It was, if we’re right, Oct.2018 when we decided to visit the Peoples republic of China during the Durga Puja holiday in 2019. In all our earlier Tours to different corners of the World we arranged every detail on our own without taking recourse to any Operator. This time, however, or acquaintances who had visited the PRC strongly advised us to venture with an Operator due primarily to language and food issues. Well, willy-nillly, we heeded their advice as the proposed terrain was unknown to us barring some’bookish’ idea.
Around February 2019 we began contacting some well known tour operators. among all, the reception and relationship overture of the SOTC personnel were strikingly better than the others. We have no hesitation in mentioning two names of the SOTC Kasba- Calcutta office personnel who were, from the inception of our contact, very helpful in providing necessary information with due clarity. They were, Mr. Haider Ali and Mr. Subrata Mondal. we zeroed o to SOTC for the Aitihaasik China- DURGA PUJO 2019 Tour.
Yet the apprehension remained in our minds as this was going to be a first time experience as part of a Tour Operator- driven trip for us!
Our meeting with the Tour Managers, Mr. Vincent Britto and Mr. Winston Gonsalves, was brief at the Airport prior to departure on 4 Oct. 2019 early morning although some yet to be befriended Member of the Tour Group had previous experience visiting other destinations with them and they appeared to be happy having Vincent and Winston as the tour managers.
Next few days, transiting Kunming on the 4th, sty and visits in Xi’an( visiting Terracotta Warrior, Shan xi Museum, wild Goose Pagoda, watching the enchanting dance recital on the Tang Dynasty), Beijing( climbing along the Great wall of China, one of the wonders of the World, visiting Olympic garden, The Summer Palace, The Forbidden City, Historic Tiananmen Square, The temple of Heaven, witnessing the Kung Fu show), Shanghai( Jade Buddha Temple, The Oriental Pearl TV Tower of 314m height, cruise on Hangpu river, enjoying acrobatic show)and back to Kunming to walk through the Stone Forest, one of the World’s Heritage site were hectic yet absorbing and highly satisfying due to precise Planning, well thought -out Coverage, selection of Sights within and around each city, inclusion of excellent shows, choice of Hotels and quality of food( Indian/ Chinese) within limited elbow- room. These apart from the sprawling cities, fast train journey, eye catching markets and super markets, driver less 7 minutes journey from the city to the airport by the Maglev Train running at a speed of 431km/hr were awe-inspiring experience of the progress and pace of development of the Country.
However, the Coordination, Control, and Care accorded by the Tour Managers- Vincent and Winston along with their Chinese counterparts were the hall marks of SOTC in implementing Plan to Execution.Both, Vincent and Winston were very cordial, balanced, cool- headed in dealing with a diverse Group, extremely helpful in every situation. In this respect, some of the names of Chinese tour guides like Jackie, Chaang, Jack and Kelen are worth mentioning for their friendly behavior and wide spread knowledge. We have no hesitation in admitting that the presence and perfection of Vincent and Winston made a huge difference in clearing our hesitation to be a part of an Operator-driven Tour. Our Apprehension turned in to all our APPRECIATION at the end of the Tour.
OUR SINCERE THANKS TO SOTC FOR PROVING A THOROUGHLY ENJOYABLE EXPERIENCE.
With best regards,
MANIDIPA LAHIRI AND ARUNAVA LAHIRI