A couple of years ago we sent out a YouTube video of the song "Stand by me"  from "Playing for Change". The message is as valid today as it was in 2009, perhaps even more so.

Experiencing our world and making new friends wherever we go is our passion and our mission is to help you enjoy the same joy.

Our friends at Micato expressed our truth in their holiday wish to us and we happily pass it on to you: Wherever we are in the world or in life...our hearts beat together.

May your actions touch those around you with love and kindness and may peace embrace our souls...

Once again, enjoy the video of "Stand By Me":

Fast forward six weeks---When planning our flights to attend PURE, Michael and I chose to fly Easyjet from Gatwick to Marrakech. Easyjet, known for its pared down service and it's menu of service fees, has garnered a loyal following. I see a place for this type of offering for a short haul, but not for a flight over 1 1/2 hours. All coach and minimal legroom are doable, but seats that don't recline at all are the deal killer for me.

We arrived in Marrakech, enduring 3+ hours of sitting "at attention", and looked for our airport butler, a service offered in some countries that help new arrivals through the immigration lines and passport control. Not spotting our name on any placard, we darted o the shortest line. We waited obediently behind the designated line and, when our turn to be submit our passports came, we promptly stepped forward.

"No!" admonished the clerk sternly while straightening her uniform, "One!" Michael stepped back and left me to fend for myself with this impersonator of Attilla the Hun. I offered my best "suck-up" smile and hoped for the best. "Flight?" barked the Grand Inquisatrix. Oh my God, I forgot to write the flight number and fear coursed through my veins. A young woman a couple of people behind Michael volunteered the number. "8855," I told the wicked Witch of Morocco. She glared at me and shoved the form and a pen towards me. I scribbled the digits where instructed and after a moment more of glaring and a loud pounding of official stamps, I was allowed entry into Marrakech. She must have found Michael more to her liking because she processed his entry card quickly.

A whirlwind week in China has ended, I'm comfortable sitting at home with my laptop is, well of course, on my lap, and it's time to catch you up on Virtuoso Chairman's Event 3 days in Shanghai.

I already mentioned our arrival at the Ritz Carlton, the wall of applause as we entered, the breathtaking and well-appointed rooms. I forgot to add when our luggage arrived in our room, each piece had an engraved silver Ritz Carlton luggage tag attached personalized with our name. 

I prefer being on the Puxi side of Shanghai for several reasons, accessibility to my favorite shops and markets, walking along the Bund, enjoying the view of the skyscrapers on the Pudong side with their lighted exterior decor at night, and being closer to the actual city center of Shanghai. Holding that bias, I still delighted in everything about the Ritz Carlton Pudong - the contemporary yet classic feel of the rooms, the steeping tub that affords a skyline view of the Puxi side, the double-headed shower that allows you to use both the handheld and rain shower head in tandem, the French press coffee pot, bedside room controls, phenomenonal service without the obsequious aftertaste, and food equal to the best privately owned, trendy hideaway.

An editorial correction: I mentioned we dined at Flair but spelled it Flare. Personally, I suggest they rename the restaurant Flair Flare because it is both stylish and eye-catching!

Thursday, October 20 presented us with options for tours such as the Back to the Future tour of the French concession led by W. Patrick Cranley, the Yu Yuan Garden and Old Town area led by my dear friend, Gerald Hatherly of A&K, a tour of the Jewish section (Did you know Shanghai was one of only a handful of places that did NOT have immigration restrictions?).  We lunched at the Swatch Art Peace Hotel and had a sumptuous food-station buffet dinner at the swank Park Hyatt Shanghai. The Park Hyatt Shanghai, the tallest hotel in the world, entertained us in their private dining venue on the 93rd floor.

Friday began with gray clouds and a few sprinkles that morphed into a lovely puffed-cloud, blue sky day. We spent the morning in an area on the outskirts of Shanghai, Zhujiajiao, a village whose roots go back hundreds of years. Many of the century old buildings house art galleries, craft stores, shops, and museums. Often called the Venice of Shanghai, Zhujiojiao is also famous for its system of canals. Before boarding a boat for a ride in the canal, you can purchase a small koi fish to release in the river and that is supposed to bring good luck. This is actually a great business model: The vendor catches the fish in the river, sells it for RMB 5 to us, we release it in the river, and the vendor catches it again! Gotta love the entrepreneurial spirit!

If it's noontime, we must be lunching somewhere wonderful, right? Friday's luncheon at the Grand Hyatt, was nothing less than mesmerizing. Before the meal we enjoyed apertifs, champagne, hors d'ouevres, and opera, arias sung by a tenor whose voice rivaled Andrea Bocelli. Staying with the Italian theme, our meal was a contemporary Italian dream.

Friday night, our final evening, found us all decked out in our custom-made black velvet Mandarin styled jackets. Before arriving in China, we sent our measurements to Virtuoso and included our choice for the lining color. Upon arriving at the Ritz Carlton Pudong, we had a final fitting of our jackets and proudly wore them for our final Gala dinner, which was held at the Peninsula Shanghai on the Bund. I had the good fortune to stay at that uber sophisticated property last month and was eager to return. After an elegant cocktail hour, our hosts ushered us into the ballroom set with four long banquet tables adorned with silver candelabra, beautiful china, and both Western silverware and silver inlaid ebony chopsticks. Our multi-course meal was an example of the best of contemporary Chinese cuisine, and dessert - glad you asked! Dessert, held in the lounge area of the 13th floor, featured desserts of the future, yummy treats interspersed in a setting of a futuristic chemistry lab! Only the iconic Peninsula group could be so creative!

We reluctantly bid farewell to the Ritz Carlton Pudong on Saturday morning and headed to the Shanghai Pudong Airport. Our final China treat was a ride on the famouse Maglev, the world's fastest highspeed magnetic levitation train. Reaching a speed of 431 km/h, we traversed the 30 km route in just over 7 minutes.

The takeaway: Plan a visit to China today! Enjoy a mix of the "lure of the past" and feel the "impact of the future" in today's China. This is not your mother's China nor the China many of thousands of people dressed alike in  drab uniforms black, gray, or blue. China is vibrant and exciting, a hotbed of creativity and design, a forward thinking and acting country that today honors its rich history.

PS. Many of you know I've been very critical of the service I've received on international flights. Now hear this: the flight crews on United, both directions, was excellent. Maybe there is hope that we haven't lost sight of true customer care!

Wednesday, often called Hump Day, marked the last day in  Beijing and our first day in Shanghai. We squeezed in one more bit of sightseeing Wednesday morning in Beijing. We went to the Hutong area, one of Beijing's last and oldest neighborhoods. A hutong is traditionally described as a quadrangle of houses with the main house in the North. North is a very important concept to the Chinese and many historic areas are on a North-South line. When the Communists took over, they changed the main emphasis to East-West. They built a broad, multi-lane road that runs for 30 miles on an East-West axis. In fact, Raffles Hotel sits on that boulevard. While the government felt the change was important, people still held to the North-South concept. The government has relented and when they built the two main structures for the 2008 Olympics, the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube, they built them on a North-South line. The government now claims to be the custodian of the traditional China.

Our visit to the hutong began was a leisurely stroll through a market area and we were guided by Lijia Zhang, noted author and lecturer. Our next activity was a ride through the hutong area in rickshaws. We stopped along the way to admire the scenery and we spent some time in a park where our senses were bombarded by so many interesting sights and sounds--senior citizens exercizing, a man practicing calligraphy on the ground using a long brush and water, heated games of table tennis, grandparents and grandchildren playing together, and myriad of bicycles parked while people visited.

After a stop at the Westin Beijing to "test their plumbing" (one does NOT want to use the public restrooms, if possible!), we headed to the domestic terminal at the airport. We were escorted through the maze of people and queues and found our way to our gate for our flight to Shanghai. One last bit of elan, Imperial Tours had ordered each of us a takeout lunch of chicken and caesar salad to be delivered to the airport from one of their favorite delis.

The flight was uneventful (a good thing) and when we landed in Shanghai, we were greeted by our hosts for the second part of our journey, Patrick MacLeod and Gerald Hatherly and the staff of A&K. Once on our way in our motorcoaches, our guide gave us a brief history of Shanghai, often called "Paris of the East." I love Shanghai! Michael and I have talked about renting a place for a month at some future day so we can fully embrace this city. 

We exited the motorcoach and were surrounded by applause from the staff of the Ritz Carlton Pudong, who lined the way inside. They provided a lovely aperitif, we picked up our custom-made black velvet Mao jackets with brightly colored lining and headed to our rooms. My girlfriend, Sam, audibly gasped as we entered our room. "Oh my God," she said, "this is wonderful!" The girl has good taste because recently Conde Nast Traveler rated the Ritz Carlton Pudong as the best hotel in the world! 

Quick wardrobe change again and, voila, time to go to Flare, the loft-style restaurant and night club on the 58th floor. Food, food and more food--all of various Asian countries--was provided and we were entertained by a trio of female violinists playing pulsating and lively music. 

Next stop was back to our suites and the oh so comfy Ritz Carlton beds. We are most definitely in Shanghai!

At 7:59 AM on Tuesday, October 18 the athletes had finished stretching, their muscles tensed, eyes focused awaiting the beginning of the race to the Presidential Suite at Raffles Hotel.  Perhaps I am exaggerating a bit...what I am describing was our anticipation of the beginning of the Virtuoso Shopping Bazaar, a display of unique items procured by Nancy Kim, Managing Director of Imperial Tours, and presented in a boutique setting in the Presidential Suite . Jewelry, clothing, cashmeres, private blend teas, and Tibetan ethnic goods were scooped up with enthusiasm and, as we boarded the motor coaches for our lunch on the Great Wall, we modeled some of our purchases.

An expert in the history and construction of the Great Wall was aboard each of the 4 motor coaches. David Spindler, our Guru of all things Great Wall, shared many details that fascinated me. A "great wall" actually is defined as a non-enclosed wall (like city walls in Xi'an or Dubrovnik) with a minimum defined thickness, height and length. China's Great Wall is a series of walls joined together. The fired brick construction was see at locations near Beijing are the newest construction. Some of the oldest and still standing parts are actually tamped dirt. 

There are certain areas round Beijing where the Wall has been restored and those locales are tourist friendly. This visit to the wall was my 3rd and the takeaway is that where you visit the wall matters. My first time I was in a sea of tourists. The second time, in 2008 with Gerald Hatherly of A&K Hong Kong, we went about an hour outside of the city center to an area that felt quiet and serene. This time, because of the large size of our group, we visited an area that was more populated than visit #2 and much better than my first Great Wall experience. I sound like I'm telling a spin-off of Goldilocks and the three bears, don't I?

St. Regis Hotels hosted our Great Wall experience, an event that began with champagne on a terrace. Next we watched 7 young women in red, skintight costumes combine drumming and dancing in a chorus line type act. The main wow was our sit-down luncheon  on the Great Wall, highlighted by a menu of delicious courses served by scores of waiters who served all the tables simultaneously. One of our luncheon companions was William Lindsay, noted conservationist and Great Wall advocate. A lovely singer serenaded us with ballads and jazz favorites of the 1930's.

Greg Nacco, Julie Nacco, and Kimberly Wilson Wetty were brave souls who actually ran a length of the Great Wall. Nancy Stein, of Aldine Travel in St. Louis, had a different Great Wall run, one of bad luck. Reaching the last step of the Wall returning to our motor coaches, Nancy's foot rolled desiring in a broken bone. I hope your foot heals quickly, Nancy!

We made it back to Raffles in time to rest and change into our "party fashions" and to make the mental shift from the "lure of the past" to "the impact of the future" (the theme of our journey to China) as we made our way to the Water Cube, the 2008 Olympics swimming venue. Shangri-La Hotels hosted our evening, which began with a red carpet walk alongside an outside wall of the cube and led us indoors and up an escalator to what was normally the tennis courts but now transformed into a heavenly room dotted with sprays of blue hydrangeas. Liquid refreshment was served from a magnificently carved circular ice bar. I easy found my way to our assigned table and I had wonderful dinner partners including Priscilla Alexander and Tova Fink of Protravel International, Inc, Marina Linhares and Tomas Perez of Teresa Perez Tours in Sao Paulo, Brazil; Angie Goiricuria,Virtuoso's Vice President of Alliances; Nancy Kim, Managing Director of Imperial Tours; and, our table host Wolfgang Krueger, GM of the Shangri-La Tokyo.

Needless to say the food was deliciously exquisite! Greg Dogan, President and CEO of Shangril-La Hotels welcomed us and Matthew Upchurch responded with gratitude to Greg's welcome. If we felt we had overeaten, we had the opportunity to dance off the calories as Beijing's most popular DJ and a bevy of 1980's clad disco dancers entertained us and helped remove any shyness about  dancing!   President and Chief Executive OfficerMatthew Upchurch, Virtuoso's CEO, and dance afficianado, was among the first on the dance floor followed quickly by Valerie Wilson and Rosie Goldberger. A personal highlight was watching the Chinese government officials dancing with the advisors. Proving the "Dancing with the Stars" element of the evening, I took a photo of the Vice Chairman of the Tourism Adminsitration with Kimberly Wilson Wetty and an Elton John wannabe!

What a day--a day of contrasts, elegance, and history. We truly spanned the centuries from the lure of the past to the pulsating contemporary feel of today's Beijing. Having traveled all those years in one day, I was exhausted and ready for a good night's rest. Sweet dreams!

St. Regis Lhasa 

 Inviting bedroom in Historic wing of Waldorf Astoria on the Bund

 Feels so inviting at the Waldorf Astoria on the Bund

The Peninsula Shanghai

St. Regis Lhasa-I wasn't sure how I'd react to plush luxe in Lhasa. It seemed like an oxymoron, but it works. It really does. The use of native materials, granite, stone and wood; the decor, a mixture of muted colors accessories of tactile native crafts and religious items, and amazing photographs and paintings; the service is impeccable (attention Chinese hotels that complain how difficult it is to train their staff to Western standards, maybe Magdy Anis will allow you to sit in on his training classes); the butlers were a silly affectation (it's a St. Regis thing) but fun; and the food was divine. The architecture was about blending into the city and not sitting in some awkward, juxtaposed out-of-place way.

Waldorf Astoria on the Bund: a Shanghai MUST STAY. Last night, the final night of this Chinese journey, I stayed in a suite in the historic old building and LOVED everything about it-even though it did not have a brainy toilet like the new wing (go back a few posts for my love affair with the brainy toilet). My Tip: request a suite facing the river in the old wing ( there are only a few) or a suite in the new tower facing the river. What won me over and moved the Waldorf to my absolute fave for Shanghai was the in-room check-in. Last week after sampling the Waldorf and the Peninsula, i picked the Peninsula. The main decider was en suite check-in. Last night i had that luxury at the Waldorf, and, thus my new #1 in Shanghai. Some people are devoted to other Shanghai properties, but at this writing, I prefer the Puxi side of Shanghai, on the Bund, with great service and an excellent breakfast (you may recall that the Peninsula's breakfast was totally scrambled and unorganized).

Peninsula Hotel Shanghai: The clubby feeling at the Peninsula would comfort a solo traveler and some people still appreciate the signature outfit of the Peninsula bellman. Beautiful hotel and the first new build in years on the Bund. I like the Peninsula tradition but prefer the history of the Waldorf Astoria.

The next must stay hotel is the Amanfayun in Hangzhou-picturesque and tucked into a spiritual area. It is very soothing and spiritual and when they improve their lighting in rooms and on pathways (rooms are scheduled for increased lighting this winter), it will be a solid recommendation.

Other places we stayed or inspected were adequate, even perhaps, the best of the area, but truly not worthy of comment---except I did like the Four Seasons Hangzhou, just a little too Western compared to the Aman.

I know several of you have been to China. What are your favorite places to stay?

Amanfayun 

 Four Seasons Hangzhou                                               

Chengdu is known for it's panda refuge and breeding program. Because they resemble bears, people in the West sometimes call them panda bears; however, our guide, Rebecca ( most service workers pick Western names when dealing with the public - John was our first guide and Leo was our second guide) explained that pandas are their own breed.

We arrived early at the Panda Reserve in order to catch them at an active time before the heat of the day invited the pandas to sleep. The pandas are grouped by age - adults, 3 year olds, 2 year olds, 1 year, a few months, and a newborn nursery. I defy you to wander through the park and not want to take a panda or two home! The newborns aren't particularly cute, you might describe them as having a face only a mother could love. Even so, all the pandas, the more recognizable black and white, as well as the red pandas, more raccoon-like, were "special". Because this was a long holiday weekend, the popular Autumn Festival about to start, the park quickly swelled with Chinese tourists, apparently deeming the pandas extremely special, too.

After a delicious Sichuan lunch (yes, that translates as spicy, but not wildly so), we went to the Sanxingdui (Three Star Piles) Museum. In 1929 a farmer found some jade and the following dig around the area has produced a wealth of artifacts.

The next morning we drove about an hour to a Daoist temple, our guide for that experience a Daoist monk. The temple was beautiful, ornate, and clouds of prayer incense wafted through the air. The monk talked about yin and yang, Daoist art, and Daoist philosophy. Then, we experienced something very special, indeed. The monk took us to the private dormitory of these holy men and invited us into his room. He had an ancient Chinese instrument on which he played a Daoist song about drunken men. We saw beautiful water color landscapes of mountains and rivers on his walls, yes, painted by him. One of them won a national award. He had a small bed, warming plate for his tea (the tea ceremony is extremely important in Daoism), a microwave, lots of books, bottled water and a laptop.

Leaving the room we entered the courtyard and watched the monk perform some Tai Chi, so graceful and powerful. Was this special? Absolutely! Many people visit China, but very few enjoy the experience of participating in a monk's private life. This is one of many of the delights that Guy and Nancy, of Imperial Tours, include and is one of the things that sets them apart.

An aside: most tour companies include shopping stops at places they pick. The shop owners give the guides and the tour companies a kickback. Imperial Tours is the only company that does not participate in this charade. While they will glad offer names of shops and take you there AT YOUR REQUEST, you will never be "guided" to one that offers "very good price", "make good deal for you", or "we think this store is good, reputable."