Bathroom Language

In the Philippines, you will normally hear people say C.R., as in Comfort Room.

As in a room where literally you will be comforted once you release all those inner stuff~~ :P

C.R. can be a noun or a verb.

VERB: Like "Gusto ko mag-C.R." [I want to do C.R.] ==> hehehehe, quite awkward translation.

NOUN: Or "Nasaan ang C.R.?" [Where is the C.R.?]

British normally say, "I want to go to the loo."

Americans might say washroom or W.C. [for Water Closet].

Now, I usually say 厕所 or 洗手间. Even if I am a Filipino, I do not like using the word C.R. I prefer washroom--both a friend and me. It sounds more...discreet~~ hehehehe. *blush blush*

When I was a little girl, we were taught to raise our fingers 1 or 2.

1 for pee and 2 for well, poo! :P [I doubt anyone would actually raise a 2! :P]

So ok, in China, or at least in Guilin and Xian, I learned a new bathroom language!

我要唱歌！！！

I want to sing a song!!!

This means I want to go to the bathroom. :D

According to our tour guide, there is a story behind this funny bathroom language.

Back in the Tang Dynasty, people would say, "I want to go to the toilet or 我要去厕所." But the emperor does not want to hear of the word toilet--because it is too frank. Instead, he suggested that people say, "I want to sing a song!"

Ok, so there was this little kid. In the middle of the night, he told his Grand Pop, "Grand Pop, I want to sing a song!"

Grand Pop: It is the middle of the night! Why do you want to sing a song? Go to sleep, Boy!

Little Kid [can already feel the trickle of pee in his pants]: But I really want to sing a song, Grand Pop!

Grand Pop: Ai-yah, ok loh, if you really want to sing a song, do it ever so softly in my ear.

Happy singing! ^_^

大墙壁: Day 5, 6, 7!!!

Internet connection was no longer free when we transited to Xian.

We got stranded in Guilin's airport!!!

It was not really very much awful. We had dinner before so hunger was not a problem. The ugly part was trying to sleep on the hard plastic chairs.

Our flight was scheduled around 8 in the evening. But due to unpleasant weather, our flight was delayed until around 1 AM or so.

I remembered the harsh winter in southern China just last month and lots of people were stranded also. I was thinking, oh no, I hope the skies clear very soon.

The scary part was one of the locals was trying to pick a fight with the airport staff. The woman banged her fist on the counter and started shouting.

I kidded to my mum, who was with me, that I will rush to the washroom [and hide there] once the word war gets physical AND violent.

Of course everything turned out well in the end. Maybe the woman was just hungry, but believe me, the tension was there!

What is so special with Xian?

The first thing that came to my mind when I heard of Xian is that it is the home of the Terra Cotta Warriors of the first emperor of China.

Think of the generals and soldiers in the Disney movie Mulan.

China is such a wonderful country with lots of people from different backgrounds. They are really making an effort in their tourism industry especially now that Beijing Olympics 2008 is up and coming!

And speaking of Beijing 2008, I read that they are doing some massive restroom renovation. WC's in China are not exactly five-star (not all actually...but probably most?).

大墙壁: Day 4

We watched this outdoor show called 印象 (Impressions). The stage is between the mountains of Guilin and surrounded by the Li River. The same director of "Hero" staged the show--Zhang Yimou. The performance comprises of around 600 actors with a budget of 24 Million USD!

The show kind of dragged a bit in the middle part or probably because it was just really cold last night and really late, that I kept thinking about the hard seat. Still, the show was so worth it!

Guilin is very famous for its majestic mountains and scenery--think "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". The Li River has inspired poets and artists alike. It is really so beautiful that I believe words are not enough to describe the place. It is said that Guilin’s scenes are the finest under Heaven, but Yangshuo’s are still better.

Gossip 2.0

In uni, you could read about scandalous and open-secret items in the girls' washroom. [At least in our uni.] :P

Things like who is sleeping with whom and to more comedic ones like crushes and puppy loves.

There is site in the net called JuicyCampus.com where campus gossips behind the toilet doors are transferred to the World Wide Web.

One of the "juiciest" entries has the question "Who is the sluttiest girl?" Names of people have been exposed on the site, and I am thinking that most of the names there are real.

What do you guys think of this tactic of spreading juice? Is it normal or distasteful?

I personally think the method is quite normal. Because the internet has long been known as a privacy invader [if you do not know how to secure your steps].

I see the site as sort of a university forum where moderation is withheld. I think that is what is wrong with it. People are allowed to be anonymous and can bash at anyone they know. And the thing that it is a one-stop shop for uni gossip, people who use the site may just realize how small their world is.

In a way, it is creative but probably hurtful if you are the one talked about. One no longer needs to be Paris Hilton or Edison Chen to get involved in celebrity-like rumors.

Insights on this?

大墙壁: Day 2

First stop, we drove a coach to Longsheng to visit the terraces and the Zhuang and Ton villages.

Our tour guide for the day is Ah Mei. Her life is really hard. I asked her how long has she been touring visitors to the area; and she said eversince she graduated from uni, she has been doing it to support her brother to school. Her parents are farmers but not from Guilin.

And well, we can not help it--we asked her if she is engaged already. Because people from our group were commenting how pretty she looks like! :) She answered no, because she has no time for romance as of now [due to work]. She works tirelessly almost everytime--hiking the tall terraces of Longsheng just to make a decent living. But she seems she is enjoying herself, so I guess that is sort of a consolation already.

Guilin has ethnic groups also like Taiwan. They did this wonderful cultural performance for us, and I even made friends with one of the girls there!

We went to a ballet a while ago. It was so cool! Both the women and the men, as in woah~~ they do not seem to have any bones at all! So flexible and graceful acrobats!

大墙壁: Day 1

It is not really literally 大墙壁 or Big Wall; I am now in the country where 万里长城 is located.

Yes!!! China!!!

The plane touched down in Xiamen this afternoon. Afterwards we transited to Guilin. So more specifically, I am in Guilin now!

When I was in Xiamen a while ago, I suddenly realized that I missed the place a lot! It was such a long time ago when I was last there.

Anyway, I will be retiring to bed in a few minutes now. I am not really tired but the business center here does have operating hours [even though it is free].