World Balloon Tour

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Table of Contents

Introduction ...................................................................................................1

1. Traditional Food ........................................................................................32. Traditional Clothing..................................................................................4

Manchu ........................................................................................................................4

Han ...............................................................................................................................4

3. Climate .......................................................................................................7

4. Population ..................................................................................................8

5. Main Industries .........................................................................................96. Famous People .........................................................................................10

Yao Ming ..................................................................................................................10

Qin Shi Huang ............................................................................................................11

7. Famous Sites & Places ............................................................................12

Forbidden City ..........................................................................................................12

Oriental Pearl Tower ..................................................................................................13

8. Chinese Currency ...................................................................................14

9. Landscape and Geographical Location .................................................15

10. Canadas Trade with China ..................................................................16

Journal .........................................................................................................17

Bibliography ................................................................................................22

Websites Used ............................................................................................................22

Search Engines Used .................................................................................................22

Introduction

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China is a country in East Asia. Chinas full name is the Peoples Republic of

China. China includes four parts, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and

Taiwan. It is one of the worlds oldest civilizations, and is said to be the source of

some of the worlds greatest inventions, including paper, gunpowder, the

compass, and printing.

China is most commonly called Zhongguo in mandarin Chinese. The first

character, Zhong () means middle, and Guo () means country. China has this

name because in ancient times, everybody in China thought that China was in

the middle of the world, and all the other countries were around it.

China has a long history of about five thousand years. In total, there were

about 17 ruling families, which are called dynasties. The first dynasty was the Xia(Hsia) Dynasty started at 2205 BC, followed by the Shnag, Zhou (Chow), Spring

and Autumn Annals, Warring States, Qin (Chin), Han, Three Kingdoms, Jin (Tsin),

Southern and Northern, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song (Sung), Yuan, Ming, and

the Qing (Ching) Dynasty, which ended at 1911 AD. After the Dynasties came the

Republic of China, and finally, the present Peoples Republic of China.

While in China, I have researched about traditional food, traditional clothes,

climate, population, main industries, famous people, famous sites, currency,landscape and geographic location, and last off all, Canadas trade with China.

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1. Traditional Food

The Chinese have a reputation for cooking and making some of the most

delicious foods in the world. Some of the worldwide known Chinese foods include

dumpling, spring rolls, and Niangao. Most of the traditional Chinese foods are

eaten on the Lunar New Year. Here are some traditional Chinese foods.

Dumplings -- a dumpling is made of a filling wrapped in thin sheets of flour-

covered dough. Usually, the filling includes beef or pork, Chinese cabbage, and

sometimes carrots. It can be steamed, boiled or stir-fried.

Spring rolls -- spring rolls are made of filling rolled into a thin dough sheet. It is

then fried, making it crunchy. Spring rolls are the best when eaten hot. Most of

the time, the filling consists of Chinese cabbage, mushrooms, and carrots.

Niangao -- niangaos are usually made of rice flour. It is sticky and gooey, and

sometimes filling is added into it. Niangao is sometimes referred to as pudding.

Niangao also sounds like happy year in Chinese.

Chinese food is usually steamed, boiled, and stewed. Chinese food seldom

cooked on a barbeque grill. Chinese people use chopsticks to eat and spoons to

drink. Soy sauce is the most popular dipping sauce.

A Plate of Yummy Dumplings

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Crispy Spring Rolls

2. Traditional Clothing.

There are many types of traditional Chinese clothing. Most of these clothes

are similar to robes, with skirts for men and women. Ancient clothes consisted of

two pieces, the skirt and the top. These clothes are usually very popular while

filming Kong Fu movies or movies with Chinese characters in them. Here are two

examples of two types of Chinese clothes.

Manchu

Upper Part: Consists of a Pao. They have secured lapels on the collar

and no side openings.

Lower Part: Consists of pants or trousers called Ku

Collars: Consists of parallel vertical collars with parallel diagonal lapels,

that overlap

Sleeves: the sleeves of a Manchu are narrow and tight.

Buttons: there are many buttons and can be seen.

Fittings: Buttoning system used to fit the collar around the neck and upper

torso.

Han

Upper Part: Consists of Yi. They have loose lapels and are open.

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Lower Part: Consists of skirts called Chang/Shang

Collar: The collars overlap, with the left crossing over the right.

Sleeves: The sleeves of a Han are long and loose.

Buttons: there are very few buttons and cannot be seen.

Fittings: Belts and sashes were used to close the Han around the waist.

An example of a traditional Chinese Garment and the parts that is consists of

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Another example of Chinese Clothing, and the parts in consists of

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3. Climate

The climate of China varies greatly during different seasons. The northern

part of China, which contains Beijing is very hot (over 30 degrees Celsius) during

the summer, and has Arctic-like weather conditions during winter. The central

part of China, which contains Shanghai, really hot summers and cold winter. The

southern part of China, containing Guangzhou has a subtropical climate with very

hot summers and mild winters.

Precipitation in China is normal each year. The place with the most rain is

Huoshaoliao, Taiwan. The average annual precipitation can reach over 6,000

mm!

Every spring, there is a sand storm in Beijing. All the sand blows over from

the Gobi Desert. During the sand storm, outside it might look like a badly

developed picture.

Also, if you ever go to Beijing, you might want to bring face and hand cream,

winter jackets, and a large supply of water. Beijing can be really cold, windy, and

chilly sometimes. Also, if you stay in Beijing for the summer, bring a fan,

sunscreen, lots of water, and a hat, because the Sun can be dangerous and if

you dont get sunscreen on, you can get seriously sunburned.

A Beijing Sandstorm

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4. Population

The last census done in China was in 2004, and the population found was 1.3

billion. The main religions are Daoist (Taoist) 6%, Buddhist 6%, Christian 3%-4%,

Muslim 1%-2%, and most people are nonreligious.

Age structure:

0-14 years: 20.4%

15-64 years: 71.7%

65 years and over: 7.9%

There are many ethnic groups in China, such as Han, Hui, and Yi. Han people

make up about 91.9% of Chinese people, and other ethnic groups make up 8.1%of the population.

The crowded streets of China

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5. Main Industries

Chinas main industries are manufacturing, mining, electrical power

generation, and building and construction.

China is rich in mineral resources, including some important industrial

minerals. The worlds largest coal mining industry is China. Many small

coalmines are scattered through out the country, but the main producers are

found north of the Yangtze River, mostly in Shanxi. Coal is in a large portion of

freight trains.

China is currently producing a great amount of steel products, including

tungsten steel, stainless steel, heavy steel plate, and seamless pipe. Some mainproducing areas are Manchuria, North China, and the Yangtze Valley.

Among Chinas heaviest industries are shipbuilding, making trains, and

making tractors. Other important manufactures are cement, paper, bicycles, cars,

sewing machines, watches, and cameras.

China is one of the worlds leading manufacturers of electricity. Although

this is true, there is still not enough electricity, especially in big cities. 18% of

electricity is hydro electricity, and the rest is made from coal burning plants.

One of the power plants in China

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6. Famous People

Yao Ming

Yao Ming is a Chinese professional basketball player, and is one of the

best in the NBA. Standing at 2.29 meters tall, he is a five-time NBA All- Star

winner. He is on the Houston Rockets, and his former team was the Shanghai

Sharks.

Yao Ming was born on September 12, 1980. Yao Ming is genetically tall,

and he does not have pituitary gigantism, or Acromegaly.

Yao Ming played for 5 years in the CBA (Chinese Basketball Association),

achieving many records such as Most Dunks in A Career, Most Blocks in a

Career, Most Blocks in a Season, and Most Blocks in a Game. All four records

still stand today.

After leaving the CBA, Yao Ming entered the NBA. At the NBA, he is a

five-time NBA All-Star winner, a two-time All NBA winner, a TSN NBA Rookie of

the Year, and NBA Western Conference's Player of the Month. He plays center

position in the Houston Rockets and he has an accurate jump shot from as far as

6.1 meters, though he usually shoots from 3 to 3.7 meters away from the net.

Being as tall as he is, he has an advantage of shooting the ball higher than the

defender can reach. Yao Ming wears size 18 shoes.

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Qin Shi Huang

Qin Shi Huang was the first Emperor of China. He was born on 260 BC, in

the State of Zhao. Before he became Emperor, he was the King of the largest

state during the Warring States dynasty. He conquered all of China and made it

one large country. Before, China was separated into seven warring states. Also,

the name China may have also been derived from Emperor Qins name. During

his life, he ate many mercury pills, which he thought would let him live forever. At

the end, instead of living forever, the mercury made the Emperor die of mercury

poisoning during a road trip. Emperor Qin was buried in a large mausoleum,

along with his favourite girls and the makers and designers of the tomb. Also

buried with him were many terracotta soldiers that he thought would protect him

when he passed on to the next world. None of the soldiers faces were alike.

After his death, his second son forged a will, since his father did not write one,

and forced Qins first son to commit suicide. Emperor Qins second son became

the new emperor. The new Emperor, Qin Er Shi was not as good as an emperor

as his dad. Soon after, China went into a civil war again.

A portrait of Emperor Qin Shi Huan

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7. Famous Sites & Places

Forbidden City

The Forbidden City is located in Beijing, China. It used to be the Imperial

Palace of China from the middle of the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing

Dynasty. The Forbidden City now houses the Palace Museum.

The Forbidden City consists of 800 buildings with a total of 8, 886 rooms.

The whole palace covers 720, 000 square meters.

The Palace Museum is not the same as the National Palace Museum in

Taipei. Both museums are from the same institution, and they were separated

after the Chinese Civil War.

Construction of the Forbidden Palace was started during 1406, and lasted

fourteen years. It took about 200,000 men to build. For pillars of the most

important halls, Phoebe zhennan was used. This type of tree would be found in

western Asia, and are very precious. The original pillars are now gone, as they

were newly constructed with multiple pieces of plank wood.

A 7.9 m tall wall and a 52 m wide moat surround the Forbidden City. The

surrounding walls are 8.62 m wide at the base, thinning into 6.66m at the top.

These walls were specially made to withstand canon fire. The bricks used were

specially baked, and mortar was used in the cracks.

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Oriental Pearl Tower

The Oriental Pearl Tower is located in Shanghai, China. It is beside the

HuangPu River. Designed by Jia Huan Cheng, the tower stands at 468 m high.

Construction started during 1991 and ended during 1995. It is the tallest Tower inAsia, and the third tallest tower in the world. The tower belongs to the World

Federation of Great Towers.

The tower features eleven spheres, which are big and small. The two

largest ones are the lowest and the second lowest ones. The diameter of the

biggest sphere is 50 m and the other is 45 m.

One of the highlights of the Pearl Tower is the revolving restaurant. At the

height of 267 m, it provides a grand 360 view of Shanghai. Other highlights

include a shopping mall, exhibition facilities, and a twenty-room hotel between

the two large spheres.

The design of the tower is based on a verse in a Chinese poem by Bai

Juyi. The verse is about pearls big and small falling onto a jade plate. There are

eleven spheres on the tower, representing the pearls falling on the jade plate,

and the jade plate is the HuangPu River.

The Oriental Pearl Tower

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8. Chinese Currency

The official currency used by Mainland China is renminbi. The Peoples

Bank of China issues it. The currency is used everywhere in China except for

Hong Kong and Macau.

The Peoples Bank of China in December 1948 first issued Renminbi.

Hong Kong has its own currency, the Hong Kong dollar, but allows bank

members to hold renminbi in bank accounts. Macau has its currency the pataca.

Banks in Macau can issue credit cards based on the renminbi, but not loans.

Renminbi based credit cards cannot be used in Macau's casinos. In Taiwan, it is

illegal to use renminbi. The Chinese government believes bad things will happen

if there is too much usage. Tourists are allowed to bring 20,000 renminbi when

visiting Taiwan, and must convert that money into New Taiwan Dollar upon

arrival.

Chinese Renminbi

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9. Landscape and Geographical Location

The geographical location of China is 3500N, 10500E. it is bordered by

Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Kazakhstan, North Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Laos,

Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Vietnam. The total

area of China is 9,596,960 km, the land area is 9,326,410 km, and the water

area is 270,550 km. China is the fourth largest land in the world after Russia,

Canada, and USA. Since it would take me hours to describe the whole landscape

of China because of its massive size, I will only describe the landscape of

Beijing. In the north, northeast, and west, the are mountains. At the northwestern

part of Beijing, especially Yanqing Country and Huairou District, is dominated by

the Jundu Mountains, while the west part of Beijing is surrounded by the XishanMountains. The Great Wall of China stretches along the northern part of cities,

and took advantage of the rugged terrain to defend China from invaders. Some

rivers that flow through Beijing are the Yongding River, and the Chaobai River.

A satellite image of China showing the terrain

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10. Canadas Trade with China

Families in Canada benefit greatly from importing goods from China.

China seems to be making more and more goods each day, and exporting more

to Canada each day. The electric equipment, shoes, watches, clothes, furniture,

and toys make up a large part of the things that China exports. This keeps the

prices down in stores, and raises the wages of workers because they are

shipped in large quantities and are cheap. Canadas stores also benefit from the

low prices of the goods that China makes, which allows them to save money and

keep their competitiveness in the market.

Currently, China is the fourth largest market in the world for Canada. While

exports for other countries have only risen 20% in the last five years, exports to

China have risen 91%. If there was a cutoff in exports and imports to and from

China, billions of dollars could be lost.

Trading with China is a win- win situation. Canadian people win as

consumers, because of the low prices, and as workers, because it doesnt cost a

lot to buy goods from China so employers will have more money to pay

employees. Chinese people win because they can get money from exporting,

and China will have a better reputation in the worlds markets.

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Journal

Day 1 (April 18)

Just took off from Toronto at 11 a., m., and we have bad

luck already! Major thunderstorms are blasting our balloon while

we try to climb above the clouds were it isnt so wet. Our

altimeter shows that we are at 1000 feet in the air, and our

compass is showing that we are heading south. Jay is navigating

the balloon to Trinidad, while Muhammad is bailing out water so

we can keep a decent ascent rate. Its my break time right now,

so I am writing my journal.

Day 2 (April 19)

Finally made it to Trinidad, and we have landed in Port- of

Spain. I dont think I will ever let Jay fly the balloon again. He justmade a terrible landing, and the rough pavement of the airport

has bore a hole in the basket of the balloon. While Jay is

researching, we will go off to get postcards and to find materials

to fix our balloon. When Jay comes back, we will setup sleeping

bags near our Hot Air Balloon.

Day 3 (April 20)

So we are off again. Last nights sleep was everything but

comfortable. The grass near our hot air balloon was filled with

bugs, and thats were we set up our sleeping bags. After

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successfully fixing our balloon with the help of friendly civilians,

we are on the go to Pakistan. Along the way, we will stop in Mali

to stock up on supplies. It is a beautiful day to be flying the wind

is calm, and skies are clear. Visibility is about 80 kilometers.Muhammad is flying the balloon to Pakistan, and it is a much

smoother ride. We encountered some nasty turbulence during

ascent, but we made it through.

Day 4 (April 21)

We just came back from stocking up goods in Mali. There

are some very nice street vendors there that provided us food at

a discount price, as we are running low on saved money. The sun

is scorching hot here. We bought a lot of water during the trip in

Mali, so it shouldnt be a problem.

Day 5 (April 22)

Its really getting hot up here from all that sun. My shirt is

sticking onto me, and I bet I could squeeze out a million gallons

of water out of this. Isnt a really good day for flying, as the winds

are blowing at 20 km an hour and there seems to be much more

turbulence today than on any other day.

Day 6 (April 23)

Finally made it to Pakistan. While Muhammad goes off to do

his thing, Jay and me get to buy postcards and enjoy the

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delicious foods of Pakistan. We just filled our bellies with some

curry chicken from a local restaurant, and we are now trying to

see if there is traditional Pakistani drink we can get. When

Muhammad gets back, we might go to a hotel for a try.

Day 7 (April 24)

And we are off again. This time, I am navigating the ship. I

can already see my destination, China, because it is right beside

Pakistan. This afternoon, we should be landing and staying at a

hotel for the night, and I will begin my research on China the next

day.

Day 8 (April 25)

I woke up early, and careful not to wake up my tired friends,

I set out to do my research. First, I went to the Forbidden Palace,

and what an amazing place that was. There were beautiful and

tall columns, stone carvings of lions, and really nice chairs. It

took me about an hour to rush around parts of the massive place

and take notes. Next, I went to meet a professor who new many

things about China. He invited me to go to the revolving

restaurant on the Oriental Pearl Tower to discuss things. When

we finally got there on the busy streets, there was a long line of

people waiting to get their tickets. When we finally got our

tickets, we took and exhilarating ride up the tower on the fast

elevator. As we entered the restaurant, I saw a fantastic view of

Shanghai. As we found a seat by the window, we started

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discussing about China. A waitress came, and the professor

ordered all the traditional foods he could find on the menu. The

first dish to come was the dumplings. They were delicious. Nest,

came spring rolls. Those were even better than the dumplings. Aswe ate, we drank tea, which many Chinese people do, and he

told me many things I never new about China, like how much

people there are (theres so much numbers that I cant

remember without writing it down!). He told me about Chinese

history, and all about and ancient emperor called Qin Shi Huan.

He also told me many interesting facts that he new about his

favourite basketball player, Yao Ming. Finally, it was time for me

to go back to our hot air balloon. When I got back, I found Jay and

Muhammad playing with some little souvenirs they found at

street vendor stalls. We found a hotel with untaken rooms, and

we slept and prepared ourselves for the long trip tomorrow.

Day 9 (April 25)

It is finally time to go home. We are all excited to tell our

teacher about our trips and adventures. We are going to take

shifts navigating the balloon. Jay went first, then Muhammad, and

then me. The weather today is a beauty. The sun is bright, there

is a slight cool breeze, and visibility is almost unlimited. Jays

navigational abilities still arent very good, and I bet we will go of

course.

Day 10 (April 26)

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Jay is crazy, and he flew the balloon so fast that we had

even had time to make a stop in Paris to get supplies and stay

around for a while. Its Muhammads turn to navigate today, and I

can almost see the Atlantic Ocean looming up ahead. Theweather is gray and fogged in. Visibility is only a few kilometers,

and we all need to keep a look out for any obstacles.

Day 11 (April 27)

We have finally made it back. The landing was sort of

rough, but that was because of the high crosswinds. Now, Jay

wont stop bothering me about that landing and how it was worse

than when he landed in Paris. I think my nerves are going to blow

soon.

George

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Bibliography

Websites Used

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/climate.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#Geography_and_climate

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_money

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_City

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_China#location

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_Chinese_clothing

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Pearl_Tower

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_Shi_Huang_Di

http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1462681

http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/explore/nations/china.html#fw..ch122500.a10.c30

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yao_Ming

Search Engines Used

http://www.google.ca/

http://www.askforkids.com/

http://www.yahoo.com/

http://www.live.com/
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/climate.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#Geography_and_climatehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_moneyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Cityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_China#locationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_Chinese_clothinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Pearl_Towerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_Shi_Huang_Dihttp://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1462681http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/explore/nations/china.html#fw..ch122500.a10.c30http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yao_Minghttp://www.google.com/http://www.askforkids.com/http://www.yahoo.com/http://www.live.com/http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/climate.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#Geography_and_climatehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_moneyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Cityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_China#locationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_Chinese_clothinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Pearl_Towerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_Shi_Huang_Dihttp://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1462681http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/explore/nations/china.html#fw..ch122500.a10.c30http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yao_Minghttp://www.google.com/http://www.askforkids.com/http://www.yahoo.com/http://www.live.com/

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