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Post by helen on Jul 13, 2010 5:35:29 GMT -5
Great photos and great commentary. aiting for my planned trip to China in April, with my 2 younger children and husband. I want to go again.
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 14, 2010 2:25:12 GMT -5
The end product after ten hours or so of boiling. The jung are now ready to be divided up. It is customary to give a few away to the in-laws or the elderly. It is hard to find young people who cared enough to keep this tradition going. Most young girls don't want to learn. In the old days, the girls would pick up the skill from their mother or grandmother. It was a part of girlhood or rite of passage into womanhood. It has to be said the girls are all in school, unlike their mother or grandmother's generation. I fear for the long term survival of the art of preparing festive food. One day, perhaps the only place to taste them is at a restaurant or bought from shops in commercially prepared quality and quantity. The demise of comfort food, how sad ! This is another shot of the village hall. It is clear for all to see the hall is in danger of collapsing. It is like a tip for builder's rubble, a home for vermin. My village is well known for its large number of communal halls. Each hall has its history and individuality in design. Many of them were demolished, those left standing are badly in need of repairs. Long years of neglect and misuse such as makeshift factory, workshop, warehouse, menagerie or restaurant have resulted in restoration works expensive if not impossible because the structural integrity is damaged. The slogan of "in with the new, out with the old" espoused by the great helmsman and followed to the letter by his followers had done its damage in all our cultural relics.
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Post by Ah Gin on Jul 14, 2010 17:54:40 GMT -5
Douglas,
Thanks again for fine pictures and postings.
Re: Festival Food. I agree -- I also have my concerns with "the Young Ones" that they will have the patience to learn about their food heritage. That said, overseas Chinese seems to want to perpetuate the fine art of Jung wrapping. On the Internet there are quite a number of individuals who took the trouble of demonstrating the art of wrapping Jung. And of course there are variation between regions -- heck, even between villages. Somewhere on Utube I have seen a mold for making Jung. The utube thing was made by some ABC.
At my recent performance (Dragon Boat Festival and Story telling) to a bunch of under 5, I showed them cooked Jung, and they all seem to know what it was, and what it should contain. Most of the kids spoke Mandarin, only 20% spoke Cantonese. But that's another story.
Regards, Ah Gin.
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 15, 2010 0:57:48 GMT -5
Green, green fields of home: About a fifteen minute walk from my village, it marks the beginning of green fields of vegetable and rice plants. Fish ponds I see are aerated, I guess, for oxygen enrichment. The fields are leased to migrant farmers for an annual rent. Many of them live by the side of the field in hovels. Very few villagers carry on traditional farming. It is hard work for uncertain returns. My walking tour guide Ma Gor greeted two or three of those fast disappearing breed, man of the land. Ma Gor is better qualified than most people to brief me on things growing in the fields. It is hard to find anything he didn't know. If there was one, it had to be a new specimen introduced from Mars. Here is a stark contrast: on the opposite side of the lush green fields separated by a paved narrow road, there is a polluted stream. You can see the outlets for discharging filthy affluent into the water, though at the time they are not operating. Little comfort to me.
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 16, 2010 1:25:45 GMT -5
These are scenes of freshwater ponds and river/ lake. People can be seen ( not shown) fishing or foraging for a periwinkle-like shellfish. I am not sure if it is public domain or not, and don't know what the fishers are hoping to catch. It is peaceful and scenic nonetheless. It would be nice to retire to a place by the water just like the ones on the background. My clan brother Ma Gor is only too happy to pose for me. Ah Gin, You said you stayed in a multi-story gated development when in Chungshan. This is what I wanted to stay away from. I want to spend part of retirement in China to re-live the village life that I remember . In a gated high-rise, there is no such thing as neighbourliness. You are cocooned in a sterile world. You don't get the true sights and sounds of China. I like to hear the man pedal-powering his tricycle, striking a piece of metal to hearld his arrival. He is there to buy your recyclable plastic,and glass bottles, old newspaper and cardboard boxes. I like the sound of the man who comes around to take away your empty LPG cylinder for a full one on the return trip. I want to see the man who comes around to repair of all things, broken umbrella. The cry of a woman calling out " chicken feather, goose feather, duck feather in exchange for matches" stayed with me. So did the man who went around striking two bamboo pieces, to announce his mobile wonton soup kitchen was open for business. Then there was the lean middle aged man who carried a bundle of long, thin bamboo poles which he sold as cloth lines. These colourful scenes and peculiar musical tones of the ordinary man and woman remained vivid with me since childhood. Nowadays, I also see electricians and plumbers on bicycle doing the rounds in older parts of Guangzhou and the villages. I don't want to deny myself the pleasure of seeing life's struggle unfold. It is about people on the fringe who bravely battle on, eking out an honest, independent living. I wish I had captured some of those images. A gated housing development with security patrol is not for me. Douglas I
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Post by helen on Jul 16, 2010 4:31:08 GMT -5
Great descriptions and photos Douglas. Thanks for the mental images that you write about
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 17, 2010 1:42:15 GMT -5
Re-visiting: Day 21 June 16 Dragon Boat Festival This is tyuti1668's village which is next to mine. We are crossing the river on a punt. In the background to the left of the boat ramp is a building popularly called the Rice Mill and next to it used to be storage facilities. I have no idea when it ceased operating. I didn't get to see this part of the village often when I was small. The river water is unsafe for human consumption. I don't think anyone would want to swim in it either. The furniture and garment factories along the banks are making sure it is kept that way. Quite different from the days when this waterway was bustling with boat traffic, bathers frolicking in summer, and a freshwater larder. And it is doubly poignant for today is Dragon Boat Day. Young men should be bathing and immersing themselves in the river, cleansing themselves in Dragon Boat water for good health, rid themselves of bad luck and all that stuff. Now, no one in his right mind would dare to dive in. One mouthful you'd need your stomach pumped out. This large barge carrying a load of sand upstream is the only vessel I can see plying the waterway. There are more barges moored some distance away. The sand is probably for building needs. This is the boat ramp on the opposite side. The crossing takes barely a minute or two. There is an engine driver and a fee collector on board. It has a steady stream of customers, @ 1 RMB/person and .5/ motorbike. The alternative by road is very time-consuming. Hi Helen, Hope you and your family are going to have a great holiday in China come April next year.
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Post by helen on Jul 17, 2010 2:46:35 GMT -5
I hope so too - have to work extra hard this year to fund it. 4 our of my 6 children have been. My oldest with her dad, the next 3 went together with a few others their age - and had a great time. The last 2 are coming with Mum and dad - so each will have a different experience.
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Post by Ah Gin on Jul 17, 2010 23:22:48 GMT -5
Douglas,
Again your posting is filled with montage of the picturesque view of what life was (and is) in the villages, and thankfully we still see most of these views even in the city of Hoiping.
I am in agreement with you. If I have a choice, I rather stay in my ancestral village in Hoiping, and take daily life as it unfolds. When in Chungshan, I stay with my BIL and in a gated "community"not by choice, but out of respect for my BIL. I am after all, his guest and that's where his retirement home is. 港口鎮 星晨花园 中山
Interesting is, this place is usually very quiet, as most owners are from HK, and only visit their "holiday flat" during long weekends or school holidays. I think it's not very popular with the young ones, as there is nothing much to do in the "community" -- not much of a community as we would view it. Parts of the development has themes. e.g. one section, each house backs onto a canal (?), complete with a gondola, yes, a real gondola, permanently moored. Another part has what looks like artificial paddy field in front of ones garden. I gather this sort of development is quite common. In Taicheng, there are also a number of developments, aimed at the upward mobile and HK retirees.
Back home in Hoiping at our ancestral village (3 to 4 miles from town), my father's houses are still standing, and cousins and aunt are still living there, and I feel very much at home there. I too have hopes that one day, I will stay much longer than a few days in the village.
Regards, Ah Gin
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 18, 2010 0:17:45 GMT -5
Here I am on the river-crossing punt, well tanned but unshaven. Hmm....it's about time I had another 10 RMB special ( see Day 12 7th June ); a shampoo, scalp massage and shave. All for a fraction what I normally pay for a basic haircut back home in Sydney. This is just heavenly, so much for so little. Going back to China is a big attraction for me, inflation and rising standard of living haven't got to the stage that I have to think twice about spending on a little luxury. Not yet. Of course, I stay away from the five star establishments. People milling about, getting ready to cross to the other side. Notice how well dressed everyone is? I agree with Ah Gin, no one needs be in rags,( except for the professional beggars at the markets.) This was not the case in my earlier visits in the 70s and even the early 80s. Lots of people were in rags, and clothes were a classic patchwork design. As an overseas Chinese I was entitled to bring in goods duty free normally rationed or unavailable. Clothing was one of the welcomed gifts. I also took with me a bolt of fabric, the humble khaki of course. There is only so much I was allowed to take to China, as a token help to some of the less fortunate ones, my minders would cut a length of khaki for hard up visitors for dress-making. On one occasion, a pesky unwelcome visitor hang around my place, he wouldn't leave. He was hell bent on not leaving empty-handed. I was thinking of dispatch him with a little cash, then a minder stepped in, suggesting I should give him a plain T-shirt. This I did, and he left. Now, I enter China with practically no luggage, I travel light, six and a half kilo of check-in baggage only which includes a pair of sandal and a pair of jogger. I look back with some nostalgia the fleet of bicycle couriers who followed me carting bags and bags of my presents. I was a returning gold mountain guest, I was mobbed by the kids and neighbours. Didn't I do the same thing when I was a small boy? There is something enigmatic, something special, an aura of sorts being a gold mountain guest. I have been there. Even now, older people occasionally still refer me as a GMG. It may have been jovial or tongue-in-cheek. It harks back to the fact the I left home young and long ago, and returning with grey hair, and wrinkles. It doesn't infer I am well-heeled. The people tend not to call those who go abroad on family reunion or business migrants or mature age home leavers GMG. I guess I am amongst a select few who are still so called . Ah Gin, I do know your BIL's place. It is a stopping point for the Kowloon/ Shekki buses. It was a big hit when new. Now, some owners have trouble off-loading their units. I have not been inside the complex.
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Post by Ah Gin on Jul 18, 2010 4:37:48 GMT -5
Douglas,
About my BIL's place. You may or may not be aware of a story on the HK news couple of years ago. The place is big (just like other such developments to attract HK retirees). Seems like there was a bunch of middle-aged ladies who would meet to play MJ. Husbands are usually back in HK or elsewhere making money. One day, the MJ ladies wondered where was their regular partner who was very late for MJ. Rang security, went into her flat, found her body. Police involved, the the HK new involved, as there was the usual sex and crime overtone. In fact everthing was captured on CCTV. The lady in question was entertaining one of the guards (for many months it seems). Guard been asking for more money (?) etc. resulted in murder. The guard was an out of state migrant worker, young and handsome. So what happened after this, I know not, but it makes interesting reading and for a while, gave some excitment to the gated community.
I know. Strange. And progress?
Regards, Ah Gin
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 19, 2010 1:37:15 GMT -5
Just a short ride away on the motorblke, we find this restaurant sitting on stilts above a fish pond and nestled amongst lychee trees. It is a lovely setting. I can see a few eateries taking advantage of the space above water to offer diners a view to a working fish pond. Very refreshing. I have yet to dine in one. Ah Gin, I do remember that case from the Chinese press. It was very sensational at the time.
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 20, 2010 1:40:14 GMT -5
One of the purposes of the trip is to re-discover my own county Chungshan in general and Longdu in particular. Though I call myself a Chungshan native and speak the Longdu dialect, I really know very little of the villages in relation to each other. I want to join the dots. The poem sent by tyuti1668 listed 76 villages in Longdu alone. I know just a few adjacent and a few larger ones. It is a learning experience. On this Dragon Boat Day outing on a motorbike, I find out a little more than I had bargained for. Just minutes off the boat ramp across the river, we come upon a truly " sleepy" little village Fuchong 福涌 . Fuchong is small in size but big on features. Here, I find many fine examples of diaolou fortified building as shown above. It must have been a very prosperous village, and it is something totally unexpected. You will notice, each building is four-storey high, as defined by my tour guide in Hoiping to qualify as a diaolou. There are slits in the wall for gun placement, and all window panes are made of iron. Two or three of them are located amongst traditional dwellings. Just as in Hoiping, all of them are in neglect and unoccupied, though, there are signs proclaiming their heritage significance. Not one of them is open for inspection, not here, not in Hoiping. Also at this same village, Longdu dialect is not spoken. I wish someone could point to me where that invisible divide is. It is nothing short of amazing. The next village is Dutou 渡头 of the Louie fame. There are many, many Chinese of note in Nth. America and Australia from this village. I know many Louies myself, I long to visit the village to feel that ambient feng shui and good vibe. We do a round on the motorbike but not stopping to take snaps. It is a very orderly place.
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Post by tyuti1668 on Jul 20, 2010 2:28:12 GMT -5
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 21, 2010 0:24:48 GMT -5
Continuing my motorcycle diary: We are on our way back to the boat ramp and stopping at the village of Beitai 北台, which is new to me. We are arriving just in time to see preparation for a lion dance performance in front of a temple. I am not sure if it is part of a Dragon Boat Festival celebrations. There are firecrackers of course. No occasion is complete without the noisy din of this uniquely Chinese way of celebration. Long may this tradition last. A Deity in a sedan chair is then carried into the village followed by the lions, for the villagers' adoration, and perhaps, giving blessings to all. When China relaxed its stranglehold on all kinds of worship and faith except that of the great helmsman, it did not take any encouragement for old beliefs and faith to resurface. Just don't go over the top and have a titular head such as a pope, a dalai lama or too big, too organised like Falun Gong. It is a big improvement on the days when worship was done in secret and lighting mosquito coils in the place of proper incense sticks as I witnessed in my earlier visits.
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