1. CHINA TRAVELBLOG: HONG KONG - SHANGHAI EXPRESSED Click to advance slides. Shot on cellphone, so use your imagination to fill in the pixels.

2. MARTYRS FOR PART ONE 3. A one-hour train away from my base in Hong Kong, Guangzhou is the former Canton - the hometown of the Cantonese language, although Mandarin is now the official tongue. 4. Guangzhou is the crown jewel in the Pearl River Delta MegaCity. How many people live in the area? 10 million? 25 million? 40 million? The answer is: 40 million. 5. The inhabitants look cheerful, prosperous and busy. Theres a lot of SHOPPING to do. From the vast malls and giant designer logos, you could be pretty much anywhere. 6. After a night in one of the few hotels allowing non-Chinese, I go for a jog through Martyrs Park. But fortunately, not all is lost in consumer homogeneity. 7. The park is adorned with statues and monuments to the 5700 who died in the Guangzhou Uprising of 1927, two decades before the eventual Communist triumph. 8. I was not familiar with Comrade Lavatory, but Im sure he performed a valiant service.. Meanwhile, this Sino-North Korean friendship is now being questioned up in Beijing. 9. The park is austere but peaceful. Lovers stroll hand in hand, men contemplate in solitude. 10. Elderly patriots perform karaoke versions of revolutionary songs. 11. Nearby, the Peoples Revolution is being celebrated with considerable poise and skill. And what symbol of proletarian brotherhood is that at the center of the racket? 12. Ah yes, the glorious Pepsi logo.