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1,000 Saxophones On The Great Wall Of China

Team GPSaxophone
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Team GPSaxophone

+Team GPSaxophone

Posted
Posted (edited)

It's hard to believe it's been three years since we heard of this plan. Putting 1,000 Saxophones on the Great Wall of China is apparantly no easy task.

 

When we first started geocaching in April of 2002, we needed a team name to represent our family. Right around the same time, I learned of the proposal to get Saxophone players from around the world to play on the Great Wall. Since I already played the bass guitar Saxophone, of course I wanted to go to China for this concert. The wife plays the trombone, but she wanted to participate too. She decided to start learning to play the Saxophone. I had already taken a band trip to France in 1994, and both of us have played in California, Indiana, and New Mexico. The China trip would give us the opportunity to both be world travelers. We settled on naming our "team" (family) the "Globally Positioned Saxophones" or Team GPSaxophone.

 

Unfortunately, the proposed trip in 2003 was pushed back to 2004, then pretty much cancelled altogether. Not enough people could come up with the money in time, and the project lacked corporate sponsors. Last month the project was essentially cancelled for these reasons. This morning when I checked my e-mailbox, I got excited about it again:

Dear Great Wall Saxophone Enthusiasts,

 

Life is really surprising sometimes.  I was just about to finally

give up on the idea of producing the 1000 Saxophones on the Great

Wall project when I got an email followed by a call on Sunday night

from my main contact in the China Performing Arts Agency in China.

 

The Beijing 2008 Olypics Organizing Committee started looking for a

grand project, our proposal came to their attention, and presto, they

are now extremelly eager to make it happen and to lend government and

logistical support!  The event will be promoted world-wide by the

China Performing Arts Agency in an effort to get saxophone players

from as many countries as possible in the spirit of the Olympics.

 

The concert will take place around mid-July of 2006.  Details and

plans are supposed to finalized in the next few weeks.  At the

moment, the initial plan will include a basic trip of about one week

in Beijing.  There will be an optional second week of performances in

Shanghai, Xian, and possibly a third city.

 

We don't know the costs yet, but are hoping that it might be around

or less than $1000 from the US for everything including air tickets,

hotels, food, etc.  For those travelling from other parts of the

globe, similar efforts will be made to keep the costs to a minimum.

For those travelling to China on their own, it may cost as little as

$350 for the week in Beijing including accommodations, food,

rehearsals, workshops, and other activities.

 

Look for details soon.  Keep the lip in shape.

When I first heard of the plan, there were only 6 geocaches in China. Today there still aren't very many, only 62 in the entire country, and most of those are virtuals. Obviously, geocaching is not our primary mission when we get there, but we intend to find as many caches as possible during our weeklong trip next summer.

 

With 5 of us going (we have 3 kids) we'll need to save several thousand dollars for this trip. I apologize in advance if we have to miss out on some caching events between now and then in order to save money. We had planned to visit the Southeast US in 2006, those plans will likely be moved to 2007 instead.

 

Any other geocaching sax players interested in joining us? We could get together and hit a few caches while we're there!

 

** This thread isn't about fundraising, or requesting donations, but I wouldn't turn down any offers **

Edited by Team GPSaxophone
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WH

WH

Posted
Posted

 

** If you'd like to donate to the "Send Team GPSaxophone to China Fund", send me a PM or an email. All donations greatly appreciated. **

First of all, I don't see how this is geocaching related. Secondly, soliciting donations to fund your trip is in very poor taste.

 

People had threads shut down for soliciting donations to help the tsunami victims. If those threads had to be closed, this one DEFINITELY should go.

 

As a mod, you should know better. :lol:

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Team GPSaxophone

+Team GPSaxophone

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Posted

 

** If you'd like to donate to the "Send Team GPSaxophone to China Fund", send me a PM or an email. All donations greatly appreciated. **

First of all, I don't see how this is geocaching related. Secondly, soliciting donations to fund your trip is in very poor taste.

 

People had threads shut down for soliciting donations to help the tsunami victims. If those threads had to be closed, this one DEFINITELY should go.

 

As a mod, you should know better. :lol:

No, this thread isn't about soliciting donatioins for the trip. Yes, that is tacked on to the end, but is really an afterthought to the whole thing. If you're offended by it then don't read it. You know it's in this thread now and you can just ignore it to your heart's content.

 

This thread is no different from this one about my Great Plains trip, or This one about my Northwest trip. All of them involve geocaching, meeting other geocachers, and seeing the sights. The only difference is that I don't know any cachers in China yet and the trip is going to much more expensive than the others I've done or have planned.

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WH

WH

Posted
Posted

The primary mission of your trip is to blow your horn on the Great Wall. Your other threads discussed trips where geocaching was the primary reason for the excursion. How expensive it is is not anyone's problem but your own. If you can't afford it, don't go and don't use the forums to try to solicit funds for your trip.

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GrizzlyJohn

+GrizzlyJohn

Posted
Posted
If you're offended by it then don't read it.

Yea but you don't know it till you read it then you are offended.

 

Will this idea of being able to say anything in the forum and have the fallback to be able to just say then don't read it be a new policy that other mods will be putting into place?

 

Also to keep this on topic with geocaching ... I am starting to collect funds to take a trip to go caching somewhere. I don't know where yet, that will depend on how much money the community sends. ;)

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Divine

+Divine

Posted
Posted (edited)

I've gone geocaching thrice in Thailand, once in China and in several European countries. Everywhere I've seen great sights, and I've also met geocachers in couple of foreign countries. I've paid all these trips myself. However, I just booked flights to New Zealand for the next Xmas and New Year. It's much more expensive trip than the previous ones, so I greatly appreciate all donations. ;)

Edited by Divine
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Ambrosia

+Ambrosia

Posted
Posted

Wow. ;) It's amazing how easily some people get worked up so quickly. :D

 

Here I was, enjoying reading this lovely thread, learning something more about Saxy, thinking about how nice it would be to go caching in China, too, then BAMM!!! I get hit with angst! :D

 

Make life a pleasant place for everyone to live in, please. ;)

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Dr123d

Dr123d

Posted
Posted (edited)

Way to go Sax! ;)

Let me know something. Do I get a tee shirt for my donation? Like: "My friend Sax went to China to blow his own horn and all I got was this crummy tee shirt" :D

 

I would wear it proudly with my new kilt.

Edited by Dr123d
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Team GPSaxophone

+Team GPSaxophone

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Posted

Ok, I've edited the original post because some of you couldn't see past several paragraphs about the trip and chose instead to complain about the one line at the bottom.

 

Further discussion of fundraising in this thread is off topic and you will be reported to a moderator. This thread is about geocaching, saxophones, and the Great Wall of China trip I have planned.

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Ambrosia

+Ambrosia

Posted
Posted

I don't care if the thing that spurred him on to go to China is because he has a secret desire to pick his nose in the Forbidden City. :P He's gonna get to go caching in China! I'm jealous. ;)

 

I go on a company trip every fall to exotic locations. The reason I am there is because my company sends me. But what do you think that I look forward to the most? ;) Caching in another country, of course! :D Why couldn't I start a thread about that, too? :D:D

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Renegade Knight

+Renegade Knight

Posted
Posted (edited)

1) Good luck to Sax on his goal. It's cool that it panned out and may actually happen. Thanks for taking the time to share it.

2) Complete different from the main topic of 1000 Saxs on the wall, WH is right about the soliciting.

 

Edit: Correction made already. Maybe they can do 10,000?

Edited by Renegade Knight
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Dr123d

Dr123d

Posted
Posted
Make life a pleasant place for everyone to live in, please.  ;)

As long as he follows the guidelines which he supposedly upholds.

You made your point again ;) and again :D and again :D.

 

You don't like it don't keep reading it. Let the powers that be close it if they feel it is wrong. Other wise no harm done.

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GrizzlyJohn

+GrizzlyJohn

Posted
Posted

I think some of the angst comes from the feeling of some people that the rules get applied differently to different people. And that some are granted favors that would not be to others.

 

I don't want to say this is how anyone who posted in this thread feels, because I don't know how these people feel. But I can say that is how I feel. Rules are rules and that is fine. I don't agree with them all and that is fine as well. But I do expect them to be applied evenly across the board. I just don't feel they always are. I don't really care that someone breaks the rules but they need to get slapped for it like anyone else.

 

I think it just makes it that much worse when the person is a mod. Like it or not I think they have to hold themselves to a higher standard. Even if they think they are walking close to the line they should take a step back just to be certain. Or at least use a non-mod account.

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Team GPSaxophone

+Team GPSaxophone

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Sax, I hope you have a great trip and that you can pull together the formidable logistics!

 

Hopefully we will hear from people like JamieZ and Laogai who have spent time in China. There are probably some other forum regulars who I'm forgetting.

I had forgotten about JaimeZ spending time in China. Thanks for reminding me about his trip. This is exactly what this thread is supposed to do! ;)

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Stunod

+Stunod

Posted
Posted
I had another idea for this trip. What if I hit my 1,000th cache during this quest for 1,000 Saxophones on the Great Wall? It would be quite a stretch though, since it took me 3 years to find my first 500 caches. I'd need to find about 480 caches between now and July of next year! ;)

You're in relatively virgin territory now that you've moved to CO...I think you could do it.

 

Go for it!

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agent7719

+agent7719

Posted
Posted

Wow, what a bunch of angry people, you tell them about your trip and joke around about donations and you would swear that you are trying to convert their Religion, the way they respond.

Every time a person goes out geocaching they are taking a trip. Even if the cache is only across town, so to be bashed about taking a trip to China and doing a little Geocaching along the way is rough. I feel talking about taking Geocaching trips is a Geocaching related topic.

Have fun in China, I have been there, Japan Korea, and many other Asia countries. ;)

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Zeute

+Zeute

Posted
Posted
I had another idea for this trip. What if I hit my 1,000th cache during this quest for 1,000 Saxophones on the Great Wall? It would be quite a stretch though, since it took me 3 years to find my first 500 caches. I'd need to find about 480 caches between now and July of next year! :D

Then why are you hanging around here?

 

GO GO GO!

 

;)

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monimoni

+monimoni

Posted
Posted

and p.s. to GPSax, If you really can pull this off for 2006, for under $1,000 per, then count me in, but frankly, you ain't gonna do it for 1K, no way, nohow......

 

and p.p.s. to GPPSax, I don't blow the sax, or anything else, but I do know how to stand on a Great Wall and pose.....

;)

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umc

umc

Posted
Posted
and p.s. to GPSax, If you really can pull this off for 2006, for under $1,000 per, then count me in, but frankly, you ain't gonna do it for 1K, no way, nohow......

 

and p.p.s. to GPPSax, I don't blow the sax, or anything else, but I do know how to stand on a Great Wall and pose.....

;)

Heck, I think you'd be taking the picture. :D;)

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WH

WH

Posted
Posted
Hmmmm....1000 people blowing hot air on the Great Wall of China.

 

Why travel to China when all the hot air you could possibly want is right here in D.C.

Don't you mean G.C.?

Nope. Im referring to a city full of politicians.

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Pork King

+Pork King

Posted
Posted

So...1,000 saxophones on the great wall? What kind of psychedelic drugs were these people taking? Cause I want some. Why not start a project of your own using arbitrarily picked places/items? "Let's see if we can get 200,000 skinned donkey legs piled up under the Eiffel tower by 2008!"

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medic208

+medic208

Posted
Posted
Sax, I hope you have a great trip and that you can pull together the formidable logistics!

 

Hopefully we will hear from people like JamieZ and Laogai who have spent time in China.  There are probably some other forum regulars who I'm forgetting.

Back in '95 I spent a month in China and had the chance to tour most of the more popular tourist spots like the forbidden city, the great wall, summer palace, etc. Before I left I only knew two words of chinese (hello), but my greatest accomplishment while there was being able to go to the train station, buy tickets to go to the great wall, and spending the entire day there hiking while being able to converse in spoken mandarin :laughing: China is such a neat and different country and I would love to return one day. I'm jealous of your trip - hope it works out! Oh by the way... if you get to go, avoid the clear, chinese liquor... bleeeeech!!!

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TheAlabamaRambler

+TheAlabamaRambler

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Posted

You go, Sax!

 

Want a fun way to help finance your trip? When I was there local artists would make rubbings of the intricate scenes carved in the stone on rice paper and would color in the detail with chalk, making beautiful wall hangings. Truly amazing stuff!

 

The two I have are old and fading - while you are there get two hand-rubbings like this that are 24"x36" or so and I will pay you $100 each for them!

 

Ed

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TheAlabamaRambler

+TheAlabamaRambler

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Posted (edited)
That sounds like fun! I've never even picked up one of them there saxamaphones much less play the damnn thing, but with 999 other people who do know how to play, I doubt anyone would notice.

 

That's pretty much how I made it through my High-school marching band, concert band, 7th Fleet Navy Jazz band, college team band (UAB Blazers Basketball Band) and the UAB Jazz band!

Edited by TheAlabamaRambler
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The Jester

+The Jester

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Posted
That sounds like fun! I've never even picked up one of them there saxamaphones much less play the damnn thing, but with 999 other people who do know how to play, I doubt anyone would notice.

Yeah, but what are going to do when 997 others decide to do the same thing? At least it'll make for a great audience for the Team Sax duet! :laughing:

 

Man, do I envy you the trip. My folks spent a year in China teaching English to English teachers, and sent back some great pictures and trinkets. Have a great time - I'd send you a little $ but I'm using it all on my geo-trip next month...

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