Sep 18, 1931, was a day which, even today, lives in infamy here in Shenyang, China. At 9:18am today the air raid sirens blew and traffic stopped with horns blowing. On this day in 1931, Japan launched an attack on Manchuria right here in Shenyang. According to people here, the attack and treatment of the Chinese was very brutal and thousands of lives where lost.
Japan likely saw China as an easy target as there was alot of internal turmoil following the collapse of the Qing dynasty and the last emperor Pu-Yi.
With the collapse of the last empire in China in 1924, Pu Yi (the last emperor), was kicked out of the forbidden city in Beijing. Fearing for his safety from numerous waring factions in China, Pu Yi sought asylum from the Japanese Embassy, where he was warmly received. He and his entourage enjoyed the hospitality and protection of Japan. In 1931, (right after Japan invaded here in Shenyang) Pu-Yi was asked to help establish an independent Manchuria (there really was no option of declining). He agreed as long as it would be a monarchy. He was smuggled into Manchuria on February 13, 1932 and declared the independence of Manchuria. When the Japan surrender was announced on August 15, 1945, he was "asked" to abdicate, which he did.
The attack on Manchuria would be the first of several that Japan would launch in China (Nanjing would fall in 1937, Guangzhou in 1938...after that the Chinese resistance stopped). Japan needed China for all of the natural resources to feed the conquest for power. All of these conquests in China would eventually lead to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, HI on December 7, 1941...another day that lives in infamy in the USA.
There is a museum here in Shenyang with a giant calender in front with the date displayed of 18 Sep. We have not visited yet...it's not the type of place I want to go when I'm not ready for it. And so far, I'm not ready.
If you're like me, you didn't learn that in school...if it was taught, I didn't get it. Now, I do and hope it makes it a little clearer for you too!
Have a great week!
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Friday, September 16, 2011
16 Sep 2011: Playing music in the park and Mid autumn festival with our Chinese family
Greetings all again (I'm on a roll here!)
This was a 4 day week after a 3 day weekend for Mid autumn festival. Rod and I both went playing music in the park...it's been probably 15 years since I played a horn, so I was certainly not ready for prime time...but you gotta start somewhere, so why not here. It all started when we went looking on music street and I tried out a Chinese hammered dulcimer. The problem was it wasn't tuned or strung the same way as mine in the US (in storage), so I didn't buy one. Rod had found a used baritone in a market, so he bought it. It was in the same key as Rod's baritone, so he thought we could play together...and we did ...but boy, was my lip not ready for that! The fingerings are the same as a trumpet (which is what I played for years). It was fun to just play around and play together though!
The big highlight of the weekend was a lunch with our Chinese family. We went to a nice traditional restaurant. We exchanged moon cakes and they gave us one of the biggest moon cakes in the world!
I'm thinking we're going to keep it and let it get good and hard..then maybe whirl it like a frisbee...at least once!
That's about it for now!
Sarah & Rod
This was a 4 day week after a 3 day weekend for Mid autumn festival. Rod and I both went playing music in the park...it's been probably 15 years since I played a horn, so I was certainly not ready for prime time...but you gotta start somewhere, so why not here. It all started when we went looking on music street and I tried out a Chinese hammered dulcimer. The problem was it wasn't tuned or strung the same way as mine in the US (in storage), so I didn't buy one. Rod had found a used baritone in a market, so he bought it. It was in the same key as Rod's baritone, so he thought we could play together...and we did ...but boy, was my lip not ready for that! The fingerings are the same as a trumpet (which is what I played for years). It was fun to just play around and play together though!
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| Rod & Sarah Miller playing the baritones in the Zhongshan park in Shenyang |
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| Rod Miller playing his tenor tuba in Zhongshan park in Shenyang |
The big highlight of the weekend was a lunch with our Chinese family. We went to a nice traditional restaurant. We exchanged moon cakes and they gave us one of the biggest moon cakes in the world!
I'm thinking we're going to keep it and let it get good and hard..then maybe whirl it like a frisbee...at least once!
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| The biggest moon cake in the world...with a Phoenix bird and a Dragon on the cake! |
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| Our Chinese family with us celebrating Mid Autumn festival in 2011 |
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| Rod & Sarah celebrating Mid Autumn festival |
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| Sweet & Sour fish...with cherry tomato eyes...actually pretty good! |
That's about it for now!
Sarah & Rod
Sunday, September 11, 2011
11 Sep 2011: We remember where we were 10 years ago and Mid Autumn Festival story
Greetings all!
10 years after Sep 11, 2001...May God bless all of the families who where there in NYC, Washington DC and PA on those doomed flights and those in their path. May God bless the leaders of our country today and give them wisdom so that we may never have to face that again. Like most of you, I will always remember where I was on this day. We were living in Romania at the time and it was about at 3:00pm in the afternoon at work when my assistant Liliana came to me with an ashen face and tears in her eyes letting me know that her son had called and told her to turn on the news. Me and the other members of the expat team gathered in a conference room and watched in horror as both towers were burning and falling down. We left work a little early that day, sick to our stomachs and just wanting to go home to be with our families in Bucharest. We called our families in the US to be assured they were OK and to let them know we were OK. The Romanians were so gracious to us, escorting us home and wanting to help us. We had visitors from the US and we tried to help them get home, but they could only reach Paris...not any further because the airports had already been shut down. I will never forget that time in our life.
Onto a more joyous occasion!
This is a 3 day weekend here in China, celebrating mid autumn festival. There are long stories and legends about this holiday in China on the internet. I got the following on wikipedia: (Probably more than you wanted to know...if you want to skip the wikipedia part, I've put it all in purple. I start writing and showing pictures after that!
This is a time for family gatherings and exchange of mooncakes (kind of like Christmas gifts...and it's a huge business here in China...it's just as much about the box and packaging as the cake inside!)
Here are some mooncakes we have given some of our Chinese friends:
10 years after Sep 11, 2001...May God bless all of the families who where there in NYC, Washington DC and PA on those doomed flights and those in their path. May God bless the leaders of our country today and give them wisdom so that we may never have to face that again. Like most of you, I will always remember where I was on this day. We were living in Romania at the time and it was about at 3:00pm in the afternoon at work when my assistant Liliana came to me with an ashen face and tears in her eyes letting me know that her son had called and told her to turn on the news. Me and the other members of the expat team gathered in a conference room and watched in horror as both towers were burning and falling down. We left work a little early that day, sick to our stomachs and just wanting to go home to be with our families in Bucharest. We called our families in the US to be assured they were OK and to let them know we were OK. The Romanians were so gracious to us, escorting us home and wanting to help us. We had visitors from the US and we tried to help them get home, but they could only reach Paris...not any further because the airports had already been shut down. I will never forget that time in our life.
Onto a more joyous occasion!
This is a 3 day weekend here in China, celebrating mid autumn festival. There are long stories and legends about this holiday in China on the internet. I got the following on wikipedia: (Probably more than you wanted to know...if you want to skip the wikipedia part, I've put it all in purple. I start writing and showing pictures after that!
The Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋節), also known as the Moon Festival or Zhongqiu Festival is a popular harvest festival celebrated by Chinese and Vietnamese people, dating back over 3,000 years to moon worship in China's Shang Dynasty. It was first called Zhongqiu Jie (literally "Mid-Autumn Festival") in the Zhou Dynasty.[1]
The Mid-Autumn Festival is held on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese calendar, which is in September or early October in the Gregorian calendar.
I love the legends that go with these holidays in China! Here's another copy/paste from wikipedia on the Mid autumn festival story of two lovers Haoyi and Chang'e
Houyi and Chang'e
Celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival is strongly associated with the legend of Houyi and Chang'e, the Moon Goddess of Immortality. Tradition places these two figures from Chinese mythology at around 2200 BCE, during the reign of the legendary Emperor Yao, shortly after that of Huangdi. Unlike many lunar deities in other cultures who personify the moon, Chang'e simply lives on the moon but is not the moon per se.
There are many variants and adaptations of the legend of Chang'e that frequently contradict each other. However, most versions of the legend involve some variation of the following elements: Houyi, the Archer, an emperor, either benevolent or malevolent, and an elixir of life.
One version of the legend states that Houyi was an immortal and Chang'e was a beautiful young girl, working in the palace of the Jade Emperor (the Emperor of Heaven, 玉帝 pinyin:Yùdì) as an attendant to the Queen Mother of the West (the Jade Emperor's wife). Houyi aroused the jealousy of the other immortals, who then slandered him before the Jade Emperor. Houyi and his wife, Chang'e, were subsequently banished from heaven. They were forced to live on Earth. Houyi had to hunt to survive and became a skilled and famous archer.
At that time, there were ten suns, in the form of three-legged birds, residing in a mulberry tree in the eastern sea. Each day one of the sun birds would have to travel around the world on a carriage, driven by Xihe, the 'mother' of the suns. One day, all ten of the suns circled together, causing the Earth to burn. Emperor Yao, the Emperor of China, commanded Houyi to use his archery skill to shoot down all but one of the suns. Upon completion of his task, the Emperor rewarded Houyi with a pill that granted eternal life. Emperor Yao advised Houyi not to swallow the pill immediately but instead to prepare himself by praying and fasting for a year before taking it.[2] Houyi took the pill home and hid it under a rafter. One day, Houyi was summoned away again by Emperor Yao. During her husband's absence, Chang'e, noticed a white beam of light beckoning from the rafters, and discovered the pill. Chang'e swallowed it and immediately found that she could fly. Houyi returned home, realizing what had happened he began to reprimand his wife. Chang'e escaped by flying out the window into the sky.[2]
Houyi pursued her halfway across the heavens but was forced to return to Earth because of strong winds. Chang'e reached the moon, where she coughed up part of the pill.[2] Chang'e commanded the hare that lived on the moon to make another pill. Chang'e would then be able to return to Earth and her husband.[citation needed]
The legend states that the hare is still pounding herbs, trying to make the pill. Houyi built himself a palace in the sun, representing "Yang" (the male principle), in contrast to Chang'e's home on the moon which represents "Yin" (the female principle). Once a year, on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Houyi visits his wife. That is the reason why the moon is very full and beautiful on that night.[2]
This is a time for family gatherings and exchange of mooncakes (kind of like Christmas gifts...and it's a huge business here in China...it's just as much about the box and packaging as the cake inside!)
Here are some mooncakes we have given some of our Chinese friends:
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| Here is a "suzhou" style moon cake, we purchased here in Shenyang |
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| Cross section of a mooncake |
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| Rod eating a piece...this one was filled with mungbean paste and walnuts...not too bad but heavy! (certainly much better than the silkworm larvae!) |
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| These are moon cakes in their box from our hotel home |
Saturday, September 10, 2011
10 Sep 2011...fish, silkworms and Erhu's...some pictures are not suitable for weak stomachs!
Greetings all!
It's been awhile since I've written...all vacations are good, but it seems that the workload that comes afterwards is always on "overload"...mine was no different!
When we got back from vacation, we bought a small aquarium to put in the apartment...it looked so nice..and easy! Well, of course it's a lot of work (for Rod)...and unfortunately several fish have died in our trial and error methods..starting with the "easy" gold fish to the "easy" tank cleaner fish etc. They are cheap and beautiful, so seems sometime most every weekend, we've been going to the fish market to replace casualties. Here's a snapshot in time...looking at this photo now, most are not are still with us...oh well, live and learn! I'm amazed at the variety of freshwater fish here...very colorful and interesting to observe!
This past week, I had to go to Shanghai for a business meeting and Rod didn't come with me. He visited our friends at the market and, as usual, he was offered lunch....authentic "healthy" Chinese fast food! Today's delicacy was silk worm larvae...cooked and from the looks of it slimy! I told him "I leave you alone in Shenyang for 1 day, and you're eating silkworms!" Here's the proof...and if you're wondering, he said the outside was like eating a crawfish tail and inside was mushy and gooey..a little salty and oily...not very good..and long-lasting (a little dab will do ya!). He is still alive and well, so we know they won't kill ya, but I don't think he will be temping fate anytime soon again!
Today, in addition to going to the fish market, we went on "music street" where they sell all types of musical instruments. We went in a shop where they make and repari "Er Hu" (a 2 stringed instrument that is played with a bow). I'm sure it takes good technical qualities to play the thing, but no matter how good they are, my ear is just not up for it yet!
Monday we've been invited to enjoy the Mid Autumn festival with our Chinese family...I'll write another update about the meaning of the mid autumn day and our time with them when we come back...I'm thinking there will be some more interesting photo opportunities!
Just to let everyone know, Rod's email has changed: it is now tubarod@gmail.com His account on hotmail was hacked, so please use this one to contact him from now on.
That's about all for now. Have a wonderful Fall, wherever you are in the world! We are blessed to have friends and family from all over the world and we cherish everyone of you!!
Rod & Sarah
It's been awhile since I've written...all vacations are good, but it seems that the workload that comes afterwards is always on "overload"...mine was no different!
When we got back from vacation, we bought a small aquarium to put in the apartment...it looked so nice..and easy! Well, of course it's a lot of work (for Rod)...and unfortunately several fish have died in our trial and error methods..starting with the "easy" gold fish to the "easy" tank cleaner fish etc. They are cheap and beautiful, so seems sometime most every weekend, we've been going to the fish market to replace casualties. Here's a snapshot in time...looking at this photo now, most are not are still with us...oh well, live and learn! I'm amazed at the variety of freshwater fish here...very colorful and interesting to observe!
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| Side view of our aquarium..it's capacity is somewhere around 3 liters of water |
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| Sarah putting the aquarium together...aqua-scaping could be a whole new hobby! |
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| Cooked silkworm larvae, halved and ready to eat...yum...NOT! |
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| Rod getting ready to put one down the hatch! |
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| Rod crunching down on one...I'm thinking the look on his face is not one of pure eating pleasure! |
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| Rod with the Er Hu makers in a street-side market/shop here in Shenyang |
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| A bunch of Er-Hu's for sale |
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| Rod scratching around on an Er hu. The bow goes between the 2 strings and depending on what tone you want, you put the bow across that string...a technique all it's own! |
Just to let everyone know, Rod's email has changed: it is now tubarod@gmail.com His account on hotmail was hacked, so please use this one to contact him from now on.
That's about all for now. Have a wonderful Fall, wherever you are in the world! We are blessed to have friends and family from all over the world and we cherish everyone of you!!
Rod & Sarah
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