The China Travel Podcast is a collection stories and advice from experts around the globe, all tied in to China in one way or another, with the aim of inspiring sustainable travel featuring human stories and cultural exchange. Each episode we’ll be heading to a different destination in China with a special guest – and when we say a destination it can be as big as a province, as small as a village, or, it may not be a physical location at all but a field of study or simply a way of life. The China Travel Podcast is produced by WildChina Travel and hosted by Mei Zhang. ----- About us: WildChina is a sustainable travel company specializing in bespoke off-the-beaten-path journeys which foster cross-cultural human-to-human connections to show travelers our China - the real China. Learn more on our website: wildchina.com ----- About the host: Mei Zhang, founded WildChina in 2000 with the aim of providing a sophisticated, sustainable interpretation of Chinese culture and nature through experiential travel. WildChina has since achieved that goal, being named National Geographic Adventure’s ‘Best Adventure Travel Company on Earth’. Mei’s expertise has also led her to win a number of personal awards and accolades, including Travel and Leisure’s A-List of Top Travel Advisors, Condé Nast Traveler’s Top Travel Specialist, Wendy Perrin’s #WOW List of Travel Experts, and AFAR’s Travel Vanguard Honoree.
Episodes
Tuesday Mar 29, 2022
Tuesday Mar 29, 2022
For this episode we explore the birds and biodiversity of the nation’s capital with Beijing-based conservationist, Terry Townshend. Mei and Terry talk about the remarkable Beijing swift, China’s birding boom and a rising awareness of conservation in the country’s public and political spheres.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Tuesday Mar 15, 2022
Tuesday Mar 15, 2022
For our twentieth episode we explore the world of studying China and Chinese language with UCSD emeritus professor of modern Chinese history, Dr. Joseph Esherick. From the athlete and academic superstar Eileen Gu to the history and modern implications of the grueling imperial examinations, Mei and Joe cover a range of education topics comparing the past and present, America and China.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Wednesday Feb 02, 2022
Wednesday Feb 02, 2022
For our nineteenth episode we chat with existential wellness counselor, Michelle Mope Andersson. Michelle brings her expertise in ministry to the ground in Yunnan, studying the history of missionaries in China by tracing the routes they took and meeting the people and structures who keep the faith in these Catholic communities alive today.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Tuesday Jan 18, 2022
Tuesday Jan 18, 2022
For our eighteenth episode we chat with Dunhuang Academy Scholar-in-Residence, Dr. Neil Schmid. As one of the world’s leading authorities on medieval Buddhism’s visual culture, Neil covers the importance and implications of the grotto art – from seasonal fruits pictured to social and political inferences. He also gives us his recommendations as a Dunhuang resident, on what to see, do, eat and drink in the city.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Wednesday Nov 17, 2021
Wednesday Nov 17, 2021
For our seventeenth episode we cover the evolution of rock climbing in China and its crossover with growing conservation awareness in the country. Our guest for this episode is lifetime conservationist and Yunnan climbing pioneer, Bob Moseley. The episode is hosted by WildChina’s Mei Zhang, and previously Beijing-based, climber Kendra Tombolato.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Wednesday Nov 03, 2021
Wednesday Nov 03, 2021
For our sixteenth episode, we talk cycling in China with Ken Goh, founder of Shanghai-based RideNow Cycle Club. Ken is a Singapore native who now lives and works, and of course, cycles, in Shanghai, as well as all over China and the rest of Asia. In this episode we cover the basics of cycling in China, what logistics are involved in planning a group cycling trip, and Ken’s favorite cycling destination – Tibet.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Wednesday Oct 20, 2021
Wednesday Oct 20, 2021
For our fifteenth episode we asked Jim Nobles, founder of Bizarre Beijing, to chat with us on some of China’s more haunting facets. We cover a range of afterlife and ghoulish topics, from joss paper burnings going virtual due to growing awareness of environmental impacts to Chinese Ouija boards and supernatural beliefs, and of course there’s a smattering of local ghost stories woven in along the way.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Wednesday Oct 06, 2021
Wednesday Oct 06, 2021
For our fourteenth episode we head to the to the Sanxingdui archaeological site in Sichuan province with Harvard’s anthropology department professor of archaeology, Rowan Flad. Dr. Flad shares insights on the importance of the Sanxingdui findings, an overview on archaeological sites across China within the context of Chinese history, and of course recommendations for archaeological sites in China open to visitors.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Wednesday Sep 22, 2021
Wednesday Sep 22, 2021
For our thirteenth episode we head to Jingdezhen in Jiangxi province were ceramics artist and expert Caroline Cheng is joining us from her workshop. Outside an ongoing street-side porcelain fair is in the works. During the episode we hear about the fair, Caroline’s project Prosperity, and also recycling ceramic waste into sponge cities, her new venture called Regeneration Tree.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com
Tuesday Sep 07, 2021
Tuesday Sep 07, 2021
For our twelfth episode, we head to Inner Mongolia with WildChina’s own, Susan Li. Inner Mongolia is a long province stretching along China’s northern border. It’s home to vast swathes of grasslands and deserts, and now, cities as well. For this episode Mei interviews Susan on what it was like growing up in rural Inner Mongolia and how the province is positioned as a modern-day travel destination.
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For a more detailed write-up on this episode, including links to resources mentioned, please visit our website: wildchina.com