CFDA Launches ‘Americans in China’ Program to Strengthen Connection with …
Fendi’s 2007 fashion show on the Great Wall
Over the last few years we’ve seen countless luxury brands stage fashion shows in China–in Beijing, Shanghai, on the Great Wall–in addition to staging their shows in Paris, London, New York or Milan. With Chinese surpassing Americans as the biggest consumers of luxury goods, designers are focusing more than ever on China.
Of course, for smaller labels that aren’t part of luxury conglomerates, China is a market that’s harder to tap into. Enter the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund’s latest initiative, “Americans in China,” which will bring Proenza Schouler, Rag Bone, and Marchesa (three former CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalists) to China to present their fall-winter 2013 collections at the Ming Dynasty City Wall Relics Park, at the Great Wall of China, in Beijing. According to a release, the initiative is “part of the ongoing effort to introduce American design talent to the rapidly expanding luxury market in China.”
“These are exciting times in China,” said CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg. “There is great opportunity for American designers.”
The initiative is underwritten by retail tycoon Silas Chou and is a continuation of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund’s program in China, set up in 2012 to “help foster the exchange of emerging design talent between the United States and China.” In addition to presenting their fall collections, the invited designers will be honored at a reception hosted by Gary Locke, U.S. Ambassador to China, and then treated to a dinner given by Vogue China’s editor in chief, Angelica Cheung.
Backyard Travel Releases New China Tour: Beijing at a Glance – PRWeb
Temple of Heaven, Beijing, China
The size and frantic nature of the city can sometimes be daunting, but our city break tour provides the opportunity to experience all the wonderful aspects of Beijing accompanied by a local guide.
Bangkok, Thailand (PRWEB) April 23, 2013
The bespoke four-day, three-night tour of China’s capital city begins at Temple of Heaven Park, a place noted for its deep connection with Chinese religion and society. The tour then moves on to the Forbidden City which was lovingly restored in preparation for the 2008 Olympics and served as the Chinese Imperial Palace in the days of the Ming Dynasty, before moving on to the nearby Beihai Lake and Houhai Lake.
Houhai is surrounded by numerous hutongs which are home to traditional courtyard-style homes that have mostly been converted into charming bars and restaurants. After a scenic walk around the lakes, travelers will then be guided to the Drum Tower which was used in the Ming Dynasty to signal the passing of each hour with a drum roll.
The next day of the China tour will take travelers to discover one of the world’s most iconic and majestic man-made structures—The Great Wall of China. Travelers will be guided to a lesser visited section of the spectacular wall where they can enjoy more space to fully appreciate their time atop the giant structure.
On their return journey to Beijing, travelers will be taken to the Summer Palace, a former Imperial garden which was redesigned in the 18th century by Emperor Qianlong. The Palace grounds and is now renowned as one of China’s most revered places of beauty and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Before flying on to their next destination, or returning home, travelers will have the chance to visit the ‘798’ art district which plays host to numerous galleries, exhibitions and fashion boutiques set up by budding Chinese artists and designers.
“Beijing is one of the world’s largest and most fabulous cities and contains many sites of man-made wonder,” said Backyard Travel’s General Manager Maeve Nolan. “The size and frantic nature of the city can sometimes be daunting, but our city break tour provides the opportunity to experience all the wonderful aspects of Beijing accompanied by a local guide.”
About Backyard Travel
Bangkok based Backyard Travel is an online travel company specializing in tailor-made tours to Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia, Japan and China. For more information about Backyard Travel, visit http://www.backyardtravel.com or Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/BackyardTravel.
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Backyard Travel Releases New China Tour: Beijing at a Glance
PRWEB.COM Newswire
Bangkok, Thailand (PRWEB) April 23, 2013
The bespoke four-day, three-night tour of China’s capital city begins at Temple of Heaven Park, a place noted for its deep connection with Chinese religion and society. The tour then moves on to the Forbidden City which was lovingly restored in preparation for the 2008 Olympics and served as the Chinese Imperial Palace in the days of the Ming Dynasty, before moving on to the nearby Beihai Lake and Houhai Lake.
Houhai is surrounded by numerous hutongs which are home to traditional courtyard-style homes that have mostly been converted into charming bars and restaurants. After a scenic walk around the lakes, travelers will then be guided to the Drum Tower which was used in the Ming Dynasty to signal the passing of each hour with a drum roll.
The next day of the China tour will take travelers to discover one of the world’s most iconic and majestic man-made structures—The Great Wall of China. Travelers will be guided to a lesser visited section of the spectacular wall where they can enjoy more space to fully appreciate their time atop the giant structure.
On their return journey to Beijing, travelers will be taken to the Summer Palace, a former Imperial garden which was redesigned in the 18th century by Emperor Qianlong. The Palace grounds and is now renowned as one of China’s most revered places of beauty and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Before flying on to their next destination, or returning home, travelers will have the chance to visit the ‘798’ art district which plays host to numerous galleries, exhibitions and fashion boutiques set up by budding Chinese artists and designers.
“Beijing is one of the world’s largest and most fabulous cities and contains many sites of man-made wonder,” said Backyard Travel’s General Manager Maeve Nolan. “The size and frantic nature of the city can sometimes be daunting, but our city break tour provides the opportunity to experience all the wonderful aspects of Beijing accompanied by a local guide.”
About Backyard Travel
Bangkok based Backyard Travel is an online travel company specializing in tailor-made tours to Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia, Japan and China. For more information about Backyard Travel, visit http://www.backyardtravel.com or Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/BackyardTravel.
Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/backyard-travel/beijing-a-at-glance/prweb10661255.htm
Backyard Travel Releases New China Tour: Beijing at a Glance
Backyard Travel, Asia’s most innovative tour company, has today released news of a new tailor-made trip to Beijing, taking travelers to investigate one of the world’s most amazing modern day cities. The trip allows the opportunity to visit the ‘big three’ of Beijing, The Great Wall of China, Summer Palace and Forbidden City with a local guide leading the way.
Bangkok, Thailand (PRWEB) April 23, 2013
The bespoke four-day, three-night tour of China’s capital city begins at Temple of Heaven Park, a place noted for its deep connection with Chinese religion and society. The tour then moves on to the Forbidden City which was lovingly restored in preparation for the 2008 Olympics and served as the Chinese Imperial Palace in the days of the Ming Dynasty, before moving on to the nearby Beihai Lake and Houhai Lake.
Houhai is surrounded by numerous hutongs which are home to traditional courtyard-style homes that have mostly been converted into charming bars and restaurants. After a scenic walk around the lakes, travelers will then be guided to the Drum Tower which was used in the Ming Dynasty to signal the passing of each hour with a drum roll.
The next day of the China tour will take travelers to discover one of the world’s most iconic and majestic man-made structures—The Great Wall of China. Travelers will be guided to a lesser visited section of the spectacular wall where they can enjoy more space to fully appreciate their time atop the giant structure.
On their return journey to Beijing, travelers will be taken to the Summer Palace, a former Imperial garden which was redesigned in the 18th century by Emperor Qianlong. The Palace grounds and is now renowned as one of China’s most revered places of beauty and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Before flying on to their next destination, or returning home, travelers will have the chance to visit the ‘798’ art district which plays host to numerous galleries, exhibitions and fashion boutiques set up by budding Chinese artists and designers.
“Beijing is one of the world’s largest and most fabulous cities and contains many sites of man-made wonder,” said Backyard Travel’s General Manager Maeve Nolan. “The size and frantic nature of the city can sometimes be daunting, but our city break tour provides the opportunity to experience all the wonderful aspects of Beijing accompanied by a local guide.”
About Backyard Travel
Bangkok based Backyard Travel is an online travel company specializing in tailor-made tours to Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia, Japan and China. For more information about Backyard Travel, visit http://www.backyardtravel.com or Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/BackyardTravel.
For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebbackyard-travel/beijing-a-at-glance/prweb10661255.htm
Chinese Characters: The Great Wall of China (長城)
The Great Wall of China is called 長城 (cháng chéng) in Chinese.
The first character, 長, when pronounced cháng, means long, lasting, and deep. It is also a radical. Its ancient form resembled a person with long hair. Its current form is a pictograph of a person with long hair with a walking stick.
The second character, 城 (chéng), is composed of two parts. The radical 土 (tǔ), a pictograph of a mound of soil on the ground, refers to soil, earth, or items made of earth. The character � (chéng) means to complete, accomplish, achieve, or succeed.
Thus 城 symbolizes an achievement accomplished using soil or earth. The character refers to a city, town, or municipality. It also refers to a castle, city wall, or place surrounded by city walls.
The Great Wall of China is also called �里長城 (wà n l� cháng chéng), literally “a 10,000-mile-long wall.� The monumental military defence structure measures over 20,000 kilometres, or 12,400 miles.
The Great Wall was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987.
According to UNESCO, it was built continuously by successive states and empires from the 3rd century B.C., or perhaps even earlier, to the Ming Dynasty in the 17th century A.D. along China’s northern border and Mongolia’s southern border.
The structure consists of walls, watch towers, shelters, and horse tracks, while along it are fortresses and passes.
Asia & US: Great Wall of China, Fact or Fiction?
Here’s how UNESCO describes the Great Wall, or what the Chinese call the Long Wall of Ten Thousand Li: In about 220 BC, under Qin Shi Huang, sections of earlier fortifications were joined together to form a united defense system against invasions from the north. Construction continued up to the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), when the Great Wall became the world’s largest military structure. Its historic and strategic importance is matched only by its architectural significance.
Here are three widely accepted facts about Great Wall. But, are they true
CLAIM 1: It’s the only human-made object you can see from space — even from the moon.
FACT or FICTION? Almost universally accepted as fact, it’s not true. Here’s what NASA has to say: It has become a space-based myth. The Great Wall of China, frequently billed as the only man-made object visible from space, generally isn’t, at least to the unaided eye in low Earth orbit. It certainly isn’t visible from the Moon. Yang Liwei, China’s astronaut, caused a lot of controversy and consternation when he said that he couldn’t see it. The Egyptian pyramids, in contrast, are clearly visible to the naked eye from space.
CLAIM 2: The purpose of the Great Wall was to keep out barbarian invaders.
FACT or FICTION? This is true, but it’s not the whole story. The Great Wall was built to keep people in as well as out. As Professor James C. Scott explains in The Art of Not Being Governed, “ the Great Wall(s) and the anti-Miao walls of Hunan were seen officially as a barrier to barbarians, whereas, in fact, they were built just as surely to hold a taxpaying, sedentary, cultivating population within the ambit of state power.”
CLAIM 3: The Great Wall has nothing to do with love.
FACT or FICTION? This might have been true at some point in the past, but not so today. When we visited the Great Wall, climbing a portion of it in the snow, I marveled at the hundreds, if not thousands, of locks that were affixed to the Great Wall. Chinese couples inscribe their initials on a padlock, lock it on a bar or chain on the Great Wall, and throw away the key — thus signifying their eternal love for one another.
Had you heard these claims about the Great Wall?
Were you surprised by the truths today?
Do you have a fourth fact (or fiction) to add to today’s list?
Beijing In Three (Long) Days
Tour groups are the laziest form of traveling. There, I said it. They lead you around like lemmings taking you to all the cool sites a city has to offer plus they do you the “favor” of taking you to special shopping locations.
In Egypt it was a “Perfumery” in China it’s a “Chinese Tea Shop”. It’s all a scam to make you open your wallet. When I’m on vacation I don’t want to sit around on a tour bus and listen to a guide tell me about the world outside the bus window. I want to experience it for myself! Free yourselves of the shackles of the tour groups. You can go to all the top attractions for a fraction of the tour group price. Leave the tours for the suckers who don’t want to have any real adventure on their vacation. Here I’ve trimmed the fat on a recent vacation to give you: The Best 3 Days in Beijing.
Day 1: Great Wall of China Peking Duck
The Great Wall of China at Jinshanling
Lots of travel books say you must visit Tianemen Square before you head off to The Great Wall of China. Hogcock! I say you see one of the Wonders of the World first and get to the large cement patch later. There are many places to see the wall. Good old Tripadvisor suggests The Great Wall at Mutianyu as the top attraction in Beijing. This is a terrible idea. Never go there. It’s the Disney version of the Great Wall of China. If Disney ever decided to recreate the Great Wall of China it would look exactly like Mutianyu: Impeccably clean, hundreds of souvenir hawkers lining the streets and amusement park rides. Instead, go to a part of the Great Wall that time forgot.
In the morning take a cab over to Beijing Downtown Backpackers and do their Great Wall Hike. Every other day Beijing Downtown Backpackers takes a small group of people and drops them off at the Jinshanling section of the wall. This is a lesser known section of the Great Wall of China and most of it dates back to the Ming dynasty.
After an hour drive to the Great Wall you are led to to a path up to the Wall and you hike at your own pace through 22 Guard towers until you hit Si Ma Tai. The view from this section of the Great Wall is stunning. The hike isn’t for the faint of heart either. There are inclines that are tougher than any setting you can put on your treadmill. The experience of stepping foot on this crumbling artifact and not hearing another soul speak your language is a memory you will not soon forget. On one side of the wall is Mongolia and the other is China. This was the highlight of my trip. Tickets for this trip are 280 RMB or $45.
Peking Duck
Almost as famous as the Great Wall of China is Peking Duck in Beijing. There are many places to get this delicious bird. The place I would recommend is Da Dong Restaurant. It’s a little pricey, but the duck is simply wonderful. They cook the duck in a new method that makes the fat crispy and lean. The chefs cook the birds in an open fire kitchen in the middle of the restaurant. Once your duck is cooked to perfection one of the chefs cuts your duck table side into 102 perfect slices of meat. No part of the duck goes to waste. Reservations are recommended and have fun flipping through their 160 page menu. Half a duck goes for about 100 RMB or $16.
Another great option for the national dish is Bianyifang (5 Chongwenmenwai Dajie, Chongwen, 3rd. Floor of the China New World Shopping Mall). You won’t find too many tourists here as this restaurant is on the third floor of a large shopping mall. The chefs here claim to be from the same cooking methods from the Qing emperor Xianfeng. They cook their birds in a closed oven instead of a half-open oven where the duck hangs to cook (like Da Dong). My advice: Try both and join the debate of which restaurant has the better duck! For an appetizer I recommend the Duck breast with apricots. Half a duck goes for about 100 RMB or $16 as well.
Day 2: Tiananmen Square, The Forbidden City, Jingshan Park the Hutongs
Tiananmen Square
Take the subway to Tiānānmén Xī or Tiānānmén Dōng station
Tiananmen Square gets a lot of publicity. What with the student protests, deaths and the fact that no one in China knows anything about it. The truth is: It’s a long flat piece of concrete. Besides the dozens of people trying to sell you designer hand bags there isn’t much to do other than line up to see the body of a deceased emperor. For real, his body is actually on display. My advice would be to do a lap, reflect on the people who gave their lives for what they believed in, pass on the dead body and head across the street to the Forbidden City. Free admission.
The Forbidden City
Take the subway to Tiānānmén Xī or Tiānānmén Dōng station
This place is gorgeous! After you enter the city and buy an audio guide you find yourself transported back to a time when emperors roamed these courtyards and gardens. They have said there are 9,999.5 rooms in the Forbidden City but I lost count after 50. The Forbidden City was off-limits to the outside world for 500 years. In those years, no one could enter or leave the palace without the emperor’s permission. Sounds like a Twilight Zone episode to me. There’s a lot to see here but you won’t miss much since your audio guide is triggered by GPS technology making sure you don’t miss a thing. Take a moment to check out the interesting rock wall in the gardens towards the back. Can you make out all the faces etched into the wall? Admission costs 40 RMB or $6.
Jingshan Park
You’ve just walked the entire Forbidden City. Cross the street from the underground tunnel and enter Jingshan Park. The hill you climb up was made from the earth that was displaced to make the moat that surrounds the Forbidden City. The climb up to the top of the park pales in comparison of the Jinshanling hike you did yesterday but you’ll still feel like Rocky once you reach the top. Waiting for you on top is a beautiful view of The Forbidden City and a temple. The views alone are worth the price of admission (2 RMB or 30 cents) alone. Take a moment and reflect on all the ground you just covered on foot and take note of the smog in the air. On weekends there are groups of Chinese people exercising and flying kites. Take it all in before you head back to the crowded subway. Admission is 2 RMB or 30 cents.
Hutongs
A thousand years before Beijingers lived in high-rise buildings that surround the ancient city they lived in small shared buildings and courtyards. Each building would house a few families and they’d often have to share the one kitchen and bathroom. The hutongs are still in use today and offer a sobering look at the day-to-day life of the lower class that live in one of the most populated cities in the world. Pedicab tours are available and often include a ride to the Drum Tower. This is a popular tourist attraction and the pedicab drivers can be a bit aggressive. Make sure to haggle on the price and try to get them to drop you off somewhere near a subway stop.
Day 3: Summer Palace Temple of Heaven
Summer Palace
Subway to Xīyuán or Běigōngmén
How did you like Forbidden City? It was nice, right? Like a real city shoved into the bigger city that is Beijing, right? Well, if you liked that then you will love the Summer Palace. This 290-acre park makes The Forbidden City look like a mini-mall. There are tea houses and shops to explore in a recreated Chinese street. If you are a fan of imperial landscaping then you will enjoy the palace temples, pavilions, bridges and gardens. All of which are in pristine condition considering the palace was damaged during the Second Opium War in 1860. The marble boat is a tourist favorite but other than a symbol of a failed leader there are much more to see than just a fake marble boat. The Long Corridor along the northern shore of the lake is the other crowd favorite. Walk in the corridor or along the side of it and head up to Longevity Hill. Stop in at the Buddhist Temple of the Sea of Wisdom at the top of the hill and keep an eye out for a family of cats that live there. Pedal boats are available at the docks along with regular boat rides in the summer. There is an obscene amount of history to see here. Take your time and don’t rush yourself. It could take you up to 6 hours to see all the major sights. The trip out to the Summer Palace is an easy 35 minute subway ride to one of the many entrances. There are audio guides available as well. Admission varies but if you get a combo pack with all the attractions it will set you back 50 RMB or $8.
Temple of Heaven Park
Subway to Tiāntándōngmén
Beijing is an outdoor city. If you’re here in bad weather you may want to get an umbrella or a poncho because you will not want to miss out on this next attraction. Temple of Heaven Park was built in 1420 and is currently the largest building for religious worship in all of China. It has been visited by emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to heaven for a good harvest. In fact the building that everyone called the Temple of Heaven is actually called the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest but I guess that doesn’t have as good a ring to it. All the buildings within the Temple have dark blue roof tiles to represent heaven. A combo ticket costs 30 RMB or $5.
A trip to Beijing is an opportunity to see just how big and different our world really is. It’s easy to hire a tour company to chauffeur you around the hard edges or you can do what so many have done before and go on an adventure at your own pace. All the attractions above would cost you under $100. Less than 100 bucks to see the Great Wall, The Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven and two Peking Duck dinners! Do yourself a favor and take the subway (all signs are in English and cost 2 RMB per ride), eat at strange and exotic restaurants, meet new people and, most importantly, be your own tour guide.
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Inspiring views of the Great Wall
For hiking and photography enthusiasts, there is no better place on the Great Wall of China than the dramatic and difficult Jiankou section, says CNN cameraman Brad Olson. Located about 90 km from Beijing, the Ming Dynasty relic is best entered from the north through the village of Xizhazi in Beijing’s Huairou District. As the section is about 9 miles (18 km) long with rugged terrain, Olsen covered it over four visits, once during each season.
Backyard Travel Release New China Tour: Fortresses, Modern History & The …
Backyard Travel, Asia’s most innovative travel company, have today released details a new tailor-made tour to China’s Eastern region, Fujian. The educational ‘Fortresses, Modern History The Hakka’ tour takes travelers to discover the fascinating past of the region, especially the migration of the Han people to Yongding and their building of self-contained fortresses, as well as staying on the island of Gulangyu, where the footprints of European and Japanese merchants can still be seen.
Bangkok, Thailand (PRWEB) January 18, 2013
The three-day, two night tour, carefully designed by Backyard Travel’s Beijing-based Travel Specialists, begins by traveling the short ferry journey from Xiamen to Gulangyu Island, a quaint, charming island in the Fujian Province on the east coast of China. The island’s history is rich, and travelers will have the chance to discover its past as they meander the streets and absorb the variety and elegant mixture of colonial and Chinese architecture, while experiencing breathtaking views of the island from Sunlight Rock, also known as ‘Dragon Head Hill’.
Once on the island travelers can also discover the art of penjing, also known as bonsai in the delightful Shuzhuang Garden, once the residence of a wealthy Taiwanese businessman, which hosts several iconic Chinese pavilions. There is also the opportunity for travelers to try the local seafood specialty ‘Xiamen Pie’ at a local restaurant.
The following day, travelers will return to Xiamen by ferry and then be taken on a four-hour drive to Yongding. This region of China is scattered with many spectacular Hakka Fortresses, also known as tulou. The fortresses were constructed during the Ming Dynasty by Han people who fled east under duress from the Manchu. When settling in this new region they found acceptance difficult and were forced to construct miniature self-contained cities to withstand attacks from local tribes.
The tulou still exist and are in use today, often containing communities numbering in the hundreds. Many of the tulou are listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites and this tailored tour takes travelers to investigate some of the most iconic buildings in the province. First the tour will visit the Hongkeng fortresses of Zhencheng Lou, Kuiju Lou and Rusheng Lou before heading to the ‘King of Tulou’, Chengqi Lou in the Gaobei Village, notable for its vast size and dates back to the 18th century.
Travelers on the tour will then have the unique opportunity to spend the night in the tulou to fully grasp the lifestyle and how the modern-day Han have adapted their unusual way of life. Travelers will also enjoy a traditional family dinner in the tulou to sample some authentic regional delicacies.
After a home-cooked breakfast at the tulou, travelers will then be taken on the return journey to Xiamen and on the way will visit the famous UNESCO World Heritage Site Tianluokeng Tulou Cluster which comprises five fortresses in close proximity, three of which are round and one oval, which surround a central square tulou. After the visit, travelers will then be transferred back to the airport in Xiamen before moving on to their next destination.
“This Fortresses, Modern History the Hakka Tour is more than just sightseeing, it’s an immersion into some of China’s fascinating past,” said Backyard Travel’s General Manager Maeve Nolan. “This tour is essentially a laid-back educational experience, taking guests to see some of the absorbing colonial regional history of China. Fujian is not often the first place that springs to mind when people think of China, but the region holds some absolute gems.”
About Backyard Travel
Bangkok based Backyard Travel is an online travel company specializing in tailor-made tours to Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia, Japan, and China. For more information about Backyard Travel, visit http://www.backyardtravel.com or Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/BackyardTravel.
For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebbackyard-travel/china-fortress-hakka-tour/prweb10324087.htm
Country keepsakes
The Travel team digs out favourite items from the souvenir chest
SOUVENIRS. They are keepsakes of delight reminding us of the places visited. Fading memories of travel experiences burn brightly again every time we look at these.
The Travel Desk team definitely have their favourites:
Great Wall Of China Fridge Magnet, Huanghuacheng, China
It’s not just any fridge magnet. For me, it’s a symbol of my triumph of conquering the treacherous steps of the Great Wall Of China. Looking at the highest tower perched high on an almost vertical ridge at Huanghuacheng part of the Great Wall sent shivers through my spine.
“Can I make it to the top?” I asked myself as I began my trek along a winding brick trail. It was no sweat to reach the first tower. It gave me time to take in the breathtaking sight of this Unesco World Heritage site surrounded by green mountains. Located 65km from Beijing, this section of the ancient wall runs more than 10km long and was built during the Ming Dynasty.
When I clambered onto the spine of the Great Wall toward the second tower, I could see the rest of the wall snaking along the ridges. It was then that I laboured with every step I took. At the second tower, I started to feel giddy but my spirit was high to conquer the third tower. I then took 10 steps at a time. Neither looking up nor down, I concentrated on my steps. Before I knew it, I had reached the top. I must have climbed 1,000 steps but they were all worth it.
I stood at the steepest section, the Shibadeng, that looked like a dragon, all poised to fly into the blue sky. So you see, my Great Wall Of China fridge magnet reminds me that I have conquered one of the greatest wonders of the world, albeit a very small part of it.Putri Zanina
Sunglasses Casing, Tokyo, Japan
When I left Suzuka, Japan, after a two-month training programme some 10 years ago, my Japanese foster mother whom I fondly call Okaasan gave me a pouch and a coin purse made of traditional kimono material. Okaasan hand-stitched the items herself. Till today, they remain my favourite omiyage or souvenir.
So when I went to Japan to take part in the Tokyo Marathon last February, I had no intention of buying anything as I still treasured the pouch and purse. But when I saw a sunglasses casing in one of the 100-yen (RM3.60) shops in Odaiba, I was immediately reminded of the two items I had at home. They’re of the same colour and motifs though the casing is covered with a slightly inferior material. But at a glance, one can’t tell.
And since the original casing of my sunglasses had worn out, I thought “why not?” This casing, though mass produced in China, is with me everywhere I go to remind me of the souvenirs that I keep in a box at home.Zalina Mohd Som
Leather Messenger Bag, Paris, France
My recent trip to Paris with my siblings was an unforgettable one. It was the first time the three of us had gone together on a holiday overseas. While in Paris, we had planned to go on a day trip to London but due to unforeseen circumstances, it was cancelled.
My sister was a little disappointed as she has always wanted to visit — of all places — the famous Marks Spencer (MS) flagship store in Oxford Street, London. My brother too was looking forward to shopping there as he found the clothes reasonably priced and of good quality.
All was not completely lost though as the biggest MS store recently opened in So Ouest, Levallois-Perret, Paris.
Like children in a candy store, my sister and brother went berserk. As for me, nothing caught my eyes except for this full leather messenger beg that sat beautifully on the rack. It felt so soft. At €125 (RM500), this 100 per cent leather with 100 per cent cotton lining was a steal. When I look at the bag, it reminds of my siblings and our wonderful two-week holiday in Paris.Shuib Taib
Minnie Mouse Headband, Disneyland Hong Kong
From small, I have loved the cartoons on TV. I still watch the Disney Channel to wind down after work. So, when I got the chance to visit Disneyland Hong Kong last September, I was excited about meeting Mickey. I might even get to be his Minnie!
And Minnie I did become, by putting on this cute Minnie Mouse headband throughout my visit to the wonderland.
The plush black mouse ears with padded red satin polka dot bow gave me that Minnie touch. Wearing it reminds me of the magical days at the park and it still brings out the child in me. It is not a dusty trophy collection at all, as I still wear it every night when I go to sleep!
Hanna Hussein
Nail Clipper, Seoul, Korea
When women talk of shopping in Korea, they always think of the cosmetics suited for Asian skin. For me, however, I will always associate shopping in Seoul with the purchase of the “mother of all nail clippers”! I always carry one in my bag whenever I travel. The Korean ones are really nippy and sharp.
As I keep long nails, I need to trim and shape them every few days. I have had my share of poor quality clippers that end up cutting off the nail instead of trimming it. So I was thrilled when a bunch of gleaming nail clippers caught my attention in a department store in Seoul. I tried one and found it to be very sharp. So the next time you pop into a Korean department store, go buy a couple. They are easy to carry around and not good just for clipping nails but for snipping off thread as well. Don’t leave home without a nail clipper made in Korea!
Teresa Yong-Leong
Great Wall Of China Fridge Magnet, Huanghuacheng, China
Sunglasses Casing, Tokyo, Japan
Leather Messenger Bag, Paris, France
Minnie Mouse Headband, Disneyland Hong Kong
Nail Clipper, Seoul, Korea
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