Sherry's Blog

According to the Chinese National Geography's October Issue, top ten beautiful mountains in China are:

No.1, Namjagbarwa Peak in Nyingchi, Tibet.

No.2, Gongga Mountain in Sichuan.

No.3, Mt. Qomolangma/Everest in Tibet.

No.4, Meili Snow Mountain in Yunnan.

No.5, Huangshan Mountain in Anhui.

No.6, Three Holy Mountains in Daocheng, Sichuan.

No.7, Chogori Peak in Xinjiang

No.8, Mt. Kailash in Nagri Tibet.

No.9, Mt. Taishan in Shandong.

No.10, Emei Mountain in Sichuan.

Have u ever been to there? How do u think about them? Here in this blog, we will share all these places.

Do you like Chinese food?

As one of the Chinese cultural treasures, Chinese cuisine is famous all over the world. Being harmonious integration of color, redolence, taste, shape and the fineness of the instruments, Chinese cuisine is not only about eating, but also a perfected art. It is no exaggeration to say that Chinese cuisine is dainty, in its items, esthetics, atmosphere, and effects.

Chinese cuisine has a long history, which even can be traced back to the Peking Man and his use of fire and the invention of "cuisine" some 400,000 years ago. Some other accounts of the history of Chinese cuisine takes the beginning to the Chinese stone age, where the cultivation of rice and the production of noodles, both typical representations of Chinese cuisine, are known from archeological findings.

After development and maturation over the centuries, new food sources and techniques were invented, new recipes were created. The art of food preparation reach its peak during the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911). The dinner called Man Han Quan Xi that incorporates all the very best of Man and Han Cuisine is held in high esteem involving as it does countless dishes, each with its own distinctive flavor and appeal. Till now, Chinese cuisine has formed a rich cultural content. It is characterized by fine selection of ingredients, precise processing, particular care to the amount of fire, and substantial nourishment.

For the cooking process, chefs pick choice and various ingredients and seasonings while employing unparalleled complicated skills handed down from their fathers, ever aspiring to their ideal of perfection for all the senses. Among the many cooking methods they use are boiling, stewing, braising, frying, steaming, crisping, baking, and simmering and so on. When they finish their masterpieces they are arranged on a variety of plates and dishes so that they are a real pleasure to view, to smell and ultimately to savor.

Chinese Cuisine can rise to many different occasions from luxury court feasts, fetes, holy sacrificial rites, joyous wedding ceremonies to simple daily meals and snacks. The art of a good cook is to provide a wholesome and satisfying dish to suit the occasion.

The Great Wall is made of a series of stone. Just like a gigantic dragon, the Great Wall winds up and down across deserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus, stretching approximately 6,700 kilometers (4,163 miles ) from east to west of China. Though some of the sections are now in ruins or even entirely disappeared, it is still one of the most appealing attractions all around the world owing to its architectural grandeur and historical significance, enlisted in the World Heritage by UNESCO in 1987.

The history of The Great Wall

With a history of more than 2000 years, the Great Wall was used as a defensive fortification in most of time. But it was in fact independent walls for different states when it was first built, and did not become the "Great" wall until the Qin Dynasty.

The Great Wall was originally built in the Spring and Autumn Period (around the 7th century BC) and Warring States Periods (from the 5th century BC to 221 BC) by the three states: Yan, Zhao and Qin, to defend their own borders, through which period the Chinese were already familiar with the techniques of wall-building. Then the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang made the unification of China. During the reign, Qin Shi Huang succeeded in his effort to have the walls joined together and to fend off the invasions from the Huns in the north. Since then, the Great Wall has served as a monument of the Chinese nation throughout history.

Later, some dynasties repaired, rebuilt, or expanded sections of the Great Wall at great cost. The most important construction took place in Ming Dynasty, which was stronger and more elaborate due to the use of bricks and stone instead of rammed earth.

Now most of the ancient walls have eroded away over the centuries, and very few sections remain today. The Great Wall as we see today was mostly built during the Ming Dynasty. It starts from Shanhaiguan Pass in the east to Jiayuguan Pass in the west traversing provinces of Liaoning, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Shaanxi and Gansu. 

The construction of The Great Wall

The construction of the wall was considered to be huge and tough project even in today’s tools and techniques, let alone ancient times. Can you image how they transport the large quantity of materials and stones, some were over thousand kg weight; and how they cut the stones to almost the same shape. It’s said that builders always tried to use local resources. Stones from the mountains were used over mountain ranges, while rammed earth was used for construction in the plains. A great army of manpower, composed of soldiers, prisoners, and local people, built the wall. The construction result demonstrates the manifestation of the wisdom and tenacity of the Chinese people. 

However, the construction of The Great Wall was a suffering to the people at that time. A lot of people died. There are some beautiful but sad legends, the most famous one is about the collapse of a section of the Great Wall caused by Meng Jiangnu, who cried bitterly over the death of her husband in the construction of the Great Wall. This legend has been spread widely through textbooks, folk songs and traditional operas.

The following three sections are in Beijing, which were renovated and which are regularly visited by modern tourists today. "North Pass" of Juyongguan pass, known as the Badaling; "West Pass" of Jiayuguan_(pass), near the western edges of the Great Wall; "Pass" of Shanhaiguan, near the eastern edges of the Great Wall.

Make a trip to at least one section of the Great Wall should be a must for your China Trip. Elaborate tour plans make travel comfortable, memorable, enjoyable and informative.

Everyday, a grand ceremony called Flag-raising Ceremony in Beijing's Tiananmen Square will attract many people. Believe it or not, going to Beijing and watching the national Flag-raising Ceremony is a dream to many people in China, especially to those who are poor and live far away from Beijing. What’s the charm of Flag-raising Ceremony?

The national flag was first raised over Tian'anmen Square in 1949, marking the birth of New China. And it has been repeated every day since then. In the morning, Chinese military honor guards march with perfect rhythm and synchronicity to raise the national flag. The ceremony begins at different time each day but precisely at sunrise and last exactly 127 seconds. And it is accompanied with a military band on the first day of every month.

While standing at the square, watching the national flag going up the pole slowly, listening to the national anthem, a feeling of patriotism grows inside of every Chinese people. That’s so impressive that somebody even cries. Although the flag has meant different things to different people, we love our great country and get power from the ceremony. I think that’s why it attracts so many people.

If you want to see the ceremony, then get up very early and arrive at the Square before sunrise. Only by doing so can you see the ceremony clearly as there are crowds of people attending the ceremony every day, especially during these important days and festivals, such as on May 1st (Internationa l Labor day),on Oct 1st (National day), every New year, and China 's New Year as well.

After the ceremony, tourists can also take a visit to Tiananmen Tower, Monument to the People's Heroes, Great Hall of the People, Mao Zedong Memorial Hall, they are just on the Tian'anmen Square.

Today, we will explore another worthwhile visiting place in Beijing, --- the Temple of Heaven (Tiantan in Chinese). It is a comprehensive expression of the unique construction techniques from Ming and Qing Dynasties, also the world's largest architectural complex for worship heaven. Along with the Summer Palace, it was listed as one of the World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.in 1998.

Built magnificent and gloriously in 1420 A.D, with an solemn and respectful environment, the Temple served as an exclusive altar for Chinese rulers during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Offering sacrifices was a serious task! The ancient Chinese believed that the entire empire relied on the emperor praying for good fortune and abundant harvests from Heaven. Thus the emperors had quite a responsibility! There were specific rites of worship in ancient times, especially during the Ming and Qing dynasties when elaborate ceremonies were held.

It’s interesting when we research the shape and structure of the Temple buildings. With an area of about 2,700,000 square meters, it’s much bigger than the Forbidden City. As Chinese emperors called themselves 'The Son of Heaven', they dared not to build their own dwelling, 'Forbidden City' bigger than a dwelling for Heaven. On the other hand, the buildings reflect an ancient Chinese thought of 'The heaven is round and the earth is square'. Thus, the Northern part of the park is a semicircular shape symbolizing the heavens and the south a square symbolizing the earth. Meanwhile the northern part is higher than the southern part.

While here, tourist can enjoy both the most important constructions, others of historic interest and scenic beauty. The whole compound is enclosed by two walls, dividing the whole Temple into inner and outer areas. The outer area is characterized by suburban scenery, while the inner part is used for sacrifices with the main structures(such as the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest, the Circular Mound Altar, Imperial Heaven, The Imperial Vault of Heaven, Heaven Kitchen, Long Corridor and so on).

But the Temple of Heaven is not just a solemn and glorious architectures, there are many funny phenomenons. Try the four wonderful sounds!

1. The echo from the Echo Wall – This famous wall encloses the Imperial Vault of Heaven with a perimeter of 193 meters. One person's mere whisper at any point close to the wall can be heard clearly on the other side if you draw your ear close to the wall, it is so clear that it is like talking on the phone. Isn't it interesting? This is possible because the wall is round and hermetically constructed with smooth, solid bricks, so the sound wave can transmit to the other side via the extremely smooth inner circle. The phenomenon utilizes the theory of sound wave.

2. The echo from the Three Echo Stones – It’s outside of the gate of the Imperial Vault of Heaven. If you speak facing the Vault while standing on the first stone, you will hear one echo; standing on the second and then the third stone, you will hear two and three echoes respectively. Why? This is because the distances that the sound wave reflected from the Echo wall to the stone are different, the number of echo is also different. Take a guess which flagstone is at the center of the Echo Wall's? The third one. The echo actually gets repeated more than 3 times, it's just the sound is too weak to be heard after the 4th echo.

3. The sound of the Dialogue Stone - If you speak while standing on the 18th stone in front of The Imperial Vault of Heaven, the sound can clearly pass to the northeast corner of the north side hall and the northwest of the west side hall that are both 36 meters away.

4. The hollow of the Heaven's Center Stone - There is a stone plate in the center of the Circular Mound Altar called the Heaven's Center Stone. Shouting aloud standing above, you will hear the reverberation of the echo. This is due to the refraction of the sound.