Section 1 — The Great Wall Looks Like a Barrier. Chinese History Was Much More Porous. You’re standing on the: Great Wall (长城, Chángchéng) outside: Beijing (北京, Běijīng). Mountains stretch into the distance. Watchtowers sit along the ridges. A huge stone...
Section 1 — You’re Standing on the Great Wall. But Whose Wall Is It? For many first-time international travelers, there are certain places in China that almost feel compulsory. The Forbidden City (故宫, Gùgōng). The Terracotta Warriors (兵马俑, Bīngmǎyǒng). And: the...
Just Outside Beijing (北京, Běijīng), Dad & Elaine Found a Human Story Hundreds of Thousands of Years Older Than Imperial China When international travelers come to: Beijing (北京, Běijīng) we naturally think of history. The: Forbidden City (故宫, Gùgōng). The: Great...
Five Terraces, One Bodhisattva — and a Mountain That Became More Than Geography Dad & Elaine arrived at Mount Wutai (五台山, Wǔtái Shān) in Shanxi Province (山西省, Shānxī Shěng) after traveling through several very different historical worlds. At: Yanmenguan Pass (雁门关,...
Section 1 — One Hangs From a Cliff. The Other Has Stood in Wood for Nearly 1,000 Years. After Yungang Grottoes introduced Elaine and me to the Northern Wei and the Xianbei world of northern China, we continued through northern Shanxi...
Section 1 — Beyond the Great Wall: When the People From the Northern Frontier Became the Rulers At Yanmenguan (雁门关), Elaine and I stood on China’s northern frontier and asked why Chinese states and dynasties kept building walls. Then, farther north...
Dad and Elaine came to Pingyao (平遥, Píngyáo) expecting to see one of China’s great ancient walled cities. And when we arrived… that was exactly what we saw. A wall. A very BIG wall. 😂 But within the next few minutes,...
DEEP China: Jinci (晋祠, Jìncí) — Where the Story of Jin (晋, Jìn) Begins A 3,000-Year Story, Nearly 1,000-Year-Old Art and Architecture — and the Missing Link Elaine Had to Explain to Dad Travel around: Shanxi Province (山西省, Shānxī Shěng) and...
Don’t Just Pass Through Shanxi’s Capital — Use Taiyuan (太原, Tàiyuán) as Your Base Most first-time international travelers planning China know: Beijing (北京, Běijīng). Xi’an (西安, Xī’ān). Maybe: Pingyao (平遥, Píngyáo). But then Dad says: Taiyuan (太原, Tàiyuán). And the understandable...
Stay a few days around Baoji (宝鸡, Bǎojī) and something strange happens to the timeline. One day, Dad & Elaine were following: Qishan (岐山, Qíshān) Zhouyuan (周原, Zhōuyuán) Duke of Zhou (周公, Zhōugōng) and the world of the: Western Zhou dynasty...
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