With the West Lake in Hangzhou recently joining the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites, it seems like the right time to highlight the value I’ve received by embracing some peaceful hours of relaxation in the most beautiful parks of China, Korea, and Japan.
Let’s start with the West Lake (杭州, 西湖):
West Lake in Hangzhou
During the Chinese new year of 2011, I traveled with my brother (Nick) and cousin (Jake) through Hong Kong, Macau, Guangdong, Yunan, and Tibet. It was Jake’s first time in Asia and I know he got memories of a life time. It was Nick’s second trip to China and we had always said we would visit Tibet; I’m so happy we kept our word to each other! Trips like the one we had in February are what this blog, AsianLiving.me, is all about: Culture, Food, and Mutual Understanding.
I’ve posted 100s of pictures in my Shutterfly photo albums. You can also see pics of Jake and me in Thailand, which I also wrote about in an article called “A Surprise in Phuket“. I’ve finally got some low-quality videos on Youku. Youtube videos will also go up in the coming week. The following videos were mostly shot in Tibet with our tour guides Gyaltsen and Gyaltsen! They were awesome and really gave us an amazing experience in their homeland. Enjoy our Tibetan music videos too!
Please leave comments below if you have any questions about travelling in or around Tibet!
A bend in the river (Tibet- Southern Friendship Highway) Read More…
Is Oolong tea a kind of green tea? Is Long Jing a kind of tea or a brand? Which one does what for you? These questions have been on my brain longer than my stay here in China (since 2005). After all, tea is the most consumed drink in the world after water. There are certainly more than a few reasons for that! After discussing the specifics with Chinese friends, tea aficionados, and tea shop owners, I can safely say that the mystery around tea is not so complicated after all. Let’s start generally and get more specific as we go along!
One Plant: All (leaf) tea comes from the same species of plant. Just like apples all come from apple trees… Varieties exist among all species and those varieties include: Green, Oolong, Black, White, Yellow,and Pu’er. Processing and growing techniques are other ways that teas get their distinctive colors, flavors, and characteristics. For specifics on processing, check out the image on the right. The following disambiguations are listed from lighter to darker tea varieties.
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