Viking China

[Romeosc]

Thanks. Those are great pictures.

What month did you go?

 

 

We went Sept 29 2009. We were there for 60th Aniv. of National Day. National weather forecaster was ordered to have beautiful weather and they seeded clouds and weather was beautiful.

[Copperdog]

Sean -

 

We are on the Roof of the World departing on April 23 from Shanghai to Beijing - are you on that one?

[seanf]

Sean -

 

We are on the Roof of the World departing on April 23 from Shanghai to Beijing - are you on that one?

I'm not no, I'm 11th April Beijing to Shanghai and can't wait!

 

Sean :)

[travelfirst]

Do the rooms in the hotels and on the ship have bathrobes?

 

Also, will I have to take a special plug to charge my camera?

 

I know I read answers re charging but I can't remember where they are...

[no fuss travel]

Do the rooms in the hotels and on the ship have bathrobes? I can't remember having a bathrobe on the ship but I think some of the hotels had them.

 

Also, will I have to take a special plug to charge my camera? There is one North American plug in the room but you must leave your key in the slot to make it work. To get off the ship, you have to turn in the key. Yes, I would take a special plug to charge your camera

 

I know I read answers re charging but I can't remember where they are...

 

See above for your answers.

[caribill]

There is one North American plug in the room but you must leave your key in the slot to make it work.

 

See above for your answers.

 

Does the plug have 120V or 240V ?

 

Thanks

[coasters]

Does the plug have 120V or 240V ?

 

Thanks

 

In each of the hotels and ships cabins we were in, there were both "American 110V" and Chinese 240V" style outlets. I took pictures and suggest you see my below previous postings on this board for more info. - journal and photos too if interested. NOTE : As I recall, the 240V foreign plugs in the hotel were different from those on the ship.

Also, any credit card sized card can be used to keep the electrical outlets live while you're out of your room, (it need not be your room key).

Finally, I would suggest you pack a multi tap extension cord - having that will make it easy to charge more than one device at a time.

Jerry

 

you may want to read my journal (below) for all electrical info and photo's of the outlets. Also, read the label on your charger to be sure it works with both 110 and 220Volts most do.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This image should help to understand the configuration of the 220V electrical outlets on the Viking Century Sun and what plug adapter/s you might want to bring if your devices use 220V.

http://glevitz.com/ebayimages/shipoutlet220.JPG

 

Journal and Photos from our Viking River trip April, 2007

http://glevitz.com/ebayimages/vikingjournal.htm

http://picasaweb.google.com/JerrysWebPage/VikingBeijing

http://picasaweb.google.com/JerrysWe...BuddistTemples

http://picasaweb.google.com/JerrysWe...jingToShanghai

http://picasaweb.google.com/JerrysWe...rcelainFactory

http://picasaweb.google.com/JerrysWebPage/HongKong

http://picasaweb.google.com/JerrysWebPage/Guilin

__________________

[travelfirst]

Thanks to everyone on this board for all your help.

[gooch47]

I just returned from a cruise on the Amazon River from Manaus to Ft. Lauderdale. Two days after boarding the cruise ship I came down with a case of bacterial diarrhea. The ship's medical center ruled out Norovirus. I may have picked it up at a floating restaurant where we had a buffet dinner. I washed my hands in what I suspect wasn't real clean water. Ironic, isn't it? I was prescribed Cipro by the doctor and it finally went away.

 

I do not want to go through this again so I am going to ask my doctor for prescriptions for Cipro that I can fill before we leave for our Viking cruise on June 26. Barring that, I wonder if anyone can provide any suggestions. Since the problem I had was bacterial, I know hand sanitizers should help.

[Romeosc]

I just returned from a cruise on the Amazon River from Manaus to Ft. Lauderdale. Two days after boarding the cruise ship I came down with a case of bacterial diarrhea. The ship's medical center ruled out Norovirus. I may have picked it up at a floating restaurant where we had a buffet dinner. I washed my hands in what I suspect wasn't real clean water. Ironic, isn't it? I was prescribed Cipro by the doctor and it finally went away.

 

I do not want to go through this again so I am going to ask my doctor for prescriptions for Cipro that I can fill before we leave for our Viking cruise on June 26. Barring that, I wonder if anyone can provide any suggestions. Since the problem I had was bacterial, I know hand sanitizers should help.

 

 

On our trip one of our tablemates came down with it also... we had 3 prescriptions for Cipro that we had filled prior to leaving States.... We gave him one and he was better 36 hours later.

 

We were careful and did use hand sanitizers since many of the meals are shared dishes that are passed around or buffets.

[Peregrina651]

It is not just the level of cleanliness but also the strains of bacteria that are different from what we normally come in contact with. We haven't built up an immunity to them--and our bodies are quite willing to let us know when we go astray.

 

Taking Cipro with you is a good idea--even if you never use it. I'm planning on asking for a 20 day supply even though that is more than the normal dose. If I have to use it, I won't stop taking it until we get home.

 

Some people suggest a prophylactic dose of Pepto and others suggest having PLENTY of Immodium (especially the chewable) in your day bag. At Costco, I found a generic in a pill that is small enough to swallow without water if I need to.

 

Bonine and dramamine aren't just for sea-sickness, they are anti-vomiting drugs (called an anti-emetic).

 

Use hand sanitizers and never the local water. If you do use the local water or come in contact with it, sanitize after contact.

 

Never eat any food or drink any water that is not supplied by Viking. Forget being gastronomically adventurous and buying from the food vendors. Why ruin a vacation that you have paid a lot of money for? You may have an iron-stomach at home but the truth is that no matter how iron it might be, it is no contest for a new strain of bacteria.

 

Be a germ fanatic even if you never are at home. Sanitize frequently.

 

 

 

 

[Maddle]

Hello everyone - friends and I will be on the Imperial Jewels tour, Shanghai to Beijing, during the hottest part of the year, July 21. I have enjoyed reading all of the useful information and suggestions on this thread. (It is terribly long, but covers a lot of ground.)

 

Has anyone personally applied for their visa at the consulate? I live about 25 miles from downtown LA, and I am wondering if it would be worth the two round trips to drive there with the paperwork myself?

 

I keep talking myself into and out of the idea. Any opinions?

 

Thanks -

 

Maddle

[caribill]

Has anyone personally applied for their visa at the consulate? I live about 25 miles from downtown LA, and I am wondering if it would be worth the two round trips to drive there with the paperwork myself?

 

We did this in Houston (live about 30 miles from the consulate). Painless. And our passports were only out of our possession while they were at the consulate. They were ready to pick up as promised four business days after we dropped them off.

[Dale]

Has anyone personally applied for their visa at the consulate? I live about 25 miles from downtown LA, and I am wondering if it would be worth the two round trips to drive there with the paperwork myself?

We couldn’t personally get our visa’s for China, no Consulate near by.

We did visit the Brazilian Consulate that was nearby,15 miles, for the one’s we needed for our trip to the Amazon River in Brazil. If you are that close I’d say go for it.

[wallygator]

Taking Cipro with you is a good idea--even if you never use it. I'm planning on asking for a 20 day supply even though that is more than the normal dose. If I have to use it, I won't stop taking it until we get home.

Some people suggest a prophylactic dose of Pepto and others suggest having PLENTY of Immodium (especially the chewable) in your day bag. At Costco, I found a generic in a pill that is small enough to swallow without water if I need to.

Bonine and dramamine aren't just for sea-sickness, they are anti-vomiting drugs (called an anti-emetic).

Use hand sanitizers and never the local water. If you do use the local water or come in contact with it, sanitize after contact.

Never eat any food or drink any water that is not supplied by Viking. Forget being gastronomically adventurous and buying from the food vendors. Why ruin a vacation that you have paid a lot of money for? You may have an iron-stomach at home but the truth is that no matter how iron it might be, it is no contest for a new strain of bacteria.

Be a germ fanatic even if you never are at home. Sanitize frequently.

I have a regular doctors appointment tomorrow 4/6/2010. I will be asking for a sleep aid. I am so excited about my trip EXCEPT the long flight. I will ask him about Cipro but can you tell me the name of the Costco pill?

Does China travel present a greater chance to get ill than other travel locations? :confused:

[Peregrina651]

 

I have a regular doctors appointment tomorrow 4/6/2010. I will be asking for a sleep aid. I am so excited about my trip EXCEPT the long flight. I will ask him about Cipro but can you tell me the name of the Costco pill?

 

Does China travel present a greater chance to get ill than other travel locations? :confused:

 

I've done the sleep aid routine before and plan on it for this trip as well. Last trip, I took the pill as we took off. This trip, I plan to wait a few hours, so that I sleep the middle portion of the trip and still have time at the end of the flight for the last vestiges of the drug to wear off. If you haven't used ambien before, I would do a trial run before you leave to make sure you can tolerate the drug--35000 feet up is no place to discover that you are allergic to the product..

 

 

Look for Kirkland brand anti-diarrheal. It is the same active ingredient as Immodium.

 

From what I have been reading, I think that China does present a greater chance for tummy problems. First, the bugs are different enough that we aren't in contact with them enough to build up immunity. Second, the standards of sanitation are not strictly regulated as they are in the parts of the world that we are all traveling from. Let's face it, we live in a santitized world where everything is anti-bacterial. Third, we are traveling on a ship in close contact with others and can easily infect one another. Moreover, the water on the ship is not potable and it is too easy to forget not to rinse our tooth brushes under the running water. I think that there is a lot that is not in our favor but it isn't all a problem of the destination.

[gooch47]

I didn't know the water wasn't potable. Thanks for the info. Do they tell you that?

 

I have taken Ambien and plan to on this trip. I had to stop taking Tylenol PM because it gave me Restless Leg Syndrome. I thought I was imagining things but researched it on the internet and my doctor confirmed it was possible.

[no fuss travel]

They do tell you to use the bottled water for brushing your teeth and to rinse your toothbrush with the bottled water. We used the bottled water in the hotels as well as they provided you with bottled water in the hotel bathrooms. On our cruise we actually had no one get sick but that could be because the ship was not full.

[bxny]

Also remember to close your mouth in the shower.:D

Maybe nose and ear plugs too. Am I being paranoid?

[Romeosc]

 

I have a regular doctors appointment tomorrow 4/6/2010. I will be asking for a sleep aid. I am so excited about my trip EXCEPT the long flight. I will ask him about Cipro but can you tell me the name of the Costco pill?

 

Does China travel present a greater chance to get ill than other travel locations? :confused:

 

 

Just use bottled water to brush your teeth, their water has been known to cause havoc with non locals gastro system. (Chinese version of Montozuma's revenge) (all hotels and ship provide free bottled water in rooms) and even on buses!

 

Also remember to close your mouth in the shower.

Maybe nose and ear plugs too. Am I being paranoid?

 

 

 

YES! Don't worry or panic

 

 

 

Don't eat any raw or uncooked vegatables except at locations approved (hotels, tour restaraunts, etc.) since they may be washed in non potable water.

 

We did eat at local establishments on our own and even cooked food from street vendors with no problems.

[Osnab]

Also remember to close your mouth in the shower.:D

Maybe nose and ear plugs too. Am I being paranoid?

 

I don't think you need nose and ear plugs but I definitely think you need to close your mouth in the shower. This is not easy, believe me!

Felicia

[Osnab]

I have a regular doctors appointment tomorrow 4/6/2010. I will be asking for a sleep aid. I am so excited about my trip EXCEPT the long flight. I will ask him about Cipro but can you tell me the name of the Costco pill?

Does China travel present a greater chance to get ill than other travel locations? :confused:

 

I hope I caught you before you left - I just got back from a cruise in the Middle East, so talk about a long flight - 15 hrs, 11 mins to get back! I thought when I went to China (13 1/2 hrs) I would not be able to survive, but I broke it down like this:

 

7 hrs sleep

2 hrs movie

1 hr moving around, exercising, eating, bathroom, etc

2 hrs writing in journal and reading

1 hr TV

 

And really, I ended up with less time than I'd allotted, so I think you'll be fine.

 

I do not recommend sleep aids. You should try (it's hard, but try) to set your watch to the local time in China and approach it like it's that time. If you can't sleep, shut your eyes and stay very still, which allows your brain to slow down.

 

Sleep aids will mess up your internal clock.

 

I do recommend "No Jet Lag". I take it everytime I cross more than 3 time zones, and I hardly experience any jet lag, only a little bit of sleepiness. It's homeopathic, no side effects, etc.

 

I really hope you get this email before you leave.

Felicia

[Atlanta Cruisers]

We leave on Tuesday, and again I want to thank everyone for your helpful recommendations. We have our Cipro, Immodium, Pepto, etc, etc, etc!! Happy travels to you all.

[no fuss travel]

Have a wonderful trip. At least it will not be so humid for you like it is in the summer. The school children will entrance you.

[Atlanta Cruisers]

I'm bringing colorful bookmarks for the children. It seems like everything I plan to pack was made in China!