I'm back! I hate that I get stressed out if its been over a week and I have not posted anything. My excuse was that I was traveling, then I was getting over being sick (food poisoning ruined the amazing Xinjiang food I ate), then I was getting back to my life in Harbin, then my internet connection was not good. And, well, a lot was going on.
I promised pictures. I tried to load some on here but they did not work too well (slow connection). Here is a link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=112465&id=721517517&l=bf1bb9fc7e
In other news, just this week the New York Times reported this article about China's plans to rebuild the ancient city of Kashgar. This was where I was (see pictures). I'm glad I saw it when I did. When the government gets involved to 'help' or to turn an area into a tourist destination, the result seems to be Disneyland. Not to mention that there are real people living there.
www.nytimes.com/2009/05/28/world/asia/28kashgar.html
I have so much more to write about. I will keep it short.
1) Swine flu is a huge scare here. Taxi drivers in Beijing were scared of us when I told them my friend had just come from the US. People moved away from us on airplanes and airports. Newspapers are reporting Chinese students in the US are urging their fellow students not to return to China for fear of spreading the disease. They were criticizing the US for not being as concerned as in China. I found it a bit ironic, after China ignored SARS for so long when it was here.
2) Showing a friend China is fun (and tiring). What I like about it is the fresh perspectives and observations they bring. It makes me think about my own interpretations of things happening here. One of my favorite lines from Betsy came after she had been here about a week. She had always wanted to come to China and had an idyllic vision in her head of what China would be like. Two years ago she had spent 3 months in Japan and she said "Wow, being here really makes me appreciate Japan!" Japan is orderly and people observe some kind of social etiquette. In China, however, cars drive on sidewalks, in the wrong lanes, and they honk at anything and everything in their way. People rarely wait in lines, pushing, shoving and spitting on the sidewalk is common practice, and its quite acceptable to yell to the waitress across a crowded restaurant to get the bill. To the outside observer, Chinese society can appear to be chaos.
3) Rice is being planted in the fields now! We just had a bunch of rain here. Pictures to come soon.
4) I'm definitely much more of a football fan than a hockey fan, but I have to show some home-town support. Go Penguins!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Change of plans
Saturday morning, as planned I was at the airport with my friend Betsy en route to Mongolia. We had already gone through customs and were waiting to get on our flight to Mongolia. Then we were told there was a snowstorm in Ulaan Bataar and it was delayed 12 hours. Rather than waiting all day in the Beijing airport and missing a day in Mongolia (which already felt rushed anyway for only 6 days in the vast country), we found out we were able to refund our tickets. We went backwards through customs and the next question was: where to go?
We were in the capital airport of China with all our money refunded. The options were endless, except that I have already been to many places in China. When Betsy said she wanted to go west, I said 'let's look for tickets to Xinjiang.'
We were here by Saturday evening. Xinjiang is the large province in the northwest of China, home to the Muslim Uighur population. Since I first came to China in 2001, this is the one place I have always wanted to visit, but never had the time to get here since its so far away.
I am now in Kashgar (Kashi in Chinese) now, a city in the far west of Xinjiang. We visited the big Sunday market/bazaar in town on Sunday and strolled through the old town. We spent the past 2 days driving through the mountains visiting Tajik and Krygy villages. We were really close to Afghanistan. We stayed in a Krygy (sp?) family's yurt at about 3,500 m high and then woke up and climbed a 4,200 m mountain (with the help of motorbikes) to see a glacier. We rented bikes today to get around the city. Heading back to Xinjiang's capital Urumqi soon, and then back to Harbin by Friday night (if all goes well).
Stay tuned for pictures of this amazing place. Its a completely different world from the Han Chinese (the majority) parts of China. Its definitely the refreshment away from China that I needed as I head into my last chunk of research time in Heilongjiang.
We were in the capital airport of China with all our money refunded. The options were endless, except that I have already been to many places in China. When Betsy said she wanted to go west, I said 'let's look for tickets to Xinjiang.'
We were here by Saturday evening. Xinjiang is the large province in the northwest of China, home to the Muslim Uighur population. Since I first came to China in 2001, this is the one place I have always wanted to visit, but never had the time to get here since its so far away.
I am now in Kashgar (Kashi in Chinese) now, a city in the far west of Xinjiang. We visited the big Sunday market/bazaar in town on Sunday and strolled through the old town. We spent the past 2 days driving through the mountains visiting Tajik and Krygy villages. We were really close to Afghanistan. We stayed in a Krygy (sp?) family's yurt at about 3,500 m high and then woke up and climbed a 4,200 m mountain (with the help of motorbikes) to see a glacier. We rented bikes today to get around the city. Heading back to Xinjiang's capital Urumqi soon, and then back to Harbin by Friday night (if all goes well).
Stay tuned for pictures of this amazing place. Its a completely different world from the Han Chinese (the majority) parts of China. Its definitely the refreshment away from China that I needed as I head into my last chunk of research time in Heilongjiang.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Asian Adventures
I am in Beijing, waiting for my friend Betsy to arrive. Two years ago, Betsy and I spent a week in Japan hopping trains, climbing mountains, chasing volcanoes, and bathing in hot springs. Now its tome for our Asian Adventure #2.
Its her first time to China, so we are heading to the Great Wall, Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and the Olympic park in the next few days. But then we are heading to Mongolia (the REAL one-not China's Inner Mongolia) for 6 days. We are hoping to repeat our Japanese adventure, Mongolian-style. Horses, mountains, lakes, grasslands, gers, etc. all await us.
Then we are returning to Harbin where Betsy will accompany me to the rice fields and maybe we will get to plant some rice. Hopefully I will be back in a week with plenty of pictures and stories.
Its her first time to China, so we are heading to the Great Wall, Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and the Olympic park in the next few days. But then we are heading to Mongolia (the REAL one-not China's Inner Mongolia) for 6 days. We are hoping to repeat our Japanese adventure, Mongolian-style. Horses, mountains, lakes, grasslands, gers, etc. all await us.
Then we are returning to Harbin where Betsy will accompany me to the rice fields and maybe we will get to plant some rice. Hopefully I will be back in a week with plenty of pictures and stories.
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