28 Years Later, Another June 4th

A year ago I shared scenes from a vigil in Hong Kong commemorating the anniversary of the crackdown at Tiananmen Square. The post also includes links to older posts offering windows onto what I have seen elsewhere in China on June 4th — something I have done every year since beginning this blog.

I am in the U.S. for a bit right now. So this year I can't capture more June 4th scenes in China. Most of today will be a very happy occasion for me — my sister's wedding. But I still want to take some time to remember what happened 28 years ago and consider some perspectives on what it means today. So I will point elsewhere:

— This year's vigil in Hong Kong

— "Hidden Away for 28 Years, Tiananmen Protest Pictures See Light of Day"

— "Interview With Yu Zhijian, One of the ‘Three Hunan Hooligans’ Who Defaced the Portrait of Mao Zedong Over Tiananmen Square in 1989"

— "Support grows in China for 1989 Tiananmen crackdown"

— "Learn from us on democracy, Taiwan tells China on Tiananmen anniversary"

— "Illegal Tiananmen Square Liquor Arrives in Hong Kong"

— Some tweets:

annual reminder that tank man faced down not the single tank, but an entire tank regiment pic.twitter.com/R7rApqFiBs

— jamie k (@jkbloodtreasure) June 3, 2017

The front page #OTD in 1989. Chinese troops attack and crush protest in Tiananmen Square. #nytimes pic.twitter.com/jC1DYPhtwQ

— New York Times OTD (@OnThisDayNYT) June 4, 2017

There are those who are waging war against memory, others are merely contemptuous.Don't let the murderers win the war#NeverForget#June4th

— Yuen Chan (@xinwenxiaojie) June 4, 2017

The picture circulated on Chinese Internet over the 28th anniversary of #TiananmenMassacre 在中國網傳的圖片。紀念 #六四 。有誰知道作者是誰？屏蔽了嗎？ pic.twitter.com/GqKnoK4ZJs

— Rose Tang (唐路） (@rosetangy) June 3, 2017

2. ears and mouth shut. Powerful image, but it reinforces sexist notions of young Chinese women as immoral and overly materialistic.

— Leta Hong Fincher洪理达 (@LetaHong) June 4, 2017

On (heavily censored) anniversary of Tiananmen massacre, Chinese social media users passing around story about 1989 Romanian Revolution pic.twitter.com/IEFBblajnC

— Josh Chin 李肇华 (@joshchin) June 4, 2017

The masses have boundless creative power.--Chairman Mao pic.twitter.com/b8poFzhXsE

— Comrade Balding (@BaldingsWorld) June 4, 2017

Girl with red bandana pic.twitter.com/7JeJMPkmvZ

— Guobin Yang (@Yangguobin) June 3, 2017

Baidu Map, a Banana, and Baijiu: From Guiyang to Changsha

Not so long ago in Guiyang, I woke up early one morning and caught a taxi. At the first intersection, the driver took an unexpected turn. Based on the traffic signals, it seemed plausible it was a wise choice, and I said nothing. A couple of blocks later, he signaled to make a turn heading in a direction nearly opposite of where I was headed. It didn't seem likely this choice was in my best interest, so I asked why he wasn't turning a different direction on another road. After some back and forth, I mentioned I had checked the routes on Baidu Map. The best option was rather clear and the most reasonable alternatives didn't involve what he had in mind.

He said "Oh, you checked Baidu Map. Then we will go that way."

It worked out pretty well.

Once I was inside the departure hall of the Guiyang North Railway Station, I wasn't surprised by the small crowd. I was catching an early morning train at 6:52 a.m. after all.

But I found it notable that the retail space on the upper levels on two sides of the departure hall, a design common in China's larger new railway stations, appeared to be completely vacant and lacking any restaurants or cafes. There wasn't even a Texas Burger. It reminded me of a similar pattern I saw five years ago at the Shenzhen North Railway Station — a place that is more occupied and busier now.

Soon I was on the high-speed train, which departed on schedule. Like my previous two trips, I was traveling a route for the first time. This route spent less time in tunnels than my previous trip though. And the train traveled at a much higher speed (about 300 km/h) than on the previous two routes (which maxed out at about 200 km/h).

A college student sitting next to me on the train kindly offered a welcomed banana, providing some balance to having had a mangosteen stolen in Guiyang. After discovering I liked spicy foods, she then gave me two small packages of spicy treats. One of them was especially tasty, and I was confident I was not going to go short on my salt intake for the day.

When I later mentioned I was catching a flight out of the Changsha the very next day, she asked whether I couldn't have flown out of Guiyang instead. Indeed, I would have done that had I better predicted things when I purchased the ticket. My schedule during the past month or so hadn't gone exactly as first planned. I spent more time than expected in Hengyang, which meant I had to skip Yongzhou. I then spent more time than expected in Guilin, which meant I had to skip Liuzhou and some other potential locations. I had just spent more time than expected in Guiyang, which meant I had to skip Kaili and Huaihua. In short, I wasn't arriving in Changsha a few days before my flight from a closer city as I had first expected. All of this reflects a tension between spending more time in individual cities versus visiting more cities. Both have their merits.

So after a three hour and twenty-something minute train ride, I had about 24 hours in Changsha. I initially thought I would put together a "day in Changsha" post similar to the one when I was last in Changsha, which also involved a one day stay followed by a flight. But that visit had occurred less than half a year after an earlier visit to Changsha, when I spent much more time there. A quick catchup here made sense. But this visit involved a one and half year gap from the previous one day visit and a nearly two year gap since my last extended stay. Not only was there much more which had changed, I more effectively maxed out my time. By the end of the day I wasn't just exhausted, I felt like all of what I had found deserved more than being put together in a single post.

So instead of a new "day in Changsha" post, for now I will share a single scene from Huangxing Square in Changsha which reminded me of scenes I have shared from Guangzhou and from Shenyang.

Yes, on the digital billboard is yet another blissfully blue baijiu advertisement from Yanghe Distillery. But instead of featuring their Tianzhilan baijiu, it features their Mengzhilan M6. which according to Yanghe:

. . . inherits the element of the ancient Yanghe Liquor, and transforms itself gracefully in the new historical period by perfectly interpreting the definition of the treasured Liquor with pure and exquisite technology.

How about that?

Anyway, more soon. I will be in less of a exploratory mode during the next few weeks, so I hope to get slightly caught up on some things. Just need to decide what is next. Perhaps more about Changsha. Perhaps where I headed after Changsha. Perhaps where I was before. Perhaps some other new historical period.

Thousands of Americans Remembered at a Memorial in South Korea

The War Memorial of Korea in Seoul covers thousands of years of Korean military history, with an emphasis on the Korean War. One particularly affecting section of the memorial displays the names of service members & police of the Republic of Korea who were killed in various wars & conflicts and the names of service members in the United Nations Forces who were killed in the Korean War.

For today's Memorial Day in the United States, below are some photos taken this past weekend that capture portions of the display with more than thirty-thousand names of Americans "whose noble service and ultimate sacrifice preserved the freedom of the Republic of Korea".

A Story of Mangosteens, Wood Canes, and a Stealthy Thief in Guiyang

On a recent sunny day in Guiyang, some people sold fruit along a road leading to an entrance to Qianling Mountain Park. One woman sold mangos and mangosteens.

Despite their similar names in English, the two fruits look very different, taste very different, and aren't closely related. Their names aren't at all similar in Mandarin Chinese. Still, the pairing caught my attention.

After taking a few photos, a man behind me got my attention and expressed amusement over my interest in the fruit seller. He also opportunistically asked if I was interested in buying one of the wood canes he was selling. I wasn't, although I knew one could soon come in handy for defensive purposes. After a brief friendly chat, the man was happy when I asked to take his photo.

I then decided to buy some mangosteens from the woman. After the bargaining was over — mangosteens aren't cheap — I had three promising-looking purple orbs. I gave one of the mangosteens to the man. He initially refused but soon cheerfully accepted the fruit. Mangosteens are really good.

I attached the clear plastic bag holding the two remaining mangosteens to my camera bag and headed into the park.

After checking out a zoo in the park, I cracked open one of the mangosteens. I wanted to make sure I enjoyed it before it was possibly stolen. Already there had been several attempts — some involving direct confrontations and others involving stealthier strategies. I had expected this since the fruit were so clearly visible. One needs to be aware of such things when roaming around Qianling Mountain Park.

Then just when all seemed clear I felt a very strong pull on my camera bag. As people yelled, I spun around reacting as quickly as I could. I knew a mangosteen was at stake here. It was all a blur, but at the end I had maintained possession of my camera bag despite the strap somehow disconnecting. And to my surprise the plastic bag remained attached as well.

The culprit quickly fled to a tree for safety. From there the monkey looked at me . . .

Looked at me while eating its prize.

Well done, monkey. You succeeded where many had failed. And your reward was a glorious mangosteen.

Taking a Cat for a Walk in Guiyang

Rapid changes of scenery led to some recent quietness here. More about that soon. In the meantime, here is a cat enjoying a park in Guiyang.

Seeing somebody walk a cat, in China or elsewhere, is a rather rare experience for me. The cat was handling it like a pro. I was curious as to what would happen if the cat encountered any of the many free-roaming monkeys in the park, but I continued heading in the opposite direction.

More about those monkeys too someday.

Constructive Symmetry in Guiyang

One of the sights yesterday on Hequn Road (合群路) in Guiyang:

For a more complete view of the symmetrically parked Kamatsu and Hitachi hydraulic excavators with breakers attached to their arms, I had to photograph them from another angle.

Chinese Media Quiet About Putin's Surprise Performance on the State Guesthouse's Rather Out of Tune Piano

While waiting to meet China's president Xi Jinping, Russia's president Vladimir Putin played two pieces on a piano at the historic Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing.

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The performance was shared by a variety of news outlets, including Russian new outlets as in the above video posted on YouTube by the Russian government funded RT news. But The New York Times reported one notable set of news outlets declined highlighting the performance:

Chinese propaganda chiefs did not appear to be amused that Mr. Xi had been upstaged to some extent at his own conference, and the official Chinese news media pointedly made little mention of the piano performance.

After watching the video, I wasn't at all surprised by the lack of official Chinese commentary on Putin's musical display, though I am not sure Putin's performance potentially upstaging Xi was the only or even main issue. The Chinese propaganda chiefs had another reason to be concerned.

While the small grand piano may look great sitting in the large formal room, it is terribly out of tune. Presumably this is not due to poor tuning (I can't imagine a professional tuner leaving a piano in that state) but due to a lack of tuning. Perhaps it doesn't strongly jump out to many people. Any of the news articles I have read don't mention it at all. But the tuning should make any trained musician cringe. Back when I studied music performance at a conservatory, I wouldn't have even practiced with a piano in that condition. I can't imagine anybody would have.  Putin himself possibly knowingly reacts to an especially offending key early on (see the 11 sec mark in the above video) but continues on . . . diplomatically.

So it is very possible, in fact I hope likely, that some relevant people on the Chinese side recognized they essentially invited the President of Russia to play on a piano in a condition not fit for a middle school performance. While they may not have been sure how many people would notice, they wouldn't want to drawing any attention to the fact that some things are not as harmonious as they may appear.

Two More Mother's Day Promotions in China

This year I have no stories to share of Mother's Day promotions involving fashion shows or QR codes in China, though I would bet examples exist. The rain and a desire for some rest ensured my explorations were limited today in Guiyang. Yesterday, though, I saw a beauty salon's "Super Mummy" promotion at the Century Golden Mall* (世纪汇金广场) where live sessions were displayed on a large screen.

And today I saw a children's clothing store at the Hunter City Mall (亨特城市广场) with a simple Mother's Day sale.

That's all from me on this holiday. Happy Mother's Day to all of the mothers.




* "Century Golden" is prominently displayed next to the mall's Chinese name on the building. However, a much smaller outdoor sign used the English name "Golden Plaza", and online I have seen "Huijin ONE Mall" used.

Dancing at Hebin Park in Guiyang

This afternoon at Hebin Park in Guiyang, Guizhou, I recorded a man expressively dancing to music. A small crowd had gathered and several others captured the performance as well. After the music ended, the man approached me and initiated a conversation in English. He told me he hoped I could share the video with my friends. He has traveled to Europe before but never the U.S. He was curious to know whether Americans would appreciate him dancing in a park there.

The video not only captured the dancing but some of the audience — including one small child who briefly tried dancing too — and passersby. As an added bonus, it concludes with a child eating an ice cream bar.

Colorful Guizhou at Night

Bordering a construction site at Dashizi (大十字) in Guiyang, Guizhou

A Fast Trip of Many Tunnels: From Guilin to Guiyang

Yesterday morning in Guilin I caught a taxi. It was rush hour, but at least I was headed out of the city center. Upon arrival at the Guilin North Railway station, I figured since it wasn't raining very hard I would get out of the taxi before opening my umbrella. I then found out the taxi had stopped at a place where a steady stream of water was pouring from a roof perfectly positioned for not covering a reasonable area where people might get out of a car.

My back was quickly drenched.

Life went on, and soon I was in the station. I didn't see a Texas Burger restaurant, but I had no need for one. I had recently eaten a small pack of unsalted roasted pumpkin seeds. Really, unsalted roasted pumpkin seeds are both good and filling.

Like my previous intercity trip, I boarded a high-speed train taking a route I had never traveled before. I expected many beautiful scenes. When some sunlight could penetrate to the tracks, even through clouds, some beautiful scenes did indeed appear. But these sunlit moments were fewer than I had expected. From the first stop in Rongjiang to my destination, I conservatively estimated at least 70% of the journey occurred while in tunnels. I have been on other rail lines with many tunnels, but this one was in a league of its own.

There are a lot of mountains in this part of China. And the high-speed rail line just goes straight through them. Fantastic for saving time. Not so great for views. Quite impressive though.

Upon arrival at my destination's North Railway Station, I quickly realized it was much larger than Guilin's. I also discovered that the taxi line is far past the still-under-construction subway station and past a long series of bus stops. But I still felt strength being drawn from the pumpkin seeds, so all was fine.

And soon I enjoyed a view from high up in the city.

No guessing games this time. If you can't identify the city from the photo (I suspect few can) or the title of this post (I suspect many can), I am now in Guiyang — the capital of Guizhou.

My first and only previous time in Guilin was nine years ago. My first time in Guiyang was eight years ago, and I last returned six years ago. In both cities a lot has changed, and that is part of the reason I haven't posted as much as I would have liked. There has been a lot to discover, sort out, and digest. Plenty of material for the future though . . .

And fear not, soon after my arrival in Guiyang I was enjoying an excellent sour and spicy dish. Pumpkin seeds have their limits.

Not a Good Air Day in Guilin

Facing westward at the intersection in Guilin where Huancheng South 2nd Rd becomes Huancheng South 3rd Rd

Unfortunately, the "good air" Guilin enjoyed yesterday is already a thing of the past. Today the air pollution returned to not-so-good levels, though still nowhere near the recent "hazardous" and beyond levels recorded in a number of northern cities such as Beijing. I even witnessed what appeared to be an attempt to improve Guilin's air today. I am skeptical it had much of an effect though. More about that later.