Ni Hao Part 13 Shanghai By Night

Shanghai Skyline Financial District At Night View from the River  Watercolor&Ink by Meera Rao  

 

Bund Old Shanghai Skyline Night view from River  Watercolor and Ink by Meera Rao

The 2-page spread of Night View 

The Night River Cruise was a wonderful light show! Our guide informed us that all the buildings are required to participate and show their loyalty. It is a big tourist draw and thousands fill hundreds of  lavishly decorated cruise boats.  The ride started at dusk and lasted close to two hours. We oohed and ahed at the magic of millions of colored blinking and dancing lights that changed and morphed every other second ! 

Buddhist monks checking their  phones at the Financial district  Sketch by Meera Rao 

Earlier in the evening we walked around the area where I saw many buddhist monks enjoying the city lights and scenes just like us.  A couple of chefs taking a break down an alley near the Food Mall caught my eye as we were searching for a place to eat. 

Pause In The Day #DirectWatercolor #nosketching by Meera Rao 

Below is a straggler sketch of an Incense burner from Imperial city at Beijing- one of our very first stops during this china trip. I painted it much later as a part of the #30x30directwatercolor challenge and therefore got left out of the earlier post on Beijing. I decided to include it in this last post on my  travel sketchbook.  

Incense Burner At The Imperial city, Beijing #30x30directwatercolor #nosketching By Meera Rao 

I had a couple of really beautiful ticket stubs that I decided were the just the right thing to grace the front and back covers of my sketchbook.  The front cover is the part of the ticket to the silk museum in Shanghai.  I used gold gel pen to write the title. 

Cover of China Travel Sketchbook Journal By Meera Rao 

The outside back cover is the ticket stub from the Sun Moon Temple at Guillin. 

Back Cover of China Travel Sketchbook Journal  by Meera Rao 

I decorated the back  inside cover with the business card for the resturant where we enjoyed delicious fresh hot Dim sums and a couple of beautiful wrappers from some chocolates I bought and enjoyed :)  

Inside Back Cover of Sketchbook Journal.  By Meera Rao 

Thats the end of my journal sketches but I hope to paint a few more full scale paintings in the next few months :) 

再見中國  Zaijian zhongguo- bye bye China  for now!!

Ni Hao Part 12 Shanghai Yu Yuan Gardens and Zhujiajio Water Town

3 Toed Dragon on Garden Wall , YuYuan Garden Shanghai watercolor b  Meera Rao 

YuYuan gardens in Shanghai is over 400 years old. It is located near the Tourist mart and City God Temple in Old Shanghai.  The Breath taking gardens, elegant buildings,  koi ponds etc are an oasis of beauty and calm ! It took Pan Yunduan, a minister in Ming Dynasty 18 odd years to build and he designed it as a place for his parents to enjoy in their retirement.  The legend goes that the Emperor was jealous of the beauty of the gardens, and especially of the dragons that graced the walls since dragons were the symbols exclusively belonging to Royalty.  He sent an agent to check it out and may be confiscate the garden but Pan Yunduan managed to convince him that the garden dragons had only 3 toes and were not the perfect four toed royal dragons. He apparently broke the fourth toes on the garden dragons just before the agent's arrival ! 

Moon Gate, YuYuan Gardens, Shanghai Ink and watercolor by Meera Rao 

Jade Rock Natural Sculptures, Yuyuan Gardens, Shanghai #directwatercolor #nosketching by Meera Rao 

Fengsheng Bridge Zhujiajio Watertown  Watercolor (2 page spread) by Meera Rao

Zhujiajiao, Water Town situated about 50 kilometers away from Shanghai is worth the drive. 1700 years old Watertown in Qingpu District, south of the Yangtze River, Zhujiajiao,  is known as “The Venice of China” It features lovely waterways, curved rock bridges, old streets paved with stone, and over 10,000 buildings dating back to the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing dynasties (1644-1911).  We took a leisurely ride in one of the old style boats with a boatman with a old fashioned cone hat :) Look for a proper painting of the boatman in a future post. It just was juried into the Virginia Artists show at Hampton VA!

Fengsheng Bridge Zhujiajiao Watertown  Watercolor by Meera Rao 

Fengsheng Bridge Zhujiajiao Watertown  Watercolor by Meera Rao

Yuanjin Buddhist Shrine  #directwatercolor, #nosketching by Meera Rao 

We walked the old city streets, and checked out the Chinese medicine shops, ate freshly cooked dumplings.  The old city is still a charming and 'living' city even though it now caters to hordes and hordes of tourists!!! The Watertown is very picturesque and I hope to paint a few more paintings from the hundreds of photos I clicked :) 

Entrance to Shanghai Zhujiajio International watercolor Biennial Exhibition gallery and Office 

Plaque Explaining the Exhibition

Painting by Nicholas Simmons at the Gallery 

As we were walking around, I suddenly noticed that one of the buildings was the Shanghai Zhujiajio International Watercolor Biennial  Exhibition office and Gallery ! I was very excited to go in and check it out. There were still a few paintings from the last Biennial show that I recognized right away - by the wonderfully talented Nicholas Simmons,  Alvaro Castagnet, and a few others as well as their current show with 35 paintings by Herman Pekel.  This was the icing on the cake of this trip :) 

Ni Hao Part 11 Some Everyday Scenes

Rental Bike with a solar panel ink and watercolor by Meera Rao

I noticed little things affected welfare of mind, body and daily living. There were dozens of bikes or some places just a solitary one with QR codes on the handles parked on the sidewalks. They are easy to rent  with just an app on the smart phone. People ride them to their destination and leave them by the sidewalks when they are done. The bikes are then ready for the next person (with an App on the phone) ! 

Country is Home ink and watercolor by Meera Rao

There are panels with cute illustrations and sayings on walls along the sidewalks all around the cities. I wondered if they were advertisements. We were told that they are government sponspored and convey pride for the nation and civic duties of the citizens. Once again I used my translation app to read this panel.   

Buddhist Lamas at Temple Gate  #directwatercolor #nosketching by Meera Rao

Buddhist temples are oasis of beauty, calm and quiet in the middle of the buzzing cities.  We saw groups of monks, visitors and devotees paying respects, praying or just enjoying the premises.  

Daily Tai Chi Practice #directwatercolor #nosketching by Meera Rao

Daily Tai Chi Practice #directwatercolor #nosketching by Meera Rao

The parks and gardens are lush and lovely. In all the parks in every city, many people - mostly retirees, get-together in groups or singly to practice Tai Chi or other martial arts, exercise to music,  give mini concerts, enjoy ballroom dancing,  take care of babies and children, play board games, walk and talk or meditate!  

Ni Hao Part 10 Guillin

Li River Cruise watercolor 2 page spread by Meera Rao

Mountain Peaks by Li River  Left page watercolor By Meera Rao

Mountain Peaks by Li River  Right page watercolor By Meera Rao

We reached Guillin in the late afternoon as the flight was delayed by a couple of hours. The guide in Xian joked that they say CAAC - 'China airlines always cancel' - but at least we were only delayed;). Beautiful Guillin apparently was China's first city to develop tourism after 1949. 

It was raining when we landed and the route to town was amazingly picturesque with lush green covered mountain peaks shrouded in fog all around. After  checking  into the hotel we went to explore the city by walking around.  There was a beautiful little Buddhist temple not too far and as we entered the premises they started their evening chanting and prayers. We watched and waited till the rituals were done - this was our first time watching and participating in Chinese Buddhist prayers and rituals. We then went over to the canteen next door - but unfortunately they were cleaning after the lunch session and would open only at 6 for dinner - an hour away. 

We decided to buy some bananas to snack on ( my google translator came in really handy! ) and find a bank ATM. The lonely planet guide book had high recommendations (one of two places mentioned in the book for places to eat!) for an Indian restaurant started by a man from Darjaleeng, India : Kali Mirch in the town square tucked behind Sheraton Hotel. With that as our guide we went searching and finally found it after someone recognized it as ‘indo canteen’  in an alley that was all colorful and lit up with festive lights  and lined with many many tiny restaurants.  The interesting thing in China we  have discovered is that everything and everyone has a English and a Chinese name - most locals know only the Chinese names - even English is ‘yīngyǔ’ in Chinese.  Btw- The food at Kali Mirch was excellent :) 

Cliffs by Li River  watercolor by Meera Rao

The next day our guide drove us to a wharf an hour away and we took a river cruise down a very tranquil Li river to see the mountains all around - it is a very beautiful and serene journey - even with a looong line of small cruise boats  filled with tourists making their way down the river! The hotel had packed us boxed lunches and there was plenty of tea served throughout the journey as it was a four hour ride.  Every inch of the journey was a digital moment - everyone was oohing and clicking away - I realized very quickly that photos just couldn't capture the awesome peaks all around - growing more mysterious by the minute with fog and drizzle. The twenty Yuan bill of Chinese currency showcases a painting of these mountains.  We passed  high cliffs,  rice paddies, quaint little villages, fishermen on bamboo rafts, water buffaloes and horses grazing by the banks. 

We got off at Younshu and again elbowed our way thru a narrow passageway packed with vendors shouting and hawking off the goods while thousands of tourists from the cruise boats tried to make their way to buses and cars and other means of transportation back to their hotels ! We tried our bargaining skills and did a little bit of shopping ! “You shop like Chinese ladies’ we were told by a vendor ;) 

Entrance to Guillin Tea Research Center watercolor by Meera Rao 

Hat Rack in the Walkway watercolor by Meera Rao 

We toured an organic tea plantation on our way back, saw demonstrations of Chinese tea fermentation of green, white, black teas. We tried out the huge stone grinder/rollers used in crushing and oxidizing  the tea. We posed for photos wearing the classic cone shaped hats as we watched ladies carefully picking tea leaves in surrounding tea plantation.   Of course, we were treated to another session  of tea ceremony - this time we tasted Osmanthus, white and Pu'er teas unique to that area. 

Evening we were on our own and this time we went back to the temple canteen ( again lonely planet recommendation) and had the best Chinese vegan buffet- tried all kinds of noodles, dumplings , steamed buns, vegetables , pickles and many varieties of fruits!! Two days in a row dinner was excellent for us us vegetarians and vegans!  We ventured out for more little shopping for Chinese-English children's books for grandkids at street side stores. Thanks again to the google translate app we were able to find what we wanted in a small stationary store:)

The sun and Moon Twin pagodas  

Last day in Guillin,  we had till noon  to ourselves - so armed with a map we went to see Sun and Moon Pagodas in the Shan Lake that could be reached by a scenic winding path from the hotel. The two pagodas are connected by a beautiful underwater tunnel. We climbed 8-9 floors up each pagoda  for gorgeous views from above.  We even managed to visit The South Sea Pearl Museum and Showroom before heading to the airport for our flight to Shanghai. 

Ni Hao Part 9 The Terracotta Army

Terra-cotta Army of Qin She Huang  ink and watercolor by Meera Rao

From Xi'an City wall, after cheering the marathon runners, we drove to the archeological excavations site and museum of the  famous Terra-cotta warriors discovered in 1974 by local farmers. The subterranean life size terracota army(210-209 BC) of Emperor Qin Shi Huang was awesome to see. The sight of more than 5000 of  the dug up and restored warriors, horses, carriages, artifacts in the excavation pits took my breath away! There were three huge pits and a few warrior statues were displayed away from the pit on higher floor where we visitors could see them up-close.  The excavations and discoveries are still in progress.

Co-incidentally, I had recently watched a documentary about the discovery this archaeological site, the history behind it and also had visited the US tour of a small part of the Army and artifacts at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts at Richmond, Va. That helped me understand the scale and importance of this site. Again crowds here were just HUGE - had to squeeze and elbow our way to the viewing balcony to be able see anything at-all:) 

Terracotta Soldier ink and watercolor by Meera Rao

The details on these warriors, horses etc. were very impressive - no two are alike! This archer  was probably holding a bow and arrow ready to defend at moments notice by the looks of his pose.  

Stretching dough for handmade noodles   watercolor -no sketching  by Meera Rao 

For lunch we were treated to handmade noodles that were prepared right on the premises in the museums restaurant. It was fascinating to see how by just stretching and twisting repeatedly within minutes the dough is turned into to long noodle threads!!! They are then cooked in boiling water for a couple of minutes, drained and served. 

This last painting is not in my sketchbook but a part of the #30x30Directwatercolor, #nosketching challenge  :) 

Ni Hao Part 8 Xi'an

Cheering the Runners at Xi'an   ink and watercolor by Meera Rao 

Xi'an City Wall Marathon ink and watercolor by Meera Rao 

After a sumptuous breakfast, we set out early to explore Xian. Xi'an, an ancient capital of China has the oldest, largest and most well preserved fortifications.  Our guide was excited and flipped our itinerary a bit.  She drove us to city wall and gate (built in the 14th century) much earlier than planned because it was Xian City Wall Marathon day ! We too climbed up the city wall to watch and cheer as the runners went by. It was the very festive and Chinese version of the Rock and Roll marathon - with mostly retired elderly ( and mainly women) drumming and leading the cheers with ribbons, flags and colorful scarves as the runners breezed through.  We also had a great view of the city from the wall.  

China Post ink and watercolor by Meera Rao

Among the things that caught my attention during our trip to China were the green Chinese post boxes, mail vans and post offices. The mail delivery and pick up vehicles especially in the cities were all small and  three wheeled.  This one had a big basket on top.  

Umbrella for Motorcycle ink and watercolor by Meera Rao

Electric scoters with covers ink and watercolor by Meera Rao 

To tackle transportation and  environmental problems, China has millions of electric motorbikes and scooters - electric are the only ones allowed on the roads now. I saw a number of them being charged by the curbside with electric wires running from stores or houses.  They run very quiet and walkers have to be vigilant and  watch out for fast moving vehicles that sneak up suddenly in their path! Many of the bikes and scooters I saw had colorful umbrellas or covers to protect them from rain and sun :) 

Another interesting feature was how they used coats/jackets or special covers for their hand and vehicle handles but not the rest of the body!  

Ni Hao Part 7 Chengdu

View From Boat, Le Shan watercolor and Ink by Meera Rao

Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province was our next stop. Chengdu seemed like a laid back modern city with high rises and bustling ring roads. I fell in love with the old part of the city with its beautiful and grand traditional buildings, the ancient Wenshu Temple dedicated to Manjushree, and its distinctive streets.  The pavement in each street in the old city had its own special carved markings. The Temple and its sprawling gardens once again were an oasis of calm and serenity.  And of course, the restaurants by the temple served delicious vegetarian and vegan food!         

Grand Buddha at Le Shan, watercolor and Ink by Meera Rao

Le Shan's Grand Buddha was an easy day trip from Chengdu. The serene 1200 year old 71meters (233') tall Budha is carved from a cliff overlooking the confluence of three rivers: Min, Dadu, and Quinyi. It is also an Unesco World Heritage site. We took a boat tour so we could see the entire statue. The view of the cliff, the Buddha statue and the many centuries old buildings enhanced the leisurely boat ride. I even had time to sketch as the boat slowly made its way to and from viewing the statue. :) Later we enjoyed walking along the park-like riverfront of the picturesque town of LeShan.

 

View from Boat,  LeShan watercolor and Ink by Meera Rao

The next morning was devoted to observing the Pandas at the Giant Panda Breeding Research Center.  The vast and beautiful park like research center is a popular tourist attraction and once again there were HUGE crowds! We saw many adult pandas resting or eating and about half a dozen juveniles climbing and playing.  They were all spread out in the park and we got our day's exercise by walking  a couple of miles or more :) 

Panda watercolor and Ink by Meera Rao

In the old part of the city, we found many vendors selling fruits, noodles, and knickknacks in small stalls.  Some had a few baskets of fruits and vegetables set on the steps. This particular stall selling mulberries, mangoes, dragonfruits and jackfruits was flanked by elegant stone carvings of an elephant on a circular wheel like base.  A couple of books and a baby's sippy cup were resting on the elephant. I noticed that around dusk, in the old part of the city, many families pulled chairs around a folding table right by the street side next to their stalls and enjoyed their dinner and conversations.  

 

Fruits for Sale on the Steps of an Old Building in Chengdu watercolor and Ink by Meera Rao

Ni Hao part 6 Sun Temple Beijing

Sun Temple Gardens/Ri Tan Park, Beijing watercolor and ink sketch by Meera Rao 

We went exploring one evening from our hotel. The Sun Temple and Ri Tan Park so clearly marked on the map within walking distance somehow kept eluding us.  And then suddenly just as we were about to give up, I saw a sign with so many things crossed off (see below) and had to take a photo. Right next to it was the sign we were looking for all along :) near an unassuming gate. 

Ritan - The Temple of the Sun was built in the 9th year of Emperor Jiajing in 1530 during the Ming dynasty. Along with temples dedicated to the Earth, the Moon, and  the Temple of Heaven, its one of five historical temples of Beijing. The Temple of the Sun was used by the imperial court for rites of worship of Sun, fasting, prayers, dancing as part of a year-long cycle of ceremonies. The color red was associated with the Sun, including red utensils for food and wine offerings, and red clothes for the emperor to wear during the ceremonies. The temple is now part of a public park. 

    

We strolled the beautiful grounds lined with trees full of red blossoms.  It was an oasis of peace in the middle of a buzzing city! There were people doing tai chi, exercise walking, chatting away and some meditating in quiet corners.  The temple complex is grand with ornate pagodas, ponds, rock sculptures, and serene gardens. We watched the sunset from top of a little hill with a beautiful pagoda in the center of a small garden. By the time we walked around and found the temple, it was dark and the doors were closed for the day. But we had a very enjoyable  and peaceful evening.

Spring in Beijing  watercolor and ink sketch by Meera Rao