Helen Mirren: China: daily life

Each day, wire service photographers from around the world file photos to their member papers that fall under the category of "daily life." On February 8, 2011, I posted a Big Picture that featured some photography from Pakistan under that heading. The images document what we call in newspaper terminology, "slice of life" photography. They are ordinary, random moments captured around a city or in the countryside and they give us just a glimpse of something in that particular place that we might not ordinarily be able to experience. The images in this post are by photographers from the Associated Press based in China. Again, they contain very little caption information and are intended to provide a small window into another culture perhaps far from our own yet reflecting elements of universality. (Note: These images were collected over the first three months of 2011.) -- Paula Nelson. (34 photos total)

A visitor peeks inside a scenery board used to fence off a construction site at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China. (April 1, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press)

Chinese people perform dancing exercise at a park near the Tiananmen Gate in Beijing, China. (March 22, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

Chinese people perform dancing exercise at a park near the Tiananmen Gate in Beijing, China. (March 22, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A child steps out of an entrance used to prevent cold air from getting into a market in Beijing, China. (March 21, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A woman walks past a partially demolished building, among the rubble in an open area for new development projects in Beijing, China. (March 21, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A man hangs birdcages on branches at a park in Beijing. (March 6, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A woman walks on a pedestrian bridge where various advertising contact numbers are scribbled in Beijing, China. (March 21, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A Chinese man eats a snack outside a food shop in Beijing, China. (March 22, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

Visitors to a calligraphy stone park enjoy the good weather on the eve of Qingming, or Tomb Sweeping Day, in Beijing. (April 4, 2011) (Ng Han Guan/Associated Press) #

Chinese collect broken pieces of furniture dumped on a site near residential housing in Beijing, China. (March 24, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A Chinese man rests on a bench among tree shadows cast on the pavement near the Tiananmen Gate in Beijing, China. (March 22, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A scavenger selects metal material from a garbage dump in Shanghai, China. (March 7, 2011) (Eugene Hoshiko/Associated Press) #

A pet shop worker washes an ermine at a pet shop in Beijing. Exotic pets are growing more common as residents' income levels rise in the Chinese capital. (January 30, 2011) (Ng Han Guan/Associated Press) #

A visitor looks at textile displayed at Shanghai International Clothing and Textile Exposition in Shanghai, China. (March 9, 2011) (Eugene Hoshiko/Associated Press) #

A young visitor poses in front of a five-dress installment that is made of one piece of textile displayed at a fashion college's booth at Shanghai International Clothing and Textile Exposition in Shanghai. (March 9, 2011) (Eugene Hoshiko/Associated Press) #

Women entertain elderly people at a nursing home in Beijing. (March 29, 2011) (Ng Han Guan/Associated Press) #

A worker holds a board to fence up a construction site in Beijing. (March, 27, 2011) (Ng Han Guan/Associated Press) #

A vendor sits at his stall selling garlic and cooking ingredients in Hutong alleys in Beijing. (March 8, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A customer selects vegetables from a street vender in an alleyway in Shanghai. (March 7, 2011) (Eugene Hoshiko/Associated Press) #

Workers from a nightclub wait for customers along a bar district in Nanjing, in eastern China's Jiangsu province. (March 31, 2011) (Ng Han Guan/Associated Press) #

A man takes a break outside a restaurant in Nanjing, in eastern China's Jiangsu province. (March 31, 2011) (Ng Han Guan/Associated Press) #

A couple rides a bicycle past a demolished housing area in Shanghai. (January 18, 2011) (Eugene Hoshiko/Associated Press) #

Newlyweds toast with champagne while posing for a photo behind a shopping mall in Beijing. (March 6, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A child in traditional costume walks with his parents as they visit the Tiananmen Square in Beijing. (March 2, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

Two girls rent a bicycle for a lake-round visit at famous tourist scene, Shichahai, in Beijing. (March 8, 2011) (Wang Xibao/Xinhua, via Associated Press) #

A security guard stands near a balloon mascot at Qianmen Street in Beijing. (March 2, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A construction worker pushes a plank which boards up to enclose the building site in Shanghai. (January 6, 2011) (Eugene Hoshiko/Associated Press) #

A Chinese man removes ropes used to protect a plant from the winter cold in Beijing. (March 1, 2011) (Ng Han Guan/Associated Press) #

A Chinese tourist wears a costume of an emperor during a photo session near the Qianmen Street in Beijing. (March 2, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

A security guard checks his mobile phone near a billboard showing a development plan of Qianmen Street in Beijing. (March 2, 2011) (Andy Wong/Associated Press) #

Chinese elderly exercise at a public park in Beijing. (March 1, 2011) (Vincent Thian/Associated Press) #

A worker wears a rabbit costume as part of an advertisement at the Bund, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Shanghai. According to the Chinese Zodiac, 2011 is the Year of the Rabbit. (February 11, 2011) (Eugene Hoshiko/Associated Press) #

A man and woman kiss at the river front promenade called "the Bund," one of the most popular tourist spots in Shanghai. (Eugene Hoshiko/Associated Press) #