on to Beijing

The three gorges was interesting - huge mountains, beautiful trees, one HUGE water dam (the biggest in the world) - based on what could be seen through the fog. It was so humid, it felt like being in a sauna while touring the area. The water, now pooling on one side of the dam is evaporating into the air, making it hard to see much farther than a few feet in front of you. This dam displaced millions of people, it drowned ancient buildings and unique relics; it is even going to change the weather (making it warmer) in places like Wuhan - a four hour drive away! Only a communist government would be allowed to change ecology and displace people in such a massive way, all in the pursuit of power. We bought a book so we could see what it was supposed to look like. The area was breathtakingly beautiful. By their own account it inspired poetry, paintings and even their own cherished Mao - it is not the same place it once was. I can see how the scenery would be inspiring, now it will be an intersting place to study mold and moss. I wish I had been to three gorges before the dam.

We will be leaving to Beijing and tour the sights there - the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, Tienanmen Square, and the Hutong tour (old villages in the city that have been preserved). I won't have reliable access to email. I will post again when we return to the States.