Smeared Type

Glimpse of Huangshan in fog

It took us more than two hours on a bus from Hangzhou to Tunxi, a town not far from Huangshan, Anhui Province. We had a local tour guide met us at the bus station with a van and a driver. After checking into a local hotel and a quick lunch, we visited the “Mysterious Grottos” at Flower Mountain, about an hour away from the city.

No one knew when and why the enormous man-made grottos were made. Supposedly there 36 of them, of which, four were developed for tourism. The size, design, supporting pillars, and carving patterns indicate the mastery of geology and science in ancient times. Many speculative theories about their usage and time, but none conclusive. Quite an amazing sight.

With Lisa at Huangshan

What is most impressive was of course the visit to Huangshan, or Mount Huang, one of the sacred mountains in China. We left for the mountain early the following morning, about an hour’s drive from Tunxi. Lisa and I wanted to climb up instead of taking the tram, but Francis and our tour guide opposed it.

“You still have 7.5 kilometers to walk on the maintains today,” Jiang, our tour guide argued. “You won’t be able to make those steps up and down the mountains if you climb up.”

In the end, the arising fog solved our dispute. Since we wouldn’t be able to see much in the thick fog, we all got into the tram, regretting not being to see the steep cliffs on our way up.

But the mountain delivered wonders in front of our eyes: once on top, a breeze of the wind quickly opened a pocket, revealing the beauty of pine trees planting themselves firmly on rocks, as we marveled at the sight and took pictures, another wave of fog covered them, making everything mysterious. We felt like walking in the clouds, enjoying the clarify of one moment and the wrap up of the fog the next.

“Welcome Pine”

Jiang was right. The walk was quite demanding. The stone-paved trail went up and down, leaving many tourists panting on the side. We made numerous stops to take photos and catch our breath. The “welcome pine”, the signature tree serving as a symbol of Huangshan, looked more resilient and strong than “welcoming”, with an extended branch being interpreted as a waving arm.

We were lucky that as soon as we reached our hotel on the mountain at about 4 pm, it began to rain. We settled down and had a nice dinner at the hotel and admired the photos we had taken. Despite the rain, a forecast of 60% chance of seeing sunrise was predicted. So the following morning, we got up at 4:30 to go to a nearby peak to see the sunrise. With the large crowd and numerous trees in the way, I must say the sunrise on Lake Michigan that I can see from my bedroom most of the mornings is more beautiful and grand.

“Ocean of clouds” on Huangshan

Jiang took us to various sights of natural beauty—the ten magnificent pine trees, the formations of rocks that are interpreted for different meanings, and the observatory dome that does research and predicts weather in the mountain areas. The walk downhill was not any easier. But we learned that all the food at the hotels and restaurants on top of the mountains were carried up by farmers on their shoulders, as we walked down, we saw quite a few of them, climbing up with bamboo poles and heavy loads of a hundred pounds or so on each side of their shoulders. Seeing them humbled us and minimized our own challenges. I tried to keep up with Lisa, a prize I paid with sore calves and thighs the following day, despite an immediate foot massage upon returning to our hotel in Tunxi.

A farmer carries food to the top of the mountain

One surprising discovery was that iPhone took better pictures outdoors than a point-and-shoot camera. When Lisa used up the battery on her iPhone up in the mountains, I gave her mine. Unfortunately, during the 20-minute bus ride from the foot of the mountain to the park entrance where our van was waiting, Lisa fell asleep. By the time we got to a restaurant for lunch, Lisa realized she no longer had my iPhone. We went back to the bus station and got on to the number 92 bus. Where the litter of used cans and paper left behind by passengers were still on the floor, there was no sight of the black pouch in which Lisa placed my iPhone. The loss put a dent to our spirit, but we managed to let it go, since there was nothing we could do about it.

Huangshan is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited in China, and equally impressive, the trails and the park were well-maintained and very clean.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into an award-winning documentary film by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated by Jacqueline Bisset.

West Lake

After spending five days with family in Changchun, we went to Hangzhou, making a quick stop in Shanghai. We were supposed to meet our close friend Mary in Shanghai and do the rest of the sightseeing together, but the bird flu in southern China, including the cities we planned to visit, made her stay put in Chicago.

Restaurants in Shanghai were packed—no sign of concern for bird flu, though a couple of American expatriates we met for dinner told us restaurants were not serving chicken at the moment. Brian and his wife Pat treated us to a wonderful meal at Ye Shanghai in Xintiandi. Lisa missed her flight connection in Beijing—not changing her watch to local time and rushing to the boarding gate 15 minutes too late. She missed dinner and more importantly, talking to Brian and Pat about their experience in China.

West Lake

We stayed at the Marriott Hotel in city center and took the fast train to Hangzhou the following morning. I was pleasantly surprised that it only took us only an hour to reach Hangzhou.

Xiao Qiu, our tour guide, was waiting for us at the train station with a driver and mini van. The perfect temperature of 70 degrees and humility made a drastic contrast to the dry and dusty air in Changchun, and the lustrous green in the city made it immediately appealing. Our driver proudly told us that Hangzhou is one of the most beautiful cities in China, with ample variety of trees along the streets. We checked into the J.W. Marriott Hotel, and Xiao Qiu took us to a signature restaurant. Despite the local specialty of chicken and duck, we carefully avoided all poultry, but did try the famous Dong Po Pork—fat but delicious!

Qiu Jin‘s statue by West Lake

We spent the afternoon walking along West Lake and took a boat ride to observe the sceneries along the shore. I’ve learned about the beauty of West Lake from poetry since I was a child and was expecting to see an impressive sight. But nothing prepared me to the vastness of the lake, and the grand scale of the well maintained gardens surrounding it. Different colors of flowers and tree leaves added more pleasure to the eye, and the lustrous spring greens were intoxicating. We walked the legendary bridges and stopped by various statues, including that of Qiu Jin, the first feminist in China.

Lingyin Temple

In the following two days, Xiao Qiu took us to Lingyin Temple, Tiger-dug Spring (the best pairing with Longjin Tea, Hangzhou’s specialty), Yue Fei Monument, and the Wetland where we discovered a small museum for the studies of the classic vernacular novel Dream of the Red Chamber. I didn’t know the original story took place in this area and the comparison of real life characters with those in the novel was eye-opening.  We also took a boat ride on the Grand Canal, the longest in the world (From Beijing to Hangzhou, over 1,100 miles) and watched the busy traffic of cargo barges moving back and forth along the Canal, as they did for more than a thousand years.

We couldn’t leave Hangzhou without taking another long walk by the West Lake.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into an award-winning feature length documentary film by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated by Jacqueline Bisset.

Construction in Changchun

I had the pleasure of visiting family and sightseeing in southern China recently despite the threat of bird flu. It has been more than a year since my last trip to China, the longest elapse of time for more than 20 years.

Changchun, the capital of Jilin Province where my mother and two sisters live, is catching up with the development with the rest of the country in coastal areas. Construction sites everywhere—subway is being built, roads being expanded or repaired, and various clusters of buildings shooting toward the sky, with cranes lining up like a forest, familiar sights one saw in Beijing and Shanghai a few years before. The price for all these developments? Heavy dust in the air and terrible traffic jam. I brought all my exercise clothing and was looking forward to my early morning jog around South Lake Park, which is close to where my mother lives. Couldn’t do so this year—it was difficult to breathe walking in the dusty air let alone running.

As in Chicago, spring came nearly a month late this year in Changchun. Flowers and tender leaves were just coming out when I was there at the beginning of May, yet they seemed to be covered already with a layer of dirt. Beside a visit to Jing Yue Tan, a large park in the outer skirt of the city, paying tribute to father at his tomb, and a few massages in the neighborhood, we stayed indoor nearly the entire time. The highlight in Changchun is time spent with family. Even Lisa sat at the Mahjong table and entertained her grandmother by joining her in her favorite game.

I wonder, however, how many people die of air pollution in this city with the name of Changchun, literally translated, “Ever Green“!

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into an award winning feature-length documentary by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated by Jacqueline Bissett.

Lisa and I with Judy, Richard and Sveta after the screening at Harper College

It took Lisa and me more than two hours getting from downtown Chicago to Harper College in Palatine, a northwestern suburb about 30 miles away last Wednesday to attend the screening and Q & A of Mulberry Child. The constant rain turned the traffic bumper to bumper. We missed the opening of the show, but made it there in time to do the Q & A.

I was impressed that so many people showed up in this terrible weather (we’d learn later how many areas were flooded) and more impressed that the Q & A lasted an hour and a few in the audience continued the discussion at the book signing table, and the staff and faculty members at Harper College, including Dr. Richard Johnson and Judy Kulchawik, stayed with us and joined the conversations all the way to the end. The event was scheduled from 6 to 9 pm. By the time we left the campus building, it was well after 10 pm.

The audience was a mix of students and members from the nearby community. A few Chinese in the audience asked questions relating to advice on how to raise the next generation in the U.S. and pass on to them the Chinese heritage. One Chinese mother shared similar experience to that of ours, revealing an interesting situation in which her son has all Asian friends, but her daughter, all Americans. Puzzled, she asked Lisa if she has ever had Asian boyfriends, explaining she didn’t mean to probe into her personal life, but she was curious to know. I laughed, telling the audience this is why I love to do Q & A with Lisa, for I could imagine Lisa would roll her eyes if I ever dared to bring up such a question. These Q & A sessions have provided us a true venue to hear each other while we address questions from the audience.

Lisa and I doing Q & A

Typical of Lisa, a professional in public relations, she answered the question diplomatically yet straightforward. The audience laughed and let her off the hook.

One young man from Greece shared his experience and asked Lisa if there was any negative side for being between cultures.

A middle-aged American couple who had just finished reading my book commented how the film brought everything live for them and asked about the filmmaking process.

A woman in her 30s, a student at Harper and has lived in many parts of the world with her parents during her growing up years, raved about the film and offered to introduce it to high schools in the area, stating how informative and educational the film will be to students.

As always, Lisa and I were genuinely touched. We didn’t get home until close to midnight, and Jiayu, a graduate student at IIT who gave us the ride to and back from Harper College, bravely battled the rain and traffic, and managed to get us all home safely (not without some dangerous maneuvering), including giving a ride home for two city residents who missed their last train.

Our sincere thanks to the Humanities Center at Harper College for hosting the event and the audience for their interest, support, and connection.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into an award-winning feature-length documentary film by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated Jacqueline Bisset.

Ascend Midwest Student Leadership Conference in Chicago

Last Friday, I attended the AMSLC in Chicago as a speaker, along with Wesley Hom and Gregg Oshita. I was quite impressed by the enthusiasm and engagement demonstrated by the students from several chapter universities in the Midwest area, including NIU, DePaul, LUC, Ohio State, Indiana U, U of I at Urbana-Champaign and Purdue.

Ascend is a national non-profit organization that empowers Asian professionals and students to develop their leadership potentials in corporate America. I got to know Ascend last year when they held its national conference in Chicago and I was invited to talk at a panel. I was immediately impressed by the efficiency of the organization running the well-attended conference and the quality of the panels and speeches that I attended.

Topics covered in our talks this year are focused on career advancement, namely how to overcome the “good Asian” stereotypes to be effective in communication, building network, finding mentor and sponsor, and exploring/realizing their potentials by stepping out of the comfort zone. These students are certainly taking the initiatives toward the right direction by joining an organization like Ascend and investing their time and efforts to learn and network. Shortly after the conference, I was pleasantly surprised by a few emails from the students, among them, several even requested for LinkedIn connections. They are certainly put what they’ve learned right into practice. Since I have two names, one student couldn’t locate me on LinkedIn, so she went to my book website and sent me an email from there.

Me with Wenxue Qu, a student

She wrote: “I believe your experience inspired many of us. I really want to thank you for taking the time to talk to us.” Another wrote: “I was very moved by the panel discussion and thank you very much for all the advice.” Another wrote: “It was nice talking to you at the Ascend event. Thank you so much for sharing your own stories and experience with us.” Actually there are a few students who didn’t belong to any of these universities where there is an Ascend chapter. They learned about the event and took the extra step to attend the conference. So glad to see their eagerness and enthusiasm. Go Ascend, and best wishes for all the students.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into an award-winning feature-length documentary movie by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated by Jacqueline Bisset. Visit www.mulberrychildmovie.com for more information.

My daughter Lisa and I recently did Q & A after the screening of Mulberry Child at the Beverly Arts Center in Chicago. As always, the responses from the audience were emotional and deeply touching and the session ran 45 minutes long.

Among the questions raised from the audience that evening, one was addressed to Lisa. I found my grip on the microphone tightening when a woman in a front row asked in a clear but amusing voice if Lisa has a daughter, how she would like to raise her.

I had brought up the subject in a different manner under different circumstances to her before, mostly when I got frustrated with her. I would say I wish her children would do to her what she had done to me. Lisa would laugh, telling me not to worry because she wouldn’t have any child. “Too much work,” she’d say.

I was eager to hear what she had to say to a question seriously and friendly presented.

Typical to Lisa, she joked about it: “Screw up our linear parents who have got liberal arts and communication degrees, because my daughter is going to get an engineer degree.”

The audience erupted in laughter.

“Sounds like a real Chinese mother,” I interrupted, unable to refrain from bing sarcastic.

Lisa turned serious after a good laugh. She shared her mortifying experience of starting school in New York City and was being made fun of, and how that had made her want to fit in, at the expense of shedding her origin.

“I think as our world continues to evolve and globalize, immigrants don’t look at this country of opportunity in the same capacity any more,” she continued. “You recognize your heritage and realize you need to capitalize on that… So I’d like my children to speak six languages.”

The audience laughed again.

“Being Chinese is part of my heritage,” Lisa added. “It will be remiss and an incredible shame if they don’t feel about China the way I do.… In part because I was born there, just like America is an intricate part of who I am.”

I was very touched and pleased to hear her say that! If I were not concerned about embarrassing her, I would have leaned over to give her a hug right there and then on the stage.

I always enjoy doing Q & A with Lisa, despite having to watch more carefully what I say when she is around, because she loses no time to dispute what she doesn’t agree. Not only her insight and humor make the discussion more lively, but also that listening to her addressing to the audience, I can always gain a bit more understanding of her, and her, me.

Thank you all for giving us the opportunity of sharing our story and reaching a better understanding of each other.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into an award-winning feature-length documentary film by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated by Jacqueline Bisset.

Roger Ebert, american film critic. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The news of Roger Ebert‘s passing came as a shock despite my being aware that his cancer had come back and the situation was grave. Maybe he would won again this time, with his will, passion, and strength, as he did before, I thought.

When I came out of the Chicago Urban League‘s office building after giving a talk, I saw a text from my daughter, Lisa: “OMG, did you see the news that Ebert died!”

I sat in the parking lot in shock.

I searched my email and sure enough, I saw the statement by Chez, Roger Ebert’s wife, which was forwarded by a friend of Chez. It was a short but very loving statement about his passing and his life.

I had never met Roger Ebert in person, but had the good fortune of receiving his review of Mulberry Child movie and a rating of 3 ½ stars in January of last year when the film based my life had just come out.

I still remember my director Susan‘s reaction in front of the audience in a packed theatre after the screening of Mulberry Child when she talked about it meant to her.

“Roger Evert is my god,” Susan said. “This feels like getting god’s approval.”

She wiped away surging in her eyes. The audience applauded for her.

I’ve read his review numerous times since Jan. of last year when his review first came out. Each time it touched me on a personal level. He caught the essence of the film and the relationship between Lisa and me with deceiving simple, down-to-earth description.

“There’s a universal story here about immigrant parents and children, and how American culture can swamp family traditions, and make parents and children culturally unrecognizable to one another,” he wrote. “This is a powerful and touching film….”

As I read the review again today, tears well up in my eyes. I felt so honored and fortunate that the icon of Chicago, or rather, the best known film critic in the U.S., if not the entire world, wrote about the film based on my life and gave it a high rating.

This morning when I read the Tribune and listened to NPR, I learned more about him, and was very moved by the stories about him that so many people wanted to share.

Roger Ebert has touched so many people’s lives in so many ways that he will continue to live with us and be cherished deeply in our heart.

Below is a link to Roger Ebert’s review of Mulberry Child:

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120118/REVIEWS/120119987

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into a award-winning documentary film by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated by Jacqueline Bisset. Visit www.mulberrychildmovie.com for more information.

Our reading group’s selection for last month was Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, paired with Anita Loos‘ Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Part of the reason for the selection was that a new film of The Great Gatsby is scheduled to come out this summer and we want to have a group outing.

I’ve read the book years before, but don’t remember much of the details except the lonely figure of Gatsby standing in the back of his mansion looking out to the green light across the water. Reading it again, I was able to notice and appreciate a lot more, including the opportunities and optimism after the WWI, the prohibition, and the conflicts between “old money” and the “newly rich”.

Anita Loos’ book has nothing to do Fitzgerald’s content or perspective, but it was written in the ’20s, the same time period. I found it incredible that the stories were written by a woman – they were not only mocking men, but women as well. Both books were popular and developed into films. Loos’ book was written with tremendous humor, which probably played a key role in its success. Still I found it hard to believe Loos, a very successful screenwriter of the time, wrote something of this nature. Yet the other three women in my group, all strong characters, appeared to take in the book with good humor. The era in which it was written probably saved it.

Interestingly, The Great Gatsby reminded me somehow of China’s situation today in which the newly rich is grabbing money in unprecedented speed, and at the same time, the country is going through crisis of morality, widening disparity between the haves and have nots, and a sense of spiritual emptiness under the economic prosperity.

I look forward to watching the new interpretation and presentation of the Great Gatsby film with by group.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into an award-winning documentary film by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated by Jacqueline Bisset. Visit www.mulberrychildmovie.com for more information.

Last week, I attended part of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS) conference in San Diego for a couple of days. One of the rare occasions where I saw more Asians than other ethnic group under one roof.

I was there for Mulberry Child movie. After spending weeks getting the Chinese subtitles ready and selecting a few episodes of “behind the scene” interviews for the premium DVD of the film, I was very excited to see the final package on display at the booth of China Classics, a distributor of Chinese classic literature and artwork at AAS conference. Wang, owner of the company, graciously agreed to showcase Mulberry Child at his booth when a mutual friend introduced us. He has been in the business of providing Chinese language materials to East Asian Studies libraries at universities across the U.S. for many years. I was impressed and pleased to see so many of his clients come to him to order books he carried. His booth must be the busiest one in the exhibition hall.

Over the period of a day and a half when I was at the exhibition hall, I met with more than 50 professors or librarians in East Asian Studies from universities around the world. Reportedly, more than 3,000 people attended this annual conference.

I was very encouraged by the interest in and positive response to Mulberry Child movie and the book. And more excitedly, upon my return to Chicago, I began to receive orders from universities via our website, which posted the sales of two different packages of Mulberry Child DVD to educational institutions.

I know Mulberry Child movie can serve as a very effective tool in courses on China’s history, women’s studies, and immigrant studies. And with the addition of Chinese subtitles, it can assist in the learning of Chinese language as well.

I look forward to the opportunity of reaching out to more students, professors, and librarians at universities in the coming months and want to thank those who have generously supported us, including Mr. Wang.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China, which has been developed into an award-winning documentary movie by Susan Morgan Cooper and is narrated by Jacqueline Bisset. Visit www.mulberrychildmovie.com for more information.