The Reunion - A Few Thoughts

May Chen

Couple people asked me to write another travelogue like the one I did when we went to Greece, I told them they are on their own this time. There will not be a travelogue (from me anyway), however, I would like to share a few thoughts and observations that I have through out these two weeks. 

The Guangzhou trip was interesting mainly because we had the highly knowledgeable "tour guides", i.e. Peter Sun and Tse Shun-Kai. The tour to Cuiheng Village, the birthplace of the founding father of the Republic of China, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, was very educational; it reminds us that great men often have humble beginnings. From its museum, one can learn about the history of the revolution, Dr. Sun's thoughts, his followers and his families. There are also some very interesting photos on display, especially the one that our dear classmate, Peter Sun was in. Although we have learned about this revolution and the life story of Dr. Sun, but seeing the old photos and visiting his old house makes it so much more intriguing. I can now relate the history to the real people rather than just something I read in the books. I really appreciate Peter's effort, I have learned a lot from this visit.

Our other "personal tour guide", Tse Shun-Kai gave us a totally different insight into the architecture of some of the Chinese government buildings and gardens. From the perspective of an architect, he pointed out to us the beauty and the defect of the structures as well as the design of some of the buildings. I especially enjoyed the tour to one of the four most famous gardens in Guangdong Province in the Qing Dynasty, YuYin Mount Garden. We had a pretty animated tour guide from the garden; (Tse provided the finer details that the guide missed) he told us the history and the design of the garden, the function of each room, its paintings, the carvings, the poems and the poetries. In this one particular room right next to the study, where the guests rest up, one can stay inside but experiences the four seasons through the windows and their tinted glass, was most interesting. This garden although is the smallest among the four, but we were told is the most beautiful and the best preserved. It has all the elements that make a good classical Chinese garden. The lotus pond, the waterside pavilion, the bridge, the covered corridors, the footpaths, not to mention the flowers, the trees and the rocks, everything was expertly arranged. After visiting this garden, and the Kowloon Walled City Park in Hong Kong that Tse Shun-Kai designed, I promised myself that I would go to Suzhou to visit all those traditional Chinese private gardens. I felt so privileged that I was in the same class as Tse. That City Park he designed is just exquisite. It not only preserved the historic site, Kowloon's Walled City, but he blended it in perfectly with the rest of the garden. It amazes me how much talents we have in our class, some we know, some we don't, now, I am slowly finding out.

As for the tour to Malaysia, there really wasn't much for me to write about since I was concentrating in just having fun; I was pretty much oblivious to everything else (that's the main reason why I can't write the travelogue). However, there was this one little incident which happened in a Cameron Highland restaurant. According to the itinerary, it was going to be a "steamboat dinner" that night, some of us thought we were going to have our dinner on a steamboat in a river or something, (we were at the Highland, far away from any water, so what possessed us to think even that is really beyond me) but as it turned out, it only meant that we were going to have the "steaming hot pot". Like all our other dinners, we were having the time of our lives eating and drinking, but all of a sudden, the hot pot on our table burst in flame and the tablecloth caught on fire, it was quite a spectacular sight. Almost instantly, we all grabbed our beer and jumped away from the table before anyone realized what was going on. Thank goodness for the quick thinking of one of the tour guide, he immediately went under the table and shut off the gas tank before it exploded. The restaurant owner moved us to a different table and offered to cook us something special in order to calm our nerves, which we were all too happy to accept. Looking back, I realize it could be quite dangerous, but at that time, I didn't really give it much thought, otherwise, I don't think I would have the appetite to chow down all those food.

During the course of that one week, we drank (a lot), ate (a lot) and danced (a little) our way through Malaysia. I complained about how hot Malaysia was to my colleagues when I returned but couldn't get any sympathy from them since I came back with a tan, (St. Louis had couple inches of snow while I was gone). Through out this tour, there was this one phenomenon that we all observed - Malaysia has a shortage of towels. The three hotels that we stayed at, none of them had enough towels to go around. This is not even tourist season, imagine what it would be like when the hotels are full, we might have to share or bring our own towel! Also, the services in the hotels were extremely slow; the waiters/waitresses' attitudes were indifferent (just ask SS Lau). I guess it has something to do with the hotel management; they certainly can use some expert advice from our own Peter Sun. 

Another observation, which has nothing to do with Malaysia, is that I am very impressed by A Chai's three sons and his devoted wife as well as A Chai's positive attitude. The fact that he made this trip was in itself a triumph. His sons took good care of their father all through the Guangzhou tour, which was not an easy task consider the tour bus and most of the sites we visited had no ramp for wheel chair. I did not detect a bit of resentment from any of them at all. With the bad rap their generation gets, I will just point them out to those critics. I doubt that they are the exceptions, but I do think it has a lot to do with parenting. They have done their parents proud. As for A Chai, he is as competitive as ever. He heard that I was a good tennis player, but since I haven't played for a long time, he wanted me to get back to the game so that he can beat me. The irony is, ever since I had surgery on my knee (from a tennis injury), tennis is done and over with for me, therefore, I am afraid A Chai's challenge will be unanswered.

The time we spent in Hong Kong was extremely hectic. The daily itinerary was packed; we hardly had any free time at all. However, I am glad I managed to have "tea" at the Inter-Continental Hotel, and not only I got to watch the harbor lights at night but I even got to enjoy the harbor during the day. It was little things like these, which gave me great pleasure and provided me with a lot of fond memories. Although I didn't get to eat the TTM (from Diamond Hill) or the red-bean ice cream bar that I longed for, but then, that should give me another good reason to go back.

This reunion was a success in all aspects, thanks to the Reunion Organizing Committee. The programs were well thought of and it had a great turnout. I got to know a few more classmates and some spouses whom I didn't have a chance to talk to or acquainted with at the previous reunions. May be after a few more reunions, I will finally get to know ALL my classmates, wouldn't that be great when it happens? So, in two years, I will be seeing you all in wherever and whenever!