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Sunday, June 20, 2010
Meeting Pentok
On Thursday, June 17th we met with the members of Pentok at Mama S’s house. Over the course of two hours we alternately hammered out the logistics of our project and played with her beautiful two-month old son. On Monday, June 21st we will leave with T Fishy to spend a month in M village and the nearby township. It takes about 5 hours by public bus to reach X county town from the capital Xining. At X county town we must hire a car to drive us to M village. T Fishy warned us that the road is windy, narrow, and treacherous, and that we will be lucky to arrive in the village alive (or at least on time).
In the village we hope to spend time meeting people, getting to know the area, and acclimating to the altitude (~3700m!). We will meet with village leaders to discuss the management of the shop, the selection of potential mechanics, and the involvement of villagers in the implementation of our project. Working closely with villlage leaders in planning all of these aspects of the project will be vital for the sustainability of the shop. We also hope to talk with them about the possibility of using a percentage of the shop’s profits to fund educational scholarships for village girls. Pentok has already started a scholarship program for girls in M, where 2000 RMB/year can fund one child’s education and living expenses in the nearby town.
Outside of the village in X county town and neighboring townships we will visit other motorcycle repair shops, look for mechanics to train M villagers, and hire construction workers to renovate the building. According to Elvis and Mama S, the rainy season begins in mid-July. During this time transportation to and from the village will be difficult, so we hope to have construction and mechanic training underway before then.
Go USA! Boo Lakers!
Friday, June 18, 2010
Crazy Train
Caption: My dad's pretty, but you're even prettier!"
We also enjoyed watching the changing landscape. We fell asleep passing through flat green fields and woke up to jagged yellow mountains. A friendly old Chinese man talked to Jesse the entire time, explaining the country and the scenery. Jesse quickly learned the phrase "Wo bu ming bai," meaning "I don't understand."
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Next up: Dragon Boat Festival and meeting with Mama S and T Fishy from Pentok to discuss the project.
P.S. Thanks again to Annie for preparing delicious food for our train ride. Also, let us know via email or by commenting on our blog if there is anything you want to know more about!
Caption: From top to bottom: dinner, lunch, breakfast, snacks
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Sightseeing
Our first outing in Beijing was to the Forbidden City. This is the former palace of the emperor during the Ming and Qing dynasties and lies at the center of Beijing. The day was full of walking, subway riding, old sights, and great food. It also marked the start of our search for the elusive zigzag popsicle. In the evening Sara’s mom Annie treated us to traditional Peking duck.
On Saturday, June 12th, Sara’s dad Jon took us on a Great Wall hike. Unlike the popular portions of the wall, which have been artificially rebuilt, the section where we hiked is secluded and unrestored. Despite a foggy day, we had a fun hike with great views, and enjoyed homemade fried rice on top of one of the towers. This particular stretch of the wall is located in the town of Gubeikou, where the wall is part of the daily scenery. Historically, this town is an example of the Great Wall’s futility since it is where the Manchurian army swiftly bribed their way past heavily guarded gates. This marked the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of Qing rule. Zigzag popsicles were still nowhere to be found.
As loyal American citizens, we woke up at 2:30 a.m. to watch the U.S. play England in the World Cup, despite being tired from our hike. Soccer has always been very popular in China, even though they never qualify for the World Cup. It really is an international sport. We have also been watching the NBA finals. While racism towards black people is prevalent among Chinese, basketball starts like Kobe Bryant and Lebron James have huge fan bases here. At the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games, Kobe received the loudest cheers from the crowd, even more than the most famous Chinese athletes.
A visit to Beijing would not be complete without sippin’ Tsingtaos on a pedal boat in Houhai. While we didn’t meet any mermaids, there were plenty of Speedo-clad old men swimming to and fro. Houhai is a lake in downtown Beijing. It is surrounded by bars and restaurants and is popular among locals and foreigners alike. At the end of the day, with an apocalyptic storm brewing, we went to Sara’s friend Annie’s house and finally consumed some zigzag popsicles with delight.
Caption: David, Annie and Sara at a pool bar in Houhai
Thanks to Sophie for the yummy butterscotch cookies. We enjoyed watching Sara’s mom devour them with a spoon. Also, thanks to Jon and Lucy for showing us a good time and for letting us play the most amazing arch top guitar ever sculpted. Finally, thanks to Annie for her hospitality and gourmet cooking, and for helping us plan and organize our trip.
Next up: 24-hour train ride!
Friday, June 4, 2010
Is this the wheel?
You may be wondering whether any of us know anything about motorcycles. Unfortunately, the answer is no. However, as liberal arts graduates we are lifelong learners and excellent problem solvers. So we talked to everyone we could find who knew anything about motorcycles and mechanics, and eventually made a trip to Peninsula Harley-Davidson!
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Getting Started
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- Renovate a pre-existing building in M village to house the repair shop. This will probably involve buying supplies and transporting them to the village, as well as hiring workers.
- Outfit the building with necessary tools and equipment.
- Help arrange for two villagers to apprentice in mechanic shops in larger towns, so that they can return and run the motorcycle repair shop in M.
- Have fun, always be listening to those around us, meet cool people, and learn a lot!