in a monestery.Built in the 1800's, The U Bein Bridge, in Amarapura, Myanmar, is the world's longest teak bridge at 1.2 km.
In Myanmar (Burma), one group of indigenous people that really stands out are the Padaung women of the Karen people, sometimes known as “long-neck” tribe.
At first glance, it looks as if the women are wearing gold rings to elongate their necks, but actually, this is not physically possible. The long neck is really a visual illusion. The women wear metal rings, whose weight pushes down their collarbones and upper ribs to such an angle that the collarbone actually appears to be a part of the neck, giving the illusion of an unnaturally long neck.
The most common explanation for this practice is that the look of an extra-long neck is a sign of great beauty and wealth, which will help attract a good husband. Some also say the opposite; that it is done to make the women unattractive so they are less likely to be captured by slave traders. Padaung mythology says the reason for the neck rings is to prevent tigers from biting them. It is also said that adultery is punished by removal of the rings. If the rings are removed after years of wearing them, the woman must spend the rest of her life lying down since the neck muscles will have been severely weakened by years of lack of support for the neck. Luckily, the instances of divorce and adultery in the Karen tribe are very low.
A little holiday snow in the high country of Mexico's Copper Canyon creates a perfect Christmas Card.
Please join us and celebrate this year’s holidays in Mexico’s Copper Canyon. We still have some spaces left on our Christmas/New Years Ultimate Copper Canyon tour where we will celebrate a special Christmas with the Tarahumara Indians at the Paraiso del Oso Lodge.
On December 23rd, our small group departs from Los Angeles and Phoenix airports for an exciting tour into Mexico’s Sierra Madre. The 11-day Ultimate tour spends nights in El Fuerte, Cerocahui, Divisadero, Creel, Batopilas, and Chihuahua. As with all of our Copper Canyon tours, we ride the Chihuahua al Pacifico Railroad for one of the most spectacular train rides in the Western Hemisphere.
A Tarahumara church deep in Copper Canyon.
Participants will have the opportunity to enjoy a special Christmas Eve known as Noche-bueno (the Good Night), a delicious dinner at the Paraiso del Oso, and Ana Maria’s famous Christmas punch. Those wishing to join the Tarahumara Indians and mestizo community may attend the midnight mass, also known as La Misa del Gallo (Rooster’s Mass). Traditional Tarahumara dancing usually starts an hour or two before the mass, then recommences afterwards to make it an all-night celebration. As an old Spanish saying goes, “Esta noche es Noche-Buena, y no es noche de dormir” (Tonight is the Good Night, and it is not meant for sleeping).
A light snow paints Mexico's Copper Canyon in holiday colors.
As Christmas morning arrives, the celebration moves back to the Oso Lodge where local Tarahumara, who live in isolated ranchitos in the rugged mountains surrounding the lodge, join the hotel guests for the piñata party. The children take turns swinging at the Christmas piñata until it explodes, showering candy and small toys. The hotel is filled with laughter and glee as the children scramble to collect their treasures. Then gifts from under the Christmas tree are handed out. As the locals return to their mountain ranchitos, The California Native guests prepare for a beautiful day trip to the bottom of Urique Canyon. In the evening after the excursion, guests enjoy a special holiday dinner.
In a few days, it will be time to welcome in the year 2013, and we’ll join the New Year’s Eve celebrations in the city of Chihuahua.
Some other highlights of this tour are the Cusarare and Basaseachic waterfalls, a day trip to the village of Urique, the “Lost Cathedral of Satevo,” a trip back in time to the village of Batopilas, and magnificent vista points which overlook a whole series of intertwined “barrancas” (canyons).
Want to celebrate Christmas in Copper Canyon but can’t take the full 11-days for your winter vacation? We also have an 8-day trip which departs on December 21.
To be a part of this year’s celebration and enjoy this truly unique experience, call us at 1-800-926-1140 (or 1-310-642-1140) to make your reservations now as time is running out. Happy holiday season to all of our fellow travelers.
Young Tarahumara girls play at school in Mexico's Copper Canyon.
