My parents and I, along with my cousin, went back to Beijing, China in
the summer of 2006 for exactly two weeks to visit family and take a little
family vacation. I think the older I get, the more I feel at home when
I go back to China. Last time, I spent time looking for weird English-translation
signs and quirks in the cities. This time, I tried to take pictures of
normal city life and the people. I got a lot of stares but tried for the
most part to be discrete about it. Apparently as long as you hold the
camera about 2 inches beneath your face, people don't think you're taking
a picture.
Walking around the city, I got the overwhelming feeling that China does not deserve the Olympics nor is it ready for it. There's poverty, nothing is handicap accessible, and the pollution is everywhere. Don't get me wrong, I love China, it's my motherland and the lives of its citizens are much better than they were even ten years ago, but it still has a long way to go. But enough of that for now.
I think I ate Peking Duck 5 times in the course of 14 days...and I could
eat it every day. I also spent a lot of time dawdling around Tiananmen
Square and just walking around the city by myself in general. You'll see
for yourself. Enjoy the pictures, they're not really in any order..
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| The first thing I noticed was the thick layer of dust from recent dust storms. Add rain, and you get mud. | Hooray for globalization, the 100th KFC to open in China. |
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| The most effective speed bump ever devised. | I have no idea what this street sign means. |
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| And for those of you who like walking around China in flip flops...don't. | At an elementary school...kinda creepy. |
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| What used to be a river, probably as a result of one of the million ongoing construction projects. | All in preparation for the Olympics. |
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| You got me, I have no idea. | Chinese people love commotion. This traffic ticket is no different. |
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| Workers on a tricycle. | The roadway near my grandparents' house. |
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| Emergency sign on how to open the bus door. I'd be dead before I got to the 10th line. | Da Vinci Code, before China pulled it. |
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| Because humans need sleep... | ...and so do mannequins. |
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| Live scorpions, and dried seahorse. | Fear Factor's got nothing on China. |
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| Cutest...kid...ever. | This amusement park has found the 4th dimension. |
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| An elderly man giving his birds some fresh air. | One of his birdcages. |
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| The pollution in China has gone from bad to worse. It makes me really sad that we only saw a handful of days with blue sky. | The official 2008 Olympic Motto. |
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| At an internet cafe, all you need to do is go on the English version of Yahoo! search. | Retired people doing morning dances and exercises in a huge park. |
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| Another view of the park. | An elderly man practicing his calligraphy using a huge felt tip brush and water. |
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| His characters were beautiful. | More people exercising, reminds me of my wushu days |
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| A group of people playing cards in the bamboo forest. | A group of old men playing traditional instruments and singing in the Beijing Opera style. |
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| Skillfully loaded trucks | A "light" day in the Beijing subway. |
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| It's a shame my Da Vinci Code turned out to be in Chinese. | One of the only churches in Beijing. |
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| Poverty in China is an issue that isn't being solved. | These people will all be herded out of the city for the Olympics. |
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| I would never be able to drive in China. | "Supersize Me" was right, America is fat. Those small sized drinks are medium sized in China. |
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| This is where I do all of my partying, at the "Crazy Space Bar". | A huge food market in Wang Fu Jing. |
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| The Hong Kong version of MTV had FOB, AAR, and Panic! to name a few. | The God of Soccer himself on this huge block-sized advertisement. |
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| Couldn't resist. | Grocery by mule. |
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| My attempt at a serious picture with my cousin. | A group of men playing chess. |
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| The Beijing Hotel where the famous picture of the Tank Man was taken from a 6th floor balcony | I would like to call this piece, the hamburgerization of China. |
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| The flag lowering ceremony in Tiananmen Square | I waited in line for a good hour and then stood shoulder to shoulder with about a billion people |
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| But it was completely worth it | Did I mention I watched it twice? |
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| This time from the other side of the Square | Now all I have to do is get up at sunrise to watch the flag raising ceremony, it has much more fanfare. |
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| And here's my collection of pictures from the Square | The columns near the Gate of Heavenly Peace |
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| Sunset on The Gate of Heavenly Peace | Soldiers leaving the Square after closing. |
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| I tried on three different occasions to take pictures in the Square at night, each time they closed it before I got there. I even lied to one of the soldiers saying I lost my family in the Square, but to no avail. | The Gate of Heavenly Peace at night. |
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| An onlooker. I saw three men kowtowing to Mao. | A soldier standing guard. |
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| And my favorite picture. My dad broke his in-flight entertainment center. It says "The system is going down NOW!!" Not a good thing to see on a plane. (At least they're using Linux) | |
And now everyone's favorite...panoramas!
(56k warning)
