How time spent in China overwhelms the senses.
Eight-lane streets. Train stations the size of stadiums. Apartment towers as far as the eye can see. If you live in a city of fewer than, say, eight million residents, or your hometown is any younger than 1,000 years, life in China feels vastly bigger, busier, and more ancient. The Chinese-American author Te-Ping Chen titled her remarkable story collection Land of Big Numbers, an apt moniker.
Words can’t describe how powerful this experience can be, and for this documentary—celebrating the publication of Lonely Planet’s Guide to China—no narration felt necessary. The images speak for themselves.
Notes & Miscellanea
- All footage was shot during a research trip to Beijing, Hebei, Tianjin, and Shanxi Provinces, as well as Inner Mongolia.
- Footage of the Great Wall was filmed at Mutianyu (慕田峪), a favorite section. Getting there is certainly possible for independent travelers, but for ease, you decided to book a tour through MuBus—and met some great folks along the way.
- The photograph above was taken at The Hanging Temple (悬空寺), which was also absolutely worth booking a tour to Hengshan, Wooden Pagoda, and Yungang Grottoes.
- You were so moved by the beauty of Hengshan, you ended up painting a watercolor landscape of it.
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