Marthrob! And, Back in the U.S.S.A.

At the end of July, Allison and I once again made the little jaunt up over China and Siberia, across the North Pole, past Hudson Bay and Canada on the continent of North America, to arrive at the former Dutch and British colony of New York City– perhaps you’ve heard of it? This was a quick family-and-friends trip, and I warn you that this blog entry is probably in the special-interest category, so if you want more travelogue, just skip down to new entries on Suzhou/Hangzhou, and Ho Chi Minh City/Mekong Delta, just below.

I spent two days in Manhattan recovering from jet lag, visiting friends, and hitting just a couple of my favorite NYC sites, like MoMA (the Richard Serra exhibition is terrific, and of course the permanent collection is not bad), St. Patrick’s, and the reading room of the NY Public Library (pilgrimage site for some). Went running in Central Park, and also up to the Bronx for my first and only game at Yankee Stadium, to cross it off my lifetime list. They’re tearing it down after next season and opening a new park across the street. I apologize, fellow Yankees-haters, but this was my last chance to see a game at The House that Ruth Built. If it makes you feel any better, the place is a true pit, in much worse shape than Wrigley or Fenway; it should come down.

But the whole point of this visit to NY was a wonderful wedding – Allison joined me on Friday, and we went up to Rhinebeck, New York, on the Hudson River in Dutchess County, for the biggest event in the area since Woodstock – the wedding of MARTHROB. As readers of the tabloids know, Marthrob is my friends Martha Stolley and Rob Keefe. It was great to see these lovable, star-struck kids on their big day; normally I might disapprove of old men taking stunning, fresh brides off the market in this way, but it would be a bit hypocritical of me to judge.

The setting was idyllic, and the vows were heartfelt, genuine poetry. Great to see young Joe Keefe at the game, assisting his dad. We had a blast dancing the night away with Rob, Martha, and many old friends like Patrick, Barbra, Paul, Kristy, Colin, Wendy, Russ, Jim, Dan, Christen, John Galen, and touch base with people we hadn’t seen in too long, like Robin, Michelle, Consuelo and their spouses, Andrew and Sherry, Mary, and the Keefe and Stolley families. Thanks for the yard-cleaning story, Mark. Loved seeing Ted work the cell to get it all in on time. And whoever it was that grabbed me in that conga line – thanks.

We performed a ridiculous pageant/tribute show for Marthrob, something of a wedding tradition now for my friends and me, called “Law and Order: Special Matrimony Unit,” complete with a dynamite ukulele closing to “I Fought the Law and the Law Won.” Sadly, the film of this masterpiece has somehow disappeared, so it might just have to remain an ephemeral memory. Unless Ted can somehow get his version onto Youtube? Just think of the sensation when the Honeymooners Lost Episodes were discovered . . .

After Rhinebeck, we drove to Lancaster PA, Allison’s hometown (although this link actually has photos from both Lancaster and Bethesda). Barbara and Turk hosted a terrific party where we were able to see lots of family – aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, and more. Then Allie and I, with Barbara and Turk, went to Bethesda, MD to hang out with Allison’s sister Liz her husband Peter, and their kids Lindsey and Natalie, who are adorable -- and I have photographic proof of that. We took the kids to the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, where we saw cool stuff, including the Space Shuttle, and the capsules I used to dream about as a kid. Lindsey and Natalie bravely entered the Shuttle Simulator with us as we all headed into outer space.

Raja came down from Boston for a day, and we all picnicked and rode the train at Cabin John in Virginia, then celebrated Liz’s birthday at a rockin’ restaurant/club, Posh’s, in DC.

Now Allison and I are back home in Hong Kong, getting over jet lag and hiking in preparation for our big trip to Tibet. We leave on Aug. 10th, get back on the 27th. We’re really looking forward to this one! Hope all is well with everyone in the States. Let me hear from you. I’ll blog about Tibet when we get back – until then, this is the luckiest and/or the most blessed man in the world, signing off.

In Heaven is Paradise; On Earth, Suzhou and Hangzhou . . . That’s an expression in China, so Allison and I decided to check out these alleged sites of earthly paradise. Both are pretty close to Shanghai, so we tried to see them both over a weekend. This was semi-crazy, given the vicissitudes of Chinese train travel, but we got away with it -- despite our minimal (to put it gently) knowledge of Putonghua (Mandarin).

Because we live in Hong Kong, we’ve been trying to learn Gwongdonghua (Cantonese). Then when we go to the Mainland -- well, it's a bit like studying a little Hungarian, and then trying to travel in France. Our Gwongdonghua is not terrific, but it’s stellar compared to our lame Putonghua – in Putonghua I can count to three, and I know the words for “hello,” “please,” “thank you,” “ water,” and the all-important “don’t need!” It’s a bit limited, but I’m very good with grunting and gestures, and my wife has a great smile . . .

Suzhou
Suzhou is famous for its gardens: we first visited the Wangshi Yuan (Master of Nets Garden). I have a very funny “Master of Nets” joke that I made Allison listen to – ask me some time, and maybe I can tell you – or, if you’re lucky enough to know Patrick Costigan, ask him. He stole it from me and does a very good version. Anyway, Wangshi is famous for its use of space. It’s pretty small, but it doesn’t seem like it.

We then went to Beisi Ta Pagoda, originally built in the 3rd century AD. It’s been reconstructed several times over the years, but hey, I think a lot of us would have to admit to that. The pagoda, at 76 meters, is the tallest in China south of the Yangtze. We climbed it for a terrific view of Suzhou, and also spent some time at a peaceful teahouse listening to the crickets jam, live in concert, sans Buddy Holly.

Next stop was a silk museum, which was really more of a silk factory with a shop at the end. Nonetheless it was actually cool to see how silk is made, and there’s a great fashion show at the end, urging you to buy, featuring a silk-centric catwalk. Silk was, of course, invented in China (along with everything else, from pasta to gunpowder). The first Westerners to see it, reportedly, were Roman legions fighting against Mongols in Turkistan. The Romans freaked out at the sight of the silk banners in the wind, resulting in a major thrashing, something like an early Yao Ming vs. Vinny del Negro situation. You can look it up.

We next headed to a place with the wonderful name of “The Humble Administrator’s Garden” (I hope you’re reading this, Ron Berggren). Covering about 52, 000 sq. meters (about 13 acres), it’s the largest and most famous of Suzhou’s gardens, and a World Cultural Heritage site. There are beautiful pools of lotus set amidst small forest areas and rock formations, and I can tell you that it’s definitely big enough to get lost in. Ahem.

In Between
Pressed for time at the train station, we attempted to eat at the ubiquitous KFC (there’s a new one in China opening every other day). This was the first time we had ever sunk this low, and it was a pretty serious judgment error -- we discovered that in China they are really big on cartilage nuggets. I can’t ask you to understand, I can only ask you to imagine. We would have been much better off with the squid-on-a-stick guy with a cart outside.

Back in the main hall of the train station, we discovered that our luggage was stuck in a jammed locker. With our train due to depart soon, the friendly attendant tried to help us open it, and we soon drew a crowd of maybe 30 or 40 people, many of whom offered us their advice (in Chinese of course) on how to jimmy it. After half an hour and four more train station personnel, the locker opened and we hurried to join the horde pressing for the train. It was like a Who concert in Cincinnati – sweaty, jostled, with squished toes, we eventually made it to our seats, only to find out that we (along with everyone else) had reserved seats. What was all that pushing for?

We were very cozy on our little bench, and watched some spectacular scenery fly by outside the window on the way to Hangzhou. We were also mesmerized by listening to the audio-book version of China Road: A Journey into the Future of a Rising Power, by Rob Gifford. A BBC correspondent in Beijing, Gifford took the Silk Road prior to leaving the country, and his book is an excellent travelogue that also deals with modern China, and sketches in a fair amount of historical background. We really recommend it for anyone interested in China – a must-read (or listen).

Hangzhou
Hangzhou is idyllic – we’ve been to Beijing, Shanghai, Xian, Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and points in between, and this is easily the prettiest city we’ve seen in China, probably the loveliest place period. We spent most of a day riding around it on bicycles, finding the gorgeous lakeside park that made us understand why the Chinese think of Hangzhou as an earthly paradise. The sweeping lotus pools are incredible. We also visited a winery that is the house we’ll build if we ever get to build a house. We cycled past dripping willows, all sorts of flowers and trees, beautiful temples, and we rode over causeways that cross the lake. One highlight was the Leifing Pagoda – very unusual for a Chinese pagoda, it has an escalator to get up to it, a glass elevator inside, and amazingly, it’s air-conditioned! We appreciated that on this 100+ degree-day, even if it’s maybe a touch more secular than an average pagoda.

Somewhere before we got to “Orioles Singing in the Willows” Park, the police put up signs that prohibited bike riding in certain areas, but it was hard for us to tell exactly where. The result was that cops would rush up to us like little barking terriers – we tried to convey to them that we wanted to just walk the bikes, but they were having none of it. Finally, Allison decided to tell off one of the cops, and told him (after ascertaining that he couldn’t understand a word she was saying) that his rule was “the stupidest rule she ever heard of in her entire life!” They then both cracked up laughing. There’s a lot to be said for being incomprehensible, and also for being a really cute redhead.

Despite the confusing bike rules, Hangzhou is magnificent, and if you’re anywhere near it (i.e. if you’re in Shanghai), by all means, get there.

Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta . . . trying to catch up on blogging a few trips -- here's a quick look at Vietnam. We had only a long weekend to check out Ho Chi Minh City (stilled called Saigon by many) and the Mekong Delta – just a taste, but it was a great introduction to a fascinating country.

The first thing that knocked us out in Ho Chi Minh City was the mad swirl of motorcycles and scooters pouring through the streets, sometimes with three, four, even five people aboard. Tiny little kids, old grannies, whole families were racing along like a nation of Dennis Hoppers. Check out the toddlers standing between their parents, the infants sleeping . . . the architecture, thanks to the French colonial influence, is reminiscent of Paris at times, with broad, elegant boulevards. And the food was dynamite, even better than Tu Lan on 6th Street inn San Francisco, if you can believe that. We even ate pho at Bill Clinton’s favorite pho joint, Pho 2000, where they’re still trumpeting the news of Bubba’s visit back in, you guessed it, 2000.

We spent our first day in the stunningly beautiful Mekong Delta – it’s like a big, tropical Venice, with canals and tributaries criss-crossing villages and fields, dotted with all kinds of small boats and floating markets. We went for a bike ride in a local town, visited a coconut candy factory, and ate yummy food, some of which was even identifiable! We passed through traditional rice fields along the way . . .

Ho Chi Minh City is a sprawling boom-town, with ubiquitous pictures of Uncle Ho still everywhere (he died in 1969, btw). He’s always pictured in a white jacket, and with his grey hair and goatee against a red background, Ho is eerily reminiscent of Colonel Sanders, at least to me. And yes, there are now plenty of KFCs in Vietnam, maybe because they trust that familiar face?

We hit the usual tourist sites: the shops along Dong Koi, the Fine Art Museum, the Ho Chi Minh City Museum, and saw lacquer-ware being made. The museums are mostly in beautiful old French colonial buildings that are slowly falling apart, and it’s too expensive to air-condition them, so they just leave the windows open and it’s HOT.

In Cho Lon (Chinatown) and at the huge Ben Than Market, I frequently had to contend with the Vulcan Death-grip of vendors who really, really wanted me to stick around and check out their goods (just the usual stuff like Lacosse knockoffs, dried octopi, whatever). I’m not kidding – they would just grab me and hold on for dear life, and it was all I could do to wriggle free in as gentle a way as possible so we all still had our limbs attached. Nonetheless, we found these to be vibrant, amazing neighborhoods.

We visited The War Remnants Museum, too, but we took only a very few photos, mostly because it’s such an overwhelming place. It’s not a sophisticated museum, but it is tremendously compelling and disturbing, and you get a powerful take on what the Vietnamese call, of course, The American War. I met and talked with a multiple amputee, the same age as me, who was injured by a landmine as a young boy. He was a friendly and positive man, not embittered. We left with a sense of what a waste the war was, and what a lasting impact it had on this country; how sad that 30 years after “The American War” ended in Vietnam, we are again attempting to export democracy by force to a population that for the most part wants us to get out.


I think we needed some form of spiritual uplift and connection, so we also visited an English-language mass at the Norte Dame Cathedral, a Buddhist service at the Xi Loi Pagoda (famous for its activism during the war – monks set themselves ablaze here in dramatic protests), and saw chanting at the Jade Emperor Pagoda – here’s a blended video of both Buddhist experiences.

We want to go back already – in short, Vietnam is breathtaking. We’re hoping to visit the capital, Hanoi, in the Fall.