Shangri-La!!!

We made it to Shangri-La! Zhongdian is home to many Tibetan minority villagers. We got the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to visit a Tibetan family, in the foothills of the Himalayas. We tasted Yak butter tea, buckwheat, and Yak cheese. When mixed together, it tasted a lot like cheerios. We learned about the burial traditions in this community, and wow--was that different. We also visited Bitahai Lake. It rained a lot, but we enjoyed the hike anyway.

Tiger-Leaping Gorge

As our tour bus made its way through steep mountain cliffs with hairpin turns to Tiger-Leaping Gorge, we figured out why we had to purchase the trip insurance. Once we arrived at the gorge, we saw beatiful scenery. The day was filled with a flood of emotions, as the breathtaking sights in southwestern China simply amaze us more and more each day. We also saw the first bend of the Yangtze river.

Lijiang

Today we traveled to Lijiang. It is a wonderful town in Yunnan province. We strolled along the cobblestone streets, where we saw lots of typical Chinese shops. Our group has become a family of close friends, and we are amazed at the sights and sounds of China. We were treated to an outstanding Naxi Music Performance. Some of us walked around at night to see the nightlife in the area. There wasn't much to do near our hotel, so we all went to sleep pretty early. On June 28th, we visited Jade Dragon Mountain. It was a nice hike, but it was cold. Several of us bought hot pink jackets that reminded me of the "pink ladies" from Grease. We have developed our own rating system for Chinese toilets, and as we travel to more rural areas we find the toilets get more and more primitive. We visited a Baisha village, where many of us purchased authentic foot-binding shoes to show students in our classrooms. We also visited the Donga Cultural Center, where we learned about Dongba--the last hieroglyphic language still used in the world today. I got the Dongba Shaman to write the Brookwood Middle School motto on a scroll for my classroom. This evening, some of us visited the Taco Bar and the New Amsterdam Pub. I even met a lady from Alabama who was teaching English in Lijiang. Greg and I "toasted" to a good trip, and (dragons that we are), we accidentally broke the drink glasses. The music in both places was great, especially "Wake me Up Before you Go-Go" and AC/DC's "Shook Me All Night Long." What a wonderful two days in Lijiang!

The Yin and the Yang

We made our way to Dali today. Every trip has its high and low points. Today's "cruise tour" on Erhai Lake was--interesting. We were all extremely tired, it was raining, and our stop at an "island" was quite odd. However, we visited a Butterfly Spring and it was beautiful. We also visited a place that specializes in making Batik fabrics. In the afternoon, we toured the site of the Three Elegant Pagodas, which was also home to a newly-built Buddhist Temple. At night, a few of us walked the streets of Dali, to see the nightlife. It was still a little rainy, so we didn't stay long. We also felt like we were walking in a "shady" area, so we returned to the hotel pretty quickly.

The Stone Forest

Today we traveled to the Stone Forest. It looked like something out of an Indiana Jones movie. We tasted "corn-flavored" ice cream, and for a moment John thought he lost his camera. As usual, Richard met many new friends during our hike throught the forest. We had lunch at a noodle place, and returned to our hotel in the evening. We returned to "The Hump" for a history lesson with friends.

Kunming

We checked out of our hotel in Xi'an, and headed to the southwestern Chinese province of Yunnan. Yunnan is home to the majority of China's ethnic minority groups. Kunming is also important in American History, because of the Flying Tigers. Flying Tigers was the popular name of the 1st American Volunteer Group of the Chinese Air Force in 1941-1942. Arguably, the group was a private military contractor, and for that reason the volunteers have sometimes been called mercenaries. They were mostly former United States Army (USAAF), Navy (USN), and Marine Corps (USMC) pilots and ground crew, recruited under Presidential sanction and commanded by Claire Lee Chennault. The group consisted of three fighter squadrons with about 20 aircraft each. It trained in Burma before the American entry into World War II with the mission of defending China against Japanese forces.
The Tigers' shark-faced fighters remain among the most recognizable of any individual combat aircraft of World War II, and they demonstrated innovative tactical victories when the news in the U.S. was filled with little more than stories of defeat at the hands of the Japanese forces.
The group first saw combat on 20 December 1941, 12 days after Pearl Harbor (local time). It achieved notable success during the lowest period of the war for U.S. and Allied Forces, giving hope to Americans that they would eventually succeed against the Japanese. The Tigers were paid combat bonuses for destroying nearly 300 enemy aircraft while losing only 14 pilots on combat missions.

The area they flew over is nicknamed "The Hump" and there is a nice place named in its honor in the middle of Kunming. Inside this restaurant today, you can see jackets worn by some of the pilots, as well as many photos and memorabilia. We had fun looking at all the historical sites on the walls. We also bonded as a group by playing a fun "world capitals" trivia game.

We also visited the Dragon Gate and the Western Hills, which were both beautiful.

School Visit in Xi'an

Today we visited a middle school that has over 4,000 students. The name of the school means "I love knowledge." It is the first English Language Immersion School in China, and they have 198 teachers. I practiced "ordering dinner" in an English class with a girl named Alice. I gave the school a book about Alabama. Students performed dances, the band played music, we were given beautiful gifts. The average class size is 50, and students always stand up to answer a question in class. They wanted to know about American schools. They attend nine classes each day, and each class is 40 minutes long. Teachers are very well-respected, and we were the first group of teachers from the United States to visit the school.

After the school visit, we had free study time. I wanted to study how China is quickly growing into a capitalist society. I visited many local stores, including a home furnishings store, a Chinese supermarket, and other places of interest.

The Warriors

There aren't too many days in my life that top seeing the Terra Cotta Warriors in Xi'an. In 1974, four farmers found the warrios. We got to meet Mr. Yang, who was one of the farmers. The Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses are the most significant archeological excavations of the 20th century. Work is ongoing at this site, which is around 1.5 kilometers east of Emperor Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum, Lintong County, Shaanxi Province. It is a sight not to be missed by any visitor to China.

We visited an Islamic section of Xi'an in the afternoon, where we learned about the Muslim minorities in China. We also visited a "cave home" at the Hong Jia Village. At night, a few of us took a wild and crazy taxi cab ride back to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda to see the largest water show in Asia.

A "Ding-Ding-Hao" Day!

We arrived in Xi'an, China's ancient capital, very early in the morning. We ate breakfast at a local McDonalds and my egg mcmuffin was wonderful. We visited the Shanxi Museum, and wandered around the city's wall. We visited the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, where we made our way into a zodiac shop. My zodiac year, 1976, is the year of the dragon. Qiong and Greg are also dragons in our group. A zodiac book near the pagoda told us that we could be "crime geniuses," and we all laughed. That evening, we had an Imperial Dumpling Banquet Dinner while we watched a Tang Dynasty Singing and Dancing Show.

Last Day in Beijing

Everyone told stories about their free-day adventures. I laughed while I listened to Melanie B. tell the story of visiting her nephew who lives in a hutong, while he attends college in the city. It was also fun hearing how Richard (who never meets a stranger) found himself with members of our group outstretched in a Chinese teacher's hutong, while the teacher painted calligraphy for some of the members.

We visited the Summer Palace today, and it was absolutely beautiful. We also visited the Olympic Park, where we toured the WaterCube and the Bird's Nest.

We all took rickshaw rides through a traditional neighborhood, and had lunch inside a hutong. Later that night, we shopped and ate on Wang-Fu-Jing, where we actually ran into the "kidnappers" from the day before! They were very nice and even posed for photos with us. They still wanted to show us some "artwork," but we resisted. We boarded our overnight train to Xi'an, where we enjoyed the experience of rail travel throughout China. There's nothing like trying to use an Eastern Toilet while the train is moving--Good Times!

Lost in Beijing

Sometimes in life you have to lose yourself, before you can find the right way. I spent the morning wandering the streets of Beijing. I was on a mission to find the Pearl Market. I had a map with me--that was written only in Chinese. However, there was a picture of a pearl where the market was located, so that came in handy when asking for directions. Of course, I got lost and found myself walking past local hutongs. I ran into a fellow teacher in our group who was also lost, and was looking for the Underground City. We decided to try and look for both places together. We hired a rickshaw driver who told us (in Chinese) that he would take us to the underground city. When we got there, we saw a sign that said the underground city was closed. The rickshaw driver quickly drove away, and we were lost in Beijing once again. With our Chinese map, we pointed to the "pearl" and some nice ladies pointed us in the direction of the Pearl Market. When we finally found the market, we were overwhelmed with the huge amount of vendors selling pearls. I bargained at shop #158, where I bought pearls for many friends and family. The vendors were nice enough to double-knot the pearls for me, and I considered my mission a success.
Later that same afternoon, a few teachers in my group and I were approached by some "art students." They wanted us to see their artwork. Maryanne was very trusting of the students, so Jerry and I followed Maryanne and the students to the "university." To make a long story short, we think we almost got lured into a hotel. We could've been kidnapped--but we walked away before the "students" had a chance to get us.
That night, lots of us walked down to Wang-Fu-Jing street. It is like Times Square. It is also close to the famous Night Market, where Andrew Zimmerman filmed an episode of "Bizarre Foods." We saw people eating beetles, starfish, sea horses, and various types of meat. Overall it was an incredible day. Getting lost is sometimes exactly what you need to enjoy the journey along the way.

The Great Wall

Today I checked off one of my lifelong dreams--I climbed the Great Wall of China! It was a foggy day, which made the view a little obstructed. But the experience was incredible. There were many people at the wall, and I had my picture taken with some Chinese high school students. The Great Wall is over 5,500 miles long, and it stretches like a strong dragon winding its way along the mountain ranges. We hiked the Badaling section in Yanqing County (about 70 miles outside of Beijing). The Badaling section was built during the Ming dynasty and is the most well-preserved section of the Great Wall.

We also visited a Cloisonne Factory. It was amazing to see artists working on beautiful pieces of art. Cloisonne vases are made of copper, and inlayed with beautiful colored enamel. After having a nice lunch and shopping for Cloisonne souvenirs, we headed to the Ming Tombs. We had a shocking moment on the bus, when Melanie K. thought she left her wallet in a public restroom. But after a few panicked moments, she found her wallet tucked away in her own backpack.

We were absolutely exhausted after a full day of sightseeing. The bus dropped us off on the street and we had about 45 minutes to find a place to eat and get back to a theatre for an exciting acrobatic show. We were starving, and we searched everywhere for food. We thought we found a Pizza Hut, but it turned out to be delivery-only. Nancy tried to ask a security guard (who didn't speak English) how to get to a McDonalds. Luckily, he recognized her best hand-motion for the "golden arches". However, we didn't have enough time to walk all the way there, so we settled on concession stand food in the theatre. I bought some chips, and I thought they tasted funny. Noah tasted one, and started laughing. As it turned out, my chips were "meat-flavored." Nonetheless, the Chinese acrobats were amazing.

Tiananmen Square

We spent the first part of the day at Tiananmen Square. Our hotel, the Jianguo Garden Hotel, was only a few blocks from the square. Tiananmen Square is a large plaza in the center of Beijing. Various events in Chinese history happened in the square, including the May 4th Movement in 1919 and the Proclamation of the People's Republic of China by Mao Zedong on October 1, 1949. Mass rallies and protests were held at the square during the Cultural Revolution. Most recently, the protests of 1989 took place in the square, where many pro-democracy Chinese citizens were massacred. We visited the square a week after the 20-year Annversary of the 1989 protest, and it was very crowded. CNN was at the square a week earlier, trying to report on the history of the 1989 protests. Unfortunately, the reporters at CNN said that undercover security guards held umbrellas over their cameras last week, to block coverage of the history of the events in 1989.

We also visited the Forbidden City. It was the Chinese Imperial Palace for almost 500 years of dynastic rule. The Emperor lived here with his household. It was the political center of Chinese government. It has almost 9,000 rooms, and covers 720,000 square meters. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is listed as being the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world.

We also visited the Temple of Heaven. It was built by the same architect who designed the Forbidden City. It was constructed between 1406 and 1420. It is a place where people pray for things such as a good harvest. It is a beautiful site to see, and when we were there a lovely couple had their wedding photos taken at the Temple. A huge park surrounds the temple, where people gather in the afternoons to dance, play hackysack, and relax.

We were treated by a Peking Roast Duck Banquet Dinner. They also offered plenty of vegetables. It was a great way to end our full day of sightseeing.

Last-Minute Preparations

In Chicago, we discussed our daily itinerary. We also discussed our individual curriculum projects we will study on the trip. Our group is composed of teachers from Minnesota, Louisiana, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and other states. There are twenty of us--all with different personalities. Study tours like this could often be compared to a reality TV show like Survivor. You put a bunch of educators on a plane together for three weeks in China, and you end up with memories that last a lifetime. Our group is filled with first-class teachers. From published authors, to Fulbright scholars, to Marathon winners, to Harvard graduates--our group is definitely one that will go down in the history books. This is the best group I've ever traveled with on a study tour.

While we waited at the airport for our flight to Beijing, many of us "spun a wheel" for a United Airlines promotion, and won free upgrades to "Economy Plus" seats with extra legroom. I was fortunate to get a seat beside our Faculty Expert, Dr. Richard Bohr, who is a Professor at the College of ST. Benedict/St. John's. Fluent in Chinese, he has done legendary work studying Asian history and culture. His wife was the first Asian-American judge in her state, and it was a pleasure sitting beside Richard on the plane.

We had been warned about the Swine Flu quarantines in China. They told us to wear our special masks the entire 13 1/2 hour flight. We were all concerned we'd get to China and have to spend the first few days quarantined in a hotel if we sat beside anyone who was sick on the plane. We had to take thermometers with us, and the Chinese government took our temperature three times upon arrival. During the flight, we flew over Siberia, and I got some great snapshots from the plane. We arrived safely. One lady in our group, Melanie B., had to get her temperature checked an extra time, but luckily we all made it through, and started our first day in China in the capital city of Beijing.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

I arrived at the Birmingham Airport at 4:30am for my early morning flight to Chicago. Our group met each other at an orientation at Indiana University in May, so it will be nice to see all my new friends I'll be traveling with to China at the HIlton Chicago O'Hare Airport. After arriving at the hotel, I was glad they had a room ready for me. I got Chicago very early, and assumed I'd probably have to wait in the lobby until check-in time. However, I was able to get my room immediately, and I caught up on some much-needed rest. I stayed up the night before packing for the trip. Everything I need for the next 22 days is zipped in a large backpack and I am ready for our adventure.