First published in Tulay Fortnightly, Chinese-Filipino Digest 29, nos. 14-15 (January 17-February 6, 2017): 24,26. Since the 1970s, Seoul has seen different stages of urban expansion. Today, Seoul has three major business districts in the city: the historical city center, the island of Yeoui and Gangnam. A fourth area is in gestation around the Digital […]
In an earlier Tulay column (Oct. 8-21, 2013 issue), I’ve written that a true Chinatown is one that is lived and experienced and not built for tourism or business purposes. Dragons, arches and temples do not a Chinatown make. It is the lives lived, the culture experienced, and the history shared by a group of […]
The legend goes that the phoenix – feng huang (鳯凰) – lived in the mountains of Hunan province in western China. As the mythical bird – symbol of the empress (the dragon is the symbol of the emperor), it represents longevity since it re- emerges from the flames each time it is consumed by fire […]