Stories about East Asia from November, 2005
Japan: Moving Noodles
Amy Nakazawa at Blue Lotus describes the first meal she cooked in her new Tokyo apartment: hikkoshi soba — “Hikkoshi means moving, and soba are buckwheat noodles; and eating soba right after moving is the done thing in Japan.”
Malaysia: Malay Identity
The Silent Room grapples with what kind of Malay he is. “While being brought up with strong Malay values, they also made sure I was able to converse in English before I set foot in primary school. I was taught to bow and extend my right hand forward when walking...
Philippines: Games Preparation
Jove Francisco has pictures of the preparations for the 2005 Southeast Asian Games in Manila.
Singapore: Blogger Domination
Singaporeans believe that their society has the characteristics for global blogosphere domination, as evidenced by their grip on top Technorati searches! Agree or disagree? Follow the discussion at theory.isthereason.
South Korea: APEC Protests Again
Wondering how the protests at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Busan, South Korea, went last week? kotaji has been covering them, as has Two Koreas.
Thailand: Majesty
Sarasonteh covers the perils of using Thailand's king “to make one's arguments.”
Vietnam: Wedding Season
Vietnamese God comments on the October-to-January wedding “happy season” in Vietnam, and recounts how cat was served at one nuptial he attended.
China: Sentenced Church Leader
Chinese Christian Jidian has posts in English discussing the case of Cai Zhuohua, the leader of several Beijing area home Christian churches, who was arrested in 2004 and sentenced earlier this month. Some bloggers like Wang Yi, believe the case is a key one for freedom of worship in China.
Singapore: Death Penalty Questions
From a Singapore Angle picks apart the U.N. Special Rapporteur's comments that Singapore's mandatory death penalty is against international law.
South Korea: Exam Eve
Gusts of Popular Feeling describes the night before the big, life-determining college entrance exam in South Korea.
Thailand: Manners Contest
At Thai-blogs.com, Richard observes a school competition in Thailand for the best manners.
Vietnam: Best of Saigon
Foodblogger noodlepie lists in one post his recommendations for the best places in Saigon for food.
Cambodia: Euthanasia Websites, Water Festival, and More
Euthanasia Websites An American citizen who owned websites advocating ‘euthanasia tourism’ in Kampot, a French-era beach town, has been sued by Kampot Province's governor for false information and defamation. “You are going to die anyway, so why not in Cambodia?” said one of the sites, which also offered a rationale...
Cambodia: Surprised by A Kiss
travel-itch is surprised by a kiss from the owner of a Cambodian internet cafe.
China: Blogger Sneaks into Church to See Bush
Chinese blogger-reporter Buzhesiliu snuck into a church (Chinese) to see U.S. President George W. Bush attend a service. EastSouthWestNorth has a translation of the report, while danwei puts the Bush service in context of the U.S. President's visit to China.
China, Taiwan: Bombs and Rockets
MeiZhongTai tries to figure out exactly what China's missile arsenal can do, especially against Taiwan.
Indonesia, Peru: National ID
Yosef Ardi welcomes Indonesia's decision to implement a single ID number, which leads him to think about Peruvian economist Hernando de Soto's theories in The Mystery of Capital. Says Ardi: “I imagine the single identification number would be the first organized property owned by Indonesian.”
Malaysia: Non-Aligned News
Malaysia's Mack Zulkifli hopes against hope that the proposed Non-Aligned Movement Network will indeed live up to its promise.
Singapore: Lost Cause?
Chemical Generation Singapore adds his voice to a discussion on say-so.org on the theme: Is freedom of speech a lost cause in Singapore?
China, Southeast Asia, Malaysia, Taiwan: Giant Partner
KTemoc Konsiders says that ex-PM Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia would be happy to know that China is now ASEAN's biggest export market and the putative leader of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. At least the prospect of making money through trade with the U.S., he says, should prevent China...
China, Japan, Korea: Superiority Complex
Yaw and Mog worry about Japan's disturbing superiority complex, lately evidenced by two best-selling comics that belittle Korea and China.
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