May 15, 2009

Earlier when I attended the business opening ceremony for Zhao Benshan’s Liu Laogen’s Big Stage Theater in Beijing, I noticed how the traditional courtyard residences had been restored so beautifully. At the time I thought, “I want to have a large courtyard house in Beijing as well, and make it into a Jackie Chan arts museum.” Friends around me started taking action very quickly. Yesterday, I was lucky enough to visit many cultural tourist attractions in Xuanwu district after receiving an invitation from local government officials. Now I have a better understanding of Xuanwu district.

The first place I stopped at was Lao She Tea House located near Qianmen or the Front Gate in Beijing. This teahouse was founded in 1988 and is named after a very well known local artist, Mr. Lao She, and a famous theatrical play. The setting and interior design of the teahouse is very refreshing, simple, sophisticated, and elegant. Many classical elements and old folk customs are combined amongst the modern-day style of a smooth, concise, and flowing layout. Having meal here was definitely an enjoyable treat.


There were also some amazing displays of small clay figures created by a clay modeling master that portrayed a very detailed, realistic, and vivid scene of old Beijing. Each figure was unique with their own distinct expressions and they all look very lifelike, doing all sorts of things such as various kinds of trades, wrestling, flagpole juggling, and a scene of traditional Beijing dialect story-telling with drum accompaniment. It was like old Beijing had come to life again in front of my eyes.


There is something I want to tell you but you might not believe what I’m about to say. Today, I went to a place and drank a cup of tea worth two fēnqián (two cents). There are 10 fēn or cents in one máo and there are 10 máo in one dollar, so you can imagine how much two cents RMB is worth in USD!


After eating lunch, local officials took me to visit a newly renovated commercial business street called Dàzhàlan. Dàzhàlan has a history that goes back 580 years and is the oldest, most famous, exquisite old-styled market place and bustling commercial business district in Beijing. Most of the ancient architecture in this area is still preserved in its original condition. These age-old architectural structures, and the movie Chéngnán Jiùshì (My Memories of Old Beijing) that was set here, are all important treasures of humanity and a source of cultural information about our ancient capital, Beijing. The origin of this street can be traced back to the first year of Emperor Xiào Zōng Hóngzhi’s reign during the Ming Dynasty (1488). At the time, Beijing had a “xiāo jīn” (curfew) and to prevent thieves from hiding in the small alleyways off the main streets, wooden gates were erected at the ends of many streets but only with the approved order from the imperial court. According to what was written in the Qīn Ding Ling Diǎn Shìlì (Examples of Orders Issued by the Imperial Court), 440 gates were granted to be built in the outer city during the 7th year of Emperor Yongzheng’s reign (1729); 1919 gates were granted in the inner city during the 18th year of Emperor Qianlong’s reign (1753), and there are 196 gates inside the Imperial City. Originally, Dàzhàlan consisted of four main corridors but because the construction of these gates was exceptional in the hútòng (alleyways) and they have been well preserved over a long period of time, these large structures have gradually become a unique attraction for the capital and were given the name Dàzhàlan. From what they told me about the area, there was a common saying that circulated around old Beijing that said, “If you’re looking for amusement, go to the heavenly bridge. If you’re wanting to buy some things, go to Dàzhàlan.” I was very fortunate and had the opportunity to visit Dà Guān Lóu (The Observation Theater). Dà Guān Lóu was built in the fall of 1905 towards the end of the Qing era and is located on the commercial business street of Dàzhàlan just outside Qiánmén (the Front Gate). The very first motion picture made by Chinese people in China was a Peking Opera short film called Ding Jun Mountain, and this documentary style stage performance of acrobatic fighting was shown here at Dà Guān Lóu (now it is called Dà Guān Lóu Cinema Theater). This film was the very first film made by our own Chinese people. The making and release of this movie marked the beginning of Chinese filmmaking.






When I came out from Dà Guān Lóu, I saw many well-known time-honored businesses nearby such as Nei Lian Sheng Shoe Shop, Tongrentang Chinese Herbal Medicine Pharmacy, and Zhang Yiyuan Tea Shop. I had this sudden urge and decided to go into Nei Lian Sheng Shoe Shop. The salespeople here were very friendly and enthusiastic. They helped take my shoe measurements and then gave me several pairs of purely handmade cloth shoes as a gift. Wow, I tried some on and they were so comfortable. From what they told me, every cloth shoe has over 81 stitches in it. Such a difficult shoe to make and it only sells for RMB $100 (~USD $15).


I also talked some people who drew paintings and made vases and they told me that they spend roughly three months, sometimes up to six months, to complete a piece of artwork. But when I asked them about the price at which they sell their work, they were selling them for only several hundred dollars. If you think about the products that people make overseas - the machines they use are made in China; all they do is turn on the machine and – ding – a product is produced, and then this product is sold on the market for over one thousand dollars, so I guess you can’t really blame our traditional Chinese handcraft artists. Also, handcrafted artifacts around the world are becoming very rare. There aren’t many people willing to learn how to make them anymore and the things being made are sold too cheaply. If this continues in the long term, I don’t think anyone will keep this age-old handcraft tradition going. I had an idea that I thought about in the past and I’m still thinking about it now – why can’t we sell these handcrafted artifacts for several thousand dollars or even tens of thousands of dollars. For example with the cloth shoes, wouldn’t it be good if we could make someone who saw another person wearing cloth shoes think, “Wow, cloth shoes, very expensive!” *sigh*. This is an idea that I really like but how can I possibly make it happen? The only thing I can do is to promote these products in my movies or at certain places. They also need to rely on everybody’s efforts and your support for the traditional art of handcraft in your own country. Be proud of your country’s culture so that different cultures around the world will survive through future generations.


After I left Dàzhàlan, I went to a street located just outside Pingmen in Beijing called Liúlíchǎng. The Liúlíchǎng main street is famous for being the culture and literature street of Beijing. This street originated during the Qing Dynasty. At the time, many scholars from around the country came to Beijing for an examination and they usually gathered around in this area. As a result, many stores in the area started selling literature, books, calligraphy brushes, ink, paper, and ink-stones. It created an intense cultural atmosphere. Currently, there are many shops here that sell antique artworks such as traditional calligraphy and paintings. I think the most well known shop in this street is Rong Bao Zhai.

There is also a shop that locals call the treasured shop in town. People say that it’s very valuable but I guess only the people who know about it will fully understand. It honestly doesn’t really mean much to me because I don’t understand.

My last stop was Húguǎng Huì Guǎn (Húguǎng Guild Hall). Húguǎng Guild Hall is located at Hufangqiao (Tiger Square Bridge) in Xuanwu district, Beijing. It was built in the 12th year of Emperor Jiāqìng’s reign during the Qing Dynasty (1807) and has a long established history and a profound cultural background. It was also a gathering place for local civilians. It used to be famed as one of the world’s top 10 architectural theaters made of wood. They especially arranged a performance of Peking Opera for me to watch. I admired the traditional theatrical play that was performed in its most original form in an historic theater, and personally experienced the distinct cultural atmosphere that was unique to old Beijing. It brought back memories of the times I had to practice Peking Opera when I was young. All these things are part of China’s culture, the culture of an ethnic group. We should try our best to carry on and promote these traditional customs. My trip this afternoon was definitely beneficial for me.

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