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.

Jiayuguan (pop 250,000)

Gansu Province

China

September 16, 2016

How can I describe the Great Wall of China?  Books have been written.

I recommend The Great Wall: The extraordinary history of China’s wonder of the world by John Man.

For basic information about the reality and the myths, please read the Introduction to the book here.

Rainbow Mountains

Zhangye

Gansu Province

China

September 14, 2016

The Rainbow Mountains is one of the most dramatic geologic formations in China.

For good reason, they are also known as the Painted Mountains.

If you travel to central or western China, be sure to visit this site.

It’s easy to reach here by bus or tour group from Zhangye City in Gansu Province.  

Baoji

Prefecture Population 3,760,000

City Population 800,000

Shaanxi Province

Peoples Republic of China

August 31, 2016

With mountain ranges to the north and the south, Baoji lies in the strategic corridor and is the gateway to the eastern cities of Shanghai and Beijing and to the Far West of China.

Baoji traces its roots back to 2000 BCE.  

The ancient, now modern city of Baoji is just a short 177 km (110 miles) from the ancient capital of Xi’an and, heading west, an appropriate first stop along the Ancient Silk Road.

Tianshui

Gansu Province

China

September 2, 2016

Ancient trade routes were much more than just a highway for the exchange of materials and goods from one distant place to another.  Ideas and culture also traveled with ships and camels and horses. The Silk Road is certainly a prime example of the exchange and dissemination of culture. 

Buddhism flowered in South Asia and eventually “traveled” to Central Asia and China.  Here in Gansu Province, the Maijishan Grotto Complex is one of several grotto sites lying on the trade routes between northwest China and Central Asia.

Tianshui

(pop 3.5 million)

Gansu Province.

People’s Republic of China

The aroma of fresh baked bread draws my attention as I wander through the noisy food market here in Tianshui, the second largest city in Gansu Province.  My eyes bulge as I encounter a pile of huge watermelons – the largest I think I have ever seen.

The bakers smile and also the lady who slices chunks of tofu and the man who sells noodles.  An elderly lady ignores me as she makes her selection from a truckload of pears.