Our journey brings us to China, one of the world’s oldest continuous civilizations and a global powerhouse of innovation. There are around 1.4 billion people living here, making it one of the most populous nations on Earth. The capital is Beijing, a city where ancient imperial palaces sit alongside futuristic skyscrapers, and the official language is Mandarin.

China covers about 9.6 million square kilometers, or 3.7 million square miles. To imagine its size, the country is roughly the same size as the United States, or about the same size as Brazil in South America. In European terms, it is larger than the entire continent of Europe. Its landscape ranges from the world’s highest mountains in the west to fertile plains and massive river deltas in the east.

The most popular sports are Table Tennis and Basketball, though traditional martial arts like Kung Fu are a core part of the cultural heritage. Their national animal is the Giant Panda, a beloved bear that lives in the bamboo forests of the Sichuan province and is a global symbol of conservation.

The flag features a red field with five golden stars in the top left corner, where the red symbolizes the revolution and the stars represent the unity of the people under the leadership of the country.

The food is incredibly diverse, with eight major regional cuisines. You might enjoy Peking Duck from the north, which features crispy skin and tender meat, or Dim Sum from the south, a variety of small, delicious bite-sized dishes. China is also the birthplace of tea, and drinking it is considered a refined art form that has been practiced for thousands of years.

China is home to the Great Wall, the longest man-made structure on Earth, stretching over 13,000 miles across mountains and deserts. In the city of Xi’an, you can visit the Terracotta Army, thousands of life-sized clay soldiers that were buried to protect an emperor in the afterlife. The country is also a leader in high-tech travel, featuring the world’s longest high-speed rail network, with trains that fly across the countryside at over 200 mph. For nature lovers, the Zhangjiajie National Forest features towering sandstone pillars that actually inspired the floating mountains in the movie Avatar.

From the neon lights of Shanghai to the quiet mist of the Yangtze River, China is a land of immense history and rapid change. Xièxiè! That means “Thank you!”