Bus 35 runs from our village, 大高舍村, into Liangxiang, where I have classes 5 days a week.
The bus runs between 05h40 to 20h30.
We’ve taken it to Liangxiang many times over the past few weeks.
This morning we got on it in the opposite direction, to see where it would take us.
It is amazing what you experience if you are willing to just get on a bus and go somewhere unknown.
We rode the bus for about 20 minutes and then got off in a neighbouring village, started walking along its streets, taking in the atmosphere, the old buildings, the beautiful people, the smell of food and the sound of laughter.
We walked down the main street, eventually getting to the entrance of the village.
I love how villages and towns and cities here in China have ornate entrances welcoming you.
We kept on walking in the shade of large trees planted decades ago, all along the road.
A woman on an electric scooter stopped alongside us.
She started talking and explaining, too fast for us to follow, but friendly and kind, us able to understand she has a gift she wants to share with us.
A little way further down the road we find their farm, their gift.
Amazing organic fruit trees.
Plums.
Peaches.
Apricots.
And a similar fruit we don’t know.
They explain that they do not spray their trees and invite us in to come and pick and eat as much as we like.
Birds provide the soundtrack fro our experience.
We enjoy one juicy plum followed by another juicy peach.
Maddi’s face and clothes are marinated in fresh fruit juice as she eats along.
As we leave we take a bag of fruit with us.
It starts to drizzle.
People offer us umbrellas which we politely decline.
The drizzle is perfect.
We find our bus stop.
We ride home, along tree-lined streets.
As Beate would call it, ‘China the Beautiful’.
Not just the trees and fruit and countryside.
The people.
Always friendly.
Always welcoming.
Always sharing their little bit of abundance with our little tribe of strangers.
Traveling Tribe 
Interesting little journey you guys had, chinese people are very social, I recall walking along a well lit street one evening, and these older men we’re playing cards and eating peanuts on the pavement…its these memories I cherish from China….and my father inlaw making the best dumplings….which he says is as good as you could get at the Shangri la hotel.
Yea, it is pretty cool, Brian.