Explore-A-Province Tour: Hunan
EAP 5 June 20 - July 6, 2008
Route: Guangzhou-Hunan Province-Xian-Beijing
Itinerary
Day 1
Depart USA (first date listed for the tour)
Day 2
Arrive in Guangzhou, met at the airport by OCDF staff and transfer to the White Swan Hotel (5-star), meals on your own
Day 3
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning transfer to airport for flight to Changsha with OCDF staff
Met at airport by local guide and transfer to Huatian Hotel (5-star)
Provincial delicacies luncheon with "Food of the Region" program
Afternoon tour of provincial government with official greeting
Tour of Changsha-Provincial Capital including Yuelu Academy and Orange Isle
Dinner included at hotel
Day 4
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning visit Hunan Embroidery Research Institute and a tour of local elementary school or daycare center
Lunch included in local restaurant
Afternoon Changsha families free time on own
For families the orphanage outside the capital city: transfer to the orphanage city by van/ car /bus/train Check in best available free time on your on own
Dinner included at the hotel
Day 5
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning visit to your child's Social Welfare Institute /Orphanage with a local bilingual guide as your interpreter
Lunch included with your orphanage director and appropriate staff
Afternoon visit any locations your family needs (foster family, finding site, activity at orphanage, etc)
Dinner at the home of a local family
Day 6
Breakfast in the hotel
Return to meet group at Changsha and stay in Huatian Hotel
Lunch included at local restaurant
Afternoon local crafts hands-on programs including embroidery and paper cutting
Dinner included at local restaurant
Evening: Hunan Puppet Show
Day 7
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning drive to Zhangjiajie and visit the Tujia Minority Cultural Park
S tay at Pipaxi Hotel
Lunch and dinner included
Day 8
Breakfast in the hotel
Zhangjiajie National Park: Yellow Rock Mountain, Golden Whip Brook
Lunch and dinner included
Day 9
Breakfast in the hotel
Zhangjiajie National Park: Tianzi Mountain, Baofeng Lake, Zhangjiajie local fruits & vegetable park (It combines a restaurant and a farm in which tourists can have meal and do some farming work)
Lunch and dinner included
Evening fly to Xian and met the airport in Xian by our OCDF local guide and transfer to the Aurun International Hotel (4-star)
Day 10
Breakfast in the hotel
Visit to the Muslim Mosque Market with time to shop at the marketplace for Xian farmer paintings and local art
Lunch at Xian Jiaozi dumplings
Afternoon visit Big Wild Goose Pagoda and Tang Dynasty Museum with hands-on calligraphy and painting lesson
Dinner at local restaurant
Evening: Free time
Day 11
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning visit Jade Carving Demonstration
Museum of the Qin Emperor's Terra Cotta Army including Imax movie and visit the unearthed warriors
Shaanxi noodle lunch included at the museum restaurant
Tang Dynasty Dinner Show
Day 12
Breakfast in the hotel
Fly to Beijing in the morning with OCDF staff
Met at the airport and transfer to Holiday Inn Central Plaza Hotel (4-star)
Buffet lunch at hotel
Afternoon visit Temple of Heaven and Hong Qiao Market
Dinner at Old Beijing Noodle Shop
Evening: The Legends of Kung Fu
Day 13
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning visit Great Hall of the People with Hunan Provincial Meeting Room and then Tiananmen Square
Lunch at Sun Yat Sen Park with fly kites
Afternoon visit Forbidden City
Dinner included at Tianwaitian Restaurant
Evening Beijing Acrobatic Show
Day 14
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning the Summer Palace with boat ride on Kunming Lake
Lunch on your own at McDonalds in Huairou
Afternoon to Great Wall at Mutianyu
Dinner included at Agrilandia
Day 15
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning Hutong Tour by pedicab including visit to Drum and Bell Tower with a Tea Ceremony at Prince Gong's Palace
Visit to Shichahai Sports Training Institute where Olympic gymnastics, Wushu and Ping Pong athletes are trained
Lunch at local family home to make dumplings
Afternoon visit to sports venues for the Beijing 2008 Olympics: The Bird's Nest, The National Swim Stadium (Bubble), and the Gymnastic Stadium
Peking Duck Dinner included
Day 16
Breakfast in the hotel
Morning to Panjiayuan Market and Silk Alley for last chance shopping
Lunch on your own
Afternoon free time on own
Dinner on your own
Day 17
Breakfast in the hotel
Transfer to airport for flight back to USA
Options for Pre-trip & Post-trip Activities
- Pretrip Hong Kong Sightseeing Email jenny@ocdf.org
- Pretrip additional time in Guangzhou Email jenny@ocdf.org
- Post-trip OCDF Beijing tours - see the pre-trip options for Beijing (PDF flyer here and here), as these can be scheduled as post-trip options following Explore-A-Province. Email jane@ocdf.org to arrange.
Hunan Explore-a-Province Tour Includes:
- Guangzhou as entry city, 5-7 days in Province (capital, SWI visit, local visits), 2-days in Xian, 5-days in Beijing with a 2008 Olympic Venue Program
- Guangzhou stay at the White Swan Hotel
- Provincial Capital - we will select best available hotel where adoptive families typically stay Orphanage City or Town - you will stay at the best available hotel in this location if it's not a Provincial capital
- Xian stay at a superior 4-star hotel such as Aurun International Hotel.
- Beijing stay at a premium 4-star level hotel such as Holiday Inn Central Plaza.
- Meals included as per itinerary with daily buffet western breakfast and special meals provided in each city in keeping with the local experience. See B (breakfast), L (lunch), D (dinner) for included meals.
- Evening and special entertainment included as per itinerary with Tang Dynasty Dinner Show, Xian Jiaozi Dumpling lunch, Peking Acrobats, and The Legends of Kung Fu included.
- Airport transfers, domestic transportation (train, air, bus, van), bilingual OCDF escort and local guides, sightseeing entrance fees as per itinerary, evening entertainment as per itinerary, domestic travel insurance, luggage handling, tips and gratuities for guides/drivers/luggage handling service providers.
- Cultural heritage sites and special visits included in the itinerary - Xian Terracotta warriors and museum, Muslim Mosque and Market, Great Wall at Mutianyu, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven, Tiananmen Square with kite flying, Forbidden City, Hutong Tour with Drum and Bell Tower and Tea Ceremony at Prince Gong's Palace, Beijing Markets (Hong Qiao, Panjiayuan, Silk Alley), Stadiums of the 2008 Olympic Games, sports training facilities such as gymnastics, and more - see itineraries!
Activities in Hunan Province:
- School visit in the Province to see local children's classrooms and experience their school environment.
- Orphanage visit including lunch with the orphanage director and caregivers and visit to any local sights desired - finding site, foster family, etc.
- Local home visit - share lunch and spend time with a family in the Province.
- Hands-on craft activities for children related to the key crafts of the Province.
- Foods of the region orientation program to learn about how to appreciate and understand local foods.
- Workbook keyed to the Province and overall itinerary along with special gift items keyed to the itinerary.
- Local scenic spots and historical sights will be visited to learn about the unique aspects of the Province - it's famous people, special relics and eras, etc.
- Local entertainment related to the Province included.
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Welcome to Hunan Province!
Location in China:
Hunan Province lies in the south of the middle Yangtze River valley, with its name meaning "south of the lake" because most of the province is located on the south of the Dongting Lake. Situated 108'47"-114'13" east longitude and 24'38"-30'08" north latitude, it has an area of 210,000 square kilometers.
Climate:
Hunan in the sub-tropical area has a warm climate, with cold, short winters and hot, long summers. It has four clearly contrasted seasons, abundant rainfall, and a mean annual precipitation of 1,300-1,700 mm. Its mean annual temperature is 16 oC-18.5 oC -- the hottest month, July, averaging 26-30 oC and the coldest month, January, 4-7 oC.
Administrative Division and Population:
It is divided into 1 autonomous prefecture, 13 prefecture-level cities, 16 county-level cities, 65 counties and 7 autonomous counties, with a population of 64.40 million by 2000, mainly including ethnic groups of Han, Tu, Miao, Hui, Dong, Yao, Hui, Uygur, and Zhuang, etc.
Food:
Xiang Cuisine (Hunan Cuisine) is one of the Eight Great Cuisines in China. Famous dishes include Dong'an Chicken, Peppery and Hot Chicken (Hot and Spicy Chicken), Orange Beef, Sweet and Sour Chicken, and Crispy Duck, etc.
Culture:
Xiang Opera, Huagu (Flower Drum), Shadow Plays, and Flower Lamp, etc.
Special Local Products:
The traditional local specialties include Changsha Xiang Embroidery, Liuyang Fireworks and Firecrackers, Yueyang Fan, Changsha Xiang Lotus, and Yueyang Whitebait (salangid), etc.
Brief Introduction:
Hunan Province, known as Xiang for short, is located at the south bank of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, with Changsha as its provincial capital. According to archaeological finds and recorded history, there were human beings living in this area more than 8,000 years ago. Hunan Province was officially set up in 1664 during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
Hunan is known as the land of fish and rice because of plentiful production of rice, cotton, tung oil, orange, and fresh water fishes. It is also noted as the home for rich mineral resources.
Hunan Province is famous for its picturesque scenery. There are places of historic interest and scenic beauty, such as Yuelu Mountain, Hengshan Mountain, Jiuyi Mountain, the Yueyang Tower, the Dongting Lake and Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area.
There are a lot of celebrities in Hunan history, and the most famous are: Qu Yuan, a great poet and one of the four ancient cultural celebrities in the world; Cai Lun, who invented papermaking and made the first piece of fabric paper in the world; Qi Baishi, the most famous contemporary Chinese painter; Mao Zedong, the founder of the People's Republic of China; Yuan Longping, who is well known in the world for the rice-hybriding skill. The former residences of these celebrities and sites of some revolutionary events, as well as the distinctive ethical folk arts of Miao and Tu ethnic minorities in Hunan, are quite worth a visit.
12 Key Steps For OCDF Travelers:
- Look at the various itineraries and decide what time of year you wish to travel and which tour fits your family's needs. Download the article: Returning to China with Your Adopted Child (pdf), and begin preparing for your trip.
- Download the pdf file for that tour or print off the itinerary. Full color brochures can be obtained from OCDF by calling 309-829-8202 or email: lynn@ocdf.org .
- If your family desires a customized trip - please download our Customized Travel Planning Booklet and contact Jenny Peng (jenny@ocdf.org) to assist you with your quotation. Any regular OCDF China Tour can be scheduled for custom groups, or new tour itineraries created just for your family and friends!
- See the tour costs. A $500 per person non-refundable deposit is due at the time of registration. Any gift certificates must be presented at the time of registration. Only one gift certificate can be used per family. Payments can be made by check, money order, bank check and Visa or Mastercard. Questions? Ask jane@ocdf.org .
- Check your passports to be sure they will be valid for at least 6 months AFTER the dates of your travel. If you do not have passports, or your passports will expire during that time-frame PLEASE make getting new passports a HIGH PRIORITY for your family as passport application and processing takes much much longer now than in the past.
- If you wish to visit a child's orphanage as part of your tour or as an add-on, please complete the file called the Orphanage Request Form and return it to jenny@ocdf.org. Jenny Peng, our travel planner, will assist you by gaining the approval for your orphanage visit, arrange for interpreters and guides, and arrange travel. She will provide you with a quotation for add-on costs for the orphanage visit should it not be included in your tour itinerary.
- Download the registration form or obtain a printed copy from OCDF by calling 309-829-8202 or email: lynn@ocdf.org. For international air fare: contact Marta LaCour (marta.lacour@travnet.net) at www.travnet.net to assist you with your international airline reservations. Call Marta at: 1-800-359-6388. For insurance: contact Medex for your trip cancellation and travel medical insurance.
- Submit your registration form (as complete as it can be at the time - you may need to add new passport numbers later) either online or to OCDF at PO Box 1243, Bloomington, IL 61702-1243. Be sure to include a photocopy of each person's passport who is traveling with your family AND your $500 per person non-refundable tour deposit (See Important Information about Tours if you have questions about cancellation policies). Please check that your passports are signed (parents should sign for children) prior to making the photocopies.
- Check the Travel Information Fact Sheet (Word file) for travel medical preparations and obtain any vaccinations and medications needed for your tour such as Hepatitis A & B series (takes 6 months to get all shots in the series), a Tetanus booster (if needed), blood typing, and prescription for antibiotics.
- Receive from OCDF three things:
- Invoice by email showing tour payment and balance due
- Email Welcome to OCDF China Tours from Jane
- A package from OCDF Office in the USA with t-shirts, travel planning booklet, luggage tags, and passport holder. Please READ your travel planning guide. Join the egroup for your tour program!
- Pay your balance of tour costs by the deadline - 3 months prior to your tour. Update your tour registration with new passport information. Questions about your invoice should be addressed to steven@ocdf.org or jenny@ocdf.org . Our USA office can tell you if your check/payment was received (309-829-8202), but they will not know the details of your travel plans - the Beijing Office will handle this. Thus emailing Steven or Jenny may be best.
- Apply for your Visa through the Chinese consulate near your home, or use our recommended courier services www.mychinadocs.com . They will assist you with your visa application. Do not apply for your visa more than 90 days (3 months) prior to your trip or the visa will expire before you travel. About 4-6 weeks before your tour is enough time to apply for your visa. Once you have your visa, please email sunny@ocdf.org with your visa numbers, expiration and issue dates.
Thank you!
Questions? Please Email the OCDF Staff:
Jane Liedtke, jane@ocdf.org OCDF China Tours
Jenny Peng, jenny@ocdf.org Orphanage contacts and additional travel in China
Contact by Telephone:
Jane Liedtke at OCDF Office in China - 011-8610-8403-4979 (answering machine available)
OCDF Office in USA - 309-829-8202 ask for Lynn Warren (answering machine available)
Jenny Peng, Travel Planner in China - 011-86-13011086069
Contact by Mail in USA:
Our Chinese Daughters Foundation
109 West Monroe
Bloomington, IL 61701
Mailing Address in USA:
OCDF
PO Box 1243
Bloomington, IL 61702-1243 USA
Contact by Mail in Beijing:
OCDF China Tours
199 Chaoyangmennei
Richland Court Room 105
Dongcheng District
Beijing 100010 China
Brief Background on OCDF China Tours
OCDF China Tours has its own trained staff and guides and also contracts with CITS in China for in-China travel services. To assure you a quality tour program, OCDF directs all tour programs and selects all staff members who work with our groups. Dr. Jane Liedtke, CEO and Founder of Our Chinese Daughters Foundation, lives and works from the Beijing and Bloomington Offices of OCDF. Her daughter Emily was adopted from Jiangmen Social Welfare Institute in 1994 and is 14 years old (will be 15 in April 2008). Jane has organized tour groups to China for adoptive families, educators and professional groups with experience in China since 1987. OCDF began Chinese Culture Camps for adoptive families in 1996 and extended them to China in 1998. OCDF was the first organization to offer Chinese Culture programs to adoptive families via tour programs to China. We work extensively with adoptive families and orphanages throughout China to insure your family has the best experience possible upon your return to your adopted child's birth-country.
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