EAST graduation photos are up!

Just went to check the EAST website and found the graduations photos up.

There are some pretty nice shots there.

It doesn't allow me to post the exact link to the photos so you have to go to

http://www.east.edu.sg

then click on "photos" in order to see them.

Pauline Epistle June edition (Chinese)

Pauline Epistle June edition (English)

travels--HK to Shanghai

from june 5 to 10, i was in shanghai. after taiwan, i flew to HK (cos i was flying cathay pacific). because i want to save money and experience what the everyday mainland Chinese go thru, i decided to take the train from HK to Shanghai. it was a 20-hour train ride. but a pretty good experience.

i learned a few things...

• bring your own cup (they provide hot water only)
• bring your own food (they are slow in selling the train food and i thought it looked pretty oily)
• people were pretty friendly to one another
• men can snore very loudly at night
• it was a long journey (duh!)

before i went, everybody was warning me to be cautious so i was super cautious. i didn't talk to anybody but just listened and watched the interaction of people. i thought most of the passengers were mainlanders (in the hard sleep section ... 6 to a cabin) and some adventurous westerners. there was an old man who didn't seem to prepare any food so those in his cabin offered him bread. i thought it was a very communal experience.

after arriving to shanghai, i spent the next few days with jw's family. (jw is a friend from my previous church.) i was very touched by their hospitality and how well 6 people can be cramped into a 2-bedroom, 1 bathroom apartment without any conflicts. i think they were amused to have a taiwanese living amongst them so jw's father would explain some of the china communist traditions, notable heroes, poems, etc. i think it is beneficial for my research on chinese american music (since i've not narrowed it down to chinese from which area).

because it was 'dragon boat festival', there was an extended holiday for that weekend. i think we went for a very avg chinese kind of weekend stroll in the public parks. it was interesting to see all the families with their young children (maybe pre-elementary school age) with their parents and grand parents.

i think the timing for my trip is pretty providential. before the trip, i already heard that my 3rd aunt's husband was hospitalized. but i think we all didn't think he would stay in the hospital for over a month. i got to visit him in the hospital and prayed along with the family for quick recovery. (thank God that he's gone home from the hospital but need to continue to pray for his full recovery) and because it was 'dragon boat festival', i also had a reunion dinner with my extended family. i've not had a chance to meet some of these relatives who's been living in shanghai all these years. it was good to finally meet them. i also had brief moments to catch up with those cousins that i'm more familiar with (thank God for family!)

hmm... this is getting pretty long. for coming back to HK, i decided to take the plane to shenzhen. that was also quite an experience... i guess i wont elaborate on that now.

for shanghai pix, you can go here.

change of plans

i arrived HK around noon time yesterday. leaving for shanghai this afternoon.

got an email from YM saying that she wont be able to go back to LZ as planned so i am cutting that part of the trip and come back to HK earlier.

when i was leaving sg and going to tw, i asked some people to pray for the people that i will meet, the things that i will see, hear and feel... that all will be what God intended. i think basically it called for an open mind and not insisting on doing this or that... (like going to the awesome party world K tv in taiwan... which i didnt get a chance to... )

basically i met these people...

• my old classmates from wesley (some of them)
• uncles and aunties from our old church
• my cousin, his wife, and a wonderful lady who works at ORTV
  
• office staff and associate missionary of CMI
• one EAST alumna/good friend
• spent time with my godma and her family
• a lady who is in charge of this humanitarian org who also stayed at where i stayed during the first few days

all the meetings were very meaningful. i was blessed with money, gifts, great food, and most importantly--great company. (quality time is my number 1 love language)

i was glad that it's also an accumulation of the blessings, and grace i've received during the sg trip. somehow... i was able to talk thru many issues that i am facing and hope to seek some adjustments after i go back home. through conversations, i realized that i am totally passionate about going into ethnomusicology and the vision of seeing nations worship in their own language, music, cultural ways. through the gifts and grace and blessings i received, i feel refreshed and am able to return to the Word... maybe the most important thing is the reminder to have a thankful heart.

there are 2 more weeks in my trip. i look forward to more people, sights, sounds, or whatever God has in mind for me.