My first encounter with the Grand Canal (some 32 years ago) was a slightly creepy overnight trip on a rust-bucket barge. I will never forget our cabin window, half submerged below the murky water line, as we travelled from Hangzhou 杭州 to Suzhou 苏州 (south-west of Shanghai). The water towns of that region are now…
Sixty Eggs Explained . 六十个鸡蛋
This is the 3rd time in recent years that we have been the gracious recipients of a festive gift-box of 60 fresh eggs. But it’s probably the first time I have had the language skills to ask about the significance of the gift…and with any hope of understanding the reply. Like Christmas or Thanksgiving, Chinese…
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…
The Temple Fair . 赶庙会
We had planned a quiet afternoon strolling around my favourite Taoist temple. Instead we found ourselves amongst the throngs at the Spring Festival Temple Fair at White Cloud Temple 白云观，soaking up a bit of the Spring Festival spirit. Beijing’s temple fairs originated over 1,000 years ago and have long become part of the local folk custom, most popular temple fair that takes…
Fangcaodi – 芳草地
The stomping ground of my husband’s youth, lies just a few kilometres east of here. We ventured there some weeks ago: part trip down memory-lane, part yearning to get out and about. It was bitterly cold, but the brilliant sunshine and blue skies were so inviting. We took a taxi to East Big Bridge Road…
YueZhenTang & the Yellow Banner . 悦真堂和正黄旗
It takes ages for the layers of old Beijing to be revealed, and there is something delightful about our slow pace of discovery. It was yesterday’s brilliant sunshine that invited us outdoors. On a whim we took the subway two stops north to explore a little more. We’d been to the area around the Lama…
Old Ma. 老马.
Tucked away up a steep valley, just outside the Great Wall is the village of San Cha 三岔村. There, the lush green mountains tumble dramatically into granite ravines, and crumbling watch-tower ruins punctuate the ridge. The vista on Sunday morning was spectacular, so we joined a few villagers for a hike. They wanted to visit Old…
An Ordinary Eatery . 粗茶淡饭
Our drive to Cuandixia village 爨底下 was 1/3 unattractive urban sprawl and 2/3 arresting beauty, when we eventually wended our way through the mountains west of Beijing. These limestone hills are especially dramatic in the winter light; precipitously steep, pock-marked with snow and punctuated by the occasional frozen waterfall. Over the centuries, any arable land between…