Photoblog
So what have I been up to? I was in the beautiful, culture rich country of China. I met up with my good old warrior friends. I had the chance to visit various factories, much to my Dad's liking. Jade factory, fresh water pearl factory, tea factory and silk factory. Of course, we (myself in particular) would not have functioned properly without fuel, so the trip was laden with visits to various restaurants. Yes, for energy. I wasn't able to take pictures since I was almost always too hungry. The kao ya was oily, but very, very good. I don't think they make it that oily anywhere here in the Philippines. I think I got fat from all the eating. I feel fat.Anyway...
Much has changed in Beijing since 1997. I think they have redevelped most tourist spots, hence even having ratings for toilets. Nevertheless, squat toilets still abound though I will probably never get the hang of how to properly use them. Let's not get into too much graphic details.
I felt very much at home, what with the almond shaped eyes and Putonghua speakers. Not to mention the architechtural genius and cultural preservation. Take this painting for instance. Legend has it that a god's daughter fell in love with a very poor man when she once roamed the world for a day. A day in the world is equal to three years in the world. So during the three years, the poor amn also fell in love with the beautiful lady. They got married and she bore him two children, a boy and a girl. When the lady's father found out about his daughter's actions, he immediately took her back and ordered her to never return to the world. (I guess, the world at that time meant the middle kingdom). But the god saw that she loved the man very much, so he allowed her to "meet" the man and their children, but only from a distance. So one time in spring, the birds took pity of the couple's fate that they built a bird bridge so the man and his daughter and son could cross the void, and go near the lady. And this painting preserves the story.
It was fun to conquer the great wall at Badaling (pictured here are Daddy's angels), the most preserved part of the Great Wall. I must say it looked very challenging from the bottom, but the hike was not that difficult as compared to hiking mountains. It took only two hours back and forth, with lots of stops for picture taking and rest. Since the site has been reconstructed, there were already new steps built into the old steps, and metal railings to hold on to. A portion of the wall has this very long chain, where couples attach padlocks. They throw the keys once they get to the sixth watch tower (or the farthest they can go), on the belief that their relationship will be strong, and will last forever. My sister and I felt like we were lucky heroes after conquering the portion of the wall.
I don't speak good Putonghua. In fact, when we try to communicate with our relatives from the mainland, it's always with broken Chinese. But I think it's good enough for bargaining. I was able to buy ancient coins from a local antique market, which I think dates as far as 750 B.C. during the Qin dynasty (or is it Ming?). But the best part is this beautiful brass axe. This is the best buy I had, never mind that I spent all my remaining RMB just so I could get it, and even if I think the seller was annoyed with all my haggling.
And as they say that a picture paints a thousand words, I end with this peaceful image.
Much has changed in Beijing since 1997. I think they have redevelped most tourist spots, hence even having ratings for toilets. Nevertheless, squat toilets still abound though I will probably never get the hang of how to properly use them. Let's not get into too much graphic details.
I felt very much at home, what with the almond shaped eyes and Putonghua speakers. Not to mention the architechtural genius and cultural preservation. Take this painting for instance. Legend has it that a god's daughter fell in love with a very poor man when she once roamed the world for a day. A day in the world is equal to three years in the world. So during the three years, the poor amn also fell in love with the beautiful lady. They got married and she bore him two children, a boy and a girl. When the lady's father found out about his daughter's actions, he immediately took her back and ordered her to never return to the world. (I guess, the world at that time meant the middle kingdom). But the god saw that she loved the man very much, so he allowed her to "meet" the man and their children, but only from a distance. So one time in spring, the birds took pity of the couple's fate that they built a bird bridge so the man and his daughter and son could cross the void, and go near the lady. And this painting preserves the story.
It was fun to conquer the great wall at Badaling (pictured here are Daddy's angels), the most preserved part of the Great Wall. I must say it looked very challenging from the bottom, but the hike was not that difficult as compared to hiking mountains. It took only two hours back and forth, with lots of stops for picture taking and rest. Since the site has been reconstructed, there were already new steps built into the old steps, and metal railings to hold on to. A portion of the wall has this very long chain, where couples attach padlocks. They throw the keys once they get to the sixth watch tower (or the farthest they can go), on the belief that their relationship will be strong, and will last forever. My sister and I felt like we were lucky heroes after conquering the portion of the wall.
I don't speak good Putonghua. In fact, when we try to communicate with our relatives from the mainland, it's always with broken Chinese. But I think it's good enough for bargaining. I was able to buy ancient coins from a local antique market, which I think dates as far as 750 B.C. during the Qin dynasty (or is it Ming?). But the best part is this beautiful brass axe. This is the best buy I had, never mind that I spent all my remaining RMB just so I could get it, and even if I think the seller was annoyed with all my haggling.
And as they say that a picture paints a thousand words, I end with this peaceful image.
