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Amanda SmithCynthia and I learned that it is a lot easier to feed pandas in Atlanta.
Amanda SmithI noticed a couple signs referencing Chengdu during my visit yesterday to the pandas at Zoo Atlanta. My favorite was a picture of the first Pandas arriving on a Panda jet.
By the way, for $145 (members)/ $160 (non-member) you can spend 15 minutes with the pandas. You don't even have to clean up their poop!
Amanda SmithChina has been experiencing a museum boom since the government made museum growth apart of its five-year plans starting in 2010. The numbers are staggering with the country increasing the quantity of museums from 2,601 in 2009 to 4,164 in 2014. While private museums like the Jianchuan Museum are still rare, the government has been providing favorable real estate prices as well as greater curatorial freedom.
It has been reported that businessman Fan Jianchuan spent more than $188 million to construct his cluster of museums which spreads across 800 acres of land and contains over 8 million artifacts. I have attached an image of the plaque found at the entrance where Fan Jianchuan states his dual purposes of helping people remember the past as well as educating future generations through his collections.
The last line “relics of vicissitudes can speak” is very telling of the museums’ collection and curation process. Most of the museums focus on difficult events in China’s past with themes like the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake, the Cultural Revolution, and World War II. For the most part the objects are left to speak for themselves with little explanation, leaving a lot of the interpretation up to the viewer. This approach has allowed the museum to cover topics like the Cultural Revolution, which is rarely mentioned in Chinese museums
The one place where the museum does show interpretation is in the design of each museum building. The look and feel of each building provides the backdrop for understanding the objects that are being displayed. That is why I was surprised to learn that the Anti-Japanese War museum was designed by a famous Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. However, Fan Jianchan is quoted in an article expressing his desire to attract large numbers of Japanese visitors to the museum. It appears that Jianchan’s desire to use war artifacts to promote peace goes beyond educating people in China.
The museum’s curation decision to display most of the collection seems strange to visitors who are used to museums only displaying a few significant artifacts. Collection management require museums to protect artifacts from damage that can be caused by long term exposer to heat and light, which can be challenging in a humid climate. I have seen the same types of concerns about the long-term care of artifacts while visiting museums in Southeast Asia and Cuba. However, the museum’s displays of seemingly endless numbers of Mao buttons, statues, and even clocks were powerful testimonies to the influence of propaganda.
I was particularly impressed by the fast actions taken to preserve artifacts for the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake museum. Collecting artifacts usually takes places many years after an event when the scope and quality of the artifacts are limited. Through Jianchan’s collection, visitors can see artifacts that depict how the tragedy affected different types of people. The display of bookbags was particularly heartbreaking as the visitor can’t help but picture the young owners.
I’m interested to hear what you thought about the Jianchan Museum or any of the other museums we visited on the trip.
Amanda SmithI live in Atlanta where we are lucky to have four pandas at the zoo. The mother (Lun Lun) and father (Yang Yang) pandas were raised at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. They were loaned to Zoo Atlanta in 1999, as part of China’s efforts to win the Beijing Olympics.
Two years ago, the pair gave birth to their second set of twins (Ya Lun and Xi Lun). Twins are extremely rare. They have seven children; the other five children currently live in Chengu. The Zoo is only allowed to keep the cubs for a few years before they have to be sent to China. Zoos pay China for the privilege for housing the pandas. On average Zoos pay $1 million a year for mating pairs, $600,000 for a cub. In addition, caring for the pandas cost Zoo Atlanta $500,000 a year. This is five times more than what it cost to care for any other animal. As visitation to the Zoo drops, there is discussion of ending the Panda program in Atlanta over the next three years.
If you are interested in Pandanomics check out these articles
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/03/0313_060313_pandas_2.html
https://www.economist.com/united-states/2014/01/18/pandanomics
Amanda SmithI’m currently working on the district level developing program and resources that can be used in multiple schools. Next year, I will be developing a new program that supports the study of East Asia and Africa in seventh grade social studies classes. The program is a partnership between the school system and the Michael Carlos Museum at Emory University, which has an extensive collection of artwork from all over the world. The concept is to create escape room style experiences where students learn about East Asian and African culture by solving puzzles made from reproductions of artwork in the museum’s collection.
My responsibility is to develop the educational resources that will be shared with students as they prepare and then reflect on this experience. On the study trip, I will be looking for primary sources that help students explore Chinese culture. I’m thinking about collecting artifacts like local newspapers, currency, propaganda posters, etc. to put into a traveling trunk. The trunk would be sent to schools before attending the program, so students can experience solving an escape room like puzzle before going on the field trip to experience the escape rooms.
I have started thinking about items that I could collect but I will need people to offer suggestions when we see things during the trip.
Amanda SmithWe will have to talk about traveling in Southeast Aisa on the trip. I would recommend considering including Vietnam in your travels.
Amanda SmithWe are spending three days in Chengdu. I decided to do some research on the various places and activities that we will be taking part in during our stay.
Sichuan Opera
Immigrants brought their local dialect, customs, folk music, and dance to Sichuan province where Chengdu is located. These different experiences led to the creation of the Sichuan Opera around 1644 near the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty.
Sichuan Opera is famous for face changing. Face changing is a magical art, where actors can change more than 10 masks in less than 20 seconds. The actor uses different masks to show different emotions. It is believed that the ancient skill of face changing originated with ancient people who pained their faces to drive away wild animals.
Watch Videos Here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kqb7opDQtg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxDkFvZS_30
Chengdu High tech zone
The Chengdu Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone was designated as one of the first state-level hi-tech development zones opened in 1991. By the end of 2012, there were more than 33,000 various companies, including over 1,100 foreign-invested ones and over 50 Fortune Global 500 ones including Intel, Motorola, Maersk, IBM, Dell, Siemens, Philips, Deutsche Bahn, Schneider Electric etc.
Tianfu Square
Tianfu Square, the symbol of Chengdu, is located in the city center. Being the largest city square in southwest China, it enjoys similar position and fame in Sichuan as Tiananmen Square in Beijing. With an area of 88,368 square meters (105,687 square yards), the square is a special sight encircled by skyscrapers. It is said that one who fails to visit Tianfu Square doesn’t even visit Chengdu.
Tianfu Square is in the shape of a circle, which is divided into two equal parts by an s-shaped line. The center of Tianfu Square is the Golden Sun Bird pattern, which was discovered on an artifact at the Jinsha Ruins. A fountain is located on the west side of a square and the east side contains a statue representing Yangtze and the Yellow Rivers. To the north of the square is the Sichuan Science and Technology Museum where the iconic Chairman Mao statue stands in front of the museum. Chengdu Museum is located on the west square and contains general history, folk customs, and shadow puppets. Next door is the Imperial Mosque, which included ancient Islamic buildings and scriptures.
Kuan & Zhai Alley
Wide Alley (Kuan Xiangzi) and Narrow Alley (Zhai Xiangzi) is one of Chengdu’s historical and cultural preservation areas. The Wide Alley features Chengdu folk culture, the Narrow Alley shows the courtyard culture of the city.
The alleys date back to the Qing Dynasty, the area was originally Mancheng City or Shaocheng City where the court quartered troops. The city decayed over time and the alleys were all that were left. In 2008, the newly renovated alleys were open to the public as a shopping and entertainment district.
Taikoo Li
A pedestrian area containing restaurants and shops. On one end is the Daci temple complex and the other end is Guangdong Hall. The Daci temple is one of the largest Buddhist monastery in Sichuan, the current buildings were mainly constructed in the Qing Dynasty. A former meeting place for merchants, the Guangdong Hall now host various exhibits.
Jianchuan Museum in Dayi County
The cluster of museums spread across 80 acres of land, with a collection of over 8 million artifacts. The motto of the museum project is “collect war for peace, collect lessons for the future, collect disasters for safety and collect folklore for inheritance”. The cluster now consists of about 30 individual museums, organized by four major themes: the Anti-Japanese War (1937 – 1945), the ‘Red Age’ (Cultural Revolution 1966 – 1976), the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake, and Folklore and Culture. Jianchuan Museum Cluster is so far the largest non-state museum project in China.
Hot-Pot dinner
Hot pot is a Chinese cooking method, prepared with a simmering pot of soup stock at the dining table. The hot pot is kept simmering, ingredients are placed into the pot and are cooked at the table. Typical hot pot dishes include thinly sliced meat, leaf vegetables, mushrooms, wontons, egg dumplings, tofu, and seafood. The cooked food is usually eaten with a dipping sauce.
Amanda SmithHello, my name is Amanda. I'm a museum teaching specialist for a school system around Atlanta. My job involves working with museums, historical sites, non-profits, etc. to bring educational resources into classrooms. Prior to to living in Atlanta, I taught high school social studies in eastern North Carolina for eight years. Like most of you, I love visiting museums, learning new things, and traveling.
I have been fortunate to do a lot of traveling but I haven't visited China yet. Two summers ago, I spent the summer in Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand). I remember thinking that I should choose a cold place to visit but that hasn't happen yet.
I'm looking forward meeting all of you in person soon,
Amanda Smith
