China

We’re leaving Shanghai behind us. From our vantage on the river it looked like a recently abandoned ghost city with the greenery still thriving. We’ve been slipping down the river- the Yangtze River, no less! - for over an hour passing docks, shipyards, mountainous stacks of containers, oil tankers, enormous ships for cargo, grain, coal, sand, one after another after another. Occasional welding sparks, laundry hanging to dry on the decks. A fellow LLL said at lunch she’s glad she won’t have to witness what lies ahead for our children and their children in this globalization process. I just pray that all over the world the young people will see that they MUST cooperate with each other, that there must be efforts made to equalize the wealth, that the beauty of this earth must somehow be preserved. It makes me so sad to think of all the people who never get to eat a tomato from their own back yard, or sit in tranquility on an empty beach or hike in the places of worship that are the earth’s forests.

“Elizabeth Ann, go down to Mr. Brock’s store down at the end of the alley tell him you need a package of Velveeta Cheese and tell him to charge it to Mrs. Williams.”

Five or six years old and Elizabeth Ann was thrilled to go to the store for her Grandma and to say ”Charge it”. Her grandma loved this new, soft orange cheese in its yellow box. It was so much better than the old fashioned kind her momma made. Progress.

Will we ever get back to the ocean? It’s almost 4 pm: two hours of river and port and shipbuilding and boats and barges and cranes and tankers and…and…and. No lights to be seen anywhere on this dreary afternoon. The apartment buildings have no lights showing…or the office buildings or the cabs or whatever you call the living quarters of the barges. This is a Communist country; maybe the lights can’t be turned on until a certain time of day.

Where is the garbage? How do they deal with sewage? Is there such a thing as leisure for the people who live here? Population statistics are staggering. To move from one town to another a person must have the permission of the government. The government owns the land. The government owns everything ...or does it. What's all this capitalism? What about all the companies and fancy retail stores and up scale malls?

I wish I had the vocabulary and an understanding of economics, commerce and trade and foreign relations and politics and international business to be able to describe this experience…to access what it means when people say China will be the next super power.

The hulls of some of these barges look as though they were hand carved. Most of the others are new and shining.

What is it like inland from all these seaports we’re visiting? How bad or good is life for all those people? It is impossible to even imagine what lies ahead for Greg and Emily, Lindsey, Grace, Annabel, Cole, Elle, Leo, Luca and Elia and the new little one; for Michael and Michelle and Matt and Brian and Taylor, for Ben and Loren and Connor; for Sean and Joey and Sarah and Kelly Ann and Devon and Delaney. Goodness. God, please guide them and protect them so they can help to make this world a better place.

I went up to the Lounge for a little while. Lots of folks standing around as we sailed down the river, leaving China behind us. I chatted with Forest for a while about his trip to Beijing and the Great Wall where it was icy and freezing. I felt an arm around my back giving me a little squeeze. It was another LLL just returned from some other big trip to the north. That little hug felt so good. Made me miss John.

What’s the difference between mourning, and self pity? Sadness and self-pity, Loneliness and self pity?

I moved the little round glass top table over near the balcony door so I can type and look out at the watery world going by. I have to remember when looking for a place to live to have a room with a window where I can set up my desk so I can type and look out at something beautiful. Things are gradually becoming more beautiful here. The tall buildings are gone and the cranes. There’s the shell of an old one from another era. The sky is low, the land appears undisturbed – with trees and green bushes near the riverbank – but off in the misty distance: more scattered buildings.

I just noticed that my little table and the two chairs on my balcony are tied down again. I wonder how rough the sea will be ahead? Our departure from Shanghai yesterday was delayed almost 24 hours because of weather between here and Japan. Obama was in Shanghai yesterday. Too bad he couldn’t have just paid us a little visit. Security. Schedule. There were people who were convinced that our delayed departure had nothing to do with weather and that the president was in fact going to surprise us. But then the naysayers pontificated that if he were coming aboard the Secret Service would have been crawling all over this ship way back in Halifax. Besides he couldn’t do it because it would be a slap in the face to the Chinese. Oh nuts, but wouldn’t it have been fun? We’re slowing down right this minute. Maybe it’s not too late and he’ll come in a helicopter or a speed- boat and say hi to all of us. Hot damn that would be GREAT!! Come on Barak!!!!! Surprise us! Poor presidents: robbed of spontenaiety, poor guys.

The river widens and the shore looks like forest…but… yet again, there in the distance in the mist: more buildings. Oh well. The waves pick up. We're on our way to Japan!

Vietnam

GOOD MORNIN' VIET-NAAAMMMM!

I thought I'd post a wee little blog entry just to let you all know where I am: cruising up the Saigon River towards Ho Chi Minh City and I cannot believe it! over the last few days it feels as though I've begun to wake up and am beginning to realize the magnitude of what it means to GO AROUND THE WORLD ...at least for a 73 year old woman who can remember her father cranking a car to turn it on!

That's about it...just wanted to connect. Hope you all are well. More in a few days. Love, Liz xo

Vietnam