Fall Trip to Southern China

Fall Trip to Southern China

Because the Chinese celebrate for a week the founding of the republic and there was no school at all the schools all over China, we took a trip with other China Teachers from BYU.  Marvin Wu, a Chinese man who has been organizing trips for groups of BYU teachers for years, every year sends out a list of different trips that he has organized and we opted to take one that most of the second year teachers were taking.  Many of the first year teachers were going on the Silk Road trip that starts in western China and makes it’s way back to Xian.  We opted to go on the trip to many of the smaller towns in southern China that would visit some of the indigenous cultures of China.  There are 56 recognized ethnic groups in China. As I remember we flew to Guizhou and with about 45 other teachers traveled by bus to many different places in Southern China.  Craig and Carol Larson from Tianjin also chose this trip as well as Mike and Merlene who were from Mount Pleasant and became our good friends over the course of the next 2 years.  One of the first places we visited was Xijiang a Miao Jur village. Miao are one of the recognized ethic groups in China. I am going to break this trip up into a few post so they don't become too long.

Much of Southern China is terraced for growing rice,  all of the work is still done by hand.

This is the entrance into the village of Xijiang.

This was a welcoming committee.

The homes were built on steep land that was to rocky and steep to terrace and use for growing crops.

They dried corn everywhere they could.

They dried corn everywhere they could.

There houses were wood frame on top of a rock foundation.

 A video of the houses and crops.

 

Drying rice in a large open square.

The bottom floor of the house is for cooking and where they keep their water buffalo.

This is Carol Larson in the front room of our of the houses we went into. Second floor,

Life looked difficult and with most work done by hand.

Second floor room with loom.

Another front room.  Notice the pictures/posters.

The roofs are clay tiles.

The roof tops of the Miao Jur village.

Daily life, selling in the market.

Freshly butchered pig for sale on the street.

Mom dressed up in some of the local traditional clothes.  I think the two girls with us are tourist from another part of China.

Mom is third from the left and Carol is fourth.  All are tourists I think.

Mom and Carol embarrassing themselves.

Some really cute kids wanted their picture taken with the foreigners.

There are many interesting translations in China.

After our visit there was a performance for all the visitors.

After our visit there was a performance for all the visitors.