ON THE WAY TO JIANGMEN

GEO Judy Newhouse was gracious this morning, and even before I got to the school gate at 6:26, she was already there waiting for me. We caught the 906 bus to Tuen Mun town center and then rode the subway for an hour. During the 20 minute walk to the ferry terminal, we dodged intermittent drizzle. Noticeably, people all morning were friendly with greetings of “Good morning” or “Hello.” Surprising in such a large city.

Purchasing the ticket turned out to be easy, but when the woman looked up at me, she indicated there was a special price (for elders), discounted from HK 230 to HK 150. I took the discount. Through immigration and customs with no difficulty.

Fifteen minutes before departure, they called for people to board. Down the escalator, along the walkway, across the gangplank and into the body of the ferry – seats for about 230. The musty smell almost did me in, but after a bit, I adjusted.

 

The waiting area at the ferry terminal (signboard alternates between Chinese and English)

The ferry itself is an albatross, a semi-rusted piece of floating steel. Every mold spore in the ferry terminal gathered right on this ship. In the men’s bathroom, the sign over the urinal said “Flush after using,” but there was no button or handle by which to flush. The windows to the outside are salted making the view an opaque challenge. The galley serves noodles and some packaged goods, but I wondered about the cleanliness. A violent movie played loudly, not understandable because it was in Cantonese or Mandarin. Note: the upper deck first class was substantially classier!

Typical scenery on the trip toward Macau

The trip was pock-marked with unoccupied mounds of rocks called islands. Little one man fishing boats and sampans competed with freighters, tankers, container ships and passenger turbojets. Occasional resorts sporting moon-shaped beaches offered havens for travelers. AND, the incessant loud chatter of three elderly people in the row in front of me gave no opportunity for me to rest. The large swells caused the craft to bounce up and down (and sideways) with irregular frequency. The ride called for a tough constitution.

After we entered the mouth of the (Jiangmen?) River, we briefly stopped at Doumen. Numerous dredging operations dotted the river shoreline. Mini-docks for container ships. Dredges actively sucking up the bottom. Rows of planted trees gracing the river’s edge. Sand and gravel barges. Tall steel towers balancing transmission lines crossing the river. Bridges on stilts. All manner of garbage floatation caught in the current. Brown water looking like the Baraboo River (from my working days at the Reedsburg, WI, canning factory). 

God provided me a clear path through immigration and customs, and a fun reunion with Hilda and Lily. 

Hilda and Lily met me at the ferry terminal and got me to Concordia English Center, located on the sixth and seventh floors of the Jiangmen Christian Church. Pastor Jimmy serves this congregation of 3,500 located at nine different sites in the Jiangmen area. He is assisted by five pastors and twenty evangelists.

Hilda, Lily, and I ate lunch at 668, a dumpling restaurant. Then we headed off with Pastor Jimmy to see one of the newer churches. The congregation just received the building back from the government (much earlier an Anglican church and later a factory). Later, we visited another worship site in a sauna sales room (the president of the company is a Christian; the saunas are all electric - cool!).

Tofu skins in sesame oil (pretty tasty since I don't like tofu)

Lamb and celery and pork and chive dumplings (YUM!)

 

 Finally, this afternoon, we walked the area of the old grey buildings - what a marvelous place for photos.

 It was good to see Brogan (Albers) again. We'll be going out for dinner with Hilda, Lynn (former secretary here at Concordia who now works for the Concordia Welfare and Education Foundation) and Lily, and then later, Brogan and I will have a chance to catch up.