Naniningkit
My trip to Xiamen was greeted by Snow White and the Seven Santas (There's one more at the back, Dopey grew a beard just for this). Apparently, any western cartoon with white beards would pass as Santa Claus for them here.
I'm quite surprised and awed by Xiamen airport. It's a far cry from our NAIA 3 here. They even have automatic trash bin sensors, where you wave your hand over the container and the lid magically opens by itself. Even the toilet seats are modernized and built especially for the hygiene-conscious. The toilet seats are lined with plastic wrap that rolls and changes into a new one with every use, all you need to do is press a button.
And at a restaurant we ate in, they had automated liquid soap dispensers. It comes with motion sensors that detect your hands and spit soap on it.
Xiamen is definitely starting to wake up.
This is me at the Xiamen Trade Exhibit parking lot. This month they're showcasing Shanghai winter fashion. And this is where
I got my new coat. They were selling it for 280 yuan. I haggled and got it for 150 yuan (1050 pesos). Not bad for my first purchase. ^_^
I saw this really nice mineral water bottle. I've never seen a water bottle that's this cylindrical and with refreshing cuts around it. It was really nice to know that they do good packaging designs here and are not usually hindered by lack of proper machines. Sigh, I wish we had their resources.
Shopping in Tiong San Road (Middle-Mountain Road) lead me to many, if not a roomful of stylish clothes. Everyone dresses like an agency creative here, if not even better. I won't call the styles here a "trend" because they always have this set of styles every winter. The "trend" here is to have something different as an individual. Maybe that's why Betty Boop and Mickey Mouse stores still live around here.
Around the back alleys of Tiong San Road, I came upon this nice little pet shop with this really big and adorable sheepdog. I wish I could bring him home, just as I wish I could bring this little guy home too.
It's a tiny pekingnese. ^_^ It costs P2,100 (300 yuan) without papers. But if you need the papers, that's another 100 yuan, about P2,800 in total. I just don't know if I can bring him home without any problems. It might be too much of a hassle considering the airport guys nowadays are paranoid about diseases, etc.
And this is the coast of Xiamen. We visited a friend's house and she lives near the beach. Shot this scene using my W800. I stupidly forgot to bring a decent camera. So this will have to do.
It's actually a nice beach, reminds me that summer is just around the corner and that I really have to make my Atkin's diet work if I plan on wearing that bikini. Hehe.
* * * * * * *
On our 3rd day, we traveled for four hours by bus to GuangZhou to visit our ancestral home. It was where my Great-great grandfather was buried. And where our remaining relatives in China are. It's practically where our clan settled as they traveled down from Mongolia. It was weird seeing the place for the first time and knowing that my existence depended so much on the decisions of my forefathers. I can see the marks of time on the walls, the streets, the people, the smell and the energy. I wished I could time-travel to our past, even for just a glimpse of how this placed looked in all its ancient glory.
I had a strange experience near the orange brick walls on a long path to the temple. I was the last one in line to walk out, but I kept on looking behind me, mistakingly sensing people following me. But there were none. I didn't feel fear and I was calm the whole time. I just hope it was my ancestors, happy, because we finally came.
This was taken outside the temple. Scenes made of stone. There are people in each scene, and each one is different. The only weird thing about this is that every one of the small stone people have their heads cut off. They said the communists from that time did it, but they didn't tell me the reason why. It might have been too long ago and no one really knows why.
A nice marble painting is set on the wall of the temple. I don't know who created it, and when it was created. I wished the walls talked. They would tell me hundreds of stories about this place.
The temple is actually a shrine of our dead relatives/ancestors. Portraits of my great-great grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. are all there. Our great-great grandfather looked very much like my grandfather. And our great-great grandmother is the exact duplicate of my great-grandmother. I even saw a distant cousin who looked like me when I was in highschool...she's alive. Saw her at the house where I borrowed a comfort room.
I had mixed feelings there. Happy to have found the place where we came from and sad at how it decapitated it looked. I wanted to talk to our relatives but my westernized tongue prevented me from doing so. Maybe next time, I guess.
Nearing the end of our trip, we offered food and incense, burned money paper, said our goodbyes and thanked destiny for taking us back here.
I'm quite surprised and awed by Xiamen airport. It's a far cry from our NAIA 3 here. They even have automatic trash bin sensors, where you wave your hand over the container and the lid magically opens by itself. Even the toilet seats are modernized and built especially for the hygiene-conscious. The toilet seats are lined with plastic wrap that rolls and changes into a new one with every use, all you need to do is press a button.
And at a restaurant we ate in, they had automated liquid soap dispensers. It comes with motion sensors that detect your hands and spit soap on it.
Xiamen is definitely starting to wake up.
This is me at the Xiamen Trade Exhibit parking lot. This month they're showcasing Shanghai winter fashion. And this is where
I got my new coat. They were selling it for 280 yuan. I haggled and got it for 150 yuan (1050 pesos). Not bad for my first purchase. ^_^
I saw this really nice mineral water bottle. I've never seen a water bottle that's this cylindrical and with refreshing cuts around it. It was really nice to know that they do good packaging designs here and are not usually hindered by lack of proper machines. Sigh, I wish we had their resources.
Shopping in Tiong San Road (Middle-Mountain Road) lead me to many, if not a roomful of stylish clothes. Everyone dresses like an agency creative here, if not even better. I won't call the styles here a "trend" because they always have this set of styles every winter. The "trend" here is to have something different as an individual. Maybe that's why Betty Boop and Mickey Mouse stores still live around here.
Around the back alleys of Tiong San Road, I came upon this nice little pet shop with this really big and adorable sheepdog. I wish I could bring him home, just as I wish I could bring this little guy home too.
It's a tiny pekingnese. ^_^ It costs P2,100 (300 yuan) without papers. But if you need the papers, that's another 100 yuan, about P2,800 in total. I just don't know if I can bring him home without any problems. It might be too much of a hassle considering the airport guys nowadays are paranoid about diseases, etc.
And this is the coast of Xiamen. We visited a friend's house and she lives near the beach. Shot this scene using my W800. I stupidly forgot to bring a decent camera. So this will have to do.
It's actually a nice beach, reminds me that summer is just around the corner and that I really have to make my Atkin's diet work if I plan on wearing that bikini. Hehe.
* * * * * * *
On our 3rd day, we traveled for four hours by bus to GuangZhou to visit our ancestral home. It was where my Great-great grandfather was buried. And where our remaining relatives in China are. It's practically where our clan settled as they traveled down from Mongolia. It was weird seeing the place for the first time and knowing that my existence depended so much on the decisions of my forefathers. I can see the marks of time on the walls, the streets, the people, the smell and the energy. I wished I could time-travel to our past, even for just a glimpse of how this placed looked in all its ancient glory.
I had a strange experience near the orange brick walls on a long path to the temple. I was the last one in line to walk out, but I kept on looking behind me, mistakingly sensing people following me. But there were none. I didn't feel fear and I was calm the whole time. I just hope it was my ancestors, happy, because we finally came.
This was taken outside the temple. Scenes made of stone. There are people in each scene, and each one is different. The only weird thing about this is that every one of the small stone people have their heads cut off. They said the communists from that time did it, but they didn't tell me the reason why. It might have been too long ago and no one really knows why.
A nice marble painting is set on the wall of the temple. I don't know who created it, and when it was created. I wished the walls talked. They would tell me hundreds of stories about this place.
The temple is actually a shrine of our dead relatives/ancestors. Portraits of my great-great grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. are all there. Our great-great grandfather looked very much like my grandfather. And our great-great grandmother is the exact duplicate of my great-grandmother. I even saw a distant cousin who looked like me when I was in highschool...she's alive. Saw her at the house where I borrowed a comfort room.
I had mixed feelings there. Happy to have found the place where we came from and sad at how it decapitated it looked. I wanted to talk to our relatives but my westernized tongue prevented me from doing so. Maybe next time, I guess.
Nearing the end of our trip, we offered food and incense, burned money paper, said our goodbyes and thanked destiny for taking us back here.