Thursday, July 9, 2009

Xinjiang, Aiya !

R0012513

I was buying kebabs from my neighborhood kebab guy last night when he told me he would be going home, to a town a few hours away from Kashgar, next week for two months. It would be his first time home after about two to three years in Shanghai. I’m happy for him though a little apprehensive over his choice of timing. I asked him to be careful nevertheless and hope to see him in two months. 

About this time last year, I was backpacking alone in Xinjiang. I returned inspired and intrigued, wanting more of the quick peek into inter-ethnic/racial relations, Uighur culture, blue skies and mountainous nature. It’s interesting to look back on my observations (day-by-day account documented here and here) in hindsight one year on days after the riots

I really don’t like the deep-rooted distrust Han Chinese have of Uighurs. More than once, the skanky Han Chinese men had warned me of Uighurs who would “persistently follow me if I don’t want to take a day tour” or “hike up prices the moment I’m in their cars”.

A, also my first Uighur friend on the trip then took me to dinner with a few of his friends. Dapanji (literally, big-plated chicken; a traditional Xinjiang dish of chicken, vegetables and handmade noodles) and loads of beer later, I’ve learnt how to say gan bei in Uighur with passable accuracy - “Houshek!”

Four bottles of mineral water, these are the farewell gifts from my Uighur friends in Turpan. Two from A and two from ST, even after I told them I could get them myself later on. I miss Turpan already.

I’m glad Kashgar still has its old town intact, though I’m sure it is due for redevelopment in time to come.

Must propaganda be more strong-handed and blatant the further away provinces are from Beijing? Toward Kashgar I witness plenty of propaganda yet it is here in the Westernmost city that I see one of the largest Mao statues in China and propaganda messages recklessly handpainted on the lovely walls of old town.

Sichuan people are everywhere, in the far reaches and armpits deep in the heart of China and what naught. Here I met the owners of a small Sichuanese restaurant, a couple who has uprooted their family (kids and parents) and who has been here for 10+ years and going strong. Kashgar is and will be their home.

Lunch today is delicious mutton dumplings at Upal, an hour from Kashgar. One thing that I know I’ll miss about Xinjiang will be the tea. It’s fragrant and not diluted like the crap they serve at Chinese restaurants. The only unpleasant bit, the cashier tried overcharging me by RMB 0.20 just because I don’t look local, bah.

So many police checkpoints as I travel by bus in Xinjiang. I wonder if the heightened security not seen elsewhere in China is a result of “Uighur separatist elements” or the ever-tiresome Beijing Olympics fervor.

No motels, guesthouses would take me in Yarkand. Apparently only three hotels are licensed to receive foreigners, and they charge RMB 100-200+/ night. Nice one, Chinese government under the pretext of ensuring the safety/ comfort of your foreign guests. Talking to some Han Chinese at a hotel that couldn’t take me, they actually sincerely believe that this policy is what it is at face value. They told me of a brutal murder that had occurred just all of two weeks ago committed in a hotel by a Uighur and advised “it’s not safe for a Han Chinese girl to wander in Uighur districts past night fall”. While searching for non-sleazy bathhouses (a last option as suggested by the helpful Han Chinese), I stumbled upon a better solution: all-night internet access in the private booth of an internet cafe for RMB 20.

Strangely but maybe not strangely so, I find myself being taken care of by Han Chinese folks everywhere in Xinjiang. If in doubt or encountering a problem, trust a Han Chinese stranger to help. I think they find it their duty as a fellow Chinese to assist. This is the only thing that doesn’t put me off toward Han Chinese.

Usually, I just can’t help but dislike Han Chinese because of their blatant distrust of Uighurs. Racial harmony is such a farce in China! Unfortunately so, my heritage causes me to inherit this baggage - Uighurs are sometimes distrustful of me as a result as much as I am a clean slate, sympathetic of their cause and position in Chinese society.

Sadly like Yarkand, Hotan is swiftly losing its charm. Such is the sad reality bidding the depressing end to all the ancient Silk Road cities.

This may come across startling or extreme but let’s have a go at this. Given the Han Chinese fascination with everything Caucasian/ Western, I suppose it should not be too difficult for Uighurs with their exotic Eurasian looks to rule ’superior’ or to interact more with foreigners. Then does it make sense that there seems to be a systematic isolation of Uighurs by the Chinese government? Why else would the government revise written Uighur from Roman alphabetical form to its current Arabic script? Or to subject Uighurs to constant humiliating police checks almost like criminals in their own country? We don’t see this practiced elsewhere in China, does the common Uighur on the street know better?

I was at People’s Park waiting for V, my HK roommate in Kashgar that I’d bumped into again here in Urumqi. I see Uighur old folks dancing Uighur-style dances with Han Chinese old folks and Uighur families picniking/ strolling about in the park. Maybe Uighurs today are content to be Chinese, who are we to interfere?

The Uighur teacher sitting next to me on the flight back reminded me that it is the policy we should be wary of, and not the Han Chinese. Good point to ponder over, since it is innately communism at work. A new friend made just as I’ve least expected on the last day of my trip.


(Pardon the wonky format, seems like the blogging interface doesn’t like copy/pasting so much.)


Posted by wl at 06:14:49 | Permalink | No Comments »

Monday, July 6, 2009

Weekend Up-Tos #36

R0021294 R0021328 R0021337 R0021383 R0021359 R0021390 

Pre-drinks outside the new FamilyMart downstairs right after work, just like students do. Actually we’d been getting beer outside FamilyMart every other day last week. It’s now so convenient to grab a beer on the way out, such a bad influence I admit.

We hung out at Mokkos till almost 3am for A’s farewell drinks with two malatang breaks in between (at least I did that). I think shiso shochu may be the new grapefruit chuhai.

July 4 party equals charity beer drinking competition and more closed eye pictures. A first for me, and now I know beer chugging made me lose my appetite so no delish barbeque in the end. I’m pretty amazed at how fast some people can down their pints. Maybe that’s one of the good things that comes from regular visits to the neighborhood pubs.

My second attempt at using the new rice cooker worked out great. Just the right amount of water and the rice turned out light and fluffy. I made some egg fried rice and mixed in loads of ketchup.

Sunday was lazy, I spent most of the afternoon lying on the bed, napping and watching America’s Next Top Model re-runs. Then made myself go to the gym in the evening and bought some purple flowers on the way.

Posted by wl at 23:18:51 | Permalink | No Comments »

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Many Years More

R0017918

Exploring new places, going to cities we both love. Peachy moments, sulky ones. Long walks through old neighborhoods, venturing out to the suburbs for good food and sometimes temples. Homebodies. Plenty of wine. Early nights and practical jokes. Conversations, morning gym routines, experiments in the kitchen. Parks and nature. Picking up new languages. Becoming a better person. Camping. And everything else that remains unmentioned. It’s one year on. I feel loved. Thank you xoxoxox.

Posted by wl at 11:26:49 | Permalink | No Comments »

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

My Favorite Type Of Equation

Something fun I did up today.

youarereceivingthisemailbecause

Posted by wl at 18:26:14 | Permalink | No Comments »

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Breakfast On A Summer Morning

One of the (many) joys of being an adult is in having a whimsical meal of a breakfast as and when you feel like it. Today, I had cold watermelon scooped out by the spoonfuls followed by stir-fried green vegetables, name unknown but with deliciously crunchy stems. I’m sure mommy would have approved, it’s healthy and wholesome despite the strangeness of it all.

R0021269R0021270

Posted by wl at 09:57:43 | Permalink | No Comments »

Monday, June 29, 2009

Weekend Up-Tos #35

R0021253

Drank more than I should have at Dishuidong and maybe it was a good thing that they ran out of beer when we reached Boxing Cat Brewery. Still, no self-respectable brewery should be in that situation… on a Friday night too, shame ! Not sure if the Cat calls for a re-visit despite my faint recollections in between hellos to Korean-Chinese girls and sips of A’s beer.

I decided to skip Beaver after since I had imbibed enough for one night and it was gym day the next day. S and I strolled through the former French Concession then I got into a taxi for the remaining part of the way home.

Gym was a little tedious as I’d woken up with a headache and I struggled some.

We spent Saturday evening over BBQ and ice cold beer to mark the birthday of our favorite Mexican girl in full-blown summer fashion with Latino pop, Paquita la del Barrio and Michael Jackson on the speakers. I also realized the importance of spicy homemade Mexican-style salsa in a party, taking the guilt out from excessive consumption of tortilla chips.

I’m trying to spend less money by cooking more at home. Total grocery expenditure during my weekly visit to the market totals RMB 13.80.

The spunky local hairdresser told me my hair is too dry and recommended that I not wash my hair for two days. No ! so it looks like my hair may need some vo5 loving soon. 

Having a male roommate makes me appreciate that J is type A. While I may tease him incessantly over it, seriously I can’t imagine being with a sloppy anybody else. It’s enough effort trying to clean up after one male and my mom is probably laughing at me as I type this.

Posted by wl at 09:04:37 | Permalink | No Comments »

Friday, June 26, 2009

Not Working

First it was gmail and google, now the blog. Page views are zero and photos don’t seem to load properly, this much I’m trying to figure behind the great firewall. Really really I’ve got to speed it up on moving to a new blog and a new domain. Go go gadget hands ! Notwithstanding, a mosquito just bit me on the forehead. Bummer scratch scratch scratch.

Posted by wl at 05:25:55 | Permalink | No Comments »

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Weekend Up-Tos #34

R0021197

The weekend began on an incredibly good note which failed to hint of the heat and rain that are to follow. Was expecting street food to be cheap local eatery since A’s ghetto style consists of rampant distrust of real food on the street. I’m glad his friends think otherwise so we ended up by the streetside out in Putuo district digging into tasty kebabs, crayfish (still in season !) and grilled oysters topped with chopped garlic/chilli bits plus lots of cheap cold beer.

Too many people squashed into a tiny space at the Nosaj Thing show. Everyone’s packed in, there’s no room to dance or shout-talk to friends by the bar and the set seemed a little short. My photos were crap except for this one with the lo-fi hands. I like !

Weather was at a low, marked by a combination of unbearable heat and humidity with thunderstorm and non-stop rain. I switched the air-conditioning on in my room pretty much all the time.

C and I went to catch a play on Saturday evening. I’ve always wanted to watch The Vagina Monologues since I read the script years back. It was funny in Chinese, especially with the localized 屄 (bī) though I was very sleepy at certain parts. Also got bitten by tons of mosquitoes at the theatre NGHGNGHG !

Major boo of the weekend: I shrunk a favorite dress. It wasn’t expensive but it was so versatile in recent weeks after I snipped off the bubble-skirty part at the bottom. I’m guessing it must be the tumble-dry (even though I’d already put it at the lowest setting). See, doing laundry at home never pays off.

Posted by wl at 15:31:48 | Permalink | No Comments »

Friday, June 19, 2009

Hey Ho ! Let’s Go To The Mountains And Countryside !

R0020506 R0020534 R0020549 R0020550 R0020553 R0020566 R0020573 R0020584 R0020590 R0020597 R0020618 R0020622 DSCN0638 R0020644 R0020671 R0020703 R0020706 R0020709 R0020714 R0020732 R0020737 R0020738 R0020741 R0020743 R0020750 R0020755 R0020771 R0020783 R0020817 R0020819 R0020824 R0020838 R0020840
Posted by wl at 05:14:40 | Permalink | No Comments »

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Present Day Propaganda Vs. Propaganda From The Past

R0020505 R0020519 R0020521 R0020522 R0020523 R0020524 R0020525 R0020526 R0020544 R0020696 R0020697 R0020707 R0020786 R0020787 R0020788 R0020789 R0020792 R0020795 R0020797 R0020809 R0020815 R0020826 R0020827 R0020832
Posted by wl at 10:54:45 | Permalink | No Comments »