Illuminated bridge at twilight in the China Folk Culture Village.

Spent some time in Shenzhen over the Chinese New Year and was intrigued about these amusement parks featuring miniatures from all over the world.  There are two major parks featuring these minis: Windows of the World showcasing famous icons from around the globe and Splendid Village highlighting Chinese landmarks.  The original plan was to see Windows of the World but upon arrival I was more interested in China showing China than randoms from all over.  And to see both is not too difficult, there is a monorail joining the two, plus other touristy places I declines to visit.

Splendid Village is basically split into two areas: on the left are the minis and adjacent is China Folk Culture Village.  The Folk Village is a maze of domiciles and local living environments reproduced to reflect the many ethnic groups of China.  Most of the place was a ghost town, especially the Folk Village, as everyone was preparing for the Chinese New Year the following day.  The lack of people makes it easier to take the photos I wanted and is one of the reasons I like to visit Chinese Tourist attractions over the Chinese New Year.  Below are some snaps from the visit.

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Map of Splendid Village and China Folk Village

Replica of a Beijing courtyard house in the China Folk Village.

Miniature gates.

Miniature Great Wall.

Forbidden City bridges.

A mini man minus his mini man.

New Year's dragon display near the entrance of Splendid China.

A popular route for Wuhan expats replenishing their visa is the high-speed train from Wuhan to Guangzhou, bus transfer to Shenzhen, and walk across the border to Hong Kong.  Last Chinese New Year was spent up north (Beijing and Harbin), this year I took my second trip south to Shenzhen/Hong Kong.
The high-speed train process is [...]

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I know this took way to long to post, the race was the first weekend in November, but I did want to share some race day photos from the New York City marathon this year.  Once again I was lucky to photograph for a great organization, the Robin Hood Foundation, just past mile 20.  Before [...]

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