china road

I just finished reading China Road by Rob Gifford and highly highly recommend it. I started the book quite a few months ago, but took my time reading it -- there was just so much to be savored, digested, and reflected upon.

Rob Gifford was NPR's correspondent in Beijing for 6 years, and before he left China to return to the UK, he took a 3,000-mile road trip along China's Route 312 -- a road that runs from Shanghai to China's western border with Kazakstan. The book is mainly an account of his trip, but also includes numerous anecdotal insights into the state of the country, collected by him during his stay in China.

This book made me feel much the same way as Rivertown (by Peter Hessler) -- another favorite China book. I learned a lot of new information, but also came across much that was familiar. And that which was familiar was so well put, giving words to some of the complex feelings I have had about China but never fully expressed. I think during my recent trip to Yangshuo, I realized that a lot of the emotions that I felt about living in China were left unresolved when I left and moved back to Hong Kong almost 5 years ago. I guess I've always had an intense love-hate relationship with the place, and it's been good to have to sort through some of that, and also somehow comforting to find others that express similar feelings (and do so more eloquently than I ever could!).

I am about to loan out my copy of China Road, so before I do, I felt compelled to go back through and find those parts that I really wanted to share. There are many other parts that would be worth adding here, and I could have spent hours re-reading sections and agonizing over what is really most blog-worthy, but here are a few excerpts that I found to be especially poignant. Please sit back and allow me to virtually read them aloud to you.

from Chapter 5: "A Single Spark Can Light a Prairie Fire"
"Pity the poor, long-suffering Chinese peasants. This was supposed to be their revolution. They form the majority of the Chinese population (some 750 million people), and they have suffered long and more deeply than anyone. They were promised so much. They were supposed to be liberated by this great experiment in social equality called Communism, but they have ended up back at the bottom of the pile. It is a betrayal of monumental proportions, considering the roots of the Communist revolution and its original aims, and a betrayal that could end up having monumental consequences for the Communist Party."

from Chapter 6: Silicon Valley
"There are nine cities in the US with more than one million inhabitants. In China there are forty-nine. You can be travelling across China and arrive in a city that is twice the size of Houston, and think, I've never heard of this place."

from Chapter 9: Power
"The tendency is to think of contemporary China in terms of the United States, because of their similarity of geographical size. Actually, to understand China today, the best comparison by far is Roman Europe two thousand years ago: lots of people with different languages and dialects, different customs, different artistic styles, even different cuisines, all with a shared heritage, but ultimately held together by force. It makes no more sense to say you're going out for a Chinese meal than to say you are going out for a European one."

from Chapter 23: A Road is Made
"It's impossible to be neutral about China. Some foreigners hate it from the moment they set foot here. Others love it so much they put down roots and never go home. I wonder if other countries divide people so intensely in their emotions. For myself, I have always tried to retain my own unity of opposites, attempting to keep love and hate in balance."

saturday evening wanderings

I'm feeling more than a little ridiculous right now. I planned to go hear a lecture tonight ("Amusing Ourselves to Death: Freedom for Youth from a Culture of Narcissism" by Marva Dawn of Regent College), and would be there now if I wasn't so very locationally-challenged. I found myself walking back and forth all over Wanchai, wondering "Have I really lived here most of my life?" Somehow I still managed to make it to my destination about 10 minutes early. But that's when I noticed locked doors and dark windows, quite the contrast to the busy church facility that I was picturing. See, I had walked myself over to the English-speaking Methodist church, when the actual locale of the talk was the [plain old] Methodist church. Both are in Wanchai, and the irony of the whole thing is that in my wanderings, I came in very close proximity to the correct church. I guess I could have walked myself back over to the right place -- being late wouldn't have been such a horrible thing --but I decided that I'd had my fill of walking for the day. So instead, I determined that I'd head in the direction of the home-bound bus, but was secretly hoping that I'd come across a coffee shop first. Consequently, I now find myself sitting in a Pacific Coffee, sipping a hot-chocolate (I already had a coffee this evening, and don't trust myself to have another).

I don't share this story in the hopes that you, dear reader, will feel pity for me. There are much worse things than coffee shops and warm chocolate beverages. And what makes me even less pitiable is that I have a book with me that I happen to be quite engrossed in at the moment: Bury the Chains: The British Stuggle to Abolish Slavery (if you click on that you'll find that for some reason the sub-heading is different on the American version). It's nice to be reading again -- for some reason it's been some months since I've been able to really get into a book. And this one is amazing (there's a reason it was a National Book Award finalist!). Very inspirational. I'd been interested in learning more about William Wilberforce, the British abolitionist, for while. And then on Thursday, after watching Amazing Grace , decided that I had to go to Page One immediately to find a book about him. I guess this book isn't exactly the Wilberforce biography I was looking for -- it's actually much better! It tells the stories of all of the key abolition figures, how they influenced each other and were finally able to bring about change. Anyway, I've still got a lot to read, so I'll save any further discussion of the book for a later post. Oh, and I guess I've been on this public computer for quite a while and should probably give someone else a turn...

cinematheque and time to kill

I had a free ticket at the Cinematheque that was going to expire on the 31st of this month. I like this theater a lot, but today felt that I almost had to drag myself over there. Part of the problem was that, since it was a somewhat spontaneous decision, I had no idea what movies were playing, show times, etc., and I had visions of myself sitting through a movie that I really didn't want to see, or watching Harry Potter again just to avoid wasting the ticket. But fortunately for me, there was a movie I'd been wanting to see playing in the theater -- 2 Days in Paris.

The movie turned out to be pretty good. It reminded me a lot of Before Sunrise and Before Sunset, and not just because Julie Delpy is in it (she incidentally wrote and directed the movie too). It had the same kind of "real time" feel to it, as well as the same kind of witty pseudo-realistic dialog. But this time, instead of being about a chance romantic encounter or an unexpected reunion, this movie presents a couple who has been together for two years and is now questioning whether they even know each other. I wouldn't go as far as to recommend this movie (I think parts of it would be offensive to some), but there were a number of things that I really liked about it. One being that I loved how natural Julie Delpy looked throughout the movie. Frizzy hair, occasional bags under her eyes, etc. -- it's clear that she's very comfortable with herself. And though this might sound cliche, it's so nice to see an actress on screen who, beautiful as she is, looks like a real person.

I got to the theater at about 4:30, but the next showing of 2 Days in Paris was at 7:45. That meant a good 3 hours of time to kill. I should know by now to carry a book with me always, for unexpected situations like this... but unfortunately, hadn't been reading much lately. So, although I have a nice stack of books at home waiting to be read, I gave in and bought a book at Kubrick. It's a collection of nine short stories by J. D. Salinger. I hadn't read anything by him since high school when I read Catcher in the Rye, which was, and possibly still is, a favorite of mine. I got to read four of the stories today while waiting, and so far, feel that it was a good purchase.
During the three-hour wait, I also gave into a long-standing compulsion of mine and bought some stationery (well, just one card, actually). I'm putting a photo of it here because I like it so much! This collection of illustrations is called "Small is Beautiful" by Peter Suart.


I really don't need any more stationery, but it's really hard for me to resist adding to my "collection" when I see something that I like. And I do actually use it too. I love real letters, stamps, the whole deal. If you are doubtful, send me your address and I'll post something to you ASAP.

show and tell

I've been teaching a summer school reading class to 5-7 year-olds (1 week left!), and in preparation for the class, I borrowed a lot of children's books from the library. I love children's literature... I think I might have to start my own personal collection sometime soon.

Anyway, here's a book that was a childhood favorite of mine: Small Pig by Arnold Lobel. I love this book -- especially the illustrations -- so I thought I would share some of the highlights...
The story opens with Small Pig relaxing happily in the mud. But then conflict occurs when the obsessively clean farmer's wife decides to clean up the entire farm. Of course her compulsive behavior includes vacuuming up Small Pig's mud. (I LOVE her vacuum cleaner!)

Small Pig runs away from the farm on a quest for mud, or something as soothing and satisfying as mud.
Eventually he makes his way to the city. A great line: "'Even the air is dirty here... there is sure to be some good, soft mud nearby.'"
He soon finds some mud (but -- shhhh! -- it's actually wet cement!).

Small Pig gets stuck in the "mud," and soon all the city folk have gathered to stare at him.
A closer look at small pig. You can't help but feel for him here... doesn't his little face make you want to cry?

Eventually the farmer and his wife find small pig. I love the expressions on all three of their faces...

In the end, firemen are able to bust Small Pig out of the sidewalk, and he returns safely to the farm, where fresh mud is waiting for him.

The end.

making the most of my student status

As you can see from my HKU ID, I only have a month and a half left before my student status officially expires. Besides the implications already mentioned in previous posts (i.e. finishing papers, finding a job, etc.), I realized a couple weeks ago that there are some student perks that I really should make the most of while I still can.

So today I did just that.

First I went to an appointment at the HKU dental center, where I had a check-up for just HK$80 (x-rays included!) . It turns out that I need 3 fillings (!!), but two of those are replacements of older fillings that are deteriorating... and thankfully fillings, like the check-up itself, are ridiculously cheap, so I'm almost glad that I need three... hehe. Can't wait for that 2-hour dental appointment as well...

(Yes, I felt silly asking the receptionist if I could take a picture of this little feline dental diorama, but really, how could I resist?! It's a feline dental diorama!!)
My next "making the most of being a student" activity involved going to the HKU bookstore and milking my student discount. I have a stack of books at home that I've been meaning to read, so really didn't need another one, but found Oracle Bones to be too much of a temptation. I really like Peter Hessler's writing and appreciate his insights on China -- I think River Town is one of my favorite non-fiction books -- so couldn't pass this up.
And with a new book in hand, I had no choice but to go to the HKU Starbucks and make use of my 25% student discount there. Toffee banana scone (who new such things existed?) and chai latte... yum. Yes, there are some aspects of student life that will be missed.