I got my copy of the latest May 2008 issue of National Geographic the other day, and the issue is focused on: “China - Inside the Dragon.” As we approach the 2008 Beijing Olympics, I think we’ll be seeing a lot more China-focused special issues, which I think is a good thing, considering American’s general ignorance of people, country and customs beyond its own borders. Here are some selected stories, photographs and videos from the issue:
Other posts you might be interested in:
Marilyn Terrell wrote:
I work at National Geographic, and even I was amazed at this issue. I also loved the Amy Tan story about the mountain village in Guizhou:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/05/china/guizhou/amy-tan-text
The print issue contains a great map of China, with an exploded diagram of the Forbidden City on the back. On the Geographic website are several exclusive online features, including two fascinating articles from the archives. “My Life in Forbidden Lhasa,” a story first published in NatGeo in 1955, was written by Heinrich Harrer, who escaped a POW camp in World War ll and ended up in Tibet and became the tutor to the young Dalai Lama:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/05/tibetans/harrer-text
Another archival story is “Return to Changing China,” which was first published in 1971. It was written by Canadian Audrey Topping who returned to China after having lived there pre-Mao, and her insights on the transformed country are pretty illuminating:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/05/china/changing-china-1971/topping-text
Posted on 03-May-08 at 3:56 am | Permalink