Amazing bamboo (3) – delicious bamboo shoots

With CCTV's Travelogue ...

A great film by David Lee ...

Provincial capital of FuJian, east China.

JiaYuGuan is the first pass at the western end of the Great Wall of China. It lies 6 kilometers southwest of the city of JiaYuGuan in GanSu province. The fortress lies between two hills and near to an oasis that was then on the western edge of China. According to legend, when JiaYuGuan was being planned, the official in charge asked the designer to estimate the number of bricks required; the designer surprised the official by giving him an exact number.

Bonus film - ShenZhen morning drive ...

JingDeZhen, in JiangXi province, is known as the Porcelain Capital' because it has been producing pottery for over 1,700 years. JingDeZhen is close to the best quality deposits of petuntse, or porcelain stone, in China, as well as being surrounded by forests, mostly of pine, providing wood for the kilns. It also has river connections flowing both north and south, facilitating transport of the fragile wares.

In central Beijing ...

Hunan province

The low-down on the Chinese writing system. Great videos ... See - it's very easy really ;)

The nearly one million square meter Palace Museum lies at the heart of Beijing ...

BaDaLing and MuTianYu Great Wall (about 1+ hours from BeiJing city center) ... JinShanLing and SiMaTai Great Wall (about 2+ hours from BeiJing) ... Bonus films - Plus, Cindy Zhang shows us a hike along the rugged JianKou section of the Great Wall (it is not far from MuTianYu) ...

NánLuóGǔXiàng was first constructed during the Yuan Dynasty and received its current name during the Qing Dynasty, around 1750. The alley is approximately 800 meters long. In recent years, the area's HuTongs have become a popular tourist destination with restaurants, bars, live music, tea and coffee shops, fast food and souvenir shops, as well as some old SiHeYuan associated with various famous historic and literary figures.