Tie A Red Ribbon

As I climbed Mount Tai last May, I found red ribbons tied everywhere, mostly in the temples and especially on trees like these.

I suppose they're for prayers and/or luck, but I personally love the bright contrast of the red ribbons on the green trees. I also wonder how well they hold up under intense weather conditions....?

(More Mount Tai photos here)

Fixit Street, Qufu

A dusty street in Qufu (as they all are) where men waited by their respective tools of the trade and waited for any customer that needed a key copied or sole replaced.

It looks much better in laaaarge

Basking Chalkboards

A high school courtyard in Qufu, Shandong Province. These chalkboards were the work of students who hoped to eventually become teachers. (My friends who are Elem Ed majors tell me they go through the same deal, except their work isn't displayed for the whole college to see.) Yay, legible handwriting!