Don't Be Caught Off-guard By The Irish Rooster!

I've had just enough time to...  be caught off-guard by the Irish Rooster

Is that an Irish Rooster in Shanghai?

Irish Music - The Rooster Lyrics

We had some chickens no eggs would they lay

We had some chickens no eggs would they lay

The wife said honey we're loosing money

Because those chickens no eggs would they lay

Then came a rooster into our yard

And he caught them chickens right off their guard

They're laying eggs now like they never used to

Since that rooster came into our yard

Did You Fall In Love With The Music or Musician?

I've had just enough time to...   wonder if I love the musician or her music?

Taken one spring night in Shanghai...

It was a pleasant spring night and I was having a stroll in the entertainment district of Shanghai where old and new buildings are well blended into an interesting and sometimes incongruous mix of modernity and history. This place then is aptly named新天地; "New Heaven and Earth". In the distance I saw brightly lighted kiosk selling this “mixture of everything” – Chinese helmets (why?) and Chinese Soldiers cap (this I can understand), ladies purse of modern design and traditional colours, and dolls. Porcelain dolls wearing traditional Chinese costume in elegant poses. And graceful modern dolls in gowns playing musical instruments. Maybe, it is this mix of contradictions that made me asked “Did I fall in love wih the music or musician

...of the musicians and their music and...

Did You Fall In Love With The Music or Musician?

Did I fall in love –

With the music or musician?

I couldn’t tell

Not when she is playing, not when

Her sound wraps round me

Like fur on a winter morning

Before the sun melts the icicles,

Lifts the heavy fog

Off the sleepy lake and

Prods lives under thick blankets

She wakes me up

And leads me to the sun

Did I fall in love –

With her or the sun?

Chinese ladies in their traditional costumes...

The Crossroad: A Fight In The Dark – Part II

I've had just enough time...   to avoid a fight in the dark

Someone's got my head!

During the Northern Song Dynasty, General Jiao Zan was exiled to Shamen, a desert island for killing the son-in-law of a corrupt official. Yang Yanzhao of the famous Yang family that defended the borders of China against the Liao Dynasty, ordered Warrior Ren to secretly follow and protect the general as he feared the disgraced general is targeted for assassination on the journey. Warrior Ren is a “Wu Sheng” (male character with martial skills that protects a “Painted Face” main character).

Is that my knee?

When General Jiao rested in an inn during the journey, the innkeeper who played the role of a “Wu Chou” (martial clown) sympathized with his plight and pledged to protect him. However, when Warrior Ren turned up, the innkeeper mistook him for the assassin. That night, the innkeeper and Warrior Ren put a fierce fight in complete darkness each mistaking the other to be the assassin.

 

Now where is that sneaky fellow?

There is no singing, dialogues or recitation for this portion of the play but it is easily understood and highly appreciated by the audience as it is comical and full of martial actions allowing the two characters to exhibit their martial artistry. The “Wu Chou” (martial clown) role is to me the more demanding role as in addition to the al the demands of performance, he has to make the audience laugh. The whole play is a re-acting of a fight in the dark though the stage is lighted. The only props are a chair and a table which is creatively used in the fight sequence. This is a good representation of a combat performance and the role of a “Wu Sheng” (warrior) and “Wu Chou” (martial clown).

The Crossroad: A Fight In The Dark – Part I

I've had just enough time to...   figure a way out of the crossroad

Taken of "The Crossroad" in Liyuan Theatre, Beijing

Continuing my series on the Beijing Opera, this is “The Crossroad” where two adversaries fought in complete darkness. Each assuming the other to be the enemy. Each putting his life on the line for an honourable task. But in the darkness, is anything what they are supposed to be? When you live your whole life responding to what you see, how will you respond to it when you cannot see? Do you trust unfamiliar senses when the one you trust can no longer be trusted?

Black Spy vs White Spy

At the crossroad

a fight in the dark.

How does one fight an enemy

he cannot see? 

Will you trust senses unfamiliar

Or not trust them to be?

Is it danger that you sense

Or is it the danger, your scent?

Will you swing your sword wildly 

Or wait for the spear thrust? 

Will you wait for danger to appear 

Or step forth in the dark? 

What will you do at the crossroads?

What will you do in the dark?

Are you afraid of the discovery?

Or are you afraid of the mark?

A fight too fast for my camera :)

Former Posts on Beijing Opera - 

BeijingOpera #1 – I Am A Painted Face But Not A Clown!

Farewell To My Concubine Part I - The Song of Gaixia (垓下之战)

Farewell To My Concubine Part II - The Song of Gaixia (垓下之战)

The Hardest Thing to Move

I've had just enough time...   to try moving...

Taken from a car in the street of the City of Hangzhou where the white snake met the scholar...

You won’t believe the things I moved

Odd shapes and sizes

Light as feathers

Heavier than stone

Smaller than your palm

Larger than the truck

Some I moved down the street

Others transported a thousand “li”

I had moved things together

And I had moved things apart

You won’t believe what I moved

But, the hardest to move

The hardest to move

- is a heart

_______

And that ain't the hardest part

The hardest part is working and I've worked enough

And that ain't the hardest part

Talkin' 'bout a true love

That ain't the hardest part

And that ain't the hardest part

The Hardest Part by Ryan Adams

Beijing Opera #1 – I Am A Painted Face But Not A Clown.

I've had just enough time to...   be touched by the tragedy of Xiang Yu

Taken of the dressing of Xiang Yu before his Beijing Opera performance

I am a painted face

But not a clown

Who moves you with laughter

I move you to tears

With tragedies

Of my own

And that of others

The world is

A greater comedy

Than that

Played by the clown

Will you laugh

Or cry

Along with me?

Xiang Yu项羽, the “Overlord of Western Chu” is a proud and complex man. He would save his horse when all is lost but not himself because he is too proud to face his people in defeat when not one of his 8,000 loyal soldiers who followed him to overthrow the Qin Dynasty survived. A brilliant strategist who won battles after battles but rushed into a trap he knew was set up for him to save his concubine. A caring leader who ordered his 28 remaining soldiers to take the last boat to safety while he stood to meet his end but a tyrant who buried alive 200,000 enemy soldiers who surrendered. He was honorable enough not to kill his nemesis Liu Bang by deceit when he had the chance yet there was no honor when he killed his own commander Song Yi for not listening to his advice. This was the King that bade farewell to his concubine.

Navigation By Fingers

I've had just enough time to...   navigate by fingers

Taken on the road one dark night along a lonely stretch from Tianjin to Beijing, China

The night is dark

The road unfamiliar

The stars covered by clouds

The only light

From the smartphone

Navigation by fingers

Led us to be found

_______

Loneliness and emptiness

Since I left all behind

Only memories in my mind

Blue lights from the screen

Black universe all around

And I can't hear no sound

Everything is lost

Everything is gone

Everywhere I go

I find myself alone

Endless days passing by

I have fallen too deep

I navigate and dream

Blue lights from the screen

Black universe all around

And I can't hear no sound

"Syrian - Navigation"

Hungering For China & Hairy Crabs

I’ve had just enough time to…   savor the unique taste of hairy crabs

Is this a male or female hairy crab? Read further...

I’ll be going off to China at the end of the week. And right in the middle of the hairy crab season though I’m not going to Shanghai this time where the best hairy crabs are reputedly from or more specifically these two lakes – Lake Tai and Lake Yangcheng. The first time I had hairy crabs was on the way from Shanghai to Kunshan last year in one of the lakes where hundreds of small stalls and larger restaurants lined the shore of the lake selling just one product – hairy crabs! 

 Served and ready to be eaten...

These crabs are not cheap and a single crab can set you back $20 depending on the size. The female crab is best eaten September to October and the male crab is best eaten October to November due to the quality of the roe. And the roe is what these crabs are so highly prized. They are always steamed. I don’t know how to begin describing the unique taste of the succulent orangey yellow roe. It had been described as a delicate lingering creamy flavor. The meat is dipped in sweet black vinegar sauce with shredded ginger. 

A family harvesting hairy crabs

The hairy crabs are so-called because of its furry dark hairs on its claws that looks like mittens. Thus, they are also called mitten crabs. You can distinguish the female by the oval-shaped belly. The males have more hairs on their claws and a triangular designed on their belly. So can you guess if that picture is that of a male or female. Maybe I will get to eat hairy crabs again on this coming trip to Beijing. But if not, I will settle for Peking Duck!

________

A Hairy Crab Vending Machine?...

The Monk & The Flame of Life

I've had just enough time to...   watch the flame dances.

Taken of the monk watching the flame of Life in the Temple of Shaolin

The monk stares at the flickering flame

Admiring its sensual dance of life

With the waltzing wind

As the pace picked up

The flame sparkles and frolics

Spin, sashay and gambol

Glitters, glistens and quivers

With rising passion

Consuming itself in its brilliance

And the monk wonders

Should he live Life as an untamed flame

Or an unlighted candle

I Don't Know (The Equation of Life)

I've had just enough time to...   answer with "I don't know"

Taken during a lecture in Dongguan, China when I don't know the equation

I don’t know the equation of Life

Presented on the white board

To the last two decimal

Neat and tidy

My mind is blank

My emotion in turmoil

Everyone were nodding their heads

But mine was violently shaking

“Life is a formula!”

But mine doesn’t equate!

I follow the rules

I read the books

I listen to the experts

And experts don’t lie

Do they?

They show me the path we should take

They have a shortcut

Only experts can make

When I asked why?

I got an “F”

And shown the door

Now I cannot be an expert-like

I’ve lost the Equation of Life

No certificate, no certificate

Condemned to die

_______ 

I don't know what you smoke or what countries you've been to

if you speak any other languages other than your own

but I'd like to meet you

I don't know if you drive if you love the ground beneath you

I don't know if you write letters or panic on the phone

still I'd like to call you all the same, if you want to, I am game.

Lisa Hannigan - I Don't Know

Discarded Gloves, Where is the Respect in That?

I've had just enough time to...   sympathize with discarded gloves.

Taken of this pair of discarded glove on a boat in the West lake, Hangzhou China.

Used, Discarded

Reused, Discarded again

Where is the respect in that?

Like discarded gloves

On the dirty floor, felt like

Discarded gloves on the floor

Kept your hands clean, we did

Kept them warm in the cold

Protect your hands, we did

Protect them from the blows

Take the blows ourselves, we did

And we take on the woes

Now, we are worn

Lost our shine and colours from the weather

Dirty and soiled, disheveled and battered

And those hands we protect

Just threw us on the floor

Just threw us on the floor

Discarded gloves, where is the respect in that?

_______

I'd like to tell a little story
Thats been told time and time again
About the foolish men who chased me
My discarded men

They used to tell me they loved me
But I knew better than them
I'd find them looking around the corner
My discarded men

Eartha Kitt: My Discarded Men

A Stranger Through The Eyes of A Child.

I've had just enough time to...   see myself in the eyes of a child.

Taken in Kunshan while wandering around

“He doesn’t like me”.

Maybe it was not because he does not like me. Maybe it was because I witnessed what he did. Or maybe it was because he was protective of his little sister. His sister, who was looking at me with questioning eyes.

“Who are you?”

“What do you want?”

“Why are you taking our picture?”

She could not figure me out yet. So she was hesitant with her response. Maybe she will smile if I say a kind word or two. Maybe she will run away. But I kept my distance. I have no right to intrude.

Her brother, he just glared at me. I am a stranger. I can be up to no good. I cannot do anything for them except getting them into trouble. So he challenged me with his look. If I put on a fierce expression. Maybe he will run away. Maybe he will call for his family. I am after all a stranger and an outsider. So I kept my distance. Smiled, and backed off. I am after all an intruder into their world and I have to respect that. (I was in Kunshan with a couple of hours to kill and I’m not going to do that watching TV in the hotel room. So I wandered out into the street where ordinary people lived.)

Earlier, I “caught” them playing with the stainless steel bolts and washers that they somehow dismantle from the railings of the steps and overhead bridge. I tried one with my bare fingers and found it to be fast secured. Maybe, they have found all the loose ones or maybe they did it with some tools though I did not see any. If they construct the railings so poorly that children can dismantle them, then it is not the children’s fault for you can expect a child to do exactly what they did. I did not want to encourage them though so I checked my smile and moved away wondering what did I learn from this encounter to have it so strongly registered in my memory.

Part I - The Monk & The Scriptures.

I've had just enough time to...   talk to the Monk about the scriptures.

Taken of the Monk & his books one night alone in Hangzhou, China.

“All the knowledge is in the scriptures”, the monk said.

“Studied it well and you will know all there is to know.”

The disciple took it to heart and studied it day and night.

And when he has memorized and could repeat every single word.

He went back to the monk with all he had learned.

“You have learned nothing”, the monk said.

“Except for the words you have read”

“The wisdom is not in the words”

“Go back and read some more!”

And the disciple burned the scriptures

And become a rich trader.

And the monk took another disciple

Who is asked to read more and more

And then some more…

There Is No Reasoning With Orcs!

I've had just enough time to...   confront an Orc and lost for I use reason.

Taken in outer Shanghai of the Orc guarding the door.

I have powerful fists to smash faces in

Brute strength to break your limbs

Metal chest to prepare for war

I’ll be the last to fall!

You ain’t passing thru!

I don’t hear your reasons

Thinking is treason

Tears won’t do any good

But some gold would.

Only gold will get you thru!

_______

Is there a noble way to die?

- Warcraft 3 Orc Ending.

If You Don’t Know Me By Now.

I've had just enough time to...   meet a girl who looks like me. 

Taken in the Flower Festival of Kai Feng, China.

This girl is a lot like me. I’m not saying she looks anything like me. For she does not. For one thing, I’m male and she definitely is not. And I’ll never be able to balance myself in that high heel boot that rise up to her knee. And the thighs that held her up are smoother, silkier and fairer than my muscular trunks that are more practical than pretty. But mine serves me better in time of danger though I cannot remember when was the last I used them for that. Anyway…

Despite her auburn hair that falls below her shoulder, despite her arched eyebrow thinner than a brush stroke, despite her elegant manicured fingers ending in stunning red, despite her slender waist protected by a warrior’s belt (I can’t picture myself wearing that even in war!), despite the fact she is female and I’m definitely not!, I still maintained she is a lot like me. It is the way she stands.

Oh, don’t get me wrong. I can never strike as sexy a pose whatever I do, legs together or legs apart. Maybe I should explain myself better. Take another look at the picture. More carefully this time. Take in the details. Notice where she is facing. What she is doing. Where everyone’s else attention are. Do you get the picture now? That is how she is so similar to me.

Still don’t get it? Like the song said, “if you don’t know me by now, you’ll never never ever will”. And by the way, that is perfectly okay too. After all, I’m the odd guy out.

_______

All the things that we've been through
You should understand me like I understand you
Now girl I know the difference between right and wrong
I ain't gonna do nothing to break up our happy home

If you don't know me by now
You will never never never know me
- Seal

The Cheerful Boatman of West Lake.

I've has just enough time to...   take a boat ride on West Lake.

Taken of my cheerful boatman of West Lake

It was my fortune to hire this cheerful boatman to take me on a tour of the romantic West Lake. She effortlessly pushed the heavy oar and gently swayed with the rocking of the boat wearing a perpetual smile on her face. And in a sing-song voice, she narrated the romance of The Scholar and The White Snake.

One of the lovely view of the lake.

Through her words, I imagined the scholar walking under the weeping willow meeting Lady White Snake and falling in love with her. How the strict monk seeking to uphold the Law of Heaven forbade the union of man and spirit and drove them apart. And when he could not severe their love for each other, imprisoned her under the Pagoda for eternity. A tragic but beautiful love story. So if you go to the West Lake of Hangzhou, hired one of the boatman for this is the best way to view the lake and hopefully, you will get a boatman as pretty and as cheerful as the boatman who showed me West Lake.

_______

This animation film by Yun Tin Ruan, a famous comic artist in China give a slightly different take. It tells of White Snake practising for 1000 years to be a perfect woman. She falls in love with a man by Hangzhou's West Lake but the man's distrust eventually kills their love. The tale is used as a metaphor for the relationship between man and woman in a male dominated society. Watch it - the animation is fantastic!