Fate Brings Vietnamese Boat People And Wrexham Man Together As Friends Through English Lessons.
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In Wrexham, North Wales, in 1979, I had a chance meeting with a Chinese young man named Hoang, one of the Vietnamese boat people refugees. Had I not had spare time on my hands, I would not have been a volunteer teacher with the Adult Literacy Scheme in Wrexham. Had China and Vietnam been on friendlier terms at the time, the ethnic Chinese would not have fled Vietnam as refugees to become known
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as "The Vietnamese Boat People". Had Wrexham not provided housing and support for some of these families, then Hoang would not have come to the Methodist Church in Regent Street, to learn English. I was teaching English there and he became my pupil and so a long line of friendships began.
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Chinese Friends In Wales, England, France, Then China, and Vietnam.
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| A few weeks after our first meeting, Hoang invited me to supper at his home in Queens Park to meet his wife and their newly born baby girl. For the first time, I sampled a home cooked Chinese food which I watched being cooked, and was delighted by my new experience. Hoang taught me to use chopsticks, and I was given Chinese "Gunpowder" Tea to drink. We talked about their experiences in Vietnam, and I told them they were now known as 'The Boat People of Vietnam'.
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On that night I also met four other Vietnamese Boat People, all being Hoang's friends who had called to see the new baby. Some weeks later, I was taken to meet Hoang's parents, brothers and sisters, living in Plas Madoc. Then in the following months I met their friends, and families of friends of friends, and their families, from Newtown, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, London, France, Norway ...... and so it all began.
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Chinese Weddings, Chinese New Year, and Family Traditions with Buddhist Ceremonies |
| When the Chinese New Years came, I enjoyed delicious home cooked special Chinese food at family banquets and was introduced to the intoxicating Rice Wine, and the red Fun Bao envelopes containing money, given to the children. I was taken to see the Dragon Dances in Manchester and London China Towns. During the years that followed,
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there were Chinese Weddings to attend, and to learn a little about their special ceremonies, such as the Tea Ceremony. There were the sad days of Chinese funerals, and the Buddhist rituals that went with them. There were new Chinese babies to welcome into the world, and watch them grow up into young men and women.
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Visiting China And Vietnam Adds Branches to Tree of Friendship Sown By Vietnamese Boat People |
| There were many things to learn about the lives of these Chinese friends, about the time they were living in Vietnam or China, and their hazardous journeys to reach the safety of Hong Kong. Although they were the Vietnamese boat people refugees, they told me about their special Chinese rituals of "Ancestors' Day" and "Moon Festival". I learnt much about their school days, their work, their towns and villages, and other days in the Chinese Calendar,
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which I knew nothing about, before the chance meeting with Hoang in Wrexham. Eight years after that chance meeting, another friend Trung said he would come with me to visit China. In 1996 he and I visited his hometown Langson in Vietnam. In both countries, more branches were added to my "Friendship Tree", and I have since visited China several times.
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There is a long story to tell about my friendships and travels in China and Vietnam and what better way to tell them than on the internet, where others might discover that the ideals and ambitions of the ordinary Chinese and Vietnamese people, are no different to those of any of us.
If you are interested in learning about my travels in China and Vietnam then clicking the blue links on the page will take you there.
Wild Card
Chinese New Year celebrated by Chinese people in Beijing. "Bringer Of Prosperity" for the Chinese New Year in lobby of China hotel. Traditional savory dumplings on eve of Chinese New Year. Chinese children receive Fun Bao at Chinese New Year. No fireworks for Chinese New Year in Beijing. Chinese New Year aka Spring Festival.
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The Chinese paper cuts included in Robert's wild cards, were distributed by the China National Tourism Administration in the form of a special twelve picture calendar for the year 1999. The work of cutting and mounting all the Chinese Paper cuts was carried out by farmers in the Shanxi Province of China. |
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| Wild card picture of Shaolin Temple boy sleeping after active day preparing to become a kung fu student. The boy sleeping with his head resting on table, perhaps dreaming of Kung Fu, could not be tempted by the Chinese food on the supper table. |
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| Three Times Cooked Pork: Pictures of Chinese food includes belly pork boiled, fried and steamed with preserved dried vegetables, Chinese style. The three times cooked belly pork in the wild card picture is a savoury Chinese food to melt in your mouth! |
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| On arrival at the Peking Duck restaurant, we were ushered to our table near the tableau of models of the founder of the Qian Men restaurant, together with a model of a chef carrying a Qian Men Roast Duck on a tray. A short time later, the 5th generation owner of the Qian Men restaurant, Madam Yang, joined us at table. |
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