Village hop in China (part 2)

Please see part 1 for description of my first day in the village.

The next day, I woke up late again: being lazy seemed to fit well the setting, and the fact that it was raining didn't help. I ate a nice brunch and watched the host yet again loose money in some sort of Chinese gambling game with domino like figures. He didn't seem to mind it though, he always wore a smile on his face and was very kind. I decided that I would spend the day just walking around my village to see how the farmers lived and see the surrounding area.

On my walk through the houses and the farms, I saw many farmers; I noticed that many of them were very short, maybe 4-5 feet, and all of them had very big hands with large, thick and strong fingers; men and women included. I saw some of them working on the small fields, while others sat idle outside or played Chinese gambling games during their winter off season. I came to the main square, where I found many farmers, wearing old suits, sitting and talking. I sat down beside them, they were very curious and were asking my friend from China about me. I did the best I could to chat with them; my Chinese friend was helping me. They told me that I looked like a Canadian doctor, famous in China, who came to the country to help and save many Chinese people during the war with Japan. They also told us that here too most people end up living well into their 80s and 90s. One farmer told me that most farmers in the village grow food only to sustain themselves. We were told that the day we arrived was the first day it rained in many months; so the farmers thought we brought luck to them.

The village was beautiful, it was surrounded by hills and had a river flowing through it ... a beautiful and clean river. Many of the local women used the river to wash their clothes and it was also a big hangout area during the day. The building in the village were old and beautiful and the streets were narrow, which gave great character to the village. In this village dogs and cats could be friends ... really! There were several times I saw dogs playing with cats; in fact at the house I stayed in the owner used to have a dog and a cat that were always together and protected each other; I saw pictures of them together and I was told some beautiful stories about them as well. I walked along the river enjoying the surrounding views and observing the locals sitting by the river and noticing their large hands that told stories of hard work. At all times we felt welcome; I felt at peace here. This is a place I can stay at for a long time enjoying the peaceful nature of the village.

In the evening, I enjoyed the food that the hostess cooked for us and first time learned how to play Chinese chess; I also won my first game, but not the next three :)

This village stay was my most memorable experience in China.