Bus #3, Passenger #68
By Missy Schmidt (Chinese name: “Sweet Lioness” Mandarin naming 蜜狮 Pronounced mee-shee)
Traveling to China is a lot like “Amazing Race” with a little “Survivor” thrown in for good measure. The following is a recount of our adventures, a once in a lifetime experience with the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce.
Day Two (first full day in China)
Under a still overcast sky, we visited the Temple of Heaven (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Heaven) built in 1420 AD and our trip’s World Heritage Site #1 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_heritage_sites). Interesting trivia: the entrance fee is $6 USD per person; for Chinese nationals, the cost is but $30 per year. Street vendors were everywhere, taking advantage of tourists, hawking wares such as eagle-shaped kites, silk bags, parasols and a Hacky Sack game. And there’s no language barrier when negotiating price; the Chinese just pull out a calculator.
The property, about 500 hectares (1= 2.471 acres), is akin to New York City's Central Park with lots of green space and people everywhere. When I asked why so many people were out on a work day, I was told most are retired. If that's the case, then America is missing out. Older people came to the park and self-organized themselves into fan dances, tai chi exercises, pick-up games of Hacky Sack and poker, mainly a male activity. What a great way to spend your retirement years!
Next on the trip came the Jade Factory, the first of what were clearly government underwriters of the trip. The jade tour guide, named Meow-Meow (again, my American spelling), gave a very animated lecture on the 7,000-year history of jade in China and the differences in quality and hardness. She delighted in practicing her English and knowledge of America, and she was fascinated by my name, the main reason I wanted to know what my Chinese name would be.
We watched an artisan while carving and, of course, had the opportunity to shop for an extended period from jewelry displays and sculptures, ranging from the tiny to the most enormous and elaborate. The marketing acumen of the Chinese is amazing.
Wei, our bus tour guide, next delivered us to World Heritage Site #2 on our trip, the Ming Dynasty Tombs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ming_Dynasty_Tombs) where, besides a brief history of the site, told us the Chinese people are introverts. He said that many Chinese dishes are served covered, wrapped in dough and husks, and one must bite into them to discover what is inside. Same certainly doesn't hold true for the street vendors. They are not introverted at all, shoving products in our faces as we walked by, staking out the bus for our return and shouting "woman" at me if I wasn't walking close enough to touch. You can buy just about anything for $1 USD in China.
This stop, which seemed much shorter than the Jade Factory, was a bit disappointing, mostly due to the weather. We really couldn’t see very much as the actual tombs, we were told, are on top of the closely guarded and lush hill behind the museum. In our itinerary, we were told that one tomb was “fully excavated and open for exploration,” but darned if we saw it. The Emperor built the Tomb according to feng shui (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feng_shui) which is the historic Chinese practice of proper alignment of everything for positive energy or ch’i (pronounced chee). Today, we decorate our homes and offices touting feng shui as a marketing ploy.
Lunch, as we guessed by now, would be at another tourist restaurant. To our surprise, the stop also included our next shopping extravaganza, the Cloisonné Factory (http://goldenpalace.cn/), where another Chinese woman showed us a few artisans at work and lectured us on the enamelware originating in Beijing in the 1450s during the Ming Dynasty. Food first (typical Lazy Susan fare), and then a lengthy stay at the marketplace where the sizes, intricacy and prices of the product ran the gamut.
Next, our troupe drove a short distance from the Cloisonné Factory to the Great Wall (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Wall_of_China), a 4,000 mile long, 2,000 year old marvel of human engineering and construction. Our 3rd World Heritage site in one day. I’m still not sure of our exact position on a map, due to the very long drive from Beijing to the Ming Tombs, but the entrance to this particular section was obviously geared to a large number of tourists. It included a photography booth with historic clothing, a courtyard with food vendors and China’s version of a “Dollar Store,” a “10 Yuan” store!
I was most amazed to see a heavily-traveled, major highway cut through the mountainside under the Wall.
When we arrived, we looked up to see the Wall travel straight up to our right and left. Bert and I both climbed the easier, right side after noting that the left was literally a ladder. One would need to climb with both hands and feet. The left:
Bert went all the way to the top of the right side, where that section of the Wall ended, while I stopped at a look-out near the top. That way I was able to get a great long-range picture of him waving at me. Of course that was my excuse.
The steps up the Great Wall, even on the “easy” side, were difficult to maneuver; some were merely six inches in height while others appeared to be several feet. The railing was very low in some places. Holding on was nearly impossible. And, then there was the rain. I convinced myself that visibility was so bad, I wouldn’t be able to see anything at the top anyway. (Afterward: good choice! My calf muscles screamed at me for two days, due to the climb down.)
Also at the Great Wall were “lovers locks,” an ancient Chinese tradition where couples place a lock on a chain and throw away the key, thus preserving their love forever, and the “ribbon tree” where one makes a wish and ties that wish, in the form of a red ribbon, to the tree for it to come true.
As usual the day ended with a meal, this time in one of the many Beijing (formerly Peking) Duck Dinner Restaurants. In a private room, the chef brought several roasted ducks (scrawny by American standards) on a carving table and sliced the dark meat for us, adding it to the now standard Lazy Susan dishes. Our waitress showed us the proper way to eat Beijing Duck a la chopsticks, placing a small thin wrapper (similar to a tortilla) on our plate, topping it with several slices of duck, shredded scallions and cucumber and a sweet plum sauce. Wrapping the bottom and side flaps of the wrapper as you would a burrito, then eat with your hands. Delicious.
Stomachs adequately filled, with snacks back in our hotel room, we crashed for the night.
Slideshow on Flickr
Read the series...
Sunday, October 10, 2010
China - a View from the back of the bus - Day Two
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