Chengdu On Our Minds

(To read comments from the previous version of this entry go to our May 28th posting HERE.) .

It's my first day out of Southwest China since I landed in Chengdu on March 19. I was woken this morning by the sun, thinking it must be seven or eight in the morning already. And then I remembered: I'm in Beijing. In fact, it was only 5 am (China is all one time zone).

NPR audio engineer Stacey Abbott, right, with NPR Beijing Bureau assistant Joy Ma.

Photo by Brendan Banaszak, NPR

Chengdu was a really hard place to leave. Largely, of course, because there is just so much more to say about the earthquake and its aftermath. Fortunately, we now have Rob Gifford in Sichuan; he'll be in there for the next couple weeks. And he promises to write something for this blog.

But also, it was hard to leave a place that so embraced us as we set out to tell its story. This was true before the earthquake, and became even more so after. Before leaving, I didn't get a chance to see and thank all of the people who helped make our coverage possible. Trying to list them here would take pages and pages.

Our team in Chengdu included, from left, pianist and Northampton, Mass. listener, Xiaoyu Xie, originally from Chengdu; Yadi Zhong, known to us as Rebecca, who teaches English in Chengdu and helped us arrange interviews; and interpreter Philip He.

Photos by Art Silverman, Brendan Banaszak, NPR

Continue reading "Chengdu On Our Minds" »

5:48 PM ET | 05-30-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

Two Pull Each Other Out of Rubble

Fourteen-year old Chen Yuqiu and thirteen-year-old Deng Qinglan used to share a desk at Yinhua school. The older girl helped her friend at math, while the younger girl dispensed advice with English homework.

Chen Yuqiu, 14, recovering in a Sichuan hospital.

Photo by Louisa Lim, NPR

These two young girls may have been ordinary students, but during the earthquake they behaved in a way that was anything but ordinary. It was a Monday afternoon, two minutes before geology class was due to start, and Chen Yuqiu was handing out math papers as the other students were looking at charts and graphics.

Then the room started to shake.

As they saw other children running, they also began to flee their classroom. Chen Yuqiu explains what she remembered happening next.

Continue reading "Two Pull Each Other Out of Rubble" »

12:00 PM ET | 05-28-2008 | permalink | comments (7) | e-mail post

Your Comments About Our Work

(We first posted final thoughts from All Things Considered producers, hosts and reporters who were in Sichuan here. An extended version of this entry is posted on May 30. Please post new comments at that location.)

From left, Brendan Banazak, Robert Siegel, Chris Turpin, Melissa Block, Andrea Hsu, Stacey Abbott, Joy Ma, Art Silverman Saturday May 24, Sheraton Chengdu.

Photo by a Sheraton Hotel Doorman

12:00 AM ET | 05-28-2008 | permalink | comments (48) | e-mail post

Crisis and Community

All Things Considered host Robert Siegel being sheltered from the sun by farmers in Red Flag village.

Photo by Christopher Turpin, NPR

One moment from our time reporting here in China that lingers with me. It occurred in the magnificently named village of Red Flag.

Robert Siegel, Art Silverman, along with our loyal NPR listener turned interpreter, Xiaoyu Xie, had visited this picturesque hamlet a couple of days earlier, just after the May 12th earthquake. They'd discovered a place where no relief aid had yet arrived.

They decided to return to see if things were any better.

A Gift of Shade

We arrived unannounced in the heat of a blazing day. As I was taking pictures, I realized one of the village women was at my side. She stood close and sheltered me from the sun with her umbrella. As if on cue, other villagers came out of their makeshift tents to shade Robert and Xiaoyu.

Continue reading "Crisis and Community" »

8:40 PM ET | 05-24-2008 | permalink | comments (14) | e-mail post

Bloggers Criticize Relief Contributions

In the go-go capitalism that pervades today's China, success is measured by money. And now sincerity is also being measured by the same yardstick. With ordinary people digging into their pockets to contribute to the earthquake relief effort, the spotlight is being turned on what Chinese celebrities and companies are doing to help out. And this has triggered an angry debate in the blogosphere.

First under the spotlight was basketball star Yao Ming. Although he was quick to make a public appeal for aid, his initial donation of less than $73,000 US was derided by bloggers such as the unusually-named "fish is crazy about balls!"

"When Yao Ming injured his foot, every basketball fan in the whole country worried about him....But this time our country suffers through such a catastrophe, our sporting icon made only a courtesy donation of less than $73,000 US... Yao Ming, this time you let us down."

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11:35 AM ET | 05-23-2008 | permalink | comments (37) | e-mail post

National Treasures: China's Giant Pandas

Dr. Zhang Zhihe, director of the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda breeding, talks about the role of his institution and the importance of pandas to China. Melissa Block's radio report on the pandas can be heard on All Things Considered.

4:54 PM ET | 05-22-2008 | permalink | comments (14) | e-mail post

Seismic Instruments

For the past two weeks the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Chengdu has graciously served as the NPR Chengdu Bureau. In that time I've gotten pretty accustomed to the layout of the hotel lobby and two items particularly have really captured my attention.

Photo by Brendan Banaszak, NPR

On each side of the main doors stands a mysterious looking, egg-shaped object mounted on a pedestal. The metal egg is about two feet high. Attached to it are eight ornate metal dragons spaced equally around the circumference. The dragons point toward the floor. Each has a little ball clenched in its mouth. Beneath each dragon sits a copper toad with its mouth wide open as if in mid-croak. At first glance, the objects seem to be a slightly kitschy attempt to give a very western looking hotel lobby a taste of the Orient. In actuality, they once served a slightly more relevant purpose.

As almost every Chinese school child can tell you, they are models of Didong Yi, the world's first earthquake detection device.

Continue reading "Seismic Instruments " »

8:43 AM ET | 05-22-2008 | permalink | comments (40) | e-mail post

Panda Water Aerobics

Bursts of color at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

Photo by Melissa Block, NPR

It's been nine days now since the earthquake rattled us here in Chengdu and caused such terrible devastation close by. The sounds and images collected over these days are haunting.

So, what a rare pleasure to go back today to a green oasis in the middle of this gritty, gray city: the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.

The air was fresh and moist. Egrets squawked noisily as they nested overhead. Lush beds of bright flowers lined the paths. The bustle of the city seemed very far away, even though it's right outside the gate.

The panda base here in Chengdu is home to 48 giant pandas. There are babies born last year, still drinking formula from bottles.

There are sub-adults, under five years old, who haven't yet reached sexual maturity. And then there are the moms and dads.

We found one of the adult female pandas, 9-year-old Qi Zhen, relaxing in a pool of water in her outdoor enclosure. She was sitting up, slumped over her paunchy belly, looking like a lazy matron dozing off in the tub. Then, as we watched, she started lifting her feet out of the water, rotating them in small splashy circles, in what could pass for panda water aerobics. Qi Zhen was putting on quite an impressive show, so out came my camera, set to the video function:

Video by Melissa Block, NPR

Continue reading "Panda Water Aerobics" »

7:40 AM ET | 05-21-2008 | permalink | comments (21) | e-mail post

Sichuan Seismic Scare

There's a run on tents here and an improvised tent city has sprung up around the Chengdu sports arena. We're not talking about homeless evacuees from the disaster area, although there are some who have joined their families in the city. These are mostly middle class residents of the city, whose homes are standing but who are sleeping outside, or planning for that eventuality, in part because of a warning from provincial seismological authorities.

Urban camping is in vogue throughout Chengdu as the result of a prediction that forecast a new quake Tuesday.

Photo by Brendan Banaszak, NPR

Continue reading "Sichuan Seismic Scare " »

2:49 AM ET | 05-20-2008 | permalink | comments (28) | e-mail post

Reporter's Night on Park Bench

Rumors of further seismic acivity sent Chengdu citizens to the streets to sleep..

Photo by Louisa Lim, NPR

When I set out to interview panicky people sleeping outside, little did I imagine that I myself would become one of them. In fact, I'd confidently predicted that I'd be back at the hotel within an hour. But that was not how things turned out. I'd taken a taxi to a place where many people were still sleeping outside in tents and cars, a week after the shock. When I first arrived, it seemed this constituted only a tiny minority of people, generally the elderly or the very nervous. But as I was interviewing, suddenly a massive influx of people came running to the square, quilts and tents under their arms, jostling to commandeer a space of their own. In the space of about five minutes, the roads were suddenly packed with cars, all heading in the same direction: out of the city.

Continue reading "Reporter's Night on Park Bench" »

2:44 AM ET | 05-20-2008 | permalink | comments (14) | e-mail post

Sichuan Farm Village Gets Supplies

Villagers take effort to shade NPR's Robert Siegel and Xiaoyu Xie even though it is they who have been devastated by an earthquake.

Photo by Chris Turpin, NPR

The earthquake destroyed most houses in Red Flag village. On our first visit, the situation was quite bleak; food and water were in short supply.

Three days later, we returned.

The situation improved markedly since our first visit. We saw villagers beginning to salvage whatever they can from the ruins of what used to be their homes. The scene was strangely serene: People looked up from their salvage operation, waved and said "hello;" children, without a school to go back to, followed us, laughing all the way.

Continue reading "Sichuan Farm Village Gets Supplies" »

11:59 PM ET | 05-19-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Fears of New Quake Scare Chengdu

Photo by Andrea Hsu, NPR

Earlier this evening, a couple of us wandered out to Tianfu Square, where the singing and chanting that began this afternoon was still going strong.

Photo by Andrea Hsu, NPR

Photo by Andrea Hsu, NPR

Crowds of mostly young people remained in the square, chanting "Go China! Sichuan! Stand up! Be strong!" They lit candles, sang the national anthem, and gathered around to sign a long white banner that read "Loved ones of the disaster area, safe journey."

Today was the first of three days of mourning for the victims of the May 12 earthquake. I imagine that this outpouring of emotion will continue well beyond this week.

Continue reading "Fears of New Quake Scare Chengdu" »

1:55 PM ET | 05-19-2008 | permalink | comments (28) | e-mail post

Emotional Aftershocks

Late Saturday night, when a potent aftershock jolted me out of bed, I thought about two 15-year-old boys I met on Thursday. Both were in Juyuan Middle School when the earthquake hit. That building was completely destroyed -- with hundreds of children killed.

The boys I met were in the lucky minority of survivors.

Juyuan middle school students Wei Bo (left) and Huang Zhihui (right), both 15, and both survivors of the May 12 earthquake.

Photo by Andrea Hsu, NPR

Huang Zhihui has a beautiful face, and soft eyes. When his school building started to shake, he followed his history teacher's orders to run. He had just made it to the playground when the school collapsed behind him.

His friend Wei Bo was in politics class. His teacher told the students to stay in their seats and keep calm. Wei was buried in the rubble but managed to claw his way out after 20 minutes, with just a scrape on his back.

He also helped save a friend.

His teacher was crushed, and killed.

Continue reading "Emotional Aftershocks" »

9:21 PM ET | 05-18-2008 | permalink | comments (24) | e-mail post

To Eat or To Mourn

Lunchtime in the village of Hongbai.

Photo by Brendan Banaszak, NPR

"Sit down! Eat!" was the order. Bowls of steaming rice porridge were shoved into our hands and stools jammed under our knees. We looked at each other, unsure of what to do next.

We'd just watched as the Ma family buried their eighty-seven year old matriarch, Li Mingxiu, on the hillside above the devastated remains of their quiet country village. Her reflexes dulled by her age, the old lady had been too slow to run outside when the earthquake struck, and she'd been crushed when the kitchen wall collapsed on her.

Continue reading "To Eat or To Mourn " »

5:22 AM ET | 05-18-2008 | permalink | comments (20) | e-mail post

Earthquake Reaction Raises Questions

Refugees, soldiers and rescue workers carry survivors out of the county town of Beichuan. The landslide that buried much of the town is visible in the background.

Photo by Anthony Kuhn, NPR

Though not at the epicenter of the quake, the city of Mianyang has actually suffered the most casualties from the May 12th earthquake. One look at the area's mountainous terrain makes it clear why Chairman Mao chose Mianyang as the linchpin of his "Third Line" strategy to relocate defense-related industries and research facilities there during the 1960s to make them less vulnerable to attack. (How vulnerable they are to earthquakes is of course is another matter.)

All along the road to Beichuan county, I saw homeless earthquake victims, many of whom had walked three days or more to come down from the mountains. Many limped along in simple canvas shoes, carrying bags and blankets. I saw many of them arrive at the Jiuzhou stadium in Mianyang, volunteers gave them tents, food and clothing.

These sights offered food for thought.

DECISION-MAKING MYSTERY

For example, I bumped into plenty of my colleagues in Beichuan. Security forces were clearly on orders to let foreign journalists into Beichuan. At what level was this decision made, and why? Why were foreign journalists being kicked out of less dangerous and remote areas? It certainly can't have hurt that there were quite a few foreign volunteers working hard to save victims in Beichuan, and Chinese and foreigners alike were clearly united in their urgent common mission.

Continue reading "Earthquake Reaction Raises Questions" »

1:48 PM ET | 05-16-2008 | permalink | comments (55) | e-mail post

Earthquake Aftermath Observations

A few glimpses of the aftermath of the Chinese earthquake, as portrayed in Chinese media:

Chinese premier Wen Jiabao pictured in Sichuan newspaper photo.

State-run Chinese television is running lots of footage showing squadrons of soldiers in green camouflage fatigues, and rescue teams in orange jumpsuits. They're seen headed toward the earthquake zone -- some with shovels, some with large backpacks, some running onto huge military transport planes. The footage is often accompanied by a dramatic soundtrack -- heroic music that wouldn't be out of place in a Spielberg film score.

Chinese premier Wen Jiabao is in charge of directing the relief operation; he flew here immediately after the earthquake struck. He's seen often on TV, calling out to people in devastated areas, "As long as there is a glimmer of hope, we will continue the rescue operation!" A photo of him is on the front page of the Chengdu newspaper today. He's in the badly-hit town of Yingxiu, standing over a bandaged survivor lying on a stretcher on the ground.

Continue reading "Earthquake Aftermath Observations" »

10:48 PM ET | 05-15-2008 | permalink | comments (24) | e-mail post

Freedom to Report at Zipingpu Dam

The Zipingpu Dam.

Photo by Brendan Banaszak, NPR

A row of green tents was perched at the far end of the road crossing the Zipingpu Dam Inside was the man responsible for the dam's safety, Mr. Hu. He was fielding calls on a red plastic telephone in this makeshift command center.

We'd read reports that cracks had appeared in the dam's wall following the earthquake, and apocalyptic warnings that if the dam were to collapse, water would surge downriver threatening Dujiangyan, a town of half a million people already reeling from the death and destruction meted out by this earthquake. Now having tracked down Mr. Hu, I was hoping for some official clarification about the extent of the damage.

Continue reading "Freedom to Report at Zipingpu Dam" »

7:37 PM ET | 05-15-2008 | permalink | comments (25) | e-mail post

Survivors from Juyuan Middle School

This morning, Melissa and I returned to Juyuan Middle School. We first visited the school Monday night, just hours after the earthquake.

A blackboard still hangs on the wall of what used to be a third floor classroom. Above it, a Chinese flag, and three characters that read "Nothing to fear," a message of encouragement for the students, many of whom came from the countryside.

Photo by Andrea Hsu, NPR

That night, we saw half a dozen cranes and scores of military police working to rescue buried schoolchildren. We also saw families, too many to bear, grieving their loved ones. In the hours and days since, many, many more bodies were pulled from the rubble, though nobody seems to know just how many. From what we can gather, the death toll at the school is in the hundreds.

Continue reading "Survivors from Juyuan Middle School" »

11:33 AM ET | 05-15-2008 | permalink | comments (73) | e-mail post

Dujiangyan Parents' Search for Child

Link to the story: Families Frantic to Find Loved Ones in Rubble May 14, 2008 -- All Things Considered

We found Fu Guanyu and her husband Wang Wei as they clung frantically to the long arm of a Hitachi excavator as it rumbled through the city of Dujiangyan.They were crying and seemed to be trying to pull the heavy machine, as if they could make it move faster toward their home. Their six-story apartment building had collapsed in the earthquake. Their toddler son, Wang Zhilu, was buried under the debris along with his grandparents. Mrs. Fu broke down as she told me she still had hope their son would be found alive.

This was the moment we first saw Wang Wei and Fu Guanyu, as they were begging the driver of an excavator to go to their house to try to rescue their son and his parents.

Photo by Andrea Hsu, NPR

Continue reading "Dujiangyan Parents' Search for Child" »

12:01 PM ET | 05-14-2008 | permalink | comments (446) | e-mail post

Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital

Today Robert Siegel, producer Art Silverman and Xiaoyu Xie, an NPR listener who is helping us out as translator and our guide to Chengdu, checked out relief efforts in the city itself. I tagged along.

At the Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, we were met initially with suspicion about who we were and what we were up to. But concern soon gave way to an openness you probably wouldn't find in most American hospitals. We were allowed into the ER. It was chaotic.

The nursing staff at Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital at the entrance.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

Continue reading "Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital" »

12:00 PM ET | 05-14-2008 | permalink | comments (11) | e-mail post

Driving Toward Destruction

We came here for a long-planned week of programming about Chengdu and the challenges of daily life in today's China. The earthquake, of course, made us change plans. Yesterday, with Xiaoyu Xie, our Chengdu-born pianist who serves as our interpreter, and Art Silverman, my producer, I went toward the places that were most damaged by the earthquake, in the mountains northeast of Chengdu.

After about a hundred miles the expressway runs out, and you take a two-lane switchback road of hairpin turns, a road cut out of the rocky face of the mountainside.

On the steep mountain slopes above, there are narrow terraced fields where the people of these parts have planted crops for centuries. Every couple of hundred yards or less, the two lanes squeeze into one, and the cars and trucks negotiate the rocks on the road.

Continue reading "Driving Toward Destruction" »

11:28 PM ET | 05-13-2008 | permalink | comments (11) | e-mail post

Meeting Survivors on the Road

Local people of the village of Gui Xi (g-way she) huddle under tarps either because their homes have been damaged, destroyed or they fear structural damage when after shocks occur.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

Melissa Block and I have just returned from a trip northwards, toward Beichuan County, where there are reports of thousands dead and 80 percent of buildings toppled. We got as far as the village of Ganxi, which we reached after traveling into a mountainous area that looks beautifully serene, until you see the devastation -- collapsed homes, huge boulders in the road, and families, on foot and in buses, emerging from some of the areas hardest hit by yesterday's earthquake.

Boulders shaken loose by the Sichuan earthquake damaged structures through the province.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

The first person I spoke to was 14-year-old Zheng Mingzhong, who was balancing himself with a bamboo pole as he stood on one foot, his other foot swollen and blistered. When we approached him, he immediately broke into tears.

He was at home when the earthquake hit yesterday, when bricks came tumbling down. His father was away -- at work at a coal mine in the mountains, and his two older brothers were away too, doing work in cities, the oldest one in Shanghai. He has not had contact with them.

Cars have to navigate around debris on an already narrow road.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

His mother died before he was four years old. He went to his grandmother's, and together, the two of them walked 3 or 4 hours, he thinks, to a town where he spent the night. Then this morning, he got on a motorcycle to Ganxi, where he hoped to find medical help. He did, from a local village doctor, who diagnosed him with a fracture.

We also spoke to 36-year-old Zhao Rong, who had walked 30 kilometers with four children -- two of them hers, two others the children of a relative and a friend. She comes from the town of Chen Jiaba in Beichuan County, where she said everything was toppled. She believes that as many as one third of the 15,000 residents in her town may have perished. She said they had moved into the town so that their children could have a better education, and now, they've lost everything. She told us, we don't know where we're going, we'll just try to find a place to stop ... at this point, we're just trying to survive.

Continue reading "Meeting Survivors on the Road" »

7:18 AM ET | 05-13-2008 | permalink | comments (45) | e-mail post

Donating to International Charities

A number of people have posted questions in the blog's discussion threads about how they can make donations to charities involved in the relief efforts. International charities are just beginning to ramp up their efforts in China, as well as in Myanmar. If you're looking to give money to help these relief activities, we've listed just some of the larger, established international aid organizations to consider:

• AmeriCares
• Direct Relief International
• Doctors Without Borders
• International Committee of the Red Cross
• Save the Children
• UNICEF

NPR is not endorsing or vouching for any of these groups. The list is just a starting point for you. There are a number of online tools available for evaluating charities and making donations to a broader range of NGOs, including CharityNavigator.org and NetworkForGood.org.

--Andy Carvin

10:09 PM ET | 05-12-2008 | permalink | comments (8) | e-mail post

Chengdu Sheraton Evacuation

Robert Siegel with the chambermaid who grabbed him and yanked him down the 27 flights to the hotel lobby.

We were all escorted from the hotel into the adjacent soccer stadium. Robert Siegel tries to reach Melissa Block as she and Andrea Hsu walked back from their interview.

Andrea Hsu files audio from her laptop computer on the lobby floor of the Chengdu Sheration once the all-clear was given, as All Things Considered Host Melissa Block and Robert Siegel discuss plans to go out to outlying areas where quake damage was greatest.

Photos by Art Silverman, NPR

Here's how the earthquake played out for those of us high above the city of Chengdu today.

We'd worked all morning on our stories about change coming to Chengdu, then broke for a lunch down the street. For some reason I felt I needed a nap, so I stretched out on my bed on the 27th floor of the Sheraton Hotel (we're here because it affords us the only good internet access.)

At 2:30, some prankster started shaking my bed violently. I figured one of our crew wanted to get back to work and was determined to get me up.

Once I figured out this was no joker, I looked out the window to see colonies of people standing in the street. Then a bunch of them started running. All the while the room was shaking. I'd only been in one earthquake before: in Japan exactly 25 years ago. This one seemed to not be as bad. But then again, in 1983 wine bottles smashed at the Italian restaurant I was at. This time the room moved, but nothing broke. Soon the shaking stopped, and I decided it was time to get out.

I gathered camera, tape recorder, microphones and walked slowly to the stairway, stopping to record the emergency announcement the hotel had prepared for just such an occasion.

Just outside the lobby Xiaoyu Xie met me and we found Robert not far away. Robert had gone down the stairs as the shaking was still going on, being pulled by a brave and determined hotel employee. The very professional hotel staff was passing out bottled water as they steered us into the soccer stadium next door.

It felt good to sit down on the grass away from potential falling objects.

We waited there until Melissa Block and Andrea Hsu had returned, and we started devising our plan to switch gears from working on features stories destined for next week to breaking news.

The Sheraton put out a vast, free buffet for hotel guests and allowed us all into the lobby to chow down. Robert and I had the same thought: we recalled the Canal Street Sheraton in New Orleans where we camped out in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina -- which offer buffet meals instead of normal hotel fare.

-- Art Silverman

3:19 PM ET | 05-12-2008 | permalink | comments (17) | e-mail post

Earthquake Hits Sichuan

We just got back from the town of Dujiangyan -- about 45 miles northwest of Chengdu.

Robert Siegel and I, along with interpretor Xiaoyu Xie walked in the dark from a Red Cross outpost in downtown to the site of the hospital where an entire wing collapsed. We spoke with a man waiting along the roadway to find out the fate of his sister who was inside.

Wailing sirens carried people away from the scene to hospitals in Chengdu. People were camped out for the night along the streets in the slight drizzle that started to fall.

-- Art Silverman

2:40 PM ET | 05-12-2008 | permalink | comments (15) | e-mail post

A Horrific Scene at a Middle School in Dujiangyan

We are just leaving the horrific scene at the Juyuan Middle School outside the city of Dujiangyan. Hundreds of parents are still standing in the rain as the army works to find children trapped in the rubble. One parent told us she could hear her son calling. A scene of utter desperation. Back a couple hundred feet was an area where rescuers -- peoples armed police -- were bringing bodies that had been retrieved. Families were rushing over to see whether the child was theirs. Under tents are families burning incense and candles and paper money next to the shrouded bodies of their loved ones. A terrible, terrible scene. Listen to the story on All Things Considered.

-- Andrea Hsu

1:44 PM ET | 05-12-2008 | permalink | comments (39) | e-mail post

Hear Us Experience the Earthquake

You can hear Melissa's interview interrupted as the building started shaking and we realized it was an earthquake. For the full story go here.

12:39 PM ET | 05-12-2008 | permalink | comments (7) | e-mail post

Long Gas Station Lines

We are headed to Dujiangyan. Lines at gas stations are long, and some stations are shut. On the radio, the news is that Premier Wen Jiabao has arrived here in Sichuan.

-- Andrea Hsu

10:51 AM ET | 05-12-2008 | permalink | comments (7) | e-mail post

Caught in the Earthquake

Melissa and I had just sat down for an interview with a Christian pastor when we heard and felt a rumble. I remember looking up at the ceiling and seeing it shaking. We ran out onto the street where students from the theological seminary and other local residents had run out, many looking panicked. The ground beneath our feet continued to move for maybe two to three minutes, and pieces of brick and cement fell off the buildings; the cross on the church was swaying. People seemed stunned. One man was completely naked. We walked a couple miles to the stadium to meet up with Robert and Art and Xiaoyu and passed crowds all along the way who stood in the middle of intersections.

We are heading out to areas we hear were much harder hit. All along the roads, in medians, are people camped out.

-- Andrea Hsu

9:22 AM ET | 05-12-2008 | permalink | comments (85) | e-mail post

Gu Zheng Lessons on Sunday Morning

Today I learned to appreciate the beautiful sound of a harp-like instrument called the Gu Zheng.

We didn't set out to do a music story for "All Things Considered," but we got one. In spades. Our intention this morning was to simply find a place where only-children and their parents might be approached to talk about their lives. We got a lot more.

Three players of the Gu Zheng at a private music school in Chengdu. The little girl in the front is 6 1/2 years old, the girl in the middle is six, the one in the rear is ten.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

Music school owner Long Dejun.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

At the Long Yun Gu Zheng Training Academy we were treated to performances and practice. We wound up at this private school after some disappointing experiences trying to obtain permission to interview kids at public schools. Luckily, our trusted guide and loyal listener Xiaoyu Xie is not only a Chengdu native, but a musician. This school is run by an old family friend named Long Dejun. And without advanced letters, grilling on our purpose or numerous phone calls we were invited to swing by at 9 am Sunday.

Continue reading "Gu Zheng Lessons on Sunday Morning" »

12:00 PM ET | 05-11-2008 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

Eyes on Chengdu

In about a week, when you turn NPR's All Things Considered on, you'll have a direct connection to China. That's when Melissa Block and Robert Siegel begin to co-host the program from Chengdu. The two will tell stories about overlooked aspects of life in this vast nation.

All the research, all the planning that you've followed on this blog will come booming out of your radio speakers. It'll be available, of course, on NPR.org, too.

Block has already been here collecting stories, and returns later today.

Siegel arrived this week and immediately sought a direct connection to our focus on youth, inviting eight outspoken English-speaking students over for dinner and a long chat.

Dinner with a group of English-speaking students.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

They talked to us for hours about a variety of things. We asked what they want an American audience to know about their country. They told us what it's like to be raised in a society that largely consists of only children your own age.

And they shared their thoughts about economic growth versus and clean environment.

Continue reading "Eyes on Chengdu" »

12:00 AM ET | 05-11-2008 | permalink | comments (17) | e-mail post

Language and Laundry

Notes from a luxury, i.e. Western, hotel in Chengdu:

Shirts: vetted, purged and then cleaned.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

No one tries harder than the army of enthusiastic young people who staff our hotel. At the front desk, two young women checked me in the other night. They go by the English names they have chosen, a practice that can be phonetic, literal, or wildly imaginative. Their names are Amy and Jones. Amy sees my reservation from National Public Radio and, upon learning that I speak on the radio, observes that my English is VERY "standard". I later learn that this is a great compliment in translation.

Three days later, my colleague and I both send in laundry and both receive phone calls about the quality of our clothing.

"Just to check, Mister Siegel, on a black tee shirt, there are two small holes...On a red shirt, the color is faded on the back."

And so on.

They are doing due diligence on the laundry, establishing by mutual consent that these blemishes on my wardrobe are pre-existing conditions, prior to laundering, and that I still intend to have the items laundered despite their gross imperfections. I do. But I am now embarrassed about the condition of my wardrobe and wonder what my ancestors would make of the holes in my tee shirt.

- - Robert Siegel

11:17 AM ET | 05- 8-2008 | permalink | comments (14) | e-mail post

Visiting the Worthy Tea Promotion Center

(This entry is written by the pianist Xiaoyu Xie. He's a Chengdu homeboy who now performs and teaches in western Massachusetts. He's an avid NPR listener who has graciously volunteered to show us around his hometown while we are here.)

Working with specialty teas in Chengdu.

Photos by Art Silverman, NPR

Tea is one of the world's oldest and most-consumed beverage. It's still preferred by most Chinese in spite of the growing popularity of Lattes and Frappuccinos.

As life in modern day China gets more hectic, the ancient art of tea drinking is a way to slow things down.

The other day I stopped into the Worthy Tea Promotion Center near downtown Chengdu. The owner is Song Yu.

He showed me Gong-Fu-Cha. In English that's Kong Fu Tea. It means literally 'tea brewed with great skill'.

He tells me "This is a part of our cultural heritage. Gong Fu Cha brings together mind, body, and nature. Not to mention that tea is the healthiest beverage in the world."

Continue reading "Visiting the Worthy Tea Promotion Center" »

3:15 AM ET | 05- 8-2008 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

Standoff on North Workers' Stadium Street

On the southbound service road of North Workers Stadium Street in Beijing, a crowd was blocking traffic. A uniformed parking attendant was standing in front of a new, white Toyota, preventing it from moving forward into the intersection. The parking attendant was a woman in her thirties or forties; she does the kind of work that can make one look older.

Standing -- or rather sitting one's ground in Beijing.

Photos by Robert Siegel, NPR

The driver of the Toyota was a woman in her thirties or forties; she wore a stylish blouse and sunglasses, things that can make one look younger. The driver had parked in a lot up the block, returned to her car and after being told the fee was five kuai, paid three, said she had no change, and pulled out of the lot and into the service road. The attendant walked ahead of her, demanding payment.

A HUMAN ROADBLOCK

At the traffic light, the argument became more heated and the traffic attendant sat down in front of the Toyota, turning herself into a human roadblock.

This attracted the crowd of, perhaps, two dozen people. Some of them shouted at the driver: "pay her."

This seemed to be the opinion of the older people. "We're all the same," one older gentleman in a baseball cap told my friend who speaks Chinese. He evidently meant 'everybody pays'. But others shouted angrily at the parking attendant, who protested, "she has to pay."

"You go back to where you came from and pay," said one of the driver's supporters, who evidently had her marked for an out-of-towner.

The driver rolled up her window and honked.

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12:00 PM ET | 05- 7-2008 | permalink | comments (13) | e-mail post

Environmental Protestors Go for a Stroll

Chengdu residents turned out Sunday to protest the building of an ethylene plant they say could further pollute the city's air and water.

Photo by Andrea Hsu, NPR

Hundreds of people gathered along Chengdu's Funan River Sunday, to express concern over the building of a state-owned ethylene plant they fear will pollute the air and the water. Word of this environmental protest spread through cell phone text messages that urged people to gather for a stroll, without slogans, without posters. And that's what people did.

For two hours, the protestors, some of them in face masks, walked, chatted, loitered by the river. Police were present, on motorcycles, in cruisers, and later - on foot, a large group of them having been bused in.

But few seemed intimidated.

Photos were being snapped left and right, some of the protestors posing for pictures in front of the police bus. I caught one young activist lecturing a group of four fresh-faced cops, telling them they should throw their police caps into the river, put on face masks, and take an interest in protecting the natural environment. Later on, when a policeman on a megaphone ordered the crowd to disperse, another protestor called out "But we're just waiting for the bus!" sending ripples of laughter through the crowd.

All in all, it was a remarkable scene: hundreds of people openly, if somewhat cautiously, expressing discontent. But, as another protestor pointed out, Sunday's gathering was still a far cry from what, ideally, they would be doing, if allowed.

- - Andrea Hsu

12:00 PM ET | 05- 6-2008 | permalink | comments (10) | e-mail post

Uncovering Ancient China

Two sacrificial pits discovered here in 1986 led to today's elaborate and quite pleasant tourist mecca.

Photos by Art Silverman, NPR

China has always been proud of it's long history. Much of it is known. But one day about 22 years ago, some brick workers stumbled on some strange objects on the ground. They were working about 35 miles north of Chengdu. What they found made it clear just how old this civilization really is.

In a place called Sanxingdui, hundreds of amazing relics of the ancient Shu people were unearthed, opening a window to an era that had been a blank page in history books. These forgotten people must have sat around carving bizarre heads that resemble our ideas of aliens. They also worked with copper alloys, and not just bronze. Some of there objects look like trees, and on them hang mteal leaves, making them look like a cross between early Calder and rusty plumbing.

All this in a two thousand years period, said to have started about 4800 BC.

And then they vanished.

Now the site of the 1986 discovery has blossomed into a big grassy park with a lake and several museum buildings. You enter one, and are greeted by a sign bragging about what was found here:

"The ancient remains at Sanxingdui are worldly renowned in the multitude of Chinese antiquities, they are among the most spectacular and of the highest historical, scientific, cultural and artistic value."

Another museum sign includes this unattributed quote:

"Having slumbered for thousands of years, once awakened, it shocks the world."

Someone said it. I wonder who?

In any case, the old stuff was quite amazing. But after a trip from Washington, D.C. what was most appealling was the soft grass outside the museum. Perfect for a midday nap. I'm sure the ancient Shu people would understand.

-- Art Silverman

Did the aliens who settled Sichuan look like this?.

Photo by Art Silverman, NPR

12:00 PM ET | 05- 5-2008 | permalink | comments (10) | e-mail post

Semi-Vacation Day

The Siegel Has Landed: NPR's Anthony Kuhn, left, welcomes ATC Host Robert Siegel to his courtyard.

Photo by Alison Klayman

Arrived in Beijing at World's Biggest Airline Terminal and was met by a friendly ex-ATC intern Alison Klayman, now working in Beijing. The city, of course, is huge and I am puzzled as to whether the traffic is heavy or light for a place with more people than New York. Today, there was no good answer as no one could quite say if this was weekend traffic or workaday traffic.

It seems the Chinese government is experimenting with vacation times, trying to break up big blocks of time when all one point three billion get the day off. So for this year's May 1st holiday, they gave the country Friday off as well as Thursday, but rather than go for broke and have a FOUR Day weekend, they declared Sunday a work day this week.

There may be somewhat less than full compliance. A gut estimate of Beijing traffic volume? Everyone agrees it's bumper-to-bumper compared to ten years ago when private car ownership was a rarity. But, by New York, London, LA or Mexico City standards, this city looks like it's still moving pretty well.

- - Robert Siegel

9:27 AM ET | 05- 4-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Finding Fortune, Blind

Okay. I'm back in China for the first time in 25 years.

Question: Where did they put the country I left?

Answer: It's there. But you have to look in all the tiny nooks and crannies, drive far away from the skyscrapers and fast food restaurants, search the outskirts in the towns where roads are still rutted. You'll find old China wherever friends squat in groups to talk, or in the serenity in the eyes of an old man carrying a couple live turtles on a string over his shoulder. And you can find it at some magical places.

The large character means "fortune" and you have good fortune if you can close your eyes, arm outstretched, walk forward and stay on course to touch it.

Photos by Art Silverman, NPR

I experienced one of them today. As skies turned blue, and a spring breeze rose and the air smelled sweet I went to a Buddhist monastery a little north of the city. In Chinese it's called "Baoguang si," which translates to "Monastery of Divine Light." Fellow producer Andrea Hsu and Chengdu-born NPR listener, Xiaoyu Xie of Northhampton, Mass, took me there. The main attraction that draws crowds is a hall overrun with statues of Buddha; grumpy Buddhas, cheerful Buddhas, bearded Buddhas with fire in their eyes.

As the three of us exited the hall and moved toward the street, we came upon a wall where a big red Chinese character hung conspicuously. We watched as person after person did the same, curious ritual. Each closed their eyes, lifted an arm and strode toward the symbol, which is the word for "fortune" in Chinese.

"It's a way to bring good fortune," Xiaoyu explained. The symbol means fortune. And it's great entertainment, in the manner of "Candid Camera" or "Jackass."

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9:59 AM ET | 05- 3-2008 | permalink | comments (8) | e-mail post

Travel Booking Haiku?

Booking air travel in China has become as easy as A-B-C.

Andrea Hsu, NPR

Over the next ten days or so, I'll be joined here in Chengdu by the rest of our China team. Producer Art Silverman will be the first to arrive, tonight.

The other day, I was booking his Beijing to Chengdu air ticket, as I normally book tickets, over the phone with a travel company called Ctrip.

I like Ctrip, because they bring the e-ticket receipts to me wherever I am, and I can pay cash on delivery. However, in the past, I always dreaded having to spell out English names over the phone. It was often a painfully slow process, with some letters harder to communicate than others.

Now, after several months of this, I think I've finally cracked the system! It's all about choosing the right word to represent each letter.

No, not Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, but a set of words that seem delectably appropriate for this day and age.

Continue reading "Travel Booking Haiku?" »

9:05 AM ET | 05- 2-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

May Day! May Day!

Today is May 1 -- International Labor Day.

Here are two snapshots from Chengdu on this day, the start of a 3-day national holiday.

Children of migrant workers find ways to amuse themselves in a courtyard outside the rooms their families rent.

Andrea Hsu, NPR

I spent the afternoon just outside Chengdu's 3rd ring road, in a migrant worker enclave packed with ramshackle buildings, makeshift outdoor kitchens and shared bathrooms. There were lots of children running about, a few teenagers watching television, some old people playing mahjong, but otherwise very few adults. They were at work, on construction sites, in restaurants and hotels, or on the road somewhere.

Crowds gather in Tianfu Square on May 1 to enjoy the spectacular fountain and lights show, which is set to music.

Andrea Hsu, NPR

I wandered down to Tianfu Square in the heart of Chengdu this evening, just in time for the start of the spectacular fountain and lights show. After a hot and sticky day, the cool spray from the fountains came as a welcome relief.

-- Andrea Hsu

8:02 AM ET | 05- 1-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post