Wuhan

When you’re not in you own bed, are there times when you wake up wondering where you are for a few seconds? Well, this morning when I woke up, my brain was very confused. Am I on a ship or a train? It was definitely train sounds that I was hearing. And, that was definitely a train horn that I just heard. Opening the drapes quickly diagnosed the situation. We were passing under a railroad bridge and a train was currently crossing the bridge. So, I’m not “on” a train; I’m “under” a train. I’m quite sure I’ve never woken up under a train before.

Today was a lazy day. Our shore excursion wasn’t until 8pm, after supper.

I started the day with another Tai Chi class, and then spent most of the rest of the day working on my journal and editing my photos. I invited some of my new friends on board to join me in my suite and we watched the river traffic through my huge windows while chatting.

I also attended some classes on board. One was “Chinese Medicine” presented by our on-board doctor, who is trained in both traditional Chinese medicine and in western medicine. Another was “Ancient Waters of the Yangtze River” presented by one of our river guides. The third was “Chinese 101” where one of the staff taught us a few dozen words in Chinese. I learned quite a lot from these lectures, for example: one-third of all Chinese residents live along the Yangtze River (0.45 out of 1.3 billion). Our cruise will traverse 1470 miles of the Yangtze. We will pass under many of the 6,000 bridges that cross the Yangtze.

This evening’s scheduled activity was a shore excursion to the “Rare Stone Museum”. I’d prefer to explore Wuhan than see a bunch of rocks. So, I wandered off on my own. The staff made me sign a waver saying that I was on my own. They took no responsibility. But, they gave me: a city map, taxi directions in Chinese for returning to our dock, and an emergency phone number to call. I brought my cell phone and my GPS, just in case. (I later found out that losing a tourist is a major crime in China, possibly even resulting in a firing squad. They are very afraid of bad publicity, particularly with the Olympics starting soon.)

As I toured the main shopping area of Wuhan, there was nothing I could see that appeared to indicate a communist economy. It seemed to me to be as capitalistic as any city I’ve seen. The teenagers and 20-somethings were all terribly fashion conscience. The stores seemed to advertise the latest trends. I know that China has a communist government. But, I think the communistic economy has already begun to give way to a capitalistic economy. (Of course, I’m making judgments based on a tiny amount of superficial information. So, don’t trust my thoughts too far.)

I got a few great night shots of the city (see photos), then returned to the ship. As I was about to cross the street to reach the dock, I saw a young man speeding around the intersection. I thought to myself, “He’s going way too fast”. Just as I was finishing that thought, I heard a crash and looked. Sure enough, he was going too fast; he was now sprawled on the ground. I went over to see if he was OK. I helped him pick up his scooter and push it to the side of the street. What surprised me is that no one else made any effort to help him. There were many bystanders who just watched, including two policemen. The traffic didn’t even stop. I’m not sure what that says about Chinese people.

One thing I’ve consistently noticed is that the people here don’t seem to smile much, not even the children. In India, the poorest children seemed to be happy playing or just running. Last July while in Africa, I saw many children with almost no possessions who were smiling and seemed to be very happy. Here in China, the people seem to me to be more affluent. Yet, I see lots of blank expressions on adults. I see and hear many unhappy children. Perhaps this is where the communist influence can be seen. Nice houses and possessions have less meaning when you don’t have at least the illusion of freedom. And, the communist concept has always been anti-religion, whereas religion is often one of the sources of happiness for many people. I don’t know what the reality is; I’m just telling you my personal impressions.

23 Apr 2008

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