Travel China

The Mid-Autumn Festival, the second-largest folk festival in the Chinese festival system next to the Spring Festival, has spawned countless legends and poems over the centuries. “明月几时有，把酒问青天。不知天上宫阙，今夕是何年？” "How long will the full moon appear? Wine cup in hand, I ask the sky. I do not know what time of the year 'Twould be tonight in the palace on high." In fact, the Mid-Autumn Festival is essentially the "Chinese Ritual Moon Festival", and the worship of the moon by the Chinese people has started since ancient times. "The lonely moon goddess, spreads her ample sleeves, To dance for these loyal souls in infinite space." "Chang'e is dancing in the long sky for ten thousand miles." From Chang'e Flying to the Moon to the lunar exploration program, for more than 2,000 years, people have never paid less attention to the moon. Mid-Autumn Festival was popularized during the Han Dynasty, a period of economic and cultural exchange and integration, when cultural exchanges across the country led to the fusion and spread of festival customs. The term "Zhong Qiu (mid-autumn, 中秋)" was first written down in Han Dynasty literature, and the Zhou Li between the two Han dynasties recorded that during the pre-Qin period,…

Different flowers have different but very important meanings in Chinese culture. Here are the basics on what some of the most important and commonly seen flowers mean.

Suzhou can be considered one of the most exquisite cities in the whole of China, and the Suzhou gardens are the most vivid embodiment of this refinement. Throughout history, Suzhou has had a total of 802 gardens, and the praise of being a "city of half gardens and pavilions" is by no means an empty phrase. It is not so much that Suzhou provides a dwelling place for gardens, but rather that the gardens spread throughout the entire city have created a Suzhou city steeped in the gentle language of the Wu dialect. So what exactly are Suzhou gardens? They serve as a window to China's aesthetic facing the world, and with the completion of the Chinese-style courtyard Mingxuan in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1980, modeled after the Master of the Nets Garden's Dianchunyi, it spreads aesthetic elements unique to China to the world. In spring, Suzhou gardens become sea of flowers, undoubtedly the most beautiful time of the year for gardens. The early magnolias in March, the wisteria at the end of March, and the peonies in late April, with flowers of various colors blooming in succession, adorn the Suzhou gardens as sea of flowers. Even those…

The term Kung Fu is a colloquialism from southern China that does not designate the Martial Arts themselves but is a word that indicates any work brought to its highest degree of perfection, thanks to an intense and prolonged effort. Therefore, the term Kung Fu is intended to designate the realization, planning, and mastery of the Art. However, calling the Chinese Martial Arts Kung Fu is no aberration and in China, this term has always been used to designate the Martial Arts, even if the exact translation is wu-shu. The goal of Kung Fu is actually beyond the expertise in the fight, seeking perfect harmony between all components of the person: body, mind, and spirit. The Origin of Shao Lin Kung Fu The history of Kung Fu is linked to the history of China. Its origins date back to 3,000 years B.C., under the reign of Emperor Huang-Ti. But it was not until the sixth century that modern Kung Fu appeared. In fact, in the 527th, the monk Ta-Mo (Bodhidarma) arrived at the Shaolin monastery in Honan province. The monastery, which was located on the north side of Mount Shao-Shih, was built 150 years earlier by Emperor Su-Wen. Bodhidarma, the…

1. The Picture of the Ode of the River Goddess The Wei and Jin dynasties, the most elegant era in Chinese history, were full of poems and famous scholars, leaving behind countless brilliant literary works. Cao Zhi's Luo Shen Fu (洛神赋) is one of the most brilliant pieces. This long poem, about a traveler who meets a goddess on the shores of the Luo River, but who eventually parts from her because of the difference between the gods and the people, has its roots in the great poetic tradition of the Chinese people, but also contains the romance of Chinese native mythology. The poem Luo Shen Fu was depicted by another legend of the Wei and Jin dynasties, the painter Gu Kaizhi (348-406), in the form of painting: "The Picture of the Ode of the River Goddess". Since then, from poetry to painting, "The Picture of the Ode of the River Goddess" has been permanently engraved in the memory of Chinese people and sublimated into an immortal cultural symbol.   2. Emperor Taizong Receiving the Tibetan Envoy One thousand four hundred years ago, during the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, Songtsen Gampo, an admirer of the prosperous…

The earthly lights and the moon in the sky, the most beautiful thing is reunion. As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches once again, mooncakes are an indispensable part. A box of mooncakes is not only a delicious pastry that delights the taste buds, but also carries heartfelt wishes and folk stories. Museums across China have also presented creative mooncakes, incorporating the cultural treasures of Chinese heritage, adding a touch of romantic national aesthetics to the Mid-Autumn Festival.   The Palace Museum In the collection of the Palace Museum, there is an imperial seal of Emperor Qianlong: "The moon is depicted with colors, water has sound". The brushwork is exquisite, capturing the scenery of the moon in the mountains and lakes. This year, the Palace Museum's mooncake gift box is inspired by this theme, combining traditional Chinese colors and dyeing techniques to appreciate the beauty of the country amidst mountains, rivers, and the moon. "Only the clear wind on the river and the bright moon in the mountains, the sound is heard in the ears, and the color is seen in the eyes." Take a bite of the Palace Museum mooncake, and the clear wind and bright moon will be in your…

Henan's traditional cultural works are deeply remembered by too many people. The "Tang Palace Night Banquet", a recreation of the Tang Sancai music figurines, shows the beauty of the Tang Dynasty; the "Luo Shen Shui Fu", a breathtakingly beautiful underwater dance, so many netizens amazed: "This is the real traditional culture program". 2022 Chinese 24 Solar Terms series, but also make Henan TV add to the drama catch-up list of every traditional culture lovers. But that's not all, the surprises are just beginning! Henan has spent billions to build China's first panoramic immersive experience theme park - Unique Henan - Land of Dramas, which is currently the world's largest theater cluster, allowing people to experience the charm of traditional Chinese culture in an immersive way. "Unique Henan - Land of Dramas (只有河南·戏剧幻城)", located in Zhongmou County, Zhengzhou City, Henan Province, is a 1,536-acre project, the core area "Huan Cheng (幻城)" is 328 meters long and 15 meters high. It is one of the largest and longest performing theater complexes in China, with 21 theaters of various sizes and nearly 1,000 actors, divided into 3 main plays and 18 smaller plays, with a total play length of nearly 700 minutes. During…

In Henan, China, there is an immortal mountain: Laojun Mountain. With the snow-capped mountains and clouds surrounding the top, many Hanfu lovers visit here to take pictures of the fairyland in their hearts. The @MediaStorm team, with 30 days and a total of 10,000 photos, used digital technology to replicate this magnificent scene and reproduce this "Cloud-topped heavenly palace".   Build a "Cloud-topped heavenly palace" with 10,000 photos This famous Chinese mountain, which was formed 1.9 billion years ago, reaches an altitude of over 2,200 meters. The team's first test was to wait patiently for the summit to clear due to the constant cloudiness. After five days of waiting, the drone successfully took off. Gliding over the top of the mountain and through the porch, the entire mountain was incorporated into the camera amidst the roiling clouds. A cloud-topped heavenly palace, accurate to the centimeter level, was built in its entirety with digital technology. It mainly records the architecture and surrounding scenery of the Golden Peak Taoist Temple complex. When it comes to photogrammetry, many people are probably unfamiliar with it. Simply put, it is a modeling technique that digitizes a scene. It has long been used in many areas…

In recent years, hanfu has been flourishing all over China, and there are large and small hanfu events held every month. So what are the specific cities with the best hanfu atmosphere? Hanfu Zixun launched the Top Hanfu Cities of China contest to reflect the different development of hanfu around the country. With 62.01% of the votes, Chengdu, Sichuan topped the list, the only city with more than 50% of the votes, and was drastically outperformed by all the other cities. Xiuwu ranked seventh, which should have a lot to do with its success in holding the first Hanfu Expo in 2021.   NO.1 Chengdu (成都) The No. 1 hanfu city is: Chengdu. After pandas, hot pot and mahjong, Chengdu has a new calling card: the Hanfu capital. It is not only because of its nationally known "Hanfu Street", but also because it has nearly 220,000 hanfu lovers, the first in China in terms of the number of Hanfu Tongpao (同袍; Hanfu fans call each other Tongpao). Chengdu's excellent hanfu culture atmosphere cannot be separated from the local government's strong support for the promotion of hanfu culture.   NO.2 Hangzhou (杭州) Hangzhou, known as "Hang" for short, was known as…

China is a country of walls. Not only the cities were enclosed by walls, but also the quarters, within them again the quarters and each individual residential yard. To the outside, the courtyards had no windows, all life was concentrated inside, everything outside, foreign was, and is, usually seen as a threat. The Chinese characters for the city and for wall are identical: cheng. No wonder China is so proud of its Great Wall. Correctly translated, it should be called "long wall", and this poses the first riddle: How long is the Great Wall of China? Nobody knows exactly. History and architectural features of the Great Wall The Chinese call it wan li chang cheng (万里长城), meaning 10,000 li long wall, which would be about 5000 km. This is probably too little, but wan also means "infinite", which again would be too much. Most estimates are around 6800 km, also quite long. But the wall was not the same length at all times, and it is not a wall at all, but a system of walls that were connected during their best times, in the Han Dynasty and much later in the Ming Dynasty. And besides, contrary to claims to…

This year, China's Henan TV continuously brings surprises to lovers of traditional culture and hanfu culture. Spring Festival, Lantern Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Qixi Festival, every important Chinese traditional festival, we will see the wonderful programs presented by Henan TV, the most exciting part of which is dancing. Not only offers a holiday gift to all lovers of Chinese traditional culture, but also traditional arts are known to more people. Starting from 2018, "Street Dance of China", "Dance Smash", "Let's Shake It" and other programs have been hotly broadcast, which also set off a wave of dance. After 2019, Chinese classical dance, one of the traditional dances in China, suddenly jumped into the public's view and became popular in social media in the short term accompanied by the popularity of ancient music. This may also be the first time that the public really knows and pays attention to Chinese classical dance. The historical background of the formation of Chinese classical dance can be traced back to the ancient Chinese court dances or to the primitive, ritual dances of more distant times. During the change of dynasties, the development of ancient court dances was affected by the limitations in the use of…

Almost certainly on Instagram, or elsewhere on the Internet. And yes, I also like to be inspired to travel on the net - and inspire others with this blog itself. Nevertheless, and perhaps because of that, I think it's great when I can just let myself be surprised by a place, without prior knowledge and images in my head and expectations. Suzhou in the south of China is such a place. Suzhou - "small" water city at the gates of Shanghai When Marco Polo came to Suzhou in the 13th century, he was impressed by the city's excellent merchants and skilled craftsmen and told of its flourishing silk industry (Suzhou is considered a terminus of the Silk Road). The 2,500-year-old city, which is pronounced "Suzhou" by the way, is located on the Emperor's Canal between Hangzhou and Beijing, the longest man-made waterway in the world, and was an important trading center even back then. And the city still thrives on trade and manufacturing. As we drive from Shanghai to Suzhou, not only do endless gray rows of apartment towers stretch out to the horizon, but also ultramodern-looking industrial areas, including those of many well-known brands, pass me by. The "small…

On the evening of November 29, at the 17th session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage held in Rabat, Morocco, the "Traditional tea processing techniques and associated social practices in China" nominated by China were inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. "Traditional tea processing techniques and associated social practices in China" covers the knowledge, skills, and practices of tea plantation management, tea leaf picking, manual processing, drinking, and sharing. Since ancient times, Chinese people have been growing, picking, making, and drinking tea. Using the art of tea making, tea makers have developed six major tea types, namely green, yellow, dark, white, oolong, black teas, and reprocessed tea such as flower-scented teas, and more than 2,000 kinds of tea products to meet the various needs of the people with different colors, aromas, tastes and shapes. https://youtu.be/Oe6kGFmFLnc   1 - The Origin of Chinese Traditional Tea Shennong used tea as an antidote for hundreds of poisons. Shu gave homegrown tea to the emperor of the Zhou Dynasty as a tribute. Since Lu Yu, the Saint of Tea, composed the "The Classic of Tea (茶经)", the status of tea has…

History of Chinese Religion China has been a multi-regional country since ancient times. In many parts of the world, people always associate the Chinese territory with Confucius. This sage is almost representative of Chinese culture. In fact, Confucianism is a philosophy that was never intended to be a religion, although, eventually, that is how it spread and had a great impact on Chinese culture with its doctrines. In a sense, Chinese life is the product of Confucian culture. Throughout the ages, many religions have entered China and, at present, there are five major faiths: Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism, and Protestantism. All religions have added their own stamp to China's cultural history. According to recent research, China has more than 100 million followers of various religions. Chinese law guarantees religious freedom, although its application is relatively recent. Official statistics attribute Buddhism and Taoism as the majority religious influence on the population. On the other hand, there are 17 million Muslims, 4.5 million Protestants, and 3.5 million Catholics. Judaism was introduced in China through the caravans in the 15th century, but after several vicissitudes, it hardly has any presence. Nature Worship and Ancestor Worship Since ancient times. China has been a country…

Do you want to learn mandarin quickly at home? Then the most important advice I can give to learn the Chinese language is to find the right method. When you finish reading this article you will probably find the best way to study one hour a day for the next one year. 1. Set a goal Learning a foreign language requires consistency, and if you are not motivated enough, you tend to forget your initial goals and soon return to your usual routine, consists of one hour of Facebook a day. Choose a clear, simple, and measurable goal. Decide how long you want to reach it. If you don't have a strong motivation, for example, to pass a test in a month, you should create one. Set a long-term goal, for example, be able to watch a mandarin movie without English subtitles and give yourself a deadline. Do you think your plan is viable? I mean, if you don't know a word of Chinese and your goal is to read "The Three Kingdom" in the original language within a month, you'll probably have to study twenty hours a day for the next thirty days, which is impossible. Give yourself a…

Vocab Deity Parade - 游神 (yóu shén) - the name used to call this parade where deity are invited though offerings to parade around town and village as a sign of fresh year, luck, prosperity, and abundant harvest.  Divine General - 神将 (shén jiàng) - directly refers to generals, warriors, and those who have certain authority or accomplishment for humanity. They are subordinates of higher generals or gods and play an important role in the protection of different towns. They are also considered gods themselves. For this article, mentioning of gods, deities, or divine figures refers to these generals and figures who parade around town, not gods like the Bodhisattva, Queen Mother of the West (王母娘娘, wángmǔ niángniáng), or Jade Emperor (玉皇大帝, yùhuáng dàdì). Moon blocks - 筊杯 / 圣杯 / 圣筊 (jiǎo bēi / shèng bēi / shèng jiǎo) - wooden tools from China used for seeking divine guidance with offerings provided to said deity. They are in pairs and can be made from different wood materials and take on different shapes.  "Smiling" Cup - 笑杯, 正 (xiào bēi, zhèng) - two flat side of the moon block, meaning your question is unclear and you can repeat yourself using…

There are a wide variety of China's dog breeds, some very well known, others not so popular. If you have one or interested in these wonderful dog breeds in China, we will explain below their origins and features. 1. Chinese Crested If you're looking for a pet that gets attention, the Chinese Crested is one of them. Its origins place it as a mouse hunter on business boats. This Asian Crested breed has two variants, one with abundant and long hair and another without hair. The latter usually has some long hair on the head and at the end of the legs, which gives them an elegant air. They are small in appearance, usually weighing no more than 5 kg, although their height can reach 30 cm, and their life expectancy is usually around 15 years. The grey and brown shades for their body are the most frequent. As for their character, they are affectionate, very active and obedient, distrustful of strangers but very faithful to their master and so playful that they are perfect for a family with children. 2. Shar Pei The Shar-Pei dogs look like their whole body is made of Plush Dolls that it is inevitable…

Umbrellas are very common in daily life. Whether it's a hot sun or a downpour, an umbrella is definitely your best assistant. Not only that, in the modern hanfu shooting, the appearance rate of the ancient style oil-paper umbrella is extremely high. The demand for shade from the sun and rain has been there since ancient times, take a look, the the history of ancient Chinese umbrellas, to see what kind of umbrellas the ancients used.   Pre-Qin Period The early Chinese umbrellas were called "Gai (盖)" or "Deng (簦)", made of grass, pieces of bamboo, etc., with a handle to hold, much like the current umbrella, but it could not be put away. Chinese umbrellas made of silk first appeared in the Western Zhou period, silk umbrellas are expensive, generally used by the nobility, are mainly decorative items and symbols of power for the dignitaries, noblemen, and the scholar. The common people could not afford to buy silk umbrellas, so they mostly used Douli (斗笠), or Suoyi (蓑衣, straw raincoats) in their lives. Suoyi has an important feature and symbol of ancient Chinese costume: Shang Yi Xia Chang. The top is called "Suoyi Pi (蓑衣披)", which is draped over…