My greatest complaint about life in Shanghai has nothing to do with traffic, crowds, local dialects or diabolical weather. All these are the trappings of city life in China. I can handle all of the above, along with other minor irritants of the city, but one thing about Shanghai really rubs me the wrong way. Short of hopping a plane there are precious few ways to escape the smoky hustle of coastal China. Getting away means taking a plane or a long train somewhere – but it’s costly and inconvenient.

        (note: Suzhou, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Nanjing and Shaoxing don’t qualify in my quaint “getting away” classification. I want peace, quiet and charm, not cheaper taxi fares and crowded tourist sites).

        But in my dissatisfaction – I was sure nothing nearby could really feel like an escape – I had never actually tried to vacation nearby. Blinded by my prejudice against crappy two-star hotel rooms with their midnight massage calls and so-called tourist sites like Zhejiang’s Thousand Island Lake, I’ve been hopping flights to Bangkok and Saigon during Chinese New Year. Until this year. Having felt the financial pinch of too much travel, myself and partner decided to go local with a bunch of friends. To a nice place I’d never traveled to, even though I knew it was indeed nice and nearby; this fact has been reinforced by the positive experiences of several friends. So two weeks ago, we cooked up a storm and packed cases of wine, stacks of board games and books and boarded a bus for snowy Moganshan. Three hours later, we couldn’t have felt further away from Shanghai.

        But unlike other ‘shans in China that have been irrevocably scarred by opportunistic and unregulated tourism (Emeishan, Wutaishan and Huangshan, to name a few) Moganshan remains quiet and relatively serene. It doesn’t have the religious/historical clout to attract flag-waving mobs of tourists, and its properties (with a few outlandish exceptions) retain their tasteful colonial charm. Go in mid-winter, and you’ve got it all to yourself.

        The town itself, with its stone houses and steep stairways, is reminiscent of a British hill station, albeit on a smaller scale. And that’s essentially what it once was – a place for foreigners and wealthy locals to escape the torrid summer in Shanghai. These days, it gets packed on national holidays but otherwise, according to my former boss Mark Kitto, who lives there full time and operates The Lodge, it remains relatively peaceful. Kitto, who once owned and operated that’s Shanghai, is expanding his operation in the village of Moganshan. His restaurant serves breakfasts, coffee and dinners (order in advance!) to those looking for a comfortable resting spot on the mountain. You’ll probably stumble across Mark when you’re there anyways; he’s a fixture in the local community. Otherwise, find him here (http://www.moganshanlodge.com/).

        The purpose of this post was to talk about Naked Retreats, however, so I hope that I’ve kept someone’s attention up to this point. The company is new, and they offer a product unlike anything I’ve seen in rural China. That service being beautifully restored country homes that are pleasingly rustic yet fully equipped for any and all needs. Our group of eleven stayed in their Bamboo Bungalow, a three bedroom cabin that sits 200 steps up from the serpentine, cement road our driver reluctantly skidded up in the melting snow. Inside, the space far exceeded our expectations for clever design and comfort. You’re not really roughing it here – but that was fine by me.

        Our snowed in cabin had four woodstoves, an island kitchen complete with oven, a dinner table that can easily seat 14, and it was fully equipped with wine glasses and every cooking utensil one might need in the mountains (and quite a few more). There’s a huge bed and flat-screen for movies (some members of our group drove to the mountains to meditate on the merits of Entourage. Sigh.) and the bedrooms are airy and large, with great mattresses and soft pillows. In sum, it’s a wonderful concept and we couldn’t have been happier.

        If you want to escape the city but don’t want to leave all your precious conveniences behind – check naked out. I can’t wait until I have an excuse to return.

        Naked Retreats - http://nakedretreats.cn/