Zhao County 赵县 is breathtakingly ugly; a dustbowl of rapid rural-urban development, shrouded in a gritty haze. But it does have one redeeming feature. It’s home to the oldest standing bridge in China. Anji 安济桥 or Zhaozhou Bridge 赵州桥 is magnificent! An aesthetically beautiful masterpiece of engineering. It has survived 1,400 years, through 8 major…
The Language of Zen Yoga . 禅宗瑜伽的语言
For months now, my friend has been trying to entice me to join her yoga class. I finally relented. But if sitting in the lotus position 坐禅 wasn’t a challenging enough opener, being asked to close my eyes and meditate, sent me into a bit of a tail-spin. When learning a new language, you become…
Iron Pagoda of Kaifeng . 开封佑国寺铁塔
Situated on the south bank of the Yellow River, the ancient city Kaifeng 开封 has historically been subject to flooding. The rich, yellow earth from upstream precipitates here, and the river bed now sits some 13 meters above the surrounding plain. History records six inundations where the city had to be completely rebuilt –…
Yang Rou Pao Mo . 羊肉泡馍
They say the first thing you should try when in Xian 西安 is Yang Rou Pao Mo 羊肉泡馍. It’s hard to find a succinct translation for “crumbled unleavened flatbread soaked in mutton stew” but it’s a local specialty, steeped in more than 1,000 years of history. It’s the original fusion food – Persian flatbread…
The Walled City of Guangfu . 广府古城
In an age when the cultural heritage of too many of China’s towns has been devoured by ugly urban development, it was heartening to stumble on Guangfu 广府古城, near Handan in Hebei – an ancient walled town with the prescience to turn back the clock. Although the town is only part way to finding the balance…
The Oracle Bones . 甲骨文
My husband has always insisted that you can’t really learn Chinese without learning characters, and it took me years to admit he is right. But as a student still wrestling with reading and writing, our visit to the Museum of Chinese Writing was full of inspiration. Last weekend, we drove 500kms south to Anyang 安阳, an…
The Fertility Goddess . 送子观音
Having come all the way to Xiangtangshan (响堂山石窟) to see the 1500-year old Buddhist grottoes, a pile of plastic dolls was not what we expected to encounter on reaching the first cave. As we ventured down a long shadowy tunnel lined with niches and deities, it quickly became evident that this was a living-working shrine….
Shredded Chicken & La Pi Salad . 鸡丝拉皮
At a recent dinner party banquet, one of my guests helped me clear the dishes after the cold appetizers – an assortment of Beijing-style liang cai (凉菜.) She wandered half-mesmerized into the kitchen carrying an empty plate. “Dinner is over. I can go home now!” she declared. Clinging longingly to the empty dish, she went on…
The Echo Caves . 响堂山石窟
Nothing prepared us for the “wow” factor of the Mountain of Echo Caves. Certainly not the desolate 2-hour drive from Anyang (安阳) through one of the most degraded landscapes of industrial ugliness I’ve ever encountered; spewing factories pitched against denuded farmland, monstrous steel mills, shabby villages, dusty cement factories and mines all mushed together. Shrouded…
Spicy Edamame . 辣味毛豆
Cultivated in China since antiquity, the protein-rich soybean is essential to Chinese cuisine and incredibly versatile. In the West, fresh soybeans are often known by their Japanese name, “edamame,” but called “máo dòu” or “hairy beans” in Chinese, due to their fuzzy pods. The vibrant-green young beans have a slightly nutty flavour and deliciously firm…