| These photos are/were the truth. I've seen myself people hardly fighting to enter from the train window during a very hot and humid night when I travelled on the line Guangzhou somewhere North. It was 1984, I erroneously got a hard seat ticket instead of a soft berth and consequently that night I had to "fight" for a place even to seat on the floor and I travelled together with hens, live animals, huge basket of vegtables while people around me stared at me.. . and inside that carriage that night I looked like, if possible, even more foreigner. At the station entrance-gate policemen were ready to beat people for nothing but you should have seen what those people were ready to do to gain a seat on the train! You would have also thanked policeman!! I cannot forget how did I felt that night among that grieving humanity lost in that hellish circle. I remember China of "meiyou" or of "maiwanle" (sold out). I remember elder in the village and their "chifanle" (have you eaten already), I remember meals based on pork and cucumber and nothing else (something unbelievable for Chinese!!). I remember pissing (sorry) in the open air because of no toilet or otrageously stinking toilet in Tibet and beggars waiting outside of the so called restaurant seeking for something left to be eaten in your dishes. I remember the day I arrived in Dazu (Sichuan) in 1981: all the village followed us in silence while some of them more curious touched the blond hair: somebody from the red planet arrived!! All this happend not centuries ago just 20 years or so !! So a fully agree with Lao Wang that the free access to basic material resources/services is a CONQUEST and a right for all. I believe that for those peasants on that train that night the most important need would have be to have a seat for themselves and their families. Besides if the local authorithy could have provided a seat there want be necessary to beat people. Meals are gorgeous. Now days elder people in greeting you don't ask you anymore ..."have eaten" because there is no need. In Dazu you see guys with long blond hair or even red.You see people open to talk, to know, to learn and, more important, you have in China a SOCIAL CONSCIOUSNESS which is something new which has grown up in the last 15 years . So even if I 'm not Chinese I feel quite "proud" of what so far China has achieved. Even if I count nothing I feel I want to be part and share the spirit of the Games so I'll go to China (I have flight ticket already) to see the Olympics and if Sarkozy and the other premiers are so busy not to attend the Opening Ceremony ..I personally dont' care: it's better because there will be more spare tickets to buy!!! |
Real Pictures of China with My Experience