Beijing: A City on the Rise

Researching scenes and historical information in Beijing for an upcoming novel

05.09.2009 - 13.09.2009
View North Korea 2009 & China 2009 on AC Frieden's travel map.

BEIJING, China (Sept. 4-8, 12-13) --

more information soon, so here are a few photos for starters...

Above: Seen after midnight from my 48th floor room at the Park Hyatt are two DongFeng 31A intercontinental ballistic missile TELs (ICBM transporter-erector-launchers) seen rehearsing in preparation for the October 1, 2009 military parade. The national day display will be the largest of its kind in China's history and will coincide with the 60th anniversary of the communist revolution. The DF-31A is a road-mobile, three-stage, solid-propellant ICBM capable of reaching most of the planet except South America and parts of the South Pacific and Antarctica. The missile also contains a new generation of penetration aids, including decoys and active electronic countermeasures and contains enhanced plume supression technology.