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Published: September 30th 2006
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Kids!
These are the kids who wanted their picture taken with us. So cute! We have arrived in Xi'an on the sleeper train from Pingyao! It was our first sleeper train journey in Asia and Devlin's first sleeper ever. I took one previously when I was in Italy.
The hard sleeper class has 3 "berths" (bunks) on either side, but no door or any separation from the aisle. We lucked out and got the top and middle bunks, the bottom one is nice because you don't have to climb up a precarious ladder but everyone else also sits on your bunk when they are not sleeping. There is another better class, called soft sleeper, and there are only 2 berth on either side and each section has it's own door and nicer bedding. The price is also usually double than that for a hard sleeper. Promptly at 10pm the lights are turned off in the train and everyone goes to sleep, and they come back on at 6am. We both slept rather well, aside from the loudly snoring man across from me.
Sitting across from us was a nice older man and I assume his wife. They smiled at us and asked us something in Chinese but of course we had no idea
Paper Flowers
The funeral procession going past. and had to just smile and say "no Chinese sorry!!". They seemed to discuss this amongst themselves for awhile (the two older people, a teenaged girl and a group of men) and then were pointing at us and talking to the young woman. She looked at us and asked politely in English "Excuse me, can I please ask you a question?" So of course we smiled and said Yes!! and she asked "We would like to know where you are from?" so we told her Canada, and she turned back to the group and said "CAH NAH DAH" (that is how you say Canada in Chinese). They all nodded and she thanked us. The man had a giant grocery bag FULL of moon cakes (biscuit like cakes filled with bean paste and sesame seeds) and he pulled out two for us to munch on. Such hospitality!!
Another common form of showing friendship and welcoming seems to be offering you cigarettes. The owner of the guesthouse in Pingyao was always offering us ciggs and would sit and chat with us. Once a much older Chinese man wandered into the guesthouse "common room" and sat down at our table and practically forced us to take ciggs and sat smoking enjoying our English conversations!! In the train stations young men will come and offer them to you! One time a girl we were sitting with already had one lit, and the man offering it to her would not take no for an answer, he shoved it in her hand and held out the lighter to light it!! She had to keep saying "no I'll save it I'll save it" and put it in her pack.
We met a charming group of school children yesterday morning in Pingyao. Walking down the street we heard a small "excuse me" from behind us and we turned to see a group of smiling children! The oldest girl, who spoke the best English, asked us if they could please take a picture with us! Of course we agreed, and they pointed further down to street and motioned for us to walk with them. They all tried out what little English phrases they know, "where are you from" "welcome to pingyao" "we go to ping zhang school" and they also told us all their names, although we had a lot of trouble pronouncing them! Finally we reach the spot where an older man is holding a camera and we all pose. We took out our camera and had the man snap a pic too, and they all crowded around to see it on my digital screen. They shook our hands and told us "nice to meet you!" and we walked off. I loved this exchange between these kids. Later on we were spotted by another group of children wearing the same track suits (they have track suits as school uniforms) and they all excitedly pointed at us and started waving. I think "nice to meet you" must have been a phrase they just learned because I said "nice to meet you!!" and in a chorus they all replied back "NICE TO MEET YOU TOOOO!". So cute.
Wandering back to the hostel to await our train we noticed a small marching band and parade coming down the street. We hurried back to the guesthouse to sit outside and watch it go by. The owner explained to us that it was a funeral procession, and he told us all about their funeral traditions. If it is a rich family, the line of fancy cars will be longer, and they pay these cars about 500 yuan each to drive in the procession! After that comes people carrying colorful paper flower wreaths and then the coffin. After this is the family members, and they dress in different combinations of white and black which signify their relation to the deceased person. He said when the person dies, they leave the body in the home for 9 days and use chemicals to keep it from decaying, and all the family and friends come by to pay their last respects. Then the ceremony we saw occurs until they reach the outside of the city walls, where the coffin is loaded into a truck and taken to the graveyard.
It was certainly an exciting few days in Pingyao. It seems we were lucky being there to experience all the different occassions.
I experienced the worst public toilet to date in the train station last night. It was a trough style one, but without the big gush to wash everything away. The smell alone was enough to make you puke as soon as you entered, but without any other options I had to hold my breath and tough it out. Lets just say the trough badly needed a rinsing, and I could hear the girl next to me gagging it was so bad!!
Because of the National Day holiday we are somewhat stuck here in Xi'an. It is impossible to book any train tickets during the week, as everyone is traveling around the country. It is raining today in Xi'an so we are taking it easy relaxing at the hostel, we will hope for the weather to improve in the week and go see the sights (Terracotta Warriors!!).
The restaurant at our hostel has some great Western food. This morning immediately after arriving we both ate the "American Breakfast", which was eggs toast hashbrowns sausage and bacon. The first time we've had real breakfast food on the whole trip! We came back and had lunch, Dev ordered the cheeseburger and me the chicken caesar salad. I was a little nervous as to what would arrive, but it was quite a delicious salad and tasted just like caesar salad at home! A fellow traveler we've met told us a hilarious story about ordering fruit salad in Beijing. Their idea of salad is lettuce with a big squirt of mayo on top, and when his fruit salad arrived, it was fruit completely slathered in mayo! How gross!! The next time he asked for it without the mayo and they told him "Oh you want the assorted fruit platter"...for 10 yuan more than the one with mayo!! So strange. It is weird eating "Western" food that isn't McDonalds or KFC!
I must sign off now, we need to book some air tickets from Chengdu to Shanghai! Missing you all!
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Laura Mandich
non-member comment
Hi Erin and Devlin
I am glad that your mom linked me to this blog. I will be checking on you. I haven't read much yet, but the pictures look incredible! Have fun and take care, Love, Laura P.S. Misho and Dani say Hi to you!