Blogs from Yinchuan, Ningxia, China, Asia

I traveled the entire day along the Gobi desert of Inner Mongolia to eventually reach Yinchuan, the provincial capital of Ningxia Autonomous Region, nestled in the middle of the Ningxia Plain. I was standing on the train for the whole trip, but this was not too bad, after all, if it was not for the cigarette's smoke that pervaded the train car. Beside the inconvenience of the people smoking on the train, I feel attracted by the uncomfortable places because I always meet up with the most interesting and kind people It is like when you stay in the hotel with all the comodities and frequented by businessmen, bankers and government officials. It never happened to find out interesting people when I stopped in those places. So, I find myself more at ease when I stay ... read more

Ni Hao China! Yesterday was the second day of instruction at the Ningxia Institute of Technology. The past few days have certainly been filled with adventures of their own. During these last few days my thoughts of China and its people have definitely changed. In these next months you, my reader, will learn about my world here in this fascinating country and interactions with its people. This time I will tell you about my trip from Minnesota to Dawukou. On the 22 of August 2006 my cousin Chris took me to the Minneapolis St. Paul International Air Port. I would first visit Japan on my way to China, which was a journey in itself. While I was sitting on the airliner a number of seats were empty. At first I thought, ‘Great, perhaps I ... read more

R. Draeger Jr. Tapestries Have you ever seen a tapestry? Normally they can be found in castles throughout Europe. In these places tapestries have two purposes. The first is to keep the castle warm, which is not easy when they are mostly made of stone. Speaking of stone, it is not very pleasing to the eye, (unless you study them for a living) and so the second purpose of the tapestries is to give the resident of the castle something pleasant to look at. Okay, there are tapestries which also tell of stories past, but for this newsletter we’ll just overlook that aspect. I know what you are asking your self now, “What exactly do tapestries have to do with China?” or “What is up with the mention of castles in Europe?” China is not a ... read more

My 'pad'... On 31 August 2006 my South Korean room mate, Mr. Kwon, moved into my apartment. At this point you may be asking yourself, "Was that trouble for me?" Think about this for a moment. When I stayed with my cousin, during my brief time in Minnesota, I thought I took up allot of room. In Dawukou, however, my room mate and I still have plenty of room in the apartment. Heck, I have room for two more roommates, even more. That is if you don't mind sleeping on the floor. The last time I ended newsletter #1 I was falling asleep and remained so from 2 P.M. until 6 A.M. the next morning. That was due to the effect of airline food, illness and massive time change. Now I shall give you a tour ... read more

Hello! Tonight we are staying in a city called Yinchuan. It's been a hectic trip so far! It's hard to believe that we left more than a week ago. This is by far the best gaming cafe we have found so far. We have only spent time in a cafe a couple of times before now. The upload speed is great and they even let us plug in our camera! That is a first. Everyday it seems we see something incredible. Here are some statistic's we've been keeping: 1. We are in hotel #6. We sometimes forget what floor we are on. 2. We have spent 40+ hours driving in the truck from Beijing to where we are. It doesn't seem so far on the map but the road is not always easy going! There are ... read more