Past is Present.doc

1、Past is PresentIn 2007， an eccentric cultural relics collector placed the last of hundreds of millions of shards of Chinese porcelain into the surfaces of a century-old French mansion in one of Chinas major port cities， Tianjin. The construction is a perfect metaphor for the city itself. Its foundat

2、ion stands on Chinese soil， yet its flesh and bones are French， as it was built while the area was part of the citys French concession. Then， not long ago， Chinese workers blanketed its exteriors with whole and partial Chinese ceramics， each with a history of at least 200 years， according to the pro

3、jects offbeat architect. It is a piece of colonized history， repurposed with a Chinese face. And thats Tianjin. It has been stamped with the characteristics and cultures of the nine countries that once established concessions within its city borders. Now that those countries are gone， locals have re

4、possessed the vestiges of foreign power and tried to make them Tianjins own. Between 1860 and 1902， Great Britain， the US， France， Germany， Japan， Russia， Italy， Austria-Hungary and Belgium sequentially portioned off local land， with the last holdout retaining its concession until 1947. They built t

5、heir own schools， operated their own prisons and collected their own taxes. As a result， Tianjin is transporting. A walk through the city center is a global expedition. Tiny Parisian alleyways branch off from a stall-lined pedestrian street. Wall Street bank columns shoot out of sidewalks. London ro

6、w houses cozy up behind intricate wroughtiron gates. But everything is slightly off. The alleyway stalls sell selfie sticks， not French handicrafts. The columns bear the characters for Bank of China， not the name of a Wall Street giant. And out of one of the chestnut row houses that would look at ho

7、me on the set of Sherlock emerge two Chinese women， languidly hanging pink cotton bedsheets on an undeniably Chinese clothesline. Tianjin is a smaller version of its colonial big sister， Shanghai. It is the embodiment of what happens when East literally meets West. Porcelain House While Tianjin is n

8、ot typically an international destination in itself， it is the perfect weekend or even day trip away for Beijing tourists. High-speed trains headed for Tianjin leave the capital every few minutes during peak hours， and passengers sit for just over half an hour before disembarking in the port city. A

9、t 54.5 yuan （US$8.42 ） ， an economyclass train ticket costs less than a mid-range meal. Italian Style Town The Italian concession stretches north of the Haihe River. Marked by expansive roundabouts and statues of figures like Dante Alighieri， one section of the former concession， branded as “Italian

10、 Style Town， ” is now a remodeled shopping and restaurant district riddled with tiny alleyways and pedestrian-only avenues. What once was an Italian community has been painted over with Chinese features. Street vendors hawk souvenirs， Tianjin postcards and in-vogue accessories aimed at a Chinese cro

11、wd. A pair of caricaturists set up easels to display their best sketches of Chinese celebrities. Tuk-tuk drivers idle next to a stall selling seafood fried rice， hoping a tourist will climb aboard for a guided tour of the district. Tianjin Eye The walkway running alongside the Haihe River is perfect

12、 for runners or couples taking wedding photos （we spotted two）. Walk a few kilometers along the path， heading northwest from the Italian area， and soon youll spot the Tianjin Eye rising out of the water. The 120-meter-tall colossal Ferris wheel straddles the river and dwarfs most surrounding buildin

13、gs. Aim to arrive just as the sun is about to set and get in line quick； staff members cut off the line as early as half an hour after sunset， depending on how quickly they fill the queue. The line may take an hour and a half and the ticket prices are steep （80 yuan US$12.30 per person， 400 yuan US$

14、61.49 to book an entire gondola） ， but the night view of the city unveiling in front of you is exceptional. The red glow of the Tianjin Eye itself reflects off the windows of neighboring buildings while skyline lights shimmer off the Haihe River. The half-hour ride goes by all too quickly. Tianjin M

15、useum The Tianjin Cultural Center is a beautifully laid out complex of museums and exhibition centers， all of which face a sheet-like expanse of water that mirrors their dramatic architecture. Next to the graceful curved crescent of the Tianjin Natural History Museum looms the Tianjin Museum， an imp

16、osing rectangular block and the largest museum in the city. While many visitors come for the displays of cultural relics， calligraphy and porcelain wares， the museums detailed exhibits on Tianjins history merit more recognition. The first-floor one begins with the first signs of human life in Tianji

17、n and works up to the late 19th century. It explores the citys roots， Opium War experiences and basic industries at a time when Tianjins population had yet to reach a quarter of a million （it now exceeds 15 million）. But the museums real jewel is the third-floor exhibit titled “One Hundred Years in

18、Tianjin.” It documents the citys history with concessionaires， a short-lived provisional government， the Boxer Rebellion and the Second Sino-Japanese War （1937-45） ， ending with a display of the first fivestar Chinese flag flown in Tianjin after the founding of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949.

19、 The content is one-sided， but its a side not often seen by Western eyes. The comprehensive photos， decent English translations and unique content all make this museum a must for any tourist looking to better understand Tianjins past before crossing back over Liberation Bridge， buying a train ticket and hurtling back to Beijing.