Xijiang pt.2 Activities

This is the second set of pictures I have from my weekend in Xijiang. 

 On the bust to the train station in Guiyang, I caught this baby looking at me. It stared at me for the longest while. It was enough time for me to stare back and then open my bag to get the camera then take the picture.

 This is the train station in Guiyang. It was incredibly busy. There is not much else to say about this place except it smelled pretty bad.

 This is the waiting room for only 2 gates in the train station. It was absolutely packed. In China, people don't line up for anything. Half of these people in the picture were on the same train as I was going to Kaili. Imagine half of this crowd trying to fit through that exit you can see in the distance. It was incredibly chaotic. There was actually a fight between on older woman and a guy that looked like he was in his late 20's. I found the chaos of boarding the train fairly entertaining.

 Erin right after we had left the train station.

 Shirley and Don having some uncle-niece time on the four our train ride. Shirley is a senior Phillips Exeter and Don is the oldest volunteer here at GFC. By oldest I mean longest serving, just wanted to clear that up. Don, Shirley, and I were popping jokes the entire train ride. The expressions of the other people on the train were priceless. Chinese looking people speaking English? What is this nonsense?

 The guy that us turned away and hidden in the camera is the boyfriend for another GFC staff member that cannot be seen. They were not part of our group, but they were also going to Kaili. That man sleeping is just a random guy who fell asleep on te boyfriend. I found the situation comical.

 That night in Xijiang we were the guests of honor at the restaurant. We had fish hotpot, chicken congee, some moutai (incredibly strong), and many more dishes. At GFC student's father spoke to the owner of the restaurant and that is how we got the private room for our dinner.

 This was one of the things that was brought to the table. I am not sure what the thing on the chopsticks is. It looks like zongzi, sticky rice, but it wasn't. It was wrapped in bamboo leaf like zongzi, but this was more like a steamed pastry. It was nice because a lot of the food is spicy so the sugar killed the spice a little.

 The owner called the performers in to play for us for part of our dinner. The group was one player and two young ladies who sang and fed us. Yes, I said fed. This guy is the player of course, but I am not sure of the name of the instrument.

 This is Don being fed by the ladies. They do not just feed you, but they also sing while they feed you. Another part of the ceremony is after you take a couple of bites of your food then they start to play with you. So they place the food on the chopsticks close to you and when you are about to take a bite they move wave the chopsticks around. It is a little game they play. You must be quick to catch the food on the sticks.

 After you catch the food on the sticks then they give you some alcohol. The ladies massage your ears for a second then hold your nose while the pour wine into your mouth. They POUR the wine down, you don't sip. At least that is what they did to me.

 This is the little hostel we stayed at. Perched 1200 ft above the rest of the village, it was a fun adventure climbing there without any actual roads but only paths.

 This is what I had for breakfast. It was a bowl of rice noodles with pig's feet and a duck egg. On top is some cilantro and scallions.

Erin and I found this place that had a certain type of treat. Infront for the little stall was the place that they made it. Erin gave it a try. All you do is take the wooden hammer and smash the rice based snack in the tub.

 I also gave it a try. The hammer was well over 25 lbs. so it was hard to control. The thing was really gooey.

 This is the treat after it is made. It is filled with red beans and the outside has a peanut taste. Super chewy.

I passed a store that sold hand made scarves. This store has their machine in the front to show the customers how everything is made. All the scarves are 100% cotton, incredibly soft.

Before we left Xijiang, we saw a performance by the Miao people. These women were doing an umbrella dance to music that was played with a leaf.

While we wait for our ride to the train station, Shirley shows her uncle what she bought in the village.

It took 30 mins to get to the train station from Xijiang. The mountain roads were extremely winding.

Shirley and Don enjoying more uncle-niece time on the train ride back to Guiyang.

When we got to Guiyang, we had to take a bus to meet the GFC that would pick us up. The buses in Guiyang are always very packed. This is before the bus started to fill up.