Biechau

 We had seen this place on the Internet several months ago and have wanted to visit so it was one of the top things on our list when we've been able to get out and about.  

It was pretty interesting.  All of these sculptures are made from the stalks of rice, then spray painted yellow.  All I have to say is that that is a heck of a lot of spray paint!  

Many scenes depicted farm life anciently.

Tom and Wang Jian

Then they had a science fiction type section.  These pieces were enormous.

After we wandered around the straw statues we went over to see the greenhouse section.  As we were walking up, a young man approached us asking us if we'd like to pick strawberries for free.  The girls were up for that!  We were each given a basket and walked to a greenhouse and told to pick all we wanted. The catch, of course was that they could use the videos/photos they took of us for advertisement.  This city must be getting so sick of seeing our mugshots advertising everything!!!

We came home with 4 full baskets of strawberries.  They were the best strawberries we have ever had. The girls were so happy and thought that made the entire trip.

Wang Jian took us into a little village to eat.  It was a dive.  Dead mouse right outside the door.  The dishes were shrink wrapped in plastic and then they brought us boiling water in which to wash our dishes and chopsticks in.  Then we dumped the excess water into a garbage can.  This was normal for Wang Jian, but puzzling for us.  The place was not clean either. But this was a few weeks back, so I can assure you we lived through it!

This lady came out and flattened balls of dough and put them around the edges of the soup then put the cover back on to let them cook.

When they were cooked she used a shovel tool to scrape them off and into the soup.  They were a rice based flat bread and quite good.

Then we did a little village walking.  This is one of my most favorite things to do (and the girls' least favorite thing).  I find their way of life endearing and heartbreaking all at the same time.  They have to pump their water from a community well, wash laundry at a community sink, dry their meat, grow and harvest all of their food. They seem so resilient to the oppression that causes this.  They are all old, but younger than my grandparents, yet are still living the life my grandparents probably lived as children.  This is astounding when so much modern life thrives around them.

The community well.

This lady's gardens were several hundred yards away from her home, she picked her vegetables and then sat outside cleaning them up.

You can see the hanging poultry just beyond that tree.

Duck and chicken yard

I have no idea how long it takes to catch that many fish, or how many you need to eat to feel full, but one man was sitting with his drying fish. (They don't like their picture taken.)

This lady is doing laundry.  Outside, in the winter.  Brrr.

I can't tell everything in this little 'garage', but there is a large bag of corn seed and beans. And the red sign on the door to bring good luck.

And then there is this charm---painting murals on their homes to brighten their lives.

Like I said earlier, this kind of life is heartbreaking and endearing.  Such resilience!  Such evidence of making the best of things under such difficult circumstances.  Bless these dear people!