Monthly Archives: July 2016

A Cultural Difference

Chinese are very much, one way or another, influenced by the teachings of Confucius, a Chinese teacher and philosopher born some 500 years before Christ. Confucius’s philosophy emphasized personal morality, correctness of social relationships, justice and sincerity. It espoused strong family loyalty, respect of elders by their children and of the husbands by their wives. For sure we Chinese children always and will continue to respect our elders, but in this modern age wives respect of their husbands has waned, not necessarily that I do not agree with this new behaviour, as demonstrated by the many divorces among the Chinese.

In the west parents rarely live with their children, and when they grow old, they likely end up in a senior retirement home. Chinese parents most likely live with one of their children till they leave this world. Both my father and mother lived with my eldest brother till they passed away in their nineties.

As a kid, we were taught to address our elders respectfully, by calling them by their hierarchical position, rather than by their first name as is customary in the west. For example we would call our elders: uncle, auntie, grandpa, grandma, and never call them by their name. Interestingly when I was in Hong Kong in the 1960s I often heard young kids calling their older siblings as “big brother” or “big sister” and this type of address continued even when the younger kids had grown to an adult. So in Hong Kong I always called my elder sister “Sister” and my brother-in-law “Brother-in-law”. In the west children call their teacher by their last name, adding Mister or Miss, a respectable way of address. Chinese children do the same such as “Good morning Miss Wong” but quite often it would be one step further “Good morning teacher”.

We were taught to be humble and not arrogant or show off. Therefore when we went out with mom and dad to visit relatives or acquaintances, we always kept quiet, to the point of shyness. In the hierarchy of things, whether it was a family discussion, a business meeting or a triad encounter, juniors were not to speak out of turn. When you did, the common warning, followed by a stern side glance, was: “Who say it is your turn to speak?” Looking back, I think this behaviour is not the best practice because it stifles the natural development of the child. Rightly, Chinese kids are now no longer “muffled”, they are encouraged to join the conversation and speak their mind.

I remember there was a popular anecdote in the sixties: when a western person went for a job interview he always boasted that he had all the knowledge and skill to tackle the job, even though he might be aware of the fact that he was far from being competent. Whereas an Asian person always said humbly that he was not sure if he could handle the job but would try his very best with the help and guidance of the boss, although in his heart he knew he was very much capable. If in Asia, the Asian most likely would get the job. If in western countries the Asian would have not a chance. This philosophy no longer works in the modern world, you now have to show all your skills, knowledge and confidence to land the job.

I remember one time in my early working years in Hong Kong, I went for an interview with the English manager of the lending department of the bank where I was working, for a job advancement. The manager asked me: “McDonald recently opened its first shop in Hong Kong, do you know why it is so successful”. I did not know the reasons and I failed to obtain the job.

Dragon Boat Festival

Every year around May or June, Chinese, all over the world celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival, which reminds me that when I was growing up in Mauritius my mother used to make sticky rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves, we called it “joong”. I did not know why then but later understood it was to celebrate the 2,000 year old Chinese traditional Dragon Boat Festival. It is amazing and worthy of praise that overseas Chinese, though thousands of miles away from their home country, keep many of their long traditions with them, wherever they are, Vancouver, San Francisco, London, Cape Town, Sydney or Sao Paulo.

"Joong" sticky rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves.

“Joong” sticky rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves.

"Joong" with peanuts and BBQ pork fillings

“Joong” with peanuts and BBQ pork fillings

The Chinese population in Mauritius is too small, too scattered and probably too busy to organize the traditional dragon boat race associated with the festival. They are content with making and enjoying the sticky rice dumplings. Nowadays sticky rice dumplings can be found any day in many Chinese restaurants and shops around the world, and they come with different kinds of fillings, red bean paste, chestnut, barbecue pork or chicken.

When I arrived in Hong Kong in 1966 I was exposed to and mesmerized by the many long standing Chinese traditions that were not celebrated to its fullest in Mauritius. In Hong Kong the dragon boat race is an important component of the festival. Here races are organized at over 10 different sites, involving thousands of competitors, tens of thousands of supporters. The race is very colourful, the boat lively decorated with an imposing dragon head and multicolour banners, the participants dressed in bright colour uniform, not to mention the chanting scream of the paddlers and deafening beating of the drum or gong which coordinates the rhythm of the paddles. A great tourist attraction.

Participants ready for the Dragon Boat race in Hong Kong

Participants ready for the Dragon Boat race in Hong Kong

Dragon Boats with imposing Dragon Head and drummers

Dragon Boats with imposing Dragon Head and drummers

When I was living in Vancouver, Canada in the 1980s, the local Chinese community leaders, due to the large influx of Hong Kong immigrants to the city, organized a Dragon Boat Race at False Creek in downtown Vancouver. The event quickly became very popular not only among the local Chinese but to many Canadians who also enthusiastically participated in the event by commissioning their own dragon boats. Soon the event spread to other major cities around the world including New York, Sydney and San Francisco.

There is even an International Dragon Boat Race held in Hong Kong every year where teams from around the world congregate to compete for the top title.

There are several folklores as to the origin of this festival, the most popular is about Qu Yuan (340-278 B.C.), a poet and beloved minister in the ancient state of Chu during the Warring States Period of the Zhou Dynasty. He lost the Emperor’s favour due to his disagreement with the state policy. Removed from his post and later out of despair for his country, he drowned himself in the river. The local people raced in their boats to try to save him, hence the Dragon Boat Race celebration. When they could not find his body, the local people threw rice dumplings in the river so that the fish would eat the dumplings and spare his body, hence the sticky rice tradition.

Statue of Qu Yuan in Zigui county, Hubei Province, his birthplace

Statue of Qu Yuan in Zigui county, Hubei Province, his birthplace