china blog too, too (June 21, 2008)

Okay...well, it's our last night in the beautiful, peaceful, exciting, safe and delightful city of Lijiang. We are all sad to leave here. Our hotel is in the center of the old/new town area where all the action, food, shops, etc. are. The people here are mainly of the Naxi (pronounced Nashi) and Bangpo minorities and are quite remarkable people. Down through history they have been renowned for their desire for everyone to be at peace which is why their temple and frescoes dating back 500-600 years show respectful markings of all three of China's religions so as not to offend anyone. We have been treated to the most exciting scenery as Lijuang sits at the foot of the famous snow mountain of 16,000 feet. Yes, it is gorgeous, breathtaking, awe inspiring! We have visited a monastery atop a mountain, lighted incense and watched young men being tutored. Each family selects one male child to become a monk, it's an honor. They begin their training at 5 years old, amazing, huh? We have visited a buddhist temple atop a mountain and a Daoist temple with the walls of the Mu Mansion (the museum home of the Mu family leaders of Lijuang who executed during the cultural revolution. What a sad state of events as this family was so very kind and influential for the Naxi and Bang po people. There is at least one surviving member,elderly, in Lijuang while the others were long ago sent to re-education camps. So, they only have the Mansion and extensive relics left and are maintained by the people and tourists. Last night we attended a fabulous musical production that illustrated the history of the Naxi people (Bangpo) through song, ancient instruments, and dance. The Bangpo priest (an actual priest of 81 years of age) is the star and trains all of the other members. He's amazing and the show was truly spellbinding, we could have watched and listened for hours more. Then, we met him afterwards and were so excited. We visited the Naxi heritage museum and met the highest Bangpo priest who also wrote special pictograph documents for anyone who wished to give loved ones a message. I did a couple and can't wait to show them off. I have shopped until I am about to drop. We eat 3 times a day and walk so much I don't think I've gained anything but an increased appreciation for Chinese food, people, and landscape. Yesterday, we were finished with our tourist stuff by 1pm so, I spent the rest of the day by myself walking EVERYWHERE. I walked and looked and photographed and met people and shopped for 7 hours. I loved it! I must have over 4000 photos so far. NO, I won't make you see them all. I have taken easily 200+ photos of children and families. The children here are so precious, it's hard not to take pictures of them. And, I love their pants that are slit around the crotch so they can just squat and pee or poop whereever. It's funny. The streets throughout China are immaculate, people are hired to clean the streets daiy, swwep and discard trash. There are fresh food and veggie vendors everywhere. Last night Jo and I ate at a restaurant where the woman has befriended us. She selected our mewal that was exquisite! We had scrabled egg pancake with peacock blossoms and a fresh mushroom and vegetable dish that had mushrooms freshly picked on the mountain that morning, and soup ( that is with every meal), 2 large beers all for a mere 120 yuan which less than $20 for the 2 of us. The flowers and trees here are lush and immaculately cared for. The museums are terrific and so well cared for. Can you imagine viewing frescoes that are over 800 years old and the colors are still vibrant and so very meaningful?! The crafts here are phenomenal and the prices are ridiculously low. I have to admit that I have a suitcase full of gifts and artifacts and had to purchase an extra bag to carry stuff home in. We are leaving at 7am tomorrow morning (Sunday) by air to Kunming and then to Shanghai where we'll grab a bus for 3 hours to Hangzhou overnight where we'll visit a silk factory and a tea plantation. Then, to Shanghai until we depart on the 26th for home. Well, I must go finish packing and shower so that I can just float in a fog in the 6:15 hour to the bus to the airport. Love to all as always!!!! Liz

china blog too! June 18, 2008

NiHao friends and family! I am finally at a hotel where there is a computer I can use on-site. We arrived in Lijuang ( the 'g' is silent) this noon, ate lunch and immediately drove to the local school for elementary and middle school students. There was a devastating earthquake of 7.0 in 1996 here when 300 were killed and much of the city of 1 million was severly damaged or destroyed. So someone from Hong Kong donated money to rebuild the school. They have 3700 students and only 217 teachers. That means each teacher has 60 students per class period. YIKES! This is our second school visit and these children are truly precious!!! We are not naive enough to think that they are always as well behaved as they were when we visited however, the pressure is very extreme here to study very hard to be allowed to enter a university and they must excell in all areas not just some. This school is located in a province that has many of the 56 minority groups who live in China in residence. There are 21 minority groups represented here with the main ones being Naxi, Bai, and Dongba. The Naxi are darker people from the sun at this altitude. When they marry here, the man quits work and the wife works...wierd! Also, for those of you who are "fluffy" that is very desirable here, the men like their women buxom. I am currently at 7,000 feet above sea level, in the clouds and loving it. The hotel we are staying in is 4 star and so very lovely. We have only stayed in local hotels which is so neat, the ambiance is amazing! The rooms are surrounded by an environment that is so very asian...trees, flowers, water, fish, meditating areas, etc. The food is too good for my good. Here in Lijuang they serve a lot of veggies fresh out of the gardens which are everywhere. they make use of all available space for planting crops even up the mountains in a 'terraceing' arrangement which serves a purpose of helping to prevent erosion.
We came here from Dali where we stayed for 2 days and our hotel again was just a part of the landscape so we could just walk out and enter the streets filled with food and product vendors in small street side shops. These shops go on and on and.....Food is prepared right in front of you and there are so many choices. We visited a village where we walked around a communal family home housing 5 families. It's really hard to descibe how they live separately but use common spaces. The last three cities we have visited are surrounded by a city wall which of course dates back to ancient times. It's a facinating history here. It's pretty amazing when you walk into a tomb for a queen and learn that she died thousands of years ago. It's quite a chilling and thrilling experience!! The people throughout our journey cannot have been more gracious, kind, helpful despite our language barrier, friendly, and excited to meet us. The people at the schools, shops, restaurants. hotels, everywhere.... I am so impressed by their high level of motivation and drive to succeed. WE all realize the political status here and the government is very much a part of everyone's daily life. If you are a small business owner here, you pay about 40% tax to the government. WE have had the pleasure of meeting and visiting casually with a number of locals who have shared their thought on life here in China. After our school visit in Xian, one of the teachers and I exchanged e-mails and have already written and responded to each other twice, very cool! Maybe I'll just forward her e-mail to y'all so you can share that with me also. The other night in Dali (close your eyes young people) we found a little tiny bar where we spent four hours visiting with the young lady who was college educated and we had a blast sharing and drinking a variety of small flavored shots of vodka. That's all the detail I will share....it was an invigorating experience and we all felt fine the next morning when we had to be alert and on the road early. Why?? Because we left by 10pm and ate and slept...healing environment!! We have visited so many museums that I will list and describe later because we are getting ready to go for supper. The computer usage only costs 10 yuan/hour which a little over a dollar an hour so, I think I can come back.. Also, I don't want to bore you too much. I will tell you that it rained mostly for the two days we were in Dali but we just kept treking along with our umbrellas and thank goodness I bought that expensive North Face jacket!! It was a little cool in Dali, altitude is high. Then, yesterday. we took a 30 minute gondola ride to the top of the mountain where there are both Daoist and Buddhist temples immacuately cared for by a group of elders. It was absolutely gorgeous, inspiring and WET. I was soaked from the rain that continued all the way up and down....soaked tomy underwear but, who cares?? Earlier in the morning we took a boat ride across the Erhai lake (which is 1/3 the size of Shanghai...huge) to a little village where we went to 2 temples. One housed the local protector and the other was buddhist. I decided to sit a bit and meditate and while doing so the people there handed me some container with some wooden sticks with Chinese on them to shake for awhile and then, I picked one which had a number on it and a corresponding message/fortune that was very special. I have had a number of "spiritul experiences along my way here in China. With thousands of years of history, it would be difficulkt tonot be awed along the way!! Again, an inspiring experiience to see how simply these people live and are happy and content. Okay...that's enough rambling for now. I send my love to each of you and wish you everything grrrrreat! Lotsa love from me to y'all!! Liz

June 13, 2008
NiHao friends and family! Today was an amazing experience as we visited a local school affiliated with a university. The teachers were such fun to visit with and the students as well. We visited, we observed a class presentation, we answered student questions, asked questions, we played basketball and badmiton, and watched the entire school perfor an exercise program. I have already received an e-mail from one of the teachers. We then visited the Shaanxzi Historic Museum that showed the history and culture of the province spanning from 1.3 million years ago and 2000 BC to about 900 AD. It was fascinating! You know, its quite astonishing when your walk into a real tomb for a princess that is about 700 AD. That's a long time ago!! The frescoes and other amazing relics!!!We have had a blast, the food is amazing, the people are delightful, the surroundings were immaculate, and the history and culture is rich. Am I moving here? Not on your life! But, I can say that this has certainly been an eye opening trip. Tomorrow, we travel a 3.5 plane ride to Kunming for 2 days that is a folk artsy area with many minorities, culture, and of course history. Then, we move on to Dali and Lijuan and Shanghai. I will try to write again tomorrow.
PS. I had to buy another suitcase today in the Muslim district due to all the stuff I have purchased and acquired. Lord, I've only been gone for 1 week....
Hugs always, Liz

Okay so, it's 12:00 midnight and I'm sitting here WIRED!!! We are leaving for the airport at 4:15 am. Poor Mary gets to drive the 3 of us...she's an angel! Krystle and Yvonne drove down from NW Arkansas this afternoon to stay over. We had a blast visiting, eating AMERICAN food and drinking Chinese Tsingtao beer, yum. We are sooooooo ready. Spencer just called from Greece, they finished their 2 courses today after completing a week-long project in groups of 3. They are all travelling to Santorini tomorrow for a three-day adventure and then, he's not sure where from there....Spain?
Our flight takes us first to Chicago and then at 10:30 am off to Shanghai (13 hours) and then, to Beijing. Please forgive me if I did not call someone before departing, this has been a non-stop week of finals, paperwork, and packing!!! Have a great weekend and check in later to see where we are and what we're doing! Love to all, Liz