Monday, June 14, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
China 2009
Here at last are my notes from our fantastic trip to China in June 26-July 21, 2009, the fifth and last College of Staten Island/CUNY Educational Seminar. Not many notes from the actual lectures and meetings however, as the notes started as just memos to my kids to let them know where I was keeping myself. Hopefully someone else will update those meeting notes. There were five cities and many colleges, with an added trip to Xi'an at the end.
Click to view CSI China Programs
Click to view my photos from China
Click to view CSI China Programs
Click to view my photos from China
China 2009 Hong Kong
China Day 01 – Friday June 26, 2009
7am leave for airport in Seattle to Hong Kong via San Francisco
7:50 arrive SeaTac, check suitcase through to Hong Kong –Hooray!!
8:00 find breakfast, and gate 15,
9:08 supposed to leave, but flight United 827 delayed, cloudy in San Francisco
10:00 Finally take off, and easy flight, just drinks served
11:30 Arrive San Fran, after holding for a few minutes
Ran to check in with Cathay Pacific 879 which is rather far in the International terminal.
Got boarding pass and found security line very long—where is everyone going?
12:30 found my gate 4A quickly and hooked up laptop to find HK airport contact info.
1:34 Left the gate a minute early—amazing. Flying over just water and air the whole trip
4:00 Got lunch at last, good thing I ate a granola bar before boarding. Pork and rice .
5:00 Mostly reading and dozing on and off. Lots of cabin activity. Got up 3 times to walk
Great seat 55A, window bulkhead and I could stand up in it and get out easily
10:00 Dinner served, chicken and rice, guess I’ll be eating a lot of rice here.
11:00 Slept on and off for a few hours. Will this flight never end??
-------------------------NEXT DAY !
3:30am = 6:30pm here. Arrived on time!! Health team board in hazmat suits; take two people off and they were seated a few rows behind me. All flight attendants wore masks the whole trip.
Finally deplane on buses through more health officials, I didn’t get checked so found my bag quickly, but no contact people here as the Continental flight from Newark is delayed four hours. Managed to change money at ATM, get a sandwich, find free phone, call contact person who told me to get myself to the hotel by taxi or public transportation—no thanks. Found Airport Hotel shuttle for HK$130 (U$30) so took that after waiting half an hour.
Raining a lot and downtown looks sparkly, a Chinatown magnified, more tall tower blocks than NY; finally got to hotel around 5am I think, and could hardly keep my eyes open.
China Day 02 – Saturday June 27, 2009
A very long short day.
Got to the hotel. Went right to bed. Stupidly though as I then woke up at 4am China time but 12 hours difference NY time.
China Day 3 – Sunday June 28, 2009
A very long long day today.
First fascinating fact: building scaffolding made of bamboo rods. Really. Have pix to prove it. Must be the leftovers from the panda’s dinner. Amazing that they can make 5 stories tall scaffold.
Second curious thing: the maids and servants day off today Sunday, and the young girls gather by the hundreds downtown, since it’s raining they picnic on plastic tablecloths under the sky walkways, etc. and in building corridors. All eating and chatting in groups of 3-4 or 10-12. Where do the men go?
Third unfortunate fact—it is unbelievably humid here. My hair is nearly curly.
7am Went to breakfast alone, no one else up as their plane from Newark was four hours late. So ate at our 12seat table alone, then went to fix my wireless connection.
8am more people came to bkfast so I went back for seconds in the buffet. Not good.
9:30am We all (10 plus 2 leaders) walked across the street to the HK Museum of History for guided tour. Excellent exhibits. Fake trees made in USA! Amazingly real looking.
12:30pm Free afternoon but everyone decided to go across to HK island for dim sum lunch and then catch a bus to Stanley, another town on the island.
So we walked down to the Star Ferry terminal and a typhoon hit us. Fortunately we ran under an overpass and after a few minutes it let up so we could take the ferry across, a 5min ride for HK$5 a real bargain.
Then we started walking to the dim sun place, and walked and walked and walked since we really didn’t know where it was, that is the leaders didn’t know exactly where it was. After crossing the skyways a few times we finally found it. Huge amount of food for less than $20 each as there were 11 of us. Most of it I didn’t eat of course, being food fussy.
Good thing the bus to Stanley was right in front of the building as we were all walked out. A double decker and I made the mistake of sitting in the front seat on top. Well the road was two lanes very VERY narrow and very very winding up the mountain. Amazing how two double deckers could pass, but many of them did. Eventually we got there, but it was a tourist trap as the guide book said. Just market stalls and a waterfront. But an interesting ride for sure. And it didn’t rain while we were there.
Coming back to the hotel we took a different bus the 978 that went to Kowloon, not to the ferry, and as we neared our stop another typhoon started, really really pouring rain. Amazingly the bus stop was right in front of the hotel. Unbelievable. A few of our group got off before to walk back, so they must have gotten soaked to the skin.
I think I’ll skip dinner, having eating too much dim sum.
China Day 04 – Monday June 29, 2009
Is this only day four? Seems like day 44. What can I say, but another busy busy day today.
Did you hear about the apt block that fell over in Shanghai? And to think we go there next.
9am sharp walked a few blocks to HK Polytechnic University (another humid humid day) which is a large very brick complex with several bldgs linked together by courtyards and walkways and many plants and trees (and all labeled to learn about them—in English too being Hong Kong). Found the lecture hall with long table seating as if for laptops. Two lectures this morning, both on the economy for some reason.
12noon Dim sum lunch in staff lunch room, very spiffy surroundings, not like the usual staff surrounds. Too much food again.
Afternoon took bus #104 to Central area and walked through the skyways again to the American Chamber of Commerce Center, and two more not as interesting lectures on the economy. What gives now? Why all this emphasis on business concerns? I thought we were “educators” but that must be what’s important here.
At last freedom and the peak tram to the top of the mountain. Very scary going straight up, but views spectacular, almost unreal looking down at the huge area of skyscraper towers with the water in between. It really is all the tourist hype says just for the scale of things. Half the group got separated in going up and looking around, so I ended up going back with only two guys. By then it was nearly 7pm so we regrouped to wander down to the waterfront for the light show at 8pm, which was truly awesome. Most of the bldgs are lit up of course all along the waterfront, and our hotel is on the opposite shore so we had a perfect view. They play with the lighting, using color and patterns and spotlights. Much fun. My two friends went on for a beer, but I was beat, so came back. My feet hurt.
China Day 05 – Tuesday June 30, 2009
Just when we are getting to know Hong Kong it’s time to leave this too fascinating place. But after another very full day, I’m tired of trying to cram a week’s worth of wandering into three days here.
First we went to the City University of Hong Kong, very like our CUNY, and a short subway ride from out hotel. Another very spiffy modern building with a huge outdoor swimming pool in the courtyard!! Too bad we were sitting in a freezing cold conference room. But the talks today were of interest to all, first about the possibility of democracy here without elsewhere in China, and a background of the British gov system, which was not a democracy, but with appointed officials governing. 2/3 of voters want democracy but they need an official vote, and Beijing could still say no. Not as much student unrest as 20 years ago, but with the job situation here worsening that may change. Also got a talk about the changing university system coming in 2012 from the three year British model to the four year American model, and the obvious increase in student population. Still only 20% of HS grads can go to college, vs 90% in Korea and Taiwan. Interestingly, a required course here is one in Chinese culture (music, art, etc.), apparently since there is little history of it here in Hong Kong.
I was able to leave the group for a quick visit to the library, not very large for a student population of 26,000, but they emphasize online collections, and they have quite a good selection of databases. Machines fascinate me, and a checkout DVD system was terrific. The holders are locked and when you check one out, you then unlock it. Then you return it into another machine, which produces a readout so you know it’s been checked in. They have a huge selection of DVDs in English (all courses here are in English, hence the size of the Univ.),with many American TV shows.
After another even more fantastic dim sum lunch hosted by the Dean here, we took the subway a few more stops to a Budhist nunnery(!) a nice change of pace. Oddly though it is set amidst huge skyscraper towers, seeming very out of place. Only a few of us went to this, others went elsewhere. I eventually left them to wander about myself, going up the escalator only half-way as then I had to walk down hill quite a long way. The escalator goes down the hill in the morning, and uphill the rest of the day, since people live uphill and work downhill. The city perches on the edge of steep mountains, so it’s quite a drop. Found a Starbucks for an iced latte just like home!
Watched the light show again and am now very very tired and still have to pack up to leave at 6am for the airport.
On to Shanghai
7am leave for airport in Seattle to Hong Kong via San Francisco
7:50 arrive SeaTac, check suitcase through to Hong Kong –Hooray!!
8:00 find breakfast, and gate 15,
9:08 supposed to leave, but flight United 827 delayed, cloudy in San Francisco
10:00 Finally take off, and easy flight, just drinks served
11:30 Arrive San Fran, after holding for a few minutes
Ran to check in with Cathay Pacific 879 which is rather far in the International terminal.
Got boarding pass and found security line very long—where is everyone going?
12:30 found my gate 4A quickly and hooked up laptop to find HK airport contact info.
1:34 Left the gate a minute early—amazing. Flying over just water and air the whole trip
4:00 Got lunch at last, good thing I ate a granola bar before boarding. Pork and rice .
5:00 Mostly reading and dozing on and off. Lots of cabin activity. Got up 3 times to walk
Great seat 55A, window bulkhead and I could stand up in it and get out easily
10:00 Dinner served, chicken and rice, guess I’ll be eating a lot of rice here.
11:00 Slept on and off for a few hours. Will this flight never end??
-------------------------NEXT DAY !
3:30am = 6:30pm here. Arrived on time!! Health team board in hazmat suits; take two people off and they were seated a few rows behind me. All flight attendants wore masks the whole trip.
Finally deplane on buses through more health officials, I didn’t get checked so found my bag quickly, but no contact people here as the Continental flight from Newark is delayed four hours. Managed to change money at ATM, get a sandwich, find free phone, call contact person who told me to get myself to the hotel by taxi or public transportation—no thanks. Found Airport Hotel shuttle for HK$130 (U$30) so took that after waiting half an hour.
Raining a lot and downtown looks sparkly, a Chinatown magnified, more tall tower blocks than NY; finally got to hotel around 5am I think, and could hardly keep my eyes open.
China Day 02 – Saturday June 27, 2009
A very long short day.
Got to the hotel. Went right to bed. Stupidly though as I then woke up at 4am China time but 12 hours difference NY time.
China Day 3 – Sunday June 28, 2009
A very long long day today.
First fascinating fact: building scaffolding made of bamboo rods. Really. Have pix to prove it. Must be the leftovers from the panda’s dinner. Amazing that they can make 5 stories tall scaffold.
Second curious thing: the maids and servants day off today Sunday, and the young girls gather by the hundreds downtown, since it’s raining they picnic on plastic tablecloths under the sky walkways, etc. and in building corridors. All eating and chatting in groups of 3-4 or 10-12. Where do the men go?
Third unfortunate fact—it is unbelievably humid here. My hair is nearly curly.
7am Went to breakfast alone, no one else up as their plane from Newark was four hours late. So ate at our 12seat table alone, then went to fix my wireless connection.
8am more people came to bkfast so I went back for seconds in the buffet. Not good.
9:30am We all (10 plus 2 leaders) walked across the street to the HK Museum of History for guided tour. Excellent exhibits. Fake trees made in USA! Amazingly real looking.
12:30pm Free afternoon but everyone decided to go across to HK island for dim sum lunch and then catch a bus to Stanley, another town on the island.
So we walked down to the Star Ferry terminal and a typhoon hit us. Fortunately we ran under an overpass and after a few minutes it let up so we could take the ferry across, a 5min ride for HK$5 a real bargain.
Then we started walking to the dim sun place, and walked and walked and walked since we really didn’t know where it was, that is the leaders didn’t know exactly where it was. After crossing the skyways a few times we finally found it. Huge amount of food for less than $20 each as there were 11 of us. Most of it I didn’t eat of course, being food fussy.
Good thing the bus to Stanley was right in front of the building as we were all walked out. A double decker and I made the mistake of sitting in the front seat on top. Well the road was two lanes very VERY narrow and very very winding up the mountain. Amazing how two double deckers could pass, but many of them did. Eventually we got there, but it was a tourist trap as the guide book said. Just market stalls and a waterfront. But an interesting ride for sure. And it didn’t rain while we were there.
Coming back to the hotel we took a different bus the 978 that went to Kowloon, not to the ferry, and as we neared our stop another typhoon started, really really pouring rain. Amazingly the bus stop was right in front of the hotel. Unbelievable. A few of our group got off before to walk back, so they must have gotten soaked to the skin.
I think I’ll skip dinner, having eating too much dim sum.
China Day 04 – Monday June 29, 2009
Is this only day four? Seems like day 44. What can I say, but another busy busy day today.
Did you hear about the apt block that fell over in Shanghai? And to think we go there next.
9am sharp walked a few blocks to HK Polytechnic University (another humid humid day) which is a large very brick complex with several bldgs linked together by courtyards and walkways and many plants and trees (and all labeled to learn about them—in English too being Hong Kong). Found the lecture hall with long table seating as if for laptops. Two lectures this morning, both on the economy for some reason.
12noon Dim sum lunch in staff lunch room, very spiffy surroundings, not like the usual staff surrounds. Too much food again.
Afternoon took bus #104 to Central area and walked through the skyways again to the American Chamber of Commerce Center, and two more not as interesting lectures on the economy. What gives now? Why all this emphasis on business concerns? I thought we were “educators” but that must be what’s important here.
At last freedom and the peak tram to the top of the mountain. Very scary going straight up, but views spectacular, almost unreal looking down at the huge area of skyscraper towers with the water in between. It really is all the tourist hype says just for the scale of things. Half the group got separated in going up and looking around, so I ended up going back with only two guys. By then it was nearly 7pm so we regrouped to wander down to the waterfront for the light show at 8pm, which was truly awesome. Most of the bldgs are lit up of course all along the waterfront, and our hotel is on the opposite shore so we had a perfect view. They play with the lighting, using color and patterns and spotlights. Much fun. My two friends went on for a beer, but I was beat, so came back. My feet hurt.
China Day 05 – Tuesday June 30, 2009
Just when we are getting to know Hong Kong it’s time to leave this too fascinating place. But after another very full day, I’m tired of trying to cram a week’s worth of wandering into three days here.
First we went to the City University of Hong Kong, very like our CUNY, and a short subway ride from out hotel. Another very spiffy modern building with a huge outdoor swimming pool in the courtyard!! Too bad we were sitting in a freezing cold conference room. But the talks today were of interest to all, first about the possibility of democracy here without elsewhere in China, and a background of the British gov system, which was not a democracy, but with appointed officials governing. 2/3 of voters want democracy but they need an official vote, and Beijing could still say no. Not as much student unrest as 20 years ago, but with the job situation here worsening that may change. Also got a talk about the changing university system coming in 2012 from the three year British model to the four year American model, and the obvious increase in student population. Still only 20% of HS grads can go to college, vs 90% in Korea and Taiwan. Interestingly, a required course here is one in Chinese culture (music, art, etc.), apparently since there is little history of it here in Hong Kong.
I was able to leave the group for a quick visit to the library, not very large for a student population of 26,000, but they emphasize online collections, and they have quite a good selection of databases. Machines fascinate me, and a checkout DVD system was terrific. The holders are locked and when you check one out, you then unlock it. Then you return it into another machine, which produces a readout so you know it’s been checked in. They have a huge selection of DVDs in English (all courses here are in English, hence the size of the Univ.),with many American TV shows.
After another even more fantastic dim sum lunch hosted by the Dean here, we took the subway a few more stops to a Budhist nunnery(!) a nice change of pace. Oddly though it is set amidst huge skyscraper towers, seeming very out of place. Only a few of us went to this, others went elsewhere. I eventually left them to wander about myself, going up the escalator only half-way as then I had to walk down hill quite a long way. The escalator goes down the hill in the morning, and uphill the rest of the day, since people live uphill and work downhill. The city perches on the edge of steep mountains, so it’s quite a drop. Found a Starbucks for an iced latte just like home!
Watched the light show again and am now very very tired and still have to pack up to leave at 6am for the airport.
On to Shanghai
China 2009 Shanghai
China 09 Day 06 – Wednesday July 1, 2009
Stupendous Shanghai seen from the bus—too bad we only went from place to place by bus all day long, and it was a long one, leaving the hotel in Hong Kong at 6am (up at 5am) and returning to our hotel in Shanghai after the circus at 10pm. I was beat so this is a day late.
First impressions – everything half finished, amazing amount of construction everywhere getting ready for Expo 2010 – how will they finish? Roads, bridges, buildings, all with scaffolding and things dug up everywhere. Bus had a hard time getting around the mess.
Next impression — huge contrast in each street here, one side slummy rundown tenements, the other side glitzy towers. Out with the old, in with the new is their motto.
Another oddity here, the tops of the towers are idiosyncratic with fences, palm leaves, spires, etc. etc. It does make the towers very individualistic, and the shapes of some are also odd, most not as weird as the famous radio tower, but all different, unlike Hong Kong, which is just all towers. Here they are spread around more, given the flat landscape.
And bicycles everywhere, mopeds too. At last we are in China. Driving would be a real challenge, but our bus driver seems expert at it.
Lunch en route to the hotel from the airport, another huge dim sum, then a visit to a Chinese garden and shopping mall recently built to look like old pagodas. Odd, but I did have my Starbucks there. Then dinner at a restaurant near the garden, then a rushed bus ride to the acrobatic circus, which was fantastic, but we were all too tired to get the most thrills -- motorcycle racing (8 in the end) inside a spherical cage.
China 09 Day 07 – Thursday July 2, 2009
I am way behind—it is already Friday, but here goes anyway.
8:30am Bus out to Shanghai University, a very good school in a very modern setting out in the “country” so a 1.5 hour bus ride as there is so much traffic, we were quite late and arrived at 10am for our lecture by an economics prof. They served us tea, which did keep me going a bit, although I was still so tired from the night before.
SU is a VERY well funded university, one of the 100 funded in the 211 project to increase status to western standards. The talk was by a very engaging young prof., about the financial crisis or non-crisis on China’s export-dependent economy. Basically if the west shops less, then China hurts more, factories close, workers have no work, etc. etc. So they are quite dependent on western markets, chiefly the USA. There are 20 million workers jobless now, with 6 million college grads every year, and with few jobs in sight; only half found work last year.
Then another great lunch in their staff lunchroom, very spiffy. After lunch most went back to the city and I got a guided tour from a very nice and knowledgeable librarian, a vice-director. The library is brand new and very large, over 3 million volumes, etc. etc. Students have to pay to use the computers though it is cheap, 1 yuan per hour. (our hotel costs far more, 1 yuan per minute, hence not much internet for me—I write this offline). Seating areas are very bright and comfy looking, but no school in session now, so nice and quiet. No bags or drinks in the library reading rooms, so they just leave their bags and drinks outside and no one takes them!!
Got a taxi back to the hotel with two others who stayed to check out student services—not many according to our standards.
Rushed out to dinner with students in another area of the city, but were were late due to traffic, which is intense here, worse than NYC. Many many bicyclers, moped riders, motorcycles, etc, all competing with cars and buses. A mad house, and Hong Kong quiet by comparison. Here they don’t queue up as they do in HK, nicely left over from British times.
Back very very late and my eyes very very tired.
China 09 Day 08 – Friday July 3, 2009
ONE WEEK IN CHINA already and it seems that I’ve been here a month, we have seen and done so very much and learned so very much. How much more can there be left? Quite a lot it seems.
8am call to the Bus (now capitalized as it’s always the Same Bus and same excellent driver and our same wonderful guide, Joe Jin) for a TWO HOUR drive to another city, Kunshan, full of brand new towers, and all new unlike Shanghai which still has a lot of the old. Kunshan however seems ALL new. And the college we went to is all new too, but no students at all so it seemed like a Fellini movie, with a big “Welcome CUNY Visitors” sign in front. And we were warmly welcomed indeed.
[I am finishing this up Sunday morning on the Bus, so I hope I remember stuff]
At the private Dengyun College of Science and Technology, there are 4400 students, and nearly 90% get jobs after 3 years of college, which is really a vocational community college. It was started by Taiwanese business men to train vocational workers, and is very successful in that. They do on the job training (internships) for part of their course work, and half get their jobs from that experience.
They gave us a wonderful buffet lunch in a nearby restaurant as the college was closed for the summer. Then a two-hour Bus ride back to Shanghai, and dinner at 6pm in a spiffy hotel restaurant, where we met CSI alumni business leaders who are very successful here. One a bank vice-president, another owns a construction company, etc. etc. All had very positive experiences at CSI as visiting faculty scholars. One met his wife there when she was an exchange student.
We were supposed to walk back to the hotel, and some did, but not me, being much too tired.
China 09 Day 09 – Saturday July 4, 2009
Happy Fourth!! Well no notice of it here of course, but we had a day off from activities, so it was a well needed break. I went to the Shanghai Museum and the Shanghai Art Museum, walking there both ways, not getting lost going, but getting really lost coming back. Met up with some others at the SM, but they went elsewhere afterwards.
So about the art—very weird as you can imagine. Photo exhibits more like documentary work, going from the sixties to now. One was on Mao and communist folk, the other by a former worker so much more interesting. Two shows of paintings, one very pop art like, with heads of doll women, the other just fuzzy abstracts. The building however was wonderful, an old one modernized, but with the grand stairway left intact.
The Shanghai Museum (art and archaeology) is worth coming here just for that. The entire cultural history of the country with artifacts arranged in very nice cases with labels. Arranged by theme, with huge rooms of bronzes, sculptures, ceramics, paintings, etc. This is great for learning the medium but not great for learning what went with what. Fantastic bronzes from BCE times, way before anything else. And the whole place was hugely crowded with families with children in tow; seemed like way more than the one child per family. But great that they consider it worth learning. Everyone was taking pictures of everything, and I wonder what for since most were camera phones.
Found a Starbucks on the way so I sat and people-watched for a bit. Chinese are a very good-looking people for the most part, much more so than generally in the US.
Finally ended up at the “Shanghai No. 1 Department Store” a huge Macy’s like 8 story building with really really cheap stuff. I mean cheap quality, not just price. Even cheaper type stuff than Kmart or Walmart, so if this is the mass quality of things, then you can understand buildings falling down.
Have to pack up to leave tomorrow for Suzhou.
To Suzhou
Stupendous Shanghai seen from the bus—too bad we only went from place to place by bus all day long, and it was a long one, leaving the hotel in Hong Kong at 6am (up at 5am) and returning to our hotel in Shanghai after the circus at 10pm. I was beat so this is a day late.
First impressions – everything half finished, amazing amount of construction everywhere getting ready for Expo 2010 – how will they finish? Roads, bridges, buildings, all with scaffolding and things dug up everywhere. Bus had a hard time getting around the mess.
Next impression — huge contrast in each street here, one side slummy rundown tenements, the other side glitzy towers. Out with the old, in with the new is their motto.
Another oddity here, the tops of the towers are idiosyncratic with fences, palm leaves, spires, etc. etc. It does make the towers very individualistic, and the shapes of some are also odd, most not as weird as the famous radio tower, but all different, unlike Hong Kong, which is just all towers. Here they are spread around more, given the flat landscape.
And bicycles everywhere, mopeds too. At last we are in China. Driving would be a real challenge, but our bus driver seems expert at it.
Lunch en route to the hotel from the airport, another huge dim sum, then a visit to a Chinese garden and shopping mall recently built to look like old pagodas. Odd, but I did have my Starbucks there. Then dinner at a restaurant near the garden, then a rushed bus ride to the acrobatic circus, which was fantastic, but we were all too tired to get the most thrills -- motorcycle racing (8 in the end) inside a spherical cage.
China 09 Day 07 – Thursday July 2, 2009
I am way behind—it is already Friday, but here goes anyway.
8:30am Bus out to Shanghai University, a very good school in a very modern setting out in the “country” so a 1.5 hour bus ride as there is so much traffic, we were quite late and arrived at 10am for our lecture by an economics prof. They served us tea, which did keep me going a bit, although I was still so tired from the night before.
SU is a VERY well funded university, one of the 100 funded in the 211 project to increase status to western standards. The talk was by a very engaging young prof., about the financial crisis or non-crisis on China’s export-dependent economy. Basically if the west shops less, then China hurts more, factories close, workers have no work, etc. etc. So they are quite dependent on western markets, chiefly the USA. There are 20 million workers jobless now, with 6 million college grads every year, and with few jobs in sight; only half found work last year.
Then another great lunch in their staff lunchroom, very spiffy. After lunch most went back to the city and I got a guided tour from a very nice and knowledgeable librarian, a vice-director. The library is brand new and very large, over 3 million volumes, etc. etc. Students have to pay to use the computers though it is cheap, 1 yuan per hour. (our hotel costs far more, 1 yuan per minute, hence not much internet for me—I write this offline). Seating areas are very bright and comfy looking, but no school in session now, so nice and quiet. No bags or drinks in the library reading rooms, so they just leave their bags and drinks outside and no one takes them!!
Got a taxi back to the hotel with two others who stayed to check out student services—not many according to our standards.
Rushed out to dinner with students in another area of the city, but were were late due to traffic, which is intense here, worse than NYC. Many many bicyclers, moped riders, motorcycles, etc, all competing with cars and buses. A mad house, and Hong Kong quiet by comparison. Here they don’t queue up as they do in HK, nicely left over from British times.
Back very very late and my eyes very very tired.
China 09 Day 08 – Friday July 3, 2009
ONE WEEK IN CHINA already and it seems that I’ve been here a month, we have seen and done so very much and learned so very much. How much more can there be left? Quite a lot it seems.
8am call to the Bus (now capitalized as it’s always the Same Bus and same excellent driver and our same wonderful guide, Joe Jin) for a TWO HOUR drive to another city, Kunshan, full of brand new towers, and all new unlike Shanghai which still has a lot of the old. Kunshan however seems ALL new. And the college we went to is all new too, but no students at all so it seemed like a Fellini movie, with a big “Welcome CUNY Visitors” sign in front. And we were warmly welcomed indeed.
[I am finishing this up Sunday morning on the Bus, so I hope I remember stuff]
At the private Dengyun College of Science and Technology, there are 4400 students, and nearly 90% get jobs after 3 years of college, which is really a vocational community college. It was started by Taiwanese business men to train vocational workers, and is very successful in that. They do on the job training (internships) for part of their course work, and half get their jobs from that experience.
They gave us a wonderful buffet lunch in a nearby restaurant as the college was closed for the summer. Then a two-hour Bus ride back to Shanghai, and dinner at 6pm in a spiffy hotel restaurant, where we met CSI alumni business leaders who are very successful here. One a bank vice-president, another owns a construction company, etc. etc. All had very positive experiences at CSI as visiting faculty scholars. One met his wife there when she was an exchange student.
We were supposed to walk back to the hotel, and some did, but not me, being much too tired.
China 09 Day 09 – Saturday July 4, 2009
Happy Fourth!! Well no notice of it here of course, but we had a day off from activities, so it was a well needed break. I went to the Shanghai Museum and the Shanghai Art Museum, walking there both ways, not getting lost going, but getting really lost coming back. Met up with some others at the SM, but they went elsewhere afterwards.
So about the art—very weird as you can imagine. Photo exhibits more like documentary work, going from the sixties to now. One was on Mao and communist folk, the other by a former worker so much more interesting. Two shows of paintings, one very pop art like, with heads of doll women, the other just fuzzy abstracts. The building however was wonderful, an old one modernized, but with the grand stairway left intact.
The Shanghai Museum (art and archaeology) is worth coming here just for that. The entire cultural history of the country with artifacts arranged in very nice cases with labels. Arranged by theme, with huge rooms of bronzes, sculptures, ceramics, paintings, etc. This is great for learning the medium but not great for learning what went with what. Fantastic bronzes from BCE times, way before anything else. And the whole place was hugely crowded with families with children in tow; seemed like way more than the one child per family. But great that they consider it worth learning. Everyone was taking pictures of everything, and I wonder what for since most were camera phones.
Found a Starbucks on the way so I sat and people-watched for a bit. Chinese are a very good-looking people for the most part, much more so than generally in the US.
Finally ended up at the “Shanghai No. 1 Department Store” a huge Macy’s like 8 story building with really really cheap stuff. I mean cheap quality, not just price. Even cheaper type stuff than Kmart or Walmart, so if this is the mass quality of things, then you can understand buildings falling down.
Have to pack up to leave tomorrow for Suzhou.
To Suzhou
China 2009 Suzhou
China Day 10 – Sunday July 5, 2009
8:30am - On to Suzhou with our Bus and Guide, Joe Jin. We have too many bags already so it’s quite a squeeze.
Another long bus ride, but we were mostly snoozing after another big breakfast – I have to stop these fantastic breakfast buffets every single day. Not enough walking and too much eating.
First stop was a model village, JinXi, a reconstructed canal village, very quaint with little shops on the pedestrian streets with houses over them, and canals behind them. Quite extensive for a little village in the middle of nowhere. The usual souvenirs for sale: quilts, pearls, fans, even furniture. Didn’t buy anything, although I like the combs, so next chance I will buy one.
Then another big lunch at a super-fancy restaurant in a gated condo compound, all very modern with the garden walkways wonderfully laid out with turns so that the evil spirits don’t go in straight and with planters of gorgeous flowers on the sides next to the lake. And an even better lunch with new kinds of food. The Chinese are very inventive with food and must have hundreds of ways to cook the same things.
Back to the Bus and on to Suzhou, but first stop at another gated compound of very western style houses (think upscale Westchester) and visit to cousins of Joe Jin’s who had one house with modern furnishings and the business partner who spoke English very well. They both made it big from nothing, in fact they were factory workers under the bad Communist years 30 years ago when all the schools were closed for ten years. But they studied and read on their own, and started their successful businesses, one an export company (now also imports) and the other a factory. Their big customer is IKEA!!
Our Bus somehow made it through the narrow winding streets of this town, and then we stopped at another restaurant for dinner. It seems as though we are constantly eating, with bus rides in between.
8:30pm Finally made it to our hotel, the Bamboo Grove Hotel in Suzhou—very spiffy place, and FREE internet. Had to pay for the last hotel, but the first one was free. Wonder why.
Straight to bed as we were all totally wiped out.
http://www.bg-hotel.com/E_web/index.html
China Day 11 – Monday July 6, 2009
Another 14 hour day—where to begin?
8:30am call to the Bus, and relatively short trip to the “Humble Administrator’s Garden” which was hardly humble, that being a misleading name for such an immense and fascinating garden, but humble is a relative term in old China. It is huge, with winding trails and bridges and pavilions around several small lakes or ponds, with rocks and flowers everywhere. Even a non-garden person like me could enjoy it. Of course one of our members got lost in there, since the person who shall not be named just wandered off alone, whereas I stuck with the guide until we found the exit. Naturally there were shops all around the exit, so we had time to browse around.
Then on to a short visit to a Silk Museum, where they showed the process of making silk, from the worm to the cocoon and the threads and the weaving. Interesting were the LIVE worms chomping away on the mulberry leaves. Would make nice pets, although they eat a lot. And of course a big shop at the end of the small museum, but very nice clothing. I bought a scarf that’s all, for 70 yuan (or RMB now), so it was around $10.
Another great lunch although I’m getting my foods and places all mixed up. Hard to keep track since the food always looks different and unlike anything I’ve eaten anywhere. And I’m eating too much of it, so am gaining weight. Not good. Have to stop, but it’s so yummy we’re all chowing down even though it seems that all we do is go from feast to feast.
After lunch we went to see the canal and old city section, but it was too hot to walk up to the Pagoda tower, so only three people went, and the rest of us came back by bus to the hotel.
Then we had an appointment with some doctors at the city hospital, and they showed us the maternity and child care wards, very colorful and nice; this section had a children’s museum in it very like those in the U.S. and in fact from a U.S. designer. We also saw the intensive care unit with all modern equipment for the tiniest of babies that we watched from a window.
We were going to go to the top of the pagoda on Tiger Hill, symbol of Suzhou, but it was unbearably hot and humid, so we just drove near it, and three people stayed to climb to the top, but the rest of us went back to the hotel on the Bus.
Then dinner (didn’t we just eat lunch?) in a restaurant in the pedestrian zone, although we went near there by bus. And after that, a boat ride on the canal, which was very fine, with many little buildings lit up like a festival. A Chinese opera singer entertained us on the boat, and it sounded a bit strange. We will see an opera in Beijing.
So finally the end of another great day.
China Day 12 – Tuesday July 7, 2009
First we went to the Suzhou Technical and Vocational University, a brand new place out in the University Center, all very modern. China is very proud of the training they are providing to the former unskilled labor force. First things they learn are to follow directions, show up on time, listen to the boss, etc. There is training in mechanics, nursing, etc. There was an excellent furniture museum in the library top floor, with all Ming furniture as Suzhou is the original home of the Wu culture and the Ming dynasty, so they are justly proud of it. The library was very up-to-date, with modern seating and computers, and a million e-books they said. That is very impressive if accurate.
It was raining most of the day, so the trip to the Wang Shan Ecological Village and farm was cut short; we took a bus ride around it instead. Then another nice lunch at the edge of a huge lake.
After lunch we went to the Suzhou Higher Education Development Center, a think-tank type of center for scholars and all sorts of students, and it is in the huge modern university town outside Suzhou covering acres and acres with many colleges located there. Apparently Suzhou wasn’t granted a research university, so the city started this instead. We visited the gym building with the usual stuff and a huge rock-climbing wall (have pix for Alexi), as well as a martial arts center with huge swords. Their library was again fantastic and modern, five floors with one floor for e-stuff, with 1.4 million e-books shared with the National Library. Using their resources is free on their computers, but they have to pay for the internet surfing, same as other schools, 1 yuan per hour, very minimal, 15 cents. There is wireless for your own laptops.
After this (!) we went to a small govt. embroidery factory and store, with people doing the finest silk thread embroidery by hand. I bought my first souvenir, a panel with blue leaves (of course).
Back for a brief rest, then out to a tea house for the tea ceremony, which is just more food, but different foods, and discussion with some teachers invited to talk with us about their education policies and methods. A nice walk back to the hotel, as the rain cooled things down quite a bit.
China Day 13 – Wednesday July 8, 2009
Supposedly a free day, but not really, as the day was full, with only a few free hours. We did get started later though, at 10am instead of the usual 8am. We went with our Bus back to the area of the Suzhou Technical and Vocational University, this time to visit the School of Art and Design workshop for wood-cutting. They were making beautiful prints as well as carving some new wood. We were able to buy some prints, right from the workshop.
Then we went to the Suzhou Museum -- a spectacular building by I.M.Pei who is a native from here. He fused the traditional type buildings with his modern manner. There were two wings for the display rooms, with pavilions in between, both inside and in the outdoor courtyard with pond and rock garden. All were in the white-washed Suzhou style with grey or black slate trim. http://www.szmuseum.com/szbwgen/html/xw/2006/0930/157.html
Another nice lunch but very different food from a different area. Then back for a few hours rest, and a last trip to the nearby Garden of the Nets, where they had entertainers in each room, some actors, singers, musicians, dancer, as we walked from room to room to watch. A cool stroll back to the hotel where we gathered in the lobby bar with its two girl singers and we had some drinks and snacks, avoiding a big dinner as we had eaten quite a lot lately.
To Nanjing
8:30am - On to Suzhou with our Bus and Guide, Joe Jin. We have too many bags already so it’s quite a squeeze.
Another long bus ride, but we were mostly snoozing after another big breakfast – I have to stop these fantastic breakfast buffets every single day. Not enough walking and too much eating.
First stop was a model village, JinXi, a reconstructed canal village, very quaint with little shops on the pedestrian streets with houses over them, and canals behind them. Quite extensive for a little village in the middle of nowhere. The usual souvenirs for sale: quilts, pearls, fans, even furniture. Didn’t buy anything, although I like the combs, so next chance I will buy one.
Then another big lunch at a super-fancy restaurant in a gated condo compound, all very modern with the garden walkways wonderfully laid out with turns so that the evil spirits don’t go in straight and with planters of gorgeous flowers on the sides next to the lake. And an even better lunch with new kinds of food. The Chinese are very inventive with food and must have hundreds of ways to cook the same things.
Back to the Bus and on to Suzhou, but first stop at another gated compound of very western style houses (think upscale Westchester) and visit to cousins of Joe Jin’s who had one house with modern furnishings and the business partner who spoke English very well. They both made it big from nothing, in fact they were factory workers under the bad Communist years 30 years ago when all the schools were closed for ten years. But they studied and read on their own, and started their successful businesses, one an export company (now also imports) and the other a factory. Their big customer is IKEA!!
Our Bus somehow made it through the narrow winding streets of this town, and then we stopped at another restaurant for dinner. It seems as though we are constantly eating, with bus rides in between.
8:30pm Finally made it to our hotel, the Bamboo Grove Hotel in Suzhou—very spiffy place, and FREE internet. Had to pay for the last hotel, but the first one was free. Wonder why.
Straight to bed as we were all totally wiped out.
http://www.bg-hotel.com/E_web/index.html
China Day 11 – Monday July 6, 2009
Another 14 hour day—where to begin?
8:30am call to the Bus, and relatively short trip to the “Humble Administrator’s Garden” which was hardly humble, that being a misleading name for such an immense and fascinating garden, but humble is a relative term in old China. It is huge, with winding trails and bridges and pavilions around several small lakes or ponds, with rocks and flowers everywhere. Even a non-garden person like me could enjoy it. Of course one of our members got lost in there, since the person who shall not be named just wandered off alone, whereas I stuck with the guide until we found the exit. Naturally there were shops all around the exit, so we had time to browse around.
Then on to a short visit to a Silk Museum, where they showed the process of making silk, from the worm to the cocoon and the threads and the weaving. Interesting were the LIVE worms chomping away on the mulberry leaves. Would make nice pets, although they eat a lot. And of course a big shop at the end of the small museum, but very nice clothing. I bought a scarf that’s all, for 70 yuan (or RMB now), so it was around $10.
Another great lunch although I’m getting my foods and places all mixed up. Hard to keep track since the food always looks different and unlike anything I’ve eaten anywhere. And I’m eating too much of it, so am gaining weight. Not good. Have to stop, but it’s so yummy we’re all chowing down even though it seems that all we do is go from feast to feast.
After lunch we went to see the canal and old city section, but it was too hot to walk up to the Pagoda tower, so only three people went, and the rest of us came back by bus to the hotel.
Then we had an appointment with some doctors at the city hospital, and they showed us the maternity and child care wards, very colorful and nice; this section had a children’s museum in it very like those in the U.S. and in fact from a U.S. designer. We also saw the intensive care unit with all modern equipment for the tiniest of babies that we watched from a window.
We were going to go to the top of the pagoda on Tiger Hill, symbol of Suzhou, but it was unbearably hot and humid, so we just drove near it, and three people stayed to climb to the top, but the rest of us went back to the hotel on the Bus.
Then dinner (didn’t we just eat lunch?) in a restaurant in the pedestrian zone, although we went near there by bus. And after that, a boat ride on the canal, which was very fine, with many little buildings lit up like a festival. A Chinese opera singer entertained us on the boat, and it sounded a bit strange. We will see an opera in Beijing.
So finally the end of another great day.
China Day 12 – Tuesday July 7, 2009
First we went to the Suzhou Technical and Vocational University, a brand new place out in the University Center, all very modern. China is very proud of the training they are providing to the former unskilled labor force. First things they learn are to follow directions, show up on time, listen to the boss, etc. There is training in mechanics, nursing, etc. There was an excellent furniture museum in the library top floor, with all Ming furniture as Suzhou is the original home of the Wu culture and the Ming dynasty, so they are justly proud of it. The library was very up-to-date, with modern seating and computers, and a million e-books they said. That is very impressive if accurate.
It was raining most of the day, so the trip to the Wang Shan Ecological Village and farm was cut short; we took a bus ride around it instead. Then another nice lunch at the edge of a huge lake.
After lunch we went to the Suzhou Higher Education Development Center, a think-tank type of center for scholars and all sorts of students, and it is in the huge modern university town outside Suzhou covering acres and acres with many colleges located there. Apparently Suzhou wasn’t granted a research university, so the city started this instead. We visited the gym building with the usual stuff and a huge rock-climbing wall (have pix for Alexi), as well as a martial arts center with huge swords. Their library was again fantastic and modern, five floors with one floor for e-stuff, with 1.4 million e-books shared with the National Library. Using their resources is free on their computers, but they have to pay for the internet surfing, same as other schools, 1 yuan per hour, very minimal, 15 cents. There is wireless for your own laptops.
After this (!) we went to a small govt. embroidery factory and store, with people doing the finest silk thread embroidery by hand. I bought my first souvenir, a panel with blue leaves (of course).
Back for a brief rest, then out to a tea house for the tea ceremony, which is just more food, but different foods, and discussion with some teachers invited to talk with us about their education policies and methods. A nice walk back to the hotel, as the rain cooled things down quite a bit.
China Day 13 – Wednesday July 8, 2009
Supposedly a free day, but not really, as the day was full, with only a few free hours. We did get started later though, at 10am instead of the usual 8am. We went with our Bus back to the area of the Suzhou Technical and Vocational University, this time to visit the School of Art and Design workshop for wood-cutting. They were making beautiful prints as well as carving some new wood. We were able to buy some prints, right from the workshop.
Then we went to the Suzhou Museum -- a spectacular building by I.M.Pei who is a native from here. He fused the traditional type buildings with his modern manner. There were two wings for the display rooms, with pavilions in between, both inside and in the outdoor courtyard with pond and rock garden. All were in the white-washed Suzhou style with grey or black slate trim. http://www.szmuseum.com/szbwgen/html/xw/2006/0930/157.html
Another nice lunch but very different food from a different area. Then back for a few hours rest, and a last trip to the nearby Garden of the Nets, where they had entertainers in each room, some actors, singers, musicians, dancer, as we walked from room to room to watch. A cool stroll back to the hotel where we gathered in the lobby bar with its two girl singers and we had some drinks and snacks, avoiding a big dinner as we had eaten quite a lot lately.
To Nanjing
China 2009 Nanjing
China Day 14 – Thursday July 9, 2009
TWO WEEKS already and we’ve seen enough for two months. China is an amazing and fantastic place and EVERYONE should visit. More about the country later when we ever get a day free, maybe next week.
So today was a travel day, or half day, as we left the wonderful Bamboo Grove Hotel in Suzhou at 9am (not 8:30 as planned) and took nearly an hour to get out of the city; too much traffic on the highway, with a lane closed for something or other. Where is everyone going? Not to Nanjing, our next stop, I hope. After a pit stop (where I still can’t use the standing pits) we arrived at an even more wonderful hotel, the New Era Hotel, right in the heart of Nanjing. This is an even spiffier hotel than the BG, and my room is delightful. There’s a frosted window in the bathroom, with a vase with flower in it, a beautiful design element, as it’s hardly necessary. The bed is nice and firm like all the beds here; this country knows about sleeping. And free internet again, although little time to use it. I am keeping up with the NYTimes, but Facebook is blocked, so no one can access it. Various theories about it, as it worked in Hong Kong. All other news web sites seem to work ok.
After we checked in we were bused off to the Presidential Palace, actually not too far from the hotel, but the afternoon heat was intense. Too bad the Palace was a series of pavilions and un-airconditioned, but we had a good guide, a teacher from the exchange program here. This was built in the first years of the “republic” of 1912 when Dr. Sun Yat-Sen led the Chinese finally in a successful revolt from the imperial rule, and the last boy emperor abdicated (remember the movie, a romantic view of things). Learned quite a lot from a good photo-exhibit with some models and reconstructions (and air-conditioned), as Dr. Sun is quite revered here as the Father of the Country, like George Washington to us, and Mao is hardly spoken of at all. Too bad that Dr. Sun did not live long enough to see the country through to its glory, as the Communists came in strong in the 1930s. We’ll visit Dr. Sun’s mausoleum later, but since Nanjing was his home and the first capital of China, they are very proud of him here.
Back to the hotel very briefly and then by Bus to an older quarter of Nanjing, which is full of restaurants and shops in a pagoda style architecture, all lit up gaily at night but more crowded than Times Square on a Saturday. We ate another great dinner at a restaurant with an auction of scroll paintings (!) and some entertainers. After that, somehow we managed to walk through some of it and not get too lost, as we had our teacher guides with us, and we found the Bus to take us home.
New Era Hotel
http://www.newerahotel.com/english/main.asp
China Day 15 – Friday July 10, 2009 – Nanjing University
This morning we walked around the corner to Nanjing University, one of the premier research universities in China, where CSI sends students every year. We got a tour of the campus, a beautiful one, with huge tree-lined streets and a few old buildings from the founding in 1902, when it was started as a normal school by missionaries, as well as many big modern buildings. We headed to the other end of the compact site to the Johns Hopkins-Nanjing Center, a new modern building, nicely air-conditioned. We were shown to its new library and some apartments for faculty and for students, as well as their roof terrace and small gym. This is a cooperative venture that takes Chinese students and foreign students, usually Americans, teaching economics and political science mostly, and teaching the Chinese students all in English and the foreigners all in Chinese. Needless to say they must pass language tests to be admitted, as well as other strict guidelines, it being very prestigious and competitive. The students are paired up in rooms of two, a Chinese student with a foreign student.
After this tour, we walked back to the other side of the campus, and a restaurant in the student building on the side with the dormitories. All students must live on campus, 41,000 total. There were still a lot of students around, although the semester was over. They are building a new campus out in the suburbs in an area with nine universities, and will move all undergraduates there in the Fall 2009. The area will have stores, schools, hospitals, etc. etc., a new city of some 300,000 people.
We had drinks and discussions with some of the professors in the International programs at our hotel (thankfully indoors as it is still very hot) and learned quite a lot about the programs and life here for students and faculty both. One professor we talked with explained his progression from a one-room apt. – and that is ONE bedroom, no living room, just a kitchen – through various upgrades in assigned housing until a few years ago when he was able to buy an apt., and more recently when he bought a house in a suburb and of course a car—the Chinese dream. Now he still owns the first apt. plus the house and will soon buy another apt. in the new University Town, quite a property owner. Needless to say, most of the professors we talked with are quite happy with the new and improved China.
Then on to dinner in the hotel, quite different from our lunch the other day (where do they get the ideas for all these kinds of foods?). And more discussions with our guest professors, who all spoke excellent English as they after all are teaching it, as well as Chinese subjects. It was our guest Prof. Wang’s 50th birthday, so a cake was produced with candles, and we had a cake dessert!
Nanjing University
http://www.nju.edu.cn/cps/site/NJU/njue/profile/index.htm
Nanjing semester
http://www.ccisabroad.org/program.php?link=china_nanjing
Hopkins-Nanjing Center info
http://www.nju.edu.cn/cps/site/NJU/njue/profile/index.htm
China Day 16 – Saturday July 11, 2009
A sightseeing day, and a very very hot one.
8:30am Bus to Zhonghua Gate, a Ming dynasty city wall (1366-1386), and a huge one that was attacked by the Japanese in 1937, a prelude to the Nanjing Massacre of 300,000 people. We could climb to the top of the wall and it was nearly a parade ground on top. It was a hugely thick wall, nearly a city block wide, with several gates from one end to the other, and the Japanese must have been desperate to get through it and over it, but the Chinese army at the time was very weak and poorly organized with many deserters. Maybe this is one reason they are building a strong army, never to be invaded again.
Next we went by Bus to Dr. Sun Yat-Sen’s mausoleum on the Purple Mountain. At least some people climbed to the top on the hottest day yet at midday—392 steps—but not me, I just took a photo from afar. Many many Chinese tourists here too, many tour buses, and the public bus comes here from the city. After that it was a short ride to more Ming dynasty elements, a row of huge stone animal statues, two by two facing each other along a long tree-lined avenue: elephants, camels, horses, unicorns, etc.
Then lunch finally, a vegetarian non-alcoholic one in a restaurant attached to a Buddhist monastery for nuns (but we didn’t see any). Now our group is too large for one table, so we split into two tables, as they are round, with the lazy-susan in the middle for the dishes. I never thought I would eat so much tofu, all disguised as shrimp, pork, beef, and a large fish. It was pretty impressive, and pretty tasty too. I tried nearly everything, being half-adventurous with food. It’s either that or go hungry, and we are not doing that.
The afternoon event was a visit to the Nanjing Massacre Museum, an immense very modern set of buildings separated by huge open spaces for some reason. First was a photo exhibit of the 1937-38 events, several weeks of slaughter, some from photos and diaries kept by the Japanese. There were many school children here, and they were laughing at us later from their buses. It seemed to me a bit too horrific for young children to see this gruesomeness, and it depressed all of us. The last building had skeletons and relics, and I passed through quickly, desperate to get back to the bus and peace and coolness.
Fortunately, the day ended positively, and a dinner with some professors from the University. My table had a retired librarian professor, and a VP provost one, so I learned quite a lot about the structure of the university and its students. Librarians are professors, although they do not have to publish books, just papers (articles) for promotion. Their system is very like the U.S. system, the universities being mostly modeled after US ones, when the schools reopened in 1979 after the ten year ban. That strikes me as one of the oddest things I’ve heard so far, as I didn’t know anything about it. I gave the VP a copy of my book, so hopefully it will end up in their library.
Early to bed for the 5:30 call to the Bus to the airport for an 8am flight to Beijing!
To Beijing
TWO WEEKS already and we’ve seen enough for two months. China is an amazing and fantastic place and EVERYONE should visit. More about the country later when we ever get a day free, maybe next week.
So today was a travel day, or half day, as we left the wonderful Bamboo Grove Hotel in Suzhou at 9am (not 8:30 as planned) and took nearly an hour to get out of the city; too much traffic on the highway, with a lane closed for something or other. Where is everyone going? Not to Nanjing, our next stop, I hope. After a pit stop (where I still can’t use the standing pits) we arrived at an even more wonderful hotel, the New Era Hotel, right in the heart of Nanjing. This is an even spiffier hotel than the BG, and my room is delightful. There’s a frosted window in the bathroom, with a vase with flower in it, a beautiful design element, as it’s hardly necessary. The bed is nice and firm like all the beds here; this country knows about sleeping. And free internet again, although little time to use it. I am keeping up with the NYTimes, but Facebook is blocked, so no one can access it. Various theories about it, as it worked in Hong Kong. All other news web sites seem to work ok.
After we checked in we were bused off to the Presidential Palace, actually not too far from the hotel, but the afternoon heat was intense. Too bad the Palace was a series of pavilions and un-airconditioned, but we had a good guide, a teacher from the exchange program here. This was built in the first years of the “republic” of 1912 when Dr. Sun Yat-Sen led the Chinese finally in a successful revolt from the imperial rule, and the last boy emperor abdicated (remember the movie, a romantic view of things). Learned quite a lot from a good photo-exhibit with some models and reconstructions (and air-conditioned), as Dr. Sun is quite revered here as the Father of the Country, like George Washington to us, and Mao is hardly spoken of at all. Too bad that Dr. Sun did not live long enough to see the country through to its glory, as the Communists came in strong in the 1930s. We’ll visit Dr. Sun’s mausoleum later, but since Nanjing was his home and the first capital of China, they are very proud of him here.
Back to the hotel very briefly and then by Bus to an older quarter of Nanjing, which is full of restaurants and shops in a pagoda style architecture, all lit up gaily at night but more crowded than Times Square on a Saturday. We ate another great dinner at a restaurant with an auction of scroll paintings (!) and some entertainers. After that, somehow we managed to walk through some of it and not get too lost, as we had our teacher guides with us, and we found the Bus to take us home.
New Era Hotel
http://www.newerahotel.com/english/main.asp
China Day 15 – Friday July 10, 2009 – Nanjing University
This morning we walked around the corner to Nanjing University, one of the premier research universities in China, where CSI sends students every year. We got a tour of the campus, a beautiful one, with huge tree-lined streets and a few old buildings from the founding in 1902, when it was started as a normal school by missionaries, as well as many big modern buildings. We headed to the other end of the compact site to the Johns Hopkins-Nanjing Center, a new modern building, nicely air-conditioned. We were shown to its new library and some apartments for faculty and for students, as well as their roof terrace and small gym. This is a cooperative venture that takes Chinese students and foreign students, usually Americans, teaching economics and political science mostly, and teaching the Chinese students all in English and the foreigners all in Chinese. Needless to say they must pass language tests to be admitted, as well as other strict guidelines, it being very prestigious and competitive. The students are paired up in rooms of two, a Chinese student with a foreign student.
After this tour, we walked back to the other side of the campus, and a restaurant in the student building on the side with the dormitories. All students must live on campus, 41,000 total. There were still a lot of students around, although the semester was over. They are building a new campus out in the suburbs in an area with nine universities, and will move all undergraduates there in the Fall 2009. The area will have stores, schools, hospitals, etc. etc., a new city of some 300,000 people.
We had drinks and discussions with some of the professors in the International programs at our hotel (thankfully indoors as it is still very hot) and learned quite a lot about the programs and life here for students and faculty both. One professor we talked with explained his progression from a one-room apt. – and that is ONE bedroom, no living room, just a kitchen – through various upgrades in assigned housing until a few years ago when he was able to buy an apt., and more recently when he bought a house in a suburb and of course a car—the Chinese dream. Now he still owns the first apt. plus the house and will soon buy another apt. in the new University Town, quite a property owner. Needless to say, most of the professors we talked with are quite happy with the new and improved China.
Then on to dinner in the hotel, quite different from our lunch the other day (where do they get the ideas for all these kinds of foods?). And more discussions with our guest professors, who all spoke excellent English as they after all are teaching it, as well as Chinese subjects. It was our guest Prof. Wang’s 50th birthday, so a cake was produced with candles, and we had a cake dessert!
Nanjing University
http://www.nju.edu.cn/cps/site/NJU/njue/profile/index.htm
Nanjing semester
http://www.ccisabroad.org/program.php?link=china_nanjing
Hopkins-Nanjing Center info
http://www.nju.edu.cn/cps/site/NJU/njue/profile/index.htm
China Day 16 – Saturday July 11, 2009
A sightseeing day, and a very very hot one.
8:30am Bus to Zhonghua Gate, a Ming dynasty city wall (1366-1386), and a huge one that was attacked by the Japanese in 1937, a prelude to the Nanjing Massacre of 300,000 people. We could climb to the top of the wall and it was nearly a parade ground on top. It was a hugely thick wall, nearly a city block wide, with several gates from one end to the other, and the Japanese must have been desperate to get through it and over it, but the Chinese army at the time was very weak and poorly organized with many deserters. Maybe this is one reason they are building a strong army, never to be invaded again.
Next we went by Bus to Dr. Sun Yat-Sen’s mausoleum on the Purple Mountain. At least some people climbed to the top on the hottest day yet at midday—392 steps—but not me, I just took a photo from afar. Many many Chinese tourists here too, many tour buses, and the public bus comes here from the city. After that it was a short ride to more Ming dynasty elements, a row of huge stone animal statues, two by two facing each other along a long tree-lined avenue: elephants, camels, horses, unicorns, etc.
Then lunch finally, a vegetarian non-alcoholic one in a restaurant attached to a Buddhist monastery for nuns (but we didn’t see any). Now our group is too large for one table, so we split into two tables, as they are round, with the lazy-susan in the middle for the dishes. I never thought I would eat so much tofu, all disguised as shrimp, pork, beef, and a large fish. It was pretty impressive, and pretty tasty too. I tried nearly everything, being half-adventurous with food. It’s either that or go hungry, and we are not doing that.
The afternoon event was a visit to the Nanjing Massacre Museum, an immense very modern set of buildings separated by huge open spaces for some reason. First was a photo exhibit of the 1937-38 events, several weeks of slaughter, some from photos and diaries kept by the Japanese. There were many school children here, and they were laughing at us later from their buses. It seemed to me a bit too horrific for young children to see this gruesomeness, and it depressed all of us. The last building had skeletons and relics, and I passed through quickly, desperate to get back to the bus and peace and coolness.
Fortunately, the day ended positively, and a dinner with some professors from the University. My table had a retired librarian professor, and a VP provost one, so I learned quite a lot about the structure of the university and its students. Librarians are professors, although they do not have to publish books, just papers (articles) for promotion. Their system is very like the U.S. system, the universities being mostly modeled after US ones, when the schools reopened in 1979 after the ten year ban. That strikes me as one of the oddest things I’ve heard so far, as I didn’t know anything about it. I gave the VP a copy of my book, so hopefully it will end up in their library.
Early to bed for the 5:30 call to the Bus to the airport for an 8am flight to Beijing!
To Beijing
China 2009 Beijing
China Day 17 – Sunday July 12, 2009 – Beijing
5:30am To the Bus for an 8am flight to Beijing; actually left the hotel at 8:50am, after squeezing so many bags into the bus (it was not a large bus)
8:30am Left the Gate and 8:40 in the air!!
10:12 landed in Beijing; 11am left the airport in our new Bus and driver.
12pm arrive at New World Marriott Courtyard hotel, but rooms not ready, so we went across the street to lunch at a “worker’s” joint, literally, but the food was good and speedy.
After that a short bus ride to the Temple of Heaven, a huge complex (everything is Big here) of temple buildings, courtyards, gates, and connected by walkways through trees. It was getting hot again although nice enough in the morning, so we finally found the East Gate exit.
Across the street was the famous Pearl Market, a huge five story building a big block long, with stalls and little shops selling everything under the sun. The sales people are incredibly pushy about it, just grabbing you in the aisles saying buy this, buy this, lady. I bought a converter for the computer fortunately as the hotel was out of them. And another flash card very cheaply 8G for $10, so I think I’ll buy more another day.
Then we found our way to Sandy’s Pearl shop, a classier place on the top floor, where Ann sent us as she knew Sandy from previous trips. They had amazing fantastic jewelry, mostly of pearls and pearl type stones, so I actually bought a few, some black pearls and some peachy colored ones, as well as a multicolor necklace. Prices were very good of course and we were assured of good quality. About ten of us crowded into a tiny little shop, and they strung up the pearls to order in the size and clasp that you wanted.
Another fantastic dinner, at the most famous Peking Duck Restaurant in China, with hoards of tourists, both western and Chinese, but we had our room reserved for us, thanks to Joe Jin our fabulous guide. The duck dishes were unbelievable, really really tasty and interesting, so I am quite full and ready for bed when I should be walking it off. That’s for tomorrow and the Great Wall!!
China Day 18 – Monday July 13, 2009 – Beijing
This morning was for the Great Wall, and it is truly Great, even the small part that we saw at Badaling, with its thousands of tourists – 400 day campers in one group – all crowding up and down the rather narrow, but incredibly steep walkway. Horses could never make this trek, but perhaps donkeys could if they had donkeys. I managed to walk halfway up two sides of the wall from the entrance gate, but that was enough on a hot day. It is truly spectacular, and the usual photos don’t do the experience justice, as it is much longer and steeper than shown. But we are small and the wall is Big, like most things here in China.
We ate lunch on the road back to Beijing in a small jade factory, where we watched a few people on show making jade carvings with a small hand drill; we were always glad to find a place to cool down and get decent bathrooms (although the tourist shop at the Wall had some sit-down ones). We measure the places we visit by the state of the toilets, but if that isn’t a sign of civilization, then what is.
After lunch we went directly to a Hutong area of Beijing, the old (and I mean OLD) type courtyard houses in narrow alleys. We didn’t have time to visit any restored ones, but the lecture we heard was about the preservation and renovation of these Hutongs, so as to keep the “old Beijing” alive, when too many of them have been torn down for apt. towers. Well the studio where we heard the lecture with powerpoint by a preservation expert was on the fourth floor of a walkup old building, where each floor was as tall as two floors, so that meant eight floors to walk up. Well we all finally made it, and then the studio was hot hot hot, no AC and no fans. We were just suffering trying to follow the talk and keep cool by keeping still. And after lunch no less. But we learned a lot about the state of old and new Beijing, all being built up since the 1950s, when the city was a minor town of few buildings of any size. Amazing changes and thus the stress on keeping at least some of the old town structures.
Well we didn’t leave the talk until nearly six, when we found the bus in the rain (it started to really pour while we were inside, and then the windows slammed shut so we were hotter). So the original plan to go somewhere by Bus was changed to go to a restaurant in the mall from the hotel. Thankfully Marriotts are usually connected to malls, as this one is, so we didn’t have to go out in the rain again.
This was some day of walking for sure, so glad to put my feet up. Maybe I should get a Chinese foot massage, as some people have done.
China Day 19 – Tuesday July 14, 2009 – Beijing
The Lama Temple was very bright and colorful, not too large, with many trees in the area, and not too many people there, so the ideal size. Many were offering burning sticks though, bowing three times in four corners, or kneeling in front of the temple. Westerners were doing it too. None of us did, not being Buddhists.
Then we bussed over to the Olympic site, and that was fantastic; the birds nest stadium even more impressive close up and somehow quite different in person than in photographs, which don’t show the massiveness of the structural webbing. We couldn’t go in, but lots of yellow-shirted day-campers had gone in, but we could walk around the grounds, and admire it, as it must have been truly spectacular in the Olympics, and probably at night lit up from within.
Then lunch of course, but this time quite an unusual one, the “hot pot” place, where you get your own cooking pot on a little stove in front of you, and you pick the food to boil from the cut up foods coming around on the table. I was needlessly fearful of 12 people sitting around the table with cooking oil, but we managed quite well, and the variety was again fantastic, and all the dishes very tasty, except the potatoes somehow, as just boiled they weren’t that good even with the peanut sauce. Meat was good when cooked quickly, shrimp wonderful, fish balls good, etc.
After a short stop at a so-called “cultural street” with more tourist shops, we went by bus to our lecture at the CEAIE (China Educational Association for International Education) given by the Secretary General, a very senior person, and his assistant who gave a power point presentation. Many questions were asked and answered, and we learned quite a lot about the changing goals of the educational system here, and the welcome mat extended now to foreign students. Chinese students are also encouraged to study abroad, but US visa problems makes it difficult, so most of them go to Australia, New Zealand, Britain, and other European countries. Let’s hope our country will be more welcoming in future.
The traffic here in Beijing is intense and unlovely, whereas we had fewer problems in Shanghai or Hong Kong. It takes ages to go from one section of the city to another, so we were a bit late for our dinner at another restaurant, as we made a very short stop at the hotel. This was a buffet type restaurant, and they cooked the food to order, as well as having many types of foods laid out for you. We split up into several tables by now, as our guide Joe Jin had invited several of his friends to talk with us about China things. Most of them were lawyers or top officials, and nearly all had gotten advanced degrees in the U.S., which seems to be the way to a better life here. That may change as the universities and colleges are undergoing massive self-improvements both physically, as we have seen, and philosophically, in their openness to western ways.
Our after dinner ride to see some of the buildings lit up was interesting, but nothing beats Hong Kong for lights at night.
China Day 20 – Wednesday July 15, 2009 – Beijing
Today was a Free Day, no events planned, so we could catch up on shopping and laundry, and museums. I did the first two only, then went to dinner at the restaurant in the mall. Unfortunately there was no English on the menu, nor did any waitress speak it, so we chose from the pictures, and unfortunately one of the dishes was frog stew as we learned later. However it was too spicy so I didn’t eat any, so when we found out what it was I was thankful for that.
Four of us went to the Silk Market, a huge building with stalls selling everything under the sun, with very aggressive sales girls, who poke you and throw scarves in your face until you buy something. Well we bought scarves, t-shirts, etc.
Another building down the block was an older store, the Friendship Store, and it was the first department store in China in 1964. Now it is totally deserted, being government owned, and the sales people ignore you as they chat among themselves, selling nothing. Quite the opposite of the Silk Market, where they accost you in the aisles.
Tomorrow the Forbidden City !!
China Day 21 – Thursday July 16, 2009 – Beijing
At last we get to the Forbidden City. First Tianamen Square with thousands and thousands of people lined up to go into Mao’s Mausoleum. But we did not go there. Headed across the square—and it is BIG, to the FC and more thousands and thousands of people. But the masses of people made it seem as busy as in the Imperial Court with its thousands of attendants. Well of course we are dressed differently, and unlike the old officials who knew their business, we were in a daze at the vastness of it. Many, many courtyards and throne rooms and temples in the complex. Displays in the side buildings, and you could only peek into the throne rooms, not go in and sit on the thrones (ha ha). One display intrigued me the most, it was a huge many windowed display of little terracotta figures and buildings, copying a famous painting with its thousands of people and buildings (I had bought a foldout postcard of this type of painting some time ago). Of course I took a lot of pictures of that display, as you could freely take photos anywhere that was open. One of the wives of the emperor lived in a courtyard house on the side of the complex, and it was unrestored and open to visitors; it was oddly small and modest, in contrast to the throne rooms. But this was a lesser wife, only a concubine, but a chief one at that. Another display held old costumes from centuries ago, massive-looking outfits that must have been incredibly hot and heavy to wear. Eventually after many temples and throne rooms and side rooms we got to the imperial garden and the coffee shop, where we had a snack for lunch.
This took all morning until 1pm, and we were due at the American embassy at 2pm, a long bus ride through traffic to the other side of the city and the brand new and very large embassy building. We couldn’t take any electronic stuff, cameras, cell phones, etc., inside, so left everything on the bus, but the driver stayed with it. Just took our passports, which we surrendered at the gate for visitors’ passes. After passing through several sets of gates (like the emperors! but uglier) we reached the lobby and our very plain meeting room. Two diplomats met us and one gave us a talk about the economic ties and forthcoming ties with China, since he was with the financial side of things. About 500 people work there, some Chinese of course. We were able to ask a few questions and get a few answers, as the meeting was “off the record” and we’re not supposed to publish any remarks. However they were very general remarks, which one could learn from anyone.
Then back to the hotel for an hour’s rest and our next stop for an early dinner at another famous restaurant, where Colin Powell had eaten (his photo was there!). Of course the food was fantastic and we ate too much again. After dinner we went by bus to another hotel, where the Peking Opera show was on. And that sure was fun, even as tired as I was. There were several short stories, rather than one long one, to keep your attention. Things got busier and busier, and the last one had acrobatics included, and about ten guys with two spears each fighting one little lady who also had two swords. Of course she won!!
After the show we bussed over to a tea house for the Chinese tea ceremony, where we had our own little room for a seminar wrap-up. Everyone offered their thoughts on what was important to them about the experience, so it was interesting to hear different viewpoints about the past three weeks, which went by so very quickly. It was a fine way to end the tour, although it made for a very very long but satisfying day.
Now finally to Xi’an
5:30am To the Bus for an 8am flight to Beijing; actually left the hotel at 8:50am, after squeezing so many bags into the bus (it was not a large bus)
8:30am Left the Gate and 8:40 in the air!!
10:12 landed in Beijing; 11am left the airport in our new Bus and driver.
12pm arrive at New World Marriott Courtyard hotel, but rooms not ready, so we went across the street to lunch at a “worker’s” joint, literally, but the food was good and speedy.
After that a short bus ride to the Temple of Heaven, a huge complex (everything is Big here) of temple buildings, courtyards, gates, and connected by walkways through trees. It was getting hot again although nice enough in the morning, so we finally found the East Gate exit.
Across the street was the famous Pearl Market, a huge five story building a big block long, with stalls and little shops selling everything under the sun. The sales people are incredibly pushy about it, just grabbing you in the aisles saying buy this, buy this, lady. I bought a converter for the computer fortunately as the hotel was out of them. And another flash card very cheaply 8G for $10, so I think I’ll buy more another day.
Then we found our way to Sandy’s Pearl shop, a classier place on the top floor, where Ann sent us as she knew Sandy from previous trips. They had amazing fantastic jewelry, mostly of pearls and pearl type stones, so I actually bought a few, some black pearls and some peachy colored ones, as well as a multicolor necklace. Prices were very good of course and we were assured of good quality. About ten of us crowded into a tiny little shop, and they strung up the pearls to order in the size and clasp that you wanted.
Another fantastic dinner, at the most famous Peking Duck Restaurant in China, with hoards of tourists, both western and Chinese, but we had our room reserved for us, thanks to Joe Jin our fabulous guide. The duck dishes were unbelievable, really really tasty and interesting, so I am quite full and ready for bed when I should be walking it off. That’s for tomorrow and the Great Wall!!
China Day 18 – Monday July 13, 2009 – Beijing
This morning was for the Great Wall, and it is truly Great, even the small part that we saw at Badaling, with its thousands of tourists – 400 day campers in one group – all crowding up and down the rather narrow, but incredibly steep walkway. Horses could never make this trek, but perhaps donkeys could if they had donkeys. I managed to walk halfway up two sides of the wall from the entrance gate, but that was enough on a hot day. It is truly spectacular, and the usual photos don’t do the experience justice, as it is much longer and steeper than shown. But we are small and the wall is Big, like most things here in China.
We ate lunch on the road back to Beijing in a small jade factory, where we watched a few people on show making jade carvings with a small hand drill; we were always glad to find a place to cool down and get decent bathrooms (although the tourist shop at the Wall had some sit-down ones). We measure the places we visit by the state of the toilets, but if that isn’t a sign of civilization, then what is.
After lunch we went directly to a Hutong area of Beijing, the old (and I mean OLD) type courtyard houses in narrow alleys. We didn’t have time to visit any restored ones, but the lecture we heard was about the preservation and renovation of these Hutongs, so as to keep the “old Beijing” alive, when too many of them have been torn down for apt. towers. Well the studio where we heard the lecture with powerpoint by a preservation expert was on the fourth floor of a walkup old building, where each floor was as tall as two floors, so that meant eight floors to walk up. Well we all finally made it, and then the studio was hot hot hot, no AC and no fans. We were just suffering trying to follow the talk and keep cool by keeping still. And after lunch no less. But we learned a lot about the state of old and new Beijing, all being built up since the 1950s, when the city was a minor town of few buildings of any size. Amazing changes and thus the stress on keeping at least some of the old town structures.
Well we didn’t leave the talk until nearly six, when we found the bus in the rain (it started to really pour while we were inside, and then the windows slammed shut so we were hotter). So the original plan to go somewhere by Bus was changed to go to a restaurant in the mall from the hotel. Thankfully Marriotts are usually connected to malls, as this one is, so we didn’t have to go out in the rain again.
This was some day of walking for sure, so glad to put my feet up. Maybe I should get a Chinese foot massage, as some people have done.
China Day 19 – Tuesday July 14, 2009 – Beijing
The Lama Temple was very bright and colorful, not too large, with many trees in the area, and not too many people there, so the ideal size. Many were offering burning sticks though, bowing three times in four corners, or kneeling in front of the temple. Westerners were doing it too. None of us did, not being Buddhists.
Then we bussed over to the Olympic site, and that was fantastic; the birds nest stadium even more impressive close up and somehow quite different in person than in photographs, which don’t show the massiveness of the structural webbing. We couldn’t go in, but lots of yellow-shirted day-campers had gone in, but we could walk around the grounds, and admire it, as it must have been truly spectacular in the Olympics, and probably at night lit up from within.
Then lunch of course, but this time quite an unusual one, the “hot pot” place, where you get your own cooking pot on a little stove in front of you, and you pick the food to boil from the cut up foods coming around on the table. I was needlessly fearful of 12 people sitting around the table with cooking oil, but we managed quite well, and the variety was again fantastic, and all the dishes very tasty, except the potatoes somehow, as just boiled they weren’t that good even with the peanut sauce. Meat was good when cooked quickly, shrimp wonderful, fish balls good, etc.
After a short stop at a so-called “cultural street” with more tourist shops, we went by bus to our lecture at the CEAIE (China Educational Association for International Education) given by the Secretary General, a very senior person, and his assistant who gave a power point presentation. Many questions were asked and answered, and we learned quite a lot about the changing goals of the educational system here, and the welcome mat extended now to foreign students. Chinese students are also encouraged to study abroad, but US visa problems makes it difficult, so most of them go to Australia, New Zealand, Britain, and other European countries. Let’s hope our country will be more welcoming in future.
The traffic here in Beijing is intense and unlovely, whereas we had fewer problems in Shanghai or Hong Kong. It takes ages to go from one section of the city to another, so we were a bit late for our dinner at another restaurant, as we made a very short stop at the hotel. This was a buffet type restaurant, and they cooked the food to order, as well as having many types of foods laid out for you. We split up into several tables by now, as our guide Joe Jin had invited several of his friends to talk with us about China things. Most of them were lawyers or top officials, and nearly all had gotten advanced degrees in the U.S., which seems to be the way to a better life here. That may change as the universities and colleges are undergoing massive self-improvements both physically, as we have seen, and philosophically, in their openness to western ways.
Our after dinner ride to see some of the buildings lit up was interesting, but nothing beats Hong Kong for lights at night.
China Day 20 – Wednesday July 15, 2009 – Beijing
Today was a Free Day, no events planned, so we could catch up on shopping and laundry, and museums. I did the first two only, then went to dinner at the restaurant in the mall. Unfortunately there was no English on the menu, nor did any waitress speak it, so we chose from the pictures, and unfortunately one of the dishes was frog stew as we learned later. However it was too spicy so I didn’t eat any, so when we found out what it was I was thankful for that.
Four of us went to the Silk Market, a huge building with stalls selling everything under the sun, with very aggressive sales girls, who poke you and throw scarves in your face until you buy something. Well we bought scarves, t-shirts, etc.
Another building down the block was an older store, the Friendship Store, and it was the first department store in China in 1964. Now it is totally deserted, being government owned, and the sales people ignore you as they chat among themselves, selling nothing. Quite the opposite of the Silk Market, where they accost you in the aisles.
Tomorrow the Forbidden City !!
China Day 21 – Thursday July 16, 2009 – Beijing
At last we get to the Forbidden City. First Tianamen Square with thousands and thousands of people lined up to go into Mao’s Mausoleum. But we did not go there. Headed across the square—and it is BIG, to the FC and more thousands and thousands of people. But the masses of people made it seem as busy as in the Imperial Court with its thousands of attendants. Well of course we are dressed differently, and unlike the old officials who knew their business, we were in a daze at the vastness of it. Many, many courtyards and throne rooms and temples in the complex. Displays in the side buildings, and you could only peek into the throne rooms, not go in and sit on the thrones (ha ha). One display intrigued me the most, it was a huge many windowed display of little terracotta figures and buildings, copying a famous painting with its thousands of people and buildings (I had bought a foldout postcard of this type of painting some time ago). Of course I took a lot of pictures of that display, as you could freely take photos anywhere that was open. One of the wives of the emperor lived in a courtyard house on the side of the complex, and it was unrestored and open to visitors; it was oddly small and modest, in contrast to the throne rooms. But this was a lesser wife, only a concubine, but a chief one at that. Another display held old costumes from centuries ago, massive-looking outfits that must have been incredibly hot and heavy to wear. Eventually after many temples and throne rooms and side rooms we got to the imperial garden and the coffee shop, where we had a snack for lunch.
This took all morning until 1pm, and we were due at the American embassy at 2pm, a long bus ride through traffic to the other side of the city and the brand new and very large embassy building. We couldn’t take any electronic stuff, cameras, cell phones, etc., inside, so left everything on the bus, but the driver stayed with it. Just took our passports, which we surrendered at the gate for visitors’ passes. After passing through several sets of gates (like the emperors! but uglier) we reached the lobby and our very plain meeting room. Two diplomats met us and one gave us a talk about the economic ties and forthcoming ties with China, since he was with the financial side of things. About 500 people work there, some Chinese of course. We were able to ask a few questions and get a few answers, as the meeting was “off the record” and we’re not supposed to publish any remarks. However they were very general remarks, which one could learn from anyone.
Then back to the hotel for an hour’s rest and our next stop for an early dinner at another famous restaurant, where Colin Powell had eaten (his photo was there!). Of course the food was fantastic and we ate too much again. After dinner we went by bus to another hotel, where the Peking Opera show was on. And that sure was fun, even as tired as I was. There were several short stories, rather than one long one, to keep your attention. Things got busier and busier, and the last one had acrobatics included, and about ten guys with two spears each fighting one little lady who also had two swords. Of course she won!!
After the show we bussed over to a tea house for the Chinese tea ceremony, where we had our own little room for a seminar wrap-up. Everyone offered their thoughts on what was important to them about the experience, so it was interesting to hear different viewpoints about the past three weeks, which went by so very quickly. It was a fine way to end the tour, although it made for a very very long but satisfying day.
Now finally to Xi’an
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