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Post by ngkokweng on Jun 30, 2013 14:39:39 GMT -5
My cousin showed me the house where my dad and grandpa once stayed. He pointed to me the oldest part of the house which was the roof. See attached photograph. He lamented that various parts of the house had crumbled down over the years and left abandoned. For many years after 1930s, the house was left vacant and remained in ruins. During the mid 1960s, it was used as a secret storage area for my great grandparents’ remains. My uncles actually dug up their remains (in the still of the night to escape the knowledge of the communists) from their graves to salvage them from the effects of Cultural Revolution. Their original burial area and tomb stones were ransacked and destroyed completely. Today, the house stands largely unoccupied with a new roof over the collapsed portion. I am invited to take possession of the house. Read more: siyigenealogy.proboards.com/thread/1856/where-22635-37324-24320-24179?page=10#page=9#ixzz2XjKTUpsTAttachments:
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Post by FayChee on Jun 30, 2013 15:31:48 GMT -5
Hi Ngkokweng, That's sad about what happened with your great -grandparents remains.......I hope someone knows where they were reburied or placed. I was told that my granddad's grave is close to my village with a small marker with his name on it. I plan to buy a nice headstone for him and for my dad's first wife who is close by......I'd like to get the 'Arm Chair' shaped kind like in the photos that Helen posted awhile back.
I'm glad to hear that there is something remaining of your Ancestral home, despite the condition. You will still be able to get a 'feel' of the life that took place there.....the laughter, the tears, the births, the deaths, all remain etched forever in every grain of earth. I would only claim my Ancestral home if it were in danger of being destroyed for some reason.
As for having a tentative date for going to China...........sadly, I have none. Finding a replacement at work is hard for vacations.....I haven't taken more than 5 days off (over long weekends) since I started this job 5 years ago. I am thinking about finding a job that is closer to my home (I currently drive 1hr 20 min each way), and if I do, I will take a month or two off between jobs and go then......but that is alot of if's............I wish I could go in November when Helen, Douglas and Carlos are going...........
Fay Chee.
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Post by FayChee on Jun 30, 2013 21:15:54 GMT -5
Ngkokweng...........Did you take that picture of the Diaolou when you visited Kaiping? It's a good shot. Can you post more pictures of the inside of your house? I think I see a nice design on that wall.....something like a family crest? It has symmetry...........
Fay Chee
Oh yes, I started watching the first episode of Ip Man...........I loved the scenery, but had to close my eyes during the Kung Fu.......I can't watch violence..........nightmares you know. I only got to the part where the Japanese took the Martial Arts Masters and promised them rice to fight them............I think I know what will follow so I turned it off for now. It was around that time that my granddad wrote a long letter to my dad in the US, telling him of the Japanese capturing Kaiping, sickness, and death all around them. I can only imagine what my family must have suffered. I do know that my dad was sending money home during that time, so it must have helped.
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 1, 2013 7:11:13 GMT -5
Let's not get ahead of ourselves, Ip Man was not the hero that he was portrayed in films. He went to Hong Kong because : first to escape the Japanese and then the communists. He taught kung fu as a livelihood, and necessity to survive. Yip Man's ability is not questioned.
His two sons were very ordinary at best, the older son who is getting the kudos is a no hoper as far as kung fu ability is concerned. In fact there was not a great deal of rapport between father and sons. The older son is cashing in on the boom created by the movies. Like father does not beget like sons.
I don't really know the sons of Yip Man. I met the older son once about forty years ago, but I was just an observer. My authorities are people I have known for forty years and once close to the parties. One of my authorities is a younger man than me. He is an exceptional kung fu master, the kind of genius you'd be lucky enough to associate with once in a life time. This good friend now calls Auckland, New Zealand home.
Fay Chee and Helen, we haven't made any travel arrangements yet. Carlos is in frequeht contact with me. At the moment he is waiting for an invitation from China to verify his bona fides. I am keen to get it off the ground soon. Carlos would probably fly to Sydney, spend two or three nights, then we fly off together for Canton by China Souhtern, a night flight on the new A380, arriving Canton the next morning. I'll have him with his China-side of the family later on the same day. Carlos is young and keen to have a more strenuous itinerary. Douglas
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Post by FayChee on Jul 1, 2013 8:14:59 GMT -5
Hi Douglas, I only started watching Ip Man to hear the Cantonese spoken language with English subtitles, as I am trying to learn Cantonese with CD's that I purchased on Amazon.com. Although I know it is supposed to be based on a true story, I am enjoying the scenery more than the storyline. Now knowing that you actually met real people of the story, makes it surreal for me. However, the violence (or Kung Fu) is too much for me and I have to turn down the volume and look through my fingers..........I think I may learn more if I watched a romantic story or a childs program. I learned how to say 'Hello' from the cartoon " Ni hao, kai-lan" that my granddaughter watches.
Fay Chee
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Post by tyuti1668 on Jul 1, 2013 22:56:58 GMT -5
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Post by helen on Jul 2, 2013 0:20:29 GMT -5
Fay Chee and Helen, we haven't made any travel arrangements yet. Carlos is in frequeht contact with me. At the moment he is waiting for an invitation from China to verify his bona fides. I am keen to get it off the ground soon. Carlos would probably fly to Sydney, spend two or three nights, then we fly off together for Canton by China Souhtern, a night flight on the new A380, arriving Canton the next morning. I'll have him with his China-side of the family later on the same day. Carlos is young and keen to be have a more strenuous itinerary. Douglas Hi Douglas - It may be that I won't be coming in November. As far as I know, the visa application still needs someone to invite you. I don't wish to impose on family, as they are of a great age. L C is also reluctant to go back to China, because of this. He feels that if he can't go in as an indpendant person, then so be it. This will be disappointing news - but I kind of agree with him. Next time maybe - if the rules are relaxed. I will be in HK from 23 August to 27th August, then going on to Phuket for a week.
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Post by FayChee on Jul 2, 2013 1:03:44 GMT -5
Hi Tyuti 1668,
I checked the links you posted and they seem very helpful. Thank you, as I would never have found those websites myself. I see that there is a talking electronic English to Chinese dictionary which may prove very useful for me. I had download the Pleco Chinese Dictionary to my Smartphone and it also pronouces words, but it speaks Mandarin rather than Cantonese. Maybe there is a way I can switch it from Mandarin to Cantonese, but I have not looked yet. I used it for the first time today when I went back to the Chinese restaurant for beef and broccolli.........I typed in 'Thank you' and asked the lady to listen....it said 'XieXie' and then I said Xie Xie, and she laughed.......then I said 'Ni Hao' and she understood me. I asked her if what I had said was in Mandarin or Cantonese, and she said Mandarin, and that she only speaks Mandarin.........so I was a little disappointed that I will not be able to practice my Cantonese with her. I'll try another restaurant next time.
Fay Chee
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Post by FayChee on Jul 2, 2013 1:12:26 GMT -5
Hi Helen, So far I don't think I can plan on going to China in November either, but my problem is finding someone to cover my position at work. I cannot take more than 5 days off over a long weekend, and that will not be enough time for me to travel. If luck comes my way and I can get more than a week off, than I will try and make it. I guess I had better check into the Visa dilema to see if it applies to me too. Fay Chee
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Post by douglaslam on Jul 2, 2013 8:04:24 GMT -5
Helen, it is hard to fathom why China is making things difficult for the tourists. I wonder if I'd meet the same problem. In the past, I simply put returning to ancestral home, and Bob's your uncle. I look forward so much to meeting you and LC for some sightseeing, explore Canton, go back to Gwa Leng etc., and sample the best Cantonese cuisine Canton has to offer. We'd all feel comfortable over there. Perhaps I should give NZ a go.
Fay Chee, I don't know how you can learn Cantonese by watching a movie, unless you make frequent stops and rewinds. Good try.
In 1973 I returned to Hong Kong for the first time and ended up staying for about three years. I did a few things whilst over there and got to know a few of the people close to Yip Man.He died the year before my visit. July 1973 also marked the sudden death of Bruce Lee in Hong Kong. It was sensational!
It was in January 1973 that I had my first plane trip, flying to Hong Komg via Manila on a Japan Airlines DC 8. I missed my folks in HK so much, especially my grandmother, that I ended up staying for almost three years. I used to share the same bed with my grandmother when I was small, right up to the day I left for Sydney. It didn't seem that long ago. Douglas
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Post by ngkokweng on Jul 2, 2013 11:57:17 GMT -5
I took this photograph from a few steps away from my grandpa’s house. The structure in the photograph was completed in 1938 as I was told. This tower is commonly known as Kaiping Diaolou (开平碉楼/開平碉樓). Just a couple of months ago, I didn’t know what was a Diaolou let alone named as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2007. I read that there were over three thousand of these towers in Kaiping and today half of them still standing. Attachments:
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Post by lachinatown on Jul 2, 2013 12:26:07 GMT -5
Fay Chee, we have many still speak Cantonese in our Chinatown. Thank you: 谢谢 Xièxiè (thanks, thanks) or 谢谢你 xiè xie nǐ (thanks thanks you) Cantonese: 多謝 doh je (much thanks) SurvivalPhrases ChineseClick hereWe talked about diaolou here when movie "Let the Bullets Fly" came out. Here is one linkClick here
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Post by ngkokweng on Jul 2, 2013 15:48:33 GMT -5
This is a portrait of my great-grandmother. I had in my earlier post attached a similar portrait of my great-grandfather. Likewise, I don’t have more information about her. To quote Frederick R. Barnard, “A picture paints a thousand words” – my great-grandmother had a doleful look on her face and a brooding frame of mind, didn’t she? As I scrutinized the portrait, I also observed that she had matching earrings and hair pin. It seemed to me that the earring attached to her left ear (if there was one) was deliberately erased. As a result, a damage/hole was evident in the portrait. I would really like to know more about her from the look of this portrait. Can the experts here help to comment on this portrait? I am looking for answers like, which year/era was this portrait done, was this a photograph or drawing, was it common to have a self-portrait done and why... Any detective work you can contribute is greatly appreciated. Thank you. Attachments:
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Post by laohuaqiao on Jul 2, 2013 20:34:46 GMT -5
Picture I took of the same diaolou when I was there.
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Post by FayChee on Jul 2, 2013 21:40:09 GMT -5
Hi Ngkokweng, Although I cannot answer any of your questions..........I looked at the picture closely highly magnified, and did not see a hairpin.....the orangish color next to her head is an artifact like the color on the earring.....there was no design suggesting hair adornment. I tried to 'clean up' some of the holes and things, and fix the missing part of her mouth (left) and earring.....but could not get her mouth exactly as on the original.....probably a professional detailer can make it perfect.... Fay Chee
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