|
Post by Ah Gin on Jun 11, 2010 23:41:49 GMT -5
Douglas et al,
Many thanks for sharing. It is regrettable to hear of Ming's accident. Hope he recovers quickly and Douglas continues with his travel safely.
It is perhaps a timely reminder of the need for Travel Insurance. Many a time when I travel, I think twice in buying extra Travel Insurance, but am covered anyway, as my credit card offers that facility when I book my travel using the Credit Card. No doubt that is a fairly common offer now a days (ie Gold & Platinum cards). Check to be sure.
I recall a couple of years ago, while in San Francisco Chinatown, over the Chinese New Year period, when most GP are away, I sustained a small cut on my hand. Within hours I was in deep trouble. Luckily I was near our own Clan Association, and they directed me to the Chinese Hospital in Chinatown. It wasn't a great experience, but nevertheless, a good experience to visit a famous landmark in SF, and exposed to the inner working of a Chinese hospital. My name is now on the hospital record, and the fun thing is, in years to come, some family researchers may come across my medical record in SF. Months later, I finally got the bill. (They were very trusting. Treated me first, and then took their time to send me the bill) Not small amount for what I consider to be simple procedure of cleaning the wound, injections of various type, wonder drug etc., but hospital bill was largely covered by travel insurance. Good for insurance.
Regards, Ah Gin
|
|
|
Post by Henry on Jun 13, 2010 22:07:56 GMT -5
Posted by Henry Tom for Douglas Lam - no access to the SiYi Forum from China
My Excellent Adventures in China: An introduction from you can do wonders.
Day 8 to Day 14, June 3rd to June 9 Day 8 maks the day I have my own mobile ( or cell phone to many of you). It costs 68 RMB for a SIM card and 100 value in call time. There is no questions asked as it is in Aust. in the name of anti-terrorism. A phone is essential for travel away from home. First thing on Day 9 is to visit Ming in hospital, and get travel information from him as I am setting off later to Hoiping by myself. Ming is waiting for the wound to heal so that the surgeons can operate on and set his broken bones. In every major township in the Pearl Delta, there are bus terminals to move the masses. I queue up at the window, the booking girl tells me there is no direct service to Hoiping. I must change at Jiangmen. So to Jiangmen it is at 20 RMB. An hour or more later, I am at Jiangmen, and line up again for a Hoiping service bus. Booking girl asks which stop I want to get off as there are three of them. I have no idea at all, then my phone comes into use. I call my wife's cousin who is there to make things enjoyable for me. He gives me the stop name, 23 RMB and about an hour later, I am at Hoiping main stop. Cousin arrives minute later in his China made Honda after calling him. We head straight to a restaurant for dinner which is just across the road. There is also another guest Kwan, with us. I met him on my last visit about six years ago. Cousin has a small garment factory here and his family is in HK. Kwan has an electrical works factory and his family is in Boston. ========================================= I am giving up on my travels in Hoiping, my dining experiences, at Taicheng meeting Henry's nephew Shi Cheng, touring the watchtowers diaolou etc. Twice I spent hours typing up, only to have the email to Henry my conduit wiped for no apparent reasons.
|
|
|
Post by tyuti1668 on Jun 13, 2010 23:31:40 GMT -5
Posted by Henry Tom for Douglas Lam - no access to the SiYi Forum from China ... Day 8 maks the day I have my own mobile ( or cell phone to many ... there are bus terminals to move the masses. I queue up at the window, the booking girl tells me there is no direct service to Hoiping. ... Buying a SIM card is easy - small shops/ Vending Machine outside China Mobile BUT Int'l call need registry the ID# in the branch Wrong station -the "main" station don't have bus to KP the KP bus's tix is selling @ 沙溪車站 (opposite the "main"/Zhuhai<->KP bus) or flag them down @ 沙溪路口/ S268
|
|
|
Post by Henry on Jun 14, 2010 6:05:38 GMT -5
Posted by Henry Tom for Douglas Lam - no access to the SiYi Forum from China
My Excellent Adventures in China: An introduction from you can do wonders.
Day 15 to Day 19 June 10 to June 14 The long days are spent inclusively in Zhongshan. I become a little restless. It is close to the Dragon Boat Festival, I see for the first time the making of our Longdu "jung", the sticky rice parcels in well over half a century. They are BIG. It is normally for two or more families to share the work involved. Two big cauldrons, probably borrowed from a nearby cannibal tribe, are used to boil the jung using firewood at one of the many abandoned village halls close by. My village was very prosperous, and various male heirs built halls to distinguish themselves. Sadly, most of the halls are in neglect verging on collapse. Some are turned to uses such as storage area, migrant housing or even restaurants. No other country in the world would do so much to destroy its own heritage. It is too late to make amends. One of the characters in the village is simply known as Ma Gor, Ma as in twin or double in Cantonese, and Gor as in big brother. He was not one of a twin. His nickname came about because his father had an extra finger, and is nicknamed "ma jee." Thus his son's nickname Ma Gor. Ma Gor is about three years my junior, he is very reliable in doing errands such as informing my guests of the dinner party. Ma Gor and his family had a very hard life. They have no windows to the south meaning no one in HK or overseas to help them. His father died of hunger either during the Great Leap Forward or the big famine in the early '60s. Calling him barely literate is an overstatement. He is your tough-as-nail peasant farmer. Ma Gor takes me on a long walk on Sunday 13th, we walk close to three hours with stop breaks to a town called "Barn Fu" ( help tyuti1668). All along the rural byways he can tell me just about every type of crop or vegetable growing in the fields. I see waterways completely damaged, black as ink, it is depressing. I also see relatively clean agricultural areas, and water being pumped from streams to replenish fish ponds. It is a very enriching experience. I take many digital photos and hope to have them uploaded for all to see. After lunch at Barn Fu, we catch a bus to Shekki. At Shekki, I pick up two silk/cotton quilts which my wife wants me to bring back. They are not cheap @ 900 RMB each with vacuum pack for stowage. The owner said a day earlier that he knew I was not a local because of my demeanor even though I spoke local.dialects. On his name card, it reads Simon Chan, he says he returned from England many years ago. Back to Ma Gor, he now no longer works the land. He does exhumation work on call. It is still a custom to exhume the disceased after a number of years and the skeletal remains placed in an urn. It is not pleasant work because the decaying process varies. Often he had to scrape off the remaining flesh attached to the bones. Other times he repairs or builds new graves where burials are still allowed. Work is unreliable and seasonal. Ma Gor like his hard liquor, a local brew. He likes a drop whether it is in the morning or dinner time. His late mother was also a lovable peasant woman, who worked hard all her life. She died peacefully about 8 years ago in her 80s. On my past return trips, I used to give her 100 RMB or so when I called on her. It is not an act of charity, it is just that it gave me so much pleasure to share my good fortune with her. She was always happy to receive because she knew she wasn't forgotten. I like the simple people of the village.
|
|
|
Post by laohuaqiao on Jun 14, 2010 8:01:51 GMT -5
Haven't been posting here for a quite a while, since i've been busy with other things during the past year. I'm in Taishan right now and i guess I missed an opportunity to meetup with Douglas.
Anyway, in regard to assessing siyigenealogy and other blocked site from China, the key words are "proxy server". Google the words for proxy servers, select one and just type in the website address (URL). This post is an actual demonstration/test.
|
|
|
Post by tyuti1668 on Jun 14, 2010 9:30:57 GMT -5
... Ma Gor takes me on a long walk on Sunday 13th, we walk close to three hours with stop breaks to a town called "Barn Fu" ( help tyuti1668). ... Walking to 板芙 via dirt path The MAP Visited my cousin's shrimp farm in that town around古神公路 serval times as Motorbike Pillion & rided bicycle by myself ONCE so still had some basic memories about that area . Some villagers are native Longdu dialect speaker in 里溪/深湾 Video about a village fight the sytem of People's commune in 70's
|
|
|
Post by Henry on Jun 15, 2010 6:28:54 GMT -5
Posted by Henry Tom for Douglas Lam - no access to the SiYi Forum from China
My Excellent Adventures in China: An introduction from you can do wonders.
Day 16 Friday June 11 This day merits a special mention, it marks my visit to Chang Gar Bin or Zhangjiabian 张家边. I hear the name mentioned so often by fellow Chungshanese that I have to see it for myself. Travel is on one of those millions of small capacity motorcycles as pillion passenger. My cousin's son takes me on a tour before he goes to his work site. The overwhelming impression is the degree of urbanisation in this part of China. When we get to Chang Gar Bin, we just cannot find the village proper. CGB and Zhongshangang, Zhongshan Port 中山港 is one and same. One huge conglomerate of large industrial plants, and broad highways. The village could well have been hidden behind any one of those high rise buildings, or verges on complete obliteration by forced relocation. At the village market, I hardly hear or see anything which reminds me I am in my native Chungshan. All the signs are touting pull noodles, dumplings, soy bean drinks,Sichuan, Hunan or Fujian cooking. The migrant workers' takeover is complete. Fellow members who have their roots in CGB will be disappointed for they are unlikely ever to see their ancestral homes. The same may apply to Denise Chong, the Canadian author (Concubine's Children) who went to CGB in the 1980s to find the house her grandmother built. I bet the house no longer stands. If Denise Chong is reading this, please correct me. I think it was in 1993 that I chose to travel by hydrofoil from HK on my return to Chungshan. Zhongshan Port was far from what it is today. I remember meeting the party there to greet me, and set off for the village in a taxi (or two). There wasn't much traffic and I can't recall seeing the high rise buildings. The amount of fertile agricultural land lost to urbanisation and industry must in the millions of acres/hectares just in Guangdong alone. China is now a net importer of foodstuff, rice from Thailand, soy beans from the US, to name just two. But the locals mostly think it is all good. How sustainable is it for a country with a population as big as China's ?
|
|
|
Post by Henry on Jun 16, 2010 5:46:10 GMT -5
Posted by Henry Tom for Douglas Lam - no access to the SiYi Forum from China
My Excellent Adventures in China: An introduction from you can do wonders.
Day 20 and 21 June 15 and 16 Day 21 turns out to be a surprising one. It is a public holiday, Dragon Boat Day. I long wanted to visit two villages which are just just a short swim away from tyuti1668's village, Today is the day. Again my mode of transport is on the back of a motorcycle. There is a motorised punt which takes us across a tributary of the Pearl. It goes without saying the water is polluted. Hard to image people used to swim in it and draw water from it for daily needs. It is only about a hundred metres in width. The charge is 1 RMB/person and .5/motorbike. At our embarkation point, there stands what used to a rice mill and storage area. It is a very well known landmark. Older men used to tell how they used to swim up to the barges on tow, hitched a ride and then jumped off. The other side of the river has much less industry, the roads are not as busy. there are lychee orchards with fruit dangling from the branches. One village Liaohou寮后, which hosts an extension of my clan and the people speak the same dialect. Yet the next village Fu Chong福涌 just a minute or two away, the people speak a variant of the main stream Cantonese. It defies explanation. This is not the most surprising part of Fu Chong. For a small, little heard of village and wait for it, there are many diaolou watchtowers to be found. It really surprises me and makes the morning very productive. I take many photos of the watchtowers. I simply have not heard of the village mentioned before. The next village is Dutou 渡头. I know many Chungshanese from this village. The early pioneers from Dutou literally blazed a trail in country NSW, in townships like Inverell and Moree. Geoff can certainly provide greater details. The owners of London Drugs in BC, Canada are descendants of HY Louie, a son of Dutou. The two big industries I can see are the cement plant and an ice cream factory. We continue on passing Zhuxiuyuan which I have visited earlier on during my stay here. We are heading back to the river crossing. Then, a village called Beitai 北台 comes to my notice. There is something going on here. A crowd is gathered outside a temple, I can see preparation is underway for a lion dance to celebrate a great occasion. When the lion dance is finished in the accompaniment of much fireworks, I see two young men carrying a deity on a sedan chair followed by the dance troupe, going in to the village, perhaps to give blessings to the villagers. I am privileged to be there at the right time to witness it. All these happened in a little over two hours. A very productive morning indeed. Tomorrow is my last full day in Chungshan before heading home.
|
|
|
Post by tyuti1668 on Jun 16, 2010 23:26:21 GMT -5
Posted by Henry Tom for Douglas Lam - no access to the SiYi Forum from China My Excellent Adventures in China: An introduction from you can do wonders. ... I long wanted to visit two villages which are just just a short swim away from tyuti1668's village, Today is the day. Again my mode of transport is on the back of a motorcycle. There is a motorised punt which takes us across a tributary of the Pearl. It goes without saying the water is polluted. Hard to image people used to swim in it and draw water from it for daily needs. It is only about a hundred metres in width. ... ...One village Liaohou寮后, which hosts an extension of my clan and the people speak the same dialect. Yet the next village Fu Chong福涌 just a minute or two away, the people speak a variant of the main stream Cantonese. ... Similar pier in 沙溪 (Defeated by 中山三桥 ) The wood bean (from OLD Macau house -HKD only/ RMB not accepted) in my cousin's (Built in early 1980's) house are bought from sombody from that pier. 南区(环城/對面海) Londu speaking villages: 月山 寮后 金溪 沙田 树涌
|
|
|
Post by tyuti1668 on Jun 17, 2010 1:12:57 GMT -5
... we just cannot find the village proper. CGB and Zhongshangang, Zhongshan Port 中山港 is one and same. One huge conglomerate of large industrial plants, and broad highways. The village could well have been hidden behind any one of those high rise buildings, or verges on complete obliteration by forced relocation. At the village market, I hardly hear or see anything which reminds me I am in my native Chungshan... In the 2000 census 48% still spokes "村话" : 张家边 窈窕 江尾头 沙边 泗门 西桠 大环 义学 小引 二洲 黎村 珊洲 BUT Cantonese / Mandarin is VERY poweful . In old days, Longdu & CGB speaker can communicate in their "home" dialect.
|
|
|
Post by chansomvia on Jun 17, 2010 5:39:39 GMT -5
Haven't been posting here for a quite a while, since i've been busy with other things during the past year. I'm in Taishan right now and i guess I missed an opportunity to meetup with Douglas. Anyway, in regard to assessing siyigenealogy and other blocked site from China, the key words are "proxy server". Google the words for proxy servers, select one and just type in the website address (URL). This post is an actual demonstration/test. I agree with the above by laohuaqiao, I can also recommend getting in touch with:- InfotechDesk.com provides computing services which include IT consultancy, computer repairs, IT equipment procurement, training, helpdesk, web development, SEO and other IT related services.
They will help fix up a free proxy server (google) or a VPN (google), the expert is a UK Engineering graduate with a strong team, they are based in Beijing. Mention Joe Chan for better service. These methods will save a lot of frustations for the those who wish to access "blocked sites" in China and elsewhere. We enjoy reading the first hand experiences of those who make or are making the trip to China, so do the recommended googling, or take the easier way out and ask Richard of InfoDesk.com to set it up for you. I can give you his private Beijing phone if you send me a pm. This forum could perhaps be on a separate thread as it is of interest to many. Joe
|
|
|
Post by Henry on Jun 17, 2010 12:22:20 GMT -5
Posted by Henry Tom for Douglas Lam - no access to the SiYi Forum from China
My Excellent Adventures in China: An introduction from you can do wonders.
Day 22, 17th June This is my concluding entry for my long stay in Chungshan and Hoiping. At this time tomorrow, I shall be some where over the Pacific, on my way home. I fully expected the wet, hot, humid and sticky weather. And it did not disappoint. I am surprised that I bear up quite well to the conditions. In fact I resist turning on the air conditioner at bed time. It is the mozzies that are bothering me. I need mosquito coils to combat them. The major regret is my clan brother Ming's serious injury. You'll recall he has had a bad fall breaking both bones in his left leg. Since June 2, he has been confined to bed, and on June 14 the surgeons operated on him when the wound was healing well enough to do so. There is a long cut on his shin with black stitches. The break was made worse because the bones were twisted, before breaking. The hospital, a hybrid of Western and TCM, is a teaching hospital of Yat Sen Uni. It enjoys a fine reputation in orthopaedics. The overcrowding is not unique to China, but certainly not to the extent that I found. A new hospital is under construction. All nursing sisters are really young, and very kind to the patients, even the smokers in the ward. Surgical gloves are not commonly seen, and certainly not one use only/patient. Don't forget to bring your own toilet rolls. Ming's job with a govt. body entails great fringe benefits. Even in retirement, he gets 100% medical rebate. He was given a spacious three bedroom flat with a current value in excess 1 mil. RMB. While he was on the job, he got yearly holiday allowance which enabled him and his colleagues to see much of China and many Asian countries. He was incorruptible or else he would have risen to the top, by the same token no one could fault him. He resisted invitations to join the Party. Perhaps it was a good thing he did not join the exodus to escape to HK because he still draws a substantial pension as well as free travel on buses which is extended to all men over 60 yrs. of age in Chungshan. He is doing a lot better than I am.
|
|
|
Post by douglaslam on Jun 19, 2010 6:51:40 GMT -5
Hi All,
And thanks to Henry for posting for me. It is a way to beat the great fire wall. Now I can post to my heart's content.
June 18th marks my departure day. My flight leaves HKG at 1920 hrs. I allow plenty of time to make the flight. I leave on the 1100 bus for Prince Edward Station. The fare at 100 RMB is certainly dearer by over 10% than my forward leg of the journey.
One incident to report; as I clear immigration and customs in China then HK, it is taking longer than expected for some passport holders. I am stuck in a short queue. When I come out looking for my bus, it has gone without me !!
I have allowed plenty of time for unforeseen circumstances like this. Fortunately help is ready at hand. A man at the bus interchange sees me with my bus tag gets to work straightaway. He puts me on to another bus for Prince Edward. Minutes later I am underway again. I think this is a regular occurrence, and bus companies agree to carry passengers got left behind like me for the last leg of the journey.
Once at Prince Edward Rd., I get straight to Nathan Rd. for the E21 airport express bus and pay for my journey with my Octopus Card. One minor incident at check-in, the check-in staff won't accept my single piece of luggage. She demands repacking. Power to the check-in people !! So, it is another HK$30 to my travel expenses.
My trip was meant to re-discover my native Chungshan county. This I did to a limited extent. I did take in parts of Siyi , it is still Sze Yup to most of us. Both regions are parts of the Pearl River Delta, and home to the early Chinese settlers abroad. I called off visiting Guangxi because of an unfortunate accident.
It is a pity I couldn't meet up with tyuti1668, he knows our county so well. BTW I had yum cha at the best known restaurant in Shaqi (?) 沙溪 which tyuti1668 mentioned often. It cost 105 RMB for two. Rather pricey. I got change for 100 at my village for a party of 5.
This is not my last entry for the trip. I still have a few of my observations and anecdotes to share. Watch this space.
Douglas
|
|
|
Post by tyuti1668 on Jun 19, 2010 9:25:18 GMT -5
taking longer than expected for some passport holders. I am stuck in a short queue... Once at Prince Edward Rd., I get straight to Nathan Rd. for the E21 airport express bus ... ...yum cha at the best known restaurant in Shaqi (?) 沙溪 which tyuti1668 mentioned often. It cost 105 RMB for two. Rather pricey. I got change for 100 at my village for a party of 5. This is not my last entry for the trip. I still have a few of my observations and anecdotes to share. Watch this space. Douglas Grab the new "smart" HKID card if u can -U mention stayed in HK to OZ. Find the OLD HK releated docs & e-mail ur case HK immgration dept - HKID releated Qs: www.sm128c.com/hk/ OR #1 rule: Don't Q in "darker" Asian line -"Cheap" Visa Run for house helper etc play Dirty trick : Senior 65+/ Disabled person had special (faster) line in Mainland side. Lightweight Hiking pole is a MUST in my backpack. -Apart from what it designed for. It's a 100% legal weapon :) E21 = express ;D Why wasting time to Prince Edward when just straight to Nathan Rd The China<>HK bus stops @ Tune Mun -E33 is just $13.6/ Saved $0.4 & tons of time 沙溪's "海港" ? It's good for business type customer OR formal activites ONLY NO fun for closed family party. I NEVER remeber my relatives wedding day's lunch helded in 海港 You can easily tell who's 上方佬 in 沙溪's Yum Cha. They're very frugal (congee ) & spends lots of time in newspaper . 大涌人 enjoys food & had lounder discussion.
|
|
|
Post by douglaslam on Jun 20, 2010 6:42:18 GMT -5
There are many minor things and incidents I want to share with you, things first timer or infrequent visitors to China may not be aware of. These are my random thoughts.
Graffiti or the absence of it, is all too evident in HK and China. It is refreshing to see walls, public transport and public spaces spared of this social scourge we all detest in Western countries. But I do see phone numbers splashed on walls in China, advertising services such as well-drilling. This is much preferred to the mindless graffiti attacks which we see daily.
I think town water became available to the villages in the 1980s. My mother did not want it , and stuck to using well water. Her reasoning was that she was well into her seventies, she was not to be around long enough to take advantage of the convenience. It was not money well spent she said. I took my young family home in 1983, I assured her it was quite all right, I could pay for it, it was no impose to me. No, town water was not for her. This lasted to her passing in 2006 at the ripe old age of 95. She did have a live-in carer for her final years. Not a bad tally for one who was a life-long smoker.
I remember stealing water was a common thing as the metres were installed inside the premises. Another trick was to let water dripping slowly from a tap into a collecting vessel or holding tank. People think the slow drips would not set the metre ticking. Drip, drip, drip, slow Chinese water torture.
On my recent visit, works were just about to finish on having all water metres in the village placed outside of the buildings. This would make stealing water difficult if not impossible to do.
|
|