Behind the Bamboo Curtain

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Destinations

Behind the Bamboo Curtain

Since it opened up to tourists in the late seventies, China has taken its place as one of the world's favourite tourist destinations, and with good reason, writes Ben Barton

The attractions of the People's Republic of China are so iconic, so far reaching, that it's easy to see why travellers are drawn to this formerly forbidden kingdom.

In December 2007, I flew behind the 'Bamboo Curtain' and began my adventure in Beijing, the heart of China, where the secular stands side by side with ancient temples, bustling markets and rickshaw-wallahs, and where the build-up to the spectacular 2008 Olympics could be felt on every street corner.

The Forbidden City tops the list of Beijing's must-sees. This former Royal residence sits opposite the forbidding 100-acre Tiananmen Square. I'm sure you could walk around the city for days and still not see it all - there are hundreds of buildings, each a perfect example of traditional Chinese architecture. Much of the city is used as museum space, with endless exhibits of exquisite jade treasures, symbols of the former imperial kingdom's wealth.

Outside the forbidden walls we ventured into the hutongs with our guide. Some took a rickshaw, but I preferred to walk into this world of labyrinthine alleyways lined with cramped but pretty courtyards. It was like stepping into the bygone China of old books and Hollywood movies.

An hour's drive from the city is Badaling, where most people go to promenade along a restored section of the Great Wall. Winding its way over undulating hillsides as far as the eye can see, this remarkable monument is an essential part of any visit to China. With sections dating from 220BC and a total length of 4,000 miles, the feeling of awe is all-consuming. If you are going to do this for yourself, be prepared to climb more than you walk – it often twists erratically and there are infinite steep, uneven steps. But the views are magnificent, and well worth the climb.

Before saying goodbye to Beijing, I snatched a glimpse of the now-familiar Olympic Bird's Nest stadium, the newest jewel in the city's 21st century crown.

The strikingly futuristic-looking stadium seemed like it had just landed from space. Although we were only able to see it from the outside, it was undeniably spectacular - built to withstand earthquakes, according to our guide. It's destined to become much more than a stadium with its restaurants, shopping mall, hotels and lots more.

Next we travelled back in time - to the home of the Terracotta Warriors. Xi'an, the capital of the Shaanxi province, was the gateway to the Silk Road and has seen the rise and fall of many dynasties during its tumultuous 7,000-year history.

Nowadays it is all too often passed through by travellers, who come to visit the Terracotta Warriors located 25 miles away at Lintong. However, the city itself is well worth exploring for its Ming-era city wall, the only one in China which has resisted modern urban planning and remains intact to this day. Within it are Xi'an's 14th-century Bell and Drum Towers, which would have sounded every hour of the day as an early version of a clock.

So much has been said and written about the Terracotta Warriors, but seeing them first hand, now entombed in an enormous metal hangar, is still an electrifying experience. Unlike many archaeological discoveries, which usually follow years of research and digging, the warriors were found purely by chance. Unearthed just a few feet below the surface by a farmer digging a well in 1974, this epic site really does lay a well-deserved claim to being the greatest archaeological find of the 20th century.

Thousands of the figures are on display, all in various states of repair, poised for a battle that will never come. Experts believe that the site, which is still to be fully excavated, could hold as many as 8,000 warriors and horses.

The final leg of our tour took us to the avant-garde cityscape of Shanghai, China's largest metropolis, where mirrored skyscrapers crowd tightly together in the mould of New York or any other major modern city.

One of the tourist meccas is the Bund, a mile-long boulevard where grand remnants of colonial power line the Huangpu River. While little of the city's pre-war grandeur has survived, luckily the multi-faceted architecture of the Bund has been well protected.

The Maglev Train (literally 'magnetic levitation') is a modern attraction that makes Shanghai one of the world's most cutting-edge cities. This driverless train floats above the track at an astonishing 270 miles an hour, taking just a few minutes to travel the 20 miles from the city centre to the airport.

Other attractions in Shanghai include the Garden of Contentment with its handsome pavilions and seemingly never-ending paths. Or, for a fabulous evening out, I highly recommend attending the breathtaking show by the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe, which made a fantastic end to this thrilling holiday. I also enjoyed a cruise along the Grand Canal in the town of Suzhou, now a suburb of Shanghai. Here a network of criss-crossed canals, stone bridges and waterside shanty houses led Marco Polo to dub it 'The Venice of the East'.

In this Olympic year, China is expecting its highest-ever number of foreign visitors. But one thing is certain - the world's fascination with this incomparable country will continue long after the athletes and their shiny medals have gone home.