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Tuesday, May 29, 2018

Karst and Water: The Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu

The first thing that caught my eye as I arrived in Yunfu, Guangdong, was the incredible number of places selling various types of stone. The second thing was the karst topography in the midst of Yunfu's central urban area.

Soon I was photographing some it from my hotel room window. But the Panlong Lake Scenic Area which I had just passed is a more popular place to take in the karst views. It isn't as famous as similar sites in Guilin or neighboring Zhaoqing, but it has its own charms. And you can walk around the lake and hills for free.

I had planned to mention this scenic area earlier, but I ended up going down a rabbit hole trying to figure out what to call it English — more about that in a later post. The lake takes it name from Panlong Cave, which is in one of the hills surrounding the lake. More about the cave in another later post. A guide at the cave said it isn't possible to walk up any of the hills. But there is an accessible hill top not far away. More about that crag in yet another later post.

For this post, below are some photos taken on a cloudy and slightly hazy day as I walked around Panlong Lake in a clockwise direction. Yes, the sculpture in the last two photos is leaning to one side. And yes, there are ducks in the lake. But mostly, I share these to highlight more of the karst topography and some of the nearby urban areas in a city not familiar to most people outside of this region in China.



path at the Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu


View from Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu


path at Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu


bridge at Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu


Panlong Lake in Yunfu


people on boats at Panlong Lake


Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu


Longzhu Island (龙珠岛) at Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu


Yunfu's city center behind Panlong Lake


Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu


sculpture at Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu


sculpture at Panlong Lake Scenic Area in Yunfu

Friday, May 25, 2018

Buckling Up Success: Belts for Sale in Yunfu

The previous post with a photo of a crag in Yunfu I didn't try to name indicated that some future posts will include more crags. Incredibly enough, though, some other posts I have been working on don't include a single crag. So for a slight hint of what these cragless posts will be about, here is a sign for some belts for sale at a shop in Yunfu:

sign for belts for sale with a black rabbit logo and "Sign of successful people"


I believe that is it for this week. Next week should be more post-heavy.

An Unidentified Crag in Yunfu

I have recently spent much effort on research for several posts here. I don't actually have any of the posts ready yet though. And a good chunk of this research won't lead to anything that would make most people think, "Wow, you must have put a lot of time into this!"

If some people knew how much, they would probably wonder, "Why in the world did you spend so much time on this?"

Such is life.

So for a contrast (and to get something actually posted today) here is a scene from Yunfu.

a field and crag in Yunfu


I don't know the name of the crag / rock / hill in the photo. I am not going to try to figure it out. I just thought it was a nice thing to find while walking around an urban area in Yunfu.

More crags soon. At least one will be named.

Thursday, May 17, 2018

A Long Wait: Colors Arc Over Qingyuan

Earlier today I returned to my room in Qingyuan, Guangdong, just in time to avoid a thunderstorm. Later as I worked at my laptop, I turned to look outside. The rain had appeared to come at least nearly to its end, and there was an unusual type of sunny brightness. I wondered if this could be an opportunity to see a rainbow. On several recent occasions I thought I might catch one only to be disappointed each time.

In fact, the last time I saw a rainbow in China was three years ago in Shaoyang, Hunan province. And four years ago after seeing a painted rainbow on a building in Hengyang, Hunan, I considered the fact that I couldn't remember having seen any real rainbows during my previous eight years in China. I later wondered whether the rarity with which I spotted them in comparison to when I lived in the U.S. could be at last partially connected to air pollution.

The end of daylight was soon approaching, and I thought about where the sun would be at the moment. I realized that if there were a rainbow, my window was facing a favorable direction. So I took a look.

I'll admit, seeing a rainbow outside led to a small gasp.

rainbown in Qingyuan, Guandong
A glorious rainbow outside my window


After excitedly taking some photos, I raced outside. Well, the elevator wasn't in a hurry, but I did my best otherwise.

I made a quick decision that heading to the Qiaobei Road Overpass, from where I took a previous photo shared here, would be my best bet. And from the pedestrian bridge, I took more photos.

rainbow over Xianfeng East Road (先锋东路) in Qingyuan
Glorious rainbow over Xianfeng East Road (先锋东路)


I had gotten there just in time. About 10 minutes later the rainbow was gone. And soon after that so was most of the sunlight. From the time I went out, the peculiar type of light when facing some particular directions wreaked havoc on my camera's white balancing. But I took effort to ensure the photos above are reasonably faithful to what I actually saw, which I prefer over taking some simple steps to make them more visually appealing to many people with a bluer sky.

I later noticed faint signs of a double rainbow in the photos. It isn't easy to spot, but it's there. That might be a first for me in China. The rainbow (and these photos) won't win any awards, but it still greatly lifted my spirits (though not that high). And after I received puzzled looks from some passersby, once they figured out the target of my attention, sometimes with my help, they appeared to appreciate it as well — especially the little girl who had pointed out the foreigner to her mother.

Hopefully it isn't another 3 years before I see another rainbow.

Monday, May 14, 2018

Playboy at Jiefang East Road in Yunfu

While just looking through my photos, I suspected one could have been included in the earlier post of scenes from historical Jiefang Road in Yunfu. I didn't consider it before, because when I first took the photo I didn't think of it as part of the same street. But a look at a map and enlarging an address sign in the photo confirms it is indeed from Jiefang East Road.

Especially since the photo contrasts with the others, I will share it here:

Playboy street-front sign on Jiefang East Road in Yunfu


Playboy is well known in this part of the world but not in the same way it is in the U.S. The brand positions itself quite differently here. More about that another day.

Friday, May 11, 2018

A Sign of the Donkey and Goat Food Street in Qingyuan

Earlier this evening while standing on a pedestrian bridge I looked for a particular bank. I didn't see the bank, but I did notice a sign for an eating establishment which reminded me of yesterday's post about a butcher shop in Yunfu, Guangdong province, which offers goat, donkey, rabbit, dog, and cat meat.

View from the Qiaobei Road Overpass (桥北路立交) in Qingyuan including a sign for "Th Donkey and Goat Food Street"


I will go ahead and translate the "驴羊食街" that appears on one of the signs in the above photo as "The Donkey and Goat Food Street", though as mentioned before the second character may be for sheep instead of goat. In China sometimes animals in restaurant names doesn't mean they are on the menu. Sometimes it does. In this case I would expect the latter.

Two years ago I shared an example of a restaurant I had seen the year before in Zhuhai, Guangdong, that featured the same combo. The sign was more explicit about the animals being on the menu since the Chinese character for "meat" appeared as well. I see I interpreted "羊" (yáng) as "lamb" then. That was before I began exploring what the character alone often represents in such cases in Guangdong.

Finally, the above scene isn't from Yunfu, nor is it from the city I visited next — Zhaoqing. Yesterday after an unexpectedly scenic bus ride I arrived in Qingyuan, yet another city in Guangdong. Specifically, I took the photo from the Qiaobei Road Overpass (桥北路立交), and this view looks down one side of Qiaobei Road as traffic slowly makes it way from the south.

Oh . . . and no, I didn't try the donkey and goat place. No food reviews for today.

Thursday, May 10, 2018

From Donkey to Cat: The Selection at a Butcher Shop in Yunfu

A variety of shops line historic Jiefang Road in Yunfu, Guangdong province. One which especially caught my eye sells meat.

butcher shop with signs indicating it sells goat, donkey, rabbit, dog, and cat meat


It was specifically the selection of meat available listed on its signs that I found notable. I have seen all of these types of meat sold and on restaurant menus in China before, but seeing them all together listed so prominently isn't a daily event for me.

The first meat listed is identified with the Chinese character 羊 (yáng), which can refer to sheep or goats (and some other animals as well). Given how I have found the term used in many parts of Guangdong province, including in Jieyang, I presume it refers to goat.

Donkey meat is next, which I saw on the menu at a restaurant in Huizhou — another city in Guangdong province.

Then comes rabbit meat, which I most strongly associate with Zigong in Sichuan province since it is especially popular there. A couple of relevant dishes I had in Zigong appear in a post where I offer spicy evidence that family-sized portions of rice are quite common in parts of China.

Next up is dog meat. I have seen this for sale in many regions. A post including photos of seven restaurants in Mudanjiang, Heilongjiang province, that feature dog meat comes to mind.

The last item listed, cat meat, is the one I come across the least in China. I don't have any relevant posts about it. I have photos of various sightings though — potential material for a future post.

While it significantly differs from what is available at typical grocery stores, I wouldn't consider this selection of meats especially exotic for Guangdong. In terms of what I have personally come across, the winner for that is probably a live animal market I visited a number of times in Shaoguan — more material for a future post. The bamboo rats did not look happy.

Tuesday, May 8, 2018

Eighteen Scenes from Historical Jiefang Road in Yunfu

Many of the buildings which line Jiefang Road as it winds it way through central Yunfu are indicative of some of the city's history. In nearby cities such as Zhongshan and Jiangmen, a few similar historical roads have in part been turned into popular pedestrian streets. Yunfu doesn't appear to have any such grandiose plans at the moment, though the city government has proposed renovations to this "living fossil" (reference in Chinese).

The series of photos below capture scenes beginning on Jiefang East Road, moving westward to Jiefang Middle Road which passes by Martyr's Park, and then onto Jiefang West Road towards the road's end near Pingfeng Hill, which appears in two of the photos. Many of the scenes include buildings with historical architecture. And many capture some of the life at the old street on two recent weekday afternoons.


Jiefang East Road (解放东路)

woman pushing a baby stroller on Jiefang East Road in Yunfu


small vehicles on Jiefang East Road in Yunfu


Jiefang Middle Road (解放中路)

people walking on Jiefang Middle Road in Yunfu


scooters on Jiefang Middle Road in Yunfu


Jiefang Middle Road in Yunfu


building with historical architecture on Jiefang Middle Road in Yunfu


Jiefang Middle Road in Yunfu


Jiefang West Road (解放西路)

man riding motorbike on Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


dog and a woman pushing a baby stroller on Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


bikes on Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


pharmacy on Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


man unloading a van on Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


Jiefang West Road with Pingfeng Hill in the distance in Yunfu


Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


man looking at his mobile phone while walking on Jiefang West Road in Yunfu


old buildings on Jiefang West Road in Yunfu

Sunday, May 6, 2018

A Golden Visit to M8 Langhe Dumplings in Zhaoqing

Previously, I shared a photo of a wonton restaurant in Zhaoqing with a logo very similar to the McDonald's Golden Arches. The next day I happened to pass by yet again. I also happened to be hungry this time. So I took the opportunity to have dinner there.

After sitting down at a table, I noticed the M8 logo appeared in a number of locations, including signs featuring one of their ice drinks.

tables and signs for drinks at M8 Lianghe Wontons


As indicated by their menu, in addition to wontons they offer a variety of other items, most common Cantonese fare.

M8 Langhe Wontons menu in Zhaoqing


The choice for me was easy. For 8 yuan (about US $1.25) I ordered a medium-sized bowl of the item featured in the name on their storefront sign — langhe wontons (塱鹤云吞).

medium sized bowl of Langhe Wontons at M8 in Zhaoqing


The wantons are named after Langhe village in Zhaoqing (reference in Chinese). Some other restaurants I have passed in Zhaoqing similarly feature "langhe wontons" in their names.

I also ordered a plate of Chinese broccoli, but they were out. So for 7 yuan I had the usual choi sum — much healthier than the Big Mac I had earlier suggested pairing with the wontons.

plate of choi sum at M8 Langhe Wontons in Zhaoqing


In short, the wontons were better than I expected. They are a smaller type of wonton which I have found at some places not to be especially flavorful. But these were tasty. The choi sum was a little overcooked for my tastes, not uncommon, but for 7 yuan I was still pleased.

And just to make sure . . . I asked the high school boy who took my money while the woman who had taken my order was back in the kitchen about the eatery's name. He said "M8" and also said this was their only location.

If I were living in Zhaoqing, I could definitely see myself returning. For comparison, I would also be curious to try some of the other restaurants in Zhaoqing which similarly feature langhe wontons.

But none of them will have the golden M8.