While exploring through the back alleys of the ancient village we suddenly noticed this little old woman calling out to us and waving her arms in a specific direction. Of course, she was speaking Chinese so I had no idea what she was saying. Normally when I didn't understand what people were saying to me I would just ignore them and continue doing what I wanted to do. After a few minutes Eric came around a corner and heard her and said that she was telling us we wouldn't be able to get out by going in that direction so we should come the direction she was showing us. So we turned around and walked towards her. Then she invited us into a little courtyard and told us this was where she lived. Then she began to show us around and tell us (Eric) little facts about her space: like her front door was 400 years old and the carvings on the other doors were of sparrows which took a liking to nesting inside this room (there were two nests right there on her wall). She said this room had been used as a school -- or maybe it still was. She had an accent that even Eric found hard to understand so we didn't really get much of what she was saying. Though when we thanked her for showing us her home, she made it clear that she would like a little "payment" for this guided tour. Then we realized why she was so adament about which way we should come through the village. Clever, very clever.
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