Rolling Tigers

Jing Shun Lu. For years I travelled this stupefying road to work and back. To the airport and home again. To share experiences with friends in other districts of Beijing. Intriguing, if not at times terrifying, this road offered a rudimentary insight into the daily drudgery of commuters.

The road was dangerous. Crammed with anything resembling a vehicle. Millions of feet too walked the potholed road. Somehow it all worked. There was no place for anger. Patience and unspoken rules of the road were displayed and respected. 

With love and respect I refer to the people along Jing Shun Lu as the tigers. With fierce tenacity, they faced challenges such as extreme weather conditions, endless hardships and over-crowding. They stopped at nothing in their quest to conquer each day.

Engines drone

The road plays host to furious chaos

Exhaust fumes billow

Weaving slowly through congested traffic

The Tigers loom

Jing Shun Lu madness

Electric wires hang in hazardous clumps 

Cyclists and motorists dodging

Street sweepers take control

Determining destiny

Moving sluggishly along shades of grey 

Humanity and machinery united 

A relentless desire to move forward

To conquer the day

To build the future

Skyscrapers embrace the dawn

Imposing in their power

Stark and silver

They command respect

Soaring above all

Warmth of breakfast fills the air

Permeating all and everything

Pickled delights

Sharp and pungent

Set the day on fire

Dappled sunlight filters through

Its strength depleted

Nature creates a silent escape

Through poplar trees

Unseen

The world in motion

Moving in opposite directions

Repeating tonight 

Tomorrow

Next week

A story of survival

Creating opportunities

Wealth, power and employment

Pollution and noise too

A high price to pay

Jing Shun Lu madness

Gives rise to the unexpected 

Plans made and changed

Destroyed too

Stealing time for absorbing dappled sunlight through poplar trees

The Tigers are rolling