Beijing and Shanghai

The Forbidden City Mao Cult Entrance to the forbidden city is marked with a 5m high portrait of Mao, who - astonishingly enough - is still admired by large parts of the population. Imperial Dragons (1 / 6) The dragon being the emperors symbol, the forbidden city iis full of dragon images and sculptures. Somehow I only took pictures of dragons there - maybe because the weather was not very good for taking pictures and the city was overcrowded with tourist, so it was kind of hard to find other targets. Imperial Dragons (2 / 6) Imperial Dragons (3 / 6)
Imperial Dragons (4 / 6) Imperial Dragons (5 / 6) Imperial Dragons (6 / 6) Where Did Everyone Go? A rare sight in China: an empty pedestrian tunnel. And even a beautiful one, I found. Hutong Scene A very chinese setting, found in Beijings Luogu Hutong.
Hutong Wall This hutong has partially been restored, with an astonishing love for details Old Beijing Honey Yoghurt Another surprise: Beijingers have a passion for yoghurt! This "Old Beijing Honey Yoghurt" is a real classic and can be purchased at any street shop all over the town. Of course I had to try it and it tastes - well - like yoghurt. Olympic Flame This sculpture in Beijings olympica park symbolizes the olympic flame, bakced by the sun which barely manages to shine through the polluted air. The Birds Nest IBM on the Horizon From the top of the birds nest I could see the IBM building - a shy reminder of my job waiting for me in just a few weeks from here...
Water Cube 798 Art Zone 798 Art Zone is a forme industrial area turned into a cluster of art galleries, art shops, cofee shops and restaurans. Quite a cool place! This hall has not been converted into anything yet and just because of that sticked out from the rest. Area 798 The shadow of a bronze statue in 798 art zone looked like a piece of art on its own. Ai Weiwei! I read about this in a China blog and then suddenly was standing in front of this little sensation: Ai Weiwei has finallly managed to exhibit some of his work in China... interstingly enough, the chinese don't really seem to know him, as his name has very successfully been purged from all Chinese media in the last years. The Great Wall The main question of any visit to Beijing is, which part of the great wall one wants to visit. I took a tour to the Jinshanling / Simatai section, whis seems to have been a good choice, as our group was virtually the only visitors that day.
The Great Wall Bejings Legendary Air Quality Beijing has a reputiatiton of having very bad air quality - and I can now testify that this is true. When I was there, the AQI for PM2.5 particles (the meanest ones, which pass through your lungs and enter your blood), was often above 300, which is rated as "dangerous".... The Grey Wall The "grey", not the "great" wall - I somehow like this picture because it looks so unfocused, eventhough it is isn't. Its an empty billboard of a small theater in Beijing. My Shanghai Memories Yup, that's what I think of when I think Shanghai. Rain, rain and even more rain... Impressive At Daytime... Shanghai's Skyline, the "Pudong New Area" - the large building on the right is just about to be finished: Shanghai Tower, 632m high, is currently the second talles building on the planet...
... But Much More Impressive At Night Mandelbrot Set Since I saw Alf in a camel you must are aware that I sometimes have somewhat weird associations. Here is another one: when I looked at Oriental Pearl TV tower from this perspective I suddenly saw the Mandelbrot Set in front of me. This was very popular when I went to grammar school and somehow stuck to my mind (in german we colloqually call it "Apfelmännchen", meaning "little apple man"). It is named after the mathematician who discovered it, Benoit Mandelbrot. I looked up his biography and learned that he had been working for IBM for 35 years. Which again reminded me, that I will be working for IBM again in just a few weeks... Fotographer's Focus I wonder how many photos are taken of Shanhai's Pudong skyline - it must be 10s of thousands. So this photo seems quite symptomatic to me... Reflections I Reflections II
Reflections III