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From Times Online

August 6, 2007

On tour with a teenager in China

Single mother Jane Owen explores China with her daughter, and finds a gap year trail to replace Florence and Venice

Teenage Daughter Miranda chats to fellow traveller Emily on the River Li in China

Jane Owen

Ten days in the sweltering heat of China’s summer does wonders to the post-GCSE victim. Exam-stressed daughter Miranda and I joined a group organised by Explore to cover thousands of miles plus Hong Kong, the terracotta soldiers, the Great Wall, the Li River gorges, Beijing plus several dozen street markets. Suddenly there wasn’t the time nor the energy to dwell on the merits of exam answers.

The tour schedule was brilliant (but insane) and made possible by our indefatigable leader, Claire Taylor. Incidentally those who turn up their noses at organised group travel should think again: our 11-strong group added a dimension of pleasure, rather as plum sauce does for Peking duck. And, as Miranda put it: ‘I liked getting to know people I might not have met without going on this tour. And it was nice for mum to have other old people to talk to’. (Thank you so much, darling).

Her highlights were the markets in Hong Kong and Xian, and the Great Wall at Mutianyu. We arrived early, long before the tourists and traders began cluttering up the Great Wall as we were leaving. Some stretches were so steep we climbed on all fours until we reached a small gateway where the wall beyond had crashed into oblivion down the hillside. As we looked back along the route we’d come, the misty humidity obscured the hills and made the wall look as if it was snaking into thin air.

For me, the highlight was the countryside around Yangshuo on the Li River where farmers and water buffalos tended fields of peanuts, cotton, sesame, aubergine, beans and rice. We visited Mrs Li’s house, s a 65-year-old farmer with a pig, a simple methane plant, a stone mill to make Soya milk and a large picture of Mao Tse Tung on her wall.

Her reverence for Chairman Mao was typical of all the Chinese we met. Hardly surprising given the peace and material advances he achieved for his people. Tracey, one of our three (excellent) Chinese guides, told us that her grandparents’ dream was for a bicycle, watch and radio; her parents’ for a TV and fridge; and her own dream is for an apartment, a washing machine and an opportunity to travel.

Yangshuo was one of the most beautiful places we visited and, despite the outrageous humidity and heat, we cycled through the limestone peaks and gorges that have inspired iconic Chinese paintings over the centuries. We breakfasted beside the River Li where bamboo rafts kitted out with bamboo armchairs took visitors skimming along the river and over rapids. Parts of the area had the air of the hippy trail in India twenty or so years ago. Today’s version features bamboo huts playing Razorlight while their inhabitants try to sell raft rides to mellowed-out chess players along the river bank.

We met a few travellers doing the overland trail from India to Korea and Australia; China is very much part of today’s itinerary. I also came across Gap year students who might once have gone to Venice to learn Italian, and were now coming to China to learn Chinese.

The first couple of days of the tour in Hong Kong were a hazy mix of jet lag and heat shock, but Miranda and I loved the city; Repulse Bay, where the Bhuddist Kwan Yin temple sells coke and other western delights, and Aberdeen where we chugged out into the harbour on a fishing boat.

Hong Kong’s clear blue skies would have been welcome in Beijing, which lurked under a grey hood of pollution. In Tiananmen Square, tall, blonde Miranda became a centre of attention. Some of the Chinese there were on a pilgrimage to Beijing to pay homage to Mao. It was the first time they had travelled outside their villages, let alone seen a blonde westerner like Miranda in the flesh. They jostled round asking to have pictures taken with her while a few creepy old men followed capturing images of her on their mobiles.

It was disarming and alien. The antidote to this alienation appeared miraculously: a Starbucks inside the Forbidden City . We ordered frappacinos and felt faintly ashamed. Boy, they were good. And a relief after some of the food we’d eaten. It wasn’t the content, which included snake and seahorse, so much as the discovery that I prefer English-Chinese food to the hotter, heavier genuine article. Miranda, once a dumpling fan, now reckons she’s dumpling-ed out but she enjoyed cow’s stomach in peanut sauce. Or maybe it just gave her chance to make fellow travellers squirm as she ate the strips of stomach or dangled them in front of the rest of our friendly group.

And it was a friendly group despite a gap of 12 years between Miranda and the next youngest traveller. Ages vary wildly from group to group and the next group that Claire was leading included three teens. The group also included ‘old people’ as Miranda so sweetly interprets her mother’s Youthful Middle Age.

Need to Know

Jane Owen travelled to China with Explore (0870 333 4001), specialists in adventurous small group travel worldwide, on the 11-day 'China Highlights' trip. Prices start from £1,729 per person including return flights with regional connections available, all transportation, nine nights' accommodation (eight nights' hotel and one night sleeper train), some meals and the services of a tour leader and local guides.

Visas for China are best bought via the special company Travcour (020 7223 5295)

Its not for us outsiders to determine how the Chinese people should see and understand their history. Of course the atrocities commited by Mao are deplored, however the many chinese people I've spoken to see it thus.... The cultural revolution was a huge mistake, a mistake that cost the lives of millions and millions of people. However Mao united a country previously ran by warlords, simplified the chinese language enabling men and WOMEN to get an education, liberated chinese women from feet binding and restrictive dress, whether this was for his own purposes or not seems irrelevant or unconsidered. It' s considered, certainly among the older generations (like Mrs Li), that these benefits outweigh the 'mistake' of the cultural revolution. Mao was intent on China becoming a world power (some would say at any cost) it has to be said that the industrial wheel that he set in motion has lead to todays china, with a high literacy rate & booming economy. Surely the truth is in middle area

claire, Xian, China

Jane Owen's article is spot on. I have just returned from the Explore trip with the 'thirtysomethings' on board and can wholly recommend the experience. Unsurprisingly, our group comprised a plethora of teachers whom on this occasion were more than content to let our energetic , caring and informative tour leader, Claire Taylor, manage the administrative and organisational aspects of the holiday. Whilst the itinerary is varied and exhausting, travelling in a group with people whom one wouldn't ordinarily meet, is refreshing and humbling.

We all have pre-conceived ideas about a country before we visit it. It is, however, full of surprises. Its people, whilst noisy and ebullient, entrepreneurial and a little materialistic, are also friendly; interested in us (I speak as another blonde) and respectful. The countryside is beautiful; the Great Wall an experience, particularly when you can toboggan down alongside it. Failing that, see the Terracotta Warriors at the British M.

Cate Brahams, London, United Kingdom

Sorry to say, your comment regarding Mao really is unfortunately ignorant. Perhaps however, the blame is not all yours. Whenever i travel to China, i'm continually dismayed by how contemporary Chinese culture mollifies the legacy of Mao. For instance cute 'Mickey Mouse style' Mao watches with moving hands, can be found for sale everywhere. This is just shocking to me considering that a murderous dictator such as Mao absolutely should be considered in the same category as Stalin or Hitler.

Ian, New York/ Hong Kong,

Didn't the Starbucks in the forbidden palace close before this article was written?

C H, North,

I understand where you guys are coming from re Mao â€“ although as a fairly widely travelled chap myself, I know itâ€™s sometimes easy to swallow the official or local line without thinking it through. As a journo I guess Miss Owen should know better, but I guess she just reported what she was told by the locals. Actually re the price thing, Iâ€™m not sure itâ€™s too bad. I have travelled with Explore before and the level of service you get, with tour leaders, guides, drivers etc, as well as a planned itinerary, fitted in to a short period of time, is actually good value. Yes, it can be cheaper to go DIY if you have the time and energy, but for most of us mere mortals itâ€™s not always possible and companies like Explore seem to offer a viable alternative.

Paul, London, UK

"Hardly surprising given the peace and material advances he achieved for his people."

Are you completel insane! What peace or advances did Mao bring? Name one!

Liuzhou Laowai, Liuzhou, China

"Hardly surprising given the peace and material advances he achieved for his people"

Really? The Great Leap Forward caused the deaths of over 30,000,000 Chinese â€“ some estimate 60,000,000. Mao Tse Tung was also responsible for the Cultural Revolution, which was far from peaceful. Millions died, countless families were destroyed and irreparable harm was done to a beautiful and ancient culture. Much of this has been covered up in China, along with the cultural genocide in Tibet and the torture and murder of countless innocent people over the last 50 years. This is not to mention the historical support for the Khmer Rouge and the regime in North Korea. Mao's poisonous legacy continues though the regime he helped to establish and there is still no shortage of human rights abuses today. Given the level of indoctrination, many Chinese could be forgiven for hanging up a portrait of such an odious individual. But Ms Owen really needs to read up on her history a bit more.

Matt Richards, London, London

I have read many history books on China and Mao and although I have only visited Hong Kong myself, I would concur that the view of Jane Owen is naive in the extreme and an insult to the millions of Chinese who died under his rule. I also see China as advancing only on Mo's death.

Lynne Nicholas, Bournemouth, England

It's really nice to know they enjoyed their trip to China. But the price is shockingly expensive, but I am sure they would get a good service from their tour company to compensate it. I went back to China last October and had a really good time. A normal return ticket to Beijing cost around Â£350-Â£500, and hotel in China is a lot cheaper compared with here as well. For visa to China, you do not have to pay a company to get one, you can apply directly to Chinese embassy in London or Manchester, they have a website as well, you can download forms from there.

CK, London,

"Her reverence for Chairman Mao was typical of all the Chinese we met. Hardly surprising given the peace and material advances he achieved for his people."

Are you insane? Great Leap Forward, anyone? Cultural Revolution? Good Lord.

James, Canberra, Australia

I've had 2 "gap yearers" in China this last 2 weeks. Not organized tour, and boys.

They have loved it. Some of the same tourist spots and issues. But you have forgotten the big things. They have shopped till they dropped, clothes, electronics. And the night life (in Shanghai) has been jaw dropping.

And Mao? He has a very mixed press compared to Deng.

peter, Sydney, Australia

I lived in China for 9 years and now live and work in Hong Kong. My wife is Chinese. This article shows astonishing naivety. Mao was a murderous tyrant directly responsible for the deaths of more than 30 million of his countrymen, during the Great Leap Forward, and at least 500,000 more during the Cultural Revolution. She obviously did not speak to the millions who were wrongfully imprisoned and tortured during his reign, including my father in law. Some peace. As for the material advances, they have been achieved only since his death and a complete overthrow of the insane economic policies he followed. Please, do your homework in future.

ashley, hong kong, hong kong