Monthly Archives: December 2009

New Year Traditions

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Today is New Year’s Eve, which made me think of past celebrations. I’ve been to Times Square along with thousands of other people, partied at local nightclubs and attended house parties with family and friends. Through these celebrations, I learned about and participated in several cultural traditions. For example, my friend Laura, whose family is from Spain, had everyone eat 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight. This act signified good luck in the next 12 months of the New Year. Furthermore, in my family on New Year’s Day, we eat black-eyed peas, which is to bring prosperity in the New Year. During the Chinese New Year, which is celebrated January through February, a Chinese colleague shared a tradition by giving everyone a red envelope with a coin and a message inside to represent luck. To learn more about these cultural traditions and others, click here.

I hope you have a joyous and prosperous New Year, and I look forward to sharing cultural experiences with you in 2010.

Kosher Chinese Restaurant

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I grew up Episcopalian; however, part of my childhood I lived in a predominately Orthodox Jewish neighborhood in Baltimore. Furthermore, my parents’ best friends from my dad’s graduate school are Orthodox, and my Jewish friends are mostly Reform, which is less observant of Judaism. Therefore, my family is accustomed to Jewish cultural influences such as food and religious holidays. Growing up, it was normal to have breakfasts that included lox and bagels and white fish and to not question why my neighbors did not drive on Saturdays.

As part of the Orthodox Jewish culture, I understand that “keeping kosher” means their food must be prepared in accordance with Jewish law. However, I never knew Chinese food restaurants could be designated as kosher. My mom took me out for lunch at David Chu’s China Bistro, a kosher establishment in Baltimore. The restaurant’s sign had a “K” which identified itself as kosher, and many patrons were dressed in Orthodox Jewish attire, which led me to believe that this restaurant was in fact kosher.

The service was great, and the menu was no different than most Americanized Chinese food restaurants. Before we ordered, we were served hot tea and fried wonton type crackers. For our main entrees, we shared platters of Hunan chicken and chicken egg foo young. At the end, the bill came with a couple of fortune cookies. Now I would not say this was the best Chinese food ever, but I would say this was one of the most interesting and educational Chinese food experiences.

Aboriginal Artwork

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Possum Dreaming by Bessie Nakamarra Sims

I visited the National Museum of Women in the Arts to see the Lands of Enchantment: Australian Aboriginal Painting exhibit. My knowledge of Aboriginal people is very limited to historical events such as the “Lost Generation” and Cathy Freeman, the Aboriginal sprinter who one gold in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. Therefore, I wanted to learn more about the culture and its artwork.

This exhibit, co-sponsored by the Australian Embassy, features paintings created by contemporary, female Aboriginal artists from central and northern Australia. Most of the paintings were dot paintings, which is a form of storytelling that depicts “Dreamtime.” “Dreamtime” or “Dreaming” is an Aboriginal belief that in the beginning of the world ancestors rose from the earth through nature. In order to tell this story to the youth and non-Aboriginal people, the Aborigines created drawings in the sand using dots that formed symbols, such as plants, water, clouds, rain and animal footprints. In this exhibit, I saw paintings that transformed dots into images of plant seedlings, travelers, ceremonial body art and animals. I’ve never seen anything like this and am a new fan of Aboriginal art.

The National Museum of Women in the Arts houses other great cultural artwork by women. For instance, I saw photos of a Brazilian woman holding different types of native fruits; a painting of an African-American woman draped in designs of African masks; and a photo of a hand covered in Farsi poetry. It’s interesting…I have lived in the Washington-DC area for many years, and I can’t believe, as a woman, I had never visited this museum before today. To see an entire museum filled with female created art was inspiring and empowering. However, I believe the male visitors got the same effect.

A Foreign Film for a Snowy Day

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Like most of the Mid-Atlantic states today, I woke up to six inches of snow with the likelihood of an additional 10-14 inches. After watching the morning news, I decided to search for a foreign film or a program about a different culture. Not knowing the TV schedule, I looked at channels that typically featured international programming such as the Independent Film Channel, Sundance, BBC America, Discovery Channel, National Geographic Channel, HBO and the Travel Channel.

I settled on the Sundance Channel which was showing an interesting Chinese film with subtitles called Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. This film, nominated for a 2003 Golden Globe, is about “two young Chinese boys of bourgeoisie backgrounds who were sent to a remote village in Sichuan province for three years of re-education during the Cultural Revolution. They both fell in love with a beautiful local girl, granddaughter of an old tailor and known to everyone as the Little Seamstress.” The movie gave me what I believe to be a good representation of rural China in the early 1970s and some insight into the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Furthermore, I found myself intrigued because I got a glimpse of the language, music, food, social interaction and laws of China at that time. Overall, I thought this love story was the perfect film to watch on a snowy day.

As I remain stuck inside for the weekend, I am glad to know that I can connect with another culture through foreign television programming. Up next, Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern on the Travel Channel which will feature holiday feasts from around the world.

Japanese Kimono Sculpture

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Today I visited a local glass studio and gallery to see an exhibit by Markow & Norris that featured a hand woven glass sculpture titled “Autumn Sunset Kimono.” This life-sized Japanese kimono was intricate in design and full of vibrant colors. I was so awestruck how these artists translated a beautiful Japanese art form into glass. It was absolutely amazing, as you will see in the photo below.

photo by Javier Agostinelli

Autumn Sunset Kimono photo by Javier Agostinelli

I would have never known about this exhibit if I did not read through the weekend section of the Washington Post. Looking through your local paper can help you find activities at unfamiliar establishments in your community. Before you plan your next cultural outing, pick up your local newspaper for ideas.