Tuesday 27 September: Finishing the Yangtze at Yichang and on to Shanghai

 [Larry:  Well we made it down the Yangtze, some 700 km, and now we are being called on the ship speaker as we are descending the dam.  The descent will either be by a ship elevator, or a 5 stage lock.  We saw both this evening and I'm not sure which will be used. (...5 min later): I see now we are approaching the 5-stage locks - largest in the world - it drops some 75 meters. I sat on the front deck and watched the whole lock passage, through 4 locks...fascinating - but lost some sleep as it took 3 hours, ending at 3:30am.]    

We eased into the first lock just after midnight. The water level was 135 M above sea level. It's not a quiet performance since several boats use the same lock ( 9 came out of the upbound) and there are announcements, radios and so forth. Larry stayed on the front observation deck all alone until we were well clear of the last lock [ there were 5 locks all together, but the first 2 are combined as the river hasn't risen to its final level], but I slept through most of the 3-hour process. I did go out and get the feel of being at the bottom of the first lock and then a bit later to see the open water again but just from our own balcony.  

When we docked at Yichang we had a great view of the departure ceremony - fiirst "stick soldiers" ( men and wormen ) carried all the bags ashore, then the people went across the gang plank to the accompaniment of the percussion group and a dancing dragon.  

      

Ship's crew were placed all the way to the steps up to the parking lot [ each one bid us farewell ] . Our local guide for Yichang was Gary, who took us first to a vast riverside park where local residents go for their

morning exercise on equipment that is like an adult play ground, and also for gentler enjoyment of lawns, trees and water. 

 

 

 

We listened to musical groups, watched young cadets drilling and children playing.    

Then we visited the museum of artifacts, recovered from the areas that have been, or will be flooded by the Three Gorges Dam Project. Our lunch was voted the best Chinese meal so far. On the way to the airport we stopped at a traditional poor farm.  The story was that the lady lived there with her disabled son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren, and that she supplemented her meagre income by opening her home to visitors. 

When we got off the bus a man in traditional garb came by leading a cow, then stood around for photos. It was all quite staged, ["queue the cow"] but the house likely is like the old mud-built dwellings that have mostly been replaced. It was definitely in the hovel category, and would not be comfortable to live in [ or camp in ]. We did get to see crops, like rice and sqash up close. 

We flew to Shanghai, arriving in time to check in and shower before going to a beautiful restaurant with mediocre food.

We did sample a local dumpling specialty which was pretty good.

Photos 27 Sep Yichang and on to Shanghai