Domo and I could have spent as many years studying the garden of Bonsai Trees as it took them to mature to their current thick trunked grandeur...hundreds of years.
The musicians and Feng Shui inspired setting was a welcomed respite from the busyness of the cities, as well as a lull before the long bus ride awaiting us to our next garrison in Hangzou.
The silk factory was another example of the beauty that can derive from long hours of painstaking attention to detail. This art form appeared to be the epitome of toil laden expression...until we entered the embroidery factory and received an education in the eye crossing, fine-motor skill testing art of Chinese Embroidery. No photos were allowed, and after learning about what goes into these pieces, the protection of these masterpieces is more than understood. If you ever need your mind and senses blown, Google Chinese Embroidery!
The meeting at the Middle school was a great time to see that kids are kids, no matter their location on the earth. They all like video games, home cooked meals, music, technology, and sports. These students are sacrificing much freedom and relaxation to obtain a higher level of education, and I was inspired by their work ethic and broad smiles.
The ride to Hangzhou was punctuated by a stop at a rest stop/truck stop along the toll highway. There resides the most pungent and disagreeable odor Jim's nose has encountered to date, and if you know the jobs Jim's had over the years, this is an impressive statement! We believe it to be a mixture of the infamous "Stinky Tofu", Bulute (or some other fermented egg concoction), public restroom, road-weary human funk, and a produce/fish market that housed the largest frozen-salted-plastic sealed fish to ever be sold at a truck stop...in the middle of nowhere mind you. Who would be craving a 25lb frozen-salted-plastic sealed fish while driving a long stretch of highway, I have yet to conjure up a guess...but, I digress.
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