i am all excited despite being stressed out... my friend J is wearing her white gown next friday... and i've been invited! weddings are much smaller events in the 'western' world and it is therefore quite an honour to be part of the guest list! what's really nice about european/western weddings is the social part of it... the dancing and music that is much neglected in asian weddings, which on the other hand, have amazing culinary treats to delight! in any case, it's a great excuse for me to get as much writing as i could done and have a wee break at the celebration party! i've got a dress i could wear, shoes, and a date (wow!)... but i have no idea what i should do with my silly messy hair!
while google-ling for ideas... this brilliant NYT article popped up... it wasn't really what i was looking for... BUT... who doesn't enjoy a good laugh?! =)
"Literary and Historical Notes:
Today is May Day, a day on which you should wash your face with morning dew to keep yourself looking young and beautiful. You should also gather wildflowers and green branches, make some floral garlands, and set up a Maypole to dance around."
who's up for a wheelin' around with me?
5 years ago, i was just settling into the historical city of Tübingen... in fact, i remember spending the first months sleeping on my camping air-mat laid over a few duvets in what would become my room for the next 2 yrs of my stint in germany... i had an eucalyptus tree and a garden bench for company... and the slanted roof for cosiness... and living out of my big yellow north-face duffle-bag. classes have already begun at the graduate school... and i got home that afternoon, quite despondent over all the many facts i wish i knew and the work i had to do and the frustration of being in a foreign country and not really able to utter more than "Nah? Wie war dein Tag?!" to my land-lady-flatmate... or to anyone else i knew.
i popped into the living room to find ute sitting in front of her beloved telly... and said hello... she sat me down to watch the horrifying news in german... news of the madness that blew over new york just hours before i got home... i was kinda confused and not quite sure what's being blabbered on the news and it took me like 10 minutes to figure out that my brother could be in danger (or ?!)... and so i tried to call him in NY but i couldn't get though... & panicked... then i decided that maybe my family at home would know of something... so i called them... and boy was i relieved to hear he's fine... but trapped in his office building... until further notice.
i never really figured out what actually happened... because it's not always easy to ask people about it. but i got to speak to my brother a week later and he told me that it was surreal; seeing the 2nd plane crash into the 2nd tower... people throwing themselves out, ... everything collapsing.
so much has happened since... and yet somehow... ground-zero remains a stark reminder of the many gaping holes in hearts that remain too much to bear... not just in america, but in iraq, in sudan (because of the war in iraq; many UN military were unavailable to be sent to help stop the humanitarian crisis there), in spain, in london, in israel, in lebanon, in so many other places...
with all the build-up to the memorial day... i got to watch a documentary film about New York last week while randomly switching channels... and learnt about the controversies about the twin-towers and the architectural designing and building of the world's tallest buildings... some ironies as to their economic purpose and the revival of the lower Manhattan, some amazing engineering triumphs, the spell-binding high-wire walker performance by the french, Philippe Petit, and the gradual attraction of the towers to tourists, business, and their eventual destruction and the carnage...
the recount of the event 5 yrs ago in pictures spoke more than what words could appropriately describe... it is very sad in a multi-faceted way... but i think some positive things have emerged too, albeit being overshadowed by the apparent senseless war(s)...
somewhere amidst the ugly madness... is the amazing human capacity to will ourselves to cope with adversity... the celebration of the simple yet profound things in life; like being able to call my brother in NY even though he doesn't always return my calls... and perhaps a reminder that how we journey through our transient (and interconnected) existence is what we make out of it... carpe diem.
they are dying out! those lovely red double-decks are part of my memories of visiting London for the very first time some, oh gosh, 13 years back!... those lovely red double-decks, the icon of london... they will no longer run... sob.
little kids at the hospital day-care were just visiting for trick-or-treats and i suppose, i should join in the 'festivities' with my happy-pumkin, carved a year ago during my visit to ruth's cute little home at portobello beach... and enjoying some sparklers by the sea...
maybe i should try to make a pumpkin pie...
you'd probably recognise the face of the Afghan girl with piercing green eyes that once covered an issue of the National Georgraphic magazine, even if you didn't realise that the photographer who captured the face is Steve McCurry, one of the world's best photographers who tries to bring the connectedness of humans through his pictures. as least, that was the case for me... i'd seen the face on his collection of portraits published by Phaidon but i couldn't remember who the photographer was until i was reminded of his name at the "Face of Asia: Steve McCurry photographs" exhibited at Edinburgh's City Art Gallery.
it is a wonderful collection of portraits and scenes... and often the intensity of the facial expressions could really tell you so much of the person's life. what skill, sensitivity and patience it must require to attain the quality of expressivity in his subjects, whether descriptively or metaphorically... what i find so amazing about photographs is how much they tell you about the subject and the photographer and in some other ways, the audience. this inter-connected-ness renders a beautiful role for well-captured photographs.
as i wandered about the gallery filled with his signature pieces, i found myself wondering perhaps what makes Steve McCurry's photographs powerful is because they capture more than the person or the places in which they live or flee... they capture the ironies of life too and the formidable human strength to overcome some of life's harshest conditions... they are themselves, life stories. it is life stories that touch... and this is how his photographs have connected people and how people reached out to those they do not know, to help.
i found myself taken to a photograph of an indian man wading through the flood left by a monsoon, water to his chin, him carrying his livelihood, an old sewing machine slightly submerged, to higher grounds... on his face, a resilient but distant smile. when i finished reading the caption that accompanied it, i turned my head not knowing that another lady was also there... and we both just happened to look at each other at the same time.
"It's so amazing!" she exclaimed with a beautiful smile.
"i am so happy he got a new sewing machine!" i told her...
"Me too!"
that made my day. the happiness is quite indescribable...
Steve McCurry's work can also be viewed at the pdn gallery and is definitely worth catching if it comes to a place near you.
chatted to mummy this morning... which is pretty much evening on her side of the world... she wanted to know how i was getting on... and although i wasn't so keen on telling her that there's just so much that needs to be taken care of and how 麻烦 (troublesome and vexing) it all is... i did anyways...
in an attempt to make me feel better, she quoted from Mencius (孟子)...
"[Before Heaven places a great responsibility on a person, it will always test the person's resolution, wear out his/her sinews and bones with toil, as well as to subject him/her to experiences of starvation and extreme poverty. It will frustrate his/her efforts in order to stimulate his/her mind, toughen his/her nature and indemnify againsts his/her deficiencies. Most people are only able to mend their ways after they have made mistakes.] Only when they are frustrated in mind and in their deliberations will they stand up anew. Only when their intentions become visible on their countenances and audible in their voices may they be understood by others... [A country without good citizens on the one hand, and without the experience of external threats on the other, will perish. Until then, we do not necessarily appreciate that anxiety and distress promote survival and that ease and comfort lead to one's downfall.] "
(quoted from http://www.confucius.org/old/m0002.htm with some rephrasing)
i seriously doubt i have the calibre to do anything great or survive this great test... but it's really sweet of mummy to think i might...
something which i don't get... america is made up of people originating from different nations... yet such narrow-mindedness prevails... makes me wonder...
i shall be really annoyed if they don't do ceilidhs there... humph!
--Friday 15th April 2005--
it's been quite a while since i posted regularly... i kinda lost that 'randomness' and excitement of posting something potentially trivial and nonsequential... perhaps i ought to limit myself to more substantial and informative posts... hmm.
anyways... here i am in Manhattan... just round the corner from Times Square... New York is a happening place... far too busy for my liking... BUT there are pockets of very charming areas that are able to keep yours truly smiling...
last saturday morning we took the subway express on A-line uptown to the 190th street and entered Fort Tyron Park. then we wandered towards the beautiful medieval building that is formed from various ruins in Spain and the French Pyrenees.
within its limestone structure, Rosslyn Chapel-like features and beautiful courtyards, the various colorful stained glass from different european countries, unicorn tapestries from the 15th century, collections of intricate wood crafts, sculptures, figurines and medicinal herb gardens, which are lush in summer, make the whole place quite a remarkable collection of medieval art that the MET museum is proud to boast.
the Romanesque-Gothic creation overlooks the Hudson and there's a lovely and quaintly decorated restaurant nearby which would add to the day's lovely excursion had we made a reservation earlier... The Cloisters is indeed something one ought not to miss when visiting New York.
sunday was absolutely sunny and warm for 'spring' and i was coaxed to skive the afternoon part of the conference to join the picnic at Central Park...
i am glad i did... for it was lovely to see everyone outdoors and enjoying the sun while being surrounded by the skyscrapers in the distant...
tuesday evening, after a failed attempt in getting student tickets to catch "The Fiddler on the Roof", Lucy, Matt and i headed to the site of the original World Trade Center where we could only just imagine how devastating it must have been... and what the memorial park would look like in time to come.
then we took the subway to the edge of Brooklyn and walked back to Manhattan along the Brooklyn Bridge in the twilight... it was a beautiful evening...
wednesday... after a long lie-in, i summoned enough strength to head out to see the world... hopped onto the subway and headed to Bowling Green where one could catch the free ferry to the Staten Island and catch a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty...
a quick hop-off and on and the ferry went back to where it came and i was back on Manhattan in approximately an hour's time.
thereafter, i made my way to Hudson River Park area... taking the subway line 1/9 till Christopher/St. Sheridan Sq., i got some directions from friendly people in the nearby Starbucks who pointed to Christopher Street and along there i went till i reached the bay/pier
... there, i asked a jogger waiting to cross the streets if she's heard of the nomadic museum... she pointed to where i might find it and darted across the street as the white-man flashed. i had read about this special exhibition in the inflight magazine when i flew with Lufthansa from Edinburgh to New York... terribly convinced that it is something worth finding out... Gregory Colbert's ashes and snow is a wonderful experience that shouldn't be missed... from the grand-scale construction of the portable museum to every little detail of the print-work i found myself amazed.
on my way back later, i popped into a quaint little tea & coffee store and brought back some blueberry and armourous almond teas... hmmm =c)
thursday... the trip to Chelsea Market (between the 9th & 10th Ave. and between the 15th & 16th streets) in the afternoon was a delightful thing to do... in there, you get to watch bakers in Amy's Bread make rolls, baguettes, ciabattas, brioches, quiches, pies and all other sorts of doughy stuff that become lovely edibles when baked. you might also find yourself bewitched by FatWitch's brownies... or enticed by the Chelsea Wine Vault to fill yourself with more spirits... the Manhattan Fruit Exchange has an unbelievable range of fruits, greens, mushrooms, squash and herbs, or The Lobster Place seafood store for some fish, the meat place, or the buonItalia where you can find authentic Italian produce and Illy's coffee... or simply join in the general bustle in the converted warehouse-like building with some of the quirky remains... it is a wonderful one-stop gourmet's paradise... and you could even pick up some gorgeous flowers at the wholesale flower market on your way out...
after all the foodie fun, i took the subway back to mid-town... and guess what i found underground?! ... there's apparently life underground...
it's been almost five years since my first brief stop-over visit... i remember catching Georgio Armani's collection at the Guggenheim as well as taking some lovely black-N-white photos in that wonderful building (i love Frank L. Wright's creations and would love to visit his Falling Water someday...), at the MoMa and around the city with the manual Canon AE1, which i dearly miss whenever i don't have it with me for convenience's sake. it was winter then. now, it's spring-ish...
today, i decided to walk down from the top of Central Park from 110th street on 5th Ave. till Times Square just so i could catch the quirky but fun Guggenheim building again...
i even had a wee courgette quiche and a cuppa earl grey in the museum's cafe... just like how i did five years ago with mummy and papa...
on my way through the Central Park this time, i spotted three maidens dancing
miniature motor sail boats struggling against each other in the water conservatory
and lovely magnolias in bloom...
a little further along... passing the series of fashion big names on 5th Ave... i caught sight of the Traump Tower with the gorgeous contrast of glassy concrete structure and the planted flowering trees in bloom...
i also spotted St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Atlas statue...
and just before returning to Times Square... i paid a visit to the NY public library in which i discovered how grand its interiors are...
but before i realised, i found myself through Bryant Park where come summertime... it will be filled with people enjoying their cuppas under the sun... the little pockets of greenery sure make Manhattan seem rather charming...
as i finished packing the last few items into my haversack, i recalled the view last evening from my brother's apartment which looks out to the Hudson River: the skyline was a beautiful pastel rainbow... pale burgandy, gentle crimson, soft yellows to light greens, turquoise and the blues that reached toward the heavens... soon it will be dark and all the skyscrapers will be highlighted with neon lights... and i'll be catching that from the skies above tonight...
crazy day yesterday... trying to catch various supervisors dotted in different parts of the macro and local world...
experienced what the Swiss-Psychologist Piaget might term as "dis-equilibrium" as i went over the un-finished manuscript to piece a seminar talk together... and somehow regained "equilibrium" via Vygotskyian 'scaffolding' from C, my old supervisor... [excuse the silly lingo -- partly to do with overemphasis from having to mark essays...] more scouting of current research papers and reading required to supplant my discussion... (when will i ever get to read the list of interesting books?! instead of dry, jargon-filled scientific papers?! ... scientists don't write like Luria (Russian neuropsychologist whose writings could be described as 'romantic' science because he gives the subject of his study humanity) anymore... SIGH...)
my plate is piled up... marking/tutorial/programming/experimental-design/2 posters/funding report/funding renewal/oh yes... and seminar this thurs! help.
then i got a note really late today to say that my funding application in aid of attending the conference in NY has been approved... so it seems i could sing "New York... New York..." perhaps... let's just see if i can still get a ticket!
i can't wait for April to arrive... just so i can get a breather... perhaps...
[therefore... in case i am not spewing more nonsense for a while... i'm just trying very hard to be sensible elsewhere... wish me luck!]
crocuses and some snow drops are already nosing their way above the soil... soon the daffodils will probably join in the display... spring is coming coming...
i can't wait for the colours and the sounds to reappear in full but the temporal aspect of their 'debut' is really something quite beautiful and exciting... this Chinese poem describes just how lovely it would be...
春风动春心，流目瞩山林。
山林多奇采，阳鸟吐清音。
--- 乐府民歌(子夜四时歌) ---
i can't quite translate this appropriately... and so this attempt might be quite futile: my joy in appreciating Spring's colours, sets free my gaze and render it to wander towards the forest on the hills... yonder, from the mysteriously spectacular foliage, the calls of migratory birds can be heard...
and to welcome Spring... we mark the start of the Spring Festival (or Lunar New Year) today! 松迎富贵福满门, 鹤舞吉祥春回地! Happy New Year to everyone out there!
went to the Chinese New Year's party organised by the local asian students with XY and her mum who's here to visit and 2 Scottish coursemates of hers... it's been ages since i've been to one of such gatherings... different generations of students have their different styles of organisation, entertainment and choice of restaurants... tonight's dinner menu was nothing for raving about (although i had to my delight 2 tasty giant prawns and lots of Cantonese-style steamed seabass fish!), there was no lion-dance like in those good ole days, nor fun interactive games.... nonetheless, i appreciated the gathering of people with common roots... and the respite from having to cook tonight! heee.
minority ethnic festivities are such non-events here... and that really makes celebrating terribly trying... i miss the colour and noise that often accompany Spring Festival... with fire crackers being banned even in asia these days... it must be quite a different atmosphere too, especially for those older generations who grew up with that New Year's crackling! i miss all things special that are consumed particularly at this time of the year... the preparations... the visiting... the treats...
it's Lunar New Year's eve tommorow... and i'll be missing reunion dinner for the 10th year... the steamboat at home in singapore will be taken out from its box and used for what europeans might call the asian fondu... actually, i think the swiss fondu pot, being a lot bigger, might work well... hmm... after dinner, mum will be choosing pots of plants from her garden that look pretty to take them indoors and perhaps papa might do up some calligraphic couplets for the main doorway...
i've not really got a new set of clothes that i'll wear on New Year's like how i usually do when i was growing up yonder... (i do have a lovely 2-piece corduroy set from Laura Ashley =c), which i got at the post-xmas sale in singapore, but i won't wear it on wed... i hope to take it to the conference in NY! mummy sent a set of summery wear the other day but it's still too cold out there...) but i'll put on an ethnic top instead... make some asian dishes for dinner with A and perhaps ruth might be around too...
ahh... i should pick up some mandarins/tangerines and some flowers for the flat! hmm flowers!!! =C)
darn... i don't have any more of mummy's incredible kuey lapis cake that's synonymous with Chinese New Year...
i did have a huge piece which i carried with me flying back to europe... i made it last over the whole of january being quite a good squirrel i am... but it's all gone! ... those lovely little flat-squarish-stripey pieces are really truly hard to resist... some people call it the asian tiramisu... but i fear that name isn't quite so befitting; it's more than just a 'pick-me-up'!... this cake is really too special... and all the Lunar New Year's visitors are so fortunate to receive some of those stripey pieces as treats! the best way to go about consuming such divine creations is to eat them layer by layer... and know that each layer is made with wholesome goodness... and a lot of love! =C)
today in Auschwitz the world remembers... and painful memories are rekindled...
i've never been to Auschwitz... but visiting the concentration camp in Dachau near Munich was an eye-opener... and reading One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn for Theory of Knowledge class years ago in Wales, gave me some ideas of what the ordeals that those who had to survive each day in such tormented conditions must have been... still, i am only just able to imagine what it must be like... and nothing really comes close enough to the true experience... but this is one experience which no one should have (had) to live through...
i am really enjoying the daily poetry selection of The Writer's Almanac which monoceros introduced us to. it gives snippets of interesting information about whose birthday it is everyday (e.g. today's also the birthday of Virginia Woolf) or what happened during each day in history. it's a great thing to hear a poem a day! and here's today's poem:
Bonie Doon
Ye flowery banks o' bonie Doon,
How can ye blume sae fair?
How can ye chant, ye little birds,
And I sae fu o' care?
Thou'll break my heart, thou bonie bird,
That sings upon the bough;
Thou minds me o' the happy days
When my fause luve was true.
Thou'll break my heart, thou bonie bird,
That sings beside thy mate;
For sae I sat, and sae I sang,
And wist na o' my fate.
Aft hae I roved by bonie Doon
To see the wood-bine twine,
And ilka bird sand o' its luve,
And sae did I o' mine.
Wi' lightsome heart I pu'd a rose
Frae aff its thorny tree;
And my fause luver staw my rose
But left the thorn wi' me.
--- Robert Burns ---
hmm... maybe i should have some Haggis and neeps and tatties tonight... or perhaps i could indulge in poetry reading instead... :C)
Frauke, my ex-neighbour from the flat below where i used to live in T?bingen is here to spend new-year's and we made our way to Blackford hill with some lovely mulled wine to welcome the new year...
little did we know how time-confused we were until we were almost at the foot of the hill... the view of the clock tower of a chapel on the way alerted us to our temporal folly and reminded yours truly that she's still living by continental German time... we were terribly early.... an hour to be precise... so we had to keep warm in the windy dark night and hoped that other people would arrive soon to avoid looking stupid or too eager.
but our patience was rewarded by some beautiful fireworks shooting upwards from the 7 hills surrounding Edinburgh... but it was all too brief!
here are some fragments of flying colours i managed to capture...
you'll just have to trust me that it looked far more spectacular than these wee little fragments!
i'm not sure if many or any of you have eaten Haggis... whatever myths you have acquainted yourselves with, it does taste quite lovely... whether Haggii actually existed still baffles me... i know not if the facts are fiction or truth... but they are often depicted as platypus-like creatures with a duck-like bill.... only that they don't live in Aussie land.
for all those with a whiff of curiosity... here's how you can hunt for the Haggis! and for the those who feel slightly revolted... here's a vegetarian version!
i wish i had a telly. the 2004 Olympics has finally returned back to Athens and i didn't manage to catch the opening ceremony nor am i able to catch the live performance of some of the world's brilliant atheletes in action...
today's the longest day of the year and today many centuries back, medieval and folk practices abound rejoicing the start of summer... today, i finished reading Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code", which mentioned some of the ideas of pagan rituals i have sometimes encountered or heard people talk about, that somehow became closely linked to Christianity. captivated within the 500-600 pages of cleverly crafted Crimi, absorbing interesting details i have never before known or interpretated as they have been meticulously woven (if they are true at all?! some apparently are), and my crazy imagination gone slightly over-loaded... i felt as though i have re-lived some bits of my life;...been into the Louvre (saw some of the world's amazing art pieces... admiring those pyramids), into Westminister Abbey (home to the graves of many dignitaries) and to the surroundings of Roslin... quite spooky. just yesterday, i watched Harry and Hermione (is that how her name is spelt?) re-living their adventures in "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban"... i wonder what i will feel when i eventually enter the Roslin Chapel... i have seen how intricate the exterior stone walls looked 2 saturdays ago... i have seen gargoyles of sorts before (e.g. in oxford, and in Gaudi's barcelona etc.)... i wonder what this special place has in store. many questions pertaining to bits mentioned in the book and related to religion whirr and swim in my head; many of them have always been there. is Dan Brown trying to hint at us not to take everything at face value and read between their lines? i can't wait to re-visit those mentioned places again... no i can't wait. these 3 places are very much linked to my experiences in bizarre ways: i first visited Westminister Abbey when i was about 14, with the school (DSD was also there! we were travel partners!); the Louvre entered my life journey during my inter-rail travels across europe with Sabine after finishing our IB -- i had been really excited about the pyramids; Roslin, of course, has been mentioned to me a few times whilst i have been in Edinburgh, but it is not until my supervisor - a nature lover, Dave, mentioned how beautiful the area is and the hype of Dan's book, did i go searching for it....these 3 little parts of my life seem to share some form of commonality... and i am not sure if i will see many things in the same light as i did. this world seems to be filled with hidded mysteries. .. and humans have a penchant for knowing.... and giving meaning to the inexplicable.
BBC4's Nature programme talked about the "Squirrels Wars" on Monday...and coincidentally, i found this poem by Humbert Wolfe (1885-1940) that is rather sardonic...yet very cleverly expressing the hipocricsy of some (i don't think it refers to all Christians) with a 'living' metaphor
The Grey Squirrel
Like a small grey
coffee-pot,
sits the squirrel.
He is not
all he should be,
kills by dozens
trees, and eats
his red-brown cousins.
The keeper on the
other hand,
who shot him, is
a Christian, and
loves his enemies,
which shows
the squirrel was not
one of those.
BBC4's Saturday Play featured Greyfriar's Bobby, an amazing skye terrier, who is very much part of the history of Edinburgh city.... do listen to it before it goes 'offline' from the website.... it's probably not the real story but it protrays the courage and loyalty of this wee dog that is legendary.
this is a sktech by artist Reginald P Phillimore (1855-1941; taken from www.edinphoto.org.uk) of the granite statue-fountain erected in memory of the amazing terrier. go here to read more about Bobby and his friends.
some of my european friends have been asking about the 12 animals that make up the 12 year cycle. so here we go:
Rat 鼠
Ox 牛
Tiger 虎
Hare 兔
Dragon 龙
Snake 蛇
Horse 马
Sheep 羊
Monkey 猴
Rooster 鸡
Dog 狗
Pig 猪
(to find out a wee bit more about the calendar, click on)
to those who are waking up to the lunar new year: 新年快乐！
i wish i could be celebrating with my family and friends....it seems so long ago when i couldn't really sleep the night before, possibly having gobbled up too much during the reunion steam-boat dinner or staying up with mummy and papa while they skilfully write couplets for the doorway in their beautiful Chinese calligraphy (something which i, shamefully, never quite master). we always have rice noodles for breakfast for New Year's morning, either at home or at the temple after paying our respects to my ancestors, and Buddha (we are a family of Buddhists, although i'd rather like to see it as a philosophy or way of life rather than a religion per se, which i believe was never the intention of Buddha himself). the first day of Chinese New Year is a day of visiting relatives and friends for my family while the second official day is spent welcoming family and friends. i have always looked forward to visiting granny and my late grandpa, grand aunty and grand uncle for they would have prepared a plethora of delectable goodies awaiting our visit.
New Year is good fun for us kids? apart from the food galore (see the pictures Joan took at home and at Chinatown in Singapore, showcasing some traditional festival foods etc.), there are red packets to collect?.in it would be some token of cash from older relatives or family friends (the aunties and uncles) as a form of goodwill and ?Gl?ckwunsch? for the new year. it is like the western celebration of Christmas where family and friends exchange gifts and most children also receive money, however, in Chinese new year, presents in the form of Red Packets are ?exchanged?. there are apparently rules to all this giving and receiving e.g. only married adults give them to children and not vice versa!. another fun part of it is to rehearse some happy positive 4-word greeting phrases (e.g. the last line in this blog entry, in Chinese - sorry!) which one says as s/he gives two mandarins to the family they visit!
i miss not celebrating New Year in its ?authentic? form. for the last eight years since i have been studying and living in Europe, i have either celebrated this day with local Asian folks or in more recent years, celebrated it with my European friends. it's never quite the same, but it?s just as meaningful to share this tradition with others from and in another part of the world. to everyone out there, have a sprightly and splendid year of the monkey!
it's a little late, but nonetheless, Fr?liche Weihnachten (Merry Christmas in German) to all! i celebrated X?mas on 24th Dec with the J?kels in Munich?in German tradition?or should i rather say, in J?kelian tradition?! (i am once again in Germany! visiting friends and having yet another white Christmas; this time it is with Frank and his family rather than with Sabine and hers, but we will be meeting up and perhaps going skiing near her home in Chiemsee!). Christmas in Germany is celebrated on the day that Jesus is born (at least it is what they claim here in Germany)?and in Frank?s family, the Christmas tree is decorated only on Christmas morning ?there are obviously many different family traditions regarding when the tree is dressed up, or how, or where, or with what?.e.g. real vs electrical candles?
interestingly, pressies are opened only after the ?Christkind? (literally translated as Christ child aka Jesus Christ?and is represented symbolically as the ringing of the bell) ?visits? the family?.sometimes he arrives before Christmas dinner and sometimes he appears after dinner?.but in any case, pressies can only be opened after dinner has been eaten, or so it seems!
this year, the Christkind appeared after a traditional dinner that included Wei?wurst (white sausages) from Schlesien, a place which used to belong to Germany but is now a part of Poland, and is also the birthplace of Frank?s Opa (grandpa). ?..and what did the Christ Child bring for me this Christmas? hmmm? lavendel bath gel and body lotion together with a bath towel from Family J?kel; probably because they have found out how deprived of baths (but not showers! i don?t think i stink! hee) i am?!, a book of poems by Erich Fried and a lovely photo to keep from Frank,?some truffles from my landlord?s family, the Orlowskis?which i am looking forward to gobbling up!, a lovely Nepali or is it Bangladeshi mini cushion from Ruth, and some yummy African date balls from Rafe, and lots of warm greetings from friends living afar?
it?s been rather nice to be back in Germany?.i had a quick weekend visit to T?bingen before Christmas?to meet Christoph (my thesis supervisor) and also met up with my old flatmates, Ute and Nicole, attended Ute?s friends Anna and Uwe?s wedding reception, and had breakfast with old schoolmates from the Gradschool before returning to Munich?but i will be back in T?bingen after the new year?to attend a seminar, and complete some additional work with Christoph, and also to pick up my degree certificate...almost forgot about that!
? in any case, i still have no plans for Silvester (New Year?s eve) but i hope i won?t have to end up partying with strangers?and in unfamiliar territories?! ?.until then?happy holidays!!!
6th Dec. is Nikolaus Tag....i remember finding chocolates in my room or in my shoes when i was in Germany on this day.....it is a wee celebration of an old tradition....when Saint Nikolaus was said to have gone round the night before to put food (chocolaty treats these days) in people's shoes to help them through the harsh wintry days..... i did not put my shoes out this year...but i have a fond little memory of the surprise i had finding some treats awaiting me.... and of the fun in hiding chocolates intended for friends too (go here to read up about St. Nikolaus/Sint Nicolaas etc... and where Santa Claus came from )
fire-works galore....this week has been full of cracking noises and loud bangs in the night all culminating tonight as i walked home in fear of being blown up in the dark....it is Burn's night or better known historically as Guy Fawke's.....the guy and his fellow conspirators who tried to set the House of Parliment on fire some 400 years ago....the conspiracy known as the Gunpowder plot (click to get more insight into the whole plot!).
but however it may be celebrated ....and for whatever-reasons today (because the parliment still exists, that the UK is what it is, or that Guy was such a courageous person...if a bit fanatical......, or because it is a great excuse to get lots of fire-works and play....and make lots of noise....) many Brits will recall themselves learning the following rhyme at nursery ....
Ceilidh is a must if you ever visit Scotland. it is in my opinion a lovely social activity (perhaps sparing the fact that you might at times feel the need to switch roles from being a woman to a man since there is always a shortage of men around?.but that in itself is quite fun!) where you are encouraged to be energetic and be less self-conscious about looking silly or thinking that you have 2 left feet!
i love going to Ceilidhs ?.and Ruth, my close friend from undergrad days, got me a ticket for yesterday?s fund-raising Ceilidh, organised by Reforesting Scotland, held at the Rudolph Steiner School (pretty much a rather different schooling philosophy from main-stream education?.very much into all-rounded learning education) which is walking distance from where i live. it was also held during the Celtic celebration of the end of summer known as Samhain (there was a big street fire parade on Friday evening of Halloween but unfortunately i didn?t go this time?.it must have been really amazing?..and somewhat akin to the Belthane festival i went to some years ago in May which celebrated the arrival of summer at the top of Carlton Hill).
there are many many different dances all with different combinations of couples and different patterns as to how each partner/dancer should go about dancing. the thing that doesn?t seem to change is that each couple or dancer almost always gets a chance to do a duet/solo?.so for the attention-seekers?.this one is for you!
the best bit of it is that you get such a huge shot of adrenalin/endomorphines that you feel absolutely happy! ........and of course the sight of the flying kilts is pretty fun too! :c)
at the end of each Ceilidh event is the traditional singing of Auld Lang Syne the poem that the Scottish poet, Robert Burns, wrote. in fact yesterday was the first time i learnt what the lyrics or some of it meant?..and i thought it might be worth sharing what i found out?.. at least for the first verse:
?Should all acquaintance be forgot, And never brought to mind?
Should all acquaintance be forgot, And days of auld lang syne?
For auld lang syne my dear, For auld lang syne,
We?ll take a cup of kindness yet, For auld lang syne.?
translating from old Scot, Auld lang syne literally means 'old long ago'??so the words in the song really question us whether people we have met and gotten to know, and particularly time that has gone by ?. ought to be forgotten?.and that the very roots of friendship are to embrace the past (both good and bad), and build on from the kindness you bestow onto each other?.as symbolized by holding the double handled Scottish mugs between friends. these days we hold hands with the person next to you in the circle while singing the song.
thereafter, the Ceilidh evening usually ends with a last quick Polka music which allows the addicted a last dance with whoever that is just as addicted! i danced my last Polka with a guy named Chris who is a friend of Ruth?..he is one of the most energetic dancers i have ever danced with?..my goodness i could hardly breathe!!!! (he will really need a partner with equal energy and stamina and height!) boy was it an incredibly fun night of Scottish prancing!!!!
seems to be the season for festivities in many cultures....today happens to be the 15th day of the 8th lunar month and is the equivalent of the Indian festival of lights, Devali. i imagine lanterns (paper or plastic) being lit and carried about by children or are hung up in the gardens. i could still recall the excitement of holding a lantern attached to a stick and going about the neighbourhood with the other children...the adults staying indoors (or in the garden), sipping tea and enjoying what is known as moon cakes....lovely gorgeous baked pastry made from lotus seed paste with salted egg yolk(s) within, representing the moon in its full, as it is on this day.
mid Autumn festival is a time for family gatherings as much as for being with friends. the significance of the moon is much appreciated in the Chinese culture and is often referenced in poems. in fact, many important dates occur during days when the moon is at its fullest, e.g. Lunar New Year.
there are many legends that account for the celebration of this day:
one recounts that during the occupation of the Mongols in the 14th Century AD (Yuan dynasty), the Chinese secretly organised a rebellion to regain their land. an attack strategy was outlined and brought into a particular walled city held by the enemy by means of hiding the strategy in little moon cakes, carried in by a Taoist monk (who was actually a senior office member of the preceding Sung dynasty, in disguise) and distributed them to the people within. when mid Autumn arrived, the hidden messages were discovered when people opened and ate their cakes. the advise from the messages enabled the successful coordination of the uprising both from within and outside on the night of the full moon. the cakes thus became a symbol of this historical event.
another, tells of a tyrannical but skilful archer, General Hou, who was rewarded the herb of immortality for shooting down nine of the ten suns that suddenly appeared around the earth and over scorched the people living on it. fearing his tyrannical presence and eventual rule, his beautiful wife, Lady Chang Er, stole this herb and ate it. but as soon as she did, she became lighter and lighter, and floated up to the moon where she eventually stayed. even though he must have been very upset over what had happened, General Hou loved his wife dearly and couldn't bear to shoot down the last sun (or moon). despite the different versions of this and other legends, the lady on the moon is often portrayed on the boxes that hold the special cakes which are eaten during this festival.
mid Autumn as it is celebrated in the Chinese tradition, is a non-event here in Germany. i wonder if kids in Asia still go about waving their lanterns or making them themselves.....i sure hope so...even if it is dangerous playing with fire! incidentally, my little fish lantern that Joan sent me a year ago still hangs on the Eucalyptus tree in my room....it would be nice to light it up with a candle and bring it outside...but it is drizzling...and the moon is not in my view tonight.
Maik invited us (whom he 'stuck the carrot at' to help him move to his new flat up a thousand and one steps) for crepes the other day....lovely perfect little things he made....(but that's not what i want to tell you)....Karin who then just got back from London visiting one of our classmates, Shihpi, couldn't resist telling me how wonderful Dim Sum (点心) is.... that poor girl...i mean the poor nation! they really don't know what they have been missing out!!! (i don't know of any places serving Dim Sum here in Germany, if any one of you out there does....please tell me....i shall be eternally grateful!)
Dim Sum... literally means 'touching the heart' but in reality, it is more of a potpourri of different sorts of delectable snacks, perhaps better described as 'Chinese Tap'as'; ranging from an assortments of steamed varieties e.g. dumplings with all sorts of delicious fillings, rice noodles, buns with lotus seed filling or minced barbecued pork, lotus leaf wrapped glutinous rice; to fried wantons or jiao zhi or fried carrot cakes and custard egg tarts (to name but a few) ... all beautifully arranged either in three or four pieces within little bamboo steamers (or little dishes) which are served from a trolley that's being carted around a Dim Sum place. one could also enjoy congee, or almond pudding and other treats.
historically, the emergence of Dim Sum followed after the tradition of tea drinking at Teahouses, which travellers through the Silk Road depended for 'refuel'. in those days, heeded by the advise of the famous Imperial physician Hua Tuo (3rd C. AD), that combining tea with food would lead to excessive weight-gain, teahouses served only teas! however, as it became better known that drinking tea aids digestion and cleanses the palate, Teahouses began to serve various 'small eats' for hungry travellers. today, Dim Sum is enjoyed as brunch in many parts of the world and i hope this tradition will continue to spread across the european continent!
however, even though i can't get near any Dim Sum Teahouses here, i am satiated by Joan's DimSumDolly, a Dim Sum inspired weblog which like the variety of food assortments of this form of enjoyment, is filled with many different wonderful thoughts, experiences and observations, some of which would make your mouth water...
i haven't told you about the traditional punting race amongst the numerous Fraternities (that still exist in modern day!) here in Tübingen along the river Nekar. this event occurs every summer. lucky me, i managed to witness the race this year in mid-June, after battling the crowd gathered at the Nekarinsel and along the Nekar bridge.
(pics from http://www.tuepps.de/stocherkahn.html)
this little observation sparked what is now a reality....
for those who do not grow up in continental europe....it would be difficult to imagine why asparagus is much loved and is on the top menu for most especially during the months from about April to mid June. Spargel (as it is called in German) is in season only for these months every year and it is apparently quite a big event.....vegetable stalls and supermarkets are stocked full of fresh asparagus especially the white ones that grow in the sand. these big white shoots could cost about 8 euros a kilo, and the more you purchase the cheaper they get.
Nicole my new flatmate is a fan of spargel and i am often amazed by her enthusiasm over the somewhat plain vege. coming from the city of Aachen where she is used to buying spargels grown by local producers....she was rather dismayed that the ones you could get here in T?bingen are imported from Spain. nonetheless she is cooking them again today and making the most of the fading spargel season.
preparing spargel can be a pain. unlike the green asparagus i am used to eating, the white ones are thick and rather tough. one is recommended to eat them when they are fresh, ie. on the day they are bought, otherwise, they have to be left covered in a damp towel over night to keep them moist. first, their skins must be peeled (unless of course you prefer to have them as well), and then the naked spargels are boiled in a huge pot of boiling water. some use the peels to make a broth for a soup to go with the spargel meal, others prefer to compost it as fertilisers. whatever the preference, spargels must be done just right....not over done such that they are soggy, nor too raw. the traditional way of consuming this vege which is slightly bitter in taste, is to eat it with slices of cooked ham which are wrapped around the spargels and topped with sauce hollandaise or melted butter. interestingly, Nicole has some boiled potatoes and a boiled egg to go with it all. i suppose, in that combination, white asparagus doesn't taste too bad.
