c

Future tours arranged by Christine-Ann Richards: THE SILK ROAD IN CENTRAL ASIA Tajikistan 7^th – 21^st June 2017 Dushanbe, Shahr-i-tuz, Khorog, High Pamirs, Wakhan Valley, Murgab, Osh, Uzgen & Bishkek Visit Shahr-i-tuz, part of the elusive Graeco-Bactrian kingdom of Alexander the Great which over the centuries thrived in an intense, material, spiritual and artistic melange much influenced by Turkic and Buddhist Indian worlds. Follow the Pandzh River (upper Amu Darya) to Kalaikhum before joining the Pamir Highway to Khorog, which has the second highest botanical garden in the world and where we will spend a couple of nights visiting the gardens and museum before heading south to hot springs, ancient caravanserai, castles and petroglyphs in the Wakhan Valley. Turning northwards at Lyanger we rejoin the Pamir Highway to Alichur and have the opportunity to explore the lakes, mountain and the local flora and fauna as Spring unfolds. Landprice: approx. £2,725 inclusive Single Room Supplement: £325 where available Turkish Airlines Flights: London via Istanbul to Dushanbe Bishkek/Frunze via Istanbul to London: approx. £600 CHINA TOUR Sichuan Province & the Tibetan Border 11^th– 25^th October 2017 Chongqing, Anyue County, Chengdu, Qionglai & Yinjing with a pottery tradition dating back to the 8^th century, Songpan & Jiuzhai Gou In the Autumn we will be travelling to Chengdu the capital of Sichuan Province, which lies in the hugely fertile Red Basin, surrounded by chequer-board fields and well irrigated plains. The wealth generated by this fertile land helped sponsor the temples on forested slopes and the mélange of Buddhist, Confucian and Daoist sculptures of the temples which we will visit. In contrast, northern and western Sichuan are covered by the snow-capped foothills of the Himalayan range, rising well over 5,000 metres, a thinly settled region whose culture is predominantly Tibetan. While in the far north is the beautiful alpine scenery around Songpan and Jiuzhai Gou. Landprice: approx. £2,300 inclusive Single Room Supplement: approx. £250 Flight London to Chongqing return - Tianjin Airlines: approx. £400 Previous Tours List of past tours arranged by Christine-Ann Richards: CENTRAL ASIA: The Silk Road 7^th – 21^st October 2016 CHINA: Southwest China and Laos 7^th – 25^th January 2015 CHINA: Contemporary & Traditional Ceramics in Eastern China 10^th Anniversary Tour with Li Wenying 6^th – 30^th October 2013 CHINA: Contemporary & Traditional Ceramics in South East China 6^th – 24^th March 2012 CHINA: Indigo and Clay 19^th March – 3^rd April 2011 CHINA: Contemporary & Traditional Ceramics in North China 8^th – 26^th May 2010 CHINA: Western China & the Southern Silk Road 5^th – 27^th September 2008 CHINA: The ‘Mingei’ Tradition in Central China 26^th February – 20^th March 2008 UZBEKISTAN: The Silk Road in Central Asia Sunday 20th – Tuesday 29th August 2006 CHINA: The ‘Mingei’ Tradition in South West China Saturday 26th February – Sunday 20th March 2005 CELEBRATE: 25th Anniversary of 1st Craft Potters Association Trip to CHINA & 1,000 years of Porcelain Production in Jingdezhen October 2nd – 21st October 2003 UZBEKISTAN: THE SILK ROAD IN CENTRAL ASIA 16th September - 3rd October 2001 ORIENTAL CERAMIC SOCIETY TOUR TO CHINA 21st October - 11th November 2000