Hong Kong and Southern China Tour

We left Shenzhen Thursday morning, Jan. 23rd to meet the other China Teachers in Hong Kong.  We were bussed there and had to go through immigration for both China and Hong Kong.  (Two different entities)  It wasn't a long process, but we had an extra 2 hours built into the schedule to make sure we made it on time to check in at the YMCA Hotel in downtown Hong Kong.  (It is actually in Kowloon, where the LDS temple is located).  Stan had made an appointment with an authorized Apple repair shop to see if he could get his iTouch repaired.  We didn't know if there would be enough time to get checked in and successfully negotiate the subway system and locate the shop.  But, we were able to find everything and in good time.  Unfortunately, they were not able to help because they needed at least 3 days to make the repairs.  They suggested contacting one of the major Apple stores in Hong Kong.  We didn't have much hope for success, but we learned of an Apple store near the Temple and determined to give it a try that Friday.

 This is the view of Hong Kong Island from the

 Kowloon side near our hotel.

 

That evening we went to dinner with several of our group.  Since there are many western restaurants in Hong Kong, we decided to make the cultural leap and go to Outback.  It was wonderful!  We had steak, salad and Stan had a mango smoothie.  He was in heaven.  Everyone was in heaven.

We had an early appointment at the Temple Friday morning.  Having our group of about 85 attend at one time, and in combination with the Spring Festival Chinese visitors, was a little overwhelming for the folks serving there.  Everything went well and it was so good to be in the temple together again.  We met up with two couples who had served with the Rhyasens when they were serving their 1-year temple mission in the Hong Kong.  We were fellow workers with the Rhyasens in the Portland Temple for 2 years before they left.  They had just returned home a few months before we left for China.

After the temple we had a meeting with Elder Gong, president of the Asia Area.  He was a part of the administrative team at BYU, is Chinese and is now a full time church leader over all of Asia.    The meeting was held in a very nice facility across the street from the temple.  Part of it was the Mission office.  Elder Gong talked about the BYU China Teacher's Program and the positive influence we are in China.   Since we are forbidden in mainland China to do any "missionary work," he indicated we can talk about the academic institution that we represent, its academic programs and the standards of the university.  He said that may be helpful as many teachers get questions from Chinese nationals about the church and it feels abrupt to give them the standard line, "We have signed an agreement with your government that we are not allowed to discuss religion."  I think all of us were grateful for his suggestions.

That afternoon Stan was successful in getting his iTouch replaced, although the data had to be eliminated.  We hope our back-up on the computer in Jinan will be successful!  That evening BYU hosted a western dinner at a restaurant and we enjoyed the meal and being together.  Following the dinner several of us took a tram to Victoria Peak, which overlooks Hong Kong.  It was a little brisk on top of the Peak, but we enjoyed the lights of the city.

 This is the tram we took to the top of Victoria Peak

View of Hong Kong from Victoria Peak

Saturday morning we met as BYU teachers and shared teaching ideas.  We had a strict time limit.  At the two-minute point, the crowd applauded and you sit down whether or not you have finished your presentation.  Each of the ideas were included in a packet that we could study and use in our lesson preparation.  We are thankful for the ideas as we begin planning our second semester classes. 

We had free time for the rest of Saturday so we went with several others to another section of Hong Kong Island called Stanley.  It is more a beach resort area, less crowded and had beautiful views of harbors and the ocean.  We just strolled along the promenade and "shopped" at the local markets.  Plus we took an hour trip on a typical sampan.  Many of the fishing boats were already docked in the harbor as the crews had been given leave for the upcoming Spring Festival and Chinese New Year celebrations.  It is a time when most people travel back to their hometown, visit relatives and eat "delicious" food!

 On our way to the market in Stanley

 

 The waterfront and promenade in Stanley

 

 On the Sampan boat ride in Aberdeen, south coast of Hong Kong Island

 Floating restaurant in Aberdeen harbor

 Some of our group on the Sampan boat ride

 This is the Sampan boat

 

At a park near our Hong Kong hotel

Sunday we were up early to attend our Sunday services.  No one -relatively speaking - was in the subway! The meetings were held in a chapel at the LDS Temple.   We spent the afternoon exploring a nice park near our hotel with a aviary, flower beds and just enjoyed the pleasant weather.  We then traveled by bus from Hong Kong back to Shenzhen to board a plane to Guilin.  (Back through two custom stops again!!) 

The Shenzhen airport is less than an hour from Hong Kong, but some flights are less expensive from that location.  It is one of the most modern airports in China and is shaped like an airplane.  This picture was taken from one of the posters in the airport!

Monday was a 4+ hour cruise down the Li River.  The scenery is unusual with small mountains that are connected at the base, so they are not a mountain range like you would see in the Rockies.  Unfortunately the weather was hazy and foggy so we didn't really get to see the area in its "prime".   Following the cruise, we did have a "golf cart" ride through the countryside of Yangshuo and observed the life of the native Chinese in the area.  We really felt like we where in rural China.

 On the Li River many villagers "deliver" produce to the cruise boat via bamboo rafts.

The view on the Li River cruise

 The mountains we "sort of" saw are the ones depicted on the 20 RMB bill

On the boat with Lily

Traffic jam in Guilin.  This was taken from the bus.  We were turning away from the traffic.  All of us clapped when the bus driver successfully negotiated the bus through this maze!

Yangshuo village outside of Guilin.

 This is a typical view from the Yangshuo village.

 Water buffalo are used to help plough the fields in the village.

Near the village is rock formation of the "moon" through the hill.

That evening we went on small boats to watch the cormorants (duck-like bird) catch fish.  They only caught two, so they must not have been too hungry or the fish were hiding!

The cormorant has a rope around his neck that prevents him from swallowing the fish.  He is trained to bring back the fish to the boat and then he is rewarded, after a time, by having the rope removed and he gets a fish.  This is an ancient way of fishing and a now more a tourist attraction as the younger generation is not interested in learning the "trade".

Julie Johnston, a BYU teacher from Beijing (really from Las Vegas) allows the cormorant to settle on her shoulder.  He was heavier than she expected.

 

 

Tuesday, Jan. 28, we went to Reed Flute Cave, about 750 feet underground.  It was more a dry cave and is quite different from the Oregon Caves with dripping water everywhere.  It fact we almost thought the formations looked fake!  The Chinese did a nice job of lighting the areas  with colored lights and seem to see "animals, Santa Claus, old men, etc." in most of the shapes in the cave.  One of the largest rooms was the "Crystal Palace" that can hold 1,000 people.  We then spent several hours in the airport before taking an evening flight to Lijiang, near the Tibetan border in Yunnan Province. 

Reed Flute Cave

 The "stunned bunny" look

Wednesday we explored the area around Lijiang, which is at about 7500 feet in elevation.  The sky was clear with no pollution!  It was still cold in the morning, but warmed to the 60's by afternoon.  Snow Mountain is a prominent feature in the area and we enjoyed picturesque scenery at Black Dragon Pool Park, which is formed from the runoff from the mountain as well as some natural springs.

Black Dragon Pool Park with Snow Mountain in the background

We also visited a working Chinese village of 1,000 people that many tourists never see.  The people were very friendly, although most speak a dialect form of Mandarin.  They are "Naxi", one of the 55 minorities in China.  There was an embroidery school there, but the students had gone home for the Chinese New Year.  Some of the tapestry that was displayed took about a year to complete.  Those that took six months cost about $700 (US). 

 Naxi village meat market.

 

This tile work is on the outside of the home facing the street.  There are many red lanterns in celebration for the upcoming Chinese New Year.  Red is a lucky color in China.  We were allowed to enter and take pictures of a typical home in this village.  There is an inner courtyard with two homes - one for the grandparents and one for the other members of the family.  The grandparents get the apartment that receives the most sun since indoor heating is limited.

 

 This kitchen is on the outside of the home in the village

 

 This is one of the entrances to the home.  The wood carving is quite detailed.  The guide said the doors look beautiful, but often the inside of the home is a mess!

 The grandmother with her grandchild.

 

 Each home has its own garden plot.  This adobe portion of the home was built from straw and mud.

 

 The guide said this was likely bean curd drying which will later be used to flavor veggies and soups.

Cleaning fish. 

 

 This woman was chasing her rooster.  He likely would become a meal for the New Year feast.  We tried to help her, but we were not successful.  We observed that she later cornered him.

 

This 'tye dye" tablecloth was on display. 

 

This Naxi village has their own writing language and is more like pictographs

In Lijiang there is an "Old Town" section with merchants, cobbled streets, canals, etc. as well as a more tourist area.

Shanghai, Sanya and Shenzhen

On Saturday, Jan. 18th, we left for the first leg of our 3 week tour of points south.  We were hopeful that the weather would be much warmer than it has been in Jinan and that we could spend time in our swimming suits.  First stop was Shanghai.  We were definitely not able to swim at this location.  It was socked in, (combination of fog and smog), and it was colder than it was in Jinan.  We bundled up to go out.

First stop was the Bund or a promenade type walking area on the south side of the river.   There was a lot of river traffic; sightseeing boats, barges hauling coal, etc.  Across the river are all the major skyscrapers of Shanghai.  Normally it would be a stunning view, but that day it was a bit pathetic.  However, it was amazing standing there and thinking that we were in China, and in the center of the most populated city in the world.  Shanghai's population is somewhere near 25 million.

These flowers were growing near the Bund.  Even though it was quite cold, these warmed us up. 

You can see that the Shanghai skyline from the Bund, was shrouded in fog/smog.  Even then it is still amazing.

These buildings are across the street from the Bund.  They are definitely European in design.

This is what the skyline should look like.

Another view.

 This is a famous market not too far from the bund.  It caters to foreigners but there are many locals there as well.

Another stop was the Shanghai museum.  This is a very nice facility with many Chinese artifacts.  There were exhibitions of coins, ceramics, copper works, jade, furniture, calligraphy, Chinese art, minority clothing and seals.  Many dated from before 3000 BC!

Although it was smoggy, our tour guide felt the air was clear enough to ascend the Pearl Tower.  We could not see really well, but it still was impressive to be up that high and see the tall buildings.

We went to another observation deck where there were glass panels in the floor so you could see straight down.  It was difficult to walk out on those panels even though they are stronger than steel.  It was an uneasy feeling!  After about 10 minutes, we gathered in a very interesting museum housed in the bottom of the tower that explained in detail the history and development of Shanghai.  It was like a feature at Epcot center.  There were wax figures depicting street scenes and you felt like you walking in "Old Shanghai". 

 

Later that day we flew to Sanya, the tropical China.  After a night's rest, actually it was difficult to sleep with all the outside noise - honking, night markets, etc., we went for an hour bus ride to Monkey Island.  We stood in a long line for the gondola ride and then we were surrounded by monkeys!  They were all around us, swinging in trees, chattering on top of signs and posing for pictures!  The babies were so cute!  We attended two monkey shows….one with monkeys on bicycles, a mountain goat that balanced on a pipe with a monkey on his back that did a handstand!  The later show was more comical as the trainer was trying to get the monkeys to perform and they would steal his hat, not do what he said, try to “hit” him, etc.  The best part was the monkey who dunked a basketball!  We left the island via a short boat ride after a not memorable Chinese lunch buffet!

We then spent about an hour on a beautiful beach in front of an abandoned resort.  We had the place to ourselves.  We watched the waves and looked at the fishing boats in the distance.  Many dipped their feet and half of their body into the water. 

 

 

These fishing boat were interesting in that they

 were rigged to fish at night.

We took a short nap and went with the rest of the Jinan BYU Teachers to Dolphin Sports Bar and Grill restaurant for dinner.  We met a church member whom Wayne home teaches, normally via Skype.  She only moved to Sanya on Friday to oversee a construction project for Shangri-La Hotels.  She is the only LDS member on the island of 8 million people and we enjoyed getting to know her.  Plus it was wonderful western food and we all raved about what we ordered.  Stan had BBQ ribs and Nancy had chicken fajitas plus blueberry cheesecake for dessert.  Stacy was our waitress and was extra attentive and spoke excellent English.  We wished we could tip her, but that is not Chinese culture.

 

 Following dinner we strolled along the river observing the junk fishing boats, trees lit up with led lights, people doing choreographed dancing, bridges lit up with flashing pictures of horses, birds, butterflies, etc. and many people out in the alleys and streets.  It was almost ten pm and the open air night market was still a buzz of activity where people were selling jewelry, crafts, purses, clothes, fruits and snack foods.  Does this town ever sleep?

 

Another day we visited Tianya-Haijiao, a romantic scenic area.  Many Chinese couples honeymoon here.  An emperor believed it was the end of the earth.  "The Rocks of Sun and Moon  are two boulders near hundreds of other uniquely shaped rocks. Here the "Sun" refers to "husband" and the "Moon" refers to "wife". Looking from the distance, they resemble a couple entwined to each other, but they are in fact separate rocks." (Wikipedia).   It was beautiful and the weather was perfect.  We strolled along the beach and just enjoyed the setting. 

 

 

After a flight from Sanya, we arrived in Shenzhen, a 35 year old city and the most modern in China.  We toured the "Splendid China Folk Culture Village".  It is patterned after the Polynesian Culture Center in Hawaii that the LDS Church developed 50 years ago.  There are miniature replicas of famous sights in China: the Great Wall, Tibetan Palace, Three Gorges Scenic area, etc.  Plus there are individual villages of various minority Chinese people with displays of their artwork and culture.  We watched a demonstration of cutting a coconut, a game with a spinning top, and a horse "war" show that reminded us of a Genghis Khan setting.  The most spectacular event was the evening show which was a mini version of the opening ceremony for the 2008 Olympics held in China.  There were fireworks, drums, dancers, acrobats and beautiful costumes.  They had a cast of at least 75 performers. 

 

 

"Splendid China" exhibits

Night Show