my Mosuo new year !

I live in a Mosuo family recently, they are matriarchal society. they are a 4 people family: mother, and her 3 sons. the eldest son is an honest, gentle and good looking guy.he officially take charge of the village fairs. the second son is a owner of a BBQ restaurant, he has a long hair and romantic personality. the youngest son is a Buddhist monk, he is sunshine like young fellow. The mother is about 70 years old,always wear traditional clothes.she is a happy old lady,she is kind, clam, and polite. smile is always on her face, when she stay with her sons, you can tell that is her most happiness moment, which you can tell from the winkle of her happy eye.

the family own a guest house, which were newly built few years ago. while the family members live in the traditional house and still live the traditional way of live, and that is the culture what they want to keep and pass on. 

It is a happy family, living with them for about a week, and i can feel the love and warm in the family. Although I am a guest here, but they never made me feel as an outsider. I call the mother 'Ah Ma'( mother) and her sons 'gege' ( brother) . I was told,t he Mosuo society, all the family members should live together, and elderlies are respected not only their own parent but also seniors from other family. single senior will always be taken care of in the society. 

I hope i can be such harmony with my mum. I love her too, but sometimes she requires too much and worry too much about me... it is good to spend a new year with such a happy family, and get inspiration of how to communicate with mum.

the guest house are the most well facilitated guest house, and you can also experience the traditional Mosuo family culture by living here. 

meals are included with the room fee.

    booking : http://wx.miot.cn/i-3492?from=timeline&isappinstalled=1

they currently don't have english website

 

Happy new year! and I am not in GZ.

Many  Chinese go home and spend the new year with family, while this year I choose to leave my family and spend the time with another family. I am in Lu Gu Lake, Yun Nan province. I stay in my local friend's house during the new year holiday. here is a  beautiful place, has clear sky, white cloud, bright stars, organic food and nice people. stay with some nice people during the holiday is a happy thing, don't have to always stick with family. and my local friends are Mo Suo ethnic, so I am experiencing a different new year, a completely different culture one. Cannot believe there is a placer like here remains in China, it just a paradise. and how amazing is --- here is a matriarchal society! 

I am helping to decorate the hose. 

happy new year! 

Buddhist flags decoration in the house.  

Cantonese new year eve dinner

what will be serve on the table for new year eve?
this  is the family gathering dinner. people will come home and have dinner with family members. some migrant workers travel half of the county to get home is for the family gathering and share happiness on the dinner.  Chicken and fish are must have. it doesn't matter how you cook these materials, they must be on the list.  Cantonese just love chicken, even during the time of  H5N1. as to fish, fish symbolise savings. Chinese are the nation that likes to save money.

in my family, my uncle is the chef. although nowadays many family are more like to have the dinner in restaurants, my family still like to have it at home.as my father want to have more time to chat with other family members. my grandma has 6 children, 3 boys and 3 girls. married girls must have dinner with their husbands family. so, every year, i will have the dinner with my parent my brother, grandma and my other 2 uncles' family. my uncle will cook soya source chicken, steam fish, three cups goose, these are his signature works. and also some other food. these year. but this year, i will not stay home for new year,  I miss all those food. uncle only cook them on big festivals.

How Cantonese decorate their home for new year

Cantonese will clean their home about 2days before the new year, then decorate the house before new year eve. to decorate the house, flower is a must have, many people will buy flowers from the new year fair after the new year eve family gathering dinner. so flower is the last step of decoration. after the clean up, people will stick papers with some new year wishes written on on the wall.

1. Fai Chun 挥春
Fai Chun traditionally is new year wishes written on a piece of red paper. however nowadays, many modern Fai Chun appeared included electronic Fai Chun. but like most Cantonese family, my family like stick on the traditional way. new year wishes usually formed in 4 characters. according to its meanings and will be stick on different places. for example: 出入平安 （safety travel ) usually stick on the top  of the main door of the house, stairway or corridor. 学业进步 ( good luck for study) usually stick on your study and near your desk.  there are many choices of wishes words, just pick what you like. and you can also write on your own, but remember, must on a red paper.  
 

2. Dui Lian 对联
Dui Lian are stick by the side of the door. A Dui Lian must compose with a heading, and two sentence of  poetry. just like this:

3. 门神 The god of door keepers
what should be stick on the the door are posters of door keepers. there are also many choices of the door keepers. people like using  icon of  historical army generals. the most common pair are: Qian Shu Bao秦叔宝 and Wei Chi Gong 尉迟恭 .they are famous generals in Tang Dynasty. people believe they will get ghost and evil things away from the house.

4. As to flowers. few small trunk of tangerines, and peach flower are must have things. Tangerine pronounces as good luck in Cantonese and peach flower is symbolised as good luck for romance and popularity. Orchid and peony are also very popular.

scissor cut/paper cut stick on the window are popular in the north. very few Cantonese stick paper cuts.

festivals during the chinese new year

1.Traditional  new year fair 

we usually go the the new year fair with family after the family gathering dinner. Each district has a new year fair market, you can choose the one which near you. but the one on Beijing Road are the largest in the city. they sell similar things: flowers and new year crafts, but each market has it own decoration of lantern. people will buy flowers back home for to decorate the house. flower symbolise new hope. 

the new year fair will be started on 16th Fb till 18th Feb  every day at 08:30 - 02:00

when buying things, remember to bargain and first cut the price at least half. usually 30%--50% off  the price is the reasonable range. 

2. flower city square new year lantern festival

there will  be a lantern and lighting opening ceremony show here on 15th Feb at 20:00

Then the lantern and light setting will be shown till 5th Mar every night at 19:30-22:30
Nearest Metro station: Haixinsha 海心沙 APM

3.lychee bay water market and traditional lantern festival

Want to experience pure local culture, then you must come here. you will see people selling flowers on the boat. and maybe tasted some traditional snacks. will be started on 14th Feb - 25th Feb.
Nearest Metro station: Zhong Shan Ba 中山八  Line 5
                                   RuYi Fang  如意坊  Line 6

                                 
4.Yue Xiu Park lantern festival
Goat Year theme lantern exhibition
14th Feb - 20th Mar
Nearest Metro station: Yue Xiu Park

5. Baiyun Mountain and Yun Tai Garden flower exhibition  
Geranium potted, and peach flower will be shown.
13th Feb - 31st Mar
Nearest Metro station: N/A

6.Cantonese temple festival
on Beijing road and Zhongshan road.
traditional Cantonese craft, art and temple culture will be shown.
15th Mar - 11th Mar
Nearest Metro station: Gongyuan Qian 公园前

Eco --- upcycling cosmetic boxes

online shopping is extremely  popular in China, as you know we chinese people work as a cow, we usually too busy to go to the real shop.
every month I buy skin care product online. in order to show their good manner, the merchant usually over packed the product. I ordered a  serum, but they used 3 boxes to pack the serum! just like this:  

months after months, I have a lot of boxes....

these boxes are actually in a good quality. see how tough the cardboard is.

so~ I upcycle it !

simply design the structure, then use wide transparent adhesive tape to stick them together. 

the long stand space is designed to place long and standing bottles. 

the rest of three drawers you can place what ever you like. I place can/tin  and tubular shape object into the first one.

second drawer for blush and eyeliner .

the third one is smaller so I put lipsticks and mascaras.

see how smart it looks like! 

other cases: 

pen box

this box is just the right size for pens 

loosing power coin pot

when you have finished the powder, the pot can be reused to store buttons.

very often, that when you buy a blouse, the manufacturer usually attach extra buttons.you don't know where to keep it? use your loosing powder pot. 

or use for store coins

...

still thinking how to upcycle these toning lotion bottles

any ideas?

traditional snacks in the old town: Shang Xia Jiu pedestrian street上下九步行街

Shang Xia Jiu (上下九) is one of the pedestrian street in Guangzhou. initially, the street was created to let tourist feel the local culture. 19th century Cantonese style building can been seen on the street. however, the street currently become a commercial street. all the shops sell cheap and bad quality apparels.
  but in this area, you can find the most local  flavor of snacks.

Caution: there are a lot of pickpocket on this street, so you must watch out your wallet and mobile all the time.
and I don't suggest you go there on weekend, unless you want to experience what is so called "people mountain people sea"（人山人海）.

1. Chan Tim Kee Fish skin  陈添记鱼皮

this small restaurant is located in a small alley, quite difficult to be found if you didn't ask for direction. but if you had asked, just ask someone in the nearby shops, you must found it. the restaurant is in an old Xi Guan Style building. 

they was given a good food certificate by a famous foodie. 

only three type of food on the menu

1.traditional little boat porridge  7 CNY (it was selling on the boat, so the name was gained. ingredients: fish,egg,pork,peanuts, rice and scallion) 

2. steam rice rolled noodles with soya source  3CNY   (ingredients: rice, soya source, white sesame seed )

3. crunchy fish skin  22CNY  (fish skin, sesame seed, sesame oil, peanut, ginger,coriander and scallion)

this is the fish skin, their famous product! Yummy! I love it! 

from left to righ: fish skin, porridge, rice rolled noodles

the restaurant is on this street: BaoHua Lu. If you were walking on this street, search this  road board, and the jewellery shop, the alley of the restaurant is just on the left of the road board.   

when you walk in the alley, you will found a lot friendly people telling you they are selling fish skin, ignore them ! that is the fake restaurant! the real Chan Tim Kee is the second restaurant on the alley.just keep walking until you have seen the Chan Tim Kee trade mark.  

2. Shun Kee ice cream

just the alley next to Chan Tim Kee, you can find Shun Kee ice cream shop. if you ask staffs in Chan Tim Kee, they will tell you how to come here.

it was an ice cream shop, but nowadays sell other kinds of food. it became a cantonese fast food restaurant. you will find rice, noodles, soup, snacks and desserts here. 

but the most famous food here, is --- coconut  ice cream! 

ice cream menu was highlighted. you can find many aspects of ice cream here, such as, mango, and durian ice cream. but the most famous one is ---- coconut ice cream!  13CNY for one scoop. it taste as good as the gelato in Rome. 

3. Man Kee Yi Xin Chicken  文记一心鸡

if you asked who makes the best chicken in the world, I can tell you it is not KFC, cantonese do much better than it. if you walk out from the front door of Shun Kee Ice Cream, cross the road, and go into the alley which on your right hand side, you will easily find Man Kee Yi Xin Chicken restaurant. try the canontese taste of chicken cuisine. 

4. Ginger vinegar  

if you walk on the Shang Xia Jiu pedestrian street, keep walking until you see a famous restaurant Taotao Ju （陶陶居）,then ask people in the shop near by: where is the Shi Ba Pu Avenue  ( 十八浦大街 )? they will show you the way. and you will found the avenue is just a small alley. walk into the alley you will easily found some small shops selling Ginger vinegar. 

what is Ginger vinegar? it is a very nutrient food. Cantonese make ginger vinegar for pregnant women few days before giving birth. this nutrient food can help women's recovery of health. and also the family will give some ginger vinegar for friends to share their happiness. 

Ginger vinegar contains ginger, sweet vinegar, pork feet and eggs. it taste sweet and sour, you will feel the aroma of ginger but won't taste too much flavour of spice. ginger help to keep the body warm, pork feet contains a lot of collagen and calcium, and eggs contains protein, I think vinegar help all this element to be assimilated. one of my French friend questioned if animal collagen can be assimilated by human being. well, believe or not, the traditional Chinese medical science say 'yes'. which means eating skin is good for skin. this is a food for ladies. 

when you walk into the alley, the first ginger vinegar shop on your left--- Sam Ban Foo (三板斧姜醋）, is the best tasted,  however, I much prefer to go to the third shop:  How Jee ginger vinegar （好姐姜醋）. as I like the owner How Jee's  sweet personality. she is very talkative and always show her friendly smile. 

eggs is my  favourite part of ginger vinegar, in a cold weather, to have a bow of ginger vinegar, the whole body will just warm! 

you can also find other kind of food here. one of my favourite is -- blood jelly. you may think it is bloody and scary. Muslim, Jewish and many western people don't eat blood, but chinese is a very eco nation, since an animal has sacrificed, we must thank it and try to don't waste any part of its body. not mentioned that, traditional Chinese medical science thinks pig blood is good for lung.

it tastes salty, as salt was used to make the pig blood solidificated.

if you are open minded about food, you will enjoy a lot time in this area. 

I also made a phase table of these shops and  food names. print it out, and it can be made as a small card for you to ask for direction, and order food. 

 if you still don't know how to get there, don't hesitate to email me. I might show you around the area if i were free.