of the early cold and afternoon slumber

The liaison officer from the school told me two weeks ago that they're unloading from me some classes which means that I'm off Tuesday afternoons (aside from having my days-off on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday) coz they're giving these classes to the new foreign teachers.

I beamed at the idea. In my mind, I was thinking of blogs and books and tea and coffee, or movies, or self-study of some Chinese words.

And so this afternoon, after my "so-so" late lunch composed of chewy (Chinese) pancakes with fried eggs mixed with shrimps (okay, I was lost with what I ordered); I left the restaurant thinking about the books I would be reading for the afternoon - Tad William's The War of the Flowers, Kris Valloton's The Supernatural Ways of Royalty or the classic I'd recently borrowed from the school library - Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights.

The wind blew against my face as I walked out of the restaurant. It was cold. Last week, the temperature dropped to 7 degrees celsius which is quite early compared to last year's. Once inside my room, I felt the inevitable cold as well. The whole heating system in the Northern part of China officially functions starting November 15 of each year. I hate the heater from my room's AC but have to use it every once in a while to warm my room. There's no stopping for winter but I never expected autumn cold to be this early.

After an hour or two, I was sitting on my bed and was reluctant about what to do. My mind wanted to read but it seemed like my bed was calling me.

That's the thing about the cold, you see. It makes you lazy, well, at least for me it does. It's like some parts of me are frozen or something. I grabbed a book in the shelf and placed it above the bed to remind me to read it but several minutes after, I was off catching some zzzzz. Sorry, book.

Did I tell you that I felt cold so I covered myself with the blanket and...and...well...I fell asleep.

I awoke to the familiar voices of other foreign teachers who were talking on the hallway, outside my room. I thought it was morning and wondered why they were up so early. I grabbed my cellphone and looked at the time. It's 7:51 - in the evening!

I thought of the books that I should be reading and figured I'll read it later, unless I get busted with the cold again.

The famous Russian writer Alexander Pushkin wrote about the cold in Autumn:

"When gracious autumn comes, my heart feels gay and
light,

I am alive once more...Benign and salutary

Our Russian cold is, friends. My sleep, my appetite

It benefits, I vow. My very step grows airy;

The daily rounds of life brings me renewed delight;

Desires within me seethe...I'm young again and merry.

So am I built, so made, for which dull turns of speech

Your pardon, readers mine, herewith do I beseech."

Here's wishing I could say the same...cheers!

God puts a butterfly in my heart

The air
Sending movements
To its graceful wings

It flutters
Dancing through
Thousands of flowers

If you ever see
My spirit traveling from
Here to there

It’s because
God puts a butterfly
In my heart

Here it is
free and spirited
Rising up to the earth’s colors

Bouncing to
the rhythms of life
singing to its melody

And my laughter
Reaches through your ears
And you asked why it’s loud

It’s because
God puts a butterfly
In my heart

Don’t ask me
Why I cannot stay
The same way each day

Or why
I’m itching to reach
the long and friendly horizon

And then I flew
Threw my smile to the wind
And you asked me why it changes you

It’s because
God puts a butterfly
In my heart

My love,
Look at the sparkle
In the middle of my eyes

See how
I open wide my arms
To the lovely sun above

Have you
Not noticed this?
Have you not wondered why?

It’s because
God puts a butterfly
In my heart


*acp/feb26,2008

contemplation from Hongkong, or whatever

*Some ideas in this entry are lifted from my multiply site - http://cathyperez.multiply.com. I went to Hongkong July 19-21 of this year before I went back to the Philippines for an almost 2-month vacation.

At 9pm, Hongkong streets sizzle with lights, vendors and shoppers.

At The Peak Gallery. A date with Bruce Lee, nah! You're next, Brad Pitt!

I was in HK for four days - July 18-21 - and was overwhelmed by HK Lifestyle. Not that I want to live there, because to be honest I would not, but those tall buildings (HK is 75% rock so they're pretty confident for high-rise buildings), the astounding lights at night, the hordes and hordes of people in shopping districts at 11 pm, and the way strangers would drop a pick-up line just to know you more...Hongkong is, to me, an unfamiliar ground yet also familiar in a way that you'll see Filipinos there, especially on Sunday (hundreds and hundreds are around on Worldwide in Central).

I met my friend Cathy and her family on the 18th, and after that I was pretty much on my own. I managed to take the MTR (train) on my own from downtown shopping districts to my hotel (Newton Hotel in Ngau Tau Kok, I was on the 23rd floor...really fantastic view of the city) which I really enjoyed though it was so confusing at first because of the many interconnections. Bargaining was fun, I have learned how to dramatized bargaining in Tianjin and Beijing so it wasnt that hard in Hongkong. When I asked a price and the vendor would give a price, say 300, I bargain the half price - 150. Then when the vendor wrestles and would not agree, I would then turn away, at that time the vendor would call me again and we would arrive at a very agreable price. Quite cheeky, right? Heheheh!

Hongkong, as everybody knows, is a shopping haven; and a busy city fused with different nationalities. It could very well be a city that never sleeps, what with hundreds of people still "chilling" at 1 or 2 am. I would say it is a real adventure that I had in Hongkong because like many people, I could not help but walk fast. And for one who is a stranger to this city, I walked wherever my feet takes me. I looked for the MTR or the subway whenever I felt like I need to go back to my hotel.

On my second day, for lunch, I find it strange that an old guy joined me in my table. I know that with Chinese, they really don't mind people joining - it's in their culture. But to me that time, I was taken aback because there were 6 other tables that were vacant. Why wouldn't he go there?

I could not, for the life of me, understand that until this time. I guess it takes a Chinese to understand such actuation.

Also, I'm sure that many travelers (especially Filipinos) in Hongkong would love Cafe De Coral. Oh, I love the food there...yummy! (sorry, the food that we ordered escaped me already so I could no longer remember)

With my friend Cathy and her son in Central the day I arrived in Hongkong.


And oh, I should say that I soooo love the subway in Hongkong. It's very convenient and though at first you get confused with how it works, but later on as you get used to it - you would absolutely love it!

That and with so many stories to add to my single life's adventures. Each and every journey, every travel, I always ended up being enriched, knowing a little more about life and God, about human behaviors and the beauty of everything around me and facing many other stuffs that lies within my heart. Thus, it's more of a spiritual journey to me.

***

captions (for pics without caps above): The IF Tower, the highest in HK with 88 floors.../Yummy adventure at Cafe de Coral.

Places, places, places!

Mongkok - shopping to death!

Central - Hoarded with Filipinos every Sunday

The Peak - best place to go at night

Avenue of the Stars - best place to go at night, too (although I went there in the morning, well, next time)

Aberleen - interesting

Victoria Harbour - take the boat ride!

Yu Mai Tai - a place I walked just to kill time

Tsim Cha Tsui - countless shops (there are many expensive ones) and hotels

Postscript: I need to share this story, I hope we could learn a thing or two from this.

I was in a cosmetic shop called Sasa in Central when I can't help but listen to the conversation of the two ladies next to me. They are Filipinos, I could tell (by their looks and the strong Filipino accent in their English).

Okay, I forgave their uber-loud voice, and I forgave how they acted as if they are rich (cos maybe they are). What I couldn't stand was how they have to pretend like they are native English speakers! Can't they talk to each other in Tagalog? They are both Filipinos, for crying out loud! I noticed the other girl even had a hard time talking and had to pause and think for like 5-10 seconds before saying the next word.

A Filipino proverb kept ringing on my ears, I felt like any minute Jose Rizal would awoke out from his grave..."Ang hindi marunong magmahal sa sariling wika, ay mahigit pa sa mabaho at malansang isda." (One who doesn't know how to love her own mother language is worst than a stinky, rotten fish.)

How can I be so sure that they're Filipinos?

Because later, as they tried to describe something in English but found it hard...they started speaking in Tagalog.

Hay, pastilan!

Feng Huang

* This is a travel article I wrote which was published in Sun.Star Cebu February 7 of this year.

The morning when we left Feng Huang. The snow had subsided but it was so chilly.

The Wunshou Palace at night. Sweet!

Feng Huang

It may have been the relaxing sound of flowing water from the Toujiang River, or the age-oldedifices reminiscent of the Ming and Qing dynasties, or because of its people – friendly and simple – with its laid-back lifestyle, that convinced me that Feng Huang would be a place I would love to visit again and again.

HOW THE CITY GOT ITS NAME

Houses along the Tuojiang River

Legend has it that long, long time ago, two phoenix birds happened upon a place so glorious that they were deeply enticed by its beauty, never wanting to leave. Now, the place is called Feng Huang, the Chinese word for phoenix, the mythical bird known to be a harbinger of good omens and possessing the power to rise from the ashes after being consumed by fire. A county in China’s southern Hunan province, Feng Huang is said to be one of the most beautiful towns in China. It was first built on 1203 and was turned into a brick city by 1556. Decades after, in 1715, Feng Huang became a stone city. Until now, the original structures,especially those from the Ming and Qing dynasties, have been preserved, even with modern streets enveloping the old town.

UPON ARRIVAL

Mountains dappled with winter fog met me and my friends when we arrived. It was an eight-hour train ride from Hunan’s capital Changsha to the town of Jishou, followed by a two-hour bus ride to Feng Huang. The foggy weather was not a good sign for travelers and villagers alike, for it meant that it could rain and snow anytime soon. I was told that the perfect time to visit Feng Huang was during the summer, when one could enjoy the scenery sans the chilly weather. The entire Hunan province has no heating system to keep you warm, especially at night. Even so, the beauty of Feng Huang is constant all year round, regardless of season.

Wooden houses sit on stilts, restaurants and shops straddle along the banks of Tuojiang River while three bridges span across it. Also in sight were women washing clothes with wooden paddles or ladles in hand, and travelers doing any, if not all, of these three things: taking pictures of the Toujiang river and its vicinity, dressing up like Miao villagers (for friends to take pictures), or taking a boat ride to see the entire river scenery in one sitting.

There were alleyways paved with large flagstones on Stone street. Nearby were meandering passageways to rows and rows of shops, restaurants and street vendors. Art enthusiasts will enjoy the art shops along these rows. In several coffee shops, one can hang out with friends or simply

Me in Miao attire. It was chilly and cold but I managed to smile.

read a book. My favorite dinner haunt is Yi Jiang Yue Bar, where I spent most of my time reading travelers’ notes and letters posted on its walls.

Dominated by a Miao minority, Miao culture is prevalent in this small town and it is not a surprise for one to see a person with baskets on his back, slung like a knapsack;or women dressed in traditional Miao costume – headdress glinting with lustrous silver, brightly-colored tunic and trousers, embroidered bodices mottled with color, allaccented with silver jewelry.

FENG HUANG BY NIGHT

At night, Feng Huang city vibrates with color. The sight of Wanshou Palace, Rainbow Bridge, the old pagoda and the edifices near the riverbanks dressed in lights with hues of red, orange, blue and green, speaks of a city capable of transforming itself from a serene natural beauty by day to a vivacious charmer by night.

Another interesting thing to do by the riverbank at night, besides taking pictures and bargaining at shops, is offering a prayer. Candles are placed on a paper plate with flower design and are available along the riverbanks. You may light a candle and let it float on the river while you say your prayers. It is believed that doing so will make yourdreams come true and answer your prayers.

Vendors selling jade and silver jewelries

BEYOND THE CITY

Beyond Feng Huang, an hour or so away, is the heart of the Miao villages. I learnedthat the Miao minority has retained their spoken language,but not their writtensystem. A Miao gesture of hospitality includes offering rice wine to every visitor inthe village. Along the way to the Miao performing hall, old folk greeted me whilethey were preparing to make silver jewelry. Several steps further, some folk sold batikcloths at a very reasonable price. Miao houses, though old and shabby, reflect the inhabitants’ humble and unassuming lifestyle. Another sight to see not far from the Miao villages is the Southern Great Wall. This wall is different from the Great Wall that lies in the northern part of China. It is 190-kilometers long with 848 perplexed blockhouses, a living testimony to the 400-year struggle and battles of the local townsmen.

Tianglongxia Canyon on the east of Feng Huang city, 24 kilometers away, is Feng Huang’s National Geopark. The canyon stretches 2.5 kilometers and is famous for its “dangerous and peculiar steep slopes”. Though a hike from the entrance of the park to the Qiansi spring is a challenge to travelers, it is both satisfying and breathtaking to be able to witness the grandeur of nature right before your eyes. One can see countless waterfalls, fantastic rock formations, ladder-like slopes, the Karst spring on a faulted cliff, and the Qiansi spring which sprays water in thousands of silver threads.

Poor pigs...i thought it interesting to post this.

SAYING GOODBYE

We left Feng Huang as the snow subsided. It was early morning, when the city was about to stir. I felt a sense of connection to it, maybe because in many ways the peoples’ attitude towards life touched me. The whole place’s beauty somehow felt like it was begging me to explore it more, and the Tuojiang river, though cold in the winter weather, was like a friend encouraging me to flow on amidst life’s ever changing times.

As the sound of crisp snow beneath my every step told me that I was about to leave, I thought of the mythical phoenix birds in the legend of long ago. In a way, they became alive in me…because like them I was enchanted, never wanting to leave.

February 7, 2008

Sun.Star Cebu

by: Cathy Perez

(note: pictures in this post are not exactly the pictures that appeared in print.)

and some things are the same

One of the books I'm currently reading is from a popular travel writer Paul Theroux. Theroux's book, Riding the Iron Rooster by Train Through China is, as stated by the book cover, "an eye-opening and entertaining account of travels in old and new China".

And for someone who's been residing in China for a year now, I often found myself nodding to the thoughts and observation of Paul Theroux.

Here's the catch though...the book was published on 1987.

Nevertheless, some things are the same here in China. And here are some of my thoughts together with quotes from Paul Theroux's Iron Rooster (in random from different pages) thoughts/tidbits that I agree with because even as time passed by, they still remain the same.

1. Chinese cannot hide their interest in anything.

"The Chinese never seemed to hide their interest in anything. They stared frankly - when I opened my wallet they peered in, when I unzipped my bag a crowd gathered to look at my laundry. They are seldom alone; usually they were part of a watching crowd, which made it all possible. They were riveted by the freakish and the pathetic." (page 213)

I laughed when I read that passage. Why? Because I experienced the same thing on my train travels. One time when I was on the train from Guangdong going to Tianjin, I never said one word because I know I am going to be the center of attention in the train if one Chinese ever finds out I'm a foreigner (it's easy for me to pretend I'm Chinese cos I'm Asian looking). After a couple hours of what I thought was a success in hiding my true identity as a foreigner, one woman asked me something. At first I tried to pretend that I did not hear her, but she persisted and asked many questions so I told her that I am sorry cos I can't understand what she said cos I'm a foreigner (Duibuqi, Wo ting pudong. Wo shi way guo ren). Then everyone in my part of the train stared at me. And it was like that for the next 20 hours on the train. When I awoke the next morning, I saw the woman opposite my bunk staring at me as I opened my eyes. I looked at the person on the bunk up next to her's and he was staring all the same. I pulled my sheet up my head and went back to sleep.

2. The friendliness of the Chinese.

"Their attentions were sometimes bewildering, as when they leaned over my shoulder trying to read what I was scribbling into my notebook, or pressed their damp faces against my book, fascinated by the English words. But their curiosity and goodwill were genuine, and in general they were hospitable towards strangers and reasonably candid." (page 300)

This one is, in a way, connected to the one above. Yes, Chinese people are so friendly. If you've been reading my travel thoughts in Beijing you would know what I mean. Their attention could sometimes be bewildering cos they are constantly curious of someone or something that are not the same as them. I would speak English to one restaurant attendant and all the rest would gather to listen to my English. It's fun at times, but then later on you would like to be just normal and not to gather too much attention to how poor you are in your Chinese. I'm speaking for myself in here.

3. Ice cream for winter.

"People shopped, bought frozen food (melons, meat, bread) and licked ice cream. That was the most popular snacks in Harbin - vanilla ice cream. And the second most popular were small cherry-sized "haws" (hawthorn berries) which they coated with red goo and jammed on twigs." (page 318)

The quote above was Paul Theroux's observation in Harbin. I have gone to Harbin myself and I observed the same thing (aside from the fact that women in Harbin likes their hair to be really, really curly it almost look like they are wigs and not an ordinary hair). It was freezing cold outside and you'll see people joyfully eating ice cream (and some would pair ice cream with spicy barbecue, talk about an adventurous combination). My friends in Harbin asked me if I would like to try it out. The wind blew against my face and it felt like my face was slashed with a razor blade. I said yes to my friends and off we go. Very cold ice cream on my left hand, and the very spicy barbecue on my left. I survived!

4. Loud is natural.

"And they talked very loudly in that deaf, nagging and interrupting way, as if no one ever listened to them and they have to shout in order to be heard." (page 217)

Chinese people could be shy. I attest to that in the silence of my students when I start to ask something in class, or in how low their voices are in oral recitations. But in the restaurants, internet cafes, in buses and trains and in other public places - Chinese would talk very loudly. In other countries, or in the Philippines, one would get the attention of the staff in the restaurant by waiting to see him/her eye-to-eye then giving a signal that one would order, in China, people would shout "fuwuyuan!!!!" (meaning helper, attendant, staff). They talk loudly all at the same time and would smoke inside restaurants and internet cafes.

sweet morning treat

Woke up late this morning but was surprised to see a note in the kitchen from another foreign teacher, Nina. She's off to Beijing but has asked me and Alex (another foreign teacher) to help ourselves with some pear soup on the fridge.

I tasted it, and yummy it was!

Thank you Lord for the sweet morning treat through Nina.

online proposal

Some weeks ago, an online friend asked me if I could be his girlfriend.

With the world bridging the distance amongst people by the power of the internet, you can't help but meet people on-line who are interested to find someone special - online.

It took me days to respond to that person's e-mail. It's not that I did not know my answer because I did, and I had no confusion whatsoever on what I feel towards this person. Here are some of my considerations, important considerations before starting a relationship:

1. Friendship first. Friendship is very important to me before anything else. I read a book before that says love is like a long-stemmed rose, the stem is the friendship and the rose is the love. Without the stem (friendship), the rose (love) would die because all the sustenance that keeps the rose alive is through the stem.

2. No long distance, please. I used to think that a long distance relationship is fine. And I mean the long distance relationship that is really long distance from the very start, you haven't seen this person, you just met him online and work it out online. Maybe it works for some people but I don't think it is for me. Now if I already know the person in real life and we have to work out a long-distance one after, then that's a completely different story.

3. Common interest. I need someone who believes in the same thing that I believe in, especially in my spirituality. They say that opposites attract, nice one, but at the core of the relationship, what keeps it holding on is what is common - the values and what a couple believes in. Just a two-cents.

4. Sincerity. I am 27 and is not looking for someone who is just playing. Go look for one somewhere else. Understand?

5. Intelligence. If you are to be with me for a long haul, then might as well have lots of interesting stuff in your mind because I can't stand shallowness, if there is such a word.

I guess I can add a few other things on what I mentioned above but that will do for now. And for that online guy, I did respond to him so he got his answers. And I guess you can figure out what it was.

That's another one on my "Charge to singlehood experience" list.