Update and Avatar Mountains
I've just come back from seeing the mountains where they filmed some of the movie Avatar. Although we had loads of rain, it was absolutely stunning. I thought Avatar must have had loads of digitally enhanced scenes but,really, a lot of it is just as it is in Zhangjiajie (Google it!). Of course the mountains don't float but they stick up from very green forests in very tall thin spikes with pine trees growing sparsley out of their tops - and there are just thousands of these tall spikes. It is astonishingly beautiful - perhaps enhanced by the misty weather with clouds weaving their way around the spikes. I went on an organised trip with a coach load of Chinese people - again I was the only non-Chinese - but I was so lucky in that a lovely Chinese girl adopted me into her group of 5 friends and she was a nurse who also taught English so she made sure I knew what I had to do and see! They were a lovely group and very friendly. We left on Friday evening and got to Zhangjiajie around midnight, had Saturday and Sunday until about 3 p.m. sightseeing the mountains, lakes, river and parks, then got back evening Sunday. It was the first 'adventure' outside Changsha that I have had and I loved it. The air was clear and good and I felt very refreshed after the smog of Changsha. Next week I am off on another 'adventure' to Hong Kong to get my visa restamped so I can continue to stay in China for a bit longer. I shall be in Hong Kong for 3 days and it will be another good break, I'm sure.
So, some updates from Changsha.
First, Butterfly. We are having a mixed time at the Butterfly Home. We said goodbye to one of our longstanding butterflies - her adoptive parents came here from America to collect her. She handled leaving us very well. We had a party for her and she went with her book of photos, letters from the staff and volunteers, reports, etc. The family have another adopted Chinese child, another girl, and I'm sure Hannah will be really happy when she settles in. On Monday we shall say goodbye to another butterfly who is going to be adopted by a Dutch couple. He's a 'bruiser' of 2 1/2 years old - born with some of his insides on the outside but is very well now and a very live wire - I hope his new family have loads of energy!
We lost our little Benjamin - he died peacefully with lots of love around him. We have 2 new babies now who have filled the cots left by Hannah and Benjamin. They are both very poorly with brain damage - causes unknown - and are with us for palliative care. They were in a bit of a state when they came to us so we have improved their lot in life but there's nothing we can do to save them, just keep them comfortable in their last few weeks/months. Our little boy in Shanghai is keeping us awake at night at the moment, figuratively speaking. He ended up having a big heart operation and did really well for about a week then, last night, started having complications and had to go back to theatre. Last night and today has been a nightmare as first of all they thought he would be OK, then there was no hope, now he may pull through. His name is Emmanuel so positive thoughts and prayers would be appreciated.
We still haven't moved, maybe next month now! I don't think I will see Butterfly in its new home, somehow. I am still sorting clothes and will have to hand over that job as I won't finish it before I leave.
A few other 'observations'...!
The roads around our flats are being dug up for pipework - everywhere. There are probably over a thousand flats here and the workman continue working until about 1 a.m. most nights - drilling, throwing pipes around, driving diggers. You would think they might realise people in a thousand flats may want to sleep... - obviously not!
The traffic continues to amuse me and I took a video the other day of people dodging traffic as they cross the road on a pedestrian crossing. I should take a video of a police car on a mission: they sit in the 5 lanes of traffic (which should be 3 lanes judging by the white lines down the road), with lights flashing and a siren of 5 different tunes going, and no-one bats an eyelid or moves a jot. The police car just continues following the other cars in the traffic jam and gets nowhere! People walk in front of it crossing the road, etc.
Health and safety is another fun thing to observe. Workmen in the road, or around buildings wear jeans and t-shirts, no hard hats or high viz jackets. However street cleaners have the high viz jackets! We just saw workmen today trying to get up to the 5th floor outside a building so they balanced a ladder here, a few planks with another ladder on top further up, etc. nothing tied on, then they went up it - mad!
Smoking and tobacco chewing is everywhere - taxi drivers, people on busses, in shopping malls, restaurants - pretty unpleasant really. There are big shops which just sell cigarettes, stacks of them literally.
The weather is improving. It still rains great dollops but we have more sunny days now, and not all of them humid which is nice. I am still trying to walk home from work every day.
Our flat has changed its tenants. The volunteer who was here for 4 weeks left yesterday and another volunteer who will be here for 6 months arrived 2 weeks ago. I go on 2nd June, for my next adventure with Mary to the Himalayas. I have managed to pack a large box full of clothes and blankets which I shall send on ahead of me so we can take it 'up the mountain' with us. After that my plans have become unsure as I may not be able to get a permit to travel through Tibet. They are denying these to individual travellers/small parties at the moment - they will only allow large parties of the same nationality in. There's nothing I can do, just wait and see and make the best of what happens...!
I'll write again after I come back from Hong Kong and before I leave the flat. When I am in the Himalayas I think I shall be out of communication for around 2 weeks but I'll let you know. I've given up trying to get photos to you. When I get home I can make loads of CDs and you can just let me know if you want one...
I hope you are all well and happy. I hear you have had gallons of rain - which apparently you needed - but I hope, soon, you get some summer and enjoy your gardens.
Have fun, Liz
I've just come back from seeing the mountains where they filmed some of the movie Avatar. Although we had loads of rain, it was absolutely stunning. I thought Avatar must have had loads of digitally enhanced scenes but,really, a lot of it is just as it is in Zhangjiajie (Google it!). Of course the mountains don't float but they stick up from very green forests in very tall thin spikes with pine trees growing sparsley out of their tops - and there are just thousands of these tall spikes. It is astonishingly beautiful - perhaps enhanced by the misty weather with clouds weaving their way around the spikes. I went on an organised trip with a coach load of Chinese people - again I was the only non-Chinese - but I was so lucky in that a lovely Chinese girl adopted me into her group of 5 friends and she was a nurse who also taught English so she made sure I knew what I had to do and see! They were a lovely group and very friendly. We left on Friday evening and got to Zhangjiajie around midnight, had Saturday and Sunday until about 3 p.m. sightseeing the mountains, lakes, river and parks, then got back evening Sunday. It was the first 'adventure' outside Changsha that I have had and I loved it. The air was clear and good and I felt very refreshed after the smog of Changsha. Next week I am off on another 'adventure' to Hong Kong to get my visa restamped so I can continue to stay in China for a bit longer. I shall be in Hong Kong for 3 days and it will be another good break, I'm sure.
So, some updates from Changsha.
First, Butterfly. We are having a mixed time at the Butterfly Home. We said goodbye to one of our longstanding butterflies - her adoptive parents came here from America to collect her. She handled leaving us very well. We had a party for her and she went with her book of photos, letters from the staff and volunteers, reports, etc. The family have another adopted Chinese child, another girl, and I'm sure Hannah will be really happy when she settles in. On Monday we shall say goodbye to another butterfly who is going to be adopted by a Dutch couple. He's a 'bruiser' of 2 1/2 years old - born with some of his insides on the outside but is very well now and a very live wire - I hope his new family have loads of energy!
We lost our little Benjamin - he died peacefully with lots of love around him. We have 2 new babies now who have filled the cots left by Hannah and Benjamin. They are both very poorly with brain damage - causes unknown - and are with us for palliative care. They were in a bit of a state when they came to us so we have improved their lot in life but there's nothing we can do to save them, just keep them comfortable in their last few weeks/months. Our little boy in Shanghai is keeping us awake at night at the moment, figuratively speaking. He ended up having a big heart operation and did really well for about a week then, last night, started having complications and had to go back to theatre. Last night and today has been a nightmare as first of all they thought he would be OK, then there was no hope, now he may pull through. His name is Emmanuel so positive thoughts and prayers would be appreciated.
We still haven't moved, maybe next month now! I don't think I will see Butterfly in its new home, somehow. I am still sorting clothes and will have to hand over that job as I won't finish it before I leave.
A few other 'observations'...!
The roads around our flats are being dug up for pipework - everywhere. There are probably over a thousand flats here and the workman continue working until about 1 a.m. most nights - drilling, throwing pipes around, driving diggers. You would think they might realise people in a thousand flats may want to sleep... - obviously not!
The traffic continues to amuse me and I took a video the other day of people dodging traffic as they cross the road on a pedestrian crossing. I should take a video of a police car on a mission: they sit in the 5 lanes of traffic (which should be 3 lanes judging by the white lines down the road), with lights flashing and a siren of 5 different tunes going, and no-one bats an eyelid or moves a jot. The police car just continues following the other cars in the traffic jam and gets nowhere! People walk in front of it crossing the road, etc.
Health and safety is another fun thing to observe. Workmen in the road, or around buildings wear jeans and t-shirts, no hard hats or high viz jackets. However street cleaners have the high viz jackets! We just saw workmen today trying to get up to the 5th floor outside a building so they balanced a ladder here, a few planks with another ladder on top further up, etc. nothing tied on, then they went up it - mad!
Smoking and tobacco chewing is everywhere - taxi drivers, people on busses, in shopping malls, restaurants - pretty unpleasant really. There are big shops which just sell cigarettes, stacks of them literally.
The weather is improving. It still rains great dollops but we have more sunny days now, and not all of them humid which is nice. I am still trying to walk home from work every day.
Our flat has changed its tenants. The volunteer who was here for 4 weeks left yesterday and another volunteer who will be here for 6 months arrived 2 weeks ago. I go on 2nd June, for my next adventure with Mary to the Himalayas. I have managed to pack a large box full of clothes and blankets which I shall send on ahead of me so we can take it 'up the mountain' with us. After that my plans have become unsure as I may not be able to get a permit to travel through Tibet. They are denying these to individual travellers/small parties at the moment - they will only allow large parties of the same nationality in. There's nothing I can do, just wait and see and make the best of what happens...!
I'll write again after I come back from Hong Kong and before I leave the flat. When I am in the Himalayas I think I shall be out of communication for around 2 weeks but I'll let you know. I've given up trying to get photos to you. When I get home I can make loads of CDs and you can just let me know if you want one...
I hope you are all well and happy. I hear you have had gallons of rain - which apparently you needed - but I hope, soon, you get some summer and enjoy your gardens.
Have fun, Liz
Yet another great posting from you. What a time you are having. The Olympic torch went through Saltash last night.... never seen so many people... it was behind schedule but nevertheless the build up with small convoys of police, bomb disposal vans, various official following vehicles
ReplyDeleteand sponsor buses which were quirky and great fun set the scene before the torch bearer eventually came down from Burraton Traffic lights (previously in a bus from town to town) through Fore Street and onto the Tamar Bridge. It was gone in a flash but the excitement and atmosphere was just wonderful and we are all slowly being wound up for the start of the Olympics. We had a good view by standing on the wall outside of the betting shop at the end of Fore Street so we saw it for several minutes as it approached us and then onto the Bridge. Quite exciting times with the Jubilee Street Parties happening in Early June. Yesterday Saltash had open sporting events for people to try and for youngsters to get a passport signed to say they had tried the sport. The Sailing Club had the RYA Gazebo along with a Laser and Finn dinghies for kiddies to sit in and pull on ropes etc and we also had 2 yachts out taking out 4 at a time for a short spin around the River. About 40 went out in all. It was a really remarkable day with things happening all over the town, China Fleet, Longstone Park, Waterfront, in churches etc well all over the place. There was a huge giant puppet which was a bit scarey for the kiddies but was superb and various different cultural bands and music and finally a big event on the waterfront for the Battle of the Bands. Tamar River Regatta this coming weekend.... I do sometimes wonder if there life after the sailing club and why no one warned me sooner that life with a sportsman could be an all consuming activity. Well little prayers have been said for those in need of them and again more hugs from us Cornish mummies for those littluns. Hope you catch up again before you go to the mountains.... and enjoy enjoy enjoy.... Take care now... Penny