In September 2008 58 of us cycled the above route to raise funds for Macmillan Cancer Support. It was a fantastic experience and I have a DVD copy chronicling the twelve days we spent in China with various photos. We saw some main tourist attractions but it was the unexpected sights along the way which delighted us. However nothing compared with the contact we made with the Chinese. We stayed in hotels in Beijing and Xian but felt more at home when we camped with locals who lived in primitive houses and caves for seven fascinating nights.

Through the newspaper?

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This section of the city is amazing. It has a real Middle Eastern feel combined with far east. There is one main street next to the ancient city wall which you can turn off to reach the Great Mosque. The street is alive with people and the perfect place to sit and enjoy the unique Chinese Muslim culture and food of spiced meats, noodles with a type of bread dough and delicious spicy flatbreads. I enjoyed many a beer here watching the world go by.

City centre

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In 1998 the car park was right at the entrance to the museum, very convenient.

The car park is now a long way from the museum entrance (1km or so) and you now have to walk past a shopping centre to get to the entrance. When all the retail units are open this is going to be a nightmare!

The one saving grace is that you can get an electric buggy (at a price) to drive you to the museum entrance.

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You get all the way there and you see the sign. It was heartbreaking for me as I had carried my tripod all across China.

Good results can be obtained however by using a slow shutter speed, resting the camera on a ledge and keeping it steady.

I went on a sunny day in January so there may be more natural light shining through the windows when the sun is higher in the sky.

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