Archives by Tag 'Life in China'
The Tao of travel in rural China
Brian Hennessy. China Australia Consult. February, 2013 You need to have your wits about you when travelling independently across the countryside in China. Having said this, as long as you can speak a little functional Chinese language and have a normal ration of common sense and patience, your journey will be a rewarding one. If […]
On understanding the local environment
Brian Hennessy. China Australia Consult. October, 2010 China is an ancient, complex, and culturally strong society with its own ways of doing things. Ways which are sometimes difficult for a foreigner to understand. A lot of unnecessary frustration can be avoided if things are put in their historical and cultural context. On understanding the local […]
Fushun: small town China
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. January 1, 2010. At first glance, the only striking thing about Fushun is its utter ordinariness. It is just a small town in a small county in Sichuan province in southwest China, three hours or so by bus from the hinterland metropolises of Chengdu and Chongqing. It is typical […]
Scratching a living: China reality.
Brian Hennessy. China Australia Consult. June, 2009 Life in the countryside is dull. As dull as the sky viewed through that Chongqing mist. There is no ‘village life’ or excitement, or intellectual stimulation. Just the company of extended family who live in similar circumstances and who share a communal courtyard. A sad example of a […]
Wedding.
Brian Hennessy. China Australia Consult. 2008. Chen Xiao Jin and Zhang Yue had invited me to their wedding ceremony in Chaotianmen, Chongqing. Xiao Jin, the bride, was a close friend who had waited three lonely years for her boyfriend to complete his engineering degree in France before they could be reunited. Wedding ______________________________________________________________________ These […]
Liaoning Province: Fushun city.
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. 2008 Like many ordinary cities in China, Dongbei Fushun does not impress at first sight. The same old grimy buildings and littered streets dominated by rampant spewing smokestacks. This is industrial north-east China. Dongbei: the home of coal, steel, and struggling State Owned Enterprises. Downtown Liaoning Province: Fushun […]
Choices
Brian Hennessy. China Australia Consult. Chinese New Year, 2009. Chongqing weather: there is nothing good to say about it. The summer is more scorching and humid than the tropics, and winter is a cold wet blanket which coats the ridges in mist and fogs the river valleys below. A town without colour at this time […]
Sichuan earthquake. Shifang. Remembering.
Brian Hennessy. China Australia Consult. 5:12 (2009). On the eve of 5:12, the anniversary of the Sichuan earthquake, I was in the provincial town of Shifang, very close to the epicenter at Beichuan. 6000 residents perished here. China Central Television (CCTV), a nationwide government-controlled service, was due to televise a special live program in memory of […]
Sichuan earthquake. Hongbaizhen. One year later.
Brian Hennessy. China Australia Consult. 2009 I have just spent two days in the earthquake zone. I went there with a small group of volunteers from around China who dropped everything when the earthquake occurred, and went into the zone. Ordinary people: office-workers from Chongqing and Shanghai, off-duty policemen from Guiyang and Xi’an, a businessman from […]
Sichuan earthquake. Beichuan. One year later.
Brian Hennessy. China Australia Consult. 5:12 (2009). My purpose here is to outline what I saw at the epi-center of the earthquake one year after that terrible day. A day when relatives were allowed back into what is left of that city to grieve. Until now, nobody has been allowed to return. Beichuan is beyond […]