My Visit to China/Taiwan

In 1989 my husband had to go to China on business and his boss, his brother, allowed him to take me with him. It was such a magnificent opportunity and I've always thought of it as the trip of a lifetime.

We flew to Vancouver, then to Shanghai, and then arrived in Beijing late at night. The flight had taken 19 hours if I remember correctly. Dennis' contact met us at the airport and arranged for the taxi to the Beijing Hotel. I remember thinking it was like a dream to enter that fabulous old hotel, especially since there were no lights on outside and only faint lights inside. They wisely conserve power at night.

One of my favorite memories is of the lovely crocheted doilies that sat on the backs of the chairs, even in the lobby. It all seemed so quaint and from another age.

Dennis spent most of his days with businessmen so I was free to roam around the area. I felt very safe but my colorful clothing and caucasian face brought many curious stares. The Chinese people at that time seemed to wear nothing but blue or brown, even the children. Occasionally someone would politely approach me and test their knowledge of English.

I walked through Tianamin (spelling?) Square and saw far off in one corner a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant...American influx of businesses was just starting at that time. I also toured the Forbidden Palace which was one of the the highlights of my trip. When you entered the Forbidden City, you were given headphones which directed you on the tour in the language of your choice. The headphones could be stopped or started when you reached the described area. The Forbidden City is massive and so full of history and culture. In the gift shop I purchased a few water color paintings that I'll always treasure.

Much of the time we were in China we had an English speaking interpreter along with us. Our little lady took me shopping and tried to convince me to buy a beautiful sculptured wooden vase that I turned my nose up at. Instead I bought 2 porcelain vases covered in appliqued flowers and vines. In later years I discovered that the sculptured vase would have accelerated in value while the porcelain vases became a common sight in stores back in Canada. I have no class.

Our guide took us on a tour to the Great Wall of China. I can't describe how thrilling it was to walk along this famous wall. The part we walked on seemed to be all steps, though...going up. It wasn't long before my legs began to weaken. Not long after we started our trek we passed a Coca Cola stand and I remember thinking it was out of place on the Wall. About 1/2 hour later I would have killed for a nice cold Coke.

At one point I was looking through the viewfinder of my camera and I saw a spectacular sight. Dennis was surrounded by soldiers while our little guide was jumping up and down screaming her head off. Chinese visitors on the wall were also surrounding the whole group yelling at the soldiers. Dennis just stood there with a cigarette in hand and looking completely befuddled. Apparently we'd not seen a "no smoking" sign posted because the wall is a national monument. Dennis was a hard core smoker and he was outside so therefore he smoked. Not on the Great Wall, though! He was fined the equivalent of $3.00 Cdn. Our angry guide and bystanders weren't able to convince the soldiers that they should give the Canadian visitor a break. To be fined on the Great Wall of China...what a story!

One of our side trips in China was south of Beijing. I don't remember the name of the city but it's basic fuel was coal and every outside surface...window sills, etc. was covered in a film of coal dust. A common sight on the street was face masks worn by the citizens to preserve their lungs.

We travelled by train from city to city and the countryside was beautiful. The scenery wasn't like the Canadian or U.S. but had a unique quality of it's own that seemed older somehow. As though it had existed long before America. That sounds silly but that's how it looked to me.

The trains were also an experience. The backs of the seats were graced with those lovely doilies and many passengers had brought along glass jars. Soon a lady came along and poured boiling water into each of the jars. Apparently the passengers brought their own tea, too. How simple and economic! We Canadians and Americans are definitely spoiled but we pay a high price for it.

The last leg of our trip was to Taiwan. It was very different from China, very crowded and cosmopolitan in comparison. Dennis, being frugal (for a better word), decided the hotel we were booked into was too expensive ($120 per night)so he moved us to another hotel ($95 per night)with a room so small there was barely room for the bed. The compressors for the hotel were right outside our window and ran 24 hours a day. We argued. He won. I became unfriendly.

One day I decided to take a walk around the neighborhood but the street signs were all in Chinese. It didn't take long for me to get lost even though I'd counted the blocks...I have no sense of direction. I hailed a taxi which took me up 1/2 a block and over 1/2 block to my hotel. The taxi driver must have thought I was one lazy north american!

Overall, my memories of this wondrous trip fill me with amazement at times. Did I really visit China? Did I really walk on the Great Wall? How fortunate I was to have this experience in my lifetime.