SHOW #60: MARCH 25, 2017. Flushing, Queens, New York City is a phenomenal place. When I rode the #7 Subway from Grand Central Terminal to Main Street I never imagine the surprise that awaited me when I emerged for the first time. I felt as if I took the subway to a destination in Chinese-speaking Asia. When I related my first impressions to good friend and former show guest Dr. Dave Wang he just laughed -and I could not blame him. After lunch we ventured to historic Flushing Town Hall, headquarters of Flushing Council on Culture and the Arts. This hub of cultural activity features an impressive myriad of fascinating Asian-themed programs serving the community.
My guest on the March 25 broadcast was Mr. Michael Liu, the director of Chinese Community Initiatives at Flushing Town Hall. I was looking forward to introducing you to Michael, to the successful programs he manages and how you can experience and be enriched by everything that the Flushing Council on Culture and the Arts has to offer -and how you can join the fun and support its mission.
We headed off to another amazing Chinese destination on Treasures of China, got our weekly dose of wisdom on the Confucius Moment, hearD about exhibits, programs and happens and more!
Mark your calendar! Tune in for Saturday's broadcast starting at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH and anywhere via streaming audio on WGCH.com.
SHOW # 61: APRIL 1, 2017. On today's Saturday, April 1 broadcast I welcomed while in Hawaii Chairman Ms. Yin Zhijun of the internationally famous Lau She Tea House by phone in Beijing to the show. Thank you, Mr. Liming Guan of The China Press in New York City for your superb translation.
Lao She Tea House was founded in 1988 by Chairman Yin's father. You'll learn that Lao She offers much more than tea. This tea house offers its patrons a cornucopia of Chinese cultural performances. These include Kung Fu, acrobatics, crosstalk, dancing, Peking opera and more.
For many years audiences from around the world are dazzled. You may not speak or understand Chinese language, but this is a cultural immersion experience that is not to be missed.
We also featured our weekly Confucius Moment and Treasures of China destination. Tune in to 1490 WGCH on the AM radio dial -or listen to the show via audio-streaming on WGCH.com every Saturday morning 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time.
SHOW #62: APRIL 8, 2017. My guest on the Saturday, April 8 show was Mr. Douglas Chong of the Hawaii Chinese History Center. I sat down with Douglas and his volunteers to learn about the Qing Ming Festival -also known as Tomb-Sweeping Festival that goes back centuries.
We shared words of wisdom on the Confucius Moment, and took the audience on another journey on Treasures of China.
There's more! We're introducing new segments. Chopsticks is foodie central, appealing to the hungry, eclectic and curious.
Historical Notes reflects on historical events in and about China.
On Chinese Fun Facts you'll hear that baseball isn't just America's pastime; the Chinese having playing ball for a long time.
The Weekly Almanac lets you know what's going on at museums and other events.
Tune in on Saturday's at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH in Greenwich, Connecticut USA and anywhere on WGCH.com.
SHOW #63: APRIL 15, 2017. My guest on the Saturday, April 15, 2017 broadcast of Marvels of China: Pathways to the Pacific Rim was Professor Jonathan Lee of San Francisco State University's Asian American Studies Program.
Professor Lee is the primary organizer of a fascinating conference scheduled for October 6-8, 2017. "This Land Is Our Land": Chinese Pluralities Through the Americas, An International Conference of the Chinese Historical Society of the Americas sounded fascinating to me -and I think it will be to you, too.
The conference is open to the public and organized by the Chinese Historical Society of America in San Francisco, California. The basis of the conference "seeks to unpack, (re)examine, re(focus), (re)calibrate, and (re)examine the pluralities of "Chinese" experiences within, among, and through the Americas-historically and presently. We enjoin participants to take a global view of the Chinese experience in the Americas. The primary focus of this Conference is to research on any and all aspects of Chinese American history, Chinese American studies, and Chinese in the Americas."
What else do we have on tap for you? We'll feature our usual Confucius Moment. On Treasures of China let your imagination soar as we'll take off for a new, amazing destination. Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. On Historical Notes you'll hear about Hazel Ying Lee, the first Chinese American woman to fly for the U.S. military during World War II. After my recent first-ever visit to San Francisco's Chinatown I decided to share some of what I learned about this oldest such Chinatown in North America on Chinese Fun Facts. As a confessed foodie I shared that nothing comes between me and my dim sum on Chopsticks.
Time flies when you're having fun! Be part of the journey on Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH Greenwich, Connecticut USA and anywhere in WGCH.com via audio-streaming. If you miss the show fear not! We'll post a link on our archives site on Podcasts.com and this blog site on the 2017 Shows page at MarvelsofChina.blogspot.com.
SHOW #64: April 22, 2017: Author Henry Chang was my guest on the Saturday, April 22, 2017 broadcast of the Marvels of China: Pathways to the Pacific Rim show on 1490 WGCH Greenwich, Connecticut, and anywhere on WGCH.com.
Chang is a native New Yorker hailing from Manhattan's Chinatown and the Lower East Side. His poems have appeared in the seminal Yellow Pearl anthology, and in Gangs In New York’s Chinatown. He has written for Bridge Magazine, and his fiction has appeared in On A Bed Of Rice and in the NuyorAsian Anthology. His debut novel Chinatown Beat garnered high praise from the New York Times Book Review, the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, among others.
Henry Chang is a graduate of City College of New York (CCNY). He has been a lighting consultant, and a security director for major hotels, commercial properties, and retail businesses in Manhattan.
Chang's Chinatown Trilogy of Chinatown Beat (2006), Year of the Dog (2008), Red Jade (2010) and Death Money (2014) are currently being developed for television and movies.
His newest mystery novel, Lucky: A Detective Jack Yu Investigation was released on March 14, 2017.
Kirkus Reviews calls Chang's latest work, "a turbo-charged requiem for a blood brotherhood rooted in an impossibly distant past." Library Journal says, “Yu struggles between his loyalties formed growing up in New York’s Chinatown and his role as a police officer in the very same neighborhood… The sparse writing infused with Chinatown culture will appeal to those who are drawn to noir mysteries with a rich cultural component.”
We also featured our usual weekly words of wisdom on the Confucius Moment.
On Treasures of China my good friend, Singapore-based travel blogger Darren Ng of ExploreLifeLah! (http://explorelah.blogspot.com) shared his recent exploration of Shamian Island in Guangzhou.
Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. We'll have more for you on Historical Notes, Chinese Fun Facts.
On Chopsticks guess what? Yes, you'll hear that those two sticks many of us use for eating and cooking have been around for 6,000 years. Not bad!
Time flies when you're having fun! Be part of the journey every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH Greenwich, Connecticut USA and anywhere in WGCH.com via audio-streaming.
SHOW #65: April 29, 2017: My guest on the Conversations segment of the April 29 broadcast of Marvels of China: Pathways to the Pacific Rim is Ms. Zhou Yi, pipa virtuoso of the Ba Ban Chinese Music Society of New York. Founded in 1999, the Ba Ban Chinese Music Society of New York is dedicated to the preservation, creation and presentation of Chinese traditional and contemporary performing arts. Named after an ancient piece of folk music, "Ba Ban" literally means "Eight Beats,” which is the structural basis for the grouping of notes in traditional Chinese music.
In 1843, Shanghai was one of the first five cities to open its ports to the West and became known as the "Paradise of Adventurers" and the “Paris of the Orient.” Because of its unique geographic location and the structure of foreign concessions, Shanghai gradually became the most prosperous economic trade and cultural center of the Far East in the early 20th century. In the 1930s and 40s, Shanghai was a cultural gathering place that fostered a unique environment for creating hybrid music. The boom of the foreign trading markets, the shantytowns on the riverbank of the Suzhou River, and the cultural mixture of east and west were reflected in the complex timbres of emerging Chinese pop music. This new genre of Chinese pop was both foreign and domestic as well as modern and traditional.
We'll also featured our usual weekly words of wisdom in the Confucius Moment. On Treasures of China let your imagination soar as we'll take off for a new, amazing destination -Baomo Garden, thanks to good friend, faithful listener and Singapore-based travel blogger Daren Ng. Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. We'll have more for you on Historical Notes, Chinese Fun Facts and Chopsticks.
We remind our audience that Host Jeffrey Bingham Mead is the American representative of the Admissions Network of Chinese Universities and Colleges. The Sino-American Cultural Exchange Scholarship Program has opportunities for qualifying Americans to study for their Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral programs at Chinese universities and colleges. Please contact Mr. Mead for further details and to register today.
Time flies when you're having fun! Be part of the journey live every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH Greenwich, Connecticut USA and anywhere in WGCH.com via audio-streaming. If you miss the show fear not! We'll post a link on our archives site on Podcasts.com and MarvelsofChina.blogspot.com on the 2017 Shows page.
SHOW #66: May 6, 2017: My guest on the Conversations segment of the May 6 broadcast of Marvels of China: Pathways to the Pacific Rim was New York Times best selling author Lisa See.
Li-yan and her family align their lives around the seasons and the farming of tea. There is ritual and routine, and it has been ever thus for generations. Then one day a jeep appears at the village gate—the first automobile any of them have seen—and a stranger arrives.
In this remote Yunnan village, the stranger finds the rare tea he has been seeking and a reticent Akha people. In her biggest seller, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, See introduced the Yao people to her readers. Here she shares the customs of another Chinese ethnic minority, the Akha, whose world will soon change. Li-yan, one of the few educated girls on her mountain, translates for the stranger and is among the first to reject the rules that have shaped her existence. When she has a baby outside of wedlock, rather than stand by tradition, she wraps her daughter in a blanket, with a tea cake hidden in her swaddling, and abandons her in the nearest city.
After mother and daughter have gone their separate ways, Li-yan slowly emerges from the security and insularity of her village to encounter modern life while Haley grows up a privileged and well-loved California girl. Despite Haley’s happy home life, she wonders about her origins; and Li-yan longs for her lost daughter. They both search for and find answers in the tea that has shaped their family’s destiny for generations.
A powerful story about a family, separated by circumstances, culture, and distance, Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane paints an unforgettable portrait of a little known region and its people and celebrates the bond that connects mothers and daughters.
Reviews:
“Lisa See transports readers to the remote mountains of China…come for the heartwarming bonding between mother and daughter; stay for the insight into Akha culture and the fascinating (really) history of the tea trade."
—Real Simple
"With strong female characters, See deftly confronts the changing role of minority women, majority-minority relations, East-West adoption, and the economy of tea in modern China. Fans of See’s Snow Flower and the Secret Fan will appreciate this novel.”
—Library Journal
"With vivid and precise details about tea and life in rural China, Li-Yan’s gripping journey to find her daughter comes alive."
—Publishers Weekly
"A riveting exercise in fictional anthropology."
—Kirkus Reviews
We also featured our usual weekly words of wisdom in the Confucius Moment. On Treasures of China let your imagination soar as we journeyed to a new, amazing destination. Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. We shared more for you on Historical Notes, Chinese Fun Facts and Chopsticks, too.
We remind our audience that Host Jeffrey Bingham Mead is the American representative of the Admissions Network of Chinese Universities and Colleges. The Sino-American Cultural Exchange Scholarship Program offers numerous opportunities for qualifying Americans to study for their Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral programs at Chinese universities and colleges. Please contact Mr. Mead for further details and to register today.
Be part of the journey every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH Greenwich, Connecticut USA and anywhere in WGCH.com via audio-streaming.
Thanks to them and an exhibit they curated at Flushing Town Hall in Queens, I was introduced to an extraordinary American woman named Pauline Benton. She was the founder of Red Gate Theatre and the first to bring Chinese shadow puppetry to American audiences nationwide. We also featured our usual weekly words of wisdom in the Confucius Moment.
On Treasures of China let your imagination soar as we'll take off for a new, amazing destination. Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. We had more for you on Historical Notes and Chinese Fun Facts, too.
We remind our audience that Host Jeffrey Bingham Mead is the American representative of the Admissions Network of Chinese Universities and Colleges. The Sino-American Cultural Exchange Scholarship Program offers numerous opportunities for qualifying Americans to study for their Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral programs at Chinese universities and colleges. Please contact Mr. Mead for further details and to register today.
SHOW #70: June 3, 2017: Adriana Proser is the John H. Foster Curator of Traditional Asian Art at the Asia Society New York City USA. A specialist in Chinese art, over the last fifteen years she has organized and co-organized over forty exhibitions featuring diverse works from all over Asia. These include the upcoming loan exhibition Buddhist Art of Myanmar and the exhibitions Gilded Splendor: Treasures of China’s Liao Empire and Princes and Painters in Mughal Delhi, 1707-1857 for Asia Society Museum. Her publications include Pilgrimage and Buddhist Art (Asia Society Museum and Yale University Press, 2010), for which she served as editor and contributor. Dr. Proser is recipient of a Ph.D. in Chinese art and archaeology from Columbia University. Proser was formerly Assistant Curator of East Asian Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
SHOW #71: June 10, 2017: You might remember that my guests on the Conversations segment of the May 27 broadcast of Marvels of China: Pathways to the Pacific Rim were Ms. Kuang-Yu Fong and Mr. Stephen Kaplin of Chinese Theatre Works in New York City.
I asked them to return for the broadcast on Saturday, June 10 to talk about Chinese Theatre Works, its mission, programs and cultural offerings to the public. We featured our usual weekly words of wisdom in the Confucius Moment.
On Treasures of China let your imagination soar as we'll take off for a new, amazing destination. Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. We had more for you on Historical Notes and Chinese Fun Facts, too. Host Jeffrey Bingham Mead is the American representative of the Admissions Network of Chinese Universities and Colleges. The Sino-American Cultural Exchange Scholarship Program offers numerous opportunities for qualifying Americans to study for their Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral programs at Chinese universities and colleges.
Be part of the journey every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH Greenwich, Connecticut USA and anywhere in WGCH.com via audio-streaming. If you miss the show fear not! We'll post a link on our archives site on Podcasts.com and the blog site on the 2017 Shows page.
SHOW #72: June 17, 2017: On today's show we welcomed Mr. Douglas Chin, Attorney General of the State of Hawaii. Warm and engaging, you'll hear about his remarkable journey from his birth in Taiwan to growing up in the Pacific Northwest to his present life and career in Hawaii as the state's Attorney General.
We featured our usual weekly words of wisdom in the Confucius Moment. On Chopsticks today's ingredient was one of my favorites, lemongrass. Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. We focused on the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region on Chinese Fun Facts, too. On Treasures of China we took you to another timeless destination from China's distant past. Host Jeffrey Bingham Mead is the American representative of the Admissions Network of Chinese Universities and Colleges. The Sino-American Cultural Exchange Scholarship Program offers numerous opportunities for qualifying Americans to study for their Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral programs at Chinese universities and colleges.
SHOW #73: June 24, 2017: It's graduation time across America. On today's broadcast of Marvels of China: Pathways to the Pacific Rim I welcomed William Yin and his proud father, Dr. Mark Yin. William Yin is the valedictorian of the Greenwich High School class of 2017 here in Connecticut USA. This accomplished young man is truly extraordinary. Recently named a U.S. Presidential Scholar and honored by the Greenwich Board of Education, William Yin has volunteered at Albert Einstein Hospital in New York City and at the First People's Hospital in Shanghai. Did you know that he created a science enrichment program for children in neighboring White Plains, New York? Participated in the We the People: the Citizen and the Constitution competition? Captain of the Math Team? Oh yes, there's more! We featured our usual weekly words of wisdom on the Confucius Moment. On Treasures of China let your imagination soar as we took off for a new, amazing destination. Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. We had more for you on Chinese Fun Facts, too. Be part of the journey every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH Greenwich, Connecticut USA and anywhere in WGCH.com via audio-streaming. If you miss the show fear not! We'll post a link on our archives site on Podcasts.com and the blog site on the 2017 Shows page.
SHOW #74: July 1, 2017: Sometimes when you visit a museum exhibit there are treasures on display that simply take your breath away. I experienced one of those cultural epiphanies when I laid eyes on an immaculately restored jade suit at the China Institute Gallery’s new exhibition, Dreams of the Kings: A Jade Suit for Eternity, Treasures of the Han Dynasty from Xuzhou.
More than 76 objects originating from royal tombs dating from the Western Han Dynasty (206 BCE – 8 CE) will be exhibited in the U.S. for the first time. Ranging from terracotta performers to carved stone animal sculptures, the objects are extraordinary testimony to customs and beliefs surrounding life and death during the Western Han Dynasty, one of China’s golden eras.
Together with Rome, the Western Han capital, Chang’an in present day Shaanxi Province, were the two largest cities in the ancient world. Poetry, literature and philosophy developed and flourished during the Western Han Dynasty. Among the accomplishments of the Chinese people during the Han Dynasty were the developments of paper, sundials, and astronomical instruments. Today, the majority of the population in China is descended from the Han people, the single largest ethnic group in the world.
I welcomed back Willow Weilan Hai, Director of China Institute Gallery in New York City. We conversed about this remarkable exhibit at the China Institute in America. The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated bilingual catalogue, too.
We'll also featured our usual weekly words of wisdom in the Confucius Moment. On Treasures of China let your imagination soar as we'll take off for a new, amazing destination. Learn about what's going on and things to see at museums on the Weekly Almanac. We'll have more for you on Chinese Fun Facts, too.
Last -and certainly not least- I shared some special, well-deserved words of appreciation for Sue Lee, the retiring executive director of the Chinese Historical Society of America in San Francisco, California.
SHOW #75: July 8, 2017: Nearly two years ago in Beijing I had the pleasure of meeting my next guest, Mr. James Lindsay and his wife Pamela. We were in the Chinese capital as invited guests for the 70th year anniversary events commemorating the end of World War II. We and other guests had arrived from all over the world that first week in September, 2015.
On one magical night we sat around large, round tables in the Grand Ballroom of the Grand Hyatt Beijing trading larger-than-life war stories of a time when the world was in turmoil -until, as you can imagine- the hotel staff kicked us out as the hour had grown late.
Jim spoke to us by phone from his home in Canberra, Australia to share with me and you a true, gripping story surely like no other as found in his mother’s book, Bold Plum: with the Guerrillas in China’s War Against Japan.
Hsiao Li Lindsay was one-of-a-kind, a master storyteller whose stories are real and harrowing. Her day-to-day accounts of the flight from Beijing after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 with Japanese military troops in hot pursuit, years with Communist guerrillas in hot pursuit, childbirth on the trail and refuge in Yennan, tragically massacred peasant villages and living intimately with Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De, Lin Biao and many others is a story of struggle, courage and life-changing choices we can only imagine in the 21st century.
You can purchase a copy of Bold Plum: with the Guerrillas in China’s War Against Japan at amazon.com or through the publisher at lulu.com:
SHOW #76: JULY 15, 2017: Today I welcomed Mr. Wesley Radez, the man behind the web site ChineseAmericanFamily.com. He shared his story and how his web site and online business-Red Bean Company- can be of service to you. You can subscribe by going to Wesley Radez's web site. Did I mention it is free? It is! We featured our usual segments -the Confucius Moment, Chinese Fun Facts, Treasures of China and the Weekly Almanac. Be part of our celebration of Chinese culture every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH Greenwich, Connecticut USA and anywhere on WGCH.com via audio streaming. Remember: we archive our shows here on Podcasts.com and our most recent ones on the Shows & Host section of WGCH.com.
SHOW #77: JULY 22, 2017: My guest on today's show was Dr. Karen McNeill. She illuminated us all on renowned American architect Julia Morgan. Dr. McNeill is considered America's foremost authority on Morgan's life, career and legacy. As the first female architect licensed in California and a graduate of the Ecole des Beau-Arts in Paris a century ago, Morgan is best known for designing Hearst Castle in San Simeon. She designed over 700 buildings throughout the Western USA. Our focus today was on the San Francisco Chinatown YWCA, now the headquarters of the Chinese Historical Society of America (CHSA). We featured our usual words of wisdom on the Confucius Moment, took off for another amazing destination on Travels of China, heard about what's happening on the Weekly Almanac, learned more on Chinese Fun Facts, and so on. Tune in each Saturday morning 10:30 a.m Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time for more of our ongoing celebration of all-things Chinese. Go to 1490 WGCH or anywhere, anytime on WGCH.com, Greenwich, Connecticut USA.
SHOW #78: JULY 29, 2017: My guest on the July 29 broadcast was Mr. John Woo, executive director of Asian CineVision and the Asian American International Film Festival in New York City. The festival goes from July 26 to August 5 at various venues in Manhattan. This year marks the 40th anniversary. We featured our usual weekly words of wisdom on the Confucius Moment and shared news of exhibits and events on the Weekly Almanac. We heard more on Chinese Fun Facts, too. Tune in every Saturday at 10:30 a.m Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH in Greenwich, Connecticut and anywhere on WGCH.com.
SHOW #79: AUGUST 5, 2017: My guest was Daisy Wang, Ph.D., curator of Chinese and East Asian Art at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts USA. Dr. Wang oversees the museum's Chinese, Japanese and Korean collections. Previously, she served as Chinese Art Specialist at the Smithsonian's Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Wang's publications cover topics ranging from Buddhist art to contemporary art and the history of collecting Chinese art. Wang founded the American Alliance of Museums' China Program, the largest annual US-China museum professional exchange program. Wang was a Smithsonian Post-Doctoral fellow, a Getty Museum Leadership fellow and a grant reviewer for the Getty Research Institute and the Smithsonian.
She earned her Ph.D. in Art History from Ohio University, and her M.A. in English Literature and her B.A. in International Law and Affairs from the University of International Relations in Beijing. We heard about Yin Yu Tang, an authentic 200-year-old Chinese merchants house formerly located in Anhui province, now on the campus of the Peabody Essex Museum. Learn more about the museum and this remarkable house at www.pem.org. On today's broadcast we featured our usual segments -the Confucius Moment, Chinese Fun Facts, the Weekly Almanac and more. Tune in every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on 1490 WGCH and anywhere on WGCH.Com in Greenwich, Connecticut USA.
SHOW #80: AUGUST 12, 2017: My guest on today's broadcast was Mr. Edmond Gor, the national president of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance (www.cacanational.org). He shared details of the Chinese American World War II Veterans Recognition Project (https://caww2.org). We featured our other segments such as the Confucius Moment, Chinese Fun Facts, Treasures of China, the Weekly Almanac and more! Tune in every Saturday morning at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time for more of our celebration of all things Chinese!
SHOW #81: AUGUST 19, 2017: On the August 19 show I welcomed Ms. Sonia Hu to the Conversations segment. Hu is the author of Shanghai, Forever Lost: A Biography of My Grandmother and Mother. This nonfiction book is based on the true stories and events from 1920s Shanghai to 1950s Peking. Be sure to tune in for future Conversations, the Confucius moment, Treasures of China, Chinese Fun facts and other segments each Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time as our celebration of all-things Chinese continues on 1490 WGCH and anywhere on WGCH.com.
SHOW #82: AUGUST 26, 2017: Joining me from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada today was Mr. Grant Hayter-Menzies, the author of The Empress and Mrs. Conger: The Uncommon Friendship of Two Women and Two Worlds. Published in 2011, this book tells the story for the first time of a special friendship between Dowager Empress Cixi and American Sarah Pike Conger, a diplomat's wife during tumultuous times in China dominated by the fifty-five day siege of the Beijing foreign legations known as the Boxer Uprising. We also featured our usual segments: the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, the Weekly Almanac, Chopsticks and Chinese Fun Facts. Be sure to tune in every Saturday morning at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time and anywhere via audio-streaming on WGCH.com as our celebration of all-things Chinese continues.
SHOW #83: SEPTEMBER 2, 2017: My guest on Conversations was Mr. Jeff Greene' executive director of the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation. This is the first of a two-part interview that will be continued in the next broadcast. We went back in time to World War II and a time when tigers roared- Flying Tigers, that is! We heard about the foundation, its mission, goals, and the history of the Flying Tigers. We featured our usual segments -the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, Chinese Fun Facts, and the Weekly Almanac. We heard about Mid-Autumn Festival events, too. We also heard some big news about Greenwich High School 2017 valedictorian William Yin -and more! Tune in every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time on 1490 WGCH and anywhere via audio-streaming on WGCH.com.
SHOW #84: SEPTEMBER 9, 2017: Today we featured the second half of my conversation with Mr. Jeff Greene, executive director of the Sino-American Aviation Heritage Foundation. We discussed the history of the renowned Flying Tigers and the activities of the foundation. We also featured our usual segments, such as the Confucius Moment, Chinese Fun Facts, the Weekly Almanac and more.
SHOW #85: SEPTEMBER 16, 2017: On today's show I welcomed back Grant Hayter-Menzies from British Columbia, Canada. We discussed his book Shadow Woman: The Extraordinary Career of Pauline Benton. In the 1920s, Benton discovered Chinese shadow theatre in China and brought it back to the USA. Like other women Hayter-Menzies has written about, Benton defied the conventions of her time while at the same time opened herself and her heart to Chinese culture. As always, we featured the Confucius Moment, the Weekly Almanac of events and happenings, Treasures of China, Chinese Fun Facts and more.
SHOW #86: SEPTEMBER 23, 2017: I was joined today by Connie Young Yu from San Francisco. She is a descendant and recognized authority on the Chinese railroad workers who built the Transcontinental Railroad. She is a Trustee Emeritus Board member of the Chinese Historical Society of America and graduated from Mills College. This is the first of two conversations on the subject. remember to tune in next week for more from Connie Young Yu.We had our usual segments -the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, the Weekly Almanac and more! Tune in each Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time for all-things wise, wonderful and Chinese on 1490 WGCH and anywhere on WGCH.com.
SHOW #87: SEPTEMBER 30, 2017: On today's show I welcomed back Connie Young Yu, Board Emeritus Member of the Chinese Historical Society of America in San Francisco. She's a descendant of Chinese workers who built America's first Transcontinental Railroad in the 19th century. We discussed more about this remarkable history. Be sure to look at the Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project at Stanford University. We featured our usual segments, such as the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, the Weekly Almanac and more. Be sure to tune-in every Saturday morning 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time to 1490 WGCH and anywhere on WGCH.com.
SHOW #88: OCTOBER 7, 2017: On the October 7, 2017 broadcast I welcomed by phone from Honolulu, Hawaii USA Ret. Brigadier General Frances I. Mossman. This is the first of two conversations -the second scheduled for next Saturday, October 14- on the recently signed "sister city" agreement between Greenwich, Connecticut USA and the city of Hangzhou in China. Both municipalities are established financial wealth centers in their respective nations. (AM 1490 WGCH/WGCH.com is located in Greenwich, where Marvels of China: Pathways to the Pacific Rim broadcasts from). At the signing ceremony it was noted that Greenwich was the model for developing Shangcheng, China's first investment management commercial park. In the official declaration it was noted that Greenwich and Hangzhou have shared values in "jointly promoting prosperity and cooperation and understanding of development and change." Additionally, the agreement calls for the promotion of social, cultural and commercial ties. Both General Mossman and I discussed the nuances of sister city relationships, their history examples of successful exchanges and relationships as well as how both Greenwich and Hangzhou should establish a framework for increased trust, intercultural appreciation, shared goals and priorities. We called, for example, for both communities to immediately establish representative offices in each other's locations. Stay tuned for the October 14 show when Mossman and I discuss the constructive foundations for how Greenwich and Hangzhou could learn from each other, as well our suggestions for the next step in this new relationship. We also featured our usual segments, such as the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, the Weekly Almanac, Chinese Fun Facts and more! Tune in every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time on WGCH and anywhere via streaming audio on WGCH.com.
SHOW #89: OCTOBER 14, 2017: On today's show I resumed my conversation by phone with Retired Brigadier General Frances Mossman in Honolulu, Hawaii USA. Our topic was the recently signed sister city agreement between Greenwich, Connecticut USA -where AM 1490 WGCH/WGCH.com is located- and the city of Hangzhou, China. Both communities are seeking to open, nurture and expand social, cultural, educational and commercial ties. Greenwich and Hangzhou are recognized finance centers. As always, we featured our regular segments -the Confucius moment, Treasures if China, Chinese Fun Facts, the Weekly Almanac and more. Be sure to tune in every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time. Shows are audio-streamed on WGCH.com and archived on Podcasts.com and the Shows and Hosts section of WGCH.com.
SHOW #90: OCTOBER 21, 2017: My guest on the Conversations segment of today's show was Ms. Stephanie Liu, Vice-Consul of Cultural Affairs at the Chinese Consulate General in New York City. We discussed the China-US Cultural Forum. Needless to say, China has a vibrant, dazzling modern cultural scene in the performing arts, music and much more. The area of the USA covered by the Chinese Consulate in New York City consists of ten states in the Northeast. The Cultural Affairs office offers a wide-range of opportunities to celebrate China's culture and works with many American cultural institutions as partners. We also featured our variety of segments such as the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, Chinese Fun Facts, too! Thanks to the education I received from Vice-Consul of Cultural Affairs Liu you're going to hear more about China's contemporary cultural scene. I think you'll be impressed; I certainly am. Tune in every Saturday morning 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time, and listen via streaming audio on WGCH.com. Check out the Shows and Hosts section of WGCH.com where our most recent shows are posted for you.
SHOW #91: OCTOBER 28, 2017: During my recent travels to my home in Hawaii I caught up with Mr. Cy Feng of the Honda International Center (HIC) at Kapiolani Community College (KCC). I was an instructor at KCC, working with the Honda International Center. My colleagues and I taught various subjects to university-level students from China, Japan and South Korea on short-term study programs. That experienced highlighted for me the importance of international study programs. We also featured the Confucius Moment, Chinese Fun Facts, Treasures of China, and our Weekly Almanac of things to see and do at various Chinese museums and cultural institutions across the USA. Tune in on Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time/ 10:30 p.m. Beijing Time. We're on AM 1490 WGCH and anywhere via live audio-streaming on WGCH.com. Miss a show? Check out the Shows and Hosts section of WGCH.com and this archival site on Podcasts.com. Remember, you can also contact the show by email at marvelsofchina@gmail.com.
SHOW #92: NOVEMBER 4, 2017: What a delight it was to welcome Professor Kenneth Hsien-yung Pai to today's broadcast! Warm, gregarious and cultured, Professor Pai is a living legend. He is also a visionary of China's modern culture scene, one of the great stylists of Chinese fiction and prose. We met at the China Institute In America's headquarters in Lower Manhattan -and it was there that I conducted my interview with him. We also featured the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, the Weekly Almanac -and on the show's first-ever Spotlight on C-Pop Music we heard Lu Han sing his hit 'Catch Me When I Fall.' Remember to tune in every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time on 1490 WGCH and anywhere via audio-streaming on WGCH.com.
SHOW #93: NOVEMBER 11, 2017: Today is Veterans Day in the USA. My special guest was Greenwich, Connecticut resident and World War II veteran Mr. Roswell Curtis. He served in the war in Chengdu as one of the renowned, heroic Flying Tigers. He shared some of his memories of a time when a militarized Japan sought to conquer China. The Flying Tigers cast a bold light during the darkest days of World War II, boosting morale on the path to victory in 1945. We featured our usual segments -the Confucius moment, Treasures of China, the Weekly Almanac and more. On our new 'Spotlight on C-Pop' segment we featured the mixed South Korean and Chinese group UNIQ singing the Chinese version of 'Falling in Love.'
SHOW #94: NOVEMBER 18, 2017: On today's show I welcomed Mr. Dong Yaohui, vice-chairman of the China Great Wall Society. Translating Vice-chairman Dong's remarks was Mr. Larry Liu of the Charles R. Weber Company, Inc., shipbrokers and marine consultants since 1940 in Greenwich, Connecticut USA. Learn more about the Great wall of China and on-going efforts to restore and preserve it for present and future generations at www.chinagreatwallfoundation.org, a secondary foundation to the China Culture Relics Protection Foundation. We featured the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, Chinese Fun Facts and the Weekly Almanac.
SHOW #95: NOVEMBER 25, 2017: My guest on the Saturday, November 25 show was Ruthanne Lum McCunn who came to us by phone from San Francisco, California. She is the author of Chinese Yankee. Her book recounts the true story of Hong Kong born Thomas Sylvanus (Ah Yee Way) who was one of a number of Chinese who fought in the American Civil War 1861-1865. Learn more about Ruthanne Lum McCunn and how you can order copies of her works by going on the web to McCunn.com. We like to say that "everything Chinese is all the rage these days," so you'll get your dose of wisdom on the Confucius Moment, explore another of the Treasures of China, learn about events and exhibits on the Weekly Almanac and so much more!
SHOW #96: DECEMBER 2, 2017: Widely recognized as one of the most talented violinists of his generation, Mr. Gao Can enjoys an international following, appearing with major orchestras, prestigious venues and festivals around the world. In 2014 Gao Can was appointed the ambassador of the prestigious Verbier Festival held annually in Switzerland, the only Chinese national to be appointed. In 2015, Gao Can performed in front of 17 national leaders and thousands of political and business leaders at the closing ceremony at the Boao Forum for Asia. On that occasion he played the 1727 Stardivarius violin ex-General Dupont, the first to be owned by a Chinese collector. He has performed at the Houston Symphony Orchestra, the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra in South Africa, the Teatro di San Carlo Orchestra in Italy, the China National Symphony, and numerous music festivals throughout Europe, Asia and North America. Gao Can holds over 45 violin concerts annually, touring on five continents gaining international acclaim from Critics and audiences alike. He also dedicates his time to mentoring the next generation of violinists through teaching, lecturing and masterclasses. He has been appointed as the music director of the Poly WeDo Education Project by the Poly Cultural Group. We featured the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, and the Weekly Almanac.
SHOW #97: DECEMBER 9, 2017: NOTE: The live broadcast of the regularly scheduled show was pre-empted until Wednesday, December 13 at 9:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time. On this show I welcomed Dr. Ying-Ying Chang, mother of the renowned, legendary author Iris Chang who wrote 'The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II.' Iris Chang's book chronicles the 1937 Nanking Massacre. This year we are commemorating its 80th anniversary on December 13, 2017. I invite you to tune in next Saturday, December 16. I'll be welcoming back Dr. Ying-Ying Chang to discuss her daughter's legacy and her own memoir, 'The Woman Who Could Not Forget: Iris Chang Before and Beyond The Rape of Nanking.'
SHOW #98: DECEMBER 16, 2017: On today's show I welcomed back Dr. Ying-Ying Chang, mother of the renowned and legendary author Iris Chang. Dr. Chang is the author of an extraordinary memoir, 'The Woman Who Could Not Forget: Iris Chang Before and Beyond The Rape of Nanking. As we pause to reflect on and commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre in 1937, we discussed Iris Chang's life and legacy in the Conversations segment. I also shared my recently delivered remarks at the United Nations, New York City. In the Delegates Dining Room on that day YinuoYIP launched its art trading platform (www.yinuovip.com). We also featured the Weekly Almanac of events, exhibitions and more at various museums and Chinese cultural institutions. Be sure to tune-in every Saturday 10:30 a.m. Eastern USA Time on 1490 WGCH and anywhere via audio-streaming on WGCH.com.
SHOW #99: DECEMBER 23, 2017: Today I welcomed Ms. Ginger Jiang representing the Silk Road Chamber of International Commerce (SRCIC.com). China's Han Dynasty established the famous network of ancient trading and commercial routes we know today as the Silk Roads. In Year 2013 Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Belt and Road Initiative-the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. The SRCIC was founded in Year 2015 in Hong Kong, serving as a bridge between corporations and governments through its 91 members, further promoting a resilient world economy. We also featured the Confucius Moment, Treasures of China, the Weekly Almanac and more.
SHOW #100: DECEMBER 30, 2017: We're rounding out Year 2017 with Mr. Jim Jang, president of the Friends of the Chinese American Museum in Los Angeles, California USA. The Chinese American Museum's (CAM) mission is to "foster a deeper understanding of, and appreciation for, America's diverse heritage by researching, preserving, and sharing the history, rich cultural legacy, and continued contributions of Chinese Americans." It is the first museum in Southern California dedicated to the Chinese American experience and history of the region. The CAM is housed in the oldest and last surviving structure of Los Angeles' original Chinatown, opening on December 18, 2003 in the El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument.
To all my guests throughout Year 2017 -and my listeners around the world- I'm gratified to everyone for your support and continued interest in this show and its mission to explore and celebrate China's amazing dazzling culture, as well as nurture and illuminate the longstanding ties of friendship between the American and Chinese peoples. We eagerly look forward to Year 2018 as our journey continues.
