tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84187265852243262782024-03-04T22:29:11.358-08:00SDSU 2016 China Ag travelCheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-51739358213528408312016-05-23T14:41:00.004-07:002017-02-23T13:00:04.899-08:00May 22, Sunday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hutong</div>
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Bell tower</div>
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Drums</div>
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Final leg</div>
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Gifts</div>
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Hackey sack</div>
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Rickshaw</div>
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Rolex still working</div>
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Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-29074010310411422922016-05-23T14:16:00.001-07:002016-05-23T14:16:21.642-07:00May 22, Sunday
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>We boarded the bus at 9:00 am
from the hotel for our final day in China. We traveled for 15 minutes to the
old city center of Hutong. Located in the Hutong center were two towers. The
bell tower to the north and the drum tower to the south. In ancient times the
bell tower would ring the 63 ton bell each morning. The bell was heard throughout
the entire city. Each evening the drums were played in the drum tower to call
people back into the city. We were able to climb to the top of the drum tower
for a performance. To the top of the tower was 69 steep steps. We dreaded each
step as our bodies where very sore from climbing the Great Wall. After the show
we took a rickshaw ride through the village. A rickshaw is a small cart for two
people pulled behind a bicycle. To conclude our morning we ate lunch at a local
family’s house. They family cooked a traditional Beijing meal. This meal consisted
of rice, green beans, stewed beef, potatoes, and our favorite - carrot balls.
The food was delicious! In this house lived three generations. In our spare
time we were able to play hacky sack with the locals. They were much more
skilled than we were but they were happy to play with us. We then boarded the
bus and headed to the airport for our 13 hour flight!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall
we have had a wonderful experience in China. We have learned a lot and gained
new friends and experiences that we will take into our future. One thing that
we found interesting throughout the entire trip is the fact that each company
we toured is new. All production farms we visited were built within recent
years. This shows how fast and quickly China is growing and adapting to the
growing populations. As young students in Agriculture we are blessed to be a
part of this important time in history. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Kyle and Whitney
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">P.S. See
you soon family and friends!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-34055693018259874962016-05-22T15:31:00.003-07:002016-05-22T15:31:49.677-07:00May 21, Saturday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Victory</div>
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We are The CHAMPIONS!</div>
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Patient and gift</div>
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SDSU and ISU</div>
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All Blue and Gold</div>
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Bird Nest</div>
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CAU supper</div>
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Femur Head Hospital</div>
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Great Wall</div>
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Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-7672643219430957682016-05-22T15:28:00.000-07:002016-05-22T15:28:07.162-07:00May 21, Saturday
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Our morning call wasn't as early
as the days before, which was a good thing. We joined up with 24 students and 4
faculty from Iowa State University today so that was a lot of fun. Our
itinerary today is jammed pack with tours of the Beijing Emperor Special
Hospital of Femur Head Necrosis, the Great Wall, Olympic Stadium- Bird's Nest,
and China Agricultural University. Today is our last full day and we plan to
make the most of it!</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Our
first stop was at the Beijing Emperor Special Hospital of Femur Head Necrosis.
Through connections with their patient Ty Eschenbaum, South Dakota native, we
were treated like royalty and were able to learn more about their impressive
healing treatment on femur head narcosis that uses traditional Chinese
medicine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Femur head narcosis is the
deterioration of the femur head which is located at your hip. The femur head is
responsible for the majority of leg movement. The most common type of treatment
for this disease in America is hip replacement. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>There are four types of
treatments used at the hospital based off of an herbal supplement mixture and acupuncture.
The doctor determines this mixture based on the patient's condition and rely
greatly on the use of x-ray to compare progress as all treatment is done on the
outside of the body. The founder of the hospital, Dr. Huang developed this
specific treatment and the type of x-ray that produces better pixelated images
and colored images that can show bone growth better than x-rays used in the
United States. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The hospital has treated over
20,000 patients from over 41 countries since 1993. Besides femur heads, they
can also treat ankle and shoulder joints. The efficiency rate for this treatment
is 97% and they have even had artificial joint companies come visit them,
because their treatment practice is decreasing the need for artificial joints. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Next we took an hour drive to the
Great Wall. On our way to the Great Wall, we got a briefing on the history
behind it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The oldest part of the wall
is 2,700 years old, which made the first construction start in the 7th century
B.C.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All the different sections of the
wall combine to make almost 13,000 miles long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>With Mother Nature and time taking a toll on the Great Wall, only about
a third of the original wall is easily visible now. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The contrition of wall was built by many
different dynasties throughout its history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The section that we saw and hiked up was rebuilt by the Ming
dynasty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The construction of the Great
Wall was done by three different groups of people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This consisted of soldiers, laborers, and
prisoners.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Laborers were mostly peasants
that were forced to work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prisoners that
worked on the Great Wall worked in 4 year periods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The work was hard and the conditions were not
any better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is estimated that
throughout the history of the Great Wall, roughly 700,000 people died while
working on it.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>When we arrived at the Great
Wall, we had two choices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We could
either go up the steeper and more strenuous route, or we could go up the easier
route.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of the group between us and
the Iowa State students decided to be adventurous and try out the more
difficult route.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both groups headed out
on their respective stairways and quickly realized that the engineers of over a
thousand years ago were not exactly the same as they are today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The steps were very uneven with some being
only 2 inches tall and the next one being 18 inches.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The harder stairway proved to be
more difficult than anyone in the group had predicted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After the first 100 foot climb, our groups
quickly realized how difficult the climb was going to be and how out of shape
all of us felt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had to stop several
times for "photo breaks" so we could all catch our breath before
reaching the top.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After several photos
and some pretty sweet/sketchy climbing by Andy Rausch, we realized that almost
everyone from SDSU had made it to the top while only 1 Iowa State student made
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>GO JACKS!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The trek back down was still very
steep and definitely made a few people feel uneasy, but everyone made it down
mostly alive and in one piece.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
rewarded ourselves with some cold water from the market and proceeded to buy
some pretty cool souvenirs before we left.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Next we went to a cloisonné
pottery shop and got a brief 20 minute tour of all of the 6 steps in making
these beautiful vases. We then continued to a great lunch with the Iowa State
students. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Following lunch we took an hour
drive to China Agriculture University where we met with students that picked us
out of the crowd by our "American" names they were give. We got to
know one another and then sat down for a briefing by Dr. Li who went to K-State
with our very own Dr. Thaler. He built the Animal Science Department from the
ground up and now they have a 600 sow farrow to finish research facility, and
better research facilities than just about any Animal Science Department in the
US. We then got a tour of the campus by our Chinese friends and had the
opportunity to learn of bit more about them as an individual and about the
campus. We continued to have a fun filled supper full of amazing food and
toasts. We had a wonderful time hearing about project these individuals we
conducting and many of us got their contact information for the future.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the way back to the hotel we got to stop
by the Olympic park for a short 20 minutes to see the amazing structures that
were built for the 2008 Olympics. Although we are extremely tired and are ready
to come home, we intend to have an extremely fun night, exploring the night
life of Beijing. It has truly been a once in a lifetime experience but we can't
wait to see our loved ones once again. Hope you have all have enjoyed our
updates as much as we have and we will see you soon!! </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sincerely,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kiera, Darrin, Tony<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-42876772003642689652016-05-20T08:11:00.001-07:002016-05-20T08:11:07.091-07:00May 20, Friday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY6VWhK3leLGc-TBonyhyphenhyphenA4SfICObs3yKlBui6qLCL6Xe-CPRQ4WYOpC1VMyElKAe_Q_CpxbY2Uarg6xv0IypF88aWL2sBZItUcu2cYCFxaSQvHpwNmxhn_-amGhbc8yGy8UETVp_OuqI/s1600/Artex2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY6VWhK3leLGc-TBonyhyphenhyphenA4SfICObs3yKlBui6qLCL6Xe-CPRQ4WYOpC1VMyElKAe_Q_CpxbY2Uarg6xv0IypF88aWL2sBZItUcu2cYCFxaSQvHpwNmxhn_-amGhbc8yGy8UETVp_OuqI/s320/Artex2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Artex</div>
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Hand welding</div>
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JD in China</div>
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JD sign</div>
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JD women</div>
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Press</div>
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Product testing</div>
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Tractors</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoLbwDNMbQP6obgeiGJFuV2kro6a5PA9b7t2KPXtAu47a4naRyW2JjFzE-2OkrdDQiKotVYBMr5dOZ1jtz8NKrK4wIRwcp64DCXdACoUWsgqtUaDBCRk628uAjXP2pUiu8e_mIlBsCIrk/s1600/Welder2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoLbwDNMbQP6obgeiGJFuV2kro6a5PA9b7t2KPXtAu47a4naRyW2JjFzE-2OkrdDQiKotVYBMr5dOZ1jtz8NKrK4wIRwcp64DCXdACoUWsgqtUaDBCRk628uAjXP2pUiu8e_mIlBsCIrk/s320/Welder2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Welder</div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-2081199825597882602016-05-20T08:07:00.002-07:002016-05-20T08:07:13.641-07:00May 20, Friday
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We started
off the day bright and early at 7 in the morning by taking a 4 hour bus ride to
Tian Jin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bus was really quiet this
morning as most of us were taking a nap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>After we arrived at Tian Jin, we stopped at a John Deere engine
factory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The factory currently has 157
employees working there. The Tian Jin factory currently has the capacity to
produce 50,000 engines annually but is only producing 10,000 annually due to
demand and emissions regulations. The factory is broken up into seven different
sections.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first section is the
materials warehouse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is where all
the engine parts are stored before the engine assembly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The next section is material staging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is where all the parts a gathered before
they are assembled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After material
staging is the assembly section.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
section is in charge of assembling the engines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The next section in the factory is testing cells.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here the engines are tested to make sure they
are functioning properly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After the test
cells section, the engines go to the paint and final trim section.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is where the engines are painted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After painting they go to the shipping
section to be shipped off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The last
section of the factory is the axel section.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Here they assemble axels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
factory currently produce 40 engines and 2 axels each day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was interesting to see how John Deere
incorporates AGV's (automated guidance vehicles) to move the engines throughout
the factory as they are being built.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our next
stop in Tian Jin was at the Artex Barn Solutions factory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The factory can process 20,000 tons of steel
materials annually. Fifty parent of Artex finished products get exported to
countries around the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other 50
percent is sold within China. Three hundred containers of finished product are
sold to over 40 countries throughout the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some of the products Artex produces are free stall gates, head gates,
calf zones, and barn fans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This past
year Artex has started to incorporate robotic welders into their manufacturing
process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These robotic welders help to
save labor costs and to improve the consistency of each weld.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The factory that we visited did not do any of
the galvanization process in-house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
is due to the difficulties of getting permits to perform the galvanization
process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was very interesting to see
how they transform raw materials into the finished products.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This
evening we met with a group of ag students from Iowa State University for
supper. We split off into groups of about half and half SDSU and Iowa State
students and talked about what they had seen so far on their China trip. We
were all able to try some Chinese hard alcohol called Baijo while we had
dinner. This concluded our twelfth day in China. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-48182701523139473752016-05-19T07:13:00.003-07:002016-05-19T07:13:39.409-07:00May 19, Thursday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbV_5OBd2VIxTljbVzIWAUCj1HkCUVXfwZSc4W7dG9NbbhH1d7hYloqTJksb7ryRP-KmGlPtd61fdLeeaivq68C5Fje093ku7rjfqzb3o4JapdgqF2Coui6kG69PKUAGhezmK2MeYhDtQ/s1600/5+motorcycles2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbV_5OBd2VIxTljbVzIWAUCj1HkCUVXfwZSc4W7dG9NbbhH1d7hYloqTJksb7ryRP-KmGlPtd61fdLeeaivq68C5Fje093ku7rjfqzb3o4JapdgqF2Coui6kG69PKUAGhezmK2MeYhDtQ/s320/5+motorcycles2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Five motorcycles</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI072SmhSY5LZcfLcCy7vk-GQaQu8jGSbZd5DTCphHxQ2T6qE5oPzJCqUK6Bv8jNB1TBi8p1ppB49onVmAH7Rlag0KYeRRfZ3Awx7-JGxObK_TMqrsHKxSSL1HvwHkG7iiTB1DPqBjzBQ/s1600/Acrobats2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI072SmhSY5LZcfLcCy7vk-GQaQu8jGSbZd5DTCphHxQ2T6qE5oPzJCqUK6Bv8jNB1TBi8p1ppB49onVmAH7Rlag0KYeRRfZ3Awx7-JGxObK_TMqrsHKxSSL1HvwHkG7iiTB1DPqBjzBQ/s320/Acrobats2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Acrobats</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjFRmtwl6jyTECuxs4QarBtoSxR-hm08p3iNrg4eePnDoEcrXL_QvncogXg1cy4zQ9juumpOOHG8ywFmhbIlbMxr3ZuiF9-oJN-RYDwG47mQAXdVLMn_e4Iq2p4hsoxmkdrILurg5PYkM/s1600/Inner+Temple2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjFRmtwl6jyTECuxs4QarBtoSxR-hm08p3iNrg4eePnDoEcrXL_QvncogXg1cy4zQ9juumpOOHG8ywFmhbIlbMxr3ZuiF9-oJN-RYDwG47mQAXdVLMn_e4Iq2p4hsoxmkdrILurg5PYkM/s320/Inner+Temple2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Inner temple</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIMcHXogbx1NxMjav4ueWOsGdgoJSrvXp6_Nasr-jTn-W9rOV2Q2bQscEzZfufdC2vn2ra1OVLAVtigVZYib8Ek0_fOgNUOAlvR9jDCVC6C2uZcv9hAMHi1Ust4HEeWkktX2r7IRz1W8c/s1600/Jacks+Forbidden+City2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIMcHXogbx1NxMjav4ueWOsGdgoJSrvXp6_Nasr-jTn-W9rOV2Q2bQscEzZfufdC2vn2ra1OVLAVtigVZYib8Ek0_fOgNUOAlvR9jDCVC6C2uZcv9hAMHi1Ust4HEeWkktX2r7IRz1W8c/s320/Jacks+Forbidden+City2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Jacks Forbidden</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhljVlGPz8Doi_y8nJNDqO9E34dPa4feqN3OJoNVsVoPnxcEeqww-My4IPpxFA_YEDscKuoWIft1Li-trWs2opxPE_6-4R6C9jj8b6CDcGjXghhcgS1sJxEebhG6JHT94jLfbnfkgY-s0M/s1600/Mao2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhljVlGPz8Doi_y8nJNDqO9E34dPa4feqN3OJoNVsVoPnxcEeqww-My4IPpxFA_YEDscKuoWIft1Li-trWs2opxPE_6-4R6C9jj8b6CDcGjXghhcgS1sJxEebhG6JHT94jLfbnfkgY-s0M/s320/Mao2.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Mao</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKn0VXE3068NVthTiXjgHuhFgsjkG08-44jipZiNmFClS-kBZ71Op75xUFcZsGaXDu_Xm4TTgrUuJrSikTV2zXVIc9fOPO9duCjcMw9xIbCITYPK9-szbkp-LM2cOazKTSV1wIZEr-cCk/s1600/Sampling+Tea2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKn0VXE3068NVthTiXjgHuhFgsjkG08-44jipZiNmFClS-kBZ71Op75xUFcZsGaXDu_Xm4TTgrUuJrSikTV2zXVIc9fOPO9duCjcMw9xIbCITYPK9-szbkp-LM2cOazKTSV1wIZEr-cCk/s320/Sampling+Tea2.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Sampling tea</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDouTd4Rg-IvvX7zSxbuqLbujg7JpfPy629kju_EumMDc-YXXLb0g9ZriSI1zKmCxRD01FJHnyHBdXIIJG4AKawjK9rnUqEG43_d8nBrotEXtwnudMGIFo7In5maA5YYUyxa3KeXCzZoc/s1600/Smog2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDouTd4Rg-IvvX7zSxbuqLbujg7JpfPy629kju_EumMDc-YXXLb0g9ZriSI1zKmCxRD01FJHnyHBdXIIJG4AKawjK9rnUqEG43_d8nBrotEXtwnudMGIFo7In5maA5YYUyxa3KeXCzZoc/s320/Smog2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Smog</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0_6efhu9SSYtXpuavBNyFC4Bw_L6dDea52pGa-8MqhZ8Bf8sOPNIS7G8mmxw-h75sjQfYkk-yc7p-8X6eNtbIO9chSMk5PUxjumjFJqCCR1Dqv4bPFfN1aZV2o65uN5t_aaIUfl7QjLs/s1600/Temple+of+Heaven2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0_6efhu9SSYtXpuavBNyFC4Bw_L6dDea52pGa-8MqhZ8Bf8sOPNIS7G8mmxw-h75sjQfYkk-yc7p-8X6eNtbIO9chSMk5PUxjumjFJqCCR1Dqv4bPFfN1aZV2o65uN5t_aaIUfl7QjLs/s320/Temple+of+Heaven2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Temple of Heaven</div>
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</div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-24485238181653096662016-05-19T06:52:00.001-07:002016-05-19T06:52:25.776-07:00May 19, Thursday
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Howdy from
Beijing!</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Today was
our typical "American Tourist" day in Beijing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not having any agriculture related stops, we
got the low down on the City of Beijing.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Rolling out
of bed bright and early, we were on the bus by 7am headed to the famous Tiananmen
Square and Forbidden City to beat the rush (crazy tourists) that come in the
middle of the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These historic places
in the middle of downtown Beijing are an important part of China's ancient and
modern history.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sitting on
more than 110 acres, Tiananmen Square can host over half a million visitors at
a time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It also houses former Dictator
Mao's tomb as well as a Monument to the People's Heroes and the Zhengyangmen
Gate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is surrounded on either side by
the People's Congress of China building and China's National Museum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was kind of cool to see who had the most
curious Chinese people that would ask to take a picture with the weird tall
white people from America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being the
tallest guy, I think Corey got featured in the most snapshots.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Crossing
the street, we headed into the first gate (Tiananmen Gate) of six gates
entering into China's Forbidden City.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This city was home to the royalty of the Quin and Ming Dynasties from
1406 till 1924.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taking over 300,000
workers to build, it was under construction from 1406-1430 A.D.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was called the Forbidden City because the
common people were never allowed to enter its gates until 1925 when it was
opened to the public.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was home to
over 3,000 royalty and concubines at a time, with an astounding 8,704
rooms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This 180 acre city (in the middle
of a Beijing) takes over 50,000 workers to staff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were all blown away by the history, detail
of architecture, and size of this palace.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">During
lunch at a local restaurant, our tour guide (Michelle) switched hats for a
couple minutes and made a delicious dessert of fried apple toffee, which
finally hit a note with the sweet tooth we have as Americans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think we've all been missing the sweet
desserts that we usually enjoy back home.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After lunch
we headed to Yi Xin Tea House where we got the low down on how to make real
Chinese tea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fun fact - there are over
3,000 different types of tea in China, and they are used for everything from
liver and eye health, to morning and night tea and even for curing hangovers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Needless to say, even with the six types that
we got to sample, our taste buds went on a roller coaster ride of bitter to
sweet and even tangy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all left the
gift shop with a handful of different boxes of tea to take home to share.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Following
tea time, we made a quick stop at the Temple of Heaven, which was historically
used to present sacrifices including oxen, jade, and silks by the Emperors to
"The Heavens" to ensure that the Gods would grant them a good harvest
of crops.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We enjoyed doing some bartering
on knick-knacks and hats from street vendors and playing Chana's version of
hackey-sac with the elderly that gather in the temple park to enjoy their day.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Following
the temple visit, we 'swung' by to catch an acrobatic show in a local theater.
From the fie motorcycle riders in the cage to the dancing ladies stacked nine
high on one bicycle, I think it's fair to say that we were all flabbergasted by
the performances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wow! What flexibility
and body strength!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next we
rolled on down to the Pearl Market to try our hand at more bartering and
dickering on gifts for our family & friends (and mostly ourselves).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basically, the Pearl Market is like the silk
market that we visited yesterday - cheaply made products with name brands
slapped on them (like Oakley sunglasses, Bose speakers, Coach purses, or Rolex
watches).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The listed price is about what
you would pay for the actual name brand products, and your challenge is to
dicker the price down to about 1/6 of the price.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We definitely got a chance to work on our bartering
skills with the rather stubborn shop owners.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We were told to never feel bad for the price we got goods down to, as
they would never sell it to you for a loss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Needless to say, after spending more than we probably budgeted for, we
headed off for a local cuisine specialty for supper -- Peking duck.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now, Peking
duck is basically China's version of a duck burrito.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The whole duck is filled with soy sauce and
cooked until the sauce has penetrated the whole duck.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The inside is moist and the outside is
crispy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is then masterfully carved,
and placed into soft wheat tortilla like wraps with cucumber and onion slices
and hoisin sauce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The finished meal is
nothing like the wild waterfowl duck we're used to eating back in the states -
you actually enjoy eating it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Overall,
the Peking duck supper is probably one of the top 3 notable meals from the trip
so far.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, getting
our fill of tourism today has us all looking forward to more agriculture visits
tomorrow, with John Deere and Artex Farm Solutions on the itinerary. It's crazy
to think that we only have two full days left in China!</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Signing off
from Beijing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yi huier jian (see you
later)!</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">-Reba and
Andy<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-31697331100097984272016-05-18T08:06:00.001-07:002016-05-18T08:06:24.552-07:00May 18, Wednesday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR2IukX7xXeEWVGgKOKjEdiJYPjlwqvyhac1aHZ74w2TMumiJoE9_QO2nGU2Tf0alwJp97QPQK1zQyebSEh6dlNzSdT2k_jwIEO57qJA8_88sokbpr2NDQj7AU3f6wiyvc5tTPP1ucbwM/s1600/Air+Quality+Ap2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR2IukX7xXeEWVGgKOKjEdiJYPjlwqvyhac1aHZ74w2TMumiJoE9_QO2nGU2Tf0alwJp97QPQK1zQyebSEh6dlNzSdT2k_jwIEO57qJA8_88sokbpr2NDQj7AU3f6wiyvc5tTPP1ucbwM/s320/Air+Quality+Ap2.jpg" width="190" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Air quality app</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
CP info</div>
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CP layer</div>
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CP</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIHdwrmRv4DPMXF981fkmYIYp9eToEPMw099tvzPKw5yupOAwjNjBk6frB2b07mrWkkNDDdzfNKKJ7B3mH9BSna5730LbwfHQrdckCO5NIWRDmfRF1tWYajOolJLm9Fy3ry5P9Yah9Owo/s1600/Egg+Packaging2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIHdwrmRv4DPMXF981fkmYIYp9eToEPMw099tvzPKw5yupOAwjNjBk6frB2b07mrWkkNDDdzfNKKJ7B3mH9BSna5730LbwfHQrdckCO5NIWRDmfRF1tWYajOolJLm9Fy3ry5P9Yah9Owo/s320/Egg+Packaging2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Egg packaging</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYcVSlrHs8J9_PkT-7dXbpzXKKJZ1tEUZuLX5p1Y_zeQWn_-nPitBQSnQMc2AA24hhzFq7u_VjgdV6ihn-9LxTp6uPxb6VQUB0nEZD9-NX5QrL8XDyXExBi2yfcSmJKTwspaKxV6Y9xk4/s1600/Feed+lines2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYcVSlrHs8J9_PkT-7dXbpzXKKJZ1tEUZuLX5p1Y_zeQWn_-nPitBQSnQMc2AA24hhzFq7u_VjgdV6ihn-9LxTp6uPxb6VQUB0nEZD9-NX5QrL8XDyXExBi2yfcSmJKTwspaKxV6Y9xk4/s320/Feed+lines2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Feed lines</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAq0WZICHNlGZsnXgW0orooF0GHOoI81oG2OEEYI4dIyzeK6e7OwYhg5BwizrqYruLF15PXwDtCIJT6PsElnN6arCMPKQwkduCSrWau88kbVSycSeaAbeObyp1G4TL1uqL9IPihinp6ws/s1600/Pioneer2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAq0WZICHNlGZsnXgW0orooF0GHOoI81oG2OEEYI4dIyzeK6e7OwYhg5BwizrqYruLF15PXwDtCIJT6PsElnN6arCMPKQwkduCSrWau88kbVSycSeaAbeObyp1G4TL1uqL9IPihinp6ws/s320/Pioneer2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Pioneer</div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-76509661494824618462016-05-18T08:02:00.003-07:002016-05-18T08:02:44.794-07:00May 18, Wednesday
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Greetings
from China, </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Today was our full first day in
Beijing. Beijing is a very large city with a population of 20 million people in
an area that is four times the size of New York. Our first stop for the day was
at the DuPont Pioneer Chinese Headquarters located in the Central Business
District of Beijing. The lead marketing and sales director, Adrian Gomez,
originally from Mexico, discussed with us the operations of Pioneer in China.
Erica Wang, the technical agronomist was also present to answer questions.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In China,
Pioneer is only allowed to obtain one license for selling seed, that product is
corn. Throughout the country approximately 38 million hectares of corn are
planted each year. This is the sole reason Pioneer focuses on corn rather than
the other crops within their company. The seed is completely produced locally
throughout the Chinese provinces. There are 13 research and development
locations along with 4 production facilities, these are comparable to what we
would see in the United States. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One of the
issues Pioneer faces in China is the selling of counterfeit seed. This occurs
when people either mislabel seed as a Pioneer brand or steal Pioneer's hybrids
and sell it for their own profit. This is controlled by very detailed packaging
and labeling such as barcodes and secret codes only to be detected by black
light. This is to insure the product is what the farmer is paying for. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Different
from what we are used to in the United States, the amount of seed needed for
each farmer is typically smaller. Therefore, the bag sizes only amount to 4,000
kernels per bag. Although Monsanto and Syngenta are large US competitors
located in China, the largest competition for Pioneer is the local seed
markets. On the other hand, northern China is home to some larger farmers that
would be comparable to the United States where as the southern part you will
find the smaller farmers. The most popular diseases and pests found in corn are
Northern and Southern Corn Leaf Blight along with corn borer. Agronomists in
China recommend a spring application of fungicide for larger farmers but it is
not economical for smaller farmers to apply. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our second
stop for the day was with CP Group, a diversified agriculture company from
Thailand that is very large in China and 13 other countries. This is the
largest laying operation in Asia and the world with a high interest in
biosecurity as we were required to enter a disinfectant chamber for 30 seconds
before setting foot on the farm. Mr. Yang led the tour through the site that we
visited which was their egg laying farm that consisted of 18 laying barns with
167,000 chickens in each barn. With a total capacity of 3 million laying hens
on the site they collect around 2.3 million eggs daily. CP Group works with a
cooperative leasing 5,000 acres from the local farmers, the poor population,
and the disabled for 20 years. This allows for small farmers, the poor, and
disabled to obtain a sustainable income to support their families. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The
technology at CP Group is phenomenal. The use of robots to detect temperature
in barns as well as the temperature of each hen allows them to have the highest
efficiency amongst their laying hens. There is no use of antibiotics and
disease is controlled by vaccines, ventilation and the biosecurity measures
mentioned above. The breed of chickens at CP Group are Highland Brown and Lumen
Brown, these produce brown eggs which are the consumer preference. After 52
weeks of laying the hens are slaughtered and used in soup that is beneficial to
pregnant women in the Chinese culture. They are also used as crocodile feed
which is located at this site also. The chicken manure is used as organic
fertilizer which is applied to the peach farm located on site. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dr. Gary
Stoner, the vice chairman of CP Group also provided some perspective on
agriculture relations between the United States and China. He gave us advice
about how important critical thinking is. For example, when comparing Chinese
and United States numbers in terms of export, production, and yield it is important
to take into account the per capita and how it can distort the graph. A large
concern in the United States and the world is the decreasing of China's GDP.
Dr. Stoner mentioned that we should not be alarmed as this is expected to
happen and the overall trend line is still increasing. As far as regulations on
GMO importing, Dr. Stoner believes that China will eventually have to accept
GMO corn because of the increase in population. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The day
ended with going to the Silk Market. This consists of many different silk
products as well as electronics, purses, kids’ toys, and common souvenirs. It
was set up like a shopping mall but the fun part was that all prices were
negotiable. It was fun hearing who got the best deal and who came home with the
most unique items. We were able to obtain some personal items - Sam bought some
silk scarves and Scott bartered down the price on some pretty sweet Legos!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-30576229147203387682016-05-18T07:59:00.002-07:002016-05-18T07:59:21.511-07:00May 17 Tuesday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Fresh poultry</div>
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Black chicken</div>
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Blood</div>
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Burning hair</div>
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Meat</div>
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Peeps</div>
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Pig head</div>
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Pork</div>
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Scooter</div>
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Spices</div>
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<br />Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-39115591194667326372016-05-18T07:38:00.002-07:002016-05-18T07:38:58.240-07:00May 17 Tuesday
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our first
stop Tuesday morning was to a wet market that was a lot newer than the wet
market that we visited in Guangzhou. At today's wet market we got to see how
different cuts of meat were cut. Some of the carcasses we got to see were pig,
goat, chicken, beef, lamb, and fish. While there we had the opportunity to
watch a chicken being processed. This was beneficial because we were able to
compare how it is done in the U.S. While at the chicken processing booth, we
learned why they have black chickens. The people of China created a black
chicken with black bones that contains dark meat. The reason the Chinese people
prefer this type of chicken is because they believe it is more flavorful. At a
different chicken booth we found colored chicks. They were pink, orange, and
green in color. The reason they were colorful was due to the Chinese people
injecting the embryos with dye. After the wet market we walked upstairs to a
spice market. While up there we were able to see and smell the different types
of spices the Chinese people use in their meal preparation. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After we
were finished with the spice market we took a one hour bus ride to the train
station. Once we arrived at the train station we thanked Maggie for everything
she taught and showed us. After saying goodbye to Maggie we went through
security and then had lunch on our own in the train station. After lunch we sat
in the station waiting until our departure at 1:18pm. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">While on
the 4.5 hour train ride we were able to see all the different types of scenery
while traveling at 307 km/hr (190 mph). Some of the scenery we saw was local
farm fields, as well as smaller villages. Some other scenery we saw was
mountains. In America we would normally travel around the mountain but here we
traveled through them instead. On the train ride to Beijing it was very
interesting to see and compare the land to the United States and how they use
it compared to us. The farmers over here would make terrace after terrace to
farm every possible inch of ground. Over here all the ground is used for
growing crops instead of livestock, whereas in the United States we graze
livestock on it and don’t think twice about it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ground here is worth so much that the
Chinese people can’t afford to do that. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Once we
safely arrived in Beijing, we met our new tour guide Michelle. After we left
the train station, Michelle took us to a very nice restaurant were we
experienced a local hot pot supper. At the hot pot supper we had little
individual hot burners with a pot on top of it to cook our various options.
Some of our options included mutton, beef, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, noodles,
kelp, and shrimp. After supper we took a half hour drive to our hotel to check
in to prepare for a full day tomorrow of travel, learning, and sightseeing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-67123323525031133232016-05-16T10:19:00.000-07:002016-05-16T10:19:03.551-07:00Monday, May 16<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Ms. Gao</div>
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Cherry trees and corn</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrU0yW-kglKfHiGaSmWyDtLW4ocU-u5S1DOSzXSHHRn0nVTbucyVT9Rn27fx5d43zAUnqd7TbRfTbGjC4tv1mjgIFVZ4qmt5XwCfZaqwAAwp3Qrm7PRPxjelQO6rmnvCD4wp5YgPLH9-I/s1600/Enjoying+Dairy2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrU0yW-kglKfHiGaSmWyDtLW4ocU-u5S1DOSzXSHHRn0nVTbucyVT9Rn27fx5d43zAUnqd7TbRfTbGjC4tv1mjgIFVZ4qmt5XwCfZaqwAAwp3Qrm7PRPxjelQO6rmnvCD4wp5YgPLH9-I/s320/Enjoying+Dairy2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Enjoying dairy</div>
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Fierce soldiers</div>
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Go Jacks!</div>
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Hackey sack</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv1QYSf0uQcCMrzUo0Pvu1D8Qz9AzipBaE_ggUERqcAph5OUTyJfzAo8PyLdeS6Nhgij-WqKiI7BLIFFzRo53QLhIPDtZC2TtDBIJA1zx7Uk7243I5m3J2LHfbjcbo6t2cBr0Em5Hu8Wc/s1600/Terra+Cotta+Soldiers2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv1QYSf0uQcCMrzUo0Pvu1D8Qz9AzipBaE_ggUERqcAph5OUTyJfzAo8PyLdeS6Nhgij-WqKiI7BLIFFzRo53QLhIPDtZC2TtDBIJA1zx7Uk7243I5m3J2LHfbjcbo6t2cBr0Em5Hu8Wc/s320/Terra+Cotta+Soldiers2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Terre Cotta soldiers</div>
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Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-5731329204803095522016-05-16T10:16:00.001-07:002016-05-16T10:16:01.332-07:00Monday, May 16
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our first
stop on Monday morning was Miss Gao's farm, though the farm is basically still
in the city of Xi'an. She farms 4 mu, 2/3 of an acre, of wheat and corn. The
wheat is a winter variety that is grown for 10 months and harvested in June.
Corn is planted immediately after the wheat harvest and is ready to be
hand-picked in September. Miss Gao also has a small cherry-growing business.
They reminded us all of Bing cherries from home. Before any cherries can be
harvested, the trees must grow for five years. When the trees are young, she
attaches a weighted bag to the branches to force them to grow outward so a
greater cherry harvest can be sold. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Miss Gao plants everything by
hand. She uses her experience to judge how far apart the rows and individual
plants are from each other. The rows were impressively straight. Even the
planting depth is done by Miss Gao's own judgment. To irrigate, she digs
shallow canals in between each row and carries buckets of water from their well
to fill the canals. They water every fifteen days. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Because Miss Gao's family works
in Xi'an, she does all of this farm work by herself. She hand-pulls all of the
weeds and harvests everything by hand as well. The only aspect of her operation
she contracts out is the spraying of insecticides. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our second stop on the lovely,
seventy-four degree Monday was the Terra Cotta Warriors museum. The clay the
warriors are made from is called terra cotta clay, hence the name. The clay
army is 7,000 strong, though only 2,000 are viewable to visitors. Unknown to
most, when the army was first discovered, they were painted with intricate
detail, but nearly all unearthed artifacts lost their color from being exposed
to sunlight and fresh air. Horses and chariots were also made into pottery
along with the warriors. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The army was made over 2,000
years ago by order of Emperor Qin of the Qin Dynasty. He was known as a cruel
leader, forcing 700,000 people to make the clay warriors. Emperor Qin is buried
a few kilometers from his army, who are buried at the base of Lishan Mountain,
just outside of Xi'an. The reason for their creation is due to the beliefs of
Taoism, which was predominant at the time. Emperor Qin believed the army would
accompany and protect him in the afterlife. Each sculpted face is said to
represent someone from Qin's real army. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our last stop of the day was at
Yinqiao Dairy Group, a thirty-eight year old dairy manufacturing company in
Xi'an. The president, Mr. Liu, and several other senior executives met with us
to show the success of their products and answers any questions we had. Moving
forward, Yinqiao Dairy Group wants to increase the diversity of flavors of
their milk & yogurt products and make milk a more popular choice of
beverage in China. Mr. Liu hopes to continue and expand relationships with the
United States, as well as SDSU specifically because of our outstanding College
of Ag & Bio. We were also able to tour their production facility, which
uses U.S. packaging equipment. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The evening was open for us to
get foot massages, do some shopping, and explore the magnificence of Xi'an.
This was definitely one of the favorite days we have had so far.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Devon Baum
& Corey Chicoine<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-36597097502958855212016-05-16T10:12:00.000-07:002016-05-16T10:12:02.764-07:00Sunday, May 15<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpCSiFF6opevAFFxOSzUiXm1Okp_SHMl1J1ulgOiZTYsRV6Uaq6IbN34vze2ndvNL3ZI_FbIMQreZRnZ9a-Ua44eIrR1DamTyryINjdggj6Ff6nHhL5XIhJhfwmEpo3kYeOtR3sSNI0Fw/s1600/Beef+farm2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpCSiFF6opevAFFxOSzUiXm1Okp_SHMl1J1ulgOiZTYsRV6Uaq6IbN34vze2ndvNL3ZI_FbIMQreZRnZ9a-Ua44eIrR1DamTyryINjdggj6Ff6nHhL5XIhJhfwmEpo3kYeOtR3sSNI0Fw/s320/Beef+farm2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Beef farm</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBQ2OeBK586t5Z0vcKeI8EXoSPL-ehSBtf3APbdQ5oji2ygigu1b2PuT1EiP8CpHSb5U_AQGsOSLTtpvoRM4SqSVe4grVQEcsDbRwJKk5g_azX1Bobjhrvdu-vaYMqWh9kOAFy7rwNrtQ/s1600/Chopping+Haylage2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBQ2OeBK586t5Z0vcKeI8EXoSPL-ehSBtf3APbdQ5oji2ygigu1b2PuT1EiP8CpHSb5U_AQGsOSLTtpvoRM4SqSVe4grVQEcsDbRwJKk5g_azX1Bobjhrvdu-vaYMqWh9kOAFy7rwNrtQ/s320/Chopping+Haylage2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Chopping haylage</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgofZn9OJ4YfV6fsZW92n180fFntEX195j8MWMdwCNv1SzTqvQZBLEeFJ01V4WsM-2Y-McrI_AmOP9iaSEJPjIT0aCctwE-Bg7F3hgclR4r7hNzjbKyuFXz9lDsJdme05My1F82D3bz8rw/s1600/Dairy+Barn2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgofZn9OJ4YfV6fsZW92n180fFntEX195j8MWMdwCNv1SzTqvQZBLEeFJ01V4WsM-2Y-McrI_AmOP9iaSEJPjIT0aCctwE-Bg7F3hgclR4r7hNzjbKyuFXz9lDsJdme05My1F82D3bz8rw/s320/Dairy+Barn2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Dairy barn</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPjGeqBBatHfRh8pb_d3wJtOReAwKcq9MeIlfq8W5jGvtrrR3WYCOXf0t1olPjqX1lmiy_p8yuKDE6AAepAG194_XX4SNRZVcPMHWzpmHgOG4TiK3Iq_iorDkSSuzAKZY3AUl1fYDDPHo/s1600/Dumplings2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPjGeqBBatHfRh8pb_d3wJtOReAwKcq9MeIlfq8W5jGvtrrR3WYCOXf0t1olPjqX1lmiy_p8yuKDE6AAepAG194_XX4SNRZVcPMHWzpmHgOG4TiK3Iq_iorDkSSuzAKZY3AUl1fYDDPHo/s320/Dumplings2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Dumplings</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVZL_9QSzoiUxWSt_41ebb3QgTxzeW9jcrkeYmS-so9GJztd4qMmqI3cRglYmsj7LosdqdXPx1VgbeTOGJpAesdYyceHVfviE3RktT_po4AR1Aq-UhGH4Jcd7I_idxssj1kf0ikUeFvnw/s1600/Evaluating+the+Plow2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVZL_9QSzoiUxWSt_41ebb3QgTxzeW9jcrkeYmS-so9GJztd4qMmqI3cRglYmsj7LosdqdXPx1VgbeTOGJpAesdYyceHVfviE3RktT_po4AR1Aq-UhGH4Jcd7I_idxssj1kf0ikUeFvnw/s320/Evaluating+the+Plow2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Evaluating the plow</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgWLudOgjBpw7YgIUhzEmZFcEPd0uYIeZUuua5v2Pdqja2-4R_Zadz6b6ULR-xQmGlmyXs5cAaMu__TffWSL4RsdZGbxJFnwrf7EeOQoaMfJfgYGe8yffyDPOvrs0uQnxYTRkdV28h4Y8/s1600/Helping+Hand2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgWLudOgjBpw7YgIUhzEmZFcEPd0uYIeZUuua5v2Pdqja2-4R_Zadz6b6ULR-xQmGlmyXs5cAaMu__TffWSL4RsdZGbxJFnwrf7EeOQoaMfJfgYGe8yffyDPOvrs0uQnxYTRkdV28h4Y8/s320/Helping+Hand2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Helping hands</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0WHPBrEn50uazYfjFDq0l93wEDPvgJmno6psTq7wDO_q_0QrNlxQoe13UQepZYIvo6iiI-1BkK6VOHioCB2-bHhzt8NrTwK1YgQ57abuxecYkehAcIpeYvFnaq9xrUbRGnSuR06BnNjI/s1600/Kingbull+steers2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0WHPBrEn50uazYfjFDq0l93wEDPvgJmno6psTq7wDO_q_0QrNlxQoe13UQepZYIvo6iiI-1BkK6VOHioCB2-bHhzt8NrTwK1YgQ57abuxecYkehAcIpeYvFnaq9xrUbRGnSuR06BnNjI/s320/Kingbull+steers2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Kingbull steers</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ1eRBpHSMWaZst51RXWZgJ07lCRxkxU3PWtpME5tWYRJiedrtYgIEVdTHhAQdM94KA4TkSxLuWxjJLE7441inCJh1l1T5QFoPIB_EeDBZK5hVew9YyRbAnm2XCRf4kNGqNz5VBGhqxK4/s1600/New+combines2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ1eRBpHSMWaZst51RXWZgJ07lCRxkxU3PWtpME5tWYRJiedrtYgIEVdTHhAQdM94KA4TkSxLuWxjJLE7441inCJh1l1T5QFoPIB_EeDBZK5hVew9YyRbAnm2XCRf4kNGqNz5VBGhqxK4/s320/New+combines2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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New combines</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyfEc_GcnHyq890WxVpHNrbOycY58i7nPpKY2RQE3mBNiszjZYkg0ckyT5wusvmVXtf3IRl-fG2ofCsMwkRs1bjl7kleM1oIQvAYJsSAFQdVIgeRN0uGqKdukwEgBDLc7ggbmH6F6Ypl0/s1600/New+Friends2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyfEc_GcnHyq890WxVpHNrbOycY58i7nPpKY2RQE3mBNiszjZYkg0ckyT5wusvmVXtf3IRl-fG2ofCsMwkRs1bjl7kleM1oIQvAYJsSAFQdVIgeRN0uGqKdukwEgBDLc7ggbmH6F6Ypl0/s320/New+Friends2.jpg" width="247" /></a></div>
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New friends</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfxOQq9u0g8e2nGwyLN8XIWd33eIKGyeHTv_VueyGtCGLngrnaJ-EF65iMSYm2aZbVAiigWLLlqLAXrH9o10OeumR70Y3F_ZDSg7LA7E3Vgy12dAbH4gzGTkAKSFpKQ1PDBetWpkN-vk4/s1600/Silage+pile2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfxOQq9u0g8e2nGwyLN8XIWd33eIKGyeHTv_VueyGtCGLngrnaJ-EF65iMSYm2aZbVAiigWLLlqLAXrH9o10OeumR70Y3F_ZDSg7LA7E3Vgy12dAbH4gzGTkAKSFpKQ1PDBetWpkN-vk4/s320/Silage+pile2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Silage pile</div>
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</div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-156655060064139032016-05-16T09:57:00.001-07:002016-05-16T09:57:35.555-07:00Sunday, May 15
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ni-hao
(hello) from China,</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After a
full night of rest in our new hotel in Xi'an, we set out for the Northwest
University Beef Farm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are partnered
Kingbull, which was the first cattle breeding company in China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This farm has 10,000 beef cattle housed in
twenty barns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The company emphasizes in
four different areas: reproduction, engineering, nutrition, and training of
producers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The company has crossed Black
Angus and a local red breed, then mated the offspring to a waygu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They produce a high quality marbling beef
which is expensive and also a lower quality that sell more locally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Retail beef from a Kingbull can be scanned
and traced back to the source.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Chinese like beef, but are not particular on the specific palatability. The
manure is made into fertilizer that is then used on fields to improve
growth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the company's cow/calf
operation which is a few miles away, they do not synchronize the estrous cycles
of the cattle and the weaning weights are lower than weaning weights in the
United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The operation does not
have an established EPD (estimated progeny difference) system to select for
desired traits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have a total of
8,000 beef cows with the majority of them the local yellow breed and a few
Waygu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are all dry-lotted on solid
brick flooring, and body confirmation is sure different than our US cattle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After lunch at the Northwest Agricultural
& Forestry University (40,000 students), we made a quick stop at a local
farm equipment dealership.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While A LOT
smaller than farm equipment in the US, the designs were similar.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our next
stop, we visited the Shaanxi Provencal Dairy Cattle Center, which was home to
4,000 dairy cattle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dairy farm was
very modernized with a 60-cow milking carousel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They set a high desire on making the farm presentable to those who
visit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The farm milked the cows three
times a day and produced a total 45 tons of milk per day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each cow produced 30 kg (66 pounds) per
day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The farm receives about 4.1
yuan/kilogram (33 cents/pound), which is substantially higher than the United
States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Milk is more expensive because
they have to import most of their feed from the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They feed their cattle a mixture of silage,
haylage, sugar cane, and cotton seed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
is illegal for them to feed blood meal to cattle. While observing their feed
storage facilities, many of the guys jumped in to help unload sugar cane from a
truck giving a few of the workers a break.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sunshine
Lidu Grand Theater was the next stop on our destination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Xi'an is an ancient capital of China, so it
is most famous for its dumpling dinners.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Dumpling dinners are famous because the wife of the emperor of the Tang
Dynasty loved dumplings, so he created numerous different kinds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The theater served many different kinds of
dumplings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dumplings were shaped to
represent the meat that it was made of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Tang Dynasty was a time of political and economic prosperity in
China, dances during this period was very colorful and cultural to represent
this history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In total, there were nine
different dances to represent this time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The rest of
the night was left to explore the streets and local life of Xi'an. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Devin and
Tyler<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-4238978256971844892016-05-16T09:53:00.003-07:002016-05-16T09:53:42.673-07:00Saturday, May 14<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV-D6w19KU2iAAs0aVjRTCEL-TVT7PRViH6mRalAB_PxpJNa3eG8UnaF74bIwLn6JJo6I6e3g3-OjEJbhuWiztkuSlxrgTElLE1rtM4_J63VFqMcPswvHD9f9Bm-rxxbyDev2IOmBYOv0/s1600/Not+Forrestburg2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV-D6w19KU2iAAs0aVjRTCEL-TVT7PRViH6mRalAB_PxpJNa3eG8UnaF74bIwLn6JJo6I6e3g3-OjEJbhuWiztkuSlxrgTElLE1rtM4_J63VFqMcPswvHD9f9Bm-rxxbyDev2IOmBYOv0/s320/Not+Forrestburg2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Not Forestburg</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuYC9LZGes6D3ua6LvmYSBptMBgjDjT03J4Iaoqu0L3ztNAyCJE2mGZUiePV0YnfSU_Pa63NOzAK9RvBcIAF4J8-ndxtz48en3_gZliDQqOj2pect01KQeAhVcJMVn8yR1ITy5yBHd_hw/s1600/Fish+market+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuYC9LZGes6D3ua6LvmYSBptMBgjDjT03J4Iaoqu0L3ztNAyCJE2mGZUiePV0YnfSU_Pa63NOzAK9RvBcIAF4J8-ndxtz48en3_gZliDQqOj2pect01KQeAhVcJMVn8yR1ITy5yBHd_hw/s320/Fish+market+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Fish market</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-bXwm_FQBJo-Yz_waPMdu4o72ZRwtZcWohRMb1lansWXHFnCMhI3lMDaKSTsjlsf9MuDQpKn5EgK3FEsVUBLWxXbTS-33c4qqmNQDWO5kAAwXQQoqQCwGhag0LnQR5vnWO07ayYMfmo/s1600/Fish2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-bXwm_FQBJo-Yz_waPMdu4o72ZRwtZcWohRMb1lansWXHFnCMhI3lMDaKSTsjlsf9MuDQpKn5EgK3FEsVUBLWxXbTS-33c4qqmNQDWO5kAAwXQQoqQCwGhag0LnQR5vnWO07ayYMfmo/s320/Fish2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Fish</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWvLaCNXmhByW6y2lqmZzX0aSPquLMapTCSTjjo1mkgKQ8BFpZuwkGOJCRZNoQhT_ahd2CxyP7NQlvylgyX-5cZ1jjZiPP7GmN3NR0n96i_Xwtr2511zvhrzNmtYUVk4TqOneY84EibQ/s1600/Dancing2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWvLaCNXmhByW6y2lqmZzX0aSPquLMapTCSTjjo1mkgKQ8BFpZuwkGOJCRZNoQhT_ahd2CxyP7NQlvylgyX-5cZ1jjZiPP7GmN3NR0n96i_Xwtr2511zvhrzNmtYUVk4TqOneY84EibQ/s320/Dancing2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Dancing</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnRLOTn_EFu78ZU73bvWg-YDX-ILYRNmgJNkXvspMeINsN0JjbfyCfyShf-rjNL8mBBo44tcj5nbYiF4nVOjSF796MS-9MGZBb-cZ9xixDdlshda1EeMOyRJL2dFTKI2SzunSKBGjODw0/s1600/Morning+Exercise2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnRLOTn_EFu78ZU73bvWg-YDX-ILYRNmgJNkXvspMeINsN0JjbfyCfyShf-rjNL8mBBo44tcj5nbYiF4nVOjSF796MS-9MGZBb-cZ9xixDdlshda1EeMOyRJL2dFTKI2SzunSKBGjODw0/s320/Morning+Exercise2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Morning exercise</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3euBjLS-36kCOqNaG6m9GudvisqPHdY_ltKZBOgb7lyDiy6ztOp2bM6PEqEzp3nGBhixy7J63IqoqzpZrioLs2Pp9jZr3FN62Nh020xveGr5640lVgshN2O_lao16E1ClbhYohgA_QFo/s1600/Success+at+Fruit+Market2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3euBjLS-36kCOqNaG6m9GudvisqPHdY_ltKZBOgb7lyDiy6ztOp2bM6PEqEzp3nGBhixy7J63IqoqzpZrioLs2Pp9jZr3FN62Nh020xveGr5640lVgshN2O_lao16E1ClbhYohgA_QFo/s320/Success+at+Fruit+Market2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Success at fruit market</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT8uapn_D2QN26HSf9V19ptMXa5EofF7wI6bKvpOKMpoXe4uIpv1A0gpJe2yKcU9EXRxno0pg3DaRRLVi6u2iJ0LC3LXqG-1bY7dahEwFhS6RzCzY_Q8uqnT2g7GRp3llh8xuDZmKEBMk/s1600/Shamian+Island2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT8uapn_D2QN26HSf9V19ptMXa5EofF7wI6bKvpOKMpoXe4uIpv1A0gpJe2yKcU9EXRxno0pg3DaRRLVi6u2iJ0LC3LXqG-1bY7dahEwFhS6RzCzY_Q8uqnT2g7GRp3llh8xuDZmKEBMk/s320/Shamian+Island2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Shamian Island</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3ZSvsspZA0COlL4w59vaFYP0jcam55eBNfIEMVmhpcOQzk9aJWpu47hdT2KRN9X7DaitSeCCwt2cl764Xkq_tzzoce8TW1Si2m3619hlvBFfLRu700kr3rWvMDVMnvMdZafrHyR60b7k/s1600/Tyson+Chicken2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3ZSvsspZA0COlL4w59vaFYP0jcam55eBNfIEMVmhpcOQzk9aJWpu47hdT2KRN9X7DaitSeCCwt2cl764Xkq_tzzoce8TW1Si2m3619hlvBFfLRu700kr3rWvMDVMnvMdZafrHyR60b7k/s320/Tyson+Chicken2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Tyson chicken</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyKlqZ_-NIfe4NEGhgmpqGZ0NVfKq77E9h_6wtKe5f2fhXOUb3Q2sTNJOwL4yXBPOdeXVpj3mm2ryZgWGNJX3EVAVj5knxmhjzbKPyJvs1ps-Lmm5pJiSsmA2agDBlz9Lh41CETQe3cyk/s1600/Jackrabbit+day2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyKlqZ_-NIfe4NEGhgmpqGZ0NVfKq77E9h_6wtKe5f2fhXOUb3Q2sTNJOwL4yXBPOdeXVpj3mm2ryZgWGNJX3EVAVj5knxmhjzbKPyJvs1ps-Lmm5pJiSsmA2agDBlz9Lh41CETQe3cyk/s320/Jackrabbit+day2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Jackrabbit day</div>
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Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-52769942116896011332016-05-16T09:48:00.002-07:002016-05-16T09:48:49.495-07:00Saturday, May 14
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Greetings
from China,</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Today we
started off leaving the hotel bright and early and took a bus for half an hour
to the fish market, Huangsha Aquatic Product Market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our translator told us that on an average day
there is an average of 100 million yuan (16 million dollars), from 500 million
tons of fish and seafood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
particular fish market is the third largest in China and sells to over 200
other provinces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everything was alive
and swimming, with more colors and shapes than you can imagine!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were things such as alligator, eels,
crawfish, bullfrogs, snakes, turtles, giant salamanders, and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>many</u></b> other assortments of fish. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our next
stop was Shamain Island, an island located directly in the middle of mainland
China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This island is European based
because after the Chinese lost in the Opium War, the Europeans took over the
island and therefore the island still has the European heritage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a 200 m by 800 m island, and all the
building look like we could be in London.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We went into the White Swan hotel, which was also the first Five Star
Hotel in China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the locals were
doing activities such as hackie-sack and dancing and a few of us jumped in on
the action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, the biggest
surprise of the White Swan hotel is that we actually got Facebook!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Probably the only place in China that’ll
happen, and it was kind of hard to leave it.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then we
made our way to the Fruit and Vegetable market where they have 12 million tons
of turnover a day,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>5 million tons of
that being fruit and 7 million tons being vegetables, with half of that being
used daily in Guangzhou.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fruits and
vegetables came from all over China, and all over the world. The size of the
market was 3,300 hectors (1320 acres).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was hard for us to buy products because it was only sold in
bulk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the vendors were nice
enough to cut up some watermelon and kiwi for us to try.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few of us bought some fruit such as mangos,
elderberries, and kiwi (which we got through airport security in our
carry-ons). </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">To finish
off our day we headed to the airport to fly to Xi'an.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It's about a 3 hour flight, which was delayed
roughly 45 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To fill our time we
played cards and took full advantage of the free Wi-Fi, a delicacy here in
China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are looking forward to our
time in Xi'an during the next few days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ty and
Laura</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">P.S. Don't
worry parents, all of your children are accounted for!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>:)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-52833028134163027692016-05-16T07:58:00.003-07:002016-05-16T07:58:36.956-07:00Friday, May 13<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-flxG6J8OeJvaDkGomkfQJ7RALHJrItJs_O4NiUd9oCcnWh4JR39KL6LiKxbHvAHcdthtSna3tiKzxbMRJ2UIPGVBD9GbdSmcnw-2EMXD19Q3cektvDqvJawzPNI8jXpVGvFZD3YBIi4/s1600/Banana+tress%252C+fish+pond%252C+lotus+pond2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-flxG6J8OeJvaDkGomkfQJ7RALHJrItJs_O4NiUd9oCcnWh4JR39KL6LiKxbHvAHcdthtSna3tiKzxbMRJ2UIPGVBD9GbdSmcnw-2EMXD19Q3cektvDqvJawzPNI8jXpVGvFZD3YBIi4/s320/Banana+tress%252C+fish+pond%252C+lotus+pond2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Banana trees, fish pond, lotus pond</div>
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Daniel and Dillon</div>
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Feeding fish</div>
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New bank</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Pig barn and fish pond</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoG9MBqb9_NVyMvW8-N7CQt38qe4bUUSpGgvaCH4ixlLy4xEe3sNgBnKRY0iVPLzH09ccPbfaNeI9TOG7l9F7Yfqx8hygTQdGVRAD-MHWZZJ0TqTPUMxZK_ncRH8S-1aEQYnK3ouElKg4/s1600/Pig+Barn2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoG9MBqb9_NVyMvW8-N7CQt38qe4bUUSpGgvaCH4ixlLy4xEe3sNgBnKRY0iVPLzH09ccPbfaNeI9TOG7l9F7Yfqx8hygTQdGVRAD-MHWZZJ0TqTPUMxZK_ncRH8S-1aEQYnK3ouElKg4/s320/Pig+Barn2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Pig barn</div>
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</div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-69546147809460566342016-05-16T06:05:00.000-07:002016-05-16T06:05:00.997-07:00Friday, May 13
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Today, our
group sent some quality time together on a really long bus ride and began to
bond. The morning started off with a bus ride to a fish farm in the southern
part of the Guangdong province. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This fish
farm was only 8 years old, but it is definitely something you would see out of
a National Geographic magazine. Every building is made out of bamboo or spare
pieces of tin. Each barn holds around 600 pigs and there are 8000 pigs on the
farm. The farm has 30 employees that lived on site.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are 25 ponds being about 1.8 meters
deep. The fish are naturally bred and the main breed the farm harvested is China
Argus. Some ponds are full of minnow-type fish to feed the bigger fish in other
ponds. They regularly check the fish and the water for sickness and disease. If
the fish or the water comes back positive for a disease, they will put the
antibiotics in the water to treat them.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The main
source of feed for this fish is manure from the pigs. The pig barns are set up
in a way so that the solid concrete floor is at an angle with openings on each
side that led out to the ponds. When the workers spray out the pens twice a day
the manure will go straight into the ponds as nutrients for the fish. The fish
are also supplemented with specialty fish feed given to the farm by the
Government. Every 12 to 15 month the fish will be harvested at around 3 to 5 kg
and the ponds will be drained, sediments at the bottom would be scooped to the
side, and the farm will refill the pond and start over.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We were
lucky today, because the fish farm had a pig farm on site. A few days ago the
pig farm that was scheduled for our tour backed out. The farmer let a few of us
go into the barns to see his pigs, and let me tell you they do not seem that
different than the ones being produced for our food back in America. The
structures of these buildings again, look like they could fall with a good
South Dakota gust came by, but the insides are a completely different story,
with all the pens and the feeders being completely made of solid concrete. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This farm
is wean to finish, they get there pigs from a sow farm 200 km away. The pigs
come in at 25 kg and go to market 7 months later at 120 kg. The barn is
"naturally ventilated" with only blankets covering the big openings
in every stall within the barn; but with just the basic necessities given to
the pigs, they are still thriving. The genetics of these pigs look similar to
ours. The government still allows the use of antibiotics to treat the pigs when
sick, but the farmers expects that will not last for much longer. The death
loss on the farm was 15% which is very high compared to only 4% in the United
States.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Once we
were done at the farm, we went for lunch. That was an eye-opening experience.
This local restaurant we went to was on a gravel road out in the middle of farm
land, with only one or two sturdy structures, the others were make-shift. This
restaurant is the very meaning of farm-to-table. The chickens are running
around outside and the fish are in the pond right next to the kitchen. After several
photo-ops with the locals and a quick game of limbo with some bamboo lying next
to the road, this meal seemed to be one the best we have had so far on the
trip. </span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After the
late lunch, we started the bus ride back to the main city, Guangzhou. The farms
and cities that we passed are very different from what we are used to seeing in
America. Many workers use hoes and their hands to tend to the needs of their
farms and the cities were full of several different social-economical types
with construction around every turn. Once we arrived back at the hotel, the
group walked around Beijing Road, which is the most popular shopping part of
the city, it can be described similar to an outdoor mall that is 5 miles long.
There was mostly clothing and toy stores and a lot of shoe stores.</span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After a few
minutes of shopping, we had a buffet-style dinner with traditional Chinese food
options. This buffet offered dessert in form of cookies and ice cream. The ice
cream flavors were banana nut with a green color to it, a purple ice cream that
tasted like sweet potato, and a white ice cream that reminded us of birthday
cake. They also had a man grilling "steak" which had a big line of us
trying to get some. It was pretty thin cut and really greasy but it was a nice
change from the traditional food that we have been eating. </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After
dinner we walked over and took a Pearl River cruise. This was a great way to
see the beautiful riverside at night. The huge skyscrapers around the river are
all lit up with various colors and change every few minutes to a different
pattern. The main attraction was the Canton Tower. It is a tv and also the 2nd
tallest tower in the world that is just used for recreation. On top of the
tower there is even a ride that takes you up even higher and drops you. The
cruise itself only took about an hour, but the sights are priceless and
awe-inspiring. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-20249325367879028042016-05-13T06:20:00.000-07:002016-05-13T06:20:00.122-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegWaydv7wTpD-9yZXLFkdSxGvgwzyEnG4VWA8phDvimG4XbKbAA6PSJfXOM1Y4nnNBQUSsGpuJU7hABjlk_8wBUsNKfqPZJrDi3ZYDTiyzbQX_K-Z1tMjKy_cclNT6wQy2cYSJodzCTE/s1600/View+from+Campanile+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegWaydv7wTpD-9yZXLFkdSxGvgwzyEnG4VWA8phDvimG4XbKbAA6PSJfXOM1Y4nnNBQUSsGpuJU7hABjlk_8wBUsNKfqPZJrDi3ZYDTiyzbQX_K-Z1tMjKy_cclNT6wQy2cYSJodzCTE/s320/View+from+Campanile+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="background: white;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif;">The view of Guangzhou from the 39th floor of our hotel. Home
to 20+ million people, and growing every day. A little different from the
top of the Campanile!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-36323217579842005812016-05-12T06:50:00.000-07:002016-05-12T06:50:05.241-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhkPBm-NlFA2Ls59KZRmm0HB_zYvjnKUkA5Q9j9mADZWkntwMYgnSoo81Ds4q8oDdxAXCRsLNO5qQvzTmjxpP9erDhpFu70NU1FXxVnTp7rTC7FW1wvW96IIukotb375-KSsQGsZqf3EE/s1600/DDGS+Trucks+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhkPBm-NlFA2Ls59KZRmm0HB_zYvjnKUkA5Q9j9mADZWkntwMYgnSoo81Ds4q8oDdxAXCRsLNO5qQvzTmjxpP9erDhpFu70NU1FXxVnTp7rTC7FW1wvW96IIukotb375-KSsQGsZqf3EE/s320/DDGS+Trucks+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
DDGS trucks</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxH5wFC_Jaiv1p52D7CKNOwyXVDB6-udcuMfSeZUEnGAdBI7wbjnVBWcwkRrLTpr1ZHw0putRj5mOjDOn-PIKGoIrCKAXZ-X2gvmmaIZW6UmTIQR1FOq5vObuRQdFdOWiywzf2J7DoNEA/s1600/Double+decker+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxH5wFC_Jaiv1p52D7CKNOwyXVDB6-udcuMfSeZUEnGAdBI7wbjnVBWcwkRrLTpr1ZHw0putRj5mOjDOn-PIKGoIrCKAXZ-X2gvmmaIZW6UmTIQR1FOq5vObuRQdFdOWiywzf2J7DoNEA/s320/Double+decker+2.jpg" width="251" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Double decker</div>
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</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJUCFOjCO81m2qU3KsDXr0upyB8BzNQahZpzO7xtstCkSFavhdvL_WEf5m3t_lqad_l41dxgK5Mr_hgYGewEBcoH0Cf8ND8oiBx_tiJO6y3kZ19YCojFR3pXuiSLdqQY9RBtctAyfQB6k/s1600/Grain+Elevators+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="85" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJUCFOjCO81m2qU3KsDXr0upyB8BzNQahZpzO7xtstCkSFavhdvL_WEf5m3t_lqad_l41dxgK5Mr_hgYGewEBcoH0Cf8ND8oiBx_tiJO6y3kZ19YCojFR3pXuiSLdqQY9RBtctAyfQB6k/s320/Grain+Elevators+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Grain elevators</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj67AN2XegoWoJtqjow3pkVonvsf3RnGUF87WM6NaJqlpg9NXtkhLNCnEOThATPEIGIwpcQBY_ORyZD6CdAXG_Mfd7xx3gt_UeBLDsi4ZZWwNZLpguCzLg0YMQOxSES2y-56IISW85sD-w/s1600/Grain+Unloading+DDGS+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj67AN2XegoWoJtqjow3pkVonvsf3RnGUF87WM6NaJqlpg9NXtkhLNCnEOThATPEIGIwpcQBY_ORyZD6CdAXG_Mfd7xx3gt_UeBLDsi4ZZWwNZLpguCzLg0YMQOxSES2y-56IISW85sD-w/s320/Grain+Unloading+DDGS+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Grain unloading DDGS</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUykodrgA1BDJhIT3pPB6fFU80s9moit52Q_l-TTqfStGjyYOV2kyhSqymR96sgIN5U0JFEdHDqGrQAJK0umyGdUfgigiwZdazowoPV37134TLa4Sub_kxbfZ8Nr1-RujDpXWRprFc8Kg/s1600/Port+conference+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUykodrgA1BDJhIT3pPB6fFU80s9moit52Q_l-TTqfStGjyYOV2kyhSqymR96sgIN5U0JFEdHDqGrQAJK0umyGdUfgigiwZdazowoPV37134TLa4Sub_kxbfZ8Nr1-RujDpXWRprFc8Kg/s320/Port+conference+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Port conference</div>
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</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHx-OQxYDvUR7i6zzzR54TRPH6wvgfu1ybtkhMmDLaektNxX6cvEXaqGwMJVeu2wVHmGSFKXnCRnQH-a3CzkAPw3vocFSOeotG9861INs2D1tatf649RZCctGxu7n_LdsGdo-N8zmEoJE/s1600/Thank+you+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHx-OQxYDvUR7i6zzzR54TRPH6wvgfu1ybtkhMmDLaektNxX6cvEXaqGwMJVeu2wVHmGSFKXnCRnQH-a3CzkAPw3vocFSOeotG9861INs2D1tatf649RZCctGxu7n_LdsGdo-N8zmEoJE/s320/Thank+you+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div align="center">
Thank you</div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-3727904908463147732016-05-12T06:25:00.003-07:002016-05-12T06:25:19.691-07:00
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We started
the day at 8:15 am with a nice hotel breakfast in Hong Kong. It’s not every day
that we can have fried fish, pork dumplings, and egg noodles for breakfast.
After breakfast, we boarded the bus to head to the northern border of Hong Kong
to head into main land China. Since we are all struggling with jet lag, our bus
ride was a little tough. It seemed that all of the drivers had a better place
to be. They honk and sneak in between every open gap that they can find. It did
not matter if the gap was only two feet or twenty feet. We drove over a lot of
canals that lead to HUGE container ports that never seemed to end. I guess all
of our stuff does come from China! Once we reached the northern border of Hong
Kong we went through the customs check to enter mainland China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After we crossed the border we saw plenty of
oyster farms in the one of the canals and saw our first cow of the trip. We
then entered the City of Shenzhen. Forty years ago, it was a small fishing
village and now it is home to 15 million people. It is considered the magical
city for its rapid economic growth. Because the city grew so rapidly they do
not have much heritage. Individuals from all over China have come to live in
this city as well as people who wish to work in Hong Kong since the housing
here is cheaper than it is in Hong Kong. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We
continued to travel via bus to Guangzhou. Once we reached the outskirts of the
city, we stopped for lunch at KFC. The food tasted the same as in the US but
the menu choices were a little different. For example, they had spicy fried
squid and red bean pie. In Guangzhou, there are a lot fewer people who speak
English so the language barrier has been difficult. Before loading the bus
after lunch we had a few minutes to walk around and explore. We came across a
wet market that sold everything from fruits, veggies, spices, toads, turtles,
beetles, fish, pig’s feet, whole chickens, and premature chicken eggs. After
the market, we all loaded the bus to head to the middle of Guangzhou that would
take about an hour. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">On the way,
we saw all different aspects of Chinese agriculture including banana farms,
fish ponds, corn growing in places where corn shouldn't be growing, and small
patches of what looked like community gardens, and a sunflower farm. We then
reached our main tourist stop of the day, The Guangzhou Port Nansha Grain and
General Cargo Terminal. We spent a couple hours here touring around the
facility looking at the unloading of freighter ships, the giant warehouses for
DDGS, and the constant hustle and bustle of incoming and outgoing trucks filled
with product. We also saw their automated scale ticket system and 24/7
monitoring of the unloading bays. This showed the type of technology used to
run this large of an operation. After touring the terminal, we went the
headquarters to receive a briefing form the general operations manager. The briefing
was very interesting as we talked about Chinese regulations on American crops,
the cost of running the operation, and all of the materials that are moved
through the port. His answers to our questions seemed scripted and were very
closely related to the government’s beliefs. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">To all of
our family and friends, we are having a blast and learning so much. We are
thankful to all of the opportunities that you have provided for us. We are
humbled by our standards of living compared to the standards of Chinese living.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sincerely, <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dan and Lacey<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">P.S. Talk to you later, Annie!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-31570459485411930382016-05-11T08:06:00.003-07:002016-05-11T08:06:28.259-07:00
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif;">On Thursday, we'll be going into China; first stop will be
Shenzhen. Forty years ago it was a small villiage, and today it's the
world's largest megaloopolis! </span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/story-of-cities-supernumber39-shenzhen-%e2%80%93-from-rural-village-to-the-worlds-largest-megalopolis/ar-BBsUeYE?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=iehp"><span style="color: #0563c1;">http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/story-of-cities-supernumber39-shenzhen-%e2%80%93-from-rural-village-to-the-worlds-largest-megalopolis/ar-BBsUeYE?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=iehp</span></a></span>Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8418726585224326278.post-46658528399614323342016-05-11T08:00:00.003-07:002016-05-11T08:00:34.624-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTSW8Mb7fV067jzv6Z7dH6nLB99E203U6gJmRO86DsUs65rjGykSKqSyjPNKINu6LbMOmEnmIusLrneg3y0HZSiYuEycmTc6GrQAFDwyssR70WSt0mdegyBE5AkoykPQ9f7TrIW0qFo3o/s1600/ATO+and+USMEF+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTSW8Mb7fV067jzv6Z7dH6nLB99E203U6gJmRO86DsUs65rjGykSKqSyjPNKINu6LbMOmEnmIusLrneg3y0HZSiYuEycmTc6GrQAFDwyssR70WSt0mdegyBE5AkoykPQ9f7TrIW0qFo3o/s320/ATO+and+USMEF+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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ATO and USMEF</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA2Zjo3X3Mb5pLCcXZMa5PKwKOm8makqm7B-oR7X2X5CaRX2stp0LTl9eEIs0os4GPQhQR0gQLPlRYocSMlVhLTrcCA7P_bPgBXiKT2HKc0HJAixleqmLRMlZieNeXiSeHiOV9UEP9wa8/s1600/Fish+eye+ball+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA2Zjo3X3Mb5pLCcXZMa5PKwKOm8makqm7B-oR7X2X5CaRX2stp0LTl9eEIs0os4GPQhQR0gQLPlRYocSMlVhLTrcCA7P_bPgBXiKT2HKc0HJAixleqmLRMlZieNeXiSeHiOV9UEP9wa8/s320/Fish+eye+ball+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Fish eye ball</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWmW1vc6Ld0fnEgiV1gAPMxuKwg0WwO4nUmqnP_ExFwfJtQmUAhpIwXvx5WcRN_Lkb1FMuU157IFeegoArEsUY0nJ5vbLYFJa7ZUJnZYlYpColkJx26jRrEjJQjtIvpV98BY3D2d4XYVI/s1600/Ocen+PArk+Gondola+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWmW1vc6Ld0fnEgiV1gAPMxuKwg0WwO4nUmqnP_ExFwfJtQmUAhpIwXvx5WcRN_Lkb1FMuU157IFeegoArEsUY0nJ5vbLYFJa7ZUJnZYlYpColkJx26jRrEjJQjtIvpV98BY3D2d4XYVI/s320/Ocen+PArk+Gondola+2.jpg" width="280" /></a></div>
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Ocean Park Gondola</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmiG6TkkLrz9Y485mjSL69CuZybY7gNqUAayPzsR81HEZ3rffEvC5jxq3JJIx7M_AogBhvbyGp2sM0i-v_WV5nG9YDDa9wu02YQfx0p0OI6Lh2307ME1RhvjI1sEeGrRxe7Ep1bjw_og/s1600/Panda+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmiG6TkkLrz9Y485mjSL69CuZybY7gNqUAayPzsR81HEZ3rffEvC5jxq3JJIx7M_AogBhvbyGp2sM0i-v_WV5nG9YDDa9wu02YQfx0p0OI6Lh2307ME1RhvjI1sEeGrRxe7Ep1bjw_og/s320/Panda+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Panda</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE0Uce4R66zu1oJC7_l4VRo8o5H_22twYFKXFd-h9prOJ5X_oEW-AjAkypq3GmPkjlk4qL7cNccpnluuMDgkDJ3QBAbNWiJQsS809KsQwKZHJIQblJdT-D9Hx7k8Yl-oG7up_CBTFI2Co/s1600/Race+track+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE0Uce4R66zu1oJC7_l4VRo8o5H_22twYFKXFd-h9prOJ5X_oEW-AjAkypq3GmPkjlk4qL7cNccpnluuMDgkDJ3QBAbNWiJQsS809KsQwKZHJIQblJdT-D9Hx7k8Yl-oG7up_CBTFI2Co/s320/Race+track+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Race track</div>
Cheryl Bestehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11710369564523684084noreply@blogger.com0