CHINA December 26, 2005: From Xi’an to Xiamen

Hi-

Arrived in Xiamen early this afternoon..Started out pretty early to get the plane from Xi’an… Funny thing happened at check-in… I decided to check my suitcase (first time in about 15 years…) because it was a small plane and our seats were way in the back… Anyway, when they put the luggage through screening.. I was called over to open my suitcase… The guy showed me that there were two circular objects that he needed to identify… I scratched my head and couldn’t figure out what I had packed that could be that shape and that might trigger the detectors… So he starts undoing my very neatly packed suitcase and I try to help … I finally realize that last night at the market in Xi’an, I bought two little alarm clocks with Mao on the face of the clock.. Mao moving his arm up and down… apparently these clocks set off the detectors… So I now have to take them in my carry bag. (Don’t ask why they don’t trigger any problem in the carry bag..
only in checked luggage.)

Anyway, we arrived in Xiamen at about 11:30 this morning.. and set out to walk until dinner time.. Xiamen (population only 1.2 million… a mere little village) is also buzzing!  It’s a newer city… in very good condition. Lots of new buildings, tree-lined streets, broad parks — with piped in classical music playing throughout —  (we stumbled on some performances in one of the parks — singers, acrobats, and some mime); The city is situated on a river so there’s a wonderful strolling
area that edges the river and appears to go for quite a long distance around the city’s edge… sort of like the Malecon in Havana.. Lots of activity along that river edge…

The people who shine shoes (there are tons of them in every town) all seem to want to polish our shoes… perhaps they look a bit shabby.. and they seem to hang out in clusters.. so about eight shoe shine folks surround us at any one time…

There’s an old section of town that’s pretty interesting — meandering little alleyways.. much like the old parts of the other Chinese cities.. and operating from about 9 a.m. until about midnight… Actually, these cities operate with much longer days than in the U.S…. shops are open 7 days a week for about 16 hours each day. People seem to work all the time (I feel right at home…)  One taxi driver told us his schedule is 12 hour days/ 7 days a week.. And today — Sunday — construction workers were working all day, banks were open, etc.

Overall, people in all of the cities we’ve been to thus far, appear to be in good shape — well fed, well dressed, busy… There’s been minimal begging (some children and old women)..  and we haven’t encountered any real homelessness (even though we’ve been in some pretty seedy parts of each town.)  Not saying there isn’t any, just that we haven’t seen it, and in any American city we’d certainly have seen homelessness by walking through the streets this much.

Part of Xiamen includes an island that was developed during colonial times… We’ll probably ferry over there for part of tomorrow… We’re off to dinner now…
If I have my days and times correct.. It’s Christmas Day in the states…  so merry, merry…

Fern