Three years ago we started our December Advent calendar. On December 1st we left treats in front of our neighbors' doors. A few weeks later, right before Chinese New Year began the little girl from next door -- whose mother is from Southeast China -- knocked on our door and handed us satin rabbits. We had begun a tradition -- a yearly exchange. Last year we received dragons from a much more grown-up girl, and this year a confident middle schooler handed us snakes. Like a device used in a movie to show time passing, I can flash through those moments at the door and see our neighbor growing up. Small gestures fill me with a big sense of connectivity. I believe this is what it means to have roots.
Even with the myriad of races and creeds that allegedly run through my mother's veins, being Chinese has never come up. However, the brightness of the Chinese New Year celebrations are undoubtedly appealing, so every year our Valentine's decorations are regulated to the living room and the area around our table (our vast dining hall) is Chinese New Yeared up. As if that isn't authentic enough, we also order from China Fun at least once during the holiday period.
This year, with our master 17-year old planner, we decided to go a step further and explore Chinatown. The one downside: because of the holiday a few of the places on the agenda were closed.
Our first stop was the Mahayana Buddhist Temple on Canal Street where we saw the altar with piles of oranges and flowers (and became motivated to make our own tomorrow), were impressed by the enormous Buddha statue, paid $1/fortune, and up in the rather random upstairs "gift shop/museum" paid $3 for a little "lady Buddha" (for that altar we decided to make).
Confucius says: "Wherever you go, go with all your heart." We went to Confucius Plaza today, and saw his statue. I feel motivated to study his words more... Perhaps a quote a week...
On to Chatham Square where we saw the memorial arch that specifically honors a pilot shot down during WWII (Kimlau) and more broadly honors all Chinese Americans who have died while serving. We also saw that statue of Lin Zexu -- the "pioneer" in the war against Opium. I must admit that when I tried to explain the Opium Wars to the kids, it was rather vague -- money, tea consumption, the British, opium -- it really just comes down to what Nancy Reagan taught: don't do (or import) drugs even if your tea is on the line. (The British and that damn tea...it seems like it got them in more trouble from an international relations perspective... though in this case it was the opium that was thrown into the sea... Though I will say that it rather sums up the spirit behind my anglophileness -- we do terrible things and chuck our morals for oil so we can drive our SUVs, they did terrible things and chucked their morals so they could have tea with their bickies.) Ah... and that tangent is a fine example of the social studies curriculum.
We slipped down Dowry Street where there are some fun stores to peek into, a tea parlor, barber shops, and the little street turns at a 90-degree angle.
On Bowery we saw the Edward Mooney house on our way to Lin Sister Herb Shop.
I wanted to know more about the herbs and what they healed and how they smelled, but it was clear from the moment we walked in with two prattlers in bright red coats that we were just lame voyeurs. I asked for permission before we took a couple of pictures, and it felt like good manners to buy something, so we finally settled (Judd the Red Chicken had all sorts of ideas of what we should buy -- he was going very exotic) on a pretty bag of rose buds -- not for tea -- but for that altar we're making tomorrow.
We stopped by the library -- I appreciated the red doors -- the library is indeed a lucky place.
We went to Oriental Books and Stationary on Broadway and for 65 cents a pop got these awesome retro notebooks, some decorations to add to our Chinese New Year celebrations (little paper banners for 35 cents that we're told say: "You should get what you want" -- the children picked out that sentiment -- I was more for peace, health, love, etc...), and tiny shiny papers for folding origami (which I thought was Japanese?)
The Church of the Transfiguration is the oldest Roman Catholic church building in NYC. We stopped by and quietly sat with about three older ladies who were worshipping. While there we saw a poster about Felix Varela. I did not know that he existed until today, but having looked him up and read this article, I am glad to know about him.
We went to Columbus Park. Opened around the turn of the century, the park was the first step in the social movement to do away with the slums -- for here was the infamous Five Points neighborhood. Now it is a place where men that live in Chinatown gather and play games -- even in the bitter cold. My favorite quote of the day came from The Boy as we walked through: "It's interesting that nobody is on their cellphones."
We saw the statue of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen who was apparently the father of the revolution in China. It's interesting to note that his big revolution days were starting just a few years after the park was created. Change was in the air; leaders were raising their heads above the crowds and calling for the end of oppression and unfairness. I've always wanted to have an enormous timeline wrapped around my walls that would provide a visual representation of what was going on simultaneously in the world. To be able to trace themes and trends and see how far back ideas might have germinated...
On our way to see the dragon kiosk we stopped at an interesting bead/accessory store, per The Girl's request. We saw some impressive bead "art," and picked up a pair of cute barrettes that got put in the cutest bag on the planet.
Our trip to Chinatown was fascinating and fun and frugal. We didn't buy anything that cost over $3. Our last stop was the Dragon Land Bakery where gals are at the ready with their tongs to place your selection in a bag. We bought four different savory buns, and four different selections from the bakery -- the entire order came to $10. The strange eggy, spongy cake was not worth my $1.20, but all the savory buns/rolls were delicious.
Hurray for The Sister who planned a fun and educational field trip. Hurray for NYC for all of its wonderful nooks and crannies. Hurray for people who have reached their potential -- whether world leaders or barrette designers. Hurray for the scheme -- it does allow us to "go with all our heart" and "get what we want" -- our Chinese New Year's wish has already manifested itself.
