Saturday, October 13, 2007

the most strange place i have ever seen

Thursday, October 11th :

The flight was short, and very stereotypical - all the young to middle aged Asian men, I look down the row and over their head to see black haired heads with every single face peering into a newspaper that I can only recognize one or two symbols of. China Eastern's meals are awful as well, so I was digging into trail mix most of the time - feeling ultra awesome using my chopsticks from breakfast to pick through it. I always manage to get a couple of double takes when I am chomping away with two wooden sticks...crazy lauwei!

We are flying into the airport and I can see mountains and corn...not an unfamiliar site from the air when flying through the States. (Yes, now I am now one of those people that refers to the US as the states). The mountains are very reminiscent of Southwest Virginia, while the corn fields are much like wherever they grow corn. We touch down to a tiny runway surrounded by nothing but empty fields and mountains. As I exit the plane I can feel the cold bite my face and it's drastically different than in Shanghai, and it's around 17:00 so the sun is setting fast.

This must be the smallest airport I have ever seen in my life. We walk into the waiting area and the luggage pickup is a belt that runs from outside to inside, looping over and over again. It would been as easy just to throw the luggage off and have them pick it up plane side. We are greeted by a small group of men and women that escort us to a van. I am traveling with Bill, Jason, and another Jason - one of Bill's employee's. Let me remind that I don't understand anything being discussed, except for some small gestures - such as them thinking Jason and Bill do not look like brothers. I notice the small building in the parking lot and seem to think it is very familiar to Russian style architecture. Where exactly are we? How close are we to Russia - and more importantly...could I walk to the North Korean border?

Headed towards the city, I see fields and fields of corn - and currently there are people throughout the fields harvesting the corn. I see mechanical contraptions on the road that look like nothing I have ever seen before. They seem hand welded with an open engine in the front or some have one in the back. There are donkey and horse drawn carts, always stacked high with something, I often see lettuce or cabbage draped in cloth with a round woman sitting atop. My mouth is dropped open for the entire ride and Jason and I exchange looks ever so often - trying to just fathom what we are seeing. He says, " I have NEVER seen corn in China". I just nod, trying to figure out how to get out here to photograph. The engines in the carts, or whatever they are, leave a black smoke and I can only assume they are all still powered by coal. The "homes" and communities littered within the fields are shacks, some more than others...some reminding me of West Virginia - if you ever decide to drive through the mountains and bypass the interstate. Outside walls built with patches of whatever, huts built with plastic and perhaps corn stalks. I can only be humble and have the utmost respect for these hard working laborers, where I can see smoke stacks and a few tall building with neon coming upon us from the inner city. The faces of these people are worn, tough, and have a different complexion and facial structure than those of Shanghai. Thick hats, and coats, and gloves are worn. All the bicycle carriages have a drab green plastic covering, because here it gets much colder. The images I captured in my mind on this drive will remain with me for the rest of my life - I could never describe them accurately to anyone that has not seen it for themselves.

We are driving to a job site that MRT has designed that was suppose to be complete that day. It is not, though I am thoroughly impressed of the amount of work that has been done in only a matter of 3 months. From nothing to what I am now seeing. Jason explains to me that the Chinese still have not mastered the task of concrete pours and have to bring Russian crews in to do that task. I turn my head on the first level to see Grandpa carrying to canvas bags, one in each hand, filled with concrete or some sort of tile. He must be at least 20 years older than my own dear father and can't but feel to offer him a hand...though I resist - he wouldn't understand the language or the gesture. Watching this construction, I always wonder of my own father, and my heart and mind is put to a moment of rest thinking if this 70+ year old man is still doing this, my dad can keep going. Perhaps when your body is use to this life, it's easier to continue through this way.

After about an hour or so we leave to go to a bank where the developer's work, Greenland, and leave very briefly from there to our Hotel. The front desk girls are wearing large military green coats to keep themselves warm. The coats are styled as Russian military, or maybe North Korean, I am not sure as I have never seen either nor been in the military - though have visited military surplus stores more than a handful of times.

Only in our hotel for a matter of 15 minutes or so - we head off to dinner with members of Greenland and MRT. There are approximately 10 of us, in a private room, with a round table and the typical "lazy susan" for you Westerner's to understand. Now, if you have never eaten with Asians, you do not order your own dish. Many dishes are ordered and you share them. I learned this a couple years ago with my roommate Hey and then meeting Jason. I love this style of eating, and is definitely one of the things I love the most about Asian culture and cuisine.

First comes hot tea, a couple of dishes consisting of seaweed, a cabbage style salad with little brown nuts/herb than numbs your mouth when you heat. It's kind of like mentalatum but not really. The cabbage and oil is warm and supposedly these little guys have a medicinal purpose. I decide to only have 2 small serving of this. We are brought a basket of large bottled beers and then beautiful and strange dishes begin to appear. A large fish head, small fried fish on a skewer, pork meat from the spinal column (which is the only dish I must pass on) - but the most interesting dish is the DONKEY! Now, I decided when I visited I would try most all of the dishes. I am aware I am at a partial business dinner and it would be incorrect for me not to try - or show disgust. Let me remind you, I am in a room, eating with all Chinese - with very little English being spoken. I have to go strictly on gestures, some words of English, and some translations from Jason and a few from Bill. Jason is wonderful, as he sits next to me translating most of the conversations for me.

"Are you not going to try the Donkey" comes from the jokester of the group. Who knows some English - such as "Porn". I smile, reach across the table to the plated meat in the shape of a brain - which is what I thought it was at first. I place the bite size piece of meat in my mouth and its absolutely wonderful. It takes a bit more chewing than what I am use to but the flavor is absolutely wonderful...perhaps Anise, or some Clove. I don't know, but I will let you, the reader know, that I ate more than just a couple of bites of Donkey.

After a large meal, with a large amount of food being left to waste ("there are starving children in China"), and large bottles of beer. We head out, to get into the van again and head down the streets through the city. The city streets are fairly dead and empty at this point until we arrive to a KTV. NOW - a KTV was explained to me that its karaoke. Okay, sure, I go to karaoke in NYC and its chill, byob, private rooms and what not. But this is not the karaoke establishment I was expected to find. Two floors, neon lights, brightly lit, men in uniform directing us wear to park. Upon entering, I saw these young girls in knee high boots, brightly lit satin and silk dresses, with a fur scruff. Hair elegant and a fair amount of make up. From see the city before night, my first assumption is, "oh, someone's high school is having prom". NO. They are employees, and which I find later on - attendants of rooms and other personal services.

We enter a large room, with more neon, a large screen, and with only one female attendant. She pours red wine into carafe's with ice and brings trays of fruit, popcorn (which is sweet in China - no such thing as salty or buttery popcorn), nuts, and other snacks. Jason and I only sing one song, as we were instructed by Bill because of the business going on or what not. I also joined Bill on a Mr. Big song.

On my way to the bathroom down the dark hallway, I receive strange looks from these girls - these dolled up teenagers, some with tiara's some with sparkely things. My instinct tells me that something else goes on here, behind these doors, in these dark rooms, that is more than just some sing alongs. I find my way to the bathroom, where I young man, probably around my age, points me to the correct bathroom and speaks some English to me. I am very grateful.

There is an attendant trying to get ink pen marks off her white boots with a rag. I can tell she is frustrated about it and its not coming off. Why are there pen marks on her boots? How did they get there? What is really going on in this place? I use the squat toilet, wash my hands, and head straight back to the room - praying that I enter the correct one.

As we are leaving, we walk through the bar where there is a stripper pole and in the next room seems to be a quasi rave going on. Oh, good ol' communist China, how I wish I was still so young but I am quite ready for bed. We leave, we go to our rooms at the large hotel with no heat, and tuck ourselves away from the cold until the morning. Jason and I are set to see the "Bear Farm" in the morning.

Friday, October 12 (Happy Birthday Chris, my brother):

Jason and I head down for the breakfast at the hotel. It is 8:30 am and we have 30 minutes left and a lot of cold food. I take some breads and cookies because I woke up in the middle of the night with stomach cramps thinking, "why did I eat that damn donkey!?" but that wasn't the reason for the abdominal pains.

Once outside, I am bombarded with smells and sounds. What I see and hear and smell is definetly strange, even in comparison to Shanghai. Too much going on to even try and discuss...sensory overload. We walk through streets where there are vendors, and markets, and chickens and all sorts of different animals. I have my camera and some people ask what are we doing and ask Jason more questions about me. We continue through the streets while I take pictures, 2 of man with his donkey, hauling 2 large steel barrels of muck. He came outside and asked in Chinese, "taking a picture of my donkey?" We exchanged smiles, because though I can't understand, a smile is fairly universal.

The entire place has a grey smudge to it, like everything has been dusted with a fog. In the close distance you can see smock stacks. But from our 13th floor of the hotel, it only goes so far until the city is completely cut off my mountains. There is Mandarin being spoken from the loud speakers around the city, honking horns, bicycle bells - loud speaking. A McDonald's with great coffee that trys to upsell hamburgers and fries - we only want the damn hot coffee. I spot teenagers all hipster like, not fitting the scenery - and can relate to my youth with the dreams of getting out of a shithole and dreams of a big city where everything is clean and beautiful. Oh, if they only new the truth of it all. Like the assumption that Americans ALL have a car and that i why taxi's are expensive.

At 10 we hailed a taxi. It took 10 minutes for Jason to speak to the driver about going to the Bear Farm. Trying to explain that the bears have hoses from their stomachs where they take bile. When I hear both give a big sigh of relief I realize that they have come to an understanding of where we are trying to go and for he to take us. He explains to Jason that no one ever goes there. (Here is some forshadowing for you my dear reader: Do you remember when Yogi and BooBoo go to the bear cave and Yogi is confused about the Bears sleeping in the Fall/Winter...?)

So we are off to the Bears. We leave the city and we are driving through the country side. It is the fall now and I can only imagine what it looked like during the Spring. For now it is orange and dying green and brown...though this will have to do for my photographs. Looking outside the window, while Jason and the Taxi driver chat it up, I am dying to get out and take photographs. This is obviously a very poor part of the country, no cars, all carts, horses, buggies, and just a few bicycles. Huts and shacks are set of too the back of the corn fields, that you can see a few people sprinkled though out the fields harvesting the corn.

Jason explains to me that the driver is asking a lot of questions and wards them off because he doesn't want us to be taken out to the middle of nowhere to be killed or whatever. I do grow nervous when his car starts going really slow up the hills but I realize that it is having transmission problems or the fuel injections just really sucks.

We pass small communities, where I can see from the top of hills that you enter this neighborhoods with one street and then its a labyrinth of homes throughout this squared area.

I begin to see billboards for the bears. you wouldn't believe the ads; bears in tutu's, bears and trapeze's, bears doing non bear activities. Do I for see a wonderful proposal for a story when I get back to the states? Newsweek? NY Times? Vice? I know I don't have enough film for what I may see so I am already preparing a plan to get back in the Spring.

After about a 45 minute car ride, we arrive. (Taxi's are dirt cheap here) It is obviously closed for the season but the giant basketball court next to a warehouse facility in the middle of nowhere makes both Jason and excited of what happens here. But its a no show. Closed...mental note....must COME BACK AGAIN!

We make a deal with the driver that we will be making stops on the way back for me to take photographs. He says where we want to go is this "waterfall". So we go there. Maybe more like a trickle of water down some stones. There is a fenced area a couple yards away...we walk up to it and the driver yells to us that we can go in. (Jason can't read chinese). We go in and its a Temple, in the middle of nowhere. I take some photographs, Jason purchases some water, a woman comes out and asks why I want to take photographs, its only a field of corn stalks. She is smiling and very friendly. She explains to Jason that if you look up the mountain the rocks look like Buddha, or whatever you wan it to be. This woman, in the middle of nowhere, a place of poverty, is instilling the idea of imagination to us. I think its wonderful, we all laugh...a wonderful woman and very neat Temple. Yes, I took pictures of the Mountain Top Buddha.

Back in the car we head down the dirt roads to get back on paved path. We stop at one entrance to a community. The driver gets out with us, and tells the people to leave us alone, we are just taking pictures, who cares. because they had tried to shoo me off. we walk down and through. an older man with a toddler comes up towards us and I smile and say hello (obviously in mandarin) and he smiles and returns it. i gesture if i can take a photograph he politely shakes his head no. there is a very tiny woman in the streets explaining to others that i am someone from another country. she approaches us and i say i am american (again, in mandarin). she understands and continues, like a skipping record to jason that she is scared of americans and foreigners, over and over again. this is after he asked if we could take her photograph and she said no because she doesn't know me and i am a foreigner and they scare her. i notice a large bag of prepared ramen packets (in china, there are noodle places everywhere, people usually make their own). she explains that she has to go home and make them for her and her mother. Weird...we leave.

We continue stopping through the country side. The driver explains that dog is eat out here. Bill calls us and tells us we should go see the baby tigers. The driver gives us a high price for the transportation...i mean "high" as relative. We are already giving him extra for making all the stops and paying his cheap rate. I will have pictures of this adventure as soon as the film is developed.

Returning back to the city, I completely forgot to ask the driver if I could take his picture. We had spent nearly 3 hours with him and Jason and he had chatted it up for nearly the whole time. One of the discussions between him and Jason was how "America is heaven and here is Hell" - where all Americans are rich and have cars, where life is easy. The Chinese are allowed to watch too many Friends episodes or 7th Heaven or whatever. Jason tries explaining that it's not all like that. Either way, I have to admit, America does look like the land of the rich from what I have seen and where I have been.

We go back to our room, watch some communist tv and take a nap. It's freezing.

Later, we go out to take some more photographs. Near the end of the walk we purchase some sunflower seeds from a woman. She asks Jason if I am Russian, I "look Russian". Her son, whom I think may have had some "learning disabilities" claims I am American. She probably thinks I am Russian because Americans don't come to this part of the country. They stay in Hong Kong/Beijing/Shanghai and shop their worthless US Dollar away. They are pleased that I am from America and we all exchange smiles and sunflower seeds. A LOT of sunflower seeds.

Back to the hotel room to warm up, drink a beer, and eat sunflower seeds...and of course some more communist television - in the sense of the government control.

FOOD IS SO CHEAP IN CHINA!!! Jason and I found a place for dinner. We each had a meal and 2 large beers a piece for under 6 US Dollars. Food, booze, and transportation is cheap here...to keep the people happy. We buy more beer on the way home and some bottled water. Realizing we have no bottle opener, I am prying the caps off with the clothes line hook in the bathroom while Jason is using something else. Mine works the best - I win.

Saturday, October 13th:

We are leaving at like 15:00 or sometime around there. Jason and I walk to a different part of town. We come by a back alleyway, sort of street...with dogs everywhere. i mean everywere, in cages, on cages, on leashes, hundreds. 10 Us Dollars....its sad...its cold...will they be eaten or for pets...we have to leave. this explains what i though i saw on our driver from the bear farm...i thought it looked like a puppy farm...it probably was. We walk to the river where I finish up the batch of film. We have to meet up with Bill but am so disappointed because I find a run down amusement park of sorts along the riverbank. But, we have to go and I am out of film anyhow. We eat. Back to the hotel where we wait for a transportation. There is something strange (nothing new in this town) out in front of the hotel. There is a large truck that men are filling up with cut steel and metal. no gloves, nothing, just pure blood and sweat. the below photograph is of the man that stays at the top and adds the metal to the truck. they are emptying all of this stuff out of the bottom of the hotel we are in. a little tractor with a cart goes under and then about 10 minutes later returns with a cart full of metal scraps.

In the van we take a different route to the airport. There is dozens of construction sites, building materials, all next to huts/homes of the nearby communities. This is across the river from the city where there is nothing but corn fields and broken down homes. It's crazy. If I only had another week here and a car. This is has been the craziest place I have ever been in my entire life. Its sad. Its dirty. Its poor. Its REAL. I am experiencing real China and I couldn't ask for anything better. The only thing I wish on a daily basis is that I wasn't large and white and could speak Mandarin.

At the airport...goodbye Mudanjiang...I will return - someday - I must. The best trip EVER.


The above pictures are just snapshots of Heilongjiang - as I shot more than 10 rolls of Medium Format film in a day and a half.

3 comments:

Martha said...

I have just returned from FLA and have read every word you wrote. It is such a different world which I'm sure has changed you. You are a luck woman, please be careful, stay with Jason and I love you. I find it all very interesting/educational and cannot wait to see all your pictures. We are truly very fortunate people. Contact me when you can.
Love MOM

Unknown said...

What in the hell is that guy sitting on thats all piled up in the back of the truck?

eleanor moseman said...

That would be a truck filled with raw edged metal scraps.