I KNOW NICE PEOPLE

Recently I was gifted two very nice books from two very nice friends. I had "My Country and its People" on my reading list, and one day it arrived in my hands, delivered in person. Thank you Rain! Soon afterwards I made the comment that I should probably take along a guidebook for China since it is the first extensive travel I will do in one country and I won't have to lug it around much beforehand. Shortly thereafter a box from Amazon.com arrived with the Lonely Planet. Thank you Candy!

I know nice people.

ETHNIC MINORITY REPORT?

This trip in a way seems to be developing some sort of back-up theme. If Movement is the major of my studies, than ethnic minorities seem to be the minor, at least in Asia. As reported a couple times already, I plan to visit some communities within Vietnam, Laos, and China that are villages of some of the ethnic minorities there. There are also numerous autonomous regions in Siberia that warrant mention and are composed of significant minority populations. I've put together a list of those that I have decided to go to so far:

China:

The Dong peoples in Tongdao county, Hunan and Guizhou provinces.

Hmong in Guizhou and Guangxi provinces.

Yao in Yunnan province.

Vietnam:

Hmong, Tay, and Yao (Dao in Vietnamese) in Lào Cai province.

Laos:

Hmong and Akha in Luang Namtha provinces.

Russia:

Jewish Autonomous province.

Buryat Republic.

I will in the future go into more detail about my plans to visit these places in Siberia, including both of the places above. They each have unique stories and histories that are fascinating to learn about.

If anyone has suggestions for others along my route, please let me know!

長江 YANGTZE RIVER

As part of this journey I have decided to spend as much time as possible on the world's largest rivers, and will use at least the largest river in every continent as a significant route of transportation. This includes the world's four largest rivers (Nile, Amazon, Yangtze, Mississippi) and also the Danube in Europe.

The first of these great rivers that I will come into contact with is the Yangtze in China. I will cross its path a few times, but the first time will be in Yunnan province at Tiger Leaping Gorge. I hope to use the river as a means of transportation between places here in Yunnan, as well as later in Hubei and near Shanghai.

(Tiger Leaping Gorge. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia Commons)

Here at the upper reaches the river still runs fast through some amazing scenery. I think I will be able to take a boat from near Lijiang to Panzhihua where I can take the train north to Chengdu and say goodbye to the river until I see it again at the Three Gorges Dam.

Each of these rivers has a special meaning to its country and to the world. Locally, regionally, and globally, their significance is unquestionable.

More to come on the other four later this week!

HARBIN ICE FESTIVAL

I have always wanted to attend this event in northeast China.

On January 5th, 2010, you know where to find me, even if the temperatures might be approaching -40...

More photos available here.

CHINA BY RAIL

One of the things I am looking forward to the most about this journey is extensive travel by rail. On many trips with time restraints, I end up taking more buses than trains for reasons of scheduling, as it is often much easier to go on one of many daily buses. In most countries outside of Europe, the train is often much slower than buses as well, creating a dilemma.

China has a lot of people, and a lot of trains. From all accounts, half the country is always seemingly boarding the same train as you, no matter what your destination and no matter what time. I can deal with this, as the reward of train travel starts when the train pulls out of the station. You can enjoy the scenery more peacefully, many trains are open air, and taking photos on or of trains is about a million times more successful than any taken aboard buses.

The map above shows the various lines in the China rail system, of which I plan to spend about six weeks hopping from town to town. My roommate from Shanghai will probably snicker when I say my Mandarin is improving, but one of my most important goals for this trip is to be able to speak as much with people in China as possible. Mandarin obviously does not guarantee me conversations with everyone, but I think it will give me better insight when talking with some people. I would hate to only have the perspectives of those that have learned English.

I will be writing about these adventures to no end, but to those with an interest now, I recommend checking out Paul Theroux's Riding the Iron Rooster: By Train Through China. 

I AM NOT A LEPER

The first visa I will need, and possibly the most bureaucratic of any embassy's requirements prior to my trip is without a doubt China.

I have never been to China yet, but when I visited Taiwan they only asked me a question or two upon arrival and seemed to be glad to let me come. China has some different things on their mind apparently:

My favorite question had to do with what sort of trouble I could be bringing with me. I wonder what type of person in their right mind would answer yes to this question. Thankfully, I am not a leper.