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Day Nine - Yangtze River Cruise, page 2

Acupuncture, Talent Contest, LED Bridge

As we make our way away from the three gorges and further up river, life along the river's edge begins to get more populated

Baidicheng Scenic Area

This place was offered to us as an optional excursion. It needed 30 people to sign up and not enough people did, so we didn't have a chance to go here. Very sad. It would have given me an opportunity to see one of China's covered bridges. I could see it from the ship, but it was quite a distance.

Continuing upriver, we passed several more communities and the city of Fingie. This city also had to move to higher ground with the rising water of the Three Gorges Dam. This area has a very long history dating back to the Xia Dynasty (21st - 16th BC). It has much natural beauty and has been eulogized by poets throughout the centuries. As with all places in China, there is much construction.

And, as we got further out of the gorge area, the weather began to improve.

In the afternoon Reuben and I both had appointments with the ship's doctor. We went with minor problems, but we were both curious about the Chinese medicine. The doctor spoke to both of us together. He held our hands for a few minutes and examined our palms, then looked at our eyes and tongues and ears. Reuben still has pain from when he had shingles a few years ago and was curious to see if Chinese medicine would help. I complained that I'm still having hot flashes after 16 years. After the initial examination, the doctor took Reuben into an exam room while I waited in the office. These two signs were hanging in the office.

When it was my turn he took me into a small semi-dark and very calm room. I was to lie down on the exam table and pull up my pants legs. In the few minutes while I was lying there and answering a few more of his questions, he had inserted many acupuncture needles into my legs. I never felt a thing and was very surprised to see them all when I raised my head and looked. He asked me to lie still for a while and also to breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth, and then he left the room. I felt so entirely calm and totally relaxed. That alone seemed to be a wonderful thing. When he came back into the room, he took the needles out and then asked me to turn over and remove my shirt. He then put cups on my back - about 8 or 10 I think - and sucked the air out of them. It felt very nice. He left me there again for many minutes - I have no idea how long. An assistant came in and removed the cups. I then got a very vigorous massage on my back before turning over and getting the same thing on my stomach. It was so vigorous that I felt like my organs were being rearranged. I'm not entirely sure what all of that was supposed to do, but I can say that I did not have another hot flash for about a month. Amazing. And Reuben said his shingle pain subsided greatly. Anyway, we were to come back the next day as well. We both left feeling very relaxed. The whole process took about an hour and a half.

The only frustrating part of being in that room was that I knew I was missing things on the river. It made me crazy to think there might be another city or another bridge that I didn't get to see. Here are a few things that I saw before it was time for dinner.

We were told when we first boarded the ship that the humidity would be very bad and that we should keep our windows closed as much as possible. We did try to do that. Before going to dinner we went back to our cabin to rest a little. I sat down on my bed and it felt like the sheets were very wet. It felt like they hadn't been dried well before putting them on the bed. So I called housekeeping to see if they would put some new ones on for me. They came right away and changed the sheets. The new ones felt much better - for about 30 minutes. Then they were as wet as the first ones! It is truly that humid on the river, at least in the month of June.

After dinner there was going to be a talent show. They had asked for volunteers from each group. A couple of people from our group said they would perform. Unfortunately I was having camera troubles at the time and most of my shots didn't turn out well. Jerri spent much of her life in Hawaii and offered us a show with the ukelele.

And many of the staff also performed for us.

It was an enjoyable evening. After retiring to our cabin I thought I should have one last look outside before climbing into bed. I went out on the balcony and absolutely could not believe my eyes. There was a beautiful bridge that was entirely lit with LED lights that were programmed to show constantly-changing images: of fireworks, flowers, butterflies, fish underwater, and many other things. I grabbed the camera and went flying up on deck to see this amazing spectacle.

This is the Yunyang Yangtze River Bridge. It is a cable-stayed bridge, but unlike most it is asymmetrical, with the southern tower being 85 feet (26 m) higher than the northern tower. The bridge is 341 feet (104 meters) high, but with the raising of the water level from the dam only half of it is visible. It has a central span of 1,043 feet (318 m) and a total length of 4,193 feet (1,278 m). The bridge was completed in 2005.

After watching the bridge for quite some time and passing underneath it, I went back to the cabin. Reuben and I sat on the balcony to watch it for a while, but at 11 P.M. on the dot, it turned off. Time for bed. It will be another early morning tomorrow.

Here's a video I shot that will give you a better idea.