Journey Through China

I wasn't expecting to travel so soon after returning from South Africa.  However, I've been wanting to travel in China, slightly off the beaten path, for some time and when my friend suggested we do it before it gets too hot, I couldn't resist.
There are so many places to go and so many things to see in China.  Most first-time visitors to China go to Beijing and Shanghai, and maybe Xian.  I've been to Beijing and Shanghai a couple of times so I don't need to go there again.  I have not been to Xian so I am going to include it on this trip.
As of now, this is our rough itinerary:

• Meet in Hong Kong on May 13, then fly to Wuhan
• 2 days in Wuhan, then start on 6-day Yangtze Cruise through Three-Gorges Dam
• End cruise in Chongqing (CQ), where we'll stay for 4-5 days
• Travel by high-speed train from CQ to Chengdu.  Stay in Chengdu for 2-3 days
• Return to CQ, then fly to Dunhuang, a city on the old Silk Road in northwest China.  Dunhuang is in Gansu province (peach-colored province on map above, just below Inner Mongolia)
• Fly from Dunhuang to Xian, stay for 3-4 days 
• Xian to Guilin, where we'll stay 2-3 days.  Guilin is in Guangxi province, just west of Guangdong province in the south.
• Travel from Guilin to Guangzhou and stay for 3 days.
• Return to HK, then go to Macau for 1-2 days.
• Return to US on June 15.

Since we are traveling on our own, we have the flexibility to change the itinerary.  Until even 10 years ago, it was not that easy to zig-zag across China.  Today, its domestic transportation is very advance.  China has built a network of high-speed trains and has flights that connects most of the major cities.

Speaking of cities, most Americans only hear about Beijing and Shanghai.  But China has been on a growth spurt for the last 30 years and even little-known cities are big.  CQ's population is over 20 million people.  Below are pictures (copied from the internet) of some of the places we'll be visiting and you can see most of them are big and modern cities.

As I've done in the past, I will share pictures, observations and perspectives on what I see.  Your comments and questions are always appreciated.

Giant Panda Breeding Center - Chengdu

Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River

Dunhuang - on the Silk Road

Guangzhou

Chongqing

Cormorant Fishing - Guilin

Great Chinese Food in Hong Kong

Modern City of Wuhan on the Yangtze River