Shortly after I moved from Changchun to Beijing in 1998, I began studying one on one with a Chinese professor at a local teachers college. On the first day of class he told me, quite matter-of-factly that, since he was not a member of the Chinese Communist Party, we could talk about anything. He wasn’t […]
Be More Chinese!
Over the past year, the Chinese government has ramped up its campaign to “sinicize religion,” — to make it more compatible with both traditional and modern socialist values. In reality, it is a move to re-establish Party-state control over the religious sector, Christianity included. Last month I had the opportunity to co-author an article at […]
Easter Trinkets
With Easter just around the corner, stores and shops are filling up with Easter trinkets — bunnies, baskets, and all manner of spring-themed items. And of course, they mostly come from China; in fact, the mostly come from one city in China — the city of Yiwu. Last month the Los Angeles Times did a story […]
A Minneapolis Smile
This is a great story from the BBC about a kid from Minneapolis who has become an internet sensation in China — primarily because of his cute smile. On a recent visit to the country he was treated like a rock star! Image credit: MPR
Happy New Year
Is it 2019 already? Where did 2018 go? For that matter, where did 2000 go? And 1975? You get the picture…. Looks like Hong Kong was the place to be when the clock struck midnight. The amazing fireworks display gets going at the 1:48 mark. (Email readers, please click here to watch the video.) May you […]
Cover the Cars!
While visiting friends in an old neighborhood of Beijing last week, I noticed something I hadn’t seen before –quite a few of the cars parked along the streets and alleyways were covered. When I got to my friend’s house I asked her about it. The conversation proceeded like this: Me: Why do some of the […]
