The Travels of the Egyptian Marco Polo

Since returning from Inner Mongolia, I haven't really had the opportunity to sit down with a good cup of tea to reflect about what was truly an eye opening experience. Although my visit to China this vacation had taken me to Beijing, Shen Zhen, Hong Kong, Macau, Zhu Hai, Guangzhu, and Hohhot, all of which are some of China's largest metropolises, I don't think any of these cities sufficed in showing me the traditional side of China I had been craving to see. I was curious to see how the traditional Chinese person lived, what he ate, where he slept, how we spent time with the family and friends, what he did in the bitter cold of the north of China, how he reacted to a foreigner... These were amongst some of the questions that my sense of curiosity was eager to find out.

I was truly fortunate that the opportunity presented itself in the last week of my stay in China. After returning to Beijing from my trip to the south of China, I had been passing time shopping, reading, spending time with the family, writing, but I realized that during this whole time, I wasn't experiencing China. Then, luckily, my good friend Xiaohuan and his family invited me to their village in Inner Mongolia. After accepting their cordial invitation, I felt that I was Marco Polo embarking on a journey to the ends of the world to experience exotic distance lands where I might come across treasures and miracles. This was obviously my exaggerated imagination taking me on an unrealistic adventure, but now I realize that the rewards of this trip truly did contain treasures of friendship and miracles of realizing that no matter where people lived, be it on the eastern end of the Orient in China or the western end in Egypt, people essentially had the same needs, emotions, and love for one another. These conclusions that I had come to had comforted my heart in a time when humanity can really show its dark side via financial crises, wars, etc...

After my first night in Xiaohuan's village, I remember writing in my diary "Never in my life have I been treated so hospitably and graciously as I have today by Xiaohuan's family." This was only an excerpt from the many impressions I had of living with a Chinese family for a couple of days. During my visit to Inner Mongolia, I had tasted the most delicious food ever, such as lamb dumplings, and tasted some of the finest green tea of my life.

What was truly interesting was the reception of the villagers to a foreigner. I believe that a foreigner hadn't set foot in some of the villages surrounding Xiaohuan's house in a very long time, so I wasn't surprised when some of the townspeople would stare at me for extended periods of time. People were anxious to see this alien from Egypt. Almost everyone I met asked me questions about my country, which seemed to them to be at the other end of the world.

Of course, my traditional Chinese experience didn't go without sight seeing to some of the most fabulous places in Inner Mongolia. Unfortunately we were unable to see some of the beautiful grass lands because it wasn't the appropriate time of the season, but what we did see was more than sufficient to make it up. Xiaohuan was very culturally considerate to take me to a Muslim restaurant upon my visit.
The most intriguing think I was exposed to must have been the milk tea, which was very tasty but very new to me. We then went to a Buddhist temple that convinced me that Buddhism is a very lively and colorful religion.

We also visited the Zhaojun museum, which showed me the prehistoric side of China's history. Although it was almost -8 degrees celsius as made our tour, I truly enjoyed seeing what was in Hohhot.

The next day was truly a revelation for me to see a side of China I never fathomed existed. we visited some of th poor villages in Inner Mongolia where people lived a very harsh life. These run down villages reminded me of the poverty I had seen in Egypt and India. Moreover, due to the financial crisis, these people lived under really dire circumstances. The was malnutritioned animals and unsold corn harvest. Upon experiencing this side of China, I was grateful to God for my comfortable life.

We also visited China's famous yellow river. It was truly a beautiful sight seeing a frozen stream still flowing in the bright sun.


I would have to say that the highlight of the trip was by far the farewell dinner I had. Xiaohuan's family had invited many of their acquaintances to a dinner to bid me farewell. There was a live performance and Xiaohuan and his sister even sang to me!

I have just given you, dear reader, an excerpt of the many chronicles of my adventures in the far land of Inner Mongolia. I leave the rest of my adventures to imagine based on your own curiousity so that maybe one day when I become a famous traveler like Marco Polo and my travelogue is published, you may find out the rest of my adventures (hehe!).

In any case, if there is anything that was truly worth getting out of this trip, it was the amiable friendship I have with Xiaohuan and the people of China.