Modernisation

As fast as we can explore the old part of Zhangzhou it is being demolished for modernisation.

Tea and dumplings

A favourite place for tea and vegetarian dim sum is Lock Cha Teashop. Mr Ip's passion for tea and tea culture pervades all aspects of this charming and calming refuge in Hong Kong.

'Oil sticks'

Set up in a lane, not far from a school, were a couple preparing and deep frying dough sticks. The long ones are savoury and often dunked in rice porridge, while the short ones are slightly sweet and a good mid afternoon snack.

Pandas, and other animals

It has taken three trips to Fuzhou (the capital of Fujian Province) to get to 'Panda World', but finally we made it.






This 5 year old panda was being put through her paces as 'Miss Panda World 2008'. A keeper was coaxing her in and out of various poses with carrots, bamboo and 'panda cake', while another staff member took photos. Perfect, as all the other pandas just lay around digesting bamboo!

In comparison the red pandas were positively manic, and pretty cute!





The monkeys we saw later that day, wild in a National Park, were mischievously intent on getting peanuts from the visitors, sold to them by the opportunistic locals - a symbiotic relationship!

A Local Festival

The marching ‘girls’ had hit the streets the day before, but it was the people carrying complicated paper constructions that lured me to the local temple.

The scene at the temple was overwhelming.

There were 12 large tables covered with food, paper decorations and flowers, and beside each table stood a dead pig, and in many cases a dead goat too!

I was told it was in honour of their ancestors and only occurs once every 6 years. There were people everywhere; people decorating tables, people preparing the temple, people applying makeup on the opera stage, people applying makeup to the pigs and goats, people gossiping, gawping and comparing the offerings.

It was spectacular.