My friends Richard and Ayanna, Jonathan and I went to a local Chinese restaurant to have dim sum, a wide range of small dishes served alongside tea. With few Chinese restaurants serving dim sum in my area, the line was long but this cultural experience was worth the wait.

Dim sum originated from the Cantonese culture, which is found mainly in China’s southern provinces of Guandong and Guangxi, Hong Kong and Macau. In these areas, teahouses were popular rest stops for travelers and farmers who wanted to take a break, drink tea and have a small snack. This custom grew over time and is still popular in the Chinese dining culture. In the east, Dim sum is served in the morning; however, Chinese immigrants in western countries enjoy dim sum for brunch on weekends.

Because there are so many varieties of dim sum, the experience is recommended for groups so one has the opportunity to sample everything instead of filling up on a few items. Dim sum is served in a small steamer basket or on a small plate. Many of the dishes are made of steamed buns, dumplings or rice noodle rolls, filled with beef, chicken, pork, prawns and/or vegetables and then steamed or deep-fried.

To select the dim sum, you choose from an assortment of dishes that servers push around on carts. However, they move around quickly so you must be ready to make a decision. Our selections were mostly traditional such as shrimp and pork dumplings, sweat buns stuffed with pudding and spring rolls. However, we missed out on other popular dishes such as steamed pork buns, beef balls and pan-fried squid with spicy salt. At the end, our bill was only $10 per person, a real bargain for all that we ate.

I visited the Gandhi Memorial Center today, which is nestled in the suburbs of Maryland just outside Washington, DC.  Cultural centers tend to offer a wide variety of resources and activities so I knew this would be a worthwhile visit.

Mahatma Gandhi was a well-respected spiritual and political leader of the 1900s who used the philosophy of Satyagraha (Satya, meaning truth, and Graha, meaning “insistence”, or “holding firmly to”) to advocate for Indian civil rights in South Africa and for India’s independence from Great Britain through non-violent movements. The Gandhi Memorial Center was established in 1976, as an extension of the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Foundation, which mission is to “disseminate and represent the philosophy, ideal, life, service and teachings of Mahatma Gandhi as well as the cultural heritage of India.” The Center’s offerings include a library, educational programs, exhibits and cultural presentations of dance, music, art and photography.

At the center, I saw a photo exhibit titled “India’s Original People, Part II” by Dhairyakant “Titi” Chauhan, which featured 21^st century Indian men, women and children who still live traditional lifestyles through rituals and attire. Chauhan took great headshots and photos of individuals in their daily lives. There were approximately 20 photos on display, each taken in black and white with natural light (no flash) and later converted into digital pictures. In speaking with the Center’s Director, Carrie Trybulec, I learned that the photographer grew up in western India, currently lives in the DC area and travels frequently to India with his wife. I also spoke with two other women on staff who provided me with additional information about the Center and upcoming events, including an art exhibit and a classical Indian dance performance.

In addition, by visiting the Gandhi Memorial Center website, I learned that officials from the Embassy of India and other prominent dignitaries are actively involved with and great supporters of the Center. Furthermore, the Center appears to do a wonderful job educating the community about Gandhi and Indian culture so I hope to take advantage of its other offerings in the near future.

Japanese Hibachi Dinner

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Last night Jonathan and I, along with 10 other couples, went to a Japanese hibachi restaurant, where a chef cooks each meal on a large hot grill in front of you. It’s been years since I’ve had hibachi so I forgot how entertaining it is to watch a chef do tricks with sharp knives and fire as he cooked and at the same time make jokes.  The restaurant, Kenji Hibachi and Sushi Bar, was decorated with Japanese sculptures and murals, which gave a nice ambiance.

For my meal, I decided to use chopsticks to enhance my Japanese eating experience, even though I was a little out of practice. As custom, our dinner started off with miso soup, followed by ginger salad. The chef then prepared a shrimp appetizer and our various dishes of chicken, steak and/or shrimp with vegetables and fried rice. The food was good, and the best part was that it came hot off the grill.

If you have never been to a hibachi restaurant or if like me it’s been a while, I encourage you to try it out. Trust me; it’s a lot of fun.

I attended my first Johns Hopkins Alumni Chapter event today, which included a lecture and access to the Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor exhibit at the National Geographic Museum.

During the lecture, I learned how China was originally a kingdom comprised of several territories and ruled by the privileged with family connections. The laws and taxes of each territory were different, and a counsel maintained the peace amongst the territories. However, Qin Shi Huang Di, a territory ruler, disrupted the kingdom by taking over other territories to eventually create the first empire of China.  Between 211 B.C. and 207 B.C., Qin ruled all of China with legalism, where the same laws applied to everyone, and he neutralized everything from currency to the size of the roads. Also, during Qin’s reign, he had a massive tomb constructed with thousands of terra cotta soldiers, generals, musicians, and other items to take care of him during his afterlife.

Through the lecture, I gained more appreciation for the exhibit, which featured over 100 objects such as 15 life-sized figures, weapons, coins, pottery, armor, roof tiles, animals and photos from Qin’s tomb, which was discovered in 1974. The exhibit provided detailed information about Qin’s dynasty and the purpose of each artifact. For example, each warrior looked different (e.g. hairstyles and clothing) to signify his level of importance in the dynasty. In addition, a warrior’s position told a story about his role (e.g. a warrior knelt down represents an entertainer and a warrior with hands out represents a chariot driver.) The time and detail that went into each object were amazing, especially since they were preserved for over 2000 years.

To date, archeologists have excavated over 1,000 artifacts. However, it is estimated that over 7,000 more exist so I hope to see an expanded Qin exhibit in the future.

Last night I got takeout from a popular Chinese restaurant in my neighborhood. In celebration of Chinese New Year (a.k.a. Lunar New Year), the establishment was decorated with Gong Hei Fa Choi cutouts, consisting of one lucky boy and one lucky girl, and firecracker displays. According to the Chinese zodiac cycle, this is the Year of the Tiger, which signifies bravery and keeps away three main tragedies of a household: fire, thieves and ghosts.

On my way out, I also picked up a copy of Washington Chinese News to get a sense of how the New Year is celebrated. Now keep in mind that 95% of the newspaper is written in Chinese so I would have to figure out the content by photos and English captions. Like a typical paper, it contained articles on business groups, local activities, national and international issues, and had advertisements for lawyers, doctors, real estate agents and travel agencies.  Throughout the paper, there were numerous New Year messages from city, state and national politicians, including President Obama, as well as from local business leaders and organizations. In addition, commercial businesses such as grocery stores, restaurants and banks gave special discounts on products and services.

As mentioned in a previous blog, I have taken part in celebrating the Chinese New Year with a colleague. However, after perusing this paper, I am now interested in attending the Chinese New Year parade in Chinatown; hopefully, I am not too late.