There were a few hundred of these lovely doors (each painted a different way on top). The middle class and nicer neighborhoods in town are still in the old kinda #Traditional style with a big front Door to the courtyard and small rooms for the Family off the center. Very Awesome! And Beautiful artwork!
Happy Dragon Boat Festival! Today in #China we are celebrating the Duanwu #端午 festival! It’s been a Holiday here for more than 2000 years!
It celebrates the Famous #poet #quyuan. Devoted to #China 🇨🇳, he wrote beautiful poems about its history, nature, and people. When the invading Qin armies approached, he chose to drown himself rather than see his beloved country fall. Although they sent out many #dragon boats to look for him, they could not save him in time.
So to commemorate his memory, every year they eat #粽子 (aka Zongzi), a sticky #rice #treat wrapped in banana leaves. And the big cities send out Dragon #boats for big battles and races on the lakes and rivers! Cool!
Stewed Iron Eggs – everypne’s favorite food! It even comes #SPICED! As my ESL students say – ‘have a try!’
Notice the star #anise on the picture (tastes like licorice – often poisonous here in #China since the legit anise stars go to theraflu factories). Can only imagine that added to stewed egg flavor!
Gongyi is home to the Kang Family Mansion – a Ming Dynasty mansion still preserved centuries later. Also called the KangBaiWan Mansion 河南巩义康百万庄园. It is #10 on China’s list of famous mansions! A truly beautiful place filled with all sorts of ancient buildings and gardens. At one time, he was apparently the wealthiest businessman in China. The family was famous be being good and virtuous, so much so that the emperor wrote them a poem just for them after 8 generations of wise and honorable leaders in a row. Wish I could have met them!
Holy tigger, I love this – Our university art students are encouraged to paint the man holes aroind campus as projects. This one showed up today! ❤
Chinese historical sites (and some city buildings) here in Henan have a tendency to have these sharp warnings NOT to climb the walls. Given how much looting and destruction they’ve faced with their heritage in the past, it is a pointed (pun intended) reminder that history is to be protected, not stolen or broken. Also – avoid the Baiju (China’s alcoholic beverage which is as much as 70% alcohol). Getting drunk on that and stupidly climbing the fence is a REALLY BAD idea here!
Henan is home to the Shaolin Temple – made famous in Jackie Chan’s films and the center of Chinese Kungfu or “Wushu.” The monks did a performance for the Henan Tourism Festival!
#Fire drill! #China style! 📣 Because we take your security seriously – we use real #smoke bombs to stink the building up, train you to go through usually locked doors, and ask that you guess when a fire starts because we have no smoke alarms. But you know, security! At least now maybe they’ll stop padlocking all the outside doors at night 😂
#Gongyi #Grottos – one if 4 Famous grottos in #China. These are places where loyal #monks have carefully carved out thousand and millions of #buddhas and religious #statues into the walls of nearby #caves over CENTURIES! Unfortunately, many of the ones in Henan were destroyed during the #CulturalRevolution or were defaced by the Western militaries During the wars with #China. Still an amazing, awe-inspiring sight! Well worth the trip! Thanks to the Henan Provincial Tourism Bureau for sponsoring our trip today – it was lovely!
You know, it says #rainbow but for some strange reason I’m seeing #cow . . . . On a t-shirt for #girls Hmmmm 😂 Life in #China means living with random #words on your #clothes 😜
A Life Savored 