{"id":11536,"date":"2015-09-17T08:45:58","date_gmt":"2015-09-17T12:45:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/?p=11536"},"modified":"2015-09-17T08:45:58","modified_gmt":"2015-09-17T12:45:58","slug":"top-10-china-experiences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/top-10-china-experiences\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 10 China Experiences"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the 5+ years that I lived and worked in China, I was fortunate enough to have more incredible experiences than I can even count. Perhaps the fact that the 2008 Olympics kicked off on my first day in the country was a sign of epic things to come, as the years that followed were full of adventure and discovery. In that time, I managed to explore every corner of Beijing, lots of Yunnan, and more than half of the provinces in the country. Since leaving a few weeks ago, I\u2019ve been doing lots of reflecting on all the great times I had in China; there are so many that thinking about them keeps me quite busy. If you\u2019ve been following the blog for a while, you may have noticed that I\u2019m a sucker for Top 10 lists. Well, here\u2019s another one for you, as I count down my Top 10 Experiences in China:<\/p>\n

10. Longmen Grottoes<\/h2>\n
\"Massive

Massive Buddhas carved into the rocks.<\/p><\/div>\n

China is home to three massive Buddhist grottoes, and I\u2019ve had the chance to visit two of them. Of the two, the Longmen Grottoes<\/strong> (\u9f99\u95e8\u77f3\u7a9f – l\u00f3ng m\u00e9n sh\u00ed k\u016b) in Henan stand out more in my memory. Not to take anything away from the Yungang Grottoes in Datong, but I got to Longmen first and thus it leaves more of an impression. As with many places in China, I was left standing in awe, wondering how on Earth people managed to carve these beautiful Buddhist images right into the cliffs. Should you get the chance to visit one of the three, definitely jump at it for an incredible cultural experience.<\/p>\n

9. Qingdao Beer Festival<\/h2>\n
\"\u5e72\u676f🍻!\"

\u5e72\u676f🍻!<\/p><\/div>\n

I\u2019m not gonna lie, I love beer. I\u2019m with Benjamin Franklin, who once said, \u201cBeer is proof that God exists and that he loves us.\u201d Whether it\u2019s having a pint and catching up with friends at the pub or playing a good ole\u2019 game of beer pong, I\u2019m always up for a cold one. In my time in China, I managed to get to the annual Qingdao Beer Festival<\/a><\/strong> (\u9752\u5c9b\u5564\u9152\u8282 – q\u012bng d\u01ceo p\u00ed ji\u01d4 ji\u00e9) on two occasions. Munching on tasty morsels like chicken feet and raw garlic, pounding lukewarm beers, and singing arm in arm with sweaty, shirtless Chinese men may not sound like fun to many, but I had a damn good time.<\/p>\n