What the Chinese think of American Politics

During this US presidential election year, it has been fun talking to my local Chinese friends and even strangers about American politics.
When I ask what they think of Hillary and Trump they almost always laugh. They ask me why these two are the best people America can come up with to lead their country. They think it is insane that a woman who should be in jail is the party's nominee and a temperamental reality TV star is the other party's nominee.
Here, Hillary Clinton is referred to by just her first name translated as: Shillaly or Shillary as some pronounce it.
All but one that I have talked to prefer Hillary Clinton to be elected as president of the United States. Many women say that they think it's about time America elected a woman. All that agree Hillary should be president want her to win because they want America and China to be strong allies and think Hillary will keep the status quo with China.
Of all the people I have talked to, only one man likes Trump. He likes him because in his words "Trump stand for everything China believes in. Money, power, and beautiful women."  Most do not like Trump because they say he will take jobs away from the Chinese and take them to America. They are afraid he will do or say something to upset their government, thus destroying the American and Chinese relationship.
No matter ones political views, this election cycle is bound to be full of surprises and drama.

Hancheng Lake, Xi'an, China

Hancheng means Han City. The Hancheng Lake served as the channel for official water transportation during the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD). The project took tens of thousands of soldiers three years to complete. The channel is 93 miles (150 km) long and was played an integral role in transporting military supplies for Xi'an, which was known as Chang'an at the time.
Today there is a big pagoda you can climb up to see the view and old relics from the Han Dynasty., and a walk way that showcases the natural beauty of the canal an area with over priced carnival rides it was $15 US dollars a person for a Ferris Wheel ride or roller coaster ride.

).

Eighth Route Army in Xi'an

At the outbreak of WWII known as  the Second Sino-Japanese War in China the Eighth Route Army was formed from the Chinese Workers and Peasants Red Army. The Eighth Route Army was the main fighting force during the Sino-Japanese War. It was commanded by Mao Zedong and General Zhu De.
On September 22, 1937 the liasion office as renamed the Eighth Rout Army (ERA) Xi'an Office. It's main purpose was to circulate and expand Anti-Japanese propaganda, organize resistance, purchase and transport supplies needed to fight the war, and escorted youth involved in the cause to Yan'an and other places where the fighting was going on.
In June 1946 during the Chinese Civil War the office was moved to Yan'an.

Building 

Courtyard with housing in the 

buildings seen

Courtyard

Work space

'

Supply room

Today, visitors can see the living quarters, meeting rooms and kitchens of the offices. There were a few halls dedicated to foreign people that helped the cause. One was a Canadian doctor who taught Chinese doctors how to do surgeries. Another room was dedicated to a woman named Helen Foster Snow, a woman from Utah, USA who wrote articles and books regarding the war and life in China.

Pingyao, Shanxi, China 平遥

During the Qing Dynasty Pingyao was the financial capital of China. The city was founded 2,700 years ago. The inner city's layout hasn't changed since the Ming (1368-1644 AD) and Qing (1644-1917 AD) Dynasties.
We stayed at an old hotel that was supposedly 500 years old. It had traditional Kang beds, which were huge rectangular shape beds surrounded by brick and traditionally filled with dirt, with wooden posts placed over the dirt followed by hard mattresses. Our bed was large but wasn't made out of wood or dirt but the mattress was hard. Traditionally the kang bed fit 7 people.  Because the beds were filled with dirt they kept the people warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
The city had 22 different houses or sites to visit. We saw an old bank that had under ground vaults, a museum of furniture, Buddhist temples, residences, vinegar shops, the old city wall. I noticed that many of the buildings were bright orange and green. This contrasted greatly with the red and black I am used to in Xi'an.
The food in Pingyao is not as spicy as Xi'an. They had a lot of beef dishes, breaded and fried mushrooms, and beef skewers. I took a video of a meat skewer BBQ that is unlike any I have ever seen.
The city had fun antique shops that sold old clocks, lanterns, animal skins, and other souvenirs.

Black Vinegar. This stuff is strong

City Wall

Wang Family Compound 王家大院.

The Wang Family compound was built by the Wang family between 1762-1811. The Wang family was one of four official families of the Qing Dynasty. The Wang family were government officials and amassed their fortune through government deals.
The compound has 231 courtyards, 2,078 houses and the total yardage is 179,399.  The entire compound is surrounded by high walls.  The buildings were close together, and for the first time I understood why kung fu movies portray people jumping from rooftop to rooftop.
The compound had amazing architecture and displayed traditional art. The building displayed the Wang family tree, which had a whopping 89 generations documented.

This is what 89 generations of 

family names looks like. I couldn't

get a great picture.

Outer wall.

My Two Cents: Volunteering in China

Don't let your kids come to China to "volunteer" unless you directly have evidence that it truly is volunteering. This doesn't mean going through companies like China Horizons, ILP, Travellers Worldwide, etc. (Please note, I am just trying to point out that even established companies such as these have issues, I am not trying to call out any specific company). Many of these companies are looking for cheap labor, and "volunteering" is the easiest route to that. What we have seen here is that many of these companies are hooked up to the "middlemen" that find foreign teachers for schools. Many of these schools are not for poor children in remote areas of the countryside, that could really benefit from volunteers. Many volunteers end up teaching very well off students in cities. Some of these middlemen, such as one that we know, are quite dishonest. This specific one has been kicked out of nearly every job-hunting group in Xi'An for lying, cheating, stealing money, vulgarity, and threatening violence. Once a friend of mine contacted him about a job (not knowing it was him until later) and requested the going rate for foreign teachers, he replied "are you kidding? I get native speakers who teach for free." By "volunteering" in this way, you are placing yourself in a vulnerable and potentially dangerous situation. You are making the rich here richer, not helping the poor. You are also disturbing the marketplace, becoming slave labor that says no English teacher must be treated with respect and fairness. If you want to come to China as a "volunteer" very careful think through what you are doing. Work directly with a school, as these companies are generally set up to profit off of you. After paying for your plane ticket, visa, and housing, the middleman will earn AT LEAST $16,000 USD a semester per teacher. It is better to work for a semester earning that $16,000 for yourself and pay the money for your plane ticket and visa, rather than putting yourself in this situation.
Many of these companies bring teachers here on a tourist visa rather than a working visa. This creates a lot of legal problems if the authorities catch you. A big question to ask the companies is what legal help if any is available to you. Not getting teachers a working visa is a red flag.
 If you know anyone who really wants to come to China to volunteer, and can't find a legit school we are more than willing to help while we are here.  My recommendation is don't volunteer. Accept the money they are willing and able to pay. There are plenty of places in China that can't get foreign teachers due to the low salary they are able to provide. If you want, you can donate that money you earn to an orphanage before you leave (but be careful about which orphanage there is a lot corruption, but that is a whole different blog post).

Mianshan Mountain 绵山

The highlight of our weekend trip was a trip to Mianshan Mountain. The mountain is well known for it's beauty,  for the Buddhist and Daoist temples and bridges built into the sheer cliffs and as the birthplace of the Qingming Festival 

Mr. Kungfuyankee climbed up the cliff to walk on the wooden steps.

Monkey bridge and Daoist Temple

Buddhist temple built into the cliffs

People put locks on chains to bring wealth and 

lovers put locks on chains together to signify

their love is never broken.

.

Huaqing Hotsprings Palace and Lishan Mountain 华清池

Huaqing hot springs and palace has an extensive history. It was built during the Western Zhou Dynasty (711 BC) and expanded by the first emperor of China (210 BC) and during the Western Han Dynasty (206-24 BC).

The palace had five hot springs. One giant one designated for the emperor, one for his concubines and others  for palace dignitaries .

The palace has extensive gardens and a spectacular view.

This palace is also the site of the Xi'an incident, an important incident in modern Chinese history. The Xi'an incident took place during  the Chinese Civil War between the Kuomintang led by Chiang Kai-shek and the Chinese Communist Party. During the incident two of Chiang Kai-shek's generals took him hostage and made him join with the communists in order to defeat the invading Japanese. After the Japanese were defeated and the communists took over China Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan.

We took a gondola to the midpoint of a mountain where there were more palace grounds. At the grounds was a Buddhist temple, a bird aviary, and another tower. The kids loved riding a horse from the base of the gondola to the top of the mountain to see the view of Xi'an.


                                   

                                                                    View of Xi'an

Sky view of the Huaqing Palace

garden

garden

hot spring for concubines 

Living area of Chiang Kai-shek

Bullet hole from the Xi'an incident

Chiang Kai-shek eating quarters.  It is 

rare to see the Taiwanese flag displayed in

China.

Small Wild Goose Pagoda

                                                   

This week my daughter and I went to the Small Wild Goose Pagoda. The Buddhist pagoda was built during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). During the Tang and Song Dynasties (618-907 and 960-1279 AD) it was known as the Jianfu Temple Pagoda. The Pagoda was built to house Buddhist sutras a monk had brought from India.

                                              

The original pagoda was fifteen stories but because of storms and earthquakes it is currently thirteen stories.

In 1487 AD  a violent earthquake occurred which caused a huge 1.1 foot crack down the middle of the pagoda. The crack was there until another earthquake occurred in 1521 AD. The two halves came back together and the crack disappeared, the people called this phenomenon the magical combination.

Restoration in 1949 revealed the Small Wild Goose Pagoda can withstand earthquakes because ancient craftsman built it's foundation on a hemisphere of packed earth, allowing it to be flexible during earthquakes.

                                                    

The morning bell chime was built in 1192 AD and was rung every morning as a prayer for happiness. 

The Pagoda also had a museum and cultural street. We really liked watching the shadow puppet show and puppet show.

Shadow puppet show