The first photo-journalistic record of the park culture of Beijing.Discover how the locals promote their health and happiness through a rich variety of daily activities - pastimes and hobbies, both ancient and contemporary.Explore the related history and culture as you enjoy over 300 photos of more than 40 different activities including interviews with local park-goers.

Introduction

1 Taiji

1.1 Taiji Quan

1.2 Taiji Sword

1.3 Taiji Fan

2 Folk Cames from Antiquity

2.1 Kongzhu Playing

2.2 Shuttlecock Kicking (Hacky Sac)

2.3 Kite Flying

3 The Rare Treasures of Beijing

3.1 Juggling the Flower Stick

3.2 Spinning the Top

3.3 Snapping the Whip

3.4 Clapping the Bamboo

3.5 Rolling the Hoop

3.6 Shooting the Meteor Hammer

4 Classic-Leisure Scenes in Beijing

4.1 Bird-cage Walking

4.2 Chess and Card Playing

4.3 Chatting

New Inventions of Fun

5.1 Ground Calligraphy

5.2 Ring Tossing

5.3 Clapping-and-chanting Drill

5.4 Taiji-soft Ball

6 Non-Competition Sports

6.1 Outdoor Gyms

6.2 Fishing

6.3 Swimming

6.4 Skating

6.5 Hiking

7 Let's Dance

7.1 Yang-ge

7.2 Fan Dance

7.3 Folk Dance

7.4 Ballroom Dance

7.5 Free Style

7.6 Ribbon Dance

8 Let's Get Musical

8.1 Solo Singing

8.2 Chorus

8.3 Beijing Opera

8.4 Dance to the Harmonicas

8.5 Self-organized Performing Group

8.6 Folk Music Players

9 Social Groups

9.1 Matchmaking Meet

9.2 Emotional Support Groups

10 Special Features

10.1 The Square of the Beijing Exhibition Center: Day and Night

10.2 Other Activities

Beijing at a Glance

Parks in Beijing

Map of the Major Parks in Beijing

How We Did It

Afterword

Acknowledgements

About the Authors

Bibliography