From the hutong we were off to the airport for a 2 hour flight to Yichang, known for its oranges, peaches, and manufacturing. Leaving the airport we drove by at least a dozen new factories, office buildings and warehouses...all massive in size. When we got into Yichang, which is right on the Yangtze River, it was a study in contrasts...high rise buildings in extreme disrepair and gated communities with very large modern homes...right next to one another.
For me it was despressing...such poverty and filth, such wealth and luxury. Hundreds of thousands living in such small confines, packed in like sardines with porches enclosed with wire fencing for extra storage out exposed to the elements...mile after mile. The local guide kept caling our attention to the left hand side of the bus...towards the pretty part along the Yangtze while all of this was on our right.
Needed to go to the bathroom when we arrived at the restaurant...only two stalls and the one on the right was taken, so I stepped into the one on the left...it was a squatter...a very nice ceramic squatter. Much, much nicer than my first experiences with them in Italy and France years ago. Later I found out the one on the right was a regular KOHLER toliet.
We had dinner at a hotel/resort on a hill overlooking the city. Very nice ~ beautiful gardens and great food. We had a few dishes that were new to us but still served on the huge lazy susan.
After dinner we rode to the cruise ship. A couple of typical dragons (two people in a bright costume, head and tail) greeted us, dancing to loud music. The Century Star was a great ship...5 stars...can hold 286 but there were ony 130 of us this week...Americans, Germans, and Chinese. The cruise director spoke very good English and did a nice job at the orientation. He said just 10 years ago there were only 10 cruise ships on the river, now there are over 50. Big business!
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