Tag Archives: china

Youngest Golfer, 14 years old, at the Masters

Around the World, , ,

Guan Tianlang, 14, is set to become the youngest player ever to play at the Masters — he tees off today at 12:24 pm Georgia time. He’s from Guangzhou, China (represent!). Actually, he’s paired with Matteo Manassero, the former “youngest golfer at the Masters” when he was 16 years old in 2010.

Here’s his latest tweet with one of the first female members of the Augusta National Golf Club, Condoleezza Rice. This kid’s still in 8th grade. Man. This story begs the question: What were YOU doing when you were 14 years old?

132b22fd 447b 4e0e 866d 7528687a8954 500x802 Youngest Golfer, 14 years old, at the Masters

Rural Chinese Families and their stuff

Around the World, , ,

famstuff5 500x400 Rural Chinese Families and their stuff

Huang Qingjun has spent nearly a decade traveling to remote parts of China to persuade people who have sometimes never been photographed to carry outside all their household possessions and pose for him.

famstuff9 500x398 Rural Chinese Families and their stuff

Huang says, “In lots of Chinese villages, the government has delivered roads and connected them with electricity. This has been a huge change. If you’ve a road, you can move about. If you’ve got electricity you can have TV, you get the news and ideas about what the outside world is thinking.

The biggest problems in rural areas now are how people can get better education for their children, and healthcare.”

famstuff7 500x400 Rural Chinese Families and their stuff

Most families have already acquired a TV, a few have washing machines. The pedal-driven sewing machine which in their parents’ generation was every housewife’s dream – known as one of the “four big things” – is pushed to the back of a few pictures.

Four Big Things

  • Phrase dating from 1950s for most sought-after goods for newly married couples: sewing machine, bicycle, watch, radio
  • It’s since come to refer to whatever is most fashionable at the time
  • By 1980s the four big things were: TV, washing machine, rice cooker, fridge
  • Now consumer goods flood China’s cities, it tends to be used to describe people’s aspirations for the latest thing

Chinese spending habits

  • The government has tried in recent years to boost consumer spending with discount vouchers on appliances, furniture and cars
  • Many aspire to material goods, but a 2010 survey found they were more concerned with saving for education, healthcare and retirement

famstuff8 500x400 Rural Chinese Families and their stuff

famstuff4 500x400 Rural Chinese Families and their stuff

famstuff6 500x400 Rural Chinese Families and their stuff

Next year marks the 10th anniversary of the first photograph, and Huang plans to mark it by returning to the places he visited – or those that are still recognizable – to see what has changed.

“In the last 10 years, China has seen such a fast rate of growth, I want to go back and see what the effects have been on their lives,” he says.

Source: BBC
Photos: Huang Qingjun

Photography Equipment in Beijing

Around the World, Materialism, Photography & Art, , , , , ,
IMG 2443 600x400 Photography Equipment in Beijing

Nathan and his new toy

I’ve been meaning to document this here so I can find it easily in the future. Where do you go to buy photography equipment when you’re in China? Look no further than the Beijing photography city. If I remember correctly, it’s about 2 stories filled with a hundred different stores/booths.

I didn’t buy any big-ticket items, but I did pick up some accessories that were fairly inexpensive. Prices are comparable to US retail store prices, although online US prices are still slightly cheaper. Be careful when buying though, because I believe those gray market items do not include the manufacturer’s warranty.

If you want to check out photography equipment in China, visit the “photo gear mall” in Beijing.

Beijing Photography Equipment City
Address: Beijing, Haidian District, Wukesong Road No. 40
Phone:010-88119728 88119763 (Chinese only)
Store hours: 9:00am – 17:00pm (Winter), 9:00am – 18:00pm (Summer)

地址：北京海淀区五棵松路40号
电话：010-88119728 88119763
营业时间：早9：00—晚18：00

Subway: No 1 line, Wukesong station, Exit B to the North East of the Wukesong intersection, Walk 1km (10 minutes) to the north (east side of the 4th ring road). The place is on the right side of the road.

Image taken in Hong Kong, 2009. I think the picture looks a little too cartoon-y. Not sure what it is. I just remember the lighting was pretty bad in the tiny cafe place we were at.

Baby on Board

Personal, , , , , ,

IMG 0313 2 Baby on Board

I guess there’s really nowhere to put that small “baby on board” sign that people place in the back window of their cars to encourage safe driving. I can’t imagine my sister biking around like this with Abby.

Image taken while I was riding my bike. I don’t really like it because it’s slightly blurry. I suppose I should have adjusted my settings a little better.
Narnia (Beijing, China. 2010.)

Dance with the “Where the Hell is Matt” guy in Shanghai and Beijing

Around the World, ,

China friends! Go dance with the “Where the Hell is Matt” guy in Shanghai and Beijing! I want to see you in his videos. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, watch his old videos here.

According to a tip on the Shanghaiist:

In Beijing, he’ll be dancing in the Sanlitun area at the San Li Tun Fountain, near the northwest corner of the fountain. The time and date: 3pm, Saturday, February 19.

And in Shanghai, he’ll be at the Science and Technology Museum in Pudong (on Line 2) near the sculpture at the entrance. The time and date: 3pm, Sunday, February 20.