Images of China

Rebecca and I decided to go through our China photographs and we have pulled out some of our favorites during the 3 years we have been here:

Steaming dumplings in Shanghai

Lion guarding the Jade Buddha Temple entrance in Shanghai.

Student Monks at a Tibetan Monastery near Lijiang.

A round doorway in the Master of Nets garden in Suzhou.

 

A vegetable vendor's wares laid out in a back alley market.

Burning incense at a temple outside of Hangzhou during Qingming Festival.

A young girl dressed in Yi minority tribe traditional clothes at Stone Forrest near Kunming.

Rice noodles drying in the sun in Dali.

Eating lunch in a small village in Fujian province.

Wuzhen water town outside of Shanghai.

Minority women dancer who was fascinated with the girls in Yunnan Provence.

Local Temple caretaker welcomed us to drink tea and rest from our hike near Wasa.  

It is no surprise to me that so many of our favorites are of the Chinese People.  During our stay and travels, almost without exception, the People of China have been overwhelmingly eager to meet us and have showed us such patience, generosity, and hospitality that it is difficult to describe.  We have been welcomed into their homes, religious temples, weddings & ceremonies with open arms as their distinguished guests.  We have appreciated their kindness very much and it has been our great honor to meet them.



Cruising In China

2 1/2 years ago when we started our China experience, I would not have predicted that we would venture out into traffic, but here we are on my CJ750 Sidecar.  The bike is a restored 1957 Chang Jiang 750cc 24hp bike (very nearly identical copy of the 1930's vintage BMW R71).  Riding around on this bike has been an absolute blast.  Not only is it entertaining to ride, it also catches the attention of nearly every Chinese and Foreigner we pass on it.  So many thumbs up I cannot count.

My friend Tim Peat and I decided that we would both go and get sidecars this summer.  The process started with him and I test driving the bikes at the sidecar shop.  I was the first to test ride, and I pre-warned Tim that the last time I rode a bike was a mini 50 when I was 12 yrs. old.  At the time, the only thing that prevented me from driving into the lake was the campsite grill that I rammed shortly before I jumped off and ran away.  This ride would be my second attempt and directly into Shanghai city traffic.  Tim bravely hopped into the sidecar and off we went.  As we returned from the successful ride, I commented to the mechanic that I was surprised how the bike was able to lean so effortlessly into the corners.  After hearing this, the mechanic ran into the garage and quickly installed the securing nuts for the sidecar.  Turns out the sidecar was not attached completely and we were probably lucky that Tim didn't peel off for his first solo sidecar run.  But, he didn't and with our first successful ride completed, we ordered the bikes.

Next step was to obtain a motorcycle license.  After getting a medical check, taking a written test, and passing two separate on road driving tests with a police officer I was all set.  The entire process took about 2 months and required about 7 seperate trips across town.  Here are a few of my favorite test questions:

5.7.2.2 When the driver senses he will inevitably be thrown out of the vehicle, he should violently straighten both his legs to increase the force of being thrown out and jump out of the vehicle. Answer: Right

5.9.2.3 When a vehicle falls into water, the driver should in no way panic. In particular, those who cannot swim should first manage to escape through the windows. As long as they reach the water surface, they will have more chances to survive.  Answer: Right

5.6.2.2 When a head-on collision is unavoidable, the driver should free the steering wheel, raise the legs and lie sideward on the right seat at the moment of the head-on collision. This can ensure his body is not stuck by the steering wheel.  Answer: Right

Some of the questions were obviously nonsense, but I made it through anyway.  Since I got the bike this summer, I have put on about 500km so far and always look forward to nice days when we can explore Shanghai from a new an unique perspective.

For those who travel to Shanghai and are interested in a sidecar tour let me know and I can hook you up with a ride on my bike or you may also ride as part of organized tours of Shanghai by sidecar.

Signs you're in China...

The following signs are some of the best ones that we have seen on our travel throughout China. Hope you enjoy them as much as we did.

 

5-Star Ratings and Polite Conversation

Anyone who travels or talks to people that travel knows that one of the most popular topics to note and discuss after a trip is the state of the bathrooms. Whether you are staying in fancy hotels and marvel at the impressively outfitted commode, or traveling to a third world country and peeing in a trough, it is a rare thing to not comment on the facilites you have encountered. The Lundy family certainly fits that mold, and have appreciated some of the best and worst during our travels in the last couple of years. I recently had a new and unique bathroom experience that has prompted me to take a moment to capture a few of our favorite toilet-themed memories, but I'll come back to that...

We knew, of course, that we would need to be prepared for some rough potty-stops when we moved to China. Jeff and I had both visited China for work and had experienced the China-standard squat toilets. For those of you that haven't had the pleasure, allow me to explain. Traditionally here, they do not use the standard Western-style stool that most of us are accustomed to. Instead, they squat over an opening in the floor. Nicer bathrooms have a porcelain ring with foot pads directing you where to stand and a flush feature similar to a Western stool. Kayla, bless her, has adjusted to these toilets quickly and is a regular potty-pro, tolerant of even the roughest of conditions. McKenna, at just under 4 when we first arrived, has had a slower, and more difficult learning curve. The first issue is maneuvering your clothes - this is easier if you are wearing a skirt, but you still have underwear to deal with. For an adult, this can be a difficult question of positioning, but it is complicated for a small child. McKenna often can't pull her pants around her ankles and still straddle the hole - the clothes are too small to cover the span. Therefore, a simple potty break often requires a fair amount of undressing. (And if you are a 4-year-old who has to go, it can exceed the amount of time and movement your bladder can manage. McKenna and I speak from experience on this front.)

Next, clothes properly positioned, you must assume the squat position. Actually, once you get accustomed to it, this is not too bad. For you ladies who have "hovered" over a less than clean public stool, squatting is less strenuous on your quads and an easier position to hold for any length of time. McKenna, however, has never quite gotten the hang of it; and I have yet to find a good way of supporting her. For this reason, I rarely escape these trips without getting pee'd on. In fact - I will offer this recommendation - do not accompany a small child to a pit toilet with open toed shoes - it never ends well.

Finally, getting back up to a standing and fully clothed position without anything touching the floor can feel like mission impossible. If you think public bathroom floors in the US are nasty, well, you ain't seen nothing yet. Another unusual, and rather unpleasant, feature of the Chinese ladies room is the fact that they don't flush anything that didn't originate from them. So used toilet paper is stowed in the garbage. This is a bit...well... icky even if the bathroom is well maintained and lightly used; and a well maintained and lightly used public bathroom in China is a rare thing. I leave the rest to your imagination on this front.

Things get fun when you leave the big cities and head out into "real China." We have learned that communal troughs are the norm in most places; if you are lucky there are small dividers demarcating individual space and providing at least a small amount of privacy. Usually there is a trickle of water running down the length of the trough, but not always. In many places, the trough is actually just a shute, headed for the back of the building. What has made Jeff and I nearly laugh out loud is the fact that many of these public facilities charge a fee for the pleasure of using them!

Of course, discussing the state of the bathrooms is a regular part of China adventures, and as those of you who have worked in GM's test groups will understand, Jeff and I have been known to apply a "GMUTS" rating to them. But one of the funniest sights came from our first trip to Beijing, in May 2009. During our visit to the Forbidden City, we happened upon this sign:
It was the first and only time we have seen an official government-sanctioned star rating; and of course we had to evaluate it for ourselves. It was on par with the average "modern" (porcelain floor ring and flush) bathroom, but except for the sign it wasn't anything to write home about.

And so, we get back to the event that prompted me to record this topic. Last week, the Lundy family ventured out to Nanjing to do some China sightseeing. Needing a pit stop, I ventured in to a public bathroom downtown. It was of the communal-trough-with-doorless-divider variety; and while waiting for an open slot, I was befriended by a young boy (I'd guess about 4 or 5 years old) who wanted to practice his English on the only Western in sight. We traded "Hellos" and "How are you's?" and then my turn came up. I went through the various stages of getting into position (refer to text above) and then was startled by a little voice from the edge of the divider saying "You're pretty."

And so I challenge each of you to fill me in -- what exactly is the proper response to this lovely compliment when you are squatting over a trough with 15 other ladies and your pants around your ankles? And how exactly do you extricate yourself smoothly from this scenario at the end of your task?

Spring 2011

It's been a while since the last post, and we have been quite busy with work, school, and trying to cram as much travel as possible in.

In August, the girls returned back to school. Kayla started 4th grade, and McKenna started Kindergarten. They continue to excel in school don't complain about it too much. With Yew Chung being an international school for primarily Expatriate children, the turnover rate is quite high (as many parents are on 2-3 year assignments). This year, Kayla's good friend Claren returned with her family back to Australia. The girls spent a lot of time at each others houses and they both were not looking forward to having to separate. Kayla is missing Claren and continues to keep in touch through email. There are a couple new girls who arrived, one from England and another Japan and they all are spending more time together and Kayla is helping them with the transition to Yew Chung.

We caught some great days in Shanghai in September (which is an excellent time to visit Shanghai in addition to April-May). The 1930's architecture of the Bund area near the river continues to impress and with new roof deck bars and restaurants opening it is an active and fun place to hang out and enjoy the city lights. A couple of our favorites: Ritz-Carlton roof deck bar, Lost Heaven roof deck patio, Stiller's roof deck, New Heights roof deck. (Yes there is a pattern there).

In October we travelled to South Western China (just north of the Vietnam border) to Yunnan Provence. Yunnan is home to a large majority of the Minority Tribes in China. We spent time in the Stone Forrest near Kunming, hiked through local villages during the rice harvest, visited Tiger Leaping Gorge & Shangri-La. We were there about one week and it is impossible to include here all of the amazing sights, scenery, & people we saw there. Probably the highlight for me was walking near the rice fields watching the farmers cutting and thrashing the rice by hand. No mechanisation at all and felt a bit like travelling back in time to what it must of been like in the US in the early 1900's I'm guessing. We also dropped into a local temple and was treated to tea by the temple caretaker (above). Quite a memorable experience!

We celebrated Halloween and Thanksgiving at home and invited some of our close friends to join us for the festivities. Both holidays are uniquely American and it is particularly entertaining to watch the other non-American foreign kids embrace Halloween to get free candy. I think that we had maybe 200-300 kids come to the house for candy (because we had American candy: Smarties, candy corns, etc. hand carried in- thanks Ed & Adam!). US Candy is the best (German Kinder eggs a close second).

We took holiday vacation during Christmas time (which is not celebrated in China) and flew to New Zealand for a two week Camper Van spectacular. We rented a camper van and drove over the South island of New Zealand from Christ Church across and down the West Coast to Milford Sound, Queenstown, and back again (camping the entire way). NZ is an outdoorsman Mecca. Mountains with glaciers to oceans & whale watching within a very short distance. Unbelievable outdoor opportunities. We spent Christmas on a overnight cruise through Milford Sound in the South Western part of the Island sharing a British Christmas with some Germans, Australians, British, & Americans. Kids enjoyed the "crackers", but the British Christmas cake should be avoided (like fruit cake - just not as good). Here is a brief montage of NZ: Beautiful Christchurch architecture, climbing Redwoods, Whale watching...no whales but dolphins...too rough and a lot of really sea sick people, seals at the campsite, ocean 30 ft. from camper, spectacular sunset, new screensaver, playing in waves, pancake rocks, one lane bridges shared with trains (really?), 3 walking suspension bridges, 2 glaciers, kayaking, so many sheep, wine, drenched by waterfall, bungee jumping 10 yr old (not mine, but McKenna cried that she couldn't do it at 6), stars, couple thousand pictures, 4 happy campers.

Unfortunately, in February an 6.3 earth quake hit Christchurch again and leveled many of the buildings and severely damaging many others. Much of the church steeple shown here has been completely destroyed since this picture was taken in December.

Early February was China's traditional "Spring Festival" which is a week long holiday that marks the beginning of the New Year based on the lunar calendar. As we have learned from experience that one should never travel in China during a Chinese Holiday (crowds), we went to Boracay, Philippines for some warmer weather. The week consisted of basically sitting in a beach chair, drinking beer, and basically doing nothing. It was everything that I hoped it could be. We were joined by a couple of our friends: The Peats and the Ihlens. We used the time as a last hurrah with Lars and Anna as Lars has accepted a new job and will move with the family to Paris.

So that pretty much brings us up to date. Obviously, we have done a lot of travel, but our philosophy is to travel absolutely as much as possible to take advantage of the opportunity that we have by being located on this side of the world. I think we have given it our best shot.