For breakfast every morning, my friend’s father will start the day off with some Chinese 38% alcohol. They say it keeps you warm. This village if full of interesting characters. An uncle down the street who cannot talk, another uncle who paints coffins, and a grandfather who is very hard of hearing (I thought mine was!). Also an interesting story about my friend who was the second daughter in this family. Due to the one child policy in China, her mother had to go hide somewhere in the mountains while she was pregnant. If the government found out, they would abort the baby, even if it was a week or two before birth. Her father lost his job and much money because they broke the rules of having more than one child.
I learned of some interesting things around the village. During WWII, there was a tunnel dug through a mountain next to the village to serve as a bomb shelter. It is kind of dangerous, so not sure if I can visit. There is also a walled area with old buildings in it. This used to be a Buddhist Temple until shutdown in the Cultural Revolution. There used to be four statues insides, but were destroyed. Currently it is used as a chicken farm. There is supposed to be a ghost of a baby inside.
Today I got to walk in fields and mountains around the village. The family planted some trees in an area of their land since the government gives special credits for doing so. A walk up the mountain behind the village reveals a good view. There are clear skies and fresh are in this part of the country.