SUN LOUGH. China — A Missouri Western State University associate professor seized an opportunity to see the real China this summer by visiting Jiangxi province in southern China.

Professor G. Barry Nelson visited friend and St. Joseph native Roger Martin, who teaches English in China. Mr. Nelson said he didn’t want to see the Olympics, the Great Wall or the Forbidden City. Mr. Nelson said he wanted to see the “real” China.

A student of Mr. Martin’s, Kevin Huang, 18, invited Mr. Nelson, his wife, Sonya, and Mr. Martin to see where he grew up. According to local information, no foreigner had ever visited the hamlet near Sun Lough.

The visit required an 18-hour trip via train to Jiangxi province and Sun Lough. From there, it was a two-hour trip north in an all-terrain vehicle that traveled across washouts and rocky areas that resembled a 19th century western trek, Mr. Nelson said. Approaching the town, the three Americans noticed the main crop was tea.

The town had no name.

There is no doctor, no restaurants and only the most basic shops for the 1,000 villagers, Mr. Nelson said. Paved streets didn’t exist, but some people had bicycles. People walk along paths that have bamboo growing beside them between homes because there aren’t any roads, Mr. Nelson said. Most of the homes appeared to have dirt floors and no mechanical toilets.

The hamlet does have old-fashioned “outhouses” with a pit dug in the ground. Occasionally, lime is dropped in a hole to lessen the odors, Mr. Nelson said.

There was a strict order of visitation starting with Mr. Huang’s grandparents, then his oldest uncle and on down the list of about 100 relatives. The three Americans got to the homes of about 40 of Mr. Huang’s relatives.

Each family had to be met at their home, and each time the first order of business was washing hands. The three Americans were offered snack foods, invitations to dinner and a chance to spend the night. Everyone shook hands many times at each household.

At the grandparents’ home, there was a large wok built into the concrete cooking area, Mr. Nelson said. Most of the homes were wood-framed with tile roofs, he said.

By the time he left, Mr. Nelson knew he’d gotten his wish to see the real China. Mr. Huang, the tour guide for the three Americans, wants to develop a proficiency in English. Efforts are under way to see if he can qualify for a student visa to come to St. Joseph and become a student at Missouri Western State University, Mr. Nelson said.

Marshall White can be reached

at marshall@npgco.com.