China is a land of great beauty, often visible alongside the harsh realities of daily life. The wise traveller is not overawed by either into ignoring its opposite.

Here are some pictures of China - please feel free to download them.

Click here for a picture of the beautiful temple of Lingyan Shan, near Suzhou

Click here for a picture of the Drum Tower at Qufu, Shandong

Click here for a picture of the Great Wall near Mutianyu

Click here for a picture of a game of xiangqi, China's ancient game of chess

Chris West writes: 'All these places, and more, appear in my travelogue, Journey To The Middle Kingdom (Allison and Busby, £8.99). This describes my first journey to China, back in 1985, when the country was first opening up to western tourists. It depicts a China that has in many ways already disappeared. It is also a 'rite of passage' story. I suspect that a lot of travellers do a lot of very quick growing up 'on the road', and it is one of the aims of the book to capture this experience.'