Finally, Greg found some internet access!

Sorry it's been almost a week since I've updated Greg's blog, but I've not talked to him much at all. His most recent hotel didn't have wireless internet access. He's on his way to Shanghai right now and feels pretty confident his hotel there will be more connected with the rest of the world. I got this e-mail today from him so I could send all of you an update. Olivia and I are counting down the days, literally....we made a chain and Olivia has been tearing a ring off each day and then counting how many days left until Daddy comes home! Hope to post more soon as he wraps up his last few days exploring China! Here's his Journal from where he left off last time:

Monday June 22
Today was the day that all members of the study tour have been eagerly anticipating: a visit to see the famed Terre Cotta Warriors. They did not disappoint as we were awed at the grandeur of this clay army constructed by Emperor Qin to guard his tomb in the afterlife. There are nearly 8,000 soldiers and horses at this site, each with unique physical features and military ranks. Many of the soldiers were destroyed during a peasant uprising following the Emperors untimely demise and therefore had to be reconstructed by archeologists, an incredible undertaking. Overall, the warriors seemingly speak to you and immediately transport one to China’s imperial past.
After a lunch of Chinese food (go figure), we had an interesting experience visiting a traditional Xian farm family. The family lived a rather simple existence in a cave dwelling. I was surprised at the strong Maoist/Communist influence as there were a number of Mao and CCP posters decorating the house. There were approximately 4 rooms in this cave dwelling, parts of which were literally dug into a cave and a well to get water. The family was extremely gracious and explained a bit about farm life in China, while their existence was simple; they appeared happy and relatively well-off.
Our final stop was to the Grand Mosque of Xian. This is the largest mosque in China and demonstrates the large number of ideas and religions that arrived in China via the Silk Road. We talked to an imam and had the opportunity to see other philosophies such as Taoism incorporated into Islam in China. We also walked through the Muslim quarter. This is an eclectic market area where you can buy anything from Guess jeans to Mao’s Little Red Book to lamb kebobs and tea. I found a bought Terre Cotta warrior chess set for a whopping 100 Yuan (about 14 bucks). This was good find considering there were 800 Yuan at Terre Cotta warrior museum.
The day ended with some fun and spontaneity. Me and some friends walked to the South Gate of the Xian city wall and searched for a restaurant. We found a Chinese place (go figure) and again did the point and hope method of ordering. We once again got lucky as we had an excellent meal, with one item being similar to buffalo wings. Following dinner, we hopped in a Chinese cab for the first time. All I can say is that I lived through the experience as Chinese drivers are CRAZY!!!! You couldn’t pay me enough to drive in Xian. Following dinner, we returned to the Wild Goose Pagoda to see a water/light-show in from of the Pagoda. It was a bit less than the Bellagio in Vegas but entertaining nonetheless. As we were sitting at on outdoor café enjoying the show, we struck up a conversation with a young Chinese couple. The discussion ranged from western movies, to Chinese toilets, to the NBA. I’m consistently amazed that the Chinese know much more about the NBA than I do. If the NBA was smart, they’d start a new franchise in Beijing…

Tuesday, June 23
Today we had the opportunity to visit a middle school in Xian. As I said before, American’s are rock stars in China. We were greeted to the student body cheering and waving to us. I don’t think my American students would be that excited about a Chinese delegation visiting their school. We had the opportunity to visit a number of classes and were guided by two Chinese students who spoke English better than a few of my students back in the states. The first English class we visited greeted us with a song in English about friendship which caused a number of people in our group to tear up. The class than followed utilized much more technology than I anticipated as a Power Point with projector was used (as was the case in nearly every other class). The class size was around 60 students and there was not a single discipline problem. I asked a number of teachers what their main discipline problem was and most didn’t understand what I was asking. The common response that the greatest problem they had was students not grasping a concept. This is a huge difference from the states as students’ acting out seems to be a constant problem with most teachers. Discipline issues appear to be a non-factor in this particular Chinese school. Granted, this school is for advanced students. Out of 2000 applicants, it only accepts 300 new students per year. However, the general impression that I get is that, overall, Chinese students are extremely respectful and well behaved demonstration an adherence to Confucian principles.
We observed a few more classes and saw some instructional strategies used in the States such as cooperative learning, a strategy that was rarely used in China a few years ago. Following our classroom visit, we were taken to their television studio which was extremely state-of-the-art and a robotics lab. Students here created a robot that could sense heat and blow out a candle. Wow! The visit concluded with a student performance of traditional Chinese dance and music. We were also given gifts from the school that included traditional Chinese artwork and shadow puppets. A Chinese teacher made the observation that if we combined the creative element of American schools with the structure of Chinese schools, we would create the perfect learning environment. I couldn’t agree more.
Following the school visit, we had a free day in Xian and our first stop was a Taoist temple. I found it extremely interesting how many aspects of Taoism and Buddhism get intertwined in China. On the way there, we talked to our Buddhist cab driver through Richard Borer translation. He said he was Buddhist but that Taoism was good as well and asked us to light some incense for him. He also made some keen observations about Mao and the Cultural Revolution. The man was the first person we encountered in China who was decidedly anti-Mao. He stated that during the Cultural Revolution, him and other Buddhists were held down and beaten by the Red Guard while forced to put on dunce caps, renouncing their religion. As we entered the temple, there was the traditional burning of incense. There was a wall where people were rubbing coins. The legend goes that you will have good luck if you can get a coin to stick. Amazingly, this old Chinese woman got a coin to seemingly stay levitated on the wall. Weird stuff…
As we were exploring the temple, Richard again struck a conversation with a Chinese gentleman who was a Taoist monk. He amazingly invited us into the temple and had another monk get us temple food, a great honor. As we ate watermelon in the temple, we learned that the monk was also a Tai Chi master. He offered to give us a free Tai Chi lesson on the temple grounds after we finished exploring the temple. Following our exploration, the lesson began in a courtyard of the Taoist temple. With about 100 Chinese people laughing themselves silly, we attempted to duplicate this moves of the monk. With the exception of Jona, none of us were terribly successful. Following the ½ hour lesson, we departed after giving the monk gifts that we could scrounge up from our bag.
Following another death-defying cab ride, we proceeded to the south gate of the city wall to find a place to eat. We lost half of our group so I decided to scout a place to eat. I learned that crossing a roundabout in downtown Xian should cause your life insurance rates to increase tenfold. I felt like I was back in the ‘80’s playing Frogger only I was the frog. After nearly getting hit by a bus, I returned to my group and decided that we would locate a place to eat as a unit. After walking a few blocks, we discovered a Pizza Hut (Yeah American Food!!!). I learned that even in China, pizza is good…After packing, I decided to get a good nights rest to get ready for the flight to Kunming.

Wednesday, June 24
From Xian, we caught a morning flight to Kunming which is in Yunnan Provence in Southwestern China. After landing and lunch we explored some of the natural wonders around Kunming. Our first stop was the Dragon’s Gate in the Western Hills. The Dragon’s Gate is a Taoist temple that offers stunning views of the surrounding countryside. You are up a good 400 feet and the drop is nearly straight down. Don’t slip… We also visited the Grand View Pavilion that was a botanical garden. It again had many Taoist temples and beautiful trees and flowers. Banzai trees were everywhere and Mr. Meagi would have been proud…
In the evening, we explored downtown Kunming and located a restaurant called “The Hump”. The establishment gets its name from the route flown by the famed Flying Tigers, U.S. pilots who aided the Chinese in fighting Japan prior to the U.S. getting involved in WWII. “The Hump” was the route the planes had to fly between the Himalayas due to Japanese control of the Burma Road. The Restaurant was adorned with pictures and memorabilia of the Flying Tigers. Too cool! I foresee my students having an assignment on the Flying Tigers next year…

Thursday, June 25
An outdoor excursion today as we visit the stone forest outside of Kunming. The Stone Forest is an other-worldly panorama of stone steles created a couple of million years ago by the forces of nature. I could try to describe it in writing but I simply won’t be able to do the Stone Forest justice. I’ll just have to post a few pictures. We hiked for about 2 hours and saw absolutely spectacular landscapes. In the evening, we visited “The Hump” the final time and paid our respects to the Flying Tigers. We heard an account of an elderly Chinese woman who saw the Tiger’s go into action against the Japanese for the first time. Apparently, there was a great deal of fear that the Japanese were going to invade Kunming and commit the same atrocities that were seen and Nanking. The woman recounted her stories of dogfights over Kunming, downed Zero’s, and throngs of cheering Chinese with tears in her eyes….