If you are a traveller when you arrive in a new city, would you choose to go to its famous attractions or learn about the city's people and their lives in the city?
Shaoguan is a wonderful tourist city in China. This historic city has the wealthiest and most concentrated tourist resources in Guangdong Province. There are 17 world-class and national-level tourist attractions, and the city has 903 tourist resources. But in this blog, I'm not going to take you on a tour of these scenic areas, where photos and information are available everywhere on the Internet. Instead, I'm going to take you into the lives of the people of Shaoguan and know what life has become like for the city's people after they had their Pandemic.
THE HISTORY EAST STREET, China, May 8, 2021
If you arrive at the city centre of Shaoguan at night or like me who likes to watch night scenes, you must come to THE HISTORY EAST STREET for a walk. It was once one of the most prosperous business streets in the history of South China. Taking the century-old building overhang as the architectural style, the newly built East Street built into a newly developed commercial pedestrian street in Shaoguan by preserving the original style and features of the old neighbourhood and inheriting the history and culture. So when night falls, and the lights are on, when you stand on the arcade and look down at this street, passing cars and building overhang, modern shops and building overhang that carry history, this seems to be a way of dialogue between the old and the new.
THE HISTORY EAST STREET, Shaoguan, China, May 8, 2021
THE HISTORY EAST STREET is located on the edge of Zhenjiang. After you have watched the building overhang at night, you might as well come to the river to blow your hair. As a commercial pedestrian street, the design team has placed many sculptures on the pedestrian road, including a set of artworks. Pedestrians put on masks, which is a "feature" left after the pandemic.
THE HISTORY EAST STREET, Shaoguan, China, May 8, 2021
If the night of THE HISTORY EAST STREET is a paradise for young people, then walk south until you reach the intersection of Zhenjiang and Wujiang. You will see the Shaoguan Tongtian Pagoda in the centre of the river, a landmark of Shaoguan. On the opposite bank of this landmark, on the shore of Wujiang, you will find that this is a place where middle-aged and older people gather after dinner. Middle-aged people fish by the river, while the elderly are in groups. They sang and danced together what they loved when they were young.
When you walk here, you should feel tired, so please take a rest for one night, we will experience the daily life of Shaoguan people the next day.
Shaoguan Tongtian Pagoda, Shaoguan, China, May 8, 2021
There is a saying in China: "People depend on food for their lives", and there is another saying, "A good day starts with breakfast."
When you come to a new city, the first meal and breakfast will naturally not be hasty. Then it would be best if you came to Qingshi Street, this old street with memories of generations, this street has accompanied many people growth.
It is a street where Shaoguan's time-honoured noodle crowded together. As a well-known local food street, it is irreplaceable for the new generation of cuisine. The relationship between the owners of these snack shops and the diners is like an old neighbour who has known each other for many years,
"Come on, what do you want to eat today..."
"You haven't been here for a long time, look at what you want to eat on the menu...",
"Your grandson is here for breakfast with you! Your child ate breakfast in my store when he/she was his/her (grandchild) age..."
These words are the conversations between shopkeepers and customers that I hear most often as a diner. We can know the importance of these noodle shops to the people here on this street.
Qingshi Street, Shaoguan, China, May 11, 2021
Shaoguan is a city with many children and middle-aged and older people. Most young people prefer to go to larger cities such as Guangzhou and Shenzhen for development.
So after breakfast, we will go to the park in the city to find out how the locals spend their time after breakfast. Excluding the time for lockdown during the pandemic, when the cases were cleared in the city for a period of time, people once again resumed their old-age life, and the park became lively again and resumed its vitality. After that breakfast, we will go to Xiqiao Park and Zhongshan Park.
Xiqiao Park, Shaoguan, China, May 11, 2021
Taking grandchildren to the park every day is a must for retirees responsible for helping their sons and daughters with their children. Chinese Square Dance also one of the options for retirees to enrich their lives.
Here is Zhongshan Park. Zhongshan Park divided into five areas. We are currently in an area called Center Stage. This area has a flat floor and is a very suitable place for dancing. At the same time, the trees planted in the square are also very ideal for citizens to enjoy the cool or sun.
Zhongshan Park, Shaoguan, China, May 10, 2021
We are in Xiqiao Park now, which used to be a children’s park and later transformed into a garden park. Many citizens like to sing and dance, exercise Tai Chi, play chess and walk the birds.
The birds in this picture are Garrulax canorus. During the conversation with their owner, I learned that they would take them to the park's lawn every day to bask in the sun and occasionally put them together with other birds to make them "sing" to each other. These are now the so-called "fighting birds". Their owners will not leave them too far during this period, and without frightening the birds of other owners, they will chat on the stone roads around the lawn or in the shade of the yard.
"They (their birds) are like my children. But, most of the time, they spend more time with me than my children and grandchildren."
This is what an elder Mr. Chen (one of my interviewee) who I talked with told me. And he tell me that they will giving them (birds) time to "communicate" with their peers and time to relax and rest.
Xiqiao Park, Shaoguan, China, May 11, 2021
The table of table-tennis is a piece of equipment that many parks will set up. Table tennis is China's national game. People of the older generation who love sports are know a bit about table tennis. In addition, table tennis rackets and balls are small and light, which has become one of the sports they choose besides square dancing and Tai Chi. Although there will be table tennis tables in the park, there are not many. So that many table tennis enthusiasts will choose to go to the park earlier to get a favourite position and play table tennis with their companions. The two table tennis enthusiasts in the picture are the most passionate group on the court and have won the attention of many people.
Xiqiao Park, Shaoguan, China, May 11, 2021
Finally, this is the interviewee Mr. Bai, who communicated with me the most this time. He is different from other people in the park. He grew up in the north of China because his children chose to move to the south. His preferences are different from those around him, so he has no companions in the park. And the instrument in his hand is not the Erhu that we are familiar with but the Jinghu commonly used in Peking Opera.
"People here rarely listen to Peking Opera, but I like it very much. Few people can talk to me about the Peking Opera that I like, so I play the tune here by myself..."
"This song is called 'Fishing for Golden Turtle', which expresses Chinese culture of filial piety..."
"Before I performed at Shaoguan University, where I sang while pulling, and many students came to take pictures of me like you..."
Before communicating with this interviewee, I have observed him. He rarely greets people passing by, and more often, he immersed in his own Peking Opera world. After I take the initiative to communicate with him, he speaks more clearly. When I got up, he was very excited to teach me a lot about how to play Jinghu. But I'm feel so sad that I didn't fully understand it, also I can feel his love for Peking Opera and Jinghu.
Xiqiao Park, Shaoguan, China, May 11, 2021
