[Writing] 浴廁之內

舒服自在猶如在家裡，除了媽媽的廚房、媽媽的床以外，或許就是浴室與廁所了。浴廁的重要，至今才深深體悟到。外出需要上廁所第一個反應總是皺眉頭，上到乾淨的廁所即使出遊開心的前提。上山也是，那種對面是雄壯的南湖山及被熏死三六九的茅廁完全是不一樣的感覺。哦，不對，剛剛在浴室沖熱澡想到的不是在這些地方，要先從宿舍講起。不，先從今天我的浴廁如何被侵犯講起。

前兩個禮拜，洗臉台莫名其妙的堵塞，洗澡也會小淹水，前兩天洗澡ING燈泡忽然變暗一半。今天來了一個水電工，不，是一對水電工作人員。中間的過程跳過不講，也沒什麼好講。他對工作致敬到徒手徒腳吐血幫我弄好洗手台，我要尊重前代為台灣發展默默作出貢獻的人。我對吃檳榔與抽煙的都沒意見，我外婆嚼檳郎，老爹老弟都抽煙；但是大叔你在我浴廁內吐檳郎丟煙蒂，不小心還一腳踩爛檳郎渣，我不對你翻白眼也不行。還真好奇在陌生人的廁所內吃檳榔和抽煙會是什麼樣的滋味呢？目前這間廁所沒有抽風機，相當封閉的空間，每當洗完澡都要全開門讓它風乾。他離開後，我花了一個小時多把我的廁所整理，最後還特地泡了香噴噴的柔衣劑熏香浴廁。一打開馬桶禁不住飚了粗話，甘，馬桶一片紅通通；邊洗洗刷刷，邊想念家裡的浴廁。

很小很小的時候，浴廁大概只有兩平米吧的空間吧。一個蹲廁所、一個半米的平台加一個半米高的水池，阿，那就只有一平半，洗澡時面對水池背對蹲式馬桶。水池上有鐵絲的天井，白天有充裕的陽光，晚上有一閃閃的星星，開玩笑的啰，最好看得到星星。洗早前要踏上池墻把樹白色膠板子扣上鐵絲網，不然洗到一半看到隔壁家的人影就刺激了，那麼剛好隔壁家有二樓的花園。初中吧，洗澡間一抬頭還他媽的看到了人影，慌到一路騎車騎到那小鎮最高的橋，傻傻地坐著發呆地看日落照耀蕩漾白江水，很久很久之後就默默地回家了。下雨也要扣上塑膠板，因為池裡有養魚，魚魚會跟著水越過池門跳到平台與水池一手掌寬的排水溝。剛開始有小魚大魚游來游去，到重建屋子之前只剩一條黑色的魚。我懷疑它已經成精了，一直吵媽媽炸著吃掉好不好。後來它的游到哪裡去，已不詳。浴廁的門是一塊腐朽的鐵板，上半邊還漏了一條縫隙。那時候老爹僱用矮高胖三個哥哥幫忙做工，所以每次洗澡前，要塞髒衣服到夾縫間，也不知道是誰叫的。吵架生氣的時候，爛鐵門忿怒地使勁力甩一把，還是沒甩壞，上鎖。靠在池邊看魚兒看青苔，看夠了就開門出去，那時候大人應該也走了。

[Trekking] Beidawu Mt. - town of cloud （北大武山）

Team: YZMC 

Time: Jan 20-23, 2015

Place: Pingtung-Taitung border

Difficulties: **** (4/5), since I din trek for half year + steepy with tree roots + muds + raining 

Intro 

     Beidawu mt. (北大武) locate in the border of Taitung and Pingtung county, the name literally means North Dawu, for there're South and West Dawu also, but less favorite trekking route for theirs difficulty and dangerous. Dawu in aboriginal language "karoroan" (which tribe?) means “very broad vision”.

For reference, this old drawing map would help. As you see, North Dawu (北大武山) and South Dawu (南大武山). For the position, I think Dawu mt. (大武山) is now called West Dawu (西大武山) (photo from internet)

    The mt. is 3092m height - highest peak of south Central Mt. Range and highest points of local regions. Rated as one of the 5 typical peaks of Taiwan, together with Jade(玉山), Snow (雪山), Nanhu mt (南湖大山), Hsiuguluan mt. (秀姑巒山). Total length is 9k from trail head, the one and only cabin  in half way (檜谷山莊).

In front of the cabin, with YZMC (2015 Jan)

      Near to the cabin, At 3.8k there's very nice view point call Guangmingding (光明頂), ideal for enjoying sunset and sea of cloud. Now the meaning very broad vision comes quite clear. It said in nice weather, from top of mt.  even Lanyu island (蘭嶼島) can be seen and from the edges, at night hikers can enjoy light of the town below. On the trip in Jan 2015, I didn't see any of them at all, it was  raining all along the day we headed to the top. Fortunately, the sun smiled at us sometime and gave some nice scene at 3.8k. 

Trekking route GPS (from internet)

Historical and Cultural 

     In wikipedia, it's mentioned that Beidawu is considered a holy mt. of Paiwan tribe (排灣族) who had been living here for long long time, symbol for The tribe's wisdom and culture. However, as I know, there's one ancestral temple near top of mt, Dawuci (大武祠) and inside placed one stone tablet of Stemona snake totem of Rukai tribe (魯凱族). Back to Dawuci itself, it was build in 1931 (under Japan rule time), with very typical Japanese shrine gate (torii). What a pity, in 2015 Jan when I came visited, it collapsed. 

Photo from internet

[Trans] Midnight restaurants (Quán khuya)

Original: Nguyễn Ngọc Tư, Mấy cụm khói rời, Đong tấm lòng, 2015, HCMC: Tre Publisher.
Copy right belong to author. This translation only my hobbies and respect to her works.

Sudden light brighten between two broken sleeps, those kiosks places at sides of the country road, selling food at midnight til breaking dawn; usually they make my mind flows, as if there are people, haunting or waiting. It takes some times, and rub my eyes several times to realize that light is not dreaming. Sleeping in the coach is a vaguely mixing of dreams and real life. Coughing sounds of the elderly seating next by just perfectly matched with the face of grandma who pass away long time ago.The sad melody turned on by the young driver trying to light up this boredom, now becomes the background of a shadow gliding on the river. Everything just be confirmed not dreaminess when the coach stops, and people sleepily get off.

Midnight restaurants.

[Trans] Cluster of haze (Mấy cụm khói rời)

Original: Nguyen Ngoc Tu*,  Mấy cụm khói rời, Đong tấm lòng, 2015, HCMC:  Tre Publisher. 

Copy right belong to author. This translation for cultural view exchange purpose. 

Seven Mountain Area, Angiang, Vietnam (photo from Internet)

Every morning, the small alley always wet. The wave from river swallow the small street, the  water drop from those clothes laying on that inclined fence, the washing drain full of detergent bubbles and spoiled veggies. The tears and snivels of children begging for some nickels to buy snacks, next to them mothers sitting, drying their newly wash - still wetting long hair. Their skin mix in one shape with the darkness of shadow of the alley. 

Nobody knows what change makes people uprooted the whole Khmer village from faraway Seven Mountains area, then grew them inside this urban city zone, together with the temple. People here used to call the place - Khmer alley. Each time pass by, the thought of after fifty years they're still out of place keep haunting me. Not for their curly hair or big eyes, or  dark bold eye rims, or brown skin that not integrate with other ethnics; but the solitary that shows in the paces of their lives, the looks in their eyes and the ways that they sit. Urban city streams can't stop them from lower their paces within those woebegone old shacks, and nobody knows what are they thinking  while their eyesight not a moment stay at any point.

The furthest view point seems endless, where the fields stand together with those Palmyra trees, those gaunt cows and the dried yellow grass. That's my imagine. In their motionless standing or sitting, they wandered through cow race festival where the couple (in their age of fifteen or seventeen) sneaked out and hanged out together for the first time. The low limestone hillock that the man traced after the trail to set animal traps. The Moon festival that held right in middle of temple's yard with the background of five-tones music.

The children climb on neem trees and drum and sing out loud the melodies. In land of memories, the feast atmosphere  not yet exhausted, already fulfill again by several festival each year. Or maybe they think nothing, the pass is too faraway, while future have none to think about. 

[Culture] On Pig-slaughtering Ritual Ceremony: from the view of cultural study

This is the compiled article, inspired by and mostly based on the interview of Prof. Tran Ngoc Them, on the debating topic: "should pig-slaughtering fest. be kept or revoked?" 

Start of Ritual Ceremony  (Source: Internet)

About Pig-slaughtering Fest. and its spirits (media untold part)

When: 

Lunar Year, Jan 6th. 

Where:

Nem Thuong village, Tien Du,  Bac Ninh, Vietnam 

Spirit: 

The villagers practice this traditional ritual in the spirit of memorializing a General in Ly's dynasty(1009–1225), who slaughtered the boar to raise the local army to fight with invaders*.  

 Ritual

• The pig raisers also being chosen from those families with lot of children and happiness life, especially get good skill in raising pigs. 
• The slaughterers must be healthy, with happy family background and exact age of 50. 
• Two chosen pigs for the ritual are sacred and fully respected and was calling "Ông Ỉn" (Pig deity - as my translation). 
• In the day, they were paraded around the village, accompanied by formal teams of drums, trumpets, parasol and villagers prepared their tray of offerings to show their sincerity and giving economic contribution to the community.
• The main ritual is to slaughter Pig deity in just one blow (for purpose of immediately release His souls from purgatory ), with cheering from the crowd.
• Pork is considered sacred, and would be shared for every villagers after praying to the God.
• While pig blood is considered bringing luck, prime, fertility, liveliness and good harvest...After the ritual, villagers tend to dip stuffs or money into pig blood to pray for luck.
• After the ritual, villagers come back home for lunch. In the afternoon, they gather to join entertaining activities like rice - cooking contest...