Travel to China with Wallace State; informational meeting set for Oct. 8

HANCEVILLE, Ala. — Since 2006, Wallace State Community College has offered area residents the opportunity to travel abroad to learn about other cultures, visit famous landmarks and see sites that many only see in picture books.
In 2014, the program will embark on a 9-day educational tour to China, exploring the Summer Palace in Beijing, the Great Wall of China, biking along an ancient city wall, seeing the Terracotta Warriors, attending a Chinese acrobatics show, visiting the Jade Buddha Temple, and many more adventures.
An informational meeting for the China trip will be held at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013, in the Recital Hall of the Burrow Center for the Fine and Performing Arts. The trip is planned through Education First (EF) College Study Tours and is scheduled to depart on or about May 14, 2014.
The cost of the trip starts at $3,971, including insurance. Installment plans and fundraising opportunities are available through EF Tours. The trip includes round-trip international and internal flights, land transportation, hotels with private bathrooms, light breakfast daily and six local dinners, a full-time tour director, sightseeing tours led by expert local guides and admission to the planned tours and events.
Optional excursions include the Legend of Kung Fu show and a Tang Dynasty Show and dinner.
The trip is a total of nine days. Day 1 is an overnight flight from Birmingham to China, with arrival in Beijing on Day 2.
Day 3 includes a guided tour of Beijing, a visit to the Summer Palace, participation in a Taiji lesson, visits to the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, a visit to a local school if available and a Peking Duck dinner.
On Day 4, the group will travel to Badaling to visit the Great Wall of China, before returning to Beijing to enjoy a tea ceremony, take rickshaw rides to tour hutongs (neighborhoods characterized by their narrow streets and alleys) and have dinner with a local family. An optional trip is the Legend of Kung Fu show.
Day 5 begins with a visit to the Temple of Heaven Park in Beijing before the group jets off to Xi’an where they will take a bike ride along the ancient City Wall.
Day 6 is day two in Xi’an and begins with a guided tour of the eternal city and visits to the Shaanxi Provincial Historical Museum and Terracotta Warriors. The schedule allows for travelers to enjoy time on their own in Xi’an and there is an optional trip for the Tang Dynasty show and dinner.
Day 7 finds the group flying from Xi’an to Shanghai where they will visit the Shanghai World Financial Center and attend a Chinese acrobatics show.
Day 8 includes a guided tour of Shanghai and visits to the Jade Buddha Temple and Yu Yuan Garden, plus free time on the Bund, a waterfront area in central Shanghai.
The group will depart for home on Day 9, their heads and cameras filled with memories of a fantastic trip to the Far East.
For more information, call Kristen Holmes at 256.352.8064 or visit www.wallacestate.edu/abroad to view the detailed itinerary and pricing information.