Friends from China

• Chinese Student in Tai-yuan, Shanxi Provice in China (1995). A very smart and polite student. She was studying English literature at Shanxi University. Chinese Student in Chinese dress.
  1. Salamanca (Spain 1992). Chinese restaurants are everywhere in the world.
  2. From Xinkiang. These ladies came from China's Xinkiang province, the far-western province which borders with Kazakhstan. We do not meet the people from this area too often, but they were like neighbors when I was talking to them (Minsk, May 2002). Very kind ladies!

  3. Hotel receptionists at Dalian's Furama Hotel (2013). This tall lady very courteous to me. She gently bowed whenever I saw her. She came from Dandung.
  4. Chinese Farm Lady. I spent the first eleven years of my life in a farmland in Korea. I was very young then, and Korean ladies looking like her took a very good care of me. I felt babyish, while this Chinese lady felt that I was a very rich man from the United States (ShangXi Province, China, 1995).

• Chinese Lady from England at a sidewalk cafe in Nice (France 2006). She manages money in England.
  1. London Subway Train (2008). There are many Chinese in London, and most of them are from Hong Kong.
  2. Chinese students near the British Museum in London (2010). They came from Hong Kong. Like me, they were going to the Museum.
  3. Chinese Students at the Manchester Airport (2013).
  4. Chinese student in Edinburgh. She came from Shenyang and used to attend a Korean church there. She was quite familiar with the history of Korean Christianity.

  5. Harbin. Do you know where Harbin is? It is a large Chinese city located in the north-eastern corner of China. There are many Chinese of Korean origin. I have a tendency to regard all Chinese from Harbin as Koreans. This lady is a student from Harbin studying in London. The British system allows foreign students to work for up to twenty hours per week while studying. A Good foreign policy to extend British influence around the world.
  6. Chinese student from Macau working at the entrance gate of the Blemheim Palace near Oxford, England (2019).
  7. Two Chinese students from Hong Kong while waiting for a bus from the Blemheim Palace to Oxord (2019).

• Chinese Actresses in Santorini (Greece 2010). They came from Beijing, and I had a photo with them.
  1. Chinese Scientists in Vienna. I met these ladies in Vienna's Musikverein (2007). They both studied at Beijing's Tsinghwa University. One of them is working in Sinkiang Province (west) and the other is working in Gwangjou Province (south). As China becomes richer, I see an increasing number of Chinese in music halls of Europe. I expect to see more in the coming years.
  2. Chinese Student in Padua (2014). We were on the city bus. There are many Chinese students in Italy, or everywhere.
  3. Chinese Students at the Amsterdam Airport (2003). Chinese students are everywhere in the world.

• Chinese lady working for the Air France. This photo was taken at the Orly Airport in Paris (July 2002).
  1. Chinese Students in Paris attending the Univ. of Sorbonne (2002).
  2. Chinese lady in Paris. I met her on a high-speed train from the Orly Airport to the city (2014). She is working for a tourist company in Paris (2013).
  3. Chinese Student enjoying the Bastille day (July 14) at the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris (2015).
  4. Two Chinese ladies on a narrow street in Seville (Spain 2019). One of them came from Qingtao (north), and the other from Guanzhou (south). We noted that they speak Chinese differently. I did not ask how they communicate.

• Two Students at a Bus Stop in Xian (2011). I was a total stranger to them, but they had a chance to practice their English. They became very happy when I proposed a photo. They seem to know how to dress up.
  1. Two Hostesses at the rooftop tea room of the Sofitel Hotel (French chain) in Xian (2011). This hotel makes every effort to offer a combination of Chinese elegance and French elegance.
  2. Engineering Graduate Students at the Xian airport (2011). They became very happy when I told them I am a physics professor in the United States. They said they hope to visit America for practical training.

  3. After a Tea Ceremony at the Terra Cotta Tea House. The hostess was dressed like Chinese ladies during the Tang Dynasty (600-900 AD). Xian served as the capital city of China from the period of Emperor Chin (300 BC) to the end of the Tang Dynasty (900 AD).
  4. Two Hostesses at a Japanese restaurant. One of them was dressed like a Japanes lady, but she could not speak Japanese. She was a Chinese lady.
  5. Three Chinese Ladies at the Xian airport. The lady with eye glasses spoke English fluently and has been to many places in the world, including Seoul. We spoke about many things after this photo (2011).
  6. Neatly-dressed Taxi Driver who took me and my wife to the airport.

• In Beijing (1995). Chinese ladies shy to pose with a strange man, but feel secure with their soldiers. Things were different when I was there in 2011.
  1. How about Chinese soldiers? There were more soldiers in 2011. Perhaps, there are more China ladies to protect. In either case, I like soldiers, but it was very difficult to have photos with them.
  2. Two Tour Guides during their off-duty hours. They wanted to practice their English near the Tian Anmin Square (2011).
  3. Chinese Young Computer Programmers near the Beijing Hotel where I stayed during my visit (2011).

• Two Students at Peking University. We had this photo earlier, but these girls pushed away their male classmate. In the background is the main library of the University. Chairman Mao Zedong once worked in this libray's old building.
  1. Young Chinese Students. I met them in front of Beijing's Wang-Fu-Jung book store. I always become happy whenever I meet young students.
  2. Two Chinese Financial Engineers working for a petrolium company bringing oil from the northwestern region of China. One of these ladies studied in England. This photo was taken in the lobby of the Beijing International Hotel (2011). I stayed in this hotel in 1995. In 2011, I was surprised to see so many young capitalists in the lobby of this hotel.
  3. Chinese lady playing piano at the lobby of the Beijing Hotel.
  4. Restaurant Receptionists at the Beijing Hotel. They were so persuasive that I had to go into the restaurant and order expensive items. Here is another photo.

  5. Chinese Mother and Daughter at the National Museum. They do not live in Beijing, but this 13-year-old daughter was spending her summer months in Beijing to learn English. While her mother was not able to speak English, the daughter was able to communicate fluently with me. The mother was somewhat lost, but was very proud of her daughter. When I proposed a photo with them, the daughter came very close to me. She perhaps thought it was the American way.
  6. Two Chinese Students I met in the Forbidden City. They are studying Spanish. They like to go to South America.

• House of Dr. Tea is located at the northeasten corner of Beijing, and it has a long history. This tea house is maintained by the city government of Beijing, and its tea ceremonies are free to all visitors.
  1. A Photo with the hostess after the ceremony (2011).
  2. Vladimir Putin was there before I went there. He was with Hu Jin-Tao.
  3. Queen Elizabeth was there earlier. She was there with Jiang Je-min.
  4. Tea Store. Even though the tea ceremony if free, the guests are pressured to buy tea bags and tea accessories at this tea store.

• Lugou Bridge is located in the Wonping Distrrict, southwest of Beijing. This bridge was built in 1294 AD, and was praised by Marco Polo. In 1937, a gun battle took place between Chinese and Japan armies. This was the begining of the second Sino-Japanese war which lasted from until 1945.
  1. Wonping Gate. This bridge starts from the Wonping Gate leading to Beijing via the district of Wonping.
  2. Emperor Qing Long's Poem. I am standing in front of this Imperial poem with a Chinese lady fluent in English and also in history. Emperor Qing Long ruled China during the 18th Century, and China was the strongest empire in the world. After his death, during the 19th century, China started declining when the Western powers started invading the country. This poem is at the eastern end of the this historic Lugou Bridge.
  3. Student Volunteers patrol this bridge to make sure everything is OK with everybody. They were high school students, and I became very happy with them. I went through a military training when I was a high-school student in Korea, during the Korean War (1950-53).

  I had these two photos with the same person at the same place.

• The coastal city of Qingdao was developed by Germans, and there is a Western style residential area. This area is very popular among young people, and we can meet many interesting people.
  1. I met this stylish lady taking photos with her expensive camera. She came from Beijing to meet interesting people in this area. Her purpose was the same as mine.
     • She looks better wihout her overcoat. She is standing in the middle of the road leading to the swimming beach from the residential area.
     • She looks happier with me.

  2. Two students at the Qingdao harbor place (2014).
  3. I met these Chinese students. It was April, and the weather was not right for swimming. Yet, there were many interesting people. Chinese students can speak English and I could communicate with them.
  4. Qingdao beach has a rocky area. Many young coupled come here to have their wedding photos taken.
  5. Another group of young Chinese. They are happy to have a photo with me when I tell them I came from the United States.
  6. Two more Chinese ladies. In the background is the building once served as a summer-time resort for Chiang Kai-Sek and his wife Sung Mei-Ling. Chiang Kai-Sek in known as Chiang Je-Soo (in Mandarin) these days.

  7. Japanese-speaking Chinese lady. I met this lady in the breakfast room of Qingdao's Crown Plaza Hotel. She is working in Osaka and speaks Japanese. Since I cannot speal Chinese, I spoke to each other in Japanese. She came to Qintao as a representative of her company in Japan.
  8. Two hostesses at an up-scale Italian restaurant in the same hotel. The tall lady came from France. She came here for her internship. French tourist company like to attract many Chinese visitors, and they need their people who could entertain those Chinese customers. In 2013, I met another French trainee at the Furuma Hotel in another coastal city of Dalian.
  9. At the Qingdao Airport, while waiting for a flight to Dandong, I enjoyed talking with this young lady about the recent history of China (April 2014).

• Li Xianglan was the Chinese name for a Japanese singer who used to sing in Shanghai and other major cities in China during World War II. Her real name is Yamaguchi Yoshiko. She was born in 1920, and is still doing well in Japan. Here are some of her images. She used to sing at the Grand Theater, now called Paramount Theatre on the West Nanjing Road. Across the street is the Jiangang Temple.
  1. Click here to hear one of her songs still popular in all Asian countries.
  2. She sings "Kojo-no Tsuki" in front of home-sick Japanese soldiers in China.
  3. You may be interested in a younger Japanese singer reproducing the old scene at the same place in Shanghai.

• Chinese student at McDonald's at Shanghai's Nanjing Road. She is studying chemistry at her college, but she wants to switch to a more abstract subject such as physics. She was talking to a right man. When I proposed a photo, she asked me to come to closer and embrace her. Her behavior was not consistent with Chinese tradition, but she wants to be kind to me who became completely corrupted by American culture.
  1. Two Chinese students with Shanghai's International Financial Center in the background (2013).
  2. Chinese students working for a tourist company in Shanghai.
  3. Three Chinese students at Shanghai'a Xintiendi (new world) district (April 2004). They were studying architecture. I told them China should stop building high-rise apartment buildings and should develop houses with beautiful gardens in the true tradition of China. They said they understood what I was saying.

• From Sichuan. I spotted a group of tourists from Sichuan Province toward the end point of the Nanjing Road in Shanghei. This lady was wearing her provincial dress. She could not speak English, but someone translated for us. She clearly understood why I wanted have a photo with her. We exchanged good words. She became amused when I told her I came from the United States.

• At a silk shop in Shanghai. Silk dress with Picasso-type design.

• Two receptionits at Waldorf-Astoria Hotel Shanghai. I asked them how New York's Waldorf-Astoria was created. They knew the story. Impressive! This Shanghai hotel is trying to do better and bigger than the original hotel in New York. Here are some photos.
  1. In the lobby of the Bund Center, I had a photo with these two young ladies. They are financial analysists working in this building. They came down for the lunch.
     • The Bund Center is one of the landmarks in Shanghai.
     • Its Lotus-shaped top looks like this during the night. There seems to be a building whose roof-top is like that of the Chrysler building in New York.
  2. Two airport receptionists at Shanghai's Pudong Airport (April 2013).
  3. Two ladies on bank of the Hwangpu River during the night. Shanghai's International Finance Center is in the other side of the River. One of them came from Guangjhou and the other from California.

• Korean lady in Shanghai. She is the head librarian of the Korean National Library in Seoul. I met her at the site of the Korean provisional government (2011). During the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945), Koreans had their provisional government in Shanghai. This government site is still a popular spot for tourists as can be seen from this brochure. Click here to see the Korean government section in detail. This site does not allow photos inside the building, except at one place. I was allowed to have a photo with Kim Koo's bust.

• Two ladies wearing Tang-style dresses in Hangjhou. Chinese completed developing their civilization during the Tang Dynasty (600-900 AD). Tang's capital city was Xian, but those cultured people moved to southern areas due to continuous invasions by the barbarians from the north. The Hangzhou area became the center of the original Tang culture. Thus, the women in this area like to dress up like those ladies during the Tang Dynasty. I had a photo with them.

• Suzhou. It is known that there are many nice-looking Chinese women in this city, west of Shanghai. I had a photo with many of them. They were receptionists for a conference held at the Pan-Pacific Hotel. They look much better without me.

• Young ladies in Chonging enjoying their evening hours (April 2014).
  1. Two Chinese medical doctors and two Ukrainian engineers on a cruise boat along the Yangtze River. Henry Kissinger was on this boat ealier.
  2. On the Yangtz bank I spotted this young lady reading her phone message. I invited her to pose with me to produce this photo. A very neat and cheerful lady.
  3. In front of a Chinese painting on the bank of the Yantze River.

  4. Two self-assured Chinese ladies waiting for a cable car to the Yangtze River in Chongking.
  5. The cable car upon the River.
  6. One of the cruise boats on the River.

  7. Chinese lady in Korean dress. She is working as a hostess at a Korean restaurant in Chongking. I asked her whether she can speak Korean. She said No.

  8. Chongking is rapidly becoming like New York, but the city still maintains Chinese tradition. Look at
     • the means of transportation.
     • city landscape difying those high-rise buildings.

• Two sisters in Nanjing. I spotted these two sisters at the Opium War Museum in Nanjing. However, they turned out to be mother and daughter. Later there appeared a younger boy, and I had a photo with the daughter and her younger brother. About one minitute later, their father came, and I was fortunante enough to have a photo of this Chinese family with two children.
  1. Tall hotel receptionists at Nanjing's Jian-guo hotel. I stayed in this hotel when I was in Nanjing (April 2013). I thought they would be good candidates for airline hostessed, and I said so. They said they would think about.
  2. Chinese student who was all excited to go to the United States to become a graduate student at Ohio State University. She was working at the breakfast room of the hotel.
  3. Two ladies from China's Yunnan (south of cloud) Province. They were wearing their traditional dresses.
  4. Age of goddess. American actresses are still popular in China.

• Guangjhou's Shamian Island is the place where boys can meet girls. This island was the earliest conony by Western powers, much ealier than Hong Kong going under British rule in 1897.
  1. Statue of a business Chinese business man holding his laptop computer. He is talking with his British counterpart holding a bottle. It is not difficult to guess what is inside the bottle.
  2. I had a photo with these two well-dressed girls.
  3. There are many more girls in this park.

  4. At the Guangjhou Airpot I met this young lady who speaks English fluently. She was quite interested in what is going on in the United States.
  5. Receptionists for an international trade conference in Guangjhou (2013). They also speak English fluently. While in China, I often feel that China is run by Chinese women.

  I was sitting between these two young ladies. When I moved closer to one of them, the other became very unhappy. She became happy again when I moved toward her.

• Two Chinese Ladies. One came from Beijing and the other from Canton (August 2011). When I was taking a photo with the Beijing lady, the Canton lady got turned off. Beijing is closer to Korea geographically.
  1. The Canton lady became very happy when I proposed a photo with her. Korea is closer to Canton culture in terms of the way Chinese words are pronounced. Koreans imported a bulk of Chinese culture during the Tang period (600-900 AD) centered around Chang An (called Xian these days). Those Tang people moved to the southern provinces of China to avoid repeated invasions from northern barbarians. In Canton, they still speak Chinese in the way spoken during the Tang Dynasty.

  2. Two Chinese Ladies from Hong Kong I met in St. Petersburg (Russia 2003). They were spending their vacation week in Russia, while I went there for attending a conference. Very cheerful ladies. They even sent me an e-mail from Hong Kong.

  3. Young financial analyst on an airport express train in Hong Kong (August 2011). She was born in Shandong Province, studied in Singapore, and is working for one of the banks in Hong Kong. I asked her whether she wants to marry a rich man or a smart man. She said "smart man." She said there are many physicists working in the financial industry.
  4. Another financial analysit I met in Honkong (2011). She works in Singapore.

• Grace Yang is a professor of mathematics at the Univ. of Maryland. We meet occasionally in the math building where the physics library is. She is always kind, courteous, and humorous to me. This photo was taken at a reception given to graduating Asian students in May of 1998.
  1. Chinese Scientist from Switzerland. We met at a conference held in Hangzhou (2011). She travelled around the world, and we had a lengthy conversation covering all aspects of life.
  2. Chinese Medical Doctor from Australia. She came to Nanjing to continue her reseach in Chinese medicine. This was taken at a hotel executive room Jinling Hotel (2013).
  3. Two research scientists at a hotel breakfast room in Nanjing. They enjoyed speaking English (2013).
  4. Two medical doctors from Shanghai. We shared the same table on an evening cruise boat on the Yangtze River in Chongking (April 2014).
  5. Chinese investment banker waiting for her clients from Brazil at the Sofitel Hotel in Shanghai (April 2104). She was complaining that those Brazilians were late, and she was still waiting. She spoke fluent English, and I enjoyed talking with her.
  6. Chinese historian I met at at the bus stop after seeing Pont du Gard in France (February 2017). Do you know where this place is and what to see there? Click here.

• Three Taiwanese ladies on the ground of the Osaka Castle in Japan (2014).
  1. Two Taiwanese ladies at a subway station in Busan (Korea 2017).
  2. Two young Taiwanese ladies on a ferry boat at the New Yrok Harbor (USA 2016).

• China Eastern Airlines. Flight from Shanghai to Hongking (August 2, 2011). This photo was taken by this shy lady, but she should be included in this album.
  1. Traditional Chinese Dress on another Chinaeastern flight from Hong Kong to Xian (August 5, 2011).
     • with her Colleagues in convenience dresses. I am with them.
  2. ChinaEastern ladies to at Shanghai Airport (April 15, 2014).
  3. ChinaEastern from Wuhan to Chongking (April 18, 2014). This Chinese lady was able to speak Korean.

• China Southern Airlines. From Xian to Shenyng (August 8, 2011).
  1. From Guangjhou to Beijing (April 23, 2012).
  2. From Dalian to Shanghai (April 29, 2013).
  3. From Dandong to Shanghai (April 27, 2014).

• AirChina, I met this delightful Chinese lady at the Caesar Park Hotel at the Sao Paulo airport (2011). She works with this charming gentleman. He received his training in the United States.

• Like to understand China? Click here, and Click here.

• Need Visa to China? Click here.