| Submitted by: Mark NowakUnited States |
| Submission Date: 04 February 2005 |
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I half-jokingly was starting to think we were being drugged -- I mean I was surprised at how tired I was was in the evenings. Maybe they didn't want us walking around and meeting locals. Or maybe I was just being neurotic and paranoid. Tony told us that the reason we were kept so busy was because the Chinese feel that it is rude to have guests and not provide them with enough to do.
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Sunday, March 20 -- XI'AN: Qin Terra Cotta Army, Huaqing Hot Springs
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Once again I got up at 6:00. Miroslaw asked if I'd join him for breakfast, but when I went to find him at his table, I found him sitting with a Chinese woman at a table for two. I joined Diane and Joanne, but soon Miroslaw came over and asked me to come over. When I did, he introduced me to Joanna Zhong, a Motorola (China) Cellular secretary on her first business trip up from Guangzhou. It was quite a treat to meet someone who works for same company I work for, but in a different country. We didn't have much time to talk, but we did exchange phone numbers as unlikely as us meeting again seemed.
Our 7:00 AM flight to Xi'an had been changed to a 10:00 AM flight from Beijing's military airport. This time we were flying on a Russian plane, and I think only an Asian couple were the only other passengers on board. I had read an account on the net of someone flying this route to Xi'an in which the plane had bounced violently three times -- enough to cause Americans on board to scream. I kept this to myself.
The landing at the east airport was smooth enough, and I had had time to write a few postcards on the way. There was a light rain and fog when we landed. At the airport itself was a man who would look at you, cut out your silhouette and offer to sell it to you. Mr. Liu was our guide while in Xi'an. He first took us to lunch, and then took us to see the Qin Terra Cotta Army where the first Qin emperor is buried. It was the Qin who unified China around 700 B.C. The life-sized army made of painted pottery was impressive, but we weren't allowed to take any pictures. I ended up buying the postcards instead. Over 6000 such soldiers are supposed to be there guarding the tomb of the first Qin emperor, but I was surprised that the tomb itself hadn't been excavated. Most of the warriors face the east where most of the enemies of the emperor could be found at the time.
We then visited the Huaqing Hot Springs where Chiang Kai-shek (the second and last president of China) was abducted in 1936. The rain was coming down as a drizzle at the time which made our stay less than it could have been. Dinner was another extravaganza at the Tang Dynasty Hotel. I was wary of another special dinner and show, but this time I was really impressed. The service was excellent, and the food was good enough that even Miroslaw enjoyed it. Nevertheless, I still kidded that we'd all be getting sleepy shortly. The show was very much in the style of Las Vegas, focusing on the prosperous Tang Dynasty. There was an exceptionally beautiful woman at the next table that it turned out we would keep seeing in the days ahead.
I was in room 711 at the Lee Gardens Hotel. Once again you needed your key chain to turn the power on in your room. In Xi'an I had to switch to a 3-pronged adapter to use my electric shaver.
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Monday, March 21 -- Banpo Neolithic Village, City Wall, Big Wild Goose Pagoda
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Today I got up at 6:30. At breakfast I saw some of the hotel workers performing Tai Chi in the hotel courtyard. This time, however, I was able to recognize the movements from a Tai Chi class I had taken a while ago. Our first stop today was the neolithic village of Banpo. The site is said to be some 6 to 7 thousand years old. The morning started off cold and foggy, but the sun started to poke its way through by the time we reached the wall of the city. The wall surrounds the old city with a circumference of 14 kilometers. We climbed on top of it on the south side of the city and were just able to see the Bell Tower which was used to signal the opening of the gates in the morning. We later saw the Drum Tower which was used to signal the closing of the gates in the evening. Xi'an was the ancient capital of the China. Now it has some 6 million people.
We had lunch at the same place we had had dinner the night before -- at the Tang Dynasty Hotel. The place is supposed to be a joint venture between China and Hong Kong investors. It was quite expensive to order anything extra with your meal, as I found when I had some coffee. Outside several green, covered tricycle taxis could be seen. Some local artists were selling paintings. I bought a couple that I liked for friends at home. Many of the streets of Xi'an were lined with what I believe were sycamore and locust trees.
We then went to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and Temple. It was very ornate and worshippers could be seen praying in the temple. The smell of incense filled the air. Going up the pagoda wasn't part of the tour, so I bought my own ticket and climbed the stairs to the top storey where a 360-degree view of the city could be seen. As a foreigner, the ticket cost me significantly more than a local would have to pay. I was continually amazed at how no one ever mistook me for Chinese. :-)
We visited the Shaanxi Provincial Museum which I thoroughly enjoyed. I thought that they way they presented the history of China made it easy for someone to understand how the culture and society developed through the years. We ended up driving through the bustling shopping district on our way to a government restaurant where, of course, the food would not be drugged. From one of the windows I was able to see some kind of playing field. I finished early and decided to explore the hotel. On my way out, a girl intercepted me and seeemed to try to direct me to head in another direction. Communication didn't work out too well, but it seemed that she thought I was looking for the washroom (either that or I hadn't eaten enough to knock me out). I ended up walking around floors that didn't have any lights on. It struck me as odd that the only part of the hotel that seemed to be lit was the dining area on the 4th floor. Weird.
When we got back to our hotel, Miroslaw and I decided to hang out in front by the street and see who we could talk to (I guess I hadn't eaten enough). A woman tried to sell us pencils. A man tried to seel us more paintings. We ended up talking to the man for a while., Miroslaw ended up asking him where we could find some women. I told him to cut it out, and he later said that that was a good thing because he was about to ask about the woman selling pencils -- she turned out to be the man's wife. She was cute. We talked for a while about their lives, and I did end up buying a couple more paintings. Miroslaw went inside while I stayed to talk a while longer with Kaishi (?). He told me that they live with his father who has an apartment provided by the factory at which he works. I went back to my room and put my bags out by 10:00 because we were leaving very early the next morning.
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Tuesday, March 22 -- GUILIN: Reed Flute Cave, Fubo Hill, Elephant Hill
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This morning I was up at 4:00 AM and had breakfast at 4:30. We were flying out of the airport north of Xi'an at 7:25 -- China Northwest flight 2309. We drove by some cooling towers which someone on the net had thought meant that a nuclear power plant was there. Actually, the power plant there is a coal plant which uses cooling towers. At the airport I noticed the same girl from the Tang Dynasty dinner. This time we flew on a British plane. The view of Guilin from above was spectacular. I don't believe that the limestone formations found there can be seen anywhere else in the world.
The air in subtropical Guiling was noticeably warmer and fresher. We checked into the Windsor Seven Star Hotel. I was in room 7543 which meant Seven Star Hotel, fifth floor. Our guide was the beautiful Shirley who turned out to be married to our driver, Mr. Mao. Many of the various limestone peaks have their own names. We saw Tunnel Peak and Pagoda Peak shortly after arriving. We had lunch at the Li hotel. Afterwards, I went for a little walk, and a guy on bicycle pulled up to me and asked if he could practice his English with me. We talked for a bit until I had to rejoin the group. He was in town looking for a job.
We then visited the Reed Flute Cave which is supposed to be very much like Carlsbad caverns in New Mexico. The place was very beautiful, and many of the formations inside had names. You really had to use your imagination to see some of them, but it was fun. Our next stop was Fubo Hill where most of us checked out the Buddhist writings and then climbed to the top for a great view of the city. At last we were in a town in China with less than a million people. I believe some 340,000 live in Guilin.
We also stopped at a factory in which embroidered silk, tapestries, various woodwork and fur garments were made -- many by handicapped people.
It was nice to have dinner without a bus trip -- we ate at the hotel. Afterwards, nine of us went to the Gui Shan Hotel for an ethnic show which was nothing less than a lot of fun. There was quite a bit of audience participation and dancing. I know because I got pulled on stage for some of it. I'm not one who learns dance steps easily, but it was funny when I realized that the steps were basically identical to some Greek dancing I had done in Greece last summer. I said it was funny -- not helpful. I still struggled with the steps, but mercifully the dance did end. They performed various which represented ethnic minorites that can be found in China. On our way out I once again saw the woman from the Tang Dynasty dinner.
When we got back to the hotel, Miroslaw and I decide to walk the block of stalls just outside our hotel where people were selling all kinds of things like table cloths, crystal balls and woodwork. We went to every single booth -- we were the only shoppers in sight and we were there until 11:00 haggling to the last moment. At one point we were surrounded by 5 little women. Miroslaw was hilarious as he masterfully haggled blood out of stones. He'd tell them the workmanship was cheap. They'd call him crazy. Back and forth for ninety minutes. Eveyone was laughing by the end of it. The man never seemed to tire. I told him he should sell cars. He said he did. (Now he sells insurance, though.)
The sellers had official certificates with their pictures hung over their stalls. They'd often give you their price by writing it out on a piece of paper and expect you to counter their offer with one of your own on the paper. Sometimes they'd type the numbers into a calculator with a liquid crystal display and invite you to type your offer.
Miroslaw bought a couple of table cloths, a silk negligee for his wife and possible some wood work which he seemed so fond of. I bought a some silk pajamas for a friend and a crystal ball. As we were leaving a woman ran up to me with a bigger crystal ball I had eyed and a man ran up to Miroslaw with some woodwork. They were making a last ditch effort to sell, but I wouldn't go any higher than $5 for the ball and Miroslaw had more than enoguh wood to fill his suitcase. |
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