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Visit To China 2008: Stray Cats and Son Of Chinese Dragon In Beijing, Morning Tai Chi.
It may be cold, miserable, and very troublesome, but when family and friends remember each other, then all is well with the world, at least in the part in which we live. Thank you again for remembering me during the past year, and for the cards and gifts received at Christmas time. I hope your year and Christmas time gave you many things to enjoy and that the events brought you much happiness. My Christmas was spent ''Chinese style'' as I spent the time with Be Wen and family, so at Christmas dinner we ate ''lobster'' and ''oysters'', with no sign of ''turkey'' or ''Christmas Pudding'' anywhere!
Of course I went to China last year! Looking forward to a five week visit to China made me think that there would be more than enough time to do and see all the things I would like to do but
when I got home again, I wondered why all the time had gone so quickly. We ''discovered'' many new parts of China that were not even considered when all the plans for our visit were being made. It all started in Beijing when we went in Kate's car, to have lunch in a hotel up in the mountains, where a friend Li is the Chef.
After lunch Chef Li took us to the park, at the side of the hotel, where there was some beautiful scenery. We spoke to workers relaying some of the stone paths. We visited the parts that had historical interest to the Chinese people, and saw the rock slab stele, covered with Chinese characters, and one of the stele being borne on the back of ''Bixi', one of the nine sons of the Chinese Dragon. The son of the Chinese Dragon named Bixi is usually seen with heavy weights on its back, as according to legend, this is its special attribute. In the Shaolin Temple can be seen many examples of Bixi, the oldest son of the Chinese Dragon, burdened with heavy weights. All the visitors and workers in the park where Asian, probably Chinese, there was not a single other ''Westerner'' in sight!
When we returned to the hotel, there were a few stray cats strolling or sleeping near the back entrance to the hotel kitchen. I sat on a step and Chef Li picked up one of the sleeping cats, and placed it on my knees where it soon settled down to sleep again. I was told that the stray cats gathered by the kitchen door every day, waiting for the cooks to feed them with the food scraps. The stray cats certainly looked contented and well fed. Before we left for our drive back to the city, a big cat strolled towards us, purring very loudly, but we had nothing to give!
Changes In Beijing City With Open Courts Of Estates, And Hutongs Surrounded By Tower Blocks.
On another day when we had lunch in the revolving restaurant at the top of the International Hotel we could see views completely different to the mountain scenery. Through the window could be seen modern tower blocks,
but below was a small area of old houses, part of a hutong. The Hutong is a rare sight in the city, as you are more likely to see a view
similar to what could be seen from Michael's Beijing apartment on the 28th floor. In the early mornings some residents would gather for their Tai Chi exercises, and later, grandparents would bring their grandchildren to play! Chinese people doing Tai Chi exercises are often seen in the mornings, wherever you travel in China. Usually the Tai Chi exercises are performed in groups, but often a single person can be seen performing the Tai Chi exercises, completely disregarding the attention from any spectators.
Photos Beijing
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Shanghai Pics
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Nanning Fotos
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Guangzhou Pic
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Photos Shaolin
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| CLICK HERE For 99 webpages about visits to China and Vietnam |
Updated
6th April, 2010
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| Happy kids and school children photos |
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| Friends and Family Letter 2010 |