China Qigong Study Trip Itinerary

......

Greetings.

Thank you for your interest in our Qigong study trips to China.  We have been working with Qigong Master Wan Su Jian in Beijing (who you may have seen on our Qigong documentary now airing on PBS) to bring you an exciting and memorable trip.  We have finally received confirmation that we can bring another group of students over to study with him in China in 2005 - as we have for the past eight years - this year traveling to Beijing with a magical side trip to the ancient cities of Taiyuan and Xi'an (the old capital of China and home of the Terra Cotta Soldiers and ancient Taoist Qigong sites.) The full itinerary is listed below.

As with all our trips, we try to appeal to the student within each of us.  This means we will be on the go most of the time, with daily training, personal treatment, and adventure as our main focus.  When you get precious time with Qigong Masters in China, you learn to savor every moment.  There will be balanced time to rest, enjoy traditional entertainment and do some sightseeing, but the focus will be on learning Qigong and experiencing the Qigong treatments and foot massages we receive each day. The trip starts with a personally-tailored Traditional Chinese Medicine herbal treatment to help balance your energy and assist in any healing that you may require. This will work in conjunction with your daily medical Qigong treatments (by six doctors at the same time) and herbal foot massage.

The food is par excellence, well suited for vegetarians like me, but with a fair share of dishes for everyone.  Our trip price is all-inclusive and based on double occupancy; the only money you will spend during this trip is on personal items you decide to buy like gifts, laundry, long-distant telephone calls and so forth.

We will need a $500 deposit to reserve your spot.   Upon receiving this, you will start getting information from us through our email "China Travel Tips" to help with making preparations for the trip a breeze. 

We will take reservations on a first-come, first-served basis. Refunds will be discussed on a case-by-case situation, but understand that the closer we get to the trip dates, the tougher it will be for us to provide a full refund. We've been enjoying nearly 1/4 of our group each year returning from previous trips and that makes us happy!

Our trip price is based on leaving from San Francisco, but we know some of you may wish to depart from your home country so we can work out special arrangements for you.  We really work to keep these trips affordable, yet with no compromises.  We will also work with you to help make connecting flights to Los Angeles as our volume buying power and experience might save you a little money.

I trust the following gives you a good idea of the enriching educational and experiential trip we will be going on.  From my past experiences over the past eight years, leading groups including physicians and members of the health field to newcomers curious about learning more of Qigong, we have come to discover that these adventures can be positive, life-changing experiences.  I hope you will join me and Daisy on our unique and heartfelt study trip.

Click here to view the 2004 China Trip Image gallery

If you have any further questions or would like to sign up to travel with us, please click here to let me or my wife and partner Daisy know.

Peace... Francesco Garri Garripoli

Wuji Productions and Kahuna Valley present:

Medical Qigong Study and Treatment

Tour to China 

with Francesco Garri Garripoli and Daisy Lee-Garripoli

September 13 - 27, 2005  Beijing / Xi'an / Taiyuan

featuring Master Wan Su Jian, Director of the Beijing Red Cross Traditional Medical Exchange Institute and his students

9/13 Tuesday - Our group leaves out of San Francisco around 1:30 pm. (we accommodate our travelers from Canada and abroad, making arrangements to all meet in Beijing on Saturday as we pass the International Date Line)

9/14 Wednesday - Arrive in Beijing, China in the early evening and get escorted to Master Wan Su Jian's Qigong Institute nestled in the mountain foothills at the Western edge of the city. This is where we'll stay for a few days, in comfortable accommodations within the Institute. After a sumptuous welcome dinner, we receive a healing Qigong tui'na treatment and foot bath/massage before retiring for the evening.

9/15 Thursday - Group Qigong practice. After a multi-course, Chinese breakfast - cooked as all the meals are at the Institute by the live-in Qigong Master Chef… each meal a conscious, healing experience - Master Wan officially welcomes us at the Opening Ceremony with Taoist music played by his students, as well as Kung Fu and Qigong demonstrations. After the ceremony, your personal Qigong treatment and foot massage. Traditional Qigong Meditation training for family health, then, a unique Taoist Qigong calligraphy healing session (where you will receive as a gift to take home, an artwork scroll painted for you to promote healing. Next you will participate in a traditional Taoist Tea Ceremony, an ancient practice designed to cultivate Qi. After a traditional Beijing Duck dinner, there will be a Taoist Prayer Ceremony to bring good luck and happiness to all.

9/16 Friday - Group Qigong practice. Breakfast. Today's adventure will be to the magical Bei Hai Temple, located in a remote mountain pass outside of Beijing. This is Daisy's favorite place, replete with 1,000 year-old Dragon Pine Trees and a 40 foot-tall golden Buddha statue. After lunch at the temple - a gourmet vegetarian treat that simulates various meat dishes in ways that will amaze you - we return to the Institute for our Qigong and foot massage treatment. We are treated to a traditional Chinese dumpling (jiao zi) dinner (which you will help to prepare, learning about incorporating Qi into cooking) before we leave for the ancient city of Xi'an on a first-class, overnight sleeper train.

9/17 Saturday - We arrive in Xi'an, one of the six ancient capitals of China, in time for breakfast, then visit some of the most spectacular sacred sites in the country. We begin at the Dayan Pagoda, the historical home base for Wild Goose Qigong where we will learn the background of this style as well be led in a few movements. After lunch, we check into a 4-star hotel before visiting Gucheng, commonly known in China as "the ancient city", home of the famous Terra Cotta Warriors. We will enjoy a delicious dinner before Qigong treatment and training. Feel free to spend the rest of the evening exploring this fortified, walled-in city, or resting in your hotel room.

9/18 Sunday - Morning Qigong exercises. After breakfast, we visit Bingmayong where the now-famous Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses were unearthed by farmers in 1974. Considered the "eighth wonder of the world", it is a site not to be missed. Lunch will be in the old capital city of Xi'an. Afterwards, we get spoiled by another treatment by Master Wan and his senior students, then sit down for a sumptuous dinner at Tanyuegong where we enjoy a traditional dance by the local people before calling it a night.

9/19 Monday - Morning Qigong exercises & treatment. After breakfast, we visit the magnificent Huashan Mountain (Flower Mountain), so named for its five peaks which resemble a lotus flower from afar. Renowned for its history as a sacred cultivation spot for ancient Taoist Qigong practitioners. Our group will take time here for Qigong practice and meditation. After lunch, we travel to Taiyuan by train and rest overnight in first-class sleepercars.

9/20 Tuesday. Breakfast in Taiyuan before visiting Mianshan Mountain, famous for its 88 temples and 2,000 grand halls. We check into the Yunfengyiewan Hotel before going to lunch. Visit Daluo Temple that is built on the side of a mountain, its grandeur comparable to the Potala Palace in Tibet. It is known as "the first Taoist temple in the world". From there, we Qigong-walk our way to Yunfeng Temple, where the views and temple are stunning. We will practice Qigong to cultivate the mountain's Qi, then return to our hotel room for a relaxing dinner, followed by a much-appreciated Qigong treatment before retiring for the evening.

9/21 Wednesday - Morning Qigong exercises. After breakfast, we visit Shuitaogou "Water Waves Valley", famous for its waterfalls and hidden caves to build our Yin Qi. After lunch, visit the ancient city of Pingyao, where a splendid array of cultural wares and antiques can be found on the old cobblestone streets. Check into Minsu Hotel. After dinner, Qigong training on the grounds, and treatment in your room. If you have the energy, explore more of this ancient city before you retire; otherwise, there will be plenty of time to do so the next day.

9/22 Thursday - Qigong Practice and breakfast before returning to your room for treatment. All energized, we are ready to explore Pingyao, known in China simply as "Gucheng", or "the ancient city". We stay in the city for lunch at a local restaurant, before visiting Jinei and Tianlongshan Cave for more Yin Qi cultivation. We have our final meal in the old city before returning to Beijing by first-class sleeper car.

9/23 Friday - Return to the Institute in time for breakfast, then Qigong treatment and foot massage. Master Wan will give a lecture on Medical Qigong Treatment, and application to help others. Visit the famous Great Wall before returning to institute for supper and the uniquely powerful Yin Yang Meditation. (For those who have been to the Great Wall before, a special side trip will be available.)

9/24 Saturday - Morning Qigong, followed by breakfast. After breakfast, Qigong treatment, foot massage and training. Time for lunch before we take a short bus ride to Xian Shan (Fragrant Hill) to train in Qigong on the grounds of the legendary Bi Yun (White Cloud) Temple. The ruins of this ancient Buddhist temple are located within the 3,000 acres of this lush mountainside park. We will stay for dinner at the 4-star Fragrant Hill Hotel (designed by the famous architect I.M. Pei right in the temple complex) and be able to enjoy the surrounding village followed by time to purchase gifts in the many shops in this quaint mountain area. Group Qigong training will be at the beautiful Lakeside Pavilion.

9/25 Sunday - Qigong Practice, followed by breakfast, before Qigong-walking Xiang Shan and taking in the powerful Qi there. Return to Master Wan's Center for lunch by our renowned in-house chefs. Qigong treatment and foot massage as well as training. In the evening, an acrobatic performance by Master Wan's award-winning kung fu students.

9/26 Monday - Qigong treatment and foot massage. After breakfast, we visit Gu Gong (the Forbidden City) and Tianamen Square in downtown Beijing (again, a separate side trip will be available for repeat travelers.) We'll eat an "imperial" lunch in the city followed by shopping at the famous Silk Market in the Embassy Park area (great discounts and practice in negotiating). We return to the Institute for our Closing Ceremony, exquisite banquet dinner with entertainment, singing and dancing.

9/27 Tuesday - A final, good-bye breakfast, then off to the Beijing Airport to return home.

All-inclusive cost:  $ 3,395 US   Click here to contact us

Please note:

You are responsible for any personal incidental and gift purchases of course, as well as laundry services and telephone calls incurred while in China.  The trip price is based on double occupancy, but if you would like to have a private room during this journey, the extra cost is $475 US.  You are required to have a valid Passport and China Travel Visa to join this trip (we will advise you on how to acquire this - it is relatively easy and will cost you about $75 US. 

A $500 deposit is required to secure your place on this limited participant trip, which fills on a first-come, first-served basis.  Final payment balance is due by June 1, 2005.  Our cancellation policy is based on trip director discretion and we do our best to help on a case-by-case basis.  As the departure date nears, it will of course be more difficult to provide full refunds due to fees and fares that we pay in advance. 

Please bring two passport-sized photos with you for use on the Certificate of Training from Master Wan Su Jian that you will receive upon completion of your studies on this trip.  Trip directors Francesco and Daisy Lee-Garripoli will provide information through their emailed China Travel Tips to help you prepare for this study trip every month or so as the departure date nears.

Click here for a Word "Rich-text" version of this Itinerary for printing...

Click here for an Adobe Acrobat file for printing...