The Chinese discovered the healing properties of tea nearly 5,000 years ago.
From Wikipedia: The history of tea in China is long and complex. The Chinese have enjoyed tea for millennia. Scholars hailed the brew as a cure for a variety of ailments; the nobility considered the consumption of good tea as a mark of their status, and the common people simply enjoyed its flavor.
Tea was first discovered by the Chinese Emperor Shennong in 2737 BC. It is said that the emperor liked his drinking water boiled before he drank it so it would be clean, so that is what his servants did. One day, on a trip to a distant region, he and his army stopped to rest. A servant began boiling water for him to drink, and a dead leaf from the wild tea bush fell into the water. It turned a brownish color, but it was unnoticed and presented to the emperor anyway. The emperor drank it and found it very refreshing, and cha (tea) was born.[citation needed]
While historically the origin of tea as a medicinal herb useful for staying awake is unclear, China is considered to have the earliest records of tea drinking, with recorded tea use in its history dating back to the first millennium BC. The Han Dynasty used tea as medicine. The use of tea as a beverage drunk for pleasure on social occasions dates from the Tang Dynasty or earlier.
Marco Polo discussed Chinese teas in his journals; two Russian explores brought tea to Russia in 1579.
For more on tea: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_tea_in_China
To purchase wonderful tea in our area visit Arogya: http://www.arogya.net/
We all know tea has healing properties, gives you energy, tastes great (if prepared the right way) and is good for you.
Following are some Tea Tips:
White Tea: May dispel effects of alcohol and nicotine; acts on colds and sore throats, strong antioxidants; steep for 30 seconds at 185 degrees F, 85 degrees C; may reuse up to 4 times
Green Tea: Acts on colds, sore throats, strong antioxidants; helps dispel fat; steep for 30 seconds at 203 degrees F, 95 degrees C; may resue up to 4 times
Pu’er Tea: May regulate blood pressure, lower cholesterol, helps dispel fat, purifier, may eliminate toxins, mixing with gingeng is said to provide relief from rheumatism and arthritis; steep for 30 seconds at 203 degrees F, 95 degrees C; may resue up to 4 times
Oriental Beauty / King of Oolong Tea: Good for blood circulation and skin; good for anemia, helps enrich blood; may nourish stomach if mixed with brown sugar; may soften blood vessels; steep for 30 seconds at 203 degrees F, 95 degrees C; may reuse up to 4 times
Jasmine Tea: Dispels heat, improves eyesight; gives energy and may help relieve headache; steep for 30 seconds at 203 degrees F, 95 degrees C; may be reused up to 6 times
Litchi Tea / Black Tea: May be good for digestion and promotes energy; steep for 30 seconds at 203 degrees F, 95 degrees C; may be reused up to 3 times
Ginseng Oolong: Restores energy, protects liver and kidney; steep for 30 seconds at 203 degrees F, 95 degrees C; may be reused up to 5 times
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
First Chinese American Woman Elected to Congress
First Chinese American Woman Elected to Congress
Here is a great news item from the San Gabriel Valley (southern
California):
Judy Chu Becomes First Chinese American Woman Elected to Congress
On Tuesday, adding to a 24-year political career launched on a local school
board, Judy Chu became the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress.
She won a special election -- with nearly 62% of the vote -- to succeed
longtime ally Hilda Solis, now U.S. Labor secretary, in the 32nd Congressional
District.
L.A. Times -- July 15, 2009
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-judy-chu16-2009jul16,0,2984735.story
Ms. Chu is here with her two nieces, both adopted from China:
http://www.judychu.net/
Here is a great news item from the San Gabriel Valley (southern
California):
Judy Chu Becomes First Chinese American Woman Elected to Congress
On Tuesday, adding to a 24-year political career launched on a local school
board, Judy Chu became the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress.
She won a special election -- with nearly 62% of the vote -- to succeed
longtime ally Hilda Solis, now U.S. Labor secretary, in the 32nd Congressional
District.
L.A. Times -- July 15, 2009
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-judy-chu16-2009jul16,0,2984735.story
Ms. Chu is here with her two nieces, both adopted from China:
http://www.judychu.net/
Thursday, July 23, 2009
California Apologizes to Chinese Americans
By Ling Woo Liu Wednesday, Jul. 22, 2009
From Time.com http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1911981,00.html
What's in an apology? Some expressions of remorse are commonplace — we hear them on the playground when kids smack each other on the head, or they land in your inbox after a friend forgets your birthday. It's the grand-scale apologies, it seems, that are harder to come by.
On July 17, the California legislature quietly approved a landmark bill to apologize to the state's Chinese-American community for racist laws enacted as far back as the mid–19th century Gold Rush, which attracted about 25,000 Chinese from 1849 to 1852. The laws, some of which were not repealed until the 1940s, barred Chinese from owning land or property, marrying whites, working in the public sector and testifying against whites in court. The new bill also recognizes the contributions Chinese immigrants have made to the state, particularly their work on the Transcontinental Railroad.
(Check out a story about the Asian-American experience in late–20th century California.)
The apology is the latest in a wave of official acts of remorse around the globe. In 2006, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper made a similar apology, expressing regret to Chinese Canadians for unequal taxes imposed on them in the late 19th century. Last February, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologized to his country's Aborigines for racist laws of the past, including the forced separation of children from their parents. Five months later, the U.S. Congress formally apologized to black Americans for slavery and the later Jim Crow laws, which were not repealed until the 1960s. And most notably, in 1988 the U.S. government decided to pay $20,000 to each of the surviving 120,000 Japanese Americans imprisoned in camps during World War II. Says Donald Tamaki, a San Francisco–based attorney who helped overturn wrongful WWII-era convictions of Japanese Americans: "Part of what a humane society does is recognize past injustices and address them."
The California resolution moved quickly through the state legislature since it was first introduced in February. "It's symbolic to recognize that the state made mistakes," says assembly member Paul Fong, who co-sponsored the legislation with assembly member Kevin de Leon. "These laws reverberate to this date because racism still exists."
(Read about a new Asian-American stereotype in TIME'S 1987 cover story.)
Most of the direct victims of the laws in question have already passed away. Fong's grandfather was held for two months at Angel Island, an immigration station near San Francisco that targeted and detained several hundred thousand Chinese immigrants from 1910 to 1940. Dale Ching, 88, arrived at Angel Island from China's Guangdong province in 1937 at age 16. Though his father was an American citizen, immigration authorities detained Ching for 3½ months. "My intent was to try to have a better life, better than in China," says Ching. "But at that time, they didn't want you to get ahead."
How times have changed. In the throes of huge budget cuts, California is wooing cash-flush mainland Chinese tourists to its sun-kissed coastline and world-famous theme parks. So far this year, the state's Travel and Tourism Commission has opened offices in three Chinese cities. In 2005, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger toured China on a six-day trade mission to peddle his state's produce, technology and raw materials. China is now California's fourth largest export market, after Mexico, Canada and Japan. In 2008 California exported $10.9 billion worth of goods to China, up 40% since 2005.
With the California bill in the bag, Fong now plans to take the issue to Congress, where he will request an apology for the Chinese Exclusion Act, the only federal law ever enacted to deny immigration based exclusively on race or nationality. Passed in 1882, the law was not fully repealed until 1943, after China and the U.S. became allies in WWII. Given President Obama's decision to appoint Gary Locke as Commerce Secretary and Steven Chu as Energy Secretary, Fong says he's confident of the bill's passage. "As a person of color, President Obama would understand these issues," he says.
Fong does not plan to press for financial compensation for the surviving victims of the state and federal laws in question, despite the Japanese-American precedent. More important than individual compensation, he says, is to help educate younger generations about the mistakes of the past. That said, Fong may ask for funding to help preserve the Angel Island immigration station, dilapidated after decades of neglect. To complicate matters, the station is located within a state park that, along with several others, may be shut down to help balance California's budget shortfall.
Not long after his father helped negotiate his release, Dale Ching joined the U.S. Army and fought Japanese forces during WWII. He went on to become an electronics technician, but after retiring, he began volunteering as a docent at Angel Island in hopes of drawing more attention to that moment in history. "We've been fighting, but nobody would listen," he says. "Finally someone has said sorry."
From Time.com http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1911981,00.html
What's in an apology? Some expressions of remorse are commonplace — we hear them on the playground when kids smack each other on the head, or they land in your inbox after a friend forgets your birthday. It's the grand-scale apologies, it seems, that are harder to come by.
On July 17, the California legislature quietly approved a landmark bill to apologize to the state's Chinese-American community for racist laws enacted as far back as the mid–19th century Gold Rush, which attracted about 25,000 Chinese from 1849 to 1852. The laws, some of which were not repealed until the 1940s, barred Chinese from owning land or property, marrying whites, working in the public sector and testifying against whites in court. The new bill also recognizes the contributions Chinese immigrants have made to the state, particularly their work on the Transcontinental Railroad.
(Check out a story about the Asian-American experience in late–20th century California.)
The apology is the latest in a wave of official acts of remorse around the globe. In 2006, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper made a similar apology, expressing regret to Chinese Canadians for unequal taxes imposed on them in the late 19th century. Last February, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologized to his country's Aborigines for racist laws of the past, including the forced separation of children from their parents. Five months later, the U.S. Congress formally apologized to black Americans for slavery and the later Jim Crow laws, which were not repealed until the 1960s. And most notably, in 1988 the U.S. government decided to pay $20,000 to each of the surviving 120,000 Japanese Americans imprisoned in camps during World War II. Says Donald Tamaki, a San Francisco–based attorney who helped overturn wrongful WWII-era convictions of Japanese Americans: "Part of what a humane society does is recognize past injustices and address them."
The California resolution moved quickly through the state legislature since it was first introduced in February. "It's symbolic to recognize that the state made mistakes," says assembly member Paul Fong, who co-sponsored the legislation with assembly member Kevin de Leon. "These laws reverberate to this date because racism still exists."
(Read about a new Asian-American stereotype in TIME'S 1987 cover story.)
Most of the direct victims of the laws in question have already passed away. Fong's grandfather was held for two months at Angel Island, an immigration station near San Francisco that targeted and detained several hundred thousand Chinese immigrants from 1910 to 1940. Dale Ching, 88, arrived at Angel Island from China's Guangdong province in 1937 at age 16. Though his father was an American citizen, immigration authorities detained Ching for 3½ months. "My intent was to try to have a better life, better than in China," says Ching. "But at that time, they didn't want you to get ahead."
How times have changed. In the throes of huge budget cuts, California is wooing cash-flush mainland Chinese tourists to its sun-kissed coastline and world-famous theme parks. So far this year, the state's Travel and Tourism Commission has opened offices in three Chinese cities. In 2005, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger toured China on a six-day trade mission to peddle his state's produce, technology and raw materials. China is now California's fourth largest export market, after Mexico, Canada and Japan. In 2008 California exported $10.9 billion worth of goods to China, up 40% since 2005.
With the California bill in the bag, Fong now plans to take the issue to Congress, where he will request an apology for the Chinese Exclusion Act, the only federal law ever enacted to deny immigration based exclusively on race or nationality. Passed in 1882, the law was not fully repealed until 1943, after China and the U.S. became allies in WWII. Given President Obama's decision to appoint Gary Locke as Commerce Secretary and Steven Chu as Energy Secretary, Fong says he's confident of the bill's passage. "As a person of color, President Obama would understand these issues," he says.
Fong does not plan to press for financial compensation for the surviving victims of the state and federal laws in question, despite the Japanese-American precedent. More important than individual compensation, he says, is to help educate younger generations about the mistakes of the past. That said, Fong may ask for funding to help preserve the Angel Island immigration station, dilapidated after decades of neglect. To complicate matters, the station is located within a state park that, along with several others, may be shut down to help balance California's budget shortfall.
Not long after his father helped negotiate his release, Dale Ching joined the U.S. Army and fought Japanese forces during WWII. He went on to become an electronics technician, but after retiring, he began volunteering as a docent at Angel Island in hopes of drawing more attention to that moment in history. "We've been fighting, but nobody would listen," he says. "Finally someone has said sorry."
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Museum of the Chinese in America
The Newly Renovated Museum of the Chinese in Americas has Free Thursdays.
MOCA Target Free Thursday! Gran Torino Forum Discussion With Actors on July 16, 2009
Come to MOCA's Target Free Thursday on July 16!
Gran Torino Forum Discussion With Actors
Thu, Jul 16 from 7pm – 9pm
Free gallery admission this and every Thursday, made possible through the generosity of Target.
11 am - 9 pm Educator-led tours of the new space, plans for core exhibit and the Core Portraits.
11:30 am; 1:00 pm; 2:30 pm; 4:30 pm; 5:30 pm Screenings of Chinatown Film Project
7 pm - 9 pm GRAN TORINO FORUM DISCUSSION WITH ACTORS
A conversation and documentary screening with Bee Vang (played lead “Thao” in Gran Torino and making his only appearance in New York), Doua Moua (played gangbanger “Spider” in Gran Torino), and Louisa Schein (Asian American media expert, Rutgers University)
Join the Museum of Chinese in America and New York University’s Asian/Pacific/American Institute, for an exclusive and intimate conversation with actors Bee Vang (played lead "Thao" in Gran Torino), Doua Moua, (played gangbanger "Spider" in Gran Torino) and Louisa Schein (Asian American media expert, Rutgers University). Clint Eastwood's blockbuster was number 1 in the box office when it was released to critical acclaim. For Hmong Americans, Gran Torino marks a cinematic debut - the first they have participated in as characters, cast and crew in a major motion picture.
The event will include the New York City premier screening of "Gran Torino: Next Door" (directed by Mark D. Lee, produced by Cedric Lee), accompanied by a lively discussion and Q&A as the actors discuss their experiences as Asian Americans in the film industry and how they crafted their roles and their culture in Gran Torino.
"Gran Torino: Next Door", a short documentary made by two Detroit Hmong filmmakers, takes an intimate look at the Hmong actors' experiences and their stories, both on and off set, by mingling glimpses of early auditions and production shots with interviews - from Bee Vang, to Clint Eastwood, to writer Nick Schenk.
This event is free and open to the public. RSVP’s recommended. Email education@mocanyc.org with name and number of guests.
This exciting benefit has been made possible through the generosity of Target.
Upcoming Target Free Thursday performances:
July 30: Cynthia Lin (acoustic/folk/jazz), Alice Hu (alternative/folk)
August 13: Kelly Tsai (spoken word)
MOCA Target Free Thursday! Gran Torino Forum Discussion With Actors on July 16, 2009
Come to MOCA's Target Free Thursday on July 16!
Gran Torino Forum Discussion With Actors
Thu, Jul 16 from 7pm – 9pm
Free gallery admission this and every Thursday, made possible through the generosity of Target.
11 am - 9 pm Educator-led tours of the new space, plans for core exhibit and the Core Portraits.
11:30 am; 1:00 pm; 2:30 pm; 4:30 pm; 5:30 pm Screenings of Chinatown Film Project
7 pm - 9 pm GRAN TORINO FORUM DISCUSSION WITH ACTORS
A conversation and documentary screening with Bee Vang (played lead “Thao” in Gran Torino and making his only appearance in New York), Doua Moua (played gangbanger “Spider” in Gran Torino), and Louisa Schein (Asian American media expert, Rutgers University)
Join the Museum of Chinese in America and New York University’s Asian/Pacific/American Institute, for an exclusive and intimate conversation with actors Bee Vang (played lead "Thao" in Gran Torino), Doua Moua, (played gangbanger "Spider" in Gran Torino) and Louisa Schein (Asian American media expert, Rutgers University). Clint Eastwood's blockbuster was number 1 in the box office when it was released to critical acclaim. For Hmong Americans, Gran Torino marks a cinematic debut - the first they have participated in as characters, cast and crew in a major motion picture.
The event will include the New York City premier screening of "Gran Torino: Next Door" (directed by Mark D. Lee, produced by Cedric Lee), accompanied by a lively discussion and Q&A as the actors discuss their experiences as Asian Americans in the film industry and how they crafted their roles and their culture in Gran Torino.
"Gran Torino: Next Door", a short documentary made by two Detroit Hmong filmmakers, takes an intimate look at the Hmong actors' experiences and their stories, both on and off set, by mingling glimpses of early auditions and production shots with interviews - from Bee Vang, to Clint Eastwood, to writer Nick Schenk.
This event is free and open to the public. RSVP’s recommended. Email education@mocanyc.org with name and number of guests.
This exciting benefit has been made possible through the generosity of Target.
Upcoming Target Free Thursday performances:
July 30: Cynthia Lin (acoustic/folk/jazz), Alice Hu (alternative/folk)
August 13: Kelly Tsai (spoken word)
Terra Cotta Warriors in Washington, DC
See the video here: www.nationalgeographic.com/terracottawarriors
Terra Cotta Army at National Geographic Museum, Washington, DC
Terra Cotta Army Coming to U.S. National Geographic Museum, Wahington, DC
November 19, 2009 to March 31, 2010
Soldiers. Charioteers. Archers. Musicians. Generals. Acrobats. Nearly 2,000 years ago, thousands of life-size clay figures were buried in massive underground pits to accompany China's first emperor, Qin Shihuangdi, into the afterlife. Their discovery outside the city of Xi'an in 1974 is one of the greatest archaeological finds of the 20th century.
Now, you can stand face-to-face with these terra cotta warriors. In November 2009, National Geographic Museum will host Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor, an exhibition featuring treasures from the tomb complex including 15 life-size figures, weapons, armor, coins, and more. Don't miss this chance to see the largest collection of significant artifacts from China ever to travel to the United States.
National Geographic Museum is excited to be the final stop on the two-year U.S. tour of Terra Cotta Warriors. Whether you live in Washington, D.C., or are just passing through, come visit us for this special exhibition and the many other exhibitions and events we host all year long.
National Geographic Museum. 17th & M Streets NW, Washington, DC 20036
www.nationalgeographic.com/terracottawarriors
Terra Cotta Army at National Geographic Museum, Washington, DC
Terra Cotta Army Coming to U.S. National Geographic Museum, Wahington, DC
November 19, 2009 to March 31, 2010
Soldiers. Charioteers. Archers. Musicians. Generals. Acrobats. Nearly 2,000 years ago, thousands of life-size clay figures were buried in massive underground pits to accompany China's first emperor, Qin Shihuangdi, into the afterlife. Their discovery outside the city of Xi'an in 1974 is one of the greatest archaeological finds of the 20th century.
Now, you can stand face-to-face with these terra cotta warriors. In November 2009, National Geographic Museum will host Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor, an exhibition featuring treasures from the tomb complex including 15 life-size figures, weapons, armor, coins, and more. Don't miss this chance to see the largest collection of significant artifacts from China ever to travel to the United States.
National Geographic Museum is excited to be the final stop on the two-year U.S. tour of Terra Cotta Warriors. Whether you live in Washington, D.C., or are just passing through, come visit us for this special exhibition and the many other exhibitions and events we host all year long.
National Geographic Museum. 17th & M Streets NW, Washington, DC 20036
www.nationalgeographic.com/terracottawarriors
Monday, July 13, 2009
Travelling to China!
We recently returned from a wonderful twelve day trip to China (Beijing, Xian, Hangzhou and Shanghai) with our two children, ages 9 and 13. The trip was arranged by China Connections, and was very professionally organized, terrific guides, wonderful sites, extemely courteous attention, very well organized. I would receive a reply to every email within 24 hours. http://www.china-tour.cn/
June 26
We arrived in Beijing’s sparkling new international airport, and made it thru security and the H1N1 flu check. Security came on board the plane to do a temperature scan; technicians were wearing all white, surgical masks and visor-helmets. Sort of techno-scary, but very interesting way to start our trip. Very few crowds, so easy to get thru security and immigration was a snap.
June 27
Tianammen Square and Forbidden City were amazing so historical. Lots of people, mainly tourists from Korea, Japan and around Chinese. Very few Americans or Europeans.
In the afternoon we went to the Summer Palace and rode the Dragon Boat (a ferry across the lake to the exit, definitely worth doing. Then a visit to a
pearl factory.
Dinner was at this very upscale restaurant, Baizha Da Zhai Men - costumed actors in Qing dynasty wear, it was like a courtyard home, meticulously maintained; very expensive / exclusive. Most tourists, I've heard, do not know about this restaurant - definitely worth a visit!
Our hotel is good, not as upscale as 4 star would be in the States, but very good for us, because almost no one speaks English, so Em, Becky and I have to really make an effort to speak Chinese (and sometimes we draw pictures!).
We didn’t have cold water the first morning, but they fixed it fairly quickly after I called a couple times and finally went downstairs (at 6 AM).
Emily’s Ipod with Chinese app is coming in handy to look up all kinds of words (it gives Chinese, pinyin, English, with tones).
Food is great, we found the chef will make fresh Beijing noodles right in
Front of you, for breakfast.
Our guide, Robert Huang, is warm, funny, delightful, his English is great. If you travel to China and use China Connection Tours, I would recommend you ask for Robert. (info@ChinaConnectionTours.com, ask for Michael Xu.)
June 28
Yesterday we went to the Jade Factory then on to the Great Wall, Juyonguong Pass (this is a section of the Wall I did about 3 years ago, but I did it in April, 70 degrees, not end of June, 100 degrees…)
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/china_great_wall/scene/beijing/juyongguan.htm
We had lunch at the friendship store / cloisonne factory (I've been to this
Factory before, but they’ve renovated it, so they no longer have glass separating most of the workers which meant we were able to get up close to them while they worked, it was great.
We went to the Olympic Village, went inside the water cube,
and then went to a tea house and then to the Hard Rock for dinner (had to do it).
June 29
Today we visited the hutong area of Beijing, amazing, wonderful, in rickshaws, it covers a much larger area than I thought it would. You cannot skip this if you are in Beijing.
Then we visited Wangfujing Street, like Rodeo Drive, gorgeous, new, then on to the Temple of Heaven, a beautiful, big park, was where the royal families worshipped.
Then to dinner and to a gongfu show. It was great, very crowded, this is where all the tourists go. When we left someone managed to get into my bag and steal my wallet. (There were a lot of crowds, buses, chaotic.) You have to remember to watch your children, bags, when traveling, a good reminder.
June 30
The next day we went to the bank to get $$ from American Express and
turned out we were the first of anyone ever to try to do that, so took
1.5 >> hours, (we cancelled our field trip for the day, which was supposed to
be a 3 hour bus drive to an even more ancient hutong area, Cuandixia Village http://www.china.org.cn/travel/gallery/2008-11/13/content_16759910.htm but that was okay...our guide Robert Huang said we still had time, and could go, but we wanted to be sure we had cancelled credit cards, called insurance, etc.
Miraculously, though, after getting $$ from bank, Robert got a call, a car park attendant at the Crowne Plaza found my wallet - everything intact except cash, credit cards and ring, so we went over to pick it up. The car parking lot attendant said the wallet had been thrown under a car, so most likely what happened was that a gang of professional thieves scoped out the most tourist-y area they could find, found someone distracted (me) to accost, then within 30 minutes went to Wangfujing Street (Rodeo Drive) to charge about $12K worth of items, (including about $4K woth of clothes from Zara!) tossing my wallet with things they didn’t need out, along the way.
Surprisingly, everything left in my wallet was scrupulously in order, so the thief was very neat.
We made a trip to the Beijing Zoo, which wasn’t on our itinerary, but which China Connections graciously substituted since we had to cancel Cuandixia Village. This is another “don’t miss” in Beijing, especially if you have children. The pandas, of course, were the biggest hit, and I was surprised at the extent of the panda exhibit; I expected 2 or 3 pandas, but there were at least 6 or 8, many outside, climbing trees.
July 1
Today got up at 6, and took a walk to this great park we found, where Olympic baseball was played. People were doing tai chi, Chinese yoyo, walking dogs,
sitting outside with their birds in cages, wonderful.No matter how much you may want to sleep in, it’s worth it to set the alarm and get up to see some tai chi in the early, cool AM.
We went to Hong Qiao Flea Market, a large indoor market where you can pretty much buy anything you’d want. My children thought it was hysterical that shop girls would accost me in the aisles, sometimes grabbing me, four or six at a time, trying to get us to buy things.
Had a Beijing Roast Duck dinner, then on to the very clean, new-ish train station for the overnight soft sleeper train to Xian. We had 4 berths in a very small cabin, but very new, clean, air conditioned, so we actually all slept well.
July 2
Arrived in Xian at 8:30AM, this was tricky, at first we couldn’t find the way out / correct exit, and had to meet our guide outside the exit…but we managed, after paying someone much too much to help with bags (er shi liang kwai for oone or two large bags on wheels, 22 kwai RMB, about $3.50).
Our guide was Elsie, very knowledgable, very nice, she had a bit of a tendency to get short tempered with our questions, though!
Very hot, hotter than Beijing (if anyone has a chance to travel to China, but can make the trip in October or April, I’d recommend doing that, even if it means pulling your children out of school).
On to hotel to check in (lovely hotel, Arum International, beautiful, connected rooms, sophisticated staff, many people spoke English, easy to get an internet connection, great breakfast).
After breakfast went to Shaanxi History Museum (first capital of China in 220 BC, emperor Qin unified China, standardized currency, connected various walls to form the Great Wall). Xi'an was the center for international trade in the Tang Dynasty period - this was before the Silk Road / Marco Polo / Kubla Khan.
Then went to the Huaxian Peasant Painters Village (very famous, they came to
Greenwich a couple years ago), one woman, Mrs. Pan, who was a local crafts person when much younger, got local artists together to help promote their way of painting, and it's gotten international awards. Saw paper cutting, then back to hotel, had dumpling banquet and show (Tang Dynasty music and dance).
July 3
Today got up early, went to Terra Cotta Warriors museum, where we saw the
pottery area, kiln, a demonstration of how the warriors were made, how lacquer and pottery is made, and how the smaller (souvenirs) ones are made now, very similar, except now they use molds, back then they did not (220 BC). The Terra Cotta Warriors were part of the Emperor (Emperor Qin, above) tomb, to act as guards.
On to the actual excavation site, unbelievable and amazing, they 're still
excavating more. Met the farmer who discovered the stone warriors; he is in his 80s now, Mr. Yang.
Then on to the Big Goose Pagoda (buddhist monastery) and to the ancient
Xi'an City Wall, where we rode bikes on the wall, a great thing to do. Dinner was Szechuan hot pot, we walked through the city of Xian to get to the restaurant, much like parts of NYC. Older children would love this, you get to cook your own food.
July 4
We took an early flight to Hangzhou. Hangzhou is a very upscale, famous, water resort town, lots of BMWs,Mercedes (and with import taxes, they pay about 4X what we'd pay for the same car...).
Saw the West Lake, went boating on the lake, went to Ling Yin Temple and a
silk factory (supposedly the biggest in China), as well as a tea
plantation. Really beautiful.
Had dinner at Lou Wai Lou restaurant on the West Lake. Would definitely recommend this for the experience and views of the lake, except we seem to keep getting chicken and fish with bones, hard to eat…think about requesting “nothing with bones” when you are planning your trip, especially if you have children. (I’ll eat anything, but the bones get to me…)
Next AM took the van to Shanghai, checked in, and went to see the Yuyuan Gardens (with ancient bazaar; this market with buildings and zig zag bridge has been around for centuries), the Cheng Huang Temple (passed by, didn't go in), did Nanjing Road, then shopping, dinner, then acrobats at the gorgeous performing arts center. Puts anyhing in NYC to shame.
The next day we did the Shanghai Museum (I've been there before, we loved it), the Children's Palace (which was really a community center, strange naming), a wonderful Jade Museum, and then to the Pudong district, the Bund, TV Pearl Tower, and dinner at the top of the Pearl Tower's spinning restaurant. Again, this is something that might not make it to your itinerary unless you ask, and it's definitely worth it!
We finished up with a boat tour on the Huangpu River, which is amazing, All lights at night. This is another “must do” in Shanghai.
The next day took the maglev bullet train to the Pudong Airport and headed home!
A fantastic trip.
For more information on Chinese programs (especially Chinese language classes for children and adults, Chinese preschool classes, culture, history) please contact www.ChineseLanguageSchool.org or email us at info@ChineseLanguageSchool.org.
June 26
We arrived in Beijing’s sparkling new international airport, and made it thru security and the H1N1 flu check. Security came on board the plane to do a temperature scan; technicians were wearing all white, surgical masks and visor-helmets. Sort of techno-scary, but very interesting way to start our trip. Very few crowds, so easy to get thru security and immigration was a snap.
June 27
Tianammen Square and Forbidden City were amazing so historical. Lots of people, mainly tourists from Korea, Japan and around Chinese. Very few Americans or Europeans.
In the afternoon we went to the Summer Palace and rode the Dragon Boat (a ferry across the lake to the exit, definitely worth doing. Then a visit to a
pearl factory.
Dinner was at this very upscale restaurant, Baizha Da Zhai Men - costumed actors in Qing dynasty wear, it was like a courtyard home, meticulously maintained; very expensive / exclusive. Most tourists, I've heard, do not know about this restaurant - definitely worth a visit!
Our hotel is good, not as upscale as 4 star would be in the States, but very good for us, because almost no one speaks English, so Em, Becky and I have to really make an effort to speak Chinese (and sometimes we draw pictures!).
We didn’t have cold water the first morning, but they fixed it fairly quickly after I called a couple times and finally went downstairs (at 6 AM).
Emily’s Ipod with Chinese app is coming in handy to look up all kinds of words (it gives Chinese, pinyin, English, with tones).
Food is great, we found the chef will make fresh Beijing noodles right in
Front of you, for breakfast.
Our guide, Robert Huang, is warm, funny, delightful, his English is great. If you travel to China and use China Connection Tours, I would recommend you ask for Robert. (info@ChinaConnectionTours.com, ask for Michael Xu.)
June 28
Yesterday we went to the Jade Factory then on to the Great Wall, Juyonguong Pass (this is a section of the Wall I did about 3 years ago, but I did it in April, 70 degrees, not end of June, 100 degrees…)
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/china_great_wall/scene/beijing/juyongguan.htm
We had lunch at the friendship store / cloisonne factory (I've been to this
Factory before, but they’ve renovated it, so they no longer have glass separating most of the workers which meant we were able to get up close to them while they worked, it was great.
We went to the Olympic Village, went inside the water cube,
and then went to a tea house and then to the Hard Rock for dinner (had to do it).
June 29
Today we visited the hutong area of Beijing, amazing, wonderful, in rickshaws, it covers a much larger area than I thought it would. You cannot skip this if you are in Beijing.
Then we visited Wangfujing Street, like Rodeo Drive, gorgeous, new, then on to the Temple of Heaven, a beautiful, big park, was where the royal families worshipped.
Then to dinner and to a gongfu show. It was great, very crowded, this is where all the tourists go. When we left someone managed to get into my bag and steal my wallet. (There were a lot of crowds, buses, chaotic.) You have to remember to watch your children, bags, when traveling, a good reminder.
June 30
The next day we went to the bank to get $$ from American Express and
turned out we were the first of anyone ever to try to do that, so took
1.5 >> hours, (we cancelled our field trip for the day, which was supposed to
be a 3 hour bus drive to an even more ancient hutong area, Cuandixia Village http://www.china.org.cn/travel/gallery/2008-11/13/content_16759910.htm but that was okay...our guide Robert Huang said we still had time, and could go, but we wanted to be sure we had cancelled credit cards, called insurance, etc.
Miraculously, though, after getting $$ from bank, Robert got a call, a car park attendant at the Crowne Plaza found my wallet - everything intact except cash, credit cards and ring, so we went over to pick it up. The car parking lot attendant said the wallet had been thrown under a car, so most likely what happened was that a gang of professional thieves scoped out the most tourist-y area they could find, found someone distracted (me) to accost, then within 30 minutes went to Wangfujing Street (Rodeo Drive) to charge about $12K worth of items, (including about $4K woth of clothes from Zara!) tossing my wallet with things they didn’t need out, along the way.
Surprisingly, everything left in my wallet was scrupulously in order, so the thief was very neat.
We made a trip to the Beijing Zoo, which wasn’t on our itinerary, but which China Connections graciously substituted since we had to cancel Cuandixia Village. This is another “don’t miss” in Beijing, especially if you have children. The pandas, of course, were the biggest hit, and I was surprised at the extent of the panda exhibit; I expected 2 or 3 pandas, but there were at least 6 or 8, many outside, climbing trees.
July 1
Today got up at 6, and took a walk to this great park we found, where Olympic baseball was played. People were doing tai chi, Chinese yoyo, walking dogs,
sitting outside with their birds in cages, wonderful.No matter how much you may want to sleep in, it’s worth it to set the alarm and get up to see some tai chi in the early, cool AM.
We went to Hong Qiao Flea Market, a large indoor market where you can pretty much buy anything you’d want. My children thought it was hysterical that shop girls would accost me in the aisles, sometimes grabbing me, four or six at a time, trying to get us to buy things.
Had a Beijing Roast Duck dinner, then on to the very clean, new-ish train station for the overnight soft sleeper train to Xian. We had 4 berths in a very small cabin, but very new, clean, air conditioned, so we actually all slept well.
July 2
Arrived in Xian at 8:30AM, this was tricky, at first we couldn’t find the way out / correct exit, and had to meet our guide outside the exit…but we managed, after paying someone much too much to help with bags (er shi liang kwai for oone or two large bags on wheels, 22 kwai RMB, about $3.50).
Our guide was Elsie, very knowledgable, very nice, she had a bit of a tendency to get short tempered with our questions, though!
Very hot, hotter than Beijing (if anyone has a chance to travel to China, but can make the trip in October or April, I’d recommend doing that, even if it means pulling your children out of school).
On to hotel to check in (lovely hotel, Arum International, beautiful, connected rooms, sophisticated staff, many people spoke English, easy to get an internet connection, great breakfast).
After breakfast went to Shaanxi History Museum (first capital of China in 220 BC, emperor Qin unified China, standardized currency, connected various walls to form the Great Wall). Xi'an was the center for international trade in the Tang Dynasty period - this was before the Silk Road / Marco Polo / Kubla Khan.
Then went to the Huaxian Peasant Painters Village (very famous, they came to
Greenwich a couple years ago), one woman, Mrs. Pan, who was a local crafts person when much younger, got local artists together to help promote their way of painting, and it's gotten international awards. Saw paper cutting, then back to hotel, had dumpling banquet and show (Tang Dynasty music and dance).
July 3
Today got up early, went to Terra Cotta Warriors museum, where we saw the
pottery area, kiln, a demonstration of how the warriors were made, how lacquer and pottery is made, and how the smaller (souvenirs) ones are made now, very similar, except now they use molds, back then they did not (220 BC). The Terra Cotta Warriors were part of the Emperor (Emperor Qin, above) tomb, to act as guards.
On to the actual excavation site, unbelievable and amazing, they 're still
excavating more. Met the farmer who discovered the stone warriors; he is in his 80s now, Mr. Yang.
Then on to the Big Goose Pagoda (buddhist monastery) and to the ancient
Xi'an City Wall, where we rode bikes on the wall, a great thing to do. Dinner was Szechuan hot pot, we walked through the city of Xian to get to the restaurant, much like parts of NYC. Older children would love this, you get to cook your own food.
July 4
We took an early flight to Hangzhou. Hangzhou is a very upscale, famous, water resort town, lots of BMWs,Mercedes (and with import taxes, they pay about 4X what we'd pay for the same car...).
Saw the West Lake, went boating on the lake, went to Ling Yin Temple and a
silk factory (supposedly the biggest in China), as well as a tea
plantation. Really beautiful.
Had dinner at Lou Wai Lou restaurant on the West Lake. Would definitely recommend this for the experience and views of the lake, except we seem to keep getting chicken and fish with bones, hard to eat…think about requesting “nothing with bones” when you are planning your trip, especially if you have children. (I’ll eat anything, but the bones get to me…)
Next AM took the van to Shanghai, checked in, and went to see the Yuyuan Gardens (with ancient bazaar; this market with buildings and zig zag bridge has been around for centuries), the Cheng Huang Temple (passed by, didn't go in), did Nanjing Road, then shopping, dinner, then acrobats at the gorgeous performing arts center. Puts anyhing in NYC to shame.
The next day we did the Shanghai Museum (I've been there before, we loved it), the Children's Palace (which was really a community center, strange naming), a wonderful Jade Museum, and then to the Pudong district, the Bund, TV Pearl Tower, and dinner at the top of the Pearl Tower's spinning restaurant. Again, this is something that might not make it to your itinerary unless you ask, and it's definitely worth it!
We finished up with a boat tour on the Huangpu River, which is amazing, All lights at night. This is another “must do” in Shanghai.
The next day took the maglev bullet train to the Pudong Airport and headed home!
A fantastic trip.
For more information on Chinese programs (especially Chinese language classes for children and adults, Chinese preschool classes, culture, history) please contact www.ChineseLanguageSchool.org or email us at info@ChineseLanguageSchool.org.
Friday, July 10, 2009
"Real" Chinese Instant Noodles
Interesting video on how Chinese chefs prepare traditional noodle soup. This was shot in Beijing in late June (the soup's delicious).
Chefs in Asia train for several years to be able to do prepare noodles this way.
Chefs in Asia train for several years to be able to do prepare noodles this way.
Footage by Kaeru
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
The 