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Back to "Monthly Program History"
September 17, 2008
"China and Tibet Adventure"
by Dick and Judy Opsahl
The adventure began in 1984, when Dick
Opsahl traveled to China with a group of engineers and engineering
educators to help improve engineering education at universities in
China. The adventure continued this past May when Dick and Judy
Opsahl and several others from Los Alamos went to China on an
"Overseas
Adventure Travel" trip, where among many other things, they learned
of the astounding Chinese advancements of the past 20 years. They
found high rise construction, new highways, and satellite dishes (once
discouraged, but now tolerated) everywhere.
Judy & Dick cruising on
the Li River near Guilin
A highlight in Shanghai was taking the
regular service Maglev train to the airport, while getting up to a speed
of 275 mph. The Opsahl's trip also included visits to Beijing,
Xian, and Chengdu, where they visited a panda sanctuary. They then
flew out of Chengdu just four hours before the disastrous earthquake and
made it to safety in Guilin. The Chinese adventure was complete
with a cruise through the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River, through the
locks of the Three Gorges Dam, and then finishing with a visit to Hong
Kong. Throughout the trip there were many opportunities to meet
with Chinese people, visit their homes, and learn about their life and
their culture. Before returning home, the Opsahl's took a side
trip to Macao.
Judy & Dick on the
Great Wall
The Opsahl's are long time, and very
active, members of the Los Alamos Mountaineers, and have been trip
leaders on numerous summer and winter Colorado hut trips, camping trips,
and ski and shoeshoe day hikes. Judy and Dick are also avid
travelers who have presented their overseas adventures to the
Mountaineers on several occasions. |
