Chengdon't

March is a month notable for its numerous days marking various different landmarks, which as time goes on seem to get more numerous and more bizarre.  On March the 10^th netizens celebrate ‘International Awesome Day’ (the date corresponds with the birthday of legendary kung fu high-kicker Chuck Norris).  On the 11^th you can breathe a little easier on ‘no smoking day’, the 14^th sees mathematicians reach for that extra decimal point when ‘international pi’ day is celebrated, and March 15^th is a day of particular resonance here as it heralds ‘fight for consumer rights’ day.

One date that most Chinese will have indelibly burnt in their psyche from their school days is March the 5^th; otherwise know as ‘Learn from Lei Feng’ day.  This seems to have passed most Westerners by, but to the majority of China’s citizens the name is as familiar as Robin Hood in England or Jesse James in the states – but Lei Feng was no outlaw…

Born in 1940 and sharing his home province of Hunan with Chairman Mao, Lei Feng was orphaned at an early age and was taken into the care of the Communist Party.  He soon joined the People’s Liberation Army, partly as a way of thanking the state for taking care of him during his infancy.  According to reports it was while in the army that he first studied the works of the Chairman and decided to dedicate himself to serving the people.

He sent his savings to the parents of a fellow soldier affected by a flood; served tea and food to the new recruits; washed his friends’ feet after a long march and mended their clothes; he went all-out to show his devotion to the cause. In short, it is reported he lived the life of a saintly boy scout, his one desire to be a ‘revolutionary screw that never rusts’.

There are various conflicting stories about Lei Feng’s early death in 1962; some say he was hit by a falling telegraph pole, others report he was run over and a few conclude he simply worked himself to death.  He remained in obscurity until his diary – which chronicled his daily life of philanthropy in extreme detail – was found in 1963.  It was then decided by the Party to elevate him as an example to others of how to behave and treat your fellow man, and the first ‘learn from Lei Feng’ campaign was launched, complete with pictures, songs and poems extolling the virtues of living a selfless life.

“Uncle Lei Feng tells revolutionary stories” (1965)

To this day Chinese school children are still taught about Lei Feng’s deeds, and on March the 5^th school children are encouraged to go out into the community and perform random altruistic acts like cleaning up parks and schools, and local news will often run stories about these activities.

It has been debated whether teaching Lei Feng’s model of altruism and self-sacrifice in schools has any relevance to today’s modern Chinese world, and even his very existence is a bone of contention for some commentators.  However, his legend persists, and both Chinese and foreign Chinese language students continue to learn from Lei Feng’s good example in ways the man himself would scarcely have been able to believe; he has had numerous films made about his life, and now has his own web log and video game, the object of which is to meet Chairman Mao and get his autograph!  His story has now spread worldwide, with one particular Chinese-speaking foreigner being especially interested in him…

Until next week blogwatchers, good luck and good tasty – zaijian!

There is an old saying in the middle kingdom that, “China has the best teahouses in the world and Chengdu has the best teahouses in China.”  It is a well-deserved reputation, not only because of the numerous teahouses dotted around the city, but also because drinking tea has evolved to become a quintessential part of the daily lives of Chengdu locals.  For many residents here, tea is much more than mere leaves and water – it is a way of life and is ingrained into the very fabric of the city.

For Chengdu locals, it is very important to have the proper atmosphere to enjoy their tea, and for many the best place to do this is a teahouse.  The design and layout of teahouses varies from simple and rustic to opulence that even the ancient emperors of China would have been happy with, and each local has his or her favorite teahouse to frequent, but why are Chengdu’s teahouses so popular with visitors to the city?

Perhaps it is the special way of serving and drinking tea that attracts visitors from across China and around the globe to Chengdu’s teahouses.  After the guests have sat down, the waiters – locally known as ‘tea doctors’ – set the cups on the table and pour the water from behind the guests or from above their heads. When the cups are almost full, the tea doctor suddenly raises the teapot high above their head, still not spilling a drop.

One of the best parts of Chengdu’s teahouse culture is the sense of community, with young and old alike milling around and enjoying the atmosphere.  Many who regularly go are not thirsty – teahouses here serve numerous other social functions.  For some it is a place to meet – retired people pay the equivalent of around half a US dollar to go to the teahouse and sit there all day.  Others bring guests and eat melon or sunflower seeds while they chat.  Most of the city’s tea drinkers do not consider themselves connoisseurs, but come to relax, and are not bothered about the expensive brand-name teas.

Some of the more established teahouses also have theatrical performances, such as storytelling, crosstalk (Chinese comic dialogue) and Sichuan opera.  It’s the perfect place to meet new friends, and some teahouses also offer other services – people wandering through the crowds with handfuls of metal tools that they use to clean out patron’s ears, or cut their fingernails. It may look scary, but it all adds to the local teahouse experience!

Chengdu is one of the few remaining places in China where true teahouse culture still exists, and it is an experience that should not be missed – the only way to truly understand it is to try it yourself!  Until next time blogwatchers, good luck and good tasty – zaijian!

Number 9 – In dubious taste

After the controversies surrounding photos taken of the Spanish Basketball team, Miley Cyrus and Ronaldo, the Chinese decide to take matters into their own hands…

One of the great things about Chengdu is that despite the fact it has roughly the same population as Paris, the city remains relatively small scale compared to it’s more illustrious coastal cousins.  Having lived in the urban sprawls that are Shanghai and Beijing, I find the city’s relative accessibility quite refreshing.

However, one of the major gripes expats living here have is with the provision of taxis.  In other major cities it is relatively easy to walk out onto the street and pick up a cab day or night – provided it’s not raining, when they all seem to melt away into thin air – but in Chengdu there just don’t seem to be enough to go round.  Rush hour sees scenes usually reserved for recreations of gladatorial combat in ancient Rome, with grown men trampling old ladies and children to ensure their safe passage.  It’s not a pretty sight, and in order to avoid such brutal encounters, the other week both Iz and I took the plunge and purchased bicycles.

Although it seems dangerously chaotic on the roads, there is some sort of order to the whole thing – think shoal of fish and you won’t be too far out – and you soon get used to following the lead of other Chinese road users who are just trying to get from A to B without getting a spear in the head waiting for a taxi.  Biking also opens up areas of the city you don’t really notice from the inside of a car.  Over the Spring Festival we biked out to see the sights of central and North East Chengdu, and here’s what we found:

Over the Spring Festival these orange ‘firework tents’ have sprung up on every street corner, selling all manner of explosive devices.  A stray cigarette could cause mayhem, but the motorbiking dog seems to be calm about it all…

Public parks are an essential part of everyday Chinese life, with people of all ages and backgrounds going to walk, play cards or music and just get away from the crowds and noise of other public areas.

Just in time for Valentine’s day, this romantic pedestrian crossing puts the ‘oh’ into road safety…

The north east of Chengdu is probably the area of the city that has received the least investment in recent years, and some of the buildings have a real ’60s Eastern European Era feel to them.

This stall selling lamb kebabs on sticks (or yang rou chuanr) seems to be doing a roaring trade at a temple fair (a kind of carnival to celebrate the Spring Festival held in the days after lunar new year)

The fair offered the chance to feed coy carp with what looked like a baby’s bottle…

There were also activities for the kids

I guess they couldn’t get real horses?

Always worried about the cold, Chinese parents tend to wrap up their children in so many layers that they begin to resemble the logo of a famous tyre manufacturer

The haunted house was pretty scary

But not as scary as the colour of the water in the ‘children’s pleasure cruise’

This was the entrance to the Temple Fair at Wu Hou in the south west of the city

One of the attractions featured St. Bernards in cages… I think there were performances, but we didn’t stick around to find out.

At the temple itself, much incense was burned in prayers for good luck in the coming year

On the way back we encountered Chengdu’s famous ‘shipwrecked’ boat.

And at the end of the day, a good time was had by all!

Well, that’s about it for this week blogwatchers.  Thanks a lot for reading, and good luck and good tasty.  Zaijian!

Number 8 – The sequel to the film ‘Snakes on a plane’

Snakes in a jar...

I’d go on, but I wouldn’t want to boa you…