Jinji Sadan

Like I wrote earlier I had an invitation to be a part of an “Israeli week” that was planed to be in the city of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province in china, the embassy of Israel with the city of Chengdu invited artist from Israel to show the locals some of our culture and to keep up with the good and warm connection between Israel and china.

 For me was planed a cycle with the locals in the event but before I will write on this day I will write how I got there.

I was cycling fast in this really cold weather to get in the time to my flight I didn’t wanted to miss this flight so I enter to the highway to cycle fast in the last days, its not allowed to cycle there but I thought that no one will care in this time of a year and I know that foreigners cyclist are a rare sight her.

 I was cycling when a police car came and did noise and shout at me to stop.

In these moments I am putting my stupid smile but when I saw this 2 police guys coming out from the car with a camera I laughed…

They did with me some shots when they salute me and we say good bye to each other…

 

 The flight was in the morning and we needed to wait until they workers will take the ice from the runaway and I after 2 flights I got to Chengdu airport where nice girls waited for me and took me to my hotel.

From the first moment I noticed the excitement of this event.

 

 

I was tired from the last 2 months but I wanted to see every event that was scheduled and went to see the performance of singers and bands from Israel.

Even the famous Israeli singer David Daor took a part and his voice was    warm to the chine’s people.

There is Israelis that living and study here so we had parties and I enjoyed my time.

After 40 days without meeting a traveler to come and be here was like to be on a warm Israeli island in the middle of china.

 My cyclist’s friends, yorma, Aziza and Toby heard that I am coming to Chengdu and they took a part in the riding event.

In the last day of the Israeli week and a bus full of reporters waited for me and we drive together to the event.

When we got closer and closer I got a confused from the many police cars and signs with my photos and name.

When I saw the amount of people that waited for me I had only one word to say:

“Wow”

Every thing in china is big and if they do something they do it big.

Hundreds of people were standing in front of a big stage with my photos, they were many important people like the Israeli ambassador, Mr. Amos Nadai, and the mayor of chengdu and they had some speeches but I had problem to listen to them I was distracted by the amount of cyclists and people from all ages waving the Israeli and the chine’s flags.

I had some tears in my eyes and then I knew thats this is the most emotionally day that I had in this journey.

After the ceremony we cycled to the center of the city about 70km with a police escort and an open lane just for us… “thats the way to enter a city” me and my dear friends said to each other.

 That most emotionally moments are coming by surprise and noticed that for me this days are coming because other people action to me and not the other way around.

 When I started this journey I imagine the happiest moments to be when I am finishing continents or climbing a big mountain but with the time noticed that the” human” are moved me the most.

 

When I finished everything and the adrenalin was in a normal standard I watched the event and listen to what the ambassador said:

“I am more then 35 years in the Israeli foreign affairs mission and this is one of the happiest days in my service”  

 ”To be an ambassador I learned many things but no one taught me that I can ride on a bicycle and represent my country”.

China is the country that “every thing is made” and she also made me the happiest guy on earth.

It was also very funny to hear the chine’s saying Mr. Jinji…

 

For more then 3 years I am working with the Israeli embassies around the world and together we showing them the real Israeli and not the things that every one see on the CNN and this guys are doing magic most of the travelers thinks that the embassy workers are going from a cocktail to a cocktail but its really not the truth and this fin guys are working days and night to represent our country and doing the best even to make lemonade from the lemons that life brings to us.

Most of them are humble and not many people know this in Israel and it’s about time to say (or write) it loud.

Behind this big event there is the “ant” that holding the strings of every thing and the name of him was Guy Kivetz ,Spokesman ,Director of Communications & Public Diplomacy  in Israeli embassy in china, for the last 3 months this man work day and night to produce this event.

The mobile phone was part of is ear and he had his sleeping on the flights going back and forward from Chengdu to bejing.

Even when I knew that he is very busy he had the time to call me and to ask if everything is ok and if I need some thing.

I want to thank him for making this vision come true and because of him many people know about Israel and that if we doing some thing we try to do it in the best way that we can.

If we started to cycle we will cycle around the world.

I give guy and all the Israelis that representing my country a big salute.

 

Now I am back on the road after 2 flights back to the place that I stooped and It’s very cold (-10) but I have so much power from this week.

 In this week I learned again that every thing is possible for that people that dreaming with open eyes.

To see chine’s girls signing together with David Daor “messiah, messiah in Hebrew its some thing that I never thought that I will see…and maybe its a sign that is coming soon..

 

 Keep up the good work my friends

 

Roei “jinji” Sadan

 

Where every thing is made

 

China

The world

       

  

 

Going out from the desert to another desert by crossing high mountains in this time of the year in this area in china means one thing:

Its going to be fucking cold (excuse me for the language but I need to make a point here…).

If it was freezing cold in the night already you need only to imagine how cold it was up there. I did more then 2000km in the last month and in this trine it’s a lot maybe too much but I need /want to finish Asia on my schedule and winter is knocking on my tent.

The road was in good condition and the climb was gentle but it was cold nights…

The days are getting shorter and shorter so I don’t have  much time to stop and rest like I should during the day and I need to start early to begin “my day in the office “.

 

In one truck stop that I stopped to get some lunch and to get more food to warm for dinner the locals ask me where I am going (in Chinese of course) and we start to have a interesting conversion in sign language we talked with the hands and shouting to each other because like every 3^rd world country the locals think that if they will shout what they want to say to me I will understand…

  You needed to see this small nice guy.

In acting he told me that there is ice on the road another 20km and its very dangerous because the big trucks are loosing control on the ice…

In that moment I thought that he should get an Oscar nominated.

 ”it’s very cold in the night up there that you will die sleeping out side in your tent”

All of this with waving hands, jumping and making sound of dead man…

 

Now I am sure he is going to win this Oscar.

“This place got to be the Chinese version of Hollywood” I said  to myself.  

I was really tired and I did all ready 90km of climbing (gentle climb) so he convinced me to stay in a near truck “hotel” in a warm bed.

 The room was dirty but it was warm so I think that it worth every dollar (the all two of them … ).

 I got some sleep (the chine’s truckers can be very noisy) and in the morning went to say good bye to the local Denzel Washington and start to climb again.

One day I will show you the video of this actor…

 

It was magic day, I was so happy to see snow capped mountains after 2 month in a desert.

The big mountains are like my best friends- I just need to see or hear them and I got power for months.

 I could imagine my future and remember my past much more clearly in the mountains.

 

The pass was a small, no more then 3500m, I wish that my GPS broke after 3 years of use so I cant tell how high it exactly was but from my map I knew that it was only above 3000m, not so high but very cold.

Like any other good actor also my Chinese friend knew how to exaggerate and it wasn’t that much ice on the road not so dangerous place.

 

They road down was very fast and I got to the city of wuwei and like every Chinese city it’s quit big and with interesting gates and way of life.

I even saw a new way to use a bicycle:

Deliver fresh goats skin.

 

 

From the city of wuwei to the city of Yinchuan it was another 500km so I will tell you about this crazy day’s letter because I need to rest now.

 

Its cold but it will be colder.

Until we freeze again.

 

Roei “jinji” sadan

 

Yinchuan

Province of ningxia

China

Asia

The world.