I woke this morning to a window filled with fog!! The haze lingered along with the humidity and heat. It was 38 degrees centigrade - how close is that to 100 degrees F? It felt like it had to be close! I do believe that I was boiling at one point today!!! The hazy skies did limit visibility today, but I was still able to see quite a bit of beautiful views and learn a ton of information throughout the day!
I started my day with a lecture on the history of the Three Gorges Dam while the ship was docking. According to the speaker, the dam is the largest dam and hydroelectric power plant in the world. The dam was originally designed and the location suggested by an American named Dr. John Savage who visited China in 1945. Nothing was done about construction until Chairman Mao wrote a poem in 1956 expressing his desire to have the dam built which caused a great debate that ended when the scientists that did not agree to the building of the dam were imprisoned. Political concerns derailed the building until 1992 when the government voted to build the dam. The original plan was completed in 2003, but since then there have been additions to the project including underground generators and a small ship "elevator" which will be completed in 2015. Construction of the dam required 103 million cubic meters of rock to be moved and the pouring of 28 million cubic meters of concrete! When completed, it will have 32 generators that are 63 feet in diameter each. The project is considered a success because of its ability to control flooding and produce power. It was predicted that it would provide 20% of the needed energy in China, however, it only provides 3% at this time.
Passage through the ship lock steps (five steps of raising the water one level at a time) is free, but our speaker did say that it is not uncommon for gifts to be given to those that determine a ship's place in line at the locks in order to secure necessary times! We passed through the first ship lock today and it was fascinating! The ship and several others pull into what looks like a great big toll booth with one set of gates open on one side to enter and the other gates closed for the exit. Then the gates (which can weigh 850 tons each) close behind them. They then take about 15 minutes to raise the level of the water in that small enclosed space to the same level as the other side of the exit gate. Then the exit gate opens and ships can continue on their way up river. It felt like being on an escalator!
Once we exited the ship lock, we enter the Xiling Gorge where I saw steep mountainsides and several farms that use terrace farming!!! I took lots of pictures!
In the afternoon, I attended a demonstration of a Chinese tea ceremony where they described the various types of teas and their strengths and uses for people. My favorite black tea is good for attention and calming a person. I know some students that are glad I drink it in the morning!! :) The tea ceremony requires an elaborate tea set and is one to welcome special visitors to their home so it is not done everyday. The Chinese enjoy watching the tea leaves flow through water, so they do not use tea bags. They did make it look pretty, but I am not sure I have the patience to blow the leaves away before taking a sip!
We docked in Sin Dou Ping and took a bus to view the dam and the ship lock. I again took lots of pictures. I am so sorry that I have been able to upload any pictures at this point because of the limited Internet access. I can use one of eight computers on the ship that are connected to dial-up which works intermittently. Needless to say, I save my drafts often!! :)
Tomorrow, we will be taking a smaller boat to see the areas of the gorges that can't be viewed from the ship. I think I will go ring out my socks and take a third shower to cool off!! :)
(P.S Happy Birthday to Heather!!!!!!-Christie)
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