Artist Diary

On the first day in Qingdao, the tour guide took us to the boardwalk in Quondam. It is where the Olympic torch was passed on when the game were happening in Beijing. All along the boardwalk, there were these vendors selling all kinds of trinkets, such as seashells and jewelry.

#China #Olympics #seaside #boardwalk #tourism  #peoplewatching

In Quingdao, we went to the seaside and walked on the pier. It had rained that morning and by afternoon, it was misty and foggy. We considered it lucky that throughout the trip we only had one day of rain. Sometimes I think the unusual weather makes for the most interesting of photos. I really enjoyed the people watching at the pier. There were so many swarms of seagulls flying everywhere.  The fog felt somewhat magical.

#seaside #China #peoplewatching #seagulls #fog #rain #mist

Some aspects I find interesting about China is the difference in living standards. It’s interesting to see how people from the other side of the world life. In Changchun and Jilin, it made for some interesting people watching. You may notice people wearing masks over their nose and mouth in these photos. The reason for that is that environmental pollution is very apparent in the cities. I also noticed that Chinese people wear a lot of colour in general. Unlike in the West, where most people prefer to wear dark or neutral colours.

On one of the tour stops, we went to Jilin Beishan Park. The river was frozen and so people were skating. We walked over the icy white bridge past the railway track and I could heard weird ghostly noises. A recording was being played repeatedly. I’m not sure why or where it was coming from. It was a rather strange and surreal experience.

#China #skating #peoplewatching #snow #winter #landscape




 

One of my favourite city stops on the tour was Jian. Jinan is known for its hot spring waters, and so even the hotels had hot spring water coming out of the faucets. We went to Daming Lake Park (as seen above), which had picturesque views. That day was hazy, and so you see it in the pictures how misty it looks in the distance. We also went to Baotu Spring. The scenery is very pretty, even in winter. What was an interesting site to see was the people collecting the spring water. It was an interesting place for people watching.

Thanks for dropping by! Be sure to come back next Sunday for a new set of photos from my journey to China. You can also follow me on Instagram @andreamaicreative, were I post daily photos from the trip that aren;t on this blog!

#travel #China #tourism #springwater #thermal #nature #peoplewatching

Our tour took us to Chang Bai Mountain, which is along the North Eastern coastline that borders North Korea. Getting to the mountain top, you have to take a bus that drives you to the trails. It was snowing as we climbed the mountain, and it blocked visibility of most of it sights. It made it more difficult to get around. There were even snow ploughs removing snow around its facilities! However, despite its disappointing weather it’s only in moments like these that you get these glorious sights, when the sun is just peeking through the clouds. Truly the silver lining in a situation!

Although everything freezes here in the winter, the streams are steaming, as its thermal springs run along the mountains. It’s an amazing sight to behold! At the top of the mountain area, they had food venders and one of them was selling eggs and sausages prepared using the heat from the thermal water! At the hotel we stayed in, there was thermal spring water in the taps. I felt so lucky to wash my hair that night with spring water! it made my hair and skin feel really smooth.

I also enjoyed people watching, seeing how they were dressed for this environment. Many bright colours! It’s a stunning contrast set against the pale whiteness of the snow.

This was an amazing trip and I would recommend going here if you have the chance to!

Be sure to follow me on Instagram, where I often post photos that didn’t make it onto the blog! Stay tuned for more photos from my China trip next Sunday! Thanks for visiting my site!

#China #landscape #mountains #streetstyle #blizzard #snow #winter