They told me that they built their house themselves, in which they live with their daughter Eva. All three of them are actually quite tall! Almost as tall as me. Eva showed me the garden in which small herbs grow, and where chickens and a dog named Leisi walk around freely.

After that, I joined Baba and two of his colleagues who had a car to a farm where bay leaf (yuèguìyè) is grown. After trimming bushes and planting new ones, we went to collect our dinner. We walked to a bamboo forest to cut fresh roots, and then we went knee-deep into the lake to fish for fresh shrimp. It was amazing to see up close how it grows and how it’s harvested, and it was the freshest food I ever ate.