A new freeway

Freeway toll booth

Talking about all the construction and the messes and air pollution it makes is only one part of the story.

This morning we took a 20 mile ride out to the airport. It was mostly on a new freeway. 4 lanes in both directions and beautifully landscaped with mature plants, shrubs and trees. It was like a private park. Instead of being unusual, as it would be at home, this is very typical of China.

The dense, well-trimmed and watered shrubbery and trees are so different from what we would see in America. It is not unusual to see miles of flowering trees in bloom on a freeway less than a year old. Not only are the freeways landscaped but they are meticulously maintained - all by hand.

So often at home we see new public plantings dry out and die. Here the streets have constant watering trucks driving the boulevards water the hedges in the median and sides of the road. Impressive.

Along with landscaping is the constant road and sidewalk sweeping - much of it done by hand - even done by hand on the freeway itself.

One of the advantages of a country with a large population still trying to emerge from poverty is that there is so much available cheap labor.

Different from America, laborers  will work at any job to elevate themselves and become self-sufficient. The prime work motivation, even in very low paying jobs, is to work and sacrifice to allow their children to get an education. China really puts that inexpensive labor to work beautifying the country, cities, streets, and neighborhoods. It definitely soothes the heart and gladdens the eye.

These, and so many of our pictures, are hazy not due to poor cameras, nor being actually overcast and cloudy. Instead it is the haziness of air pollution.