Is There a Wall in China?
Posted by robynh | Filed under Total Solar Eclipse: Live from China
It is a great privilege to be a producer for the Exploratorium. It is vital, of course, to go to potential webcast locations to meet officials and decide if the location is viable: Can the gear be shipped there safely? Is there a fast, reliable internet connection? Are there people there willing to help us?
I have been to China three times to arrange logistics, get permits, and establish partnerships for this webcast. Whenever I return from these trips my friends ask, “can I see your pictures?” I am probably the only American who has been to China, but has not seen the Great Wall. I have been to Beijing, but not seen the Forbidden Palace. I have been to Dunhuang, but not seen the Buddhist Caves. I have, however, seen the inside of a lot of conference rooms and I got to go behind-the-scenes at Xinjiang TV (which, for me, was really great.)
I did get one afternoon to stroll the streets of Urumqi. (I defended this luxury by explaining that I needed to buy local crafts to show at the Public Program at the Exploratorium) My first time in Urumqi (the capital of the Xinjiang Uygher Autonomous Region) I was flabbergasted: I expected a sleepy little town, but was met with an incredibly fashionable modern city. Anyway, I went to the Uygher neighborhood and was amazed! It was absolutely bustling! People smiling, vendors hawking in several languages, the evening call to prayer: it was a total delight. Here are a couple videos: one is of a quiet back street, the other is of a dumpling maker, who spoke several languages and spent some time in the U.S.
I ended up buying a dozen Uygher hats and 100 meters of traditional Xinjiang fabric! (I also bought a yurt, but that’s a whole other story…..) Our Executive Producer, Robert Semper, agreed to carry most of the fabric as I shopped.
Tags: silk route, solar eclipse, total solar eclipse, urumqi
