Some days are diamond and some days are stone.You guessed it, this was the "stone" day. An early start in Chengdu to be sure we arrived at the airport in time for the 10.30 flight. We woke at 6 am to the rumbling of thunder and when we opened the curtain Chengdu was blanketed in an angry black cloud and lightening flashed and thunder roared! A quick breakfast and we were bundling into the car for the ride to the airport. But the rain brings with it it's own c...

Forget everything else - because this was the day of the panda. Amy is a tough task master and greets us with a wide smile at 8 am to head for the panda Research Station. We had a treat as we got out of the car because the sun was trying ever so hard to peek through the clouds and smog. We could see it with the naked eye - not sure you can spot it in the photos. This is truly an auspicious day.Amy's enthusiasm and love for the pandas is infectious and these n...

Farewells, hugs and handshakes all round and that was the end of the cruise. Our new travelling companions dispersed in the blink of an eye - we wish them well on their individual adventures.Mac had emerged from the bathroom last night with a "Houston, I think we have a problem." For some reason it looked as if the Yangzte was flowing back into the bathroom through the shower floor. There was water everywhere - seriously lapping over the tops of our feet. We were...

The river views have changed so much now that we are out of the gorges. The towns that cover the banks of the river are thriving metropolitan areas and and there is an endless stream of barges downstream laden with manufactured goods. There was a glimpse of the sun at sunset and patches of blue sky throughout the day but the lingering mist of the gorges has been replaced by the low lying film of grey that is the signpost of industrial smog.Food, food and more foo...

I am sure you have the rhythm of the days by now...eat, tour, eat, tour, eat.....all interspersed with a little drinking and a lot of walking.Time for a break...not from the eating and drinking though....just from the touring and the walking.We decided early that we would only do the one tour today and have some rest in the afternoon. After 8 days of travel with the itinerary loaded from 7 am till 10.30 pm we gave ourselves the afternoon off.The morning tour was ...