Storms of Change!

Beijing, China

Today I finally understood what my friends were trying to tell me: China is changing fast.
One friend once told me that, after being away for four years, she could hardly find her way in her own home town. It had changed so much. She said entire roads were moved. Now I finally understand.
I tried to find a big market near Wudaokou where I had bought a shirt last year. It was gone. Not the shirt but the market. Gone. Not closed but gone. And not only the market but the whole damn street! Where I remembered shops and eateries and said market there was now a large parking lot framed in some greenery. At first I thought I had took the wrong turn. This couldn't be right. I swear, I just stood there for a few minutes with my mouth open, staring blankly. Buildings get finished, new constructions get started, that's normal. But for an entire street to disappear without a trace within a year, for that I was not prepared. For a major traffic artery, Qianmen Dajie, with its historic shops and restaurants to be simply closed for renovation like some neighbourhood cafe - that just seemed impossible. I liked those places - didn't think there was anything wrong with them. Maybe a bit of cleaning up would have done the trick...
These are not the famous Winds of Change - it's bloody tornados!