The Chinese Countryside
Moonlight, Anthony, and I rode a bus out to the countryside west of Nanchang. It's spring here and the weather is perfect- a little cold at night, cool in the morning, warm in the afternoon and then slightly breezy and cool at sunset. It was freezing in the winter and soon enough this place will be oppressively hot. Right now however, the weather couldn't be better.
We took three different buses, one from the University to the trainstation, another from the trainstation to the country, and then a third from the country- the foot of the mountains, up to the mountains. The mountains out there are topographically like the San Gabriels. When they face the sun they are hot and somewhat barren, but in the cooler spots there are pine trees and small rivers. I strapped on the bjorn and we walked about 5 kilometers from the bus stop. We walked along a lake, across and old suspension bridge, up a hill- though not up the hill- and then back down along tiered rice paddies cut into the mountain. Anthony saw his first cow, an old broken down bull, tied to a plough that was tilling the rice paddy. The old man behind the cow looked ancient, but he is probably just a little older than I am. He was puffing away on his cigarette, ocasionally lashing the less than enthusiastic bull with his whip.
Anthony seemed to be taking everything in. He had to wear a hat that unfortunately would slide down his forehead and cover his eyes. Complaining and kicking would immeadiately follow. I would hear the ocasional oohh aahhh from him. I need to work on stopping more often when we walk and letting Anthony look at tree leaves, flowers, etc. I did give him time to examine the bull (from a safe distance) and the farmer behind the bull. It struck me as odd, that I stopped to gaze at something so foreign to me. An old man standing on a plough, behind a bull, that was walking on a rice paddy that is cut into a mountain. Sorry I did not take a photo- it was a very Chinese sight. It has been a very Chineese sight for a very long time- it's possible that this man's family has been tilling this land for the previous 200 generations. It makes the sight very exotic and foreign to me, I don't think that in the United States I ever saw an actual working farm animal, i.e. an animal used to do farm work. I have seen animals raised for eating- i.e. chickens, cows, sheep, pigs etc., but not working farm animals. It is, however, part of Anthony's lineage. His maternal great grandparents toiled on a rice paddy, just like this guy.
Moonlight invited her parents to accompany us out to the countryside. I was relieved when I heard they declined. We think of a trip out to the country and mountains as a relaxing respite from the pace, noise, and scenery of the city. Moonlight's parents grew up in the country- there is nothing relaxing about it to them.
We tramped into a cool grotto that a small river ran through and that was very relaxing, Anthony looked intently at the rocks and I think wanted to see the source of the babbling sound we were hearing (the brook). I was happy to get him out of the bjorn for a few minutes.
We later hitched a ride with some students on a field trip to a small restaurant in town. Anthony is the center of attention here in Nanchang- out in the country the folks find him, and me, just beyond fascinating. If a U.F.O. landed in the middle of this town and several space aliens got out, there would have been more comotion than Anthony's arrival caused. But not much more.
The old folks are particularly interested in him, which is fine until people want to touch him- that is getting annoying. 'Don't touch him' is a Chinese phrase I speak particularly clearly. Fortunately, most Chinese restaurants have private rooms and I can always slip a waitress 10 rmb and get us a table in one. At the University, we live among educated people so Anthony and the other teachers here who have children his age are excited about their children mingling with him, but they don't behave the way young girls did when the Beatles first arrived in the United States.
I will get you a run down the second half of yesterday's trip later.
We took three different buses, one from the University to the trainstation, another from the trainstation to the country, and then a third from the country- the foot of the mountains, up to the mountains. The mountains out there are topographically like the San Gabriels. When they face the sun they are hot and somewhat barren, but in the cooler spots there are pine trees and small rivers. I strapped on the bjorn and we walked about 5 kilometers from the bus stop. We walked along a lake, across and old suspension bridge, up a hill- though not up the hill- and then back down along tiered rice paddies cut into the mountain. Anthony saw his first cow, an old broken down bull, tied to a plough that was tilling the rice paddy. The old man behind the cow looked ancient, but he is probably just a little older than I am. He was puffing away on his cigarette, ocasionally lashing the less than enthusiastic bull with his whip.
Anthony seemed to be taking everything in. He had to wear a hat that unfortunately would slide down his forehead and cover his eyes. Complaining and kicking would immeadiately follow. I would hear the ocasional oohh aahhh from him. I need to work on stopping more often when we walk and letting Anthony look at tree leaves, flowers, etc. I did give him time to examine the bull (from a safe distance) and the farmer behind the bull. It struck me as odd, that I stopped to gaze at something so foreign to me. An old man standing on a plough, behind a bull, that was walking on a rice paddy that is cut into a mountain. Sorry I did not take a photo- it was a very Chinese sight. It has been a very Chineese sight for a very long time- it's possible that this man's family has been tilling this land for the previous 200 generations. It makes the sight very exotic and foreign to me, I don't think that in the United States I ever saw an actual working farm animal, i.e. an animal used to do farm work. I have seen animals raised for eating- i.e. chickens, cows, sheep, pigs etc., but not working farm animals. It is, however, part of Anthony's lineage. His maternal great grandparents toiled on a rice paddy, just like this guy.
Moonlight invited her parents to accompany us out to the countryside. I was relieved when I heard they declined. We think of a trip out to the country and mountains as a relaxing respite from the pace, noise, and scenery of the city. Moonlight's parents grew up in the country- there is nothing relaxing about it to them.
We tramped into a cool grotto that a small river ran through and that was very relaxing, Anthony looked intently at the rocks and I think wanted to see the source of the babbling sound we were hearing (the brook). I was happy to get him out of the bjorn for a few minutes.
We later hitched a ride with some students on a field trip to a small restaurant in town. Anthony is the center of attention here in Nanchang- out in the country the folks find him, and me, just beyond fascinating. If a U.F.O. landed in the middle of this town and several space aliens got out, there would have been more comotion than Anthony's arrival caused. But not much more.
The old folks are particularly interested in him, which is fine until people want to touch him- that is getting annoying. 'Don't touch him' is a Chinese phrase I speak particularly clearly. Fortunately, most Chinese restaurants have private rooms and I can always slip a waitress 10 rmb and get us a table in one. At the University, we live among educated people so Anthony and the other teachers here who have children his age are excited about their children mingling with him, but they don't behave the way young girls did when the Beatles first arrived in the United States.
I will get you a run down the second half of yesterday's trip later.