a boy and a chair

a boy and a chair, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

in a narrow alley in the gaoqiao district, a young boy plays outside his home
photo: mhobbs

tianfeng tower

tianfeng tower, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

part of the "city gods temple" (Cheng Huang Temple) 'complex' the tower was first built during the Tang Dynasty (695-696) then rebuilt during the Song Dynasty (1144). For many years it was of course the highest structure in Ningbo being 51 meters.
photo:mhobbs

a woman and her children on the edge

a woman and her children on the edge, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

a mother and her two children outside their canalside home, near 'Ningbo Dahongying University', in the gaoqiao district, west of the city
photo:mhobbs

between the shadows

between the shadows, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

a young boy plays in the dark alleys (nong tang's) of the gaoqiao district
photo:mhobbs

a woman and her children on the edge

a woman and her children on the edge, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

a mother and her two children outside their canal side home, near 'Ningbo Dahongying University', in the gaoqiao district, west of the city
photo: mhobbs

patchwork # 2

patchwork # 2, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

nearing ningbo, Zhejiang province - the landscape changes from the dry plains and mountains of the north to the coastal plains and farm lands of Zhejiang
photo: mhobbs

aqua profunda

aqua profunda, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

washing hangs between to "trees in a small 'backstreet' in the north of the city.
photo: mhobbs

close to noon

close to noon, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

entrance to a freeway, in the north of the city

photo: mhobbs

life in dust

life in dust, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

flour and rice sacks in a small store in the north of the city
photo: mhobbs

when the sun is high and the dust is on your skin

when the sun is high and the dust is on your skin, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

immigrant workers demolish a row of stores in the northern part of the city.

This extraordinary scene where men and women alike work with nothing more than their bare hands and primitive tools to demolish brick and concrete buildings, is not unusual in China. In my experience in many provinces and cities in China it is always the same.

My family and I were out walking close to these buildings (We had been out for a couple of hours, buying fruit and playing with our daughter). I as usual had my camera with me and saw these "workers", toiling in the debris.

I stopped to chat with them, and was struck by the extraordinary labour that they were doing. I had a bag of bananas with me. One of the men gestured and asked if they could have a banana, so of course I handed out the fruit. My partner suggested to me that I buy them something more, so after some discussion I went to buy some steamed buns and a large bottle of water.

It is unusual I know, that I comment in such a way on my images but in this case the actual background to the shot conveys perhaps more meaning than the image itself. It is often commented by myself and others the changes that are a part of everyday life in China, but do we (the viewer/outsiders) stop to think of who and how these changes occur.

China is a country of many minorities these men are from the far north west of the country, they are unable to find "better" work in Shanxi and are employed in situations that the majority of the population does not or will not do. In many ways this type of "racial" persecution is "developing " China, but until all minorities are treated equally in 'The Middle Kingdom', development will stagnate and be wholly superficial.

photo: mhobbs

harmonizing - black with some red

harmonizing - black with some red, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

dried mushrooms and chili at a small stall at the 'northern market'. Taiyuan, Shanxi Provence. China
photo: mhobbs

when memory is your friend # 2 - steps

when memory is your friend # 2 - steps, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

a young woman walks to her apartment, in an area that has apparently been neglected by the local government. Taiyuan, Shanxi Provence. China
photo: mhobbs

weep

weep, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

an old woman covers her eyes whilst weeping, sitting on the side of the road in the north of the city

photo: Mhobbs

he closes his eyes to what's coming

he closes his eyes to what's coming, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

middle aged man rests at a busy intersection in the north of the city
photo:m.hobbs

party store

party store, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

a small wholesale catering supply store in the center of the city - click on the image to visit me on flick

photo: mhobbs

the break

the break, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

a group of men playing cards in a narrow "nong tang" (alley) in the north of the city
photo:mhobbs

it was snowing

it was snowing, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

a woman struggles against the heavy snow and wind, pushing her bicycle into the shelter of the central bus station near the center of the city
photo:mhobbs

scarf

scarf, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

an old man guards against the biting winter cold, on his way to the small 'northern' market
photo: mhobbs

emporers chicken

emporers chicken, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

A young market vendor sits by his slow "clay baked chicken's", sometimes called Beggar's Chicken, at a small 'open air' market in the north of the city. The chicken is wrapped in huge lotus leaves, packed in cool, wet claylike mud or ceramic clay and then baked for hours in a low oven. When the dish is ready and the hard clay cracked open, the chicken, so tender it falls away from the bone, releases a steamy fragrance that is truly memorable.

It is doubly appealing because it is steeped in the kind of folklore and legend that the Chinese love.

One story tells of the beggar who became the first Emperor of the Han dynasty (202 B.C. to A.D. 220). It holds that this clay-baked chicken dish, a favorite of the beggar, became an imperial specialty when he became Emperor.
photo: mhobbs

steam

steam, originally uploaded by china.sixty4.

A vendor steams buns (Bao Zi) in the open outside his small " store", in the Jiancaoping district near 'Taiyuan Institute of Technology'.
photo: mhobbs