China guesthouse and hostel booking info, travel tips

China Warns U.S. to Stay Out of Islands Dispute

The country?s foreign minister said that international involvement in dispute in the South China Sea would make ?resolution more difficult.?

Southeast Asian Leaders Agree to Form Free-Trade Zone by 2015

Association of Southeast Asian Nations leaders agree at summit in Philippines to establish free-trade zone by 2015; pledge to intensify their fight against terrorism, protect region's migrant workers and improve their campaign against HIV/AIDS; also break from tradition of consensus and noninterference and agree to new charter with broad enforcement powers; group fails to find common ground on how to deal with Myanmar, which has come under fire for its poor human rights record

The Muslim Stereotype

I find the common American stereotypes of Islam profoundly warped.

Indonesian President Is Sworn In, Promising a Cleaner Government

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono promised a new era of cleaner government and renewed growth for Indonesia.

THREATS AND RESPONSES; President Seems to Gain an Asian Ally

Pres Bush and leader of Brunei, Sultan Sir Bolkiah Hassanal, meet at White House; they agree to expand intelligence-sharing as part of Washington's campaign against terrorism; photo

10 Asian Nations Join With U.S. in Pledge to Fight Terrorism

Ten Southeast Asian nations join United States in pledging to 'prevent, disrupt and combat' global terrorism through increased sharing of information and intelligence; declaration comes at end of conference of Assn of Southeast Asian Nations; it commits region that is battling extremist groups to strengthening counterterrorism training, exchanging financial and immigration data and working to create joint programs with US; Secretary of State Colin Powell, who signs agreement with Asean, seeks t...

Brunei: From Oil Rich to Garage Sales

Oil-rich tiny nation of Brunei is in state of financial collapse, hit hard by Asian economic crisis in 1997, drop in oil prices and by Prince Jefri Bolkiah's $15 billion spending spree; saga of profligate prince is latest cautionary tale about dangers of economic windfall; Nigeria, like Brunei, has been all but ruined by corruption spawned by discovery of oil; Brunei holds six-day auction of depleted assets of prince's construction and supply company, which went bankrupt in 1998; Prince Jefri, ...

How to Say No To a Sultan; Brunei and Its Leader Try Economic Discipline

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiash of Brunei, whose lavish spending helped push country into recession, now acts as economic disciplinarian, trying to less its dependence on oil production and into global economy; Brunei has been vowing to diversify its economy since mid-1980's, but reductions in dominance of oil have been achieved largely by raising government outlays; surging oil prices have taken some urgency out of reform drive; photos

Hints of Graft by Indonesian President

Protests against Indonesia's Pres Abdurrahman Wahid erupt into violence in capital of Jakarta as investigative committee submits report to Parliament suggesting he acted improperly in two multimillion-dollar corruption scandals; findings of six-month inquiry suggest Wahid may have been involved in embezzlement of $3.7 million from government agency and that he improperly accepted $2 million from Sultan of Brunei; photo

As in Manila, So in Jakarta? Upset of Leader Is Protests' Aim

Thousands of chanting protesters denounce Indonesia's president, Abdurrahman Wahid, in what has become daily ritual in Jakarta and other major cities; Wahid is embroiled in corruption inquiry, and protests are expected to grow; special parliamentary committee is expected to announce results of its investigation into charges that Wahid's personal masseur embezzled $3.7 million from state agency, and that Wahid failed to report secret $2 million gift from sultan of Brunei; Wahid took office with ...

GOLF: ROUNDUP; Wayne Smith Leads By One in Thailand

Golf Roundup; Wayne Smith takes lead after first round of Johnnie Walker Classic in Bangkok; Pres Clinton shows up at 11:30PM to play at Royal Brunei Golf and Country, after long day of summit meetings; he and Singapore Prime Min Goh Chok Tong play nine holes until 2AM, on lighted course in lush rain forest, despite flashes of lightning

REPORTERS' NOTEBOOK; An Oil Barony Knows How to Entertain Important Visitors

Reporters' Notebook vignettes from Pres Clinton's visit to oil-rich Brunei; photo of Pres Clinton and his daughter, Chelsea, being greeted by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and his two wives

WORLD BUSINESS; Southeast Asia Nervously Watches as Oil Prices Climb

High oil prices deal double-whammy to Southeast Asia's developing economies, raising cost of energy while curbing demand for exports region depends on for growth; prospect of fuel shortages and soaring prices in industrialized West means possible trouble for Southeast Asian countries still struggling to put financial crises of 1997 and 1998 behind them; thousands protest in Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest oil producer, demanding that government scrap day-old increase in fuel prices; there i...

WORLD BUSINESS BRIEFS: ASIA; COCA-COLA BUYS FRANCHISEE

Coca-Cola acquires its Singapore-based franchisee for seven Asian countries in exchange for shares in Australia's Coca-Cola Amatil valued at $271.3 million; buys stake in franchisee, F&N Coca-Cola, from Fraser & Neave; Coke gets control of its franchises in Brunei, Cambodia, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Vietnam with sale

The Royal Treatment; Ruling Family Feuds as Oil Income Drops in Brunei

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei is facing both bitter family feud and free fall in oil prices, which has thrown his country into financial bind; recent celebration marking crowning of Sultan's eldest son, Prince al-Muhtadee Billah, is coupled with economic crisis in which Sultan recently stripped his brother, Prince Jefri Bolkiah, of his posts as head of Brunei Investment Agency and its largest conglomerate, reflecting allegations that Prince squandered billions on bad investments and proflig...

Across the island from Haikou on Hainan's central southern coast (320km direct down the expressway), SANYA is, sooner or later, the destination of every visitor to the island. Though relics at the westerly town of Yazhou prove that the area has been settled for close on a thousand years, Sanya city itself is entirely modern, maintained as a scruffy tourist centre, fishing port and naval base for monitoring events (and staking China's claims) in the South China Sea. What pulls in the crowds - including increasing numbers of Russian and Korean visitors - are the surrounding sights, especially easterly Dadonghai beach , one of the few places in China where you can unwind in public. The Chinese also flock to associated legendary landmarks atop the Luhuitou Peninsula and west at Tianya Haijiao , while foreigners generally find the day trip out to a couple of tiny inhabited coral islands off Dadonghai more interesting.

Farther afield, the coastal arc between Sanya and the western industrial port of Dongfang sees few visitors. While Dongfang alone doesn't really justify a trip, it's emphatically worth getting as far as Jianfeng Ling , the most accessible surviving fragment of Hainan's indigenous mountain rainforest. If this doesn't appeal, there's plenty of transport north from Sanya to the Li stronghold of Tongshi, and on into the central highlands.

SANYA CHINA
Most Popular Provinces: Beijing - Changsha - Chengdu - Chongqing City - Guangzhou - Guilin - Hangzhou - HongKong - Kunming - Lhasa is occupied - Macau - Nanjing - Sanya - Shanghai - Suzhou - Xi'an	LATEST NEWS LATEST NEWS China Warns U.S. to Stay Out of Islands Dispute The country?s foreign minister said that international involvement in dispute in the South China Sea would make ?resolution more difficult.? Southeast Asian Leaders Agree to Form Free-Trade Zone by 2015 Association of Southeast Asian Nations leaders agree at summit in Philippines to establish free-trade zone by 2015; pledge to intensify their fight against terrorism, protect region's migrant workers and improve their campaign against HIV/AIDS; also break from tradition of consensus and noninterference and agree to new charter with broad enforcement powers; group fails to find common ground on how to deal with Myanmar, which has come under fire for its poor human rights record The Muslim Stereotype I find the common American stereotypes of Islam profoundly warped. Indonesian President Is Sworn In, Promising a Cleaner Government Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono promised a new era of cleaner government and renewed growth for Indonesia. THREATS AND RESPONSES; President Seems to Gain an Asian Ally Pres Bush and leader of Brunei, Sultan Sir Bolkiah Hassanal, meet at White House; they agree to expand intelligence-sharing as part of Washington's campaign against terrorism; photo 10 Asian Nations Join With U.S. in Pledge to Fight Terrorism Ten Southeast Asian nations join United States in pledging to 'prevent, disrupt and combat' global terrorism through increased sharing of information and intelligence; declaration comes at end of conference of Assn of Southeast Asian Nations; it commits region that is battling extremist groups to strengthening counterterrorism training, exchanging financial and immigration data and working to create joint programs with US; Secretary of State Colin Powell, who signs agreement with Asean, seeks t... Brunei: From Oil Rich to Garage Sales Oil-rich tiny nation of Brunei is in state of financial collapse, hit hard by Asian economic crisis in 1997, drop in oil prices and by Prince Jefri Bolkiah's $15 billion spending spree; saga of profligate prince is latest cautionary tale about dangers of economic windfall; Nigeria, like Brunei, has been all but ruined by corruption spawned by discovery of oil; Brunei holds six-day auction of depleted assets of prince's construction and supply company, which went bankrupt in 1998; Prince Jefri, ... How to Say No To a Sultan; Brunei and Its Leader Try Economic Discipline Sultan Hassanal Bolkiash of Brunei, whose lavish spending helped push country into recession, now acts as economic disciplinarian, trying to less its dependence on oil production and into global economy; Brunei has been vowing to diversify its economy since mid-1980's, but reductions in dominance of oil have been achieved largely by raising government outlays; surging oil prices have taken some urgency out of reform drive; photos Hints of Graft by Indonesian President Protests against Indonesia's Pres Abdurrahman Wahid erupt into violence in capital of Jakarta as investigative committee submits report to Parliament suggesting he acted improperly in two multimillion-dollar corruption scandals; findings of six-month inquiry suggest Wahid may have been involved in embezzlement of $3.7 million from government agency and that he improperly accepted $2 million from Sultan of Brunei; photo As in Manila, So in Jakarta? Upset of Leader Is Protests' Aim Thousands of chanting protesters denounce Indonesia's president, Abdurrahman Wahid, in what has become daily ritual in Jakarta and other major cities; Wahid is embroiled in corruption inquiry, and protests are expected to grow; special parliamentary committee is expected to announce results of its investigation into charges that Wahid's personal masseur embezzled $3.7 million from state agency, and that Wahid failed to report secret $2 million gift from sultan of Brunei; Wahid took office with ... GOLF: ROUNDUP; Wayne Smith Leads By One in Thailand Golf Roundup; Wayne Smith takes lead after first round of Johnnie Walker Classic in Bangkok; Pres Clinton shows up at 11:30PM to play at Royal Brunei Golf and Country, after long day of summit meetings; he and Singapore Prime Min Goh Chok Tong play nine holes until 2AM, on lighted course in lush rain forest, despite flashes of lightning REPORTERS' NOTEBOOK; An Oil Barony Knows How to Entertain Important Visitors Reporters' Notebook vignettes from Pres Clinton's visit to oil-rich Brunei; photo of Pres Clinton and his daughter, Chelsea, being greeted by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and his two wives WORLD BUSINESS; Southeast Asia Nervously Watches as Oil Prices Climb High oil prices deal double-whammy to Southeast Asia's developing economies, raising cost of energy while curbing demand for exports region depends on for growth; prospect of fuel shortages and soaring prices in industrialized West means possible trouble for Southeast Asian countries still struggling to put financial crises of 1997 and 1998 behind them; thousands protest in Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest oil producer, demanding that government scrap day-old increase in fuel prices; there i... WORLD BUSINESS BRIEFS: ASIA; COCA-COLA BUYS FRANCHISEE Coca-Cola acquires its Singapore-based franchisee for seven Asian countries in exchange for shares in Australia's Coca-Cola Amatil valued at $271.3 million; buys stake in franchisee, F&N Coca-Cola, from Fraser & Neave; Coke gets control of its franchises in Brunei, Cambodia, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Vietnam with sale The Royal Treatment; Ruling Family Feuds as Oil Income Drops in Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei is facing both bitter family feud and free fall in oil prices, which has thrown his country into financial bind; recent celebration marking crowning of Sultan's eldest son, Prince al-Muhtadee Billah, is coupled with economic crisis in which Sultan recently stripped his brother, Prince Jefri Bolkiah, of his posts as head of Brunei Investment Agency and its largest conglomerate, reflecting allegations that Prince squandered billions on bad investments and proflig... Province of Sanya Across the island from Haikou on Hainan's central southern coast (320km direct down the expressway), SANYA is, sooner or later, the destination of every visitor to the island. Though relics at the westerly town of Yazhou prove that the area has been settled for close on a thousand years, Sanya city itself is entirely modern, maintained as a scruffy tourist centre, fishing port and naval base for monitoring events (and staking China's claims) in the South China Sea. What pulls in the crowds - including increasing numbers of Russian and Korean visitors - are the surrounding sights, especially easterly Dadonghai beach , one of the few places in China where you can unwind in public. The Chinese also flock to associated legendary landmarks atop the Luhuitou Peninsula and west at Tianya Haijiao , while foreigners generally find the day trip out to a couple of tiny inhabited coral islands off Dadonghai more interesting. Farther afield, the coastal arc between Sanya and the western industrial port of Dongfang sees few visitors. While Dongfang alone doesn't really justify a trip, it's emphatically worth getting as far as Jianfeng Ling , the most accessible surviving fragment of Hainan's indigenous mountain rainforest. If this doesn't appeal, there's plenty of transport north from Sanya to the Li stronghold of Tongshi, and on into the central highlands.

LATEST NEWS