My Blue Notes: 4/8/07

Thursday, April 12, 2007

中法文化对比清单

法国朋友不是很多，真正的朋友除了Pierre 和Cecile 也就没有了。他们的自信开朗、热情和疯狂是我认为的法国。但因为都是地球人，有很多事情也无法免俗。所以，Henri 就是另一类法国人了。

地球人（法国）　　　　　　　火星人（中国）
“我的”，“你的”　　　　　 “我们的”，“你们的”
享受服务　　　　　　　　　　请求批准
制服厌恶　　　　　　　　　　制服崇拜
警察保护隐私　　　　　　　　警察干涉隐私
遇事找政府　　　　　　　　　遇事找老爸
东西各就各位　　　　　　　　人各就各位
收信人地址在信封下方　　　　收信人地址在信封上方
底层楼　　　　　　　　　　　一层楼　　
黑色的葬礼　　　　　　　　　白色的葬礼
地图上法国是世界中心　　　　地图上中国是世界中心
“亚洲人长的全一个模样”　　　"欧洲人长的全一个模样”
“我”（手势指胸脯）　　　　　"我”（手势指鼻子）
巴黎人瞧不起外省人　　　　　北京人瞧不起外地人
晒黑　　　　　　　　　　　　美白
抬手叫出租车　　　　　　　　抬胳膊叫出租车
走在狗屎成堆的大街上　　　　吃狗肉
刀叉和面包　　　　　　　　　筷子和米饭
向坟墓上送鲜花　　　　　　　向坟墓送食品
甜早点　　　　　　　　　　　咸早点
安静而灰暗的餐馆　　　　　　吵闹而明亮的餐馆
“你好，走得好吗？”　　　　　“你好，吃了吗？”
勤洗澡　　　　　　　　　　　勤洗衣服　　
吐泡泡糖　　　　　　　　　　吐痰
骂人夸大其词　　　　　　　　恭维夸大其词
藐视权威　　　　　　　　　　尊重权威
让别人丢面子　　　　　　　　保全自己的面子
吹嘘所送礼物的价值　　　　　贬低所送礼物的价值
当客人面大呼小叫拆礼物　　　客人走后悄悄地看礼物
穿体恤杉旅游　　　　　　　　穿西装旅游
“新年好”　　　　　　　　　　“恭喜发财”　　
溜狗　　　　　　　　　　　　遛鸟
照景物相　　　　　　　　　　照人物相
坐在地上　　　　　　　　　　蹲在地上
汽车为责备他人而鸣笛　　　　汽车为警告他人而鸣笛
女人吸烟时尚　　　　　　　　男人吸烟时尚
多生孩子多补助　　　　　　　多生孩子多受罚

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Gay in Lhasa

Fridae’s Beijing correspondent Dinah Gardner travels to Lhasa, Tibet and speaks to young gay and lesbian Tibetans about their lives in the city's small yet flourishing queer scene.

How gay friendly is the Dalai Lama? Well, the charismatic exiled leader of Tibet says he supports gay and lesbian rights. But only for non-Buddhists. Same-sex intercourse, he says, is simply wrong for believers of his faith. In that case, he might be a tad unhappy then, to learn that Lhasa, capital of his estranged Himalayan kingdom, now has a small yet flourishing queer scene. Lhasa's iconic Potala Palace.

It’s hard to find, but the city does have a gay bar. Yeshe, a 20-something gay Tibetan who is working as a bar manager for a tourist restaurant in Lhasa, says Lanse Tian Kong (Blue Sky) is quite hidden, but “there are so many gay boys who go there, especially on Friday’s and Saturday’s. It’s packed.” To protect it, its location won’t be given here.

There are also popular cruising spots in the city, says Tenzin Tsetan, a gay Tibetan from India, who runs gaytibet.blogspot.com, a blog with resources on gays and lesbians in the “autonomous region” and Tibetan communities around the world.

“As for gays in Lhasa, I think the way they meet each other is mostly through cruising,” he says. “There are certain public parks and toilets where they tend to go and meet.”

“It seems like there is an underground gay scene in Lhasa,” he adds, “but the community is not vibrant and open and nor is there a support group.”

According to a local lesbian, there are no dyke bars, and girls will rarely go to Blue Sky bar. “We meet each other through friends, or normal bars, or through the Internet,” says 30-year-old Lhundrop.

Lhundrop is wearing baggy jeans and a loose blue sweater. Her hair is cut short and spiky like a typical Chinese T (tomboy).

“I make myself look like a boy because I know it’s easier for girls to like me and accept me like this,” she says. “Occasionally I like other butch girls but usually I like feminine girls.”

It’s doubly difficult for gay Tibetans since not only are they living in China, which is not big on gay rights, but according to their spiritual leader, gay sex is condemned as a sexual misconduct. Even so, some scholars say that in old Tibet, gay sexual play between monks was very common.

“Some people – the younger generation accept homosexuality, but most Tibetans cannot accept it,” says Lhundrop. “I have never told my parents. They are really traditional. They don’t have any experience of this, but I think if I told them they wouldn’t reject me.”

Whereas many closeted Chinese lesbians and gays are pressured by their families to get married, Lhundrop says her parents have given up pushing her.

“I just told them that marriages between men and women in Tibet aren’t really stable these days, there is so much divorce,” she smiles. “Even my parents got divorced, although they are back together now. So I use this as an excuse, I say I don’t want to get married because it will only end in divorce and they accept this and don’t pressure me any more.”

She says she is serious about finding a “wife” later and adopting a child.

“I definitely want to settle down later with a girl.” The table of her friends – a lesbian couple and a gay boy – erupts into laughter. She explains that she’s a bit of a player. “I have had a lot of girlfriends – usually they last about a week.”

Despite a lack of Tibetan gay role models – Tibetan-born crooner Han Hong, is rumoured to be a lesbian but has never publicly come out – Lhundrop says she knew she was a lesbian from the beginning.

“I have never had any feelings for boys, and so I’ve always known I’m a lesbian. I had my first girlfriend when I was 15 years old.”

Tenzin says the gay community is mixed between Chinese and Tibetans, which raises another problem. The relationship between locals and Han migrants is tense. Many Tibetans resent their presence in their city.

This sour relationship is clear at the table. Yeshe says that all the money boys at the Blue Sky bar are Chinese, while Lhundrop says she’s dated Chinese girls but much prefers Tibetans. “I’ll never settle down with a Chinese girl,” she says.

But, Dawa, a flamboyant, 25-year-old Tibetan gay man, dressed in a white pleather suit jacket and union jack loafers, says he loves his Chinese boyfriend.

One of the main problems, says Tenzin, is that there is so little visibility for gay Tibetans.

“Among the Tibetan communities both inside and outside Tibet, there is zero visibility of homosexuals although we do exist. On 9 December, two members of the Tibetan gay community, Tenzin and Jampa, both Tibetan expats living in the US went on air on a Tibetan webcasting forum and spoke openly about their lives as gays. This was the first time any Tibetan came out publicly.”

In that case, what a great move it would be for Tibet’s new generation of lesbians if Han, provided she really is gay of course, had the balls to come out to her public.