China provides inspiration

While taking a break from building their own new home in Lake California, Leonard and Kristi Betts shared with the Valley Post a few of the inspirations they received during a recent trip to China.

A retired school teacher, Kristi Betts will present more of her thoughts, photographs and impressions of China with members of the Anderson Women's Club at 10 a.m. this Friday, March 20. The meeting will take place in the Community Room at Anderson City Hall, club publicist Maxine Cambra said.

"I was amazed by the great accomplishments of people in the distant past," Kristi Betts said of the Great Wall, portions of which her father climbed a number of years earlier on a similar tour. "In addition, I was impressed with the improvements made in the last few years to improve the quality of life for the people and to give a facelift to the cities" such as Beijing, which recently hosted the 2008 Olympic Games.

Mrs. Betts said she was particularly impressed with the high rise apartments where the world's athletes stayed that have recently been converted into housing for those previously displaced by the Olympics.

"The Bird's Nest Stadium was really fascinating," she commented.

Although Mrs. Betts has traveled extensively in Europe, Central America and Hawaii, it was the first time that either she or her building contractor husband had ever visited Asia.

"The trip was announced at the Anderson Chamber of Commerce. It was $1,700 per person, which included airfare, accomodations and all of the meals. We thought that sounded pretty reasonable so we took money out of our savings to go over there," Leonard Betts said.

They visited Hangzhou, known as the Paradise City because of its many lakes, parks and tree-lined streets. They also made the obligatory pilgrimages to the Forbidden City, former home of the various Chinese emperors in Beijing, along with stops at Tian'amen Square, the Tower of Heaven, the royal Summer Palace and a trip previously mentioned to a section of the Great Wall.

"I was overwhelmed by the scale of their history and the development of their country," Mr. Betts said. "It was one of the best experiences of my life, just seeing how all those people interact with each other," he said of the nine-day visit, Nov. 10-19.

As a contractor, Mr. Betts was impressed by the spidery network of bamboo scaffolding used to erect some of Beijing's tall high-rise apartments and office buildings.

When asked what were their most lasting and strongest impressions, Leonard Betts responded.

"The trip left me with a desire to meet more Chinese people and to find out more about the country," he added.