南笙姑娘

As an example of the power of the internet, in early January of this year the Chinese Blogosphere (on both sides of the strait) was abuzz with pictures of a girl self styled "南笙姑娘" or "Southern Reedpipe Maiden" who posted pictures of herself on her blog on Tudou with her pictures rapidly going viral and she now even has an entry in the Chinese online encyclopedia on Hudong.com. This has happened a number of times before, as with the story of the stylish homeless man - "Brother Sharp" or a number of instant female celebrities such as 奶茶妹. The main reason for her popularity is her classical Chinese beauty, unlike many of the modern girls. There were many comparisons with the Taiwanese actress Vivian Hsu 徐若瑄. However the information on her blog was very limited, and with the exception of information that she is 21 and from Sichuan there was not much else there, leading to plenty of speculation. [Although just today there was another article stating 人肉搜索 or the internet community had obtained further personal information about her.] I have posted some of her pictures here which I really like which have a retro-Chinese feel and some samples of her own calligraphy.


Unfortunately there was recent news that she did not welcome all the attention and is taking a break from posting. Anyhow I have posted the above for some of my other readers to enjoy. All in all this has been interesting following the story as to the power of the internet and how it can be sometimes a very frightening place with a life of its own.