This photo was taken in the city of Nanning by Robert Daboss, in which this billboard shows Chairman Mao, Deng Xiaopin and Jiang Zeming looking at the modernization efforts underway.

这张南宁的图片是Robert Daboss在南宁拍的,照片里的政治宣传牌描绘了毛泽东,邓小平和江泽民三代领导人展望中国的现代化发展的画面.

“Let’s strive together to revitalize Nanning”, the poster board reads

牌子上写着:”团结奋斗,振兴南宁”.

In China, tremendous progress has been made in reform, opening up and modernization, which was intiated by Deng Xiaoping over the past two decades.

在过去的二十多年里,在邓小平的指引下,中国的改革开放和现代化建设取得了卓著的进步.

Beneath the board, a sanitary worker is also on camera, watering the plants for use in improving Nanning’s urban landscapes.

在牌子下面,我们可以看到一个环卫工人了正在为城市的绿化植物浇水

While many of the National leaders in China have made a deep and lasting difference in the life of Chinese people, ordinary people like him are also performing their service to make China a better place.

很多中国的国家领导人为改善人民生活作出了很大的贡献,而像这位环卫工人一样的普通人民也正在为祖国的建设奉献自己的一份力量

This photo was taken by Fu Ling in a small water town in Zhejiang province, which is known as the “Land of Fish and Rice”.

这图片是Fu ling在浙江的一个水上小镇拍的,浙江又被称为”鱼米之乡”.

And this photo from Robert DaBoss was taken on one of the waterways of Shaoxing, where two little boats sat quietly on the water.

而这一张是Robert DaBoss拍的图片,地点是在中国的绍兴市.在图片上我们可以看到两艘小船静静的躺在水上.

There is a new blog in town. China Golf and has courses from around China featured on its pages. Soon, about 300 courses from around China will be featured on the site with prices, play dates and more.

新的博客来了:中国高尔夫 ,在上面有中国各地的高尔夫球场的信息

网站很快会提供大概300多个遍布中国的高尔夫场的信息 包括价格,场地数据等等

China Golf : Hainan, Mission Hills, Sanya, Great Wall Golf Tours

中国高尔夫:海南,观澜湖,三亚,长城高尔夫之旅

A couple of days ago my girlfriend HuaDi went to He Yuan city, China on a business trip, where she witnessed the first hand beauty of this marvelous fountain known as the biggest one in Aisa. The height of this gorgeous fountain is 169 meters, or 554 feet tall. The giant tall fountain is located in Xinfengjiang forest park in He Yuan.

几天前我的女朋友华Di去了中国的梅州市出差,在那里她看到河源亚洲第一高的喷泉.这座美丽的喷泉169米高,也就是554英寸.喷泉坐落于河源的新丰江森林公园

See the magnificent fountain below

看看下面这座宏伟的的喷泉的图

To get a better view of the fountain, refer to this video I found on Metacafe

想看清楚点的话,下面我找到个在Metacafe的视频,也是这个喷泉的.

[metacafe 849525]

This picture was taken at Detian Falls in Guangxi, China by Robert Daboss

这是一张Robert Daboss在中国广西德天瀑布照的图片

An update for new readers and a reminder for long-time fans: we regularly publish photos from our readers and group members who want to show others the interesting, curious, creepy, unusual, mysterious, elegant, odd, lovely, frumpy, and otherwise fantastic China that they have found from behind the lens. We publish work from beginners to veterans of photography, and our only requirements are that you only send us photos you have taken.

Some examples:

These first photos come from the China Photo Contest group on Facebook and were posted by Robert DaBoss.

These next photos come from our Facebook group A Million People Who Love China and were posted by Elisabeth Rowley Mitchell.

To see your photos here, post your photos first on the Blog of Dreams’ associated groups on Facebook: China Photo Contest and A Million People Who Love China. We will feature weekly photos on the blog from each group and from any part of China and its autonomous regions. Stories, anecdotes, notes about context, and information about the location where the photo was taken are more than welcome.

All money raised as a result of views of these photos and click-throughs on ads for these sites go directly to the Library Project and the Library Project Earthquake Relief Fund, a China charity now leading a campaign focused on helping to rebuild libraries and schools.

Tom Carter, an internationally acclaimed photographer currently based in Beijing, will be releasing his series of portraits from people all around China titled “China: Portrait of a People.” His photographs, there of which are featured here, provide a sense of depth and perspective on China, as does Tom’s career and body of work concerning China.

I wanted to feature Tom on the Blog of Dreams because of the intense passion and deep commitment his photos and writing seem to commit to understanding China. He does not seem to be content with the metropolises of Beijing or Shanghai, but has a deep interest in looking at parts of China that are often forgotten about or little-known to foreigners who have spent a short amount of time here. Most of us know that we need to go to Sichuan to see pandas, but how many of us are familiar with the Yao Minority people or Guizhou’s minority village of Zengchong? Tom’s articlulate stories and photos on both of these places are worth a thoughtful read.

More of Tom’s photos and articles can be seen on his China photo website, http://tomcarter.org.

Here are three more photos from our friends at the China Photo Contest:

This photo from Ricardo Duarte comes from Xian in Shaanxi Province.

This photo from Robert DaBoss was taken in Guangzhou.

And this photo from Joew Huang was taken in Guangdong Province.

We’ll announce more photos and contest winners in the next couple of days.

One of my favorite spots in Guangzhou (and a place that’s unusually quiet in a city known for its loud, delicious restaurants) is The Temple of the Six Banyan Trees.

An ancient Buddhist holy site built in 537 AD, during the Liang Dynasty in Guangzhou, the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees (六榕寺) was originally called the Baozhuangyan Temple, which probably means means something like . During the Northern Song Dynasty, a writer called Su Shi wrote the inscription Liu Rong (Six Banyan Trees) because of the six banyan trees he saw there. (The Chinese for “Captain Obvious” has escaped me). Ever since, the place has since been called the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees.

Just as dynasties in China rise and fall, so did the Temple. One of the dynasties burned the temple down, and it was rebuilt in the Northern Song Dynasty (989 AD). The Flower Pagoda, the main structure of the temple, was built in 1097, and was named for its colorful exterior. Though its original base was square, it was given an octagonal base during the rebuild in 1097. It was rebuilt again in 1373 AD after another fire in the early Ming Dynasty period, and finally restored in 1900. In all, this temple has over 1,400 years of history.

After entering the main gate, Tianwang Hall is the first major area, and The Laughing Buddha is there to welcome visitors. Next comes Weituo Hall. An old Chinese legends tells of a general Weituo who recaptured the Buddhist relics which had been stolen. In contrast to the laughing Buddha, Weituo keeps a straight face–apparently getting the relics back didn’t do all that much for his mood.
The piece of architecture that most often catches a visitor’s eyes is the Six Banyan Pagoda, where the Buddhist relics are placed. Its roofs curve upward and appear to be dark red flower petals, while the tip of the pagoda is like stamens. The whole construction looks like a huge stigma high in the air. Therefore, people like to call it the Flower Pagoda. The pagoda not only is architecturally elegant, but also provides visitors a good place to overlook enchanting scenery around.

To the west of the Six Banyan Pagoda is Daxiong Baodian Hall - the main hall of the temple. The three biggest copper Buddhist statues placed there are among the biggest and most ancient Buddhist statues in Guangdong. In the center is Sakyamuni; to the left, the Amitabha; and to the right, the Apothecary. Together, they represent for present, past, and future.

Burning incense sticks is a major part of visiting the temple and paying respect. Thus, every year on the night before the Chinese traditional Spring Festival and Lantern Festival, the temple swarms with people. Masses queue to light and burn the first joss sticks so that they are blessed with good fortune in the coming year.

Nowadays, the temple’s proximity to foreign consulates in Guangzou has made it a regular destination for families participating in the international adoption of children from China. Typically families receive blessings for their newly adopted children at this temple in front of the statue of Kuan Yin.