Four young boys play outside the apartment buildings that they call home, on the eastern edge of the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
Monday, December 31, 2007
boys
sometimes we can be tired of eating when the world is awake
A narrow "nong tang" (alley) in the center of the city, crowded with vendors stalls serving "take-out" or "eat-in" meals.
At the end of the alley on the street oppersite is a large KFC 'restaurant'
photo:mhobbs
white washed with some red
Wall on the government offices on the eastern edge of the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
when looking in the mirror we often do not see ourselves
Afternoon light in a narrow "nong tang" (alley) in the center of the city
photo:mhobbs
factory - cibachrome # 4
Overlooking a "man made' lake (highly polluted) an old factory seemingly deserted but very much in use 24 hours a day, belching out pollutants in the already dirty atmosphere.
This factory is one of many in and around the city that produces large quantities of domestic ceramics
democracy
No words are needed - Just action - Free the people of Burma
As we (the world) continue(s) to watch and be interested in the situation in Burma - The world is also preparing to go to Beijing next year - China (Beijing) continues to "crack-down" on so called political disidents, execute and "disappear" its citizens
photo:mhobbs
the sky - when thinking (dreaming) of home
View looking east across the rooftops of the "Hutong" (Traditional Chinese alley dwellings) over the Hanjiang and into Chaozhou.
These buildings may look 'romantic' to the casual observer but infact it is a "slum" in the true sense of the word, power cuts (if a "house" is connected to the power grid), little or no services including garbage collection, sewage on the streets, no running water (most of these house still use small wells - if a 'house' has water it is un drinkable) the list goes on -
A romantic view yes, but with no or little care by the government for "its people" (Peoples Government?)
when two men and a dog are together
Two men (and a small dog) sit and chat on the corner of a nong tang (alley) in the CBD (Central Business District) of Chaozhou
photo:mhobbs
mop and shadow with narrow door
Narrow entrance to an old brick and stone 'home' in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
towels
Two towels hang on an old "coat hanger" from the window of a Hutong (Traditional Chinese alley dwelling) in a 'sunless' nong tang" (alley) in the Qiaodong district, near Hanshan University
photo:mhobbs
junk - contact print # 4
Harsh light in a "nong tang" (alley) in the Xiangqiao district in the center of the city
photo:mhobbs
on my way home
A street vendor and a woman (shopper) at a small street market in the center of the city
photo:mhobbs
bicycle & wall with rust
Old and rusted bicycle with two baskets, in a narrow "nong tang" (alley) in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
at this time of day - cibachrome # 3
A busy street market in a residencial area of the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
when your afraid
A fight between a "street trader" and this man (the man covering his face with his hand) in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
the rain makes us stop and think - National Day Oct 01 - 2001
Pollution has made cancer China’s leading cause of death, the Ministry of Health says. Ambient air pollution alone is blamed for hundreds of thousands of deaths each year.
Nearly 500 million people lack access to safe drinking water.
Chinese cities often seem wrapped in a toxic gray shroud
Only 1 percent of the country’s 560 million city dwellers breathe air considered safe by the European Union - and only a very small percentage of the 1.4 billion people have access to clean and safe drinking water.
Environmental woes that might be considered catastrophic in some countries can seem commonplace in China: industrial cities where people rarely see the sun; children killed or sickened by lead poisoning or other types of local pollution.
China’s problem has become the world’s problem.
Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides spewed by China’s coal-fired power plants fall as acid rain on Seoul, South Korea, and Tokyo. Much of the particulate pollution over Los Angeles originates in China, most of the government’s targets for energy efficiency, as well as improving air and water quality, have gone unmet. And there are ample signs that the leadership is either unwilling or unable to make fundamental changes.
Coal, on which China relies for about two-thirds of its energy needs cause "acid rain" and many other environmental problems (It has abundant supplies of coal and already burns more of it than the United States, Europe and Japan combined). But even many of its newest coal-fired power plants and industrial furnaces operate inefficiently and use pollution controls considered inadequate in the West.
when in doubt ask another... - square # 158
Two women chat in a narrow "nong tang" (alley) in central Chaozhou
photo:mhobbs
when a man has nothing more to do
A man cooks at a small "open" restaurant in a small 'backstreet', in the Qiaodong district, while a customer eats her meal
photo:mhobbs
Woman with grandson and two plastic bags with primary colors
A middle aged woman carries her grandson in the afternoon heat whilst also holding two plastic bags, near the "west" gate of Hanshan University in the Qiaodong district of Chaozhou, Guangdong, China
photo:mhobbs
An afternoon when all a man can do is stand
Street in the eastern district of Qiaodong, Chaozhou, Guangdong province, China
when we all are together - cibachrome # 2
At the end of the day - coming home after work or school - The "mass" of people come together not only to shop but to do what we all do be a part of a group at a small "street market" in the Xiangqiao district
In modern China 'collectivism' is a part of everyday life - Individualism has almost been completly erased from the peoples consciousness.
at this time of day damage is sure to happen
Students make their way home along a busy "backstreet" in the Qiaodong district
According to the WHO (World Health Organization) 600 people die per day in car accidents and 45000 are injured on the roads in China. Ranking the country top in the world for both the death toll and the death rate.
In a country where most of the people have to walk or use a bicycle or motorcycle because they cannot afford a private car, the increasingly busy roads will make them more vulnerable to death or injury. The figure is accelerating by 10 per cent every year.
photo:mhobbs
Monday, December 24, 2007
wall with red & blue
"New years" door sign and poster on the wall of a Hutong (Traditional Chinese alley dwelling) in a "nong tang" (alley) in the Fengxi district
photo:mhobbs
gap
Narrow space between the "Hutong's" near "Hanshan University", in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
when having nothing more is everything - square # 157
Early in the morning two women ride their "biketruck" through the narrow 'nong tang's, (alley's) near Hanshan University
photo:mhobbs
when the streets is yours
Relaxing in the heat of the afternoon two "rickshaw" (ricksha) drivers in the center of the city -
To travel from one side of the city to the other (about 30 mins) costs no more than 6 or 7 RMB (Less than $1:00)
photo:mhobbs
red fish
Graffiti painted on a wall near "Hanshan University" in the Qiaodong district of Chaozhou, Guangdong, China
photo:mhobbs
conversation concerning a bicycle
Two men in a narrow "nong tang" (alley) pass the late afternoon chatting, in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
having spent the day - cibachrome #1
Waiting for the traffic to clear at a busy "crossing" in the Xiangqiao district in the center Chaozhou, Guangdong Province, China.
photo:mhobbs
"china" smile # 2 - square # 156
Roast duck vendors at the central market in the Xiangqiao district
photo:mhobbs
catching up on the news # 3
A vendor takes a moment to "catch-up" on the news at his "mixed business" store near "Hanshan University" in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
easy - square # 155
Motorbike "taxi" guy waits for his next fare at a bus stop in the center of the city near the Hanjiang "south" bridge
photo:mhobbs
Monday, December 17, 2007
woman sitting with things that are dead - square # 154
A street vendor, with herbs and assorted dried plants in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
Saturday, December 08, 2007
preparation
A woman prepares the evening meal at the door to her small home at the end of an alley (nong tang) in the Xiangqiao district in the center of the city
photo:mhobbs
early - square # 153
Early in the morning, a couple sit by their small stall in the Xiangqiao in the center of the city.
I've often seen this couple at their stall - they specialize in a "local delicacy", cold rice noodles - This might sound a little odd to a 'western palate' but I can assure you that the noodles are really good - It took me a few weeks to have the "courage" to try them but once eaten never forgotten.
photo:mhobbs
orange threat
Crossing the "Liberation Bridge" that spans the Han river (Hanjiang) a truck speeds past the early morning traffic
photo:mhobbs
woman sitting with things that are dead - square # 152
A street vendor, with herbs and assorted dried plants in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
across the rooftops # 2
A view across the rooftops of the Hutongs (traditional Chinese alley dwellings) area near Hanshan University in the Qiaodong district
photo:mhobbs
when it rains - this man sells more fruit
A fruit vendor stands by his small fruit stall in the Xiangqiao district near the center of the city
photo:mhobbs
man makes sure of the correct weight
A street vendor weighs vegetables at his "stall" in a "nong tang" in the Xiangqiao district
photo:mhobbs
butcher - square # 150
A street vendor checks the money (China has a problem with "fake" bank notes) in a narrow "nong tang" (alley) in the Xiangqiao district
photo:mhobbs
bitter melon
Bakets of bitter melon and zucchini at the Han river (Hanjiang) market in the center of the city
photo:mhobbs
fish man
A man sits outside the Han river (Hanjiang) market in the center of the city, with his "stall" of live fish
photo:mhobbs
route home
A narrow "nong tang" or "xiao xiang" (alley) in the Qiaodong district
This is the route that I take to and from my teaching classes each day
photo:mhobbs
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