A 23-year-old Vietnamese's 60-day Backpacking Journey in China

Buzz

Ngày cập nhật gần nhất: 15/4/2026

Content

A 23-year-old Vietnamese's 60-day Adventure in China

After a spontaneous moment of inspiration, Linh decided to embark on a journey through 8 provinces and 12 cities in China, tackling challenging routes.

A 23-year-old Vietnamese's 60-day Adventure in China

Dang Huynh Khanh Linh (23 years old, residing and working in Ho Chi Minh City) is a young, dynamic girl with a passion for travel, rarely staying at home for too long. Right after graduating from university, Linh planned to travel abroad for a while to celebrate this significant milestone in her life. During Christmas in 2015, in a spontaneous moment, Linh's boyfriend suggested a backpacking trip to Singapore and China, also visiting Linh's friend in Singapore (who had been living there for 19 years).

Speaking about the journey, Linh mentioned that initially, they planned for about 50 days, but it ended up extending to 80 days after successfully extending the visa for an additional month. As they both worked online, this decision did not significantly impact their work. The young couple decided to pack their bags and hit the road.

Linh's journey started from Singapore, staying there for 20 days, then flying directly from Singapore to Tianjin (China), traversing 8 provinces and 12 cities in China over the remaining 60 days, including Liaoning, Guangxi, Heilongjiang, Shaanxi, Hubei, Hubei, Sichuan, Yunnan; famous cities such as Dalian, Changchun, Shijiazhuang, Beijing, Tai'an, Zhengzhou, Nanning, Chengdu, Lijiang, Xi'an, Leshan, Nanning, Tianjin.

Embarking on a lengthy journey, creating countless unforgettable memories that never fail to amaze and inspire friends, Linh shares her experiences from traversing 8 provinces and 12 cities, always making time for famous landmarks and exploring new places. With so many experiences, Linh finds it hard to decide where to start when recounting her journey.

During this trip, Linh experienced the skin-piercing cold of -25°C in the famous 'snow village' in Heilongjiang province. She saw real-life pandas for the first time, attempted to conquer the Great Wall on a day of unexpected snowfall, and woke up at 3 am to attend the flag-raising ceremony in front of Tiananmen Gate – a deeply sacred ritual for the Chinese people.

The 23-year-old spent 3 days in the Truong Gia Gioi National Forest – believed to be the inspiration for the famous movie Avatar. She also visited Lugu Lake – the territory of the legendary 'Western Liang Women's Country' in Journey to the West, and took on the most challenging trekking route at Tiger Leaping Gorge (near Lijiang, Yunnan).

But one memory that left Linh with a mix of emotions was experiencing the thrilling sensation on the perilous road of Hoa Son. Hoa Son is one of the five famous peaks of the Five Sacred Mountains, with an altitude exceeding 2,000 meters. This nerve-wracking mountain road is situated on the Southern peak (over 2,000 meters) and is also the highest peak. Linh recalled, 'While standing in line waiting for my turn, I scolded myself countless times: 'Why am I standing here waiting for my turn when my hands and feet are trembling?'. The answer is: 'I came thousands of kilometers here not to be afraid.'

The skywalk mountain path is tucked away in a corner of the mountain, only about 100 meters long, but every second feels like a century. The path was rudimentarily constructed from the 3rd to the 4th century. 'Even though I knew in advance, I was still amazed at the sight before me. Walking on those extremely rudimentary wooden planks, attached to the mountain wall with no protective railing, it felt like a first-time mountain climber with an overwhelming burst of emotions,' Linh narrated.

Traveling extensively for nearly 3 months, Linh took only 6 flights, opting for train travel due to China's well-developed railway system. In mountainous areas near Lijiang, Linh used buses. As for accommodation, Linh stayed with a friend for about 4 weeks and utilized the Chinese version of couchsurfing, hostels, dorms, and occasionally hotels for the rest.

The northern part of China can be exceptionally cold, especially in the high mountains. Initially, the Southern girl like Linh was quite shocked, but thanks to her mental preparation and having the right clothing and accessories, she managed to adapt to the climate, despite the difficulties.

Spending an extended period with the local people, Khanh Linh has accumulated many memories. 'The Chinese people are mostly very friendly, curious about foreigners. Linh still remembers that even though they had never met in person before, the hosts were very enthusiastic. In Beijing, the host was a young man living in a normal room, yet he agreed for six friends to stay overnight, coming from all over the country. We also conquered the Great Wall together.

At Tiger Leaping Gorge, Linh coincidentally met two petite Chinese girls who were excellent at mountain climbing. They conquered that challenging journey together in 2 days and 1 night. While in Chengdu, they met a young man from Serbia again, whom they had met in Vietnam a year ago, a person who travels all around the world. We had dinner together, watched movies, and had a great time chatting,' shared Linh.

Extended travel with a young girl seems not to be difficult. Linh confided that she likes to travel far from home, so the farther and longer, the more she enjoys it. The only difficulty is the unclear and dangerous mountain paths, and occasionally craving Vietnamese food. Another obstacle is that China blocks most websites and apps associated with normal life, so Linh was quite shocked at first. However, as the journey began, everything gradually improved.