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Dalian

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China

Day 3 - Dàlián

Chairman Mao at Dagong

Chairman Mao at Dagong

I was up at 5am in order to get an early flight from Beijing to Dalian. Dalian is a major city and seaport in the south of Liaoning province, in Northeast China. It is surrounded by the waters of the Yellow Sea to the east and the Bohai Sea to the west and south. This huge statue of Chairman Mao is outside of Dalian University of Technology, Dagong.

Encircled

Encircled

The campus was like any other. Lots of students having a good time, hustle-bustle, and some interesting architecture. Dalian is considerably less hazy than Beijing, but it's still hazy.

DUT Library

DUT Library

Many universities in China sport a statue of Chairman Mao, and many of the buildings share the same architectural mantra.

Abandoned Waterpark

Abandoned Waterpark

After work was finished, we headed to the beach. There aren't many beaches close to Chinese cities, and my co-worker said this is the third one he's been to. He said that he was surprised how clear the water was (it was clear) and that this is probably the most beautiful beach he's visited in his life. I recommended a trip to Thailand if he could make it one day.

Flying kites and airing linen

Flying kites and airing linen

There was plenty of action down by the seaside. Some dude with a whip, ladies dancing, bungee jumps & zip lines!

Lots of concrete

I've not shown many photographs of food, but that's mostly down to being absolutely ravenous by the time I sit down. The camera remains in my bag as I tuck in, and then I remember I've not taken any pictures of food! 

Amazing seafood

Amazing seafood

Well, here you go. Some amazing seafood from this coastal region. There was no menu in this restaurant; we went into a back room and chose what we'd like to eat from tanks and exquisitely set-out plates. It was nothing short of delicious.

Haidian District

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China

Day 2 - Haidian District

 

It certainly looks like the Environmental Sciences building

It certainly looks like the Environmental Sciences building

I'm currently here in China for work-related activities, and thus needed to crack on with work early this morning. A 2km walk from my hotel, is the Environmental Sciences building of Tsinghua University, in the heart of the large Haidian district. I always appreciate greenery, especially when said greenery apparently envelopes the man-made structure within.

Up the river

Up the river

Visibility is as poor as yesterday, and here's why. There is a lot of water vapour in the air, which condenses onto the aerosol particles. The particles thus become a little larger, and scatter light even more. It's almost like being in a very fine cloud. If there were fewer particles, more water may condense onto a given particle and it would fall to the ground as a droplet. Even though we have actually had some rain, there are too many particles to remove in such processes. It's making every photo look as though I've completely messed up the in-camera settings. There is simply just too much scattering - all of these photos are even taken with a circular polariser fitted to the end of my lens! 

The largest lake on the campus

The largest lake on the campus

The poor visibility certainly gives the photos a certain "look" . I don't know if it's possible to get instagram in china (it's probably not), but it's not needed in Beijing. All my photos look retro here.

Some Chinese characters are the same in Japan

Some Chinese characters are the same in Japan

I can read quite a lot here in Beijing. What I can't read, I either guess or just ignore. The Chinese writing system has changed over the years, and the oldest scriptures are the easiest for me to read, as they are the same characters as used today in Japan. The Chinese have since moved onto simplified scripts, though not in Taiwan.

100 year old shrine

100 year old shrine

Unlike Japan, and Tokyo in particular, many buildings in Beijing are well over 50 years old. The reason is twofold. Firstly, there are far, far fewer earthquakes here in Beijing than in Japan. And secondly, Beijing wasn't mostly turned to rubble by firebombing from the Allied Forces in WWII.

The original Tsinghua University building

The original Tsinghua University building

Tsinghua University was founded in 1911. There's an interesting mix of Chinese and American (Jeffersonian) architecture throughout the campus. 

For dinner I ventured into the centre of the Haidian district, in search of noodles.

TUS Park is called "China's Silicon Valley"

TUS Park is called "China's Silicon Valley"

It rained again. 

Recharge your car here. Help reduce pollution!

Recharge your car here. Help reduce pollution!

I've not been here long, but I have noticed a few things about the Chinese people:

  1. Extremely friendly
  2. They don't drink cold water (it's served hot) 
  3. They don't stare at foreigners, and will speak to you in Chinese first
  4. Completely ignore traffic signals (observe below)
Notice the "red man" sign, and everyone ignoring it

Notice the "red man" sign, and everyone ignoring it

As I was devouring my noodles, a very pleasant chap came and sat down opposite me. He started talking about the weather, probably. I wouldn't know, as he was speaking in Chinese. I only know how to say "hello" and "thank you", so I didn't get very far. It turns out that he studied French in school (as did I), and so we conversed in the best French we could muster. No doubt if an actual french person were nearby they'd cringe in horror, but it got the job done. Surreal. He asked me if I had "QQ". I said no. I said we use Facebook outside of China. He said he didn't know what it was. I'd finally found someone who doesn't know Facebook.

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C'est la vie. 

Make haze while the sun shines

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China

Day 1 - Beijing

Visibility is just a few hundred metres

Visibility is just a few hundred metres

I've safely made it to my hotel in Beijing. I've never been to mainland China before (save for a transfer in Shanghai).After passing through immigration, I headed to the taxi rank. The taxi driver was an utter loon. He appeared to be driving a manual gearbox, but sans clutch (or at least he didn't care about a clutch). If you've ever watched touring cars, you'll have some idea of the ride. Quite brilliantly, around 50 near-misses were skilfully kept as near-misses, with the kind of precision you'd only expect from Schumacher. The guy could have been a world champion, but he's just a crazy taxi driver in Beijing. His photo ID was a little perplexing, as it pictured a man with a full head of hair and no wrinkles. However, the chap next to me had almost no hair and skin like a prune. Hmmm.

Crazy Taxi

Crazy Taxi

I am rather quickly finding out what parts of the internet I am permitted to see. No facebook, no twitter, sparse Google pages, half of the video feeds don't work. As a temporary resident in Beijing, I am also not permitted to see the sky. In every direction, the haze is very, very obvious. I've never experienced anything like it first hand. Unfortunately, it means I will have to limit my time outdoors. As a climate scientist specialising in the study of small particulate matter (the exact type which create this haze), I know all too well of the detrimental effects to human health.

If you squint, you might make out planes on the runway...

If you squint, you might make out planes on the runway...

It's quite impressive that planes land safely in this smog. It was rather an odd feeling; knowing you're coming in to landing, but only seeing the ground around 5 seconds before the wheels bump down. 

Nothing like a good coffee

Nothing like a good coffee

I checked in and was told that my room was still being prepared, so I ordered a coffee and got to some work in the lobby. Nothing beats a good coffee, and I always feel tired after travelling long distances. 

How much would a room this size cost in Tokyo?

How much would a room this size cost in Tokyo?

The hotel is rather grand, and so is the room. I've never had such a spacious room in Tokyo. If they exist, they're well out of my budget! The water pressure is feeble, but apart from that, I can't complain. Unlike any bed in Japan, it looks like I'll fit in this one.

The view from the hotel window drops off rapidly

The view from the hotel window drops off rapidly

All being well, I plan on updating the blog each day with a few photos from China. I've got plugins to automatically post to twitter and facebook - I won't have access to those until I am outside of The Great Firewall this weekend. Stay tuned!

An afternoon in Jiyugaoka

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After my orange juice this morning, I headed to Shibuya to catch a train on the Tokyu Toyoko line. The train terminus has actually moved, now serving as a through-train to the Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin Line. Remarkable, really. Today, I wanted to find the quickest way from my usual exit, to the Toyoko Line, as when we tried the other week, we were going around downward spirals deeper into Shibuya's underground. Anyway, my aim today was to visit the popular and chic neighbourhood of Jiyugaoka.

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Any visitor to Tokyo will ride a train. It's unavoidable. Thankfully, it's a joyous experience. Helpful staff and punctual trains make life easier for tourists, but if you try to catch a train before 9am... good luck to you! My train to work is quoted as being at 225% capactiy. Yeah. 225%.

If you can manage it, I recommend going to the very front carriage, as there are usually windows into the driver's cab.

 

Driving  | NEX-7 & SEL24F18Z | 1/30s f/1.8 ISO100 24mm

 

I like to find new and interesting coffee shops when I'm out and about in Tokyo. Japan's the world's third largest coffee bean importer, and it's evident. There are both chain and independent coffee shops within a few metres of every train station. Sometimes, there are even two or three shops next to each other. You'd never see that in the UK. I remember people dissing Starbucks in the UK for destroying the independent coffee shops... yet I never remember seeing anywhere decent in the UK. Most "coffee shops" were just greasy spoons, and I never wanted to go into one. I'd pay for a good coffee, in a good coffee shop in the UK. Maybe I'll cut to the chase and just open a shop one day.

Anyway, I walked past an old fellow separating out the "good beans from the bad" in his (translated) words. Wow. I don't even know what the difference is. He said that he looks for whole, well shaped beans. I asked him if I could take a photo, to which he agreed with a big smile. Of course, I went in straight away and ordered a good strong coffee.

 

Mr. Bean | NEX-7 & Canon nFD 50mm F1.4 | 1/1250s f/2.0 ISO100 50mm

Espresso Blend | NEX-7 & SEL24F18Z | 1/60s f/1.8 ISO320 24mm

Energised, I went back to the streets. I'd waited until the afternoon to avoid the strong midday sun, and to catch the favourable low-angled light. 

I wanted to practice what I preached, so I slowly drifted away from the busiest shopping areas and headed down the backstreets, passing more and more residential areas, and independent shops.

Yellow underbelly | NEX-7 & SEL24F18Z | 1/30s f/8.0 ISO100 24mm

 

Jiyugaoka is consistently listed as being the most popular residential area in all of Tokyo. The apartments are expensive, and an expensive car will most likely pass you at some time.

 

Apartment | NEX-7 & SEL24F18Z | 1/1000s f/1.8 ISO100 24mm

Bridge | NEX-7 & SEL24F18Z | 1/160s f/2.5 ISO100 24mm

 

Rain was actually predicted today, as Japan has started its rainy season. Thankfully though, there was none. Not only that, but the forecast for tomorrow is favourable. Rain will come on monday and last for a few days. 

 

Green man | NEX-7 & SEL24F18Z | 1/160s f/1.8 ISO100 24mm 

 

These days, I've become really used to all of the overhead cables here. It's really quite interesting how quickly something so different can become normal. I had a similar thought today, as I've been using this NEX-7 for around 9 months now, and know it like the back of my hand. I can use it without having to think about what I'm doing, which I've never felt with a camera before. It's a really nice feeling, and has meant that I can focus on the photo, rather than the camera.