China, Photography, Urbanism, Xi'an → Promenade à Xi’an
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I just arrived last week in Xi’an, and I went to my first class on Monday, this week. The semester started on March 1st, so I have four weeks of study to catch up. By chance Mandarin Chinese is such an interesting subject, otherwise, I don’t know where I would find the motivation to study as much as I have been doing since I came back! Nevertheless, I took some time last Sunday to take a walk outside, from my apartment to downtown – a two-hour walk. There was a kind of bazar at the foot of a tower, where I sent Ying to buy Mao Zedong’s official portrait in a frame. (If the salesman had seen me, he would have risen the price at least three or four times higher than what he charged Ying). Then, we walked together. She insisted on carrying the portrait, so that I could take some pictures of her, that she then uploaded to her Xiaonei.com account (Chinese Facebook). Here are the pictures that I took on that day:
Some people are playing mah jong.
The avenue that takes to my place.
On this avenue, the traffic is really hectic. Cars are going from any direction and they never yield to pedestrians. To a newcomer, it is difficult to get used to it. When I first crossed this street, last summer, I panicked. I thought that one day, I would certainly be hit by a car. But I haven’t gotten hit by a car yet, and new traffic lights were installed at the intersection, which should make the place more orderly, and less dangerous.
Can you recognize this tower? I took a panoramic picture of it last year. At the foot of the tower, there was a little bazar where one could buy articles made of porcelain.
Mao Zedong’s official portrait, printed on porcelain.
颖 (Ying).
As she was posing for the picture, a baby went to 颖 and pointed her finger to Mao’s face. Her mom asked her “who is the man on the picture?… it’s grand’pa Mao!”
A photographer at a camera shop.
Tower under construction. (The windows in the middle are still missing).
“Hard hat required in this area”.
“Our business is still open during the construction”
A tent, probably for migrant workers who come from the countryside to work in construction sites in the city.
The site of the future Chinese Time Square, under construction.
An old factory near the center of the city.
