NANCHANG, China - Holt International Children’s Services and Lotus Travel provided families adopting Chinese children a treat Thursday: A trip to a rural village.
I already talked about the trip at length in an earlier post. Here, you can see a selection of 12 of the many photographs we took on the morning trip. I’m no professional photographer, but these still will give you an idea of what we saw.
I also added a few extra snapshots from our group dinner Thursday night at the East Restaurant in Nanchang, the same restaurant where we ate as a group the night before.
- Terry R. Cassreino
PHOTO 1
Pam stands outside the entrance to Liu Tian, a rural village our group from Holt visited Thursday morning. Camryn is bundled because the weather turned cool and we didn’t want the grandma police in the village fussing at us about how underdressed Camryn was. Actually, those ladies I kid about are sweet and mean well. They are simply concerned about the health of the children they see.
PHOTO 2
This scenic shot shows a man from the village working in the rice fields. In the distance is the Mei Ling Mountains. Many workers use water buffalo to help plow the land.
PHOTO 3
The walkways of the Liu Tian village are narrow and create a confusing maze. If you break away from your tour group, you probably will get lost. Along the walkway are entrances to residences, small businesses and a restaurant. The 1,200-year-old village is home to residents with the same family name of Huang. About 1,000 people live in the village, which also features its own elementary school.
PHOTO 4
This village resident was shelling peanuts for use in home cooking. The strong aroma of wood-burning stoves filled the air of the village when we arrived early in the morning.
PHOTO 5
This resident was preparing rice plants for the fields.
PHOTO 6
Camryn, Mom and Papa pose in front of a wall hanging in the residence of one of the village’s residents. This home was built 1,200 years ago and is furnished with antiques dating back many years. I’m not sure the significance of the wall hanging, but was struck by its simplicity and beauty. It is typical of the artwork in homes throughout the village.
PHOTO 7
Pam and Camryn pose outside. If you look hard enough, you can see the faint outlines of the Mei Ling Mountains in the background.
PHOTO 8
This is admittedly not the greatest photo. But the subject is interesting: A restaurant in the village that features wooden tables and a selection of meats - ducks and chickens - hanging from a string across the dining room. We didn’t eat there; I’d be too afraid to do so. For some reason, I just find it fascinating that the village has its own restaurant. The menu was in chalk on a board outside the door. Unfortunately it was in Mandarin, so I don’t know what they serve or the cost.
PHOTO 9
Back in Nanchang, I took a walk down the street from the hotel and found this gentleman trying to sell me one of the four live turtles he had in two net bags at his feet. The turtles are used for turtle soup; some restaurants serve the turtle shell fried as an entrée. I declined the man’s offer.
PHOTO 10
Here, our tour guide from Lotus Travel, left, chooses dishes for our group dinner Thursday night at the East Restaurant. I’m telling you: It was the best meal Pam and I had so far on our trip. Great taste, great seasoning and authentic Chinese food. I think we are going back on Friday night for one more group dinner before we leave town Saturday.
PHOTO 11
Nothing special here. I just thought Camryn looked cute in this photo as she waited for a 26-ounce prime rib Chinese-style I ordered for her. She was hungry.
PHOTO 12
Here, Pam plays the mommy role and Camryn plays the baby role as mommy feeds the baby soup at the restaurant. Camryn insisted on the role playing before we left for dinner. I don’t know what it is, but these two are always playing the same game.
Photos and text copyright 2006 by Terry R. Cassreino.
Just when I thought she couldn't get any cuter-she does! My goodness that child is CUTE CUTE CUTE! :-)
ReplyDeleteAunt ReRe says skip the steak, Cam. Say to Daddy-"I want McDonald's French Fries!"