Lake Kanas lies near the Altai mountains,in Xinjiang,China. It is China’s deepest freshwater lake. About 117 different kinds of birds live along it.

There is a large population of  Tuvans in the area.

There have been sightings of large lake creatures in the waters. A video was taken and shown in the local Chinese media where numerous unidentifiable creatures can be seen. And the water’s colour of the Kanas lake changes incredibly oftentimes.

Wolong National Nature Reserve  is a protected area located in Wenchuan country, Sichuan Province.Wolong National Nature Reserve houses more than 150 highly endangered giant pandas.On 5.12 earthquake,3 pandas were missing,5  staff members were killed,14 houses were all damaged.

Here is a picture of a panda seeing a policeman after the earthquake.

Though the other 86 pandas in Wolong had no casualty,the origin place of the pand’s  food,bamboo,was affected by the earthquake.

The wild giant pandas are still at risk.Concern about the lovely ancient animal,giant panda.

中文

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Chinese New Year or Spring Festival is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It is often called the Lunar New Year, especially by people in mainland China and Taiwan.

Here is the picture from Tom Carter,taken in Beijing

2009  is “The year of  the ox” according to the Chinese animal sign.Ox ,牛,is pronounced NIU in Chinese，the same as the NEW.So Happy Niu Year to the world!

China Travel: Guangdong Province

Andy Lai is the photographer behind this photo. This is a mosaic photo from a Cantonese Opera.

Guangdong Province lies in the southernmost part of China. With its location on the South China Sea, the province is a natural entry point to south China and has long served as a gateway for Westerners interested in China. Bordered by Jiangxi and Hunan provinces to the north, Fujian province to the east, and the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region to the west, Guangdong has easy access to many other key parts of south China. Guangdong province also claims 651 islands, many of which are located in the Pearl River Delta, which has recently become a center of great economic development in the region. It is estimated that Guangdong Province generates as much as a quarter of the GDP in China.

(This photo of Guangzhou’s skyline and all the photos below were taken by Shenxy.)

The provincial capital of Guangzhou has a long history of international trade and cooperated. Originally transcribed by Portugese traders as “Canton,” who took the name of the region for the name of the city, the name Guangzhou literally means “wide state.” The name Canton is still used informally for events such as the Canton Trade Fair, the world’s largest trade and outsourcing fair. Guangdong was named during the Ming Dynasty, and it was at this time that it began to serve as a major trade hub for China and Europe, with Portugal and England contributing much to the region’s multiculturalism and international fame (see our posts on Macau and Hong Kong for more information). Guangdong was famous for its hongs (trading houses) and its traders known compradors, (which comes from the Portugese word for “to purchase,” comprar). Perhaps because of the powerful international influence and centuries of contact with foreigners, Guangdong people have a long history of immigration and worldwide travel, with large groups of them moving to the US and Canada in the 1800s. To this day, Cantonese is the dominant language in many Chinatowns and Chinese communities across North America (as well as other parts of the world).

(This is a photo of Hua Nan Xin Cheng 华南新城, one of the areas of Guangzhou in Panyu District)

Though Guangzhou has a complex and interesting relationship with the outside world that has lasted for centuries, it also has a fascinating internal history of diversity. Many people who live in Guangdong are of the Han Chinese nationality, which comprises the largest single ethnic group worldwide. Still, Guangdong has a diverse, multi-cultural population, with members of forty-two different ethnic groups making their home here. In addition to Mandarin, Cantonese, the local dialect, is the most common tongue and one of the most important dialects of Chinese spoken inside and outside of the PRC. Other languages spoken include Hakka, Kejiahua, Min Nan, Xiang, Dzao Min, Zhuang, and many others.

In addition to rich environment of culture and language, Guangdong’s physical environment features a subtropical climate, with high humidity and hot weather in the summer and brisk and humid winters. Be careful about visiting during the rainy season in March and April! Due to its favorable geography and mild weather, Guangdong is the area’s major producer of rice, tea and tropical crops. Less than a quarter of all the land in Guangdong is used to produce food, so the areas that are set aside for agricultural purposes are farmed intensively.

(This is a photo of Shenzhen’s Dapeng Bay, 深圳大鹏湾).

In terms of its economy, light industry has brought an economic boom to Guangdong, and Guangzhou, not Beijing or Shanghai, boasts the highest GDP per capita in mainland China. Food processing, including sugar refining, as well as textile manufacturing and weaving are major industries here, as well as heavy industrial pursuits such as shipbuilding and repair and machine manufacturing, among others.

(This is a photo taken near Hailing Island in Guangdong Province.)

Perhaps more than anything, Guangdong is famous for its Cantonese cuisine. Because Guangzhou was a major trading port, its access to trade from all over the planet brought a wide variety of foods to the city, creating a huge amount of diversity within the cuisine. Someone once said, “the Cantonese eat every thing that flies except planes, every thing on the ground except cars, and every thing that is in water except boats,” and the saying has stuck. Fresh ingredients, mildly spiced, are favored, and the flavors are brought out with steaming, stir and deep frying. Because Guangdong is on a sea coast, seafood is often featured. Choice dishes include dim sum, hot pot, steamed eggplant, wonton noodles, fish balls, and beef brisket.

Visitors to the Guangdong province enjoy the scenic beauty of the Danxia, Zijiao, Luofu, and Dinghu mountains. In Guangzhou you will also want to visit Yuexiu Hill and Park, as well as the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees, an ancient Buddhist temple. There are many beautiful temples to see in Guangdong, including the Nanhua Temple located in Shaoguan. You will also find the informative Guangdong Provincial Museum in Guangzhou. Offering examples of Chaozhou wood carving, ceramic figures, old Chinese pottery and traditional Chinese calligraphy posters, you can enjoy the best of Guangdong’s culture, past and present.

Guangdong is also the home of Coffee, Yue Ying, and the League of Extraordinary Chinese Women.

Look for posts here soon about Yanzhi and Dawei’s adventures in Baiyun Mountain and Qi Xin Yan, two of the most scenic areas in Guangdong Province.

Recently, I was able to complete an interview with Thomas Stader, founder of a Chinese charity organization that helps to build libraries. Here are his words about some of the latest work the Library Project has been working on.

Can you tell us a little bit about the Library Project?

The Library Project provides books and libraries to under-financed countryside elementary schools in China.

I founded The Library Project because I found that most countryside elementary schools in China were lacking books that the children could physically read. What I mean by that is, most books in a countryside elementary school were written for university and high school students. They also lack any kind of reading area for the children to curl up with a book. What we do is very simple, we donate colorful, relevant, hi-quallity books to countryside elementary schools, while also ensuring that they have a safe and fun area to read the books in.

I understand that often children’s libraries in China aren’t often stocked with good children’s books and are often cramped or uncomfortable. Can you tell us more about that?

In general, we have found a complete lack of children’s books with PinYin for young learners. A child absolutely needs PinYin to read during grades 1 – 3. So that is our first obstacle that we must overcome. Our second is a complete lack of a comfortable library for the children to gather as a class and read a book. Most schools have a room set aside for a library, but they don’t have the funding to fill the room with furniture.

What we have found is, once we bring books that the children can read, along with tables and chairs for a library, the children love it.

Cool. I understand you’ve made a lot of big developments in the past year, right?

Yes we have. We have provided our first ten libraries, with plans of reaching a goal of over 80 by the end of 2008.

That sounds like a big commitment. Isn’t it costly to build a library?

The cost is quite low. Most libraries will cost between 4,000 and 8,000 RMB. This includes hi-quality Chinese language children’s books, colorful chairs, sturdy tables, globes, plants, posters, and all logistic costs such as trucks.

What all goes into the building of a library? What kind of cost is there in terms of money, time, and other resources?

From beginning to end, it takes about one month. That includes our Pre-Assessment, purchasing of books and furniture, and final delivery of the library. We usually have a group of about 5 – 15 volunteers helping with the final delivery. Once we set up the library, we introduce the children to their new library and play games. It’s a lot of fun for both the children and the volunteers.

I also understand that you cooperate with local charities to create community support and interest for your project. Have you found that local communities and organizations are helpful and willing to be involved?

That is true. We have partnered with the Xi’an Charity Association to provide libraries to the regions of the ShaanXi Province that they are working in. They are a huge help. We also run community based book collections through Aston English of China. They are one of the largest private English language schools in China, with schools in over 40 cities. We hope to hold book drives in each of those cities annually, and then take those Chinese language children’s books and get them into countryside elementary schools. Aston English has made a major commitment to giving back in China.

I understand you recently made a trip to Shanghai and had some exciting opportunities crop up for you there. How exactly did all of that come about?

That is true. The University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business in Shanghai has been absolutely amazing. On November 24th, the Smith School of Business hosted a charity fundraiser in Shanghai that raised enough funds to provide twelve schools with full libraries. They got Black and Decker, Microsoft, Storm Case, Grainger, Grace, Under Armour, The Children’s Place, Jaguar, Avon, and Land Rover, among many others, involved.

The University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business in Shanghai and their China EMBA program have really made a difference in the lives of thousands of children living in the countryside of China.

Where will the funds you raised in Shanghai go and how will they be used?

The funds raised in Shanghai will go toward providing libraries to the Ba Qiao School District in the ShaanXi Province. Each school will receive 500 Chinese language children’s books, and a comfortable child-safe library for the children to use.

To date, what do you think has been your biggest success?

That’s a tough question to answer. There have been so many successes to date. But if I were to pick on success, it would be the creation of our School District Program. This program makes the kind of impact that we all like to see. True impact is hard to make, and I’m confident that providing every countryside elementary school in a single school districts improves the level of education that each and every child receives.

What are the next big plans for the Library Project? How do you see the project growing? How can people in China and abroad help you and support you?

The Library Project has a very clear plan for our future. We will have over 80 libraries provided to countryside elementary schools by the end of 2008. We’ll have over 200 by the end of 2009. We’ll continue that aggressive growth plan until every elementary school in China has children’s books for every child to read.

We have a ton of volunteer opportunities, both in China and abroad. The best place to begin is to check out our website at The Library Project.

All donations are greatly appreciated. Small and large donations really do make a difference. Each book that we provide to schools only cost $1 USD, or 8 Yuan. Adopting a school costs only $1,000 USD. Both of these really do make a huge impact on the lives of literally thousands of children.

We are happy to announce this week’s winner. It is…Derrick Chang, with his photo Tibetan Girl. Congratulations.

The runner up is…Joel Johnstone. Joel’s picture was taken at Lijiang, Yunnan. Good work!

Our second runner up is… Darryl Snow, with his phicture of Shanghai Jinmao Tower. Very interesting.

We want to thank all the participants of this week’s contest especilly those took part in for the first time. You all did a great job! So please give yourselves a plause, and get ready for a new round of competition.
To see your photos here, please send them to or or just post them on Facebook.

This is our last post of “Billy Elliot in China” series. Ivanzhong is the photographer behind these pictures and we would like to thank him again for his talent and acuity of discovering the beauty in ordinary lives. Ivanzhong is also a member of Photography Association of Sun Yat-Sen University.

The early morning after the show, they are ready for another one. Trained only for original ballet though, they won’t turn down requests of other type of dancing from clients, and that’s for living.

“Mom, why don’t they have to go to school?”

Getting prepared.

Yes, they are still girls.

Sorry, I have to take a nap….

Rehearsal on the stage.

This little “box” of their everyday practice, is wall-papered with pictures of the glorious past.

Everybody, one, two, three, Cheese!

This is the end of our Billy Elliot(s) in China series. From Ivan we know that the Chenyu Jia has already recovered from her leg injury and is doing better than ever before. The Modern Ballet Crops of Shenzhen is still striving to thrive and at the same time has our best wishes and hearty blessing. We would love to hear from you and share your stories with our viewers. Please send your photos and letters to or .

This is the second post of the “Billy Elliot(s) In China”. Thank Ivanzhong for his contribution. Ivan is also a member of Photography Association of Sun Yat-Sen University.

Chenyu Jia is excited again after the doctor gave her a pain-alleviating shot, which works only temparily.

The group manager is giving an address. She wants to thank every member of the group but stammered by tears.

It is about to start.

Chenyu Jia is doing her “breath-taking moves”. Other members are watching her through tv backstage.

The performance is over, but her work is not.

They were “angel’s wings”.

It is time for supper, but hardly anyone takes any food in the evening. They have to “watch their weight”.

To be continued…

Our last post of this series will be posted later this week, please check it out on Dream Blog. To see your photos here, send them to or

One of our purposes of building up Dream Blog is to present you the extraordinary dreams of ordinary people from all walks of life. We are gald to see that more and more people are joining us, and one of them is Ivanzhong, who is also a member of Photography Association of Sun Yat-Sen University. On his recent trip to Shenzhen, Ivan had a chance to get in touch with Shenzhen Modern Ballet, the only ballet group funded and organized by individuals in China. Instantly, he was moved by this group of people, for their diligence and optimism. Ivan wants their spirit to touch more and more people like him. For that, we made you this one-week series.

The girls are taking a rest during the interval of their perfomance, but their feet are not.

This is their “box” for practice.

Their dancing shoes are worn out every couple of days.

There is always someone “sneaking” to practise during the breaks.

The leader Wangxi yue is trying on the ballet dress for the next day’s performance.

Chenyu jia got hurt during the practice. That’s a bad news in more than one way, because she is the leading dancer.

Chenyu jia has to leave the rehearsal for treatment, otherwise she would end up in severe injury.

To be continued…

Please check on Dream Blog later this week, we still have two more posts. To see your photos here, send them to or