The Harbin 哈尔滨 Snow and Ice Festival opens January 3rd

Not the rise of, just the return. A talk by Australian Malcolm Turnbull ... A comment re defense spending - per capita (person), China is not even in the top 15 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditure_per_capita Defense spending is in fact very small considering the size of the country.

An in-depth look at how current president Xi JingPing has guided China over the last five years, the ideas behind the changes, and the future direction. A fascinating and excellently made documentary by the Discovery Channel. If you want to know today's China and where China is headed, this is a comprehensive guide.

Where the journey began ... Looking back and return ...

Awesome feel-good dance video ... Locations: The Great Wall, the Summer Palace, the "Bird's Nest" Beijing National Stadium, QianHai - HouHai, the Temple of Heaven, ZhongShan Park and The Place mall. Music：the fantastic Pink Martini - "Wo Yao Ni De Ai  我要你的爱"  (I Want You, To Be My Baby) http://swingbeijing.

'Umbrella' protests 2. Who's behind the curtain and what is the real agenda ? With Michelle Greenstein and Rick Sanchez of RT ...

Scenes from the Great Wall Marathon 2013 ...

This beautiful Ming dynasty complex (GuGong, 'Old Palace'), which opened in 1420, lies in the heart of Beijing ... Bonus films - mostly Beijing, plus a little ShangHai ...

The Canton Tower in GuangDong province is the world's tallest TV tower.Not only does it offer excellent features for visitors, it also unusual in being distinctly feminine - curvacious and sleek, very unusual for a skyscraper. The SpiderWalk runs from 170 meters to 350 meters in height.

East China

In a chance discovery, an entire army of terracotta warriors was found. The first emperor of China had them created and buried with him, to protect him in the afterlife. Construction of this mausoleum began in 246 BC and is believed to have taken about 700,000 workers and craftsmen 38 years to complete.

South of the Forbidden City and Tian'AnMen Square in central BeiJing, the blue sky city, lies this amazing Taoist temple, set in an abundant area (now park) of trees and a great place to visit. The wonderful architecture is brimming with symbolism and the park as a whole is a favorite for locals to hang out and practice Tai Chi or play JianZi (hacky sack), etc .