I told my taxi driver that I want to see a typical Chinese village and farm and he took me to his ancestral home outside of Kunming. He didn't take me to his house though he said his grandparents still live there and they weren't home. Instead we drove around this dirt road to the other houses and saw the fields and the irrigation channel. There was this beautiful mud house in an enclosed compound, so grand and imposing. There were children playing outside and people at work inside the house. My driver said if I'm asked as to why I'm there, I'm to say, I'm visiting and would like to take pictures as remembrance. The dirt is red clay and with the same stuff they made mud bricks and built the house with it. There were other houses nearby but these were new and built with modern bricks. Each family plants a variety of things, mostly to consume at home and the excess sold in local markets. The rows were neat and weed free, they do work at these fields. It was very impressive.
When I first arrived in Kunming, I was disappointed, I thought I wouldn't get to see the authentic China. This visit to the countryside made me happy, I came and I saw. I was watching a cooking show on television the other day, it showed the hills of Piedmont, Italy and the vineyards. I thought, 'How boring!' China did a number on me, it changed me. There is still so much of the authentic China left that I can't wait to get back and explore. This was just an exploratory trip.
2 comments:
What beautiful photos! You always have a way of capturing places that I never see anywhere else. I'm sure you gain such wonderful experiences and learn so much along the way.
Thank you for sharing! I will be in China later this year, although I already know I won't be there long enough.
Thanks, Emily, China is too big, there are too many places and so little time. I have come to appreciate China in a different way. The Chinese are much nicer and less grabby than the Egyptians. I've come to enjoy the common folks in China.
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