Chinese Women's Stories

So many images, smells, and sounds arrested and beguiled me on our trip through China. There are some final sights and sounds I would like to record. But, in the end, it may be the stories I saw and heard of Chinese women that I will remember the most vividly.
At the Temple of Heaven, my favorite tourist site in Beijing, I walked through rows of tranquil trees many Chinese women were never permitted to see. There, before those holy altars, where the past emporers prayed for good harvests, a feeling of peace pervades. Seen from the air, the atlars or temple buildings in the park are round and their bases are square. The construction was based upon the ancient Chinese belief that Heaven is round and the Earth is square. We visited the temple on a sunny day before the crowds. We stood on the 5 meter high round altar, which was originally constructed in 1530 (and later rebuilt) in white marble in three tiers. The acoustics of the circular structure causes one's voice to carry. A fellow visitor (from India) told me that wishes whispered from the very center of circle are more likely to come true-so I took my turn standing in the center and wishing. My wish? I can't tell! :) Just past the altar there stands a curved "echo wall;" it is known for it's accoustic properties. I stood at one side of the wall and softly said hellow to my boyfriend, and he could hear me loud and clear several feet away at the edge of the curved wall! The most picturesque structure on the site would have to be the hall of Prayers for Good Harvests. Gorgeous, the temple hall stands a top a three tiered marble terrace and boasts a triple-eaved umbrella roof. Four central pillars inside symbolize the four seasons. Twelve others form a ring around the outside. They curiosuly support the ceiling without nails or cement (For further comment upon this point, see the Lonely Planet Beijing City Guide). Although the common Chinese woman was not allowed into that building for year upon years, it still stands out in my memory.
At the tail end of our trip, we were fortunate to travel to Xi'an to see the impressive Terra Cotta warriors from the Qin Dynasty. They were certainly worth the trip. Whether built out of ambition or narcissism, the thousands of tall, detailed ceramic soldiers, some holding actual functional weapons, comprised just one part of the mausoleum of Emporer Qin Shihuang. Several sites we saw in China claimed to be the 8th wonder of the world. Apparently, there is no verification process, no researching by earstwhile geeks from Wikipedia, needed to make this claim. However, of the "wonders" we saw, the huge historical and archeological significance of the Terra Cotta Warriors led me to see them as the most wonderful. For some good photos and more factual information on our trip to Xi'an consult Steveadoo's blog on blogger.
My mind was intruiged by the terra Cotta Warriors. But then I couldn't breathe! The pollution caught up with us there. A stroll outside of more than twenty minutes would aggravate my allergies. The brownish gray air would, after a while, cause my eyes to start watering and my nose to feel stuffy. Do children in Xi'an color the sky in their drawings with gray and brown crayons? Imagine growing up in a city with so much air pollution that foul smelling air is the only air that you've ever known!

As we prepared to leave China, two women's stories stuck in my mind. One is a famous and tragic story, one is a quiet anecdote with a happy ending. Nestled deep inside the Forbidden city is a simple hole in the ground known as Concubine Zhen's well. Women go there and leave flowers. Zhen fe Jing was imprisioned by the formidable Cixi, and later thrown down this lonely well for refusing to give up her loyalty to her ousted emporer (he started the "100 days reform" movement and payed for it with his freedom, obviously the reform movement did not go well-it only lasted 100 days!). Later Zhen's sister built her a small shrine near the well. Visitors still value Concubine Zhen's well as a symbol of this woman's love, loyalty, and determination. For more facts on the sad tale of Concubine Zhen, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_Concubine_Zhen.

Another story, less famous, reminded me how lucky I am to be a modern American woman. Our guide, B., did a great job taking us to important sites, providing historical background, and helping us find more authentic local dumpling houses to enjoy. As the days went by, we also got to know him and he started to explain his life and the lives of his friends and neighbors. He and my boyfriend Steve got to be friends. Steve is a mellow guy and it seems that everyone likes Steve! :) When I asked about family life in Beijing, he told us a story about a neighbor of his who jumped through many hoops to make a decision I could easily decide to make. The family had one child, our guide explained, but then the woman became pregnant again. The woman wanted a second child, a sibling for her child, very badly. It was a very stressful situation for the family due to the one-child policy in over-populated China. However, our guide's neighbor was lucky because she had attended elementary school with a boy who grew up to be a local government official. The neighbor woman and her husband went to see the local government official (with a gift) to renew old ties. Later her husband took the official out for dinner a few times and convinced the official to write a letter to the local hospital condoning the woman's wish to carry (and not terminate) her second pregnancy. The hospital agreed to treat the woman and deliver her baby. The woman's husband had to go to a government office with a letter of support from the local official, and later had to pay a large fine for having a second child. However, with the support of the local government official, the family encountered no further problems. They had a beautiful second daughter who grew to become an honors student. The neighbor woman had been lucky.
My guide took no sides, did not tell the story to criticize his government, but rather related the story in a matter of fact manner. I can't verify that it's 100% true. But the details really struck me. The discsussion around freedom of Choice in America sometimes gets narrowed in the media to the freedom to decide NOT have a child, when certainly the freedom to elect to HAVE a child is just as important. Over population remains a valid issue, and I am not going to argue here that anyone needs to have large families. (I, myself, have been thinking I'd someday like to adopt a baby who's already on the planet.) But I feel very glad to live in a country where the government can't dicate to me the size of any family I might elect to build.