HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Xīn Nián Kuài Lè!
CHINESE NEW YEAR BANQUET
Come and join us to welcome in
Sunday, 17th February 2013 at 6.30 pm, Dragons Restaurant, 25 Tory St
The Programme will include our traditional Quiz Contest and Raffles.
Ambassador Xu Jianguo will be attending.
The cost, including wine and juice, is $38 per person for non-members and $33 for financial members
To book, please send the attached form to the Treasurer by Friday, 15th February.
The attached registration form also includes a membership renewal form if you are not able to attend the banquet but still wish to renew your society membership.
Electronic Banking is available for payment. Details are provided on the registration form. When making an electronic payment, please ensure your name is specified as part of the payment details.
No last minute arrivals please.
ALSO COMING UP THIS MONTH (see below for details)
14 February, 6:30pm Celebrating Chinese New Year: Jade, Jazz, and Journeys 蛇, Te Papa
14 February, 7:30pm NZSO Martial Arts Trilogy, Michael Fowler Centre
16 February, 10:30am Chinese New Year 2013 蛇, te Papa
16, 23 February, 3:15pm Mandarin Corner, 24 Kelburn Parade
28 February, 7:00pm Chinese Film, 101 Wakefield St
IDIOM OF THE MONTH (from Ellen Yang)
两相情愿 liǎng xiāng qíng yuàn
both sides are willing to do the thing; by mutual consent
REPORT ON LAST MEETING – Joy Bickley Asher
China is likely to have a big impact on Wellington and on other New Zealand cities in the future. This was the main message conveyed by Her Worship the Mayor Celia Wade-Brown in her presentation to the November 2012 meeting of the Wellington branch of the NZ China Friendship Society. She was invited to speak to members about recent mayoral delegations to China and to share her impressions from personal, cultural, business and political viewpoints. A distinctive feature of mayoral delegations is the degree of formality involved. Nevertheless, it isn’t all seriously hard work and the Wellington delegations also have a lot of fun while they are in China.
Wellington has sister city relationships with Beijing, Xiamen and Tianjin. The relationship with Tianjin dates back to 2000 when a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Mayor of Wellington Mark Blumsky and Vice Mayor of Tianjin Liang Su. The partnership initially focused on fostering the sharing of scientific, technical and policy expertise in the handling of the common threat of earthquakes. More recently, Mayor Celia Wade-Brown and Tianjin Mayor Huang Xingguo signed the agreement to set up a friendship city relationship in Tianjin on 22 July 2011.
The main aims of the most recent visit to China of thirty Wellington delegates were to enhance capital-to-capital connections and to support the Wellington economy. Ms Wade-Brown observed some significant favourable developments. For example:
The twelfth China World Wildlife Fund five year plan is the greenest yet
There is a discernible shift from maximizing economic growth to achieving a balance between the economy and the environment
Increasingly trade is focusing on services rather than manufacturing
Tianjin is developing ecologically sustainable urban water systems
Connections made during previous trips were shown to be worthwhile through continuing developments.
In Ms Wade-Brown’s view, what we in Wellington need to do is to increase the level of reciprocity with Chinese businesses and local government officials. This will result in greater opportunities for Wellington businesses in China. Mayoral delegations to China also provide opportunities to showcase the similarities between Chinese and Wellingtonian aspirations and to demonstrate what we think is right, e.g., on environmental issues.
MEETING DATES FOR 2013
Your committee has organised the following meeting dates for 2013. Please mark these dates in your diary:
Wed 20 March, Wed 17 April, Wed 15 May, Sun 23 June, Sun 21 July, Wed 21 August, Wed 18 September, Wed 16 October, Wed 20 November. Note that the June meeting is on the 4th Sunday in June (rather than the 3rd Sunday). We welcome suggestions for possible speakers for these meetings.
NEW MEMBERS
A warm welcome to the following new members, with apologies to some for the belated nature of this welcome: Russell Metge, Lee Tan, Jacob Toner, Colin Chen-Fah Koo & Jackie Loi-Mam Lee, Annette Meates & John King and Della Randall.
SUBSCRIPTION RENEWALS
Subscriptions for 2013 are now due. Please use the attached Banquet/Subscription form. We prefer that you fill in all the details on the subscription form each year to confirm that we have your correct details. Please note that from this year any subscriptions renewals not received by the end of April will result in cancellation of society membership. This is a result of a remit passed at the 2011 National Society AGM held in Wellington.
DAVID WARD
It is with great sadness that we note the passing of David Ward on December 7th, on his 81st birthday. David and Catherine have been members of NZCFS Wellington Branch for more than 15 years, and regular attenders of our monthly meetings and banquets.
Our thoughts are with Catherine in this time of sadness.
NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING – WEDNESDAY MARCH 20, 2013
This is the first notice for the Branch AGM which will be held on Wednesday, 20 March 2013 at 5.45pm at Connolly Hall. Nominations are invited for President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and seven Committee members. Nomination forms will be available in the next issue of the Newsletter. Also in the next Newsletter, there will be information on current officers and committee members who are prepared to serve for another year.
Members please consider standing for one of the elected positions. This is your society, but if we cannot find enough members to act as the committee, then the society must cease to function.
CHINESE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION DIRECTORS VISIT NZ (from Doreen Launder)
The China New Zealand Education Trust (CNZET) developed and managed a 5-day study programme for 31 Chinese Directors, from 16 provinces and municipalities, in November 2012. The programme covered both ECE and Junior School curriculum, student and child assessment, programme evaluation, cultural diversity, teacher education and teacher professional development. The Delegation visited both non-formal (Playgroups) and formal (Licensed) ECE and Schools. In China children start school in the year they turn seven. ECE, or Basic Education as it is known in China, covers 3 to 6+ year age children. The Delegation also visited the Correspondence School and Waiwhetu Marae and Museum.
During the visit the Delegation Leader, Professor Zheng Ming, Professor at North West Normal University, gave a presentation on Chinese early learning practices and policies. The visit builds on a long standing ECE relationship between China and NZ. The relationship stemmed from 1994 when a small NZ ECE Delegation, led by NZCFS member Betty Armstrong, visited and lectured in Guizhou. There have been many ECE exchange study visits, and much mutual learning, between our two countries over the past 18 years.
(Doreen Launder is a Trustee of the CNZET)
MANDARIN CORNER 汉语角 3.15pm – 4.30pm Saturdays during school terms
Mandarin Corner will resume on Saturday 16 February 2013
Victoria University of Wellington, Seminar Room, 20 Kelburn Parade.
Gold coin donation.
Open to all ages, all levels. One to one, or small groups. Two sessions in February 2013:
16 February – The Peony Pavilion (Dance drama) 舞剧《牡丹亭》
23 February – Stamp for Year of the Snake 2013 蛇年生肖邮票
Contact: Ellen Yang (04) 473-7558，[email protected]。
CHINESE CHINESE FILM 中国电影
Date: Thursday 28th February Time: 7.00pm
Venue: Committee Room One, Wellington City Council, 101 Wakefield Street. Gold coin donation.
7.00pm: Documentary – Traditional Chinese Medicine 中医药文化
7.30pm: Riding alone for thousands of miles, 千里走单骑 [2005]
Director: Zhang Yimou 张艺谋 Stars：Takakura Ken 高仓健， Kiichi Nakai 中井贵一， Li Jiamin 李加民
A Japanese father travels to China’s Yunnan province in the place of his ailing son to film a famous folk-opera star. 父亲高田却为了完成儿子的意愿，从日本赶往云南拍摄李加民唱的傩戏《千里走单骑》。
With Support from Confucius Institute, Victoria University of Wellington. www.victoria.ac.nz/ci/
NEW ZEALAND POST RELEASES YEAR OF THE SNAKE STAMP SET
NZ Post has issued a set of 4 stamps commemorating the Year of the Snake. See the NZ Post website at: stamps.nzpost.co.nz/new-zealand/2013/year-snake for further details. A brochure describing this is attached (or enclosed with posted copies). Thanks to NZ Post for providing postage for this issue of our newsletter.
REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
One of our newsletter readers has sent in the following request. If any of our readers can help, please respond to the email address contained in his message:
I wonder if a reader of your newsletter has up to date knowledge of the outskirts of Chongqing please?
My parents were married in Chongqing in 1940 and I am keen to establish if the little church where they were married is still there and available to visit? The following is taken from an account of the event:
‘First of all Liang-Feng Ya is located on the second range of hills, just outside the city of Chungking and is a little over one hour’s journey from the banks of the mighty Yangtze River on which Chungking stands.
The name “Liang-Feng Ya” means ‘cool breezes pass’ and is fully descriptive of the beautiful place, and so to cool-breezes pass people resort in the heat of summer that they may rest and recuperate from the burden and heat of the day.
On the hillsides in the vicinity of the pass you will discover numerous bungalows belonging to Mission bodies and other residents of the city. These buildings stand in delightful surroundings made beautiful through the
efforts of the owners who in years gone by planted and tendered the stately pines and eucalyptus gum trees which adorn the slopes. In the distance, down through the valleys acres upon acres of rice fields spread out before one’s raptured gaze as giving evidence of the inherent industry of the people of this great land of China. Spread before one are small canals and channels, ponds and tiny pools all harnessed together to nourish the fields of China’s staple food.
Approaching Liang-Feng Ya from the city one sees in the distance a little church on the hillside, and it is to this little building that we direct our thoughts and our footsteps today. It was erected years ago as a
memorial to Dr. Wolfendale’.
If you happen to be reading this and are able to provide up to date information about the Dr Wolfendale Memorial Church in Liang-Feng Ya, Chongqing, I will be most grateful if you can contact me by email at [email protected] Thank you, Graham Gibbs, Porirua, New Zealand
SNAKE BABIES ANYONE? (by Luke Qin 秦瞳)
After a bumper year for birth rates both in China and overseas Chinese communities that saw Dragon Babies popping out left, right and centre and a bright young Chinese lady openly advertising her availability in New Zealand the prospect of having a Snake baby in 2013 may not be as appetizing for snakes are often much-maligned with fear, disgust and can be used as a lowly rhetoric to describe a human being in the West.
Fortunately Aotearoa is among a few places (Ireland, Iceland, Greenland, Antarctica and some small islands of the Atlantic and central Pacific) on Mother Earth where trampers don’t have to worry about the slithering menace.
However, as all expecting parents would agree that people born in the Year of the Snake are reputed to be thoughtful and wise, and approach problems rationally and logically, not to mention that you are unlikely to have your fingers snapped at! After all, famous “Snakes” include MAO Zedong, SONG Qingling, Abraham Lincoln, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Mahatma Gandhi, Pablo Picasso, Brad Pitt, and Oprah Winfrey. True Harry Potter fans will also be able to tell you that not all in the House of Slitherin are bad…
Let us all pray Snake babies born this year will grow to be wise, cool, calm and collected and will keep the real bad guys at bay.
MORE NEW YEAR EVENTS
1) Te Papa is staging two free events to celebrate the new Year of the Snake, on 14th and 16th February. See:
www.tepapa.govt.nz/WhatsOn/allevents/Pages/CelebratingChineseNewYearJadeJazzandJourneys.aspx and www.tepapa.govt.nz/WhatsOn/allevents/Pages/ChineseNewYear2013.aspx for further details.
2) To mark the Year of the Snake, Academy Award-winning composer Tan Dun returns to New Zealand to welcome in the Chinese New Year and conduct the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra in a thrilling performance of his Martial Arts Trilogy on Feb 14 at 7:30pm at the Michael Fowler Center. You can get a 15% discount if you say “SYMPHONY15” when you book at Ticketek. See www.nzso.co.nz/news/post/2013/01/nzso-welcomes-tan-dun-chinese-new-year/
