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After descending the mountain itself I had a day to fill in before my return to Nanjing on the midnight train so it was time to explore some of the city. Huangshan city, called Huizhou in ancient times (Song Dynasty 960-1279), lies at the southernmost end of Anhui Province with a population of 1.5 million people. For most tourists, Huangshan City is just a transit point and gateway barely noticed on the way to the mystical cloud shrouded peaks of Huangshan Mountain. Yet it is a city that offers an insight into one of China's ethnic minority groups - The Hui.
A visit to the China Huizhou Culture Museum proved to be a wonderful addition to my trip. It is a comprehensive museum in Anhui province covering all aspects of the Huizhou culture including architecture, art, science and technology, customs, history and etiquette. The Huizhou culture was well-known in a historical period running from the Southern Song Dynasty (1127 - 1279) to the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911) for its merchants, architecture, cuisine, seal cutting, opera, medicine, and a famous Confucian school of idealist philosophy of the Song (960 - 1279) and Ming (1368 - 1644) dynasties. The culture, a typical example of Chinese culture in late farming era of Chinese history, once created splendid historical achievements, with its great number of talents in many fields such as philosophy, opera, arts, and trade. I found it totally fascinating to learn about this minority group and the influence of women within that culture particularly given that in general women do not feature strongly in Chinese culture.
Next stop was a visit to Tunxi Ancient Street (Lao Jie) situated in the center of Tunxi District.
The street with centuries-old history dates back to the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Emperor Huizong (1082-1135) moved his seat of government to Lin'an (now is Hangzhou), when many architects and workmen were conscripted to construct the new capital. After returning to their hometown, they imitated the structural style to build architecture along the street, so Tunxi Ancient Street was formed. At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), a merchant in Anhui invested money to build 47 stores so as to attract businessmen, which contributed to the communication of the street with outside world. Gradually it developed into the distribution center for materials in and out of Anhui in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The street is paved with maroon flagstones with a total length of 1,273 meters, of which 895 meters is the pedestrian commercial street. Shops standing on both sides are generally of two or three floors, which feature the local Anhui style of stone base, brick construction and tile roof. The layout of these buildings commonly takes on the appearance of shops in front while houses and workshops are to the rear. Nowadays the street is also used as a natural studio for films and TV series.
There are two well-known museums in the street. One is the Tunxi Museum with a display of furniture from the Ming and Qing dynasties on the first floor and an exhibition of calligraphy, paintings and china upstairs. The other is Wancuilou, a four-storey structure which is the first private museum of ancient architectural style. Famous ink stones and the four treasures of study, writing brushes, ink sticks, ink slabs and paper are displayed or for sale on the first floor. Here you can find the biggest inkstone weighing more than 12,500 kilograms (about 27,558 pounds). Cultural relics and other artworks collected by the owner of the museum are exhibited on the second floor.
Along the street there are many shops that have existed for over one hundred years. Curios and knick-knacks including inkstones, brushes, local teas, and local snacks can also be found. Shopkeepers welcome you to try their produce and I tried a few of the local snacks but gave a miss to the tofu and of course anything egg based. Also tried a nip of the local baiju with one of the many Chinese tourists who were also there to sample the wares. There are many small restaurants and cafes along the street and down the few side streets offering local and western foods.
My next stop was meant to be the Huizhou cultural show but I ended up feeling very sick and got taken to the local hospital. What an experiences that turned out to be!!! With the outbreak of Avian flu in the Eastern provinces of China it was clear that this was their only concern.....not what was actually wrong with the patient. Upon arrival I was given a mask and had my blood pressure checked..that will be 5 yuan thank you.....next it was in to see the doctor who did not even look at me, directed all his questions to the guide and even ignored me when I answered in Chinese!!!...that will be 19 yuan thank you......he then wrote in my history.....what only knows as I'm waiting to get it interpreted and decided that I needed to have an IV put in......that will be 74 yuan thank you. By this time I'm getting rather annoyed with the process and tried to find out exactly what they thought was wrong with me....no answer just that I needed an IV. My poor guide explained to the doctor that I was a Professor from Nanjing Medical University and that I wanted to know what was wrong.....the doctor looked mortified and quickly found a nurse to take over!!! so much for doctor-patient communication!!!. The nurse could only say "hello, follow me" in English but at least actually looked at my face when she spoke.
I was taken into a dingy room where she wanted to put the IV in. Holy Hell you have to be joking I thought....no hand washing, no gloves and she thinks she is going to stick a needle in me!!!!. no bloody way so I grab my handbag, get out the hand sanitiser and pour it on her hands. she looked at me confused so I demonstrated what to do and then checked the equipment. The IV was already opened so I made her go and get a new one. By this stage I am more petrified of the hospital than what is wrong with me (self diagnosis: either I had mild hypothermia or gastro) but figured either way some IV fluids might help me to feel a bit better if we can just use some slight universal precautions!!!
With the IV in place I now had time to take in my surroundings.....oh dear I wish I hadn't looked. There was mould growing on the walls, paint flaking off the ceiling, dirty floors with dust balls in the corner of the room and dried blood on the chairs. OMG what has happened to basic infection control???? Of course no-one could tell me what they had put in the IV but at least they let me bring the vial back so I can get one of our doctors to tell me. As I sat there I reflected upon how we take healthcare for granted in developed countries. We assume that the staff are well trained, they use the latest techniques and equipment and they actually talk to the patients. NOT so in a developing country...China might like to think it had developed but it has a very long way to go with healthcare if my experience is anything to go by. Of course I had to do my own observations as once the IV was in no staff membe came near me.... I had plenty of locals staring through the window at me, fascinated by the "lao wei" in their local hospital.
Still feeling sick and by now freezing cold...oh did I mention that the room they put me in was unheated??? I asked if I could lie down...yes of course that will be 19 yuan thank you!! Kept all my clothing on as I was unsure of the cleanliness of the bed. Once the IV had finished I turned it off and then got my guide to go and find a nurse to take it out. At least she bought a sterile dressing - unopened - to put on the site......maybe a little of what I said was sinking in.....
Anyway they kept me there till it was time for my train to depart. Discharge consisted of me picking up all the bits of paper and notes and walking out of the hospital. Trust me they wont need to keep my history as do not plan on ever returning again!!!! figure I will keep it as a souvenir!!!!
Got back to Nanjing in one piece. Self medicated from my own first aid kit and am now feeling better. No thanks to the Chinese health system!!!
A visit to the China Huizhou Culture Museum proved to be a wonderful addition to my trip. It is a comprehensive museum in Anhui province covering all aspects of the Huizhou culture including architecture, art, science and technology, customs, history and etiquette. The Huizhou culture was well-known in a historical period running from the Southern Song Dynasty (1127 - 1279) to the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911) for its merchants, architecture, cuisine, seal cutting, opera, medicine, and a famous Confucian school of idealist philosophy of the Song (960 - 1279) and Ming (1368 - 1644) dynasties. The culture, a typical example of Chinese culture in late farming era of Chinese history, once created splendid historical achievements, with its great number of talents in many fields such as philosophy, opera, arts, and trade. I found it totally fascinating to learn about this minority group and the influence of women within that culture particularly given that in general women do not feature strongly in Chinese culture.
Next stop was a visit to Tunxi Ancient Street (Lao Jie) situated in the center of Tunxi District.
The street with centuries-old history dates back to the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Emperor Huizong (1082-1135) moved his seat of government to Lin'an (now is Hangzhou), when many architects and workmen were conscripted to construct the new capital. After returning to their hometown, they imitated the structural style to build architecture along the street, so Tunxi Ancient Street was formed. At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), a merchant in Anhui invested money to build 47 stores so as to attract businessmen, which contributed to the communication of the street with outside world. Gradually it developed into the distribution center for materials in and out of Anhui in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The street is paved with maroon flagstones with a total length of 1,273 meters, of which 895 meters is the pedestrian commercial street. Shops standing on both sides are generally of two or three floors, which feature the local Anhui style of stone base, brick construction and tile roof. The layout of these buildings commonly takes on the appearance of shops in front while houses and workshops are to the rear. Nowadays the street is also used as a natural studio for films and TV series.
There are two well-known museums in the street. One is the Tunxi Museum with a display of furniture from the Ming and Qing dynasties on the first floor and an exhibition of calligraphy, paintings and china upstairs. The other is Wancuilou, a four-storey structure which is the first private museum of ancient architectural style. Famous ink stones and the four treasures of study, writing brushes, ink sticks, ink slabs and paper are displayed or for sale on the first floor. Here you can find the biggest inkstone weighing more than 12,500 kilograms (about 27,558 pounds). Cultural relics and other artworks collected by the owner of the museum are exhibited on the second floor.
Along the street there are many shops that have existed for over one hundred years. Curios and knick-knacks including inkstones, brushes, local teas, and local snacks can also be found. Shopkeepers welcome you to try their produce and I tried a few of the local snacks but gave a miss to the tofu and of course anything egg based. Also tried a nip of the local baiju with one of the many Chinese tourists who were also there to sample the wares. There are many small restaurants and cafes along the street and down the few side streets offering local and western foods.
My next stop was meant to be the Huizhou cultural show but I ended up feeling very sick and got taken to the local hospital. What an experiences that turned out to be!!! With the outbreak of Avian flu in the Eastern provinces of China it was clear that this was their only concern.....not what was actually wrong with the patient. Upon arrival I was given a mask and had my blood pressure checked..that will be 5 yuan thank you.....next it was in to see the doctor who did not even look at me, directed all his questions to the guide and even ignored me when I answered in Chinese!!!...that will be 19 yuan thank you......he then wrote in my history.....what only knows as I'm waiting to get it interpreted and decided that I needed to have an IV put in......that will be 74 yuan thank you. By this time I'm getting rather annoyed with the process and tried to find out exactly what they thought was wrong with me....no answer just that I needed an IV. My poor guide explained to the doctor that I was a Professor from Nanjing Medical University and that I wanted to know what was wrong.....the doctor looked mortified and quickly found a nurse to take over!!! so much for doctor-patient communication!!!. The nurse could only say "hello, follow me" in English but at least actually looked at my face when she spoke.
I was taken into a dingy room where she wanted to put the IV in. Holy Hell you have to be joking I thought....no hand washing, no gloves and she thinks she is going to stick a needle in me!!!!. no bloody way so I grab my handbag, get out the hand sanitiser and pour it on her hands. she looked at me confused so I demonstrated what to do and then checked the equipment. The IV was already opened so I made her go and get a new one. By this stage I am more petrified of the hospital than what is wrong with me (self diagnosis: either I had mild hypothermia or gastro) but figured either way some IV fluids might help me to feel a bit better if we can just use some slight universal precautions!!!
With the IV in place I now had time to take in my surroundings.....oh dear I wish I hadn't looked. There was mould growing on the walls, paint flaking off the ceiling, dirty floors with dust balls in the corner of the room and dried blood on the chairs. OMG what has happened to basic infection control???? Of course no-one could tell me what they had put in the IV but at least they let me bring the vial back so I can get one of our doctors to tell me. As I sat there I reflected upon how we take healthcare for granted in developed countries. We assume that the staff are well trained, they use the latest techniques and equipment and they actually talk to the patients. NOT so in a developing country...China might like to think it had developed but it has a very long way to go with healthcare if my experience is anything to go by. Of course I had to do my own observations as once the IV was in no staff membe came near me.... I had plenty of locals staring through the window at me, fascinated by the "lao wei" in their local hospital.
Still feeling sick and by now freezing cold...oh did I mention that the room they put me in was unheated??? I asked if I could lie down...yes of course that will be 19 yuan thank you!! Kept all my clothing on as I was unsure of the cleanliness of the bed. Once the IV had finished I turned it off and then got my guide to go and find a nurse to take it out. At least she bought a sterile dressing - unopened - to put on the site......maybe a little of what I said was sinking in.....
Anyway they kept me there till it was time for my train to depart. Discharge consisted of me picking up all the bits of paper and notes and walking out of the hospital. Trust me they wont need to keep my history as do not plan on ever returning again!!!! figure I will keep it as a souvenir!!!!
Got back to Nanjing in one piece. Self medicated from my own first aid kit and am now feeling better. No thanks to the Chinese health system!!!
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