NZCFS Rewi Alley and Kathleen Hall Heritage tour, September 2022.
21 days in China
2021 is the 125th anniversary of Kathleen Hall’s birth. 2022 is Rewi Alley’s 125th. An overview of the itinerary is to travel from Beijing to Shandan, ending in Shanghai. The focus is to visit heritage sites of both Kathleen Hall and Rewi Alley, and organise some official/ semi-official meetings with partners of their heritage in China.
The plan includes activity like English corner with students in Gansu, Youxie support for forums on RA and KH, meet Kathleen Hall scholars, all to be confirmed. Along the way there will be a number of historical, cultural and scenic sites of interest. Underlying all of course will be a diverse and authentic food experience of the regions!
This is a unique tour that only NZCFS can deliver. Through the focus on Rewi Alley and Kathleen Hall, it provides a platform for a broad appreciation of where China came from, and how it got to be where it is today. With contact with real people!
NZCFS seeks expressions of interest in this tour. At this stage it is conditional on NZCFS being able to deliver the tour free of restrictions on both international travel and in-China travel, free of constraints from Covid other than testing requirements. Expressions of interest are also free from commitment at this stage. Contact [email protected]
A draft outline of the itinerary and an indication of the activity is as follows:-
Beijing:
- Highlights of Beijing, may include Great Wall, Tiananmen/Forbidden City, to be arranged
- Sites less visited – Zhoukoudian (Peking Man Site); Luguo qiao (Marco Polo Bridge)
- Rewi Alley heritage – formal meetings/ informal workshops; Song Qingling former residence
Hebei Province:
- Kathleen Hall heritage – Songjiazhuang village; KH Memorial room, Baoding; Anguo
- Langya Shan (wolf tooth mountain)
Shanxi Province:
- Datong – Kathleen Hall heritage; meet NZCFS’ KH scholar;
- Yungang grottoes;
- Hengshan Hanging temple
- Pingyao Ancient Town
Shaanxi Province:
- Xi’an – Terracotta soldiers; Eighth Route Army Museum; City Wall; Moslem Bazaar; meet KH Scholars, Women’s Federation
- Fengxian – cross the Qingling mountain range that separates north and south of China; Rewi Alley cave house and heritage – Xi Zhongxun memorial museum
- Baoji – Industrial Heritage Cave Factory Museum; Baoji Museum (comprehensive Shang dynasty and bronze age collections)
Gansu Province:
- Zhangye – Zhangye Danxia Geological Park; Wetlands Nature Park
- Shandan – Rewi Alley heritage activities; Shandan Vocational College (previously SBS); RA museum, RA grave; Commemoration activities- seminar, meet the students and teachers
- Big Buddha
- Lanzhou – Lanzhou City University: Rewi Alley commemoration activities, forum with students and teachers; Bailie Square; Yellow River waterwheel park
Shanghai:
- Rewi Alley historic residence 1315 Yu Yuan Ave; meet partners (possible meet NZCFS sponsored Michael King NZ writer in residence?); free time, to be arranged
April 2023 Tibet and Xinjiang
- This is a revision of the proposed Hanoi to Lhasa with an Everest Base Camp add on – It is best to do this in Chinese Springtime. At this stage the Vietnam content is removed due to requiring an extra border crossing, which may add complications in uncertain times. A Xinjiang add on suggested is also a new combination for NZCFS. Wang Fang (NZCFS tour colleague in China) advises that it is untenable to do at this time, but we look forward optimistically to offer this in 2023.
September 2023 NZCFS Long March and 20th Century History
- This tour promoted for September 2021 is postponed to September 2023. This is to allow the Rewi Alley and Kathleen Hall Heritage tour preference due to it being RA’s 125th commemoration in 2022, which facilitates special attention from China.
