Munching on Delicious Rice Cakes while playing a game of Mahjong: Kaili, China

 

The details:

Where: Kaili, Guizhou Province, China

Where we stayed:  Heaven sent Dragon Hotel ($30-$35/night with breakfast, wifi, immaculate rooms & unlimited hot water) – after all our squat toilets and run down places, it was time for a little ‘luxury’…trust us, it was “heaven sent”!  This was also the first place in China where we were actually turned away for being foreigners. Apparently there’s a lot of paperwork involved and an extra license so some hotels don’t want to bother with the hassle. After checking out the Petroleum Hotel (not recommended at all!) and being denied by many of the rest, we ended up at one of the nicest places in town.

Good Eats:  Why did we not buy more! Rule of thumb – when you see lines it must be good. One of Kaili’s specialties are little rice cakes with peanuts held together with a touch of honey. While there are many imitations in town, the one down the alley in front of the hotel was always the busiest. We also had a delicious pizza like street snack from a vendor that sets up near the southeast corner of Yingpan Donglu and Shaoshan Beilu down a little ways on Yingpan. We also enjoyed a traditional Chinese hotpot meal at a fellow couchsurfer’s house, Min. Thank you Min for your hospitality and showing us around town a bit!

Best of:  Best taste of ‘real’ China on our trip, cheap massages, street eats (a dying art thanks to crackdowns on food safety issues.)

Worst of:   Hotels denying us a place to stay when we arrived, a couple of rainy days.

Most Memorable:  One of the many memorable moments was compliments of Min by showing us where the $3 blind massage place was. It’s located on the second floor above the food court of the ‘mall’ and an excellent value, but be prepared for a strong massage that hurts in a good way the next day!  Photo of the area is below:

 

Arguably the poorest part of the poorest province, Eastern Guizhou sees fewer tourists compared to the rest of the nation, but there are signs that that too is changing. All around this unassuming city lies some of the most unique and traditional Miao villages making it the ideal hub for travel around the region. As somewhat of a ‘last frontier’ the area is becoming increasingly popular with travelers that want to get off the beaten path. For those willing to go off schedule of the market days and tour group times, these villages can still be a unique experience with no other foreigners around for miles.

The Miao villages may be the main attraction, but Kaili has a few nuggets to offer the intrepid traveler if given enough time to work its charm. It’s own market attracts all the villagers from all over the region making it possible to see all the different minorities in the region in one spot. The downtown area has plenty of eateries and hotels giving you far more options than you would get in the villages and lets not forget about that $3 massage!

 

Kaili’s market plays host to a variety of vendors. From tofu to dog, dental services to haircuts – anything and everything can be had on market days.

 

Another aspect of market day that plays a vital role for the community is it’s social aspects. Something akin to what we would consider a lazy Sunday afternoon coffee, the Chinese men enjoy games.

Occasionally, a small group of men, such as this one, will get together and play their musical instruments. Despite breaking a few flimsy strings on his banjo, the musician, ever resourceful, found a way to continue the show. 

 

Chinese chess and Mahjong are the two most popular games in China and one does not have to go far to catch a game in action. On market days, the number of people playing increases as squares fill and makeshift tables are set up all over.

  

Social aspects not only apply to the men and their games, but the women as well. Many women spend days making a couple of pieces of textiles to bring to market. Some are made with new threads while others are made with recycled materials, like old blue jeans. The combinations create a kaleidoscope of color and patterns that are distinct from one ethnic minority to the next.

  

   

Even locks of hair are sold in the market. The long hair tribes (discussed in a previous posting on the Dragon’s Backbone) prize these ‘extensions’.

 

And what’s a market without its exotic food options? Dried chilies and, yes, dog are still available served alongside Pao (steamed buns) and various soups and stews.

While we could have spent months exploring the various villages and tribes, we felt it was time to move on after a week. Packing up, we boarded a train heading further into the Chinese interior. Passing through the Southwest China transport hub of Kunming, our next stop is the magnificently stunning rice terraces of Yuanyang!

Snapshot Sunday: China’s Cuddly Creatures

A must stop when in Chengdu is the Giant Panda Research Base.  View these cute and cuddly creatures in the early morning when they come out for breakfast! 

Snapshot Sunday: Chinese Hotpot

We arrived in Chengdu late after our border run from Kunming to Hong Kong to renew our visas.  The only restaurant open was packed with young local people but, as usual, was without an English menu.  We sat down anyways and Tracy pointed in our phrase book for vegetarian which resulted in a laugh from the waitress.  She in turn pointed at chicken and fish.  We saw the fish heads and scales as we entered the restaurant and didn’t want that in our pot so we shrugged our shoulders and ordered chicken thinking how bad could it be?  What came out of the kitchen was a cold hotpot, a concoction of lukewarm spicy broth with bits of chicken floating in it.  We stirred our chopsticks around and the first thing Jason came up with was the chicken’s head!  I swirled my chopsticks around and came up with a foot.  We sighed, ordered another beer and resigned ourselves to going to bed hungry…

For those of you that are curious we asked at our (English speaking – YAY!) hostel and they confirmed that we went to a “different” kind of hotpot restaurant and that it shouldn’t keep us from trying Chengdu’s traditional hotpot which really is a delicious spicy concoction with vegetables and meats (it really is, I LOVE those SICHUAN peppercorns)! 

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all our Friends and Family!

Another crazy year in the Bedsaul household has come and gone and what a ride it was! From the frozen tundra of the upper Midwest to the stifling heat of southern India, we wrapped up what ended up being our two year world tour by visiting the two most populated nations in China and India with Myanmar (Burma) thrown in for good measure.
We began the year in North Dakota making it to the annual fishing tournament in Devils Lake before hopping on a plane headed for Asia once again where we promptly landed without luggage (a problem which was rectified a day and a half later but what a start).
First on the list was Myanmar. For the past 40 years the country has been controlled by a military junta and little progress, economic or technological has been made in that time. It’s a nation stuck in the past. British Colonial buildings dot the cities in various degrees of crumbling beauty, American WWII transport trucks serve as buses shuttling people to and fro and electricity is a luxury not to be taken for granted as it disappears for hours at a time. Tourism in Myanmar has been severely restricted and travel there is tough but extremely rewarding with some of the world’s friendliest people.
Our next stop was India, home of the Taj Mahal and two of the world’s largest religions – Hinduism and Buddhism. We started in the north and made our way south taking in all of what India had to offer for better or worse. India is a land of extremes as there seems to be a huge line between the haves and the have not’s. By the time we reached the south of India, we had had enough of the heat, the poverty and the attitudes. We were ready to leave. But as the old adage goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder, and of all the places we have been, India ranks near the top of places we would revisit. We love to hate it but can’t wait to go back.
Leaving the sweltering heat behind, we moved on to our final country, China with quick stops in Hong Kong and Macau along the way. A nation that is clearly on the upswing, China proved to be one of the hardest countries to travel independently around. English is virtually nonexistent and the accommodations, in particular the bathroom situation, were among the worst in the world. The varied ethnic minority groups and stunning scenery made it all worthwhile but by the time we made it to Beijing we were ready for a dose of clean, more westernized China before heading back to the states to begin the starting over phase.
Our travels have been put on hold while we both explore new and exciting opportunities. Tracy is now a partner in a translation company which she manages from the comfort of home. Jason has returned to college at Lake Region State College in Devils Lake. He hopes to receive his AA in Accounting and then continue on to get his Bachelors in Web Development at NDSU. Ty and Athena have adjusted well to the extremes of North Dakota, although Ty makes his trips outside far shorter in the winter than summer!
We hope this letter finds you well and in good spirits. May you and yours have a joyous holiday season and best of luck in 2011!
Tracy, Jason, Ty and Athena

Strike up the Band and Welcome to the Show! Langde, China (Guizhou Province)

Continuing on our tour of the ethnic countryside surrounding Kaili we next head to Langde. While most of the Miao villages are quite similar in architecture and landscape, they each have their own unique personalities and characters. The government, in their constant pursuit of capitalizing on the growing number of internal domestic tourists, treat many of these villages as new mints, increasing the nations coffers at the expense of the local villagers and their traditional ways of life. It’s a story that is oft repeated in modern day China, but I don’t think there was a place that was more in your face that what we experienced in Langde.

 

 

We boarded the local bus with the usual cast of characters – chain smoking farmers, produce toting old ladies and the token fellow independent traveller (in this case a Frenchman) all driven by the chain smoking driver. . . did we mention that they smoke a lot here?

Upon arrival we were greeted by a gaggle of men guarding the public bathrooms who smiled and waived as we set out and began exploring the village. At first the village seemed deserted. No one was in sight. Aside from the half a dozen men guarding the restrooms, the place was a deserted. But that in itself was not such a bad thing. The peaceful silence was a welcome respite and wandering the cobblestone streets without hassle or bustle was nice.

Peaceful silence can only last so long in two people’s lives and after a half hour or so we began to think the place was a bust. We came to the conclusion that everyone must be out in the fields hard at work and that we had just came at the wrong time. We weighed our options and began to think about when that next bus would be heading back to Kaili. As we wandered back to the entrance of the village our silence was broken by a scratchy voice coming over the loud speaker. . .wait the village has loud speakers?

Having spent some time in China’s neighbor to the south, Vietnam, we knew a thing or two about Communist countries and how much they love to broadcast propaganda. The ‘Voice of Vietnam’ can still be heard today in smaller villages across the country, bringing the news and stories of the world, only with a slanted twist in favor of Vietnam. Knowing none of the languages being spoken, we just assumed it was the Big Red machine hard at work. A few moments later, the voice bellowed out once again. As if on queue, glimpses of villagers dressed in full regalia began to flash down the alleys.  The voice came again, this time more hurried and anxious. This was something more than just propaganda. . . this was a call to action.

    

 

The town square filled with young and old, men and women, crippled and able bodied. They came from all corners of the village and beyond. Doors previously barred and closed, swung open to reveal shops.

 

   

  

Babies with slit pants shared the square with fully adorned Mao women donning celebratory attire and headdresses.

 

 

Another call goes over the loud speaker and we finally realize the voice is coming from this very same square and that the man making the announcements is directing people sit here, stand there and line up over there. Still not 100% sure what’s going on, we decide to sit on the ledge out of the way and wait to see happens.

The band strikes up and a few moments later, streaming in from one side came the point-and-shoot wielding, khaki’s shorts and goofy hat bearing tour group. Ah, now it all makes sense. The icing on the cake came in what I like to refer to as a “Funny Farm Moment.” (A couple think they have purchased their dream home until the townspeople show their true colors. In an effort to sell the house, the couple pay off the town to act ‘normal’ for a day.) Little coupons were divvied out to those that participated in the charade and there even appeared to be multiple levels. If you showed up in dress, you got a little coupon; if you sang and danced, you were given a different colored coupon. 

 

Authentic no longer, the show was still interesting as we were able to hear traditional songs, see traditional dances and dress all without having to fork out any money. 

 

Sure it was a little fake, but hey, it was fun and entertaining anyways.

 

After the show, we walked back though the gorgeous valley a couple of kilometers to the main highway to catch the public bus back to Kaili. Langde may be somewhat tainted in our minds by the show put on by the government, but in China, land of kitsch, it somehow just seems to make sense.

Old Made to Look New: Picture perfect in Xijiang, China (Guizhou Province)

Xijiang has been bulldozed by the Chinese government and rebuilt with beautiful brand new buildings built in the typical Miao-style.  You see this all around China, in particular in minority regions that cater to China’s vast domestic tourist market.  It’s the appeal of the old, but spic and span (at least on the outside) and made to look shiny and new.  For us, we prefer a more realistic look, though I won’t argue that the results were stunning!  It’s a bit of a warped combination, these picture perfect buildings that represent reality as much as the McMansions back home…   

It was a rainy day so we didn’t spend much time in Xijiang.  We went for the market and since in our opinion, that is the “real” Xijiang, that is what we’ll  show you (after the first and only required touristy photo op – I could not resist paying a buck to don the traditional Miao attire). 

 

I was pretty excited when the bus dropped us off at the top of the hill and I saw this guy cruising by on his motorbike!  What is that animal?  Where is he taking him?  Will we see him for sale in the market below?

  

We never did find out what it was and we didn’t see him in the market but as we made our way down through the traditional Miao style buildings we finally crossed the river and found the traditional market!

 

     

 

   

We did more people watching than shopping which is how we like it!  We both love to watch the men sewing (gender roles in relation to occupation are often flipped here) as well as the Chinese barbers in action.  They set up for every market, sometimes in the middle of the road, sometimes down by the river, really anywhere!  But they are always around.  I wonder what they charge?  We should have found out.  Note to self…find out before springing for next $40 haircut (yeah right).

Snapshot Sunday: The Citified Rice Terrace – Dali, China (Yunnan Province

Rice terraces are everywhere in China, in the flat countryside, the mountainous regions and even right outside the city!