Setting sparrows free in Vientiane – Laos – 2011

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Laos, sparrows, Vientiane

A work trip to Vientiane

 In 2010 I was asked to travel from Beijing to Vientiane for a conference.  I had never been to Laos so was looking forward to the experience.  My other colleagues all had travelled from around different areas of Asia to attend the conference and we all stayed at a lovely little hotel (resort really) near the centre of town.  We did not have much spare time but did have the opportunity to taste some fabulous food in local restaurants and walk along the boardwalk looking over the wonderful Mekong river to nearby Thailand.

We also visited one of the famous sights in Vientiane; Patuxai which means ‘Victory Gate or Gate of Triumph’.  This is a war monument which is dedicated to those who fought in the struggle for independence from France. It actually resembles the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

We also visited one of the national symbols in Laos; the ‘Pha That Luang Temple’ which is covered in gold and located in the centre of Vientiane.

And this is where I saw the baby sparrows.  So…there was a lady carrying around several small bamboo cages and inside were these tiny baby sparrows, so many in one cage and she was offering people [foreigners really] the opportunity to set them free – for a fee of course.  Well..I knew that as soon as we paid her and set the birds free she would re-capture them and take more money from another animal/bird lover…but I did it anyway.  It was so incredibly warm and I thought the opportunity for these sparrows to fly in the shade for a few minutes would be good for them.  And maybe some would not get caught again.  I recall seeing this in China a few times (again did the same thing and paid to set them free only to see the men recapturing the sparrows!!).

I realised though that I had no Laos money on me, so my dear friend who had come over from Singapore bought the freedom of the birds for me – four cages full!!  I can’t recall what it cost him but it was not cheap; (I think around $20 AUD)…he is a true friend who knew it was upsetting me to see the birds in cages.  He still tells the story and the fact I have never re-paid him.

Vientiane was ok to visit; it’s hard to comment really having only seen a small part of the city, but it was good to get around either walking in the evening or by tuk tuk) and taste some of the local dishes, but it was dreadfully hot during our visit even in the evenings.

 

Chengde – Hebei Province – PRC – 2010

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Chengde, china, Hebei Province, prc

A weekend in Chengde

Whilst I was studying Mandarin in Beijing, a friend of mine and his wife asked me to go away for the weekend with another few friends, to Chengde which is in the northeast of Hebei Province, and about 230 kilometres from Beijing.

We went with a local tour company (China Culture Centre) and with our tour guide and about four other people we didn’t know, we hopped on our small tour bus and drove from Beijing to Chengde.  This took about four hours but there was some nice scenery along the way once we got out of Beijing.  We did a stop at a local ‘truck stop’ along the way but I didn’t use the facilities as was told they were not exactly clean and lovely…did enjoy a nice Chinese ice-cream though!

Chengde was established by Qing-dynasty emperor Kangxi as the imperial summer residence. There still remains an 18th-century Mountain Resort palace complex which comprises a museum, the remains of the royal library, a yurt-style village, beautiful gardens, pagodas and hunting grounds which are no longer used to hunt but you can see deer roaming the grounds.

We took a boat ride along the lake which afforded us the opportunity to see more of the grounds and pagodas.  The boat operators were all dressed up in Qing Dynasty costumes.

The Mountain Resort (Bìshǔ Shānzhuāng which means ‘Mountain villa for avoiding the heat’…which makes total sense to me)!! Who doesn’t want to get out of the intense summer heat of Beijing.  However when we went it was summer and absolutely stinking hot!!!

We also went to Sledge Hammer Peak (Qingchuifeng) which stands on a hill and is colloquially called ‘the thumb of God’…you can see why from the photos.  To get to Qingchuifeng you have to walk along a very high wall with no sides; too scary for me so I just waited at the top of the mountain when we got off the chairlift. 

Our final visit before we departed back to Beijing was the Putuo Zongcheng Temple; stunning!! This temple is not located far from the Mountain Resort and is one of the Eight Outer Temples of Chengde. The Eight Outer Temples is a collective name given to twelve temples located outside Gubeikou – a section of the Great Wall. Eight of the temples were administered by an administration department for the affairs of minorities i.e. Mongolian and Tibetan, and so the name stuck. (source:www.travelchinaguide.com).

The Putuo Zongcheng Temple was modelled after the Potala Palace of Tibet, the old sanctuary of the Dalai Lama and has a fusion of Chinese and Tibetan architectural styles. The temple is one of the largest in China and many of its halls and pavilions are adorned with copper and gold tiled roofs.

We were very fortunate to see monks; both male and female, walking to prayer which was very special to see.

And we also had the opportunity to listen to some elderly Chinese musicians sitting around just playing their Chinese instruments; again very special.

A weekend away that I absolutely loved…would love to re-visit one day.

Lao She Teahouse – Beijing – PRC – 2010

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beijing, Lao She Tea House, prc

A show and cups of tea at the Lao She Teahouse 

In 2010, a colleague who who I met whilst studying Mandarin, asked me would I like to visit the famous teahouse, Lao She, to see a show and drink some tea.  I immediately said ‘yes’.  So with another friend, one Saturday afternoon we caught a taxi to the Lao She Teahouse which is located in Qianmen very close to Tian’anmen Square.

The Lao She Teahouse was named after famous Chinese novelist Shu Qingchun.  When writing, Shu used the pen name ‘Lao She’ and wrote the play ‘Teahouse’.  Hence the name ‘Lao She Teahouse’.  Shu also wrote the great novel ‘Rickshaw Boy’ which I have read and thoroughly recommend.    A really enjoyable read.

The whole building is quite beautiful, it was opened in 1988 and is decorated mainly in a traditional Chinese style.

The ground floor has a little museum on the history of the teahouse and then you walk up a flight of stairs to see paintings and calligraphy hung on the walls and beautiful displays of old teapots and teacups.  There is a small shop where you can purchase tea, teapots etc [which of course I did].

 

We were shown to our table which was a basic wooden table with Chinese wooden chairs [very befitting with the rest of the building] and on the table there were traditional Chinese snacks and local desserts.  Neither my friend Natalie nor I liked them very much but our colleague enjoyed some of them.  I think I enjoy western sweet more than Chinese sweets…they are an acquired taste; and unfortunately I don’t like most of them.  I don’t think the Chinese mind though as there are about 1.4 billion Chinese who do like them.

Then the show commenced, firstly with a traditional shadow puppet show which was very good, followed by a Chinese comedian.

Now this was a funny part of the show…and not for the reason you might think…yes I am sure the comedian was funny because the Chinese audience were all in hysterics..but at that time neither me nor my two friends neither spoke nor understood Mandarin, so whilst the audience was laughing loudly, we sat there wondering what in heaven this man was joking about!!  And of course the Chinese kept looking at us (as the only foreigners in the restaurant) to see if we understood, so we had to keep up appearances; smiling widely and pretending to understand!!

The comedian was followed by a Chinese opera singer – again another acquired taste …and not mine…(I have seen one other Chinese opera when living in Hong Kong and even then, some years ago it wasn’t to my liking).

We then were treated to a man who balanced pots on his head; it wasn’t particularly enthralling but it was ok; clearly he was very talented.

Throughout the show, different types of Chinese tea was provided. I do love Chinese tea; in particular Jasmine and Oolong – fabulous.  The Lao She Teahouse was the first of the modern teahouses  built after the opening up of China and at that time the price of a big bowl of tea was only the equivalent of two cents a bowl.

 

Our next show was a tea pouring ceremony which was very good and then  the final show being the ‘Chinese face mask changing’ [bian lian 变脸].

Bian lian is an ancient Chinese dramatic art that is part of the more general Sichuan opera. Performers wear brightly colored costumes and move to quick, dramatic music. They also wear vividly colored masks, typically depicting well known characters from the opera, which they change from one face to another almost instantaneously with the swipe of a fan, a movement of the head, or wave of the hand. (source: Wikipedia).

I have seen this many times in China and it is remarkable; I love it.  So clever. Overall a good couple of hours and I am so glad I went.

 

A 40th Birthday Party at Hamilton Island – Australia – October 2014

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Australia, hamilton Island

Australia’s Beautiful Hamilton Island

Hamilton Island is the largest inhabited island of the Whitsunday Islands in Queensland, Australia and it is truly beautiful.  A good friend of mine, Natalie, turned 40 last year and she  decided on a birthday weekend at a beautiful home [which we rented] at Hamilton Island.  She invited me and her sister and brother-in-law and as I had never been I jumped at the chance to not only spend time with my friends but to see the Island.

So five of us travelled independently to the Island.  I arrived last and travelled from Canberra, with a stop over at Sydney as there are no direct flights to Hamilton Island from Canberra which is unfortunate as the stop over was about two hours or so.  The airport in Hamilton is very small and as soon as you are off the plane you hit the tarmac and the heat.  And boy was it hot.  Before they arrived, Nat and her sister had ordered our food for the weekend, on-line, so when I arrived all the food for breakfasts, snacks and the BBQ had arrived and all been put away; all I had to do was pay my share.

There are no vehicles allowed on the Island and transport is by a little golf cart which the owners of our rented home provided for us.  Our home for the weekend was beautiful with fabulous views over the water and daily visits from the local cockatoos.

We are not supposed to feed the wild birds but…I was a bit naughty and as I had a spare vegetarian sausage; instead of throwing it away I gave half to one bird and half to another..as you can see from my photos – they loved them!!

Nat’s husband picked me up from the tiny airport in the cute golf cart and after dropping my baggage off, we went to a local restaurant overlooking the water where my friends already had eaten lunch so we enjoyed a glass or two of champagne and ate some lovely desserts.  The birthday girl was given a plate of delicious desserts with ‘happy birthday’ written on the slate plate by the chef..very nice.

We had some lovely meals on the Island and one day took a boat trip to Airlie Beach where we walked around a little and had a great lunch before hopping back on the boat to return to Hamilton Island.

It was very warm during our visit so early one morning a few of us took a walk around part of the Island, stopping for a quick photo of a koala bear who lives in a Eucalyptus tree at one of the cafes.

Just before sunset one evening we drove up to Hamilton Island’s renowned hilltop lookout.  You need to get there a little early for two reasons; firstly a lot of people go there and you need to get a prime spot; and secondly you can buy cocktails, wine and beer from a little portable shop…this is most important – to see the orange and yellow hues in the evening sky – with a drink in hand – as the sun sets over the Whitsunday Islands is just fabulous!!

And finally I thought I would also share the beautiful views at sunset from our rented home.

I know my friend Nat had a wonderful birthday and was very happy with the lovely gifts she received from us.  I was so glad to be invited and really enjoyed my long weekend.

Dinner at CBD Dumpling Restaurant – Canberra – Australia – November 2015

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Australia, canberra, Chinese restaurant, Dumplings

An evening with friends at a local Chinese dumpling restaurant

(this photo from http://www.goodfood.com.au)

Tonight I arranged an evening with some dear friends to eat at a local Chinese restaurant in Canberra that has very good reviews for its dumplings.  We were not disappointed.

Whilst I have to admit firstly I forgot to take photos of our dishes before we all tucked in; secondly my photos do not do justice to the meals which were so delicious.

Only one of my friends, Natalie, had been to the restaurant before but the rest of us were all waiting to compare the dumplings and other dishes to another Chinese dumpling restaurant we always go to in a local suburb near my home (which is very good).  I ordered the ‘yu xiang qie zi’ which is spicy [and oily] eggplant which was sensational.  It’s great with rice to mop up the delicious spicy oil.  This usually comes with pork on the top, but of course, being a vegetarian I asked for ‘mei you rou’ which means ‘no meat’.  My friend who I am travelling to China with next year, could not believe how delicious this dish was..he is used to grilled eggplant, which like me, he dislikes.  I said that the Chinese make eggplant into fabulous meals and to get used to me ordering it all the time.

My friends ordered some meat dishes; pan friend pork dumplings and another pork dish as well as kung pao chicken.  My lovely friend Evonne (who is Taiwanese) and I took the opportunity to teach my friend [who is travelling to China with me] some basic Chinese words:

您好 ni hao  = hello

 谢谢 xie xie = thank you

再见 zai jian = goodbye

And most importantly….

太贵了 tai gui le = too expensive [most important saying in China for visitors]

All the dishes were so fresh and I also ordered the salt and pepper tofu which was very good [albeit in my opinion my other local restaurant does it better].

We also ordered two serves of the Chinese pancakes and they might be the best I have ever tasted…absolutely delicious and as you can see I forgot to take my photo before we took pieces off the plate..

A lovely evening to catch up with friends and enjoy a really good restaurant in Canberra!!

Chicago – Illinois – USA – May 2015

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Chicago, Illinois, USA

A week in Chicago..

In May this year two of my friends and I went to the USA for a holiday; we first went to New York then spent just under a week in Chicago.  I must say I loved Chicago, it is a beautiful city with beautiful architecture.

We stayed at a great apartment on West Huron Street which is about a twenty-minute walk up to the ‘Magnificent Mile’ – the main shopping area of Chicago.  Our first day we bought tickets for the ‘hop on/hop off’ bus and took a tour of the city which afforded us the opportunity to see the beautiful buildings from the top of the open bus.

I love the ‘hop on/hop off’ bus as it gives you a great opportunity to look around the whole city and see the most famous sights without getting off the bus.  We saw the building that housed the musical ‘Chicago’ and then we got off the bus at the Navy Pier and took a look around; a little dated but it was ok.

I heard from a colleague that a restaurant called the ‘Purple Pig’ had very good food and was worth a visit.  We only intended to stop in for a short while to eat and ended up staying there for a couple of hours as we sat on a communal table and met some lovely women who were in town for work.  Rather expensive for lunch but the food was delicious.

Our next day we took a river tour which lasted about ninety-minutes.  I could not believe how cold it was.  My dad had warned me that Chicago was very cold but of course I took no notice of his advice to take a warm coat, so I froze on the river.  But the views were spectacular and there was only about ten of us on the boat so that was nice; still cold!!

It was wonderful to see the beautiful architecture alongside the river: the buildings are really spectacular.

 We took a walk along the river to the planetarium where we saw Chinese artist AI Weiwei’s Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads which are located outside the planetarium and were on display for one year so we were very fortunate to see them (AI being one of my favourite Chinese artists).

We also did a bus tour of the Chicago Prohibition areas and were given a history lesson on prohibition.  It was ok but little bit boring.  I preferred the river tour and the hop on/hop off bus tour.

We shopped at Macy’s and one of my friends said we had to have a drink at the famous Walnut Room.  I had never heard of it but she had done some research on great places to have a drink and in Chicago this was one of the places to go!!  The Walnut Room has been a Chicago tradition since 1907 and is located on the 7th floor of Macy’s and said to be the first restaurant ever opened in a department store.

We decided we would just have a glass of wine rather than a meal so we sat in the Wine Bar which has wood paneling imported from Russia and Austrian chandeliers.  It was very old world and absolutely gorgeous.  The Wine Bar was opened in 2007 and we were able to choose from about twenty wines by the glass.  A great couple of hours spent there after a tiring morning of shopping.

(photo from http://www.timeout.com)

My same friend told us we had to try the Chicago deep pan pizza, so after another morning of shopping and sight-seeing we stopped at this wonderful little pizza restaurant and tried the pizza.  It’s very different to NY pizza and all other pizzas really as it has a high edge and a deep surface for the large amounts of tomato sauce and cheese.  I must say I preferred the NY style pizza.

(photo from http://www.tripadvisor.ca)

On our last day I decided to walk around the area we were staying and check out all the beautiful homes; of which there were many.  Some with ivy all up the side, beautiful architecture [and I would say very expensive].

I must of walked around for a couple of hours just looking at the homes as they were all so different but all so lovely.

I think I fell in love with Chicago because of the beautiful architecture and tree-lined streets but also the people who were extremely friendly and lovely.  We took a long walk one day along Grand Park where we saw Buckingham Fountain which is said to be one of the largest in the world.

It was a very (very) warm day so we got a little bit sunburnt but the scenery was just so lovely so we kept on walking. There was so much to see on our walk including the Art District and Millennium Park where we saw this amazing structure in a pond which was a huge photo where faces changed all the time with a fountain of water coming from the mouth…amazing.

And there were some other great sculptures in the park; including a 110 tonne stainless steel sculpture which reflects the skyline of Chicago and a pavilion which has a head-dress of stainless steel ribbons that frame the stage opening and connecting to an overhead trellis of crisscrossing steel pipes.  And so much more – another reason I loved Chicago!

And one of the final things we did was take a look inside the city’s cultural centre.  The Chicago Cultural Centre was previously the city’s official reception venue where the Mayor of Chicago welcomed Presidents and royalty.

It was originally the central library building and was converted in 1977 to an arts and culture centre.  The building was designed by a Boston architectural firm in 1892. It has masonry walls faced with Bedford Blue Limestone on a granite base, and designed in a generally neoclassical style with Italian Renaissance elements. It is capped with two stained-glass domes, set symmetrically atop the two wings. The entrance and stairway have mahogany doors with featured mosaics and ornate bronze balusters. And amongst many other architectural sights there is a austere 38-foot Tiffany glass dome and this is said to be the largest Tiffany dome in the world. (source: Wikipedia)

A fabulous place to visit and I am sure a wonderful place to live.

Beijing’s Pangu 7 Star Hotel – Chaoyang District – Beijing – PRC – 2012

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beijing, Chaoyang District, Olympic Park, Pangu Hotel, prc

A viewing of Beijing’s Pangu Hotel

Just near Olympic Park you will find Beijing’s self proclaimed 7 star hotel.  The hotel is located up the top of one of Beijing’s buildings that is shaped like a dragon’s tail.  The hotel was supposed to be open for the 2008 Beijing Olympics but I was told that it was not ready in time.  Not sure if this is 100% correct.  Rooms have views over Olympic Park where you can see the Bird’s Nest and the Water Park.

My friend knew one of the senior hotel staff so one day we were given a tour of the hotel and a couple of the suites.  One word…’amazing’.

The entry foyer is absolutely huge with gold, marble and original Chinese paintings…we started off with a buffet lunch which was incredible; although not a huge amount of vegetarian options but so much seafood and meat – all displayed beautifully.  There were noodles and jiaozi (Chinese dumplings) that were vegetarian so I had those.  And the desserts were incredible…and so many of them.

(this photo from http://www.tripadvisor.com)

The hotel boasts an architectural approach that combines the oriental architectural spirits and the western architectural techniques and the interior design by Mr. Richardo Bello Dias, a world-class Italian designer, demonstrating a perfect blend of western architectural style and traditional Chinese decoration elements. (source: Pangu 7 star website – http://www.pangu.com)

We were given a tour of a private floor which contained a courtyard type set up [four rooms with a courtyard area in the middle and all rooms opening up onto the courtyard].  I have never seen anything like this before [ever] – as it was so incredibly opulent with genuine Ming Dynasty vases and Chinese artefacts including Chinese hand made embroidered wall hangings and genuine Chinese wooden furniture…all worth millions of dollars.  The rooms were very old style Chinese and the Chinese paintings in the rooms were absolutely beautiful.  The fact this was over thirty storeys up from the ground was even more amazing.  You really would never know you were so high from the ground when you were sitting in the centre courtyard.  These courtyard type floors are not available to the general public – they are not even on the website…they are incredibly expensive and my eyes watered when I was told the cost [ie hundreds of thousands of dollars].

The Presidential Suite was also lovely; again with Chinese handmade embroideries and views of the Water Cube and Birds Nest; all complete with your own personal butler.  But whilst it was lovely and the bathroom fabulous, it was nothing compared to the private courtyard floor which was absolutely spectacular.

It’s an amazing hotel.  It’s a little far out of the centre of Beijing (about thirty minutes drive and not really much to do surrounding the hotel), but it’s definitely worth a visit for the buffet or to stay overnight for a special event (maybe not the courtyard floor!!! might be a little bit too expensive).

Little Oak Animal Sanctuary – Bungendore – ACT – November 2015

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ACT, Australia, Bungendore, canberra, Little Oak Animal Sanctuary

A visit to a local Animal Sanctuary

There is a wonderful farm animal sanctuary about a thirty minute drive from Canberra in a country town call Bungendore.

The sanctuary is situated on over 200 acres of land and as the website says…

‘Little Oak Sanctuary Incorporated is a not-for-profit, registered charity that offers sanctuary to animals in need while promoting compassion for all animals through education and cruelty-free living’

The sanctuary holds open days and this month a few friends and I drove out to a small town called Bungendore where we were picked up in 4-wheel drive vehicles and taken to the sanctuary.  We had to hop into the 4-wheel drive vehicles as we had to drive over a flowing river and on a very bumpy dirt road to reach the sanctuary.

There was about twenty of us and the entry fee of $25 goes towards the upkeep of the sanctuary and the animals; so we were very happy to pay and we were given a nice vegan BBQ at the end of our visit including vegan chocolate pie and apple and berry crumble.  My dear friend Simone had actually told me about the open day and then could not come as she had to work; so her daughter and her friend came in her place; I am sure we will go back and she can see the sanctuary for herself.

We were shown around the sanctuary and our first stop was a visit to the sheep then the calves.

All the animals have wonderfully large areas to play, eat and sleep.  They each are named after humans for example the calves are called ‘Jack Black’ and ‘James Brown’ and a couple of the pigs are named ‘Pablo Pigcasso’ [a rather humorous play on Picasso] and ‘Dr Seuss’.

Our next stop was the pig area where two huge pigs live…one male and one female.  We were told that they had dug their own bath and when filled with water, they both loved to hop in and get dirty (as pigs do).

All the animals are rescue animals and now have a wonderful life in this beautiful part of Canberra.

During our walks we were given the history of the sanctuary and how each animal came to live at the sanctuary and additional information on the plight that animals face in Australia; including how we can help by living compassionately.

Our next stop on our walk was to see the goats who were just delightful – so cute and all coming up to the fence to receive some snacks; some more pushy than others, jumping up onto the fence, which was funny to see.

My friend’s daughter was taking ‘selfies’ with the animals and I managed to capture her with the ‘pushy’ goat who was still up on the fence waiting for food. 

Next to the goats we saw the horses which included two huge Clydesdales…beautiful animals and just so big.  These were found in a paddock one year after their owner died, skinny and near death…but now they live in this huge paddock and are healthy and well cared for.

The sanctuary’s mission is to promote compassion to all animals through education and cruelty-free living and Little Oak looks forward to creating many more projects and planting lots of seeds of compassion in the hearts of Australians.

(source: website of Little Oak Sanctuary)

 A great day out and lovely to see rescue farm animals living a lovely life!!

Fragrant Hills – Haidian District – Beijing – PRC – 2011 and 2013

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autumn, beijing, Fragrant Hills, prc

A trip to Fragrant Hills in Summer and Autumn

Beijing has so many places to visit at any time of the year but a trip out to Fragrant Hills, which is about a forty minute drive out of Beijing, is well worth the visit any time – maybe not so much in winter but definitely any other time.

I went to visit the first time during summer with some friends and we took a picnic and sat near a small waterfall and relaxed.  It was a really nice couple of hours but I knew I had to go back to see the leaves of the ginkgo, persimmon and red smoke trees in autumn.

The park was first built in the Jin Dynasty and later extended to a larger scale in the Yuan and Ming dynasties when new pavilions and gardens were added. In 1860 and 1900 after the Summer Palace and the Yuanming Yuan (the Old Summer Palace) were set on fire, lots of relics in the Fragrant Hills were damaged by foreign troops.

The whole area has since been refurbished and it is said that the red smoke trees over the mountains are some of the most spectacular in Beijing.  So when autumn arrives the red smoke leaves blanket the mountain which look amazing.

There are two ways to get to the top of the mountain; walk or cable car.  I decided (like I always did whenever I had the option of walk or cable car) on the cable car as the steps looked incredibly steep.  But I must say the cable car ride was rather scary as it was an open car and that ride up was also incredibly steep.

Smoke trees are a Eurasian shrub or small tree which bears feathery plumes of purple or reddish flowers and fruit, giving it a smoky appearance.

The Ginkgo tree or the Ginkgo biloba, is renowned worldwide for its medicinal properties. This remarkable tree is known as a ‘living fossil’, as it is the sole survivor of an ancient group of trees that date back to beyond the time of the dinosaurs.

(information on trees from dictionary – Google search).

The best season to view the yellow and red leaves is autumn which is best from mid October to early November. There is also a Fragrant Hill Red Autumnal Leaves Festival during the same period where you can view the leaves and also go along to see cultural exhibition.  As I went very early one autumn morning to avoid crowds, arriving 8am, I didn’t stay for any cultural exhibitions as by the time I was departing around 10am, thousands and thousands of visitors were arriving at the park.

There are also many other sites to see apart from the trees and leaves.  I only had the opportunity to visit one, which was during my summer visit, and that is the Bright Temple which is a large Tibetan style lamasery complex built in 1780.  It was built as the residence for the sixth Panchen Lama during his visits to the Qianlong Emperor.

As usual lots of stairs to climb to the top of the temple but worth it for the views.

I was told after I had visited Fragrant Hills on my wo occasions, that I should have gone to see Shuangqing Villa, which was once the residence of Chairman Mao as well as an early site for the headquarters of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party.  Unfortunately I did not…but for me seeing the leaves in autumn made my visit very worthwhile as I could take some nice photos to remind me of my visit.

It was also worthwhile for me to see a cute little dog and rather lazy cat who lived in one of the houses just outside the park.

And..I know space is at a minimum around Beijing for parking vehicles but I think this driver is probably one of the most capable to manage to get his/her car into this tiny garage …and as my photo below shows, the car has been there for some time…owner probably can’t get it out!!

A Temple Fair at Ditan Park – Beijing – PRC – February 2013

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beijing, Chinese New Year, Ditan Park, prc

A visit to Ditan Park during Chinese New Year

There are many Temple Fairs in Beijing during Chinese New Year and they are still  a tradition which was great for me as I had wanted to go to one during my time in Beijing.  So in 2013 I chose Ditan Park as I had read it was one of the most popular.  So some friends and I drove there (had to park a little way away but not too far) and we walked to the park which was about a fifteen minutes walk.  I think it cost about 10 RMB to enter (@ $1.50 AUD).  I knew there would be thousands and thousands of people there but knowing that I just went with the flow [literally].

We walked into the park and saw many stalls along both sides of the wide path selling all sorts of things; balloons, arts and crafts, home made items, toys, souvenirs etc..we did make [push] our way to the stalls and bought a few silly things to carry.  It was funny to see (and I saw this all around China) if there was a place to sell something then the Chinese would but then another Chinese person would set up stall next door selling exactly the same things…funny!!

My friend’s daughter bought a blown up balloon animal on a stick…which was rather difficult to carry but she managed.

Lots and lots of my favourite Chinese red lanterns lined the streets and were hung in the trees and just looked fabulous.

So what are the Temple Fairs all about…the tradition began as groups of vendors who did business near Buddhist and Taoist temples when many pilgrims came to pay tribute to the gods during traditional festivals. The practice grew and grew to what it is today…of course now there are not only the Chinese who attend but also expats and visitors.

And Temple fairs in Beijing are not just held at Chinese New Year, they are held during major cultural events.  After we walked along the path that housed all the stalls we arrived at the food area…amazing…dumplings, buns, sweets, noodles…so much food and all smelling and looking delicious apart from the ‘stinky tofu’.  Really does smell!!

I had some noodles and dumplings which were delicious and so cheap and my friends bought some pork buns.

It was lovely to see everyone just having a wonderful day out as we did…we found a little area on the grass and ate our food and then took a walk around at the park where we listened to some lovely Chinese music, did some people watching and saw some cultural events…but I think the highlight of our day was the little Chinese girl who was rugged up to avoid the cold [as it being in February it was still very cold]….she was very cute and her mum was more than happy for us to take her photo.