This book addresses the impact of intermarriage between Chinese immigrants and the natives, specifically the intermingling of blood and the offspring from such unions, and the influence they wielded on the society and environment they chose to live in. It also covers how some rose to high positions and their contributions to their societies, and how some openly declared their pride in their ancestry, while others have forgotten their heritage and have dissociated themselves.

Hong Mei and her single mother have had to move from town to town in modern China – as soon as townsfolk get suspicious that her mother’s magical healing powers are, in fact, truly magical, they move on, usually in the middle of the night. But Hong Mei has started getting emails from someone named Madam Ching, who claims to have information on her long-missing father. Ryan and Alex are Chinese-Canadian brothers who have lived with their aunt and uncle since their parents died in a mysterious fire. They are just going to visit relatives in Hong Kong as far as they know, just as the New Year’s celebrations begin for the Chinese Year of the Golden Dragon. What they are about to discover, as they magically connect with Hong Mei, is that there is a link between the fire that killed their parents and Madam Ching, between the ancient jade pendants they all wear and the Chinese myth of the Black Dragon. And why all these strange things start happening on the eve of the Year of the Golden Dragon. East and West, ancient and modern, the mystical and practical, all collide as the trio races against time from Hong Kong to Beijing and finally to the famous Imperial tomb of Xian, where they meet their fate and discover what they are truly made of.

Chasing the Dragon is the story of a Boston Herald reporter's journey into Burma/Myanmar to interview the mysterious drug lord, Khun Sa. The features desk of an American newspaper may seem an unlikely launchpad for a journey into one of the world's most remote and dangerous regions, but for journalist Christopher Cox, it was where the story began. It would end nearly three years later in the almost inaccessible mountain fastnesses of Shan State, Burma, as Cox brought off a journalistic coup even hard-bitten foreign correspondents might envy: a rare personal audience with General Khun Sa, the man U.S. law enforcement dubbed "The Prince of Death," the man thought to control a third of the world's supply of heroin. Accompanied by an obsessed Vietnam vet who had given up everything in his single-minded search for American POWs left behind in Southeast Asia and an eccentric expat with close personal ties to the general, Cox was going to cross forbidden borders to enter a region long off-limits to Westerners. And armed with little more than a backpack stuffed with vodka, porno tapes, and cigarettes, he was going to succeed. His journey would take him deep into the Golden Triangle, a shadowy zone of banditry, drug smuggling, and the ghost armies of past wars. He would begin in the red-light district of Bangkok, with its sex bars and soaring HIV rates, then head up into northern borderlands newly discovers by package-tour groups, and finally cross a jungled no-man's-land into the world of the Shan, where tough tribesmen trade opium and precious gemstones for the arms they need to fight the Burmese.

From the early days, musical instruments in China were made from everyday items: hunting tools, trees, bamboo and even bones. During the Zhou dynasty, there were about 70 instruments. Today, there are hundreds. But have you ever wondered how these musical instruments in China came about? Well, in this book, the evolution of Chinese music over the centuries is examined, from prehistoric times, through the Qin, Han, Sui and Tang dynasties, all the way to our modern times. In addition, the origins and characteristics of specific musical instruments are explored, giving insight in one's understanding of these instruments. Legendary accounts related to historical personalities are also featured, including: * How two phoenixes helped Fuxi, the earliest ancestor of the Chinese, add music to the lives of the people. * How the musical talents of some individuals were so high they could sense evil elements in a piece of music. * How Wangzi Qiao became an immortal from playing the sheng. Indeed, this book holds a treasury of fascinating information and stories pertaining to Chinese musical instruments. This is definitely something any music lover should have in his collection.

Chinese President Xi Jinping launched the Silk Road Economic Belt component of the One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative at Kazakhstan in 2013. OBOR is a development strategy and framework that focuses on connectivity and cooperation among countries primarily in Eurasia. It consists of two main components, the land-based "Silk Road Economic Belt" (SREB) and ocean-going "Maritime Silk Road" (MSR). This book studies the equilibrium or balance between overland and maritime trade routes of OBOR. This book has two major sections. The interpretive section examines contemporary media narratives related to the OBOR initiative and how contemporary commentators appropriate narratives about historical events related to the maritime Silk Road to interpret current policy agendas and legitimize diplomatic or economic exchanges. In terms of institutional studies, the chapters related to Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will look at the issues facing the Bank in its quest in forming a new world platform for multilateral development financing. The other section, the empirical case study of the publication highlights the fact that Euro-China High Speed Rail (HSR) and Central Asia-China HSR are not viable at the moment as passenger volume is not sufficient to justify the HSR line. This section examines the overland route of the OBOR and looks at recent Chinese HSR history and conventional sub-high speed rail technology development, and identifies technical & economic criteria determining the appropriate technology for a certain line. The chapter in this section will use the developed criteria to analyze the various rail linkage projects currently under study in the OBOR framework, highlight the economic, bureaucratic and geo-political challenges that these projects likely face and lay down conditions that will determine the outcome of these projects.

Through the ages, the dragon has been an important symbol for the Chinese. A time of Golden Dragons is the most auspicious possible. In fascinating text and beautiful paintings, Song Nan and Hao Yu Zhang trace the dragon’s history. Perhaps inspired by giant crocodiles, the image of the dragon affects every aspect of life in China, including the marking of dragon years, the flying of dragon kites, and the eating of dragon cakes at dragon boat races. A splendid introduction to the richness of Chinese culture, this is a book to cherish this special year and for years to come.