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The Watchtowers of Kaiping: Liyuan Garden
The Kaiping Diaolou are fortified multi-story watchtowers and residences originally built to protect rural villages. Most were built from the late 19th century to the early 20th century, with a fusion of Chinese and Western architectural styles, by returning...
The Watchtowers of Kaiping: Zili Village
The Kaiping Diaolou are fortified multi-story watchtowers built to protect rural villages from ethnic warfare, bandits, and warlords. Most were built from the late 19th century to the early 20th century with a fusion of Chinese and Western architectural styles by...
The Hutong Next Door
Hutongs are traditional neighborhoods in Beijing and other northern Chinese cities. These neighborhoods are created by a series of alleys or narrow streets (called Hutong) that are formed by connecting traditional courtyard residences, called siheyuan.Beijing’s...
Snow Day in Beijing
Winters in Beijing are cold and dry. Snow is rare, and it usually doesn't stick. We can count the number of times it has snowed the past three years on one hand. This year it has already snowed twice before the official start of winter.We were flying to Taipei the...
Desperately Seeking Geishas
Gion is a famous entertainment and geisha district in Kyoto that is filled with restaurants shops and teahouses, where geisha (called geiko) and maiko (apprentice geisha) perform.Most tourists looking to spot geisha head to Hanami-koji Street. The street and side...
76 Departments of the Afterlife
Dōngyuè Temple is a 14th century Taoist temple in Beijing’s Central Business District. From the outside this hidden gem looks like most other small temples in China, but passing through its gates takes one on a tour of the Taoist afterlife. Dōngyuè Temple is one of...
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©2020 David M. Littlefield