Travels in China 2007
A Day in Beijing
After a good night's rest, we have a more relaxed day in Beijing, enjoying some of the unique pleasures that Beijing has to offer. I walk to Yun's apartment four city blocks from my comfortable hotel directly across from the massive construction of the new subway system, planned to be ready for the looming Beijing Olympics in August 2008. I consider it a minor victory to cross a busy street in Beijing and usually clutch the hand of the nearest friend, but today I carefully study the traffic flow and follow very closely the pedestrians in front of me. Yun and Katka's apartment is in a prime "first ring" location, within walking distance of the Forbidden City, the absolute center of Beijing. After a breakfast of fresh fruits purchased this morning at the very local market just down the street, we walk down to the courtyard directly surrounding the apartment complex.
Yun affectionately greets a man in his 60s with a distinct potbelly protruding out of his thin t-shirt. He introduces us to Mr. Zhou, a former Red Guard during the Cultural Revolution. This man was one of the "enforcers" called upon to whip and beat the "dogs" at the "struggle meetings" during the Cultural Revolution, when all the people of education, wealth and family background were brought before an audience of hundreds of people and ordered to "confess" their crimes against the state. This particular Red Guard would lean down and whisper into young Yun's ear, "Pretend to be hurt. Yell and scream. I won't hurt you. Always remember, you are a lord, and when this is all over, you still will be a lord." The kindness of this particular Guard, however, could not prevent the severe beatings Yun received from other Guards that broke several of his bones and almost lost him the use of his left hand, which was surgically repaired only after his mother found him at age 12. Mr. Zhou is now recovering from the open-heart surgery for which Yun provided some of the necessary financial resources. As the saying goes: "What goes around, comes around." Such is the cycle of life, death and reconciliation here in present-day China.
We all decide that we must share with you in these messages the exquisite culinary experience of dining in Beijing and throughout China. Having a meal in Beijing is an event, a highpoint of each day. Sometimes there will be nine people at the large round table, the whole Golden Courage family; today there are four of us at the Jin Yang Restaurant, over 100 years old and known for its fine chefs and succulent duck. Yun, with his highly refined palette, always orders a wide array of dishes, most of which are totally unknown to us in the US.
What we savor in these restaurants in China is truly not what we know as "Chinese food." Ten or 20 dishes of often unrecognizable delicacies appear before us, and we take very small amounts of each dish one at a time with our chopsticks. The range of tastes is quite impressive, with more pungent, woody, earthy flavors and combinations and far fewer sweet tastes. Beijing duck is always served near the very end of the meal to the exclamations and "oohs and aahs" of the patrons, anxiously waiting the "piece de la resistance." The duck is always followed by duck soup, prepared with the carcass of the duck, not to waste any part of the animal. Yan Ping, seen in this picture, is an old friend of Yun's and currently a senior editor of China Culture Daily, the foremost cultural newspaper in Beijing. She hosts us for this abundant meal, sharing with us the current cultural trends in this vibrant and intense city.
One of our other favorite Beijing activities is to visit "our" local tea house, just outside the central courtyard of Yun's Beijing apartment. Yun and Katka have developed a relationship with the young woman owner of the shop and have purchased many pounds of the finest oolong, jasmine, green, guanyin and other of the finest teas.
We stop in to sample the newest shipment of guanyin tea, most recently harvested. There is a specific ritual that accompanies the sampling of these teas and we usually sit for over an hour, drinking tea and savoring the subtle differences, quite a different experience from ordering a latte at Starbucks.
We finish our afternoon in a salon that features a combination of hair washing and deep acupressure massage. Yun and Katka, Oran and I are greeted by a host of young men and women, four of whom lead us to comfortable seats and proceed to suds our hair using shampoo and a small bottle of water that helps them to slowly lather and massage our scalp until, 10 minutes later, they walk us to a sink and rinse our hair.
Then starts the most relaxing deep massage of our head, neck, shoulders, arms and back that continues for a delightful hour. Before leaving, the young man working with me attempts to comb my hair but is completely baffled by the abundance of curls and waves that he finds. Half of the salon crowds around my chair touching my hair, asking Yun if it is real. He verifies that, indeed, this is real hair that is just naturally wavy and we all laugh together enjoying the novelty of their new discovery.
Although there is a huge media market of Western films and videos, there is still very little direct interaction between the average Chinese person and Westerners in China. Often we are the first Westerners many of our new acquaintances have met, up close and personal, and it is wonderful to extend a friendly and welcoming hand and smile to initiate this important new connection. Each day is a new adventure and we are so honored to be part of the journey to connect these two important cultures through the work of Golden Courage International.