City gates open

"City Gates Open" depicts Bei Dao's memories of Beijing. The writing began in 2001, when his father was critically ill and Bei Dao returned home for the first time after years. As the plane touched down, the lights of countless homes flooded into the cabin, whirring around. "I was truly taken aback. Beijing was like an enlarged football field." The land that had given him life was now so unfamiliar that he couldn't even find his home. In his hometown, he found himself a stranger.
"I want to use words to rebuild a city, rebuild my Beijing - use my Beijing to deny today's Beijing." So the book "The City Gate Opens" was created. "In my city, time flows backwards, dead trees come back to life, disappeared smells, sounds and lights are recalled, and demolished courtyards, alleys and temples are restored to their original appearance... I open the city gates to welcome wandering wanderers from all over the world and homeless souls." In the preface to the new book "My Beijing", he imagined himself as the master inside the city gates.

2023-01-01

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