My plans for next month are still in the making, but I'll fill everyone in on what I've got (and hope for) so far. As you probably already know, the Guangzhou trip is an elusive phantom that continuously escapes from my grasp as either I or other friends become swamped with sudden work. Magda's decided not to go since she's not a big fan of large cities, so it looks like (if this trip ever happens), it will probably be just Ruby and me. That makes the planning easier if nothing else. So, once again, I'm crossing my fingers that early May will be a good time for the both of us to visit Guangzhou.
Also, even though Magda isn't interested in Guangzhou, we have decided to visit some less urban areas in the Pearl River Delta before she goes back to Poland. The way our schedules coincide, we have about a week open to travel together. Since I'm more familiar with Mainland China, she's eager to hear my recommendation. So, I've been asking around between some friends, especially friends from or currently living in southern Mainland China, and think that I've finally pinpointed our ideal destination: Kaiping! Yes, I know that 99.9% of you (including Hong Kongers and Mainlanders) haven't heard of it, and it's no wonder. Kaiping is only a county-level city according to the PRC city-classification system. In English, that means it has a population around 700,000. However, it's a World Heritage Site famous for both its natural beauty and its unique architecture. I'm still waiting to hear back from Magda about whether or not she's interested in this place, but I think it'll probably go over well. One way or another, I'd still like to go sometime. 3-4 days should be enough time to see everything, experience the local culture, and visit nearby villages, such as Chikan Town. The best part? We wouldn't need to travel by plane, or even by the infamous Mainland China trains (not that I'm opposed to either). Getting to Kaiping from Hong Kong is extremely convenient. All we would need to do is take the MTR to Prince Edward Station (~12 minutes), walk across the street to the bus terminal, and then take the direct bus to Kaiping. It's a 4-hour drive for about the equivalent of USD15, with one stop in Shenzhen to go through immigration. I'm really hoping and praying this little side-trip will work out well, although I have little doubt it will.
Afterwards, as I've mentioned many eons ago, I'm going for an extended stay in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province. I don't think I need to provide a link to explain this one. Even if you don't recognize the name, you've probably heard of it. Some of these facts might ring a bell. It's one of China's oldest cities, well over 3000 years old, and is classified as one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China. It actually was the capital city under the Zhou, Qin, Han, Sui, and Tang dynasties. It's considered to be in the heart of Western China (the name Xi'an actually means "Western Peace"), but on the map it looks like it's right smack in the middle of the country. To clarify, a vast majority of the Chinese population lives along the eastern and southern coasts in the fertile river deltas. So, those areas are called "Eastern China." Western China consists of pretty much everything else. People do still speak of "North" and "South" of course, but Western China makes up around 60-70% of the actual land mass. Big tangent, I know, and I apologize. Anyway, the culture at Xi'an is very unique, especially since it has such a large population of Chinese Muslims and other minority groups. Most famously, it's the site of the enormous Terracotta Army.
I don't think I've fully explained my excitement over this one little detail. You know how it's weird the things you remember from a long time ago? Well, I remember being in elementary school--age 6 or 7--sitting in the waiting room at Cheraw Family Medicine after school one day while waiting for my sister and me to have check-ups. I picked up a National Geographic magazine with an article featuring the Terracotta Army. After reading the article over and over again, I wanted nothing more than to see it in person. Of course, I also wanted to be an archeologist at the time. Either way, I think that's when I first became interested in China, and Asia in general. For me, getting to see the Terracotta Army in person is like going back to "where it all began." Yes, going to the Great Wall or the Forbidden City would certainly get my heart pumping, but to this day I still can't think of even one place in the world I want to see more than the Terracotta Army in Xi'an. Silly, perhaps. Strange, true. Even so, I can hardly contain my excitement--and it's still over a month away!
I'll be in Xi'an from May 17-28, so I'm considering this trip as my birthday present to myself. Of course, it isn't all fun and games. The main purpose of the trip is for Chinese language practice. It's part of a program arranged through the Chinese Language Centre called PRINCH (Pragmatic Internship in China). Many of my fellow American IBCE students as well as a few students from other countries will go in a big group and live in a hotel on the campus of Shaanxi Normal University. We'll have intensive Chinese class in the morning, in and around the campus. In the afternoon, we'll go to various places of interest in Xi'an with both our CLC teachers and local teachers as guides. We're technically not "allowed" to speak English, but there isn't a penalty. Even so, I intend to practice my Mandarin as much as possible. Closer to time, I'll fill everyone in on the exact details, but for now let's suffice it to say that we're all going to be very busy, very tired, and very happy. I couldn't have arranged a better trip myself.
We come back to Hong Kong on May 28. Tentatively, that's about the time we have to move out of our current dormitories and into a new one for the summer. Of course, none of us know yet where we'll be living, but Dr. Hudgens has promised to tell us soon. Hopefully, it's somewhere at Chung Chi College, since that's closest to both our summer classrooms and the train station. Last summer at Shaw College, we were literally as far as possible from everything convenient--including class, transportation, and food. So, I'll let everyone know once I know the living arrangements for this summer.
Coming back on May 28 still leaves a pretty big gap of free time, though, since our summer classes don't begin until June 7. Naturally, that got me to thinking about where else I could go. Ideally, I would love to travel to Beijing. I could spend just about a week there, which is the perfect length of time to see everything. The only problem I'm facing (and it's major) is that currently I have no one to go with me. I don't really want to travel in a big group--2 to 4 people is best--however, several of my friends are leaving in May since they won't stay for the summer. Many of the IBCE students have either already been or are arranging trips to places besides Beijing during the same time. I'm asking around now, hoping that something will work out. As y'all can tell, May is the best time to travel, and I know I won't have time for any long-distance trips during June and July. With that in mind, please pray for me to find a traveling buddy or two to go to Beijing with me. I certainly won't go by myself!
OK, OK, future-plans aside, I'll let y'all know what I've been up to recently. On the 10th, a Sunday, I and several friends from church took a half-day trip to Ma Wan Island, which is in the Tsing Yi area, near the airport. There's a new attraction there called "Noah's Ark," and one of the congregation members also lives on the island. So, with Bernard as our guide, all 17 of us made the 1.5 hour trek to scenic Tsing Yi. Spotting "Noah's Ark" turned out to be very easy.
Although we didn't go into the ark itself (too expensive), we had a great time playing around on the island. Our first stop was the beach! Really, the beach just under the Tsing Ma Bridge is one of the best in all of Hong Kong, which is saying a lot considering how many gorgeous seaside towns there are. We did get all sandy and wet, though.
Then we entered the actual park. Getting in the park itself is free, but entering the ark is not. So, we enjoyed the beautiful natural scenery and, most of all, the fellowship.
For a park called "Noah's Ark," there was very little related to the good old boat-builder himself. Instead, there was a lot more abstract art related to environmental consciousness and eco-friendliness.
Of course, I was a bit surprised to see this whimsical representation of the fearsome sea-beast of ancient Western-European legend, Aspidochelone, also known as Fastitocalon. It looks so cute, but I know better. :)
As we made our way through the park, the scenery was absolutely picturesque. Going in the afternoon was certainly the right decision, especially just a few hours before sunset.
Liu Chang posing with some of the modern art sculptures. Is it just me, or would the park be much better off without them? The sculptures, not my dear laoshi!
Black bamboo:
Eventually, we actually made our way out of the park and further into Ma Wan Island. Following Bernard, we explored the villages in the shadow of the massive Tsing Ma Bridge.
Baoling, Xiao Miao, and one other person I can't identify from this picture. Too bad it's so dark. Even so, all of us enjoyed sitting down for a moment to watch the sunset over the South China Sea.
After a brief stop, we picked up the pace again and walked through the rural village areas. This building and several others like it caught my attention. The residents are protesting over property and tax laws in Hong Kong that affect the "grassroots" population.
Country roads, much? This really is the main road...dead serious.
Finally, we made it to the more modern apartment complexes where Bernard and his family live. The buildings here are a far cry from the rural village just a 5 minute walk down the road. You can tell that this is a well to-do neighborhood for 2 reasons: (1) lots of foreigners--only the rich ones keep a place in HK, and (2) lots of dogs, especially big ones. Dogs in general are status symbols because most apartments don't allow them. So, if you own one, it means you can afford a big enough apartment, and pay extra to have a dog. The bigger the dog, the bigger the status symbol. As for cats, many apartments don't allow them either, but they're more common than dogs. People also tend to keep shop-cats so you don't look rich for having a pet cat. For the rest of HK, turtles and tropical fish are the most popular pets.
Anyway, Bernard took us all to a little hole-in-the-wall local restaurant where we all ate, drank, and totally negated any of the good effects all that hiking might have had on our health. Here's to a day well-spent. 干杯!
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