April 26, 2013 – Lesser Three Gorges

Sleeping last night was difficult. Passing through the locks is a noisy, smelly business. It takes about 3 1/2 hours so there is not much sleep between midnight and 3:30 AM.  This morning as we look out the air and the water seem somewhat cleaner. We only see pollution when we pass by a town high up the cliffs. These are towns that were relocated up the hill when they flooded the dam. We are told that there is such a volume of water in the Yangtze that it only took 10 days to fill up the dammed part.

Cruising through the gorge
Cruising through the gorge

 
This morning we are taking small excursion boats into the lesser Three Gorges area. We leave from Wushan. After the construction of the dam the original Wushan was flooded and the new Wushan was built on the hills above it.  Our guides, who are Wushan natives, have mixed feelings about it.  One guide is pleased because she was able to get an apartment that is more spacious and has indoor plumbing.  Our male guide remembers sadly how beautiful the gorges used to be and how he hiked the trails into the mountains as a child.  Wushan itself is a typical sprawling city of high rises now.
Modern Wushan
Modern Wushan

Headed by Lois, the bar manager, we are waved off our boat to the smaller excursion boats
Headed by Lois, the bar manager, we are waved off our boat to the smaller excursion boats

One of the excursion boats passes under a bridge
One of the excursion boats passes under a bridge

 
There are three gorges here, the Dragon Gate, the Misty and the Emerald.  The guides keep remarking on how the air is clean here.  It actually is so much better than the air on the Yangtze. We see various scenic spots including a hanging coffin which is a burial site chiseled out high in the rock over 2000 years ago.  Apparently the ancient people had an inkling that if they buried their ancestors in the ground that some day the burial sites would all be flooded.  For a society that venerates its ancestors, this issue continues to be a concern.
Terraced farming in the gorge.  Farmers plant the exposed ground as soon as the water recedes in the summer.
Terraced farming in the gorge. Farmers plant the exposed ground as soon as the water recedes in the summer.

Cliff wall with casket
Cliff wall with casket

People honor their submerged dead with rock memorials
People honor their submerged dead with rock memorials

175 marks the high point for the water in the winter
175 marks the high point for the water in the winter

 
Later in the day we have a talk by Daniel about modern day China.  He is amazingly frank and admits that even 5 years ago he would have been in serious trouble for saying some of the things he says.  These comments concern the environmental destruction, the corruption in the government, and the lack of freedom.  He talks about  how communism doesn’t work well due to lack of incentive to achieve anything.  He points out the brave people who have tried and succeeded to change things.  He also says that the Internet has changed China because the government can no longer hide the truth from the people.  Even though the government blocks some sites, people have a way of getting around those blocks.
 
In the end he concludes by telling us how fortunate we are that we have the freedom and resources to travel around the world because meeting new people and seeing new cultures is the best way to bring peace and understanding around the globe. He says that just like Americans he wants a good life for himself and his children.  It is all quite touching.
 
Later there is a mediocre dinner and a crew show.  The show is cute and our tireless, quiet serving persons show a wide variety of talent.  On to Shibaozhai Pagoda in the morning and the last day of the cruise portion of the trip.

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