Story
July 4, 2008

Yak Butter Blues:  A Tibetan Trek of Faith
Chapter 1 - Part 3
by Brandon Wilson

The staff at CSWA was surprisingly cooperative and more than surprised that two Americans were serious about trekking through Tibet.

"Your timing is fortunate.  Most fortunate," the slight supervisor pronounced, sizing us up with wide-eyed curiosity.  "You see, the border officially opened just yesterday."

"Yesterday?" I thought.  "What incredible luck!"

"However," he continued, "it is only open from the Tibetan side.  You must first fly to Lhasa on our mandatory five-day tour."

Cheryl and I shot each other incredulous looks.  Grins started to surface as we thought, "Hey, we can deal with that."

Travel
July 2, 2008

Nepal:  A Haven like Paradise for Overland Travelers
by Dave Combattelli

In my quest to travel from Portugal to China overland, I will be quite frank in telling you I expected Asia to be my least favorite place to travel through.  I was looking forward to Iran and Pakistan the most.  That was then, and this is now.  As with all great travel plans, one starts off with preconceived notions that have the stuffing knocked out of them after you hit the road.

What's an overland traveler to do?  Coming from India, you should be prepared to take on any barter system, argue any case and survive traffic spawned from hell itself.  You will discover what it's like to be stuck in the worst of the day's heat.  You and your stomach will never have been so closely bonded.  And the idea of a restful day will mean staying locked up in your hotel room.  Coming from China, on the other hand,  you will be aching from undersized sleeper trains and buses.  Your mind will be bombarded by Olympic Games 2008 signs.  Your stomach will be more solid than in India but will still be recovering from seeing giant crunchy bugs ready for eating in Beijing and vacuum packed duck in the supermarkets.  Your brain will also be screaming out to talk to anyone who at least understands the basics of English while you chase after that elusive thirty-day non extendible visa.

Food
June 21, 2008

Flavors of India
by Kalyan Kumar Panja

Indian food has a colorful history that is a mélange of numerous cultures and tastes.  The British rule, trade routes, invasions, and colonies have led to food influences by the Persians, Greeks, Chinese, Turks, Arabs, Egyptians, Dutch, Portuguese English, and French who came to India.  Basic to Indian cooking is an assortment variety of flavors:  astringent, sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and pungent.

Indian influence in Asian cuisine started in the 19th century when Indians migrated to different parts of Asia for work related purposes.  Some took the opportunity to set up trade in the food industry.  Indian cuisine can be divided into two mainstreams, Northern and Southern Indian cuisine.

Books
June 15, 2008

Foreign Babes in Beijing:  Behind the Scenes of a New China
by Rachel Dewoskin
W.W. Norton & Company
ISBN 0-393-05902-2
Book Review by Geni J. White　

After graduating from college, Rachel Dewoskin wanted adventure, so accepted a job in Beijing with an American PR firm.  She soon received an unexpected interview as an actress for a Chinese TV show, not knowing the program was a soap opera.  During filming, she tried unsuccessfully to convince the director that scenes about American life were not culturally correct.

The twenty-two week TV program was shown many times throughout China and she soon found herself well known all over the nation.  Viewers never believed she wasn't like the TV character, Jeixi an American divorcee, but the Chinese loved and welcomed her anyway.

Culture
July 8, 2008

Kuinsa:  Strange Things Happen to Me
by Michael Greenwell

Some really strange things happen to me.  

Most people go to a Buddhist Monastery hoping to get some peace and quiet.  I personally went to this one to soak up the atmosphere, look at the stunning architecture and smell the trees, which of all things, there was no reason or opportunity to do so in the city where I was living.  Yet when I went to Kuinsa, I was pestered by Monks – in a friendly way – so much that I had to leave.

The complex I visited is in Sobaeksan National Park.  When the bus drops you off, you have to walk up a steep hill until you come to a large gate.  When you pass through the gate, the first buildings in the temple complex are on your left.  It is all relatively newly built (1945) and is part of the Ch'on'tae sect of Korean Buddhism. Thousands of monks were there, dressed in gray from head to foot.

Climate
June 26, 2008

Exploring Ecosystems Around Taiwan
by Daniel White

You've finally got that great big paycheck you've always been dreaming about and now you're ready to go out and explore Taiwan. But where do you go?  Your search of the Internet has returned a million possibilities and you're not going to live forever.

Taiwan boasts six national parks, each with a diverse collection of flora and fauna.  There's Kenting, Yushan, Yangmingshan, Sheipa, Kinmen and my personal favorite, Taroko National Park.  If that's not enough, check out the soon to open Dongsha Marine National Park located in the South China Sea, about 400 kilometers southwest of Taiwan.

Outdoors
June 24, 2008

Land of Abundance, Home of the Panda
by Amy and Wim

Billions of squinty eyed little people pushing us, shoving us, and spitting their boogers on our toes.  Unintelligible Chinese characters swarming around our heads.  Hoards of onlookers laughing at us as we get charged insane tourist prices.  Police watching our every move. "This city is closed, no pictures, we have to confiscate your camera!"  Who can we ask, where do we go, how can we function in such an alien country?  Dry cabbage and dog for breakfast, lunch and dinner, stinky hotels and community toilets.  Wim and Amy...two little fish lost in a big scary Chinese pond.  Or at least that is what we expected.

Economics
June 20, 2008

China's Long Term Economic Prospects
by Paul D. Deng

China's thirty-year economic reform has been a great success.  Except for the incident in 1989 and “great inflation” in the 1990's, China's path to economic revival has been quite smooth. The Chinese economy measured by GDP just surpassed Germany and is ranked No. 3 in the world; If measured by real purchasing power, China's GDP is even larger than Japan, only second to the United States.

Economic pundits predict that if the current high growth rate is maintained, China's GDP could surpass the U.S. by 2030.  By then, China's income per capita would be a quarter as large as the U.S., assuming the ratio between these two countries' population is largely unchanged, which is about 4:1 now.

      Geni J. White, USA
      Category:  Books
      Articles:  13

      Brandon Wilson, USA
      Category:  Interview
      Articles:  1    
      Category:  Story
      Articles:  4          Category:  Writing
      Articles:  1   

      Paul D. Deng, China
      Category:  Economics
      Articles:  5

      Paul Brownlee, UK
      Category:  Business
      Articles:  2        
      Category:  Climate
      Articles:  1

      Rogier Gruys, Canada
      Category:  Outdoors
      Articles:  3

Michael Greenwell
Dave Combattelli
Amy and Wim
Kalyan Kumar Panja
Jack Weatherford
Angela Leary
Polly Evans
Noel Tan
Marshall Crawford
Jeff Bucchino
Daniel White

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