Our route from Malaysia to Wales initially did not include a journey through China, but as with many travel plans, it changed and we researched for the best way for us to travel through China and on to Kyrgyzstan. Mike discovered a company called Drive China Tours and straight away we were impressed with their communication, their suggested tour, the cost and what would be required should we sign up with them. It was the best decision we made and we would highly recommend them should you travel through China. https://share.google/83j5tEnRFchAfOXVD

Prior to the journey, which would be with a number of other travellers helping to reduce the cost as a guide was needed to be with us through some of the provinces, the company sent detailed information to us with regards to the necessary arrangements that were required to prepare us for the journey .. such as organising a Chinese visa, Chinese driving licenses as well as a Chinese number plate, apps for paying for items in China including WeChat; the sat nav app that would ensure we travelled in the right direction and so much more ensuring we were fully prepared for a smooth travel through the country and any questions asked were promptly replied to either by WhatsApp or email. 

We were sent a detailed itinerary of our travel as well as suggested hotels to stay in. There were some options for camping if we wished. You could book the hotels in advance or the company would do it for you, Mike and I did a bit of both and always stayed in the recommended hotels. Throughout the trip we had a guide with us who travelled in one of the vehicles. We had three guides in total for the different regions we travelled through, all of whom were extremely helpful and informative. Every evening a WhatsApp message was shared with us which had a detailed itinerary of what to expect the next day, places to visit, recommended petrol stations, coffee shops, restaurants and the coordinates of our final destination. This was such an organized and well coordinated trip that all that was required of us was to enjoy the journey with our new travel buddies! 

There were five vans and five motorbikes and we all met in Boten, a Laos/China border town, a few days prior to our Chinese crossing. Evening meals out altogether gave us the opportunity to be acquainted and hear about our travel journeys so far. We were from far and wide, Australia, Poland, France, Malaysia, the UK and Russia. We now had thirty days together travelling from the Mohan border crossing in China through to Kyrgyzstan via Tibet and along part of the old Silk Road. We soon became very good friends with one common interest .. travel! Another chapter of our journey was about to begin and we were excited! 

And we weren’t disappointed .. it was the journey of a lifetime with each day proving to be a wow experience that had a lasting impression on us. The days were jam packed with driving and stop offs to see some of the amazing sights of China. The journey took us through places like Dali, Lijiang, Shangri-La, Lhasa, Shigatse, Golmud and Kashgar, to name just a few. The majority of time was a one night stay in these towns or cities but you always gave yourself enough time to explore. There were a couple of cities where we had a two night stop which gave us more time to appreciate the history and wonders of this incredible country. 

What did we see? Well the list is endless. We explored tea plantations and enjoyed sampling the famous local teas. We travelled through the salt fields and enjoyed a tour with a local who shared the history of how we enjoy the himalayan pink salt in our food! We drove alongside the Yangtze river and walked the leaping tiger gorge. We hiked mountain passes that required oxygen but gave us spectacular views. We visited the largest prayer wheel in the world and even walked around saying the traditional mantra which its said will bring you karma. We visited palaces and had the privilege of being in the home where many Dalai Lama had resided. We drove the Dongdashan Pass which is the highest pass on Route 318 and is known as China’s equivalent to Route 66 in the USA. On part of this route one day we stopped for a coffee at the top of the 72 bends of Nujiang .. we took in the view and then had the privilege to drive these amazing bends! 

We also had one adventure ticked off from our bucket list and that was a journey to a base camp in Tibet where we could sit in awe of the magnificent mountain Everest. How lucky were we that the weather had cleared up for us this particular evening and we had the privilege of seeing Everest. We were taken by a mini bus to a base camp in Tibet and had the best view. It was definitely one of those pinch me moments.

Our journey took us along, up and down many high passes all of which had us in awe of the beauty of China. With many places to stop and wander and appreciate the country we found ourselves falling deeper and deeper in love with this country. Many of the passes were covered in snow with temperatures dropping and clouds hanging low. We definitely experienced some extremes with the climate. We even drove through falling snow at one point. We were lucky, we were inside our warm truck, but the bikers with us did suffer from the icy temperatures. 

We drove on some awesome roads the majority of the time. The infrastructure blew our minds on occasions. We would find ourselves travelling along roads which were overlooking steep drops or the roads appeared to be suspended in mid air! Some of the tunnels we drove through appeared to be never ending with your sat nav telling you not to cross the line! There were a number of tunnels that were extremely long, one even over 20 metres .. we thought we’d never get to the end! And then there were the bridges we crossed, absolutely awesome, built in the most unusual places at astounding heights  .. this country certainly knows how to construct highways! There were roads which were still work in progress, where you had to drive through poor conditions, gravel, rocks, big boulders and mud. You had to take your time and be cautious. We also were caught in a couple of traffic jams because the road had been closed. We spent a number of hours making friends with our neighbours in their vehicles!  And we also drove roads that were at altitudes over 5000 metres and covered in snow. 

Throughout our journey we had some challenges and excitement, but whatever they were, the outcome always ended in a smile or with a story to tell. There was one morning where we ended going off the beaten track in the hope of seeing some spectacular views, which we did .. however we found ourselves on a Chinese Military base! They were all fine with us, and after seeing our documentation said we needed to reverse and go back down. We did, and found a little coffee shop at the bottom. As we were about to settle down with our coffee two of the military came down in their car and asked to see our phones and our go pro! Any pictures that had been taken were to be deleted, we hadn’t actually taken any and they took our memory card from the GoPro and wiped it clean on their computer and then returned it! Definitely an adventure, but one that ended up being a tail to tell!

Throughout our journey OTW made us proud. Our truck was one of two that didn’t need to visit a garage during our time in China. We ended up changing all our tyres but we had no mechanical mishap, unlike others. So why new wheels and tyres? We had a puncture on one of the days and with us all traveling on the same road we were lucky enough to have most of our groups stop by and help. Our problem was the spare tyre didn’t match the rest of the tyres, unbeknown to us! Thanks to Bing, our tour operator help was sent and we were on our way to be fixed. The very next day we had another puncture! OTW was then blessed with new shoes! Five new shoes! But that was all OTW suffered on our journey, she did struggle in some of the colder temperatures and when the altitude was high, but OTW made us proud! 

Our journey through China introduced us to the local cultures of the areas we visited as well as the people. Everywhere we traveled we were greeted extremely warmly by the locals. Even when stuck in a traffic jam we were looked after. We were given an oxygen generator by one guy who was stuck behind us waiting for the road to be opened as he was so concerned about the oxygen levels for us. Everyone greeted us with a smile and there was no such thing as a language barrier, actions and charades were perfectly fine. One thing that warmed our souls was that people were genuinely interested in finding out more about us. They were keen to find out about our journey, who we were, how much OTW cost and so much more. One evening in Dali we came upon a local restaurant that specialized in the traditional hot pot meals where you cook your own dinner! Looking bemused at the menu, a young local girl called Winky asked if she could help us! We took up her generous offer and she continued to discuss with us and the waitress what we would like for our meal! We had great fun trying out this new experience and again we were really blown away by the warmth of the Chinese people. We were also interviewed for the restaurant’s media company who wanted to know about our take on this restaurant and the food! Always willing to oblige and they gave us a free ice cream for our troubles! And to top it all that night on our way back to the hotel opposite the entrance was a local singer enjoying serenading locals who were gathered around him, of course being inquisitive we took a look, we were invited to sit down and we sat and enjoyed the end of a fabulous day listening to this amazing singer who finished the evening with a John Denver song, “Take me home!”

And then there was the food .. because of the region we were in the food was mainly rice, noodles and steamed dishes. We loved experimenting and trying the different dishes and found some hidden gems when exploring the different cities and towns. We tried new foods like Yak and different types of mushrooms. We tried hot pots and had food cooked at the table for us. They do like their spice and we were asked if we wanted it spicy or not! We always said not spicy as it still was spicy to us! We loved the street markets and the food stalls and one favorite was selecting our foods on skewers and handing them over to a chef who cooked it on the BBQ for us .. with a beer .. it cost us no more than five pound per person, a real bargain.

Our journey hugged the border of Myanmar and took us towards Nepal and Kathmandu, we then headed north and travelled along some of the old silk road before heading west towards Kyrgyzstan. A journey that took us 30 days and left us with special memories and life long friends. Whenever we are asked about our time in China we always say that we had no expectations and it blew us away. We were very impressed with how safe it was; how generous and warm the people were; we were mesmerised by the beauty of the country as well as its infrastructure; we learnt so much about its history and felt humbled and privileged to be able to visit the places that we did, would we go back 100% yes the only question is when?