As someone whose first job out of college involved writing for a China-related website, I have a soft spot for writers interested in China. In many ways, China remains a misunderstood place, one whose complexities can only be truly understood and conveyed by those who have been there. In that spirit, WildChina is excited to officially invite international writers, bloggers and radio / TV hosts to apply to participate in hosted press visit China trips this fall.
We’re looking for unique voices that are in sync with the WildChina brand image: premium quality, attentive service and an adventurous spirit. If you produce multimedia content for a luxury adventure travel audience, all the better.
On these press trips, we invite you to experience China the way that our guests do: sipping tea with village elders or shooting hoops with local school kids on a dirt court. This fall, we’ll focus on two trips to southwest China’s Guizhou and Yunnan provinces (you may join just the Guizhou portion, just the Yunnan portion, or both):
1) The Richest Mosaic: Discovering Hidden Minorities of Guizhou (Nov. 6-9, 2010)
We like to think of Guizhou as China’s best-kept secret. A remote province that is still relatively untouched by modern tourism, Guizhou is a must if you want to experience rich ethnic minority culture. On this trip, you’ll hike along ridges of terraced rice paddies from village to village and learn ethnic traditions and craftsmanship.
Curious what Guizhou is like? See for yourself — two of WildChina’s best guides, Billy and Xiao, are featured on our new Vimeo channel, showing what they love most about their home province.
For this press trip, WildChina will provide a car, driver and services of local, English-speaking guides; hotel accommodations; admission fees and activity expenses; meals and drinking water; opportunities to interview village heads and local craftsmen; and free time to explore and conduct interviews on your own. Please note: you will need to arrange your own international / domestic air to the starting point (Guiyang) and from the ending point (Guiyang).
2) The Ancient Tea & Horse Caravan Road: An Expedition with Jeff Fuchs (Nov. 10-16, 2010)
Yunnan is another one of our favorites, given its stunning natural landscapes and cultural diversity. We’re particularly excited to offer a press trip for our newest journey, one that retraces part of a legendary trade route that remains little known to Western audiences. The Ancient Tea & Horse Caravan Road was a vital route along which Chinese tea was traded for Tibetan horses.
On this trip, you’ll travel from Yunnan’s subtropical south in Xishuangbanna, the source of all tea, before heading north up the Road to a former trading post, Shaxi, and further north to Lijiang, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, finally ending in the mountainous Tibetan region of Shangri-La. Along the way, you’ll sample teas at their origin and study the trail’s impact on ethnic minority villagers.
What makes this trip particularly special is the access you’ll have to Jeff Fuchs, the first Westerner to have ever traveled the entire 5,000-kilometer (3,100-mile) route and author of The Ancient Tea Horse Road. Jeff’s passion for exploring off-the-beaten-path locales and local culture is right up our alley, and we’re pleased that he will lead this press trip in addition to the journeys we’re offering our guests.
For this press trip, WildChina will provide an economy-class air ticket from Xishuangbanna to Dali; a car, driver and services of Jeff Fuchs and local English-speaking guides; hotel accommodations; admission fees, activity expenses and presentations; meals and drinking water; opportunities to interview Jeff; and free time to explore and conduct interviews on your own. Please note: you will need to arrange your own international / domestic air to the starting point (Xishuangbanna) and from the ending point (Shangri-La).
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For more information on either trip, see WildChina’s Press Trips page. To apply, please submit samples of your recent clips (within the past 6 months) and information about your outlet to Anita Narayan at anita.narayan@wildchina.com.
You’re writing about my home. It makes me feel like crying because I’m not there now. You’ve written the story beautifully. My father-in-law rode the tea and horse caravan train, made and lost fortunes, and now resides quietly in Dali with my brother-in-law. The traces that those adventures left in his heart are still there. Talking with him is another adventure that always leaves me wanting to cry. Now I’m in Zhangjiagang, running an eco-resort staffed with Yi from Xiao Liang Shan. The Yi too had their place on the trail, one of the main branches of which ran through their territory and via Lugu Lake. My father-in-law spend his formative years in Muli, just the other side of Lugu Lake, raised by another family of traders after his own parents were killed during clan scirmishes in Chamdo. Keep up the good work, and keep letting people know that it’s not about visiting an alian culture, it’s about visiting people like you or my, for whom the most spectacular scenery in the world is just called “home.”
Even though I won’t be able to apply it seems like this is a wonderful area of China to visit. I know people who have visited the major cities and then complained about how dirty it was or how it was too congested but they didn’t realize the best parts of the country aren’t located in the most populated places but many times in the least populated. Should be a great trip for those involved.