![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=91.7){kind=small}
There are 2 ways of putting your best foot forward in an expo pavillion. Either blugeon your hapless viewer to death with numbers and facts or let wonder take over. I leave it to you to guess how the Singapore Pavillion was. I was actually waiting for a pop quiz as we made our way out. In contrast, wonder was big in the Czech, Spanish and Turkish pavillions. We managed to snuck our way into the Philippine Pavillion, thanks to a craving for adobo for lunch. The sales people were gracious enough to allow us in through a back exit. 360 degree videos were big. The best one we saw was the Iceland pavillion with dizzying videos of the glorious Icelandic landscape. The China pavillion was packed with queues snaking all over. I turned to Dr s and told him to content himself with taking exterior shots. Once again, my belief that the local tourism industry can survive on Chinese tourists alone was re-affirmed.
Hairy crabs were in season. So we made our way to have a 8 course crab-filled dinner costing a bomb. Everything was yellow - yellow soup, yellow rice, yellow appetizes (even the tablecloth was yellow). When the crabs arrived, it was small but the yellow roe was heavenly. Dr S was sighing all throughout dinner. I had a tummy ache after eating so much
By sheer luck, we managed to score train tickets to Shouzou. Unless you can't get your hotel to get you tickets, be prepared to brave the crowds for tickets. In Shouzou, Dr s ordered what we thought were spare ribs in the menu pictures. Turned out to be duck heads and we were supposed to pick the brains out! Our return trip was at 6.20 pm and we were already by the roadside trying to hail a taxi at 5. At 6, we were still by the roadside. We eventually found our way back to the train station through an enterprising motorcycle driver who offered to bring us there for 20 bucks. So imagine 3 of us on a small motorcycle driving drown the highway - no helmets and dr s clutching his bag. I had to get off and walk to the next intersection as there was police and only 2 person per bike is allowed. That short 20 minutes ride was better than the short walk we had around town.
I didn't manage to buy anything in Shanghai, except for a dozen donuts to bring home. Imagine that, buying Krispy Kreme from China for your housemates!
I'm halfway through with the third novel I brought with me to China. Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang is the story of 3 generation of Chinese women as they live through 3 pivotal periods in Chinese history - the final years of the Qing Dynasty, the Civil War and the rise of Mao, and the aftermath of the Cultural revolution.
For those who have only known the name but the not the person, I strongly recommend reading up on the man. The first eye opener was when I read Mao: The Unknown Story by Jon Halliday. The book I am reading now only reinforces the notion that this man is as evil as Hitler. At least Hitler did not sacrifice his own people in the millions to achieve power. Its no wonder Pol Pot, a staunch Maoist - turned to genocide in Cambodia.
Ignorance is the name of the game in China. How else can you explain the continued veneration of Mao? For somebody who is staunch anti-capitalist - his face now adorns all the money in China. His mummy lies in a crystal coffin in the middle of Tiananmen Square.
But I wonder how long this farce will last. How long will communism remain compatible with economic prosperity? or for that matter, the widening inequality between the rich and the poor where classes are not supposed to exist?
Adjacent to our table, a couple was arguing on whether to order the chicken or beef. The old guy across the table was tapping his cigarette ash on the floor. Dr s pointed to the tissue papers and cigarettes butts strewn all over the floor. The waitress left us the order sheet and asked us to just write down what we wanted, and went out to cut up a watermelon. Behind Dr s loomed this huge communist propaganda poster. We had originally planned to have dinner elsewhere but most were already closed by 10 pm. So we ended up in this neighborhood eatery a few minutes walk from the Hutong we were staying in. At another instance, I'd dragged Dr s out as soon as I saw the old man squat on the chair instead of sitting, but we were hungry so we persisted. It was obviously where people in the neighborhood had their dinner and everybody seemed to know each other. The food turned out to be better than I expected. In fact, it was one of the best we had in Beijing that we went back one more time.
I imagine Beijing as some sort of duck Auschwitz.. At night, ducks from the countryside would quack somberly among themselves inquiring on their destination. As they are herded into trucks, they are told they are going to a better place, and told to leave all their belongings. Of course all of them end up being dressed and roasted to a delectable crisp - to be served in the millions of restaurants in Beijing.
For a place that's called the Forbidden City, it certainly didn't deter the crowds, especially the Chinese crowd (China does not need foreign tourists, tourism will survive on just the locals). The place is huge but the crowds were bigger. Truth be told, the place is falling into pieces. I certainly don't understand how the interiors are left out to the elements to gather dust (literally). The building that housed the imperial throne is dark, dusty and have lost any semblance of past splendor. In contrast, the modern Capital Museum is air-conditioned, well lighted and well maintained. Just like most of Beijing, the old is left to decay in favour of the new. Nouveau riche mentality is everywhere in Beijing.
A young day guide who took us around Beijing haven't heard of the 1989 Tiananmen massacre or the iconic tank man. It's obviously not in the textbooks and the government continues to take extreme efforts to delete that embarassing incident from memory. Saddening. Those students died for nothing.
Whoever thought of installing those sleds for tourists at the Great Wall is a genius. On the way up, you take the cable car. On the way down, you take this sled where you can speed down the mountain. It was a fun experience as the awe you feel at seeing and walking down the Great Wall wears off after walking for an hour under the blazing noon sun. I actually got an unwanted tan.
Books at hand while in Beijing: Ma Jian's excellent "Beijing Coma" - an account of the Tiananmen massacre through the eyes of the students and Jia Yinghua and Sun Haichen's "The last Eunuch of China" - who knew the last emperor was gay?
Advice From Dr. Laura Schlessinger
On her radio show recently, Dr. Laura Schlesinger said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstance.
The following response is an open letter to Dr. Laura, penned by a U.S. resident, which was posted on the Internet. It's funny, as well as informative:
Dear Dr. Laura:
Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination...End of debate.
I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Law and how to follow them.
1. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odour for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbours. They claim the odour is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?
2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?
3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15: 19-24. The problem is how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offence.
4. Lev.25:44 states that I may indeed possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighbouring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?
5. I have a neighbour who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2. The passage clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself?
6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination - Lev.11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there 'degrees' of abomination?
7. Lev.21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle room here?
8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev.19:27. How should they die?
9. I know from Lev.11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?
10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev. 19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? - Lev.24:10-16. Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev.20:14)
I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I am confident you can help.
Thank you again for reminding us that God's Word is eternal and unchanging.
Your adoring fan,
James M. Kauffman, Ed.D.
Professor Emeritus
Dept. of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education
University of Virginia
405 Emmet Street South
PO Box 400273
Charlottesville, VA 22904-4273
via http://christiangays.com/humour/schlessi
In between having a day job that consumes just about all my bandwidth and a few hours left for bodily functions, it's no wonder that my brain generally goes on safe mode by the time self-time comes around. Downtime would usually be spent playing with the cats, or tending to my zombies; which leaves not a lot of time for blogging.
This explains the lack of posts for more than 2 months.
I did attempt a couple of times, but quickly abandoned it when I found myself being too long winded. So I would play Bejeweled instead.
So when I saw so many LJ's drop like opininated flies these days. I thought maybe I should do likewise.
NOT. (stare at cat with the cracker)
But a change of pace happening in the next few weeks should do me some good. Let's see.
The other day I was recounting a story to the rest of the team about Mr T from the A Team. The young ones blinked at me in ignorance. "You've never heard of the A Team?"
Nothing like a cold slap to remind you that you belong to a completely different timezone.
Tiong Bahru cat Lomo sure has gone a long way. He is bound for Barcelona Spain tonight with the Divine Miss M as they make their way to their new home.
I remember this dusty black furball relentlessly following me to the bus stop in Tiong Bahru - insisting to be picked up and a chin rub. After 10 minutes of playing hide and seek, I decided to drop by the nearby petshop (how convenient can you get?) to ask the store owner if the cat that was by then clinging to me belonged to anybody. After assuring me that he was a neighborhood tomcat, I bought a pet carrrier and brought him home.
The 2 tomcats at home, of course, were visibly outraged at having another cat to share the litter box with. After a sleepness night of hissing and cats trying to establish boundaries, I decided to call the Divine Miss M if she would be interested in adopting him. She did, and after 2 years of staying with her, he is now on a flight to Spain.
Four days of blissful nonsense have brought about a few days of endless meetings, paperworks and ad nauseum overtime. Sigh...So local pastor gets into trouble for making insensitive comments about other religions. I'm not really surprised. I remember years ago when an uninsighful friend started "sharing" his belief, going as far as claiming that those Virgin Mary apparitions were nothing more than the work of the devil himself. Of course, years later I would mull over the said claims after having a better understanding of Christian behaviour. I'd be surprised if he said otherwise - knowing the propensity of radical Christians to lump anything un-Jesus (including other religion) as the work of the devil. In fact, I won't be amiss in saying that the only was some Christian sects can enlarge their flock is by precisely disparaging other religions. What local pastor said probably is what other Christians were thinking anyway but were afraid to speak out loud. This is, after all, Singapore. I can imagine the frustration for not being able to say so.
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of
There’s nothing you can’t do
Now you’re in New York
These streets will make you feel brand new
Big lights will inspire you
(Empire State of Mind Part 2/Alicia Keys)
(This is how I always remember NYC. Wet. Cold. Bright Lights. Big crowds and solitary souls. NYC, 2006)
But things just get so crazy
Living life gets hard to do
And I would gladly hit the road
Get up and go if I knew
That someday it would lead me back to you
(Sunday morning/Maroon V)
(Ducklings in Boston Public Garden, 2009)
With the windows all closed,
I've been doing my best, I'll see you soon.
In s telescope lense,
And when all you want is friends,
I'll see you soon
(See you soon/Coldplay)
(Shuttered windows along the road in Luxor, Valley of the Kings, Egypt 2009)
