Beijing
Zen purity in the shadow of the Great Wall
The Great Wall of China was not a singular enterprise. It was built in sections by different dynasties over centuries, partly as a fortification and partly as a highway for men and materials.
Some of it dates back to 2000 years ago; large parts have crumbled or been restored. Snaking across rugged terrain to the Gobi Desert, it is an awesome symbol of history, legend and the modern tourist industry. One popular location to view it is at Badaling, 70 kilometers. northwest of Beijing; it is here that developers Zhang Xin and her husband Pan Shiyi, in a bold personal initiative, hit upon the idea of inviting 12 leading Asian architects to design villas in a self-styled commune. The models of avant-garde architecture were exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 2002 and acquired by the Centre Pompidou in Paris. Inspired by the seamless integration of the Great Wall in a rough landscape and the use of bamboo as scaffolding, Japanese architect Kengo Kuma sought a harmony between "delicacy and roughness". In tribute he calls the house the "Bamboo Wall". 
