A delightful 82 year old, playing the
erhu.  He scrambles down a steep

river bank for five miles every 
day to play for the long boats, then
hikes back UP.  Wow.
Some of our best times were little side
 trips along tributaries of the Yangtze River.
  Here, boatmen are having a break and a chat.
We floated in traditional long boats, used for
centuries.  The guys running on the shore were
boat trackers, who used to drag the boats from
an attached line through shallow water.
Historically they did it naked.  Really.
This Tujia boatman was happy to show me his
muscles.  We figured he had about 3% body fat.

       

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