Glimpses of Guilin

Had to flee the cold, dry and grey Xi'an soon after the exams, hoping to enjoy a warmer weather down south.  However, we seemed to carry the cold wave and haze and fog with us as we arrived at Guilin.  The cruise along the Li river did not give us the scenery we had expected but it was still something to cherish.  Take a glimpse, if you will.  Hope to give you glimpses of Yangshuo which is much better than what you see here now.  Watch this space!

karst mountains reflected on the foggy Li river

Ah, the rafts!

Guilin city, behind the scene

A fisherman and his obedient and reliable cormorants

The karst mountains of Guilin, the Solitary Beauty Peak at the left

The Elephant Trunk Hill actually looks like an elephant

On Christmas and New Year

My mind was already switched on for the holidays since we had a team Christmas dinner on 19th December. The Foreign Exchange Department offered to take us out on a Christmas trip to a holiday resort a few weeks before Christmas. We saw Christmas decorations everywhere. Most restaurants wore Chrismas look and waiters were instructed to put on Santa's hat and are liable to be fined if they took them off.

You see Santa smiling at you in the supermarkets and shops but what you will not see is a scene of the Nativity. However, even a week after Christmas we still need to work, holidays have not come yet. It was hard to get back to work on Boxing Day after a hard-earned day off on Christmas Day, but only to be made up the next day. Here's a brief on what happened during the past two weeks:

Christmas at Xi'an

We are aware that it happened every year but we have never actually been there ourselves. So, we set out on Christmas eve to the Bell Tower, the city centre to witness the gathering of thousands of people to celebrate Christmas without knowing what it really means. We arrived at dusk but it was getting quite busy even then.

Many people did brisk business in the makeshift market on the sidewalk

We went looking for some gifts for friends and we dropped in at a book shop for about a quarter of an hour. When we emerged from the store the streets began to look really busy and it took us a long time to walk even a block because by this time the streets were absolutely crowded. The traffic was closed on all the four main roads leading to the Bell Tower at about 8 o'clock. The roads were jam packed all we could see was the back of the heads of people. A quiet corner was nowhere to be found and it became a bit suffocating in the end.

Christmas trees infront of Zhongda International on Nanda Street

We were fortunate to get a table in an Italian restaurant for our Christmas Eve dinner since every restautant was crowded (and the steak was scrumptious by the way). When we got back on the streets the party had already begun. Most people wore masks, Santa's hat, wigs or a lighted devil's horn or carry some Christmas balloons or other symbols. This is the time, it seems to me, when they mixed everything western together - Halloween, Yuletide, Valentine's Day etc, etc . Among the thousands (more than a million I reckon, actually) who thronged the streets what chances had we to meet any of my students? But we did, though some of them had been told not to venture out from their dormitories but the pull was too strong I guess.

Christmas revellers on the main streets of Xi'an

Most Chinese see Christmas as a time to have fun with friends and it is supposed to be very romantic. What they know about Christmas showed in the decorations they put up which include Santa Claus (who they call Christmas old man), Christmas trees, and mostly Santa Claus. Things are usually very quiet during the traditional festivals (except for the Spring Festival when they may gather again in the same scale). But even then things are not as spontaneous and as free-spirited as they are on Christmas Eve. Traditional festivals are reserved for celebration with families and relatives. China Daily reported that Christmas is big business in China - even during the global economic slowdown. Read a little more here:

What was once simply a foreign affair has not just grown in popularity, but morphed into a festival with Chinese characteristics. So many worshippers and visitors crowded the Northern Church, also known as the Xishiku Catholic Church, in west Beijing on Christmas Eve that traffic controls were needed. Wang Peng, 29, a stock broker, has experienced the festival in the church for the fourth year. Although not a Catholic, he said the church is the best place to feel the spirit of Christmas and get a taste of different culture. "You go to a library to read books and to a church to spend Christmas," said Wang, who attended the 5-pm Mass yesterday. "More people are coming here. They might not be religious people; they are here to relax and meet friends." Read more

We decided to head home at about 10:30 but we had to go outside the city wall to get any form of transpotation. Taxis and buses were too crowded and too hard to find we had to hire a tricycle in the end. It was a totally different and interesting experience and we have a feeling that there's so much that you can convey to people starting with what they already know. So we say, "yeah" for Christmas whatever that may mean to different people.

New Year

Never remembered when a New Year's day was of any significance here for they have their own Lunar New Year which happens to be the most celebrated and eagerly waited time for all people. But the New Year's day, or January the 1st had gained it's place and popularity among the people. A number of students sent us New Year's wishes which is a novelty. There was a TV show on CCTV 9, the only English Channel, to usher in the New Year along the lines of the Spring Festival TV Mega event but not as big which I can't remember watching in the past. Things are changing here and I believe that it is for the better.

The President's televised speech assured the people of the world that China's reform and opening, in it's 30th Year since Deng Xiaoping started it will continue in the coming years and it remains to be seen what that opening actually entails.

Many things happened in 2008 and what a year it had been for us! So, out we went, after the classes to celebrate the year that was, and to give thanks for his goodness. We chose the Small World Cafe along the city wall and had a quiet, wonderful dinner. The food, as always, was just so wonderful. We are looking forward to have a great year with his leading. Happy New Year to you.

Xi'an City wall on New Year's Eve

Truth in the inner parts

Surely you desire truth in the inner parts

-King David

(Ps. 51:6a)

It was interesting to browse the mobile phone handsets on display here in the market.  I refrained from buying the all attractive 3G 16G iphone after deciding that the quoted price was still a bit much here compared to the price in the states.  However, what you could get here in terms of fake goods is often unbelievable!

The salespersons introduced the fake handsets with some clear hint of amusement and one came across brands like ‘Sansung’; ‘Nakia, etc., etc.  mofăng (模仿) is Mandarin for 'copy or imitation' and píngŭo is for 'apple'.  Try and see the difference between the original and copy version of Apple iphone here:

Most of these fake handsets look very much like the original; however a few tests would reveal that they aren’t for real and wouldn’t last for long.  Just open and see the inside and what you see will tell you that it’s better to buy the real McCoy or none at all.  The battery had a warning telling me not to recharge it while it’s still inside the phone and recommended using a wall charger.  There are more issues that told me not to get one but for the sake of finding out what it was all about I browsed and tried a few of them.  The presentation was often interesting and impressive at times.  Well, at the copy capital of the world most of the things can be copied.

Most of the time in life we act what we don’t feel.  There’s a bit of an actor in all of us and the Bard had said “all the world’s a stage” and we all know it’s true.  It’s easy to fool people but we know what is really inside us.  So, with this constant practice of acting and convincing people of what we want them to feel and think about us we get better each day I guess.  However, when we bring this part of our nature into our worship and relationship with an omnipotent and omniscient God it doesn’t work at all.  To the Samaritan woman He said his Father was looking for worshippers who will worship in spirit and in truth not only in Jerusalem.  That was to say that the true worshippers could worship him from anywhere (not only in a building) as long as it is from the heart, that’s what he is looking for.

It’s been over a hundred years and I believe we still have a long way to go in our walk with him.  It’s not only about corporate practice of faith but it is about relationship and communication at the spiritual level - ‘worship from the heart’.  We have to realise the essentially important ‘closing of the door and kneeling to him in private’ so that we may get our reward not from the praises of people but from him who is in secret.

Are you truthful in the inner parts, that’s the all important question.  He saw you last night as you celebrated Christmas Eve.  And he knows and sees you wherever you are.  He wants true worship from the inner parts that might begin with telling him what you have done and he is ready and willing to forgive those who have broken and contrite spirit.  That's what he came here for more than two thousand years ago.  Merry Christmas!

Sawi ve reng reng ang

Roreltua awmte hi Pathian ruat an ni

- Rom 13:1b.

Hunte leh hunbite a ti danglam a: Lalte a sawn bo va, lalte a tungding a

- Daniala 2:21

Sawi ve reng reng a ngai. Inthlan hmain kan tawngtai tlat. Kan dil a, hei hi kan hmu a, kan sawi hi a thiang a ni. "Mahni phu tawk ang zel roreltu kan nei thin" an tih avangin Pathian hnenah kan phu tawk ang min pe tawh lo hram turin ka lo dil ve mial mial a. Kan phu tawk leh kan neih chuan kan ram hian eng kan an phah dawn lo; phu tawk aia sang ngen ngawl taka dil kha a tulin ka hria a ni.

India inthlanpui hnuhnung berah mi tam zawkin BJP an chak leh an ring a, Congress an sawrkar leh ang tih an ring lo. Economy a tha a, ramin kawng hrang hrangin hma a sawn a ni. A lehlamah BJP sawrkar laiin nasa takin ringtute'n nekchepna leh tihduhdahna an tawk a, Gujarat-ah buaina namen lo thleng a, Orissa-ah te pawh. Hindu hovin min nghaisa nasa dawn a nih hi tia mi tam tak an rum laiin Pathianin an sawrkarna chu a paihthla a, "A va mak em!" kan ti a nih kha.

MNF sawrkar-in term hnih chhung sawrkarna an chelh a, mipui duhthlanna a lo chhuak a, an kal a ngai ve leh ta. An tlin zawh tak lohna chhan kawng hrang hrangin a sawi theih ang. Zoramthanga chuan 'sawrkar dinglai nin vang' (incumbency factor) ni berah a ngai a. Ngaihdan dangah corruption nasat lutuk vang tih te, Law and order mumal loh vang, sawrkarin a tih tur a thawk zo lo, etc, etc a awm nawk mai. Heng zawng zawng hian kawng hrang hrangin awmzia an nei vek awm e. Vote thlaktu tam zia leh an kal thatzia enin engemaw kawng zawng tak chuan 'Obama factor' te pawh kan ti ve thei awm e. Mi tam tak, a bikin thalai, khawvel tukverha dak phak chin tawh phawt chu tunhma zawng aiin vote thlak ngei turin a fuih phur ve ngei ngei ang. A hmuna awm lo tan chuan rindan sawi a ni deuh vek mai a, sawi thui vak lovang.

Tun tum inthlana rilrua thil lo langsar tak tak te chu hetihian han sawi thuak thuak dawn ila (ngaihtuahna fim tak pawh ka hmang hman em em bik lo):

Mipui kan fing leh zual tawh: Tunhma zawng aiin mipuiin ram hmangaih nachang kan hre leh zual ta a, kan fing ta zawk niin a lang. Mi tam tak party politics-ah la buai fo mahse, a ngaihna hre chin te hi chuan 'party' ai mahin candidate te enin vote an thlak ta niin a lang. Congress hrim vote lam ai mahin a candidate an chhawp chhuahte an hralh an tla zawk niin a lang.

YMA-in absolute power a hloh deuh em?: Tunhmaa YMA, pawl thianghlim nia kan ngaih thin kha mi engemawzatin politics lama invawrhna 'platform' atan an hmang ta mek niin a lang a. A tir lama politics-a zuang lut te khan an tlin phah a, tunah chuan an tlin phah ta vak lo niin a lang. Thil kan ti chho zel a, kan zir chho zel bawk niin a lang, a tha lam a niin ka ngai.

Mahni thawhchhuah loh pui lo claim a him lem lo: Ram hruaitu lu berin 'Pathian rawngbawltu' nuai khat kan tir dawn tiin a puang dum dum a, Mizoram sawrkarin engtikah mah Pathian rawngbawltu a tir ngai lo. Pathian Kohhrante'n Pathian thu hmuin an tir thin a ni zawk. Sawrkar chu Pathian hmanrua mai a ni.

Vote Bank Politics a reh deuh em?: Chhung leh khat, vua leh vang in vote luih luih kha hmun tam takah chuan a la awm em em ang. Mahse, tlem tlemin a zia chho zel turah ka ngai. Mahse, Chhim khawthlang lamah chi bing in vote-na a la nasa hle tih result atangin a hriat theih. West Tuipui Constituency-a MLA thlan tlin hian a bial a hum hneh hle. He bial atang hian Mizoram MLA inthlan awm tawh reng rengah Mizo pakhat mah an la tling thei lo. Hemi avang hian hmasawnna pawh a 'satel kal' tial tial a, hnuhchhawn ramah a chang chho zel 'ni berin a lang'.

Media role a langsar: Mizorama chanchinbu darhzau ber berte leh Cable TV te'n sawrkar thlak chungchangah role an nei lian hle. Inthlan hma kumah Zoramah kan awm ve a, mipui ngaihdan siam, thlak leh hruai kawngah kan chanchinbu leh electronic media lam an pawimawhin an langsar leh zual hle. A tha zawnga changkanna a ni e.

Inthlan result lamah erawh kan chanchinbu website hote an che muang viau. www.lawrkhawm.com leh www.misual.com te an tangkaiin an fakawm hle. Election Commission website pawh a rintlakin a chhawr nahawm hle mai. Chanchin thar a thlen rual rualin kan lo hre ve zung zung mai.

Opposition an va chau dawn ve!: Shadow Ministers tih vel nei thei khawpin opposition an inhlawmkhawm tha thei ngut ang em? Duh aiin an tlem mah mahin ka hria.

Roreltute hi Pathian ruat an ni: A tawp ber leh a pawimawh berah chuan Pathianin a duh duh hi a tung ding a, a duh duh a paihthla mai thin. Inthlana chak chhan leh chak loh chhan zawng zawng bul ber hi chu Pathian liau liau a ni. 1998 thleng Congress-in ro an rel tawh. Corruption leh zu leh sa leh kawng hrang hranga sualna pawh kan ramin a dai nasa a, mi tam tak an rum thin. Pathianin tunah hian tungdingin 'chance' a lo pe leh ta. A duh zawng leh a zai ngai, amah tih chunga ro an rel loh chuan reiloteah kan ‘mangtha' leh mai ang.

Kan zavai hian khua leh tui tha nih tum ila, mahni theuh hi kan hna theuhah han corrupt lo phawt mai ila ram siam thatna chu kan tan a lo ni reng dawn a ni. Sawrkar thar lo piang tur hi tawngtaina nen chelh ila, anni'n an theih tawpin ram leh hnam thatna turin rinawm takin thawk sela anmahni leh an chhungte ei khawp chu nitinin Pathianin a pe zawk dawn a ni. Kan Pathian Nung tia sawi kur dup lovin a nun ang ngeiin amah tih a pawimawh zel ang.

Hei hi ka 'two cents' worth' chu lo ni rih phawt teh se.

Cold Wave

The Siberian cold wave is sweeping across the country and the temperature has dropped below freezing for a few days now. (That's me resorting to weather for want of more interesting things to talk about). Anyway, when it's below freezing you really feel it in your skin. Hope we'd have a white Christmas this year. What I really want to do now is pass you the following quote, and see if it encourages you (in its simplicity and clarity) to go forward with whatever task you have been entrusted with:

There are difficulties on every hand,
and more are looming ahead. Therefore, (mark that) we must go
forward.

- William Carey

ca. 1796

The Race Question

You may have wondered what was keeping yours truly out of radar, or you may not have given a fiddler's fart at all.  

It has become so hard to find the time to update a blog or whatever log you are keeping.  Time is of essence and I find myself running out of supplies most of the time.

You are my reader and I am your writer.  You are my audience and I am your speaker.  And right now you are listening to me, and I am speaking to you alone.  What I say matters to you and the fact that you are listening and taking in whatever I say matters to me.

I have to admit that the infectious American optimism is getting even to me, and I am beginning to believe that change is coming, and that change would be for the good of all.  The Obama factor is BIG and believe me it’s going to change a lot of things.  I believe I will want to remember where I was and what I was doing when it happened.  As of now, I am living in a country where the colour of your skin does not seem to matter in theory but it does and sometime it can hit you very hard when you have to face it, especially in my line of work, teaching language science and a language which is not my native tongue. 

As a people group, I believe most of us are racists, may be more so than people in our neigbouring states.  I wouldn't want to be a non-local person in our land because of all the things an outsider has to endure.  The Burmese, the Vais, the Brus, the Chakmas - it's not easy for them at all.  You can't imagine one of them becoming the Chief Minister of the state.  The names we call, the treatment we mete out, the way we abuse and the general negative attitude we have of them - I would never want to endure in the life of me.  It would be an understatement to say 'It's not nice!' when you are made to feel the second best, not because of your ability, but merely for the colour of your skin or the passport you are holding. 

I have written extensively on the demigod status that some white-skinned folks enjoy in some societies including ours.  And I am still trying to find ways to convince people that a person is not better or worse than you simply because of his race or colour.  As the walls of separation came crushing down in the land of opportunities, I begin to believe that one day we would be free of all these shackles and live as equals in this southwest region of the galaxy.  The place may look like a little speck of dust from outer space, but we shall find that there's a room for us all, black and blue, white and green and all colours, on this planet after all.  So, I salute you, Mr. President Elect, and I join you in saying "Yes, We Can!" with much more enthusiasm and believe than when you first begun. 

One man spoke of his dream on August 28, 1963, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and said, "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’ I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood."  Just look at what had become of his dreams.  You have to dream big, and the dream will come to you eventually.

Some Photos from Mizoram, India

I was dreaming that once we got back to India, I would shoot away everywhere, and would come out with some wonderful pics on the land and the people of India, especially of Mizoram. Now, I realized that this takes time and energy and inspiration, and most of all sweat. After being here for almost a year I managed a few thousand pics, most of them of family members, and wish I could come up with better ones than what I have now here.

A mail from Mr. Menahem Fogel, of Jerusalem Post, asking for permission to use my photos inspired me to post these. So thanks to him.

See the Photos Here