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Published: February 26th 2007
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Hello Friends!
I have just come from one of the most authentic cultural experiences I have had while traveling here in Yunnan Province, China. I am currently staying in a UNESCO World Heritage site, the ancient city of LiJiang. This is home to the Naxi people (pronounced Na - Shee), who were until very recently a completely matriarchal society. Some more secluded branches of the Naxi still are. That means the women are in charge, and in some cases they practice "Walking Marriages," where women do not marry, men roam from house to house, and children don't know who their father's are. I have just come from a performance of traditional Naxi music. The orchestra was made up of thirty some musicians, a few over 80 years old. It is no exaggeration to say I have never heard music like this before. Besides the gigantic drum, there was a gong, a long, three stringed banjo, and a mandolin the size of a man's chest.
To say that this experience was rather authentic is very impressive, and not saying much all at the same time. I have come to see that the Chinese idea of tourism is very different
from mine. The "ancient" cities more often feel like some kind of Disneyland than anything else. Buildings have been reconstructed or painted over to look like they could have been made yesterday. Many "local" shops are run by ethnically Chinese, also known as "Han," entrepreneurs looking to sell anything that will sell, native or not. I have seen Tibetan prayer wheels here, and this area is by no means Tibetan. This however is only half the difference, the other being even odder. To anyone who is familiar with the Japanese tour group stereotype, of groups of Japanese led by a guide with a flag and a megaphone, imagine that multiplied by 1.3 billion. Tourism is a huge industry here, and we are in the midst of Spring Festival. This combines to bring us HORDES of Chinese tourists, they clog the streets because so many groups come at once. Large buses have specially designed parking lots, and they are always led by someone with a flag, and they often all wear loud, distinguishing clothing to tell each other apart, like red baseball caps.
Needless to say, this is not really my idea of traveling. Unfortunately, my two weeks here were
designed in very Chinese fashion. That means no public transportation, no hostels, no local restaurants, and definitely no free time. Luckily however, I do have some kindred spirits on my trip. When we insisted on getting a free afternoon from the tour guide to rent and ride bikes outside of a particularly bad tourist town, we got our way. Myself and another guy split from the group, haggled for bicycles, and rode out of town. We saw two pigs being slaughtered, were offered to eat the fat of one raw, then sat by a picturesque lake while some women washed clothes and vegetables, then tried to learn an odd billiards type game with two very old men who didn't even speak Mandarin, ran into a very lively funeral, and met a like minded Chinese rock climber who gave us his phone number so we could look him up next time we were in his city. Whoa! Now thats my kind of tourism!
Speaking of rock climbing, we were recently in a place known locally as the "Stone Forest." This a geological feature found only here in Yunnan Province in an area that used to be on the ocean floor.
Due to extensive undersea fluctuation, huge, jagged stone pillars grew from the ground in such numbers so as to look literally like a forest. Today it has been turned into a very well manicured park. Despite in the gaw dropping magificence, the site was only somewhat marginalized by the Chinese tour groups that literally made the paths impossible to navigate without going with the flow. Luckily, my friend and I both brought our rock climbing shoes. We danced around that place like monkeys, and loved every minute of it. For that matter, so did the Chinese. Rock climbing is not a sport that has caught on here, so two whities sticking to rock faces was like getting to see the bearded lady at no extra charge.
That being said, my experience of being referred to as "Lauway" or "Foreigner" at dinner was just the tip of the iceberg. Here we are literally part of the show. When we sit in groups we often catch people blatantly taking pictures of videos of us. Last night, while at a bar that was in very close proximity to a bar across the way, we were drawn into a game with the other
bar. They would chant a song, and then yell "Ya so ya so ya ya so!" So we had to sing back, or lose face. I got the feeling this was a standard type thing, so a standard Chinese song was expected in return. Ha! We challenged our competitors with Sublime and Baby Got Back. Confident that no one would understand us, the simultaneous use of English was enough to wow a crowd of tourists on both sides of the street. Needless to say, the bar enjoyed our presence.
I feel like I should take this time to describe the place I am living now. The town as called Lijiang. It is home to an old quarter like few I've seen. The roads are cobbled, and far too narrow for vehicular travel. There is also running water that flows along the sides of the street, and sometimes the middle. This is a remnant of an old Naxi custom that used the many mountain springs to feed their villages. They would have these streams routed through their towns, and even their homes to provide water. Strict rules were employed as to when water could be used, and for what. Today,
this seems to be maintained as little more than a tourist attraction, but that can't negate its charm. The streams are filled with large goldfish, and in some larger sections where it more resembles a small river, people can buy large paper flowers with a candle in the middle and send them downstream. The largest thoroughfare in the city is lined with small weeping willows. All and all the place is beautiful, though the feeling that everything has been constructed recently and for the sole purpose of moneymaking is rather overwhelming.
Tomorrow I set out for Tiger Leaping Gorge. This is the largest gorge in the world, nearly twice as deep as the Grand Canyon, though only a third as wide. The site is renowned for its beauty. On the one hand, we have all been purchased matching shirts to ensure our safety, but on the other we have been allowed to split into four groups of five, and seem to be allowed some kind of freedom. Only time will tell, but the pictures should be fabulous.
Until Next Time,
Love,
Carl
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