Right after I finished my blog last night about feeling like I'm getting ripped off for the bus ticket, how I screwed up dinner, and how I felt pretty lonely and totally lost in a strange place, I get on the elevator and the old man standing next to me asks me in perfect English how I feel about Obama. You just gotta laugh at this Universe.
Lest you think I am now drama free, part of me really didn't want to go out into the world this morning. It took courage to leave my room. But baby steps. As Dad once said, a living thing is either growing or dying - if you try to "freeze life" or hide, you stagnate (dying). So to breakfast. My vegetarinism is now "knowledge-based vegetarian" as in if I know what I'm ordering, it'll be vegetarian. Dumplings this morning: one just bread, one red-bean (yay!) and one some diced up meat. Oh well. However, the little ham sandwhich I will never have again. I managed not to throw it up, but I had to suppress a few gags.
Mingtown Youth Hostel, according to the guide book, rents bikes. I figured they might also have maps (needed to follow the biking route laid out in the guide book). And I knew they spoke English from a phonecall the night before. A taxi ride later, all hopes were fulfilled. And damn but Mingtown is nice. I should have been staying in these all along! But away I went (the receptionist was kind enough to rent to me even though I wasn't a guest). I stopped at a teahouse before I had gone to far. It was right on the lake, grey stone and dark wood. I drank some as I poured over the map, figuring out where exactly I was going. The view from the teahouse was basically the same as the picture at right (this is actually from one of the causeways in the lake, but brings out the "China-ness" more).
I started slow, getting the feel of riding in traffic. I was an entirely different district of Hangzhou and it was beautiful. Parks, traditional architecture. Hangzhou is huge, as I now knew from the map. This is what I had been looking for. I was amazed how contracted my perception of this place had become from the night before. Had I not baby-stepped my way out of my fear, I never would have found all this, dispelling the fear. Fear perpetuates fear. Huh.
And then I was on Longjing Road, heading into the hills. I gain some altitude. I stop to rest in the mist, above a tea plantation in the valley, a small pagoda above me on the ridge. I'm riding a frickin' bike through the frickin' countryside of China. How frickin' cool is that? I'll tell you: it's really frickin' cool! : )
I get to the really step part and see this sign. To the uninitiated, this may look like a "No biking" sign. I, however, have been in China for three days and now know this is is a "Do whatever the hell you want"-sign (with the caveat "But don't be a problem"). I continued to the top to Longjing Village, the source of Dragonwell tea, so named because it has the Dragon Well, where ceremonies to encourage rain were performed long ago. I then take the "high road" per the guidebook because I am masochistic.
At the pass, I begin drifting down through another village, a single road running through, kids playing, catching glimpses of families gathered round tables through open doors. And then I am in a different world. There has clearly been a lot of effort in this area. I am traveling down a narrow, deeply lush canyon. The hills are so steep on either side, pines rise straight as arrows along the path, and a stream gently flows along side. I'm in love. I ride slowly, taking pictures, just absorbing it. I find a nice spot to meditate and do so. I pass several couples strolling. I try a "Ni hao" on one and am rewarded with a bashful "Ah-low" from a pretty woman. In the center picture below, see if you can see the pagoda on the peak above the growing tea.
I return the bike. It was maybe 14 km. It's 3pm and restaurants don't open for dinner until 5 pm. I want a place to relax, journal, and read. Having learned from yesterday, I just go to the Starbucks (I can read the first two characters of the Chinese name "xing ba"). Ah, thank god the barrista speaks English. Green tea latte in hand, I find a plush chair right next to the floor to ceiling windows looking out over West Lake, willows, a moon bridge, and strolling locals. Ahhhhhh...
When I returned my bike, I pumped the poor receptionish for a dinner recommendation (hey, she spoke English). So armed with a name and an approximate location, I head out. Of course I can't find it. I feel the same feelings arising as last night. Just relax, and pick another place. Going with intuition, I bypass the empty places and choose a place with lots of people and menu pictures in the window. Happiness. My Chinese is also improving to the point where basic questions like "Ji3 wei2" (how many people) only have to be repeated twice before I get it. I have these veggie wraps with a wicked good sauce and - glory be - those fried potato patties with veggies in them, but now with a spicy powder. Also, I realize the menus list the mass (e.g., 150 g). What a great way to pick out just the amount you want to eat.
I try to catch a cab, but so is the rest of Hangzhou (recall Valentine's Day), so I end up walking the two miles or so back to the hotel. At reception, I pick up my ticket to Huangshan (Yellow Mountain) for tomorrow. Remember this is the 200 yuan ticket that freaked me out yesterday. In the meantime, I reasoned that people are generally good, and for whatever reason, I needed to give her 200 yuan, but it was an honest reason. Flash forward: I am given the ticket and 105 yuan. I get it - I had to overpay, there is no credit, and then I would be refunded. The ticket is 85 (reasonable - the guidebook said 60, but the guidebook I'm discovering is approximate). They only charged a 10 yuan commission.
I tried calling a place in Huangshan to reserve a room, but was unable to get a human. Encouragingly, the hold message was in English and Chinese. The guidebook says there are quite a few places, so taking the next step in adventurism, I will try to get a room when I get there. Baby steps. I want to try this because there was a Starway Hotel right on the West Lake too, which would have been way cooler. I need to explore a little more before picking a place. And Tangkou (a village just off Huangshan) is small enough that I can walk the main street. I've memorized the characters for bing1guan3 (hotel). Here goes nothing!
Off to pack. Good night,
Dan
PS Language lesson: "landscape painting" is "shan1shui3hua4," literally "mountain water painting." Nice.
Lest you think I am now drama free, part of me really didn't want to go out into the world this morning. It took courage to leave my room. But baby steps. As Dad once said, a living thing is either growing or dying - if you try to "freeze life" or hide, you stagnate (dying). So to breakfast. My vegetarinism is now "knowledge-based vegetarian" as in if I know what I'm ordering, it'll be vegetarian. Dumplings this morning: one just bread, one red-bean (yay!) and one some diced up meat. Oh well. However, the little ham sandwhich I will never have again. I managed not to throw it up, but I had to suppress a few gags.
Mingtown Youth Hostel, according to the guide book, rents bikes. I figured they might also have maps (needed to follow the biking route laid out in the guide book). And I knew they spoke English from a phonecall the night before. A taxi ride later, all hopes were fulfilled. And damn but Mingtown is nice. I should have been staying in these all along! But away I went (the receptionist was kind enough to rent to me even though I wasn't a guest). I stopped at a teahouse before I had gone to far. It was right on the lake, grey stone and dark wood. I drank some as I poured over the map, figuring out where exactly I was going. The view from the teahouse was basically the same as the picture at right (this is actually from one of the causeways in the lake, but brings out the "China-ness" more).
I started slow, getting the feel of riding in traffic. I was an entirely different district of Hangzhou and it was beautiful. Parks, traditional architecture. Hangzhou is huge, as I now knew from the map. This is what I had been looking for. I was amazed how contracted my perception of this place had become from the night before. Had I not baby-stepped my way out of my fear, I never would have found all this, dispelling the fear. Fear perpetuates fear. Huh.
And then I was on Longjing Road, heading into the hills. I gain some altitude. I stop to rest in the mist, above a tea plantation in the valley, a small pagoda above me on the ridge. I'm riding a frickin' bike through the frickin' countryside of China. How frickin' cool is that? I'll tell you: it's really frickin' cool! : )
I get to the really step part and see this sign. To the uninitiated, this may look like a "No biking" sign. I, however, have been in China for three days and now know this is is a "Do whatever the hell you want"-sign (with the caveat "But don't be a problem"). I continued to the top to Longjing Village, the source of Dragonwell tea, so named because it has the Dragon Well, where ceremonies to encourage rain were performed long ago. I then take the "high road" per the guidebook because I am masochistic.At the pass, I begin drifting down through another village, a single road running through, kids playing, catching glimpses of families gathered round tables through open doors. And then I am in a different world. There has clearly been a lot of effort in this area. I am traveling down a narrow, deeply lush canyon. The hills are so steep on either side, pines rise straight as arrows along the path, and a stream gently flows along side. I'm in love. I ride slowly, taking pictures, just absorbing it. I find a nice spot to meditate and do so. I pass several couples strolling. I try a "Ni hao" on one and am rewarded with a bashful "Ah-low" from a pretty woman. In the center picture below, see if you can see the pagoda on the peak above the growing tea.
I return the bike. It was maybe 14 km. It's 3pm and restaurants don't open for dinner until 5 pm. I want a place to relax, journal, and read. Having learned from yesterday, I just go to the Starbucks (I can read the first two characters of the Chinese name "xing ba"). Ah, thank god the barrista speaks English. Green tea latte in hand, I find a plush chair right next to the floor to ceiling windows looking out over West Lake, willows, a moon bridge, and strolling locals. Ahhhhhh...
When I returned my bike, I pumped the poor receptionish for a dinner recommendation (hey, she spoke English). So armed with a name and an approximate location, I head out. Of course I can't find it. I feel the same feelings arising as last night. Just relax, and pick another place. Going with intuition, I bypass the empty places and choose a place with lots of people and menu pictures in the window. Happiness. My Chinese is also improving to the point where basic questions like "Ji3 wei2" (how many people) only have to be repeated twice before I get it. I have these veggie wraps with a wicked good sauce and - glory be - those fried potato patties with veggies in them, but now with a spicy powder. Also, I realize the menus list the mass (e.g., 150 g). What a great way to pick out just the amount you want to eat.
I try to catch a cab, but so is the rest of Hangzhou (recall Valentine's Day), so I end up walking the two miles or so back to the hotel. At reception, I pick up my ticket to Huangshan (Yellow Mountain) for tomorrow. Remember this is the 200 yuan ticket that freaked me out yesterday. In the meantime, I reasoned that people are generally good, and for whatever reason, I needed to give her 200 yuan, but it was an honest reason. Flash forward: I am given the ticket and 105 yuan. I get it - I had to overpay, there is no credit, and then I would be refunded. The ticket is 85 (reasonable - the guidebook said 60, but the guidebook I'm discovering is approximate). They only charged a 10 yuan commission.
I tried calling a place in Huangshan to reserve a room, but was unable to get a human. Encouragingly, the hold message was in English and Chinese. The guidebook says there are quite a few places, so taking the next step in adventurism, I will try to get a room when I get there. Baby steps. I want to try this because there was a Starway Hotel right on the West Lake too, which would have been way cooler. I need to explore a little more before picking a place. And Tangkou (a village just off Huangshan) is small enough that I can walk the main street. I've memorized the characters for bing1guan3 (hotel). Here goes nothing!
Off to pack. Good night,
Dan
PS Language lesson: "landscape painting" is "shan1shui3hua4," literally "mountain water painting." Nice.
Keep these affirmations close to your heart..."I survived China"..."Life takes Risk"..."Dare to Win". You are problem solving your way through China for a brief time and exploring the ways of another culture..and believe it or not, you are a CLS student..Chinese as a Second language!! HAHAHA How wonderful for you to see a totally different culture and be completely immersed in it, and know that it will be ok in the end. Americans have everything at their fingertips...so you have experienced a bit of discomfort, but I sense it's all good in the end. Your narratives are wonderful and funny(soup story) to read. Thanks for sharing the Tao of Dan. Starbucks?? Really!!
ReplyDeleteLife begins outside the comfort zone.
ReplyDeleteAnd, at least you aren't getting asked about Bush!