China

Yesterday we had a guide and a driver of a van from the hotel take 5 of us to 3 different types of shopping areas in Guangzhou. Several of the group were interested in buying jade, and the guide was able to negotiate for them in the jade district, which covered several streets with small vendors lining this area. This approach kept us in the comfort zone since the guide and the driver were able to get us around with little trouble. At one area she advised me on negotiating a watch: I scored a nice Rolex for $21. Yes, what a bargain!

I could just sit in the hotel (the Ritz no less), relax at the pool, have a drink, whatever, and not get out of the comfort zone. But one surefire way of discovering and learning new things quickly is to force yourself out of the comfort zone, as I did today. There were 2 museums I wanted to see, based on travel guide descriptions. The concierge armed me with maps and cards from the hotel in Cantonese to show taxi drivers, who here, as in many countries where English is not the first language, speak little English.

The first museum was an easy setup, since all I do is tell the doorman where I want to go in English, he tells the driver in Cantonese and off we go. Taxis are still cheap here. This ride of about 20 minutes cost all of $5. Another thing is that I am traveling solo. I always feel more comfortable with a traveling companion to sort out problems, so there are several uncomfortable aspects of this trip: traveling alone, language issues, unfamiliar location, among others.

The museum was built around the tomb of an emperor from about 100 BC. This tomb was discovered in 1983 and Indiana Jones nor other tomb raiders had discovered it before that, so it was full of everything that went in when the emperor died, other than the emporer who deteriorated to small fragments of bone and teeth. Quite a find, and the artifacts are historically significant. Many descriptions are also in English, and I rent an audio guide in English that gives excellent descritptions of many artifacts. Museum entry was $2 and the audio guide $1.50.

My second museum was listed in the hotel travel map. Taxeee! Universal taxi hand signals work well. I show the driver the guide, he nods yes, and off we go. I get to the museum, go in, then discover this was not the one I wanted. The hotel travel guide listed this as the Guangzhou museum, which I want to visit, but it was really the Guongdong museum. Ooops.

Taxeee! This time there is a problem, as the travel guide I have for the correct museum is not written out in Cantonese, so the driver has no clue. Next best solution, head to the Ritz and sort it out. The card from the concierge is spot on with directions, off we go and within a few minutes I am at the hotel. Total taxi bill for this ride: $1.

I talk the problem over with the concierge who finds the correct address for the museum, writes it on the card, gets a taxi for me, tells the driver where to go, and off we go. This time I do end up at the Guangzhou art museum, which has a nice selection of Chinese art work. Only had about 1 and half hours till closing, but this was enough time as some galleries were not open. But it didn't have the terra cotta soldiers that one travel guide said were there. Must have been a temporary exhibit. Surprisingly, these last two museums here have not added English to many of the art notes, and the map of the facilities are not very useful. Beijing, Guilin, and Yangshou were way ahead of this city in English advancement.

Taxee! Now I want to go to a mall clear cross town, and the driver is able to figure it out from the travel guide I have. No problem getting there. I spot a Starbucks, score a latte and 2 Guangzhou city mugs, and relax in this crowded and noisy Starbucks, where everyone but me is oriental. So even the natives are getting into the Starbucks experience here.

This mall is crowded at 6 pm Sunday evening. Stores stay open late even on Sunday, and the place is a sea of young Chinese. Taxeee! Traffic is a mess, but I get a taxi quickly. This is not too far from the hotel so the ride is smooth. I’m back, no longer uncomfortable about getting around this city alone.

The hotel has almost all employees working on English. On the street and in museums, it is not uncommon for young Chinese, maybe 10 or so, to say “hello” when they spot me. I think they are trying out their English that they are now starting to learn in elementary grades. Even though this is a major industrial and trade city, there are not a lot of westerners here, relative to the population. Thus, people stare at us all the time. Which initially is uncomfortable, but after a while it no longer matters to us.

Overall the day was a success: 2 museums I needed to see today (they are not open tomorrow, Monday), I navigate the city with assorted tricks in taxis, people staring is not a problem, I have a better orientation of the city, and I feel more confident that I can get around a city alone where languages are not the same.
Peter

If you read the theme blogs, you know that we had some special experiences in Yangshou. It is a "small" community of about 300,000. It is tagged a "back packer" town - and that it is. We took a 3 hour boat ride (racing other boats) up the river from Guilin. It was a great ride! The boat was questionable and sported a tag "Sanitized"which made us wonder what that meant! We shared a table with a newly married Italian couple (on a honeymoon across China) and a Mom and son from Beijing vacationing in the south. Food on the boat was surprisingly appetizing but somewhat mysterious.

What is most important is that it was a totally stunning ride. The Li River winds through inverted cones of limestone. The swirling fog (and it poured rain at times) made it so surreal. It was a time in the past, maybe a movie scene. It took at least 500 pictures on the digital cameras to come close to capturing the totally amazing ride.

We arrived in Yangshou to find the "back pack" community. It is quaint and really stunning scenary. It is mostly poor - people constantly followed us and asked for money from us. It is quite rural as well. So, we dived into our expereince. It often rained (heavily) and was tremendously hot and humid.

We took off on a bicycle tour (see separate blog). It was a truly cultural expereince - in intense heat. A local cold beer afterwards was never more appreciated!! The hotel was, well - uniquely Chinese. It was quite nice but not quite the comfort of hotels we had grown accustomed to.

At night, we experienced the most amazing light and sound show. It needs a separeate blog -- produced by the director of the opening ceremonies of the Olympics. When you are amazed by what you see, you will see what we expereincecd at night in Yanshou on the banks of the Li River. Nearly 1000 performers ... on the river!
See vide clip:
The cooking class was our highlight. We have to blog that one separately! We did return early to Guilin - where we got to see the Panda Bears at the local zoo and sit in air conditioning in the hotel.

One thing I think I have learned as a result of my travels is that one's palette for food must be "learned." Wherever you go, people eat different things and seem to thrive on whatever it is they consume. The foreigners who visit may find the local cuisine unappetizing, if not appalling, and yet the locals love it. Whether it is hamburgers, stir fry, or mutton stew - appetite is clearly regional!

There is no place that this acquired taste is apparent than China. We have encountered the most bizarre (to Americans) food that is clearly common place for the Chinese. Menu items (beware: the faint of heart do not read further!!!!) include snake, dog, rat, squirrel, jelly fish, and others. A visit to the market where meat and vegetables are purchased daily shows that "live" animals are preferred, and unnamed vegetables and herbs are selected to embellish the flavor. However unappetizing to Westerners, the Chinese are very efficient. Absolutely every part of an animal is consumed: meat, skin, feet, tongue, eyes, entrails, etc.

Vegetables, fruits, and nuts abound. In Yangshou, we bicycled past groves and fields of walnut, organge, pomerants, mangoes, grapes, peaches, apples, bananas, and passion fruit. Watermelon are as plentiful as grapes might be in clusters. Again - they use ALL parts (garlic, garlic leaves and stems, water spinach, etc.). They use oils and spices -almost to a extreme. Beans - whole, curd, juice and whatever else can be extracted. And rice??? Rice 5 x a day (rice porridge - corrant for breakfast, rice noodles, rice wine, rice rice, and more rice). Lotus roots and wolf berries and Haw berries and things we never heard of. Most are prepared with great artistic flare. Many are very foreign in flavor and texture.

Now if you think this is repulsive, just take one look around you. The Chinese are healthy, thin, and active. They live to be older in years than Americans. And, judging by our quick look, they dance and exercise and move vigorously well into their senior years!! So, can't be bad.

Sanitary?? Ha!! Nothing is prepared with the US version of sanitary. Warmth, bugs, exhaust, ciggarette smoke - doesn't matter. Well, we have been eating it for the last week (albeit very selectively!!!) and we are still alive. Maryann swears she is now a vegetarian - never to consume animal again. Peter - well, he continues to swear off those wierd vegetables. This trip will have a profound affect on how the Billingtons will prepare and consume food.

I have a completely new perspective on driving in China. On my last trip in November 2006, I concluded that there is just a chaotic mess of drivers versus pedestrials versus bicyclist. On this second trip, and seeing exactly the same pattern in Beijing, Yinchuan, Guilin, and Yangshou, I have concluded 2 things: 1. this is the way it works in China, and 2. it works in China.

Taken from front seat of van, which is passing the bus on the left. The van is in the middle lane. Note oncoming traffic on left.

Let me explain. As soon as you get in a car (and we do not drive in China, it would be suicide), you see a lot of close calls. Cars, trucks, buses, pedestrians, bicycles, and motorcycles are all weaving and dodging each other in a mess of close calls and chicken. I have never seen a stop sign, but there are occasional traffic lights - but rare. It's really spooky when you drive down the street and see buses and trucks suddenly in your lane, but miraculously get back into their own lane without incident. The first time you see this you figure you are dead, as you would be in the US. But after witnessing the same thing time after time with no incident, you realize that something is going on here.

What I realized is that since everyone is doing this, it works because everyone is actually looking out for all the others. Someone cuts you off, you slow down, no big deal. You cut someone off, not big deal, they slow down and avoid you. It all evens out at the end of the day. People are actually patient in this big mess of traffic.

In an aside here, we witnessed the same behavior on a river cruise with maybe 5 or 6 cruise boats passing and weaving and missing each other by feet on the river. Go figure. And these were boats that could hold several hundred people, not just little boats that could manuveur quickly. It's just the way they drive here.

We even did a bike ride that included a few miles in this traffic. If I tried cutting in front of cars in the US, I would probably get knocked off the bike and die. Here, a car just slows and avoids you. After a few of these, I gained confidence that I could cut off or swerve around cars without any problem. By the way, no one on bicycles wears helmets, and motor-bike drivers wear 1960's helmets at most. And horn-honking on the road is a ritual that could be a warning, a greeting, or just a defective vehicle.

So I concluded that this scheme works because everyone here knows the deal. You swerve, you dodge, you play chicken, you honk your horn, you cut some off, you get cut off. But the great thing is that traffic moves, and there are few incidents. We have not yet seen anyone injured, and amazingly, there is no road rage! I have not witnessed one case of a driver yelling or getting angry. No flipped fingers (that may not even be the sign in China). And police tend to be scarce, so there are few tickets written. That's because this mess works.

We even witnessed little kids, maybe 7 or 8 years old running into traffic knowing that they will not get knocked over unless they are not careful. This skill starts at an early age here.

So what we have is a system that seems incredibly foreign to us (Americans), but works well in China. Do not try this at home, you will cause major road rage!

Peter

One of the more interesting parts of our trip has been the opportunity to get to know about the Chinese through our guides. Both are young - in their late 20s (we think). And they spend lots of time by our sides so we have great opportunity to hear about their lives. Sally in Beijing (real name is Zhang Hong (first name is Hong). And our 2nd guide in Guilin and Yangshou is John (zhou Wan Fu). And we also learned from the young boy and his mom who sat at our table on the boat from Guilin to Yangshou (Tony, or Chen Jian Yu). They all seem to take English names if they come into contact with Westerners. Even Tony, who is 11 or 12, had an American teacher in school who gave them American names.

They are all well eduacted. And what is very apparent is their profound respect for their culture, religion and family. They all talk about Buddhism and the 12 Chinese years (or zodiak). They even talked about when to have babies - in certain years like the Pig which is good luck. John is married to a "minority" or small sector citizen. She is a pharmacist. Sally is not married. They both live with parents. In fact, a man's parents save money for a dowry and then give him up to move in with the woman. But many familes only have one child as a result of years of mandatoroy birth control. The plan is for a woman and man as husband and wife to have BOTH their parents move in and live with them. Sometimes the parents who have money build a home for "everyone." Apartments are expensive so many are 3-bedroom (parents of each and the lucky couple). Since it is still mandated you have just one child, that is what is planned for that house. Both John and Sally are "only" children. They both have strong respect for their parents and expect to live with them and care for them. Very genuine and amazing concept! BTW, a man's parents not only pay for a dowry but also the wedding ceremony! Bride's parents get off easy.

Religion seem important, although they may not practice it formally. They really practice Buddhism which has a happy, nature- based, seasonal spirit to it. I found it particularly interesting to observe how genuine and spiritual even the young people are. Hey, anyone would like to believe in a happy Buddha!!

It was a dark and rainy night (it really was) in Yangshou. Here's my story. I received a letter from a woman in Yangshou China. She has a problem; she doesn't know what year it is. This I can handle. She offers me full expenses and a daily fee. After this gig, I'm turning consulant. Give your clients the answer they want. Good money. But back to my story. It is July 1938. How do I know this? Because the Magnolia Hotel flashing neon light is outside my window, and all detective moves from 1938 have a flashing neon sign. I am Peter, P.I. and this is my "Yangshou Mystery."

I take the Pan Am Clipper across the Pacific, land in Hong Kong and catch a crowded sleeper train to Yangshou. I check in to the hotel about midnight. Within minutes, I hear a knock on the door. It's the woman, she's American and beautiful. I fall hard for this women. After I get up (from the fall), she tells me her story. She doesn't know what year it is. "No problem, it's 1938," I reply. She says that strange occurances have made her think it is not really 1938. We will take a bike ride tomorrow morning to check this out. I fall asleep within seconds, a serious case of propeller lag.

The next morning we head out on bicycles.

We ride along the hazy Li River and come across water buffalo. I've seen this before, I think, but I cannot place it.

We continue bicycling by rice paddies where workers with cone-shaped hats harvest the ripened rice.

This is spooky. Now I place it! I'm expecting copters any minute. Mekong Delta 1968. "Yes, yes, see. I really don't know what year it is," the beautiful American yells.

We peddle our rusty bikes and head back to Yangshou. On the way, a peasant farmer passes us, pedaling his tricyle, overloaded with chickens on the way to the market in town. Five minutes later we notice that he has stopped on the side of the road. Does he have a flat? Did the US forces shoot him? No, he is talking on his cell phone! Can it be 2008? Oh, it is so confusing!

We return to the hotel. The beautiful American says she is leaving tomorrow for Guangzhou to conduct some business. Will I come along, she asks, to continue to work on this mystery? Is this a trick question? I will follow her anywhere. Maybe there I will be able to find the answer to my "Yangshou Mystery."

We travelled from the BIG, BIG city to the not-so-small (over a million) tropical community of Guillan. Not too far from the China Sea and Vietnam border.
!
It is a city trying hard to become a commercial resort. The city is poor but the center of it consists of many nice hotels around the lakes and rivers. The scenery is magnificent - limestone mountains like inverted cones along a hazy, humid river. The night cruise we took on the river included spectucular lighting and opera and music peformances on riverside stages performed just for the river cruises. One site is fisherman using cormorant birds to catch fish and return to their boat (like pets would). The birds have a string on their neck - not choking them - to keep them from swallowing it and rendering it to their fisherman. Amazing number of tourists, despite off season. John is our new tour guide here whose wife is a pharmcist. We also toured a cave. Like everything, the Flute cave is larger and more dramatic than any cave we have ever seen in the U.S.

We also took it easy for the afternoon - rested and had a Chinese massage. Today, we travel by boat down the river to the city of Yangshou where we will stay at a local hotel and take a cooking lesson at a "farmer's home." That will be a stretch away from the U.S. hotels in which we stayed!

8:30 a.m. pickup to head out to the Great Wall. Partly cloudy with some haze, or is it pollution? Hot and humid again. First stop is the Olympic Center to see the Bird’s Nest (the main venue). When you watch the Olympics in August, you’ll see why it is called that. We could not get very close as there is still a lot of construction going on. It is hard to imagine that they will be ready in less than month!

On to a jade showroom, where we found some interesting things, including a jade bangle for Maryann - something that is customary for women in China to wear on their left side - close to your heart. Then another hour drive to the section of the Great Wall through very beautiful countryside populated with farms and fruit groves. There are 3 different sites near Beijing, but this was the best view of a large segment of the Wall, although the furthest away. The good news is that is was not very crowded. The bad news was that it entailed a major hike just to get to the gondola that would take us up to the wall. The gondola looked exactly like the one we use at Keystone when skiing. The wall here is on ridge lines that run across the mountainous region, so we have to go up a steep section to get to the wall, which is why we had to do the gondola. The walk up to the gondola was steep, but the most annoying part was the myriad of aggressive goods hawkers selling t-shirts for $1, postcards, and assorted other junk. Unlike what you might expect in the US at a major historical sight, there are no people to provide tours or historical perspectives or construction insights. You are on your own: take a look and be awed, which we were. The wall goes on for many miles in either direction, up and down, curving, turning, as far as your eyes can see - just like you’ve probably seen in pictures. It was an astounding sight and maintained in good condtion, given its antiquity.

We then headed to a restaurant nearby for lunch. The tour provided the menu, which turned out to be a large variety of often unknown foods that could have fed 10. Not sure what they were thinking. After a several hour drive back to our hotel in central Beijing, we rest, shop, then try to find a restaurant that we could actually determine what we are eating (without a guide, this time). Most have English subtitles so we know the basic food we are getting, but what we would get are parts of the animal that we don’t really want to eat. We settle on 3 dishes, one beef, one shrimp and one fried rice. Turns out to be way too much food – more six, but the total bill with a couple of beers and tip is only about $45.

Tonight, we are packing up for an early flight to Guilin in Southern China and our NEXT advenure.

We awaken at 4 am on Sunday, the wakeup time moving by about a ½ hour every day. Not our choice, our brain’s choice. We also note that there is blue sky, what a treat. Turns out to be sunny all day, but hot and humid.
We start at Tiananmen Sq. Vast, stark, hard, little vegetation, tens of thousands of people, many with umbrellas (to keep the sun off). Chairman Mao looks down from the huge portrait on the first gate. Next on the stop is the The Forbidden City which is massive, in square area, size of buildings and number of buildings (9900). A large and deep moat surrounds it all, the largest palace in the world. It takes all morning to get through it all.
Our guide takes us to a local noodle house for lunch. Not a lot of other westerners in there, and few on the wait staff speak English. Noisy, crowded, busy, bench seats, a local experience. Our guide orders a number of dishes. Maryann, who was planning on subsisting on powerbars, scarfs down a noodle bowl with veggies and a soy sauce, which she finds delicious, but which Peter finds icky in taste. Our guide says Maryann is more Chinese than Peter. Ouch! Somebody reading this look up Chinese Haw juice (which we drank) and let us know what it is. We couldn’t come up with a comparable fruit juice to match this. Sort of cherry like, but not exactly.
Desserts are very strange. One had a white mushroom with dates, another was a bean curd cube that had the most unusual texture I’ve ever eaten. Peter was still able to consume too much, as a plate of battered shrimp went fast.
On to a pearl factory where Maryann finds something she likes. Then to the Temple of Heaven. This is in a large park, while charging admissions, that is frequented by many locals who buy season passes. This is Sunday, so a large number of older citizens are dancing to boombox music, singing, dancing with fans. Sort of like street musicians but done for fun, not money. These performances are not allowed in the temple area, which is another large ornate structure devoted to the 4 seasons.
It’s now 3 pm and we are both beat. Nap time. We later meet up the Jana and Dave and go to a local Japanese restaurant that our guide suggests. Good food, but another adventure with no English speaking staff but subtitles on the menu. We then head the famous Chinese Opera, which turns out to be 3 different performances, one musical with traditional Chinese instruments, and the other 2 highly costumed actors and actresses performing what we would consider melodrama. The plots are strange, the acting somewhat over the top, but in a setting where each performer has completely painted faces. The first involved a nun that escapes here nunnery to find a boat to chase over her love! The second was a plot about the Buddha requesting that the evil monkey be killed. A number of acrobatic fight scenes ensue.
Ended the night with a farewell and a wish for smooth travels to Jana and Dave who leave for Katmandu tomorrow and a 2 week trek.

American style breakfast available at the Marriot courtyard gives us a chance to get an omelet, bacon and eggs. Finished with Starbucks nearby. OK, time to stop looking for American stuff and start doing Chinese. The lunch at a Chinese family’s home was a true adventure. Kung pao chicken! Plus assorted pork and veggie dishes, dumplings. Not bad! And homemade. The kung fu night show was a spectacular athletic martial arts show. Not seeing a lot of Americans here at this time, but you can pick them out of the crowd when they do show up, or some are getting really good at blending in. Did meet some Australians and heard some Italians and Germans. Lots of thin people here. Major vices: smoking and not wearing seat belts! The Marriott is modern, but the light switches take some getting used to. They also use the card in the slot approach to turn on the lights. Take your door card and all your devices that are charging suddenly turn off and do not charge. We did find a few not so modern toilets, if you catch my drift, while out sightseeing. Bring tp in your day bag!