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Ferry Boat Crosses Yong Jiang River Near Nanning; Handicrafts Sold By Women On Streets Of Ancient City, Yang Mei.
On the outskirts of Nanning there is an ancient city, Yang Mei, of a minority group, to which Xu Jian took us by car, but to get to the town we had to use a ferry boat to cross a the Yong Jiang river. The last time we used a ferry boat was in Vietnam, when Quang and I were on our way to the Bay of Mountains. When Xu Jian got nearer to the Yong Jiang river, we could see that there was a queue of cars, lorries and motorbikes in front of us, but at least it gave us the opportunity to take some photos of the local people and their work. Some men on the boats moored close to us, appeared to be busy with repairs to boats that looked as if they were living quarters. Small punts were being used to move from boat to boat, and chickens and ducks were scavenging at the water's edge. Similar events are quite often seen in small countryside communities, where access to a different lifestyle is beyond reach of the inhabitants.
When it was the turn of Xu Jian to drive onto the ferryboat, he did so with no other passenger than myself. Lao Ma, Ri Sheng and Michael, boarded the boat before us; it was a rule that no vehicle passengers were allowed! Even after crossing the river, it was quite a while before we arrived at the entrance of the old city of Yang Mei. The Yang Mei city was certainly not modern and certainly not prosperous, but the people selling their produce at the sides of the streets were all very friendly, and happy, despite the difference in their lifestyles and that of the visiting tourists. There were many handmade items displayed, from brushes to embroidered items such as tiny shoes and purses. Some old women sitting at the side of the streets were busily embroidering and at the same time happily chatting with neighbours sitting close by. There was certainly a community spirit in this city, that has virtually disappeared in the modern towns and cities.
Youngster Crawls On Street Bench of Ancient Yang Mei City; Restaurant Boat Moored At Yong Jiang Riverside.
Many of the people we saw in this part of the city were either rather old or very young. Whilst talking to one small group of people on the street, Ri Sheng picked up a young boy of perhaps 2 or 3 years old, and held him in his arms for a while. When it was time for us to move on to another part of this Chinese city, the young boy was very reluctant to return to his mother! Another young boy standing by his mother who was busy embroidering, appeared to be a bit puzzled by the photographs that were being taken by the visitors. A short while later he seemed to enjoy the ocassion and was quite willing to display his acting talent.
Further down the street we came across a building that looked quite out of place, in the position it occupied. The houses in the street were old buildings of stone or brick, then in their midst was a modern white faced building of a Chinese Bank.
We were due to have our lunch on a boat moored at the side of the Yong Jiang river and as we approached the boat we walked through another ''restaurant'' where the tables were under the shade of some trees. There was a three day wedding banquet in progress that was drawing to a close. Some of the tables were still occupied, but in another area there were bamboo containers piled high with plates and dishes, ready to be removed by the caterers. It is said that these ''three day banquets'' are customary with some Minority Groups.
To get to our restaurant we walked down steps to the water's edge then along a short gang-plank to the moored boat. Our table was on the upperdeck so we had good views of the activities around us, and of the other boats at work on the river. In one part of the river, dredging for sand was in progress, and the loaded boats would pass our own boat, to deposit the sand on a stockpile nearby. At the side of the Yong Jiang river two men with fishing rods were hoping to catch fish, but they did not appear to be very succesful at the time. Attached to our restaurant boat was a small floating platform on which were cages of live chickens, ready for the kitchen whenever needed!
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Updated
3rd February, 2009
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