Winter China trip – Beijing to the Harbin Ice Festival, 2015

Surprisingly beautiful ...

The DaMing Palace (DaMing Gong, Palace of Great Brilliance) was the imperial palace complex of the Tang Dynasty, located in its capital Chang'An. It served as the royal residence of the Tang emperors for more than 220 years. Today, the DaMing Palace site is designated a National Heritage Site of China, located a little north east of present-day Xi'An city center, ShaanXi province, central China.

Also known as the Spring Festival, the Chinese New Year starts on Saturday 28th January this year and on the mainland lasts one week. This year, based on a lunar calendar, will be the Year of the Rooster. Preparations will already be under way and include a spring clean and adding festive decorations. New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are a time for family reunions, and for many this means travelling home from the city to the countryside.

TianXin Park is a scenic spot with classical gardens within an ancient city wall. The city wall was constructed in the year 202 AD. The TianXin Pavilion is a key feature of the park, which was developed in 1924 and now occupies an area of 30,000 square meters.

HuangShan (Yellow Mountain) lies in AnHui province.Highly worn granite summits peak out from a sea of clouds, dotted with ancient pines, have been an inspiration to artists and philosophers for many centuries ...

BěiHǎi GōngYuán is just a five minute walk (north west) from the Forbidden City (immediately west of sister JingShan Park).

As a former treaty port, XiaMen has some colonial architecture. As part of China's Opening Up Policy in the early 1980s under Deng XiaoPing, XiaMen became one of the four original special economic zones opened to foreign investment and trade. XiaMen is well-regarded as a pleasant city. A film about a return to one's family's roots .

An awesome film - don't miss it ... September trip, in 2017; charming couple. XinJiang, north west China, includes the Tien Shan and Kunlun Shan mountains, the Taklimakan Desert, and the Tarim Basin.

FengHuang, 凤凰古城, HuNan province, central China. 'Fenghuang', Chinese for 'Phoenix', the mythical bird of good omen and longevity that is consumed by fire only to rise again from the flames, is named after a legend that two of these fabulous birds flew over and found the town so beautiful that they hovered there, reluctant to leave.

Cafe culture, boutiques, galleries ...

GuangXi province.

2012.