“Journeys with Jane”

Next meeting: Friday 28 August

The full pdf of this newsletter is available at: NZCFSNelsonAugust2015.pdf

Having spent the last year in China, based in Shandan, Jane is back this month to resume her life in Nelson. 

While term-time in Gansu Province was spent teaching English at Shandan Bailie School, Jane did plenty of travelling in the holidays.

We have had the opportunity to read her interesting reports on the NZCFS website, and now we have the opportunity to hear some of her stories first-hand.

As usual, we will begin at 5.30 p.m. and then enjoy our buffet meal ($12 each), at 6 o’clock. Our speakers’ presentation will begin about 7 o’clock. 

Friends and visitors are most welcome but please notify Jeanette when you contact her so that we have accurate numbers for the meal.

(N.B. Please note the change of contact person while Barbara is away overseas.)

Friday 28 August  ..  Hearing House  ..  5:30 pm

To book please ring:

Jeanette Jones   ph. 545 0929   by Tuesday 25 August

text: 021 039 3226 or e-mail: [email protected]

LAST MEETING: 38 members and friends gathered at 5.30 p.m. on the last day of the month. During the first half hour there were reports about the July Huangshi delegation and previews of three more visiting groups from Huangshi: the Guang Chang Lu schoolchildren in August, a Mayoral delegation in September and a group of performers for China Week. 2015 is truly a momentous year for Sister City exchanges!

After the meal we settled down for some serious thinking about Traditional Chinese Medicine, under the auspices of our Nelson practitioners, John Black and Mark Soper. Members are very grateful for this introduction to a big topic, alongside some personal stories to demonstrate and support the efficacy of TCM.

AUGUST MEETING: As you will have seen, the Mongolia/Northern China tour report has been put on hold until the tourists have fully recovered. Instead we’ll be journeying with Jane in Gansu and elsewhere.

SEPTEMBER MEETING: As the full moon in September, and the change to daylight saving, are close to our usual meeting date, we have decided to gather in the Huangshi Garden on Sunday 27 September (from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.) instead of a Friday evening meeting. This will celebrate the Chinese Mid-Autumn (Mooncake) Festival and the arrival of our New Zealand spring.

SISTER CITY SCHOOLS’ ART EXHIBITION: 

We now have all the artwork from Huangshi, mostly transmitted electronically, but there are some originals, including calligraphy scrolls from Guang Chang Lu.

Our pictures show some samples of the wonderful work from the three Chinese schools that will be on display from 1 – 12 September at Refinery Artspace. 

These pictures come from Huangshi Social Welfare Institute, (paired with Maitai School), Guang Chung Lu (paired with St Joseph’s), and Huangshi #3 High School (paired with Nelson College for Girls).

NELSON ARTS FESTIVAL: Some of you may well be interested in this item from the October Festival:

“‘The Mooncake and the Kumara’ is a moving story about a mixed-up, Maori-Chinese love affair that sprouts among rows of potatoes.

Nearly 90 years ago on a New Zealand market garden, two families, one Maori and the other Chinese, became part of a romance that would uproot their lives over generations.

Layered with myth and fable and told in a rich mixture of English, Maori and Cantonese, ‘The Mooncake and the Kumara’ tells a story intertwined with history, duty, secrets and the delicate balance needed to grow families.”

THEATRE ROYAL: Wednesday 14 October, 7.30pm; Thursday 15 October, 7.30pm

Earlybird bookings are available now at the Theatre Royal or see: 

http://www.nelsonartsfestival.co.nz/shows/the-mooncake-and-the-kumara/

NELSON’S CHINA WEEK AND NEW ZEALAND CHINESE LANGUAGE WEEK:  7- 13 SEPT.

Nelson will be colourfully alive with exciting Chinese happenings in the second week in September. Many shows, entertainments, and opportunities will be available at a variety of venues, so do make a note of those you will be able to enjoy.

1. Nelson Branch is hosting 13 performers from Huangshi, who will be staying at Cedar Grove Motel and performing at various venues during the week, including the Refinery Artspace, Top of Trafalgar, and the community day at NMIT on Saturday 12th. The programme is soon to be published and will be on the Nelson City Council website at:

http://nelson.govt.nz/recreation/festivals-and-events/china-week/

2. We are also hosting the Nelson-Huangshi Schools’ Art Exhibition at Refinery Artspace from  September 1-12, with an opening gathering on Tuesday 1 September from 4:30 to 6 p.m. 

Please RSVP to Kathy Beatson (see invitation below) if you would like to attend the opening, or come and see the exhibition between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. any weekday. For more information, see our posting on the NZ Chinese Language Week website:

http://nzclw.com/events/nelson/nelson-china-week.html

Thanks to those who have offered their help with the exhibition – you will be contacted soon.

You and your family are invited 

Nelson-Huangshi 

Schools’ Art Exhibition Opening

尼尔森-黄石校园艺术展开幕式 

Refinery Artspace, Halifax Street, Nelson

Tuesday 1 September, 4.30 – 6.00 p.m.

Original works from Nelson students at Maitai School,

St. Joseph’s School and Nelson College for Girls.

Prints of artwork from students in sister-schools in Huangshi.

RSVP by Monday 24 August

with numbers attending to [email protected] or ph 547 9940.

3. Community Day at NMIT on Saturday 12 September. Nelson Branch will be running a stall, selling Chinese artifacts, books, DVDs, and Chinese teas for our scholarship funds. Mark Soper will be promoting his Chinese health teas nearby. Thanks to those who have offered to help. There will be more details soon.

4. A six-person Huangshi Mayoral Delegation will be here for some special events being arranged by the Nelson City Council on Tuesday 8 September. The Huangshi-Nelson Sister City Memorandum of Understanding will be re-signed at the Council Chamber on that day, and NZCFS members who have been associated with Huangshi will be invited by the Mayor’s office to witness the occasion. Those invitations will be sent by email. Nelson Branch is providing transport for this delegation during their short, two-night visit.

5. Bill Findlater and The Nelson Regional Economic Development Agency have arranged a business and trade day on Wednesday 9 September to add this important aspect of our local connections with China.

6. There will be many other events available for you and your friends and family to enjoy. Please check the programme when it is published and support this Nelson initiative which is bringing Chinese language and culture to the public, connecting school children in Nelson and Huangshi, and celebrating 20 years of Sister City links with Huangshi.

The full schedule of events will be available very soon on the Nelson City Council website:

http://nelson.govt.nz/recreation/festivals-and-events/china-week/china-week-schedule/

Visit from Huangshi to Nelson

by Guang Chang Lu Primary School Students

Any trepidation on the faces of the 16 children from Guang Chang Lu Primary School quickly evaporated when they arrived to a warm welcome by branch members. Joy then set in when they heard that their next stop would be a farm visit where Colin and Marilyn Gibbs delighted them with their hospitality.

As well as time with their Nelson host families and a day at local schools, there were visits to Founders Park, the Nelson market and some much-loved souvenir shopping. At Tahunanui Beach, the barbecue and sand play were very popular, as was feeding the ducks in The Huangshi Garden. Fun in the sunshine at Kaiteriteri and the Riwaka Resurgence showed the region at its best. The action-packed itinerary, so well-organised by Barbara and Roy Markland, made this a hugely memorable school holiday trip.

Finally, the children performed a delightful concert, and artwork from their school was presented for the coming Huangshi-Nelson Schools’ Art Exchange exhibition. Thanks are due to Barbara and Roy Markland, participating schools, MLAs Gina and Emma, Colin and Marilyn Gibbs, host families, drivers, member hosts, helpers and those who attended the concert.