Travel Letters

Xining: Silk Road Hub

Posted September 10, 2016 by Jan
China: Silk Road

Xining

Qinghai Province

China

September 10, 2016

 

Xining is a city with a history of more than 2000 years.  It was a vital link to Tibet to the south and to the city of Lanzhou to the east. 

Xining lies in the Hexi Corridor and served as a transportation and trading hub for the ancient Northern Silk Road route.  The city now serves as a hub for the Modern Silk Road providing connections to multiple-lane highways and bullet trains in all directions.

Qinghai Province

Posted September 11, 2016 by Jan
China: Silk Road

Qinghai Province

China

September 11, 2016

 

Kumbum Monastery (Ta’er Si) lies just south of the city of Xining, the capital of Qinghai Province.

The Monastery was built in 1577 at the birthplace of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelugpa (Yellow Hat) sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

Further south, on the road to Qinghai Lake, lies a lovely scenic spot  and a Tibetan version of a Petting Zoo.  The official name is Sun and Moon Mountain or Sun and Moon Pass.

Icons of Modern Art

Posted February 8, 2017 by Jan
France

 Paris

France

February 8, 2017

 

My friend Gary in Bangkok described his strategy when he visits a museum: “When I go to an exhibit,” he told me, “I choose one special painting and then stare at that work of art for at least thirty minutes.”

The Icons of Modern Art, the Shchukin Collection at the Fondation Louis Vuitton has on display more than one hundred and twenty paintings.  I have planned three visits.  But with hundreds of visitors streaming through the galleries at any one time, how shall I follow Gary’s advice?

Well, I did my best.

Jaisalmer: "The Golden City"

Posted February 27, 2007 by Jan
India: Rajasthan

Jaisalmer, Rajasthan

India

February 27, 2007

Dear Family and Friends,

India is blessed with ancient stone -- deep deposits of granite and marble and sandstone. For centuries, for millennia, masons, architects, artisans and artists have quarried and designed and cut and carved their local stone to build a dramatic and eternal heritage.

 

The glossy white marble of Agra, the sparkling pink sandstone of Jaipur, the rich red sandstone of Bikaner -- the geological riches are the pride of India and a prize for her visitors.

And now, Jaisalmer -- a golden city! Jaisalmer, the golden-yellow sandstone walls rise up from the hills to dominate and defy the golden gauntlet of the Thar Desert.

Taipei: "Fur Elise"

Posted October 24, 2007 by Jan
Taiwan

Taipei,

Taiwan

Republic of China

October 24, 2007

Dear Family and Friends,

I am shocked, shocked to find that "Für Elise" is the "national anthem" of Taiwan!

As I check in to the Han She Hotel in Taipei, "Für Elise" flows forth from the lobby sound system. It's not a very good version; it's too heavy for my taste, and not lovely and lyrical as Beethoven intended. 

As I stroll around Taipei, and in the streets of other cities and towns, "Für Elise" pours forth. But from where? At first I thought it was a loud mobile phone announcement or maybe an inducement from a shop or a restaurant. But it's playing on every street, morning, noon and night. Finally I found the source.

Taipei 101 and Beitou, Danshui: "A Soak and a Sunset"

Posted October 28, 2007 by Jan
Taiwan

Taipei

Taiwan

October 28, 2007

Taipei. The capital of Taiwan. 2.7 million well-educated, well-dressed, energetic, hospitable people. Everyone carries a colorful umbrella.

It's crowded, busy and glitzy. Modern buildings. Modern fashions. Some boys wear spiked hair and the girls "accessorize." Spotlessly clean. Lots of bright yellow taxis with drivers who accept any destination without question.

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