Day 6 - Zhu Zhou

Tuesday November 27th



The sun tried valiantly to force its way through the smog. It was brighter today and a bit cooler. We all piled on the bus to head for Zhu Zhou where Isabelle’s orphanage is located. I was looking forward to getting out of the city and, perhaps, breathing some fresh air. After an hour we had reached the 8km limit of the city and areas of trees and tiny farm patches began to appear. But, the smog persisted. The leaves and branches of the trees were grimy with the pollution. Twice we passed kilometers long line ups of trucks waiting for their allotment of diesel. Our guide told us that sometimes they wait for up to a full day in order to get refueled.

I kept hoping to see countryside but the evidence of man’s physical will being imposed upon the land was everywhere to be seen. An hour late we arrived in the city of Zhou Zhou or Chen Zhou. It was pretty in a way with its lakes and large river. We were told that it had a huge textile market and it certainly appeared to be a city whose streets were bustling with commerce.

The entrance to the orphanage was neat and opened onto pretty landscaped area surrounded by walls painted with colourful images. The buildings were modern and bright covered in blue glass. We were greeted by the director, the woman who gave Sophie her Chinese name – Chun Fang, and were taken up to a sitting room. Sophie’s nanny was brought in and there was much smiling and hugging and exchanging of gifts. Both Sophie and her Nanny were seemed thrilled to see each other. We were then taken on a tour of the building that held the special needs children. These children appeared have a multitude of different disabilities but were all neatly dressed and attended by the women who work at the orphanage. I was impressed by the cleanliness, the cheerful and educational environment and the obvious health of the children.

After the tour we were taken to a local restaurant where our guide and driver gamely carried Marg up several flights of stairs. We went to a private room to eat which is common here. The food was fantastic and if I spoke Chinese I might be able to tell you what it was! I tried hard to imitate our hosts and hostesses table manners so that they wouldn’t think that I was too rude. Our guide wisely slipped out before the meal was finished and paid so that the orphanage women and Marg would not fight over who should pay.

After a two and half hour drive back where we passed the same trucks in the diesel line-up that we had seen four hours earlier Marg went up to the room for a nap and the girls and I continued on with their cousins to the Embroidery Museum. The embroidery was impressive. Some pieces taking over a year to be completed. Many of them looked like oil paintings or photographs from a distance but when looked at more closely had a rich texture from the variety of different stitches that gave the images a life-like quality.
Dinner consisted of a buffet of snake, river turtle, ostrich tendons, dog, shrimp, and a variety of raw meat and fish that could be cooked to your specifications. It was delicious, but I have to admit that I did give the dog a pass. No funny stories to tell today. It was more emotional as Sophie at age seven seemed to really connect with her heritage after seeing her orphanage and spending time with her Nanny. She was sad to leave.