December 16, 2006 to January 3, 2007

A two week visit to the places and peoples of Taiwan, China and Hong Kong.

China (中国), the world's fourth largest country is one of the world's oldest civilizations, consisting of states and cultures dating back more than six millennia. The stalemate of the last Chinese Civil War has resulted in two political entities using the name "China": the People's Republic of China (PRC - 中华人民共和国), administering mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau; and the Republic of China (ROC - 中華民國), administering Taiwan and its surrounding islands.

China has the world's longest continuously used written language system, and also invented paper, the compass, gunpowder, and printing.

Photos taken with Nikon D40 with Nikkor AF-S DX 18-55mm F3.5-5.6G ED II lens. All images resized to 1280 x 851 pixels.