Photo trips In China

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Here you find pictures I make
during my trips in China

Photo reports: Jack Kolster

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Canon Eos 30D

	The Great Wall, Summer palace and the Ming Tombs This year March, we visit China. With our Chinese friends we have seen many beautiful places in China. This first gallerie is about Beiijng. Here we visited: The Great Wall at Ba Da Ling: The Great Wall, which stretches 6000km from the Gobi Desert in the West to the crashing waves and rocks of Shanhaiguan in the East, is one of the seven wonders of the medieval world. The Summer Palace: A former royal garden with more then 200 years of history, with temples, lakes and walkways The park is dominated by Kunmíng Hú (Kunming Lake, which covers ¾ of the park’s area) and Wànshòu Shan (Longevity Hill). Both the lake and the hill are manmade. Kunming Lake was previously a reservoir which had been used to irrigate the surrounding countryside for millennia. It is used for ice skating in winter. The Ming Tombs: The Ming Tombs are located about 30 miles northwest of Beijing at the foot of the Tianshou Mountains. Located here are the tombs of 13 of the 17 Ming Dynasty emperors. Dragon Hill lies to the east and Crouching Tiger Hill to the west. The first emperor to be buried here was Yongle who died in 1424. His tomb, Chang Ling, and that of Emperor Zhu Yijun, Ding Ling, who died in 1620, are the only two opened to visitors today.

	Tian'anmen square And The Forbidden City Tiananmen Square: Over 400,000sqm of flat concrete, is the largest urban square in the world. The square itself was born out of the destructive chaos of the anti-foreigner Boxer rebellion (c 1900). Much of Beijing’s ancient centre was destroyed, and the square resulted, although it was Mao who ordered it to be increased to its current size. Forbidden City: The Forbidden City (Zijin Chéng or Gùgong) is one of the sights that every Beijing visitor must see. It was the residence of the Chinese Emperors for more than 400 years and two dynasties. The complex covers an area of more than 720,000msq, and more than one million labourers were involved in its construction. It is a popular belief among Beijingers that the palace has 9999.5 rooms, because only heaven was grand enough to have 10,000.

	Temple Of Heaven And The Lama Temple Temple Of Heaven: A wonderful example of Ming architecture in a walled 276 Hectare parc. It is the place where Chinese Emperors offered sacrifices and prayers for good harvest. As we visit it on a sunday, many local people are coming to the parc, to do exersice, make music and play games. Lama Temple: The Lama Temple is one of the very important temples in Beijing. Many religious people come here to pray and lots of incense is used here. It's also a place where many tourists come. Besides the Temple of Heavenly Peace this is thé temple in Beijing to visit.

	Jinghsan Parc and BeiHai Parc This day we visit the Jingshan and BeiHai park. Also we walked around the area to see the local people in there daily live. Jingshan Park Beijing’s Jingshan Park is highly recommended for the amazing view of the Forbidden City. The hill was formed from earth excavated to make the moat around the Forbidden City, and its location directly to the North protects the Forbidden City from evil spirits according to Chinese feng shui. It also serves as a useful windbreak, and was once part of the Forbidden City. The hill is about 50 metres high, and on a good day you can see not only the entire Forbidden City, but the city of Beijing for miles around too. The park’s very popular. Bei Hai Park Beihai park is just a few hundred meters northwest of the Forbidden City. Its main attraction is its topography. Most of Beijing is an unrelentingly flat plain, but Beihai boasts a large lake and a few surrounding hills decorated with restored pavilions. The artificial hills are believed to have been created in the Yuan dynasty by the Mongol Khans, who used the area as a basecamp. Nothing of the original palace survives except a large jar of green jade that was given to the Khan in 1265. Supposedly it stored his wine until Taoist priests appropriated it to store pickles. The Beihai skyline is dominated by an enormous milk-bottle structure called a dagoba, erected first in 1651 and later in 1741 in honor of the Dali Lama's visit. Damaged in a 1976 earthquake, it has since been restored. Within it are believed to be centuries-old relics, including robes and jewelry of past Dali Lamas.

	Around The Bell and Drum Tower And Inside The Hutong Bell And Drum Tower The Drum and Bell Towers (GuLou & ZhongLou) are situated at the northern end of the central axis of the Inner City, to the east of HouHai (and just south of GuLou DaJie subway station). Drum and Bell Towers are a common feature of chinese cities - and of chinese temples. Bells and drums were musical instruments in ancient China. Later, they were used to announce the time - the Bell Tower and Drum Tower had this function during the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. The times and patterns varied, but in general only the bell was rung during the night. You can still hear the beats from the ancient Drum Tower even now. The Bell Tower and Drum Tower of Beijing were listed among the first batch of cultural relics under municipal protection in 1957, and listed as cultural relics under state-level protection in 1996. Hutongs The word "hutong" is Mongolian in origin, meaning a "water well". In the old time with the digging of new wells, came the new communities. Later it was referred to as narrow streets or lanes formed by quadrangles. The word " hutong" with the meaning of narrow lanes was formed during the Yuan Dynasty in the 13th century when the Mongols, led by Genghis Khan, occupied Beijing, then the capital of the Jin Dynasty. In 1260 Kubla Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan, established the Yuan Dynasty. Kubla Khan chosed Beijing as his capital. During the takeover by the Mongols, the old city had been largely demolished, and so he decided to rebuild the city. When the new city was finished, there were clear definitions of streets, lanes and hutongs. A 36 metre wide road was called a "big street". An 18 metre wide one a "small street", and a 9 metre wide lane was called a "hutong". Surrounding the Imperial Palace, hutongs were established throughout the Yuan (1206-1341), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) Dynasties. Most of the hutongs we see today were built during the Ming and Qinq. You only still find a very few hutongs preserved from the Yuan Dynasty.

	Wenzhou Wenzhou derives the present name from its mild climate.Known as "Ou" in ancient times, it was the capital of the Kingdom of East Ou in192BC.In138 it began as Yongning County and in 323 developed into Yongjia Prefecture. It was also called" the City of White Deer" because, according to the legend, when the city was rebuilt a white deer passed round it holding a flower in the mouth, which implies good fortune. In 675 it began to be named Wenzhou and continues to be so called up to now. Located at the middle section of the golden coast of China with the sea line of 355 kilometers and situated at the intersection of the two economic zones of the Yangtze River and the Pearl River, Wenzhou is the economic, cultural and transport centre of south Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou has a total population of 7.558 million and under its jurisdiction three districts ( Lucheng, Longwan and Ouhai ), two cities (Ruian and Yueqing ) and six counties ( Dongtou, Yongjia, Pingyan, Cangnan,Wencheng and Taishun). It covers a total land area of 11,784 square kilometers, including an urban area of 1,082 square kilometers, and the sea area of about 11,000 square kilometers

	Yandang Shan Yandang Mountain Mount Yan Dang is a world geopark located in Leqing County in the southeast of Wenzhou City. 'Yan' refers to 'wild gooses' and 'Dang' means 'undulating' in Chinese. On the top of the mountain, there is a lake surrounded with reeds, seemingly undulating in the tidal-like breeze. The wild gooses that fly back from the north to avoid cold winter often stay in the dense reeds thicket, giving the name of the mountain 'Yan Dang'. Due to the frequent volcanic eruptions in ancient times, peculiar cliffs, rocks, caves and mountain peaks were formed, making the mountain a comprehensive geographic museum. Mount Yan Dang boasts of strange peaks, 'flying' waterfalls, solitary caves and deep valleys. The night scenery of Lingfeng peak and the swift cross between two peaks in the Lingyan cave areas are worth mentioning and are especially breath-taking to usually awe-struck tourists. When evening descends, the Lingfeng peaks appear to strike various poses under the moonlight. The two standing peaks closely resemble lovers kissing while the peak nearby is vividly like a cheeky cowboy watching them stealthily. Another peak evokes an image of an old woman who is so shy to see the lovers that she turns her head back. There are many other strange peaks posturing mysterious shapes, leaving you to imagine as most as you can

	Hangzhou Hangzhou is one of the important tourism cities in China, famous for its natural beauty and historical and cultural heritages. Ling Yin Temple You will find Ling Yin Temple in a long, narrow valley between Fei Lai Feng (Peak flown from Afar) and North Peak to the northwest of the West Lake at Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province. The temple is without doubt a premier showpiece in the West Lake environs and is notable also as one of the ten most famous Buddhist temples of China. In 1961 the temple was listed for protection as a key provincial historical and cultural site and is considered a leading centre for research relative to Chinese Buddhist culture. West Lake The West Lake is undoubtedly the most renowned feature of Hangzhou, noted for the scenic beauty that blends naturally with many famous historical and cultural sites

	Suzhou Suzhou is located in the center of the Yangtze Delta, in the south of Jiangsu Province, with Shanghai to the east, Zhejiang Province to the south, Wuxi City to the west and the Yangtze River to the north. Since 42% area of the city is covered by water, including a vast number of ponds and streams, Suzhou is praised as the 'Oriental Venice'. Taihu Lake, four fifths of which is in the territory of Suzhou, is one of the four largest fresh lakes in China, with East Hill, West Hill and other scenic spots in its vicinity. The city is cut by the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal from north to south. Together with its mild climate, making it an available destination all year round, fertile landscape and abundance of produce, it is no wonder that Suzhou is called 'paradise on earth'

	Zhouzhuang Zhouzhuang, one of the most famous water townships in China, situated in Kunshan City which is only 30 kilometers southeast of Suzhou. It is noted for its profound cultural background, the well preserved ancient residential houses, the elegant watery views and the strong local colored traditions and customs. In the Spring and Autumn Period (770 - 476 BC), Zhouzhuang was a part of the fief Yaocheng and called Zhenfengli. After being donated to Full Fortune (Quanfu) Temple by Zhou Digong, a very devout Buddhist, in 1086 during the Northern Song Dynasty (960 - 1127), Zhouzhuang got its present name as a memorial of the donor. In an area of half a square kilometer, 60 percent of the Zhouzhuang's structures were built during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, which is from 1368 to 1911. Taking the most convenient form of transport in Zhouzhuang, a gondola, we will present some of the breathtaking sights one by one

	Shanghai Shanghai is a fascinating mix of East and West. It has historic houses that blend the styles of Chinese houses with European design flair, and it has one of the richest collections of Art Deco buildings in the world. As there were so many concessions (designated districts) to Western powers during the turn of the 20th century, at times the city has a cosmopolitan feel. From classic Parisian style, to Tudor style buildings that give a German flair, while the 1930s buildings put you in New York or Chicago