Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Gugong in snow, Xmas 2002


Gugong snow2, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Gugong deserted, 2002


Gugong empty, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Gugong in snow, 2002


Gugong in snow, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Sunday, November 20, 2005

Time to retire?


Pumi couple as seen in Roni, originally uploaded by jiulong.

I'm no longer in Beijing so I don't have much more to add to Beijing Observer. Why don't you head over to my other China blog, which is MUCH MORE INTERESTING. It's called In the Footsteps of Joseph Rock and it's about the still unexplored areas of South West China visited by botanist Joseph Rock in the 1920s. I've been to many of the same places he went to and taken pictures to compare hopw they look now with then. Here's an example:

Muli monastery in 1927:


And Muli monastery now:


The old monastery, about three days hike northeast of Lugu Lake used to house almost a thousand monks. It was the centre of power for the whole Muli "kingdom", ruled by a lama king called Chote Chaba, who became a friend of the visiting American, Joseph Rock. The monastery complex was destroyed in the late 1950s after the communist takeover of Sichuan. The monks could not challenge the power of the Party and the PLA. In my blog you can read all about Rock's visit and my own follow up visits almost 80 years later. The blog also covers my visits to other areas explored by Rock, such as Minya Konka, Yading and Deqin.

cheers

Michael

Saturday, November 19, 2005

Military Museum, Beijing


Military Museum, Beijing, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Full of guns, tanks and statues war heroes - but not Lin Piao, their finest general, as he turned traitor.

Morning school parade, Beijing


Morning school parade, Beijing, originally uploaded by jiulong.

View from my apartment of the typical morning patriotism indoctrination session for schoolkids.

Sun Yat-Sen memorial, Biyun Si, Xiangshan

The founder of modern republican China is given God-like status.

Biyun Si, Xiangshan


Biyun Si, Xiangshan, originally uploaded by jiulong.

A very old carving. Quality stuff - not like the crap they produce now.

Biyun Si, Xiangshan


Biyun Si, Xiangshan, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Nice temple, in NW Beijing.

Editorial meeting, China Daily


Editorial meeting, China Daily, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Every Friday morning we used to have an editorial meeting to decide the content for the week ahead. The key word, often recurring, was "mingan" (sensitive). Lots of things were too "mingan". We actually had two meetings, an informal "little meeting", to which I contributed, and the formal "big meeting" from which I was excluded as this involved "internal affairs".

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Beijing's Summer Palace: Duobao Pagoda


Summer palace 1, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Longevity Hill, Yiheyuan, Beijing


Summer palace 2, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Summer Palace: a frozen Kunming Lake


Summer palace 4, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Summer Palace, Beijing: Seventeen Arch Bridge


Summer palace 5, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Over Kunming Lake.

Summer Palace in winter


Summer palace 3, originally uploaded by jiulong.

View from Longevity Hill and the Duobao Glazed Pagoda.

Beijing Xidan


Beijing Xidan, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Winter, 2003

Saturday, November 12, 2005

Prince Gong's House, Beijing


Prince Gong's House, Be, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Summer Palace, winter


Summe Palace, winter, originally uploaded by jiulong.

View from Coal Hill


View from Coal Hill, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Forbidden City Gugong, Beijing


Forbidden City Gugong, Beijing, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Gugong (Forbidden City) in winter


Gugong, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Monday, November 07, 2005

Wangfujing bike


beijing 292, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Beihai at dusk


beijing 044, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Beihai boats


beijing 038, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Promise keeping enterprise


beijing 155, originally uploaded by jiulong.

As opposed to promise breaking?

Beihai


Beihai1, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Beihai


Beihai 3, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Sunday, November 06, 2005

Old Beijing: Xizhimen


bj8, originally uploaded by jiulong.

All these views are scans of old scenes from some postcards I bought in Beijing.

Old Beijing: Pavilion of the Concubine Fragrance


bj12, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Old Beijing: inner city moat


Old Beijing, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Old Beijing: Guanganmen


Old Beijing 1, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Old Beijing: corner tower at Xibianmen


Old Beijing 3, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Old Beijing: city moat


Old Beijing 2, originally uploaded by jiulong.

Old Beijing: Datong bridge near Dongbianmen


bj5, originally uploaded by jiulong.