Down to breakfast and hoping to escape the stuffy, warm room that made sleep difficult. Went to breakfast buffet, and we knew we were no longer staying at a 5 star hotel. The buffet looked like it had been sitting for quite a while, but fine with me because I’ve started trimming back to a more regular diet.
When we were done, we went up and picked up our suitcases and headed down to wait for Duon in the cool outside air. Of course he was there when we got down, as was the steady drizzle. Into the van and on the road.
After a bit more than 3 hours, we arrived at our destination. But not without a couple of stops for photos in the rain. Kind of fun to pull over and follow two women with umbrellas down a cement path through and around rice fields. They are empty from the harvest, but the pattern of plant stems and the stacked, drying sheaths make a pretty grid in the lush countryside. I tried for some arty pictures, but there are power lines everywhere messing up the aesthetic!
We arrive in the Miao (meow) village, and it is small. We walk through an archway:
and onto what may be the Main Street. We are here to witness the paper-making process that they have handed down from generation to generation. It’s not so very different in many ways than what I saw at Inle Lake. Duon takes us to visit the “studio” of Mr. and Mrs. Lee:
and someone working husking rice grains down the street:
who are busy working on the wood pulp from a local tree to prepare it for becoming paper. Evidently the quality of their work is so high than emissaries come from the Forbidden City in Beijing to purchase paper to repair art and historical documents. We wander and look at their process – where they mash and form the paper pulp into frames, which are then set out to dry. Alternatively, they are piled up into a large block, which is then laid out to dry, and as pieces are peeled off, they are pressed to a wall with a heat source in the back. Once completely dry, someone peels them off one at a time:
The uniformity of thickness and strength of the paper, no matter how thin, is amazing. I purchase a couple of beautiful, small journals with dried flowers on the cover and gold leaf on the spine.
Then it’s time to head upstairs for lunch cooked by Mr. and Mrs. Lee’s daughter. She has her hair fixed in a traditional way for the Miao, with her long, dark hair shiny from tea oil that is combed in after bathing. Her hair is done in a fanciful bun, with large loops, and a large (like we would use on our hair) comb inserted in the back. I have seen the same type of comb on a couple of other women in the village (which has about 500 residents). Anyway, she brings out the piping hot dishes, each with different types of peppers. Duon tells us that we are in pepper country, although he didn’t need to make a formal announcement. Here’s a picture of the first few items:
Lance and I look at each other and agree it’s probably our best meal to date. It takes a minute for me to calm my mouth down, but then I dive in for more green hot goodness! The dish with sections of red peppers is cooked until almost caramelized – a smoky sweet flavor on the peppers and carrot slices. We talk, laugh and I’m tipsy from the plum wine made by the family. What a day! I walk out onto the wood balcony and take it all in. Watching people come and go with carts, plastic bags for raincoats, wagons, etc etc. Here are a few:
I could sit here all day, but don’t really have all day. So I gather up my things, and walk down the road, taking pictures and peeking in doors. Here’s a man we watched cross the street, then squat in the alley to sharpen his knife:
and a couple loading a couple hundred bowls in a wheelbarrow to return them after having the whole village over to celebrate their new house:
and your basic street views:
and beautiful handmade paper lanterns, swinging in the rain:
More pictures and just taking it all in. This is the China I really wanted to see. Duon points me into a room and I see 3 tables of mahjong going on.
We stand and observe and I finally start to get the hang of how the Chinese play. But wait….what’s this? Do these players mix and restack their tiles? Oh no, oh no. A metal disk pops up in the middle, and they push all the tiles into the opening below. As soon as they’re done, the sides of the table open up and beautifully stacks rise up all ready to go. They push out the walls, then push down the dome in the center (which has lowered back into place) and the die inside comes up 1. One pair is removed from the first wall, and self-dealing begins. Oh if the girls could see this! They will have to wait until I get home and post the video proof. Perhaps a new business: importing automatic maj mixer tables? I’m motioned over to play, but laugh the invitation off. They’re playing for money and smoking like chimneys, so I’m out of there.
A few more photos,
then back in the van for about an hour and a half. We check into our hotel and walk over to the grocery store to pick up some fruit and yogurt for dinner. Don’t need to go out tonight. A quiet night to relax, catch up on whatever, and then a 9 am start again. More villages tomorrow, a hike and a sleepover with a local village family that has built a room just for such visitors. Should be interesting and can’t wait to see what they think of the Boulder granola I brought them!