Phil's China Viking Yangtze River Cruise - Blog 4 (river cruising .co.uk)

Last night was Chinese night onboard the ship... I know you are probably thinking, isn't that like having having an American night on a Disney holiday? Well, you have to understand that when you are on board, the ship is very westernised inside and the food options also reflect this.

However, last night the chef cooked the most amazing Chinese food and all the crew were dressed in typical bright silk outfits. A most memorable evening.

A new day and I am sorry but the market pictures will have to wait until tomorrow... (you lose track of time when you are in the middle of the Yangtze!)

But stay with me because we are off on a small boat trip into the Lesser Three Gorges .

We dock along side our Sister Ship and walk through her reception to board our river craft for a morning cruise into the Lesser Three Gorges.

One thing I want to stress is that all the tours on a Viking River Cruise are included in the fare. It really does work well and makes for a great holiday experience.

The bridge in the picture below gives you an idea of what will happen in the next 2 years when they raise the water level to its peak, another 100ft. The clearance to travel under will reduce to just 10 metres..!! You can see to the right where the people are constructing a new higher bridge.

The communities in the Lesser Three Gorges are so remote that the only form of transport is via water taxis.

Most of the remaining settlements have already made provision in preparation of the water level rising. But you can't help feeling for these people who are being forced into giving up their homes and farm land. The picture below is of a family who will lose their current homes and land in less than 2 years. The whole island will disappear. They do however have land and homes being prepared on the opposite bank of the Gorge.

The scenery is breathtaking and it really does now feel I am in the middle of the adventure I came here hoping to experience. My Viking Yangtze River cruise has come to life today.

It is quite hard if not impossible to explain how impressive the Lesser Three Gorges of the Yangtze River really is. The best time of the year to visit the Yangtze is April, May and Sept, Oct. We have been really lucky today. The sun has got his hat on and the colours of the Gorge and the water reflections off the Yangtze are beautiful.

I promised a shout out to my daughter Jessica and her boyfriend Will today. Hi Jess - love you see you next week. Hi Will.

The Viking excursion through the Lesser Three Gorges takes approx 3 hours. Once back on board its time for lunch before we sail on up the River.

What is impressive is the live commentary from the crew guide as you sail up the river. There are no tapes here controlled by the captain. This is live and extremely well presented to you as you observe the sights from the observation deck. I have a picture of this below, because it is important to understand how passionate the Chinese are when they talk about their history and this would never come across on a recording. It also allows for questions or simply for clarification of the information.

Its time to go and listen how Chinese Tea's are properly prepared, but I am not sure if this is a good idea because my team at Save'n'Sail will probably use this as an excuse to promote me to office boy..!!! There is a picture below of this demonstration.

Tomorrow is most deffinately market day. I will look forward to bringing you the next installment of a China Tour with Viking River Cruises.