China Days 6 & 7

                Well, on the 6^th day we once again had to get up very very early for a flight. We left our hostel at 5:30am and our flight life at 9am. So the whole morning was once again a travel day. I love travel mornings like this though because it gave me time to catch up on the much needed sleep. Once we got to Shanghai we had to once again get off the plane and figure out how to get from the airport to our ship. This does not sound very difficult, but when you have visited nine other countries and you don’t speak any portion of the language your brain starts to confuse things. Oh well, it was still fun to try and figure it out.

                Once we got on the right train we just people watched for about twenty minutes. It is amazing how fast trains go in China. It made me realize how slow stuff in the states moves. When we got off the train we then had just a five minute walk to the ship. Well, the ship was not really where it was supposed to be so it took us almost a half an hour to find the ship.

                After we found the ship we all took naps and showers. Before we knew it, it was time for dinner.  It was really nice to just relax a little. After dinner I hung out with Molly, Meagan, and Matt around Shanghai. I think this was one of my favorite cities at night. I really enjoyed just walking around downtown Shanghai and getting to experience the night life of another city.

                On my last day in China I had a field experience. I went and saw two different Buddhist temples. The first one had a pagoda which is where the ashes of the original Buddha are kept and used as a place of worship. It also had a few temples with different Buddsadfas, statues of Buddha himself, and other gods and goddess to worship. The temple was full of people there on a Saturday morning to worship Buddha and to make wishes or prayers to each of the Gods. The god that was the most popular was the fertility god; anyone who could go to this God and pray for fertility of any of their family members. I think this is so strange only because I am not familiar with this religions practice.

                The second temple I went to was the Jade Buddha Temple. This is where the only two remaining jade Buddha statues from Burma are housed. These statues were beautiful! It was interesting how drastic in size they were from one another. They were still beautiful though. At this temple I also got to taste what the Chinese call Buddha tea. This is herbal tea that has medical uses. Most of the tea was delicious. Of course I had to purchase a little bit of my tea which is actually supposed to help with relaxation.

                Once I was finished with my FDP it was time to get back on the ship to leave to go to Japan. I loved China. It was a great experience between the language barrier, the drastic culture difference, and the sheer number of people. I know that I would love to come back here one day. I can’t wait to get to Japan though!    

China Day 5

                Well, yet again this morning started out rocky. I’m not really sure what happened but our alarm did not go off so none of us woke up until 7:20am and we had to leave by 7:30. Well, of course we all pulled through and rushed to get ready. Then Brittany, Ada, a new friend from the ship Grace, and I got into a cab and traveled the two hours to The Great Wall of China. Brittany, Ada, and I were exhausted so we took a nap while Grace stayed awake.

                Before we knew it we could see some of the lower portions of the wall. This got all of us excited for what we were about to do. Our taxi driver parked the car, took us to the ticket booth, and then showed us where he would be waiting for us when we were finished. So, we bought our tickets and began our journey to the Great Wall.

                To get to the top of the wall we took a ski lift. This was a cool way to get to the top for many reasons. First, we didn’t have to walk which was nice especially at 9am. Second, it took almost 1/8 the time it would have taken had we walked up to the wall. Third and most importantly, I was able to slowly watch all civilization as I knew it disappear into nothing but a small ant hill and see the wall gradually turn from a dream of mine into a reality.

                As we got off the ski lift I could not believe where I actually was. I’m still processing everything that happened. I mean this was my second Seven Wonders of the World in a matter of weeks. How many people outside of Semester at Sea can really say they have achieved that?

                We spent the next two hours exploring the Great Wall. I had no idea how incredible it was! I could not imagine how anyone could build such an incredible monument. There some strange things about the wall though. The spacing of the shelters was very sporadic from what I could see. The three we went to where not placed by space, but instead placed by the tops of the mountains. As I write this I guess that makes sense, but at the tie I thought it was really interesting especially because there was not a shelter on each mountain top. So how did they decide which mountain tops got shelters? Another strange detail is that the stairs are all uneven. Some of the steps were so small that an infant could walk up the stairs, while others were so large I had to use my hands to help push myself up to the next step. In general though, this place was beautiful. I think my favorite part of the mountain was the parts we were not allowed to go to because they were so deteriorated. I think I liked these areas so much because it shows the long history the wall has. Each section of erosion tells a different story of the wall fulfilling its purpose. I just loved the wall even though it was really windy and a little chilly.

                On the way back down to the bottom of the wall we got to toboggan! It was so fun. We honestly went on a curvy water slide like trip down from the Great Wall. While this can be very confusing because what kind of historical land mark is the Great Wall if you have to add something fun like tobogganing down, but at the same time it is a way to keep money coming in to keep up with repairs.

                On the way out we stopped at some of the local markets and bought fresh dried fruit. My favorite was the dried cherries. Then we took the two hour car ride back to Beijing. The taxi driver dropped us off at a local market where we spent the afternoon shopping. This seven story market was full of literally anything you could imagine! It was a fun day that is for sure!

                That evening we ate dinner at our hostel which was delicious. When dinner was finished Ada and I decided to go explore night life in the area. I just enjoyed spending time with Ada getting to talk and enjoy life in China.

                I wish that I had more to say about the Great Wall of China. I’m just still processing everything. Know that it was the only thing I wanted to do in China, and it was my favorite thing in China by far. Pictures and words could never describe what I saw, felt, and experienced.       

China Days 3&4

                Well, this morning started out a little rocky. I got up and got ready for the day, but Ada and Brittany’s alarm did not go off so they didn’t get up until 10 minutes before we had to leave. We checked out of our hostel because we were not staying there that night and check out was going to be while we were gone. The nice thing was that they let us leave our bags in their locker so we didn’t have to carry them around all day.

                So we got on the bus and traveled just about an hour north of Guilin to another city called Yangshuo. Our main stop was to visit the Li River. This is one of the most visited places in all of China. This river is surrounded by mountains and deep gorges. The sun peaks around each mountain top like a child peaks out from under its covers.  The calm river acted as a sheet of glass for our bambooish raft to float on. I was able to sit on the river for just about two hours enjoying the scenery. While on the river not only did I see few tourist, but I saw local families out fishing, eating meals together on the shore, and fisherman working hard to support their families. Moments like these are my favorite parts about SAS. When I can see an almost authentic view of what life is like in the countries that I visit. One the small raft Brittany and I were on we met two guys who were also staying at our hostel, Jasper and Sven. Little did we know they would be such a big part of our day.

                Once we got off the raft the six of us: Brittany, Ada, Carlos, Sergio, Neil, and I took a half hour bus ride to the city of Yangshuo. Once we got to Yangshuo we dropped off the guys stuff at the hostel they were staying at. We really wanted to stay in Yangshuo that night as well, but we had an early flight. So, we just had to make the best of the time we had there. By this time it is almost time for dinner. So, we found this cool little café in the middle of West St. West St. is like the Broadway of Yangshuo. This whole big group sat in this café and enjoy a meal, drink (everyone but me), and laughter. As I sat there listening to these conversations I couldn’t help but smile. How many times in my life will I get to sit at a table in the middle of China with people from all over the world and the only thing we have in common is the fact that we all stayed at the same hostel. It was just an awesome moment. This was one of those moments when I felt like this life I have been living for 3 months was a dream. In this moment I could not believe that this was my real life.

                After dinner the girls decided to go shopping and the boys went to a jazz club/bar. So, reluctantly we all said our goodbyes and parted ways.  As soon as Brittany, Ada, and I left them we said we wanted to go back and hang with them some more. Who knew how close you could get to someone so quickly? Shopping was a blast! The three of us turned it into a game and it made the evening fly by. Before I knew it, it was time to get on the last bus to get to Guilin.

                The bus dropped us off very close to our hostel where we were going to pick up our bags and go to our next hostel. Well, when we got to the hostel my original roommates Nicole and Saddie from Great Britain were there and Jasper and Sven. Long story short the six of us convinced the bar tender to let us stay! Jason (the bar tender and one of the owners) told us he would give up his room and sleep in the common room that night so the three of us would have somewhere to stay. Everyone was so excited because no one wanted us to leave (including us). So, yet again we stayed up literally all night just talking and dancing. It was a great night! These 2 nights at WADA (the name of our hostel) were my favorite nights on this whole journey.

                At 5am Brittany, Ada, and I had to get a taxi to go to the airport. Well, because we had decided so late to stay at WADA we had not ordered a cab to pick us up. So at 5am Jason came outside with us and helped us get a cab, negotiate price, and tell the driver where we wanted to go. We hugged Jason and the girls who worked there for everything and promised them that someday we would be back!

                Most of the day was a travel day. We had a flight at almost 9am, but first had to drive over an hour and then check in. Then a two hour flight to Beijing, get off the plane, and then figure out how to get to our next hostel. So in order to get to our hostel we had to take the Airport Express for about a half hour, then negotiate the subway system and get off at whatever the name of our stop was with two transfers. I know as you read this I don’t sound like a good navigator, but trust me I am a pro! Without me I think we would have gotten lost! Lol ANYWAY…..once we got off at the right stop we had to walk just about five minutes to the hostel. The walk was interesting too. Our hostel was called Fly by Night and it was tucked away in this alley. Before you get worried it was a VERY safe neighborhood. The main road had a lot of store fronts and the alleys were where the owners generally lived. So, we walked past people walking their dogs and local hole in the wall restaurants. The walk to the hostel was actually one of my favorite parts of this hostel.

                When we finally reached the hostel we were so impressed. The main gate of the hostel was locked and we had to be buzzed in. Then, there was this cool cul-de-sac feeling. All the doors to the rooms all faced the center so everyone really felt like a community. We checked in and then decided to go and explore.

                At first we really just explored the area. It was about rush hour when we went to get on the subway. That was interesting, only because the subway in general was always crowded. Holy cow was it so crowded. I literally was suspended in air at one point because there were so many people that there was not enough room for my feet. It was a very strange feeling. The main thing that we saw today was Tiananmen Square. It was a very overwhelming place to be in. the weirdest part was that we could stand there and know of the devastation that happened, but to also know that the Chinese government does not acknowledge its occurrence was hard. However, as we stood there we saw countless numbers of police personal there paying close attention to everyone who passed by. Our thought was if the Chinese government does not recognize the existence of the “incident” then why have so many police officers there?  I guess we will never know.                

                Finally, we went and got some dinner which was interesting. I’m not really sure what we had all I remember is that none of us really liked it that much. I was so surprised how much I didn’t like the Chinese food in China in general. If anything it made me very excited to come home and eat at my favorite Chinese restaurant in Greenville. Lol

                After dinner the three of us decided to call it an early night simple because the next day we had a very early start at the Great Wall!         

China day 2

                This morning I woke up and prepared for one of the activities that I have been looking forward to since I discovered I was traveling independently. The three of us got into a van with a small group of people to the Rice Terraces. The woman who was our tour guide, named Sophia, was awesome. Her short stature and sweet smile put all of us at ease as we traveled over 2 hours away from any major city in China.

                On the way to the Rice Terraces Sophia told us about how the Yao people migrated from Guilin to escape war. She also told us that the Yao people have some very unique ways of attracting their future mate. A woman shows her attraction to a man by pitching his butt; the harder the pinch the deeper the attraction. A man shows his attraction to a woman by touching her foot. The men also have unique things they look for in a wife. The men want a woman with big hips for children, large feet to climb the mountain, a loud voice to yell for the husband in the mountains, and small fingers for better pinching! Another thing that is very different about the Yao women is that they only cut their hair once in their life, and that is on their 18^th birthday. The Genesis Book of World Records holder for the world’s longest hair is a Yao woman whose hair exceeds 2.1 meters. You are probably wondering what do they do with all of that hair? Well, a woman’s hair helps show the men and the community at what stage of life they are in. There are only three hairstyles in the community: one where they wrap the hair in black cloth which means they are not married, one that is wrapped in the style of a “cat tail” as they call it to signify they are married with no children, and one that is wrapped in the style of a “dragon” which means they are married and have children.  

                The first stop was to actually go and visit the Yao people. We got to watch a show that helped show us some of the culture’s rituals and life styles. The end of the show was the weirdest part. They showed us how they wrap their hair. I was honestly in shock. I could not understand how their heads hold up all that weight.

                After the show our group went and ate lunch at a local restaurant. This is where Brittany, Ada, and I got to know the two guys that were with us. One of the guy’s names was Carlos and the other is Sergio. Carlos was born in Brazil, grew up in Germany, and just finished a year fellowship in Bio Chemistry in Hong Kong. Sergio is from Switzerland and is in China visiting his brother who lives here. The five of us hit it off right away! In talking to Carlos I discovered that he used to work at the headquarters of BASF, which is the company my dad works for! So strange!!!! We all sat there talking about our lives and what we were all doing in China. As we got into the car to head to the actual terraces Brittany, Ada, and I knew we had just made friends for life.

                On the way up to the terraces we had to drive up the side of a mountain. The roads are crazy! It was like a roller coaster complete with sharp turns, obstacles, and high speeds (don’t worry Mom we didn’t crash lol). Once we arrived at the terraces we started hiking up the mountain to get a view from the top. It was a little overcast and windy so the temperature was chilly, but nothing compared to a Cleveland winter. The hike up was beautiful! The higher we climbed the more detail I could see in the sides of these mountains. The elaborate twists and turns in the rice fields are something to marvel at. When the group reached the top I was almost speechless. To see all of these fields that used to be full of rice was incredible. I mean, who thought to plant rice on the side of a mountain. I think one of my favorite parts was at the top of the mountain we climbed we could see other mountains full of rice fields playing peak-a-boo with the clouds. I am honestly still trying to process what I saw. It is hard to imagine everything that I have seen. I will be processing for years to come I think.

                While at the top I noticed a guy that I met briefly at the Yao People show. His name was Adam. So, I decided to go over and talk to him some more. At the Yao people show I learned that he was teaching English here in China, and I thought this was a perfect time to pick his brain about how he got here. So at the beginning of our discussion I asked him where he was from. He told me he was from Ohio, and when I asked where my jaw dropped when he answered from Akron. I could not believe it! Akron! As Adam and I spoke a little longer we began speaking of where we had originally come from. Come to find out he knew of Greenville, Ohio because he is originally from Carrollton! Can you believe that, two people meeting in random Guilin, China having grown up 45 minutes away from one another? It felt like such a small world. We exchanged emails to keep in contact, and then I had to quickly disappear because my group was leaving.

                On the way back to our hostel we met a traffic jam on the side of the mountain. The weirdest part about the traffic jam was that everyone just turns off their car and gets out. Sophia was telling us that they never know how long they will be stuck there so instead of wasting gas they turn their car off. She then told us that people often get bored sitting in their car usually alone so they all get out and talk or help if there is an accident or something. I found this very strange. I made the comment that you know someone is really badly hurt or worse if people are turning off their cars in a traffic jam in the states.  Luckily this traffic jam was only about a half hour. So on the road again back to the hostel.

                Once we got to the hostel the five of us shared dumplings and rice for dinner. During dinner Carlos remembered it was his birthday! How do you forget something like that? Well, needless to say we celebrated his birthday. Brittany and Ada went and found a bakery that was open late and bought a small cake to celebrate with. While celebrating his birthday with cake we made another friend. His name was Neil and he was from Sweden. We also all discovered that we all planned on doing similar things the next day so we decided to join up and go together.  

                One more really weird thing happened to me this day. This group of people came into our hostel at about 1am to check in. Out of nowhere this guy asks me if I know a guy named Brody. I say well, I know a Brody. This guy proceeds to say yeah Brody from Baldwin-Wallace in Cleveland, Ohio! I had no idea but a guy from my school is studying abroad in Hong Kong and I had just met his roommate. The school he is studying at was on spring break and so Brody’s roommate in Hong Kong had decided to come to Guilin, and recognized my BW t-shirt I was wearing. How crazy!!!!!

Even though we knew we had a busy day tomorrow we stayed up almost all night just talking and laughing. This day had been a great day!