There is an ancient tale--more like a myth really--that has to do with two non-human entities called Sơn Tinh (the mountain god) and Thủy Tinh (the water god). My family told me of this tale (and other) myths and legends when I was a kid, so I knew the gist of this story which was quite... Continue Reading →
(Continued from Following the Ancient Scent of Trầm Hương 1) In one of my previous posts, Following the Ancient Scent of Trầm Hương 1, I touched upon the agarwood tree and how oud was processed. This post digs deeper into the dendrology (study of trees) of agarwood and the various types of agar resins. Ancient Origins... Continue Reading →
Tea has been a part of ancient Asia for a very long time. We know this because back in ancient times, Gramps (aka Shennong) had taken a trip to the Southern region where his mother lived. Along the way, it is said that some sort of leaves fell into a pot of water his people... Continue Reading →
Lì Xì Cats Every year, right around this time, I buy red lì xì money envelopes that have the corresponding animal to the year I'm in and give them out to all the little kids I know. Before you think that is extremely wasteful, I will hasten to assure you that the envelopes only contain a few... Continue Reading →
I have a very ancient multi-millennial ancestral grandpa. His name is Khương Thạch Niên (姜石年). Most folks know him as the farmer god. Yes. THAT farmer god known as Thần Nông (aka Shennong), the same one who gave us tea (among other things). Now, I don't like people who falsely claim famous relatives just to... Continue Reading →
(Continued from Au Revoir, Kitchen God) So, it's after midnight and my work with the Kitchen god is done, even though the rain never let up. I was going to edit the previous post to show photos of the preparations that I made, but I decided to create a second post because there was so... Continue Reading →
Welp. It's that time of the year again, when I send off ye merry gentle kitchen gods to the sky so they can pay homage to the Sky Lord. This is not a roaming date. It is fixed in stone (or at least renewable bamboo alternative). On the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month... Continue Reading →
Dó trầm Agarwood trees from the cliffs of Central Vietnam. I love perfumes. I have a small collection that I have carefully curated through the years, picking and choosing until I have the perfect scents for all seasons and reasons. There are the scents that are just heavenly, like Chanel Coco Mademoiselle and Guerlaine La... Continue Reading →
(Continued from Ten Conditions for Beauty in Ancient Times 1) As promised, here are the remaining Requirements of an Ancient Beauty, as written by an ancient scholar of anonymity. 5. The Three Arts So far, the first four requirements are something that is beyond the scope and ability of any young beauty of the day to... Continue Reading →
We all know what constitutes Beauty in our present-day world. The artificially constructed image created by the trillion-dollar beauty industry informs us in no uncertain terms, what is necessary to have in order to be considered Beautiful. The images show up everywhere we look to influence our lifestyle and to sell us things that we... Continue Reading →
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