Less than an hour out of North Korea and I wondered, was I never going to be able to get away from bronze statues of leaders in squares? Continue reading “Chairman Mao Zedong”
A New Dawn – China sees Red
When most people think of ancient history they think in terms of thousands of years ago. Not so in China where the National Museum of China has decreed that Ancient China ended in 1840 with the onset of the First Opium War. Thankfully, otherwise I and, I suspect, many of my readers would be deemed products of the dark ages or, at best, the middle ages, China moves directly from Ancient China to the Modern Age. Continue reading “A New Dawn – China sees Red”
Visit Chairman Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong (1893-1976) was Chairman of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China from 1943 and the Chairman of the Communist Party of China from 1945 until his death on 9 September, 1976. Continue reading “Visit Chairman Mao Zedong”
Chairman Mao Memorial Hall
This review is on the building and sculptures around it. For details of my internal visit see my separate review – Visit Chairman Mao Zedong.
The Chairman Mao Memorial Hall or Mao’s Mausoleum is located at the southern end of Tiananmen Square between the Monument to the People’ s Heroes and Zhengyangmen Gate. Continue reading “Chairman Mao Memorial Hall”
Monument to the People’s Heroes
On the 30 September 1949, the day before Mao Zedong’s official proclamation of the People’s Republic of China, the first plenary session of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference decreed that a monument be constructed in Beijing to commemorate the people’s heroes of modern Chinese history. Continue reading “Monument to the People’s Heroes”
Tiananmen – Gate of Heavenly Peace
With its portrait of Mao Zedong, Tiananmen (Gate) is one of the most recognised sights in not only Beijing but also in China and it forms a key part of the country’s national emblem. Continue reading “Tiananmen – Gate of Heavenly Peace”
“Exploring the old and deducing the new makes a teacher”
When a friend comes from afar, is that not delightful?
Confucius
We think too small, like the frog at the bottom of the well. He thinks the
sky is only as big as the top of the well. If he surfaced, he would have an
entirely different view.
Mao Zedong
Continue reading ““Exploring the old and deducing the new makes a teacher””
Kumsusan Palace of the Sun – Meet the Leaders
Where does one begin?
Today was the day when shirts and ties were required for men with appropriately modest attire required for the ladies. We were headed for the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, final resting place for both Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. Both leaders have been embalmed and lie in state for loyal subjects and tourists to visit. Clearly this is a site of very great importance to the North Korean people and one, quite reasonably, requiring a level of reverence and discretion from all those who visit. Continue reading “Kumsusan Palace of the Sun – Meet the Leaders”
Sino-Korean Friendship Tower
This monument, close the Kim Il-sung Stadium and the Pyongyang Television Tower serves two purposes.
Firstly it is a memorial, dedicated to Chinese martyrs of the Korean War Continue reading “Sino-Korean Friendship Tower”
The Rambling Wombat 