Start In China

China has seven public holidays a year.

This is a free park in the North of Shenzhen in Longhua District.

We travelled to Henan, central China, and visited several interesting cities and cultural highlights during our 1-week trip.

Note: these notes were written while I lived in Shenzhen, mostly between 2008 and 2013, and merged into one guide in 2026.

Note: these mall descriptions were written while I lived in Shenzhen, mostly between 2008 and 2013, and merged into one guide in 2026.

Note: this article was originally published in 2011.

Water bamboo (also called “wild rice stem”) is a typical Chinese vegetable.

Lotus root meatballs are very simple to make and a nice variation on the typical meatballs found in Western dishes.

Winter melon is a huge vegetable of which you usually buy one very thick slice in the supermarket.

Tofu with pepper and pork is one of my favorite dishes.