tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84197746315897663832024-02-07T16:25:23.805-08:00Fishing for DragonsAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-31901103882083094262013-09-15T02:12:00.000-07:002013-09-15T02:12:27.719-07:00Catching Up<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
After a very long break, I will begin making occasional updates again on this blog. I've been going to school in Beijing, traveling around different parts of China, and spent a couple of months during the summer back in the States. It feels great to be back in such an exciting and interesting place like Beijing. To start, I'll give you a quick tour of some of the places I've visited over the last several months!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3McUfTIuJpZPM2NJQi3xoGF8E405RKR-l9cXVx0bweCtJGL3E4p-UhfZ2gg6Qo5f1A7DcM8_kblkKuaaxEe7GmiMAk34hhrmQK8zVkWCmcIXVI1eX4PFz_ENQW8jT6YC6b2gsM8DN1sw/s1600/IMG_2992_3_4_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3McUfTIuJpZPM2NJQi3xoGF8E405RKR-l9cXVx0bweCtJGL3E4p-UhfZ2gg6Qo5f1A7DcM8_kblkKuaaxEe7GmiMAk34hhrmQK8zVkWCmcIXVI1eX4PFz_ENQW8jT6YC6b2gsM8DN1sw/s320/IMG_2992_3_4_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Food streets, the Pearl Tower, and unique high rises. The super city Shanghai continues to impress.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The water town Wuzhen on the outskirts of Shanghai gives visitors a sense of time traveling.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A brief visit with a Chinese friend's family in Hangzhou was a refreshing break from Beijing.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwjIHABvSIA6vnJyJDQWpmNyoEKIt6KGDn08wLfsHoPcOTR4TDv-cFKrgiLVF2ESjgCnul49w1dWiX_2yrMWAj3j7wZjFsT8iOigpAoFY15S0SBRakDmAVc3TFnJiWUQNpLhnwlMeNlE/s1600/IMG_3106.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwjIHABvSIA6vnJyJDQWpmNyoEKIt6KGDn08wLfsHoPcOTR4TDv-cFKrgiLVF2ESjgCnul49w1dWiX_2yrMWAj3j7wZjFsT8iOigpAoFY15S0SBRakDmAVc3TFnJiWUQNpLhnwlMeNlE/s320/IMG_3106.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOzR3UlimHQob-tzgfDd4EY4_ylsJygQWlzfiiMwZo5tKTWCuDJhAeaq5mPJeFrI21gSVkmUV6CidQSoFoIWrV66Bg46V5QapiCbz2BdJFTTEDqqHImOAPXbWdOg0AE6o2EkvZmIoiSyw/s1600/IMG_3116.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOzR3UlimHQob-tzgfDd4EY4_ylsJygQWlzfiiMwZo5tKTWCuDJhAeaq5mPJeFrI21gSVkmUV6CidQSoFoIWrV66Bg46V5QapiCbz2BdJFTTEDqqHImOAPXbWdOg0AE6o2EkvZmIoiSyw/s320/IMG_3116.jpg" width="213" /></a><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The famous West Lake and tea gardens are among Hangzhou's many popular attractions.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Lake Lugu</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lake Lugu is home to one of China's surviving minority groups whose lifestyle has been largely preserved, the Musuo people.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The quality of the water here was unlike any other place I had been to in China.</td></tr>
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I'll be coming back shortly with something a little different for this blog.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-49786738575831799502013-01-18T12:41:00.001-08:002013-01-18T12:41:32.605-08:00The Final StretchAt the end of the semester, some friends and I decided to go a little travel crazy. In the course of about 10 days I went from Beijing south to Shanghai, west to Lijiang, and then all the way to the northern most part of the country to Harbin, the land of snow and ice. Seeing all of these radically different places so quickly gave me a steady sense of contrasting perspectives between the many faces of China. China houses people and places on every end of the development and geological spectrum, making it a whole world of its own. There's so much history to explore, I look forward to my next opportunity to learn more about it. First stop, the hyper-city Shanghai.<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">I have less pictures than I would like of Shanghai. At some point, I rode the elevator to the top of the Pearl Oriental </span><span style="text-align: center;">Tower (the far left tower with the orbs), however the day I went up it </span><span style="text-align: center;">the weather was very overcast, and didn't really provide a photographical </span><span style="text-align: center;">situation. I'll be back though. Until next time, this is all I have of the great city. It's huge, with a lot of modern architectural influences as well as old european. I feel that this reflects the city's development in many cases, drawing from both older international influences as well as the ever converging modernity of rich societies.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">From here it was the tourist and local favorite place to unwind, Lijiang. We spent an equal amount of time hanging out in the old town and on a multiple day hike through the Tiger Leaping Gorge. Both places were beautiful in their own way. Going from a hub of commerce and technology like Shanghai to the rural rice terraces of Tiger Leaping Gorge was quite amazing, and it served as an ample reminder that even though China has a public face of a quickly rising economic world power, it still has much left from its ancient past. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rice terraced farm land and dramatic mountain peaks, Tiger Leaping Gorge</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of Lijian Old Town</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The narrow alleyways of Old Town</td></tr>
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<br />From Lijiang we went to the City of Ice, Harbin. Needless to say, it was cold. Really cold. In Lijiang we enjoyed temperatures at a comfortable 60 degrees Fahrenheit, while in Harbin we walked the ice festival in -13 Fahrenheit. The city is smoggy and cold, heavily influenced by local Russian culture, and all the while festive. The ice festival was all I had hoped to be. The full scale castles and constructs were completely made of snow and ice. The place as a whole was impressive and beautiful. <div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A blatant example of the Russian influence in the area, The Saint Sophia Cathedral</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Digital thermometer inlaid in an ice sculpture in the ice festival. This was<br />at the beginning of the night, and the temperature dropped even lower towards the end.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant Buddha sculpture made of snow.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This festival gave the most incredible fire works display I've ever seen. <br />It was essentially a twenty minute finale. </td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigfeTnkVd4F9bkGhDreIBFj9tawbYiC3cOwexjLV7hz3wOxi5FOqQsa3-May2fEKTXzT9MBE82_GpSHRRVaOSQEye1qXHbYR8nRMhc39Ecbp0OmV5fuas37c1IPuJqk1zbfMVjGBbAdlo/s1600/IMG_2798.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigfeTnkVd4F9bkGhDreIBFj9tawbYiC3cOwexjLV7hz3wOxi5FOqQsa3-May2fEKTXzT9MBE82_GpSHRRVaOSQEye1qXHbYR8nRMhc39Ecbp0OmV5fuas37c1IPuJqk1zbfMVjGBbAdlo/s320/IMG_2798.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Harbin Annual Ice Festival </td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: center;">Closing Thoughts</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">The first leg of my trip through China which has taken its course over the last four months. I will be returning for another semester, and even as I write this last entry from America I look forward to returning in a few short weeks. Hopefully, for the people who view these posts, they inspire some desire to travel to this country or really any other country. Some say travel is the best form of education. While I haven't lived it out long enough to say whether its true or not, I can say that travel is, for me, the best form of exposure. The cultures that so radical contradict our own are out there, full of people that at the core are human beings just like the rest of the world. There's still much to see, and there are some people in the U.S. that wouldn't appreciate if I discontinued the publishing of these entries, so expect to see more in the future. Until then, 以后见。</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-25666853584437053192012-12-15T09:44:00.003-08:002012-12-15T09:44:47.349-08:00The Great Wall (Part 3)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-49371474977990856872012-12-09T18:20:00.001-08:002012-12-09T18:45:23.712-08:00Xi'AnThe weekend before last my friends and I took a trip to Xi'An for a couple days. Xi'An is a urban city located to the west of Beijing, and was once the home of royalty. The name Xi'An means "west security" and since the turn of the new era has become an economic work horse and at the same time a home for many of China's Muslims. The "Muslim Quarter" is a large community of businesses and homes owned and occupied by a concentration of people of several nationalities, but for the most part all share the Muslim faith. They come together in the area for the same reason China towns spring up in the United States, to find a sense of community and familiarity in what is usually a foreign living place.<br />
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The Muslim Quarter is a good place to spend a weekend. Their food is phenomenal and the owners of the shops and restaurants are usually not only very friendly but also carry a festive vibe. They have specialty food at every turn like lamb skewers. They usually don't allow the drinking of any alcohol in their restaurants, staying true to the beliefs their community was founded on. Below are some pictures of the trip.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu4W2MKdRR7CcSmKOeOhIhmTWIktov1FO7uiM_aUhLoB6DKjGBj36yVnYdcrtls234R15KEkbIyewBfL3P3rIh5xWxmHIJumo9e_rNQW0N_nM1K1pCeWH6WLqH-xVL6jTxrdJowdYCgog/s1600/IMG_2003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu4W2MKdRR7CcSmKOeOhIhmTWIktov1FO7uiM_aUhLoB6DKjGBj36yVnYdcrtls234R15KEkbIyewBfL3P3rIh5xWxmHIJumo9e_rNQW0N_nM1K1pCeWH6WLqH-xVL6jTxrdJowdYCgog/s320/IMG_2003.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The streets of the Muslim Quarter</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhop2HyOtyTNGUPdjJfBsOsYYwFcqDRxxVEcMK27DebHIync8HChBLyTZFX-33UfxwBfcKDxmC9wzf4KGJo8DODVX0oamPKSTjFpe8unI5tR7NWh0npLWvgv6lmGwprws0o3-mnk6vdubc/s1600/IMG_2005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhop2HyOtyTNGUPdjJfBsOsYYwFcqDRxxVEcMK27DebHIync8HChBLyTZFX-33UfxwBfcKDxmC9wzf4KGJo8DODVX0oamPKSTjFpe8unI5tR7NWh0npLWvgv6lmGwprws0o3-mnk6vdubc/s320/IMG_2005.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cooking food</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Water fountain show near the Big Goose Pagoda, or <i> DaYanTa</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR3cwg5QaBgWzLsIAmDd97DB7AvfZZd-BVeqWY-UHbHsl0OzmSL2s4b-Afy7RWjLMizhNbzHEp5Y9aFYYnpiMJllWtGPZI51bckr2VCpQRJY_szBfYmhCec8oFhQDJINujpAaPvxBMYLo/s1600/IMG_2091.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR3cwg5QaBgWzLsIAmDd97DB7AvfZZd-BVeqWY-UHbHsl0OzmSL2s4b-Afy7RWjLMizhNbzHEp5Y9aFYYnpiMJllWtGPZI51bckr2VCpQRJY_szBfYmhCec8oFhQDJINujpAaPvxBMYLo/s320/IMG_2091.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of Xi'An from the top of <i>DaYanTa. </i>Those visibility conditions<br />
are not natural weather phenomenon, its smog. A good example of<br />
why China, amongst double digit GDP growth, is still considered a developing country.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div>
The major tourist pull of the region is the Terra-Cotta Warriors. Built in the Qin Dynasty to serve as the guardians for the first emperor of China in afterlife, it was buried with him around 210 BC. At a later date, revolutionaries stormed the tomb and largely destroyed the tomb and the warriors within it. They were discovered in 1974 by a group of farmers digging a well, and since then an extensive rebuilding archeology project has been undertaken at the site.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
At the site I saw one of the men who originally discovered the warriors. Mr. Yang, after discovering the head of a warrior in the ground, reported it to his brigade leader and was rewarded the equivalent of about a dollar. While visiting the newly renovated site, Bill Clinton asked to get the autograph of the man who discovered the 8th Wonder of the World. However Mr. Yang was discovered to be illiterate, and could only sign his name as three circles. Embarrassed by the exchange, the PRC sent Mr. Yang to an intensive calligraphy study which lasted several months and then made him work at the visitor center doing just what he'd been schooled to do, sign his name on the inside cover of books for tourists around the world. It's a strange story, but it reminds me that even though myself and many of my well off classmates enjoy freedoms that on the surface looks comparable to ones we have in the U.S., this society is still ruled by an authoritarian government. It is still within their power to change an individual life into a political or economic tool in a very direct way.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif-8uOesgLrucjCdv66PTnF8fJiyUY48caP1vYsCTTgYyr51StS86znwCiES8W6aft7E2Vw6xUKnop1kLks5g5x60nMWjTxbxsU7itrE5iF1Aq3r-hhipKEYS3ZemHqpSfy6pYzX4AOL8/s1600/IMG_1865.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif-8uOesgLrucjCdv66PTnF8fJiyUY48caP1vYsCTTgYyr51StS86znwCiES8W6aft7E2Vw6xUKnop1kLks5g5x60nMWjTxbxsU7itrE5iF1Aq3r-hhipKEYS3ZemHqpSfy6pYzX4AOL8/s320/IMG_1865.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Riding bikes atop the city wall, which wraps around<br />
the perimeter of the metropolis.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLtqb8-Yaz-zDqcRNs6c34y-vYBhihvXB2s86FWXi_Moz5hHURMyY7I_-vISlXgeKW3VE0eg1pFc_0uxr6Y7PYTBohF8eSpS6KkDyjzZOtLRxUYXFBNxU21ePMSTsZLFPPXnv0jc0Q2Mw/s1600/IMG_1878.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLtqb8-Yaz-zDqcRNs6c34y-vYBhihvXB2s86FWXi_Moz5hHURMyY7I_-vISlXgeKW3VE0eg1pFc_0uxr6Y7PYTBohF8eSpS6KkDyjzZOtLRxUYXFBNxU21ePMSTsZLFPPXnv0jc0Q2Mw/s320/IMG_1878.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Section of the Terra-cotta Warriors. Here they are informally<br />
facing each other, indicating they are off duty.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI51lBWCmM_McdrTYtsdHrHowPKS7h2Wzt6_pRzGZ3rTD2T0Q2mN8dcA2bibx09SC275x82cjAHfnLl1bbAU46IRHwJ0oK_j1eUuO4yju7x5Y7zq1IszkHB61ymtSRy6LaYbugEQE9kqs/s1600/IMG_1944_5_6_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI51lBWCmM_McdrTYtsdHrHowPKS7h2Wzt6_pRzGZ3rTD2T0Q2mN8dcA2bibx09SC275x82cjAHfnLl1bbAU46IRHwJ0oK_j1eUuO4yju7x5Y7zq1IszkHB61ymtSRy6LaYbugEQE9kqs/s320/IMG_1944_5_6_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Terra-Cotta Warriors, "8th Wonder of the World"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCM4LN9dBvGSQqf5k5xq76HUt37F_wPcqZgT-7fGcEMUzZkxRwMTTmWDbnbVcLLgNKIzzPiSlKviu2eZiIW25ArhcUcrPH6kCivX625p0DyIrLv_T4CabBX-5QKh6wZ9aPZDd77cqhUA0/s1600/IMG_1998.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCM4LN9dBvGSQqf5k5xq76HUt37F_wPcqZgT-7fGcEMUzZkxRwMTTmWDbnbVcLLgNKIzzPiSlKviu2eZiIW25ArhcUcrPH6kCivX625p0DyIrLv_T4CabBX-5QKh6wZ9aPZDd77cqhUA0/s320/IMG_1998.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pig feet with your chicken wings.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAYy1hzA5waSdSJmQ2jDrrOCupcohJlU1tTG6gzNh2ifNzJFW15q4ZFjlCvGnAiTPnyTTa0Eb-V-0wa5pdhwdtRZmf0aO0ywCat_xdwcU-8QaVFVpTJCUrQ_AobnxBT8lxbZeb18SRSxE/s1600/IMG_1999.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAYy1hzA5waSdSJmQ2jDrrOCupcohJlU1tTG6gzNh2ifNzJFW15q4ZFjlCvGnAiTPnyTTa0Eb-V-0wa5pdhwdtRZmf0aO0ywCat_xdwcU-8QaVFVpTJCUrQ_AobnxBT8lxbZeb18SRSxE/s320/IMG_1999.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Squid skewers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-26079442924122504342012-11-11T18:42:00.003-08:002012-11-11T18:42:50.248-08:00The Educated Youth
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Lately I’ve been spending a lot of
time discussing the different types of information control exhibited by the
Communist Party both in class and informally with my peers. These discussions
have enlightened me to a side to the Chinese that gives me a hopeful outlook to
the future of this country. Though the CCP is still strong in its authoritarian
ways, the expanding modernization of the country is putting them in an
increasingly difficult position. The Internet by its nature is a difficult
thing to control, and even in China it is a place where people can begin to
speak their minds behind the safety of the anonymous Internet. The “Great Fire
Wall” as it is popularly known, is the CCP’s attempt at information control on
the fast growing information sharing medium that the world has ever seen.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
To their credit, it is the most
sophisticated online censorship tool in the world, and works by finding key
words on websites such as “democracy” and “Tiananmen massacre” etc. What people
are beginning to do however, is express discontent in more subtle ways than
blatant criticism. Artist add critical elements into their work, an example is
the Chinese artist Ai WeiWei who has also become a anti government pop culture
figure with world wide recognition. Users of the Internet use irony and similar
devices to construct critical campaigns against the Party’s actions. An example
here is the Grass Mud Horse Internet phenomenon, characterized by a
particularly vulgar play on words in the Chinese language. If pronounced
correctly, it refers to an animal identical to a Llama, but with a slight
variation in the tones used to pronounce the words the meaning changes entirely
to f*** your mother. It isn’t just an attempt to be gross, the campaign that
follows the slogan is a cleverly crafted push against internet censorship,
using a song with several similar play on words to slip past the filter system
while still addressing the desire for freedom of speech.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Many of my students are aware of
these kinds of things, and think that it’s cool. Contrary to some western
stereotypes, the country is not just full of a bunch of complacent Chinese who
are okay with their right to express themselves being smothered. One of my
friends has a VPN, a software used to mask the region you are accessing the
internet from and this allows her to see the internet as we do in America.
Another student, when I asked him why Chinese students are becoming more
critical, responded by saying “Critical thinking is important, most students
are just taught to memorize. But if we can think critically we have more power.”
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The educated youth are making their
way up, and the old structures are crumbling. It is a natural effect of
modernizing, and I find the entire thing a bit ironic. The Communist Party
takes long strides to improve the country’s domestic and international economic
health, and I think they do a pretty good job of that. However with increased
economic well being you get more educated youth, wider access to information,
and people who have more time to think and need less time just to work and
survive. The CCP seems to be digging their own grave here. I believe that
eventually the reigns will be loosened on the people of this country, and the
change may be sudden and brutal, however I think it is more likely that the
change will come silently and gradually with the changing times.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So here are some unrelated pictures I’ve taken over the last
few weeks, it isn’t much because I’ve been quite busy with school and things.</div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicf6G122ns5-062Uoi4J9qufrwRJIHXosAMQKkEOf7fkDtzbiSVnvfLgpXoHMHGTTK2nVCye6F2qfguPMvV7S_nvpvkJMFC3dPev87I-fDcW_Kvjx9xkNNxqcUNdiMesN281NwgiP0lXM/s1600/IMG_1788_89_90_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicf6G122ns5-062Uoi4J9qufrwRJIHXosAMQKkEOf7fkDtzbiSVnvfLgpXoHMHGTTK2nVCye6F2qfguPMvV7S_nvpvkJMFC3dPev87I-fDcW_Kvjx9xkNNxqcUNdiMesN281NwgiP0lXM/s320/IMG_1788_89_90_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Temple in The Summer Palace </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnUni2RmVQXcXqIEWKY4A8SAPix5kblunm94m9xBh1FczE2KrBiAa4pLAXhW6xK0CExVCI7-aAwIA2fLEtYWzTpxuToncfgjT-U6FvA3wsxkX-NutUZ35XgufJNcM1x66nhMQsGyIl5P4/s1600/IMG_1833_4_5_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnUni2RmVQXcXqIEWKY4A8SAPix5kblunm94m9xBh1FczE2KrBiAa4pLAXhW6xK0CExVCI7-aAwIA2fLEtYWzTpxuToncfgjT-U6FvA3wsxkX-NutUZ35XgufJNcM1x66nhMQsGyIl5P4/s320/IMG_1833_4_5_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Overlooking the Summer Palace lake</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBIz6l_BxVZMljJGQVlvv3MZlyHcQK6lurIaTP4gWzlnfvdxmw0-T7yc-Hj-TTDTvG4PyIZGt80N2WzxJK-LAt1jijaxuY0nfbw6dtMfwdbOx9fI0q5VT9bR7zAu6xTvkss_rm3l_FTZk/s1600/IMG_1728.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBIz6l_BxVZMljJGQVlvv3MZlyHcQK6lurIaTP4gWzlnfvdxmw0-T7yc-Hj-TTDTvG4PyIZGt80N2WzxJK-LAt1jijaxuY0nfbw6dtMfwdbOx9fI0q5VT9bR7zAu6xTvkss_rm3l_FTZk/s320/IMG_1728.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Huge, sprawling, Beijing. Make no mistake, the city extends well outside of frame<br />and the smog only lets you see no more than 1/4 into the depth of the city. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Summer Palace</td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-19633323872033653542012-10-16T09:11:00.000-07:002012-10-16T09:11:04.212-07:00Great Wall (part 2)We revisited the Great Wall on Saturday, and I'm a little happier with the pictures I got from this time around. It's the same section of wall. Hopefully at some point I'll get to see a section that is less renovated and more remote.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIZ7dFxW5ZRf688ZHyhq5RC97utWYpUnzblhLVvv3X3jG2MKK5l1boeilBkyxx-kBa1yM5iei-xYnS_tpP9c2z2mkyW5f47ldk22TbbjkafaR7hNOgNX8xy-xwE7rxhLYWwIDu21mYtWk/s1600/IMG_1651_2_3_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIZ7dFxW5ZRf688ZHyhq5RC97utWYpUnzblhLVvv3X3jG2MKK5l1boeilBkyxx-kBa1yM5iei-xYnS_tpP9c2z2mkyW5f47ldk22TbbjkafaR7hNOgNX8xy-xwE7rxhLYWwIDu21mYtWk/s320/IMG_1651_2_3_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The interiors of the towers are like small mazes, riddled<br />with corridors and stairways.</td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-47457910079237370102012-10-08T09:34:00.001-07:002012-10-08T09:34:14.038-07:00And Back Again<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This is part 2 of my update related to my week long travel through Hunan province. Let's start off with some pictures of my favorite place, Phoenix Old Town (Fenghuang). I described it a little in the previous post.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQpd4RBgdinc62Y_kJRLXt69ko0cDEWdlOarz4xQFdjxc5E13cbxNe5O-v1EY0rqAAjkzxeJ3zOfsw0Nyd1JGQQCpvVAHmJGKw_q7ZwivXwT-Wagdl_doNmd6eqi9Vr7qXYNQ5_m9pY4/s1600/IMG_1362.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQpd4RBgdinc62Y_kJRLXt69ko0cDEWdlOarz4xQFdjxc5E13cbxNe5O-v1EY0rqAAjkzxeJ3zOfsw0Nyd1JGQQCpvVAHmJGKw_q7ZwivXwT-Wagdl_doNmd6eqi9Vr7qXYNQ5_m9pY4/s320/IMG_1362.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Busy street in Fenghuang, many of the shop owners live in<br />apartments built right on top of their shops.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKj5T0z3NMtqltpC124TJz5ZYIaySeRC2PVlM9D19WzSKmTB4lf34zHe000h06XhGBIetZ2mVlYrTkeO4sVZb8iibx6JHzTQCmrUsp7MrfzMFy6pWNUj49qREk8SQpKTgBseiVG_HXRkk/s1600/IMG_1377_8_9_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKj5T0z3NMtqltpC124TJz5ZYIaySeRC2PVlM9D19WzSKmTB4lf34zHe000h06XhGBIetZ2mVlYrTkeO4sVZb8iibx6JHzTQCmrUsp7MrfzMFy6pWNUj49qREk8SQpKTgBseiVG_HXRkk/s320/IMG_1377_8_9_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fenghuang canal at night.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVls49Nsrtd1O4JoEZ8nobIn6spM__YtT6-9zPXbQKj6CMS1gjfdUjnbWlcQ6U3wPyWrmf28oPltjsb9yK7PUWsYO3pq37R6slVFsGXtRSF3ygSOjhF9bSic2skpmqZk-pcjOj7dCG5do/s1600/IMG_1385.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVls49Nsrtd1O4JoEZ8nobIn6spM__YtT6-9zPXbQKj6CMS1gjfdUjnbWlcQ6U3wPyWrmf28oPltjsb9yK7PUWsYO3pq37R6slVFsGXtRSF3ygSOjhF9bSic2skpmqZk-pcjOj7dCG5do/s320/IMG_1385.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We ducked under here to get out of the rain, and had<br />some of Hunan's famed spicy food.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrLHhHOOGgDhrv9usYriB_4OEMCAGu7xkqBPZyxITx5QW9vSAb_7ycsdnGIrfh03O-n9HALZw9j6ljbICDwTx5DAWB6vPdnbvH8vIVgcWqUVI7sveBMOVM77Ket-YX5iiSbuxhKXSXYlc/s1600/IMG_1386.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrLHhHOOGgDhrv9usYriB_4OEMCAGu7xkqBPZyxITx5QW9vSAb_7ycsdnGIrfh03O-n9HALZw9j6ljbICDwTx5DAWB6vPdnbvH8vIVgcWqUVI7sveBMOVM77Ket-YX5iiSbuxhKXSXYlc/s320/IMG_1386.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fenghuang is the Chinese word for Phoenix. This is the statue<br />in the middle of the main square.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicvhVxKKvQeuJ0wSlPNAysaBwqMoaDy6Fz8QqvfhbRuN0vxQ5e-dNyafJbPcZYG95BX6xgfa7yCrEtHYRyGofzeGzesXk9o-kzJQyiArO2kqIxA7MoqsK72MwBA88sSxb6NjvcUalv7xc/s1600/IMG_1387.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicvhVxKKvQeuJ0wSlPNAysaBwqMoaDy6Fz8QqvfhbRuN0vxQ5e-dNyafJbPcZYG95BX6xgfa7yCrEtHYRyGofzeGzesXk9o-kzJQyiArO2kqIxA7MoqsK72MwBA88sSxb6NjvcUalv7xc/s320/IMG_1387.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXjTw6vi1MHGvJJ-gSSYCSm_UmZ2XfEezkUynge1kqnwWCx6_THr8KX-IG2rjlEgXmTa62BqJ8TN5IGWmnTqp0EGzBxCvgaxw6Us-mBFpdThc0VDxnf5LM4r7-i3rwozz62Q44_zvKEIA/s1600/IMG_1395_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXjTw6vi1MHGvJJ-gSSYCSm_UmZ2XfEezkUynge1kqnwWCx6_THr8KX-IG2rjlEgXmTa62BqJ8TN5IGWmnTqp0EGzBxCvgaxw6Us-mBFpdThc0VDxnf5LM4r7-i3rwozz62Q44_zvKEIA/s320/IMG_1395_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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Thought the visit was brief, I fell in love with the place. I'll be back for a more thorough exploration the first chance I get. After we departed the Phoenix Old Town, the next stop for us was the main attraction of the trip,
ZhangJiaJie. Famed for its unique mountainous landscape of steep towers of
rock, which was one of the locations of the world that inspired the design of
the floating mountain region in James Cameron’s Avatar. We started at 5am to
get there early and beat the crowds, and the first several hours climbing up to the top were
sublime. However once we got to the top of the hike around noon, all of the
tourists who took the busses to the top were their to meet us and it quickly
became a storm of people, bargaining, and unfortunately trash was sprawled all
over the area. Despite all of this, the place was beautiful and I believe that
if it weren’t the National Holiday, the place wouldn’t be such a zoo. We ended
the day by taking the world’s largest outdoor elevator from the top of one of
those rock towers down to its base. Unfortunately, I didn’t get any pictures of
the elevator or the amazing place it spit us out at, because of both the rain
and the rush we were in at that point. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKiK61vXyYG4cdTOXaYcr0WTJSRHlWHoV4pq8dAnvap9yU3udCWoACAk8o-TeMte076EhfE5ZG5h_7IS4PwM-efYWUtaI4wVBmL_gKm_9T7cj_I91V2LCxPRyzIRt2Cv9h5oPGspJh6C8/s1600/IMG_1490_1_2_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKiK61vXyYG4cdTOXaYcr0WTJSRHlWHoV4pq8dAnvap9yU3udCWoACAk8o-TeMte076EhfE5ZG5h_7IS4PwM-efYWUtaI4wVBmL_gKm_9T7cj_I91V2LCxPRyzIRt2Cv9h5oPGspJh6C8/s320/IMG_1490_1_2_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The ZhangJiaJie landscape</td></tr>
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<br />The final stop for us was a Traditional Chinese museum, and an art museum that specialized in paintings made of sand, which were phenomenal. If there was one thing that never ceases to amaze me in China, it's their beautiful and variant forms of art. And their food. So that makes two things.<div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyUec0gWxgx3qEOS8mFb3rkgZnZgMrdgwH9Agy495zGfHJtrIpUEq_4uFdl9DFODGBu_VEGOAMoW0M2c9c2WUqriAAHzbR4HbYqchjueZMGAJvH75H1XNS7NBX7Bm3-QfZajXNXa0CYZc/s1600/IMG_1573_4_5_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyUec0gWxgx3qEOS8mFb3rkgZnZgMrdgwH9Agy495zGfHJtrIpUEq_4uFdl9DFODGBu_VEGOAMoW0M2c9c2WUqriAAHzbR4HbYqchjueZMGAJvH75H1XNS7NBX7Bm3-QfZajXNXa0CYZc/s320/IMG_1573_4_5_tonemapped.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY7w6csJdQ_ojThGnRGUy0sPp6kl3_JfouIz04rKlDs6Ci-7dnSsNoG2n_TfUT1UoIZi-kFxr44pYGMsBbFiLPm09YtwTZITZSIaOKqymjmieYVT00vfYHpn7wG9Xsk0ZGyxYUW_GKaEA/s1600/IMG_1585_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY7w6csJdQ_ojThGnRGUy0sPp6kl3_JfouIz04rKlDs6Ci-7dnSsNoG2n_TfUT1UoIZi-kFxr44pYGMsBbFiLPm09YtwTZITZSIaOKqymjmieYVT00vfYHpn7wG9Xsk0ZGyxYUW_GKaEA/s320/IMG_1585_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another example of a preserved traditional chinese area, with<br />industrialization happening right outside its walls.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtasHF_S-VlNJRXQq0wP3ULD2xSUloQN5EviklHM-I9V8UlZQ33rbdXRB12prCHK2brMfiwBr9XMzkTfiuu06CHmGyigpZxH8vf1IA9SRQn5i_rtgSM4mxEOVcqF3mUE_9xnNMxrMH2BI/s1600/IMG_1590.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtasHF_S-VlNJRXQq0wP3ULD2xSUloQN5EviklHM-I9V8UlZQ33rbdXRB12prCHK2brMfiwBr9XMzkTfiuu06CHmGyigpZxH8vf1IA9SRQn5i_rtgSM4mxEOVcqF3mUE_9xnNMxrMH2BI/s320/IMG_1590.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This whole thing was within a frame. The tools, stone, and wooden doors<br />were built onto the canvas with the painting in middle, made of sand adhered to the canvas.<br />The red tags on the door read "long live the Communist Party and Chairman Mao"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-ypxBYiGyqwj3bhEtPcc9gyTcYcBrQvRkk3zdEiQFU1lV2aO_W4l6y-HPYH5z4I4FuSrNBAwMt_yU0m4pVkQcau2iQ3hLolwJgOUf8majC-KruFRnLufW9JehnVtB7E3y-2alSsiWQaA/s1600/IMG_1592.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-ypxBYiGyqwj3bhEtPcc9gyTcYcBrQvRkk3zdEiQFU1lV2aO_W4l6y-HPYH5z4I4FuSrNBAwMt_yU0m4pVkQcau2iQ3hLolwJgOUf8majC-KruFRnLufW9JehnVtB7E3y-2alSsiWQaA/s320/IMG_1592.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can see the texture that the sand creates on the dome</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVzBcvKOZnY7857YaMGqy0UWGTK7KNXSWkKikBFnt2lcClcIfoX2kWHv1R1LIETRZpg35e-DeeqXevyD5VWyLssbJM6bZIuvJjBfTJRvdJFx1kD2N1Tzl2TJfEkSWIzXIctlbPS4ExT-U/s1600/IMG_1595.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVzBcvKOZnY7857YaMGqy0UWGTK7KNXSWkKikBFnt2lcClcIfoX2kWHv1R1LIETRZpg35e-DeeqXevyD5VWyLssbJM6bZIuvJjBfTJRvdJFx1kD2N1Tzl2TJfEkSWIzXIctlbPS4ExT-U/s320/IMG_1595.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Once again, made entirely of colored sand. Pretty unreal huh?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
That was the conclusion of the trip with the tour group. We stayed one extra day in the city of ZhangJiaJie while the rest of the group went back home via train. During that day we walked the city streets and generally took it easy. I ate bat on a skewer, which was delicious. I felt attached to many of the people I traveled with after the week I had spent with them in Hunan province, talking about China and life here. Some I could even call friends. During my time in China I've met so many kind people, with seemingly infinite patience in teaching me their language and culture, and an easy going willingness to help in any way they can.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">3 Chinese children I got to know along the trip. All 3 of them are learning<br />English as a second language, and at 7 years old can speak it very well.</td></tr>
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<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My buddy Kevin, son of Rambo. </td></tr>
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<!--EndFragment-->Heading back home was a 26 hour train ride. As usual we made conversation easily with the Chinese people near our bunks. Some spoke great english, some spoke none at all and our interactions were done through simple Mandarin, friendly gestures, and card games. I learned much during this last week, about traveling within China and about the people of this country. I have positive impressions of both, and look forward to my next trip.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-67344106279150436032012-10-05T20:49:00.000-07:002012-10-05T20:49:04.292-07:00Out for AirIt's been a while since I last posted some info on what I've been up to. Apologies to those that were waiting. The first half of the last couple weeks was a little too routine to post anything significant, and the last half was too hectic and busy to find time to post anything. The reason for that is, we all had a week off of school for the Chinese Mid Autumn Festival and the Chinese National Holiday. Since this is the only holiday we get during the semester, myself and a few friends made it our mission to travel somewhere far away from our increasingly comfortable life in Beijing. We ended up going to ZhangJiaJie, and stopping by several places along the way including ChangSha, Mao Zhedong's hometown, and Phoenix Old Town. We traveled with a tour group, for several reasons. Though I'm always looking to get away from big tourist crowds, this holiday is a nationwide event that puts billions of people on the move all at once. It's tradition that during the national holiday everybody returns to their hometowns to see their family. The sheer volume of people that travel during this week makes train and plane tickets very hard to come by, and finding hotel accommodations are equally as challenging. With these things in mind we set out with a tour group.<br />
<br />
It turned out to be a great time, and we were able to befriend several of the chinese families that were in our group. Usually they were the ones that could speak some english, as they would often help us translate information throughout the day to get around. Among the ones I became friendliest with was a man whose english name was Rambo, and his wife and son. There is also an english speaking Chinese student named Angel whose father is a goofy demeanor government officer. Many Chinese use the holiday period to do some touring of their own. Seeing foreigners on vacation, at least in our experience, was a rarity.<br />
<br />
I'm sitting in my hotel room now and my return train trip is in several hours. It will be over 20 hours of travel time straight to Beijing. Here something of a walk through of the trip, and looking back now I'm regretful of missing some pictures of a few things, but I'll do my best to fill you in with words.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The hard sleeper train we took to ChangSha</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our den. My bed was the highest bunk on the right.</td></tr>
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<br />
The train ride was 15 hours long. We passed the time playing cards, eating snacks almost constantly, a little bit of homework, reading... We made friends with the group of Chinese people in the den next to us. We shared food at dinner time and eventually they were feeding me as much of their rice liquor as I dared to take.<br />
<br />
Upon arrival and meeting up with the group, the first stop was Mao Zhedong's hometown and the school he attended. There were more effigies of the famous leader than I could count, he was literally everywhere.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bust of the young Mao Zhedong, over 40 meters high and 80 meters wide</td></tr>
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After getting a fair share of nationalism, we heading out
for what would become my favorite leg of the trip, The Phoenix Old Town. On the
way there the massive amounts of traffic going in and out of the city caused a
huge traffic jam. It was bad enough that the tour guide decided it would be
more effective for everyone to just grab their luggage and walk the remaining
several miles to the hotel. It was raining. But my saying that visiting this
place was my favorite part of the trip wasn’t sarcasm. The city was everything
I would hope from a hub of preserved Chinese culture and architecture. It had a
very unique character, the native people often spoke their own dialect of Chinese
making them completely unintelligible unless they wanted to be understood, and
the architecture and design of the town was unreal. Unfortunately we were only there
for a very short time, but if I ever get the chance I’ll be back.</div>
<!--EndFragment--><br />
<br />
Ill finish this post soon, but as of now I'm getting kicked out of the hotel and I have to get moving towards the train station. Expect this to be finished within 48 hours. The best is yet to come!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-44719550785000210352012-09-22T05:36:00.000-07:002012-09-22T05:36:37.142-07:00Into the Eastern WorldThis update is strictly a shout out to my roommate's blog, Into the Eastern World. He was good enough to put a link to this blog on his, so I'm returning the gesture. He voices more than I do, so you'll probably learn something cool if you check in every once in a while. If you want to see this experience through a different pair of eyes, you can follow his adventure <a href="http://intotheeasternworld.blogspot.com/">here</a><br />
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http://intotheeasternworld.blogspot.com/Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-6208869094734155282012-09-17T01:21:00.002-07:002012-09-17T01:21:48.475-07:00To elaborate of my previous postI've decided to write a little something about the last week and the pictures I put up. If for no other reason than I owe it to my family. First of all- the Forbidden City. Obviously a spectacular place, but to me what was even more striking than it's grandiose interior structure was its existence in the heart of one of China's largest and most modernized cities. Living in America, I feel like the trend for metropolises is for the hub of the modernization and urbanization to be in the middle, with residential and more suburban areas diffusing outwardly. Beijing from this perspective seems to be just the opposite with its conscious choice to preserve its traditional roots. Nonetheless, the place is truly amazing on the inside and is not overrated as must see for people visiting Beijing, however the food within the walls are expectedly pricy for tourist and comparative to typical chinese restaurants it isn't that good.<br />
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Then there was Tiananmen Square. It's spacious, and a central tourist attraction as well as local gathering spot with much political significance. If you know the stories of what's occurred there, it can be a very meaningful visit.<br />
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The art district we went to is called the 798 Art District. It's home to many high profile artist's work, some of it surprisingly untraditional Chinese. Unfortunately, there were many great galleries I went into that didn't allow photography of the work, but there was one exhibition in particular that housed huge sculptures of very surreal figures made by Chen Wenling. This work stood out as very bizarre, expressionist, and political. Which are all things that, at least in my mind, go against the stereotypes of a Chinese resident and high profile artist. But I'm learning more and more that the characteristics that once merited these predispositions are dying, especially amongst the younger generation of Chinese.<br />
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I will have more to come of the Forbidden City, as there wasn't enough to time to see all of the inner halls that I wanted to see. Until then--Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-90823103433614911032012-09-16T09:11:00.000-07:002012-09-17T01:26:40.080-07:00Another week, another updateAnother update with a few shots of a few things I've seen this week, once again with no coherent theme. At some point I'll actually have a point to these posts, besides just showing off a bunch of cool looking sites. Until then, enjoy.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Forbidden City's North Gate</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBzQ8yDKzSGxg6VWsTx39B43Spptf_EKC8MxMtQKpT52wpvD-SbUTGFOTth-WsjFyoqTNLIi-0o7eFaUnu-xgwUWwRyXRDGHkXr4UPMm58WXczCfmRJCkOHYUG1198eY06wjsA8UJvPmY/s1600/IMG_1045_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBzQ8yDKzSGxg6VWsTx39B43Spptf_EKC8MxMtQKpT52wpvD-SbUTGFOTth-WsjFyoqTNLIi-0o7eFaUnu-xgwUWwRyXRDGHkXr4UPMm58WXczCfmRJCkOHYUG1198eY06wjsA8UJvPmY/s320/IMG_1045_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">YuanMingYuan Park</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">YuanMingYuan Park</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJb4Bq5APBCfWP3-lPb6Yc0oWexyXVhxQwUMQc0dnnjyOOr8fkpty7erlxAgen7ovs2-oVN-Qc0pSkgGyOpXviNjeQgbLl5JFdEmv8mNgB4ZADxgwk2s2y0GdP9imfbAkmGaeBd77aFM/s1600/IMG_1084.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJb4Bq5APBCfWP3-lPb6Yc0oWexyXVhxQwUMQc0dnnjyOOr8fkpty7erlxAgen7ovs2-oVN-Qc0pSkgGyOpXviNjeQgbLl5JFdEmv8mNgB4ZADxgwk2s2y0GdP9imfbAkmGaeBd77aFM/s320/IMG_1084.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside the Forbidden City</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ornamental Roof Inside the Forbidden City</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hall of Preserved Harmony </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixBi14OgPOPka93BncaU4Bl4fXpB15X2dqesbRw8MiucvePJXLnegJp7ip5VTaoCN3QAkFXid3JPpW_pGk_jcx6QqxRd5IV1Eeg0DOgzIVWtqUftCMAjZfbq8gfBrFuGUGRUIg8kjmuIg/s1600/IMG_1161_2_3_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixBi14OgPOPka93BncaU4Bl4fXpB15X2dqesbRw8MiucvePJXLnegJp7ip5VTaoCN3QAkFXid3JPpW_pGk_jcx6QqxRd5IV1Eeg0DOgzIVWtqUftCMAjZfbq8gfBrFuGUGRUIg8kjmuIg/s320/IMG_1161_2_3_tonemapped.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tiananmen Square's Monolith at Sunset</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tiananman Square</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beijing City at Night</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhT94jsT_80fmMbEj4Dgsc4zO2_NtGVMFyIxRjXNZwjGYfmDN_sLa6OCBIeTFHN_HOZwTvCWpxkrSl3S529IsDD7YGZJOTqajGeCv5gyXimAXqmZu7jzDqdDnkZ96IK4gd78FzgEYo_Qc/s1600/IMG_1198_199_200_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhT94jsT_80fmMbEj4Dgsc4zO2_NtGVMFyIxRjXNZwjGYfmDN_sLa6OCBIeTFHN_HOZwTvCWpxkrSl3S529IsDD7YGZJOTqajGeCv5gyXimAXqmZu7jzDqdDnkZ96IK4gd78FzgEYo_Qc/s320/IMG_1198_199_200_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">North Gate of the Forbidden City</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRz0Q5zr5tfjweqgGPPHe5s3RLShQftfl8KcXsjY2ee1zYOTBcYwwM-tYSfWEUobgBnEmKVmr0-CsyMh8Qq-3uZG3SVyUjOhvRW3nR5-o_n8EjTd7eI4i9t5Ujy2F6-iWSpxUqf8PyC4s/s1600/IMG_1207_8_9_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRz0Q5zr5tfjweqgGPPHe5s3RLShQftfl8KcXsjY2ee1zYOTBcYwwM-tYSfWEUobgBnEmKVmr0-CsyMh8Qq-3uZG3SVyUjOhvRW3nR5-o_n8EjTd7eI4i9t5Ujy2F6-iWSpxUqf8PyC4s/s320/IMG_1207_8_9_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; line-height: 16px; text-align: left;">Sculpture by Chen Wenling</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSlaI58d0aqMbJAavuvv_AH-KTDN15mT-tFhcnYZ3mU208ZM7oXHATGmUqUNaxHHiYGjhRneYwx0jQZ4ySnBsdlUwZKWCcomizKlwphapptTLDnBOJRAfBFCbKSQq5MCmVnJRi_lkhtLM/s1600/IMG_1210.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSlaI58d0aqMbJAavuvv_AH-KTDN15mT-tFhcnYZ3mU208ZM7oXHATGmUqUNaxHHiYGjhRneYwx0jQZ4ySnBsdlUwZKWCcomizKlwphapptTLDnBOJRAfBFCbKSQq5MCmVnJRi_lkhtLM/s320/IMG_1210.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you read the front of the barrel of this baby's tank, it says Made in China.</td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-68874126409128304692012-09-09T09:04:00.000-07:002012-09-09T09:04:51.100-07:00The 1st week<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The first week here was great. It was adventurous and hectic trying to get settled in and figure out my surroundings, but I enjoyed every second of it. For some reason amidst all of the chaos this last week all of my pictures are of structured things. Strong architecture, organization, and lasting customs. Orderliness is not an accurate representation of my experience so far, but here are some of the things I've seen.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsh1pFqZCxxY00XBsQJvEVcn0-TYfN51ny82DJhZvRT0ErC2kAObSDLty5wZfrOz4APdQQz_HxEaLeKFNf9gH6KpWE7sKp3v_uNnZ4m4igfajC2izAOPjTxhgP3oMELSjlS0kHiCxZYUY/s1600/IMG_0936.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsh1pFqZCxxY00XBsQJvEVcn0-TYfN51ny82DJhZvRT0ErC2kAObSDLty5wZfrOz4APdQQz_HxEaLeKFNf9gH6KpWE7sKp3v_uNnZ4m4igfajC2izAOPjTxhgP3oMELSjlS0kHiCxZYUY/s320/IMG_0936.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Freshmen at the Campus do military style marching drills every morning for 2 weeks as part of their orientation into college life.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT_38Ojd9ShCq_PRVs3fcUtCXYqygbCLlMrTx8euXQ85z8AuOSQr2honEeBCm7a8Zo-kWL87CKLSiJ1DSj-hiqrA4e58wJ5vjeX69EwdNK7xlcDt8SJYjixWvVvgkLZMklsdJ2T0g92l8/s1600/IMG_0939.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT_38Ojd9ShCq_PRVs3fcUtCXYqygbCLlMrTx8euXQ85z8AuOSQr2honEeBCm7a8Zo-kWL87CKLSiJ1DSj-hiqrA4e58wJ5vjeX69EwdNK7xlcDt8SJYjixWvVvgkLZMklsdJ2T0g92l8/s320/IMG_0939.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Notice the difference between the freshmen students and their uniformed upperclassmen.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKr20f8WMJ73CXg2CLikOFdPyAADBgXl0ibDPLeiZIbplxYuScIEKI98h1gfsYxDOvgM-LVpSbJ5stoQWNud5O_xey2YrI2AnUb_QGs9otDaTQ-6uYbQWKPgG7OBG1ihiuSgbYzpo8r9k/s1600/IMG_0942.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKr20f8WMJ73CXg2CLikOFdPyAADBgXl0ibDPLeiZIbplxYuScIEKI98h1gfsYxDOvgM-LVpSbJ5stoQWNud5O_xey2YrI2AnUb_QGs9otDaTQ-6uYbQWKPgG7OBG1ihiuSgbYzpo8r9k/s320/IMG_0942.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On our way to the great wall we stopped at this farmers house to eat lunch. They make a lot of great food made right on their land and have a small dining hall for people who are visiting the wall to eat at.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzqq1XXUvwHUa2hP73YZ03NQeS7EZjlXidUuV2Yq37DW03Dk7E8E2zTTRv7IAax1NRraG5wHJ-oIHS1fHXgcCoXkVSHQSZKJ6bY74yd6YNHbAynIBU7xuEUkeMH7J1iGcK6xTX6GicpiA/s1600/IMG_0959_60_61_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzqq1XXUvwHUa2hP73YZ03NQeS7EZjlXidUuV2Yq37DW03Dk7E8E2zTTRv7IAax1NRraG5wHJ-oIHS1fHXgcCoXkVSHQSZKJ6bY74yd6YNHbAynIBU7xuEUkeMH7J1iGcK6xTX6GicpiA/s320/IMG_0959_60_61_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Great Wall of China. Seeing it with your own eyes delivers a sense of vastness that a picture just can't emulate.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi17saiJxZ0KnyFg5blisBgdvJkIkTSdrHbp-hB_NdgrHpZdso1QTg6jGWYBv84cNupJYV0ZPVKQfe2XDpQlpMW81m7-eeYD49rboFJtbbQ3bYAwhf4YAuNQefXj_MfN9D5Geh6YFVPIzc/s1600/IMG_0966.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi17saiJxZ0KnyFg5blisBgdvJkIkTSdrHbp-hB_NdgrHpZdso1QTg6jGWYBv84cNupJYV0ZPVKQfe2XDpQlpMW81m7-eeYD49rboFJtbbQ3bYAwhf4YAuNQefXj_MfN9D5Geh6YFVPIzc/s320/IMG_0966.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRFP5tbcXcKPUBal2HxLyyHlfvdtNoaTGtNZOQjk71DMhRYaApvzdPA1foTn13QRdKQhrU4gTlHa4BTd_PvhsnBKUpP4mpv68BW9-SHwETxqG7QMN2Xe3-rPFJh4IjUqOskM6o9ztZAX0/s1600/IMG_0980.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRFP5tbcXcKPUBal2HxLyyHlfvdtNoaTGtNZOQjk71DMhRYaApvzdPA1foTn13QRdKQhrU4gTlHa4BTd_PvhsnBKUpP4mpv68BW9-SHwETxqG7QMN2Xe3-rPFJh4IjUqOskM6o9ztZAX0/s320/IMG_0980.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGZXHC6Nj1VUnP87Xivi6jroMH4UBpbPgXqQTx8KGlkYYwyewjIrbYpVGdQ_z0TBN1cPaoByX-DFne1dEkhA3jLk9ft4SbGyPBs-UG1YndE_w4FTQASvEhrTfra8Fht0lhJ3ROyyU0ok/s1600/IMG_0995_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGZXHC6Nj1VUnP87Xivi6jroMH4UBpbPgXqQTx8KGlkYYwyewjIrbYpVGdQ_z0TBN1cPaoByX-DFne1dEkhA3jLk9ft4SbGyPBs-UG1YndE_w4FTQASvEhrTfra8Fht0lhJ3ROyyU0ok/s320/IMG_0995_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The KTV building across the street from campus. Believe it or not this is a karaoke hall. The Chinese take their karaoke seriously.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An example of Beijing's unique architecture.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrCFQub5Q2qbDn_3Ve6FP8ZqGSipRLdXNBjRKt04JUMlgr-dQhwimUPpj3JAxhKLR_NBLyBjaSm9xZxGMwoICVQVoRdv22A1s-X-s9fIaaxHIhsX5BmooZxdsfBwGg8F_P5Yk-oTLmVRU/s1600/IMG_1010_1_2_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrCFQub5Q2qbDn_3Ve6FP8ZqGSipRLdXNBjRKt04JUMlgr-dQhwimUPpj3JAxhKLR_NBLyBjaSm9xZxGMwoICVQVoRdv22A1s-X-s9fIaaxHIhsX5BmooZxdsfBwGg8F_P5Yk-oTLmVRU/s320/IMG_1010_1_2_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Construction in Beijing</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjErelhGrSZ2rO-luDZFbO0R63YiHDQb2JjdGTmmOBHcQBYRFNKpIlyjEPrdiztA28AUap6e-EBJRlb-T2sXKQrj9s-23xnFBFN45fDuUk84kyamFAagQf9WARDZkVGxv3Gv-XDm937Hj0/s1600/IMG_1025_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjErelhGrSZ2rO-luDZFbO0R63YiHDQb2JjdGTmmOBHcQBYRFNKpIlyjEPrdiztA28AUap6e-EBJRlb-T2sXKQrj9s-23xnFBFN45fDuUk84kyamFAagQf9WARDZkVGxv3Gv-XDm937Hj0/s320/IMG_1025_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A classic Pagoda</td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-40306420470149244632012-09-02T21:00:00.004-07:002012-09-02T21:01:18.735-07:00Departing Portland<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Leaving Portland and the U.S. tomorrow. Here are a few shots of Portland city. In about 30 hours I'll be in Beijing. <span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial, simsun;"><span style="background-color: white;">再见</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, simsun; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">美国!</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBwx7nqHpEHaVrazz-j-1e7Gyme8FtRX5QAXh6G6IJCVBfdOuoJPN5Z4tx5XlY0eGzZuJhhvQgsMw-cnb6R-wuFgrJgkDvdGlnELUFASacDKPocfEZiYzmUx6S2wTsydhb9EM_JwWTaM/s1600/IMG_0675_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBwx7nqHpEHaVrazz-j-1e7Gyme8FtRX5QAXh6G6IJCVBfdOuoJPN5Z4tx5XlY0eGzZuJhhvQgsMw-cnb6R-wuFgrJgkDvdGlnELUFASacDKPocfEZiYzmUx6S2wTsydhb9EM_JwWTaM/s320/IMG_0675_6_7_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steel Bridge</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtQkImqUVGNsFb9nPQprFpui8VZJrQGxaAfx73wCzZpzuCK-X6pU6OIgXZ9-sCcOOp8Yyfr9rc_wVyqF4pyA92ZrTqSsBFFtwHaIqbSmbETVGL2Bb2vtletyTUXw5Ph0RxBtBP0kNu9K0/s1600/+2And2more_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtQkImqUVGNsFb9nPQprFpui8VZJrQGxaAfx73wCzZpzuCK-X6pU6OIgXZ9-sCcOOp8Yyfr9rc_wVyqF4pyA92ZrTqSsBFFtwHaIqbSmbETVGL2Bb2vtletyTUXw5Ph0RxBtBP0kNu9K0/s320/+2And2more_tonemapped.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Koi pond in the Washington Park Japanese Garden</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqhMYx-_2EI6mnAYdjPKAnqQNeLmlF7RaJ-8QVfGUNAnVncwhrz0MyFsdAx7HfHN3KLCTHmJtFTzlKAls1s7eEZqEaUKJeCNmFofButcKhyphenhyphenMh-XP0JAeHaZTDHruG8iS64nTJ77i5uIGc/s1600/IMG_0914_5_6_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqhMYx-_2EI6mnAYdjPKAnqQNeLmlF7RaJ-8QVfGUNAnVncwhrz0MyFsdAx7HfHN3KLCTHmJtFTzlKAls1s7eEZqEaUKJeCNmFofButcKhyphenhyphenMh-XP0JAeHaZTDHruG8iS64nTJ77i5uIGc/s320/IMG_0914_5_6_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Portland skyline</td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-89995451079851700622012-08-25T20:07:00.001-07:002012-08-25T20:07:39.301-07:00Leaving California<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Tomorrow morning I head out to Seattle to visit my dad and the rest of my family. This will be the last stop before I head out to China. These pictures are of Pacific Grove, where I've been staying, and some strange creatures from the Monterey Bay Aquarium.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnHHaaOPt7Rs7S5kRUJo8ckvjpM0ZvxBZe0PA8U3i13OE-qYikFU2hLBNqUnaZOAcv9yzFk8baNM_eK6J1Nll6zcj5OLoCbH-f1I_hW69UPDZS9WfKPOJlGKghMReSJ4QIMg0pp5C-QuE/s1600/IMG_0560.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnHHaaOPt7Rs7S5kRUJo8ckvjpM0ZvxBZe0PA8U3i13OE-qYikFU2hLBNqUnaZOAcv9yzFk8baNM_eK6J1Nll6zcj5OLoCbH-f1I_hW69UPDZS9WfKPOJlGKghMReSJ4QIMg0pp5C-QuE/s320/IMG_0560.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leafy Sea Dragon... Strange, yet totally awesome.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9gldSfP1TbgovAfsRoSSe2n623wA3wHHx2qG8xB4MH9va9mBbWX6fMbCdHOoy9TLxsJpma-B675dleP2imLjRARfq7qxlIAXBCtSxNWsjWNlYiDyqvnYlx4xDMATXYKugLDTxz33I5U/s1600/IMG_0539.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9gldSfP1TbgovAfsRoSSe2n623wA3wHHx2qG8xB4MH9va9mBbWX6fMbCdHOoy9TLxsJpma-B675dleP2imLjRARfq7qxlIAXBCtSxNWsjWNlYiDyqvnYlx4xDMATXYKugLDTxz33I5U/s320/IMG_0539.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monterey Aquarium</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOuXRtFPZd8I9JMaeVYPNLmsPRt9Y01Osd0iLcScvOHE5p4uovqCJ4-7rXlsyZ-Vk3We7sCVRri3kmqzmRLpxZxRRnuj_fczeRtY0szb9ccAdtPbouMv22peq25C9uZP7aEjXAc0DU_g/s1600/IMG_0646_7_8_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOuXRtFPZd8I9JMaeVYPNLmsPRt9Y01Osd0iLcScvOHE5p4uovqCJ4-7rXlsyZ-Vk3We7sCVRri3kmqzmRLpxZxRRnuj_fczeRtY0szb9ccAdtPbouMv22peq25C9uZP7aEjXAc0DU_g/s320/IMG_0646_7_8_tonemapped.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Lone Cypress in Pacific Grove</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq4izUgcjKfWJyjidSlam_al0T1szZkWKoW-xuMcxENnJB7rWNTndOaUOU_EBJb2MtrqvlFy-88doHhhszSG2PNYBak24KDiwHgYa3kJQWE-HRVE_73zX5eb-qtsyZHVJHELldd0bRZ_s/s1600/IMG_0641.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq4izUgcjKfWJyjidSlam_al0T1szZkWKoW-xuMcxENnJB7rWNTndOaUOU_EBJb2MtrqvlFy-88doHhhszSG2PNYBak24KDiwHgYa3kJQWE-HRVE_73zX5eb-qtsyZHVJHELldd0bRZ_s/s320/IMG_0641.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blue Crown Jellies</td></tr>
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<br /><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-72254795071832712662012-08-22T20:18:00.002-07:002012-08-23T11:28:33.370-07:00En route, San Francisco and Laguna Seca<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: start;">Prior to my flight on September 3rd, I'm traveling up and down the west coast to visit with family, friends, and in general to get the rest of my things together for the trip. San Francisco is an incredible city, one of a kind in its character and I thoroughly enjoyed my time there. Laguna Seca Raceway was hosting the<span class="spell" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"> </span></span><em style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Tour d'Elegance</span></em><span style="text-align: start;"> the weekend I was there so I had the opportunity to see some amazing cars.</span></div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419774631589766383.post-8552295239171060822012-08-12T22:39:00.000-07:002012-08-23T11:37:24.849-07:00你好! (Hello!)You've found my travel blog mostly dedicated to my expedition throughout China. My goal with this is to create an illustrative record of the things I see for myself as well as for others to enjoy and reflect on.<br />
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The majority of what I post will be the photographs that I take along the way, and I may occasionally write something if I feel like the picture needs or merits explanation. So to start off, I'll post some shots of the state I grew up in, and where my travels start. Thanks for looking, I hope you gain something from what's to come from this.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The hills behind my house in California</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset at Laguna Beach</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Irvine Spectrum, Ca</td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06477448455402121413noreply@blogger.com0