Welcome Rituals, the Asian Way

Each culture have different ways of welcoming visitors. Different words, different gestures, different symbols.  People going extra mile to make their visitors feel at home. 

I have had the wonderful opportunity to visit different communities in Asia for work, and it feels nice to be welcomed, in whatever way is appropriate for their culture. My most memorable and favorite ones are the welcome rituals from India, Nepal, Pakistan and Indonesia. 

I have traveled 3 times to India , each time I have visited communities in remote places.  I found the people to be very hospitable.  As a sign of greeting, they apply tilak or red mark in the forehead between the brows of their visitors. Flower garlands, often made of orange marigold flowers, are also given to acknowledge and to show their happiness at receiving their guests. During my visit in one of the villages in Bihar province, I was given tons of garlands, going up to my chin that I had to ask permission if I can remove some, so that I can have a conversation with them. :)

Shower of petals..what a welcome!

How do I look with the tilak?

Tons of garlands...and wait...there's more?

A very heart warming welcome from the children.... and look at that work of art.

During one of my visits in Thatta, a Sindh province in Pakistan, I was so touched to see small children lined up the streets to greet us.  As we walked, they showered us with rose petals. I also noticed that the women, and even little girls, were fully made up. My Pakistani colleague said that it is also how they welcome visitors- by being and looking their best: wearing their best clothes, putting on their jewelries and make up. Never experienced something like this... it was...touching.

Rose petal shower....(me in orange Pakistani garb) 

In Nepal, visitors are welcomed by putting a khata (pronounced as khada)  around the neck. A khata is a traditional ceremonial scarf, presented at ceremonial occassions, symbolizing purity and compassion. During my visit in Makwanpur district, I was given a yellow-gold khata along with the invitation to stay in Makwanpur, because they said I look like a Nepali.

My khata

Visitors of West Timor in Indonesia are welcomed with Natoni.  In natoni, a group will perform a welcome dance, do a short welcome speech and put selendang (woven shawl or shoulder cloth) on the neck of the guest. It is said that it is an expression of their happiness and a form of prayer for God to protect and bless the guest and everyone in their village. During my visit to Oinlassi, a group of women performed the natoni...and I got a really nicely weaved scarf.

Welcome dance...and lovely costumes

Welcome dance...

Drums....

Musical instruments.

...and I got my lovely selendang.

Beautiful culture. Beautiful people. Priceless moments.

Travel Tips: Nepal

Nepal is one country I cannot get enough of.  It has Mount Everest, very beautiful landscape of mountain ranges, and very friendly people who enjoy meeting visitors and who have a ready smile for everyone. The following are some tips for those who plan to explore Nepal: 

Visa

A visa is required when travelling to Nepal.  It can be organized through the Nepalese Embassies in USA, UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, Brussels, Geneva Japan, Thailand and Hongkong. For those without embassies, tourists can apply for tourist visa upon arrival at Kathmandu.  A 15 day single entry tourist visa is usually provided for a USD 25 entry fee. You may check out visa regulations at the Nepal Tourism Board website.

Arrival

All international flights arrive at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal.  It is, surprisingly, a small airport considering the huge number of tourists coming to Nepal. Tribhuvan is the only international airport in Nepal.  

Currency

Currency is Nepalese rupee (NPR). You may get estimate of the exchange rate here before you travel. There are foreign exchange counters at Tribhuvan airport as well as in downtown Kathmandu. 

Major banks and big restaurants, hotels and shopping malls in Kathmandu accept major international credit cards.

Travelling in and around Kathmandu

Metered taxis are available and fare may cost up to approximately USD6 or Euro4.

Timezone

GMT + 5:45

Weather

• Summer is March to mid June and temperature can range from 15 to 32 degree Celcius during summer. 
• Monsoon period is between mid June to mid August.
• Winter is from mid November until mid February.  Temperature can go down to minus 2 degree Celsius during mid winter with lots of fog and frost in the morning.  In Kathmandu, winter season is very cold, but without snow. 

Best time to visit 

The best time to visit is after August, when the monsoon ends.  Post monsoon mountain air is clean and fresh and also Dashain and Tihar festivals fall in September and October. From February to April, climate is dry and pleasant and also rhododendons (Nepal's national flower) are in bloom.

Language 

The language spoken (even in hotels and restaurants) is mainly Nepali.  English is spoken to assist foreigners. 

Things to Remember: 

• Before entering a house or a temple, please remove your shoes

• Non Hindus are not allowed to enter into Hindu temples. Buddhist temples are however open to all.

• Women should avoid dresses which expose bare shoulders and knees when visiting rural areas

• Don't kiss or shake hands, especially with women, unless they initiate.

• To greet people or say good morning, good evening, goodnight and goodbye, say "Namaste" with hands joined together and fingers extended in front of you. A simple smile is also accepted or you may raise your right hand slightly above your head.  

• Do not put your hand or arm on the shoulder of a person,specially of a woman and also do not put your hands on the head of the children, as it may offend them. 

• Do not smoke in public places as it is prohibited by the government..

Have a safe and fun travel to Nepal!

Travel Tips: Xian, China

Here are some information for those who will be travelling to Xi'an, China.  I hope they could be of use to you.

About Xi'an:

Xi'an is the capital of Shaanxi province. It was the capital of 13 dynasties in the past and as such, was the center of culture. It is now one of the tourist destinations in China. 

Arrival:

Visitors can fly directly to Xi'an Xianyang International Airport. International flights are all in the T3.  Those who arrive in Beijing may take the train between Beijing and Xian, which will take about 12 hours.  

Taxis and shuttles are available at the airport. Taxis from Xianyang Airport to the downtown hotels will take about an hour and costs around 140RMB (China's currency).  Shuttles cost around 25RMB per person. 

Currency Exchange: 

Currency in China is Yuan (RMB). 

At Xianyang Airport, currency exchange is located at Gate 324, 2/F of Terminal 3
Operating hours: 07:30-21:30
Service fee: RMB58 per transaction

Currency exchange is available in most banks in Xian.  Credit cards such as Visa, Federal Card and Mastercard are also accepted in many establishments.

Language:

In Xi'an, Mandarin Chinese is the main language and only a few people speak English. If you will be travelling by taxi, it is advised that you ask your friends or hotel staffs to write down your destination and hotel address in Chinese, so you can show them to the taxi driver.

Time Zone:

GMT + 8

Electric system

220 volts, 50Hz 

Hotels

• Gloria Plaza Hotel  - 0086 29 87868855 (4 star)
• Hyatt Hotel- 0086 29 87691234 (5 star)
• Bell Towel Hotel- 0086 29 87600000 (4 star)
• Xi’an Royal Hotel- 0086 29 87690000
• The Bell & Drum Tower Hotel - 0086 29 87278276
• Xi’an City Hotel - 0086 29 87219988
• Grand New World Hotel - 0086 29 87218686
• Citadines Central Xian - 0086 29 85761186

Working Time 

• Government offices : 8:00a.m to 18:00p.m (Monday to Friday)
• Banks: 9:00a.m to 17:00p.m (Monday to Friday) and 9:30 a.m to 15:00 p.m (Saturday and Sunday)
• Shops: 10:00a.m to 21:00 p.m (Monday to Sunday)

Holidays:

• International Labour Day:  first three days in May 
• National Day: first week in October
• New Year: January 1 
• Chinese New Year or the Spring Festival: usually late January-early February, depending on the lunar calendar

Tip practices:

Tipping is not common except in star hotels and luxurious restaurants

Places to visit:

• Terracotta Warriors (1 hour away from airport)
• Ancient Xian city wall (within walking distance from downtown)
• Big Goose Pagoda
• The Bell  and Drum Tower
• Shaanxi History Museum
• Forest of Stone Steles
• Hanyang Tombs

Xi'an's Terracota Army: Protector of the First Emperor

The first Qin emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, has not only unified China during his rule from 221-207 BC. He also left behind a treasure, which can aptly be considered as another wonder of the world.  He built a mausoleum for himself- and thousands of life-size terracotta army, horses and chariots.  These terracotta army, arranged in battle formation near the Emperor's tomb, is believed to protect the Emperor in the life after.  Emperor Qin died in 209 BC and was buried with his terracotta army. They remained buried for 2,200 years, until the accidental discovery of the terracotta army in 1974, by some farmers digging a well. The mausoleum of Emperor Qin remained buried and not excavated to this day. 

Since it was opened to public in 1979, the Terracotta Army has attracted millions of visitors per year.  It is considered as one of the must-see in China, along with the Great Wall.  And I was not going to miss it for anything!

Our colleague has arranged for the taxi driver to take me and my colleague Shanta from Xi'an airport to the Terracotta Army museum, upon our arrival from YuLin. It's an hour drive from the airport.  We first had lunch then met with the tour guide which the driver has arranged for us. The tour guide showed us where to buy the admission tickets, we queued, bought our tickets,  and started with the tour. It was a bit of a walk through a nice garden, from the gate to the exhibitions.  

Ticket booths

Everybody off to see the tarracotta army

And here we go.....

The mausoleum and the terracotta army museum is in a 20 square mile compound. There are 3 exhibitions, showcasing the 3 pits of terracotta warriors.  We entered the biggest building, the 1st exhibition. It is where 6,000 terracotta solders were found. The tour guide shared that the figures used to have colors when they were first unearthed.  However due to exposure to air and light, the colors faded.  

The life-size terracotta soldiers (archers, cavalry, infantry and officers) are arranged  in battle formation along with chariots and horses. There were also 40,000 bronze weapons (spears, axes, crossbows and arrowheads) found in the pits.

Looking closely, each of the members of the army has distinct facial features and facial expression, height, and hair style.  Our guide shared that the artists then, copied the features of the of the Emperor's favorites among his soldiers.  

Our guide also shared that a number of laborers and artists, who helped in the construction of the tomb and of the terracotta warriors, were killed in order to preserve its secrecy.  

The 2nd pit or the 2nd exhibition has cavalry and infantry units.

The 3rd pit contains high ranking officers and chariots.

We headed to the souvenir shop. Our guide pointed to a man signing souvenir books by the entrance of the store.  He's one of the farmers who accidentally discovered the terracotta soldiers.  

I bought myself a replica of the kneeling archer, made from the terracotta soil.

The sales person said the kneeling archer is a symbol of luck.  I hope the kneeling archer will indeed bring me lots of luck, so that I will be able to see all of the world's wonders.

Getting to know JiaXian

Our second day at Jiaxian was the visit to the communities. JiaXian was mountainous, and the weather in the villages is cold.   

In the early morning and on our way to the communities, we dropped by a Daoist temple.  It was a nice one on top of a hill.  We brought some dried dates, one of the main products of Jiaxian.

The Daoist temple from afar...

We visited communities, talked to our partners, teachers, parents and the children. The people in the community were in awe when they saw Shanta, our colleague from Nepal because of her Nepali costume, and South Asian feature.  I, on the other hand, was again mistaken to be Chinese (but of course :-) ).

There is one reality in China , which I did not see in other countries I have visited.  In this part of the world, there is a  huge number of "left-behind" children.  These are children who had to stay school dormitories because their parents work in another place and there is nobody home to take care of them.  The school teachers or caretakers become their second parent.  And I believe, our organization's programs there is a good response to this situation.  We train the caretakers  and children about proper child care, nutrition, hygiene and about children's rights. This will enable the caretakers to take good care of the children, and knowing their rights, the children would also be able to take care of themselves.  And I commend our China colleagues for coming up with these programs- and also the school authorities and teachers for taking on the additional responsibility of being the caretakers of these children.

Children live and are cared for in these school dormitory

After the visit, we did a short debriefing about our findings together with our field office colleagues and our partners.  In the late afternoon, we traveled back to Yulin where we spent the night before we fly back to Xian. 

 

The Mother River of China and YuLin County.

Though both belong to the province of Shaanxi, we had to take a plane ride from Xian to YuLin. That is how vast China is.  

The driver of our JiaXian office was waiting for us at the airport when we arrived. He's a nice and funny guy who claims to be a fan of Manny Pacquiao (well -known boxer from the Philippines), who knew Pacquiao's rags-to-riches story.  Before we started our 2 hour travel to JiaXian, he took us to a noodle restaurant in YuLin, which he said is very popular. Each customer only pays around 1 dollar and can eat as many bowls of noodles as he/she can. There were many small bowls of herbs and condiments on each table, to mix and match.  It looked like a good business concept, judging from the many customers coming into the restaurant. 

My colleague , waiting to get started

Mix 'em and match 'em

The noodles was really good but easily filled me up. Our driver was able to finish around 8 bowls  of noodles (and these are not small bowls!) and he can finish more.The owner of the restaurant looked unhappy that I finished only 1 bowl and kept asking me (in Chinese) why I finished that little and if I did not like the taste.  Yang Min , our manager, and the driver, had to explain on my behalf.

After lunch, we started for Jiaxian.   Driving around YuLin, it was easy to notice that several new buildings were sprouting all over the city.  Yang Min shared that it was not like this before they discovered that their soil is rich in coal. Coal mining made many ordinary people instant millionaires. We used to have an office in YuLin but because the city became very progressive, we decided we were not needed there anymore and we closed

YuLin

On our way to Jiaxian, we passed by the Yellow River, one of the longest rivers in China at more than 5,000 kilometers long. Considered as the "Mother River of China"   and the "cradle of Chinese civilization", it was the center of Chinese culture for some 2,000 years in the past.  Confucious, the ancient Chinese philosopher, was born in one of the villages by the Yellow River.  The yellow color came from the lose sediments it carries.  It looked dark yellow, bordering on brown. 

By the bridge

the Yellow River

Bridge over the mother river

My self and my friend Yang Min

We then embarked on the 2 hour drive to JiaXian. The road was really wide and well paved and it was a very smooth travel.   I wish we also have these roads in the Philippine provinces.

On the way to Jiaxian

We finally reached JiaXian, and after a few introductions, we proceeded with our meetings and interview.  In the late afternoon, we met with the representative of the government from the Women's Group , which is our partner in the area.  The head of the Women's Group welcomed us over (big) dinner.  

And, it was time to call it a day.  

Xi'an

There are news again of Chinese vessels intruding the Philippine territory.  As if their taking over of one of the islands in the Spratly's is not enough. These news scares me.  So when I was told that I was to do a review of our office in China, I was scared. I wanted to see China, but not at that time when our dispute over the islands was on all time high. 

I was anxious all throughout my flight to Xi'an.  I have heard about the propaganda the Chinese government has spread against the Philippines, Vietnam, and other Southeast Asian countries whose islands, they have interest on.  I was prepared to be harassed at the immigration, and be treated badly as what some Filipinos have experienced in Beijing.

To my surprise, I did not experience any of that in Xi'an.  I guess they are far from Beijing so they are not that aware of the issues between our countries.  The immigration officer looked so young, and he was very nice and even welcomed me to China.

And I was doubly surprised that many people thought I was Chinese! (How come?). And I did experience a lot of kindness. The people in our office (both in Xian and Jiaxian) were very nice (and many looked fashionable :). They were very open in sharing their processes and procedures, important information I needed to be able to do my review and be able to provide with feedback later.  

Also, our partners from the government , were very cooperative during the interview.  Not to mention that they prepared delicious Chinese dishes for me.  

I totally did not expect it- those were pleasant surprises.  

But  there was one unpleasant surprise: when I tried to open Facebook, I was not able to. And I just found that their government has banned Facebook in China.  Same thing as Google and YouTube.  What??

View of the mall from my room in Xian...

The fancy hotel next door.... 

  

When Pope Francis was in the Philippines...

On September 23, my friend Kate attended Pope Francis' mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Immaculate Conception in Washington DC.  She was one of those picked by their Bishop in their parish in Rocklin, Sacramento. From her Facebook posts, she shared how blessed and happy she felt about her encounter with the Pope.

Pope Francis also visited the Philippines in January this year.  And it was big! No..it was not big...it was a huge event! The final mass in Manila was attended by 6-7 million people, and is said to be the largest papal event ever.

Pope Francis, endearing as he is, was well received by the Filipinos, who lovingly called him Lolo Kiko (or grandfather Kiko) .  It was love at first sight for everyone - there was lots of love given to this very charismatic,fatherly,  and very humble man.  All throughout his 5 daysvisit in Manila and Tacloban, people lined up the streets, in the airports, in the Papal Nuncio residence, to meet and greet him.  People waited for him to arrive, and sent him off waving and smiling, when it was time for him to leave.

The day after he arrived, me and my friend lined up the street outside one of the gates of the Malacanang Palace, where the President holds office.  He had a meeting with the President and afterwards, had a motorcade to Manila Cathedral to say a mass. We were there from 5 am, and had a glance of this well loved Pope at around 11am, when his motorcade passed by.  The almost 6 hours wait was worth it, the moment I saw him.  I was in awe.  It was a weird feeling..yes..very much like love at first sight :). 

I followed his entire visit through the TV, as probably almost everyone in the Philippines. I listened to each and every homily he did.  Despite the language barrier, I remember some of the things he said in his homilies, many are quite practical things. 

"Only by becoming poor ourselves, by stripping away our complacency, will we be able to identify with the least of our brothers and sisters. We will see things in a new light..."

"When you lose the capacity to dream, you lose the capacity to love..."

"How many solutions are found to family problems if we take time to reflect?" 

"Rest is essential for our health, so that we can hear God's voice and understand what he asks of us..."

But it was his homily during his encounter with the youth at Sto. Tomas University that struck me to the core.  And I would forever remember the things that he shared. 

“Certain realities of life we only see through eyes cleansed by our tears."

"...using the three languages of the mind, heart and hands – and to use them in harmony. What you think, you feel, and you do. Feel what you think and feel what you do. Do what you think and what you feel. The three languages…To think. To feel. To do. And all in harmony…”

“Real love is about loving and letting yourself be loved."

"To learn how to beg. To learn how to receive with humility. To learn to be evangelized by the poor, by those we help, the sick, orphans, they have so much to give us."

"Reality is superior to ideas"

"We run the risk of becoming museums of young people that have everything but without knowing what to do with them"

I pray that these words will continue to guide me.