Friday, December 08, 2006

101 Tapei: the world's largest steel orb inside the tallest building


IMG_0154
Originally uploaded by nimobimo.
Mrs. Lisa (Lihui) Wu, Magnet parent, and Mrs. Hsu Lee Liu, both of Taiwan and, now, Shreveport, visited classes this week.

Among the topics we covered:
* Feng Shui (Literally, "wind" & "water"), the arrangement of the elements of your life, principally buildings and furniture, so that your life will be healthy and wealthy.
* Chinese numerals and the the 4 tones of the Taiwanese dialect.
* 101 Taipei, the world's tallest building. Built in earthquake-prone Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, it has a special steel ball housed near the top that balances the sway.
* Chop stick technique.
* Chinese cookies and dessert.
* Stir fried rice.

In my class notes:
* wok and quick stir fry.
* Szechwan & Hunan regions, where the cooking is often peppery.
* soybean, the perfect food.

Bureaucrats and bureaucracy: may be inflexible, obstructive ("never admit error," "chain of command") and prone to random bias. But also may be enlightened. Sketch: people behind large desks.

Repousse: working a pattern into malleable metal by tracing and chasing a design. An ancient art. See the Egyptians.