China Day 4 - Banpo Village and Big Wild Goose Pagoda

After flying from Nanjing to Xi'an, the tired had started to set in.

Our first morning in Xi'an was spent skeptically exploring the excavations of Banpo Village: a supposed Neolithic village found buried and lost for years - excavated in 1950's. Some parts were a bit too good to be true. Also, it was hard to image the Neolithic settlers building their houses with bricks, as we saw in some of the pits. But, nevertheless, the snow had made the trees and rocks that surrounded the museum tranquil enough to give me time to relax and paint in the cold, although as usual any painting was rushed and scrappy.

That afternoon we visited Big Wild Goose Pagoda. Legend has it that monks once prayed for Buddha to bring them meat to eat and a wounded goose fell to the ground. So, naturally, they buried it, built a massive temple on top of it and the Chinese Buddhists have been vegetarian ever since.

However far fetched that seems, or rather however wrong I got the legend (don't hold me to this!) - the pagoda was awesome. Like a stack of boxes - each as mysterious as Pandora's - the pagoda towers above and pierces the snowy peaks of the goose-down clouds. At the entrance to the pagoda a gleaming golden Buddha flickers in the light of the fire-trough that lays in front of the entrance. Tourists and pilgrims alike light 4ft incense sticks and touch their fiery tips to crimson bees wax candles, filling the frosty air with the smoke that seems to follow me from temple to temple around my tour of China.

(PHOTOS TO COME)

China Day 3 - Nanjing

The highlight of day 3 (because I can't remember everything I did, was trekking the 392 steps to Dr Yat Sun's memorial, built high into the mountains (how convenient).

Here I had many firsts.
1: first mountain I have climbed.
2: first experience of the Chinese always looking unashamedly over your shoulder whilst your sketching
3: my first taste of warm Red Bull (from a boiling pot) - it's really good
and 4: my first taste of coffee and almond Dove a.k.a Galaxy. Which was almost as good.

China Day Two - Suzhou

Sketches from the canal boat

After a busy morning exploring China's most prominent Silk Factory and the beautiful gardens of Suzhou, we clambered off dry-land and sank into a frightfully low boat on Suzhou's intricate canal system that rivals western Venice. With a notably illiterate conductor attempting to flog us postcards the entire journey, we peered through the cloudy windows - the air outside making our eyes stream with its bitter coldness if we attempted to slide the windows open.

Along the journey a jumble of new and old buildings slid past our eager eyes. We slipped under low bridges made famous by the silver screen and finally docked at a stone platform littered with drying ginger. Needless to say, the rich aroma that arose was a precursor for the fragrant mix that spiked the air as we dodged the bikes (almost 9 million) that rode precariously down the narrow alleys - each corner revealing exciting dishes steaming heavily from doorways.

All along the way figurines and postcards were thrusted into our hands, with a member of my party famously being chased down the entire street and onto the coach by a fan-and-silk-handkerchief-wielding woman.

It is in Suzhou that I learnt my most valuable phrase: Bu Yao - I don't need it thank you

China Day One - Shanghai

Some sketches done whilst walking around - a skill that developed throughout the trip!

The 11 hour overnight flight from Heathrow to Shanghai Pu Dong International was one of the low-lights of the 45 hours I would stay awake over the first two days of my China Tour. Nevertheless, after driving between rainy grey skyscrapers that resembled London, we took a walk around the beautiful Jade Buddha Temple.

A truly sensual experience, the 80 of us on the trip heard the sounds of chiming and wailing preachers whilst ashes and smoke spiralled through the air from incense and twisted around the iconic-flicked roofs of the Chinese Temple. Within the wooden walls of the temple towered gleaming golden Buddha figures and tranquil floating silk hangings.

Triumphantly clambering up a tightly-wound staircase (taking care not to hit our heads on the low ceilings) we found the pearlescent Jade Buddha along with hundreds of smaller golden Buddhas peering down from tiny alcoves.

Before leaving the haven of the temple, we tried half a dozen types of authentic Chinese tea - the collective favourite being an intensely sweet tea that tasted of intoxicating sugar cane.

CHINA

I have to apologise... I haven't been the best blogger recently. In fact, I have been neglecting my responsibilities of making you laugh, gape in awe at amazing artists, introduce you to new music and induce mild interest in my own work.

But that's going to change. If you give me a chance. I've just been busy recently. I've taken, and now i feel that I'm ready to give again.

So, without outa the way :-) I'm off to China!

I'll be back on the 20th ready to share all my wonderful and exciting adventures :D

Until then take a look at this purely inspirational artist: Su Blackwell

www.sublackwell.co.uk

I'm definitely going to have a go!!

Until the 20th; Chow xx

3

'3'
Oil on Canvas
20 inches x 30 inches

After 15 hours over 3 days I completed '3' - a deceiving representation of the body as the 'front' skin, an inner biological makeup and a plain background. It is the Third layer that is the real subject of this painting.