June 16th - Shanghai's Barbershop Brothels
I saw for the first time after having heard about them in Thailand - for they exist in places like Hat Yai for Malaysian Muslims who cross the Thai border for some exotic fun - the barbershop brothel. In Shanghai I found an entire area of them north of Yan'an Xilu (street) and Yan'an Zhonglu (street).
Wuding Xilu (street) Notes:
This particular street has barbershop brothels on every single block and in some cases one block would be host to several of them.
It is interesting camoflage for a brothel to disguise itself as either a massage parlor, kareoke bar, or barbershop. It makes sense and is quiet clever. The legitimate version of these establishments serve male customers, thus the brothels uses this as camoflage. Most of the barbershop brothels that I saw in Shanghai were situated next to or near legitimate barbershops. They (the barbershop brothel) all had the Chinese characters for beauty and hair on their windows along with the number 60 and the Chinese character for minutes - obviously what kind of barbershop charges by the hour? They (the barbershop brothels) distinguish themselves from their legitimate barbershop counterparts by their spinning barbershop pole which is illuminated in the color pink or in some rare cases blue. Some of these poles also have heart symbols on them. The color pink is typically the Asian (Japan, Korea, China, etc.) recognized color that denotes stores or shops and so forth as selling porn merchandise (DVDs, and S&M devices) or brothels of some kind or another.
If you look through the window of one of the barbershop brothels you will see that it is darkly lit in a soft pink glow. There are mirrors and chairs set up much like a traditional barbershop but it is plain to see that it has been years since they have ever - if ever - been used for that purpose. And you will see Chinese women scantly dressed lounging around bored out of their minds. They are sitting within simply waiting for a customer.
In some cases the windows are tinted so that you can not clearly see in, but the pink glow within is aparant letting all walking traffic know exactly what kind of establishment it is.
In terms of clientele these barbershop brothels are for local customers. They do not advertise themselves to foreigners or sex tourists. Some of these barbershop brothels are so run-down and delapitated that it is simply apparent that they are servicing lower-class, blur-collar, Chinese men (perhaps migrant working men from the country side).
This area that I found these barbershop brothels in is far west of the Bund in Shanghai; it is an area not frequented by tourists.
Sincerely,
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
Saturday, July 03, 2004
Sunday, June 20, 2004
June 14th - Shanghai
I checked into the Pujiang Hotel which was established in 1846 and spent nearly $100 for a two night stay in a massive old room on the 5th floor. Not wise but I thought I would treat myself to a bit of luxury.
People who have stayed at the Pujiang Hotel (Astor House) are:
Charlie Chaplin
U.S. President Grant (1879) in room 410 of the Astor House
Albert Einstein in 1922 in room 304 of the Astor House.
June 17th - Shanghai Blues
Shanghai - my first impression of this city was that it was a sad place. I arrived on Monday when it was cloudy and gloomy.
I walked down Nanjing Donglu (street) - a street littered with materialism and felt depressed. I have yet to feel any sort of culture shock here in Shanghai, much less in China. Im still waiting for the feeling or realization that yes I am in China to hit me.
Ive been to Hong Kong, Macau, Guangzhou and now Shaghai and all of these cities wreak of western capitalism to the point that Chinatown in Chicago or New York feels more like China than these cities. I assume that it is very selfish of me as a traveler to be disappointed with the conflict between what I expected to find and what I really found. Well, Hong Kong and Macau have lived up to my expectations. Gaungzhou I knew nothing about. But in the end after all this complaining I realize that all these cities are exactly what they are. They are the products of the European colonialism that dominated China in the 19th and first half of the 20th century. They have a heavy capitalist European feel due to the centuries of the development of these cities to serve as trading sea ports for European, American, Russian, and Japanese interests. It is actually sad and fascinating to learn of how the Europeans along with the Japanese and U.S. manipulated the naive Chinese Manchu dynasty and elites by - for instance - importing the opium drug into the Orient. Britain, in essence, was a drug dealer drugging the Chinese into heavy dependence on the opium drug.
Shanghai Timeline
Here are a list of important dates for the development of Shanghai that you should be aware of:
1839 - The start of the First Opium War (China vs. Britain)
1842 - The Opium War ends with the signing of the Treaty of Nanjing resulting in Shanghai being opened to International Trade
1850 - Outbreak of the Taiping Rebellion (read up about the leader of the rebellion, Haka Hong Xiuquan (1814-1864); an upset educated Chinese man who declared himself the Brother of Jesus Christ and the Son of God!)
1853 - Shanghai occupied by Taiping rebels
1864 - End of the Taiping Rebellion
1894-5 - The Sino-Japanese War (Japan vs. China; and Japan wins resulting in the first factories being built in Shanghai)
1904-5 - Russo-Japanese War (Japan vs. Russia for Manchuria; Japan wins)
1911 - The Chinese Revolution in which Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's movement results in the overthrow of the Manchu dynasty thus ending 4,000 years of dynasty rule in China
1912 - Yuan Shikai is elected President of the Republic of China
1920 - Civil War breaks out in China between its warlords - the war doesnt effect Shanghai's economy
1921 - "The first National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party is held in Shanghai"
1925 - Dr. Sun Yat-Sen dies. Chinese workers strike against Britain and Japan
1926 - The Nationalist army led by Chiang Kai-Shek sets out from Guangzhou to reclaim China from the warlords
1927 - Chiang Kai-Shek splits from his Communist allies in Shanghai
1928 - Nanjing becomes the capital of China
1931 - Japan occupies Manchuria by force
1932 - Japan invades Shanghai
1937 - The Second Sino-Japanese War (Japan vs. China) and the 'Rape of Nanking' where the Japanese Imperial Army raped and slaughtered 300,000 Chinese in Nanking.
The Nationalists and the Communists in China unite to fight the Japanese
1945 - End of Japanese occupation of China
1949 - Shanghai falls to the Chinese Communists
Shanghai has a long history of being a city of extreme economic importance to European and colonialists. Its location at the end of the Yangtze river and its closeness to ports in Japan and its accessibility to ports in Southeast Asia such as Singapore were the prime reasons as to why it rose to become the most important city in the Orient in the 19th and early 20th century. As a result merchants, business men, refugees, criminals, artists from Japan, Russia, Britain, France, and the U.S. all flocked to Shanghai. Due to agreements that were favorable to Western interests made with the Manchu's it quickly became a Mecca for any entrepreneur from the "West" and Japan to develop businesses with little taxation paid to China. It grew to become a city-state paying very little attention to the weakening Manchu dynasty.
Thus you find and understand why Shanghai, today, looks like 1930's Chicago or New York or London. All the buildings along the Bund - the famous street facing the Huangpu river - is lined with Art-Deco and Neo-Classical buildings that have changed little since they were built. To be in Shanghai is like taking a time machine back to the hey days of the 30's in Europe and the U.S.
Thus for me it was a city that had very little to do with traditional Chinese culture. My search for the "old" China that I long to see was not to be satisfied at all in Shanghai. Shanghai is the product of "Western" financial and economic forces and European colonialism. There were parks here that were once forbidden to dogs and Chinese. As you can imagine the impoverished Chinese who lived near Shanghai or had heard about it grew to envy and hate the "Westerners" who were taking extreme advantage of China. This resentment led to the Taiping Rebellion and later the Boxer Rebellion. And ultimately led to the strong Nationalist movements headed by Dr. Sun Yat-Sen and later Chiang Kai Shek and the Communist movement by Mao Ze Dong.
It is thus of no surprise that the movements to reclaim China from the "Westerners" began in Shanghai by "Western" educated Chinese men such as Dr. Sun Yat-Sen. Those educated Chinese who had grown up in Shanghai knew that the only way for China to take back what was rightfully theirs from "Westerners" had to be accomplished by western means. Thus men like Mao Ze Dong took western ideologies such as Communism to aid them rise and overcome Western capitalism.
Shanghai is really the cradle of the movements that has taken China where it is today - a Communist nation of over a billion people.
The Future of Shanghai and China
Commmunist China is striving to develop Shanghai to return to its former glory. It is said by some that in the future Shanghai will overcome Hong Kong and Tokyo in economic importance. That it will be the next economic capital of East Asia.
Do I agree? To be honest I do not. Shanghai in my opinion is decades away from overcoming Hong Kong and Tokyo. Communism doesnt help Shanghai either.
But one things is certain in my opinion. Communism's days in China is numbered. As the middle class grows in China you will find that Communism will be pushed into a corner until it simply disappears. Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Guangzhou are very capitalist cities and the economic driving force of China. These cities will lead the "revolution" that will ultimately end Communism in China. Thus if the Chinese Communist government continues to push Shanghai to become the next big economic city in East Asia they are actually then fueling the fire that will ultimately end them.
For those who have been to Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Shanghai you will agree that Shanghai has a long, long, long ways to go to over come these economic power house cities. I dont think the generation of China today will lead Shanghai to any form of economic glory. Perhaps it will be the next generation.
I say this because the Chinese middle class that I have found are narrow minded in thought. Although they are very educated it seems that they all think and dress the same. Thus I find no amount of original thought, creativity, or innovation among them. If China is to grow as an economic power then it needs to foster a greater freedom of expression and thought in its middle class.
To be frank I am not impressed at all with what I find and see in China. I have found more drive and creativity in Japan, Korea, and all of Southeast Asia than I have in China. Their restaurants for example are all the same, uniform, and boring. All the restaurants in China, and I mean all, are simply white walls devoid of paintings or pictures and tables. The interior design of restaurants here is pathetic. And I can say that about all the stores, hotels, and homes that I have seen here. I see no innovation in design, art, thought, decoration, etc. here. Nothing. How can China grow without creative minds, innovative entrepreneurs, etc.? It can not.
The only reason people are saying that China will become the next big economic power in East Asia is that it will soon have a massive middle class and this translates into a massive consumer market for western goods. This growing middle class will want to buy Gap clothing, more KFC and McDonalds, Toyota cars, Sony C.D. players, etc. China will become a giant consumer market for the West.
"Western" companies that will not do well here though are software companies and music labels. Anything on a C.D. here is heavily pirated and there is really no "real" means to curve that. Microsoft and Universal Records will continue to loose billions in sales here. So forget software in China and all of Southeast Asia except for Singapore and perhaps Malaysia.
But, China, if it doesnt encourage independent thinkers and entrepreneurs to create superior Chinese companies then China will be at a lost economically in the decades to come. What the hell does China produce? They make cheap and low quality products that they sell to Southeast Asian nations. How can China grow by selling to a market that has very little buying power like Southeast Asia?
In my opinion Japan will continue to be the economic power of the Orient.
And I hope that Im wrong about that . . . for China's sake.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
I checked into the Pujiang Hotel which was established in 1846 and spent nearly $100 for a two night stay in a massive old room on the 5th floor. Not wise but I thought I would treat myself to a bit of luxury.
People who have stayed at the Pujiang Hotel (Astor House) are:
Charlie Chaplin
U.S. President Grant (1879) in room 410 of the Astor House
Albert Einstein in 1922 in room 304 of the Astor House.
June 17th - Shanghai Blues
Shanghai - my first impression of this city was that it was a sad place. I arrived on Monday when it was cloudy and gloomy.
I walked down Nanjing Donglu (street) - a street littered with materialism and felt depressed. I have yet to feel any sort of culture shock here in Shanghai, much less in China. Im still waiting for the feeling or realization that yes I am in China to hit me.
Ive been to Hong Kong, Macau, Guangzhou and now Shaghai and all of these cities wreak of western capitalism to the point that Chinatown in Chicago or New York feels more like China than these cities. I assume that it is very selfish of me as a traveler to be disappointed with the conflict between what I expected to find and what I really found. Well, Hong Kong and Macau have lived up to my expectations. Gaungzhou I knew nothing about. But in the end after all this complaining I realize that all these cities are exactly what they are. They are the products of the European colonialism that dominated China in the 19th and first half of the 20th century. They have a heavy capitalist European feel due to the centuries of the development of these cities to serve as trading sea ports for European, American, Russian, and Japanese interests. It is actually sad and fascinating to learn of how the Europeans along with the Japanese and U.S. manipulated the naive Chinese Manchu dynasty and elites by - for instance - importing the opium drug into the Orient. Britain, in essence, was a drug dealer drugging the Chinese into heavy dependence on the opium drug.
Shanghai Timeline
Here are a list of important dates for the development of Shanghai that you should be aware of:
1839 - The start of the First Opium War (China vs. Britain)
1842 - The Opium War ends with the signing of the Treaty of Nanjing resulting in Shanghai being opened to International Trade
1850 - Outbreak of the Taiping Rebellion (read up about the leader of the rebellion, Haka Hong Xiuquan (1814-1864); an upset educated Chinese man who declared himself the Brother of Jesus Christ and the Son of God!)
1853 - Shanghai occupied by Taiping rebels
1864 - End of the Taiping Rebellion
1894-5 - The Sino-Japanese War (Japan vs. China; and Japan wins resulting in the first factories being built in Shanghai)
1904-5 - Russo-Japanese War (Japan vs. Russia for Manchuria; Japan wins)
1911 - The Chinese Revolution in which Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's movement results in the overthrow of the Manchu dynasty thus ending 4,000 years of dynasty rule in China
1912 - Yuan Shikai is elected President of the Republic of China
1920 - Civil War breaks out in China between its warlords - the war doesnt effect Shanghai's economy
1921 - "The first National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party is held in Shanghai"
1925 - Dr. Sun Yat-Sen dies. Chinese workers strike against Britain and Japan
1926 - The Nationalist army led by Chiang Kai-Shek sets out from Guangzhou to reclaim China from the warlords
1927 - Chiang Kai-Shek splits from his Communist allies in Shanghai
1928 - Nanjing becomes the capital of China
1931 - Japan occupies Manchuria by force
1932 - Japan invades Shanghai
1937 - The Second Sino-Japanese War (Japan vs. China) and the 'Rape of Nanking' where the Japanese Imperial Army raped and slaughtered 300,000 Chinese in Nanking.
The Nationalists and the Communists in China unite to fight the Japanese
1945 - End of Japanese occupation of China
1949 - Shanghai falls to the Chinese Communists
Shanghai has a long history of being a city of extreme economic importance to European and colonialists. Its location at the end of the Yangtze river and its closeness to ports in Japan and its accessibility to ports in Southeast Asia such as Singapore were the prime reasons as to why it rose to become the most important city in the Orient in the 19th and early 20th century. As a result merchants, business men, refugees, criminals, artists from Japan, Russia, Britain, France, and the U.S. all flocked to Shanghai. Due to agreements that were favorable to Western interests made with the Manchu's it quickly became a Mecca for any entrepreneur from the "West" and Japan to develop businesses with little taxation paid to China. It grew to become a city-state paying very little attention to the weakening Manchu dynasty.
Thus you find and understand why Shanghai, today, looks like 1930's Chicago or New York or London. All the buildings along the Bund - the famous street facing the Huangpu river - is lined with Art-Deco and Neo-Classical buildings that have changed little since they were built. To be in Shanghai is like taking a time machine back to the hey days of the 30's in Europe and the U.S.
Thus for me it was a city that had very little to do with traditional Chinese culture. My search for the "old" China that I long to see was not to be satisfied at all in Shanghai. Shanghai is the product of "Western" financial and economic forces and European colonialism. There were parks here that were once forbidden to dogs and Chinese. As you can imagine the impoverished Chinese who lived near Shanghai or had heard about it grew to envy and hate the "Westerners" who were taking extreme advantage of China. This resentment led to the Taiping Rebellion and later the Boxer Rebellion. And ultimately led to the strong Nationalist movements headed by Dr. Sun Yat-Sen and later Chiang Kai Shek and the Communist movement by Mao Ze Dong.
It is thus of no surprise that the movements to reclaim China from the "Westerners" began in Shanghai by "Western" educated Chinese men such as Dr. Sun Yat-Sen. Those educated Chinese who had grown up in Shanghai knew that the only way for China to take back what was rightfully theirs from "Westerners" had to be accomplished by western means. Thus men like Mao Ze Dong took western ideologies such as Communism to aid them rise and overcome Western capitalism.
Shanghai is really the cradle of the movements that has taken China where it is today - a Communist nation of over a billion people.
The Future of Shanghai and China
Commmunist China is striving to develop Shanghai to return to its former glory. It is said by some that in the future Shanghai will overcome Hong Kong and Tokyo in economic importance. That it will be the next economic capital of East Asia.
Do I agree? To be honest I do not. Shanghai in my opinion is decades away from overcoming Hong Kong and Tokyo. Communism doesnt help Shanghai either.
But one things is certain in my opinion. Communism's days in China is numbered. As the middle class grows in China you will find that Communism will be pushed into a corner until it simply disappears. Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Guangzhou are very capitalist cities and the economic driving force of China. These cities will lead the "revolution" that will ultimately end Communism in China. Thus if the Chinese Communist government continues to push Shanghai to become the next big economic city in East Asia they are actually then fueling the fire that will ultimately end them.
For those who have been to Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Shanghai you will agree that Shanghai has a long, long, long ways to go to over come these economic power house cities. I dont think the generation of China today will lead Shanghai to any form of economic glory. Perhaps it will be the next generation.
I say this because the Chinese middle class that I have found are narrow minded in thought. Although they are very educated it seems that they all think and dress the same. Thus I find no amount of original thought, creativity, or innovation among them. If China is to grow as an economic power then it needs to foster a greater freedom of expression and thought in its middle class.
To be frank I am not impressed at all with what I find and see in China. I have found more drive and creativity in Japan, Korea, and all of Southeast Asia than I have in China. Their restaurants for example are all the same, uniform, and boring. All the restaurants in China, and I mean all, are simply white walls devoid of paintings or pictures and tables. The interior design of restaurants here is pathetic. And I can say that about all the stores, hotels, and homes that I have seen here. I see no innovation in design, art, thought, decoration, etc. here. Nothing. How can China grow without creative minds, innovative entrepreneurs, etc.? It can not.
The only reason people are saying that China will become the next big economic power in East Asia is that it will soon have a massive middle class and this translates into a massive consumer market for western goods. This growing middle class will want to buy Gap clothing, more KFC and McDonalds, Toyota cars, Sony C.D. players, etc. China will become a giant consumer market for the West.
"Western" companies that will not do well here though are software companies and music labels. Anything on a C.D. here is heavily pirated and there is really no "real" means to curve that. Microsoft and Universal Records will continue to loose billions in sales here. So forget software in China and all of Southeast Asia except for Singapore and perhaps Malaysia.
But, China, if it doesnt encourage independent thinkers and entrepreneurs to create superior Chinese companies then China will be at a lost economically in the decades to come. What the hell does China produce? They make cheap and low quality products that they sell to Southeast Asian nations. How can China grow by selling to a market that has very little buying power like Southeast Asia?
In my opinion Japan will continue to be the economic power of the Orient.
And I hope that Im wrong about that . . . for China's sake.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
June 12th - Hong Kong to Guangzhou, China
Guangzhou along with Shenzhen are financial capitals of southern China and China period.
Guangzhou is a massive city. Very "Western" in design and lay out. If you didnt see the signs of Chinese characters throughout the city you wouldnt believe that you were actually in China.
China, although it has 4/5th of the World's population, boasts space - compared to Japan. As a result - unlike Japan - they can afford to build wide roads and large hotels and apartment and business buildings with large rooms. They have the space. As a result the large streets and orderly sidewalks of Guangzhou feel like that of any city in the U.S.
As I sat in my taxi and looked out I felt no shock in realizing that I was now in mainland China. Guangzhou is simply a big city filled with convenience and business and shopping. It is a capitalist city and as a result I felt at home. I did not feel any of the shock I felt when I crossed through the countries that I visited in Southeast Asia.
I arrived at the Youth Hostel on Shamian Island and checking into a pleasant room for one. After exploring just a tiny fraction of Guangzhou - Qingping Market - and the Jade Market on Changshou Lu I decided to resign myself to Shamian Island.
Notes on Qingping Market:
The shops facing the Liu'Ersan Lu (street) are dedicated to Chinese medicine. I saw jars and massive white bags filled with dried roots (ginseng), snake skin (dried), dried and very large mushrooms, dried starfishes, dried seahorses, antlers of deers, legs of deers that had its fur peeled off leaving only bone and thin strips of muscles, turtle shells, etc.
I also saw men waiting on orange scooters - the scooters had a platform in its rear which was used to transport goods.
I took an alley north from the market and found row after row of Mom and Pop shops selling dried fruits and figs, vegetables, incense sticks, beans - giant bags of packed and dried leaves (for tea?), chile, red peppers, sausages, etc.
There were plenty of men playing the Chinese game of Mahjongg - I could always hear the sound of them throwing down the domino sort of pieces on tables. The game usually consists of four players.
As I walked down the small alleys and streets of this old Chinese quarter I suddenly came across a very sanitary public toilet being maintained by staff who would attend to it and guard it by sitting out front of it.
I saw my first glimpse of a Chinese woman hawking and then spitting on the ground.
one shop had ham legs hanging from its walls just like in Spain.
This old quarter of Guangzhou had the sort of same feel as the Old Quarter in Hanoi.
A shopping street called Dishifu Le had no cars driving through it. It was strictly for pedestrians - people were able to walk leisurely and shop. Pepsi Cola was everywhere! And generally speaking it is everywhere in Southeast Asia.
Outside of stores I saw women clapping their hands and calling out to get the attention of potential customers.
Shamian Island
This island is a quiet refuge of peace, trees, parks, neo-classical buildings, and children.
Samian Daijin street has gardens and playgrounds nestled between two walking paths for pedestrians. There are statues of children nearly at every corner.
The playgrounds here have plenty of slides and swings along with devices meant to massage muscles.
I saw one clever Chinese kid tie a tennis ball to a brick with a rubber string so that he could hit it and have it come back to him.
And there were people of all ages playing badminton.
The Adopted Children of the Shamian Island
The White Swan Hotel is filled with children. And all around Shamian Island you will find small boutique stores selling clothing and toys for children. Then you will notice that across the street from the Christ Church there is the American Consulate.
Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of families - mostly from the U.S. - come to Guangzhou, to Shamian Island, to finalize the last remaining procedures in the adoption of a Chinese child.
General Notes on Chinese Adoption
1. There are direct flights from L.A. in the U.S. to Guangzhou.
2. Many U.S. families (also Germans and Spanish) adopt Chinese children through the CCAA which is the Chinese Center for Adoption.
3. The White Swan Hotel accommodates many families who are adopting Chinese children since the U.S. consulate is just next door.
4. The application process for a Chinese child is about 18 months and costs about $18,000 U.S.
5. With open adoption in the U.S. there is no guarantee that the adopting couple or family will be able to keep the child after its birth - even after spending time and money with the pregnant mother who wants to give up the child.
6. The majority of adopted Chinese children are girls - this is a result of China's "one child" family policy for families. This results in extreme pressure to ensure that the first child is a boy. If the child is not a boy then it is not uncommon to abandon or kill the 1st born girl.
7. The date of birth for most of the adopted children is unknown. Many of these children were simply left in a bamboo basket in a location where they were sure to be found.
8. Adopting parents usually can not go to the Chinese orphanage where their adoptive child was cared for.
9. The Chinese government pairs parents with a child - this process guarantees a child to the parents who want to adopt.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
Guangzhou along with Shenzhen are financial capitals of southern China and China period.
Guangzhou is a massive city. Very "Western" in design and lay out. If you didnt see the signs of Chinese characters throughout the city you wouldnt believe that you were actually in China.
China, although it has 4/5th of the World's population, boasts space - compared to Japan. As a result - unlike Japan - they can afford to build wide roads and large hotels and apartment and business buildings with large rooms. They have the space. As a result the large streets and orderly sidewalks of Guangzhou feel like that of any city in the U.S.
As I sat in my taxi and looked out I felt no shock in realizing that I was now in mainland China. Guangzhou is simply a big city filled with convenience and business and shopping. It is a capitalist city and as a result I felt at home. I did not feel any of the shock I felt when I crossed through the countries that I visited in Southeast Asia.
I arrived at the Youth Hostel on Shamian Island and checking into a pleasant room for one. After exploring just a tiny fraction of Guangzhou - Qingping Market - and the Jade Market on Changshou Lu I decided to resign myself to Shamian Island.
Notes on Qingping Market:
The shops facing the Liu'Ersan Lu (street) are dedicated to Chinese medicine. I saw jars and massive white bags filled with dried roots (ginseng), snake skin (dried), dried and very large mushrooms, dried starfishes, dried seahorses, antlers of deers, legs of deers that had its fur peeled off leaving only bone and thin strips of muscles, turtle shells, etc.
I also saw men waiting on orange scooters - the scooters had a platform in its rear which was used to transport goods.
I took an alley north from the market and found row after row of Mom and Pop shops selling dried fruits and figs, vegetables, incense sticks, beans - giant bags of packed and dried leaves (for tea?), chile, red peppers, sausages, etc.
There were plenty of men playing the Chinese game of Mahjongg - I could always hear the sound of them throwing down the domino sort of pieces on tables. The game usually consists of four players.
As I walked down the small alleys and streets of this old Chinese quarter I suddenly came across a very sanitary public toilet being maintained by staff who would attend to it and guard it by sitting out front of it.
I saw my first glimpse of a Chinese woman hawking and then spitting on the ground.
one shop had ham legs hanging from its walls just like in Spain.
This old quarter of Guangzhou had the sort of same feel as the Old Quarter in Hanoi.
A shopping street called Dishifu Le had no cars driving through it. It was strictly for pedestrians - people were able to walk leisurely and shop. Pepsi Cola was everywhere! And generally speaking it is everywhere in Southeast Asia.
Outside of stores I saw women clapping their hands and calling out to get the attention of potential customers.
Shamian Island
This island is a quiet refuge of peace, trees, parks, neo-classical buildings, and children.
Samian Daijin street has gardens and playgrounds nestled between two walking paths for pedestrians. There are statues of children nearly at every corner.
The playgrounds here have plenty of slides and swings along with devices meant to massage muscles.
I saw one clever Chinese kid tie a tennis ball to a brick with a rubber string so that he could hit it and have it come back to him.
And there were people of all ages playing badminton.
The Adopted Children of the Shamian Island
The White Swan Hotel is filled with children. And all around Shamian Island you will find small boutique stores selling clothing and toys for children. Then you will notice that across the street from the Christ Church there is the American Consulate.
Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of families - mostly from the U.S. - come to Guangzhou, to Shamian Island, to finalize the last remaining procedures in the adoption of a Chinese child.
General Notes on Chinese Adoption
1. There are direct flights from L.A. in the U.S. to Guangzhou.
2. Many U.S. families (also Germans and Spanish) adopt Chinese children through the CCAA which is the Chinese Center for Adoption.
3. The White Swan Hotel accommodates many families who are adopting Chinese children since the U.S. consulate is just next door.
4. The application process for a Chinese child is about 18 months and costs about $18,000 U.S.
5. With open adoption in the U.S. there is no guarantee that the adopting couple or family will be able to keep the child after its birth - even after spending time and money with the pregnant mother who wants to give up the child.
6. The majority of adopted Chinese children are girls - this is a result of China's "one child" family policy for families. This results in extreme pressure to ensure that the first child is a boy. If the child is not a boy then it is not uncommon to abandon or kill the 1st born girl.
7. The date of birth for most of the adopted children is unknown. Many of these children were simply left in a bamboo basket in a location where they were sure to be found.
8. Adopting parents usually can not go to the Chinese orphanage where their adoptive child was cared for.
9. The Chinese government pairs parents with a child - this process guarantees a child to the parents who want to adopt.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
June 11th - Macau
I went to Hong Kong with the intention of going to Man Mo Temple - one of the oldest in H.K. - but instead after going to the post office I ended up at the Hong Kong Macau Ferry Terminal and took the ferry to Macau. I was only there for about 5 to 6 hours.
I walked an incredible amount in the limited time I had in Macau. I walked from the H.K. Macau Ferry Pier south along Avenida da Amizada. On this street I headed toward The Sands Casino which was massive and sleek. I entered it after passing the metal detectors and felt like I was back in Las Vegas - only all the patrons were of Asian descent. Ideas began to flood my mind for The Dark Legacy book Tribe that I will write. While there I could only think of my father and the many times I went to Las Vegas with him as a kid.
After the casino I continued down Avenida da Amizade until I arrived at Alameda Doutor Carlos D'Assumpcao which is a wonderful park walkway lined with a unique kind of banyan tree that had thin brown roots flowing down from its branches. Elderly Chinese men and women were sitting on a few benches along this walkway passing time with their gossip and chats.
At the end of the path I found the Kum Iam Statue which was actually off-limits. I t was a large bronze statues of feminine curves which was appropriate for a statue dedicated to a female Buddhist.
After that I continued west along Avenida Dr. Sun Yat Sen (the father of the Chinese Republic - 1911) following it until I went around the long curve of Rua da Praia do Bom Parto until it intersected with Avenida do Doutor Mario Soares. I followed that street south to a roundabout and there I found the famous Lisboa Casino.
Lisboa Casino Notes:
The 3rd floor is for members and VIP's only.
The 2nd floor is for smokers. The carpet on this floor was disgusting. Its corners were filled with cigarette ash and burns. The air was cloudy and thick from all the smoke.
The first floor is crammed with people. There was not enough space between all the people and gambling tables to move through. At times I needed to squeeze through the doors to get from one crowded room to the other.
Generally speaking the Lisboa Casino is poorly designed. Its very crammed and not impressive since the carpets and walls are old and fading. Its a dumpy place in my opinion.
Immigration
Going through immigration in both Macau and Hong Kong reveals that both territories are heavily "afraid" and concerned with the potential SARS problem. I had to fill out a Health Declaration Card and as I waited to check in with the Immigration Officer an infrared camera scrolled up and down checking my body's temperature.
This is the same case in Singapore. These 3 city-states that are financially powerful are all heavily concerned with SARS.
After the Lisboa Casino
After the casino I had a bite to eat and then I went on a hard walk/run to see the only wall remaining of St. Paul's Cathedral - it was destroyed by a typhoon. Interesting enough the cathedral was "designed by an Italian, built by the Japanese, and attended by the Portuguese."
From there I went to the Camoes Gardens and saw the Old Protestant cemetery where I believe one of Winston Churchills great uncles was buried.
In the northern part of Macau I walked down Avenida Do Coronel Mesquita seeking the Kun Iam Temple which I found but it was closed. From there I walked all the way back to the Macau Hong Kong Ferry Terminal.
General Thoughts on Macau:
Macau is tiny and seems to be the playground for rich Hong Kong and mainland Chinese tycoons and middleclass businessmen. In the Casino's you will find masses of Chinese, Macau, and Hong Kong men and women of various classes and work backgrounds. The VIP sections are obviously reserved for the high rollers who could not be seen with or mingle with the masses of "commoners".
At The Sands Casino it looked like the main clientele were well-off or well-to-do middle class individuals - mostly tourists from China and Hong Kong. The Lisboa Casino on the other hand seemed to be more popular for local Macau residents - some of whom - or most of whom - seemed to be not-so-well-to-do addicts of the various gambling games. More of a rough crowd really when compared to the Sands.
Macau as a whole though is very unique and surprising. It most definitely has the look and feel of Lisboa, Portugal; and it is so odd to see it populated by Chinese residents (Portuguese residents in Macau make up about 2 to 3 percent of the population). The buildings with their Portuguese influenced balconies have curved grills that guard the windows. This is uniquely Macau for you do not see this type of architectural design in Hong Kong or China.
The streets of Macau curve and turn in sporadic directions very much in the tradition of old streets in Mediterranean towns.
And strangely the Chinese residents seem to have acquired a bit of the mannerisms and feel of the Portuguese. They seem laid back, dedicated to family. You will see old Chinese men sitting on chairs on the sidewalk or in round-about parks watching the young go quickly by.
On the darker side though it is apparent that Macau also serves as the Sex Disneyland for Hong Kong and mainland Chinese men. Go to the Hong Kong Macau Ferry Terminal in Hong Kong and you will see many, many sex tourist shops offering hotel/casino/and strip club deals that surely includes a night or more with a prostitute.
Macau is famed for its Triads (Chinese gangs) who traffic and run prostitution rings, drugs, engage in money laundering, gambling, extortion, and robbery.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
I went to Hong Kong with the intention of going to Man Mo Temple - one of the oldest in H.K. - but instead after going to the post office I ended up at the Hong Kong Macau Ferry Terminal and took the ferry to Macau. I was only there for about 5 to 6 hours.
I walked an incredible amount in the limited time I had in Macau. I walked from the H.K. Macau Ferry Pier south along Avenida da Amizada. On this street I headed toward The Sands Casino which was massive and sleek. I entered it after passing the metal detectors and felt like I was back in Las Vegas - only all the patrons were of Asian descent. Ideas began to flood my mind for The Dark Legacy book Tribe that I will write. While there I could only think of my father and the many times I went to Las Vegas with him as a kid.
After the casino I continued down Avenida da Amizade until I arrived at Alameda Doutor Carlos D'Assumpcao which is a wonderful park walkway lined with a unique kind of banyan tree that had thin brown roots flowing down from its branches. Elderly Chinese men and women were sitting on a few benches along this walkway passing time with their gossip and chats.
At the end of the path I found the Kum Iam Statue which was actually off-limits. I t was a large bronze statues of feminine curves which was appropriate for a statue dedicated to a female Buddhist.
After that I continued west along Avenida Dr. Sun Yat Sen (the father of the Chinese Republic - 1911) following it until I went around the long curve of Rua da Praia do Bom Parto until it intersected with Avenida do Doutor Mario Soares. I followed that street south to a roundabout and there I found the famous Lisboa Casino.
Lisboa Casino Notes:
The 3rd floor is for members and VIP's only.
The 2nd floor is for smokers. The carpet on this floor was disgusting. Its corners were filled with cigarette ash and burns. The air was cloudy and thick from all the smoke.
The first floor is crammed with people. There was not enough space between all the people and gambling tables to move through. At times I needed to squeeze through the doors to get from one crowded room to the other.
Generally speaking the Lisboa Casino is poorly designed. Its very crammed and not impressive since the carpets and walls are old and fading. Its a dumpy place in my opinion.
Immigration
Going through immigration in both Macau and Hong Kong reveals that both territories are heavily "afraid" and concerned with the potential SARS problem. I had to fill out a Health Declaration Card and as I waited to check in with the Immigration Officer an infrared camera scrolled up and down checking my body's temperature.
This is the same case in Singapore. These 3 city-states that are financially powerful are all heavily concerned with SARS.
After the Lisboa Casino
After the casino I had a bite to eat and then I went on a hard walk/run to see the only wall remaining of St. Paul's Cathedral - it was destroyed by a typhoon. Interesting enough the cathedral was "designed by an Italian, built by the Japanese, and attended by the Portuguese."
From there I went to the Camoes Gardens and saw the Old Protestant cemetery where I believe one of Winston Churchills great uncles was buried.
In the northern part of Macau I walked down Avenida Do Coronel Mesquita seeking the Kun Iam Temple which I found but it was closed. From there I walked all the way back to the Macau Hong Kong Ferry Terminal.
General Thoughts on Macau:
Macau is tiny and seems to be the playground for rich Hong Kong and mainland Chinese tycoons and middleclass businessmen. In the Casino's you will find masses of Chinese, Macau, and Hong Kong men and women of various classes and work backgrounds. The VIP sections are obviously reserved for the high rollers who could not be seen with or mingle with the masses of "commoners".
At The Sands Casino it looked like the main clientele were well-off or well-to-do middle class individuals - mostly tourists from China and Hong Kong. The Lisboa Casino on the other hand seemed to be more popular for local Macau residents - some of whom - or most of whom - seemed to be not-so-well-to-do addicts of the various gambling games. More of a rough crowd really when compared to the Sands.
Macau as a whole though is very unique and surprising. It most definitely has the look and feel of Lisboa, Portugal; and it is so odd to see it populated by Chinese residents (Portuguese residents in Macau make up about 2 to 3 percent of the population). The buildings with their Portuguese influenced balconies have curved grills that guard the windows. This is uniquely Macau for you do not see this type of architectural design in Hong Kong or China.
The streets of Macau curve and turn in sporadic directions very much in the tradition of old streets in Mediterranean towns.
And strangely the Chinese residents seem to have acquired a bit of the mannerisms and feel of the Portuguese. They seem laid back, dedicated to family. You will see old Chinese men sitting on chairs on the sidewalk or in round-about parks watching the young go quickly by.
On the darker side though it is apparent that Macau also serves as the Sex Disneyland for Hong Kong and mainland Chinese men. Go to the Hong Kong Macau Ferry Terminal in Hong Kong and you will see many, many sex tourist shops offering hotel/casino/and strip club deals that surely includes a night or more with a prostitute.
Macau is famed for its Triads (Chinese gangs) who traffic and run prostitution rings, drugs, engage in money laundering, gambling, extortion, and robbery.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
Captain's Log - Stardate 09.555.4434.3
June 9th - Hong Kong
The Hand that Touched the Concrete Hand of Jackie Chan
I spent part of the morning walking through Kowloon Park before heading south and walking along the promenade that had a "walk of Hong Kong film fame." Hong Kong has an impressive and productive film industry and many famous Hong Kong actors and actresses had a star on the promenade complete with their hand print in concrete. Most of the names I saw I did not recognize except for: Bruce Lee - no concrete hand print - Jet Li, and Chakie Chan.
Walking northeast along the promenade I came across a ferry shuttle and decided to board it to explore Hong Kong. It took no more than 5 to 7 minutes to cross Victoria Harbor to Hong Kong's Queen's Pier. There was a haze over the skyline so my pictures were simply o.k. An amazing blu sky filled with impressive cloud would have made them amazing.
I got off I was in Central standing just in front of City Hall. From there I walked to Connaught road and crossed the street to walk through the Cenotaph which was where "British servicemen held daily ceremonies for raising and lowering the flag." I then walked to the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank building which looks like a futuristic space station from the old movie, The Black Hole. When it was completed in 1985 it was the world's most expensive building "at almost a billion dollars." I dont understand why it was so expensive to build though. It is not terribly tall or that impressive to imagine that only 20 years ago it was the "most expensive" building of its time.
I eventually found myself at St. Johns Cathedral where I rested for an hour. 30 minutes in silence looking at my Natural Geographic China book and 30 minutes listening to a live piano recital.
From there I had lunch and then I went to the Peak Tram Terminal and took the tram up the mountain slopes of Hong Kong - sometimes ascending at a 45 degree angle - to Victoria's Peak.
The Peak was a shopping mall full of tourist gimmick crap and cheesy wax museums. Nothing too cultural but the view of Hong Kong is absolutely amazing. Most surprising though was to see that on the southern side of the peak was that it was nearly untouched. It was lush and full of beautiful trees and vegetation. I spent about an hour or two walking along the roads of Victoria's Peak admiring the natural surroundings and the multi-million dollar houses.
After descending I walked northwest along Upper Albert Road in search of Lan Kwai Fong which is a hang out area for expatriots to drink and eat after work. I believe I found aspects of it and along the way to it I found several posh Tibetan antique shops.
After that I walked and waited on the escalators near Soho which all together is the longest escalator in the world. It takes about 20 minutes to ascend to Conduit Road. From there I descended and found a market selling hyper-clean fish and meats. This was the cleanest outdoor food market I had come across on this trip.
General Hong Kong Notes:
1. Massage parlors, Saunas, Kareoke bars - some if not most of these are fronts for prostitution rackets. Newspaper kiosks sell porn and comic porn.
2. Traffic lights - the walking alarm bell sounds like percussive cowbells being struck in 16th note patterns.
3. Some cell phones are simply a sleek plastic bar, attached to the ear freeing both hands - Japan doesnt have this!
3. City buses are clean double deckers with monitors within advertising products and other stuff you dont need.
June 10th - Kowloon
I went shopping for clothes and went to see the movie Lady Killers which I enjoyed - "hippydy hop".
Simply said - I took it easy today in Kowloon.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
June 9th - Hong Kong
The Hand that Touched the Concrete Hand of Jackie Chan
I spent part of the morning walking through Kowloon Park before heading south and walking along the promenade that had a "walk of Hong Kong film fame." Hong Kong has an impressive and productive film industry and many famous Hong Kong actors and actresses had a star on the promenade complete with their hand print in concrete. Most of the names I saw I did not recognize except for: Bruce Lee - no concrete hand print - Jet Li, and Chakie Chan.
Walking northeast along the promenade I came across a ferry shuttle and decided to board it to explore Hong Kong. It took no more than 5 to 7 minutes to cross Victoria Harbor to Hong Kong's Queen's Pier. There was a haze over the skyline so my pictures were simply o.k. An amazing blu sky filled with impressive cloud would have made them amazing.
I got off I was in Central standing just in front of City Hall. From there I walked to Connaught road and crossed the street to walk through the Cenotaph which was where "British servicemen held daily ceremonies for raising and lowering the flag." I then walked to the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank building which looks like a futuristic space station from the old movie, The Black Hole. When it was completed in 1985 it was the world's most expensive building "at almost a billion dollars." I dont understand why it was so expensive to build though. It is not terribly tall or that impressive to imagine that only 20 years ago it was the "most expensive" building of its time.
I eventually found myself at St. Johns Cathedral where I rested for an hour. 30 minutes in silence looking at my Natural Geographic China book and 30 minutes listening to a live piano recital.
From there I had lunch and then I went to the Peak Tram Terminal and took the tram up the mountain slopes of Hong Kong - sometimes ascending at a 45 degree angle - to Victoria's Peak.
The Peak was a shopping mall full of tourist gimmick crap and cheesy wax museums. Nothing too cultural but the view of Hong Kong is absolutely amazing. Most surprising though was to see that on the southern side of the peak was that it was nearly untouched. It was lush and full of beautiful trees and vegetation. I spent about an hour or two walking along the roads of Victoria's Peak admiring the natural surroundings and the multi-million dollar houses.
After descending I walked northwest along Upper Albert Road in search of Lan Kwai Fong which is a hang out area for expatriots to drink and eat after work. I believe I found aspects of it and along the way to it I found several posh Tibetan antique shops.
After that I walked and waited on the escalators near Soho which all together is the longest escalator in the world. It takes about 20 minutes to ascend to Conduit Road. From there I descended and found a market selling hyper-clean fish and meats. This was the cleanest outdoor food market I had come across on this trip.
General Hong Kong Notes:
1. Massage parlors, Saunas, Kareoke bars - some if not most of these are fronts for prostitution rackets. Newspaper kiosks sell porn and comic porn.
2. Traffic lights - the walking alarm bell sounds like percussive cowbells being struck in 16th note patterns.
3. Some cell phones are simply a sleek plastic bar, attached to the ear freeing both hands - Japan doesnt have this!
3. City buses are clean double deckers with monitors within advertising products and other stuff you dont need.
June 10th - Kowloon
I went shopping for clothes and went to see the movie Lady Killers which I enjoyed - "hippydy hop".
Simply said - I took it easy today in Kowloon.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
Final Hong Kong Notes - June 8th to the 12th
I was in Hong King from June 8th to the 12th. I flew from Hanoi to Hong Kong International Airport which is on Lantau Island. Although I would have preferred to have entered China by land from Vietnam I was actually pleased to have been introduced to Hong Kong by entering it through its ultra-modern, ultra-efficient, and ultra-clean airport. After two months of traveling through Southeast Asia it was a relief to arrive into the familiar and modern surroundings of Hong Kong's airport.
But I must say that it was a sort of shock too to rejoin the modern world through the H.K. airport. It seemed unnatural to walk through such a sterile environment. I had spent weeks traveling over the rough terrains and conditions of Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. Although it was tough I must admit that I enjoyed the unpredictability of traveling through those nations. In Hong Kong though everything works like a fine time piece. Nothing too unexpected is to be expected. Things occur and happen as they should. Life in H.K. - and the "modern" world in general - is built on being stable, predictable, and safe. Thus something is lost. Life in the "modern world" becomes mundane again for the traveler - such as I.
After buying my shuttle train ticket by pressing a few selections on a touch sensitive screen I walked to the train platform within the H.K. airport. Men in clean uniforms helped various passengers unburden themselves of their bags. And when the train arrived they helped the passengers place their bags in the baggage area within the train.
I was impressed with this airport shuttle train. It was cleaner than any Tokyo train I had ever been on - which almost seems impossible to achieve if you have ever experienced Tokyo trains and subways - and I was also amazed to see that the backs of the head-rests had a monitor for passengers to look at to pass the time. The monitor - just like one you would find on a new 747 plane - displayed a map of Lantau Island, Kowloon, and Hong Kong island showing the trains progress in nearing its destinations.
Out the window I saw the mountainous terrains of Lantau and all the incredibly tall sky-scraper like apartment complexes nestled between. It was truly awesome to see so many magnificent apartment high-rises - clean and massive - neighboring lush mountainous slopes. It was a beautiful balance between man-made homes and structures and nature.
And as the train rushed through tunnels my ears would pop; reminding me how fast we were traveling.
I, after making an error as to where to get off the train, finally arrived at Tsim Sha Tsui (which translates into 9 Dragons). I loved what I found upon exiting the subway station: massive apartment complexes, dirty and grimy, full of interesting and unusual characters walking into and out of them. I was quickly approached by a tout and before I knew it I was secured a room - the tiniest I have so far found on this trip - in the Mirador Mansion. Changking Mansion is the counterpart to the Mirador. They are both gigantic apartment complexes - nearly a tiny city in it-self - near the southern end of Nathan Road. Both complexes are full of backpacker guest houses.
The Mirador reminded me much of the gritty but enormous living quarters that all the fictional characters of Zion - from the second Matrix movie - lived in. The Mirador nearly takes up an entire city block. Although it is square in shape its center is void so that the interior 4 sides of the Mirador all face a square open area.
My room was located on the 8th floor. I would usually take the stairs to ascend and descend. Usually before I would descend I would stand in the staircase and look down below to see a mass of rusted buckets and piled up metallic junk cluttered between the large ventilators and machines that powered or cooled the building. Other than that, there was simply a white floor area - platform - where no one was permitted to walk on.
From this sight I would then look up at all the floors that were full of a curious blend of apartment homes for ethnic families from Bangladesh, India, or from some countries in Africa, and tailor shops and guest houses. Although the original intent of the Mirador was to be a strict apartment complex it did not stop various entrepreneurs on the lower end of the Hong Kong economic spectrum to convert these apartments into places of labor and work. It seemed like every floor had several tailor or dry cleaning shops. Which was convenient since the 1st and 2nd floors had the tailor shops - clean and tidy - to attract customers and the counterpart tailor shop where the suits and dresses were actually made just a few floors above.
Guest houses converted these apartments to have 4 to 5 or more tiny rooms with bath for backpackers willing to pay $15 to $25 a night. I loved my tiny room. I had a view of a street that ran perpendicular to Nathan Road. I could see the business offices across the street and other apartments complexes with hundreds of air conditioners sticking out from the sides of these buildings which were positioned right above individual windows. At night or in the morning a I would look out I would feel like I was living in the apartment complex that Harrison Ford's character lived in in the movie Blade Runner.
General Observations of Hong Kong:
1. The number of air-conditioners sticking out from the 4 to 5 to 6 to 7 to 9 to 10 storey high apartment complexes is probably half the number of people living in Hong Kong. Any time you look up at an apartment complex you will see a terrible number of these air-cons just above the hundreds of apartment windows dripping drops of water upon the sidewalk. As I walked up and down Nathan road I either saw a wet line on the sidewalk caused by the constant drip of the air-conditioners or felt the droplets themselves fall upon my shoulder or my head or glasses. But no one seems to mind; its just water.
2. The teenage girls in Hong Kong dress very much like the girls in Tokyo. They seem to have the same sense of punky fashion. Sometimes I found myself wondering if the girl I saw in a coffee shop or on the street was Japanese. I would then wait a moment and then I could tell that she was indeed a Hong Kong girl due to her mannerisms, the way she spoke, and her hand gestures. Japanese girls do not wave their hands around drastically as they speak. And they speak softly whereas Hong Kong girls and Chinese girls nearly scream. Japanese girls hold their body in a conservative fashion. Hong Kong girls and Chinese girls use a lot of exaggerated body motions when they speak.
3. There are narrow alleys and staircases throughout Kowloon. Although the main streets are wide and building complexes large, alleys are narrow - this is really of no surprise - and staircases of buildings that are 2 to 3 storeys are also narrow. Walk down any street that is perpendicular or parallel to Nathan road and you will find Mom and Pop shops with apartments on the 2nd floor and narrow staircases leading up to them.
4. If you walk awhile north on Nathan road and then begin exploring the streets parallel or perpendicular to Nathan road you will notice that certain streets or blocks are dedicated to a specific type of product or industry. I found a street full of shops dedicated to the sale of fabric.
5. Generally speaking Kowloon is clean and tidy. It seems very safe and well-run. And Hong Kong itself is even more clean and sterile. I prefer Kowloon though. It has more character and personality than Hong Kong which is simply too clean for my tastes.
6. Women - and men - in Hong Kong are loud and aggressive when compared to the Japanese. In one case I saw a street cleaner woman screaming at her male co-worker. But, it turned out that she was simply excited in the telling of her story and as a result was screaming. This is very un-Japanese behavior. Use of language in public is a "no-no" in Japan. The people in Hong Kong are enthusiastic and loud in public.
7. Mirador Mansion is full of oddities: guest houses, tailor shops, sliding cages over doors, clothes hanging to dry (bras, underwear, pants, etc.) within hands reach in hallways and near staircases, sketchy Indian and African men hanging outside the main entrances into the Mirador. Also, there is a 7-11 convenient store on the south side of the Mirador that is full of African men hanging within it and also outside of it.
8. Found a "turtle soup" shop. Other shops will have chickens - dead and fried - hanging from their windows with their heads fully intact. Giant knives are used to hack them apart. When you eat them you spend more effort on trying to rid your meal of the bones than enjoying it.
9. Neon signs stretch out trying to conquer as much space as possible over the street.
More notes on Hong Kong to come . . .
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
I was in Hong King from June 8th to the 12th. I flew from Hanoi to Hong Kong International Airport which is on Lantau Island. Although I would have preferred to have entered China by land from Vietnam I was actually pleased to have been introduced to Hong Kong by entering it through its ultra-modern, ultra-efficient, and ultra-clean airport. After two months of traveling through Southeast Asia it was a relief to arrive into the familiar and modern surroundings of Hong Kong's airport.
But I must say that it was a sort of shock too to rejoin the modern world through the H.K. airport. It seemed unnatural to walk through such a sterile environment. I had spent weeks traveling over the rough terrains and conditions of Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. Although it was tough I must admit that I enjoyed the unpredictability of traveling through those nations. In Hong Kong though everything works like a fine time piece. Nothing too unexpected is to be expected. Things occur and happen as they should. Life in H.K. - and the "modern" world in general - is built on being stable, predictable, and safe. Thus something is lost. Life in the "modern world" becomes mundane again for the traveler - such as I.
After buying my shuttle train ticket by pressing a few selections on a touch sensitive screen I walked to the train platform within the H.K. airport. Men in clean uniforms helped various passengers unburden themselves of their bags. And when the train arrived they helped the passengers place their bags in the baggage area within the train.
I was impressed with this airport shuttle train. It was cleaner than any Tokyo train I had ever been on - which almost seems impossible to achieve if you have ever experienced Tokyo trains and subways - and I was also amazed to see that the backs of the head-rests had a monitor for passengers to look at to pass the time. The monitor - just like one you would find on a new 747 plane - displayed a map of Lantau Island, Kowloon, and Hong Kong island showing the trains progress in nearing its destinations.
Out the window I saw the mountainous terrains of Lantau and all the incredibly tall sky-scraper like apartment complexes nestled between. It was truly awesome to see so many magnificent apartment high-rises - clean and massive - neighboring lush mountainous slopes. It was a beautiful balance between man-made homes and structures and nature.
And as the train rushed through tunnels my ears would pop; reminding me how fast we were traveling.
I, after making an error as to where to get off the train, finally arrived at Tsim Sha Tsui (which translates into 9 Dragons). I loved what I found upon exiting the subway station: massive apartment complexes, dirty and grimy, full of interesting and unusual characters walking into and out of them. I was quickly approached by a tout and before I knew it I was secured a room - the tiniest I have so far found on this trip - in the Mirador Mansion. Changking Mansion is the counterpart to the Mirador. They are both gigantic apartment complexes - nearly a tiny city in it-self - near the southern end of Nathan Road. Both complexes are full of backpacker guest houses.
The Mirador reminded me much of the gritty but enormous living quarters that all the fictional characters of Zion - from the second Matrix movie - lived in. The Mirador nearly takes up an entire city block. Although it is square in shape its center is void so that the interior 4 sides of the Mirador all face a square open area.
My room was located on the 8th floor. I would usually take the stairs to ascend and descend. Usually before I would descend I would stand in the staircase and look down below to see a mass of rusted buckets and piled up metallic junk cluttered between the large ventilators and machines that powered or cooled the building. Other than that, there was simply a white floor area - platform - where no one was permitted to walk on.
From this sight I would then look up at all the floors that were full of a curious blend of apartment homes for ethnic families from Bangladesh, India, or from some countries in Africa, and tailor shops and guest houses. Although the original intent of the Mirador was to be a strict apartment complex it did not stop various entrepreneurs on the lower end of the Hong Kong economic spectrum to convert these apartments into places of labor and work. It seemed like every floor had several tailor or dry cleaning shops. Which was convenient since the 1st and 2nd floors had the tailor shops - clean and tidy - to attract customers and the counterpart tailor shop where the suits and dresses were actually made just a few floors above.
Guest houses converted these apartments to have 4 to 5 or more tiny rooms with bath for backpackers willing to pay $15 to $25 a night. I loved my tiny room. I had a view of a street that ran perpendicular to Nathan Road. I could see the business offices across the street and other apartments complexes with hundreds of air conditioners sticking out from the sides of these buildings which were positioned right above individual windows. At night or in the morning a I would look out I would feel like I was living in the apartment complex that Harrison Ford's character lived in in the movie Blade Runner.
General Observations of Hong Kong:
1. The number of air-conditioners sticking out from the 4 to 5 to 6 to 7 to 9 to 10 storey high apartment complexes is probably half the number of people living in Hong Kong. Any time you look up at an apartment complex you will see a terrible number of these air-cons just above the hundreds of apartment windows dripping drops of water upon the sidewalk. As I walked up and down Nathan road I either saw a wet line on the sidewalk caused by the constant drip of the air-conditioners or felt the droplets themselves fall upon my shoulder or my head or glasses. But no one seems to mind; its just water.
2. The teenage girls in Hong Kong dress very much like the girls in Tokyo. They seem to have the same sense of punky fashion. Sometimes I found myself wondering if the girl I saw in a coffee shop or on the street was Japanese. I would then wait a moment and then I could tell that she was indeed a Hong Kong girl due to her mannerisms, the way she spoke, and her hand gestures. Japanese girls do not wave their hands around drastically as they speak. And they speak softly whereas Hong Kong girls and Chinese girls nearly scream. Japanese girls hold their body in a conservative fashion. Hong Kong girls and Chinese girls use a lot of exaggerated body motions when they speak.
3. There are narrow alleys and staircases throughout Kowloon. Although the main streets are wide and building complexes large, alleys are narrow - this is really of no surprise - and staircases of buildings that are 2 to 3 storeys are also narrow. Walk down any street that is perpendicular or parallel to Nathan road and you will find Mom and Pop shops with apartments on the 2nd floor and narrow staircases leading up to them.
4. If you walk awhile north on Nathan road and then begin exploring the streets parallel or perpendicular to Nathan road you will notice that certain streets or blocks are dedicated to a specific type of product or industry. I found a street full of shops dedicated to the sale of fabric.
5. Generally speaking Kowloon is clean and tidy. It seems very safe and well-run. And Hong Kong itself is even more clean and sterile. I prefer Kowloon though. It has more character and personality than Hong Kong which is simply too clean for my tastes.
6. Women - and men - in Hong Kong are loud and aggressive when compared to the Japanese. In one case I saw a street cleaner woman screaming at her male co-worker. But, it turned out that she was simply excited in the telling of her story and as a result was screaming. This is very un-Japanese behavior. Use of language in public is a "no-no" in Japan. The people in Hong Kong are enthusiastic and loud in public.
7. Mirador Mansion is full of oddities: guest houses, tailor shops, sliding cages over doors, clothes hanging to dry (bras, underwear, pants, etc.) within hands reach in hallways and near staircases, sketchy Indian and African men hanging outside the main entrances into the Mirador. Also, there is a 7-11 convenient store on the south side of the Mirador that is full of African men hanging within it and also outside of it.
8. Found a "turtle soup" shop. Other shops will have chickens - dead and fried - hanging from their windows with their heads fully intact. Giant knives are used to hack them apart. When you eat them you spend more effort on trying to rid your meal of the bones than enjoying it.
9. Neon signs stretch out trying to conquer as much space as possible over the street.
More notes on Hong Kong to come . . .
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
Monday, June 14, 2004
June 15th, 2004 - Shanghai, China - Internet Censorship Issues
Please be informed that I will have a bit of difficulty to update this blogspot as I am currently in China where a website such as this is - as I have found in certain web cafe's in Guangzhou and Shanghai - prohibited to view. This is one form of government restriction (internet censorship) that I find ridiculous. As a result I will be keeping a hard copy journal of my experiences and travels in China and will post them on this site some time after July 10th (my date of exit from The People's Republic of China).
Until my next Journal Entry :)
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
Please be informed that I will have a bit of difficulty to update this blogspot as I am currently in China where a website such as this is - as I have found in certain web cafe's in Guangzhou and Shanghai - prohibited to view. This is one form of government restriction (internet censorship) that I find ridiculous. As a result I will be keeping a hard copy journal of my experiences and travels in China and will post them on this site some time after July 10th (my date of exit from The People's Republic of China).
Until my next Journal Entry :)
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
Wednesday, June 09, 2004
Hanoi, Vietnam to Hong Kong - June 8th, 2004 of the Common Era
Yes, I flew from Hanoi Vietnam to Hong Kong. Although I have loved the rustle and bustle of traveling by land via bus and train I must admit that it was extremely nice to travel by place again. I flew Vietnamese Airlines. A nice airline it was.
I sat in an aisle seat so I was not able to see Hong Kong on our descent into the city.
Now, as I have mentioned in a previous journal entry, I do not consider Hong Kong to be apart of China. I know on paper and on political maps that Hong Kong and Macau are "technically" apart of the China motherland . . . blah blah blah. Since China practices a "One Country, Two System" Special Administrative Region blah blah blah with Hong Kong and Macau in my mind Hong Kong and Macau are both still their own city-state countries. I strongly feel like this for this reason.
I have a Chinese visa. Originally I was going to travel from Hanoi by land into southern China - thus activating my Chinese visa. But, as I learned, if I wanted to go into Hong Kong from China then my Chinese visa would immediately expire and if I wanted to return to the Chinese main land from Hong Kong then I would have to apply for another Chinese visa. What the hell? Is Hong Kong apart of China or not? Since my Chinese visa does not include Hong Kong then in my mind Hong Kong is not apart of China and thus its own separate country. Simply said I can add Hong Kong on my list of countries visited . . . hee hee hee.
Hong Kong = 3 parts Tokyo + 2 parts New York
Im happy though that things worked out so that I could fly into Hong Kong because their airport and airport train system is a marvel in and of itself. The airport is hyper clean and efficient and their airport train system rivals that of any Japanese train system - and that is saying a hell of a lot. To begin with I approached the airport train with my bag, which sat on a cart that I rolled, and was met with a uniformed gentlemen that lifted my bag off the cart, took the cart and parked it, and then when the train arrived too my bag and placed it into a luggage holding area within the train. Now that is what I call service. All the seats in the train have a monitor screen on the back side of the head rest so that you can see the progress of the train on a digital map as it travels from Lantau island to Kowloon to Hong Kong. The train is fast, your ears will pop as you travel through tunnels. Out the window of the train I got my first glimpses of Hong Kong. My only thoughts were that I wanted to live here. I have never seen so many sky-scraper apartment buildings in my life. They were all clean and organized and carefully placed between the many hills and mountains that define the topography of Hong Kong.
I ended up in Tsim Sha Tsui which is on a penninsula that points right at the Hong Kong skyline. Tsim Sha Tsui is described by most people who live here as the decrepit part of Hong Kong. It is full of massive low-income apartment buildings, sketchy camera and electronic shops, men from Bangladesh and India trying to woo you into their tailor shops, and working girls that walk the streets at night, along with suspicious sauna's and massage parlors that advertise in Chinese, English, and Japanese.
As soon as I walked out of the Tsim Sha Tsui train station I was approached by a man from Bangladesh who wanted to show me a Guest House room in the Mirador Mansion.
In Tsim Sha Tsui there are two massive apartment buildings that are a hot spot for back packers to spend the night in. They are the Chungking Mansion and the Mirador Mansion. To most "middle-class" people I suspect that they would be afraid to stay in such a place. It is full of low-lifes, people screaming, porn shops, cheap tourist shops, and sketchy electronic shops. The public walls of these two buildings are covered with dried stains of various drinks and foods and maybe . . . blood? - No, just joking. The place is full of grime and dirt. It essentially needs a good long bath.
I followed the man from Bandladesh to a small shop within the Mirador Building that sold paintings. Somehow this shop was the check in desk for the Guest House. After grabbing some keys he took me into an elevator. We got out on the 8th floor and walked to what looked like the door to an apartment. He opened it up and I could immediately see that this apartment was renovated into becoming five individual rooms. I chose the room with a window.
My room is tiny. There is only room for a lofted bed and a bathroom. My bathroom is also tiny. A sink and toilet is smashed into it so that when I take a shower I am nearly standing in my toilet.
But, the view from my room is fantastic. I honestly feel like Im in the movie Blade Runner. The apartment building across the street from my window is a massive concrete block of grime and filth. Hundreds of air conditioners that are decades old extend from nearly every brown tinted window on the building. I honestly feel like Im in the China Town of New York in the year 2040.
After relaxing a bit and figuring out how to use the air conditioner I took a long, long stroll down Nathan road. I was headed north. Away from Hong Kong and into the guts of Kowloon. The road is lined with shops, shops, and shops. From where I started there were plenty of designer shops but the farther north I traveled the less I saw of these types of shops. Instead I found Chinese restaurants, massage parlors, clothing shops, and game centers.
The amazing thing to see with my very own eyes was the construction done on buildings. Buildings are built and renovated with the aid and use of bamboo! Yes, you will see elaborate grids of bamboo tied together all the way up the sides of buildings so that workers can construct or fix buildings. Absolutely fascinating.
Massive neon signs jet out from the sides of the buildings as if trying to attack the air above the streets.
All in all though Hong Kong reminds me very much of New York and Tokyo. It has the feel of Tokyo in that their taxi's are the same (in Tokyo they are black Toyota town cars, and in Hong Kong they are red and white Toyota town cars), there are neon signs popping out from the sides of buildings advertising everything imaginable, coporate skyscrapers lighting up the night sky, etc. It has the feel of New York in that the people shot, honk their car horns, and that the buildings are old and brick and faded after decades of use. In Tokyo buildings have a life span of about 30 years - so everything looks new - not old.
So, Hong Kong.
It is simply this. Three parts Tokyo and two parts New York.
Now, the Hong Kong skyline. At night I walked to Star Ferry Pier and saw the most amazing city skyline I have ever seen in my entire life. Yes, it was amazing. i have never seen a city skyline as impressive as the Hong Kong one. It is a marvel and a tribute to what man may accomplish. I sat and stared at the fine work of architecture before me and all the corporate logo's seeking my attention - AIA, Sanyo, Sharp, Sony, Panasonic, Epson, TCL, Nikon, LG, Hitachi, Olympus, Allianz, Philips, Canon, Onward, Marriott, CMG, Principal, Renesas, citigroup, and Cosco.
I need to rest these fingers from the keyboard.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
Yes, I flew from Hanoi Vietnam to Hong Kong. Although I have loved the rustle and bustle of traveling by land via bus and train I must admit that it was extremely nice to travel by place again. I flew Vietnamese Airlines. A nice airline it was.
I sat in an aisle seat so I was not able to see Hong Kong on our descent into the city.
Now, as I have mentioned in a previous journal entry, I do not consider Hong Kong to be apart of China. I know on paper and on political maps that Hong Kong and Macau are "technically" apart of the China motherland . . . blah blah blah. Since China practices a "One Country, Two System" Special Administrative Region blah blah blah with Hong Kong and Macau in my mind Hong Kong and Macau are both still their own city-state countries. I strongly feel like this for this reason.
I have a Chinese visa. Originally I was going to travel from Hanoi by land into southern China - thus activating my Chinese visa. But, as I learned, if I wanted to go into Hong Kong from China then my Chinese visa would immediately expire and if I wanted to return to the Chinese main land from Hong Kong then I would have to apply for another Chinese visa. What the hell? Is Hong Kong apart of China or not? Since my Chinese visa does not include Hong Kong then in my mind Hong Kong is not apart of China and thus its own separate country. Simply said I can add Hong Kong on my list of countries visited . . . hee hee hee.
Hong Kong = 3 parts Tokyo + 2 parts New York
Im happy though that things worked out so that I could fly into Hong Kong because their airport and airport train system is a marvel in and of itself. The airport is hyper clean and efficient and their airport train system rivals that of any Japanese train system - and that is saying a hell of a lot. To begin with I approached the airport train with my bag, which sat on a cart that I rolled, and was met with a uniformed gentlemen that lifted my bag off the cart, took the cart and parked it, and then when the train arrived too my bag and placed it into a luggage holding area within the train. Now that is what I call service. All the seats in the train have a monitor screen on the back side of the head rest so that you can see the progress of the train on a digital map as it travels from Lantau island to Kowloon to Hong Kong. The train is fast, your ears will pop as you travel through tunnels. Out the window of the train I got my first glimpses of Hong Kong. My only thoughts were that I wanted to live here. I have never seen so many sky-scraper apartment buildings in my life. They were all clean and organized and carefully placed between the many hills and mountains that define the topography of Hong Kong.
I ended up in Tsim Sha Tsui which is on a penninsula that points right at the Hong Kong skyline. Tsim Sha Tsui is described by most people who live here as the decrepit part of Hong Kong. It is full of massive low-income apartment buildings, sketchy camera and electronic shops, men from Bangladesh and India trying to woo you into their tailor shops, and working girls that walk the streets at night, along with suspicious sauna's and massage parlors that advertise in Chinese, English, and Japanese.
As soon as I walked out of the Tsim Sha Tsui train station I was approached by a man from Bangladesh who wanted to show me a Guest House room in the Mirador Mansion.
In Tsim Sha Tsui there are two massive apartment buildings that are a hot spot for back packers to spend the night in. They are the Chungking Mansion and the Mirador Mansion. To most "middle-class" people I suspect that they would be afraid to stay in such a place. It is full of low-lifes, people screaming, porn shops, cheap tourist shops, and sketchy electronic shops. The public walls of these two buildings are covered with dried stains of various drinks and foods and maybe . . . blood? - No, just joking. The place is full of grime and dirt. It essentially needs a good long bath.
I followed the man from Bandladesh to a small shop within the Mirador Building that sold paintings. Somehow this shop was the check in desk for the Guest House. After grabbing some keys he took me into an elevator. We got out on the 8th floor and walked to what looked like the door to an apartment. He opened it up and I could immediately see that this apartment was renovated into becoming five individual rooms. I chose the room with a window.
My room is tiny. There is only room for a lofted bed and a bathroom. My bathroom is also tiny. A sink and toilet is smashed into it so that when I take a shower I am nearly standing in my toilet.
But, the view from my room is fantastic. I honestly feel like Im in the movie Blade Runner. The apartment building across the street from my window is a massive concrete block of grime and filth. Hundreds of air conditioners that are decades old extend from nearly every brown tinted window on the building. I honestly feel like Im in the China Town of New York in the year 2040.
After relaxing a bit and figuring out how to use the air conditioner I took a long, long stroll down Nathan road. I was headed north. Away from Hong Kong and into the guts of Kowloon. The road is lined with shops, shops, and shops. From where I started there were plenty of designer shops but the farther north I traveled the less I saw of these types of shops. Instead I found Chinese restaurants, massage parlors, clothing shops, and game centers.
The amazing thing to see with my very own eyes was the construction done on buildings. Buildings are built and renovated with the aid and use of bamboo! Yes, you will see elaborate grids of bamboo tied together all the way up the sides of buildings so that workers can construct or fix buildings. Absolutely fascinating.
Massive neon signs jet out from the sides of the buildings as if trying to attack the air above the streets.
All in all though Hong Kong reminds me very much of New York and Tokyo. It has the feel of Tokyo in that their taxi's are the same (in Tokyo they are black Toyota town cars, and in Hong Kong they are red and white Toyota town cars), there are neon signs popping out from the sides of buildings advertising everything imaginable, coporate skyscrapers lighting up the night sky, etc. It has the feel of New York in that the people shot, honk their car horns, and that the buildings are old and brick and faded after decades of use. In Tokyo buildings have a life span of about 30 years - so everything looks new - not old.
So, Hong Kong.
It is simply this. Three parts Tokyo and two parts New York.
Now, the Hong Kong skyline. At night I walked to Star Ferry Pier and saw the most amazing city skyline I have ever seen in my entire life. Yes, it was amazing. i have never seen a city skyline as impressive as the Hong Kong one. It is a marvel and a tribute to what man may accomplish. I sat and stared at the fine work of architecture before me and all the corporate logo's seeking my attention - AIA, Sanyo, Sharp, Sony, Panasonic, Epson, TCL, Nikon, LG, Hitachi, Olympus, Allianz, Philips, Canon, Onward, Marriott, CMG, Principal, Renesas, citigroup, and Cosco.
I need to rest these fingers from the keyboard.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
Hanoi: Part II - Ho Chi Minh and Me, June 6th
This was the day that I would begin my "Tour of Dead Communist Leaders". The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum faces the Hanoi Citadel. The Hanoi Citadel - from what I could tell - is a military fortress of some kind. I wanted to cross through the citadel via Cua Dong street but was deterred by Vietnamese soldiers guarding a gate entrance into the citadel. As a result Frederick (a friend I met in Saigon and was rooming with back at my hotel) and I walked south on Ly Nam De. Along this street I saw a fine example of Hanoi architectural charm. The street - as most streets in the Old Quarter of Hanoi - is lined with tall and beautiful trees. A few of these trees on Ly Nam De had grown dangerously close to a few apartment buildings and in some cases grew straight into a few balconies and buildings. But they were not viciously cut down by the city of Hanoi or by the residents of these buildings. There was a nice compromise in which the branches of the trees were simply permitted to grow into the balconies - damaging them a bit - but adding to a sense of harmony between these man-made buildings and the curiving and creeping nature of these trees.
As I continued to walk looking at these trees meld into these buildings I began to think of what Hanoi would be like when man has left and nature has retaken it. After seeing the glorious temples of Angkor Wat in Cambodia - once a magnificent Empire but now an awesome ruin - I began to wonder if in the centuries or milleniums to follow if Hanoi would be forgotten and one day re-discovered. What would be left of it if already the trees of the Old Quarter are slowly conquering it? The city, as I imagine it, would be a horrible ruin of jungle forests attacking and reclaiming this once pleasant city. The narrow roads would be torn up by tree roots and thick tree branches would interweeve straight into the buildings ripping apart their walls until they came crashing down. Yes, one day all cities must fall. You never know what the future may bring. A Roman Empreror would never have thought that all the glory of his Empire would one day fall . . . be forgotten and rediscovered.
It is a curiosity to think about the fact that perhaps one day in the far future Hanoi will be deserted and one day rediscovered. That one day it will become a tourist attraction for apathetic school children who would rather be doing something else than to see the famed "Ruins of Hanoi". Will people far in the future know how the determination of Hanoi and its Nationalist/Communist government defeated the unwinable war the great Empire of the U.S. tried to wage against it? How the Vietnam War plagued the hearts and minds of so many Americans for two to three generations? Perhaps not . . . this simply goes to show that all things must end, and be forgotten for a time. No matter how glorious the feat or accomplishment, no matter how significant the win or loss in war, no matter how many lives were lost, no matter how rich or powerful the government or country . . . it is all temporary and in the end . . . holds little meaning to the infinite bounds of time and nature.
My thoughts just went off there . . . my apologies.
It was my first time to a Mausoleum. I expected something huge and incredible. The mausoleum though is not that. It is sad and dark and unimpressive. Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum is not large. It is perhaps four storeys at the most. It is made mostly of black stone, as well as red stone. What is impressive though is the fact that there was a massive number of Vietnamese citizens lined up to see the man who had freed them from the grips of the West. That is what touched me the most. 30 years after his death there are still so many people who come to see what remains of this man who stood up against two powerful nations: France and the U.S.
Frederick tried to find the end of the line. We did not succeed. After checking in our cameras and buying a brochure that we were told was a ticket - but was not - Frederick and I ran in search of the end of the line. When we thought we had found it we simply found that it was simply curving around a corner. Beyond the corner the line extended on and on. Luckily foreign visitors are given precedence and we were allowed to cut into the middle of the line.
The line moves quickly and efficiently like a conveyor belt. Upon entering the Mausoleum I was immediately struck by the air conditioner. Thank God it was freezing in there; a break from the Hanoi heat. The entrance has the feel of a corporate office entrance. I expected to find elevators to the sides. We followed the line to the left and continued up a ramp that eventually led into the darkly lit room where Ho Chi Minh's body lay at rest in a glass casket with an orange light illuminating his peaceful face. I was impressed. Extremely impressed. I have never seen anything like this in my entire life. Never in my life have I seen this odd tradition of preserving the body of a leader for all to see for decades and decades. It is moving, nearly inspiring. Ho Chi Minh's body was in perfect condition. I could not believe how well preserved he was. It was as if he was frozen in time. His white Chinese beard flowed from his chin to over his chest. He was at rest, in a peaceful slumber. You almost felt as if he would wake at any moment. Below his casket, at its four corners, were four guards dressed in white uniforms. And above him, on the wall behind him, was the Star of Vietnam (a symbol of Communist Vietnam) and the Sickle and Hammer of fomer Communist Russia.
After the Mausoleum Frederick and I rested at an outdoor drink shop. We both had some freshly squeezed sugar cane. We were soon approached by yet another Vietnamese tout who wanted to drive us around town for a small fee. I warned the guy that he was going to get no business from us. He ignored the comment and so I sat there making up the country of my origin, my occupation, etc. to have fun with him. We soon left and he grew upset that he had wasted 20 minutes of his time with us without making any money. Too bad buddy, I warned you!
We walked south to the Temple of Literature. We didnt enter it. I think I was suffering from Temple Burn Out Disorder. From there we were on a mission to find the Hanoi Main Railway Station. We eventually found it and Frederick got the info he needed about taking the train into China. From there we walked to the Culture Palace and found a restaurant to have lunch. From there we walked north until we arrived at the Hoan Kiem Lake. Soon enough we were back in our hotel for a rest. We then met up with two other Swedeish men (Frederick is from Sweden) and went out for dinner at a pleasant backpacker joint on the terrace of a building. I had two orders of a giant tuna sandwich. The beers were only 30 cents a pop so we loaded up on that as well. Since the beer was very, I mean very, week the Swedes popped out some old Swedish type of chewing tobaco known as Snus. I tried some. The tobacco is wrapped in a small packet that you place under you front lip. After about 10 minutes I felt the kick from the Snus. After 20 minutes I had enough and took it out. The other Swedes - who grew up on this stuff - kept in under their lip for the entire night.
After dinner we walked back to our hotel but along the way we stopped by several pirated C.D. and DVD shops. 1 pirated DVD was sold for just under 1 U.S. dollar.
The next day Frederick bough about 20 DVD's. Since we could rent a DVD player we decided to simply run errands on June 7th and watch as many DVD's as we could in the evening.
May the Force be with You . . .
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
This was the day that I would begin my "Tour of Dead Communist Leaders". The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum faces the Hanoi Citadel. The Hanoi Citadel - from what I could tell - is a military fortress of some kind. I wanted to cross through the citadel via Cua Dong street but was deterred by Vietnamese soldiers guarding a gate entrance into the citadel. As a result Frederick (a friend I met in Saigon and was rooming with back at my hotel) and I walked south on Ly Nam De. Along this street I saw a fine example of Hanoi architectural charm. The street - as most streets in the Old Quarter of Hanoi - is lined with tall and beautiful trees. A few of these trees on Ly Nam De had grown dangerously close to a few apartment buildings and in some cases grew straight into a few balconies and buildings. But they were not viciously cut down by the city of Hanoi or by the residents of these buildings. There was a nice compromise in which the branches of the trees were simply permitted to grow into the balconies - damaging them a bit - but adding to a sense of harmony between these man-made buildings and the curiving and creeping nature of these trees.
As I continued to walk looking at these trees meld into these buildings I began to think of what Hanoi would be like when man has left and nature has retaken it. After seeing the glorious temples of Angkor Wat in Cambodia - once a magnificent Empire but now an awesome ruin - I began to wonder if in the centuries or milleniums to follow if Hanoi would be forgotten and one day re-discovered. What would be left of it if already the trees of the Old Quarter are slowly conquering it? The city, as I imagine it, would be a horrible ruin of jungle forests attacking and reclaiming this once pleasant city. The narrow roads would be torn up by tree roots and thick tree branches would interweeve straight into the buildings ripping apart their walls until they came crashing down. Yes, one day all cities must fall. You never know what the future may bring. A Roman Empreror would never have thought that all the glory of his Empire would one day fall . . . be forgotten and rediscovered.
It is a curiosity to think about the fact that perhaps one day in the far future Hanoi will be deserted and one day rediscovered. That one day it will become a tourist attraction for apathetic school children who would rather be doing something else than to see the famed "Ruins of Hanoi". Will people far in the future know how the determination of Hanoi and its Nationalist/Communist government defeated the unwinable war the great Empire of the U.S. tried to wage against it? How the Vietnam War plagued the hearts and minds of so many Americans for two to three generations? Perhaps not . . . this simply goes to show that all things must end, and be forgotten for a time. No matter how glorious the feat or accomplishment, no matter how significant the win or loss in war, no matter how many lives were lost, no matter how rich or powerful the government or country . . . it is all temporary and in the end . . . holds little meaning to the infinite bounds of time and nature.
My thoughts just went off there . . . my apologies.
It was my first time to a Mausoleum. I expected something huge and incredible. The mausoleum though is not that. It is sad and dark and unimpressive. Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum is not large. It is perhaps four storeys at the most. It is made mostly of black stone, as well as red stone. What is impressive though is the fact that there was a massive number of Vietnamese citizens lined up to see the man who had freed them from the grips of the West. That is what touched me the most. 30 years after his death there are still so many people who come to see what remains of this man who stood up against two powerful nations: France and the U.S.
Frederick tried to find the end of the line. We did not succeed. After checking in our cameras and buying a brochure that we were told was a ticket - but was not - Frederick and I ran in search of the end of the line. When we thought we had found it we simply found that it was simply curving around a corner. Beyond the corner the line extended on and on. Luckily foreign visitors are given precedence and we were allowed to cut into the middle of the line.
The line moves quickly and efficiently like a conveyor belt. Upon entering the Mausoleum I was immediately struck by the air conditioner. Thank God it was freezing in there; a break from the Hanoi heat. The entrance has the feel of a corporate office entrance. I expected to find elevators to the sides. We followed the line to the left and continued up a ramp that eventually led into the darkly lit room where Ho Chi Minh's body lay at rest in a glass casket with an orange light illuminating his peaceful face. I was impressed. Extremely impressed. I have never seen anything like this in my entire life. Never in my life have I seen this odd tradition of preserving the body of a leader for all to see for decades and decades. It is moving, nearly inspiring. Ho Chi Minh's body was in perfect condition. I could not believe how well preserved he was. It was as if he was frozen in time. His white Chinese beard flowed from his chin to over his chest. He was at rest, in a peaceful slumber. You almost felt as if he would wake at any moment. Below his casket, at its four corners, were four guards dressed in white uniforms. And above him, on the wall behind him, was the Star of Vietnam (a symbol of Communist Vietnam) and the Sickle and Hammer of fomer Communist Russia.
After the Mausoleum Frederick and I rested at an outdoor drink shop. We both had some freshly squeezed sugar cane. We were soon approached by yet another Vietnamese tout who wanted to drive us around town for a small fee. I warned the guy that he was going to get no business from us. He ignored the comment and so I sat there making up the country of my origin, my occupation, etc. to have fun with him. We soon left and he grew upset that he had wasted 20 minutes of his time with us without making any money. Too bad buddy, I warned you!
We walked south to the Temple of Literature. We didnt enter it. I think I was suffering from Temple Burn Out Disorder. From there we were on a mission to find the Hanoi Main Railway Station. We eventually found it and Frederick got the info he needed about taking the train into China. From there we walked to the Culture Palace and found a restaurant to have lunch. From there we walked north until we arrived at the Hoan Kiem Lake. Soon enough we were back in our hotel for a rest. We then met up with two other Swedeish men (Frederick is from Sweden) and went out for dinner at a pleasant backpacker joint on the terrace of a building. I had two orders of a giant tuna sandwich. The beers were only 30 cents a pop so we loaded up on that as well. Since the beer was very, I mean very, week the Swedes popped out some old Swedish type of chewing tobaco known as Snus. I tried some. The tobacco is wrapped in a small packet that you place under you front lip. After about 10 minutes I felt the kick from the Snus. After 20 minutes I had enough and took it out. The other Swedes - who grew up on this stuff - kept in under their lip for the entire night.
After dinner we walked back to our hotel but along the way we stopped by several pirated C.D. and DVD shops. 1 pirated DVD was sold for just under 1 U.S. dollar.
The next day Frederick bough about 20 DVD's. Since we could rent a DVD player we decided to simply run errands on June 7th and watch as many DVD's as we could in the evening.
May the Force be with You . . .
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
Tuesday, June 08, 2004
My Dream and Hanoi: Part I
I have found my dream atmosphere. Yes, yes, yes. I have done it. I have found an air-conditioned internet cafe with a high speed internet connection here in Hong Kong. That probabaly means that Im going to be writing a lot while Im here.
Today is June 8th and I flew from Hanoi, Vietnam to Hong Kong. For me though Hong Kong is not apart of China. In my opinion it is a city-state that has very little to do with Communist China. As a result I will count Hong Kong as country number 9 on the number of countries I have visited so far on this trip.
the Country count for my 2004 Travelapalooza Domenico Freedom Festival Tour is as follows:
1. Korea
2. Singapore
3. Malaysia
4. Thailand
5. Myanmar
6. Laos
7. Cambodia
8. Vietnam
9. Hong Kong
and in a few days Ill be in China so that will be number 10
Now, Honoi - June 5-8
The comparison often made by East Coasters of the U.S. that have traveled Vietnam from north to south is that Saigon is New York and Hanoi is Boston. I will have to agree with this comparison. Hanoi is small and lovely and quiet and not so business oriented like Saigon . . . in appearance at least. What I love about Hanoi are the number of lakes that you will find and run into thoughout the city. It is a wonderful and pleasant sight to see these lakes scattered around the city.
I stayed in the Old Quarter of Hanoi; the old French colonial sector of Hanoi. The Old Quarter is defined by a zig-zag array of streets that seem to have evolved from glorified cow paths. In other words the Old Quarter can be a maze, a labrinth of streets that curve and twist and head in direction that make no sense. The only way to navigate from one part of the Old Quarter to the other is by developing an urban market knowledge of where certain products are sold. Every street is specialized in what it sells. Hang Quat street has an abundance of Mom and Pop shops that sells Chinese shrines and other trinkets needed for your own shrine, or for funeral rites of a deceased loved one. Luon Van Can is sun glasses and eye glasses land. The entire street only sells eye-wear. Need to shop for some food? Then go to Dong Xuan street where you will find the Dong Xuan market. The market is literally right on the street and off-streets that shoot off from it. Here again you will find that the market is divded into different specialized section. If you go east on Hong Chieu street you will find sea food sold: live crabs, shrimp, prawns, fish, fish, fish, frog skin, frog legs anyone? Further down the street you will find bloody meat hanging from hooks in the humid summer air - yummy? It is curious to see that these streets sell specific items and that they are sold right out of the homes on these streets. I guess if you have the misfortune of moving onto the fresh - or not so fresh - meat section of a street you are doomed to be a butcher for as long as you live there.
Literally, though - all these streets in the Old Quarter sell specific items straight out of their homes. These Mom and Pop shops have their store on the first floor and behind their store is where they live or on the floor above their shop. Its funny to walk past these shops in the afternoon and to see the clerks in the shop eating lunch with their families right in the middle of the store. You feel like you'd be intruding if you walked in to buy something . . . so I recommend that you do your shopping in the morning and the later afternoon so as to not disturb the people working in the shop while they are eating lunch in the early afternoon.
These types of products that you will find dedicated to specific streets in the Old Quarter include the following: iron bars, grills, and steel products for the home, toys, eye wear, Chinese shrine goods, medicine boths Eastern and Western, pirated C.D.'s and DVD's and computer software, tourist shops, clothing shops dedicated to gender and different ages (e.g. one street will only sell women's clothing where as another street will sell only children's clothing), shoes, etc.
The internet cafe is about to close so I will have to stop.
I will write more about Hanoi tomorrow.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
I have found my dream atmosphere. Yes, yes, yes. I have done it. I have found an air-conditioned internet cafe with a high speed internet connection here in Hong Kong. That probabaly means that Im going to be writing a lot while Im here.
Today is June 8th and I flew from Hanoi, Vietnam to Hong Kong. For me though Hong Kong is not apart of China. In my opinion it is a city-state that has very little to do with Communist China. As a result I will count Hong Kong as country number 9 on the number of countries I have visited so far on this trip.
the Country count for my 2004 Travelapalooza Domenico Freedom Festival Tour is as follows:
1. Korea
2. Singapore
3. Malaysia
4. Thailand
5. Myanmar
6. Laos
7. Cambodia
8. Vietnam
9. Hong Kong
and in a few days Ill be in China so that will be number 10
Now, Honoi - June 5-8
The comparison often made by East Coasters of the U.S. that have traveled Vietnam from north to south is that Saigon is New York and Hanoi is Boston. I will have to agree with this comparison. Hanoi is small and lovely and quiet and not so business oriented like Saigon . . . in appearance at least. What I love about Hanoi are the number of lakes that you will find and run into thoughout the city. It is a wonderful and pleasant sight to see these lakes scattered around the city.
I stayed in the Old Quarter of Hanoi; the old French colonial sector of Hanoi. The Old Quarter is defined by a zig-zag array of streets that seem to have evolved from glorified cow paths. In other words the Old Quarter can be a maze, a labrinth of streets that curve and twist and head in direction that make no sense. The only way to navigate from one part of the Old Quarter to the other is by developing an urban market knowledge of where certain products are sold. Every street is specialized in what it sells. Hang Quat street has an abundance of Mom and Pop shops that sells Chinese shrines and other trinkets needed for your own shrine, or for funeral rites of a deceased loved one. Luon Van Can is sun glasses and eye glasses land. The entire street only sells eye-wear. Need to shop for some food? Then go to Dong Xuan street where you will find the Dong Xuan market. The market is literally right on the street and off-streets that shoot off from it. Here again you will find that the market is divded into different specialized section. If you go east on Hong Chieu street you will find sea food sold: live crabs, shrimp, prawns, fish, fish, fish, frog skin, frog legs anyone? Further down the street you will find bloody meat hanging from hooks in the humid summer air - yummy? It is curious to see that these streets sell specific items and that they are sold right out of the homes on these streets. I guess if you have the misfortune of moving onto the fresh - or not so fresh - meat section of a street you are doomed to be a butcher for as long as you live there.
Literally, though - all these streets in the Old Quarter sell specific items straight out of their homes. These Mom and Pop shops have their store on the first floor and behind their store is where they live or on the floor above their shop. Its funny to walk past these shops in the afternoon and to see the clerks in the shop eating lunch with their families right in the middle of the store. You feel like you'd be intruding if you walked in to buy something . . . so I recommend that you do your shopping in the morning and the later afternoon so as to not disturb the people working in the shop while they are eating lunch in the early afternoon.
These types of products that you will find dedicated to specific streets in the Old Quarter include the following: iron bars, grills, and steel products for the home, toys, eye wear, Chinese shrine goods, medicine boths Eastern and Western, pirated C.D.'s and DVD's and computer software, tourist shops, clothing shops dedicated to gender and different ages (e.g. one street will only sell women's clothing where as another street will sell only children's clothing), shoes, etc.
The internet cafe is about to close so I will have to stop.
I will write more about Hanoi tomorrow.
Domenico
www.thedragonbone.com
www.banromsai.gr.jp
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