Rick's Post

IVY and LUKE :OK, they don't make it 5 minutes before I step in, more like 5 seconds. Pinching, bitting, pushing, good stuff. GUANGZHOU: We are further south than the Bahamas, hot and humid, feels good. TWO KIDS: Wow, I now respect parents with two or more kids. Our stay in Lanzhou was a big city but with old customs. The Buddhist Temple Park was a modern Indiana Jones experience with loud chanting from the monks and people bowing in unison all around us to Buddha. Incense and large alter fire. COOL! We even saw people burning paper money to their ancestors on the curb in front of the hotel, live chickens being sold in the alley, Chinese Muslims with their white hats, all this is strange to see as Toyotas, Hundais and an occasional BMW drives down the street. Guanzhou on the other hand is like any US overgrown city with with a few less caucasions, ok no caucasions except adopting couples and random Europeans. But the Chinese look like Chinese Americans in their dress an haircuts. They stare at us less( a little less) and seem up to date. I guess I always thought of China as a place but realize even though their are common threads in different parts of China, it is many places with very different cultures. Although, it seems like you could simplify the cities as close to the coast and far form the coast, the futher from the coast and Hong Kong, the more old school and interesting it gets, more split botom baby pants, more old dignified men with fu man chu beards and less American influence. Although, eventhe very inland cities have adopted American shopping malls and know who the Utah Jazz are. SQUATERS: Ten minutes and lots of steps to take a child to the bathroom here. Shoes off, hold up the child from the very wet and dirty foor, pants off, undies off, shoes on, squat, shoes off, pants on, undies on, shoes on. All this while holding a child in small stall. (sorry forth the long post- more for me than you - thanks).