Decades on from backpacking, I nervously returned to a ‘challenging’ destination

The noodle soup I sit down to eat in a Shanghai restaurant is one of the best I’ve ever had. Full of fresh herbs and tender spicy lamb, it also represents a personal triumph of sorts. You see, I am flying solo in this city of nearly 30 million and, frankly, a bit nervous. The last time I travelled alone to what I regard as “a challenging destination” was as a backpacker 40 years ago. I’m out of practice at being out of my comfort zone.Paying for stuff was the first mental hurdle. I buy a bottle of water using Alipay, China’s “super app” (that does a zillion other things than just pay for goods and services) in a 7-Eleven, and it all works easily. A nearby eatery displays huge, colourful photos of its fare. I point at that delicious lamb soup and, before you can say “open sesame”, I’ve Alipayed it with my phone. Anxiety melts away.Like Sydney’s Vivid light show every night of the year: the Shanghai skyline. Getty ImagesMy time alone soon ends as I join an Intrepid, eight-day “Highlights of China” tour. I’m en route to Europe, breaking my journey with the brisk tour that acquaints me with one of the world’s cultural, historical and political behemoths.Our group of 15 comes from almost every Anglophone country. Aboard bullet trains and buses, we will cover some serious territory in this vast country, from Shanghai travelling north-west to Xi’an and finally heading further north to Beijing.Gavin Lee, our guide, is a local who polished his English-language skills with a stint in Africa. He seems nonplussed as the group vents about troublesome e-sims and apps.Sign up for the Traveller Deals newsletterGet exclusive travel deals delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up now.China as a destination can often be perplexing for Western tourists and is part of the reason I chose to travel with a tour company. Pre-tour we are instructed to download AliPay and WeChat apps so we can link our credit card, yet one rebel in our cohort brings an enormous wad of yuan, which is also readily acceptable by merchants, as it turns out.A tourist takes in the view over Shanghai’s Huangpu River.iStockOur first night together is an optional dinner in a mediocre tour-anointed restaurant and a cruise, which is also optional but sensational. We cruise along the Huangpu River, lined on one side by illuminated colonial-era structures along the Bund and on the other by futuristic skyscrapers in Shanghai’s financial district. It’s like Sydney’s annual Vivid festival but switched on every night.A group of us heads out the next night for dinner at Jia Jia Tang Bao one of Shanghai’s most famous xiao long bao (soup dumplings) restaurants, followed by drinks at Cloud Nine, the bar at the top of the Grand Hyatt Shanghai, which is in the 87-floor Jin Mao Tower. We’re off to a good start.Leaving one of China’s most modern cities, we board a G-Series train that takes us 1500 kilometres to the ancient city of Xi’an in China’s north-western province of Shaanxi. After passing through a stringent security check at Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station (in China even bags are screened for a subway trip), it’s a comfortable five-hour, 40-minute journey, at up to 350 km/h and with full meals available on board.Far from Shanghai’s glittering cosmopolitan feel, this city – once the starting point for the Silk Road – feels more dusty and interesting. Xi’an is fortified by an ancient wall on which people stroll or cycle and is home to the AD 652 Buddhist Giant Wild Goose Pagoda and a busy, touristy Muslim quarter.The Terracotta Army attracts a crowd, but remains a must-see. iStockA stallholder in Xian’s Muslim Quarter sells pomegranate juice.iStockThousands flock here mainly because it is the gateway to visit the famed Terracotta Army, thousands of life-size figures buried with China’s first emperor, Qinshihuang to protect him in the afterlife. The trip to the Terracotta Army begins by bus from our hotel in the centre of Xi’an. It is, rightly, one of China’s tourism highlights, but a visit can be a struggle and utter purgatory if you hate crowds.Sheer visitor numbers – capped at 65,000 daily – mean lots of standing on tippy toes, the odd unintentional elbow to the head and patience while waiting to see the awesome two-football-fields-sized Pit One, in which the most spectacular warrior figures, many in the process of being repaired, stand. Three other, slightly smaller, pits contain, among other figures, horses and kneeling crossbow-men. Despite the hectic atmosphere, it’s a must-see.The next night, before the four-hour train journey to Beijing, I break from the group – most of them visit a Tang Dynasty show, with dumpling dinner –to enjoy the city on my own, walking up the main street of Xi’an and buying dinner from friendly vendors.I end up with a rice noodle, meat and vegetable dish cooked before me in a giant wok, and a container of fresh fruit for less than $12. My comrades return from the show with less than glowing reports of the dumplings but rave about the show. I don’t feel I’ve missed out.No visit to China is complete without a visit to the Great Wall.iStockThe ancient royal palaces building of the Forbidden City in Beijing.iStockNo trip to China would be complete without a journey to the Great Wall. After another bullet train journey from Xi’an to the outskirts of Beijing, we disembark for a three-hour bus trip to the Jinshanling section of the wall in Luanping County, Hebei Province. Our overnight lodging in a family-owned guesthouse is near an uphill path that leads to a beautiful serene section of the wall with green rolling hills stretching as far as the eye can see. There’s enough time to experience a sunset and a sunrise here before heading to the big smoke of Beijing.Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and lots of subway rides await. As we say farewell, we exchange emails to continue fledgling friendships and swap photos. But not the guy who travelled with his stash of hard currency. He hands everyone his address written out multiple times on tiny little scraps of paper. He might have just visited one of the most advanced technological countries in the world, but it hasn’t converted him.THE DETAILSVISITAustralian passport holders do not need a visa for a stay of up to 30 days in China.FLYAirlines that fly to Shanghai from Australia include China Eastern and Juneyao. See ceair.com; global.juneyaoair.comTOURIntrepid’s eight-day China Highlights tour begins in Shanghai and concludes in Beijing and, depending on the date, costs from $2450. Groups number up to 16 and stay in three- and four-star hotels and a country guesthouse. Some breakfasts are included, as well as all bullet train, bus and subway costs. Also included are admission to the Terracotta Warrior display, the Great Wall, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. See intrepidtravel.com.auMOREcnto.org.auThe writer travelled at her own expense.Default avatarPatricia Sheahan is a casual sub-editor for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via email.From our partners