Saturday, June 19

This day was dedicated to Peking University, still called that (or Bei Da) even though that is not the politically correct spelling. We headed out to the university area and went first to a farmers' market. This is different from the continual supply of postcard hawkers we see everywhere -- we were the only westerners, and we were not expected, to say the least. We spread out through the crowded market, taking pictures and taking in the sights and smells, much to the concern of the local security force whose job it is to prevent pickpockets -- we were ripe for the picking, they thought.

Once it was clear we were not going to leave until we had enjoyed ourselves, they asked us please to hurry. I was oblivious to these negotiations, having been one of the first to enter. Most people were very friendly, glad to have their pictures taken, or offering their children for the assignment. I was glad I invested the extra money in a video camera with a little screen so I could roll back the tape and show the proud parents the final result. I got some beautiful shots of vegetables and spices, some of chickens being plucked, and a brief clip of the only negative response, a rather angry young man selling watermelons.

At the university we had three lectures. The one before lunch was by a woman professor who spoke about the state of the economy. After lunch we had one on business issues and then one on China and its foreign relations. Bobbie, our leader, was concerned lest the last session get awkward so she reminded us ahead of time that we there to learn as much as possible about what they thought and to avoid getting into any kind of debate. The economics lecture was interesting, but we couldn't really get any answer as to how you reconcile rampant capitalism with the vestiges of communism. She told us of a couple in her neighborhood who sold fish from a cart fifteen years ago, then they opened a pork store, then a restaurant, and now they have five restaurants. I asked if there was any concern that one family owning five restaurants might be too many, and she said no, assuring us the food was very good in all five!

The business lecture stressed the fact that the reason for the terrible imbalance of trade between the US and China was because Japanese and Korean and Hong Kong companies have moved their production to China for the cheap labor. Interestingly, they still consider Hong Kong a completely separate economic zone, although a united political zone. He does not expect to see one currency with Hong Kong for at least 10 years. That surprised me.

The foreign affairs lecture began with the Kosovo issue, too big for anyone to avoid. Most Chinese people, especially in Beijing, think it was done on purpose, that the US is too technologically advanced for it to be a mistake. They don't believe there have been any documented atrocities in Kosovo, and anyway it is a sovereign nation. It was hard for some of us not to want to share what we thought, but we were told not to. The most interesting point was that China is concerned that we have gone from a world with two great powers to only one, and that Kosovo was designed as a test to see if anyone could or would challenge American aggression. Up until now he said, China had taken the view that Russia failed because a strong military policy was doomed to fail if there was not economic strength to back it up. China has been roaring ahead economically. He said he thought this event would cause them to take stock of the need to balance economic and military advancement. A scary thought.

All of Beijing is under construction. It reminds me of Jakarta -- hard to believe from what you see that it was ever a communist state. There is no restriction on petty entrepreneurs -- barbers, massage parlors, etc. in the parks. Tonight we had Peking Duck at a famous restaurant that has been serving this classic for five generations. George Bush's picture was on the wall -- made me feel right at home.

This morning at breakfast I got a phone call (cordless phone delivered to the table) from the woman I met on the plane. We have a date for dinner at her house on July 8. Tonight I made friends at dinner with the economics teacher from the morning. She laughed out loud every time I spoke Chinese, but then would give me a thumbs up, so I kept at it.

Tomorrow we take in the Ming tombs and the Great Wall. We have been blessed with temperatures in the 80s -- I hope that holds.

In peace and friendship -- no one wanted to trade for the Chicago Bulls hat I had brought to the market this morning. In subtle ways things are not as happy as they were when Clinton was here at this time last year, and we don't get CNN -- it was taken off the air -- good thing I can understand the news on the French or German Channels that still broadcast. They are part of NATO, too, but this isn't about NATO.