In Shanghai

Our last stop in China was Shanghai. It's a large, modern, shiny city.



We met with a delegation from the Institute of Coastal Studies at East China Normal University.



There is a wonderful antiquities museum in Shanghai. Aren't these statues cool?



Knittah's Dad sets a crazy pace. He let me take a break, though.



At long last, it was time to go home. One last picture outside the VIP lounge in Beijing. Did you know I'm a VIP?



Actually, it should be VIS: Very Important Swatchy!

Xi'an

From Chengdu, we went to Xi'an. This city was an ancient capital of China, and has amazing architecture. Knittah's Dad thought the Great Wild Goose Pagoda was the best.




We also visited the city wall, which has a really cool bell tower.



My buddy Frank tried to throw me off the wall!



But don't worry. Knittah's Dad always takes really good care of me.

Back to Chengdu

After we left Beijing, we headed for Chengdu. Swatchy Hugz was there before me! Some of what I saw was the same, like the yummy food:



But I also visited the Naval Institute of Biology and saw this leatherback turtle. Yes, there are sea turtles in China!



But the best part, ooohhhhhhhh, the best part was the PANDAS!



No one would let me get too close to the pandas. I don't know why. They sure are cute, though.



Knittah's Dad was the luckiest. He got to hold one! I think it talked to him!

Time to Play

Knittah's Dad works hard. But this was our first trip to China, so we got to see some sights too. Here we are at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology.




Knittah's Dad said this was a statue of horned dinosaurs, but not Triceratops. I don't know what that means though!

This is one of the botanical gardens at the Institute of Botany in Beijing. It was October, but look at the flowers! Can you see me in the picture?



This is a monastery in Beijing. I forget the official name, but I sure think it is amazing!



Finally, this is the famous Great Wall of China. But guess what? Knittah's Dad was carrying me in his pocket, and FORGOT to take me out! So I didn't see it. I went all the way to China, and even got to the wall, but I didn't get to see it. Sigh.

Official Meeting Type Stuff

My trip to China was a business trip, after all, so Knittah's Dad took me to meetings right away. We started at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.


This is our group from the US along with the outreach team at the Chinese Academy of Science.

We met with Chinese scientists to talk about climate change and how to fix it. There was a lot of serious thinking going on.*



Fortunately for me - I mean, us - we had a delicious lunch! Everywhere we went in China, our hosts always provided elaborate meals and banquets. I even got my own plate this time!




*Knittah says that a recent article in The Economist talked about the Chinese government's slow action and commitment to addressing pollution issues. While some officials and scientists are advocating very strongly for better policies and enforcement, the government is not investing enough money or attention in the problem. Our group is trying to help them change that.

Reporting In

Hi there, Swatchy McSwatchypants finally reporting in! Guess what? I went to China!

I accompanied Knittah's Dad to China as part of US group meeting with Chinese scientists on global warming. But I'll get to that. First, Knittah's Dad had to pack me in his bag to make sure I traveled safely.



It's a very very long trip, although I guess Swatchy Hugz already told you that. I was homesick when we got there, and tried to call you. That's my friend Frank helping me out.



Luckily, our hotel was very nice.



Check out this amazing carved elephant tusk in the lobby of our Beijing hotel! Isn't it cool?



Did you know that Beijing has terrible air pollution?



The Chinese economy is one of the fastest growing in the world, and this has led to lots more cars and buses on the roads and many more factories. The good news is that the government has paid attention to the need to clean the air, especially because of the upcoming Olympics. Even so, Beijing is a big city, and a bit scary for little old me!

Little Red Hugz

Swatchy strikes a pose with Mao in Tianfu Square, downtown Chengdu.

(I just had to share this one with you... I don't have much time for a full post today, but since I just uploaded this picture, I had to post it right away.)

From December 26th until January 5^th, we were in Sichuan. After the warmth of Hainan, the dark, cold, foggy days of Chengdu felt unbearable! Luckily Swatchy was all in natural fibers – wool, alpaca and silk. He was warmer than I was! Here's a photo of me from a few winters ago, freezing during the day in our Chengdu apartment.

Did you know that Sichuan is the home of the panda? The city has done well to adopt it as their mascot:

After visiting with Daniel’s sisters Jade and Chrysanthemum and their families for a couple of days, we headed off to Daniel’s rural hometown in Nanbu County. “Headed off” sounds rather faster than it actually was: our travel was delayed for a day and a half because the highway was closed due to fog. Then on the second day, we only made it so far as the county seat, where we had to find a hotel for the night.

The best part of the travel was being with our 5-year old niece, Ting-ting. That night in the hotel, she reveled in a “swim” in the hotel bathtub: she’d never bathed in more than about a gallon of water! Here she is with Swatchy. They became very close – Tingting was an excellent Chinese teacher! (it was hard for me not to leave Swatchy with Tingting, who has only two or three toys)

When we got to Beiwan town, we met Daniel’s parents and began the walk to their village. It took us at least twice the normal time to walk the 3km to Daniel’s parents’ house, the road was so slippery and the mud so sticky. When we got there, Swatchy needed a rest.

We all perked up when Mama and Baba brought out lunch – rice & corn polenta fried with fresh bacon: a hometown specialty!

Here’s one of the neighbor kids, who we called Meimei (Little Sister) who also had a great love for Swatchy Hugz. Here they are, having a little chat:

And here’s a pic of Tingting and Meimei in an irresistibly sweet moment:

I have lots more photos to upload, so look for new adventures of Hugz in the coming days! He dodges bird flu, poses again in tropical locations, samples local cuisine and more!

Chinese Yarn

Celeste is back from China, as you know, and she found a boatload of yarn in Chengdu. Actually, a suitcase of yarn. She brought it over for me to see (and so we could see each other, btw).



Nori rolled around in the fibery goodness:



and Celeste posed with the yarn for posterity:


because seriously, how could you not have a picture of yourself with the freakin' SUITCASE of yarn you brought back from your trip!

Hugz In Hainan

(our taxi driver, who told us all about r-e-a-l life in Hainan. Celeste was a little weirded out by his stories of his mistress, but I thought he was nice anyway.)





Dear Knittah & friends,

We're finally getting a chance to write a bit about our travels to China. As you know, during the week before Christmas, we were in Hainan, staying in Sanya.

Here I am on with a nice lady who wanted to sell us a lot of expensive tea. She thought I was pretty cool.



Celeste found a sea horse on the beach...

















Daniel decided that he wanted to visit a shooting range. Here's the floor-to-ceiling sign you see when you arrive, which reads "You are welcome to shoofing here"

















Stick 'em up, Swatchy!


















Pretty flowers, even in December!













Celeste & Daniel went to a hot spring, but refused to take me along. Celeste said something about the threat of felting, but I was too busy sulking. She did bring some pictures back... one of the gimmics of this particular hot spring is the small fish pools that people sit in and let the fish nibble on their skin... kinda weird, eh?

Next time, I'll tell you about Wu Zhi Zhou island - a smaller island off of Hainan that we all visited together. Coral beaches, crystal waters and lovely pagodas await!

Hope you're well, Knittah!
Love,
Hugz