Mar 3: Zhaoxing Freeday

DSCF7459, originally uploaded by gofeetgo.

Woke up late at 8:40am and slowly made my way down to the hotel's canteen where the super friendly owner was srpcuing up in his dress pants and oversixed sport jacket. He made 2 fried eggs (lots of eggs these days) and asked me if I wanted pancakes, assuming that I would, since its a quintessential backpacker's breakfast. I didn't and ordered the steamed bread. He brought me some delicious instant coffee (presenation makes all the difference) and then walked out the door with an empty saucer. I watched him by a piece of bread from the dinky bakery cross the street. Then brought it back. It was something like a microwaved croissant (rock hard-on the bottom and crumbly on the top). I liked having someone serve me what they think I would like. And I liked it!

I meandered around the M.C. Escher-like village, with stairways, bridges, and footpaths and narrow alleys. Time passed and I ate some lunch, then felt really lethargic and to heck with it crawled into bed. Woke up engergetic and a little guilty from being lazy and decided to bike the 5 miles up the mountain to the "Eco-Village" Tang'an (apparently a China-Norway colloboration in sustainable such-n-such).

In just sandals, shorts, and a short-sleeve shirt, no bags I flew through town, while feeling a little self-conscious. I know that I am showing more skin than is kosher and I turned a few heads. Little old ladies lauch and often look at my legs and try to quantify their size with their hands. I laugh and tell them that I am Big person and in China everyone is little.

The climb was steep, but no bags, and little clothing and a sunhiney blue sky, made me relish it all. It was really great and the rice terraces were millions on top of each other, the most beautiful I have seen so far.


Once I got up to Tang'An I was sweaty and my hair was crazy from the wind. I found a stream and washed up, let my hair down and combed it. My wet arms,legs,and face drying in the sun.



Played with some kids, and let a boy attempt to ride my bike. Then as I was heading up to the village with the kids clamoring around me (its so movie-like I know, but its what happened) I heard some english from a yonder window. A man appeared and invited me in his tradional home.

He is a accountant from Tianjin. Married a Dong woman and is now spending a year living in the mountains. I later asked about the Norway-China thing, and as it turned out his wife is a singer and has not only cut a live album but has travelled to Norway 3 times singing traditional Dong songs in a special colloboration and exchange to preserve the musical tradition of the village of Tang'An.

Zhang (the husband) is using some of his time in the village studying and recording his wife's music. Real anthro-field-musicology. I told him about my love for new music, espeically regionally music from little places around the world. He and his wife sung a drinking song for me as I recorded on my digital recorder (I bought especially in the offchance that I would have an encounter like this). I asked to buy a CD off of her (they weren't selling them). And he attempted to upload some of his recordings on my mp3 player (but a virus on my player stopped him). It was really super cool.
They were wired in that hut.


It was about 5pm and I had the long winding downhill before the sunset. Most wonderful long coast down a mountain ever, the road was smooth and the terraces glimmering.