The
Squamidian Report – June 18 / 11
Issue #473
Including:
China part III
Hi All,
We had visitors last weekend. That was cool. Wayne and Sylvia were out on Vancouver Island for a conference and decided to pop over to the Mainland for a few days. After visiting in Vancouver, they did the scenic drive up the Sea to Sky to Squamish and arrived on Friday evening. That meant they could stay here and have a chance to drop in on Warren. We were able to show them some of the interesting locations around the valley, and we were able to have them as well as Warren and Dennis and Dennis’s wife in for Saturday dinner and the evening.
They were heading back to the Island on Sunday, and we were heading over to the Island on Sunday morning to a motorcycle gathering, so, we gave them a motorcycle escort right to the ferry ticket booths in Horseshoe Bay. How’s that for classy attention and consideration? Because ‘the wife’ and I were on the bike, we rode right to the front of the line, just the way it should be. And because we didn’t get away from home until about ten after 7 to get to the 8:30am sailing, we didn’t have much time to spare. We were on a bike, they were in a car. We rode right on, they just barley made it on and were one of the last cars to get tucked in right at the back of the boat. We hooked up with another of our club riders and then Wayne and Sylvia found us on board giving us another chance to visit and chat. On the Nanaimo side, they headed down Island and we headed up Island.
The gathering we were going to was a multi-chapter CMC picnic and was being held in the Englishman River Park, west of Parksville. Rather than go directly to the picnic location we dropped down into Parksville where we hooked up with an Island chapter member and his wife. From there we headed to the picnic, stopping at a roadside restaurant that had a nice picnic lunch offer for all CMC members. There were only about 10 bikes at the park location when we arrived and that meant we were able to watch the others come rumbling in. They came in several groups and as they neared the picnic spot you would first hear distant thunder that grew louder as the bikes approached. Then they would enter onto the parking lot and swing in beside the bikes that were already there. We all checked out everyone’s bike, caught up with old friends, made new friends and enjoyed out lunches. We also checked out the water falls just behind the picnic area, where the Englishman River tumbles over a cliff and down into a deep, narrow crevice where it churned and boiled as it worked its way along.
Eventually we decided to head back to the ferry terminal in Nanaimo. This was a Sunday afternoon and the ferries were expected to be very busy. In fact, there was an extra sailing that day to take some of the load. Traffic reports were indicating the ferry we were hoping to catch was already full, but, as I’ve said before, we were on motorcycles and that changes the rules a bit. We rode right past all the 4-wheeled vehicles backed up outside the terminal area that couldn’t even get to the ticket booths yet, purchased our tickets and rode right to the front again. There were a dozen other bikes ahead of use and several squeaked in behind us. We had again reached the ferry only minutes before boarding time. The crossing takes about an hour and forty minutes. As we disembarked, we kept tight to the right, slipped out of the jumble of traffic that was dashing madly toward the Upper Levels highway and Vancouver, and swung around onto the exit for Squamish. Forty-five minutes later we were home. Had a great day. Took some pictures that I’ve posted at:
http://www.thedougsite.net/11-Rides/CMC/EnglishmanPicnic.html
Now a word about the Stanley Cup Hockey game…. Everyone seems to think the ridiculous riots are a blemish on Vancouver’s reputation as a world class city. Its not that way at all, or at least shouldn’t be. Vancouver was the target and the victim of the violent behavior. These were the same type of thugs, and some possibly even the same thugs that crawled out from under their slimy rocks during the Olympics and during the G8 summit. They were not hockey fans and simply used the event as and excuse to run wild like the spoiled criminals they are. There was an incredible amount of damage done and hopefully they will be caught and punished. Unfortunately, it is the citizens of Vancouver who will be punished the most because the city will no longer be able to permit outdoor festivities without worry of more violence.
And as for the game itself, Vancouver deserved to loose and Boston deserved to win. It was that simple. Even the Vancouver fans packed into the arena could see that and applauded Boston for their effort and their win.
There would have been rioting no matter how the game went, the thugs doing the rioting were not there for the game, they were there to do as much damage as possible under cover of a legal, innocent but convenient crowd of people.
doug
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China part III
Hello again!
I've spread out this trip quite a bit, and I plan to finish it now. Shortly after we arrived in Shanghai we went on a side trip to a "water-city". Whenever I say that we drove somewhere in China I mean that someone drove us or we took a cab. I can handle driving in some places, but not others and definitely not China. So we drove to the water city from Shanghai, on a beautiful day. We bought our post card / tickets and went in to the old water city. It was sort of like a Chinese version of Venice. I don't think it was as big as Venice, but it was more than what we could cover in the time that we were there.
We visited several old buildings, admired gardens and art, and met some fine people. The wealthy seem to know how to live well, regardless of the era or nation. Maybe someday we could have houses so nice that in the future people will walk through them, admiring all our old stuff. Maybe not! Some of the roads were small, old roads, lined with traditional shops and restaurants. Some of them lead to old temples or old historic buildings. Other roads were actually canals, which were all attached to a river. There were open spaces on the water too. The whole thing was criss-crossed with beautiful old bridges, which arch upwards to allow room for the gondolas. The men who propel them use one combination paddle / rudder at the back. The ride was very relaxing, with beautiful, timeless scenery, designed with a balance between art, nature and functionality. Then there were spots where air conditioners would stick out, or grill vents dripped grease. It is recognized as an area of special historic beauty, and at the same time it is just what happened over time.
The next day we flew again, which I felt was a bit too soon. We went West, away from the sea, to Chendu. It is the capital of a province called "Sitran", often spelled in English "Sichuan." They are well known in China for spicy food. We stayed with Ellen, the mother of one of my coworkers at Wind. It is so good to have a local guide, and for free! On our first day she said we would visit a dam. I figured like Hoover dam or something. We drove South to the foothills of the mountains, to a region of historical covered bridges and dams. The first bridge was amazing, I could have spent a full day there admiring the architecture and painted panels. The roof was covered in carved wood separating panels, each painted with a different scene. It was like a Cathedral or something like that. UU said that there were covered bridges in my home town (KW) too, and I told her yes but those were simple country bridge, not like this. I did say that those type of bridges are very pretty though. I really enjoyed that day because we had lots of exercise climbing up to a temple, and hiking along the fast river to various bridges.
When we unpacked in Chengdu I realized that I didn't have my sun hat, no big deal. We also quickly realized that UU's SLR (camera) was missing. I calmly recalled our steps, realized that I had set my hat upon the camera bag and walked away. We did what we could to retrieve it, but it was long gone, back in Shanghai. That was the only real bump for the trip, and I didn't like it at all. As disappointing as that was, we dealt with it and moved on. There was no point in being upset about it, better to just carry on with enjoying the trip. I owe UU and nice camera, and we have no pictures of the water city (other than the ticket). I did learn something.
We did a little bit of shopping in Chengdu, when it suited, which I actually really enjoyed. I really like their consumer electronics shops. They are like big department stores, dedicated to electronics. The stuff is exactly the same as here, nothing more advanced. What I like is that each of the major companies, from cell phones to cameras, home electronics to high tech toys, any consumer level retail electronics makers are represented in one store. Unlike Best Buy or some other store here, each one of the companies has their own little mini store, with their own sales staff. There are very few people who work for the store, they are just like general mall employees. Each store is very focused and specialized, with staff who know the merchandise very well. They all have places to sit to try it out. All we did was pick up some memory cards, but it was a real slice of China for me.
We travelled to the mountains again, where the air is much more fresh and clear. On the way we met UU's niece, "Yuan-Yuan" (pronounced "You-wan You-wan"). So we were Yuan-Yuan, UU and Ewan (pronounced "You-wan You-wan, You-You and You-wan"). I'm not kidding, I couldn't have made something like that up! My name is Gaelic, nothing to do with Chinese.
We stayed at a new resort in the mountains, which has a long way to go to compare to other resorts here, in my opinion. However it wasn't bad at all, and the food was the best. Early in the morning we drove to a park, to wait for dawn, along with many others. As we went up higher in to the mountains the air was clearer, and cooler. Eventually we were looking down at a sea of hazy white cloud, hanging low in the valleys. There were pointed islands of dark mountain tops in the distance. At the top of our mountain there are temples, and on the top of the highest temple there is a huge statue, covered in gold. The statue was strange but very impressive.
The idea is that when the sun rises in the morning the status is the first thing for many miles to be illuminated, glowing brilliantly and casting the grey sea of clouds in a golden light. Too bad we missed it! Well they didn't open the park on that day until dawn and we still had some distance to go. But we did see it and it was amazing. We drove, walked, climbed and rode a huge cable car to get to the top. There were stairs with small golden elephants on each side, with the temple and big statue on the top. It had four huge elephants, with a figure seated on top. The elephants really struck me, they were quite awe inspiring.
There were many wonderful sights in this region, with immense Buddha statues, wondrous gardens and forests with old statues and waterfalls. But that spot was the most remarkable. Everything seemed to be human a celebration of the top of the world, the edge of the Earth and the dawn of each new day. Everyone was in a good mood, and people wanted to take their picture with me. I felt like a minor celebrity for a while, more than the days when I went on Speaker's Corner. All these Chinese people were getting their pictures taken, and they loved it when I was in the photo with them. They would smile, thank me, and say a few words in English. Everywhere else I stood out a bit, but it was nothing.
We spent the last of the trip visiting UU's relatives, who I met for the first time. Her "hometown" has well over a million people. It is the Orillia of China, just a stop on the train. They were very friendly, and I could speak with her sister and brother-in-law. They are very proud of China's history, and of their own businesses. We had big dinners where we met friends and business partners. We drank Chinese "wine" in shots at dinner, with toasts, jokes and warm conversation. I figured that stuff was like Schnapps or Jagermeister, and found out afterwards that it was 40 to 45%! I never had too much, and the food helped. I think I was lucky.
There were areas of great natural beauty, and others without pretence of any environmental integrity. Other than losing the camera, the only downside of the trip for me was the air quality in the cities. They were naturally hazy, and the air was no good at all with the pollution. Shanghai wasn't bad, and the rural areas were fine. I had a cough by the time we got back. Toronto air was sweet by the time I got here. I don't want to let it get like that here, it's already bad enough.
I had so much great food. I also saw strawberries that were white, but painted red. The overall standard of living seems lower than here, but in some ways they exceed what we have. To be able to take the best of both worlds would be incredible. There was nothing in China that would keep me away, and much to make me want to return.
I described Detroit to UU's brother-in-law William, and asked whether there are places in China where the police fear to go. Are there very dangerous areas in China. He spoke with his colleague and answered, "Tibet."
The people there are like the people here, just people. They want to live their lives in peace, with their families. Some parts of life are great, others not so good, like here. I know I've gone on quite a bit about it and I want to thank you for reading about it. I believe that you and I can make the world smaller, and more peaceful just by understanding each other a little better.
Thank you!
Ewan
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Have a good one..
the doug
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