June has always been a busy month for the Tsinoy community as organizations come together to commemorate Philippine Independence Day and celebrate Philippines-China relations. Last June 9 and 10, led by the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc. and the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Associations of the Philippines, the community again celebrated the […]
I have always been fascinated by what lies above us in the heavenly skies. In my teens, I would browse through pictures on different encyclopedia and books featuring our galaxies and the different constellations. Although the heavenly bodies above seem stationary, we know that the earth is constantly moving. All we can see are the […]
According to legend, a child enters the world with a mirror that holds his soul, and this mirror reflects not only his image but also the love shaping his soul. Should the mirror break, the child’s soul will be marred forever. This metaphor forms the basis of Broken Mirror: Inside a Chinese Marriage, the story […]
A growing number of taxis on Beijing’s busy streets are electric. The electric taxis may be better for the environment, but practical problems remain. Some cabbies say finding a charging post can be difficult and inconvenient. It takes about seven hours for a full charge, and about 90 minutes for a “quick charge.” Fully charged, […]
Visitors to China’s Old Summer Palace can now look beyond the physical bricks and mortar and see Yuanming Yuan (圓明園) in its original glory. Digital restoration of the place is finally completed after 15 years’ work – researching historical documents, completing thousands of drawings and digital models – by an 80-member Chinese team, to give […]
State-owned Xinhua Bookstore turns 80 this year. It was established in 1937 by the Communist Party of China in the wartime revolutionary base of Yan’an in Shaanxi province. Its logo is calligraphy written by Mao Zedong in 1948. It is the largest and only book retail chain that covers the country. Today, there are reportedly […]
Peking University announced plans to open a new campus in Oxford, England in 2018. The university says its HSBC Business School bought a medieval campus in Oxford from the Open University in Britain. Near-term plans include building the Peking University Oxford Center and Shenzhen Oxford Innovation Center. This purchase marks the first independent attempt by […]
Archaeologists rediscovered more than 1,500 Buddhist tablets and stone sculptures under Shiye Street in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, following the rediscovery of a lost temple, the West China City Daily reported. The ruins of Fugan Temple, a well-known Buddhist temple dating from the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-589) to the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), were […]
I have finished my Buddhist studies with wise senior Buddhist nuns in a nunnery on top of a hill. Time to take the final exams – attend a Nepali wedding! A word of caution: Do not take the same curriculum –this ‘exam’ only happens once in a blue moon! It just so happen that the […]
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. 個個猛 kê kê bi-eng […]