Tianjin Tianhou Palace and religious practice in the PRC

This week as I wait somewhat patiently for my email to load, I’ve been walking the streets of Tianjin. One of the first places I wandered was to the Tianjin Tianhou Palace (天津天后宫), a temple located near Tianjin’s Antique Street (古文化街). The Antique Street is similar to dozens of other souvenir/faux brand markets around the Middle Kingdom but does offer the advantage of being a lot more laid back than Panjiayuan and a lot less pricy than Liulichang in Beijing. The relative absence of foreign tourists (I saw two the whole afternoon) means the yelling/grabbing sales approach is nearly nonexistent making for a pleasant shopping experience.

The Tianhou complex itself was originally constructed in the Yuan dynasty (1326 CE) and got an overhaul early in the Ming dynasty but most of the existing structures date back only to a 1985 major renovation of the place. Few of the original buildings had survived intact to the 20th century and those that did suffered a grim fate during the GPCR. Despite its condition, the temple played an important role in the social and spiritual life of Tianjin even into the PRC era. Scholars of Chinese religion might find it interesting that

Tianjin’s Image Problem: On the whole, why I’d rather be in Philadelphia…

Southwest Airlines ran a series of commercials this past summer advertising their service from Boston to Philadelphia. In the ads, Philadelphians gave their opinions about what made Philly so special, the joke being that everyone said the same two things: cheese steak and the Liberty Bell. The spot ends with a local yokel proclaiming that Philly indeed “has a lot of culture…like a baby New York.” Frankly, if I was from Philly, I’d be upset, but such is. With neither the glamour of New York nor the power of Washington, Philadelphia must be content to sit in an awkward geographic perineum betwixt the two.

Similarly sandwiched, if not so much geographically, between Beijing and Shanghai, Tianjin shares Philly’s fate. Both are port cities known for a movie pugilist (Rocky Balboa/Huo Yuanjia 霍元甲) and a famous snack (Cheese Steak/Goubuli baozi 狗不理包子) and neither city gets the respect that they truly deserve.

What of Tianjin? Once one of the most important strategic cities in the empire, Tianjin is now referred to by its own residents as the world’s largest 农村 nongcun.

This self-perception issue is reflected by the tourist office which recently rejected several slogans for their “Visit

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