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 and encountered two buildings that almost seem determined to defy common sense: the Hanging Temple (悬空寺), clinging to a cliff near Mount Heng, and the Yingxian Wooden Pagoda (应县木塔), a towering...
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 near Datong (大同), we visited Yungang Grottoes (云冈石窟) — and encountered the other half of the story. What happened when peoples from beyond the old Central Plains political world didn’t merely...
Section 1 — We Came for the Ancient City. The Bigger Rabbit Hole Was Money. Pingyao (平遥) is one of China’s best-preserved historic cities and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Elaine and I went for the ancient walls, streets and courtyards. But behind that beautiful Ming-Qing cityscape lies another story that international travelers can easily miss: Shanxi merchants, long-distance trade, and an ingenious solution to a very practical problem — how do...
Section 1 — One Temple Outside Taiyuan Opens the Door to the State of Jin Just outside Taiyuan, Elaine and I visited Jinci (晋祠) expecting an important historical temple complex. Instead, it opened another enormous Chinese-history rabbit hole: the story of Jin (晋) — a state whose eventual breakup helped create the Warring States world of Zhao, Wei and Han. If you’ve traveled around: 山西 — Shānxī Shanxi you may already have...
Section 1 — Before You Explore Shanxi, Start in Taiyuan Shanxi is one of those Chinese provinces where history seems to be hiding everywhere. Elaine and I came for places such as Pingyao, Yanmenguan, Yungang, the Hanging Temple and Wutai Shan. But before disappearing into all those rabbit holes, we spent time in Taiyuan — and discovered that the provincial capital is one of the best places to understand what you’re about...
Section 1 — From the Zhou Homeland to the Last Campaign of Zhuge Liang Stay a few days in Baoji and you can travel through more than a thousand years of Chinese history without going very far. One day, Elaine and I were following the ancient Zhou world around Qishan. Another rabbit hole nearby takes you to Wuzhangyuan — where Zhuge Liang fought his final campaign in 234 CE. By now you...
If Zhou Makes Sense, Confucius, the Warring States and Qin Start Making Sense Too Chinese history gets confusing very quickly. You learn: Shang. Then: Zhou. Then suddenly: Spring and Autumn. Then: Warring States. Then: Confucius. Then: Qi. Lu. Zhao. Chu. Qin. And finally: Qin Shi Huang. 😵💫 For a first-time international reader, it can feel as though Chinese history has thrown an entire bowl of names onto the table and expects you...
One Bronze. Two Familiar Characters. One Very Long Rabbit Hole. If you’re learning Mandarin, there are two Chinese characters you probably recognize very quickly: 中国 — Zhōngguó China Easy. 中 — zhōng middle / center 国 — guó country / state Put them together: 中国 = China. Lesson finished. Right? 😂 Not quite. Because in a museum in Baoji, Dad & Elaine encountered an ancient bronze vessel with those same two characters...
Before Zhou Became a Dynasty, It Was Already a People, a Place — and a Story Most first-time travelers to China meet the: Zhou dynasty (周朝, Zhōu Cháo) as a date. 1046 BCE Zhou defeats Shang. New dynasty. Next chapter. 😂 That’s useful for an exam. But travel gives us a better question: Where did the Zhou come from BEFORE they defeated Shang? That question eventually took Dad & Elaine beyond Xi’an…...
You’ve Seen the Terracotta Warriors. Now Take the Train West and Find Out What Came Before. For most first-time international travelers: Xi’an (西安, Xī’ān) is already one of the great stops on a China itinerary. And rightly so. You come for: Qin Shi Huang (秦始皇, Qín Shǐhuáng) and: the Terracotta Warriors (兵马俑, Bīngmǎyǒng). You stand in front of that extraordinary underground army and meet the ruler who completed the conquest of the...
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