| This is the first of a 2-part series describing the Memorial High School Chinese Language 2006 Tour to China last June. The tour focused on two rural areas, Wolong (an important environmental site) and Danba (a World Heritage cultural site) as well as some time spent in the large cities of Beijing and Chengdu. Wolong is a township at Pitiao River valley, 75 miles northwest of Chengdu, 1,000 miles west of Beijing, China's capital. Every human endeavor here can be seen from the road. Because significant development is restrained by the steep mountains around the river, all things human focus on the river road. Overstuffed trucks full of cabbages and other produce head for the provincial capital, Chengdu. Stone-built homes abut the road. Free range cows, chickens, and goats abound. Roadside vendors, small restaurants, and other retail sources open right up onto the road. The current site of the Panda Breeding Center is just across the river and visible from the road just up from some road work. And visitors (including Madison students and teachers) who represent a relatively new endeavor come up this one road. The steep hills, bathed in clouds every morning, are left to the hundreds of bird species, the threatened (and elusive) wild Giant Pandas, as well as 45 other mammals and numerous other species. We also hear of the Lesser (red!) Panda and get to actually see two troops of short-tailed monkeys who visit the road edge at a scheduled feeding time. There are also rumors of the Clouded Leopard here. The big draw, of course, is the Panda Breeding Center itself. The surrounding reserve was established in 1963 and the first center facilities were established in 1982. Since those first basic beginnings, newer facilities have been developed to allow more humane treatment for those Pandas which are part of the breeding center. These newer facilities, as well as some on the drawing board, have a Wisconsin connection in that their design comes from the U.S.-China Environmental Center whose director is based in Mount Horeb. |
| Memorial High School Chinese Language 2006 Tour The Road to Wolong (Part 1 of 2) by Nick Berigan |
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| Today, even the relatively uninformed first-time visitor has an expectation that those Pandas that need to be held in a non-natural setting deserve humane settings, and the center strives for that result in its continuing development. This better setting is augmented by teams of volunteers under the skilled direction of scientists who work with the Pandas. As a result, the photogenic Pandas are a draw to stimulate consideration of preservation of wild areas, kind of a successful Sichuanese version of the more unfortunate American Spotted Owl. And they are starting to come. The expectation is that road work (in process as of this writing) will allow for a big influx of visitors as China moves toward greater exposure during the Beijing 2008 Olympics. The big question facing this area and one of the issues we have come to learn about is the tension between the road and this important wild terrain. As in other places, eco-tourism is seen as a way to support the continued existence of the 2000-sq. km. reserve associated with the breeding center. Families living with sufficient agricultural resources are being considered for relocation or paid to reduce the amount of land they till. An increased influx of visitors with their yuan and dollars will require solutions to the problems associated with motor travel. The Chinese government is struggling with these tensions and people like Brody and some very knowledgeable graduate students and their professor, Jack Liu from MSU are hoping to help them come up with new solutions. With the help of these folks, we were able to do the initial planting of a new field of bamboo in hopes that service-focused eco-tourism gets consideration in the resulting mix. Reflecting on that experience, Dave Ropa, science teacher at Spring Harbor Middle School, said, '"Travel to a region like this opens up a whole new world to the traveler. However, it also adds stress to the region. Our presence strains this fragile environment. Giving back in the form of service to the environment gives meaning to our visit in a whole new way." Besides those hands-on approaches and the study and examination of captive-bred Pandas, it will also be important to connect with some of the local people in order to make sure their needs are met as these development questions are answered. To that end, we were able to visit a settlement that is under consideration for development and get a look at the current lifestyles allowed in that environment. Long term farmers who probably have a yearly income of a few hundred dollars are blessed with abundant crops (some crops have two seasons a year here) but will they be able to continue that lifestyle if they are relocated? Our team includes nine students, five teachers, and me. The transition via a long flight over the North Pole, from the metropolis of Beijing to this eastern edge of the Tibetan plateau, is an eye opener for even the most traveled in the group. New skills required included basics like using chopsticks and different restroom facilities and more complex things like bargaining with vendors for goods and meals. Some fortitude at high altitude and a willingness to slog through some pretty messy barnyards also allowed for wider experiences than one might experience in a more packaged tour. I am thankful for having traveled with such flexible companions and was impressed by their abilities to put up with some of the conditions we met as well as their inclination to connect with Chinese people. We also had a chance to connect with local people via the elementary school. The Wolong Special School let us join them for an afternoon of touring their classrooms and a Tibetan dance celebration at the end of the school day. Their welcome warmed our hearts and we had a chance to share dinner with some of the students and faculty at a roadside restaurant where we ended the night in a "sing off" -- Chinese and Americans taking turns singing to each other. Though this activity is something the Chinese probably feel more comfortable with, there were some great travelers who stepped up to this important responsibility. Hits like "I';m a little teapot" and "This land is your land," "Shalom" and a Hmong song delivered by some of ours, were well received. Memorial High School senior Deenee Thao said about this experience: "I feel so proud of myself that I stood up for our group during the dinner and sang in Hmong, because everyone was singing in their language and I wanted to share mine too, and show that our school is diverse." We had a chance to connect with road vendors, scientists, agriculturists, and the migrant workers who do the back-breaking road work (often with only hand tools, lifting large boulders with the collective application of muscle). Another opportunity to connect with the dynamics of local life occurred up the road at about 12,000 feet where we were able to watch yak herders, 20 families who cooperate annually to herd up their 2000+ yaks for shearing (and some of our folks got in on the action). The road continues on up to Balang pass at 14,000 feet and from there on to Danba, a slightly different environment another level up into the Tibetan plateau. Where Wolong primarily exposed us to environmental issues, Danba gave us a wonderful exposure to the plateau culture. Danba is next in this series. |
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