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TRAVELS IN CHINA 2001

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Apologies

Many Chinese people have pet names for Westerners such as big-nose, ghost (UH GWEI), devil (MO GUEI), etc. I was call Big-Nose Ghost by someone years ago, and so I think of myself as BNG for the purpose of this wandering discourse.

I am fascinated by things Asian and have been for many years. Everybody that travels takes a liking for some region of the world, and Asia was my choice after being there for a short time while in the Navy during the early ‘70’s. I try to make Asian friends in the US and learn about their culture as much as I can. I travel there as often as possible. I hate to leave there when I leave - almost as much as I look forward to being home and in a familiar place.

I have found that in Asia strangers are less friendly and more rude than in America. I have also found that friends are extremely good ones that are the best hosts in the world. Should you pass that way remember that many people around the world think Americans are a somewhat crazy bunch and that we are also a relatively new phenomena. When Mao Tse Tung was asked what he thought of Americans, he said, "Don’t know, it is much too soon to tell." Because many people around the world do not understand us, just as many Americans understand little of them, they think we are a little or a lot crazy, depending on the individual’s generosity and whether or not we have recently invaded their country. Those Asian people that are interested in Westerners and have taken the time to learn to like us, despite our abruptness and apparent (to most Asians) rudeness, often become our friends and sometimes guides to their culture.

This is a brief travelogue of a short 1-month trip to Nanning, China that I made in December, 2001 to January, 2002. I try to describe, as best my limited swordsmanship with the pen will allow, some of my experiences, observations and opinions developed along the way. If you get bored due to lack of creativity in the writing, you may find some useful tips and resources at the end to help you on your way should you travel to China or Asia. If at any time you interpret any part of this tale to be disparaging or critical of the Chinese people then you have read it incorrectly or I have been inaccurate with the pen. Yes, I describe poor sanitation, crazy drivers, old and decaying infrastructures and odd ways of things – from the relative viewpoint of a Westerner. In no way is this critical of the Chinese people, whom I think very highly of in all ways. My written descriptions are just that, descriptions of what I saw from an admittedly, but inbred and unavoidable ethnocentric perspective. I had a wonderful trip - the trip of a lifetime - and hope you enjoy reading about it. This document was penned almost entirely during the journey herein described, and has been edited for grammar, spelling, punctuation and syntax at later dates. I want to thank Rosie Biere for watching 'Da Boys" and keeping the house going while I was away for a month. This trip was possible because of her help. Chi Collins turned all of my hand-scrawled maunderings into legible computer text, and therefore made this web page possible.

John Hagar, AKA "BNG" 13 Jan 02

DA BOYS!

"NITRO" 1990-2002 ME AND MY DOG - JULY 2002

WHERE I LIVE EMAIL ME

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