The Big Transformation

When I arrived in Taiyuan I expected the city to be covered with a gray blanket of coal dust and industrial pollution. As China's coal production center, this once was one of the most polluted cities in all of China, if not the world. But now check out the blue sky. Even Houghton, my Hong Kong interpreter was surprised.
I suspect that Disney is not getting royalities from Mickey's image here in China.

Trusting the Inner Voice and Serendipity

One of my main photographic goals in China was the Yellow Valley. I had seen bad photo of a Grand Canyon-like valley. So here I was, but for the two days I had been staying at the nearby Grace Vineyard winery guest room, it rained continuously. Finally on the third morning it started to clear. I ran out to an overlook before 6:00 in the morning. Between cloud cracks I took the first shot. I felt that I probably got the shot. Then I had to run 25 minutes back to the winery for an interview with the vineyard manager I had scheduled the night before.

After the interview, back to my room to respond to emails and Skype-call my wife. Outside now it was mid-day bright sun. But there was something that was calling me back to the overlook. My interpreter Houghton suggested that I take the car. No, I wanted to walk because from the car I might miss something. I put on my camera backpack and took off on foot. I had two hours before I had to leave for another interview in another town. On foot, half of that time would be spend just getting there and back.

Nearing the overlook, I heard a shout. Looking down into one of the tributary canyons was a shepard with his flock. Here was just what I needed, the human element in a huge landscape.

As I'm exposing digits like crazy, I marveled that: first, something called me to come back to this spot and second I insisted in walking. From the car I would never have heard or seen the sheppard.

With your digital magnifying glass. you might see that tiny blue speck at the bottom of the photo. That's the sheppard. The white specks are his sheep.

Four Words

People here are absolutely great. Even with my extensive Chinese vocabulary of 4 words, somehow we connect. These two guys followed me around the Bodega Langes vineyard for a couple of hours. I would pretend to poke them with my tripod or flip them into a ditch and we would just laugh and laugh. Finally, I asked to take their photograph, for which they gladly obliged.

Bicycles are the chief means of vineyard transportation.


Even this guy was impressed with my extensive Chinese vocabulary.

The Vineyard/Winery Scoop

At Bodega Langes they grow the vines low so that they can be covered with insulating earth during the freezing winters from November through February. Otherwise the cold would kill the vines. And you vineyard guys will ask what the heck is the white stuff? The best I could understand through my non-agricultural interpreter, it's some sort of disease prevention chemical that they mix into a paintable paste, maybe like a Bordeau mix or sulphur or....?

No, these Alice In Wonderland-sized stainless tanks are not for a low production winery. They are for the special VIP clients at Bodega Langes who want to make their own wine.

Bodega Langes

Bodega Langes. It was overcast and rainy all day. Just as the sun was falling behind the mountain, the sky revealed the light. Since I took a variety of exposures, this photograph is a candidate for HDR (high dynamic range) treatment when I get back to the studio. No time now as it's time to catch my ride back to Beijing for a flight to Taiyuan.

Workers here continue their tasks until they can't see anymore. No such thing as 8 to 5 for the field workers. You ask what is that pollution-like stuff in the sky, it's diesel smoke from the tractor.

France, Hungary and America watch out, these guys are making barrels in China. In fact, all of the barrels used by Bodega Langes are made by their own factory. The oak comes from the northern part of China. Even though the owner is Austrian, he seems to subscribe to the Chinese idea that you do everything in the homeland.

Washing The Dust at Dinner

"In China we have a tradition of inviting a traveler to dinner to wash off the road dust," explained Houghton Lee, the Hong Kong businessman who volunteered to be my China vineyard interpreter so that he could learn more about wines from his own country. Houghton is on the right. On the left is Ma fei, the PR person for Great Wall, the largest winery in China.

We did notice that all the tables were taken in this large upscale restaurant, yet only one other table ordered wine. Everyone else had beer. Ma fei has lots of work ahead for Great Wall to achieve their goal of more than doubling volume in the next five years. Lots of wine, lots of people, lots of PR.

We also noticed that there were lots of young people who could afford to come to this restaurant. "In China parents can only have one child; so the parents often spoil their child," explained Houghton. Our host went on to explain that when he studied in Minnesota during the 1980s, Chinese students there received a $5000 scholarship each. But they lived frugally and would send $4000 back home. I wonder what we saw in the restaurant means for China's future?

As I'm eating fish head in some sort of tomato and garlic sauce, roast duck on a thin burrito-like bread, fish head soup, lots of thinly sliced vegetables and a list of other epicurean delights, suddenly comes to my mind a rough-hewn tavern/restaurant in Konso, Ethiopia. It was the last shred of "civilization" before we headed into the remote Omo region. There the main course was local beer and very loud music blaring because they had the luxury of electricity. For some reason, I couldn't get that restaurant out of my head as I sipped Viognier wine from France.

This Isn't Your Mother's Beijing

Wedding photography is big business in front of this Catholic church even though they didn't get married there. At this moment there two other couples being photographed by other cameramen.