China 2015 Installment #6: Guiyang

China 2015 with Myths and Mountains
Installment #6: Guiyang

Reunited with Wang Jun at the Guiyang airport

This morning we got up at 4:30 a.m. to prepare for our flight to Guiyang to see our dear friend Wang Jun and his family. We said goodbye to our new friend Keely at the Chengdu airport, and took an Air China flight which arrived in Guiyang at 9:50. After picking up our luggage, we saw Wang Jun immediately and he gave us a big hug. He said that he'd call our driver. We were secretly hoping that it was Mr. Zhou, our driver from last October.  We waited on the curb and as the van approached, Wang Jun said, "Look who it is!" Mr. Zhou had a huge smile on his face and was waving at us happily from behind the wheel! We were so excited. He got out of the van to greet us and gave us big hugs. We were so happy to be together again as a foursome!

Craig and Mr. Zhou at lunch

We drove to a satellite district of Guiyang called Guanshanhu District. They are building many highrise apartments and moving government agencies here, as a way to relieve congestion in the city proper. We ate lunch and were surprised and delighted that we all ate together. Typical China guide protocol is that the guide eats with the driver, separate from the guests. Wang Jun said he was breaking his own rules, but we came up with a loophole - we are friends now,. not clients!
We enjoyed our lunch of spicy dishes and it was as though we had never left. I showed them some photos of us with the pandas and dressed up for the opera on my tablet.

After lunch, we went for a walk in the nice new Guanshanhu Park. The four of us enjoyed the park together. It was hot today, and the park was beautifully landscaped. There was a nice lake and you could see the modern architecture of the new city in the distance. There were playgrounds and statues depicting the ethnic minorities of the province. Signage encouraged environmental responsibility. We saw lotus blossoms and small turtles in a pond, and we noticed many birds.

Guanshanhu Park

Lotus and turtles, Guanshanhu Park

After our walk, we drove back to Guiyang, to the community where Wang Jun and his wife Xiao Yi live. It is a very nice residential community comprised of highrise condos, gardens, swimming pool, supermarket, hot springs, a hotel, shops, and a large movie theater under construction.  Mr. Zhou went to park the car and Wang Jun took us up to their 18th floor condo. We met Xiao Yi, who was quite lovely. We learned that 5-month-old Ziting, born a month after our last visit, was napping.

Wang Jun and Xiao Yi's beautiful engagement photo

We took a tour of their beautiful condo (or "nest", as Wang Jun likes to call it), which overlooked a pond and nearby mountains.  We looked through their gorgeous engagement photo albums and the two of them looked like models. So lovely! Xiao Yi put some baby photos on slideshow on the TV so we got a sneak peek at the lovely Ziting.  It was amazing what a happy baby she seemed to be.   We couldn't wait to meet her. Wang Jun and Xiao Yi went to the kitchen to prepare an elaborate dinner. We watched some TV with Mr. Zhou and showed him some panda photos.

Wang Jun and Xiao Yi hard at work cooking an elaborate dinner

Then Ziting woke up from her nap and Xiao Yi's mom, Zhu Yongli, brought her out to meet us.  She was so cute and smiley! I held her and she was very happy. Xiao Yi's mom kept taking photos with her phone.  They laid Ziting into her lady bug carriage, and we kept seeing her little feet kick up into happy baby pose. Her name translates to Graceful Purple, which suits her perfectly! We are so happy for  Wang Jun and Xiao Yi on this wonderful addition to their family.

Wang Jun and his "little thing", daughter Ziting

Darling Ziting

Ziting with Steph

Wang Jun's mother Chen Rulan arrived and was quite friendly. Despite the language barrier, a warm friendly smile goes a long way and everyone was soon at ease.  Then it was time for dinner - 11 dishes! Xiao Yi had cooked her specialty - a pork dish, and there were also crabs, shrimp, salad, prawn cakes, salmon sashimi with wasabi, sugary rice pudding, and more! Craig and Wang Jun drank beer. The grandmothers and I drank Bordeaux.  It was a delicious meal and we both ate to bursting because it was all so good and we couldn't stop. Xiao Yi had been a little bit nervous about cooking for us, but she needn't have been. Everything was delicious and their hospitality was fabulous. We kept thanking them and Wang Jun told us it was not necessary.

Dinner: Mr. Zhou, Wang Jun's mother, Xiao Yi's mother holding Ziting, Xiao Yi, Wang Jun, and Craig

Ziting and Xiao Yi's mother

After dinner we chatted.  The grandmothers asked about our godchildren and travels. Wang Jun asked if we liked Ziting. What kind of question is that? Of course we loved her immediately! Then he asked us to be her honorary godparents. Although they are not Christian, Chinese culture does have a similar concept.  He sees it as destiny that we met and became such good friends, and wants us to be a part of the family. He thought that it was telling that Ziting took to us right away even though she often exhibits stranger anxiety. We were delighted to be her honorary Gan Die and Gan Ma! All they asked is that we come to visit again within the next 5 to 10 years.  Even though it's the other side of the world, we can certainly do that! And she will always have family in Boston!

Craig says goodnight to Ziting

After a lovely evening with our new family, we said goodnight with plans to meet again in two nights for dinner at Wang Jun's sister's house. (His sister and her husband were supposed to join us for dinner tonight, but had to work late in preparation for tomorrow's Labor Day holiday). We were so happy, and so were they. Wang Jun and Mr. Zhou drove us back downtown, and along the way we passed some really prettily lit new buildings and bridges. Everything looks so pretty at night!

We arrived at the Sheraton, where we had stayed in October. It is a very nice hotel and we felt immediately at home. We check in, unwound, and went to sleep.

The next morning, May 1, after a nice breakfast at the hotel, we checked out and met Wang Jun and Mr. Zhou at 9:30.  There was traffic getting out of town. It was a national holiday (Labor Day), and everyone had the day off. Highway tolls were free, which encouraged many people to travel by car.

We arrived at the town where the Huangguoshu Waterfall is located. The town was closed to traffic due to the influx of holiday tourists, so Mr. Zhou found a parking spot and we went to a nearby restaurant for lunch. As usual, locals at the restaurant were trying to sneak photos fo us, but we happily posed with their children, etc.

Afterwards we walked to a shuttle bus stop and took the shuttle bus to the entrance to  the smaller "thundering" waterfall (Doupotang). We got off the bus and walked on some nice walkways to the waterfall. Lots of families were visiting the waterfalls today. It was a sunny, hot day. The waterfall was very beautiful, and though "small" in relation to the main attraction, it was nonetheless impressive.

Duopotang Falls

Duopotang Falls

Then we walked to the large Great Waterfall, Huangguoshu. It is 77.8 meters high and 101 meters wide, one of the largest in Asia. We passed a statue of a Chinese geologist Xu Xiake who first "discovered" the waterfall in 1638. As we walked along the path, we got a glimpse of it. Absolutely stunning!  There were a lot of tourists here, and it was quite sunny and hot. Wang Jun seemed concerned about Craig's ability to walk further in the hot sun, and gave us the option of  viewing the waterfall from the observation areas, or actually walking behind the curtain of water, which would require braving the crowds and walking much further,

Craig was feeling good, and we couldn't resist the chance to walk behind a waterfall. But we really appreciated Wang Jun's concern for his well-being.  So we continued down the path until we got a to a point where we could no longer pass. We had encountered the queue to the waterfall. It was not single-file. People were crammed in the width of the walkway, shoulder to shoulder, as close to one another as possible. Nobody seemed bothered by this. The sun was very hot and people were doing what they could to shade themselves while they waited. People held up umbrellas, which were just at the right height to poke us in the eye, so we had to be vigilant. Fathers could be seen wearing their wives' frilly hats or their children's animal-shaped hats, just to get the sun off of their heads.

Huangguoshu Falls 

Queue to walk behind the water of Huangguoshu Falls 

The ebb and flow of the crowd  caused Craig to get a bit separated from us, and there was no way of regrouping, so we all just went with it. We drank our water and hoped not to get dehydrated as we sweated just standing still. Some people weren't able to take it any more, and security guards helped them up out of the line onto the hillside so that they could go back to the entrance (there was no "swimming upstream" in this queue!) At times, we had a very nice view of the falls with a rainbow shining brightly in its spray.

Huangguoshu Falls with a rainbow in its mist

Huangguoshu Falls

After an hour packed in like sardines, we got to a spot where the path narrowed and they controlled how many people could pass at one time. We felt like we could finally breathe when we got to this point, and we regrouped. Wang Jun  told us to enjoy, and that he would meet us at the other side. We walked behind the limestone into a cave which was lit with colorful lights. The water thundered over the falls, and we could see curtains of water rushing past holes in the rock face to our right.  We were so overheated that it felt great to feel the cold spray of water (except that I worried a bit about my bag getting wet).  We could look back across the ravine at the queue, and it was only getting longer and stretched as far as the eye could see. Wang Jun would see later on the news that there were 43,000 visitors here today, and he said that the numbers double on National Day in October. Wow! He said that he normally wouldn't take guests to a place like this on a national holiday because of the large crowds, but it was the only day that he could fit it into our itinerary. We didn't mind; in fact, it was kind of exciting. Despite the crowds, we felt very safe and everyone was very friendly and well-mannered.  And out of all of those guests, we never saw any other western tourists.

Steph behind Huangguoshu Falls (note the long queue for the waterfall in the background)

Craig and his new friends behind Huangguoshu Falls

Because of this, we found that many people wanted photos with us in the spray of the waterfall. We obliged and they kept switching out, one after the next.  We felt like rock stars and we wanted to give back to our public.

It was a great experience all around. We reunited with Wang Jun, who seemed relieved that we were ok, since we had taken so long to emerge from the cave. We explained that we had just been making new friends, and he shook his head, saying that only we would extract something so positive out of a very crowded destination.

We walked down to rejoin the main path. We were all tired after waiting so long in the hot sun, so we didn't want to walk all the way back out. Instead we took the "Grand Escalator", a 350 meter long escalator which is the longest sightseeing escalator in the world. It was billed as a site unto itself, and required purchasing a ticket to ride it.

There were beautiful bonsai gardens and hawker stalls on the way to the bus stop. The late afternoon light was beautiful on the plants and flowers. We took a crowded shuttle bus back. There were no seats available, so we were prepared to stand. The very courteous Chinese tourists made a seat available. Craig graciously sat down, as his MS makes it difficult for him to stand on a moving vehicle. I was perfectly happy to stand, but a  nice lady and her young daughter insisted that I perch on the end of their seats. Everyone was so friendly and kind to us!

We met up with Mr. Zhou and drove the short drive to the Tunpu Hotel. We checked in at 6 o'clock. This was a new resort complex with many small chalets with a few guest rooms in each, along with a common TV room. It had a  lodge/camp feel to the architecture, and there were various restaurants, a pool, and a bar on the premises.  Wang Jun said that he would make a dinner reservation for 7 o'clock. With all of the tourists who were staying here for the holiday, we wondered if that was even possible.

We took quick showers to freshen up after our day in the sun, and I washed some waterfall dirt off of our pants and shirts. Wang Jun stopped in at our room at 7 o'clock, and we met up with Mr. Zhou and walked to one of the on-site restaurants (The Homely Dish Diner). Although they had taken Wang Jun's reservation, they did not actually have a table for us (that Seinfeld rental car episode comes to mind).  It was smoky and crowded inside, but there was an outdoor deck. We preferred sitting outdoors, so we could either wait for a fancy outdoor table, or we could barbecue at one of the round wrought iron tables which had a hibachi in the middle. When presented with this choice, we opted for the barbecue, as it was a new experience. The whole atmosphere was kind of like camping anyway (though the rooms were quite nice), so it seemed appropriate.

Mr. Zhou and Wang Jun barbecue a delicious dinner

Since Mr. Zhou didn't have to drive tonight, the three guys enjoyed some beers.  Ganbe! We sat drinking while the staff prepared our barbecue by cleaning out the ashes, adding fresh charcoal, and lighting it. It was the first time Wang Jun and Mr. Zhou had barbecued with guests, and said that any guests other than us would have complained about such a thing. We can't imagine why. It was like sitting with friends around the campfire, which is one of life's treasured experiences.

Craig, Mr. Zhou, and Wang Jun after the barbecue

When the fire was hot enough, the servers brought over plate after plate of food: tofu, lettuce, bacon, spare ribs, egg plant, potatoes, fish, and beef. Mr. Zhou coated the grill grate and the the food with a marinade, and he and Wang Jun cooked it. We each had a plate of chili powder to dip our food in.  We lingered over the delicious meal, chatting and bonding. Mr. Zhou showed us photos of us that he has kept on his phone since our last visit.

We thanked them for the experience, and Wang Jun told us not to say thank you. We are family now. He had been saying this last night as well, when we had thanked his family for the lovely dinner. But we feel so sincerely thankful, that we automatically want to express it. Wang Jun explained that saying thanks among family and close friends seemed fake; people do things for one another because they want to, and as long as it makes the other person happy, no thanks is required. We said it would be hard for us not to thank them, but we would try, as we wanted to respect their cultural norms. We asked them not to be offended if we relapsed, and any time we would normally say thank you, we ended up saying "Good!" with a big smile. It became an in-joke.

We were feeling full but there were still entire plates of food which had not yet been cooked. And it was so good we just kept eating until it was gone. We kept refilling our plate with chili powder, covering every bit of our food with it and devouring it. Everything was delicious and we had a lovely evening enjoying one another's company over a leisurely dinner.

At 9 o'clock, we said our goodnights. We could hear Chinese rock music coming from nearby, so Craig and I walked over to the pool / bar area where a band was playing. As I took photos, and man and his young daughter approached Craig. She was carrying a small lantern. They said hello and offered Craig a cigarette, which he politely refused. The man then mimed having a drink and gestured for us to follow him. As much as we would have loved to have had a drink and chatted with him, we explained via sign language that we really should get to bed. It had been a long day in the sun and we should play it safe. It also seemed like they were on their way back to their room to put the little girl to bed.

Friendly tourist and his young daughter at the resort

Many people were out and about as we walked back to the room, and they all said nihao and smiled. When we went into the common room, a young man was watching basketball. We wondered if it would be noisy overnight. Luckily that wasn't a problem, and we went to bed at 10:30.

The next morning we walked to one of the restaurants on the premises for breakfast at around 8 o'clock. It was a Chinese buffet, and there was a narrow balcony outside the dining room. I was looking for a table out there and the hotel photographer got a waitress to clear a table for me. As we ate, he came over to photograph us. Maybe we were the first Americans who ever stayed there? We tried to pose for a photo, but he wouldn't bite. He waited until we shoved noodles and dumplings into our face with our chopsticks, and then took close-ups. So be on the lookout  for unflattering shots of us in their next brochure!

Waterfall at the Dragon Palace

After breakfast, we checked out shortly before 9 o'clock. We were worried that the Dragon Palace, our next stop,  might be as crowded as the waterfall was yesterday. But when we got there, it was no comparison. We walked along bridges and saw a cool waterfall inside a cave. We got photos with several people but we tried to keep moving so we could beat the crowds and make it back to Guiyang in time for dinner with the family. We got to the entrance to the boat ride and the corrals were empty. We got right onto a small boat and Wang Jun waved to us from the dock.

Boats about to enter the Dragon Palace water caves

Stalactites lit up and reflecting in the water in the Dragon Palace

It was a sunny day and we crossed a stretch of greenish water to the entrance of a limestone cave.  We were instructed to keep our hands in the boat and to watch our heads. We entered the cave, where brightly colored lights illuminated the stalactites and reflected in the water. The passage was narrow in most spots and we had some minor collisions with boats coming in the other direction (this is why we needed to keep our hands inside the boat!) All part of the fun! Once again, this was no Disney ride on a track. The cave opened up to a large misty cavern, and was very impressive. Once again I was so glad to have the good camera back! The low-light photos came out great, because a flash would have ruined the ambiance. We got to the other end of the cave, and then rode the boat back to the start. We met up with Wang Jun, who said that they are still expanding the cave tour, and that the portion of the cave that we explored was only 1/6 of the total length. Wow!

Stalactites lit up and reflecting in the water in the Dragon Palace

Craig and Wang Jun leaving the Dragon Palace

We drove back to Giuyang, where we ate lunch at a restaurant nearby Wang Jun's office. He sometimes walks here at lunch to eat with colleagues. We sat at a table out on the sidewalk and enjoyed our lunch.

We drove past his office building and went to the Flower and Bird Market. They dropped us off in the parking lot next to a statue of Chairman Mao, and Wang Jun gave us from 2:30-4 to wander by ourselves. Though the name calls out flowers and birds, you can buy just about anything in the narrow meandering alleys of this market. Fish, turtles, tadpoles, birds, rabbits, mice, incense, kitchen goods, tea, traditional Chinese medicine, porcelain, etc.  None of the salespeople in the market were pushy at all. It almost seemed weird not to be accosted.

Craig at the Guiyang bird and flower market

We went into a store called Two Little Fishies that sold the most amazing home salt water aquariums we had ever seen, containing vibrant, thriving coral, tube worms, and tropical fish. The tanks were crystal clear and healthy. The area was crowded with families because of the holiday - especially the dog and cat alleyway. Some of the dogs were huge! Many were very well-groomed.  Alleyways were narrow and at one point we heard a mortorcycle approaching. We looked up and saw a motorcycle with a large tree on the back making its way down the alley. It was so wide that it could barely fit. We had to duck down an adjacent alley to get out of his way. He somehow managed to navigate his way through.

Wide load coming down a narrow alley at the Guiyang bird and flower market

We ran into Wang Jun and Mr. Zhou at 3:45 in the market, and by then we were all ready to go. Mr. Zhou drove us to the Sheraton to check in. Wang Jun had a long talk with the clerk and when he handed us the key cards he said, "Don't say anything about your room." We looked confused.  "You will know what I mean when you see it." It turned out to be a large corner room with a walk-in closet, king bed, desk, love seat, and a comfortable chair. There was a spectacular view of the First Scholar's Pavilion (Jiaxiu Tower) out one window (we had seen the Sheraton from the pavilion in October, but not the other way around) and the parks containing the large Chairman Mao statue and the Lusheng Flute Stage out the other window. WOW!

View of the First Scholar's Pavilion (Jiaxiu Tower) from our room at the Sheraton Guiyang

We had just under an hour to freshen up and then we met Wang Jun at 5 o'clock in the lobby. We said, "You told us not to say anything about the room, but...good." It was very difficult not to say thank you for arranging this room upgrade! We drove back to Wang Jun's neighborhood, and went to his sister's building this time, another condo in the same complex. We rode the elevator up to the 23rd floor, where were greeted by his sister Chen Xiaohong and her husband Yuan Huizhong, as well as Wang Jun's mom, Chen Rulan. We got the tour of the condo. Wang Jun's sister speaks some English, and apologized that her daughter Yuan Siyuan was not home for the holiday (she had an exam at university this weekend).

Steph, Ziting, and Craig

Xiao Yi and Ziting

Ziting with Wang Jun's mother

Yuan Huizhong served us fancy tea, small bananas, and pears. We showed them our photo album. Then Xiao Yi and baby Ziting arrived. They handed the baby to me and she sat contentedly for a few minutes. Even when she fussed it was so minor and quiet. We took a few more photos with her and then it was time for dinner. Wang Jun's sister had prepared her specialty: Chinese cabbage in a tasty sauce. We also had Chinese mandarin fish, corn, soya, chicken dipped in chili paste, salmon sashimi with wasabi, shredded carrots. Wang Jun, his brother-in-law, and Craig drank lots of beer, and they sereved another bottle of the delicious Bordeaux from the other night. I ended up drinking the majority of the bottle myself, as Wang Jun's sister was the only other person to have some.But it was so good! I am definitely becoming a big fan of red wine! Birgit would be proud.  Mr, Zhou did not drink as he would be driving later. He is a very responsible driver, and we respected and appreciated that.

Wang Jun's mother, Wang Jun's sister, Xiao Yi, and Ziting

Wang Jun's brother-in-law and Mr. Zhou

The spiciest dish was mushrooms with chilies, and they hadn't believed Wang Jun that Craig would be able to eat this.  They watched him intently and gave him a big thumbs-up. Craig wasn't putting on a show - he didn't just eat it to prove that he could. He genuinely loved it! Wang Jun's sister immediately ran into the kitchen and added some more chilis to some dipping sauce. She had gone easy at first in case we couldn't take it, but when she realized how much we were enjoying it, she spiced it up eve more. When the sashimi was running low. she insisted on preparing more. They wanted to make sure we had plenty of food.We had difficulty not thanking everyone profusely for their generous hospitality, but we hoped that our smiles and full bellies conveyed our appreciation!

The family told us that this is nothing compared to their spring festival feasts, where they often serve more than 20 dishes in a single meal! They invited us to visit for the spring festival within the next couple of years, so that we could spend time together, enjoy the celebration, meet the extended family, etc. It sounded fantastic and we will definitely make it a priority to come back and see our Chinese family! Wang Jun started to list off other things we could do in the area, and that he would like to take us to the hot springs and also karaoke (Lost in Translation sprang to mind again...What's so funny 'bout peace, love, and understanding?)

Ziting and Wang Jun's sister

Ziting had fallen asleep during dinner but she woke up just before we said goodnight. She is such a good baby!  At 9:15, Mr. Zhou drove us back to the hotel. There was a sobriety checkpoint during the ride, so it was very good that Mr. Zhou had been self-disciplined about not drinking, even though the rest of us had gotten a little tipsy.

Wang Jun, Ziting, and Xiao Yi

The next morning we would head to Kaili together for the Miao people's annual Sister's Meal courtship festival!