[Itinerary Page]The Daily Diary of a Wandering Restaurateur
May 2 - Au Revoir to the River
Today is a day of tying up loose ends. Bright and early we were bussed over to "tour" the Three Gorges Dam Project. I had somehow hoped to see what was going on inside the thing (generating stations and all that) but instead just got to the observation area and the model -- a 30-minute visit crammed into two and a half hours. I won't try to recount all the numbers on this work-in-progress other to say that they are staggering! This is truly an example of what can be accomplished when you are willing to think big enough.
Finally we bussed back to the ship to settle the bill, pack the bags, and say our goodbyes while we motored a bit farther downstream to the mooring. The ship will pick up a fresh batch of passengers and leave again tonight for a four day run back upstream to Chongqing where the cycle will repeat again.
So while the crew set to work turning the ship around, we set off for Shanghai. This involved a 90-minute van ride to the airport at Yicheng, a three-hour wait for a one-hour flight to Wuhan where we changed planes and flew another 90 minutes to Shanghai. (There are direct flights but they were all full of tour groups. Then we caught a city bus for the hour-long ride into the big city. China is a fascinating country, but it seems to take a lot more work -- and a lot more energy -- than most other places in the world!
Just for fun, I included a few warning signs in today's photo collection. I suspect they will have you scratching your head. They sure made me do a double-take. Enjoy!
© 2008 Restaurant Doctor