China
part of the On the Road travelogue
This was the "cushy" part of the trip - I met my grandfather in Beijing
for a 2-1/2 week guided tour around China. Normally organized tours
aren't really my style, but as I don't speak any chinese there was a certain
convenience to going this way. Also, I couldn't really picture my
grandfather (who is 84) packing it in and out of hostels, gear in hand.
Oh, and that's the other thing about tours - it's mostly an elderly crowd.
Luckily one of the matrons had had the foresight to bring her beautiful
daughter along, and Beatriz proved quite agreeable
company.
I can't really say I got a good feel for the country; tours are generally
sanitized presentations of what they think you want to see. But the
glimpses of the real life and the impressions of the culture that I got
were interesting. I did have one exceptional afternoon walk down
the market street of one small town - lots of people going about their
business; open air dentists, live frogs and eels for sale, school children
going home, abacus in hand. I wish I had
had more opportunity to experience this real part of China.
Beijing
Beijing is China's capital - as with any national capital government thickens
the air with its presence. A lot of the city is new construction;
high-rise apartments and skyscrapers. Most of the traditional housing
is being rolled over in the race to modernization. The main streets
are wide (some formerly emperor only zones) and often there are separate
alleys for bike and foot traffic. Tons of bikes by the way, both
the two, three, and four wheeled variety. Our first day we started
at the infamous Tianemen Square. It really is a big
space. One things for sure - it is the best place to take
pictures of people taking pictures of each
other. From there it is a short walk across the square to the Forbidden
City - the former palace and jail of the emperor. There's always
a friendly face to welcome you in, and plenty of
buildings and accoutrements
to gaze at.
The next day we went to the Wall. My grandfather only got to the
first platform, but I naturally went to the highest
point. The scope of this project is truly mind blowing.
Then again, never underestimate the power of numbers (which China has in
excess). And slavery.
The Yangtze River
The next section of the trip was a leisurely cruise down the Three Gorges
section of the Yangtze River. We had short day tours from the boat
almost every day, but the best part was just sitting on deck watching the
scenery go by. Lots of cliffs, hills
and peaks, boats and
villages. And of course, high and narrow gorges.
We even saw the dam site, where they are going to flood a large part of
the upstream basin and relocate one million people in the name of hydro.
Now there's a big logistics nightmare.
Beyond
We left the cruise at the foot of the city of Chung Qing. As we walked
up the double staircase from the river to the city streets, our bags
followed us in traditional chinese fashion. We were hurtled through
the city on the bus, to grab a quick lunch and then hit the airport.
More bus touring continued; on occasion it was even possible to glimpse
rural life through the bars of the window.
One place we went was a huge grotto containing buddhist carvings in the
rock face. Here's a big buddha
catching some z's.
During the course of the tour we were led to a series of "workshops"
to see how various handicrafts were made. Read this as "tourist trap"
and you'll have a good idea of what was involved: usually ten minutes of
walking through a production room, to conviently emerge in the showroom
where eveything happened to be on sale! In this way we were introduced
to the secrets of cloisonne, fresh water pearls, jade carving, and silk.
Some of the show-and-tell was educational: for example watching the silk
being unravelled from the cocoons, as well as watching the rows
and rows of workers in the sweat shop.
Xian was probably my favorite city. The city
walls have been maintained over the years, and makes a great architectural
counterpoint to the entire city. Alas, I didn't have time to take
a morning run along the top of the gate, which is many kilometers long.
Right near the South Gate (near where we were staying) we visited the White
Goose Pagoda. There were some loyal citizens practicing Tai Chi
on the first level. I even got to run up the narrow stairway to the
top. But of course the raison d'etre for being in the city were the
terra cotta soldiers. Very impressive, and
extremely interesting. Many, if not, most of the statues are still
buried. Work is ongoing. You can't help but wonder what they
will uncover by the time they are through.
Recommended Reading:
If you're headed out this way, you might want to check out the following:
