More pictures via my two Facebook albums, here and here, and from Alicia, Aaron and Kevin. Kevin also has a write-up over at his blog.
Kaila! Jordan! Kevsther!
12 years ago
Showing posts with label Aaron. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aaron. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
More pictures from the Great Wall
Leftovers from Monday's post
More pictures via my two Facebook albums, here and here, and from Alicia, Aaron and Kevin. Kevin also has a write-up over at his blog.
More pictures via my two Facebook albums, here and here, and from Alicia, Aaron and Kevin. Kevin also has a write-up over at his blog.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Great Wall: Jiankou
I camped at the Jiankou ("Arrow's Nock") section of the Great Wall over the weekend and took about 800 pictures, and looking back I'm amazed all over again: there's not one bad shot in the batch. The views are simply that spectacular. Before I blabber on, just take a look:
What's unique about Jiankou -- other than the fact that three sections of the Wall connect here, Mutianyu to the east and Huanghua to the west, and that most professional photographs of the Wall are taken at this spot -- is it's completely devoid of tourists. In fact, there are signs in the village that say, "This part of the Wall is not open to the public." Just recently a couple hikers died at Jiankou, so our group of 10 were told twice to not go up there. Our guides, however, knew the deal: the villagers merely felt compelled to say "Don't go" so that they would not be liable in case something did happen. In actuality they didn't really care, though one lady was kind enough to say, as we breezed by and away from civilization, to "Be careful."
The accident, far from discouraging visitors, may have actually increased them. We encountered four other groups of hikers, including a pair that woke us at 3:30 a.m. with a stirring rendition of a nationalistic Chinese song. Our guides told us was they had never seen more than 10 people on a trip before, and for good reason: Jiankou is for experienced hikers, as there are steep sky stairs and loose rocks all over. But a little caution is worth the experience: treading over stones virtually untouched -- at least by construction cranes and souvenir vendors -- since Ming Dynasty workers placed them here a thousand years back.
I don't usually use this site for promotions, so you'll excuse me for saying this one time that if you want a great experience, go to Back Country Beijing and contact Aaron and Lincoln. Weekend getaways start at a very affordable price (RMB 400 to 600, depending on the size of the group), with tents and other camping gear, transportation and three meals all included. Yes, Aaron and Lincoln actually tote your tent up to the site with you, and -- if you ask nicely -- supply all the red wine you can drink. Take my word for it, when you're up there, even Great Wall wine is drinkable.
UPDATE: Lot more pictures here.
UPDATE 2: Video (and some more words) here.
What's unique about Jiankou -- other than the fact that three sections of the Wall connect here, Mutianyu to the east and Huanghua to the west, and that most professional photographs of the Wall are taken at this spot -- is it's completely devoid of tourists. In fact, there are signs in the village that say, "This part of the Wall is not open to the public." Just recently a couple hikers died at Jiankou, so our group of 10 were told twice to not go up there. Our guides, however, knew the deal: the villagers merely felt compelled to say "Don't go" so that they would not be liable in case something did happen. In actuality they didn't really care, though one lady was kind enough to say, as we breezed by and away from civilization, to "Be careful."
The accident, far from discouraging visitors, may have actually increased them. We encountered four other groups of hikers, including a pair that woke us at 3:30 a.m. with a stirring rendition of a nationalistic Chinese song. Our guides told us was they had never seen more than 10 people on a trip before, and for good reason: Jiankou is for experienced hikers, as there are steep sky stairs and loose rocks all over. But a little caution is worth the experience: treading over stones virtually untouched -- at least by construction cranes and souvenir vendors -- since Ming Dynasty workers placed them here a thousand years back.
I don't usually use this site for promotions, so you'll excuse me for saying this one time that if you want a great experience, go to Back Country Beijing and contact Aaron and Lincoln. Weekend getaways start at a very affordable price (RMB 400 to 600, depending on the size of the group), with tents and other camping gear, transportation and three meals all included. Yes, Aaron and Lincoln actually tote your tent up to the site with you, and -- if you ask nicely -- supply all the red wine you can drink. Take my word for it, when you're up there, even Great Wall wine is drinkable.
UPDATE: Lot more pictures here.
UPDATE 2: Video (and some more words) here.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Longqingxia and... aghhhhhhhhhh
Visited Longqingxia 龙庆峡 yesterday, a ravine full of cliffs and cypress trees. A bit pricey, much more than we had anticipated (Molly: "So with lunch, the day should be under 100 kuai...woohoo!"): 40 RMB ticket, then 60 RMB, then 150 RMB for bungee. Bungee? Yes, bungee. See below...
It wasn't too high -- 48 meters -- but high enough for me to lose a sandal that was taped to my foot. It was awesome. (And in case you're wondering... yes, it was my first time.)
Video here, appropriately titled "Flailing."
Saturday, July 5, 2008
"Hey will you spin your belt?"
Backdated entries from this past week:
MONDAY, JUNE 30: The morning after, and ESPN The Magazine: How a dead hooker ended up in my bed.
TUESDAY, JULY 1: Frolf at Ditan with Sandy and Cowboy Jeff. The strangest chant this side of Falun Gong.
THURSDAY, JULY 3: Watching Kung Fu Panda, and a clip from Shanghai: a clip of Joe, a.k.a. Mini-Hulk, serenading Molly, a.k.a. Smegma a.k.a. Smeglips a.k.a. Smegus (feel free to Urban Dictionary any of those).
BEIJING'S FIRST 18-HOLE FRISBEE GOLF COURSE!
FRIDAY, JULY 4: Dinner with dad, and... nice view.
Note: The Friday, July 4 Blueberry Nights entry refers to an event that happened the night of Wednesday, July 2... just in case that wasn't clear. That leaves the question, What did I do Friday?
Oh, you'll see... you'll see. Here's a quick preview:
Photo credit: Me
Who is Boehner? This is Boehner (video from Shanghai):
MONDAY, JUNE 30: The morning after, and ESPN The Magazine: How a dead hooker ended up in my bed.
TUESDAY, JULY 1: Frolf at Ditan with Sandy and Cowboy Jeff. The strangest chant this side of Falun Gong.
THURSDAY, JULY 3: Watching Kung Fu Panda, and a clip from Shanghai: a clip of Joe, a.k.a. Mini-Hulk, serenading Molly, a.k.a. Smegma a.k.a. Smeglips a.k.a. Smegus (feel free to Urban Dictionary any of those).
BEIJING'S FIRST 18-HOLE FRISBEE GOLF COURSE!
FRIDAY, JULY 4: Dinner with dad, and... nice view.
Note: The Friday, July 4 Blueberry Nights entry refers to an event that happened the night of Wednesday, July 2... just in case that wasn't clear. That leaves the question, What did I do Friday?
Oh, you'll see... you'll see. Here's a quick preview:
Photo credit: Me
Who is Boehner? This is Boehner (video from Shanghai):
Friday, July 4, 2008
Happy one-year anniversary, Blueberry Nights
I had a friend tell me Wednesday night that I'm "too young" to understand something I did on Sunday, and I think she was right (I'm not trying to be vague -- it's just not worth elaborating, and it's besides the point). It's startling to have someone show you a glimpse of a future realization. In that sobering moment, something opens up right in front of you, and once you step forth you can never turn back.
Well.
Blueberry Nights, my friends, in high-ISOed splendor:
And here's video:
Well.
Blueberry Nights, my friends, in high-ISOed splendor:
And here's video:
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Watching Kung Fu Panda, and a clip from Shanghai
Backdated entry, because if not by this blog, how will I track the passing of days?
This g-chat message came through yesterday at 7:03 p.m.:
Aaron: hey
I knew little about Kung Fu Panda except that it starred Jack Black and featured the line, "I've only seen paintings of this painting," a punchline that, as China Law Blog points out, sheds light on China's counterfeiting culture (though no one laughed in my theater when the joke was delivered). Still, there were three reasons for my exclamatory excitement:
1. The name of the movie combines kung-fu and panda.
2. I hadn't watched a full movie since The Great Debaters, and I did that on an airplane from New York.
3. I had nothing else to do.
So, Aaron, Lincoln, Molly -- left to right, below (ignore that white guy in Molly's picture) -- and I went for a 9:35 showing in Wangfujing's Oriental Plaza, the same building as Aaron's Grand Hyatt Hotel. Unfortunately we had to leave Ice Age 2 at a crucial part, right before Manny meets the only other mammoth left in the world, a female he happens to despise, initially (I maintain, even after watching Dreamworks's Kung Fu Panda, that Ice Age 2 is the best non-Pixar CGI-animated movie ever made because of its subtlety and the theme of global warming). That's okay -- only Molly among us hadn't seen the movie.
Who's Molly?
This is Molly:
Joe, for the record, did not propose.
POSTSCRIPT 1: The pictures and video are from the Shanghai Ultimate Frisbee tournament, which happened two weekends ago. I'll post a picture or video every couple days from here on out. That's how massive and eventful that weekend was: it takes two weeks for me to process it all, then another four to get it all out.
POSTSCRIPT 2: Kung Fu Panda trailer.
This g-chat message came through yesterday at 7:03 p.m.:
Aaron: hey
kung fu panda
up for it?
me: oh yeah!
I knew little about Kung Fu Panda except that it starred Jack Black and featured the line, "I've only seen paintings of this painting," a punchline that, as China Law Blog points out, sheds light on China's counterfeiting culture (though no one laughed in my theater when the joke was delivered). Still, there were three reasons for my exclamatory excitement:
1. The name of the movie combines kung-fu and panda.
2. I hadn't watched a full movie since The Great Debaters, and I did that on an airplane from New York.
3. I had nothing else to do.
So, Aaron, Lincoln, Molly -- left to right, below (ignore that white guy in Molly's picture) -- and I went for a 9:35 showing in Wangfujing's Oriental Plaza, the same building as Aaron's Grand Hyatt Hotel. Unfortunately we had to leave Ice Age 2 at a crucial part, right before Manny meets the only other mammoth left in the world, a female he happens to despise, initially (I maintain, even after watching Dreamworks's Kung Fu Panda, that Ice Age 2 is the best non-Pixar CGI-animated movie ever made because of its subtlety and the theme of global warming). That's okay -- only Molly among us hadn't seen the movie.
Who's Molly?
This is Molly:
Joe, for the record, did not propose.
POSTSCRIPT 1: The pictures and video are from the Shanghai Ultimate Frisbee tournament, which happened two weekends ago. I'll post a picture or video every couple days from here on out. That's how massive and eventful that weekend was: it takes two weeks for me to process it all, then another four to get it all out.
POSTSCRIPT 2: Kung Fu Panda trailer.
Monday, June 30, 2008
The morning after, and ESPN The Magazine
Backdated entry, published 2:53 a.m., July 5, 2008
After waking up at about 8 a.m. and wondering why I was naked in bed, underwear and shorts on the other room's bed, a sock on the ground, another strewn in the bathroom, I pried the dry contacts out of my eyes and returned to bed, only to discover -- with horror! -- a dead hooker under my sheets. I didn't know what to do, so I tried going back to sleep.
Alas, I could not -- the nausea! I considered jamming a thumb up my throat but instead planted myself on the bathroom floor (which was cold and hard and probably dirty) with my upper torso draped over the bowl, which reeked. I dry-heaved some stomach acid into my throat but it would go no farther.
In the afternoon I was taken to Beijing Sports University by Christine, my father's assistant, for an interview with an Olympic marathoner.
I had dinner at Aaron's with Lincoln and Molly, who I felt obligated to give an apology because when you can't remember what you did the night before, chances are you owe lots of people apologies. We shopped in the Oriental Plaza, then Lincoln and Molly cooked spaghetti while I stressed out about the interview I was supposed to transcribe and translate.
That interview turned into this story for ESPN The Magazine's website, the latest update from the "Beijing Bureau." I'll link to all my stories some other time.
A day well spent.
(Except for the dead hooker. I still need to take care of that.)
POSTSCRIPT: If you don't know why I couldn't remember Sunday night (but I've been filled in plenty, thank you Aaron and Kevin, Betsy, et al.): read this and this, and watch this.
After waking up at about 8 a.m. and wondering why I was naked in bed, underwear and shorts on the other room's bed, a sock on the ground, another strewn in the bathroom, I pried the dry contacts out of my eyes and returned to bed, only to discover -- with horror! -- a dead hooker under my sheets. I didn't know what to do, so I tried going back to sleep.
Alas, I could not -- the nausea! I considered jamming a thumb up my throat but instead planted myself on the bathroom floor (which was cold and hard and probably dirty) with my upper torso draped over the bowl, which reeked. I dry-heaved some stomach acid into my throat but it would go no farther.
In the afternoon I was taken to Beijing Sports University by Christine, my father's assistant, for an interview with an Olympic marathoner.
I had dinner at Aaron's with Lincoln and Molly, who I felt obligated to give an apology because when you can't remember what you did the night before, chances are you owe lots of people apologies. We shopped in the Oriental Plaza, then Lincoln and Molly cooked spaghetti while I stressed out about the interview I was supposed to transcribe and translate.
That interview turned into this story for ESPN The Magazine's website, the latest update from the "Beijing Bureau." I'll link to all my stories some other time.
A day well spent.
(Except for the dead hooker. I still need to take care of that.)
POSTSCRIPT: If you don't know why I couldn't remember Sunday night (but I've been filled in plenty, thank you Aaron and Kevin, Betsy, et al.): read this and this, and watch this.
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