May 5, 2020 • 17 mins
In the first of 10 compilation episodes from Season 1, we listen to the guests's answers to the question: "What is your favourite travel destination within Mainland China". The answers range from cities with historical cities to the Gobi desert; from the mountains of Tibet to the lakes of Hangzhou and Nanjing; and from the beaches of Sanya to the Alpine scenery of northern Sichuan. So my question for you today is... where would be *your* favourite travel destination within mainland China? Chapters 00:00 - Trailer & Intro 01:34 - Main 15:56 - Outro Instagram: www.instagram.com/oscology Facebook: www.facebook.com/mosaicofchina WeChat: www.mosaicofchina.com/wechat
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Episode Transcript
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(00:03):
[Trailer]Maple ZUO: So that's amazing. I was like “Oh
god, this is…” I believed in God in thatmoment.
OF (00:07):
Yeah. Wow.
[Intro]OF: Welcome to Mosaic of China, a podcast
about people who are making their mark inChina. I'm your host, Oscar Fuchs.
And welcome as well to the first of 10 specialcompilation episodes from Season 01. If you've
been listening to the season, you will alreadyknow by the different Intro music that things
(00:28):
aren't quite the same as usual. And if you'reentirely new to the podcast, a third and special
welcome to you. In a usual episode of theshow, I will interview one person, and that
interview starts with a freestyle conversationbased on an object that the guest has prepared
in advance. And it ends with the guest nominatingsomeone for me to interview in the next season
(00:49):
of Mosaic of China. And that's how tile bytile the 30 episodes of each season build
out to form a Mosaic of China. But beforethey make this nomination, I asked every guest
the same 10 simple questions on their tastesand opinions of life in China. And it's the
answers to these 10 questions that form thecontent for these 10 special compilation episodes.
(01:12):
Today's compilation is about the guests’favourite travel destinations in China. I
wanted to get this one out of the way first,because as a subject, it's perhaps the most
ironic of the 10, given that none of us havegot any travel planned for the foreseeable
future. But I hope that you'll at least betaking some notes for when the borders finally
reopen, and transport networks begin to humagain.
(01:33):
[Main][Voiceover]
Srinivas Yanamandra, the compliance leader from Episode 15.
[Clip]SY: I would always recommend to people to
definitely visit the Three Gorges Dam. Thatis a phenomenally, infrastructure-ally, technologically
and engineering marvel that one should watchwhen he has been in China. So, alongside the
(01:58):
dam, you created a kind of a ship lock system.But when I saw it - literally the water getting
poured, the door getting closed, and the watergetting poured inside - and the ship literally
gets lifted up, and then moves on to the secondstage, third stage, fourth stage. The three-hour
journey is like a journey of a lifetime, whenyou're getting transferred from this side
of the dam to the other side of the dam.[Voiceover]
(02:19):
Roz Coleman, the theatre producer from Episode 22.
[Clip]RC: I think my favourite one is 杭州 [Hángzhōu].
And I love that you can get there so quicklyand be in the 浙江 [Zhèjiāng] hills, and
then walking around and then drinking teaon that mountainside. I really love the way
that - you know, they're not necessarily thebig mountains, those ones but like - you can
(02:40):
still feel the kind of transformative natureof them when you go up and then come down.
[Voiceover]OF: Astrid Poghosyan, the violinist from Episode
04.[Clip]
AP (02:51):
I love 杭州 [Hángzhōu] city, and I remember until now, every time when I go there,
it’s some kind of peaceful emotion I alwaysget there, something unexplainable. And I
think it's different when you go to Europe,it’s a different kind of peace you find
in 杭州 [Hángzhōu]. It’s really likethose old Chinese times, like when you read
in the books, it's exactly that.[Voiceover]
OF (03:11):
Philippe Gas, the Disney resort CEO from Episode 01.
[Clip]PG: I think one of the most memorable trips
I have made in China is Tibet. 18 months ago,12 months ago, I had the chance with a few
friends to go to Lhasa and just travel inTibet. And it's been a fascinating experience.
At many levels (03:30):
cultural, religious, geographic. You know, arriving and landing in a place
that is about 4600 metres is a shock, right?As you arrive, some of my friends were shocked
immediately. It took me a little bit moretime. But it was fascinating, the place is
(03:51):
beautiful, and understanding how people leavetheir religion, live Buddhism. I'm not an
expert in Buddhism, but I have been very impressedby how connected they are all the time to
their practice and their philosophy.[Voiceover]
OF (04:09):
Maple Zuo, the comedian from Episode 02. [Clip]
MZ (04:13):
Tibet. I love it, because my partner proposed to me there. We climbed nine hours in that
day, to the top top mountain. And then therewas a beautiful blue lake. And then above
that was snow on the mountain. It was so pure.And the name of the lake was ‘Tears of God’.
(04:33):
And then over the lake, there was a some stone.And on the stone, there was a Buddha. Like
you can’t see it, but it was a natural Buddhathing. And the shadow contained a whole Buddha
image. So that's amazing. I was like “Ohgod, this is…” I believed in God in that
moment.OF: Yeah. Wow.
[Voiceover]OF: Angie Wu, the jewellery craftsman from
(04:57):
Episode 18.[Clip]
AW (04:58):
Definitely 云南 [Yúnnán]. I was designing museums before, that's what I was doing before
my brand. And we built an Agricultural Museumin 云南 [Yúnnán]. So I've been there,
for three years, going back and forth. It’sso biodiverse. And they are 26 minorities
in 云南 [Yúnnán] itself. And this is sobeautiful. These are native, local people,
(05:22):
and they still make a lot of things by hand.They create their own tools. And the jewellery,
this is so beautiful, I mean, it’s the mostexotic thing about China.
[Voiceover]OF: Jorge Luzio, the marketer for Sprite from
Episode 05.[Clip]
JL (05:41):
Shanghai. I love this city, I've been amazed from day one. And yes, I think China
has fantastic places. But every time I feelmore amazed, and I love the city even more.
So it would be Shanghai.[Voiceover]
OF (05:59):
Octo Cheung, the fashion designer from Episode 30.
[Clip]OC: I think where I am, Shanghai. Actually,
some of the old Hong Kong culture was influencedby Shanghai. So you can see so many poets
who lived here, and some of the famous politicalpeople. It contains so many different types
(06:21):
of people. So that means Shanghai is a verygood city for you to connect different ideas,
and then you can find your own way.OF: Yeah, I agree.
[Voiceover]OF: Vy Vu, the fitness community leader from
Episode 08.[Clip]
VV (06:38):
I am gonna say my own street. I live in 长宁 [Chángníng] district, and I recently
did a walking tour with Duncan from SHANGHAIFLANEUR, and looked at all this architecture
that was just right in front of my nose. I'vebeen living in my apartment for five years,
(06:59):
and I never realised that this was just undermy nose. And how much I did not know about
where I lived.[Voiceover]
OF (07:08):
Gigi Chang, the translator from Episode 24.
[Clip]GC: I went to 运城 [Yùnchéng], and it's
a beautiful place. Lots of history around.You know, you’ve got the Yellow River, it
was a major battlefield for hundreds of years,there is one of the few surviving 元 [Yuán]
dynasty temples there…OF: Right, awesome.
(07:31):
[Voiceover]OF: Sanford Browne, the biochemist from Episode
29.[Clip]
SB (07:36):
I went with my wife and a bunch of friends on a motorcycle trip. We were in a sidecar.
And we went to Mount Everest base camp, onthe China side, on the north face. And we
went up, right up to the base camp. And wewake up first thing in the morning, and the
clouds part, and you see the top of Everest,with the sun coming through, it was really
(08:01):
quite spectacular.OF: Wow.
[Voiceover]OF: Sebastien Denes, the inclusion advocate
from Episode 11.[Clip]
SD (08:10):
My favourite destination would be 九寨沟 [Jiǔzhàigōu], which is in 四川 [Sìchuān].
It's a wonderful Alpine-style valley, withbeautiful lakes, and it's very close to Tibet.
I remember it, when we visited five yearsago, because it was the unexpected.
(08:33):
[Voiceover]OF: Michael Zee, the Instagram influencer
from Episode 07.[Clip]
MZ (08:39):
千岛湖 [Qiāndǎo hú], ‘Thousand Island Lake.’ It’s in 浙江 [Zhèjiāng]
Province, about two and a half-ish hours onthe train from Shanghai. And it's a man-made
lake. It was created in 1959 when they constructeda dam. And now it's one of the cleanest lakes
in the world. And I went for my birthday.And it was so beautiful.
(09:02):
[Voiceover]OF: Emily Madge, the aquarium conservationist
from Episode 14.[Clip]
EM (09:08):
I'm a big fan of 三亚 [Sānyà]. Just because it's beachy, and it's more my kind
of thing than a city.OF: It's the closest thing to Weymouth in
China.EM: Yes, it is.
OF (09:19):
Right. Do you know, I haven't been there yet.
EM (09:21):
Really? OF
It's wonderful, you need to go. OF
[Voiceover]OF: Abe Deyo, the tour manager from Episode
27.[Clip]
AD (09:30):
武当 [Wǔdāng] Mountain is nice. It’s a really pretty temple on top of this mountain.
It’s like sheer drops on all four sides.It’s one of those where the emperor saw
it and was like “I want a temple up there,”and made people scale this unscalable mountain
and build this massive temple. There are quitea few trails to walk around. But you can stay
(09:55):
there. I haven't been in a few years, so Idon't know if it's changed. But you used to
be able to stay in this little…OF: Guesthouse type thing?
Yeah. A Buddhist guest house, in the temple, on the top of the mountain. Because the only
way to get there is either by a cable car,or you can walk up this path along the side
of the mountain that they built. But stayingin the guesthouse is quite nice, because you're
(10:15):
right there in this temple. Sunset and sunriseis very beautiful.
[Voiceover]OF: Yael Farjun, the historical researcher
from Episode 12.[Clip]
YF (10:26):
I've been to 阳朔 [Yángshuò] a few times, I have good friends there. And I just
cannot have enough of that place. It's just…it's magical.
OF (10:35):
That's the area where there's the mountains jutting up straight from the water.
YF (10:39):
Exactly. [Voiceover]
OF (10:41):
Eric Olander, the journalist from Episode 03.
[Clip]EO: I spend most of my time in the tier one
cities Beijing, Shanghai, 广州 [Guǎngzhōu],深圳 [Shēnzhèn]. But the heart of the
country is not in these tier one cities. Theheart of the country in the countryside. So
I was just in 贵州 [Guìzhōu] which isin the south, which is one of the more poor
provinces, I was in 新疆 [Xīnjiāng] afew years ago, in 甘肃 [Gānsù]… I've
(11:02):
been to about 15 different provinces. Andso for me, it's going out into the countryside,
and it's just the simplicity of it, you'restill seeing oxes, and electrification hasn't
reached everywhere. It's much better thanit was. But the standard of living is very,
very different. The way that they do things,the tiered farming, the mountains are all
(11:22):
tiered. I mean, these go back centuries, andhow they do things in those techniques. And
you realise again, just the scope and scaleof how big China is, and how complex it is,
as soon as you go out. And by the way, youonly have to leave Shanghai an hour or two
outside and you've gone back centuries.OF: Right.
[Voiceover]OF: Noah Sheldon, the documentary filmmaker
(11:43):
from Episode 09.[Clip]
NS (11:44):
I've been to the Tibetan autonomous area, and 四川 [Sìchuān], I think that's amazing,
rural 四川 [Sìchuān] is amazing. I loveShanghai, Shanghai is such a beautiful, amazing
city. But I always love getting out of Shanghaias well, because it's like…
OF (12:03):
Yeah. NS
outside of Shanghai, and all of a sudden you'rein this very different place.
[Voiceover]OF: Lori Li, the private club GM from Episode
10.[Clip]
LL (12:15):
I like the small cities, small towns, we call them 五线城市 [wǔxiàn chéngshì].
So when you go to a very far place, or likea small town, you feel it's so interesting,
crazy, and people have their own local culture.My latest visit was to a small town beside
(12:41):
a lake in 广西 [Guǎngxī]. The people,they don't speak Mandarin, they speak their
local language which I can't understand. Wecommunicated not using language. We communicated
in other ways.[Voiceover]
OF (12:58):
Nick Yu, the playwright from Episode 13. [Clip]
NY (13:02):
Home. When I am in Shanghai right now, I always miss home. That is in the village,
we have a small house there. That's stillthere.
OF (13:14):
Well, when you say that, I can feel that your heart is in that village in 安徽 [Ānhuī].
And on the subject of 安徽 [Ānhuī], like,can you tell me something in the dialect that
you speak?NY: [Speaks in dialect].
What? NY
tomorrow’.OF: Really?
NY (13:33):
Yeah. Before I went to Shanghai, I thought the 安徽 [Ānhuī] local language is Mandarin.
But when I went to Shanghai I was all “Ohmy God, it’s really different”. I can
speak the Shanghai local language.OF: Right.
But it’s just the Shanghai people, they don't understand. That’s not my fault, it’s
(13:54):
their fault.[Voiceover]
OF (13:56):
Nini Sum, the artist from Episode 16. [Clip]
NS (13:59):
I will say my hometown. OF
Which is 南京 [Nánjīng]. Actually, Nanjing is a very slow city. And there was
an ancient capital of The Six Dynasties. Soit's a very historical place. And it's very
green, because it has a mountain in the heartof the city, and a big lake. So if you get
(14:20):
out of the train station, you see this biglake. And when I was little, I always pedalled
boats on it, and also went to the mountaina lot, just for climbing, and you can go to
the astronaut centre on it. So 南京 [Nánjīng]is a place I think that’s really good for
living a chill life.OF: Lucky.
(14:41):
[Voiceover]OF: Gina Li, the invention company CEO from
Episode 06.[Clip]
GL (14:47):
My hometown, for sure. The Gobi Desert, with mountains. And also because it has been
involved with so much history, from thousandsof years ago. We actually have the 汉 [Hàn]
Dynasty Great Wall there. It wasn't builtof stone, it was actually just built of mud,
it’s just how little the rain every yeardrops on it, so it’s still there, out in
(15:07):
the wild, you can actually just go visit withoutany problem buying tickets. No, you just drive
and you go out to the wild, and you see whatis left there from 2000 years ago.
[Voiceover]OF: Greg Nance, the ultramarathon athlete
from Episode 23.[Clip]
GN (15:24):
I've got two. So I love the Gobi desert in 新疆 [Xīnjiāng] with the 天山 [Tiānshān]
mountains. Just absolutely amazing, totallyrecommend that. My second is 哈巴雪山
[Hǎbā xuěshān], Haba Snow Mountain. Totallybeautiful. It's over 5,000 metres tall, and
you actually have a beautiful view into TigerLeaping Gorge. And when I went there were
literally no tourists there. It was me anda bunch of yaks.
OF (15:46):
I thought that was a racial slur, that. But you mean the animal.
GN (15:51):
Literally, yeah. OF
[Outro]OF: So that was the first compilation episode.
I hope you enjoyed hearing all of those voices.We actually only heard from 23 of the 30 guests
there. But on next week's show about favouriteKTV karaoke songs, you will be hearing from
all 30.
(16:12):
I hope that the topic of travel has got youthinking about those days when the luxury
of travel didn't feel like such a distantdream. I really want to hear about all of
your favourite travel destinations withinChina. So please drop me a message on social
media; tag me in a photo from somewhere inChina, either on Instagram or Facebook; or
of course share with the community on WeChat.If you have WeChat on your phone and you haven't
(16:34):
already joined the listeners group there,then please add me on ID: mosaicofchina, and
I will add you there myself.
Mosaic of China is me Oscar Fuchs, with artworkby Danny Newell. I'm releasing these compilation
episodes every two weeks, so we'll be backwith the next one on May 19th. See you then.
And I hope that you're still listening becauseI've included a special little surprise in
(16:55):
the outro music.
[Clips]PG: Thank you very much.
MZ (17:01):
Thank you. EO
AP (17:02):
Thank you too. JL
GL (17:04):
Thank you. MZ
VV (17:05):
Thank you so much. NS
LL (17:07):
My pleasure too. SD
YF (17:09):
Thank you. NY
EM (17:11):
Thank you. SY
NS (17:12):
Thank you for having me. SM
AW (17:15):
Thank you. SDM
LC (17:16):
Thanks for having me. YY
RC (17:18):
Thank you so much for having me. GN
GC (17:21):
Thank you TB
SC (17:22):
Thank you. AD
LT (17:23):
Thank you so much. SB
OC (17:25):
Thank you.
[Trailer]Maple ZUO: So that's amazing. I was like “Oh
god, this is…” I believed in God in thatmoment.
OF (00:07):
Yeah. Wow.
[Intro]OF: Welcome to Mosaic of China, a podcast
about people who are making their mark inChina. I'm your host, Oscar Fuchs.
And welcome as well to the first of 10 specialcompilation episodes from Season 01. If you've
been listening to the season, you will alreadyknow by the different Intro music that things
(00:28):
aren't quite the same as usual. And if you'reentirely new to the podcast, a third and special
welcome to you. In a usual episode of theshow, I will interview one person, and that
interview starts with a freestyle conversationbased on an object that the guest has prepared
in advance. And it ends with the guest nominatingsomeone for me to interview in the next season
(00:49):
of Mosaic of China. And that's how tile bytile the 30 episodes of each season build
out to form a Mosaic of China. But beforethey make this nomination, I asked every guest
the same 10 simple questions on their tastesand opinions of life in China. And it's the
answers to these 10 questions that form thecontent for these 10 special compilation episodes.
(01:12):
Today's compilation is about the guests’favourite travel destinations in China. I
wanted to get this one out of the way first,because as a subject, it's perhaps the most
ironic of the 10, given that none of us havegot any travel planned for the foreseeable
future. But I hope that you'll at least betaking some notes for when the borders finally
reopen, and transport networks begin to humagain.
(01:33):
[Main][Voiceover]
Srinivas Yanamandra, the compliance leader from Episode 15.
[Clip]SY: I would always recommend to people to
definitely visit the Three Gorges Dam. Thatis a phenomenally, infrastructure-ally, technologically
and engineering marvel that one should watchwhen he has been in China. So, alongside the
(01:58):
dam, you created a kind of a ship lock system.But when I saw it - literally the water getting
poured, the door getting closed, and the watergetting poured inside - and the ship literally
gets lifted up, and then moves on to the secondstage, third stage, fourth stage. The three-hour
journey is like a journey of a lifetime, whenyou're getting transferred from this side
of the dam to the other side of the dam.[Voiceover]
(02:19):
Roz Coleman, the theatre producer from Episode 22.
[Clip]RC: I think my favourite one is 杭州 [Hángzhōu].
And I love that you can get there so quicklyand be in the 浙江 [Zhèjiāng] hills, and
then walking around and then drinking teaon that mountainside. I really love the way
that - you know, they're not necessarily thebig mountains, those ones but like - you can
(02:40):
still feel the kind of transformative natureof them when you go up and then come down.
[Voiceover]OF: Astrid Poghosyan, the violinist from Episode
04.[Clip]
AP (02:51):
I love 杭州 [Hángzhōu] city, and I remember until now, every time when I go there,
it’s some kind of peaceful emotion I alwaysget there, something unexplainable. And I
think it's different when you go to Europe,it’s a different kind of peace you find
in 杭州 [Hángzhōu]. It’s really likethose old Chinese times, like when you read
in the books, it's exactly that.[Voiceover]
OF (03:11):
Philippe Gas, the Disney resort CEO from Episode 01.
[Clip]PG: I think one of the most memorable trips
I have made in China is Tibet. 18 months ago,12 months ago, I had the chance with a few
friends to go to Lhasa and just travel inTibet. And it's been a fascinating experience.
At many levels (03:30):
cultural, religious, geographic. You know, arriving and landing in a place
that is about 4600 metres is a shock, right?As you arrive, some of my friends were shocked
immediately. It took me a little bit moretime. But it was fascinating, the place is
(03:51):
beautiful, and understanding how people leavetheir religion, live Buddhism. I'm not an
expert in Buddhism, but I have been very impressedby how connected they are all the time to
their practice and their philosophy.[Voiceover]
OF (04:09):
Maple Zuo, the comedian from Episode 02. [Clip]
MZ (04:13):
Tibet. I love it, because my partner proposed to me there. We climbed nine hours in that
day, to the top top mountain. And then therewas a beautiful blue lake. And then above
that was snow on the mountain. It was so pure.And the name of the lake was ‘Tears of God’.
(04:33):
And then over the lake, there was a some stone.And on the stone, there was a Buddha. Like
you can’t see it, but it was a natural Buddhathing. And the shadow contained a whole Buddha
image. So that's amazing. I was like “Ohgod, this is…” I believed in God in that
moment.OF: Yeah. Wow.
[Voiceover]OF: Angie Wu, the jewellery craftsman from
(04:57):
Episode 18.[Clip]
AW (04:58):
Definitely 云南 [Yúnnán]. I was designing museums before, that's what I was doing before
my brand. And we built an Agricultural Museumin 云南 [Yúnnán]. So I've been there,
for three years, going back and forth. It’sso biodiverse. And they are 26 minorities
in 云南 [Yúnnán] itself. And this is sobeautiful. These are native, local people,
(05:22):
and they still make a lot of things by hand.They create their own tools. And the jewellery,
this is so beautiful, I mean, it’s the mostexotic thing about China.
[Voiceover]OF: Jorge Luzio, the marketer for Sprite from
Episode 05.[Clip]
JL (05:41):
Shanghai. I love this city, I've been amazed from day one. And yes, I think China
has fantastic places. But every time I feelmore amazed, and I love the city even more.
So it would be Shanghai.[Voiceover]
OF (05:59):
Octo Cheung, the fashion designer from Episode 30.
[Clip]OC: I think where I am, Shanghai. Actually,
some of the old Hong Kong culture was influencedby Shanghai. So you can see so many poets
who lived here, and some of the famous politicalpeople. It contains so many different types
(06:21):
of people. So that means Shanghai is a verygood city for you to connect different ideas,
and then you can find your own way.OF: Yeah, I agree.
[Voiceover]OF: Vy Vu, the fitness community leader from
Episode 08.[Clip]
VV (06:38):
I am gonna say my own street. I live in 长宁 [Chángníng] district, and I recently
did a walking tour with Duncan from SHANGHAIFLANEUR, and looked at all this architecture
that was just right in front of my nose. I'vebeen living in my apartment for five years,
(06:59):
and I never realised that this was just undermy nose. And how much I did not know about
where I lived.[Voiceover]
OF (07:08):
Gigi Chang, the translator from Episode 24.
[Clip]GC: I went to 运城 [Yùnchéng], and it's
a beautiful place. Lots of history around.You know, you’ve got the Yellow River, it
was a major battlefield for hundreds of years,there is one of the few surviving 元 [Yuán]
dynasty temples there…OF: Right, awesome.
(07:31):
[Voiceover]OF: Sanford Browne, the biochemist from Episode
29.[Clip]
SB (07:36):
I went with my wife and a bunch of friends on a motorcycle trip. We were in a sidecar.
And we went to Mount Everest base camp, onthe China side, on the north face. And we
went up, right up to the base camp. And wewake up first thing in the morning, and the
clouds part, and you see the top of Everest,with the sun coming through, it was really
(08:01):
quite spectacular.OF: Wow.
[Voiceover]OF: Sebastien Denes, the inclusion advocate
from Episode 11.[Clip]
SD (08:10):
My favourite destination would be 九寨沟 [Jiǔzhàigōu], which is in 四川 [Sìchuān].
It's a wonderful Alpine-style valley, withbeautiful lakes, and it's very close to Tibet.
I remember it, when we visited five yearsago, because it was the unexpected.
(08:33):
[Voiceover]OF: Michael Zee, the Instagram influencer
from Episode 07.[Clip]
MZ (08:39):
千岛湖 [Qiāndǎo hú], ‘Thousand Island Lake.’ It’s in 浙江 [Zhèjiāng]
Province, about two and a half-ish hours onthe train from Shanghai. And it's a man-made
lake. It was created in 1959 when they constructeda dam. And now it's one of the cleanest lakes
in the world. And I went for my birthday.And it was so beautiful.
(09:02):
[Voiceover]OF: Emily Madge, the aquarium conservationist
from Episode 14.[Clip]
EM (09:08):
I'm a big fan of 三亚 [Sānyà]. Just because it's beachy, and it's more my kind
of thing than a city.OF: It's the closest thing to Weymouth in
China.EM: Yes, it is.
OF (09:19):
Right. Do you know, I haven't been there yet.
EM (09:21):
Really? OF
It's wonderful, you need to go. OF
[Voiceover]OF: Abe Deyo, the tour manager from Episode
27.[Clip]
AD (09:30):
武当 [Wǔdāng] Mountain is nice. It’s a really pretty temple on top of this mountain.
It’s like sheer drops on all four sides.It’s one of those where the emperor saw
it and was like “I want a temple up there,”and made people scale this unscalable mountain
and build this massive temple. There are quitea few trails to walk around. But you can stay
(09:55):
there. I haven't been in a few years, so Idon't know if it's changed. But you used to
be able to stay in this little…OF: Guesthouse type thing?
Yeah. A Buddhist guest house, in the temple, on the top of the mountain. Because the only
way to get there is either by a cable car,or you can walk up this path along the side
of the mountain that they built. But stayingin the guesthouse is quite nice, because you're
(10:15):
right there in this temple. Sunset and sunriseis very beautiful.
[Voiceover]OF: Yael Farjun, the historical researcher
from Episode 12.[Clip]
YF (10:26):
I've been to 阳朔 [Yángshuò] a few times, I have good friends there. And I just
cannot have enough of that place. It's just…it's magical.
OF (10:35):
That's the area where there's the mountains jutting up straight from the water.
YF (10:39):
Exactly. [Voiceover]
OF (10:41):
Eric Olander, the journalist from Episode 03.
[Clip]EO: I spend most of my time in the tier one
cities Beijing, Shanghai, 广州 [Guǎngzhōu],深圳 [Shēnzhèn]. But the heart of the
country is not in these tier one cities. Theheart of the country in the countryside. So
I was just in 贵州 [Guìzhōu] which isin the south, which is one of the more poor
provinces, I was in 新疆 [Xīnjiāng] afew years ago, in 甘肃 [Gānsù]… I've
(11:02):
been to about 15 different provinces. Andso for me, it's going out into the countryside,
and it's just the simplicity of it, you'restill seeing oxes, and electrification hasn't
reached everywhere. It's much better thanit was. But the standard of living is very,
very different. The way that they do things,the tiered farming, the mountains are all
(11:22):
tiered. I mean, these go back centuries, andhow they do things in those techniques. And
you realise again, just the scope and scaleof how big China is, and how complex it is,
as soon as you go out. And by the way, youonly have to leave Shanghai an hour or two
outside and you've gone back centuries.OF: Right.
[Voiceover]OF: Noah Sheldon, the documentary filmmaker
(11:43):
from Episode 09.[Clip]
NS (11:44):
I've been to the Tibetan autonomous area, and 四川 [Sìchuān], I think that's amazing,
rural 四川 [Sìchuān] is amazing. I loveShanghai, Shanghai is such a beautiful, amazing
city. But I always love getting out of Shanghaias well, because it's like…
OF (12:03):
Yeah. NS
outside of Shanghai, and all of a sudden you'rein this very different place.
[Voiceover]OF: Lori Li, the private club GM from Episode
10.[Clip]
LL (12:15):
I like the small cities, small towns, we call them 五线城市 [wǔxiàn chéngshì].
So when you go to a very far place, or likea small town, you feel it's so interesting,
crazy, and people have their own local culture.My latest visit was to a small town beside
(12:41):
a lake in 广西 [Guǎngxī]. The people,they don't speak Mandarin, they speak their
local language which I can't understand. Wecommunicated not using language. We communicated
in other ways.[Voiceover]
OF (12:58):
Nick Yu, the playwright from Episode 13. [Clip]
NY (13:02):
Home. When I am in Shanghai right now, I always miss home. That is in the village,
we have a small house there. That's stillthere.
OF (13:14):
Well, when you say that, I can feel that your heart is in that village in 安徽 [Ānhuī].
And on the subject of 安徽 [Ānhuī], like,can you tell me something in the dialect that
you speak?NY: [Speaks in dialect].
What? NY
tomorrow’.OF: Really?
NY (13:33):
Yeah. Before I went to Shanghai, I thought the 安徽 [Ānhuī] local language is Mandarin.
But when I went to Shanghai I was all “Ohmy God, it’s really different”. I can
speak the Shanghai local language.OF: Right.
But it’s just the Shanghai people, they don't understand. That’s not my fault, it’s
(13:54):
their fault.[Voiceover]
OF (13:56):
Nini Sum, the artist from Episode 16. [Clip]
NS (13:59):
I will say my hometown. OF
Which is 南京 [Nánjīng]. Actually, Nanjing is a very slow city. And there was
an ancient capital of The Six Dynasties. Soit's a very historical place. And it's very
green, because it has a mountain in the heartof the city, and a big lake. So if you get
(14:20):
out of the train station, you see this biglake. And when I was little, I always pedalled
boats on it, and also went to the mountaina lot, just for climbing, and you can go to
the astronaut centre on it. So 南京 [Nánjīng]is a place I think that’s really good for
living a chill life.OF: Lucky.
(14:41):
[Voiceover]OF: Gina Li, the invention company CEO from
Episode 06.[Clip]
GL (14:47):
My hometown, for sure. The Gobi Desert, with mountains. And also because it has been
involved with so much history, from thousandsof years ago. We actually have the 汉 [Hàn]
Dynasty Great Wall there. It wasn't builtof stone, it was actually just built of mud,
it’s just how little the rain every yeardrops on it, so it’s still there, out in
(15:07):
the wild, you can actually just go visit withoutany problem buying tickets. No, you just drive
and you go out to the wild, and you see whatis left there from 2000 years ago.
[Voiceover]OF: Greg Nance, the ultramarathon athlete
from Episode 23.[Clip]
GN (15:24):
I've got two. So I love the Gobi desert in 新疆 [Xīnjiāng] with the 天山 [Tiānshān]
mountains. Just absolutely amazing, totallyrecommend that. My second is 哈巴雪山
[Hǎbā xuěshān], Haba Snow Mountain. Totallybeautiful. It's over 5,000 metres tall, and
you actually have a beautiful view into TigerLeaping Gorge. And when I went there were
literally no tourists there. It was me anda bunch of yaks.
OF (15:46):
I thought that was a racial slur, that. But you mean the animal.
GN (15:51):
Literally, yeah. OF
[Outro]OF: So that was the first compilation episode.
I hope you enjoyed hearing all of those voices.We actually only heard from 23 of the 30 guests
there. But on next week's show about favouriteKTV karaoke songs, you will be hearing from
all 30.
(16:12):
I hope that the topic of travel has got youthinking about those days when the luxury
of travel didn't feel like such a distantdream. I really want to hear about all of
your favourite travel destinations withinChina. So please drop me a message on social
media; tag me in a photo from somewhere inChina, either on Instagram or Facebook; or
of course share with the community on WeChat.If you have WeChat on your phone and you haven't
(16:34):
already joined the listeners group there,then please add me on ID: mosaicofchina, and
I will add you there myself.
Mosaic of China is me Oscar Fuchs, with artworkby Danny Newell. I'm releasing these compilation
episodes every two weeks, so we'll be backwith the next one on May 19th. See you then.
And I hope that you're still listening becauseI've included a special little surprise in
(16:55):
the outro music.
[Clips]PG: Thank you very much.
MZ (17:01):
Thank you. EO
AP (17:02):
Thank you too. JL
GL (17:04):
Thank you. MZ
VV (17:05):
Thank you so much. NS
LL (17:07):
My pleasure too. SD
YF (17:09):
Thank you. NY
EM (17:11):
Thank you. SY
NS (17:12):
Thank you for having me. SM
AW (17:15):
Thank you. SDM
LC (17:16):
Thanks for having me. YY
RC (17:18):
Thank you so much for having me. GN
GC (17:21):
Thank you TB
SC (17:22):
Thank you. AD
LT (17:23):
Thank you so much. SB
OC (17:25):
Thank you.
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