Red Journey: 384 Days of Reenacting the Long March

Author: (English) Li Aide
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-01-01
Features: Li Aide and Ma Puan took over 20,000 photos during the Long March. The published album "Red Journey—384 Days of Rewalking the Long March" includes 193 of them. Deng Jinhui, who edited the album for the Five Continents Publishing House, said that over 20 of the images depict participants or witnesses of the original Long March. Additionally, there are 70 years of historical changes, folk customs, landscapes, and scenery along the Long March route. "A unique feature of the album is the lack of page numbers; it is primarily organized by the journey of the new Long March, with each page corresponding to the progress of the journey," Deng Jinhui explained. This Chinese edition of the album was printed in 8,000 copies and is being distributed nationwide. Half a month later, at least 3,000 copies of the English edition will also be published and distributed nationwide.
When discussing red tourism, Li Aide said that in some areas of Guizhou Province, they were among the first foreign tourists to arrive. Many places are very beautiful and have a wealth of tourism resources worth developing. Moreover, local people also rely on tourism to boost their economy. They are willing to contribute to promoting red tourism. Currently, he is preparing to embark on another "Long March" along the route taken by the Red Second Army 70 years ago, starting in November this year.
"Why walk the Long March route?" is the question people ask most often, Li Aide said. "It was just something we got inspired to do." Li and Ma Puan met in the UK while studying in university over a decade ago and later moved to China separately. In 2000, while traveling in Guizhou, they heard that the area had been passed through by the Red Army, which sparked the idea of rewalking the Long March. In the book "The Long March of Two People," published in January of this year, they wrote, "We realized that if the old Long March routes still existed, the roads and the events that took place along them could offer people many insights—helping them understand China's past and its present." Ma Puan wrote, "I want to rewalk the Long March, not to personally relive everything that happened back then."
Li and Ma Puan were among the few groups to undertake the arduous journey of rewalking the Long March, and they were the first foreigners to complete the entire route. As foreigners with different identities and backgrounds, they faced even greater challenges to accomplish this journey. They spent 384 days walking 6,294 kilometers to trace the footsteps of the Red Army. The book consists of 16 chapters, detailing the authors' observations and experiences along the "new Long March," recording the stories of Red Army veterans, and sharing their reflections. The authors not only explore the historical remnants of the Long March but also allow readers to understand the lives and cultures of people in remote areas of China. The book is also interspersed with beautiful images. The book's English and simplified Chinese editions have already garnered widespread attention both domestically and internationally.