Jiayuguan Pass

After another early morning start we headed for Jiayuguan City (located in Gobi desert in the middle of the Gansu Corridor). After checking into our hotel we headed out for Jiayuguan Pass. This was a key pass of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty (AD1368-1644) and is the best preserved today. The pass was listed as a world cultural relic by UNESCO in 1986. It is a magnificent site and another example of China’s rich past. I took the opportunity to practice my archery from the top of the Great Wall. I think I would have no problem fending off an army....made of straw!

The design of the buildings was impressive

Ready, aim......fire

That will teach those dummies to try and attack us!

Erika, Marica, Myself & Jeff at Jiayuguan Pass

110th Anniversary of Rewi Alley's birth

This morning we attended the celebrations for the 110th Anniversary of Rewi Alley's birth. Rewi Alley was a New Zealander who spent a lot of time in China working with children and establishing schools. He is still an important figure in China and his legacy is important to the people of China, and in particular to the people of Shandan. The New Zealand Ambassador to China, Anthony Browne, was also at the ceremony, which was held at the Shandan Bailie School. After the ceremony we had a short tour around the school. In the afternoon we were shown around the town and visited a beautiful Buddhist Temple. The kilt proved to be very popular with the local people, although the other delegates might be getting a bit tired of it! At night we were treated to a performance in honour of Rewi Alley's life. Our favourite performance was the dance of the Thousand Buddha Hands.

Erika, Jeff, Me and Marcia

Children in the school learning metal work skills

The school looked great with the decorations

Me and the New Zealand Ambassador to China

Road trip

Around 8am we all met in the lobby of the Guest House and boarded the bus for a week long road trip around Gansu Province. Our first stop was Wuwei, around four hours away. The traffic in Lanzhou city has been a little difficult to get used to, but we have developed a theory that the bigger the vehicle you are travelling in, the more likely it is that you have the right of way. Thus, we felt very safe on the coach!

We had lunch in Wuwei and visited Leitai Si, the place where the town's single most famous object, the Han-dynasty Flying Horse of Wuwei, was discovered in 1969. The horse is the symbol of Chinese tourism and can be seen through-out China. After getting back on the road we got our first look at the Great Wall. This section has not been refurbished like the sections in the East of the country. It is another example of how Gansu is different from the ‘refurbished China’ that most tourists see.

When we arrive in Shandan late in the afternoon it was clear that not many tourists seem to pass through here based on the attention we received attention. After dinner at the hotel we all went for a walk through the small town and soon a small crowd of children gathered behind us. Jeff, Marica and I played and were beaten by some kids at ping-pong. After playing ping-pong for ten minutes the crowd had grown and one of the parents asked if we could sing a song. The only song we could think of was "Do-re-mi" and even though it wasn't exactly top-notch, the crowd clapped anyway!

That was an amazing experience and even-though the kids had very little to play with they made do with what they had and seemed very happy.

Opening ceremony

In the evening it was time for the opening ceremony of Gansu Sister Cities program 2007. We dressed up and got ready for the banquet with the Governor (the top politician in Gansu). It was the first time I wore my kilt and it proved to be very popular. A lot of people had never seen anyone in a kilt before and as a result I must of got my photo taken with over 20 different people. However, the popularity of the kilt came at great cost!!

I was enjoying both the wonderful food and the interesting music when Mr Ding (one of the program organisers) tapped me on the shoulder and asked if I could sing a Scottish folk song. At first I thought he meant at the next banquet and not right now in front of 100 people including the Governor. However, he meant now! I reluctantly agreed and then started to panic. The closest thing I know to a Scottish folk song is ‘Why does it always rain on me?’ by Travis. As I was led to the stage I decided that I would sing ‘Flower of Scotland’. However, I was suffering from a case of mental block and could only remember the first few lines. I took advantage of the fact than no-one in the audience knew the real words and I delivered my own unique and alternative version. I returned to my seat to the applause of my fellow delegates.

It was nerve racking but a lot easier than the best mans speech I did two weeks ago.

Note: When going to a Chinese Banquet have a song prepared.

White pagoda mountain

The last few days have been spent showing the new arrivals around Lanzhou and helping them settle in. Today has been a really good day. Jeff (USA), Marcia (New Zealand), Tatsuji (Japan) and I got the bus to white pagoda mountain. It was our first time on the bus and it was easy to see why it is so popular. We got the cable car to the top and then we found a temple that we didn’t see last time. It looked rather new so I wouldn’t be surprised if it was less than 10 years old and built for tourists.Myself, Tatsuji, Jeff & Marcia

Temple at the top of White Pagoda mountain

We then came across a outside swimming pool that had inflatable balls that people go inside and run around on top of the water. At first I was a little skeptical about getting into a plastic ball with a limited air supply and no means of escape but then I thought ‘when in Lanzhou’. Marcia and I got into one each and tried to run around on the water, ‘tried’ being the key word. It was impossible to keep your balance on the water, although the Chinese kids managed it easy enough!

The ball of terror (I am on the right - 'resting')

After risking suffocation in the plastic ball the danger of the fly fox across the valley didn’t seem too great. It’s only when I was strapped in and the guy was about to push me off the ledge that I thought to myself ‘just how save is this?’, by the time I came up with the answer ‘not very, I should get off’ it was too late and I was pushed off the edge.

A terrible blind date

After cheating death twice in the space of half an hour I thought I would treat myself – time for KFC! KFC is the only ‘Western’ fast food place in Lanzhou and I suppose the fact that there is no McDonalds gives you an indication of what it’s like here. In fact after spending a week here it’s very clear that there are very few ‘Westerners’ here. We tend to draw a lot of attention when we are out and about with Valancina the tall girl with blonde hair from Belarus causing a particular stir.

‘Lanzhou beef noodles’

We have been busy the last few days and more people are arriving from different places around the world. Yesterday we visited ‘white pagoda mountain’ which is to the North of Lanzhou. We travelled up by cable car and got a great view from the top. We could see a lot of Lanzhou although there was some smog which obstructed our view a little. There was also a flying fox which I'm sure I will try at a later date. For lunch we visited a Muslim restaurant and had our first taste of the famous‘Lanzhou beef noodles’ they were really good, but could have done with more beef.

People preparing spring onions for the Beef noodles

The famous beef noodles

They do taste good

The view from the cable car

Lanzhou from White Pagoda mountain

Lanzhou, Gansu

The rest of my journey to Lanzhou passed without incident. On the flight from Beijing to Lanzhou I was sat in the ‘International section’ (3 seats in row 17) beside a couple from Israel. They were going to be staying in Lanzhou for one night before going on to somewhere else. That seems to be a common theme amongst travelers in Lanzhou, they tend to be passing though on the way to somewhere else.

Before I get started it would be good to give you a quick run-down on Gansu and Lanzhou. Gansu is a province in the North West of China, although it’s in the centre of China it seems that anywhere further than 100 miles from the East coast is considered to be in the ‘West’.

Gansu has a population of around 26 million making around 5 times bigger than Scotland. The economy is based around natural resources (which Gansu has plenty of) and 90% of China’s Nickel comes from Gansu. Lanzhou is the capital of the province and is home to around 3 million people and is increasing in size everyday.

Across from the University is 'Vanguard' a big supermarket

My initial thoughts of Lanzhou are mixed. The rate of growth has clearly led to an increasing gap between the ‘haves' and the 'have nots’. There are some very impressive looking buildings in particular the ‘Bank of China’ building across the street from the University and the ‘Bank of Communications’ building in the centre of the city. However, it is clear that a lot of people are living well below the poverty line.

The main entrance to Lanzhou University where we are staying

It is also clear that the benefits on having the world’s fastest growing economy are harder to see in Lanzhou compared to cities on the East coast. The majority of cars on the road are taxis and you rarely see top of the range cars, although I did see a Hummer!?!? One reason behind the lack of ‘nice’ cars on the road may be the driving habits in Lanzhou. Taxi rides are not for the faint hearted as the driver will weave through traffic to drop you off as quickly as possible. I know I wouldn’t drive a car here. The locals that I have spoken to all use the bus, it's reliable and cheap (7p to anywhere in the city).