Nanjing 
Even in the winter's time, the streets in Nanjing still look pretty. Aged Wutong trees, or the Chinese parasol trees, stand neatly along the roads, like well-disciplined soldiers dutifully guarding the city. However, walking on the modern street of Nanjing amidst the traffic, it's hard to imagine the city's former glory.
I went to the Nanjing Bowuyuan, or Nanjing Museum, to find one thing that most colorfully represents the past: the wonderful Yun brocade. Yun means cloud and the Yunjin literally means a brocade as beautiful as the cloud. At the museum, Mr. Jin Wen kindly serves as my tour guide to give me a rudimentary explanation about the complex ancient skills.
Ordinary people wouldn't have the luxury of even looking at them. Because it's the royal supply, there are particular rules regarding the design and the color of each piece of brocade, which was were entitled for specific usages.
The weaving procedure is complicated even to look at. Want to know how complicated it is?
One day's non-stop work can only produce only five centimeters of brocade.
Not only do people care about the colors and the shine of the fabric, but even the sound the skirts make counts.
Host: "Imagine how I sound if I worn a dress like this and walked by?"
Together with reviving the old skills, Jin Wen also renovates the old patterns of Yun brocades to suit modern tastes. His studio even produces brocades with styles and designs that cater to the westerners' eyes.
Nanjing has served as the capital for 10 different governments and administrations, including six ancient dynasties. The last one is the Guomingtang government and many of the buildings from that period still stand along the Yangtze road, which was named after the famous Yangtze River, marking a special time span in China's history.
You could still find many buildings from that period, a time when the western influences, including the notion of democracy and science gradually swept into the Middle Kingdom. The changes of the mindset were reflected in the changes of architectural style. It was a most turbulent period of time in China when the country was torn with civil war and countless revolutions.
The Changjiang road bore witness to one of the most important moments in China's modern history: when the PLA took over the Presidential Palace, marking the defeat of the Guomintung government, headed by Jiang Kaishek, who had won the title through a series of political tactics, and had by then lost the trust of the Chinese general public.
However, the Presidential Palace also commemorates a well-respected President, the first president in China's history.
On January 1 1912, 10 o'clock in the evening, it was at this particular point that doctor Sun Yat-san was sworn into office. After a short and simple speech, he became the first president of China, marking a new period in China's history.
Although Dr. Sun remained in office only for a very short time, 91 days, his presidency marked the end of the thousand yearlong feudal system in China.
Before it served as president palace, the garden was the home of some Qing Dynasty officials. It's hard to believe the important history of modern China took place in such a delicate garden. And this building is where Dr. Sun Yatsan lived during the 91 days he served as president of China.
Dr. Sun Yat-san was so well respected that after his swear in many Chinese, home and abroad were overjoyed by the news. Some Chinese living abroad sent him some gifts to congratulate him. These two are for one to keep gold fish.
As night falls, it's even easier to fall back in time. Today, people mix the past and the present to build this trendy place, an area known as Nanjing 1912. Sitting right next to the Presidential Palace, you can find all kinds of bars, coffee shops, restaurants and clubs. It is the newest hot spot to be seen at night.
