Originally posted Wednesday, August 1, 2012 Formerly an official state language during the Qing Dynasty, China’s last imperial dynasty, the Manchu language is now on the verge of extinction. There are more than 10 million ethnic Manchus in China, yet fewer than 20 native speakers remain. Introducing…In Search of Manchuria For those who have followed… Read More In Search of Manchuria: Introducing “The Words of the Emperor”
One of my most poignant observations when I was in China in spring 2012 was how the state of the Chinese rail system reflected the country’s growing wealth gap. As I rode a variety of trains in China between September and November 2017, this disparity only became clearer. There are extremely old trains that rattle… Read More A Guide to Trains in China, from the Old-School to the High-Speed
Hangzhou is one of the two cities named as “heaven on earth” in the old Chinese saying. The other is the nearby city of Suzhou. Like Hangzhou, Suzhou has long been a source of inspiration for poets and painters. Follow this list of Suzhou things to do to explore and admire this place that’s long… Read More Heaven on Earth: The Gardens of Suzhou
When I left on my funemployment trip through Asia, the only plans I had was to start in Manchuria and work my way south as the weather got colder and to meet my boyfriend in southern Thailand for Thanksgiving. So I packed mostly warm weather clothes and a few layers for autumn in China, all rolled… Read More What I Packed for 5 Months in Asia, from the Himalayas to Southeast Asia
Originally posted Monday, November 21, 2011 Home. It’s a word with which I have struggled with unlike any other. Whenever people ask me where “home” is, I hesitate before answering. In the days before I left for Europe, while I was at our new “home,” I listened to Miranda Lambert’s “The House That Built Me”… Read More Home – for a nomad on the loose
Growing up, I don’t think I had a conscious awareness of race until we moved to Florida, where the ugly legacy of slavery and Jim Crow made race something that was much more obvious. But while race wasn’t on my mind, I had always been fascinated with ethnicity. Not race or nationality, but ethnicity. China’s… Read More Does Cultural Tourism Help or Hurt Ethnic Minorities?
Originally posted Monday, August 13, 2012 I didn’t need to open the letter. I could recognize that messy yet particular scribble as easily as I could the handwriting of my parents. I knew I had found Mr. Helmly. Nearly a year and a half ago, while I was still living in Montana, I posted about the… Read More Mr. Helmly Found
When I think of Chinese art, my mind goes to the classical brush paintings and classical sculptures of Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian figures. So when the World Sculpture Park in Changchun, one of northern China’s biggest cuties, was first introduced to me, I was a little skeptical. But I am so glad I was persuaded… Read More Modern Art for a Modern China: A Walk Through the Changchun World Sculpture Park
The Manchu people consider it the birthplace of Bukuri Yongson, the ancestor of the Jurchens and modern Manchus. The Korean people consider it the birthplace of Dan’gun, the legendary founder of Gojoseon, the first ever Korean kingdom. Changbaishan, literally perpetually white mountain, is a mountain range that sits on top of the border of China and North… Read More The Mountain Across From North Korea
I have arrived in Manchuria! Before I start snapping away, I wanted to share some of my favorite photos from past trips to China. I’m super excited to explore other parts of the extremely large country on this trip, including some areas that aren’t as frequently visited, especially by those in the West. Please bear… Read More My Favorite Snaps from China Trips Past