Travels in China 2006
First Impressions of China
As an American deeply interested in Golden Courage International and its work on behalf of children in China, I had the privilege and opportunity of traveling to China with Dr. Yun Lu, President of Golden Courage, his wife Katarina, and my husband, Oran, in June of 2006. This was the first trip back to China in 11 years for Dr. Lu and the first experience in China for the rest of us. I would like to share my impressions with everyone who is interested in understanding a bit more about China, its people and environment, and the work of Golden Courage.
China, its people, customs, history, and current situation are not widely understood by people in the United States. Even though I read and tried to prepare for this journey, each day brought new surprises and insights that gave me a much deeper awareness of this fascinating country and its people. I am very grateful to have had this opportunity to see, first hand, the powerful work of Golden Courage International and its impact on the lives of so many remarkable young people.
After a 17-hour plane trip from Detroit via Japan to China, through 12 time zones and three meals wisely prepared by Oran in advance for all of us, we arrived in Beijing at 10:00 pm on Tuesday evening, June 6, 2006.
As we walk from the airplane to passport control, we are greeted by an ultramodern airport with high ceilings of chrome and glass, giving us an indication of the city of the future we are about to enter. We are welcomed with huge bouquets of colorful flowers by Dr. Pang, Dr. Yun Lu's mother and recently retired Chief of Medicine at Sinyuan Medical Center; Dr. Lu's father, Dr. X.C. Lu, former Chairman of Philosophy at Beijing University; Dr. Chow, one of Golden Courage International's devoted volunteers; and Yue Xin, the Beijing Golden Courage office manager.
Near midnight, totally exhausted and simultaneously exhilarated by the lights and sounds of Beijing, we arrive at Dr. Lu's apartment in the heart of the city to enjoy a feast of Chinese delicacies prepared especially in honor of Dr. Lu's arrival home. One of the delightful aspects of this three-week experience is the adventure into the heart of Chinese cooking. This is just our very first encounter with the wide variety of tastes, aromas, and textures of food that would be a constant subject of discussion and enjoyment.
On our first morning in Beijing, Dr. Lu wants to show us the location where he spent the first 11 years of his life. We walk out of our apartment onto the crowded intensely urban city streets and begin walking in the muggy 95-degree heat. A combination of bicycles, motorcycles, cars, buses and massive trucks pass us by in an order that seems to defy logic. Yet, we manage to cross the wide boulevards being dug up to install an underground metro system to help manage the almost impossible air pollution that greets us at our first breath.
It is a challenge to maneuver in a city that has reinvented itself so dramatically, where many major landmarks have been demolished, streets have been reconfigured, and parks mysteriously arise in unlikely locations. After a few hours of searching, we enter the almost magical Taorentine Park, where hundreds of Chinese men, women and children are engaged in a wide variety of pursuits. Groups of people gather to sing segments from famous Chinese operas; couples ballroom dance to the strains of music on a CD player; men and women play tai jai ball, a cross between badminton and lacrosse; some fly brightly colored kites; others practice tai chi while groups of children run down the walking paths that border the lake on one side and beautifully manicured gardens lined with flowers of incredible varieties on the other.
We pass the Yun Yen Ji Buddhist Monastery, protected within the Park confines, its peaceful rock gardens still carefully groomed and maintained. We stop to admire the mosaic tile representation of Quijan, the Leader of China in 300 BC who wanted to unite China but was ignored by his people and later committed suicide. Everywhere we walk, we learn about the history of this great country through its monuments and temples while simultaneously watching many of the old buildings being torn down to make way for the modern multi-story apartment and office buildings needed to accommodate the growing number of Chinese citizens who make Beijing, one of the fastest growing cities in the world, their home.
Finally, we cross the length of the park, walk down an embankment and come to the place we have been seeking for hours: Dr. Lu's "corner". It is the place on the embankment of the river where Dr. Lu's grandmother, Reverend Pang, brought the newborn baby Yun to live after his mother and father were taken away by the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution of Mao Zedong. Dr. Lu's father was sent to prison for 11 years, and his mother was exiled to the remote countryside of China. Her life was spared because, as a physician, she could be useful to Mao's people. Reverend Pang was joined by a Buddhist monk, and the two of them spent the next decade nurturing the young Yun and trying to protect him from the physical abuse they all unfortunately suffered.
Dr. Lu is very excited to relate to us how creatively his ailing grandmother managed to feed and clothe him, and use the pine tree on the embankment of the river as their home, their source of shelter and protection. During the years young Yun begged for food, he went hungry many nights and watched other children die of hunger. He even helped to dig the graves for their tiny bodies.
It became evident to me, as I heard more about Dr. Lu's early experiences, that his motivation to help the multitude of children orphaned by AIDS and living destitute on the streets, came from his own experience as a child living on the streets of Beijing, begging for the only food he ate, and protected by a pine tree from the elements that rained down on him. Dr. Lu knows, first-hand, the pain of a hungry child, a sick child, a ridiculed child, and he has created Golden Courage International to prevent as many children as he can from experiencing the horror of this situation. It is my privilege to work with him to help manifest this work and gain support for this vision.