天伦乐

朱雪雪 12-21-2018

A happy family trip

by Shue Chiu

    夫婿丘文发的祖家位于广东省梅州西阳镇白宫新联村，屋名《棣华居》，建于1918年，是典型的客家围拢屋，2002年被评为广东省文物保护单位。今年是祖屋落成100周年，国内外后裔相约于2018年11月11日回巢祖屋祭祖举办百年庆典。

    为了参加这个伟大的庆典，我们全家老小倾巢出动，考虑到儿孙辈未曾回过祖国，顺便带领他们到各地感受祖国文化是必须的。

    My husband’s ancestral home is inMeixian, Guangdong Province. The name of the home is Di Hua Ju. It was built in 1918. In 2002, it was praised as a cultural relic, and became a protected unit in Guangdong Province. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the ancestral house. The descendants returned to the ancestral house to celebrate itscentennial anniversary on November 11, 2018.

    Our whole family participated in this great celebration. Considering that our children and grandchildren have never been to our motherland, it was necessary to take them everywhere to experience our motherland's culture.

“So amazing”

    《棣华居》占地面积3750平方米，建筑面积1850平方米。共有42个房间，8个厨房，9间浴室，8间厕所，7间畜舍，1间碾米房，3个厅堂，一间安置神坛的龙厅，12个天井，还有8处花厅及16处通廊。这么多的房间和厅堂，天井，通廊，对于我们这些外来人，一天之内是无法参观了解得透的。

    回到《棣华居》，孩子们第一次来到农村的环境，样样感到新鲜，首先围着屋前的鱼塘，直觉地想着在这里钓鱼将会是另一种情趣,的而确，根据同宗堂兄渊发哥的回忆，1957年暑假时他和文发2人晚上偷偷用烤香的蟑螂在这个鱼塘钓鱼，短短几分钟就钓到一条很大的白鲩鱼。

    鱼塘边上种的大甘蓝菜真大；拜祭前燃放爆竹，对着比脸盆还要大许多的炮仗盒一脸好奇；给祖先烧的高香每支如同小竹竿那么粗大也是第一次所见。孩子们拜完祖先后就在各厅堂通廊到处参观，讲出的一句话就是“So amazing”。

    Di-Hua-Ju covers an area of 3,750 square meters and the built-up area is 1,850 square meters. There are 42 rooms, 8 kitchens, 9 bathrooms, 8 toilets, 7 livestock houses, 1 rice milling room, 3 halls, 1 worship room, 12 patios, 8 small halls and 16 corridors. With so many rooms and halls, patios and corridors, it was impossible for us to get a thorough understanding of them in a day.

    Our children came to the rural environment for the first time and werecurious about everything. First, they surrounded the fish pond in front of the house and intuitively thought that fishing here would be lots of fun. Indeed, according to our cousin Yuanfa's memory, during the summer vacation of 1957, he and my husband secretly fished with roasted cockroaches as bait in this pond at night. They caught a big fish in just a few minutes.

    The cabbage planted by the fish pond were so big.Firecrackers were set off before the worship ceremony.The firecracker box which was much larger than the big pizza box and the tall incense burned for the ancestors was as big as a bamboo pole.All these were their first experience.

    After the worship, they ran through and visited the whole house and said, "So amazing".

Google translates

    孩子们都在北加州上班，他们选择从旧金山飞往广州，我们则从洛杉矶出发，按原定计划，应在11/10上午在广州机场会合一起转机到梅州。人算不如天算，飞机因故障延迟了四个小时起飞，赶不上与他们会合。

    去到梅州，一帮不谙中文的假洋鬼子只能靠着手机行事，在网上找到了旅馆附近的万达广场用餐，选择了一间火锅餐厅，对着菜单上的方块字，Google translate的功能也有限，只好乱点鸳鸯，还好国内的饮食水平一流，吃得很满意，对面点师傅在餐桌旁生动地为他们表演拉面感到很新鲜，另外还有演员在桌前表演川剧的变脸，在美国的餐厅还没有尝过这种待遇，回祖国的第一餐就获得美美的享受。

    Ourchildren all work in Northern California. They chose to fly from San Francisco to Guangzhou. We flew from Los Angeles. According to the original plan, we would meet at Guangzhou Airport in the morning of 11/10 to transfer to Meizhou. Unfortunately, our plane was delayed for four hours due to mechanical problems and could not catch up with them. We had to meet them a day later.

    At Meizhou, my children who cannot read Chinese could only rely on their mobile phones for translation. They found Wanda Square near the hotel for dinner on the Internet and chose a hot pot restaurant. Faced with the square words on the menu, Google Translate has limited functions. They had to scramble to understand the menu. Fortunatelythe domestic cuisine was fantastic, and they were satisfied with it. The performing chef vividly hand pulled the ramen for them. In addition, there was a performer who performed Sichuan Opera face-changing at the table. They have never tasted this kind of treatment in American restaurants. They enjoyed the wonderful first meal in the motherland.

“Dad, I want to live in China”

    北京是政治文化中心，带孩子们去北京体验祖国文化，天安门，故宫，颐和园，十三陵，长城等都是著名的景点，他们在电视上看过，现在亲历现场，感受迥然。

    在天安门广场的中央，看到了天安门；人民大会堂；英雄纪念碑；毛主席纪念堂。孩子们在广场上还悠闲地踢起了刚在小店买的毽子。游故宫时，一起爬上太和殿外的大理石楼梯，感受故宫建筑的宏伟, 孩子们计划着回家后要看一部电影  The Last Emperor。游颐和园，我们一起爬上万寿山看美景，在美丽的长廊上嘻哈追逐，体会着当年慈禧太后的游园乐。在十三陵，孩子们惊奇地听着皇帝有许多宫女陪葬的故事。在长城，孩子们像一群脱了缰的野马，在长城上快乐地跑啊跳啊，他们欢快地冲往远处的至高点，一下子就把我这老太婆撇在了后头。

    在北京，我们特地去了王府井的老字号全聚德品尝正宗的烤鸭，也去了最近才扬名的“海底捞”吃火锅，孙辈们对前门大街及同锣鼓巷的北京小吃异常钟爱。

    游玩北京鸟巢之际，孩子们在卫生间亲自体验到人脸识别的高科技，又增长了额外的见识。

    在北京开了眼界，长了知识，吃得美味，玩得开心。小孙子突然冒出来一句话：“Dad, I want to live in China”

    Beijing is a political and cultural center. We took the children to Beijing to experience the motherland culture. Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace, the Ming Tombs, and the Great Wall, are all famous scenic spots. They have seen them on TV and now experienced the scene personally. This was precious education.

    At Tiananmen Square, we saw the Tiananmen Gate, the Great Hall of the People, the Monument to Heroes, and Chairman Mao’s Memorial Hall. In the square, our happy children kicked a shuttlecock they had just bought at a local shop. While visiting the Imperial Palace, we climbed the marble stairs outside the Taihe Palace Hall to feel the magnificence of the Imperial Palace building. After that, the children planned to watchthe movie “The Last Emperor” when they returned home. When we visited the Summer Palace, we climbed the Longevity Hill together to see the beautiful scenery and chased around happily through the beautiful corridors. We imagined the pleasure Empress Dowager Ciximust have had in this garden. In the Ming Tombs, the children were surprised as they listened to the story of the emperor's burial with many palace girls. At the Great Wall, they were like a group of wild horses, running and jumping happily on the Great Wall. They rushed happily to the highest point in the distance.

    In Beijing, we went to “Quan-Ju-De” restaurant, the original one in Wang-Fu-Jing, to taste authentic Peking roast duck for dinner, and experienced a more modern hotpot place known as "Hai-Di-Lao" for lunch. The grandchildren were also very interestedin Beijing snacks atQianmen Street and Tongluogu Lane.

    While visiting the Bird's Nest in Beijing, the children experienced the high technology of face recognition in the restroom and learned how they conserve toilet paper this way.

In Beijing, we have broadened our horizons, gained knowledge, enjoyed delicious food and had lots of fun. Myyounger grandson suddenly said to my son, "Dad, I want to live in China."

The Big Buddha

    东方之珠---香港，我们来此探亲兼旅游, 拜访了朱家目前唯一的老前辈---85岁高龄的七婶。乘坐方便快捷的地铁往东涌，排队坐缆车上大屿山拜大佛。每辆缆车安排坐8位乘客，我们全家大小可一同挤在一个车厢，一同享乐。缆车上山时，左手边可望见远处昂坪山顶上的大佛，右手边可遥望到最近才通车的港珠澳大桥。缆车票价港币235元花得不心疼。上到山上，空气清新，风景秀丽，天坛大佛庄严宏伟（据说是世界第二大的户外坐佛），在这里可自然放松心情，可体验美丽的大自然的气息。孩子们兴致勃勃地爬上260级石阶去朝拜23米高的大佛，并尝试和大佛合掌拍照。

    While in Hong Kong, we visited relatives as well as tourist spots. We visited with the only elder ancestor of the Chu family, 85-year-old “7th auntie”. At Tung Chung, we queue up for the cable car to worship the Buddha on Lantau Island. Each cable car accommodatesup to eight adult passengers. Our family of thirteensqueezed together in one carriage for fun. When the cable car went up the hill, the Buddha on the top of Angping Mountain could be seen on the left side, and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge which was recently opened to traffic, could be seen on the right side. The cable car fare was HK$235 for adult and HK$110for kids, which was worth it.

    Up on the mountain, the air is fresh, the scenery is beautiful, and the Temple of Heaven Buddha was magnificent.It is said to be the second largest outdoor sitting Buddha in the world.You can relax naturally and experience the breath and beautiful of nature. The kids climbed up 260 steps with great

    enthusiasm to worship the 23-meter-high Buddha and gave a high-five to the Buddha.

We like Guangzhou

    从香港到广州体验乘坐高铁，我们队伍里有老有少，为了避免拥挤，就选择了头等舱（票价大人￥323，小孩￥162），从西九龙到广州南只需57分钟，方便，舒适，快捷。

    在广州租了一辆中型小巴，游玩广州塔；走访顺德寻美食；逛北京路步行街；夜游珠江，从早上9点到晚上9点，租赁费+停车费，高速费，超时费（2小时）总计￥1000元。一切从方便考虑。

    虽然在广州只玩了一天，在广州塔（中国的第一高塔）的最高点观景平台上欣赏美丽的珠江及广州城（门票￥150，小孩￥75，老人免费）。广州塔是羊城新8景之一，是外来游客必定参观的首选。

    夜游珠江￥180包括美味的自助餐及节目表演，2小时的船游，珠江两岸的风景尽入眼帘，特别是广州塔的美丽灯光非常引人入胜。

    From Hong Kong to Guangzhou, we experienced riding a high-speed rail.There were many young and old in our team, so to avoid congestion and troublesome crowds, we chose first class.The fare for adults was $323 RMB and $162 RMB for children. It only took 57 minutes from West Kowloon to South Guangzhou. It was convenient, comfortable and fast.

    We rented a medium-sized minibus in Guangzhou to visit the Guangzhou Tower, went to Shunde to find delicacies,went shopping on Peking Road Pedestrian Street, and joined a night cruise tour of the Pearl River. From 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., the rental plus parking fee, high-speed rail fee, overtime fee (2 hours) totaled $1,000 RMB. We finished our planned schedule perfectly by renting that bus.

    Although we only spent one day in Guangzhou, we had enjoyed the Guangzhou city view from the 26th floor viewing platform of Guangzhou Tower.  Guangzhou Tower is the tallest tower in China (ticket fare RMB $150, children $75 RMB, free for the elderly). Guangzhou Tower is one of the eight new sceneries of Yangcheng, and now it is the first choice for foreign tourists to visit.

    The 2 hours night tour of Pearl River cruise fee was$180 RMB which includeda delicious buffet and some performances.The scenery on both sides of the Pearl River is fantastic, especially the beautiful lights of Guangzhou Tower.

    “吃在广东，厨在顺德”，我们慕名到顺德品尝鱼米之乡的美食，司机带领去顺德“德云居”，点了一条25斤大头鱼（一鱼三吃）；还有炸牛奶；烧鹅，顺德炸鱼饼；大盆鸡；菜心鲮鱼球；豆腐等，十四位共享，买单￥894。德云居是个农家小村，装修之后每个农家就是一间用餐间，别具一格，庭院有小桥流水，在等待用餐期间，我们在农家院与儿孙同乐。

    孩子们在北京步行街购买礼品不亦乐乎。回程路上又放下了一句话：We like Guangzhou.

    People say: "Eat in Guangdong, cook in Shunde". We admired the delicacies of Shunde. Our driver led us to "Deyunju" and ordered a 25-kilogram fish (one fish cooked 3 ways), fried milk, roast goose, fish pie, large potted chicken, vegetable fish ball, tofu and so on. Fourteen of us shared the bill which was$894 RMB. Deyunju is a small farm village.After being remodeled, each house became a dining room with a unique style. There are bridges and a small stream running in the courtyard. While waiting for meals, we had fun with our children and grandchildren in the farmyard.

    Everyone was happy to buy gifts in Beijing’s Pedestrian Street. On the way back, another sentence was uttered: “We like Guangzhou”.

    从小在印度尼西亚长大的小姑也跟着我们一起回乡，她的感言是：想不到中国这么美丽，我特别喜欢广州，这里的美食令我怀念起妈妈的厨艺。

    My sister-in-law who was grew up in Indonesia also joined us on this trip. She said, "Unexpectedly, China is so beautiful, I like Guangzhou very much, especially the delicious food.  Reminds me of my mother's cooking skills".

    12天的迷人假期结束了，真是快乐不知时日过，孩子们玩得高兴也就是我们的快乐。能够全家一起旅游就是最大的幸福。更令我们开怀的是孩子们虽然请假旅游，旅途中也不忘自动争取时间学习，孩子们也是我们学习的榜样。

    The 12-day fascinating vacation is over. The happy moments are always passing quickly. It's our pleasure that the children had a good time. Being able to travel with the whole family is the greatest happiness. What makes us happy is that although the children take leave to travel, they do not forget to automatically strive for time to study during the journey. The children are also examples for us to learn from.