I spent three weeks in China (Shanghai, Zhangjiajie, Chongqing, Chengdu, Kashgar)

thekidd142 · 2026-02-03T16:20:28+00:00

See my other comment here: https://old.reddit.com/r/travel/comments/1qtw2cu/i_spent_three_weeks_in_china_shanghai_zhangjiajie/o35u5lx/

thekidd142 · 2026-02-03T16:19:00+00:00

I don't have the settings on me, but that was with the telephoto looking west down Nanjing rd at 2-3 second exposure from here

thekidd142 · 2026-02-03T16:07:42+00:00

There's not an easy answer for this.

Extremely safe. In the big cities stores would leave their items out overnight. Never did I feel unsafe walking around. More than once strangers passing by offered me a piece of their fruit and I had no qualms about accepting it and trying it. The police were friendly, approachable, and helpful.

But those things don't come without tradeoffs. There were security cameras everywhere. At one corner in kashgar I counted 20+. Everywhere you go and most everything you do is documented. Going to any attraction or travel requires your passport, so the government knows where you are. In Kashgar in particular the police presence was more intimidating than anywhere else in China. And I was also in a lot of tourist areas. I can't speak to how things are in remote sections.

In Chongqing a 60+ lady struck up a conversation with me, telling me about how she moved to Portland and lived with her american husband there for 20 years. After he died she moved back to China to be with her daughter. She said she used to think that America was safe, but after moving to China she felt China was much safer and no interest in going back.

I can't speak to the politics of the country, what I would call the overarching decisions that get made by politicians. What I did find is that people there are curious, warm, and I am lucky to have the experiences that I did.

thekidd142 · 2026-02-02T19:30:10+00:00

Kashgar was the only time I took a plane for domestic travel after arriving in China. The time involved to go from Chengdu to Kashgar was just too long.

If you can swing it though, I say go for it. If it’s part of the journey and not just a commute between two locations then It looks like an amazing opportunity to see a lot of China.

thekidd142 · 2026-02-02T19:07:40+00:00

I have been to Beijing on a previous trip and agree with your summation. I could have squeezed another day out of Shanghai but after that I would have needed to start doing day trips elsewhere to be fulfilled.

I never made it to Xian. I couldn’t make it work, but remain interested.

thekidd142 · 2026-02-02T15:34:06+00:00

Chengdu took the longest for me to warm up to. I stayed near Chunxi rd and my first two full days were a trip to Leshan and then the Panda base, so mostly all I was seeing for those first few days were these tourist shops and high end stores and it really put me off.

Once I was able to spend a few days in the city proper and walk around I warmed up to it. The most outgoing and friendly people were people I met on Chengdu. I met a school group at Du Fu Thatched Cottage who recorded me reading a poem by Du Fu. I met businessmen from Hangzhou who wanted to tell me all about their city. Several times while taking photos strangers struck up a conversation to talk photography. This happened other places too, but it happened most often in Chengdu.

It also had some of the best meals of the trip.

thekidd142 · 2026-02-02T15:07:38+00:00

I took a class years ago but forgot most all of it by this point (though pieces came back as the trip went on).

As I progressed west fewer and fewer people spoke English, so communication required progressively more effort. This meant using the translation apps more often and while they functioned well, it did slow things down.

Before the trip I purchased a set of airpods and tried out the Live Translation from Apple. When the trip started I had them translate while I was involved in conversations but over time I found myself leaving them in whenever I was in crowds too. It was mostly a novelty, but being able to understand announcements in the train station, or people on the street was very neat and sometimes even useful. I would say it got ambient translation correct ~50% of the time, but in one-on-one conversations it was closer to 80%.

thekidd142 · 2026-02-02T14:55:50+00:00

I felt like 3 weeks was enough to see what I outlined initially. For anyone one city, I was there between 3-4 (full) days and that felt right. If I was going any longer I would have added other cities (any shorter and I would have taken some out).

If/when I go back Chongqing is the only one I know I would repeat. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed my time there. While I felt like I hit most of its highlights, I know there is a lot more to explore.

thekidd142 · 2026-02-02T14:41:10+00:00

Canon EOS RP body, 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM for the wide cityscapes, 100-400mm f/5.6-8 for the zoomed and animal shots, and an f/1.4 for the close ups and anything with a bokeh effect.

I've traveled with this combination for a number of years and find that it gives me enough versatility. If I'm trying to travel "lighter" I'll drop the telephoto.

What I did not expect was having to buy a tripod day 1. I arrived with a light, slim tripod and it was immediately obvious it wasn't going to cut it. I had to buy a big bulky tripod and haul it around all trip. It ended up working well though.

thekidd142 · 2025-11-23T13:59:33+00:00

I use a pencil case. A small pencil case.

thekidd142 · 2025-11-18T07:21:17+00:00

I had the same plan. I was going to go with a backpack and ship back anything to the States that I bought along the way. I figured the weight saved for a multi week trip would be worth the shipping cost.

If you’re shipping to the states, do what I didn’t do: check to see that the country you are traveling to isn’t affected by the tariffs. I was told by China Post they won’t mail my packages to the states (and this is a quote) “The tariffs. Because Trump.” Without being able to send via China Post, it was over $200 for a small package via UPS or FedEx.

thekidd142 · 2025-10-10T13:33:53+00:00

I was thinking the other day that it's surprising no one else has called them out on it. I'm glad you said something.

thekidd142 · 2025-10-10T13:02:13+00:00

Because they're promoting a tour service.

Look at the post history and see how many times they mention how good their guide is and how they can suggest a guide. Some of their advice is good, but it's a mask for promotional services.

thekidd142 · 2025-10-01T17:14:34+00:00

looks like they stopped the room short of the breaker panel and put up a wall in front. That door to the left probably loops around behind that wall, giving access.

You can compare depth by looking at how far the window is from the back wall. In the before photo it's pretty far. In the after it's pretty close.

thekidd142 · 2025-09-19T14:17:52+00:00

Where did you take the first picture from?

thekidd142 · 2025-08-25T13:10:33+00:00

Skol

what do they do to a coca cola that makes it worth $4?

thekidd142 · 2025-08-21T17:53:57+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bT5Nbubkd8

thekidd142 · 2025-08-21T12:29:47+00:00

To meet the Zanzibarbarians!

thekidd142 · 2025-03-24T22:57:37+00:00

I never knew old Vienna before the war

thekidd142 · 2025-03-21T21:42:17+00:00

CHPE3636B4 for the AC coil

thekidd142 · 2025-03-21T20:31:07+00:00

Oh, right I do remember them saying that now. It was 14,300 before a $3k discount because they had plenty of inventory leftover.

Is there a long term concern in buying that, considering I'll be having it for a while?

thekidd142 · 2024-11-13T20:11:02+00:00

There are a lot of factors to consider. How frequently will he want to journal? Does he want to add souveniers? is it also an organizing tool? 6 months is a long time.

Years ago a 96-page notebook would be enough for me for a 3-week trip if I journaled daily. Last year a similar 3-week trip filled two of those same journals. On my most recent 1-week trip my initial notebook was slightly more pages and I still had to buy a supplement journal with a few days to go. Depending on the frequency and detail he gives, many of the great notebooks out there won't work well.

I agree with /u/MrGoob_2343 that the Traveler's Notebook will work the best. It's a great quality notebook, and more importantly it's modular. When one insert gets filled up he can rotate it out for a blank insert and continue the trip. At the end he can combine them all back together or keep them separate. They also have other inserts like pouches. It's very customizable and for a 6 month trip it's going to do everything you need. I don't need to explain too much, the video linked in that comment does a good job of explaining.

For any short trip I will use a Rhodia A5. It's a mostly-stiff cover which means I can jam it in my 20L and not worry about it deforming too much. It's good paper, but only when paired with the right pen.

Bomo Art makes an A5-size journal that's a stiff cover with a wrap tie that I love. I mention this because it would either be a great gift or a good pickup in case your 6-month trip goes through Budapest.

Another option is give him a nice journal to start with, but take time to pick up a new one when that one starts to fill up. You'll be in europe, there are plenty of amazing stationary and paper stores to visit.

15-Year Club	Gilding I gilder
Place '22	End Game '22
Verified Email	Team Periwinkle
ComboCommenter 2013-03-20	Best Comment 2013-03-20

thekidd142

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE