Author Archives: Yan Sham-Shackleton

Thoughts on Zhong Guo, Middle Kingdom, China (1)

Thoughts on Zhong Guo, Middle Kingdom, China (1) I am Chinese. When I write those words it seems to have weight. It seems a vastly heavy thing. That word Chinese, the characters Zhong Guo Ren has weight. I don’t really understand what it means or why it has meaning and whether it should have anyContinue reading “Thoughts on Zhong Guo, Middle Kingdom, China (1)”

The Palms Wants to Bomb Museums and I want Our Cultural Artifacts Back

Hong Kong, China Dave from Musings Under the Tenement Palms wrote a sprawling piece on how museums are a symbol of colonialism and encourage us to “spit in the donation box.” (It made me laugh,) In the post he goes into how “rich white people” drive the market of grave robbing added with a fewContinue reading “The Palms Wants to Bomb Museums and I want Our Cultural Artifacts Back”

News: Doctor challenges official account of killings (IHT)

BEIJING The retired military physician who helped expose China’s initial cover-up of the SARS outbreak last year is now calling on the Communist Party to confront one of its darkest periods and acknowledge that it was gravely wrong in violently cracking down on the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests in 1989. . “My proposal is thatContinue reading “News: Doctor challenges official account of killings (IHT)”

The Forgettable Fear and A Deported Journalist You didn’t Hear About.

Awaiting the Democratic Hong Kong After about eight hours into being in China, where you can eat in KFC drink a 7 Up, where I bought some books, and looked at photos of the bustling contemporary art scene in Beijing, I felt like I was in another part of Hong Kong. I start forgetting. IContinue reading “The Forgettable Fear and A Deported Journalist You didn’t Hear About.”

Ohh. Breaking Free in Shanghai. Sanity Regained

We BROKE FREE and went on our own today. THANK GOD. I had so much fun. Shanghai is mucho cool. Business center girl and I have been chatting for a while and she has promised to take me out and about next time I am in town. Cool! New Friend!!! Can’t wait to come back.Continue reading “Ohh. Breaking Free in Shanghai. Sanity Regained”

“Yan, You’re going to go to Jail!”

Awaiting a Democratic Hong Kong On my birthday my friend called, “Happy birthday! What are you up to?” “I am currently posting up a piece I wrote about a democratic China.” “Sorry?” “I am writing about how for my 30th birthday I would like to see a democratic China and that one day I believeContinue reading ““Yan, You’re going to go to Jail!””

Being on a duck tour, and hello from Shanghai.

Backpacking Addict hello from shanghai. It’s nice to be back online and hear from some of you. Sounds a little strange but I guess in the last few months your comments and thoughts have become such a frabric of my life that when I got on, saw some familiar names and words and ideas, itContinue reading “Being on a duck tour, and hello from Shanghai.”

Give Me One Day in the World and Now I want China

Hong Kong This weekend, my friend and I went to a little theme park called “Windows of the World.” It has sized down models of the different sights of the world up by the border town between Hong Kong and the mainland called Shenzen. I have always wanted to visit although of course no oneContinue reading “Give Me One Day in the World and Now I want China”

A Sketch: Space Travel, Skies and Black Holes

Backpacking Addict: Laos Oops I forgot to post this! News: Blazing a fiery trail through the Martian atmosphere, NASA’s Opportunity rover landed safely at 9:05 p.m. Saturday, rolling to a stop in Meridiani Planum a few minutes later to score a clean sweep for the agency’s twin missions to the Red Planet. I did thisContinue reading “A Sketch: Space Travel, Skies and Black Holes”