Here are just three shots of the Tulou from the inside with slightly different renditions...
... and this one is an IR shot...
... and this one is an IR shot...
Tracing my Chinese Ancestry ~ A Travelogue & Story [limwhow & SereneXMM]
- Thread starter limwhow
- Start date
The road from Zhangzhou to Hua'an was an uphill climb.
Indeed as the coach drove along the winding roads, the elevation became more steep.
Many terrace farms could be seen at the side of the mountains, and old (really old) Chinese rural houses among the fields were sighted.
I could not suppress the excitement that was beginning to mount in me, seeing the ulu ulu scenery.
As the ulu ulu sights flew past, my thoughts drifted back to my childhood days which was spent with my Ah Mah and Ah Gong in a little less ulu part of Redhill.
Memory of my past
The year was 1972.
We were living in one of the earlier Housing Board 7-storey blocks of flats in Redhill. My Grandparents' unit was on the second floor.
In those days, there was still a hill opposite our block across the road called Jalan Bukit Merah. And on top of this hill was still old thatched houses. It was some years later when this hill was evened out to make way for a big building destined to be HDB Central.
I was a three year old child. And everyday my Ah Gong and I would be downstairs doing gardening.
Half way through our chores, my Ah Mah would hang a basket on a rope and slowly lowered it to the grown level.
"Ah How... eat the dried mango peices. And drink water!" my Ah Mah would call out from the kitchen window as she slowly lowered the basket.
"Alright, Ah Mah." I replied.
I have always hated dried mango pieces. Always.
But I had no choice neither dare I say no, like many three year old children of that time.
Ah Gong passed me a piece of these horrible-tasting thing and a glass of water and I gobbled up the dried mango so that I could wash it down quickly with the water.
I smiled as I handed him the empty glass.
And my Ah Gong with his full head of white hair would smile a half-empty-toothed mouth smile as his patted my head.
"Ah How ah," said my Ah Gong. "When you grow up, you must study hard. One day I will bring you back to China to see our old house there. Won't that be good?"
"Yes, Ah Gong!" I exclaimed. "When? When? When can we go?"
"Hahaha hahaha.." laughed the old man. "Ha ha ha... Good good.. soon.. Hahahaha..."
* * * *
"Hahaha... Hahahaha.. Papa, you see what 哥哥 (big brother) is doing!" chuckled AhLiXMM on the coach beside me.
Her laughter jolted me back to the present from my reverie.
I looked across and saw the children having their own share of fun on the coach as we made our way.
As I looked out the window again, it struck me that although my Ah Gong didn't manage to personally bring me back to the old house in the village, we have managed to bring our children back to the ancestral land. Quietly I told myself that we've accomplished what my Ah Gong hoped for. For me, that is good enough.
"Ok, we are reaching our destination soon," announced our guide.
Your children (like those of their generation) are very lucky.
Once inside the Tulou, all of us were either marvelling in awe at the structure, or shooting our heads off with our cameras.
Here I just couldn't help but fire off a salvo of shots with the Lensbaby, from a window out from the second or third level of the Tulou.
Still on the Lensbaby...
Here I just couldn't help but fire off a salvo of shots with the Lensbaby, from a window out from the second or third level of the Tulou.
Still on the Lensbaby...
Here are just three shots of the Tulou from the inside with slightly different renditions...
... and this one is an IR shot...
Nice shots of the Tulou, I hope to visit some day.
Thanks so much for appreciating my shots, DMajor.
These Tulou clusters are lovely. One would go simply crazy shooting them.
Enjoyed your travelogue. Is your family register the same as the Hukou system or is it separate? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hukou_system The Japanese also have a family register called Koseiki.
Was there good air circulation in the Tulou or was it warm?
Was there good air circulation in the Tulou or was it warm?
Thank you so much, lydialee!
I am one who any how writes.. Haha...
Absolutely! Daoyin you are right. I'm sure in due course, SgTrekker will be poisoned sufficiently (and if they are not so tired after all their travelling) to explore all these other places!
Thanks for your encouragement, K3N!
I have absolutely no idea whether my family register is the Hukou system, really.
Hahaha... I am just happy to be there and to see things yah! But this time round... no vintage cars!
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Omg, I just stumbled onto this thread and you have no idea how heart-warming it is to read and see this?
Cos I'm also Teochew and my grandfather is from Swatow! And my surname is also Lim! Maybe we're related many many many many gens ago ahahahaha!
I'm ashamed that we haven't really done much tracing of our own ancestory, except that we come from the line of a certain Lin Da Qing, an imperial scholar. Our ancestral home in Swatow still has the "Lin Fu" pillar standing high but the rest of the compound is either in ruins or repossessed by the government....
... you have inspired us to see if such a trip can be planned for my family!
So, for that, many thanks and it's was very touching and in a way, personal, to read your travelogue.
Cos I'm also Teochew and my grandfather is from Swatow! And my surname is also Lim! Maybe we're related many many many many gens ago ahahahaha!
I'm ashamed that we haven't really done much tracing of our own ancestory, except that we come from the line of a certain Lin Da Qing, an imperial scholar. Our ancestral home in Swatow still has the "Lin Fu" pillar standing high but the rest of the compound is either in ruins or repossessed by the government....
... you have inspired us to see if such a trip can be planned for my family!
So, for that, many thanks and it's was very touching and in a way, personal, to read your travelogue.
Hi Mr Lim, I've just come across your excellent travelogue and I actually planning to do an ancestor tracing trip to Longyan and visiting some of the places you did. It will be around mar/apr 2014. However, we (around 12 pax) need a guide to plan for our transport, accommodation & food plus sightseeing for about 8 days. Would you be able to recommend a local guide to us ? thank you in advance.
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