CHINA: Provincial Town Fuqing Celebrates 'Senior Citizens Activity'

Columnist Ziying gets a glimpse of the charms of daily life of Fuqing, an affluent provincial town in Fujian, China. FUJIAN, China (The Malaysia Star), July 19, 2006: ONE of the best ways to determine the pulse of a place is to stroll down its streets, and central Fuqing is a town made for walking. Its bustling sidewalks may be uneven in places and the cars blind to pedestrians, but the shops lining the streets, the snack vendors and the friendly citizens make walking in Fuqing a pleasure. Fuqing has many shops and restaurants staffed by friendly sales assistants. On a sunny spring morning, I followed a lively folk melody to the small park in front of my hotel. Here I encountered a scene typical of many Chinese towns and cities. Housewives and retired people were milling around doing their morning exercises. A group of women holding big red fans danced while others practised taiji or swordplay; elderly men played Chinese musical instruments under a spreading tree, accompanying an old gentleman who sang arias from traditional operas; a gaggle of rag-tag shoeshine kids from neighbouring Jiangxi province offered to clean shoes at just one Renminbi (RM0.50) per pair. Suddenly, through the hustle and bustle came the sound of drums and cymbals and a sea of red appeared 'senior men and women in red sweatsuits marching in tandem and waving large red flags' while white-uniformed drummers beat out a rhythm on their red waist drums (yaogu). The ones in front held a horizontal banner that read 'Fuqing City Tenth All-citizens Keep Fit Festival' "Senior Citizens' Activity". At a pedestrian crossing, rosy-cheeked schoolchildren in pink uniform dashed past in high spirits, presumably on their way to join the festivities. Anyone who has travelled to China will be familiar with the high-pressured sales pitch of many of the shopkeepers and merchants. Surprisingly, I found this not to be the case in Fuqing; shopping is one of the simple pleasures of this provincial town. Best of all, the prices are reasonable and mostly fixed, so there is no need to haggle. Drummers beating out a rhythm on waist drums during a street parade in Fuqing. In Fujian, tea is an integral part of life and no town, Fuqing included, would be complete without its teashops and teahouses, where tea is served with grace and artistry and where friendships are forged and business deals sealed. Tea is considered the quintessence of hospitality and many a time, I have seen people wander into a teashop, sit down for a sip, then wander out with a friendly nod from the proprietor. And after a day on Fuqing's busy streets, nothing can be better than to escape into the calm and quiet of a teahouse and relax over tiny cups of Fujian's superb tieguanyin teas. E-mail: ziyingster@gmail.com Copyright 1995-2005 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd