Table manners revisited

When I was taught table manners as a child, I learned that I should never cut potatoes with a knife. Manners make a lot of sense as they make life in a society more enjoyable for everybody. Though I never understood my social contribution by not cutting potatoes, until I was told that old cuttlery knifes corroded when they were exposed to the starch in a potato. This made sense, because of course nobody wants to put extra work on anybody cleaning oxidized blades. Strangely, I never questioned this rule until now. 

The photo below shows a high carbon steel knife of the manufacturer OPINEL. These knifes are very sharp and corrode by just looking at them. So, such a knife is the ideal object to test to impact of potato starch. The knife you see on the picture has been stuck in a potato after dinner for a whole night. Before that the knife was cleaned from all oils or other additives which could have protected it from rusting. But no sign of corrosion at all. Ergo, the origin of this rule stays a mystery for me.

Christmas Walk

At night the mercury drops down to minus 20 Degrees Celsius. The days are clear and already 50 kilometers North of Beijing the sky turns blue. In this area chestnuts are grown and this is the only connection point with Christmas in Beijing. Christmas is of course not a Chinese festival, and it is here about on the same spiritual level than Helloween. But some people wish each other Merry Christmas in Beijing, and sometimes even take it as an opportunity to be a little bit less rude to each other. That's nice.

The region around the Shuyiyuan Dafoshan Area is nice for a Christmas walk. The trails lead through the villages and chestnut plantations and in the North West you have a very nice view on some sections of the Great Wall. You will not see any tourists here and the only people you meet are local farmers. The trail marked on the map below is about 12 km long. It is a bit tricky to find, but if you want to follow it by yourself I can send you the GPX file which is tracking a route (to use it you will need a real GPS, not a smart phone).

Nine Years in China

Where ever I stay in the rest of my life, I will always feel homesick to China. Now I have been here for nine years. It is a vast country, nearly a continent of its own, reaching from Central Asia to the Pacific. My China is not about the Megacities and becoming rich. My China is about the hidden corners and the things we might have the last chance to see in this rapidly developing country. And the deeper I go, the more there is to explore. One day, I will leave. And I know this time is coming. And I might go it even by foot. I will walk away from the cities, the cars, the factories and all these things which are increasingly shaping and changing the country. But I never walk away from my memories, and neither from my China of the hidden corners, nor from my friends and the people I love. Also I will not go to "my country". Because I have no country. I never carried a flag, neither on my rucksack, nor in my heart. I just know places - many of them. And there are many more to come.

White surprise again

The year of 2012 is slowly coming to an end. As always a lot of things have to be finished before people go on holidays, so except the (dreadful) decoration there is not much to remind me, that Christmas is coming and the old year ending. But today snow flakes came and put some icing on the city of Beijing. This is the sure reminder: another year has passed nearly.

Immortal Valley

The Immortal Valley Loop is a very nice hiking route which brings you up to a peak of 800 meters, overlooking the North-Eastern reservoirs of Beijing, as well as the mountains around. It takes about 4 hours walking to return to the starting point. 

The route contains a few steep sections which are equipped with metal staircases. At this season the waterfalls, are frozen into amazing sculptures of ice. Amazing in overview and detail.

Jeju (South Korea)

The first time I heard about Jeju was about 10 years ago, when I saw an advert in The Economist to invest in the self governed Pacific island province of South Korea. I remember there was a map showing how good it is located and which places you can reach in a radius of three flight hours. And  there were ambitious plans to develop it into a "Second Hong Kong". Today Jeju is a very nice weekend escape for me from Beijing. It is a self governed province of South Korea and also Nationals of the People's Republic of China can enter on a landing visa. First I thought then there is the chance that the island might have already deteriorated into a "Chinese Mallorca". But not at all. Most Chinese travel companions coming from Beijing, strait went to the Casino and the shopping malls and do rarely appear in the rest of the island, except in the form f a few tour busses which are easy to be spotted from far and avoided. 

The island itself is very pretty and mainly shaped by Mount Hallas, a very picturesque shield volcano and many other volcanic structures. The sea is clear and has some nice dark sanded volcanic beaches. All together the island is a very good destination for hiking, swimming, cycling, or just to get away to a quiet place. Historically, Jeju received unfortunate fame for the 1948 massacre, and the violent confrontations with communist insurgence. The society has been shaken, by troops and paramilitary units killing men and forcing the widows to marry the murderers of their husbands, so that they take legal ownership of the land.

Jeju also has a University and a Science Park and it makes a very good diaspora for example to finish up some writing in a nice environment. I have not made further plans yet, but I keep the option in mind for now.

The Temple of the Earth and I

It is a cold day with gales today in Beijing. A beautiful day, as it is sunny and the Beijingers are enjoying the clearness after a day of rain washing out, and then strong winds blowing away the haze. The Hutongs are filled with golden leaves, and live their anachronistic slowness and quietness in the middle of the capital city. 

After dinner, before going to bed, I still went to my favorite place in this city, which is The Temple of the Earth. There is no God in the centre of this temple. It is an open space to worship the Earth itself, pray for luck, harvest, and ask for forgiveness. There is no "person" on the other side - nobody you can make a deal with. I love this temple and the park around it. I spend as much time there as I can. Even I am not religious at all, and last prayed in a German kindergarden (when you got beaten up if you did not follow instructions), today I felt like asking for a few things. Of course, I am aware that I can only ask myself, and no supreme being. And then, I can hope for luck.

I regret, that I cannot read Shi Tiesheng's "The Temple of Earth and I" in Chinese. I have to rely on translations and found one on Karen Gernant and Chen Zeping . The book is the description of the Temple of the Earth Park through the eyes a man who has been crippled in young age and spends all his free time there. Even I am handicapped only having the translation to rely on, it is a beautiful record of the place I like most in Beijing.

It begins like this:

"In a number of my stories, I’ve referred to an antiquated park: in fact, this is the Temple of Earth Park. Some years ago, before tourism had developed much, it was as desolate and neglected as a wasteland. People seldom gave it a thought. 

       The Temple of Earth wasn’t far from my home, or perhaps it’s better to say my home wasn’t far from it. All in all, I felt I was related to it by fate. It had reposed there for four hundred years before my birth, and ever since, when my grandmother was a young woman, she had taken my father to live in Beijing, my family had lived near it: in more than fifty years, my family had moved several times, but always to a place in its vicinity. Each time, we moved closer to it. I often felt this was something foreordained—as if this old park were waiting especially for me: it seemed it had been waiting for four hundred years—through all the tumultuous changes of those centuries ..."

Getting rough

The weather changed seriously in Jeju this night. Rain kept falling until noon time and the sea became rough. All mountains were covered in clouds and only in the afternoon it was possible to walk up to a few of the smaller volcanoes without being washed away or blinded by fog. This trip was a nice weekend escape from Beijing and tomorrow I will have to go back.

Bootcamp

These are my new hiking boots, taken on the black volcanic beaches of Jeju Island. It is good to have a few days away from the hectic and polluted Beijing, in a small guesthouse between the volcanos and the sea. It is a good time to think. After about a year back in a corporate environment, I am still often asked how it is. Well, not that bad. Sure, many engineers around and they are not what I would call "inspired". But they are nice people. Some of them are even quite funny. And our corporate culture is actually simple: "Achtung, Currywurst - Stillgestanden! Mahlzeit. Jahwoll! Ruehrt Euch!"

Beside my corporate endeavors, I am doing research on "Microcities" and "Urban Villages", puzzle around with mobility concepts, smart grids and energy mixes. I am slowly picking up on writing, photography and still do a little bit of University teaching. My whole stay in Jeju is like a bootcamp, reviewing everything and ramping up for things to come. Just a year ago I was about to embark on the Russian Research Vessel "Academic Ioffe" to head for Antarctica, as one of the earliest ships breaking though the ice of the upcoming Antarctic summer. Yes, times have changed. And they will again.

Mount Hallasan

Mount Hallasan is a shield volcano which builds the centre of Jeju Island (Korea). It is 1950 meters high and holds up impressive basalt formations. The Mount Hallasan National Park is UN Natural National World Heritage and a very well managed site. Access is free. I approached it from the West and could not cross the summit into the crater as this region is protected, which I of course respect. Tried my new hiking boots here the first time: Vibram sole, tight grip and hard edges as always. Perfect. Asking for more.

Autum in Beijing

The weather forecast says that in the next few days the night temperature will fall below zero the first time for the end of this year. Today was still a mild and sunny day, and I enjoyed it in the awareness that it could be one of the last ones. Many trees now really have golden or red leaves and strangely many Persimmon fruits are still unharvested on the trees, already too late to be picked.

Hide Away

Under the handicap of being a bit sick today, I found a place in Beijing to hide away. Not far from home, but in a different world. It is a place where mainly Beijing Ren go for their entertainment. They sing, dance, do exercise, play ball games and perform a Judo-like way of wrestling, which is a kind of Kung Fu. It is a really beautiful place which only charges 2 Renminbi entrance. I will go there often from now on. Enjoyed the autumn color sun rays before the fierce Beijing winter will commence.

Mo Yan wins Literature Nobel Prize

Today Mo Yan was awarded the Literature Nobel Prize. How I wish that I could ever read Chinese at that level in my lifetime. But luckily the translations of his works are said to be excellent, so that I went shopping to Amazon strait away to find out more. All I know from Mo Yan ​is his novel Red Sorghum and I have to confess I only saw the movie. I liked it very much. It is from the time when Zhang Yimou was not a propagandist, but an artist. Now of course, I am eager to find out more and this will keep me busy reading Mo Yan's books which are available in translation. 

First Autumn Leaves

The last week, was called Golden Week and it is a week's public holiday ​around the Mid Autumn Festival and the National Day. This is why many people are on the way to their home towns and families, take the opportunity to do short trip and decorate their houses with some extra National flags (everything is National here anyways). Beijing was a very calm city during this week. Only the obvious tourist places were crowded. First I was annoyed by not being able to go to Japan (another one of these National things), but then I enjoyed having a quiet week and looking into corners of the city which I did not explore yet.

Yesterday before sunset, I also got aware what else "Golden Week" meant this year. The first autumn leaves were changing color. When I walked along the river back home, I could even hear some rustling around my feet. Not the deep rustle and crackle of walking through a forest, but the little one of strolling through a park in fall.​

Che Fotografo

​The Beijing Three Shadows Photography Art Centre in Caochangdi showed photos taken by Dr. Ernesto "Che" Guevara: 232 pictures by the Guerrilero Heroico, in black and white and color. This was again a very well set up and high quality exhibition by Three Shadows which runs until October 10th. The exhibition is a station of the "Che Photographer" exhibition which is hosted since 1990 in 16 cities across 13 countries.

When I was a boy, I read Che Guevara's "Motorcycle Diaries" and he was somehow a fascinating figure, as the prototype of the revolutionary and driving force in the Cuban revolution. Of course this blended in with my reading of Hemingway at that time, and a general sentiment which was positive to regions becoming independent from imperial rulers. Che Guevara travelled a lot and did not only contain his activities into South America, but also to Africa. He also visited China, with a "mandate of friendship". I tried to imagine how the meeting with Chairman Mao must have been. Che Guevara was of course far more idealistic, better educated and more traveled than Mao. For him Communism was a model for liberation, while for Mao it became way of suppression and terror against his own people. But also the Cuban regime took a way Che Guevara might not have anticipated. Perhaps this is why, instead of becoming a government minister, he headed off for the next revolution in a different country, which costed him lis life.

Before visiting this exhibition today, I was not aware that Che Guevara was a good photographer. I liked many his photos , not because of technical quality, but because they are like a freeze of what he saw and how he saw it. In a way, I found his photography very "journalistic" and "documentary". Also, because he seems to have been always with a camera, he caught many private moments, which shed a light hearted light on the Guerellia fighter. Perhaps this is what photography of this kind is about: less about the perfection of photos, but of the choices of what the photographer sees and the choice of the life he lives. Che Guevara took a very extreme choice and he left the world not just with the prototype of an idealistic young man, but also with hundreds of excellent photos. 

Lamma Island Ferry Disaster

I am terrified to hear and read that the most wonderful an peaceful commute I had for five years from Lamma Island to the University turned into a disaster on October 1st with two ferries colliding out of which one capsized within 10 minutes and the other making it back to the Yung Shue Wan ferry pier taking water. 38 passengers died and over 100 were injured. My thoughts are with those who lost their loved ones, friends and neighbors.​ Yung Shue Wan is a small village community under shock of the largest marine accident since the hand over of Hong Kong. I can barely believe that the window of my former home, at which I stood for years to watch the beautiful scenes of boats passing bye, was just facing the site of the accident. 

Penghao Theatre & Cafe

A nice place to either drop by for a meal or coffee in Beijing is the Penghao Theatre & Cafe. It is located along a foot alley in 35 Dong Mian Hua Hutong in a traditional courtyard house. Performances are not only in Chinese, so that this is one of the few drama performance places in Beijing which also is a place for non / or no good Chinese speakers. The theatre itself can host an audience of about 130 and is just beside the restaurant. The location is very close to the film school and these few blocks of Hutongs are exceptionally picturesque and have a quite special cultural atmosphere. 

Where have all the cars gone?

Exploring the streets and parks of Beijing, I am wondering these days where all the cars have gone. It is a National Holiday week in which many have left the city. And others seem not to have the urge to drive. On normal days Beijing suffocates in traffic and people suffocate in pollution. These days in Beijing are a very nice reminder how nice the city actually could be, if it would not be swamped with cars and rude drivers. And also the rudeness and aggression is dissolved in the holiday mood. This week must be one of the nicest ones staying in Beijing, and I am quite happy that Air China messed up my planned trip to Japan.

One Cylinder, Two Stroke

Yesterday to my big surprise I saw an old Velosolex engine mounted on a tricycle's front wheel in Beijing. The lady who brought it from the suburbs to the city center for repair said that the young man sitting on the floor between his tools was one of the few left who can still handle repairs like that. Just a few weeks ago, I published a blogpost in memory Velosolex, when I bought my electric bicycle. I thought though the orgininal Volosolex engine must have disappeared. But it has not.

Sonja's report

"Miss Werner was a woman of leisure, well-spoken, and had been given a good education by her middle-class parents. For her new masters, all this counted in her favour. They were short of posh ladies" (The Economist, July 13th 2000). Ruth Werner joined the Communist Party as a teenager in Berlin, in the believe that Communism would change the society for a better. Undiscovered, she lived in Shanghai, Manchuria, Switzerland and Great Britain and in the end East Berlin, as a spy of Stalin's regime. The poverty she saw in China, strengthened her believe that a revolution was needed and that Communism was the social model that could make the world a better place. She was a courier of Klaus Fuchs, the scientist who delivered secret and critical information from building the first nuclear bomb. She was following the traces of her idol Rosa Luxemburg, the German communist revolutionary who was executed in 1919. But Ruth Werner, code named "Sonja", was never discovered and lived a long life of 93 years. She died in Berlin in the year 2000, in a re-unified Germany and a time when people in Germany literally celebrated what they called the "Collapse of Communism". She must have felt that her life's mission has failed.

Having dinner with friends yesterday, I was recommended to have a closer look at Ruth Werner's biography. She was a convicted Communist all her life, but I found the turning point interesting in which she got aware of the crimes of Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot and other Communist leaders. I was wondering what the thoughts could be of somebody who finds out at the end of her life, that she has been fighting with best intentions all her life potentially on the wrong side. Of course, the discussion yesterday sparked on trying to understand Chinese Communists today, and what their comprehension might be standing at the edge from a Communist state to something nobody has really seen before. Or has it? Is it just another form of a fascist state? Or not even another form? I guess the next few years will be the most interesting ones to watch in China. It will be the years in which it will make it or break it.