Monday, May 24, 2004
WHAT A TREAT! VISITORS FROM CANADA!
See photos about this week's posting in the Yahoo photo album. (Will open in a new browser window.)
The past few weeks have brought us yet another new experience -- visitors from Canada! First, friends Mary Reynolds and Dave Paleczny ended their three week tour of China in Beijing and Huairou, and then our daughter Catherine and husband Andrew, took us up on our offer to host them for a vacation in Huairou and area. Because we had a chance to talk about all things Canadian, from the rough, cold winter just past to whether Martin will call an election this spring, we feel we have some idea of what’s happening at home. But more fun was the opportunity to be both tourists and tour guides for our visitors. At last, we could revisit the many famous sites in this area, many of which we’d seen when we were here in 2002. And of course, we could introduce our visitors to the many markets and special shopping places we’ve searched out over the past several months.
We spent Easter weekend in BJ with Mary and Dave, shopping on Saturday and sight seeing on Sunday. Mary was a very good shopper once she got used to the over attentive sales staff on Wangfujing and the crowded and noisy back streets on the way to Dachalan. Dave was very helpful in deciding on colours and sizes, and also became the bearer of all parcels accumulated over several hours of intense shopping. At the Cotton and Silk Shop on Wangfujing, he picked out a soft gray cashmere for a new suit, destined for the tailor in
Huairou. Sunday morning we visited the famous Yong He Gong Buddhist Temple, where we spent a very peaceful few hours walking among the colourful buildings, enjoying the bright green newness of a warm spring day. On the way in, we took photos of each other with a sign which read: “Cherish the Cultural Relic”. We all figured the wording was most appropriate for us!
Before checking out at the hotel, we spent some time in the National Art Museum of China, where we found a huge exhibition of Japanese woodcuts, many very familiar images by Hokusai and Hiroshige. Dave and Mary found an intriguing exhibit of Chinese editorial cartoons and recommended that we have a look before we left. Our quick lunch at a nearby noodle restaurant made us late for the hotel checkout, and Ken and Dave both had to listen to very stern words from the reception staff. Keyan had insisted that she and her husband pick us up for the trip to Huairou, where we had booked a suite (500Y) for Mary and Dave at the Long Shan Hotel, directly across from the school gate. With luggage stowed in the trunk, six of us shoe horned into the car for the ride to Huairou.
Dinners and lunches with our friends, including a memorable meal at Keyan’s apartment, where her Dad played his erhu (arwho) for Dave and Mary, punctuated their few days here, where they spent their daytime exploring the city, both on foot and bicycle. [An erhu is a two stringed instrument played with a bow, which rests between the two strings. The sound box is quite small, and we’ve recently learned, high quality instruments have boxes made from fish skin.] Keyan and our school’s Vice Principal took them to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, waited for them in the parking lot, and then took them to lunch. The generosity and kindness of the Chinese are overwhelming at times. Our Chinese teacher Jerri (the inimitable Xu Ke) bargained for a reasonable price for the taxi (80 yuan) to the airport, and then double checked on the afternoon they were to leave, to make sure there were no complications.
We certainly enjoyed Dave and Mary’s all too brief stay with us, and know they enjoyed meeting our friends and seeing how our lives work here.
With the school car and driver, Judy waited for Catherine and Andrew at the Arrivals Mezzanine of the BJ Capital Airport a few weeks later. It was so wonderful to see them both walking down the ramp to the mezzanine. We last saw them in August 2003. Corresponding by email is a good way to keep in touch, but it can’t compete with a warm hug. The day was windy and by the time we’d settled into the car, the skies had opened and rain poured down all the way home. Locust trees loaded with white blossoms swayed in the wind along the Airport Expressway. However, by the time we arrived at our place on Qingchunlu, the rain had lessened. We find that rain comes more frequently now, but we’re still surprised when we hear rain hitting the pavement outside our apartment windows.
Catherine and Andrew were with us for almost 2 weeks, and we did a great deal of sight seeing. One afternoon Keyan took us to the Mutianyu Great Wall, where we had the place to ourselves. We were the only riders on the chair lifts to the top. When we reached the wall itself, we were the only people we could see in both directions. It was a glorious clear and warm spring day, making the views in all directions come into sharp focus against the bright green of new foliage on the surrounding valleys and mountains. Catherine and Andrew headed off to what looked like nearby watchtowers, but an hour later returned exhausted from their long hike. Distance is an illusion on the Wall. Another day Keyan took them to the Qing Lung Xia (Black Dragon Gorge) to see an unrestored section of the wall. Again the day was clear and the views breathtaking, especially the lake which fills the gorge at the large dam rampart.
Another important site near Huairou is the Hong Luo (Red Snail) Buddhist Temple, which we visited on the May Day weekend. The grounds were full of people and the atmosphere was very festive. Food stalls lined the walkway, with tempting smells of meat cooking over charcoal wafting on the breeze. Souvenir sellers were everywhere. The famous wisteria vines were in full bloom, as were the extensive peony gardens. Fountains rocketed into the air, streams gurgled and people jumped from rock to rock in one of the reflecting ponds -- several got soakers! Having taken the slide ride down from the Mutianyu Great Wall a few days earlier, Catherine and Andrew were keen to try the ride at the Temple, a cable sled which pulls the rider part way up the side of a mountain. For those keen on the climb, one disembarks and walks the rest of the way to the top. But Catherine, Andrew and Ken had more fun zigzagging down the other side of the mountain and swooping to a halt at the loading platform.
Keyan drove us to the Ming Tombs, a few hours’ drive west of Huairou. Although the day threatened rain, we had only a few showers. The drive was breathtaking, through deep mountain gorges, with farmers’ fields showing neat rows of plants just beginning to grow. We especially enjoyed the Spirit Way, a very impressive entranceway to the valley where 13 tombs of Ming Emperors are situated. This area has been recently restored, and now looks like the Grande Allee at Versailles, except for the large stone animals, warriors, court officials and scholars which line the walkway. We’d taken a picnic with us, and found a stone table with garden stools just off the walk, where we had a good old-fashioned western lunch of egg salad sandwiches, yogurt and fruit, highlighted by maple cookies from Canada! A pair of stone camels gazed upon our alfresco lunch, no doubt wanting to partake.
We spent three days in Beijing, staying at a hotel just blocks from the very expensive downtown area. We visited Tian An Men Square on a day when the sky was filled with kites and the plaza with tourists. We spent a morning at the Forbidden City mingling with the thousands of Chinese who were also tourists on May holiday. Our taxi driver dropped us off at the north entrance/exit, so we explored the site backwards! We found the Nine Dragon Wall, and Ken posed for a commemorative photo. We’d missed this wonder on our last visit here. Red buildings, yellow tiled roofs, glazed pottery ridge pole figures, white marble balustrades and dragon ways - used only by the Emperor who was carried over them in a palanquin - this is the montage of the Forbidden City.
Another morning we went to the Temple of Heaven, again four among throngs of Chinese, many of whom had brought their umbrellas against the hot bright sunshine. Skirting organized tour groups - identified by their red or yellow or blue caps - we reached the Temple itself, an amazingly simple but beautiful predominantly blue round building standing above a series of circular, white marble balustrades, enclosed in a square compound. Here, the Emperor prepared for the ceremony and sacrifices at the nearby Altar of Heaven, to ensure a good growing season and a plentiful harvest for his subjects. To the east side of this compound is a colourful covered walkway which leads to the Eastern Gate. Along the walkway were groups of entertainers playing erhus and percussion instruments, singing familiar Chinese songs, or arias from Chinese operas. Men sat on the railings playing Chinese Chess, their caged birds sitting close by. After a quick ice cream bar to refresh us, we left through the Eastern Gate to visit the Hong Qiao Market, conveniently located right across the street.
Of all the markets we’ve visited during our stay here, the Hong Qiao (Pearl) Market is the most fascinating. It has the greatest variety of goods, as well as competitive prices. It occupies 4 floors of a converted office building, with escalators between the floors, and is filled with stalls selling everything imaginable. No trip to BJ is complete without a stop at this market. Less than two hours later we emerged with bags bulging with merchandise: fake Rolexes, table cloths, table runners, pillow covers, shoes, handbags, snuff bottles from the “antiques” section upstairs. No pearls this time, but we had purchased several necklaces on a previous visit.
Another morning we went in search of the Red Gate Gallery, a commercial gallery Andrew had found on the web. The manager had invited Andrew to visit when he was in BJ, an opportunity none of us wanted to miss. The gallery is actually the former lookout tower on the ancient wall which surrounded the original city of BJ during the Ming and Qing dynasties. This section of the wall has been restored, and space has been rented to various approved ventures. The main exhibition space is a room several stories high, surrounded by railed galleries above. The huge red timber beams above us groaned in the wind. The current exhibition featured the figurative large-scale brush and ink paintings of one of the gallery’s artists, who is also a teacher at one of BJ’s art schools. In our chat with the manager, an Australian expat, we learned that there are only 10 commercial art galleries in BJ, a fact which we all found very amazing, considering the city’s size. However, he explained, contemporary art for sale is a very new idea in China, and investors are slow to put their money behind a venture which, as we know, doesn’t yield high returns quickly.
Throughout their visit, Catherine was on a tea quest, having developed a nose and taste for good quality blends and a wealth of knowledge from her serious research. Wherever we went, we were on the lookout for teashops. She bought tea in Dachelan, at the Hong Qiao Market, in Huairou and in Tianjin, the large seaport city for BJ, our destination on the final weekend of their visit with us.
Jerri, our Chinese teacher, was our guide for this adventure, which began by taking the 916 bus into BJ, then going to the train station to catch the train to Tianjin, a pleasant 80 minute run to the east. Since our final destination was the northern suburb of Tanggu, we made connections with a very modern elevated urban train, newly opened, smooth riding and well maintained. Tanggu is famous for its riverside parks, lights and sculptures, especially at night. After a delicious Brazilian BBQ dinner, we went for a stroll along the Hai He (Sea River), admiring the fabulous sculptures and lights. Our stay overnight at the Victory Hotel included breakfast, which Ken and Judy enjoyed along with the many businessmen who were staying at the hotel. And of course, there was a large market area where we did some shopping.
Returning to Tianjin on Sunday morning, we traveled through the city by miandi, constantly amazed by the number of construction sites here. Everything was being rebuilt, relocated or renovated. A return visit in a year would undoubtedly reveal an entirely different face for this city, the third largest in China, where both the famous Flying Pigeon bicycle and the miandi, along with other Chinese makes of cars, are manufactured. Tianjin was an important European destination port in the 1800s, and several countries had their own districts which were concessions from the Chinese government. We could see remnants of European architecture throughout the city, as well as many bronze repros of classic European statuary. We found a very interesting arts and crafts market which had been totally rebuilt to include a series of courtyards featuring various wares - one for kites, one for paintings, another for tea (of course!).
And in order to keep up our strength for more touring and shopping, we ate at several interesting places: A Muslim restaurant on Wangfujing where we had Mongolian hotpot, a do it yourself cook everything in a boiling broth meal; a traditional home cooked Chinese meal with Keyan and her family; a glitzy dinner theatre evening which featured a 6-course meal and a colourful floor show in which Andrew got to dance in the finale number; and the afore mentioned Brazilian Grill, the current rage in this area. Twelve kinds of meat were served, each brought to the table on a thick skewer and carved onto each guest’s plate. A large buffet of salads and other dishes complemented this meal.
One morning, Catherine and Andrew went with Judy to our local massage clinic, where they both had full body massages, administered by two blind masseurs, while Judy had a very welcome foot massage. And on a visit to the NAMOC, Andrew found a marvelous art supply store across the street, where he was able to buy a number of items he’d never seen before. Look for some innovative work from him as he experiments with some particularly intriguing pen brushes.
All of our visitors headed to the airport with their suitcases tightly packed to accommodate their purchases. And three of our suitcases went home with them. As we approach the end of May, we realize that our time in China will soon be over. Being able to send some of our possessions home with our visitors has definitely make our final packing much easier!
See photos about this week's posting in the Yahoo photo album. (Will open in a new browser window.)
The past few weeks have brought us yet another new experience -- visitors from Canada! First, friends Mary Reynolds and Dave Paleczny ended their three week tour of China in Beijing and Huairou, and then our daughter Catherine and husband Andrew, took us up on our offer to host them for a vacation in Huairou and area. Because we had a chance to talk about all things Canadian, from the rough, cold winter just past to whether Martin will call an election this spring, we feel we have some idea of what’s happening at home. But more fun was the opportunity to be both tourists and tour guides for our visitors. At last, we could revisit the many famous sites in this area, many of which we’d seen when we were here in 2002. And of course, we could introduce our visitors to the many markets and special shopping places we’ve searched out over the past several months.
We spent Easter weekend in BJ with Mary and Dave, shopping on Saturday and sight seeing on Sunday. Mary was a very good shopper once she got used to the over attentive sales staff on Wangfujing and the crowded and noisy back streets on the way to Dachalan. Dave was very helpful in deciding on colours and sizes, and also became the bearer of all parcels accumulated over several hours of intense shopping. At the Cotton and Silk Shop on Wangfujing, he picked out a soft gray cashmere for a new suit, destined for the tailor in
Huairou. Sunday morning we visited the famous Yong He Gong Buddhist Temple, where we spent a very peaceful few hours walking among the colourful buildings, enjoying the bright green newness of a warm spring day. On the way in, we took photos of each other with a sign which read: “Cherish the Cultural Relic”. We all figured the wording was most appropriate for us!
Before checking out at the hotel, we spent some time in the National Art Museum of China, where we found a huge exhibition of Japanese woodcuts, many very familiar images by Hokusai and Hiroshige. Dave and Mary found an intriguing exhibit of Chinese editorial cartoons and recommended that we have a look before we left. Our quick lunch at a nearby noodle restaurant made us late for the hotel checkout, and Ken and Dave both had to listen to very stern words from the reception staff. Keyan had insisted that she and her husband pick us up for the trip to Huairou, where we had booked a suite (500Y) for Mary and Dave at the Long Shan Hotel, directly across from the school gate. With luggage stowed in the trunk, six of us shoe horned into the car for the ride to Huairou.
Dinners and lunches with our friends, including a memorable meal at Keyan’s apartment, where her Dad played his erhu (arwho) for Dave and Mary, punctuated their few days here, where they spent their daytime exploring the city, both on foot and bicycle. [An erhu is a two stringed instrument played with a bow, which rests between the two strings. The sound box is quite small, and we’ve recently learned, high quality instruments have boxes made from fish skin.] Keyan and our school’s Vice Principal took them to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, waited for them in the parking lot, and then took them to lunch. The generosity and kindness of the Chinese are overwhelming at times. Our Chinese teacher Jerri (the inimitable Xu Ke) bargained for a reasonable price for the taxi (80 yuan) to the airport, and then double checked on the afternoon they were to leave, to make sure there were no complications.
We certainly enjoyed Dave and Mary’s all too brief stay with us, and know they enjoyed meeting our friends and seeing how our lives work here.
With the school car and driver, Judy waited for Catherine and Andrew at the Arrivals Mezzanine of the BJ Capital Airport a few weeks later. It was so wonderful to see them both walking down the ramp to the mezzanine. We last saw them in August 2003. Corresponding by email is a good way to keep in touch, but it can’t compete with a warm hug. The day was windy and by the time we’d settled into the car, the skies had opened and rain poured down all the way home. Locust trees loaded with white blossoms swayed in the wind along the Airport Expressway. However, by the time we arrived at our place on Qingchunlu, the rain had lessened. We find that rain comes more frequently now, but we’re still surprised when we hear rain hitting the pavement outside our apartment windows.
Catherine and Andrew were with us for almost 2 weeks, and we did a great deal of sight seeing. One afternoon Keyan took us to the Mutianyu Great Wall, where we had the place to ourselves. We were the only riders on the chair lifts to the top. When we reached the wall itself, we were the only people we could see in both directions. It was a glorious clear and warm spring day, making the views in all directions come into sharp focus against the bright green of new foliage on the surrounding valleys and mountains. Catherine and Andrew headed off to what looked like nearby watchtowers, but an hour later returned exhausted from their long hike. Distance is an illusion on the Wall. Another day Keyan took them to the Qing Lung Xia (Black Dragon Gorge) to see an unrestored section of the wall. Again the day was clear and the views breathtaking, especially the lake which fills the gorge at the large dam rampart.
Another important site near Huairou is the Hong Luo (Red Snail) Buddhist Temple, which we visited on the May Day weekend. The grounds were full of people and the atmosphere was very festive. Food stalls lined the walkway, with tempting smells of meat cooking over charcoal wafting on the breeze. Souvenir sellers were everywhere. The famous wisteria vines were in full bloom, as were the extensive peony gardens. Fountains rocketed into the air, streams gurgled and people jumped from rock to rock in one of the reflecting ponds -- several got soakers! Having taken the slide ride down from the Mutianyu Great Wall a few days earlier, Catherine and Andrew were keen to try the ride at the Temple, a cable sled which pulls the rider part way up the side of a mountain. For those keen on the climb, one disembarks and walks the rest of the way to the top. But Catherine, Andrew and Ken had more fun zigzagging down the other side of the mountain and swooping to a halt at the loading platform.
Keyan drove us to the Ming Tombs, a few hours’ drive west of Huairou. Although the day threatened rain, we had only a few showers. The drive was breathtaking, through deep mountain gorges, with farmers’ fields showing neat rows of plants just beginning to grow. We especially enjoyed the Spirit Way, a very impressive entranceway to the valley where 13 tombs of Ming Emperors are situated. This area has been recently restored, and now looks like the Grande Allee at Versailles, except for the large stone animals, warriors, court officials and scholars which line the walkway. We’d taken a picnic with us, and found a stone table with garden stools just off the walk, where we had a good old-fashioned western lunch of egg salad sandwiches, yogurt and fruit, highlighted by maple cookies from Canada! A pair of stone camels gazed upon our alfresco lunch, no doubt wanting to partake.
We spent three days in Beijing, staying at a hotel just blocks from the very expensive downtown area. We visited Tian An Men Square on a day when the sky was filled with kites and the plaza with tourists. We spent a morning at the Forbidden City mingling with the thousands of Chinese who were also tourists on May holiday. Our taxi driver dropped us off at the north entrance/exit, so we explored the site backwards! We found the Nine Dragon Wall, and Ken posed for a commemorative photo. We’d missed this wonder on our last visit here. Red buildings, yellow tiled roofs, glazed pottery ridge pole figures, white marble balustrades and dragon ways - used only by the Emperor who was carried over them in a palanquin - this is the montage of the Forbidden City.
Another morning we went to the Temple of Heaven, again four among throngs of Chinese, many of whom had brought their umbrellas against the hot bright sunshine. Skirting organized tour groups - identified by their red or yellow or blue caps - we reached the Temple itself, an amazingly simple but beautiful predominantly blue round building standing above a series of circular, white marble balustrades, enclosed in a square compound. Here, the Emperor prepared for the ceremony and sacrifices at the nearby Altar of Heaven, to ensure a good growing season and a plentiful harvest for his subjects. To the east side of this compound is a colourful covered walkway which leads to the Eastern Gate. Along the walkway were groups of entertainers playing erhus and percussion instruments, singing familiar Chinese songs, or arias from Chinese operas. Men sat on the railings playing Chinese Chess, their caged birds sitting close by. After a quick ice cream bar to refresh us, we left through the Eastern Gate to visit the Hong Qiao Market, conveniently located right across the street.
Of all the markets we’ve visited during our stay here, the Hong Qiao (Pearl) Market is the most fascinating. It has the greatest variety of goods, as well as competitive prices. It occupies 4 floors of a converted office building, with escalators between the floors, and is filled with stalls selling everything imaginable. No trip to BJ is complete without a stop at this market. Less than two hours later we emerged with bags bulging with merchandise: fake Rolexes, table cloths, table runners, pillow covers, shoes, handbags, snuff bottles from the “antiques” section upstairs. No pearls this time, but we had purchased several necklaces on a previous visit.
Another morning we went in search of the Red Gate Gallery, a commercial gallery Andrew had found on the web. The manager had invited Andrew to visit when he was in BJ, an opportunity none of us wanted to miss. The gallery is actually the former lookout tower on the ancient wall which surrounded the original city of BJ during the Ming and Qing dynasties. This section of the wall has been restored, and space has been rented to various approved ventures. The main exhibition space is a room several stories high, surrounded by railed galleries above. The huge red timber beams above us groaned in the wind. The current exhibition featured the figurative large-scale brush and ink paintings of one of the gallery’s artists, who is also a teacher at one of BJ’s art schools. In our chat with the manager, an Australian expat, we learned that there are only 10 commercial art galleries in BJ, a fact which we all found very amazing, considering the city’s size. However, he explained, contemporary art for sale is a very new idea in China, and investors are slow to put their money behind a venture which, as we know, doesn’t yield high returns quickly.
Throughout their visit, Catherine was on a tea quest, having developed a nose and taste for good quality blends and a wealth of knowledge from her serious research. Wherever we went, we were on the lookout for teashops. She bought tea in Dachelan, at the Hong Qiao Market, in Huairou and in Tianjin, the large seaport city for BJ, our destination on the final weekend of their visit with us.
Jerri, our Chinese teacher, was our guide for this adventure, which began by taking the 916 bus into BJ, then going to the train station to catch the train to Tianjin, a pleasant 80 minute run to the east. Since our final destination was the northern suburb of Tanggu, we made connections with a very modern elevated urban train, newly opened, smooth riding and well maintained. Tanggu is famous for its riverside parks, lights and sculptures, especially at night. After a delicious Brazilian BBQ dinner, we went for a stroll along the Hai He (Sea River), admiring the fabulous sculptures and lights. Our stay overnight at the Victory Hotel included breakfast, which Ken and Judy enjoyed along with the many businessmen who were staying at the hotel. And of course, there was a large market area where we did some shopping.
Returning to Tianjin on Sunday morning, we traveled through the city by miandi, constantly amazed by the number of construction sites here. Everything was being rebuilt, relocated or renovated. A return visit in a year would undoubtedly reveal an entirely different face for this city, the third largest in China, where both the famous Flying Pigeon bicycle and the miandi, along with other Chinese makes of cars, are manufactured. Tianjin was an important European destination port in the 1800s, and several countries had their own districts which were concessions from the Chinese government. We could see remnants of European architecture throughout the city, as well as many bronze repros of classic European statuary. We found a very interesting arts and crafts market which had been totally rebuilt to include a series of courtyards featuring various wares - one for kites, one for paintings, another for tea (of course!).
And in order to keep up our strength for more touring and shopping, we ate at several interesting places: A Muslim restaurant on Wangfujing where we had Mongolian hotpot, a do it yourself cook everything in a boiling broth meal; a traditional home cooked Chinese meal with Keyan and her family; a glitzy dinner theatre evening which featured a 6-course meal and a colourful floor show in which Andrew got to dance in the finale number; and the afore mentioned Brazilian Grill, the current rage in this area. Twelve kinds of meat were served, each brought to the table on a thick skewer and carved onto each guest’s plate. A large buffet of salads and other dishes complemented this meal.
One morning, Catherine and Andrew went with Judy to our local massage clinic, where they both had full body massages, administered by two blind masseurs, while Judy had a very welcome foot massage. And on a visit to the NAMOC, Andrew found a marvelous art supply store across the street, where he was able to buy a number of items he’d never seen before. Look for some innovative work from him as he experiments with some particularly intriguing pen brushes.
All of our visitors headed to the airport with their suitcases tightly packed to accommodate their purchases. And three of our suitcases went home with them. As we approach the end of May, we realize that our time in China will soon be over. Being able to send some of our possessions home with our visitors has definitely make our final packing much easier!
All text and photography © copyright Harkaway, 2003 - 2004
