Categories
Gems of History

All for silver

Silver played a big role in the Galleon Trade between Manila and Acapulco, Mexico that lasted 250 years, from 1565 to 1815. The silver from Mexico and Peru not only sustained the Philippines’ economy through the Galleon Trade, but encouraged the trading of Chinese goods, mainly silk and porcelain. Silver was in great demand during […]

Categories
Tsinoy Beats and Bytes

‘Ninja cops’ the new crime bosses?

“Ninja cops” currently hog the headlines, but they are not new creatures in a dysfunctional police force. I first heard about them in the mid-1990s. Members of the Manila Police Department would kidnap Tsinoys and bring them to police stations, which they described as “safe houses,” to demand ransom from the victims’ families. One victim […]

Categories
History

The Chinese-American who wants to be president

Barack Obama did it first. He became the first US president from an ethnic minority. Now, Andrew Yang, a Chinese-American, is following suit, aspiring for the White House. While his chances are slim, he is inspiring thousands of young Asian-Americans with this impossible quest. Will Yang’s story also inspire a Tsinoy to make history by […]

Categories
Parenting

Hospitals: Offering, managing patient appointments shows genuine concern for the sick

Visits to the doctor are inevitable. People get sick, like it or not. It is always a relief when one realizes that waiting for the doctor will not take long. But how wonderful would it be if doctors or their hospitals and clinics can offer and manage appointments to cut waiting times for their patients. […]

Categories
Idioms...Hokkien style

When words fail, use idioms… Hokkien style (93)

Hokkien, on the tongues of Tsinoys, has grown and evolved, taking on a life of its own. Sometimes words simply fail us. With some creativity, Tsinoys have strung together words to form colorful phrases that simply hit the bull’s eye. Here are some expressions unique to Hokkien as favored by Tsinoys. Idioms, expressions Hokkien pronunciation […]

Categories
Life

John K. Chua, Banaue and its people

A person I regret never meeting was photographer John K. Chua (蔡傑安), widely regarded as a leading local advertising photographer. His works have appeared in advertisements for Mitsubishi, Audi, Lexus and Mountain Dew. It was John and his company, ADPhoto, that pioneered the use of digital photography in the local advertising industry. John was also […]

Categories
Life

Kaohsiung: Alive with art

Kaohsiung (高雄) in southern Taiwan is a city of interesting contrasts, even contradictions. Its name translates to “high hero,” although its original name is decidedly less noble – “打狗 beating the dog.” It is Taiwan’s largest port and third largest city with its share of skyscrapers, but the city’s focal point is the Love River […]

Categories
History

70th anniversary of the founding of the PRC

A massive military parade in Beijing marked the 70th anniversary of the founding of People’s Republic of China. As well, a grand display of achievements was at the Beijing Exhibition Center to mark milestones in China’s modern history. The 15,500-square-meter exhibition space is shaped like a time tunnel, chronicling historic events and symbolic people and […]

Categories
Life

Story of China’s economic growth through the eyes of a Chinese-Filipino professor who saw it begin

I had the rare opportunity to teach for one school year in 1985-86 at the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics as a visiting professor. I was invited to teach something unfamiliar to both students and faculty at that time: Western Economics. I consider this one-year stint a very significant experience. I have since looked […]

Categories
Soul of China

Female patriot behind China’s semiconductor success story

Lin Lan Ying (林蘭英) was born in 1918 in Pu Tian (莆田) City, Fujian province. She was in the United States pursuing a Ph.D. in mathematics at Dickenson University in 1949 when news of the birth of New China reached her. Lin was eager to return to China to help build the nation but decided […]