At times we get all upset about life being unfair, that some are better off and we haven’t got what we deserve… As I walked along Jonker Walk one night, I couldn’t help but staring at an average-looking lady, both hands and forearms cut off, yet tying a brush around her right-hand elbow with a wristband, writing Chinese calligraphy. With special interest in Chinese calligraphy, I decided to take a closer look. It turned out that she was writing calligraphy for a living and you could choose to make a donation as soon as you get your requested calligraphy sorted out. As I approached the table, she asked me for my full name. Curious enough, I wrote down my full name and passed it on to her. She took out a nice A4 piece of paper with flower decor along the borders and started writing what I found out later a 4-verse poem with each word in my full name as the starting word of each verse. To my dismay, it was a beautifully written poem reflecting the meaning of my Chinese name. I was speechless. Such talent! Such life! The poem is now framed and finds its place in my study as a precious gift from life…. #calligraphy #melaka #mallaca #perspective #life

Hangzhou, May 19, 2013 For the first time on this long journey I have a day off to stop and admire the beauty of China. And I am in the right place, Hangzhou, and at the right time, May when the weather is so accommodating. Drizzling rain now and then, like a pretty lady changing her outfit, only spices up the beauty of Hangzhou. As ancient Chinese people used to put it “Above is Paradise, below is Suzhou and Hangzhou.” Suzhou is definitely my next destination, but for now, I will give Hangzhou my entire presence and appreciation. Like any other tourist destinations, Hangzhou has a lot to offer. But for a nature and peace lover like myself, the selection is quite simple, the West Lake, Lei Feng Temple where I can have a different view of the West Lake, Longjing Tea Plantation, and of course Zhejiang Museum of Arts. A famous poet in the Song Dynasty in China, Sushi (and it’s not Japanese sushi) used to compare West Lake to Xishi, one of the four Miss China’s in ancient time. The poem has four verses but the last two verses basically go like this: One could compare West Lake with Xishi With or without make-up they are both gorgeous I am fortunate enough to appreciate West Lake at three different times of the day, one late afternoon around 4pm, one late morning around 11AM, and my last one on one with her this morning around 6AM. When Sushi wrote that poem, what he described was the view of West Lake during clear beautiful weather and that amidst the drifting rain. 4PM amidst the drifting rain, West Lake is quite moody. One could only spot a slender, fragile, and graceful shadow of a pretty lady sitting behind a silky white curtain, immersing in herself in a sad love song fanning out from her pipa (琵琶). She would ignore you. She is totally in her own world. And the passer-by would find himself lost. The whole world suddenly turns empty and the moment becomes eternity. 11AM on a clear sunny day, West Lake puts on her best make-up, getting ready to receive her visitors, gentle smiling eyes, majestic posture, subtle shyness as she moves forward. Like a windmill, the visitor’s mind gets all entangled as she approaches. The moment is timeless. Two encounters, none personal. She is here, yet she is not. One could feel a thousand-mile distance between us. I decided not to give up, so I asked a local what would be the best time for me to visit her. Mr. Wang told me 6AM when the disturbing traffic was still asleep. 6AM on a misty early morning, West Lake quietly sips her greenish Longjing tea from a white pearly cup. No words uttered as I approach and silently sit down next to her. The white silky mist reserves our intimacy. It is the feeling of having a soulmate beside, nothing said yet everything said. We bid adieu to each other as I leave Hangzhou for Shanghai, knowing I would return one day just for that moment of truth. #xihu #china #travel #westlake #xishi #hangzhou #sushi

Shanghai, May 12, 2013 Been to Shanghai numerous times before but coming from Tokyo does give it a different perspective altogether. The moment I stepped onto the China Eastern Airlines flight this morning, it was a completely different world; the big sloppy bags, the chaotic movements, the noises, the pushy encounters…. I often find myself vulnerable in such a settings. “When in Rome, do what the Romans do!”. So have we been taught by our ancestors. Gosh! Forgive me but I am dumb enough to never graduate from the pushy institution of China. My Chinese share of genes must be way weaker than the Vietnamese one. Chinese mainlanders never seem to be tired of being pushy, pushy to get off the flight, pushy to get ahead in the customs lines, pushy to get a good space at the conveyor belt, pushy to quickly get out of the airport…. Why the rush? Isn’t life worth appreciating? But hang on! Getting somewhere in the future seems to be all that matters now and it does get rewarded with a prize, instant happiness. Life for them is like a scratch card. You may get lucky today. If not, you just keep scratching till you pass out, without a distant idea why it has to be that miserable on earth…. It hurts to see money, status, and power take over the world. It hurts to see millions if not billions of souls lost in the search for impermanent, illusional gains. And though the teaching of ‘loving kindness’ could easily be comprehended, walking the whole nine yards can never be a mission accomplished. Keep walking, myself! #lovingkindness #happiness #shanghai #china #perspective #status #money #Tokyo #life #power

Thought about a dear friend while cruising Melaka river and hope he keeps living in mindfulness. Here’s to a friend who has been seeking himself for as long as I’ve known him. I’ve walked the endless roads To look for myself Only to have found a suffering garden Arising from seeds of misery… Sitting here this morning I have found myself In the embracing morning rays In the passing gusts of wind In the silent earth In the trembling raindrops In mindfulness In the nameless universe… #friend #melaka #mallaca #meditation #perspective #love #mindfulness