Vacation to China
I just returned from an 18-day vacation to China. It was eye opening and mind expanding. Everything I had thought about China was wrong and was from impressions developed in a previous age. There were no disappointments or anything to complain about. I highly recommend a similar trip.
Before I get into details, thanks are due to Sarah Cirelli, our extraordinary social media leader for posting my blogs every Tuesday and Thursday during my absence. Thanks to her, my twice a week consecutive string of blogs since February 2012 is intact. 
We visited Shanghai, Beijing, Xi’an, Wuhan, the Yangtze River Gorges, Chongqing, Guilin and Hong Kong by guided tours. We saw modern cities and power plants that did not exist a generation ago with construction cranes everywhere we went. We strolled in Tiananmen Square, walked in the Forbidden City, gawked at the Pandas, climbed the Great Wall (well a teeny part of it), marveled at the Terra Cotta Soldiers, had foot messages and were diagnosed and prescribed herbal remedies for our so-called ailments, went to Jade and Silk factories, learned Chinese Calligraphy along with a few Chinese phrases, participated in tea tastings and a family lunch in a private residence, attended Kung Fu, Acrobatic and Chinese Dancing shows, ate a lot of very good Chinese food, went to many other places and were surprised about the openness of the Chinese people we met and the capitalism prevalent in China today. We were also paired with a great group of people along with our dear traveling friends and were led by well-spoken guides and an excellent and caring tour director.
I could go on for hours about the wonders we saw– both ancient and modern – and will be glad to share my experiences if you call me… but I don’t want to get to a point of boredom for those not interested. Justice Felix Frankfurter once described a bore as someone who responds when asked “How are you?” I can add to that question “…or how was your vacation?”
When I am on vacation, I don’t respond to phone calls or emails, or commit to prescheduled calls, unless a true emergency arises [keeping in mind that no one will die if I can’t be reached for a couple of weeks – especially with the strong backup I have]. Vacations are not just a change of scenery, but a time to rest the brain, reduce stress, rejuvenate your body and possibly experience and absorb new things. I believe taking calls, answering emails, following up with clients, tracking staff and getting involved in the regular routine and activities thwarts the purpose and benefits of a vacation.
I hope all of your future vacations are as good as mine was.
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