Neal is in Beijing

It's a business trip so I don't know if he will see much more than this October 1999 trip to Beijing, but I hope so. Perhaps as much as Beijing in Pictures. I think he saw Tian'anmen Square and the Palace Museum (Forbidden City) on his first trip. Perhaps he can see the Summer Palace and the (nearby) "old summer palace", called Yuanmingyuan or the Garden of Perfect Splendor.

I am not recommending the Big Bell Tower for those in Beijing for a quick visit. Our quest for it one summer day seemed long and dusty - as it is not convenient to a metro stop & we could not figure out a bus that went that close either. I would describe it as more of an adventure or a quest than a pleasant tourist stop.

Photos online
Beijing, Beijing in 2004, Portraits of Beijing, Nine dragons, and "old" Beijing. Several different sections of the Great Wall are accessible from Beijing:

• Badaling (Wikipedia's entry, the “North Pass” of Juyongguan pass, known as the Badaling. see also Google Earth's Badaling),
• Mutianyu, and
• Simatai

Some are much closer and more accessible than others. Those would also tend to be more developed than others. If you like crowds and Starbucks and KFC, you should not pick the least developed area! Esspecially if you are going further out, price the cost of a private car too, for 3-4 people it may be cheaper than a bus tour!

If you are planning a trip. . . or love maps like we do:
"Best" online street map of Beijing or map of Beijing?
Downloadable subway map
Travel Map of Beijing
Tourist Maps of Beijing

Betsy's in Shanghai

In her honor, I tracked down some photos of Shanghai, "City of the Sea". Of course it would have helped her family if I had tracked them down last week!

Photos:
This is the Shanghai photo gallery I wish she had seen first!
Some Shanghai photos for sale.
From National Geographic: Oriental Pearl TV Tower
Chinese culture has a nice Shanghai photo gallery.
Shanghai food - made me hungry!
I like this guy's photos - but they load tooo slowly. My favorite of his: Cleaning up the Bund: preparing for tourists.
I think this was the bridge we saw from our hotel when I last visited.

If you are planning a trip:
Shanghai Guide has down-loadable maps of the city.
Lonely Planet is our guide book of choice. I wonder if we should compare her trip to the "things to see" list when she returns. Online, perhaps the most fun is their image gallery.
Or, read some Rough Guides to Shanghai online.

Who will carry on the lantern craft?

Especially during Chinese New Year, Lantern Festival, and Mid-Autumn Festival, lanterns, mostly round and red are hung along streets, parks & businesses.

Making lanterns is an ancient craft and there were many, many types and colors of lanterns. Four main famous styles. Traditionally, round lanterns are typical of the north and "southern" lanterns are more elongated cylinders which can take many shapes. These time-consuming constructions handcrafted on a bamboo frame originated in the Hangzhou area and were used in the royal court of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). Now round lanterns are seen in most of China.

" but time-consuming lantern-making is a dying craft, writes Yao Minji."

"However, even many locals don't realize that the round lanterns they see in Shanghai are in fact northern-style, the same type that Zhang Yimou used in his famous film "Raise the Red Lantern." And regional southern-style lanterns are disappearing."

The difference is that the authentic southern lanterns are handcrafted of bamboo; they are often cylindrical and can take many shapes.

2007 article from Xinhuanet.com Who will carry on the lantern craft?

Qing Ming

Today is Qing Ming Jie, it must be 105 days after the winter solstice. On Tomb-Sweeping Day. Families in China and Hong Kong will visit cemeteries to pay respect to their ancestors.

Honoring one's ancestors is an important part of Chinese culture, and is part of the importance of family and having a long family line.

Among the offerings, "spirit money" (paper money) is often burnt. Some say that true devotees actually scrubbed the bones of their loved ones. Some say that buying a home during this period is taboo.

Other Blog Support:
At least one family in Taiwan traditionally eats spring rolls on Qing Ming.
One student's Qing Ming Festival 2007 in Singapore.

(I don't talk about politics here.) In 2007 there were 42 round-trip charter flights between Taiwan and Shanghai for Qing Ming. There have been special charters for at least 57 years for Chinese New Year. This year it was expanded other traditional festival holidays, including Qing Ming, Dragon Boat and Mid-Autumn Festival.

Resources included:
China Economic Net article