Qufu...finally

Sorry to those who look forward to our little blog here, we've been busy and/or lazy the last couple of weeks, but we are still here. If I can remember correctly, I believe we left you with a nice big bowl of hotpot. That must mean you need to read about Qufu next. Here goes...

First off, let's work on our pronunciation! This is how you say Qufu: choo-foo. Leave those Q's for Latin-based languages.

Every city or village in China is famous for something. Usually it is some type of flower, delicious vegetable, or export (Ex. Qingdao - Tsingtao Beer), and Qufu is certainly no different. Qufu is the (disputed) home of the great Chinese thinker Confucius, or Kong(fu)zi to the Chinese. In fact, a lot of people in and around Qufu still have the surname Kong, and they are quick to claim Confucius in their ancestry. Here is a quick, and likely flawed, history of Confucius. Raised in Qufu (around 500 BCE), Confucius was well-educated and sought to be employed by emperors or local rulers, but never quite told them what they wanted to hear. He decided that he would instead concentrate on educating Chinese adolescents so that, one day, they would use his philosophy. Like many, Confucius' fame came after his death. There are claims of specific students, government jobs, and miracles, but as with most historical figures, it is hard to tell legend from fact. We do know that later empires saw the benefits of Confucian philosophy (such as knowing and staying within one's role and fitting into a harmonious society), and began implementing it. Jesuit missionaries brought Confucius back to the West where he is seen as a leading philosopher, and this popularity reinvigorated his status back in China. A guy named Mao came along and didn't care for him, but he died, and now it appears the Chinese are willing to celebrate his importance, though some are reluctant to celebrate his philosophy.

So Qufu takes advantage of this mystique and the beautiful village certainly has a lot to offer. It is a walled city, with very narrow (and crowded) roads. Street-vendors and shops are everywhere, but the city still manages to have a quaint appeal. Unfortunately, our stay in Qufu was all too short. We only got to visit the main Confucius Temple. The real treasures are supposedly hidden in the Confucius Forest, so we might just have to go back if time permits. We do have a few pictures to share, so enjoy!

As you can see above, the temple area is very lush with many different types of trees. I can't say the temple was anything greater than previous temples. Although, the insides of the buildings were usually more bare than a Buddhist temple. The tour guide would show us different buildings and relay a legend about who or what Confucius taught there. However, these building were built much, much later than Confucius, so basically, they act as monuments.

Another "must-have" for every Chinese temple is the Good Luck Tree that has been worn smooth from eager hands. However, these trees are much more important than all the others because Confucius planted these himself...uh-huh ;) There's the man of the blog himself, Confucius! This is the only idol or altar in the Confucius temple. Confucius isn't a Christ-like figure in case you were wondering. I think of this kind of like the Lincoln Memorial in DC. It is just a place Chinese can come and remember a great man. Of course, they do this differently then Americans would Abraham Lincoln, so one might see them bowing, burning incense, etc. Inscriptions of some sort and variety cover the stone wall. A classic gathering of knowledge and beauty. The Temple has these fantastic columns carved to look like dragons. The guide told us that these columns were much better than anything the emperor had in his palace at that time, so any time the emperor visited Qufu the columns were covered up and hidden from the emperor so that he would not lose face. I'm pretty happy that the emperor never destroyed them, because those columns are really beautiful, perhaps the highlight of the Confucian Temple. After we left the temple, we had a few minutes to kill so we walked down a street of vendors selling various Confucian trinkets. Every other vendor stand was selling "chops." Chops are Chinese stamps made out of jade or marble, and they have some kind of ornamentation on the top. The best thing about the stamps is that they can carve your name and Chinese name into the stamp. All the vendors had signs promising that "The Job is done in 5 minutes." We gave in, and 30 to 45 minutes later, we both had chops! Unfortunately, they are a little tough to photograph, but once we figure something out, we'll get it to you.

Well, that's our trip. We'll be telling you about our students, classes, and some funny moments in the next few blogs. Perhaps we'll even take you of a tour of our little suburb, Huangdao. I have to get back into shape, because this blog wore me out!

Happy Thanksgiving Break,

DB & KM