Cruising past the spectacular Three Gorges

Visitors explore the beauty of Yangtze River on a sampan.

The Three Gorges on the Yangtze River is possibly one of the most scenic places to visit in China. Regular luxury cruises ply the river — both upstream from Yichang, Sichuan Province to Chongqing and back.

This three-day cruise started from Yichang on the beautiful waters of the Yangtze and included a few shore excursions, beautiful scenery, some new friends and tasty Chinese food.

The morning sun looked fabulous among the towering mountains far away. The first gorge is the Xiling Gorge — the longest of the three at about 75 kilometers. Our ship had three river guides — one for each gorge — who were responsible for telling passengers about the geographical features of the surroundings as the ship sailed by. The guide explained the other small gorges that formed Xiling — Precious Sword, Horse Lung & Ox Liver, Soundless Bell and Shadow Play Gorges. Even though all rooms on the ship had private balconies everyone went to the top deck for a grand view of the world of green as the vessel sailed past towering cliffs covered with dense green trees — so serene, so soothing.

The following morning the ship docked so passengers could explore Three Gorges Tribe village and learn about traditional lifestyles.

In the afternoon, visitors were taken on a tour of the famous Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydroelectric power station. A bus took us to the dam area where visitors could see a giant model of the dam and learn how it worked. Later we took three escalators to get a general view of the entire project — the dam and the lock gates. On our journey back to the bus stop, we got a closer look at the sluice gates.

Back on the ship, sumptuous Chinese dishes were served as the ship passed through the lock gates — an engineering marvel of massive walls and gates of iron and concrete.

Next day, a bright sunny morning greeted passengers as we embarked on a side trip to the Lesser Three Gorges and an excursion to Shennong Stream.

We boarded a ferry boat and sailed for about an hour — zigzagging around the magnificent towering karst formations and the crystal clear jade green water. The cool breeze caressed our faces and we stood on the deck of the boat awed by Mother Nature's picture perfect landscape. When the water became shallower we switched over to sampans with five boatmen and set out over the calm waters. The ambience was so peaceful with so much greenery around. This was a welcome respite with most of us coming from big cities.

As the boatmen rowed on, our guide explained that boatmen in the old days pulled the boats with ropes as sometimes the stream was too shallow and boats could not be rowed. They also used a long pole to help push the boats. The boatmen belong to the ethnic Tujia minority group and this was a common profession. The boatmen did not wear clothes as they worked.

In the afternoon, we visited Baidi City. The city is on Baidi Mountain on the mouth of the Qutang Gorge. Due to the raised water levels of the river, the city is now on a picturesque island surrounded by water. We spent a couple of hours here to learn about the Three Kingdoms (AD 220-280) and its king, Liu Bei.

Back in the ship, everyone once again clambered up to the top deck as the vessel sail through the other two gorges, Wu and Qutang. The river guides arrived once again and amidst a bright sunny afternoon, the entire journey was heavenly. The mountains and the rugged peaks looked awesome — some were rock colored, some covered with green. Rocks were jutting out, some were bulging out while others looked hand chiseled. The mountains looked so tall as if they could touch the sky. In some places the passage narrowed and the cliffs were closer, it was as if we could stretch out our hands and touch them. Our guide pointed out the Qutang Gorge on the 10 yuan banknote. Passengers looked at the note closely to verify the gorge's every curve and peak. By the time we sailed past the last two gorges it was late afternoon and the sun was about to set. That itself created a magical ambience — a blue sky gradually turning orange, red and then plunging into a grey shade that ultimately led to a star studded dark sky. It was magnificent.

Early the next morning there was a trip to Shibaozhai, a precious stone fortress. There were three parts to this — a gate, a pavilion and a temple. High up on the rocks there were wonderful views of the river from different angles. The ship anchored in Chongqing the next morning. It was such a great time that I'm considering doing it again in the opposite direction to experience the Three Gorges from another perspective.