This weekend I went to Beidaihe - the seaside resort traditionally frequented by Chinese party leaders. It is also a popular holiday resort for Russians from the towns bordering Manchuria. It is a surreal place, fulll of old European style villas, and some more modern, bizarre architecture - like a beer garden tower shaped lilke a conch shell. Beidaihe is a strange, laid back place where many ordinary Beijingers also take their seaside holidays. Because there are so many Russians, the local shops address all westerners in Russian.
Monday, August 29, 2005
Friday, August 26, 2005
The Power, encore at the first night, Century Theater, Beijing, 25 August 2005
The Power, encore at the first night, Century Theater, Beijing, 25 August 2005, originally uploaded by jiulong.
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Catholic wedding, Beijing
On Saturday morning I popped in to St Joseph's church on Wanfujing to take some interior pictures. While I was there a bride and groom came in with a few family members to start what looked like a very informal wedding service. Here the priest is giving the bride and her father [or best man?] a few last words of advice. They didn't seem to mind me being around as they got ready!
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Nina Liu, star of The Power, in Beijing
Australian-Chinese actress Nina Liu is in Beijing rehearsing for a new English-language play called The Power, about the first and only Empress of China, Wu Zetian. Nina plays the leading role in a cast that is otherwise made up entirely of Chinese actors, although the play is in English. Catch it at the Century Theatre from 25 August.
Nina Liu with Elena Manuela Powers, rehearsing in Beijing
Discussing the death scene with director Elena Manuela Powers, a director from New York.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
Makeover model, Wukesong
Today [Sunday 14th August] I went down to Wukesong to look at the camera market there. There were lots of overpriced old cameras, but more interesting were the costume shops and makeover studios on the second floor. I snapped a few pics with my digital camera (a Kodak DX7630), including some of a very popular makeover demonstration that had them literally crowded out of the door.
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Blind man and one armed man on the number 13 bus
The lady conductor didn't charge them. And everone else made sure they got on first and got a seat. See, Beijing people have standards!
Friday, August 12, 2005
Fred Basset in Beijing
Beijingers love their dogs - I'm surprised by the number and different varieties. Not just Pekinese!
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Beijing bus driver
It's the number 13, that goes from Heping Qiao on the 3rd ring road, down to somehwre near Beihai Park [Well that's as far as I've travelled on it.]
Perpetual construction - Sanlitun
I went to one of the nightlife centres of Beijing, Sanlitun South Street, last weekend. Only to find that it had been completely demolished! Just a wasteland with a bit of construction taking place.
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Peking University campus - Professor's housing
These next few pictures show some of the academic residencies on the Peking University campus. I presume they belong to the professors at the university.
St Joseph's Catholic Cathedral, Beijing
It's a Chinese language church, on Wanfujing, the main shopping street
Bank security guards
I was stupid to take this picture - pointing a camera at them could have got my head blown off.
Traffic brownshirt
These guys have red flags and whistles and sometimes louhailers, to direct traffic and pedestrians at intersections.
Sunday, August 07, 2005
The real Yuanmingyuan [Summer Palace]
What it looked like before being destroyed by the British and French in 1860.
Yuanmingyuan [Summer Palace]
Tourists learning about how the palace was smashed by British and French troops in 1860.
"Lake of Happiness" at Summer Palace
I went to see the New Summer Palace bit the lakes had all been drained. Pity they didn't tell me that before I shelled out 25 kuai for my ticket!
Friday, August 05, 2005
Beijing in August: Sweeping up after the storm
Another thunderstorm yesterday afternoon, so the street cleaners are out this morning sweeping up.
Chinese money
Not much to report today, so I will post some pictures of one of my favourite Beijing sights - its money. This is the big one that you can't get change for. Worth just less than 20 bucks.
One yuan
This is it. The renminbi, "people's money", commonly known as kuai. There's six of them to the Aussie dollar. There's another, older design that is red, I think.
My "diner's card"
It's loaded with 200 kuai [$35?], which means it will get me about 50 lunches at the China Daily canteen.
Thursday, August 04, 2005
The editor - aka "the polisher"
Yes, yours truly with the first issue of Beijing Weekend what I edited [note the cunning wordplay in the headline ...] I've got the easy part- I just correct the English that the Chinese journalists have written. Well, most of it is easy. Here's a typical [unpolished] example:
In order to help the kids learning at the Sihai Children Classics Education Centre, a non-governmental educational agency aiming to spread the knowledge of ancient classics among children, the staff members with the publishing house donated the newly-published reading matter for children.
For your homework tonight I want you to render that into English. And then imagine what it's like to do the same for 20 tabloid pages of the same. Have fun!
The office
This is the China Daily building in north east Beijing. Home to about 200 editorial staff who publish the main English language newspaper in China, plus supplements like 21st Century [for students] and Beijing Weekend [a listings and lifestyle magazine].
View from the office window
From Beijing Weekend's office you can see the gate - guarded by military-looking security guards. They're nice guys really. And all offices and hotels have them here in Beijing.
Bei Hai [North Lake] at dusk
Bei Hai is one of several lakes in the centre of Beijing [the others being Back lake, or Hou Hai, which has become a bar district, and the East/South lakes - "Zhongnanhai" - which form part of the party leadership compound next to the Forbidden City and are completely off limits]. Bei Hai It is surrounded by a bit of park, and makes up one of the few green spots in the centre of the city. It's a great place to stroll at dusk, as people relax in the shadows, enjjoying the cool breeze off the water after a long hot day. It's also one of the few places you can escape the incessant traffic noise and fumes in central Beijing.
Buying tickets
"Mai piao" as they say here. It's 3 kuai [about 50c] a trip. Note the clock - 7am - I'm an early bird.
