new year

new year, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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young girl - central Shangqiu - mid afternoon - Shangqiu, Henan, China

travelling

travelling, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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Cecilia and I (Mark Hobbs) sitting in the back of an electric tricycle - mid afternoon - central Shangqiu, Henan, China

These tricycles are a very convenient means of transport within the city - they are both comfortable and "clean", and frankly are less expensive than regular taxi's - they are both fast and safe

we stand

we stand, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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row of trees - Shangqiu Normal University - Shangqiu, Henan, China

kong

kong, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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valve for the water heated radiator, our bathroon - "Shangqiu Normal University" - the heating is turned on by the University around Novermber 17 - The Chinese character "kong" has been chosen as character of the year for 2011 by a state backed poll in China.
Interestingly the widespread use of "kong" by Chinese people when discussing control of the internet, media and society was not mentioned by either the Chinese media nor the Chinese Government

shoulder

shoulder, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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cold and heavy rain - Cecilia and Alex, Shangqiu Normal University - mid afternoon, Shangqiu, Henan, China

drums

drums, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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rusted oil cans - central Shangqiu, late afternoon - Shangqiu, Henan, China

degrade

degrade, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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night - west of the city - Shangqiu - Shangqiu, Henan, China

- a new direction in photography for me - like many others whom continue to explore their and others creative urges this is a new begining - look out for both the same (square, bw, retro, portraits, streetscapes and ofcourse the usual observations) as well as new stuff that I hope will both intrigue and entertaintain you.)

frost

frost, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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leaves cover the ground near our apartment - "Shangqiu Normal University" - late afternoon - Shangqiu, Henan, China

endless understanding - nong tang # 78

endless understanding - nong tang # 78, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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long narrow ally "nong tang" central Shangqiu - late afternoon - Shangqiu, Henan, China

47.2 - self

47.2 - self, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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me at (almost) 47 and two months - Shangqiu, Henan, China

objects of desire

objects of desire, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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bicycle parked in a 'gate way', narrow alley (nong tang) central Beijing - mid afternoon - Beijing, China

good

good, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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young 'man' - small backstreet central Beijing - mid afternoon - Beijing, China

soy

soy, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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small bottles of soy milk stacked in a crate - small backstreet - central Beijing - Beijing, China

the sitters

the sitters, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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two elderly women sit and chat - central Shangqiu - mid afternoon - Shangqiu, Henan, China

me at 47

me at 47, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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spinning - camera held at arms length on our balcony looking toward the city - night - Shangqiu Normal University - Shangqiu, Henan, China

after rain

after rain, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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covered alley (nong tang) west of the city - late afternoon - Shangqiu, Henan, China

an opening

an opening, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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covered alley (nong tang) - central Shangqiu, Shangqiu, Henan, China

apologies to all my flickr friends etc - Flickr is once again blocked here in Shangqiu, Henan, China

relic - nong tang # 71

relic - nong tang # 71, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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garbage - "nong tang" (alley) - central Shangqiu - mid afternoon - Shangqiu, Henan, China

long johns

long johns, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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long johns hang - small store - central Shangqiu - Shangqiu, Henan, China

flickr is still blocked in China - Any help much appreciated - I can of course upload to flickr but cannot see my images or my contacts shots

garlic paper

garlic paper, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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small restaurant - west of the city - Shangqiu, Hen, China

building one

building one, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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second floor - Shangqiu Normal University - Shangqiu, Henan, China

desk guard

desk guard, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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late afternoon "Shangqiu Normal University", a student waits - Shangqiu, Henan, China

boy who waits

boy who waits, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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waiting outside a small supermarket, west of the city - Shangqiu, Henan, China

when he has a bag

when he has a bag, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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alley (nong tang), west of the city - Shangqiu, Henan, China

hidden flag

hidden flag, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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alley (nong tang) central Shangqiu, Henan, China

9 10 12

9 10 12, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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alley (nong tang) west of the city - Shangqiu, Henan, China

tower

tower, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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highrise apartment building - west of the city - Shangqiu, Henan, China

stop - LIGHT

stop - LIGHT, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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three women wait for the light to change at the gate of Shangqiu Normal University - evening - Shangqiu, Henan, China

stop - LIGHT

stop - LIGHT, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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three women wait for the light to change at the gate of Shangqiu Normal University - evening - Shangqiu, Henan, China

solar

solar, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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roof top solar panels - Shangqiu Normal University - Shangqiu, Henan, China

food factory

food factory, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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restaurant central Shangqiu - evening - Shangqiu, Henan, China

arch

arch, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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nong tang (alley) west of the city - late afternoon - Shangqiu, Henan, China

another view

another view, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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from the forth floor - apartment building two "Shangqiu Normal University". Shangqiu, Henan, China - early morning

departure

departure, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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Shangqiu south railway station - near the center of the city - Shangqiu, Henan, China

explosive

explosive, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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mid morning somewhere between Zhuzhou and Shangqiu, Henan, China

history

history, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

Via Flickr:
his story is like many Chinese of his generation, after leaving his family farm, he moved to the city, worked for several years in a clothing factory in Shenzhen, Guangdong. His girlfriend (later his wife) stayed at home, whilst he sent "money home", he visited his family when he could afford it, usually once a year during "Chinese New Year",. Later he moved back to his village to take care of his aging mother (or father) family, then after a year or two, not being satisfied with living in a suffocating village moved to another city with his family (wife and son) opened a small store in a backstreet. This is a story repeated all over China for the last 25 to 30 years. - mid afternoon central Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

This guy was more than happy to tell me his story - his shared his life in a 'matter of fact' way that frankly is both inspirational and a little frightening, he seems happy (of course) but it is always very difficult to tell with Chinese men, laughing and chatting at 'every turn' but under that jovial facade lies a sadness that has grown from years of hardship, loneliness and repression

photo: mark hobbs

freight bridge

freight bridge, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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railway freight bridge - outskirts of Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

photo: mark hobbs

heavy rain

heavy rain, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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nong tang (alley) east of th city - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

photo: mark hobbs

shelter # 2

shelter # 2, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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caught in a heavy 'downpour' - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

train

train, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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travelling to Changsha - between carriages - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

point

point, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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mid-afternoon - central Zhuzhou, Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

growing

growing, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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wild flowers, vacant land - "Hunan University of Technology", early morning - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China
photo: mark hobbs

ZA0062

ZA0062, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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a man with a number, guard outside small shopping mall central Zhuzhou - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China
photo: mark hobbs

standard

standard, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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apartment building number three - Hunan University of Technology - main campus - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China
photo: mark hobbs

the count

the count, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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small noodle take-out store "the best noodles in town" - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

stray

stray, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

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wild flowers vacant land - "Hunan University of Technology", late afternoon

river # 6 - flow

river # 6 - flow, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

Via Flickr:
under the #1 bridge on the Xiangjiang (Xiang river), - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

for those of you who might be interested here is an interview regarding my street photography. Thanks to Dan for the honor, I'm amongst some great company..

photo: mark hobbs

an apartment

an apartment, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

Via Flickr:
strangly isolated apartment building central Zhuzhou, Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

photo: mark hobbs

stylists

stylists, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

Via Flickr:
hair dressers 'small back street' east of the city - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

photo: mark hobbs

bags

bags, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

Via Flickr:
50kg bags of sand, vacant land - mid afternoon - Zhuzhou, Hunan, China

photo: mark hobbs