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Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum

4/30/2018

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Our 2015 group in Ohel Moshe Synagogue, now part of the Jewish Refugees Museum in Shanghai
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The Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum chronicles the little known history of more than 20,000 Jews who fled to China from Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II.  As Nazi propaganda and persecution grew, German and Austrian Jews became increasingly concerned for their safety.  In 1933, thousands fled to Shanghai.  Five years later, there was a rash of anti-Jewish pogoms, called Kristallnacht.  During this "night of broken glass", hundreds of Jews were killed and incarcerated and afterwards, thousands more fled to China. 

In the early stages of Nazi occupation, the Nazis encouraged Jewish emigration.  However, almost every country in the world was limiting or denying entry to Jews.  China was an exception.  Until 1939, no visa was required to enter China.  The Japanese had taken over Shanghai and it was unclear which country, China or Japan, would monitor immigrants. 

​Despite the fact that a visa was unnecessary to enter China, obtaining an exit visa to leave Europe became increasingly difficult.  The Nazis put Jews into labor camps.  There was mass extermination in gas chambers.  The Nazis did not want to expel Jews, they wanted to end them.  Despite orders not to issue visas to Jews, two diplomats were brave enough to defy orders.  They saved thousands of lives.

Chiune Sugihara was a Japanese diplomat serving in Lithuania in 1940 when hundreds of Jews arrived at his office, desperate to save their families' lives.  Sugihara wrote thousands of visas over a short period of time.  It is said that over 100,000 Jews are alive today because of the visas he issued to their ancestors.

Like Sugihara, Chinese diplomat Ho Feng Shan is credited with saving thousands of Jews.  Until his death in 1997, no one knew about Ho Feng Shan's heroic deeds.  Ho was the counsel general of China's consulate in Vienna.  From 1938 to 1940, Ho wrote thousands of visas, in defiance of orders to the contrary.  Other diplomats worried that they would anger the Nazi government if they issued visas, yet Ho and Sugihara continued to do so.  When the Nazis confiscated Ho's office because the building was owned by a Jew, Ho used his own money to open a new office in order to continue issuing visas.  In the year 2000, Israel posthumously bestowed Ho with the honor of "Righteous Among the Nations".

The Jews were penniless when they arrived in Shanghai and settled in Hongkew District.  They lived amongst the Chinese.  They traded services and managed to thrive in this strange new land.  They opened theaters, libraries and schools.  They ran newspapers and tailor shops.  The Ohel Moshe Synagogue, where these Shanghai residents went to pray, now houses the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum which chronicles the lives of the Jews who once called Shanghai "home".

Michael Blumenthal, former U.S. Treasury Secretary, lived in the Shanghai Jewish Ghetto when he was a child.  There is a sign in Hongkew that marks the building where Blumenthal lived.  I once asked the locals if they knew the apartment in which he lived.  They pointed to a door at the top of a narrow staircase.  I ascended the stairs and knocked on the door.  An elderly gentleman answered the door and invited us inside.  The apartment was about 10' x 15', sparsely decorated, with a large screen television.  They were more than happy to let us see their home, but did not know much of its history, other than the fact that Jews from around the world come to see their building.

There is a short video from Israel titled "Xiexie Shanghai"  or "Thank You Shanghai", created to thank the Chinese people for saving so many lives.  Here is the YouTube link:  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2j0yTlfSGk.  In 1993, Yitzhak Rabin, former Israeli Prime Minister, wrote:  "To the people of Shanghai for the unique humanitarian act of saving thousands of Jews during the Second World War.  Thanks in the name of the government of Israel."

Join us on a visit to the museum and a tour of the Hongkew District where the Shanghai Ghetto once thrived.

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Shanghai was referred to as the "Noah's Ark" of Jewish refugees. These tiles are paved into the cobblestone sidewalks in the former Jewish Ghetto.
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Dali

4/23/2018

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Many ethnic minorities live in Dali. They wear traditional, colorful clothing and participate in customs different from the Han majority.
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Two of the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple
Dali is in Yunnan Province in the southwest of China.  This colorful city is surrounded by mountains with innumerable opportunities for hiking.  A bike ride around beautiful Erhai Lake is a relaxing way to enjoy the beauty of this ancient city.

Dali's Old Town is easy to navigate and wander through.  The town is as colorful as the traditional dress of some of the local minority women wearing their bright headdresses and smocks.  

When I travel, I am most interested in the people.  Dali smiles are some of the brightest in the world.  And why not be happy?  The town is quaint, the mountains majestic and the food exquisite.  In addition to the beautiful fresh vegetables at the local markets, my camera lens is drawn to the people selling their produce.  I can't help but smile too.
PictureI titled this photograph "Vow of Silence"
The Three Pagodas of Dali are over 1,000 years old.  There is a reflecting pool in the foreground that captures their beauty.  These towers are set on the grounds of a peaceful garden with a temple in the back.  Chongsheng Temple is up the hill from the pagodas.  Upon first glance, the temple is no different from the many other Buddhist temples I have visited.  On one of my visits, however, the monks were gathering, praying, lighting incense and interacting with the domestic tourists.  They were happy to converse with the few foreigners (only our group), a deviation from their usual solitude.  I captured a photo of one monk in golden robes, talking on the phone.  I titled the photo "Vow of Silence". 

The majority of the people in Dali are Bai ethnic minority.  The Bai community is famous for its artistic creativity.  One only need to visit the women who do batik to understand the artistry.  Batik is one of the famous handicrafts of the Bai people.

There is an ancient Chinese proverb that in Yunnan, "the mountains are high and the emperor is far."  Indeed we feel almost like we are in another country.  The bright and colorful old city of Dali seems a sharp contrast to the seemingly black and white political center of China, Beijing, thousands of miles away, literally and figuratively.

Contact Chow Fun Tours to visit Dali and other Yunnan gems.  A traditional trip to Beijing and Xian, coupled with Dali and other Yunnan cities and villages, is sure to give you a feel for the diversity of what westerners believe is a homogenous society.

Hot chilies
Headdresses
Grains and Spices
My dad and son at Three Pagodas
Mushrooms for Sale
Sharpening the Knives
Vegetables and Smiles
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Sichuan Cuisine

4/16/2018

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Mapo Dofu
PictureGong Bao Ji Ding
Sichuan cuisine is spicy, smoky, pungent and sour, but it can also be sweet and fragrant.  About 300 years ago, chili peppers were brought to China for the first time and Sichuan took a liking.  Most outsiders think of Sichuan as just "ma la" which refers to the spicy, mind-numbing flavor that many dishes boast.  However, there is more to it than that.  Here are some of the dishes I look forward to the most:
  • Dan dan mian is a delicious beef or pork topped pile of noodles.  The flavor is spicy, but also sweet with sesame paste and salty with soy sauce. 
  • Gong bao ji ding is better known as kung pao chicken in the United States.  The original Sichuan version is magnificent.  Gong bao ji ding is chicken cubes, peanuts, chilis in a sweet, sour and spicy sauce.  By spicy, I mean just enough to make your lips tingle.  Delicious.
  • Ma po dofu, or tofu as we know it, is a hallmark of Sichuan cuisine.  Cubes of tofu swim in a soup of spicy ma la sauce with ground pork or beef and black beans.  I love this dish, but I need a cauldron of white rice to offset the spices.
  • Dry sauteed string beans are a must-have for any Sichuan Province traveler.  The beans are stir fried with a salty spice until crispy and crunchy.  Some restaurants in the U.S. do a decent job with this recipe, but nothing beats the original. 
  • Sichuan dumplings, sometimes called Chengdu dumplings, are delicious meat filled packages covered in a soy sauce and garlic paste with just enough chili oil to give a little kick.  
My all time favorite is yu xiang qiezi, or "fish flavored eggplant".  The name is odd as there is no fish in this dish.  Made correctly this eggplant is sweet and sour and a little spicy, but not like gloppy American sweet and sour.

You don't have to travel to Sichuan Province to get authentic Sichuan cuisine.  It has traveled around the country, indeed around the globe, but not all Sichuan is alike.  Get authentic and go to China with an expert.  Join a Chow Fun tour today!

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Yu Xiang Qiezi
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Is it Safe?

4/9/2018

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When westerners ask me about China, one of their concerns is safety.  I tell my friends and fellow travelers that I feel safer walking around cities in China than I do walking around cities in any other country in the world, including the United States. 

For better or worse, there is no Second Amendment in China.  The only guns available are for military personnel.  Some police carry guns, but most do not.  There are no muggings at gunpoint in Beijing, but there are plenty in New York.  I feel safe in Beijing.

Of course, if travelers are careless with their belongings, leaving them unattended, they will quickly disappear.  One of my students once left her camera on the counter in a store, turned around and started shopping and wondered why, three minutes later, the camera was gone.  Whenever you travel, wherever you travel, keep your belongings close.

Pickpockets are supposedly commonplace in China, but in my dozens of trips, with hundreds of people, we've never dealt with this issue.  I've never even seen, nor heard, about people being pickpocketed.  I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but from my experience, it's a non-issue.  

Part of the reason I have not witnessed crime in China is that committing crimes is not worth the risk.  All crime carries severe punishment, but punitive measures are harshest against foreigners.  Additionally, unlike in the United States, there is not yet a significant income disparity amongst citizens.  The U.S. income gap has grown steadily, by all measures, in the past several decades.  There is more desperation, more homelessness and a larger drug problem in the U.S.  China has its own issues, but they do not have a drug crisis, significant income disparity and homelessness.

I feel safer traveling around China than any other country in the world.  So yes, it is safe.  Fear not!  Join a Chow Fun tour of China!

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The Cuisine of Beijing

4/2/2018

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北京烤鸭 (Beijing Kaoya) aka Peking Duck
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Northern Chinese cuisine has a tendency to be bland, but there are plenty of exceptions.  Beijing Kaoya, or Peking Duck as we call it, is one.  Peking Duck was first made for an emperor in the Ming Dynasty, about 600 years ago.  The recipe was confined to the emperor's kitchen until the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1911.  Court chefs left the Forbidden City, where the emperor had resided, and set up shop around the city, sharing Peking Duck and other delicacies with the rest of Beijing.

Traditional Peking Duck is uniquely prepared.  Air is pumped into the duck in order to separate the skin from the fat.  The duck is hung to dry and then cooked until the skin is crispy.  The skin is carved separately from the meat and both are placed into a thin pancake, along with cucumbers, scallions and hoisin sauce.  The melding of these flavors is unparalleled in its magnificence.

Another Beijing must-eat is Zhajiangmian or Zhajiang noodles.  The most authentic noodles are hand-pulled, boiled and then topped with minced pork in a salty soybean paste.  The salty sauce is offset by thinly sliced cucumbers, scallions and radish, as well as edamame or soybeans.  There is a vegetarian version with tofu instead of pork.  This Chinese version of spaghetti with meat sauce is, in my opinion, highly superior to its Italian counterpart.

Hot pot might seem like a cold weather meal, but Beijingers enjoy it year-round.  A bubbling pot of soup is brought to the table.  Depending on the restaurant, you may be served with one large pot for the entire party or with individual pots for each diner.  Diners choose ingredients to cook in their broth, starting with the protein:  lamb, beef, chicken, fish, shrimp and/or tofu.  The meat is thinly sliced, formed into rolls and then frozen in the roll shape.  When the meat comes to the table, it will stay fresh longer since it is frozen.  It is so thin, however, that it just takes a minute to cook in the boiling soup.

In addition to meat, you can choose from a variety of dumplings and noodles, as well as just about any vegetable you can imagine.  Diners use a slotted spoon to remove the delicacies from the soup.  There are myriad choices for dipping sauces.  Hot pot is an evening of delicious food and entertainment, rolled into one.

Other Beijing favorites include chicken with peanuts, cabbage with sesame sauce, vinegar and honey, barbecued meat skewers and dumplings.  For those "in the know", Beijing is filled with some culinary delights.  I invite you to try some on the next Chow Fun Tour!


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Beijing Jiaozi (dumplings)
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    Lauren Drazen

    I have traveled all over the world, including adventures in China, Uganda, Taiwan, Thailand, Cambodia, Argentina, Vietnam, Israel, Jordan, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Spain, France, Switzerland, England, Denmark, Sweden, Russia, Costa Rica, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Dominican Republic, Mongolia, Netherlands, Canada and Mexico!  My greatest love is introducing Americans to the sites, traditions and people of China.  My hope is to give travelers a new lens through which to see the world.

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