by fulltimestudent 52 Replies latest social current
And, when you think you've seen enough old Chinese buildings - try something really ultra-modern.
Like this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUeWqs8ziNw
Hey! for the full impact of this beautiful building, switch through to youtube and watch at full screen.
My favourite shopping street in Beijing: Is Liulichang not far from Tiananmen.
Why do I like it ? Because its full of bookshops, art galleries and quirky little shops where you may find something that pleases your eyes and your mind.
Here's a brief description of this shopping street.
Liuli Chang is located in Xicheng District, just 1 kilometer away from Tian'anmen Square. The place was named "Haiwang Village" by the Liao people, and was eventually changed to "Liuli Chang" when officials set up imperial kilns to produce colored-glaze crafts for the emperor during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. During the Qing Dynasty, most Han officials and candidates for the imperial examinations lived here and there was a huge demand for books. Thus, Liuli Chang became the largest book market in Beijing at that time. In 1876, there were more than 270 bookstores on the street. The government reconstructed several parts of the old streets from 1980 to 1984. A number of artwork stores were built, covering an area of 34,000 square meters. At present, Liuli Chang is a large distributing center for artwork and cultural artifacts including books, pottery, sculptures, paintings and bronze wares.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyQbMb4ZDo8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sk0VZ5OPXIQ
My enjoyed purchases here have been, an A4 sized brush inked sketch of sailing boats on a river. Very simple, and only about A$3.00. And a book of about 100 reproductions of modern (but still idiomatic) Chinese landscape paintings (rivers and mountains - where the landscape overwhelms the people) for about A$8.00
and some more shops from Liulichang:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBM55-h3O6g
