We Dug China
We enjoyed a wonderful two weeks exploring China. What did we dig most about the ancient nation? Figuring out where to begin can be as complicated as a Chinese puzzle box.
We began our time in Beijing. We strolled Tiananmen Square, the largest square in the world. We explored the Forbidden City and visited the Imperial Palace. We danced and sang with the locals at the Summer Palace. A rickshaw ride through the Hutong brought us face to face with world-renowned Cricket Leo and lunch with his family (of people, birds, animals, and insects). And Beijing Zoo gave us a glimpse of the giant pandas.
Then we explored the original capitol of unified China, Xi’an, and it’s 5,000 year history. We marveled at the thick, 9-mile city wall, climbed the Drum and Bell towers, rang the prayer bell at Wild Goose Pagoda in Jianfu Temple, and took a crazy motorized rickshaw ride through heavy traffic going the wrong way into bus-filled round-a-bouts.
The Terra Cotta Army protecting China’s first emperor was impressive, being one of the greatest archeological finds of the 20th century. We even met one of the four peasants who discovered the warriors while digging a well.
Suzhou, the Venice of the East, saw us cruising along canals villages and admiring stone bridges and trees that touched the surface of the water. We walked ancient streets and took in the beautiful Lingering Garden. We even visited a farmer’s market with all sorts of livestock, from frogs and snakes to fish and goose. And we met a winemaker and sampled the rice wine of his 100-year old winery.
In Hangzhou, we cruised the West Lake, admired the Su Causeway and waterlogged pillars, and enjoyed some time at a tea plantation where we picked and tasted our own Longjing tea, watch it roasted in hot woks, and enjoyed a tea ceremony with the dragon-well tea so exclusive that it was once made only for the Emperor.
Shanghai surprises rounded out our trip with a skyline so amazing that it looked like something out of a futuristic movie. At the river, you could see the old European buildings at the Bund on one side, and the Pearl tower and futuristic skyscrapers in Pudong on the other. A ceremony was going on when we visited the Jade Buddha Temple. We hovered on the MagLev, climbed the JinMao Tower to stand next to the partially completed “second tallest building in the world,” explored Yu Gardens and Bazaar, explored the twisted side streets of the French Concession, enjoyed the Shanghai Museum, and even watched an ERA performance of Chinese acrobats.
What more did we do? A lot. We walked the Great Wall, one of the seven manmade wonders of the world. We visited a freshwater pearl factory, jade museum, silk factory, silk embroidery institute, Imperial Pharmacy of traditional Chinese medicine, and enjoyed lectures from experts on all of these.
There’s so much more we dug about China. But that will have to wait for the travel stories.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_heaven
Labels: china
posted by Eric D. Goodman | Wednesday, April 09, 2014
1 Comments:
you can put this on the blog if you want-
re bk festival
I don't think u shld say- the hottest tent in the festival
just seems boosteristic (to me)
Dave’s tips re a pretty instant way to big poetry and other book sales w kudos to my mentor- Jack Canfield, author of Chicken Soup for the Soul, AND HIS “Best seller Blueprint” on the internet. . Jack is famous- but what does it mean in his case? What is the worth, finally of Chicken Soup for the Soul. Does he have anything to say? Remember Barnum and Bailey and the snake oil man in Huck Finn.
Make careful note of the following tips:
1 Key words- “viral” - NY Times best seller list.
2 “Becoming an author changed my life”. 3 “Incredibly rewarding” 4 Be your own distributor. 5 a book like The 4 Hr Work Week or Happy for No Reason. 6 Do 5 things every day. 7 Don’t bother with book signings at book stores- go to a 2,000 member mega church. 8. Where the money is. 9 Don’t wait to be discovered- GO BE DISCOVERED! 10 Don’t focus on one person buying one book- the answer is bulk sales, revenue sales, consulting and speaking. 11 Sue a very successful author. 12 Go to the American Greeting company- have customized mugs, place mats and lunch pails. 13 Have “intellectual content” and be “trending” I e. (and this goes without saying) in the twitterverse. 14 Make money without selling 1 book! 15 Be a poet or…JUST LOOK LIKE ONE! 16 Get followers on social media- again- the twitterverse. 17 Conduct seminars- and again, CONSULT. 18 Apply the following saying to writing- those who can play become athletes, those who can’t teach athletics. 19 Be interviewed by Fox News and other important networks. 20. If you have an “upcoming” book- you are ready to make money already. All it has to be is “upcoming”. 21
21- Always make breaks in yr lay out- for the reader to rest and go pee or have a beer! 22 Be sure to have a business upon which your book is based- like Taxidermy of Small Animals and putting them in a jar, something like that. 23 Remember- if you do not have a “book”, you cannot be a “personality” or “go on a cruise”. 24 If you think you’re famous, you already are! Get outta here. Look in the mirror!!!
25 If you are not a famous author- follow one around and be close to them. 26 List one positive effect your writing has had on one person! Be able to talk about it with an “elevator line”. 27 Start your poems big- like with “Puppies for sale, the sign read”, or “The puppy had experienced a dark and stormy night.” 28 “I was a dumpster diver off my meds and then became an author”. 29 Apply the following to writing- “ Give a man a fish” but “Teach a woman how to fish” as to “Give a person a poem” but “Teach a person how to write poetry”, etc. 30. Convince the NY Times you have sold x copies (to make the list) even if you haven’t!
Two words to remember: “marketable” and “viral”. “Consulting” is another key word.
31 Going from page to page can be a struggle. But once it was “plastics”- now it’s “viral” and the “twitterverse” and of course- “consulting”. . 32 4 types of persons to help you: influencers, 2 not for profit and profit ceos, 3 reverends who drive expensive cars, 4 media persons if they are connected to the mafia. 33 I cannot stress this enough- again- Be your own distributor- make yours the only book in the store (what do do with the others?) 34 Get your book into hair salons, hospital lobbies and other chains and make sure there are NO OTHER BOOKS or mags there! 35 Get captive audiences- have yr book in jails and prisons. 35 Be sure to BE YOUR OWN EDITOR (who knows your writing better!)
If there is one word_ “Viral”. Don’t forget to italicize certain words for emphasis and to “spruce up your palette”.
Please have your credit card ready- this impossible offer is yours for only 19.99. But wait there’s more- a second bunch o tips (always add o to yr writing for cheerfulness) as in a cheerful case o cancer- a second bunch – FOR FREE.
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