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News, thoughts and random stuff from Todd:
This page is a weblog with the newest posts at the top of the page. Scroll down to see any older posts you may have missed.
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Friday, August 29, 2003
- Book: The New Emperors: China in the Era of Mao and Deng
Last night I finaly finished The New Emperors: China in the Era of Mao and Deng by Harrison Evans Salisbury A great book for anyone interested in China. From Publishers Weekly: Salisbury's crowning achievement, this incredibly vivid, gripping dual biography of China's two modern emperors--Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping--is also a revelatory history of modern China's transformation. As Mao's young lieutenant, Red Army commander Deng (b. 1904) led the Long March that cost Chiang Kaishek one million men. Although Deng tirelessly fought for Mao's political viewpoints, Mao (1892-1976) during his dementia of the 1970s ousted his acolyte, subjecting Deng to torture, imprisonment and exile. Mao believed himself infallible. His hero was China's first emperor, barbaric Qin, who slaughtered Chinese by the hundreds of thousands. Deng, "at heart a small dragon, not a supreme dragon like Mao," is nevertheless another absolutist emperor. Drawing on years of travel, interviews and research in China, Salisbury ( Tiananmen Diary ) provides countless new details on key events. Among Salisbury's findings: Mao was excluded from the initial planning of the Korean War, which took him by surprise; Deng played a major role in Mao's brutal "anti-rightist" campaign of 1958. This epic double portrait deserves to become a classic.
- posted at 12:26 AM
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Wednesday, August 27, 2003
- Welcome to Tibet
My head hurts. After spending a few nights sleeping at 3,700 meters, my head has had a dull ache all day. At this altitude, I am constantly dehydrated. I have been drinking tea and water as much as I can, but I am constantly parched and pissing. But I have my standards: I am not ready to stop every 10 feet on the street to pee into the gutter like the kids do. Read more...
- posted at 9:33 PM
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Saturday, August 23, 2003
- Hijacked in Jiuzhaigou
Jiuzhaigou, pronounced Jiew-Jai-Go, is over 10 hours north of Chengdu by bus, through the hills and valleys that are the first steps up to the Tibetan plateau. As has become the norm for me, I was the only white face on the bus. My travel companion, a local student named Sun Jian, was so intent on practicing her English that she told everyone else that she was from Korea and could not speak Chinese. Actualy she had me tell them in my broken Chinese which got more than a few laughs. Read more...
- posted at 6:49 PM
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- 200 Days of Travel!
Today is Travel Day #200! nuff said
- posted at 6:20 AM
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- A special thanks to Eric Case
Eric is one of the great people who keeps blogger.com running. Without his extra attention I would be off-line for the rest of my trip. Thanks Eric and I'm sorry we didn't get to meet in person when we were both in SE Asia. Erics Blog
- posted at 6:00 AM
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Sunday, August 17, 2003
- Sichuan Style
I felt right at home in Shanghai because of the similarities to fast-paced NYC life. But Chengdu, the capital of the Sichuan Province, is the polar opposite of Shanghai. People seem to spend most of their time in the many tea gardens in the numerous temples and public parks. When they do venture out of the tea gardens, it is only with their trusty tea thermos in hand and usually to take part in the second favorite local activity, Huoguo (Hot-pot). Read more...
- posted at 9:11 AM
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Sunday, August 10, 2003
- How can you afford to travel?
Recently I have gotten a few emails from friends all asking the same question "You lost your job in December, How can you afford to keep traveling Asia? Are you rich?" Some with the added "Why don't you come back and get a job?" Read more...
- posted at 9:16 PM
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- pandas, population and economic growth (a bit dark)
Each day I wake up I feel lucky to be here in China. I have moved into a great new guest house here in Chengdu that is not listed in any of the English language guidebooks and is teaming with Chinese students and travelers. It has all the community of a backpacker crash pad with a more Asian flavor. To top it all off the roof deck has great (cheep) local food. Read more...
- posted at 9:14 PM
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Tuesday, August 05, 2003
- Xi'an: Terracotta, Muslims & a cameo by Lao Shi Tuda
Xi'an may have been the capitol of an empire 2,000 years ago but today it is one of the many Chinese citys that must be wondering what the big deal is with the "growth" in China. The population is around 7,000,000 give or take a few hundred thousand and there is little forigen or domestic investment in the area. With only one real tourist draw, the Terracotta Army, and a few other sights that can fill time on a weekend trip this is not a vacation destination. I spent a few extra days wandering the back streets and the unique Muslim quarter but the real bonus was meeting some great locals who helped me understand the history of the city in relation to the rest of China. Provincial pride is strong in China, a reminder that untill this century each provence was a country. Today I "taught" my first class in China. My new friend Leo (who won't let me pay for anything) works at a small private school in Xi'an. The class was about 20 kids from 6 to 10 years old. Most had only 20 days of class with a local teacher before and had never met a foreigner. After getting over their initial shyness they were very friendly and curious. I wrote my name on the board in Chinese and they all liked that a lot. I had them each ask me a question (via their teacher) which I repeated in English and answered for them. Then we played the counting game and what color is this. it was a lot of fun and I even learned a few new colors (in chinese). They wraped up by singing "london bridge" and "B-I-N-G-O" to me. I gave my camera to the teacher so I think there are some fun photos to share. After the class the teacher asked me if Chinese children are different from American kids. After a moment I replied that they are not as different as Chinese adults are from American adults. Photos: Xi'an photos Terracotta Army photos
- posted at 11:05 PM
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Sunday, August 03, 2003
- Chillin in Pingyao
5 days in Pingyao have come to a close. This is a very cool little town. I think it is the only town left in China with a fully intact wall around it. (Mao tore down almost all of them.) There are a few bruses in the wall from when the Japanese shelled the town in the 30s but overall it is in good shape for its age. Can you imagine a mid-evil seige in the 1930s? Only in China. Pingyao is not much of a tourist destination with only a few buses of Chinese tourists and just a handful of westerners. 95% of the place still looks like it did 600 years ago with 3 "tourist streets" that have shopping, food and hotels. But even these "new streets" are old buildings with a fresh coat of paint, electricity and some glass to differentiate them from the rest of the town. Overall, a nice place to chill out between big cities. The locals are great even if they keep trying to stuff me with pingyao noodles tilll I can't walk. Special thanks to the folks at Tian Yuan Kui who took such good care of me with a great price on a room that better homes and garden would not believe. I get on the train for xi'an tonight and wake up in a city of 7 mil. Pingyao photo album
- posted at 12:28 AM
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