Dear Folks,

You only live once, or so it is surmised by those who are no-longer among us..

And, I am thinking about going for the gusto in Shanxi, China.

I have decided that ShanXi will be my new Plan B, if I need an escape destination.

This is one place I have longed to visit, since I was 18.

And so, I would like to know if anyone here has any experience living in Shanxi.

I am an Old Friend of China, as I think I have mentioned in past comments.

Therefore, I expect that a long-term visa might not be difficult for me.

Still, I am wondering about actually living in Shanxi, as an Older American.

What challenges might I face, for example.

Soon, maybe in a decade, or even sooner, I will be dead.

And, after I am dead, will I not grow to regret not taking this final, fantastic journey into the darkest part of China, the land I have loved for more than 75 years?

If I wait another few years, then I might be too old to be granted a visa for China.

I have lived in China, beginning in 1980, and that was a time when peasants were living rather primitively. Now though, things have changed.

You would not believe the beauty of Shanxi, and the history and walls that have been preserved there.  I think, even, that the Cultural Revolution might not have touched ShanXi as much as it might have in Shanghai.

What do I have to lose, anyway?

Just my life, of course.

But, what is a life, when one is as old as I.

A life, at my age, is only One/Thirteenth of a life, logically speaking.

Let’s post here a few images of the ruins of ShanXi, just for motivational purposes.

Would you go?

Would you prefer Shanxi over Mars?

I would not go to Mars, at my age.

ShanXi, however, is still doable.

Best regards,

Gamma

Important Note: ShanXi is still unspoiled, I think. Maybe...Shanxi remains the last, and final, frontier for those who wish to experience a bit of the Real China....

I bet this guy has seen some interesting times, in his day....

Off you go then.