Tag Archives: photos

Chinese Lion Statue

Posted on by

MarinaAvila posted a photo:

Lion Statue

This is a most impressive stone lion statue. You’ll see statues like this throughout China (and in Chinatowns throughout the world). In fact, it’s a symbol that most people instantly associate with China.

They are often outside banks and other buildings and they always come in pairs. There’ll be another lion statue just outside of this shot. According to About.com’s Chinese Culture section:

A pair of stone lions, a male and a female, can often be seen in front of the gates of traditional buildings. The male lion is on the left with his right paw resting on a ball, and the female on the right with her left paw fondling a cub.

For more information on stone lion statues, check out the article on About.com.

Bejing Olympics Tactical Response

Posted on by

aenertia posted a photo:

Bejing Olympics Tactical Response - soldiers on scooters

I’ve read about this – the Bejing Olympics Tactical Response group are apparently well prepared for any terrorist threat that might arise at the 2008 Olympic Games.

As part of this, they’ve trained soldiers who can speed along on little ‘scooters’ called Segways while shooting up the terrorists.

I’m not sure how accurately they’ll be able to shoot while they’re zooming along (I suspect not very well), but they look impressive, like something out of a science fiction movie!

I’m just hoping they can sit and watch the Olympics on TV, rather than being called into action. Lets hope for a peaceful Olympic Games!

Chinglish – Please Continue To Visit

Posted on by

cloneofsnake posted a photo:

Chinglish - PLEASE CONTINUE TO VISIT!!

Another example of Chinglish, following the previous example (Love Dirl, Love Goll). This one says Please Continue To Visit on an exit sign. They really don’t want you to leave!

Of course what they really mean is please visit again. It’s just a small mistake but it changes the entire meaning of the sign – and adds a little brightness to the day of native English speakers who see it.

Beijing Metro (Subway)

Posted on by

The Beijing Metro has a name for being efficient and cheap, but my last experience with it was one of overcrowding and frustration.

One of our friends explained that the government had recently dropped the price on the subway (in about March), leading to a sharp increase in passengers. Apparently the overcrowding was a direct result of this. I hope they manage to find a solution to this before the Olympics.

P1050055.JPG

A picture of a Beijing subway train by jcortell.

As I said, the Beijing Metro has (or had) a good name and is the recommended form of transport in Beijing. I haven’t used it much, but I’ve heard enough people say that to know it must be true (and let’s face it, it’s not hard to beat the Beijing traffic).

Anyway in this photo, the train appears pretty crowded, but believe me, I’ve seen worse, especially on other forms of transport.

I have a half written post somewhere, titled Bush Crush, about an experience where I couldn’t even get both feet on the ground (yes, I was standing). I’ll have to finish that post off!

Beijing Silk Street Market

Posted on by
Silk Street Market in Beijing Image Source: P1050094.JPG by jcortellLicense

This post started off a a Flickr Pick, but was promoted to the main area of the blog, as the Silk Street Market just proved to be too important.

The Silk Street Market is a landmark in modern Beijing and a popular shopping destination for tourists. It’s also called the Silk Market or Xiushuijie (in Chinese). Continue reading →

Beijing Olympics – Fuwa Statues

Posted on by

gongfu_king posted a photo:

DSC_8637

Giant Fuwa statues ready to celebrate the Beijing Olympics. They seem to be wrapped in plastic, so I guess they are brand new, ready for the celebrations.

The Fuwa are the official mascots of the Beijing Olympics. There are five of them and their names are Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan, Yingying and Nini. Drop the doubles and string them together and it makes Beijing huanying ni, which means welcome to Beijing (literally Beijing welcomes you).

Everyone in China seems to love them and their image is everywhere: on billboards, posters, school bags, keyrings, products, everywhere! You can’t escape them. It’s amazing the enthusiasm they inspire.

If you want more information on Fuwa, check out Wikipedia’s entry on them.

Pantao Chinese Flat Peach

Posted on by

Here is a picture of some Chinese flat peaches, also called pantao, which are absolutely delicious. I’ve only ever seen them in China.

蟠桃 pántáo - 3元 / 2斤 photo by img_edv

They look like you took a normal peach and squashed the top and bottom points in to a third of the size of a normal peach, with the rest being pushed out to the sides. They taste like a normal peach, only a little sweeter.

I’ve found that fruit often tastes better in China. I think this is because a lot of the fruit is grown locally and is therefore fresher. Or maybe because the supermarkets care less about the fruit looking great than they do in the West and more about the taste.

After searching the Internet about this, I found a site with lots of information on the pantao. They agree with me that it’s delicious:

A peach that is juicy and sweet—many say the best tasting of all peaches—and creamy with a pit that does not cling wrapped in a nearly fuzzless skin: I want that peach!

They also point out that they are also known as the Donut peach. Whatever you call them, pantao are fantastic!

The price is worth noting: 3 yuan for 2 jin (1kg). That’s an amazing price.

Dancing In Public

Posted on by

People dancing in public is some that happens a lot in China. People just gather together in a public square and dance. It must be a little more organised than that, because there is music playing over the load speakers, but it has a spontaneous feel to it and it’s a great way to pass a summer night.

Dancing In A Public Square photo by LuxTonnerre

A nice photo of some people dancing in a public square.

I found an interesting story from the China Daily, called It’s time to bring out the dancing shoes. Here are a few quotes from the article:

It’s summer in China. And for millions of residents, that means it’s time to dance.

True, they come out of the woodwork at summer time. Here’s a little more detail:

Rather than frequenting private clubs or dance halls, many Chinese prefer to shake their groove thing outdoors, where the dancing is free. Many throw impromptu open-air dance parties that have the feel of an ice rink in reverse: The more advanced take to the outside while the beginners wobble about in the middle.

But even though it’s common, it’s still not seen as acceptable by everyone:

Still, many Chinese men consider ballroom dancing too feminine. “So we have many all-female pairs,” said Yin Guochen, general secretary of the Chinese DanceSport Federation. “People are traditional. Many think that having an unmarried man and women as dance partners might cause problems, like an affair.”

Very traditional thinking that. I’ve seen quite a few dances in public and there are always men there – although I have seen men dancing with men and women dancing with women.

It’s not always ballroom or traditional Chinese dancing. Sometimes it’s modern dancing too. Well sort of modern. One memory has stuck with me from 2002, when after watching a fountain (that’s another story), the following words rang out across the square:

Boom Boom Boom,
Lets go back to my room,
So we can do it all night,
And I can make you feel right.

That song is from the mid 1980s… I’m not sure if anyone understood the lyrics! I’ll assume not. Regardless, they all had a great time dancing.

Hua Shan (Mount Hua)

Posted on by

Hua Shan, or Mount Hua as it is known in English, is absolutely breathtaking. That’s a phrase that is often overused, but there is no doubt that it applies to Hua Shan.

DSC_5038  DSC_4995

DSC_5012  DSC_5005
photos by Darren On The Road

I’ve always been a sucker for mountains in the mist. Wait a minute, that’s cloud, not mist! Hua Shan is really high up – 2160 metres (which is 7087 feet).

Here is a quick quote from Wikipedia’s entry on Hua Shan:

Mount Hua is located in the Shaanxi Province, about 100 kilometres east of the city of Xi’an, near the city Huayin. Hua was historically the location of several influential Taoist temples, and was known as a centre for the practice of traditional Chinese martial arts.

I love the pagoda on the edge of the mountain. That’s very Chinese. They’ll build pagodas and temples anywhere, no matter how difficult it must be to build it. The bottom left photo shows ribbons which have been tied onto the trees, presumably by climbing out on the branches, with nothing below them.

However, the most amazing photo is the last one: A photo of the path with nothing underneath it. Seems that’s for walking on! Amazing.

Xian Terracotta Warriors

Posted on by

I’ve never been to Xian or seen the Terracotta Warriors, although I plan to one day. I’ve seen some great photos of the Terracotta Warriors and they’d have to be one of the most photographed things in China.

DSC_4906  DSC_4896

DSC_4881  DSC_4897
photos by Darren On The Road

These photos go really well together – it’s just a pity that one’s the wrong shape to fit with the rest, otherwise this set would be close to perfect. The different colours and tones really complement each other and are very effective.

I particularly like the photo of the smashed up warriors. That’s not the standard photo that you see of the Terracotta Warriors.

I’m really getting to like Darren On The Road‘s photos – he sure knows how to take a good shot. Get over to his Flickr page and check his photos out.