Modern China, with its amazing economic successes, unprecedented well-being of the population, and the flourishing of science and education, stands on top of the achievements of past centuries. Traveling along traditional tourist routes and visiting remote corners of the Celestial Empire, the author tries to explain this connection of times, to connect geography with history. He shares his observations and thoughts about the causes of the processes taking place in China, which are increasingly affecting the peoples of neighboring countries and all of humanity. The essays included in the book are based on trips over the past ten years and the study of China for almost fifty years. Author's photographs will help the reader imagine the places described. Together with the text of the book, they are designed to evoke a desire to learn as much as possible about our great neighbor, to look at China with my own eyes.