Oh the Places You'll Go

So when I got home from getting Cora her 2-month shots today (yuck!), there was this interesting package waiting on my doorstep.  If my heart could leap for joy over an item, I swear it would over this... :)  (And my heart can leap for joy over an item. I was downright giddy.)

So, what might this odd-shaped package contain?  Here's a hint... you can find its likeness in the picture below...

About a year and a half ago, we went and visited a good friend of ours in Zhejiang province.  It was rice harvesting time in the countryside, and everywhere we looked, there were farmers with these giant baskets.  I have this odd penchant for the everyday items farmers use... if I were a Mongolian nomad, I might be thrilled with a plow disc or a John Deere tractor.  And it isn't the first time that I fell in love with a farmer's basket...

So, I asked one of the farmers if I could buy his basket.  He wanted $100.  I laughed.  At the next bend in the road, our (Chinese) friend asked a different farmer if he could buy the basket.  The guy looked at him like he was a wee bit crazy, but said sure... and sold it to us for about $3.

It had been used by his family since the mid-1990s, as evidenced by the writing on the side of the basket.  It also had his family name painted on it, and to me it looked positively amazing.

But then there was the challenge of getting it home.  I checked it on the airplane.  I didn't have a box big enough for it, so I just showed up at the airport with my basket and was sent to the oversized baggage area by an incredulous ticket agent.  The old guy at oversized baggage was bent over laughing when he saw the foreigner with the farming basket... he laughed so hard he cried, which is an unusual thing for a stoic Chinese gentleman.  I was a little embarrassed, but the basket was totally worth it...

By the time we got to Beijing, Jacob had his exit route carefully planned out.  He made a beeline for McDonald's and left me to "get the baggage."  But really he just didn't want to be there for the moment when my basket came tumbling down the luggage carousel.  Sure enough, as it made its way around the belt, my fellow travelers were elbowing one another and whispering and pointing at the basket.  Who in the world would bring such a thing to the metropolitan city of Beijing?  The crazy foreigner, that's who...

So the basket sat in my apartment for the last year and a half... sadly, in a corner, as it was simply too huge to fit in our small living area.  But I schemed and dreamed about getting it home to America.  But it is HUGE!  Like 2 feet in diameter and nearly 2 feet tall!  We didn't have room in our luggage (though some suggested I pop Cora in it and claim it was my baby carrier), so I left it behind, hoping it could be shipped later but too practical to bite the bullet and pay over $100 in shipping fees for a $3 basket.

But then my dear friend Joan brought it home with her on the plane!  And though it technically exceeded the size restrictions, no one charged her anything. (yippeee!)  It arrived, safe and sound in Madison, WI carrying 50 lbs of her clothing.  She then wrapped it in plastic and popped it in the mail to me... and for about $17, I ended up with this on my porch today.

I am one happy gal.  Now, there's just one more item I'd love to get home from China... an amazing farmer's hat that is nearly 3 feet in diameter and made from straw.  It's incredible, and would make a great wall decoration!  Anyone interested in being a courier? :)