| When my wife and I arrived in Shanghai as scheduled, | | | | interpreter said, and "met" in special waiting rooms |
| we met with our friendly interpreter, Mr. Sha, who | | | | (with tea, of course). The train offered soft seats and |
| advised us of the severe hotel room shortage in | | | | a plant on each lace-covered table. We enjoyed a |
| Shanghai. He had secured for us the only room left in | | | | thermos of tea for one jaio (about 7 cents US). On a |
| the city - Mr. Nixon's room in the Ching Chiang Hotel, | | | | five-hour trip between Wuxi and Kwangchow, we |
| where Bob Hope had also stayed during his visit to | | | | shared a compartment with a Chinese honeymoon |
| China. Our "room" turned out to be an apartment with | | | | couple from Hong Kong. They asked us to share a |
| two huge bedrooms, a reception room, living room, | | | | banquet in the dining car, and we were served one |
| dining room, sunroom, kitchen, and attendant's rooms. | | | | chicken, one duck, one fish, a plate of fried oysters, a |
| The next day we moved into a similar suite but took | | | | plate of steamed vegetables, soup, scrambled eggs |
| only the bedroom, as we didn't have a large enough | | | | with something mysterious in it, beer and tea. It was |
| entourage to make use of the rest of the rooms. | | | | enough for six, but hardy travelers that we were, we |
| Later, when we arrived in Wuxi, after a short train ride | | | | made do with it. |
| from Shanghai, our friendly interpreter met us with the | | | | The finale was the trade show in Kwangchow. Soon |
| strange news that there was a severe shortage of | | | | we would exit to Hong Kong and then return home |
| hotel rooms in Wuxi. But he was able to secure one | | | | after almost two months of travel. |
| room for us - a suite on the top floor overlooking the | | | | As we expected, Kwangchow was a bustling city. |
| lake and the park. | | | | Again, there were no hotel rooms available except our |
| Each night in our hotel at Wuxi we sat at a table | | | | nice corner room with a porch, overlooking the huge |
| "reserved for lady who eats three plates of steamed | | | | garden. People from all over the world, with their pink |
| greens." My wife astonished the local gentry with her | | | | badges flapping in the wind, visited the show from 9:00 |
| propensity for eating salad. She switched to steamed | | | | to 11:00 a.m. and from 2:00 to 4:30 p.m. The jewelry |
| greens in the interest of hygiene. We tried the Mao Tai | | | | section had discussion rooms similar to those we |
| rice wine and couldn't finish the first thimbleful! | | | | encountered in Beijing, but flooded with buyers and |
| Their travel system worked well. We were handed | | | | tons of merchandise. We met some old friends from |
| about carefully from city to city, were met by an | | | | the Company in Beijing and two soft-goods buyers |
| interpreter and were escorted to the sights by our | | | | from Phoenix, Arizona. |
| driver. We also wandered freely through the cities, ate | | | | We toured the rest of the fair again and again to see |
| in the recommended restaurants, and generally felt like | | | | the machinery, planes, boats, medical equipment, foods, |
| V.I.P.s. Tour groups looked at us with astonishment and | | | | medicines, textiles, clothing, metals, electronics, watches |
| outright jealously at times. We truly did feel for them in | | | | and much else. The Chinese are good merchants and |
| the restrictive confines of their packaged tours. | | | | had retail shops scattered all over the trade fair for |
| We visited a jade and ivory carving factory, a | | | | single item purchases. Money exchange desks were |
| research center for needlepoint, a doll-making factory | | | | everywhere with "Visa" signs hung over the counters. |
| where their current project was thousands of Santa | | | | We tried to buy some gift boxes but someone in Los |
| Claus pencil sharpeners, a silk thread factory, a | | | | Angeles had an exclusive. |
| people's commune, a cloth-weaving factory, and a tea | | | | We did not purchase any jewelry at the fair, as the |
| plantation. We wandered through dozens of famous | | | | selection in Beijing was sufficient for our first foray into |
| parks and gardens, took boat trips on the lakes, visited | | | | the People's Republic of China. From Kwangchow, we |
| friendship stores and antique stores and browsed | | | | hopped a 20-minute flight to Hong Kong on China Air |
| through city center shopping areas, department stores, | | | | Lines. As we returned to Arizona, we were already |
| bookstores, bazaars and markets. | | | | looking forward to returning to China the next year. |
| Between cities, we were "shown off" as the | | | | And that we did! |