May 19th, 2013 at 12:00PM: istolethetv, Flickr
On May 17, a good chunk of East Asia had a day off to celebrate the Buddha's birthday (Southeast Asia will celebrate it next week). It happens that in Hong Kong the Enlightened One's birthday coincides each year with a Taoist celebration called the Bun Festival. The culmination of the Bun Festival occurs at midnight of the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, when "bun ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
GreatWall posts
Bun Snatching At The Bun Festival In Hong Kong
May 19th, 2013 at 12:00PM: istolethetv, Flickr
On May 17, a good chunk of East Asia had a day off to celebrate the Buddha's birthday (Southeast Asia will celebrate it next week). It happens that in Hong Kong the Enlightened One's birthday coincides each year with a Taoist celebration called the Bun Festival. The culmination of the Bun Festival occurs at midnight of the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, when "bun ...The Great Walls of China
Sep 10th, 2011 at 11:00AM:
There was more than one Great Wall of China, a Chinese archaeology team has discovered.
Several portions of the wall are actually double, triple, or quadruple walls running closely parallel to one another. This was a common feature in many ancient fortifications because it made the position harder to take. Often the troops would be garrisoned between the walls for protection against surprise ...Photo of the Day - Chairman Mao Portrait
Apr 10th, 2011 at 6:00PM:
History is all around us, particularly in a country like China. Whether you're walking along the magnificent Great Wall or gazing in awe at the Forbidden City in Beijing. Today's photo, taken by Flickr user Trent Strohm, offers us yet another unique glimpse of China's remarkable history: Chairman Mao, leader of the Chinese Revolution. Trent's inclusion of the soldier in front of Mao's portrait ...Ricky Gervais' travel show "An Idiot Abroad" hits US TV
Jan 26th, 2011 at 11:00AM: Fresh off his Golden Globes controversy, British comedian Ricky Gervais' latest project has hit US television. An Idiot Abroad is a travel show for non-travelers, featuring radio producer and comedy savant Karl Pilkington visiting the seven wonders of the world. If you've seen HBO's animated podcast The Ricky Gervais show, you're already familiar with Pilkington's moronic and occasionally ...Three Intrepid Travel deals for Mother's Day
Apr 14th, 2010 at 1:00PM:
Are you standing in stores, staring at shelves and scratching your head? Figuring out the perfect Mother's Day gift is always tough. In the end, you can't afford what you want to get her, buy her something that sucks instead and try to look like the thought is really what counts. Every year, you go through it, and the outcome is the same. Until 2010.
Make this the year you do something ...Dive the Great Wall of China with Urbane Nomads
Sep 21st, 2009 at 11:30AM: Did you know that parts of the Great Wall of China are underwater? Yeah, me neither. But according to Urban Daddy, one particular section of the wall has been submerged under a lake since the 1980's. And now a luxury tour company called Urbane Nomads is offering the first-ever guided diving trips to the hard-to-reach spot.
Guides will carry your gear to the submerged portion of the Wall and ...How great is the Great Wall of China? Very!
Apr 23rd, 2009 at 3:00PM: I bet you thought the name said it all. A recent survey by of this World Heritage site – billed as "technologically advanced" – puts the original length of the wall at 5,500 miles, much further than the previous estimate of 3,700 miles. That's a difference of almost 50 percent!
This effort took more than two years of surveying with GPS tools, infrared technology and other mapping ...On Horseback From Beijing to London
Apr 22nd, 2009 at 8:00AM: Last weekend, a 65-year old retired British teacher named Megan Lewis, and her two Chinese companions, Li Jing and Peng Wenchao, climbed into the saddles of their horses, and set off on an epic ride. Over the next three years, they'll cover more than 5000 miles, on two continents, as they travel from Beijing to London completely on horseback. The plan is to deliver a message of good will from ...5 Non-Tourist Destinations in Beijing
Jul 23rd, 2008 at 11:30AM: Everyone is looking forward to the Olympics. It is expected that well over half-a-million visitors will descend on Beijing during the Games. While all those people will probably contribute to the excitement and energy of the event, it going to be crowded. Imagine trying to visit The Great Wall of China or the Forbidden City in mid-August. The crowds will make a packed weekend at Disney World look ...The real Great Wall, and how to get there
Feb 6th, 2008 at 8:30AM: The girl in the photo is my girlfriend, in the process of slowly freezing to death on the Great Wall. We were stuck in a snowstorm with the nearest hikers miles away. And that path? Yep, it's as narrow as it looks, and I'm not exaggerating here, but one slip, and you'll be falling a few hundred meters down straight cliffs. Yet that hike at Simatai has been one of the most fun adventures we've ...The world's tourist traps and how to avoid them
Oct 19th, 2007 at 2:31PM: What constitutes a tourist trap? Forbes Traveler's Chris Colin argues that it's a place that eclipses the genuine article. Postcard racks block the actual view, and prices are considerably higher than they might be a few miles (or blocks) away. They leave you drained financially, asking yourself, "Why did I do this?" How do you spot a tourist trap? Colin suggests that anywhere a cruise ship docks ...The 'Wonders of the World' Votes are in!
Jul 8th, 2007 at 8:01AM: Following up on an earlier post, the voting is now complete, and the winner has been announced. And here are the "New Seven Wonders of the World": Mexico's Chichen Itza, Brazil's statue of Christ Redeemer, The Great Wall of China, Machu Picchu, Jordan's Petra, the Colosseum in Rome, and India's Taj Mahal.
The organizers say that they got about 100 million votes in what they're calling the world's ...A Canadian in Beijing: Simatai, The Great Wall: Take 3
Jul 5th, 2007 at 10:06AM:
My sister and her fiance Steve arrived in Beijing on a Thursday afternoon and they hit the ground running. Before the sun had fully set, they had checked into their hotel, eaten a traditional hot pot meal and were in attendance at my last and final performance in Beijing. That night was a late but great one, and it was wonderful to have them there. Six o'clock the next morning rolled around far ...Researchers to Measure The Great Wall
Feb 12th, 2007 at 9:22AM: The Great Wall of China, built to protect the northern border of the Chinese Empire, is an amazing spectacle. In fact, the Great Wall -- known to the Chinese as the "Long Wall of 10,000 Li" -- is actually a series of walls and earthen works begun in the 5th Century BC and connected centuries later. Since it's so old, it seems odd that no one really knows the precise dimensions of the iconic ...The Great Wall Crumbles
Nov 27th, 2006 at 9:00AM: Following up on my recent blog regarding construction crews taking a bite out of the Great Wall of China, here's an interesting piece from the NY Times about folks who are trying to preserve the Wall.
An official at the Great Wall Society thinks that most of the damage to the Wall was probably done in the 1950s and 1960s, since Mao encouraged farmers to use bricks from the Wall to build homes. A ...Mr. Hu: Do NOT Tear That Wall Down!
Nov 16th, 2006 at 6:01PM: Interesting news keeps flowing out of China, so we'll keep relaying it. It turns out that a private contractor was building a new road, which destroyed a section of the Great Wall of China, as well as a large beacon tower.
The fine on the contractor, from the Cultural Relics Bureau of Inner Mongolia, was a tiny 500,000 yuan ($63,000 USD), for the destruction.
This took place in the Inner ...
