The Kumkuat Korner

Do you remember when Jacky Chan and Chris Tucker in the fighting scene and they caught themselves from plunging to their deaths by hanging off the bamboo in one of the shots of Rush Hour 2?  Chris Tucker was like "Lord Jesus, I don't wanna die!" And Jackie Chan said: "Don't worry...." Well, he's right. Chinese Bamboo is so strong and so cheap that its used as scaffolding instead of metal here in Hong Kong and some parts of developing Asian countries. I was taken aback by how many buildings were constructed with bamboo as scaffolding material as opposed to the more modern metal scaffolding. A quick search over the internet discovered that there are three types of bamboo scaffolding and a bigger decline of jobs in the bamboo scaffolding business due to the younger generation not seeing bamboo as a safe material and prefer jobs with metal scaffolding. Construction car heading to their work site with bamboo in their cab. Now. If ever th...

Hello my lovies!  Sorry I've been away so long. I made a post about making a video of how to cut dragon fruit but I couldn't get the video to play and ended up deleting the post. I'll figure out how to do that somehow. So like I promised in my previous post I am going to answer some of the questions I have received  about my travels here in China. The question everyone keeps asking me is  Are you learning Chinese? This requires a post on its own.  No and yes. Chinese is popularly misconstrued as a language and almost always we don't do anything about it to correct it.  Its like people saying "Do you speak American ?"  Or even dumber saying, "Do you speak Mexican ?"  The correct term is Mandarin. However, it has become very common, even among the Chinese people to say "Do you speak Chinese?" Because the literal word for the Chinese language is Zhong wèn  and it can be used as an adjective or noun to literally mean  Chinese. ...

I haven't really traveled anywhere this month so I thought I would write post about things that interest you guys. I received a private message from a friend who always reads my blog about dragon fruit. What does it taste like? Why are they white? More importantly, how does one peel the fruit? I will be writing a step by step process of dragon fruit and what it taste like. I will also try to incorporate a video (Still trying to figure that one out.) So what about you? Is there a topic you'd be interested in reading about? Send me a message or write a comment below with any inquiries. As always, Zai Jian!

Me, Martin, Pati, Valeria and Andrea after passing through inspection. I know it's been a ( LOOOOOONG ) while  since I've been to the Forbidden City but I just felt like THIS post needed so much BACKGROUND information. More of the amazing rich history that is needed to understand the pictures. And that required more time. So I hope I have done justice these pictures as I take you on my trip to the Forbidden City Palace. You're probably are wondering, "Why is it called the Forbidden City?" Well, that's because back in ancient China, only the Emperor and all of his court people could live in the Palace, and because of this, no one, I mean,  NO ONE,  could leave nor enter without his permission. If they did, you would be severely punished. More than likely with your life. Anyways... Meridan Gate before the Gate of Supreme Harmony The first thing you notice about the Forbidden City are the massive walls that surround the ...