A middle-aged British woman and two Chinese companions on Saturday set off on an epic horse ride that will see them cross China, Central Asia and Europe — and arrive in London for the 2012 Olympics.
Megan Lewis, a 60-year-old British pony breeder and head of the expedition, said the three-year trek from Beijing to London was a lifelong dream.
That’s pretty hard core. At 60 years of age, no less. Good luck to Ms. Lewis, Mr. Jing, and Mr. Wenchao. Hope to see you in London in a few years.
BBC reports that tourism numbers for China are down this year, despite hosting the Olpympics this year. The first reason they cite doesn’t surprise me at all:
Visitor numbers dropped to 130 million in 2008 – down by two million – as a result of the economic crisis, China’s National Tourism Administration said.
Analysts say increased security measures put in place for the Beijing Olympics may also have had an impact.
I’ve got a burning desire to roam around China for a while, there is just a world to explore there. But the repressive government is such a major turn off. For starters, travel blogger Noneck Noel was deported during the Olympics. Ad in a little bit of restricted communications and a feeling that you’ve always got to be looking over your shoulder, and you’ve got a place that just isn’t nearly as much fun to travel around as it should be. I know I’ll be kicking myself if I don’t end up in China within the next couple of years, but I’ll be going with a bit of guilt since I feel that traveling there does somewhat legitimize the repressive government.
