This weekend we finally got to see some of the area beyond our city of Chengdu. Dr. Zhang and his daughter Yao took us to the Dujiangyan Irrigation Project, a village about 2 hours outside of Chengdu.
The irrigation system built there over 2,000 years ago is a testament to Chinese ingenuity. Li Bing, prefect of Sichuan at the time, decided to put an end to the devastating annual floods that plagued the region, and designed an irrigation system that is still in use today and has made Sichuan the most agriculturally prosperous region in China. Li Bing and his workers had to break through one sizable rocky hill to allow the water of the Min river flow onto the Chengdu plain, then they constructed a man-made island levee to divert some of the river onto farmland. Mind you, this all happened in the 3rd century BC. The enormity of the undertaking really hits you when you're standing on a man-made island with a foundation of bamboo and rocks, knowing that it has been there for 2,000 years and will probably be around for at least 2,000 more.
The beautiful hillsides surrounding the river are dotted with temples honoring Li Bing and his workers. We hiked along the stone pathways, savoring the fresh air and the ever-present sound of the Min river flowing along its course, a constant reminder of Li Bing's revolutionary engineering feat.
2 comments:
This is just breathtaking! I'm so glad you've gotten to venture outside the city.
Babe, your stories and pictures have just been phenomenal! We've loved keeping in touch via some emails, and the skype conversations, together with actually seeing you, have made the distance seem pretty insignificant. I have to say though, your knack for sharing your experiences through the blog entries, and the quality of all the photos, is making this trip enjoyable and special for a lot of folks. I'm proud, love you, Dad
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