The New York Times...Beijing....and Me

Here at school we get the International New York Times (formerly the International Herald Tribune) every day.  Perhaps we get the Asian version, but the front page ALWAYS has some story about China with the Beijing in the location byline.  Last week, in the culture section, this article about a Ming Dynasty temple appeared.  Turns out it is a mere 10 minute bike ride away from my home, just inside the 2nd Ring road.

The article talks about the temple but the crux of the article is about the lack of cultural preservation in Modern China. How cultural relics are placed under the auspices of bureaus and government offices, but in essence they are left to their own devices.  The Nianhua Si (or Picking Flowers Temple) was a buddhist temple built in 1581.  It was renovated in 1734, but since then it has been overtaken by residents and the People's University Printing Press.  The article is a good read about the state of conservation in modern China.  I thought it was pretty cool that something in the NY Times was literally right around the corner from me.

The entrance to the Nianhua Si -- 2013

"KEEP OUT"

The Bell Tower of Nianhua Si

Temples usually were a complex.  Here's the entrance to the temple complex today.

"This area under the protection of some Cultural Bureau and No Smoking"

A majority of the temple has been overtaken and turned into a printing press.

The buildings are pretty rundown here in the temple area and in the hutongs around this area.

The hutongs sit on PRIME real estate and so the issue, as it is in many places, about preservation of cultural heritage versus modernization.

Tanzhe Temple

First day of December was a Sunday.  Onions and I saw an late morning filming of the second Hunger Games movie and then took the subway and bus to Tanzhe Temple.

The temple is older than Beijing itself having been established in the 3rd century A.D.  It's the largest Buddhist complex in the Beijing area and is 30km west of central Beijing.

Lots of candles and incense....here's a picture of all the different ones I saw, there are probably more!

I always see these medallions and have always wondered what they signified.

According to Onions, you pick a wish (such as I hope the things I want come to me) and then write your name on the medallion and hang it.

This looks like the Temple of Heaven, but I'm secretly trying to get a photo of the Buddha inside!

My favorite picture of Onions!

"Luck comes to those who hit the golden bell."

10 RMB for 10 metal coins

Wow, it's a small target.  Each of us threw five coins....

Onions got one hit of the bell!

Guess who hit it twice!

Sunset and clean air!

The Year of Three Thankgiving Turkey Dinners

Turkey dinner #1 was actually a turkey lunch!  School hosted a thanksgiving lunch in a newly renovated room at the school canteen.

A tub of the best mashed potatoes I've ever tasted.  The secret ingredient?  Cream cheese.

The sides were provided by the dining hall.  Yams, corn, broccoli and kung pao shrimp (?).

The highlight?  No duck this year, but actual turkey!

Cranberry sauce, potatoes, and as if we needed, more starch....rice!

Apple and Pumpkin Pies for everyone!

And to make it China...thanksgiving eaten with chopsticks!

My leftovers haul!!  And yes, an entire pie.

Thanksgiving night dinner was turkey #2.  Hosted by ex-colleague Barbara C.

The adults table.

Barbara, Mr. P-C and Mrs. Placht enjoying a fantastic dinner in an adult setting.

Turkey dinner #3 was two days later on Saturday.  No pictures of food or the table, but Onions got to eat his first Thanksgiving dinner and met Micah!