Photos from China: Random.

Posted on June 23, 2016 by theatrejunkiehm2012

I’ve been here almost 10 months, and I’ve seen quite a few things I still haven’t processed yet, or wasn’t sure how to classify. “Random” seems as good as anything.

: When a new shop opens in Zhongshan, bouquets of flowers on stands and BIG blow-up dragons appear!

: The flowers are always lovely.

: Some displays are VERY extravagant. This is a lion dancer getting ready to open a travel agency!

: These are their flowers! Notice the bright cloth wrapping around the bases holding the flowers?

: This is the same kind of arrangement, but in Xi’an. Smaller flowers, more greenery, tulle instead of wrapping. Same idea, but different region. Neat!

: Also in Xi’an. Want to buy a fur coat from behind a piece of corrugated tin! Totally legal!

: This is glimpse into the grounds of the technical university in my neighbourhood. I can never go in to see it properly without being on business in there. ALL schools have this kind of gate.

: Mosquito and sandfly season was hard on me. (Sandflies are midges.)

: Never had a mosquito net before coming here. It helped against the mosquitos. The sandflies…eh.

: In Hong Kong. Just thought this was cool,.

: I came down with the flu, and the pharmacist gave me…THESE. The box came a package of tiny straws to suck back the medicine in these vials.

: The instructions.

: Me at a coffee house I’ve discovered. Instead of number, they give you a teddy bear to track your order.

: Little girl on her way to school on a rainy day.

: The Flower Market of Zhongshan. Where they sell more than flowers.

: Tropical and deciduous trees going up the mountain. Just on the other side, more building.

: China is skyscrapers and high finance. It’s also people selling domestic rabbits out of cages on the street.

: Roosters outside of a play school.

: Not sure…

: During the winter, I had to get this hand warmer / hot water bottle to defrost my hands. It was the Year of the Monkey, so…

: Google is everywhere!

: Yes, while you get your car washed, you can have chicken meat, goat meat, or dog meat. Your choice.

Photos from China: Parks of Zhongshan

Gallery

Posted on April 25, 2016 by theatrejunkiehm2012

This gallery contains 46 photos.

Photos from China: THE PARK

Posted on October 8, 2015 by theatrejunkiehm2012

I’ve been wanting to visit this park almost since the day I got here. It surrounds a fairly tall peak, atop which is a pagoda that’s lit up at night. All of my fellow teachers have told me the park is huge and beautiful…except for the zoo. Apparently there’s a horribly sad zoo where they keep lions in a concrete enclosure the size of our kitchen. I managed to avoid it, lest I burst out crying.

I also experienced a first today — I’ve been told it’ll happen again. A complete stranger asked to take a photo with me.

AND. You’ll see one very bad photo I managed to snap of a butterfly. Huge, magnificent butterflies like you have never SEEN. They were such divas — none would stop and pose.

: I don’t know what this is either: best guess is a piece of military equipment.

: Inside the pagoda.

: Going upstairs.

: View from the top!

: The building with the crazy glass roof is the Zhongshan Expo Centre. It’s enormous.

: The two tall grey buildings are Ocean Plaza. At their base is Carre Four, the big supermarket we do most of our shopping at, and lots of takeaway shops — McDonalds, KungFu (China’s KFC), Bubble tea, and Starbucks, to name a few.