Chinaa cultural perspective

section five5Visiting China

AuthorJan Kiernan

EditorDamian Bester

Graphic DesignLewis Mathieson

First published in 2008. Copyright News Ltd.Photography and line drawings copyright Jan Kiernan Fair copying of this publication is permitted for the purposes of teaching, review or research.

Copyright inquiries should be addressed to:Education Services ManagerDavies Brothers Pty Ltd91-93 Macquarie StHobart TAS 7000Email: nie@dbl.newsltd.com.au

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China’s Megacities

Of the world’s estimated 6,677,563,921 people it is believed around 1,333,044,605 live in China.

Shanghai According to the BBC World Service and the China Daily newspaper, Shanghai’s population of more than 20 million makes it China’s largest city.

As China’s busiest port and as a great trading and tourist centre, it is also China’s economic heart.

Shanghai’s people are very much aware of Australia. Our wool, coal, wheat, iron ore, sugar and barley pass through its ports.

Located on the coast at the centre of the rich Changjiang delta region, Shanghai lies about halfway between Beijing and Hong Kong. In style and outlook it seems half Chinese, half western. When change comes to the country, Shanghai’s relatively cosmopolitan inhabitants are the first to pick it up. They are the most fashion and fad-conscious people; especially with regard to clothing, pop music and western foods.

As a tourist destination, the area of the Shanghai Bund retains much of its earlier charm while Nanjing Road provides a shopping bonanza.

The previously undeveloped area of Pudong, which lies to the east of Shanghai, is continuing to grow into a massive business, financial and tourist precinct.

You might be interested to know Shanghai is a sister city to Brisbane.

Source: CIA World Factbook

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Shanghai’s Bund area (above) is a popular tourist destination.

Beijing China’s second largest city is Beijing, the nation’s capital. With a population of about 13 million it is a centre for China’s communication network and important as an area for politics, education and cultural pursuits.

Beijing’s famous landmarks include Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City, the home of the Emperors of China.

Tiananmen is the main entrance to the Forbidden City—a group of palaces where the emperors and their courts lived. During the last two imperial dynasties—the Ming and the Qing—Tiananmen was the site of great ceremonies and gatherings. All major imperial edicts, imperial marriages and declarations of war were announced from the rostrum of Tiananmen.

The Forbidden City is now a museum but the Square is still very much the centre of Chinese political life. It is not surprising that Chinese students chose Tiananmen Square as the site for massive protest actions in 1989.

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Your Task Research these two contrasting cities, so you can prepare a tourist itinerary.

You might like to include a third city on your tourist route, for example, the city of Xian, which is home to the Terracotta Warriors. Use the planning sheet below to help you.

Which airline?

FLIGHT TO CHINA

Departing

Time

Flight number

Arriving

Time

RETURN TO AUSTRALIA

Departing

Time

Flight number

Arriving

Time

Advice from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade:

Travel Advisory information fromwww.smartraveller.gov.au

Departure Point

What time of year?

Why?

Do you need a visa?

Medical and health advice:

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Places to visit:

What to pack?

Other information

Things to see and do:

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The Great Wall of China

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We know it as the Great Wall of China but locals call it Wan-Li Qang-Qeng, which translates to “10,000-Li Long Wall”. (Li is a Chinese unit of measurement and 10,000 Li equals around 5000km.)

Every year thousands of visitors come to wonder at this ancient construction, which has been placed on the World Heritage List by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Photo EssayYour task is to complete a photo-essay about the Great Wall. Any search engine will provide you with information and photographs.

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Getting StartedFind answers to these 10 questions:

1. When were the first sections of the Great Wall built?

2. Which Emperor began the construction of the Wall?

3. What materials have been used in its construction?

4. Overall, how long is the Wall?

5. Why was the Great Wall built?

6. In ancient times, how were communications carried out between the watch towers of the Wall?

7. Why was it called the 10,000 Li Long Wall?

8. Where are the four most popular sections for tourists to visit?

9. In what year was the Great Wall listed as one of the world’s cultural heritage sites by UNESCO?

10. When is the best time of year to visit the Wall?

See this www.world-heritage-tour.org/asia/china/great-wall/map.html

You have been collecting photographs and information about the Great Wall of China. Now you have the opportunity to retell important information in photographs and text.

1. Work with a partner or in a small group to prepare a photostory about the Great Wall.

2. Pick a theme such as “Construction of the Wall”, “Tourism and the Great Wall”, “the Great Wall through the Seasons”

3. Use the storyboard template on the next page to plan your story.

4. Organise series of photos that tell your story. Print them and place them on a large storyboard or noticeboard.

5. Write accompanying text and captions to go with the photographs.

Photostory Planning SheetYou have been collecting photographs and information about the Great Wall of China. Now you have the opportunity to retell important information in photographs and text.

Work with a partner or a small group to prepare a photostory about the Great Wall.

1. Pick a theme such as Construction of the Wall, Tourism and the Great Wall, the Great Wall through the Seasons

2. Use the storyboard below to plan your story.

3. Organise series of photos that tell your story. Print them and place them on a large story board or notice board.

4. Write accompanying text and captions to go with the photographs.

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Terracotta Warriors of Xi’an

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In 1974, farmers from Xi’an stumbled across the terracotta warriors while digging a well. Crafted for the first Qin Emperor, the site was to result in one of the most significant archaeological finds of the 20th century. Hidden, buried for more than 2000 years, the dig was to reveal thousands of life-size army warriors drawn up in battle readiness. The figures include soldiers, horses, chariots and weapons along with officials, musicians and other entertainers.

The work continues today as further pits and figures are unearthed. Visitors to the site are amazed at the detail in the figures and how each individual warrior appears different to the rest. During their construction, attention was given to ensure the figures varied in height, hairstyle and uniform according to their rank. A museum has been built over the site, which is World Heritage-listed by UNESCO, to protect these priceless treasures.

A visit to Terracotta Warriors should be on every visitor to China’s itinerary.

Your taskImagine that you were a newspaper journalist either:• In 1974 when the Terracotta Warriors were first found or• When the site was recognised as a World Heritage area.

You are to write a “Breaking News Story”. Remember the ’”5 Ws” of newspaper writing. The planning sheet will help you.

Planning your Breaking News Storyheadline: Use the FAMOUS 5 Ws to plan your story

Make sure you have a dramatic headline.Include photographs to make your story more eyecatching and interesting.

other details:

who?

what?

when?

where?

why and how?

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My Favourite Chinese Photo

Collect photographs of different places in China and select one that you like best.

1. Research and plan a newspaper report about the place where your photograph was taken.

2. Think of a catchy headline and find possible supporting maps, photos etc.

3. Complete a “published” copy of your work including maps, diagrams and photos.

Who and what does my photo show?

Where in China was the photo taken? Where is it located?

What is my story about this place going to focus on? For example tourism, wildlife, agriculture, industries, personalities, sport...

What resources will I need?

What diagrams, maps and photos will I need?

What is my headline?

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How am I going to use the 5 Ws?

Who?

Wh

at?

Wh

en?

Wh

ere?

Wh

y?

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Hong KongA city of contrasts

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Situated on the south-eastern coast of China and spreading over 1100sq km, Hong Kong is made up of Hong Kong Island, the Kowloon peninsula and the New Territories, which includes more than 260 outlying islands.

Hong Kong was claimed as a crown colony by Britain in 1841 and became a British Dependent Territory the following year under the Treaty of Nanking.

Hong Kong Island, just a collection of fishing villages at the time, was described as a “barren rock”. Today, Hong Kong is a thriving centre for trade and commerce with a huge container port and a supportive banking system.

Hong Kong was reunited with mainland China in 1997.

To see Hong Kong Island and Kowloon at night is to marvel at the blaze of brilliant lights. Long, slow, snaking lines of vehicles stretch along the streets and huge advertising billboards light up the sky.

Visitors to this energetic city can order custom-made garments from tailors using antiquated sewing machines or visit the many fashionable boutiques and shopping centres and arcades.

Sightseers can catch the Peak Tram up to the top of Victoria Peak, which rises high above Hong Kong Island’s central business district, and look down at Victoria Harbour buzzing with hundred of boats ranging from traditional Chinese junks and pleasure boats to super-cargo vessels.

Getting around Hong Kong is easy as the city is serviced by several different forms of transport including trams, single- and double-decker buses, the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) or underground while the Star Ferry is a delightful way to cross Victoria Harbour.

The Dragon Boat Festival, held around Midsummer’s Day, is a major highlight of the tourist calendar with practically the whole population getting involved. The festival is big news with teams from local fishing villages and even major businesses taking part.

The average dragon boat is about 20m long and is rowed by 60 men. Drum beats synchronise the work of the rowers. Each boat has a large, brightly painted dragon’s head with plumes, open mouth, wagging tongue and huge popping eyes at the prow. The stern of the boat features a dragon’s tail.

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Your taskSearch the internet for photographs of dragon boat racing.Either make a collage of the photographs you have found or draw pictures of the dragon boats racing on Hong Kong Harbour.

Describe ‘your day’ at the Dragon Boat Festival in Hong Kong to go with your artwork.

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Changjiang River

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The Changjiang, or Yangtze, River is the third largest river in the world and the longest river in China. Its source is in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and from here it flows over 6300km until it reaches Shanghai and the East China Sea. The Changjiang and its tributaries cover a river basin that is one fifth of the total area of China.

Archaeological digs confirm that civilisation has existed in the valley for at least 5000–6000 years and that the region consistently developed culturally and economically through the ages.

The Changjiang’s greatest asset is its abundant water, which supports fishing; boating and navigation; irrigation for cultivation, particularly rice; and in more recent times hydro-electricity generation.

Today the river faces even greater changes as the vast Three Gorges Dam Project reshapes the landscape for ever.

Your taskFind out more about the gigantic Three Gorges scheme and the ways in which China has sought to preserve archaeological treasures and help millions of people relocate and find new social and economic lives.