Lost in a Good Book

Ken received a copy of J. Maarten Troost's Lost on Planet China for his birthday in January. Our nephew and niece, Kevin and Rachel, chose this book for him because Ken spent two years, off and on, in Chengdu, China when he did contract work for his former employer there in '05-'06. Kevin and Rachel knew Ken would most likely find Troost's story interesting.

They were right. And so have I.

I took three trips to China while Ken was there, staying at his apartment in Chengdu. I was there a total of three months, so I got to see China fairly well but not as well as Ken, who actually worked there.

Anyway, Ken and I loved reading Troost's account of his travels in China: Beijing, Hong Kong, Tibet, and several other areas. Ken and I saw much of Beijing, Xian, and Hong Kong, in addition to Chengdu.

What made both of us mostly chuckle (but sometimes sigh in despair) while reading Lost on Planet China were many of Troost's details: young children in split pants (The first time I saw a child in split pants, I thought he had accidentally torn them and wondered if I should try to tell his father), the habit of the Chinese to spit on the streets, the amazingly unsanitary public restrooms, the smog (oh, my word, the smog), the menus with no hint of what one might be ordering, the hair-raising experience of riding in taxis  (Troost observed seven lanes of traffic on a four-lane highway as he rode from the Beijing airport into the city. That sounds about right. And stop signs? A "mere suggestion," as someone once said.), endless tearing down of buildings and construction of new skyscrapers, the appalling living conditions of workers who come from the countryside to work in the cities.

Despite many of the unappealing aspects of China, Ken and I also remember the kindness of the people, their willingness to help us, the absolute refusal of waitresses and taxi drivers to take tips, the pride of parents when we asked to take a photo of their children, the brides and grooms in a Chengdu park one Saturday morning, hot pot, Carrefour, the Great Wall with its uneven steps (and the elderly gentleman who hurried past us, climbed to the top, turned around, and came down to meet us, all while smoking a cigarette. Ken and I struggled on.), the "authentic" items sold in souvenir shops (one of our guides mentioned that the antiques there might have been made hundreds of years ago...or yesterday), our housekeeper who was paid 400 yuan a month ($50) for about 48 hours' work, our many visits to Luodai, an ancient  village outside of Chengdu, and of course the pandas at the Chengdu Panda Breeding and Research Center.

I've wondered if Qingcheng Mountain even is recognizable any more. That's where the devastating earthquake occurred a year ago. Ken and I hiked this mountain twice. 

P.S. I just checked a website for Qingcheng, where a visitor mentions the mountain has partially reopened for hikers.

(P.S.S. It's been raining in Maine almost all week, I've been cooped up inside, and I'm feeling nostalgic, apparently.)