This afternoon, I'll board a plane in Shanghai and begin the 30-hour trip home. I leave China with a wealth of memories and images. We've seen and done so much more than I've had the opportunity to blog about here. So as a farewell gift, here are some of my other favorite images from this trip. If a picture is worth a thousand words, this is about 9,000 words' worth of travel treasure.

A chef in Beijing prepares the world-famous Peking duck.

Beijing artists practice calligraphy by painting with water on dry stone.

The Temple of Heaven is Beijing's most significant historic religious site.

Artwork at Beijing's Summer Palace, a lakeside retreate of the Ming Dynasty emperors.

Xi'an's elaboarte preparations for the Chinese New Year celebration.

The underground swimming pool at the beautiful new Sheraton hotel in Shanghai.

Locals and visitors browse the shops at Shanghai's "Chinatown in China."

The Shanghai Acrobats perform amazing athletic feats nightly.

So far, I've written a lot about China's history, its imperial dynasties and how that heritage shows up in modern Chinese life. Today, though, we took a welcome break from history lessons to explore the Shanghai Museum, a free public institution that houses some of the best of Chinese artwork.

Beautiful art is among China's greatest contribution to the world, and the exhibits at this museum follow the development of various media from pre-history to modern times. One large gallery traces jade carving in China, from 3.000-year old simple ceremonial tools to elaborately carved jewelry worn by royalty in the early 20th century. A gallery on currency showed the fascinating artistic touches in ancient Chinese coins and more modern paper bills, and a clothing gallery highlighted the traditional costumes of many of the ethnic minority groups in the country.

Among my favorite were the painting and calligraphy galleries. There is an art form in Chinese writing that we in the West can little understand. Masters of calligraphy are considered artists here in China, and their best works are presented on long scrolls in the museum's display cases. Many of the paintings, also presented on scrolls, used black ink or soft water colors to create idyllic natural scenes reflecting the diverse beauty of the Chinese countryside.

Many visitors will also enjoy a visit to the porcelain gallery, which explains how Chinese craftsmen created a new kind of pottery that grew to become a world-famous art form. Some of the finest porcelain works on the planet are on display in this museum, and guests come to realize how fine porcelain pottery came to be known as "China" in the Western world.

Our group spent about an hour and a half in the museum, and at the end of that time, I found myself wishing for much more. If I ever find myself in Shanghai again, this museum will be at the top of my to-do list.

Ancient stone carvings in the sculpture gallery.

A world-class example of Chinese porcelain art.

A Tibetan ceremonial mask.

We've enjoyed a number of over-the-top meals here in China, including hosted dinners last night in Xi'an and tonight in Shanghai. Chris Lee, owner of China Plus USA, is very well respected here in China, and so when he brings a FAM tour on a visit, his tourism friends pull out all the stops.

Last night's dinner included a number of colorful dumplings, many shaped to resemble frogs, ducks or other animals, as well as a variety of local delicacies. Among them were some foods that you won't find on western menus, such as ox hearts (I tried them -- not nearly as bad as you might think). But the meal also included many wonderful pork, chicken, beef and seafood dishes. All together, we counted some 37 dishes that were served family-style to our small group.

Tonight we're in Shanghai, China's business center, and staying in the brand new Sheraton hotel that is currently in its soft opening phase. The hotel management treated us to a wonderful dinner at their upscale Japanese restaurant on the 37th floor. The meal included beautiful sashimi --  raw tuna, salmon and shellfish -- as well as a number of traditional Japanese soups, salads and fried rice. The highlight, though, was the Wagyu beef, prepared in front of us on a tepenyaki grill. The cattle that Wagyu comes from are fed a premium diet, and caretakers massage them daily by hand to make their muscles extra soft and tender. The result was one of the best steak meals I've ever had, impossible tender and full of fresh flavor.

There are some perks that come along with working in the travel industry, and in China many of those are built on personal relationships. Here, as in so many other places, it's all about who you know.

A platter of ox heart and other delicacies... yum!

Frog-shaped dumplings in Xi'an.

Gathering around the tepenyaki table at the Sheraton in Shanghai. 

Fancy fingerwork makes dinner entertaining.

A splash of red wine turns beef preparation into fireworks.

For tourists, Xi’an is best known as the home of the terra cotta warriors. Discovered by local farmers digging a well in the 1970s, the terra cotta warriors are part of the massive grave complex of Qin Shihuang, an emperor who ruled around 220 B.C.

Previously, Qin was known in history for unifying China (through a brutal military campaign) and beginning construction of the Great Wall. With the discovery in the 1970s, archaeologist soon came to learn about his massive tomb complex, for which he had craftsmen build more than 7,000 terra cotta figures of foot soldiers, archers, charioteers and horses.

Today, about three thousand of the figures are unearthed and reconstructed in the main viewing area of the Terra Cotta Army Museum. Excavation still continues at the site, where workers unearth more figures in dozens or sometimes hundreds of pieces. To reconstruct just one of the figures takes around three months.

The terra cotta warriors have become one of the most known symbols of China, and have given historians a lot of insight into the beliefs and burial habits of the ancient Chinese. This large, still-life army is a striking sight to see. Even more striking to me, though, is everything it says about Qin and the ancient Chinese attitudes. Hundreds of thousands of workers toiled for nearly 40 years to create this terra cotta army to escort Qin to his afterlife, along with many other yet-to-be-unearthed features of the burial site. Afterward, many of the workmen and artists were killed, so that grave robbers would not discover the location of the burial site.

China’s history is defined by the heavy-handed rule of its emperors, and pock-marked with millennia of human rights abuses. Though we in the West still take issue with many of the policies of the current Communist Party rule (I can’t access Facebook, Twitter or Google here, thanks to the government’s “Great Firewall“), through the long lens of history we can see now just how far China has come. Hopefully, continued openness, free trade and interaction with the West will help China to emerge from its cocoon of authoritarianism to show the world the beauty that waits inside.

Full-size replicas of the terrac cotta warriors are available in the on-site gift shop... for about $3,000.

In Xi’an, a city of six million people in central China, the legacy of ancient emperors is still alive today. For many years, Xi’an was the imperial capital of China (the current capital is Beijing).

After flying to the city this morning, we spend our evening attending the Tang Dynasty Dinner Show. The Tang emperors ruled China from 618-907, during a time that has become known as the golden age of Chinese culture and civilization. The show presents many of the traditions of the period -- including music, costume and dance -- in vivid color.

If you’re a frequent group traveler, you’ve likely lost count of all the different dinner shows you’ve attended; this one though, was unforgettable. More than 100 dancers and musicians are involved in the production, playing Chinese instruments and music that date back more than 1,000 years. Though the sights and sounds were completely foreign to us Westerners, they were also beautiful and captivating.

This show is a first-rate production as well, with intricate staging and lighting. At one point, it actually rains on the stage; in the ending finale, actors representing the Tang emperor and his entourage parade majestically through the audience.

The more I travel in this country, the more I realize how much of its national identity comes from the imperial attitudes and dynasties of old. Perhaps understanding more of China’s past will inform the way we interact with them today.

As a city, Beijing is a sprawling mass of high-rise buildings, many of them apartment and condo towers built to house the 19 million people who live here. But in the Hutong area of the city, just a block behind the skyscrapers on busy city streets, quiet neighborhoods and charming one-story homes maintain a semblance of the old life in Beijing.

We toured the Hutong by rickshaw today, going two-by-two in carts powered by a bicycle driver. It’s about the only way to go -- motorcoaches can’t navigate the narrow passages, and the labyrinth of streets and alleys makes trekking through on foot an intimidating prospects.

Our drivers brought us to the home of a local family, where the mother invited us in, served us tea, and talked to us about her family’s life in the small Hutong home. The house, she said, has been in her husbands family for four generations. The couple currently live there with their youngest son, as well as her father. Like most of her husband’s family, her oldest son is a kung fu master, and he now teaches in the United States. No on asked how the family managed to get around China’s infamous one-child policy.

The home was modest and crowded, but lovingly decorated in celebratory Chinese symbols. Though the Hutong is much beloved by residents, its days are probably numbered -- as Beijing’s population continues to grow, the government is tearing down the one-story buildings to construct more high-rises. The lady tells us that by the end of this year, she and her family will have to relocated, as their home is being demolished to create a public garden and a wider road.

There is one upside for the family, though: Because traditional homes in the Hutong are highly coveted by locals, their values have skyrocketed relative to other real estate in China. When it is time for the family to move, the government will reimburse them for their tiny home, which should be worth about $600,000. That will buy a great condo somewhere else in Beijing.

 Jasmine tea with the lady of the house.

Visiting in the family room.

The family's display of Kung Fu weapons.

Enjoying a rickshaw ride through the Hutong.

It's not every day that you get to take a walk along a 2,700-year old wonder of the world. So for me as a traveler, today's visit to the Great Wall of China was pretty special.

We've all seen pictures of the wall, and probably heard various tidbits about it, such as the fact that it is the only man-made object visible from space. On our drive to the mountains outside of Beijing, where sections of the 4,000-mile wall are most accessible to visitors, our local guide Eddy gave us more details about the creation of this landmark.

"The emperors built the wall to keep out the Mongols from the north," he said. "Over one million workers were involved. Many of them died while they were building it. Most of the workers were prisoners, so if they got sick or wounded, nobody cared. They just buried them inside the wall."

Today, the wall is still as spectacular as it must have been back then. It snakes along the tops of ridges like a spine on the mountain range. In the sections near Beijing, the wall is wide, tall and easily walkable -- even on a late winter day, the place is buzzing with tourists, most of them Chinese nationals visiting from other parts of this large country.

We had two hours to spend exploring the Great Wall.  I chose to take the challenging hike from our starting place to the Eighth Tower of the North, the wall's highest point near Beijing. The journey included a lot of steps and no small amount of heavy breathing, but the views from the top, and the accompanying sense of accomplishment, were more than worthwhile.

After all, this is one of the great accomplishments of ancient humanity. Eight thousand miles away from home, it only makes sense to me to make the most of the opportunity. So the Great Wall of China, and its Eighth Tower of the North, is officially checked off the bucket list.

A steep hike from the bottom

Brian stops for a photo on the wall... with hair wind-whipped into a frenzy.

A remnant of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, fixed just beside the Great Wall.

It's a foggy day in Beijing, dreary weather for touring. But it will take more than mist to dampen my spirits -- today, my first in China, we are visiting the Forbidden City, one of the most renown sites in the whole country.

This elaborate complex of palaces and accompanying buildings was constructed more than 600 years ago, and occupied by members of the Ming Dynasty -- China's last emperors -- until 1921. During that time, it was strictly off-limits to commoners. Only emperors, their entourages and other public officials were allowed inside this massive and ornate complex. Thus the royal palace came to be known as the "Forbidden City."

After the fall of the dynasty, the new Chinese government opened the complex as the Palace Museum, but it is still widely known as the Forbidden City. Throngs of visitors come to see the craftsmanship and artwork on the palace walls and roofs, to walk in the footsteps of former emperors, and to learn more about this fascinating era in Chinese history. For a 600-year old attraction, the Forbidden City is huge -- our group spent several hours walking through from the north end to the south side. Along the way, Chris Lee, owner of China Plus, and our local guide Eddy told us stories of the emperors who lived in the city, as well as their harems and armies. All told, there are 9,999 rooms in the city, they tell us.  This was by design, as ancient Chinese beliefs held that there are 10,000 rooms in heaven.

The history is fascinating, but for me, it was the art of the Forbidden City that was truly stunning. The painting, carving and architecture represent the best work of the Mind dynasty, and have been remarkably well preserved over 600 years. With eye-catching designs and brilliant colors, the wonders of this city shine bright on even the foggiest of days.

 One of the Emperor's many thrones.

The Royal Hall

Iconic brass orbs adorn the gates to the Forbidden City.