The bus doors only have to open for a crowd to gather. I personally blew my nose for an audience of no fewer than two dozen people. Taking photographs is often difficult, because as soon as I stop to shoot, curious faces begin to appear at the corner of my frame. And my life is simple compared to British cinematographer Peter Harvey's. An Arriflex Super 16mm movie camera on a tripod will never, ever be known as a stealthy instrument of social documentation.
Children rush in.
Gnashing of teeth ensues. Workers use sledge hammers and wedges to carve a new road bed from a steep sandstone bluff near Fuling. Back on the boat we set sail for Chongqing, a sprawling river city of 4 million or so along the Yangtze's shores, nearly 1,500 miles inland from Shanghai. It's the final stop of a river voyage that has taken so many unexpected twists. The ship bobs through the water in fits and starts, as we motor through rapids and tight turns in the night.