Nixon and Mao (24 page)

A sketch of the famous West Lake in Hangzhou, showing possible photo opportunities for when the Nixons toured it. The White House advance team made meticulously detailed preparations for every aspect of the trip.

Soldiers from the People’s Liberation Army forming a well-disciplined crowd at a sports and gymnastics exhibition staged for the Americans on February 23.

As Chou En-lai waits to greet him, Nixon descends the steps from Air Force One. He is the first American president ever to visit China.

The crucial first handshake between Nixon and Chou.

As Nixon and Chou review Chinese troops at the Beijing airport, Pat Nixon follows behind.

China was dotted with pictures of Mao. This giant one on the wall of the Forbidden City gazed, as it still does, over Tiananmen Square in the heart of Beijing.

Nixon’s first and, on this trip, only meeting with Mao. From left to right, Chou En-lai; Tang Wensheng (Nancy), Mao’s interpreter; Mao; Nixon; and Kissinger. Winston Lord has been cropped out of the right-hand side of the picture.

Another handshake between Nixon and Mao, for the cameras. Both the Americans and the Chinese were anxious to overcome the memory of the infamous snub when John Foster Dulles refused to shake Chou En-lai’s hand in Geneva in 1954.

Chou hosts a welcoming banquet in the Great Hall of the People the day of Nixon’s arrival in Beijing.

American and Chinese flags fly side by side in the Great Hall of the People as Nixon and Chou address the guests at the welcoming banquet.

Nixon and Chou toasting each other with mao-tai, the formidable Chinese alcohol.

Chou, the urbane host, with the Nixons.