Chinese

The Sea

This article was published in Westerly magazine (Australia), Edition No. 62.2 (2017) The first time I saw the sea, I was five. My father took me to see the Indian Ocean. We lived in a small town near the southern coast of Java, so we refer to the ocean as the ‘South Sea’. The furious sea under the dusky and misty dawn emanated a mysterious, yet intense energy, which triggered an unprecedented sensation inside me, that I was very, very tiny and powerless before the nature. With his hand around mine, my father told me the story of the Queen of the South Sea. The beautiful goddess, always wrapped in a green dress, is a mighty spirit residing at the bottom of the sea: the one who makes this sacred sea so perilous; the one who so often takes lives. And so, fishermen, sailors, swimmers, even visitors who merely put their feet on the beach sand are carried away by under-water currents, transported to her palace at the bottom of the sea. Listening to this, I shivered. I held Father’s hand tighter. Father laughed, called me a coward. The mystical beliefs of Java somehow had become an essential part of [...]

December 6, 2019 // 6 Comments

#1Pic1Day: Naga Kebebasan | Dragon of Freedom (Indonesia, 2013)

Dragon of Freedom (Indonesia, 2013) During the New Order under Suharto, Chinese culture was banned in Indonesia, including traditional and religious rituals. After the Reform Era, Chinese Indonesian (known locally as Tionghoa, from the Chinese word of “Zhonghua”) started to gain their rights as citizens, including performing their culture. The annual celebration of Cap Go Meh, the 15th day after the Chinese New Year/Spring Festival, is a great festive for the whole city. Chinese temples and other communities (including Muslims) participate in the parade, showcasing traditions and dances from all over Indonesia, including the Chinese Dragon Dance, for sure. Naga Kebebasan (Indonesia, 2013) Pada masa Orde Baru, kebudayaan Tionghoa dilarang di Indonesia, termasuk ritual perayaan tradisional dan religius. Setelah memasuki era Reformasi, barulah Tionghoa bebas mengekspresikan budaya mereka. Acara tahunan Cap Go Meh, atau hari ke-15 sesudah Imlek, menjadi pesta rakyat yang sangat meriah di Bogor, di mana berbagai elemen masyarakat dan kelenteng-kelenteng di Jawa Barat berparade menampilkan kebudayaan Nusantara dan kebudayaan Tionghoa, termasuk barongsai. [...]

January 31, 2014 // 0 Comments

Kabul – A Lunch in Chinese Embassy

The grand complex of Chinese embassy. Not big enough? This is just one among dozen of buildings in the complex. It’s grand. It’s just like a Chinese garden from the Middle Kingdom being transported to the middle of dusty Kabul. Mr. Yang, Mr. Li, and Mr. Yu were waiting outside the grand embassy building with strong Chinese-style architecture. Mr. Yang is the ambassador, Mr. Li is the counselor, and Mr. Yu is the protocol staff. They have been waiting for about 30 minutes. We came very late, due to jammed Kabul traffic. And we, two women and two men, felt very much embarrassed. How suddenly an ordinary man like me being invited to have lunch with his Excellency Chinese Ambassador? In a diplomatic function held for the Indonesian National Day, the Chinese Ambassador and his very two staffs paid a visit. A friend of mine, a Chinese Indonesian working in UN, expressed her curiousness on Chinese culture. The hospitable Ambassador then invited her to come to the embassy to have lunch together. A month after it is proved that the invitation was not a mere lip service. She received an email from the protocol staff about the meeting and she [...]

September 24, 2007 // 0 Comments

Tokmok – The Dungan

A Dungan family “Хуэйзу либянди щинфу” – Happiness Among the Dungan Hueimin Bo 26.01.2006 My first interaction with the Dungans was with its food. There is a busy, crowded, small restaurant near the Iranian embassy in Bishkek offering Dungan food. When I entered the underground room, I felt I was thrown again to China. It is Chinese, and only Chinese language, spoken among the cook and servants. The food also resembles Chinese food you eat in mainland China, with slight variation of Central Asia touch. That second I immediately decide: I want to know who the Dungans are. Tokmok is a little town 70 km east of Bishkek. This town is located nearby to Chuy River which now separates Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. Tokmok is a kaleidoscope of ethnics: Kyrgyz, Kazakh, Uzbek, Russian, Uyghur, and Dungan traders stuff its busy Sunday bazaar. Tokmok is home of most Kyrgyzstan’s Dungan population. Not far from the bazaar there is a little Dungan mosque. Here, in Central Asia, as countries are split into ethnic-nation idea (e.g. Kyrgyzstan – the country of the Kyrgyz, Uzbekistan – the country of the Uzbeks, etc) even the mosques are now ethnic-based. The Dungans only go to their own [...]

November 26, 2006 // 1 Comment