China Time Travel Blog
A travel blog is an online travel journal.
In this assignment you are going on an imaginary time-travelling journey through China. Your posts should include some of the people/places/events which I provided to you. Information on all of them may be found in your book, but could also come from other resources. While you are not actually travelling to these places your blog should be written as if you did.
1. Please have at least 10 posts. Five comments need to be completed no later than midnight, May 9, 2014. Five more need to be completed no later than midnight, May 23, 2014. For a total of 10.
2. Posts should be at least 1 large paragraph or two shorter paragraphs
3. Each post should include mention of one of the people/place/event that I gave you, along with a thorough description of that person/place/event
4. You will be graded on having the appropriate number of posts, your content, and your writing. Think of them as mini essays
5. Please keep all posts appropriate – remember that this is a graded assignment which I can review. This is not the place for insulting comments.
6. You can comment on other people’s blogs, but remember to keep it school appropriate
People/Places/Events/Time Periods
Please visit (or meet) at least 10 of these – you can certainly do more if you want
People
Confucius
Laozi
Liu Bang
Empress Wu
Genghis Khan
Marco Polo
Empress Dowager Tz’u-his
Sun Yixian (Sun Yat-sen)
Chiang Kai-shek
Mao Zedong
Deng Xiaoping
Red Guards
Places
Yangtze (Chang) River
Yellow (Huang) River
Great Wall of China
Grand Canal
Forbidden City
Tibet
Events
Footbinding
Inventing of Gunpowder
White Lotus Rebellion
Opium War
Taipin Rebellion
Boxer Rebellion
Launching of treasure fleet
Long March
Tiananmen Square Massacre
Reunification of Hong Kong
2008 Olympic Opening Ceremonies
Time Periods
Xia Dynasty
Zhou Dynasty
Qin Dynasty
Han Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
Cultural Revolution
Confucius of China, has many positions. He is teacher, philosopher, editor, and politician. He was born in 551 BC. He is Master Kong. He traveled from feudal state to state, advising rulers on how to rule.
ReplyDeleteConfucious believed that it is ony possible to reach full development through society. He believed in nothing but peace and harmony. Also, he had a huge sense of responsibility and tried to teach people how to do right. Teaching others to respect and care for family and friends, and the city you live in.
The Opium Wars were two trading wars in the mid 19th century. During this period, Western nations gained commercial privileges in China. The first Opium War was between China and Britain. The second war, "Arrow War", was fought by Britain and France against China.
These wars occurred due to trade. British traders were illegally exporting opium, a reddish brown, heavy scented addictive drug, to China. This resulted to widespread addiction and caused serious social and economic disruption.
The Qin Dynasty lasted from 221 BC to 207 BC. This lasted 15 years, and is one of the most famous dynasties in ancient Chinese history. The ruler of this dynasty was Emperor Qin, who had absolute control of the Qin Dynasty. It is known for being the first imperial Dynasty in China.
Journal,
ReplyDeleteI just pressed the button and now I'm in china! But it doesn't look like modern china, I don't see any buildings, monuments or cars. Altho I do see the Great Wall of china, but It looks unfinished. I think I traveled back in time I'm not sure what time or date it is. I walked into the local village by the yellow / Huang river. And I found out I was back in the Zhou dynasty.
ReplyDeleteJournal,
I was so scared so I stepped back into the time machine and went forward in time to 2008 to the opening ceremony of the Olympics. There were sculptures of the red guards from the Mao Zedong cultural revolution. All of the Olympians were preparing for their events so I stepped back in to the time machine and back in time.
1913
ReplyDeleteI was walking through China and someone bumped into me. I looked up and it was Mao Zedong, a Chinese communist and founding father of the People's Republic of China. I began to talk to him and he had told me he was born in a peasant family, which I was very shocked to hear.
218 BC
I see a sign as I am walking down the street in the village and it says "New Wall Now Open, all are welcome to see." I figured since I was only going to be here once in my life, I thought I would go. So I began to walk and I turned a corner and there was this huge, brand new wall. I began to walking and could not believe how beautiful it was. The stone, the scenery, everything was breathtaking
Mid 900's
I had just had lunch and was beginning to go burn it off by walking around when all of a sudden I heard a scream. I began to walk in the opposite direction and I saw something very disturbing I almost lost my lunch. There was a girl on a table and they were breaking her foot and tying her toes to her heel. I don't understand why they were doing that but it was very bad.
670
I had learned while I was here that the Tang Dynasty came from the Sui Dynasty. It was founded by the Lu family. The capital was Chang'an which is the most populated city here. It does not seem like a lot of people compared to what I have seen in the modern day.
Late 900's
I was really tired one night but then I saw and heard something explode. I didn't know what it was because I didn't know anything around here. I asked someone and they said that they were trying out the new gunpowder mix they had just created. I then realized that I was in the 10th century and that almost nothing I had in the modern day had been invented. I then thought that they could use the gunpowder to gain more territory and fight people for land, but that really was not that important
Mao Zedong was a Chinese communist leader and the founding father of the People's Republic of China. He is also known as "Chairman Mao." He was born in 1893 and died in 1976. In 1949, he defeated both the Japanese and Kuomintang nationalist forces to create the Peoples Republic of China. Mao is said to be one of the most important individuals in modern world history.
ReplyDeleteMarco Polo is an Italian traveler. He traveled with his uncle and father to China. Also, they traveled to the court of Kublai Khan via Central Asia. His travels are recorded in, "Livres des merveilles du monde," a book which introduced Europeans to Central Asia and China. He influenced European cartography, leading to the invention of the Fra Mauro map.
Journal,
ReplyDeleteI went back in time and I don't know where I was but I started walking and I came up to this man who was preaching how you must respect the government and how the government is like a father and we are the children. After his speech I went up to him and he says his name was confuses, I was confuzuled
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ReplyDeleteJournal,
I went to this greenery trail and found a traveller named Marco Polo, he was travailing with his father. They were travailing all around china he also told me he was making this weird map. I kept walking and came across his uncle, he told me that he was tired and cant keep up with them.
I decided to travel back in time to ancient china to see the building of the Great Wall of China. It truly is amazing watching how are these people are working. It is massive and stretches for miles. The year is 216 BC and the wall is incredible and they're not even finished. They probably will keep working on the wall of several more years.
ReplyDeleteHey
DeleteHi
DeleteJournal,
ReplyDeleteI went back into the time machine and I went forward to the Tiananmen Square Massacre, there was thousands of peaceful protesters and then the Chinese military came in and started shooting anyone who got in their way. In the morning a line of armed tanks blocked the streets and most of the protesters were either killed or injured.
I am here at the 2008 Olympic opening ceremony and the atmosphere is unreal. All the Olympians are here supporting there country's colors. The games officially begin in a few hours I am excited to see Usain Bolt in the 100m dash. I am very excited to be here to experience it first hand.
ReplyDeleteI'm now going back in time to the Tiananmen Square Massacre. The scene is brutal thousands of people murdered by the Chinese Military for no reason. They blocked off the streets so there was no place to go and they were all brutally killed. I don't know why anyone would do such a horrible thing to people
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ReplyDeleteWhile I was in China I came across a man named Mao Zedong. He is a Chinese communist and leader of the People's Republic of China. I began talking to him and he was a very interesting man. He was born from a poor family but he has definitely found a way to escape from that life style.
My time machine has brought me back in time to the Opium War. The year is 1841 and the Brits are being absolutely brutal with the Chinese. They are trying to make the Chinese government trade Opium with Britian but after seeing what it does to people they don't want it in their country. Unfortunately the Brits end up winning the war several years later and Opium is back on the trade market
ReplyDeleteSo I just woke up and decided to take a stroll through the village where I say something very disturbing. I couldn't believe my eyes I saw girls getting they're feet broken and having them tied to their heels. This is so gross I can't even look at it any longer. Why would someone do that to their feet, I don't understand.
ReplyDeleteThis time my time machine has brought me to the Grand Canal. The conditions here are terrible. Lots of people have died from disease, and all we do all day is dig out this stupid canal. It's the same work everyday and we don't even get paid. Oh well, I guess I can just get in my time machine and go somewhere different.
ReplyDeleteThis time my time machine brought me to the 2008 Olympics ceremony in China. I am very happy to be hear, but I have to say, the air here is terrible. I'm not sure how the runners are even suppose to run in these conditions with all this pollution. Oh well, I'm just happy to finally be at the Olympics it has always been a life long dream of mine.
ReplyDeleteWhen I got in my time machine this time it brought me to the time of Confucius. I was sitting in a desk as a student, and he was my teacher. Confucius was a great teacher and philosopher in this time period. After listening to him in that class i finally realize what people were talking about when they said all this great stuff about him. His philosophy is amazing to think about.
ReplyDeleteBack in the time machine I went, and all of the sudden it zapped me into another place. I was on a wagon with a man who said he was traveling for trade. He said his name was Marco Polo, and he was on a journey to Mongolia for trading purposes. He said he has been on this journey for quiet some time now and has almost reached his destination. We are traveling on the Silk Roads, and I start to get a little home sick so get in the time machine to go back.
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ReplyDeleteYou wouldn't believe what happened to me today! I was in history class, and I fell asleep. I didn't mean to fall asleep, but it just kind of happened. I don't know how long I was asleep, but when I woke up I was standing in the middle of no where. I thought to myself "great this is what I get for falling asleep in class." I had no clue where I was, but it didn't look familiar at all. I was surrounded by trees every where and I could see some kind of construction project going on. I decided I would ask someone for help to get me back home, and I went up to the construction workers. "Hello" I said to one of the workers, marveling at the incredible size of the wall they were building, "can you give me directions to trinity high school?" I asked. The man looked at me like I was crazy, so I asked "where am I?" He replied to me "We're building a wall to defend china, get back to work." China? How did I get to China? Did I go back in time? The wall looked pretty cool so I decided to look at it some more.
ReplyDeleteWhile I was in China, in the past, I decided to have a look around and see what I could learn. I stumbled upon a small village. Everyone in this village looked terrified at the sight of me. Everyone was hiding in there houses and panicking. I went up to a man, who appeared to be a homeless beggar, and asked him what was going on, and why everyone is so terrified. He told me that they had heard that Genghis Khan, the powerful ruler who showed no mercy, was coming for their village and they would be forced to give him anything he wanted or he would kill all of them, except for one person so they can tell the tale.
I decided it wasn't a good idea to hang around there so I kept on my adventure. I walked for a little while until I came across a road. I decided to follow the road for a little while and then I met a man walking on the road. I asked him what road we were on and he said that we were currently on the Silk Road, and it is a road used mostly by merchants and traders. I asked him if he was a merchant and he said that his name was Marco Polo. He told me that he was born in Europe and came to China to trade, but he was well educated in Asian languages and now helped in the Chinese government. He told me a couple of his storied of his travels and adventures on the road. Then he said he had to get back to his caravan before they started to worry about him so he left and I continued to walk.
Down the Silk Road I came across what looked like a war scene. On one side there were soldiers that were obviously European, on the other side were the Chinese soldiers. There was a small child hiding in a bush on the side of the road and I quickly snuck over to him. "What's going on?" I asked him quietly. He jumped because he didn't hear me coming. "The war is going on", he said. "Well yes I can see that a war is going on but why is it going on?" I asked. He told me about how they were fighting over trade and opium. The battle was getting heated and the boy ran off into the woods. I decided that I spent enough time here and went back the way I came.
As I was walking the dirt slowly started to turn to pavement, and the streets started having grand towers. I looked around, confused as to what was happening. Suddenly, right in front of me, was a huge stadium! I was at the Olympics in Beijing! I got to watch the torch rally, and some of the amazing athletes that participated in the events. There were people from all over the world all in one place. It was amazing but I knew how this all ended because I watched it before, so I went back to the road and walked until it turned back to dirt and when I turned around I couldn't see the city anymore.
Hello my name is Matt and this is my journal from when I went to china. Today I saw the Great Wall of China. I guess it was great, but a wall is a wall. When I walked on it, it seemed like it went on forever and ever and ever and ever but it came to a stop. After the first hundred yards of walking the Wall I stopped and went back to go eat some peeking duck.
ReplyDeleteAfter I saw the Great Wall, we went the the grand canal. I couldn't believe that it was man made, I mean this thing was absolutely huge. I guess when you have a million people digging it goes by quick. They let us swim in there but the piranhas didn't like, then strangely some of the people in the tour went missing, I guess they couldn't handle it. Then our tour guide brought us to this restaurant it was a nice little place but we kept hearing howling in the back, why would they keep dogs in the kitchen, that's not sanitary.
Today we went to the yellow river. It wasn't really yellow but it was still cool. We saw a shark. Our guide brought fishing poles and we fished, it was a lot of fun, I fought a sting ray it stung our guide, he died instantly. The yellow river is a very large river I'm surprised there weren't any mermaids.
We went to a museum and there was a whole section on foot binding. It is crazy what they did to women back then. They broke there feet and would deform them so they didn't have to do work. They had to be rich though. They couldn't for bind unless they had servants or slaves to do the hard work or else it would be really hard to do work. It took about three years for foot binding to be completed.
We then went to the 2008 Olympics arena place. It was huge. I thought I was gonna get lost. Thankfully I found a Chinese woman to hold my hand ad we walked around the whole place. I saw the swimming pool that Michael phelps swam. I'm honored to be here. I think I'm gonna start swimming and break his record.
Griffin Leclerc
ReplyDeleteChina History Blogs
May 9, 2014
Surprise! My entire family was packed behind the sofa, chairs, stove, and television. It was the day of my birthday of course, and what a better was to celebrate it than a surprise party! They finished laughing at my scared-to-death face and all sat down for a wonderful meal at the dinning room table; however, I could not stay because I had a history report to write. I rushed away to the attic, undetected by my relatives, to test my crowning achievement. My time machine. I set the time and date and off I went. First stop, the construction of the Great Wall of China!
Once I arrive in China I cannot seem to find the Great Wall anywhere. I look at the landscape and, from the pictures I have seen of it, everything is in order except the presence of the wall. I continue to search when I come across hundreds of thousands of Chinese warriors and tons upon tons of stone. They haven’t even begun construction. “No way am I waiting 15 years for them to build it,” so I hop in my machine, and go 15 years into the future. Now the wall is coming together. Built of earth stones and wood frames it doesn’t look as spectacular as the pictures I had seen of it, but it will definitely get the job done when it comes to protecting invaders from the North. I notice one of the soldiers away from the rest, so I decide to ask him about the wall. He tells me it was originally started to separate Chinese kingdoms from each other, but once China became unified, a single wall was started. The idea for the wall came from Emperor Qin Shi Huang in 250-210 B.C. and was his effort to protect China from enemy invasions from the north. I decided I couldn’t wait to see how the wall turns out, knowing that many dynasty’s were still to come and the wall would need to survive many invasions, so I jumped in my time machine to 1474, when the Wall we know as the Great Wall today was started during the Ming Dynasty. Its construction is made of three inner walls and three outer walls on some places and it is planned to stretch 3,000 miles and be between 15 and 50 feet tall. It looks magnificent, almost unimaginable.
Next up is to set the Yangtze River. I travel to it and end up floating straight in the middle of it. Luckily my machine doubles as a boat, and quite a comfortable one at that. This river is huge! It must be at least 3,988 miles long! I think it is the largest river in Asia, and the third largest river in the world. It looks much better than pictures I’ve seen of it, but that’s probably because the pictures of the present are full of water pollution, air pollution, and agricultural run off. At the basin of the river there are so many people it looks like an endless flash mob - I would say about one-third of The People’s Republic of China’s population.
Griffin Leclerc
ReplyDeleteChina History Blogs
May 9, 2014
Along my time travels I had heard many times of a Mongolian hero, Genghis Khan, who was the driving force behind the unification of Mongolia and many segments of China. I had always wanted to meet this legend and had the chance one day as I was traveling along the steepes of Mongolia. I found him, a very old man sitting in the grasslands gazing at the mountains beyond, and decided to pull up a seat in the prairie and ask him about his life. It turns out we had something in common – we each had wanted to change our names during our lives. His was originally Temujin, and I was still waiting to change mine.
He was a very gentle old man, which made it even more surprising to learn he had been both a fierce warrior and a successful politician. He lost his dad at age 9 and grew up in Mongolia in a world of tribal violence, kidnapping, murder, and enslavement. His family was disbanded from the tribe and left to live in extreme poverty. From this he learned to survive, developed ambition, determination, and cruelty. His difficult childhood, as well as his nomadic heritage, helped shape him as a leader. Over his life he was able to unite Mongolian clans and organize them to conquer other tribes. He was able to form alliances and motivate his warriors that eventually led to victory. After many years, he was able to unite the tribes, forming the first unified Mongol nation. By the end of his career, he became the founder of the world’s largest continental empire.
When I look to see what he is staring at in the distance, I notice a gaggle of women watering blooming flowers in the distance. They look as though they are having a difficult time moving around, so I head in their direction to offer some help. I can’t believe what I see when I get closer! They have the smallest feet I have ever seen – no more than 3 inches and very narrow. They tell me they are from wealthy families and as young women their feet were bound to prevent them from growing. It is a symbol of beauty they tell me and helped them marry rich husbands. Their slippers were certainly beautiful, but they had to bend their knees in an awkward way just to walk and maintain their balance. It might be attractive and dainty to Chinese men, but to me they shuffle like old ladies.
As I leave the ladies I’m ready to return home, but run across another interesting individual, who also lost a parent at an early age. His name is Marco Polo. He was born in Venice in 1254. He tells me he’s the first European to travel to China and record his travels. The journey took him 24 years. When he returned to Venice, he dictated his chronicles, which became known as The Travels of Marco Polo. It is the first time Europeans get a look into the culture of the Far East. He became a wealthy merchant, married, and had three children.
I still made it back home in time for dinner.
208
ReplyDeleteAs I was welcomed into the house of a wealthy Chinese man, I noticed his wife was unable to walk correctly due to a practice called footbinding. This illustrates the the of patriarchy during Han China. I could see that the women were clear subordinates to the men of society. This practiced also showed the wealth of the husband and his family. This is cause they could afford the wife to not have to do any work in or outside the house,unlike those of middle and lower class Han China.
1842
During my travels I noticed many Chinese people addicted to a substance called opium. The Chinese leaders wanted a ban on opium trade. The British empire, the main supplier, refused to give up there staple export. The Chinese leaders were so distraught they were will to go to war in order to ban the drug. The British empire was also willing to fight in order to keep there profits. The British defeated the Chinese in the opium war and continued to trade the drug until they ceased all exportation.
1968
I was walking through Chinese peasants land, when a man they called Mao Zedong was speaking to a group of farmers. He was speaking as Marxists would of industrial laborers. However, the group of people were not industrial laborers, they were agricultural serfs. He appealed to them greatly, and spoke of a revaluation, and inspired the people. He spoke greatly of communism, and developed his own philosophy called Moaism.
1231
During this time period I encountered a extraordinary leader by the name Ghengis Kahn. He was the emperor the emperor of the mongol empire. The most expansive at the time. The mongols were ruthless warriors who greatly relied on horseback and archery type fighting. It was said that a mongol warrior ( whom learned to ride horse back as soon as he could walk) could hit a moving target at 300 feet with a bow on horse back. Ghengis Kahn expanded his empire into East Asia ( china ) , as well as into Russia. He eventually had a grandson named kublai Khan, who eventually controlled the East Asian and Golden Horde (Russia).
234 B.C.
As I wondered through China during the Quin dynasty, I experienced magnanimity of the Great Wall of China. It was a series of walls and fortifiers to protect the Chinese from nomadic barbarians of the time. The wall was mostly built by forced best who had no choice.
I was with my wife, walking down the streets in china and I couldn't stop getting glares from other people. I don't know of it was the way she walked because of her foot binding or if it was because the scars she had from fighting the mongols. But as we were walking, just minding our own business, we were approached by a man. We didn't know who he was, but he then told us his name was Confucius..
ReplyDeleteMe and Confucius grew great of friends and would ride to the Great Wall of china and talk about philosophical topics like the human life. We've been doing this for years until a man that goes by the name
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ReplyDeleteI was walking down the street as I saw a very peculiar man. I walked up to him and asked him name, he told me he was Marco Polo. I had never heard of a name like that other than a game we play in the pool. We talked for awhile in the streets and he invited me for lunch, I kindly said yes. He told me he was originally from Venice, Italy and that he traveled here to learned about the government and planned on writing books about it once he returns home.
After the delightful lunch with Marco, I decided to burn off what I just ate and go for a walk. There were a lot of people walk to the this place so I figured it was popular and went to go check it out. The sign said "Yangtze River" so I figured it was a historical river. I began to walk to towards it and it was beautiful. It smelt fresh and it made me so peaceful. I over heard a woman talking and she said that this river is the longest in Asia, third longest in the world, and also helps preserve endangered animals, like the Chinese alligator.
213
The Chinese culture had just ended the Three Kingdoms and began a new dynasty, called the Han Dynasty. There was a parade going on to celebrate this new arrival so I decided to watch since I had noting else better to do. It was enjoyable but at the end, there was a man sitting on a throne. I figured he was the new emperor but I didn't know his name. I later found out that it was Lui Bang, and he was supposed to help bring more wealth, happiness, and peace to the land and it's people
1935
China looks more modern than it did before so I decided to take it all in. I look around, did some shopping and while I was doing my shopping, I saw a tv store. On the televisions, however, there were soldiers marching and the caption read "Long March ends!" I continued to watch and figured out that the Long March had started 1 year earlier and was a military retreat by the Red Army. It wasn't really that interesting but I did figure out that it brought Mao Zedong to power which was neat because I had met him earlier.
1420
After I had finished my shopping, I was told by locals I had to go to a place called the Forbidden City. It was the city that held the palace for the emperor and others. The emperor Ming, from the Qing dynasty, was the one who built this and it was just finished. This palace was in the city of Beijing and it was beautiful. Covered with gold and silver and lots of expensive stuff I didn't even know the names to!
I went back in time to the Genghis Khan century is saw that he united land from china to Poland, he created his own empire too. This made it easier for him to rule his power. He made it easier for the people to live in peace.
ReplyDeleteI went back in time to when the slaves were building the Great Wall of china. They were making it out of wood, stone, clay, and dirt. China built this huge wall from east to west so that they were protected from the nomadic invaders. It also helped as being a watch tower or a signal.
ReplyDeleteI am Laozi, born 604 BC in Henan, China. Philosopher and poet of ancient China. I am best known as the reputed author of the Tao Te Ching. I am also the founder of philosophical Taoism. I am the diety in religious Taioism and traditional Chinese religions.
ReplyDeleteI am traveling to the Great Wall of China. The Great Wall of China is a series of fortifications made of stone, brick, wood and many more materials. It is built along an east-to-west line across the northern borders of China.
I am traveling here to witness the structure of this wall. As a poet, it is possible for me to witness one thing and come up with a million ideas for my writings. This usually happened everytime i come upon a historical or marvelous event, structure, person, possession, ect.
I am now traveling to the Forbidden City. This is a Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qin Dynasty. It is located in the center of Beijing, China. I find it very fascinating to be around.
I have met many people throughout my journey. I have recently met the Red Guards. These are a group of students who were given the name "Red Guards." Also, mobilized by Mao Zedong in 1966 and 1967, during the cultural revolution. These students are extremely youthful and tough, giving me more options as to what i should write more literature about!
I have traveled into the time period of Cultural Revolution. A social-political movement that is taking place in the People's Republic of China of the Communist Part of China. Their goal is to enforce communism by removing capitalist, traditional and elements of Chinese society. My journey has been so great and is getting better as time goes!
I don't have any clue how I got here but I'm in what I think is Japan. Maybe Korea or China. That is until I was walking through the streets and saw women with almost no feet. They looked like they had two pirate peg legs. I was extremely puzzled so I had to ask someone. I looked down at the little Chinese boy shining my shoes and asked him why the women's feet were like that. He answered "they feet like that becuze dey has hudsbends dats rich and dey dont need to wrk no mo. " so I sat there and said "Oh. Good for them."
ReplyDeleteGenghis Khan – I would like to meet Genghis Khan because he was a ruthless ruler of the largest empire in the world during the 13th century. He had so many wives that .5% of the male world population today carries a Y chromosome that is nearly identical to his. I would like to ask him how he developed his military strategies and how he created the first international postal system. It would be interesting to see if his military strategies could be put to use today.
ReplyDeleteMarco Polo – I would travel back in time to meet Marco Polo because his stories of travel and other cultures were so different from European life that people did not believe what he had to say. He traveled by caravan down the Silk Roads to China, and his journey through Asia took longer than 24 years. I would like to ask him about his journey from Hangchow to Ormuz and why over 600 of his crew died during that trip.
Yangtze River- This is the third longest river in the world, located in China. This river is home to endangered species like the Chinese alligator, the Chinese Paddlefish, the finless porpoise and the Yangtze River dolphin (which might now be extinct), all of which are endangered because of the pollution in the river. The river is over 3,964 miles long. It also has the largest hydro-electric power station in the world, which would be interesting to see.
Yellow River – This river is in the middle of China, and is the second largest river in Asia. The many hydro-powered dams on this river have led to high pollution and a 40% decrease in the fish population. The pollution in the river is so bad that 2/3 of the river is undrinkable, but people still do. I would like to visit the areas of the massive flood that killed over one million people in 1931.
Great Wall of China – I would like to travel back in time to see the people actually building the Great Wall of China during the Ming Dynasty using stone, bricks, tamped earth and wood. It is so large that you can see it from low earth orbit in space. I would like to see how long it would take to physically run the 5,500 miles of the Great Wall. It took approximately 2000 years to complete, from 476 BC to 1644.
Forbidden City – this city took over 14 years to build, from 1406 to 1420. The entire complex is a half a mile by ¾ of a mile long, and is surrounded by a moat and a 35 foot wall. It is called the Forbidden City because Emperor Yonglo would not let commoners or foreigners in. I think I would like to travel back in time to visit the Forbidden City because I would like to see the architecture and the day to day life of the people who were allowed in.
ReplyDelete2008 Olympic Opening Ceremonies – It would be interesting to attend these ceremonies as the stadium was full to capacity with over 91,000 people. It cost over $300,000,000 to produce the ceremonies. I would like to see how they computer-simulated the fireworks. The ceremonies lasted over four hours and had over 1,500 performers. The torch was light by Li Ning, who performed as if he was running through the air (he was really on cables).
Grand Canal – The Grand Canal is 1,100 miles long and travels from Beijing to Hangzhou. The official record says the work was finished in 171 days in the year 605, but really it took six years to complete and many people died making it. I would like to be there the day the canal was finally finished to see it first used for travel. I think it is interesting that it was actually a waste of manpower and money and was the downfall of the Sui dynasty.
Red Guards – This was a paramilitary social movement of young people who wanted to get rid of the old customs, culture and ideas of China. They wanted to promote Communism in China in the 1960’s. Their vision was for a society of peasants and workers and everyone was equal. Because of this, factories closed and threatened farm production. I would like to travel back in time to see this movement unfold and watch how much of impact students and youth had on their country.
The Boxer Rebellion – In 1900 this society surrounded European sections of Beijing and kept it under siege for several months. They were fighting against foreigners being given more privileges than their own citizens. Even though they were not successful and over 19,000 troops came into the city and defeated them, it did bring a strong sense of nationalism to China. I would like to have seen this event because the society believed they were doing the right thing and what was best for China.
I walked a little ways and I could see the Grand Canal being built. Yes it weird its a river how can It be built? Well I learned that the grand canal was a man made river that could reach a lot of places spread all around china.
ReplyDeleteAfter crossing the grand canal I transported over to the Tibet, the Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas, in the People's Republic of China. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people.
ReplyDeleteI saw this school that had shouts coming from it. I went in and there was children learning how to become red guards. They all had the red guard symbols and they all were battling with eachother. This school was very old the tradition has been on going for centuries
ReplyDeleteThe boy shining my shoe then robbed me and took my money. Then I was transport to a stone contraption. It looked like a wall that was in the process of being made. There were people being thrown into the wall alive and being buried there. I can only wonder what they did. I wanted to ask someone why they were building this. So I climbed the unfinished structure with dead bodies hanging out the side of it. I asked who looked like the leader, he had a whip. I asked him what was up and he said "we need keep mongol scum out of china" then he chased me off the wall.
ReplyDeleteThen when I hit the ground, I transported to a field. Very peaceful and majestic. Then I started to hear a rumble. I had no idea where it was coming from. I walked a little bit and when I came over a hill, I saw ships battling. I asked a local, who also beat me up and took my money later on, what was going on. He said "they be battling offfer opium." That's when he jumped me and I fell on the ground.
ReplyDeleteI'm now on a mountain and it is very peaceful. I look over the edge and see a huge battle, I quickly find someone to ask them why are they fighting. He then tells me that this is the opium war. I continue to watch as both sides go at it. It is truly hard to watch as they kill each other but I understand that is very important.
ReplyDeleteI'm now going back in time to the Tiananmen Square Massacre. The scene is brutal thousands of people murdered by the Chinese Military for no reason. They blocked off the streets so there was no place to go and they were all brutally killed. I don't know why anyone would do such a horrible thing to people
ReplyDeleteToday I am visiting the forbidden city which is in the center of modern day Beijing China. It is from the Ming dynasty. It is the coolest place and is giant. I am overwhelmed by the size of the palace. This is probably my favorite visit so far on the time travel.
ReplyDeleteToday I was walking through the town and say something that made me feel uncomfortable. I saw little girls whose feet were broken and binded together. I decided on was going to pretend I didn't see that and began walking away from it. But I started to notice it more and more as I went through the town.
ReplyDeleteThe invention of gun powder was huge in china. You no longer had to fight up close and personal with the enemy you now had the power to shoot at them from a distance. So if they only had a sword then you could easily just shoot them if they even to come at you. That ism why this is why this is an important invention to the Chinese people. It gives them a huge advantage in war.
ReplyDeleteI remember it like it was yesterday. Birds chirping, children playing, the smell of fresh cut grass was in the air. Spring had finally come after a cold and long winter, and everyone was taking advantage of the warm temperatures. While in the process of mowing my backyard, I came across a metal plate the size of a hubcap that I don’t remember having put there, so I brought it inside and put it on the table. Its appearance was shiny and pristine, and the only blemish on it was created by the single screw located in the center. I pulled out a screwdriver, unscrewed the screw and opened up the object. Some form of a robotic appendage handed me what looked to be a DVD with absolutely no marking on it. The appendage went back inside of the plate, both half’s of the metal plate snapped shut, and the robotic arm simply disappeared. I couldn’t think of anything else to do besides watch the DVD, so I did. The opening scene read, “The History of China through a Chinaman’s eyes.” I watched the first five minutes or so, and it was the most detailed historical documentary I had ever scene! “This would be perfect for my history paper,” I thought, so I grabbed a pad and paper and got to work.
ReplyDeleteChina went through a long period of troubling times starting in AD 220. There were no strong rulers, so the Chinese people were not united in the slightest. Enter Wendi, in 589 AD who brought order and united the northern and southern regions of China. During the dynasty that he had started, the Grand Canal was built, which connected two major rivers for the purpose of trading. The Tang dynasty followed this period of time, and lasted for another 300 years. One of the rulers during the Tangs dynasty was Tang Taizong. He made the empire larger and gained back lands lost since the fall of previous dynasties. Wu Zhao also reigned during the Tang Dynasty. Parts of Korea were added to China during her dynasty. Tang rulers made the government stronger, extended the roadways and canals, and set up schools in China. The Tang dynasty fell because of heavy taxation and invasion by other peoples. Chinese rebels became violent and killed the final Tang ruler.
Fast-forwarding the DVD, I was to a time when the current ruler of China was a woman, and was surprised to figure out that it was in the only period of time in which a woman ruled China as an empress. Empress Wu was one of the rulers in the Tang Dynasty, however she self proclaimed her reign the Zhou Dynasty. She was the only Chinese empress in the Chinese feudal period. She sat responsibly under weak emperors acting as their real power from 660 to 690 AD. In 690, however, she finally assumed the title of emperor. She was the only woman to do so and remains the only woman to have done so, even today. She ruled under a campaign to overcome Korea and extended Chinese influence over it at that time.
The invention of Gunpowder in China was a monumental occasion on the fields of battle. It was the first physical explosive propellant. The earliest samples are thought to trace back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), but there is no doubt that is was included in warfare during the Song Dynasty (960-1279). It was only a technology known in China, but after the Mongol conquests (1206-1337), it quickly spread throughout the old world. Chinese scientists in the 9th century originally discovered gunpowder while they were looking for an elixir of immortality. By the time of the Song Dynasty, they started to develop weapon-like uses for gunpowder.
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ReplyDeleteMarco Polo was one of the most interesting men I have ever seen. He was a merchant traveler from Venice, Italy. He learned how to be a merchant from his father and uncle. With them, Marco Polo went on an epic journey for 17 years throughout China, the Middle East, and the Mongol Empire. They passed through much of Asia and met Kublai Khan, a Mongolian emperor and Genghis Kahn’s grandson, along the way. When Marco Polo returned home, Venice was under attack. He was captured and put in prison for supplying weapons and equipment after joining the war effort. Several months of his imprisonment was spent telling a fellow inmate about his travels in China, who proceeded to write them down in a book called, “The Travels of Marco Polo.” Once the inmate was freed, this book gained a lot of popularity in Europe. Polo eventually died of a sickness after being bedridden for quite a long time. His legacy is his 17 years of travels.
ReplyDeleteConfucius was one of the most interesting men I have ever seen. He was a man of many hats and very influential in Chinese history. He lived between 551-479 BC during the Qin dynasty, even though his teachings were only revealed years later. He was a Chinese teacher, editor, politician, and philosopher. It seemed like he had so much to say and not enough time to say it. His philosophy emphasized personal and governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, justice and sincerity. Even today he is known for authoring or editing the five Classics and for originating the Golden Rule, “Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself.”
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ReplyDeleteWhen I got up I found myself in a ditch. A canal type deal. I swam to shore and found a women. I was going to ask her what this canal was but, you know, I searched for a man. Eventually I found one. He was digging more of the ditch. Thousands of men were digging this thing. I asked the man what they were digging. He said "we be diggn dis canel to improv tranzport of rise and othr gooods." He then jumped me, got whiped, and I fell asleep.
ReplyDeleteToday I decided it would be a good day to visit all the older chinese dynasties. So I hopped in my time machine and went to go check out the Ming Dynasty first. I am now somewhere in the 1500's and I noticed that it seems to be very populated here. I am in the forbidden city right now and I don't really like it here so I think I am going to go check out a different dynasty.
ReplyDeleteThis time I have decided I want to go visit the Qin Dynasty. Like the Ming Dynasty the Qin dynasty was very prosperous. It seems my time machine has brought me around 207 BC when the dynasty is falling. War has broken out between Lui Bang and Xiang Yu. It is complete chaos so i once again decide to leave and go to a different dynasty. Maybe one that isn't so violent this time.
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ReplyDeleteI kept walking until I came to a river, it was a beautiful river that cut through a mountain and had a beautiful view. I looked down and couldn't believe my eyes! There in the water splashing around was a dolphin! Then I looked to the shore and saw an alligator! I looked around and saw that the river was being used by all the sounding villages and realized that I must be at the Yangtze River. I admire the view of boats on the river for a little while until I decide to move on.
I started walking back when I come to a small village. It was about the middle of the day and I started to feel hungry so I knocked on a door to see if anyone can give me something to eat. A woman answered the door and automatically I noticed her feet were bound. This means that she can't walk very far and this is w very wealthy family. She welcomed me inside as her servants made me something to eat and I stayed for a little while until I thanked her for her help and continued on my journey.
I stayed in this village and walked along its paths when a came across a group of young people. They called themselves the red guards. They told me about how they wanted to get rid of the social standards and make a government where everyone is treated as an equal. They all had matching symbols to show they were part of the red guard and they were practicing fighting with each other. I decided to leave them alone and continue on my walk.
As I waled the city became larger and I found myself standing In front of the forbidden city. I looked at it and the place was huge! I couldn't get inside because the guards wouldn't let me in but I waited around and went for a walk around it and it was beautiful. It was built to house emperors and they rarely ever left. I waited around for a little while until I decided it was time to move on.
Finally I reached the yellow river. It was another beautiful view. This river is said to be the birthplace of the Chinese civilization, and is the second largest river in Asia. Although the river is the center of life around here, it has also killed many people with floods. I take in the beautiful view of the sunset and I start to feel very tired. I lay down in the grass and look at the stars. Before I realize it, I'm asleep. Suddenly I hear someone calling my name and I wake up again back in history class.
Next up my time machine brings me to the Tang Dynasty. Thankfully when I get out i don't see any war going on like back at the Qin Dynasty. In fact I think I am in one of the Tang Dynasties glorious periods where their economy was flourishing. This is the time between 627 and 649. There is absolutely no corruption for the fist time in this dynasty. As much as I would like to stay I must move on to my next adventure
ReplyDeleteNow my time machine brought me to the Han Dynasty. This was a very intellectual dynasty that had a lot of inventions and achievements. It lasted from 206 BC to 220 AD. This dynasty succeeded the Qin Dynasty. They had a very powerful military which is probably why they overthrew the Qin dynasty so easily. This Dynasty was a lot more successful then some of the others.
ReplyDeleteThe final destination that my time machine brings me to is the Zhou Dynasty. This dynasty was the first dynasty to unite almost all of china under one government. The Zhou King was killed and the Zhou empire was split into two different ones. The eastern Zhou and the western Zhou empire. It was the longest lasting dynasty out of all the chinese dynasties. It was later taken over by the Qin Dynasty in 221 BC. That is the end of my adventures with my time machine
ReplyDeleteI apologize from my late blog entries my time machine was broken. But I was in the Ming dynasty, it was weird, looking at everyone in there clothes, how different they look from me. They gave me an unwelcoming look and thought I was an invader so they quickly ran me out of there region.
ReplyDeleteI visited the opium war and it was a bloody war bodies everywhere I didn't think I was gonna make it out alive. Everyone was fighting. I saw heads rolling and everything. The goriest battle in history in my opinion.
I then went to the forbidden city, they wouldn't let me in because it's forbidden. I wasn't able to see the emperor, but I did look over the walls and see all guards. They big swords and were standing, align with one another.
Tiananmen massacre was crazy so many people were killed. I didn't know what to do I got out of there quickly, but there was no mercy just straight up killing. I know I'm never going back there again, I'm scared for life.
I decided to go to the point in time where they invented gunpowder. I realized this was a huge turning point in history knowing that most weapons of the future use gunpowder, so knowing without gunpowder that most wars would be very different.