China. Ten years ago, it was one of those Bermuda Triangles in the world economy. Even if they are known as one of the populous nations on earth, it was known then as one of the depressed and poorest countries in the world.
Today, it is different.
You could sense it in Hollywood itself. Kung Fu Panda, The Warriors, Forbidden Kingdom, and now, The Mummy III.
2008 will be different. Not because of a lot of things happening in the world, but because for the first time, people around the globe will be forced to see a shocking reality—China is eating up the globe. Beijing Olympics is coming. And around the world, people are in panic in learning how to speak Mandarin.
Even my sister is speaking Mandarin in her sleep! (She’s taking up Mandarin in school).
Is this really happening? Well, if you’re in the Philippines you get what I mean. After all, we are so well-contented with emulating, criticizing our own little problems, while outside our little country, a shift is happening in the world. What is so surprising is that we don’t even care what happens to the world outside. Talk to your colleagues about this and they will just say “so? Anong pake ko dyan?” While the rest of the world is trying to ride the Asian rise, we on the other hand would want to go to America and live the American Dream, which is—truth be told—declining as we speak. This shift is not just a cultural shift. It’s a shift of the balance of power, from West to East.
CNN and Fox News echo it everyday. “Hundreds of US Banks are closing.” “Inflation is escalating.” “Thousands are unemployed.” “The US Economy is at its lowest in 20 years.” And we are so oblivious to this.
The time of the West, like what New York Times heralded, is over. The “Asian Century” is here.
The question is, will the Philippines rise up with the rest of the continent?
If you’re a geek, a Filipino geek, you don’t have the right to boast about anything. Because the knowledge you’ve accumulated now would probably be taken up by 10 year olds in Singapore and China today.
Jin Yang, a 12 year old gymnast featured in Discovery Channel’s “China Revealed”, has been training since she was 5 years old, with that sole goal of winning gold in the Olympics. No TVs and playtime for her. Bringing honor to her nation is her highest priority. Now, multiply her by the millions.
So what are you doing today? Do you still fidget your time in studying? Don’t want to finish school? Want to join a rock band like the rest of the kids in the country? Don’t want to risk for your dream? Have you given up on your ideals? Wait a few more years and the Philippines would be erased on the world map.
That is if we geeks don’t do something.
If you’re not horrified, irritated, and panicky, I am.
~resplend3nt
I came across an article in CNN about the new dining culture in China.
You should read it. The Chinese are literally eating up the world.
If I may, I would like to post an excerpt from the article “Culture of Eating Well has Blossomed in China” published on cnn.com.
Here’s the excerpt:
Gone are the days when the traditional Chinese greeting “Have you eaten yet?” seemed like a bad joke in the dour capital where, as recently as the 1980s, staples were rationed, state-run canteens dished out the slop of the day in chipped enamel bowls and restaurants were few and far between.
Today’s Beijing is packed with eateries at every corner, open at all hours and offering regional cuisines of all kinds — a reflection of China’s stunning economic success after almost three decades of convulsive growth.
And the run-up to the August 8 Beijing Olympics has underscored the quantum leap in the quality and variety of fare on offer, with menus and manners being polished in anticipation of the crowd of 500,000 visitors during the games.
From al dente hand-pulled noodles splashed with bracing black vinegar from Shanxi province in the north, to fingernail-sized chicken pieces buried in a mountain of dried chilies from Sichuan in the southwest, to the rich, sweet braises of the east, there is something to pique every palate. Don’t forget the street food — handmade pork buns, candied fruit and egg, lettuce and crisp fried dough rolled in a freshly made flour crepe, a Chinese burrito of sorts.
And that’s just from within the country.
Sushi and sashimi? Ocean fresh. Persian grilled meats and stews? In the heart of the city. Fish and chips? Beer-batter or breadcrumbs, take your pick. Greek, Vietnamese, Italian, German, French, Ethiopian, Spanish, Singaporean, even kosher … the list goes on.
“Simply put, we’ve gone from eating just to fill our stomachs to the stage where we are open to the complete pleasures of the dining experience,” says Chitty Chung, editor-in-chief of Beijing’s Food & Wine magazine.
That includes not only an awareness of a restaurant’s environment, the chef’s concepts, quality of service, the pairing of food and wine, and nutritional balance, but also a willingness try new things, says Chung, who recommends Dadong Roast Duck Restaurant not only for the namesake fowl, but also for its light modern twist on traditionally heavy Shandong fare.
“People’s eyes are opening up and they are becoming more international. They are ready to accept and taste food from other parts of the world,” she says. “The choices are far beyond your imagination.”
So are the numbers.
There are more than 40,000 restaurants in Beijing, 90 percent of which are privately run — a far cry from the few thousand state-owned eateries that were found on the streets during the early 1980s, says He Zhifu, secretary-general of the Beijing Association for Food and Beverage Industries.
They run the gamut from the simple (mom-and-pop dumpling place) to the showy (the starkly modern Green T. House, where dishes are decorated with curling tree branches, and the Whampoa Club, where roast spring onion ice-cream can be enjoyed in a dining room that sits beneath a massive glass goldfish pond) to the bizarre (Guo Li Zhuang which serves the penises and testicles of various animals — dogs, yaks, ox — cooked in a variety of ways.)
And some of the tastiest — and most authentic — regional treats can be found in the restaurants affiliated to the provincial government offices that have set up in the capital.
In all, Beijing’s restaurants rake in more than $4 billion annually and the revenues are still growing, a lucrative streak that has boosted the street cred of the city’s food scene and drawn big names despite tainted product scares last year.
Chef Daniel Boulud — a cult favorite in New York who has grabbed headlines for his $150 ground sirloin burger filled with short ribs braised in red wine, foie gras and black truffles — has just set up shop in a compound that used to house the U.S. Embassy. Le Pre Lenotre, sister restaurant of the three Michelin-star Le Pre Catelan in Paris, opened to great buzz in the Sofitel Wanda Beijing.
WOW Speck Tackle! Thanks for this great info. Indeed the Dragon has awakened. Grabe no, the image of China as the most backward country in the world is gone! They’ve reached the stage wherein they’re not eating food for survival but for art (in this case, Chinese cuisine).
I’ve been a long fan of Chinese Food. In fact I prefer it than Mexican (i dont like their rice) or American (burgers and those stuff that kill you). Although the Chinese have some food din that can kill.
Let’s have some cook out nga! Tayong mga geeks!
Let’s explore China but EATING haha. I love Hainan rice.
sure man.
i’m a self-confessed Chinese cuisine lover.
i remember two instances when i crossed to China from HK just to have lunch with my mom and sister. food there is quite amazing. i remember having eel with the essence of orange, and a hefty serving of Fujian rice among other dishes. i’d love to go back for more authentic Chinese food.
personally, i think that Shenzhen has Chinese restaurants that serve really good Chinese food. however, i was quite surprised to know from my Beijing-based friend that Chinese cuisine from HK-Macau-Shenzhen does not come close to what they cook up in the Forbidden City.
i’m just waiting for an opportunity to dine there. i can just imagine how spectacular such a walkabout would be.
Nice post! I love it! have a nice day!
great posts, great info, great hearts decoders! i never had that in my mind that china was at a time considered the most backward country in the world. sans their great history and culture, there was africa and the likes of bangladesh. and then, there was the filipino. amusing that at one time i and classmates in college talked about how the filipino can conquer the world via a widely-scattered and deeply-planted intelligence network. sheesh. thing is, at one time the world had a negative view about us asians— as if we were a people either replaced, displaced, out-of-place or in-their-place.
that is not the case now and i hold my belief china’s return is more than a cinderella story, it is an inevitability (coining the term). china has risen in numbers and strides. its clout need not be celebrated by the olympics, but it still will be. south asia is following suit and though bangladesh is a far cry from the philippines, the world has wide- open door now and possibilities are endless. i wonder if we filipinos are to be known for more than our hospitality, hard labor and grand promise. what is our part in this asian century? if we can feel it, by watching primetime news, soap operas and if even our academicians seek it by simply recognizing our shared future as asians in geopolitics, then why are we not riding it yet? this is one wave we have to ride and it need not be a rough ride. yet we have to seek the purpose in ourselves first. what’s so filipino about me? what’s so asian about me? what does all this mean to me? i know we do not think about these in our daily dealings but it is worth a thought. it is part of our examining our lives. what is disappointing is no matter how hard we examine the filipino, it is still the filipino’s call to see if he has a soul to examine. i believe the philippines is in such an advantageous position mainly due to our being filipino and our unique national experience. we may not share china’s thousands of year history and we may not rival singapore’s efficiency for now, but we have gifts we have to use. i think fellow asians and those that have progressed before found their gifts as a people after a convicting examination of their lives. perhaps many chinese affirmed the belief they were some laughing stock after the boxer rebellion and the utter humiliation from much smaller western colonizers. perhaps many koreans found the need to plant again or die in hunger after the korean war saga. we know for sure many filipinos know of our troubles. but can we see the greatness in these times and in our place? time is catching up. we have to catch the wave. this is inevitable too. =)
Nice post! Thanks for the info… Have a nice day!
Nice post here resplend3nt!
Good job decoders =P
I’ve been eating Chinese cuisine all my life… love it!