After grabbing some bread at the pastry shop (the same one as last night) for breakfast, we got on the bus for the six-hour ride to Xinli’s hometown of Huangshan.  Much of the drive’s scenery reminded me of Pennsylvania’s agricultural outer reaches.  I’ve decided that no matter where you go in the world, the countryside usually looks familiar from the viewpoint of the highway.  It’s a reminder that the essence of a person’s life halfway around the world isn’t necessarily too different from one ten minutes away from home. 

We also took some time during the bus ride using my computer to watch one of several knockoff DVDs purchased in Shanghai.  The knockoffs all come in cardboard casings with what looks like genuine DVD cover art until you read the paragraph on their back and realize that it was written by someone with a poor grasp of the English language.  The back of Iron Man 2 called the movie’s star “Robert Downey Smalls.”  The film we watched on the bus was Robin Hood, which has only been on the silver screen for a few weeks. Despite clearly having been filmed in a theatre (once in a while, a shadow crossed the screen on the way to or from the restroom or snack bar), the picture and audio were very good.  Most of the dialogue was in English, but when characters spoke in French, the subtitles were in Italian.  Our copy of Prince of Persia, which has been in theatres for three days, also worked fine aside from the minor detail that all the dialogue was in Chinese and there were no subtitles.  At least it only cost about $3.00. 

About a third of the way through our drive, we stopped by China’s Western Lake in Huangzhou, thought of by many as a paradise on Earth.  The Lake’s geography and architecture reminded me a great deal of Beijing’s Summer Palace.  A short ferry ride brought us to the other side of the water, where we walked around enjoying the beautiful scenery and ancient constructions.  Venders sold cooked corn as a snack, which was quite tasty. 

After arriving in Huangshan, we were joined for dinner by Xinli’s nephew and sister-in-law, the latter of which teaches English to Chinese highschoolers.  We asked the her some questions about the Chinese education system, and gained a greater appreciation for the stress of the college entrance exam, which has six sections (including English) and takes several days to complete.  Schools and teachers definitely face the same kinds of pressures that Pennsylvanians take away from the PSSA and SATs.  The Chinese school day extends for several hours longer than most American high schools’, although their lunch break is longer. 

Despite having spent most of the day sitting on a bus, I was exhausted by the time dinner ended.  Some of our group decided to check out the bar next to the hotel entitled “Emperor Internet” but I went to bed instead.  

Location: Huangshan, China