Actually I think there’s more than 30 pictures in this posting but who’s counting. Hope you enjoy.
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The upscale but quite affordable Pearl Street shopping district, where I did all my Christmas shopping and pigged out at Häagen-Dazs®.
Yer Jitterbugger shown here with friends in Kaifeng. The woman on the far right owns the flooring store, with her husband, where this picture was taken. They sell a lot of bamboo flooring and stairways to builders but also to homeowners. They’re an enterprising couple, however–selling all kinds of miscellaneous things like rice cookers out of their shop.
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Tots in China wear these split-tail britches, which makes squatting (as in going to the bathroom) easy to do anywhere, anytime.
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I’m sorry, but I’m philosophically opposed to purple corn on the cob.
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Here’s a few shots taken at an ancient but very active Buddhist temple in Kaifeng. Actually it’s a sprawling place with numerous temples. It so happened that the day I was there was a special day when pilgrims came from all around for prayers seeking blessings in the temples, according to my young guide who was a college student. I asked her if she’s a Buddhist and she laughed. “No, I just work here,” she confessed. “Nobody’s ever asked me that.”
Oh, my . . . Buddhism just got even more interesting. . .
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The beautiful sycamore-shade lane near the Iron Pagoda, Kaifeng. . . .
The lotus flowers, which grow out of the mud, are not in bloom this time of year, but lotus ponds are found in abundance in China. The lotus is central to a lot of Buddhist theology. . . .
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Meanwhile, back in Beijing . . . .
Olympic Stadium, better known as “The Nest” because of its nest-like appearance. The “Blue Cube” next to the stadium is where American swimmer Michael Phelps won his hunnerd or so Gold Medals.
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At The Forbidden City, where I walked for six hours and saw a fraction of it. The palaces and other buildings have 9,000-plus rooms.
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Paddle-boaters out on the lake as seen from the Summer Palace on a Sunday afternoon . . .
I have 860 pictures from China in my digital shooter, so stayed tuned, Jitterbuggers . . . More China to come.
Ah can’t wait to get there. I’m eyeing Beijing this year.
Diapers are better alternatives than those split-tail pants but not as airy. Hahaha!
I know! Kaifeng is much more “old world” China, lagging somewhat in the progress and modernism. Diapers in Central China are a foreign concept..