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Post by lachinatown on Dec 3, 2013 12:42:50 GMT -5
So how did you get home to Dachong Douglas? Thanks to tyuti1668 for the correction on Shagang.
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Post by tyuti1668 on Dec 3, 2013 17:09:21 GMT -5
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Post by douglaslam on Dec 4, 2013 10:58:53 GMT -5
From Xiaolan, we caught two more buses in order to get home. It was rather late when we finally did make it home.
I am not familiar with the places tyuti1668 brought up. This is what we did today.
Wednesday December 3, 2013
I asked for a walking tour of the open fields. I did it three years ago. This time I wanted to know about what had happened in the past, and Ming is a better person to fill me in with little historical facts. I saw completely polluted waterways, a canal dug in the 1950s, disappearing boat people dwellings and much more.
In a walk of just a few kilometres, we crossed two dialect zones, a distinct but disappearing sub-culture, the Tanka boat people. It makes me realise just how diverse the Chinese cultural landscape is. I call it micro-tourism. I find there is much to hold my interest, to fascinate me. That's what brings me back home year after year.
This one is for tyuti 1668, when we reached a new expressway 老神, Ming won the arguement and led us in the opposite direction to Banfu 板芙 where we were intended to go for lunch and make our next connection. Instead we walked on a new expressway with no turn off, no public transport, no way out for over an hour. We walked non-stop for four hours in total. We were tired and hungry. Finally, we got to 石井, which is close to our village, it was too late to have a proper lunch because the bigger restaurants were closed after the lunch trade at 2:30. We ate at a noodle place instead.
Ma Gor made it known he'd not be in it for tomorrow.
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Post by lachinatown on Dec 4, 2013 12:11:18 GMT -5
板芙 Banfu & 石井 Shijingcun
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Post by tyuti1668 on Dec 4, 2013 19:58:37 GMT -5
... This one is for tyuti 1668, when we reached a new expressway 老神, Ming won the arguement and led us in the opposite direction to Banfu 板芙 where we were intended to go for lunch and make our next connection. Instead we walked on a new expressway with no turn off, no public transport, no way out for over an hour. We walked non-stop for four hours in total... Where's that "老神"? 古神: news.dayoo.com/guangdong/200812/24/53873_4971434.htm
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Post by douglaslam on Dec 5, 2013 10:33:51 GMT -5
Tyuti1668, as usual, you were right about the name of the expressway. It is 古神公路。It was a very long tiring walk yesterday. Thursday, 4 December, 2013. We went to Panyu or Poon Yu 番禺 in Cantonese. Ming suggested I should see Bao Mo Yuan宝墨园, which is a kind of a theme park with the accent on China's past.Again, travel was by bus. From the main bus interchange, it cost RMB40+2. Traffic was flowing nicely. and we arrived well before the two-hour long scheduled time. It took us to 市桥 Shiqiao, a bus terminus. We had a leisurely lunch there at a better restaurant. Then, it was two more bus rides before we got there. www.yododo.com/area/photo/1-01-05-08-6599 (Could not find much in English.) Panyu is now becoming a part of Greater Canton. The Metro network extends to Panyu from Canton. It highlights the degree of urbanisation that is happening in South China. Ming had his ID with him,showing he is at 65 yrs of age. It was free entry for him. For me, I paid 50RMB for a partial pass. The full amount normally is at 107RMB. It is quite expensive if you put in transport cost and other espenses for an out of town family of three to visit. The theme park is a very pleasant place to visit. It houses priceless art treasures thousands of years old, donated by one philantropist. There are huge bronze tripods, porcelain, jade burial suits, Buddhist art, and so much more. We arrived late, at after 3 pm, there was little time to take it all in for fear of missing the last bus home. My recommendation for would be visitors is to spend time in Canton, come early by the Metro to Panyu, then bus to the site. But, there isn't much in English with the display. Do pay the extra for an English speaking guide.
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Post by lachinatown on Dec 5, 2013 11:40:22 GMT -5
Sounds like a nice place to visit Douglas.
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Post by tyuti1668 on Dec 5, 2013 21:13:53 GMT -5
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Post by douglaslam on Dec 5, 2013 22:11:16 GMT -5
Friday, December 5, 2013
I am counting down to my stay in China. For the next few days I may not have the use of a PC unless I went to an internet cafe. I am staying elsewhere for a couple of nights, then head back to Dongguan to be with my auntie before I fly out on the 11th.
www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g298555-d1795915-r141889272-Baomo_Scenery-Guangzhou_Guangdong.html Bck to the Baomo Garden. Don't be put off by the first review. To anyone who has the most basic understanding of Chinese culture, it is a rewarding experience. The wall motif alone which depicting various historical events, legends and characters I did enjoy enormously.
To Lolly, I called your Pang relatives in Sing Sze on the phone this morning. They would very much like to see their brothers, sisters, nephews and neices in Australia. Yes, by Chinese reckoning, you are brothers and sisters albeit in a distant way. They do welcome receiving photos from Andrew Hung Pint's descendants. I have the mailing address, if you had installed Chinese software, you can print it out and put on the envelope. If not, I can send a scan to you. It has been a lot of fun and satisfaction for me and my village brother Ming. Shall look forward to meeting the gang in Sydney one day.
Douglas
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Post by lachinatown on Dec 5, 2013 22:11:17 GMT -5
I'm lost, "From Xinhui"? You mean the arrow angle is wrong direction?
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Post by lolly on Dec 6, 2013 1:34:57 GMT -5
Douglas, I hope the remainder of your stay in China is very fullfilling for you. I feel that you have devoted so much of your time to "my quest", so am delighted to hear that you and "Mr Brains Trust" have enjoyed and gained satisfaction from all you have achieved. I do not have Chinese software installed. That is something I may need to look into. I will be very happy to put together some photos to send to the Pang relatives and will sort out the "how" of sending with you later .... when you have had time to recover a little from your "Excellent Adventures"! We are very enthused at the prospect of meeting you in Sydney, and would love to rush right up before Christmas, but that may be pushing the envelope a bit .... and you will be needing restful time at home after all your walking and wandering! We would tentatively like to suggest a visit early in January if that suits. Will PM you about possible timing. Baomo Garden pics on the website look beautiful. We all look forward to seeing your collection of photos when you get the chance to upload them on your return. It will be a great way for you to "relive" your entire trip. Thank you again for so generously and comprehensively sharing it with us all. Lolly
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Post by douglaslam on Dec 9, 2013 1:50:47 GMT -5
I am in an internet cafe and get a chance to log on and check elctronic communication.
Lachinatown: I returned from Xinhui via Jiangmen, not Xinhui bus terminus. Time-wise it was not a wise move.
Lolly, your younger extended Pang family members in Sing Sze would have some Englsh language skill. Once contact is established, you can make the ground-breaking move for over a centuty, to be in touch with Andrew Hung Pine's ( Pine sounds better, and it's a popular name choice in Chinese, for pine trees thrive in the winter cold, and a symbol of longevity, very symbolic and important in the Chinese mindset.)link in China.
Your Uncle Denis probably has a Chinese name picked for him. It might have the character for sky or heavenly as the first of two characters, might even be Heavenly Sent. I hope there is a scrap of paper somewhere bearing all the children's names in Chinese.
Any time is a good time to meet up with you, your uncle and anyone else. I am flying out in the evening of 11th. December, arriving Sydney the following morning. I go back to work on Sunday, 15, Dec. BTW did you receive the booklet I sent you two weeks ago by air mail? China's mail service is a bit suspect at best.
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Post by lolly on Dec 9, 2013 3:30:27 GMT -5
Douglas, I have been camping out by the letterbox waiting to harass the postie each day for delivery of my booklet. Unfortunately, it has not yet arrived! I can be patient ...... and I will let you know as soon as it is in my hot little hands! Have a safe trip home, and we will plan to see you in January. Lolly
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Post by douglaslam on Dec 10, 2013 4:03:14 GMT -5
Lolly, in less than 30 hrs, I shall be on my way home in a China Southern A380 Airbus Jumbo. Yesterday, I was wandering in a narrow alley, looking at what the small traders had on offer and found something for you. I am keeping it a secret. It is something simple and very inexpensive. I bought the lot the vendor had. I'll present them to you together with the family record come January.
Even after so many visits in recent years, I can never get tired of returning. I like to look at the small details, small things, the little people making a living, not the big end of town. Like today, I saw a young woman by her mobile stand, a cobbler, probably from a poor farming family, from another province, smiling broadly as she worked on repairing a shoe. I saw a young woman getting treatment in removing facial hair at a street beauty stand. It is done by cotton threads, an almost forgotten art. I didn't ask for permission to photograph. This was common when I was a child. I remember my grandmother used to buy a certain kind of wood shaving, mixed with water to produce a gel to add lustre and hold her hair in a bun. It was a big job for a woman to wash her hair.
Friends in the USA would know Walmart only too well. Did you know Walmart here sells live frogs and turtles for the table? I found some items are quite expensive here in the supermarkets and department stores.
A few days ago,I talked to a woman(with some difficulty,) who shone my shoes. She opened up to me with her hopes for her family in the booming Pearl River Delta. It is not unlike why Andrew Sr. and my ancestors had left the old country for the uncertainty of the New World. A very sobering picture. Douglas
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Post by helen on Dec 10, 2013 4:07:19 GMT -5
Have a safe trip home Douglas. The time has flown by. Looking forward to the photos as usual.
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