... thoughts : Chinese Surnames are not Lastnames - What, How and Why?

Chinese Surnames are not Lastnames
- What, How and Why?

They really don't know what to do with names that have surnames in front, do they? I watch with amusement the way surnames are inconsistently listed/reported. Sometimes a Chinese name like Singapore's tabletennis player is listed as Zhang Xueling, and sometimes as Xueling Zhang.

I must commend the recent years sports organisers for they way they no longer insist on throwing Chinese and Korean surnames to the back (lastname) but instead to respect the two cultures. However, admittedly this is creating a little confusion, especially for Chinese names from countries from Singapore and Malaysia where Chinese names have been "westernised" and the surnames thrown to the back. I don't see this in the China Chinese or in the Korean names probably due to the way the names were first submitted to the Olympic committee and hence the "correct" surname placing.

This is really a simple matter of better understanding between the differing cultures. I face this same problem whenever I have to deal with clients from Europe or North America. Despite constant reminders, they still put my surname at the back even on cheques and other such "official" documents, which creates problems for me when I try and cash them or use them in Singapore. This confusing state of affairs has resulted in us having "multiple" versions of our names which we are forced to switch between when dealing with different people and cultures. This is made worse with the use of English names. To use the same example above; if Zhang Xueling had an English name like Jill for instance, a simple Chinese name like Zhang Xue Ling (3 characters) suddenly also becomes Xue Ling Zhang or Jill Zhang Xue Ling or Jill Xue Ling Zhang or Jill Zhang X.L. or Jill X.L. Zhang. And mind you, I've seen all these variants used. To make matters worse, a new and disturbing trend is emerging in Singapore where some locals are starting to have Firstnames, Middlename and Lastnames, throwing centuries of tradition down the rubbish chute. This is exaggerbated by the use of Western First & Middlenames, something like Ester Michelle Chan for example. Why?

I was once greatly insulted when meeting an associate from Australia for the first time. In our introductions, I introduced myself in my Chinese name and he abruptly asked me if I had an English name or some other name that would be easier for him to call me by. I recalled the book "Roots" by Alex Haley and how his ancestor by the name of "Kunta Kinte", brought over to the Americas from Africa as "Black Slaves", repeatedly rejected an English name "Toby" that his Master insisted on calling him by, even to the point of having to bear constant beatings and punishments. Not the least amused, I retorted and asked in return if he had a Chinese name instead of his English one so that I could more easily call him by. He at least had the decency to look appropriately apologetic.

My old university in Canada which prides itself as a "Bridgeway to the Pacific Rim" and champions the concept of the "Global Citizen", rather ironically fails to grasp this simple concept. Decades after my graduation, I'm still struggling with the Alumni office and the University to get my name right. I grit my teeth at every Alumni function and at every meeting with visiting University dignatories.

The problem has deteriorated so badly here in Singapore that people without Western names like me, are sometimes portrayed as backward and made to feel ashamed to use our Chinese names in more formal settings. Apparently, our "backward" Chinese names are only good for the local wet market, hawker centres and in the home. They are not good enough in the international arena.

For long suffering multiple named people like me, it is our greatest hope that the world would just learn how to deal with a surname in front and not require us to move our names around just to suit them. Any Westerner would have balked and screamed bl**dy murder if they had to do that to their names. The problem is made worse by inconsistencies in our own policies. Even Singapore Government forms and websites sometimes require the filling in of Firstnames, Middlenames and Lastnames, probably due to the difficulty in modifying off-the-shelf computer software from the US. Non-Asian religions are also to be blamed because, not only do they preach their religious beliefs, they are also rather intolerant of Asian cultures and values in their practices. The Chinese/Korean name is an integral part of our culture just like a Western name is an integral part of the Western culture. It is indeed a testimony to the open-mindedness of Asian cultures in our abilities to adopt as well as understand different naming conventions in our day to day dealing with other cultures but surely, this is going too far.

Allow me to explain the significance of the Chinese/Korean name. The front surname reflects the importance the Chinese/Korean places on the family above self. The second name, eg. Xue in Zhang Xueling's name, is the generation name which places the person into the correct generation so that we will always know who our brothers/sisters/cousins are and more importantly, who our elders are. Finally comes our personal name, eg. Ling which is the person's "actual" name. Often you will find "Ah Ling" used as a term of endearment or as a term of familiarity between close friends and family. This is because, Ling is her "true" name self. A Chinese/Korean is never called by his/her generation name or surname unless in mock seriousness or in more official settings like in the office.

Unlike in Western cultures, our elders are never called by name. It is both insulting as well as disrespectful. There are numerous honorifics used, which loosely translated would be equivalent to the western Auntie, Uncle, Grandfather etc. However, I must admit, there is a prohibitively large number of honorifics to remember especially when there are two separate sets, one for the mother's side of the family, and another for the father's side of the family, and to make matters worse, dependent on whether the person in question is older or younger in family position to your parent. Luckily, for those who don't know the correct honorific, there is a quick fix solution. When in doubt, the use of the terms Brother, Sister, Auntie, Uncle, Grandmother and Grandfather would suffice, but never, ever the person's actual name unless you are sure he/she is of the same of younger generation than you are and not significantly older than you.

Confused yet? Don't be. My name reflects my culture. It is a product of 5000 years of Chinese history and family traditions. It was given to me by my parents and the meanings inherent in my name reflect the hopes and aspirations of my family. My name is what makes me who I am, and it defines who we are as a people. Don't make me take a Western name or have me change my surname into a lastname just to suit you. I take the trouble to pronounce the names from other cultures properly. Do me the curteousy of learning mine. :-)

My name is Liang Jieming (梁傑明).

Tales of Old China

http://www.talesofoldchina.com/

Party - Christmas Singapore, 2006

The Liang Jieming Private Collection

Borrowers are requested to register for a membership account before borrowing. Please seek assistance from the Librarian in-charge of registrations.

A-list borrowers are required to return borrowed material within 1 calendar month. B-list borrowers are required to return borrowed material within 1 calendar week. Failure to comply with the abovementioned requirements will result in a monetary penalty of $0.10/day per item beyond the borrowing due date payable immediately. Please inquire within on your eligibility for either of the abovementioned lists.

There are no membership fees currently charged for membership into either A or B lists and as such, members have no rights to any borrowed material nor any rights to any of the given privileges implied in the registration of membership. Rare/Valuable publications are strictly restricted to A-list borrowers and subjected to approval by the Owner of the collection.  The Owner of the collection reserves the right to refuse and/or revoke borrowing/membership privileges at his sole discretion with no option for appeal.

Borrowed material are restricted to only within the territories as defined by the boundaries of the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia. No borrowed material may be taken out of the combined territories of the abovementioned political entities without the expressed permission of the Owner of the collection.

Borrowed material must be returned in the same good order as when signed out. Failure to comply will result in an instant revoking of borrowing privileges and a monetary fine of an equivalent value to the current new purchase price of replacement material including any extras for shipping and handling and/or Goods and Services Taxes, or a one to one replacement of the material at the borrower's cost. The Owner of the collection reserves the sole right to evaluate and to determine if a returned item has been damaged.

Loss of borrowed material will result in an instant revoking of borrowing privileges and a monetary fine of an equivalent value to the current new purchase price of replacement material including any extras for shipping and handling and/or Goods and Services Taxes, or a one to one replacement of the material at the borrower's cost.

The above terms and conditions are non-negotiable and borrowers are deemed to have read and agreed to the above terms upon signing out of any item in the collection.

Books

(categorised in alphabetical order)

"100 Chinese Gods" Lu Yanguang, Asiapac, 1994

"1421: The Year China Discovered America", Gavin Menzies, William Morrow, 2003

"1434: The Year a Magnificent Chinese Fleet Sailed to Italy and Ignited the Renaissance", Gavin Menzie, William Morrow, 2008

[AAA - AZZ]

"A Brief History of Time", Stephen Hawking, Random House, 2004

“A Military History of China”, David A. Graff and Robin Higham, Westview, 2002

"Against the Odds", Elizabeth Moon, Baen, 2000

"An Account of the Empire of China", Bernardino de Escalante, Ascanio, 1577, Reprint 2008

"Ancient and Medieval Siege Weapons : A Fully Illustrated Guide to Siege Weapons and Tactics", Konstantin Nossov, The Lyons Press, 2005

"Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History", Nicola Di Cosmo, Cambridge University Press, 2005

"Ancient Chinese Armies 1500-200 BC", C.J. Peers, Angus McBride, Osprey, 1990

"Ancient Indian Warfare: With Special Reference to the Vedic Period" Sarva Daman Singh, Motilal Banarsidass Pub, 2Rev Ed edition, 1990

"Ancient Siege Warfare : Persians, Greeks, Carthaginians and Romans 546-146 BC" (Elite), Duncan Campbell, Adam Hook (Illustrator), Osprey Publishing 2005

"Archery Traditions of Asia", Stephen Selby, Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense, 2003

"Around The World in Eighty Days", Jules Verne, Penguin, 1994

[BAA - BZZ]

"Band of Brothers", Stephen E. Ambrose, Pocket Books, 2002

"Begin Bridge", G.C.H. Fox, Elliot Right Way Books, 1985

"Being a Girl", Chloe Thurlow, Virgin Nexus, 2007

"Besieged; Siege Warfare in the Ancient World", Duncan B. Campbell, Osprey, 2006

"Between Two Oceans: A Military History of Singapore from Fort Settlements to Final British Withdrawal", Malcolm H. Murfett, John N. Miksic, Brian P. Farrel, Chiang Ming Shun, Oxford University Press, 1999

(Chapters 1 through 4 only)

"Beware the Dragon: China: 1,000 Years of Bloodshed", Erik Durschmied, Andre Deutsch, 2008

"Black Cross", Greg Iles, Penguin Books, 1995

"Black Holes And Baby Universes And Other Essays", Stephen Hawking, Bantam Books, 1993

"Black Market & Hide and Seek", James Patterson, Diamond Books, 2000

"Books of the Dead", Stanislav Grof, Thames and Hudson, 1994

“British & Indian Armies in the East Indies (1685-1935)”, Alan Harfield, Picton Publishing, 1984

[CAA - CZZ]

"Cambridge Illustrated Atlas: Warfare The Middle Ages 768-1487", Nicholas Hooper & Matthew Bennett, Cambridge University Press, 1996

"Can Asians Think?", Kishore Mahbubani, Marshall Cavendish, 2004

"China Among Equals: The Middle Kingdom and Its Neighbors, 10th-14th Centuries", Morris Rossabi, University of California Press, 1983

"China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia", Peter C. Perdue, Belknap, 2005

"China's Golden Age: Everyday Life in the Tang Dynasty" Charles Benn, Oxford University Press, 2004

"Chinese Ancient Star Map", Hong Kong Space Museum, 2002

"Chinese Civil War Armies 1911-49", Philip Jowett, Stephen Andrew, Osprey, 1997

"Chinese Emperors: From the Xia Dynasty to the Fall of the Qing Dynasty", Ma Yan, Compendium, 2009

"Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity, An Illustrated History", Liang Jieming, Da Pao Publishing (Leong Kit Meng), 2006

"Chinese Technology in the Seventeenth Century: T'ien-kung K'ai-wu", Sung Ying-hsing, Sun E-Tu Zen & Sun Shiou-Chuan (Translators), Dover Publications, 1997

"Chinese Walled Cities 221 BC-AD 1644 (Fortress), Stephen Turnbull, Osprey, 2009

"Citizen Soldiers", Stephen E. Ambrose, Pocket Books, 2002

"Colonial Armies in Southeast Asia", Tobias Rettig and Karl Hack (Editors), Routledge, 2009

"Controlling the Dragon: Confucian Engineers and the Yellow River in Late Imperial China", Randall A. Dodgen, University of Hawaii Press, 2001

[DAA - FZZ]

"D-Day", Stephen E. Ambrose, Pocket Books, 2002

"Daily Life in China, on the Eve of the Mongol Invasion, 1250-1276", Jacques Gernet, Stanford University Press, 1962

"Dracula", Bram Stoker, Penguin, 1994

"Dragon's Head and a Serpent's Tail: Ming China and the First Great East Asian War, 1592-1598", Kenneth M. Swope, University of Oklahoma Press, 2009

"Empire of Dragons", Valerio Massimo Manfredi, Macmillan, 2006

“Entering Space: Creating a Spacefaring Civilization”, Robert Zubrin, Penguin, 2000

"Everyday Life In Early Imperial China: During the Han Period 202 BC-AD 220" Michael Loewe, Eva Wilson (Illustrator), Hackett Publishing, Reprint edition, 2005

"Fighting Ships of the Far East (1) : China & Southeast Asia 202 BC-AD 1419" (New Vanguard), Stephen Turnbull, Wayne Reynolds (Illustrator), Osprey Publishing 2002

"Fighting Ships of the Far East (2) : Japan and Korea AD 612-1639" (New Vanguard), Stephen Turnbull, Wayne Reynolds (Illustrator), Osprey Publishing 2003

“Fighting Techniques of the Oriental World AD 1200-1860: Equipment, Combat Skills and Tactics”, Michael E. Haskew, Christer, Jorgensen, Chris McNab, Eric Niderost, Rob S. Rice, Amber, 2008

"Fire and Water: The Art of Incendiary and Aquatic Warfare in China", Ralph D. Sawyer, Mei-Chun Lee Sawyer, Westview Press, 2004

[GAA - GZZ]

"Gai-jin", James Clavell, Del, 1994

“Genghis Khan's Greatest General: Subotai the Valiant”, Richard A. Gabriel, University of Oklahoma Press, 2006

"Gilgamesh", Stephen Mitchell (Translator), Profile Books, 2005

"Gonzo Gizmos: Projects & Devices to Channel Your Inner Geek", Simon Quellen Field, Chicago Review Press, 2003

"Great Ages of Man: Age of Exploration", Time-Life International, 1979

"Great Ages of Man: Ancient America", Time-Life International, 1984

"Great Ages of Man: Ancient China", Edward H. Schafer, Time-Life International, 1977

"Great Ages of Man: Cradle of Civilization", Sameul Noah Kramer, Time-Life International, 1984

"Great Ages of Man: Early Japan", Jonathan Norton Leonard, Time-Life International, 1984

"Great Ages of Man: Imperial Rome", Moses Hadas, Time-Life International, 1984

"Greek and Roman Artillery 399 BC-AD 363" (New Vanguard), Duncan Campbell, Brian Delf (Illustrator)

"Greek and Roman Artillery: Historical development", E.W. Marsden, Oxford University Press (Clarendon Press), 1999

(Chapter II only)

"Greek and Roman Siege Machinery 399 BC-AD 363", Duncan Campbell, Brian Delf, Osprey, 2003

"Gulliver's Travels", Jonathan Swift, Penguin, 1994

"Gundam Seed 1", Hajime Yatte & Yoshiyuki Tomino, Chuang Yi Publishing, 2004

“Gunpowder”, Clive Ponting, Chatto & Windus, 2005

"Gunpowder: Alchemy, Bombards, and Pyrotechnics : The History of the Explosive The Changed the World", Jack Kelly, Atlantic Books, 2004

[HAA - LZZ]

"Heavenly Creations, Gems of Ancient Chinese Inventions", Hong Kong Museum of History, 1998

"Historical Perspectives on East Asian Science, Technology and Medicine", Alan K.L. Chan, Gregory K. Clancey, Hui-Chieh Loy, Singapore University Press, 2001

"Historical Records of the Five Dynasties", Ouyang Xiu, Richard L. Davis (translator), Columbia University Press, 2004

"Holy Blood, Holy Grail", Michael Bangent, Richard Leigh, Henry Lincoln, Dell Publishing, 1983

"Hsing-i Fist and Weapon Instruction" Huang Po-Nien, translated by Chow Hon Huen, 1992 (originally published 1928)

"Imperial Chinese Armies (1) 200BC-AD589", CJ Peers, Osprey, 1995

"Imperial Chinese Armies (2) 590-1260 AD", C.J. Peers, Michael Perry, Osprey, 1996

"In The Ruins of Empire: The Japanese Surrender and the Battle for Postwar Asia", Ronald H. Spector, Random House, 2007

"India, The Challenge of Change", Pranay Gupte, Mandarin Books, 1989

"Invisible Trade", Gerrie Lim, Monsoon Books, 2004

"Invisible Trade II", Gerrie Lim, Monsoon Books, 2008

“Japan's Greatest Victory Britain's Worst Defeat From the Japanese Perspective: The Capture of Singapore, 1942”, Colonel Masanobu Tsuji, Spellmount, 2007

"JG 26: Top Guns of the Luftwaffe", Donald L. Cadwell, Ballantine Books, 1993

"Julius Caesar in Gaul and Britain", Stephen Ridd, Heinemann, 1993

"Jun Da Dao Shu", Huang Honfan & Huang Honchao, translated by Joseph Crandall

"Junzi Jian", 1930

"Kan Dao Shu Lianxi Fa", Yin Yuzhang, 1933

"Knots You Need", Buck Tilton, Morris Book 2008

"Late Imperial Chinese Armies 1520-1840", C.J. Peers, Christa Hook, Osprey, 1997

"Lone Wolf and Cub Vol. 1: The Assassin's Road", Kazuo Koike, Dark Horse Manga, 2000

"Lords of the Rim", Sterling Seagrave, Corgi, 1996

[MAA - OZZ]

"Marco Polo: Journey To The End Of The Earth", Robin Brown, Sutton Publishing, 2007

"May 13: Declassified Documents on the Malaysian Riots of 1969", Kua Kia Soong, Suaran Komunikasi, 2007

"Medieval Chinese Armies 1260-1520", C.J. Peers, Osprey, 1992

"Medieval Chinese Warfare, 300-900", David A. Graff, Routledge, 2002

"Medieval Combat, A Fifteenth-Century Manual of Swordfighting and Close-Quarter Combat", Hans Talhoffer, Mark Rector (Translator), Greenhill Books, 2004

"Medieval Siege Weapons (1): Western Europe AD 585-1385" (New Vanguard), David Nicolle, Sam Thompson (Illustrator), Osprey Publishing, 2002

"Medieval Siege Weapons (2): "Byzantium, the Islamic World & India AD 476-1526" (New Vanguard), David Nicolle, Sam Thompson (Illustrator), Osprey Publishing, 2003

"Memoirs of a Geisha", Arthur Golden, Vintage 1998

"Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus", John Gray, HarperCollins, 2002

"Mongols", Stephen Turnbull, Angus McBride, Osprey, 1980

"Musashi's Book of Five Rings", Miyamoto Musashi, Stephen F. Kaufman (translator), Tuttle Publishing, 1994

"My Side of History", Chin Peng, Media Masters, 2003

"Mysterious Visitors, The UFO Story", Brinsley Le Poer Trench, Pan Books, 1975

"Naomi", Junichiro Tanazaki, Anthony H. Chambers (Translator), Vintage, 1985

"New Book of Discipline and Effectiveness: Archery", Qi Jiguang

(Chapter 13 only)

"Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party", The Epoch Times, 2004

"On Active Service with the Chinese Regiment: A record of the Operations of the First Chinese Regiment in North China from March to October 1900", A.A.S.Barnes, 1902

"On The Knowledge Possessed By The Ancient Chinese Of The Arabs and Arabian Colonies And Other Western Countries, Mentioned in Chinese Books" E. Bretschneider, Trubner, 1871

"On the Shoulders of Giants: The Great Works of Physics & Astronomy", Foreword by Stephen Hawking, Penguin Books, 2003

"On War", Carl Von Clausewitz, Everyman's Library, 1993

[PAA - PZZ]

"Pegasus Bridge", Stephen E. Ambrose, Pocket Books, 2002

"Penguin Epics: The Legendary Adventures of Alexander the Great", Richard Stoneman (translator), Penguin, 2006

"Penguin Epics: The Voyages of Sindbad", N.J. Dawood (translator), Penguin, 2006

"Penguin Epics: The Fall of Jerusalem", Josephus,  G.A. Williamson (translator), Penguin, 2006

"Penguin Epics: Xerxes Invades Greece", Herodotus, Aubrey De Selincourt (translator), Penguin, 2006

"Penguin Epics: Beowulf", Michael Alexander (translator), Penguin, 2006

"Penguin Great Ideas: Civilization and its Discontents", Sigmud Freud, Penguin, 2005

"Penguin Great Ideas: Common Sense", Thomas Paine, Penguin, 2005

"Penguin Great Ideas: Confucius, The First Ten Books", Confucius, Penguin, 2005

"Penguin Great Ideas: On Natural Selection", Charles Darwin, Penguin, 2005

"Penguin Great Ideas: The Communist Manifesto", Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Gareth Stedman Jones , Penguin, 2006

"Penguin Great Ideas: The Prince", Niccolo Machiavelli, Penguin, 2005

"Penguin Great Ideas: Travels in the Land of Kubilai Khan", Marco Polo, Penguin, 2005

"Persian Fire: The First World Empire and the Battle for the West", Tom Holland, Little Brown, 2005

"Popular Songs and Ballads of Han China", Anne Birrell, University of Hawaii Press, 1993

"Proceedings of the 2nd International Symposium on Advances in Steel and Composite Structures, Sngapore 1 August 2008", Sing-Ping Chiew (Ed.), Nanyang Technological University, 2008

[QAA - RZZ]

"Ramayana Parts 1 to 12", Dreamland Publications

"Reconstruction Designs of Lost Ancient Chinese Machinery (History of Mechanism and Machine Science)", Hong-Sen Yan, Springer, 2007

"Records of the Grand Historian", Sima Qian, Burton Watson (Translator), Columbia University Press 3rd Ed 1995

"Records of the Warring States (Zhan Guo Ce 戰國策總目四百六十\u20845 六篇)", B.S.Bonsall (Translator), 1928-9

"Return of Gonzo Gizmos: More Projects & Devices to Channel Your Inner Geek", Simon Quellen Field, Chicago Review Press, 2006

"Red Star over China", Edgar Snow, Grove Press, 1968

"Rivers of Destiny", Simon Dresner, Aldus, 1971

"Roots", Alex Haley, Pan Books 1977

"Runtuhnya Kerajaan Hindu-Jawa Dan Timbulnya Negara-Negara Islam Di Nusantara", Prof. Dr. Slamet Muljana, LKiS, 2005

"Russia's Heroes 1941-1945", Albert Axell, Carroll & Graf Publishers, 2002

[SAA - SZZ]

"Saudis, Inside the Desert Kingdom", Sandra Mackey, Penguin Books, 1990

"Science and Civilisation in China", Volume 5, Part 6, Joseph Needham & Robin D.S. Yates, Cambridge University Press, 1994

"Science and Civilisation in China", Volume 5, Part 7, Joseph Needham, Cambridge University Press, 1987

"Science in Traditional China", Joseph Needham, Harvard University Press, 1982

"Shanghai Museum : Chinese Coin Gallery", Shanghai Museum

"Shogun", James Clavell, Dell, 1986

"Siege Weapons of the Far East (1): AD 612-1300" (New Vanguard), Stephen Turnbull, Wayne Reynolds (Illustrator), Osprey Publishing, 2001

"Siege Weapons of the Far East (2): AD 960-1644" (New Vanguard), Stephen Turnbull, Wayne Reynolds (Illustrator), Osprey Publishing, 2002

“Singapore A 700-Year History – From Early Emporium to World City”, Kwa Chong Guan, Derek Heng, Tan Tai Yong, National Archives of Singapore, 2009

"Sneaky Uses for Everyday Things", Cy Tymony, Andrews McMeel, 2003

"Sneakier Uses for Everyday Things", Cy Tymony, Andrews McMeel, 2005

"Sneakiest Uses for Everyday Things", Cy Tymony, Andrews McMeel, 2007

"Soldiers of the Dragon: Chinese Armies 1500 BC-AD 1840". C.J. Peers

"Sriwijaya, Periodisasi Sejarah", H.M. Arlan Ismail, SH., Unanti Press, 2003

"Star Wars Episode I, The Phantom Menace", Terry Brookes, Del Rey, 1999

"Star Wars Episode II, Attack of the Clones", Salvatore, Del Rey, 2000

"Star Wars Episode III, Revenge of the Sith", Matthew Stover, Del Rey, 2005

"Starship Troopers", Robert A. Heinlein, Ace, 1987

"Summer Snow & Other Yuan Dynasty Stories", retold by Liu Yunbo, Federal Publications, 1991

"Sunzi's Art of War", Sunzi, Wang Xuanming (Translator), Asiapac, ????

[TAA - TZZ]

"Tai-pan", James Clavell, Del, 1986

"Tales from Five Thousand Years of Chinese History (I)", Shanghai Press and Publishing Development Company, 2006"

"Tales from Five Thousand Years of Chinese History (II)", Shanghai Press and Publishing Development Company, 2007"

"Tales from Five Thousand Years of Chinese History (III)", Shanghai Press and Publishing Development Company, 2008"

"Tales from Five Thousand Years of Chinese History (IV)", Shanghai Press and Publishing Development Company, 2008"

"Tales from Five Thousand Years of Chinese History (V)", Shanghai Press and Publishing Development Company, 2009"

"Tales from Five Thousand Years of Chinese History (VI)", Shanghai Press and Publishing Development Company, 2009"

"Tales from the Perilous Realm", J.R.R. Tolkien, HarperCollins, 2002

"Tanks and Artillery", Ian Graham, Silver Dolphin, 2003

"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People", Stephen R. Covey, Free Press, 2004

"The Aeneid", Virgil, Borders Classics, 2004

"The Ancient World At War", Philip de Souza (Editor), Thames & Hudson, 2008

"The Antipodes Map of the World (Antarctic View) and the Earth's Rotation Simulating Chronographometer (ERSC)", Andrew Pereira, 2001

"The Armies of Angkor: Military Structure and Weaponry of the Khmers", Michel Jacq-Hergoualc'h, Orchid Press, 2007

"The Asian Military Revolution From Gunpowder to the Bomb", Peter A. Lorge, Cambridge University Press, 2008

"The Book of the Crossbow", Ralph Payne-Gallwey, Sir, Dover Publications, Reprint 1995

"The Case For Mars, The Plan To Settle the Red Planet And Why We Must", Zubrin, Free Press, 1996

"The Chinese Army 1937-1949 World War II and Civil War", Philip Jowett, Osprey, 2005

"The Chinese Conquest of Songaria", CH Denby Jr, Pei-t'ang press, 1891

"The Clash of Civilizations and Remaking of World Order", Samuel P. Huntington, Free Press, 2002

"The Coldest Winter", David Halberstam, Pan Books, 2009

"The Complete Art of War", Sun-tzu, Sun Pin, Mei-Chun Lee Sawyer, Ralph D. Sawyer (Translator), HarperCollins Publishers, 1996

"The Control of Nature", John McPhee, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1990

"The Data Book of Astronomy", Patrick Moore, IOP, 2000

"The Dragon's Nine Sons", Chris Roberson, Solaris, 2008

"The Fellowship of the Ring", J.R.R. Tolkien, HarperCollins, 1999

"The Grand Scribe's Records Volume I: The Basic Annals of Pre-Han China" Ssu-ma Ch'ien, Tsai-fa Cheng, Zongli Lu, William H. Nienhauser, Jr., Robert Reynolds (translators), Indiana University Press, 1994

"The Grand Scribe's Records Volume II: The Basic Annals of Han China" Ssu-ma Ch'ien, Weiguo Cao, Scott W. Galer, William H. Nienhauser, Jr., David W. Pankenier (translators), Indiana University Press, 2002

"The Great Mariner, Zheng He", Huang Yao Chieh, Utopia Press, 2005

"The Genius of China: 3,000 Years of Science, Discovery and Invention", Robert K. G. Temple, Prion 1998

"The Genius That Was China, East and West in the Making of the Modern World", John Merson, The Overlook Press, 1990

"The Hobbit", J.R.R. Tolkien, HarperCollins, 1999

"The Illustrated Hitch Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy", Douglas Adams, Orion Publishing, 1994

"The Incas, Empire of Blood and Gold", Carmen Bernand, Gallimard, 1988

"The Illiad", Homer, Borders Classics, 2004

"The Jungle is Neutral: A Soldier's Two-Year Escape from the Japanese Army", F. Spencer Chapman, The Lyons Press, 2003

"The Karate Handbook", Ray Pawlett, D&S Books, 2004

"The Last of the Mohicans", J. Fenimore Cooper, Wordsworth, 1993

"The Last Legion", Valerio Massimo Manfredi, MacMillan, 2003

"The Last Samurai: The Life and Battles of Saigo Takamori", Mark Ravin, Wiley, 2003

"The Lost History of the Aztec & Maya", Charles Phillips, Hermes House, 2005

"The Lost History of the Incas", David M Jones, Hermes House, 2007

"The Malay Dilemma", Mahathir Bin Mohamad, Times, 1970

"The Mind of South Africa", Allister Sparks, Mandarin Paperbacks, 1991

"The Mongol Art of War", Timothy May, Horizon Books, 2007

"The Mongol Empire; World History Series", Mary Hull, Lucent Books, 1998

"The New Asian Hemisphere: The Irresistible Shift of Global Power to the East", Kishore Mahbubani, Publicaffairs, 2008

"The New Emperors, Mao and Deng", Harrison E. Salisbury, HarperCollins, 1992

"The Odyssey", Homer, Borders Classics, 2004

"The Penguin Atlas of African History", Colin McEvedy, Penguin Book 1995

"The Penguin Dictionary of Astronomy", Jacqueline Mitton, Penguin Books, 1998

"The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Civilizations", John Haywood, Penguid Books, 2005

"The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II", Iris Chang, Penguin, 1998

"The Return of the King", J.R.R. Tolkien, HarperCollins, 1999

"The SAS Handbook Of Living Off The Land", Chris McNab, Silverdale Books, 2003

"The Silmarillion", J.R.R. Tolkien, HarperCollins, 1999

"The Sword and the Scimitar", Ernle Bradford, Pen and Sword, 2004

"The Talisman of Troy", Valerio Massimo Manfredi, Pan Books, 2004

"The Tso Chuan: Selections From China's Oldest Narrative History", Burton Watson (translator), Columbia University Press, 1989

"The Two Towers", J.R.R. Tolkien, HarperCollins, 1999

"The Universe in a Nutshell", Stephen Hawking, Bantam, 2001

"The Wars of the Ancient Greeks", Victor Davis Hanson, Cassell, 1999

"The Way Forward", Dr. Mahathir Bin Mohamad, Orion Publishing Group, 1998

"The West and China since 1500", John S. Gregory, Palgrave Macmillian, 2003

"The West Point Atlas of War: World War II: European Theater", Brigadier General Vincent J. Esposito, Tess Press, 1995"

"The West Point Atlas of War: World War II: The Pacific", Brigadier General Vincent J. Esposito, Tess Press, 1995"

"The Wiles Of War: 36 Military Strategies from Ancient China", Sun Haichen (Translator), Foreign Languages Press, 1993

"Things Chinese", Du Feibao and Du Bai, China Travel & Tourism Press, 2003

"Three Generals of Later Han", Gregory Young, Australian National University, 1984

"Three Kingdoms, A Historical Novel", Luo Guanzhong, Moss Roberts (Translator), Foreign Languages Press, 1994

“Three Unbroken”, Chris Roberson, Solaris, 2009

"Timeline", Michael Crichton, Arrow Books, 2000

"Tokyo Hostess", Clare Campbell, Sphere, 2009

"Travels of Marco Polo", Signet Classics, 2004

"Treasure Island", Robert Louis Stevenson, Penguin, 1994

"Treats to Remember: A Collection of Special Recipes from the UBC Bakeshop", Christine Samson and Allen Leong, UBC Foor Group, 1995

"Tyrant", Valerio Massimo Manfredi, Pan Books, 2005

[UAA - XZZ]

"UBC - A Portrait", Wayne Skene, University of British Columbia, 2007

"Unfinished Tales", J.R.R. Tolkien, HarperCollins, 1998

"Universe", Nicolas Cheetham, Smith Davis, 2006

"Victory, The Epic of World War II 1939-1945", A.K. Macdougall, Five Mile Press, 2005

"Visit the Lourve", Valerie Mettais, Artlys, 2005

"Voices from the Ming-Qing Cataclysm; China in Tigers' Jaws", Lynn A. Struve (translator/editor), Yale University Press, 1993

"War, Politics and Society in Early Modern China, 900-1795", Peter Lorge, Routledge, 2005

"Warriors, Gods & Spirits from Central & South American Mythology", Douglas Gifford, John Sibbick (Illustrator), Eurobook, 1983

"Warriors of Rome: An illustrated military history of the Roman Legions", Michael Simkins, James Field (Illustrator), Blandford, 1990

“Warriors of the Steppe: A Military History of Central Asia 500 B.C. To 1700 A.D.”, Erik Hildinger, Da Capo, 2001

"Water Margin", Shih Nai-An, J.H. Jackson (Translator), Graham Brash, 1981

"Weapons in Ancient China", Yong Hong, Science Press, 1992

“Western Power in Asia: Its Slow Rise and Swift Fall, 1415 – 1999”, Arthur Cotterell, Wiley, 2009

“When Asia was the World”, Stewart Gordon, Da Capo Press, 2008

"Whoosh Boom Splat: The Garage Warrior's Guide to Building Projectile Shooters", William Gurstelle, Three Rivers Press, 2007

“Why the West Rules – For Now”, Ian Morris, Profile Books, 2010

"Wild Blue", Stephen E. Ambrose, Pocket Books, 2002

"World in Crisis, the politics of survival at the end of the 20th century", Medecins Sans Frontieres, Routledge, 1997

"Xunzi", Library of Chinese Classics Vols I & II, Zhang Jue & John Knoblock (translators), Hunan People's Publishing House, 1999

"世界军服 (Shijie Junfu)", 崔海源 (Cui Haiyuan) & 方文素 (Fang Wensu), 2004

(Only Chinese army uniforms)

"宋本十\u19968 一家注孙子 (Song Ben Shi Yi Jia Zhu Sun Zi)", Shanghai Guji Chubanshe, 2003

"中国古代兵器图册 (Zhongguo Gudai Bingqi Tuce)", 刘旭 (Liu Xu), 1986

"中国古代军戎服饰 (Zhongguo Gudai Junrong Fushi)", 刘永华 (Liu Yonghua), Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House, 1995

Short Stories

(categorised in alphabetical order)

“Fire in the Lake”, Chris Roberson, 2007

“Mirror of Fiery Brightness”, Chris Roberson, 2008

"O One", Chris Roberson, 2003

"Red Hands, Black Hands", Chris Roberson, 2004

“The Sky is Large and the Earth is Small”, Chris Roberson, 2007

Journal Articles, Academic Papers & Working Papers

(categorised in alphabetical order)

"72 Hours Which Shook the World", The XXth Century, Vol.II (Jan. - Jun., 1942), pp.13-18

"A Bandit-Woman in the Cockpit of Empire: The Life of Fourth Sister Yang", Peter Lorge, (2007)

“A Brief History of Ancient Chinese City Planning”, Wu Liangyong, Kassel, 1985

"A Brief Survey of Defensive Armor Across Asia", Albert E. Dien, Stanford University (2000)

"A General for His Time: Chong Shiheng (985-1045) and the Remilitarization of the North Song State", Paul Jakov Smith, China and Inner Asia Session 45, (Mar., 2009)

“A Note on the Excavations in the Tash-K'irman Oasis", Amelie Kuhrt, Achemenet Novembre, (2002)

"A Study of Early Chinese Armor", Albert E. Dien, Artibus Asiae, Vol. 43, No. 1/2, (1981), pp. 5-66

"Admiral Zheng He and Contemporary Malaysia", Lee Kam Hing, Journal of Malaysian Chinese Studies, Volume 8, (2005) pp. 99-112

"An Ancient Military Contact between Romans and Chinese", Homer H. Dubs, The American Journal of Philology, Vol. 62, No. 3, (1941), pp. 322-330

"An Illustrated Battle-account in the History of the Former Han Dynasty", J.J.L. Duyvendak, T'oung Pao, Vol. 34, (1939), pp. 249-264

"An Outline of the Local Administration of the Later Han Empire", Rafe de Crespigny, Chung Chi Journal 崇基學報, Vol. 7 No. 1 (Nov., 1967), pp. 57-71

“Ancient Chinese Cash Notes - The World's First Paper Money, Parts I & II”, Sandrock, John E., Numismatics 

International 38.12 (Dec., 2003) pp.364-372

"Appllied Field-Allocation Astrology in Zhou China: Duke Wen of Jin and the Battle of Chengpu (632 B.C.)", David W. Pankenier, Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 119, No. 2, (Apr., - Jun., 1999), pp. 261-279

"Archimedes and the Invention of Artillery and Gunpowder", D.L. Simms, Technology and Culture, Vol. 28, No. 1, (Jan., 1987), pp. 67-79

"Armor In China Before The Tang Dynasty", Albert E. Dien, Stanford University, (2000)

"Army Life in Seventh-Century China", David A. Graff, Kansas State University, (2007)

"Asian Female Sovereigns and the Empress Wu", Araki Toshio, Joshua A. Fogel (Translator), Sino-Japanese Studies, Vol. 15, (Apr., 2003), pp. 145-147

"Astrology in Ancient China", Joseph Edkins, The China Review, or notes & queries on the Far East, Vol. 14 No. 6 (Jun., 1886), pp.345-351

"Barbarians at the Gate? The Tang Frontier Military and the An Lushan Rebellion," Jonathan Karam Skaff, War and Society, Vol. 18, (2000), pp. 23-35

"Beyond the Central Plain", Cho-yun Hsu, The CUHK Journal of Humanities 中大人文學報, Vol. 1 (Jan., 1997), pp. 78-93

"Building force: Asian origins of twentieth-century military science in Vietnam (1905-54)", Christopher E. Goscha, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, Vol. 34, (Oct. 1, 2003), pp.535-560

"Burma's China Connection and the Indian Ocean Region", Andrew Selth, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre Working Paper No. 377, The Australian National University, (2003)

"Beyond Turtleboats: Siege Accounts From Hideyoshi’s Second Invasion of Korea, 1597-1598", Kenneth M. Swope, Ball State University

"Black Camels and Blazing Bolts: The Bolt-Projecting Trebuchet in the Mamluk Army", Paul E. Chevedden, Mamluk Studies Review, Vol. 8/1, (2004) pp. 227-277

"Byzantines, Avars and the Introduction of the Trebuchet", Stephen McCotter, The Queen's University of Belfast, (2003)

"Cambodia and Its Neighbors in the 15th Century", Michael Vickery, ARI Working Paper, No. 27, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (Jun., 2004)

"Can China Fight?", Homer Lea, The World Today, Vol.XII, No.2 (Feb., 1907) pp.137-147

"Champa in the Song hui-yao: A Draft Translation", Geoffrey Wade, ARI Working Paper, No. 53, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, (Dec., 2005)

"China and War in the Himalayas, 1792-1793", Mayura Jang Kunwar, The English Historical Review, Vol. 77, No. 303, (Apr., 1962), pp. 283-297

“China and Western Technology in the Late Eighteenth Century”, American Historical Review, Vol. 98,  Number 4, (Oct., 1993), pp. 1525-1544

"China in Tokugawa Foreign Relations: The Tokugawa Bakufu’s Perception of and Attitudes toward Ming-Qing China", Mizuno Norihito, Sino-Japanese Studies, Vol. 15, (Apr., 2003), pp. 108-144

"China’s Decision for War With India in 1962", John W. Garver, New Directions in the Study of China’s Foreign Policy, (2006) pp.66-130

"China's Military Power: Shadow Over Central Asia", Stephen J. Blank, Lexington Institute, (Aug., 2006)

"Chinese Burns: Britain in China 1842-1900", Robert Bickers, History Today, (Aug., 2000) pp.10-17

"Chinese Military Power: What Vexes the United States and Why?", Jonathan D. Pollack, Orbis, Foreign Policy Research Institute, (Fall, 2007), pp. 635-650

"Chinese Military Technology And Dai Viet: c. 1390-1497", Sun Laichen, ARI Working Paper, No. 11, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, (Sep., 2003)

"Chinese Support for North Vietnam during the Vietnam War: The Decisive Edge", Bob Seals, (Sep. 23, 2008) 

"Chinese Warfare: The Paradox of the Unlearned Lesson", Ralph D. Sawyer

"Chinese Ways in Warfare", Edited by Frank Kierman and John Fairbank, Harvard University Press, (1974)

· "Varieties of the Chinese Military Experience", John K. Fairbank

· "Phases and Modes of Combat in Early China", Frank A. Kierman, Jr.

· "The Campaigns of Han Wu-ti", Michael Loewe

· "Regional Defense Against the Central Power: The Huai-hsi Campaign, 815-817", Charles A. Peterson

· "Siege and Defense of Towns in Medieval China", Herbert Franke

· "The Poyang Campaign, 1363: Inland Naval Warfare in the Founding of the Ming Dynasty", Edward L. Dreyer

· "The T'u-mu Incident of 1449", Frederick W. Mote

· "Hu Tsung-hsien's Campaign Against Hsu Hai, 1556", Charles D. Hucker

"Civil-Military Coordination in the Bozhou Campaign of the Wanli Era", Kenneth M. Swope, War and Society, Vol. 18, (2000), pp. 49-70

"Crisis and Reformation in the Maritime Kingdom of Southeast Asia: Forces of Instability ad Political Disintegration in Western Burma (Arakan), 1603-1701", Michael W. Charney, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 41, No.2 (Jun., 1998), pp.185-219

"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: The Indian Ocean and the Maritime Balance of Power in Historical Perspective", Emrys Chew, IDSS Working Paper No.144, (2007)

"Crouching Tigers, Secret Weapons: Military Technology Employed During the Sino-Japanese-Korean War, 1592-1598", Kenneth M. Swope, The Journal of Military History, Vol. 69, No. 1, (Jan., 2005), pp. 11-41

"de Architectura, Book X", Marcus Vitruvius Pollio, ca. 27 - 23 B.C.

“Defending Singapore 1819-1965: Pointer Specials Supplement” (May, 1996)

· “19th Century Coastal Artillery in Singapore”, Chiang Ming Shun

· “Grand Schemes for Singapore’s Defence in the 19th Century”, Shah Alam

· “Historical Perceptions of Singapore’s Threats and Vulnerabilities 1819-1965”, Kumar Ramakrishna

· "The Fall of Singapore: A Wider Historical Perspective", Wong Lin Ken

· "The Strategy for the Defense of Singapore, 1919-1938", Dr. Ong Chit Chung

"Defensive Structures and Construction Materials in Song City Walls", Huang Kuan-Chung, Wen-yi Chen (translator), Peter Lorge (translator), Tracy G. Miller (translator), Journal of Sung-Yuan Studies 31 (2001)

"Dogs and Horses in Ancient China", Carole Morgan, Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. 14 (1974 ), pp. 58-67 

"Early Chinese Settlement Policies towards the Nomads", Pan Yihong, Asia Major, 3rd series, Vol. V, Part 2, (1992), pp.41-77

"Emperor Huan and Emperor Ling: being the Chronicle of Later Han for the years 157 to 189 AD as recorded in Chapters 54 to 59 of the Zizhi tongjian of Sima Guang", translated and annotated by Rafe de Crespigny, Asian Studies Monographs, New Series No. 12, The Australian National University, (1989)

"Forests and Warfare in World History", J.R. McNeill, Georgetown University

"Fortress Singapore", P.K. Yeoh, FORT 7, (1979), pp.13-51

"Generals of the South: the foundation and early history of the Three Kingdoms state of Wu", Rafe de Crespigny, Asian Studies Monographs, New Series No. 16, The Australian National University, (1990)

"Government and Geography of the Northern Frontier of Later Han, being Chapter 1 of Northern Frontier: the policies and strategy of the Later Han Empire", Rafe de Crespigny. Asian Studies Monographs, New Series No. 4, The Australian National University, (1984)

"Historical Perspectives on the Introduction of the Chariot into China", Edward L. Shaughnessy, Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, Vol. 48, No. 1, (Jun., 1988), pp. 189-237

"Hybrid Identities in the Fifteenth-Century Straits of Malacca", Anthony Reid, ARI Working Paper, No. 67, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (May, 2006)

"Ideology and Military Effectiveness: Chinese Mentalities in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895",Chien-Chi Wang, Masters Dissertations, Volume 4 Part 2: 2006-07

"Institutions, Families, Communities: Towards a social history of the Ming military in southeast China", Michael Szonyi, Harvard University, CHINA AND INNER ASIA SESSION 45, (2009)

"Japan - The Tiny Dwarf? Sino-Japanese Relations from the Kangxi to the Early Qianlong Reigns", Angela Schottenhammer, ARI Working Paper, No. 106, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (Jun., 2008)

“Joseph Needham and The History of Indian Technology”, Indian Journal of History and Science, 35.3 (2000), pp. 245-274

"Kowloon Walled City: Its Origin and Early History", Elizabeth Sinn, Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society Vol. 27, (1987) pp.30–31

"Ladies of the Court of Emperor Huan of Han", Rafe de Crespigny, (Feb., 2004)

"Later Han Civil Administration; being the Chronicle of Later Han for the years 157 to 189 AD", Rafe de Crespigny. Asian Studies Monographs, New Series No. 12, The Australian National University, (1989)

"Later Han Military Organisation; being the Chronicle of Later Han for the years 189 to 220 AD", Rafe de Crespigny, Asian Studies Monographs, New Series No. 21, The Australian National University, (1996)

"Magnetic Anisotropy Of Laboratory Materials In Which Magma Flow Is Simulated", Leong Wing-Fatt and Frank D. Stacey, Pure and Applied Geophysics, Vol. 64, No. 1 (Dec., 1966), pp. 78-80

"Man from the Margin: Cao Cao and the Three Kingdoms", Rafe de Crespigny, The Fifty-first George Ernest Morrison Lecture in Ethnology, (1990)

"Mao Tse-tung and Operational Art During the Chinese Civil War", Thomas P.Reilly, Monograph Report, (MAY 21, 1998)

"Medieval Warfare: How to Capture a Castle with Siegecraft", Lise Hull, The Quarterly Journal of Military History, (Spring, 2004)

"Medieval Warfare: The Unfriendly Interface", David Nicolle, The Journal of Military History, Vol. 63, No. 3, (Jul., 1999), pp. 579-599

"Meritorious Cannibal: Chang Hsun's Defense of Sui-yang and the Exaltation of Loyalty in an Age of Rebellion", David A. Graff, Asia Major, 3rd Ser., Vol. 8, (1995), pp. 1-16

"Military Campaigns against Yunnan: A Global Analysis", Bin Yang, ARI Working Paper, No. 30, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (Sep., 2004)

"Military Families and Southern Song Court - The Lu Case", Fan Cheng-Hua, Journal of Sung-Yuan Studies 33, National Taiwan University, (2003) pp. 49-70

"Military Operations in the Han Period", Michael Loewe, China Society Occasional Papers No. 12, The China Society, London, (1961)

"Ming China and Southeast Asia in the 15th Century: A Reappraisal", Geoff Wade, ARI Working Paper, No. 28, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, (Jul., 2004)

"Ming Chinese colonial armies in Southeast Asia", Geoff Wade, Colonial Armies in Southeast Asia, Routledge, ( 2006) pp. 73-104

“Ming-Qing Border Defence, the Inward Turn of Chinese Cartography, and Qing Expansion in Central Asia in the Eighteenth Century”, Benjamin A. Elman, The Chinese State at the Borders, (2007), pp. 29-56

"Modern Military Technology in Counterinsurgency Warfare: The Experience of the Nationalist Army during the Chinese Civil War", Victor Shiu Chiang Cheng, Centre for East and South-East Asian Studies Working Paper No. 20, Lund University, (2007)

"Modern War in Ancient China", T. F. Hsu, The XXth Century, Vol. I (Oct-Dec., 1941), pp. 57-62

"Mongol Intentions towards Japan in 1266: Evidence from a Mongol Letter to the Sung", Kenneth W. Chase, Sino-Japanese Studies, Vol. 9 Issue No. 2, (Nov., 1990), pp. 13-23

"Mongol Responses to Christianity in China: A Yuan Dynasty Phenomenon", Li Tang, ARI Working Paper, No. 63, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (Apr., 2006)

"Mountain Fortress Defence: The Experience of the Southern Song and Korea in Resisting the Mongol Invasions", Huang K'uan-chung, David Wright (Translator), Warfare in Chinese History, (2000) pp. 222-251

"On The Knowledge Possessed By The Ancient Chinese Of The Arabs and Arabian Colonies And Other Western Countries, Mentioned in Chinese Books" E. Bretschneider, Trubner, 1871

"On the Origin of Rockets", Jixing Pan, T'oung Pao, Vol. 73, (1987), pp. 2-15

“On the Spur: Evidence from Serapong Battery, Fixed Defences of Singapore”, The Coast Defense Journal, Vol.21, Issue 1 (Feb., 2007), pp. 4-20

"Piracy on the China Coast", A. D. Blue, Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. 5 (1965 ), pp. 69-85

"Resolving Border Disputes in the Asia-Pacific Region", Irina Komissina and Azhdar Kurtov, The Korean Journal of Defense Analysis, Vol. XV, No.1, (Spring 2003) pp.131-154

"Ryukyu in the Ming Reign Annals 1380s-1580s", Geoffrey Wade, ARI Working Paper, No. 93, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, (Jul., 2007)

"Secrets of Lock Picking", Steven Hampton, (1987)

"Shuihu zhuan and the Military Subculture of the Northern Song 960-1127", Paul Jakov Smith, Haverford College, Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 66.2, (Dec., 2006), pp. 363-422

"Siegecraft: Two Tenth Century Instruction Manuals by Heron of Byzantium", Denis F. Sullivan, Dumberton Oaks Papers 36, (2000)

"Sino-Russian Border Relations, 1850-1860", George H. C. Wong & Allan B. Cole, Chung Chi Journal, Vol. 5 No. 2 (1966 May), pp. 109-125

"Some Aspects of Chinese Science Before the Arrival of the Jesuits", George H. C. Wong, Chung Chi Journal, Vol. 2 No. 2 (1963 May), pp. 169-180

"Some Aspects of the Urban Geography of the Chinese Hsien Capital", Sen-Dou Chang, Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 51, No. 1, (Mar., 1961), pp. 23-45

"Southeast Asia: Major Power Playground or Finishing School?", Ron Huisken, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre Working Paper No. 408, Australian National University, (Apr., 2008)

"Southern Migration of the Sung Dynasty", John C. Ferguson, Journal of the North China Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol.LV, (1924), pp.14-27

"Southern Song Mountain Fortress Defense", Liang Jieming, Journal of the Ancient China Research Society, Paper No.1, (Oct., 2009)

"Strategemata", Sextus Julius Frontinus, ca. A.D. 40 - 103

"Strategy and Contingency in the Tang Defeat of the Eastern Turks, 629-630", David A. Graff, Warfare in Inner Asian History (500-1800), Handbook of Oriental Studies/Handbuch Der Orientalistik, (Dec 1, 2001), pp. 33-71

"Studies in Medieval Chinese Siegecraft: The Siege of Fengtian A.D. 783", Benjamin E. Wallacker, Journal of Asian History, Vol. 33, (1999), pp. 185-193

"Studies in Medieval Chinese Siegecraft: The Siege of Ying-ch'uan A.D. 548-549", Benjamin E. Wallacker, The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 30, No. 3, (May, 1971)

"Studies in Medieval Chinese Siegecraft: The Siege of Yu-pi A.D. 546", Benjamin E. Wallacker, The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 28, No. 4, (Aug., 1969)

"The An Lu-shan Rebellion and Origins of Chronic Militarism in Late T'ang China", Essays on T'ang Society: The Interplay of Social and Political and Economic Forces, ed. J.C.Perry and B.L.Smith, Leiden, (1976)

"The Art of War in World History from Antiquity to the Nuclear Age", University of California Press, 1994

· "Maxims (1), Maxims (2) & Geopolitics", Napoleon Bonaparte, (ca. 1804-1823)

· "On War", Sa'di, (1257-1258)

· "Principles of War", Ibn Hudhayl Al-Andalusi, (14th century A.D.)

· "Rules of Desert Warfare", Erwin Rommel, (1943)

· "Tank Attack", Heinz Guderian, (1952)

· "The Army of the Future", Charles De Gaulle, (1934)

· "The Battle of Crecy", Jean Froissart, (ca. 1361-1369)

· "The Battle of Kadesh", The Kadesh Inscription, (ca. 1295 B.C.)

· "The Book of Lord Shang; The Method of Warfare", Shang Yang, (4th century B.C.)

· "The Conquest of Delhi", Timur, (ca. 1398)

· "The Conquest of Hindustan", Babur, (1526-1530)

· "The General", Onasander, (1st century A.D.)

· "The Perfection of the French Artillery", Francesco Guicciardini, (ca. 1537-1540)

· "The Six-Fold Policy", Kautilya, (ca. 4th century B.C.)

· "War and Colonization in the East", Adolf Hitler, (27 Jul., 1941)

· "War and the Germans", Tacitus, (ca. A.D. 117)

"The Battle of Huo-i", David A. Graff, Asia Major, 3rd Ser., Vol. 5, (1992), pp. 33-55

"The Battle of Sekigahara", Hermann Bohner, The XXth Century, Vol.VI (Jan. - Jun., 1944), pp.283-289

"The Battle of Talas", Barry Hoberman, Saudi Aramco World, (Sep/Oct., 1982), pp. 26-31

"The Chinese Conquest of Songaria", CH Denby Jr, Pei-t'ang press, 1891

"The Circulation of Military Technology in the Mongolian Empire", Thomas T. Allsen, Warfare in Inner Asian History (500-1800), Handbook of Oriental Studies/Handbuch Der Orientalistik, (Dec 1, 2001), pp. 265-293

"The City-State in Ancient China", Robin D.S. Yates

"The City Under Siege: Technology and Organization as Seen in the Reconstructed Text of the Military Chapters of Mo-tzu", Robin D.S. Yates, Harvard University, (1980) (35mm Microfilm and Loose Bind)

"The Deification of Heroes Following the Struggle by the Vassal State of Chou to Overthrow the Shang Dynasty", Keith Stevens, Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society Vol. 38 (1998), pp. 173-185

"The Development of Iron and Steel Technology in China", Joseph Needham, The Newcomen Society, (1964)

"The Division and Destruction of the Xiongnu Confederacy in the first and second centuries AD, [Turkish: "Hun Konfederasyonu'nun Blnmesi ve Yikilmasi"], Rafe de Crespigny, The Turks [Yeni TrkiyeMedya Hismetleri-Murat Ocak], Ankara (2002)

"The Dunhuang Chinese Sky: A Comprehensive Study of the Oldest Known Star Atlas", Jean-Marc Bonnet-Bidaud, Françoise Praderie, Susan Whitfield, Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage, Vol. 12, No. 1, (2009) pp.39-59

"The Early Development of Firearms in China", L. Carrington Goodrich and Feng Chia-Sheng, ISIS, Vol. 36, No. 2, (1946), pp. 114-123

"The Emergence of China as a Sea Power During the Late Sung and Early Yuan Periods", Jung-Pang Lo, The Far Eastern Quarterly, Vol. 14, No. 4 Special Number on Chinese History and Society, (Aug., 1955), pp 489-503

"The Four Books for Women: Ancient Chinese texts for the education of women", Zhang Mingqi, Asian Review, Vol. 1, (1987)

"The Glories of Sogdiana", Albert E. Dien

"The Guns of Constantinople", Roger Crowley, Military History Magazine, (Sep., 2007)

"The History of the Crossbow, Illustrated from Specimens in the United States National Museum", C. Martin Wilbur, Smithsonian Institution Annual Report, (1936), pp. 427-438

& "Again the Crossbow Trigger Mechanism", A.F.P. Hulsewe, T'oung Pao, Vol. 64, (1978), p. 254

"The Horse in Early Chinese Military History", Robin D.S. Yates, Academia Sinica, (2002), pp. 1-78

"The Inner Asian Warriors", Denis Sinor, Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol.101, (1981), pp. 133-144

"The Invention of the Counterweight Trebuchet: A Study in Cultural Diffusion", Paul E. Chevedden, Dumberton Oaks Papers 54, (2000)

"The Judicial System and Governance in Traditional China", He Weifang, The Rule of Law: Perspective from the Pacific Rim, Mansfield Dialogues in Asia, (Oct., 2000), pp. 91-100

"The Korean War: An Interpretative Essay", Yonosuke Nagai, The Japanese Journal of American Studies, No. 1, (1981), pp. 151-174

"The Malay Founder of Medieval Malacca", R. O. Winstedt, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, 

University of London, Vol. 12, No. 3/4, (1948), pp. 726-729

"The Manchu Conquest of China", Williams, Frederick Wells, Journal of  Race Development, vol. 4, No.2 (October, 1913), pp. 152-167.

"The Ming shi Account of Champa", Geoffrey Wade, ARI Working Paper, No. 3, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (Jun., 2003)

“The Ming Shi-lu as a source for Southeast Asian History”, Geoff Wade, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (2005)

"The Mohists on Warfare: Technology, Technique, and Justification", Robin D.S. Yates, Journal of the American Academy of Religion, XLVII.3 Thematic Issue S, (Sep., 1980), pp. 549-603

"The Mongol Conquest of Dali: The Failed Second Front", John E. Herman, Warfare in Inner Asian History (500-1800), Handbook of Oriental Studies/Handbuch Der Orientalistik, (Dec 1, 2001), pp. 295-334

"The Origin of Ju and Mo", Fung Yu-lan, Chinese Political and Social Science Review, (1935)

"The Origin of West African Crossbows", Henry Balfour, Journal of the Royal African Society, Vol. 8, No. 32, (Jul., 1909)

"The Ottomans in Southeast Asia", Anthony Reid, ARI Working Paper, No. 36, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (Feb., 2005)

"The Perfected Warrior and the Military during Song Times ", Shin-yi Chao, Rutgers University 

"The Reconstruction of a Chou Dynasty Weapon", E. Morton Grosser, Artibus Asiae, Vol. 23, No. 2 (1960), pp. 83-94

"The Rise of Early Chinese Empire and Patterns of Chinese History", Dingxin Zhao, (Jan. 28, 2004)

"The Rise of Tambralinga and the Southeast Asian Commercial Boom in the Thirteenth Century", Fukami Sumio, XIV International Economic History Congress, Helsinki 2006, Session 72

"The Road to the "War of Greater East Asia"", K.H. Abshagen, The XXth Century, Vol.II, (Jan. - Jun., 1942), pp.5-10

"The Role of the Horse in Chinese History", H.G. Creel, The American Historical Review, Vol. 70, No. 3 (Apr., 1965), pp. 647-672

"The Spring and Autumn Period", Cho-yun Hsu, The Cambridge History of Ancient China from the Origins of Civilization to 221 B.C., Loewe & Shaughnessy, (1999), pp. 545-586

"The Stirrup and its Effect on Chinese Military History", Albert E. Dien, Ars Orientalis, Vol. 16 (1986), pp. 33-56

"The Story of Chang K'ien, China's Pioneer in Western Asia: Text and Translation of Chapter 123 of Ssi-Ma Ts'ien's Shi-Ki" Friedrich Hirth, Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 37, (1917), pp. 89-152

"The Three Kingdoms and Western Jin: a history of China in the Third Century AD", Rafe de Crespigny, East Asian History, The Australian National University, Canberra no. 1 (Jun., 1991), pp. 1-36, & no. 2 (Dec., 1991), pp. 143-164

"The Traction Trebuchet: A Reconstruction of an Early Medieval Siege Engine", W.T.S. Tarver, Technology and Culture, Vol. 36, No. 1 (Jan., 1995), pp 136-167

"The Trebuchet", Paul E. Chevedden, Les Eigenbrod, Vernard Foley and Werner Soedel, Scientific American, (1995)

"The Uighur-Chinese Conflict of 840-848", Michael R. Drompp, Warfare in Inner Asian History (500-1800), Handbook of Oriental Studies/Handbuch Der Orientalistik, (Dec 1, 2001), pp. 73-103

"The Warring States (473-221 B.C.) - The Modern Period in Ancient China", Lei Hai-tsung, War Area Service Corps, (1943)

"The Yang Family of Generals", Keith Stevens and Jennifer Welch, Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. 37 (1998 ), pp. 39-61

"The Zheng He Voyages: A Reassessment", Geoff Wade, ARI Working Paper, No. 31, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore (Oct., 2004)

“Traditional Military Thinking and the Defensive Strategy of China”, Lieutenant General Li Jijun, Letort Paper No. 1, (Aug., 1997)

"To Establish Peace: being the Chronicle of the Later Han dynasty for the years 189 to 220 AD as recorded in Chapters 59 to 69 of the Zizhi tongjian of Sima Guang [volume 1: Chapters 59-63, 189-200]", translated and annotated by Rafe de Crespigny. Asian Studies Monographs, New Series No. 21, The Australian National University, (1996)

"Turning the Tide: The Strategic and Psychological Significance of the Liberation of Pyongyang in 1593", Kenneth M. Swope, War and Society, Vol. 21, (2003), pp. 1-22

"War and Peace in Early Modern East Asia: Hierarchy and Legitimacy in International Systems", Kang, David C., Working Paper No. 25, Research Group in International Security, (October 2008) 

"War Elephants in Ancient and Medieval China", Edward H. Schafer, Oriens, Vol. 10, No. 2, (Dec. 31, 1957), pp. 289-291

"War in the early modern world", Edited by Jeremy Black, University of Exeter (1999)

· "Introduction", Jeremy Black

· "Warfare at sea 1450-1815", Jan Glete

· "Warfare in Japan 1467-1600", Paul Varley

· "War and warfare in China 1450-1815", Peter Lorge

· "Warhorse and gunpowder in India ca. 1000-1850", Jos Gommans

· "Warfare, slave trading and European influence: Atlantic Africa 1450-1800", John Thornton

· "Ottoman war and warfare 1453-1812",  Virginia Aksan

· "European warfare 1450-1815", Peter Wilson

· "War, politics and the conquest of Mexico", Ross Hassig

· "European-Native American warfare in North America 1513-1815, Armstrong Starkey

"Warring States Political History", Mark Edward Lewis, The Cambridge History of Ancient China from the Origins of Civilization to 221 B.C., Loewe & Shaughnessy, (1999), pp. 587-650

"Water supply of the cities in ancient China", P.Du and H.Chen, Water Science & Technology: Water Supply Vol.7, No.1, (2007), pp.173-181

"Weaponry: The Trebuchet", Scott Farrell, The Quarterly Journal of Military History, (Autumn, 2006)

"Weapons of the China Wars", Richard J. Garrett, Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. 38 (1998) pp.107-119 

"Western Cultural Innovations in China, 1200 B.C.", Edward L. Shaughnessy, Sino-Platonic Papers, Issue No. 11, (Jul., 1989)

“When Asia was one”, Nayan Chanda, Global Asia, Vol.1. No.1, pp. 58-68

"Yi Said, Li Said: Perspectives on the End of the First Greater East Asian War", Kenneth M. Swope, Ball State University (2005)

[END]

Travel - Japan (Tokyo, Chiba, Fujiyama, Hakone & Kyoto) December 2006

Tokyo - Disneyland, Shinjuku, Sensoji (Asakusajinja), Akihabara, Ebisu, Shibuya, Harajuku, Snoopytown, Fukugawa Edo Museum, Imperial Palace
Chiba
Fujiyama
Hakone
Kyoto - Nijo Castle, Kyoto Imperial Palace, Kiyomizudera, Heianjinja

Commentary Impressions...
"Harajuku... kawaii ne!"
"Throwing stars are NOT allowed into Singapore."
"Temples, temples everywhere!"
"Everything is soooo affordable."
"Wah... sushi here is cheaper than in Singapore!"

Project - Fort Serapong Site Structural Investigation 1st December 2006 (PRIVATE ALBUM)

Wedding Anniversary

Start:

Nov 16, '06

16 Steps Taijiquan Qiang (Spear) (Incomplete. Only first 4 steps)

Please do not redistribute. Will update when I capture the full sequence.

Project - Wife: Tea Ceremonies, Wedding Banquet, Kuala Lumpur, 18th November 2006 (PRIVATE ALBUM)

Project - Wife: Guo Da Li, Wedding Ceremonies & Tea Ceremonies, 16th Nov. 2006 (PRIVATE ALBUM)

Project - Wife: Marriage Solemnisation & Banquet, Singapore, 11th Nov. 2006 (PRIVATE ALBUM)

Project - Wife: Wedding Album (PRIVATE ALBUM)

Project - Fort Serapong Archeological Dig, 4th November 2006 (PRIVATE ALBUM)

Please do not redistribute.

At the request of an archeologist from the National University of Singapore, I joined him at one of his dig sites to look over the structures under investigation, with the intention to possibly produce and submit a visual inspection report on the structural integrity of the fort as part of his impact assessment paper to the Sentosa Development Corporation for restoration and development. Along with us was a group of students from the SIM and NUS universities. Quite a pleasant way to spend a nice morning climbing through the jungle and abandoned structures with a bunch of pretty young undergraduate co-eds.

Fort Serapong is on the highest peak of Sentosa Island and was first built in the 1870s in response to an expected threat from Tsarist Russia just after the end of the Crimean war, rebuilt again in the 1930s and was finally abandoned when the Japanese overran the British Garrison on Singapore.

Besides the fort, there is also another abandoned complex sited amongst the buildings of the fort, which was built ca. 1950s and abandoned not long after. They believe it was built and maintained by a religious cult as they have identified sleeping quarters, gathering halls, communal toilets and a chapel in the mix of collapsing buildings, but until today, they have yet to identify who or what kind of people they were, or why these buildings were abandoned, or even what religious activity was carried out here hidden from prying eyes.

In the final pictures taken deep underground is a command bunker which goes down 4 stories below the hill. As this was a cursory visit to get a feel of the site and because of the SIM and NUS students on the tour of the dig site some of whom were in rather inappropriate short skirts, we didn't go beyond the trapdoor in the floor. If they proceed to engage me for the structural assessment, at the next visit we will be descending into the lower levels to assess the state of the structure. This area has just recently been opened and they have found everything intact, preserved exactly at the moment of abandonment, with a few coins, monopoly pieces, odds and ends etc. scattered about. They have also found and handed over to the army, quite a few unexploded ordinances like landmines, 6 and 8 inch shells as well as rifle shells.

... notable events : The very first time... with stars in our eyes...

The very first time... the feelings were indescribable. With child-like wonder and curiousity we explored and immersed ourselves into the experience. The beauty of it all was breathtaking. Her eyes were opened that night, her very first time... the immensity of it all, overwhelming, exciting, and yet a little scary.

The first peek was tantalising, a promise of things to come. From that one single peek, we knew that we would get very little sleep that night. The sun was begining to set, withdrawing the last tendrils of light from the ever darkening skies.

It wasn't my first time. I'd been there and done that two other times before but the look of rapture on her soft features glowing in the dim starlight made it all new for me all over again, the pleasure of sharing this moment with her, priceless.

There were 6 of us, split into two cars for the drive up. The male to female ratio heavily in favour of the feminine gender at 1:2. We knew that others were already there waiting, having set out the night before. It was going to be a large gathering. There would be some people I knew there, the others would just be people I had yet to know. As we drove from Singapore, we laughed and played the entire journey, a short 2 hour drive along the old winding highway to the northeastern coast of Johor state. We had set out just after lunch and expected to arrive at the small coastal town of Mersing just in time for dinner and a little shopping before we headed to the beach. Everyone was excited and there was anticipation in the air because for most of them too, this would be their first time and I being the experienced one, was determined to make every effort to make it memorable.

It was late afternoon when we arrived. Our tummies rumbling, we tumbled out of the cars into a quaint little restaurant for food. We ordered and ate in a hurry, ordering extras to be packed and eaten later for supper. The sky had gotten visibly darker by the time we exited the restaurant and we needed to hurry. I fretted a little because I knew I needed to find my way to that secluded spot on the beach we were headed for and I didn't relish the thought of having to find it in the dark.

We topped off our supplies of drinks and junk food from the provision store next door to the restaurant and then we were off. From the central roundabout at Mersing, we got onto the narrow coastal highway and started heading north. This highway hugged the South China Sea coast and led all the way to the Thai border 800km to the north. We weren't going that far of course, just 15km or so for the right turn that would take us to the beach.

The streetlamps petered out not long after leaving the town, plunging everything outside of the board arcs of our headlights into darkness. We drove slowly looking for the turning we needed to make, gauging it's location more from dead reckoning and the measure on the odometer, than from any physical landmark or sign. The first time I had been here was in another friend's car, and he had used a GPS system to tell him exactly where to turn and how far to run. I had jotted notes of that first trip, converting a GPS system of navigating into a simple but crude directional and distance system of readings. With my directional and distance readings, I had put them into practice on a second excursion in broad daylight to verify the accuracy of my notes. They had worked then and I was fully confident that they would work now, the only difference being the lack of vision beyond the car's headlights.

I found the turning without problems. Slowing and signalling to make sure the second car would follow, I turned down this side road which would take us a further 2km towards the water's edge. There again, I waited for the other car before turning left along what had originally been a small dirt track but was now apparently in the process of being tarred and surfaced. A further 5km or so along this narrow track I slowed yet again. This was the difficult part. The exact stretch of beach we were headed for was unmarked and I had no foolproof way of knowing the exact moment to turn off the track. Twice I stopped my car to look for fresh signs of other cars turning off the track in the light of my headlamps before I found one with visible tire marks on the grass a metre or so beyond. This was probably it, I told the rest but wait... I had to be sure.

Turning off the car lights, stilling myself while peering outward and taking the time to let my eyes adjust to the night, I stretched out with my senses... there was the low whistle of the sea breeze, and there, the sound of the surf... and yes, there, the unmistakable sounds of other people with the telltale flashes of reddish lights about a hundred metres or so in the distance, exactly in the expected place and direction.

"Ok, we're going." I told my pensive passengers, all chatter having ceased along with the disappearance of streetlamps. To these city dwellers, the lack of lighting was an alarming thought and something probably to be feared. I smiled reassuringly. We were almost there.

With headlights on, over the low earthen kerb we went, onto the grassy knoll. Slowing twice, I edged around two small ponds, making my actions deliberate enough for the driver behind me to notice. It wouldn't do to have to call a tow truck now. Mobile phone coverage in this area was tentative to the point of being worthless, not to mention that one usually didn't want to get one's car into a pond.

Nearing the now increasingly visible group of parked cars and tents, we turned off our headlights yet again and coasted to a stop, turning our cars around for ease of unloading from the rear trunk, as well as for quick getaways in case of trouble. We were here.

The oohs and aahs were already eminating from the cars as the engines were silenced. So they've noticed, I grinned. I looked over at Waikit seated in the front passenger seat. She was silent, her eyes glued to the skies. Reaching a hand over to hold hers, we shared a treasured moment, the glorious vista of the heavens stretching from horizon to horizon above and before us.

Movements were sluggish, breaths were laboured, all due to the unabashed gawking at the night sky without city light pollution. Someone exclaimed that she didn't know that there were so many stars in the sky, enough to fill the heavens with hardly a blank space. I gave them all a knowing smile, my sister and I the old hands at stargazing, quietly making the rounds to greet the others who had arrived earlier.

We spread the mats and deck chairs and started work on setting up the telescope. I used an 8 inch which was just at the edge of decency for a deep-sky observation platform. I would have loved to have at least a 12 inch or even a 10 inch but the cost of delivery and the need to lug about such a large weight all over the place made such a bulky and heavy telescope impractical. The other newbies were all mesmerized, faces glued upwards to the heavens. Yes, it truly was breathtaking, I told them, but they really needed to stop or risk a stiff neck soon.

The coffee and snacks soon appeared and we were soon munching and slurping our supper while I took them on a slow tour of the cosmos, first identifying notable sky objects with my PDA, then waiting for them to rise high enough before pointing my telescope towards them. It was amazingly clear. The night as usual, was chosen especially for a moonless night due to the disturbing brightness of moonlight. The hazy cloud-like milky way band could be seen crossing the sky like the river of the ancients. We identified constellations, nebulae, planets, binary stars, coloured stars, star clusters, and my personal favourite, spiral galaxies.

The temperature dropped to a chill and we opened the heat packs to keep
the telescope tube warm so as to keep the lenses from fogging from dew. Not many of us slept much that night, Waikit and I snoozing off and on in our sleeping bags, waking occasionally to repoint the telescope to yet another new deepsky object that had finally risen. The very satisfied smile that was permanently etched on her starlight-lit face was simply the best reward I could have gotten for my efforts. In order not to spoil the night vision of our eyes, torches were banned or at best dulled to a low reddish glow. It was nice sharing this experience with her, in the category 1 darkness where a person's featureless outline is all one can see at 3 feet away, it was an intimacy of the closest kind possible.

The first rays of sunlight soon brought both groans of disappointment mixed with good cheer for the end of a long night. We woke up to a new world, the surroundings of the previous night now increasingly visible. The distant horn of a motocycle tooting, the crow of a cock greeting the morning, the sound of the surf returning with the rising tide and the switch of the nighttime land breeze to a daytime sea breeze made the experience one of such engagement with life and nature, a stark contrast to the numbing insulation of city life.

Waikit and I walked over the last 50m or so to the beach proper, now lit brightly enough for the waters of the South China Sea to be seen as a darker line of movement on the white sand. We took our time to explore the increasingly visible beach as the morning sun peeked over the horizon in a dazzling burst of colour. Hand in hand we returned to help pack up our things, knowing that the sun would soon be up fully, and the whole area too hot to remain out in the open for long. A friend who had arrived a day earlier had given us the keys to his hotel room in Mersing town the night before. We headed there now, dumping our stuff before going for a quick breakfast. The chatter was all about the night sky and the sights we had witnessed. Very tired bodies were dragged back to the hotel room to sleep off the edge of weariness for the drive back. The two drivers, myself and the other man in our little party, were given the beds to make sure we would be well rested behind the wheel.

3 hours of sleeping later, we were checked out and packed back into our cars. Picking up a quick lunch in Mersing, we were on our way back to Singapore. The were smiles on everyone's faces, having seen what few today ever see their entire lives, the beauty of the stars above our heads. I've been bugged and harrassed to make a second trip ever since by some of the ladies from that first trip but have yet to do so. Perhaps someday we'll return. We'll return to fill our eyes with stars, reexperience the glory of the night sky and for just one night, be again explorers of the cosmos.

>>> Click here for pictorial blog "Activity - Star Gaxing at Mersing, Johor, Malaysia"

... notable events : Singapore to Haadyai

School was over. It was the 6 month haitus between pre-university and
university. It was the grey limbo of a statusless person who was
neither an adult nor an adolescent, neither a working member of society
nor a student, neither a man or a boy, neither here nor there.

This
was the period when our A-level results were still not yet released.
Our applications to universities had gone out based on our final school
exam results and this was the period of the agonising wait for a
response. Some of us took up part-time work, our pens hovering undecidely over the dotted line of job applications forms that asked
"Current level of education:........ or "Current working
status:............". Those with glib tongues lied through their teeth
to land plush jobs, others like me could only turn red in the face when
interviewers asked the dreaded question, "We are looking for permanent
staff. Why are you here?"

I needed the money because dad's
allowance was for a student, something
I no longer was and unless I was resigned to vegetating at home
hoarding my savings, this was the only way to get at a minimum level of
finances for a social life. I did eventually find work, taking on the
exalted position of a street interviewer, stopping and harrassing
people on the streets to ask them pointless questions on whether they
liked hair tonic A or hair tonic B better, or if they went to private
clinics or to the government polyclinics when they were sick. I even
took on the more challenging interviews where thick skin was the only
job requirement needed, needing to barge through offices and medical
clinics to interview the doctors on the types of medicine they usually
prescribed. I made a lot of friends in those couple of months I'm sure.

But
we were not really part of working society, the not-quite students of
the limbo months. Work was well... boring. We needed to have fun too.
That was when a group of us decided to go up to Haadyai in Southern
Thailand, the hard way. Camping, hitching rides or taking public
transport up the full length of Peninsular Malaysia. I had grown up
hearing tales of my dad's scouting exploits cycling through then Malaya, the
1000km distance from Penang to Singapore and back on his rickety
bicycle with his friends and how they sheltered and slept on the floor
of the Muar Police Station while gunshots rang in the distance from the
fighting in the surrounding jungles against communist insurgents of the
Emergency years, and how at the Singapore Merlion statue at Marina Bay he lost his floppy scouting hat when it blew off his head into the sea. There were 4 of us with our bags, pots, torchlights,
camping gear and blankets, who finally stood at the Singapore train
station of the Malayan Railway that morning for our first leg of the
trip. All Malaysians, all former students studying in Singapore, all
crazy.

I planned most of the details of the journey, for it was
more a journey than a trip. We would make a few overnight stops at
campsites, knowledge learned from my time in the scouts, and at
strategically placed friend's/relatives' houses throughout Malaysia.

Singapore,
Gunung Ledang (campsite),
Melaka (backpacker's hostel),
Port Dickson (campsite),
Kuala Lumpur (friend's house),
Pulau Pangkor (campsite),
Penang (grandma's house),
Alor Setar (aunt's house),
Haadyai.

After going through the immigration counters to exit Singapore and to enter Malaysia, we finally boarded the train, a slow mail train that would take us to Segamat, the closest stop to Gunung Ledang (Mount Ophir). We couldn't take the express trains as Segamat was not a sufficiently large station to warrant a stop by the express and only the mail train which stopped at every single station along the line would do. As it pulled out of the station, we were all cheerfully grinning at each other. This would be a grand adventure.

We arrived at Segamat station at about lunch time. The ride had taken a few hours and we were hungry. We took a quick lunch at a local food stall by the side of the road while I tried to remember my previous visit to the Gunung Ledang campsite and the way to get there. It wasn't far by bus, I remembered. After asking around a little for directions from passerbys, we soon found our bus. We boarded the bus with all our gear and after paying the bus fare, asked the bus conductor to let us know when to get off. He apparently was an old hand at this as the Gunung Ledang campsite was a well frequented site with most campers coming by train to the Segamat station. We were just another group in an unending line of campers headed for the popular campsite.

The bus had barely left town when we were told to get off. The narrow 2-lane road was deserted with only a single wooden pole at the side to show that this was a busstop. We crossed the road and started our trek down a side road leading to the campground. There were prominent signboards pointing the way to the Gunung Ledang Waterfall which was just below the campsite. The trek proved to be quite a walk but we got to the foot of the waterfall, guided in part by the small stream that appeared in the middle of our road which disappeared into a dirt road not far from the main road, as well as from the increasingly loud roaring sound of the waterfall was we neared it.

We marched up to the small police post at the base of falls to report ourselves. The police officer, a portly gentleman asked only one question. "Singaporean?" We all shook our heads in the negative. We were all Malaysians we told him. "Ok, go. No need to report." he said. Laughing, we left and started up the concrete stairs that led up the falls. Apparently the police either didn't care about Malaysians, or they didn't trust Singaporeans to take care of themselves. Probably the latter as there had been a few reports in the newspapers recently, of Singaporeans getting lost in Malaysian jungles on overnight camping trips.

We found a nice spot just above the main falls to pitch our tent and as it was probably the off-peak season, we were the only campsite around. Our tent was just simple canvas sheet propped on two stout bamboo poles which we had chopped down with a saw from a nearby grove, and a large groundsheet laid on top of a bed of leaves to keep the damp away. The tent proved rather useless as 2 of us decided that the night was much too nice to sleep "indoors", and we promptly plonked ourselves, bedrolls, blankets and all onto a large almost-flat boulder by the river where we could see the stars. After a quickly cooked meal, we stuffed ourselves into the beds to eat and chat. It grew dark very quickly and it was soon almost pitch dark except for the dim light from the stars above peeking through the jungle canopy. The roaring waterfall making a not unpleasant droning sound far below us as we drifted to sleep. This was the life.

We woke to the strange feel of wet bedding. I was up with a start. Uhhh....

Either the river water had risen, or we had slid down to the water's edge. The bottom of my blanket was soaking wet. "Hehehe..." we grinned sheepishly at each other, each thinking the exact same thing, that we could have been swept down the water fall if the water had risen any faster. Oh well, live and learn we told ourselves. We made breakfast and then decided to go for a swim after stuffing ourselves with coffee, scrambled eggs, pancakes, hotdogs and canned sardines with bread. I think we outdid ourselves that first breakfast of the trip. It was the only time we made the effort. Cooked food at the subsequent camps were increasingly dismayal affairs. We packed up a little after breakfast, breaking camp so that we could move off for Melaka right after our swim.

We swam in the various pools just above the waterfall, splashing around and making fools of ourselves but since there wasn't another to see, we just went plain crazy-silly. That was when we noticed that the river water was rising, and rising fast. It must be raining further upstream. I told everyone to pack up everything. The faster we got everything packed into bags and under waterproof sheets, the better. I proved right. The rain arrived very quickly and there we crouched, in our swimming trunks huddled underneath plasticsheets. We had unfortunately packed our tent and it was too late now to repitch it. The rain had come too soon, and we were caught in what was becoming a major downpour.

We were soon shivering underneath the plastic sheet and some large banana leaves which had been pulled over our faces to suppliment our make-shift shelter. This just wouldn't do. We were all going to get a cold if things didn't improve. Standing, I walked out into the rain and tried to get everyone to follow me. Only one other person followed me. Oh well, don't say I didn't warn the rest. The two of us started doing stretches and rubbed ourselves vigoriously, bringing back warmth into our cold bodies. I also did a little more exploring and found a sheltered spot underneath a big boulder next to the swiftly flowing river. For awhile, this spot proved perfect, shelter from the rain and the cold winds coming down the mountain. We kept rubbing our arms and bodies, keeping warm as best we could. But even this meager shelter didn't last. The water level rose dangerously until the spot we were standing on was flooded with fast moving water. We moved back out into under the jungle canopy rather than risk being swept off our feet by the water. I'm not sure how long the rain lasted but my arms were aching by the time the rain tapered off to a very light drizzle. Taking the opportunity presented by the break in the storm, we whipped out towels and dry shirts and dried ourselves as best we could. Feeling better but still wary of the weather, we grabbed our things and started down the stairs, headed back down to the police post at the base of the mountain. We didn't relish the thought of having to spend anymore time in the pouring rain slapping and rubbing ourselves silly.

We made it just as the rain restarted itself. Safely under a solid roof now, we towelled off properly and dressed with me handing out and forcing everyone to swallow vitamin C pills. But the pills came a little late for one of our party though. He was one of the 2 who had sat things out shivering under the plastic sheet and not kept warm, and now he had caught a cold. To make matters worse, he had received a call during the night and he had been deliberating whether he should return home to attend to an urgent matter. The cold made up his mind for him and as we treked back out to the main road, we were already redividing the supplies amongst the remaining 3 adventurers, everyone in low spirits from such a lousy start to the journey.

An agricultural supply truck belonging to a government forestry agency rumbled past us while we were still walking out towards the main road. We flagged it down and asked if we could hitch a ride out to the road. It turned out that the driver was headed to Melaka, exactly where we were going! The driver very cheerfully opened the back of the truck and we piled in, squeezing ourselves amongst the bags of fertilizer and plants. Our returning friend was dropped off at the main road as he was originally from Muar, a town not far from here and he was quite confident of being able to find his way home. The rest of us, a little cheered from our good fortune in finding a direct lift to our next stop, dozed in the back all the way to Melaka.

We arrived at Melaka in the evening, hungry and tired. We checked into the first backpacker's hotel we found, not bothering to shop around for better bargains and headed for the famed seafood hawker stalls of the old town. After a good meal of crab and other delightful eats, we were soon thoroughly satiated. With a full tummy, we returned to our hotel and were soon snoring away on the lumpy queen-sized bed of the hotel, all three of us, lined up like sardines on the bed.

We woke up in good spirits the morning after and made our way to the front kitchen area where they had breakfast ready for us. Smiling politely at the other backpackers, most of them western couples on shoestring budgets, we noted with a smile the grimy rundown condition of the hotel, which was little more than a few rooms filled with bunkbeds on the 2nd storey of a old shophouse. We checked out after breakfast, eager to move on. We caught a bus heading to Port Dickson, going towards an old campsite known as the Blue Lagoon.

The campsite that I finally led our small backpacking group to turned out to be a different one from the one I had initially imagined. I had intended to use the campsite next to an army base. It was a campsite I had used twice before and it had very interesting human-sized holes in the ground and was the perfect spot for telling creepy ghost stories under the light of the moon, but alas memory failed me and the one actually arrived at was another one which was a little more commercialised, with condominiums and toilet facilities right by the beach front. The site was very different from the way I remembered it although the familiar landmarks were still there. It proved to be a good choice all the same since it certainly didn't hurt to have showers and running water just next to the campsite. We pitched our tent and settled in for campfire meal in full view of the setting sun over the Melaka straits.

The next day was a full day of seaside activities. We canoed, swam, dug clams, and did our damnest to roast our skin to a reddish peeling mess of sunburnt flakes. We spent a total of 2 nights on that beach, playing day and night until our young sun-baked bodies were screaming for soothing relief and a soft bed. Port Dickson was a mere 2 hours from Kuala Lumpur, our next destination, and halfway point of the trip. In Kuala Lumpur were beds, nice, soft, clean beds, and that as far as we were concerned at the time, was all that mattered.

Kuala Lumpur was an opportunity to replenish and resupply. We stayed at the home of one of the guys who like me was also from Kuala Lumpur. I resisted contacting my relatives and friends, prefering to simply slip through undetected. After a well rested night we were at it again, hoversacks on our backs and on a bus to Pulau Pangkor.

We reached Lumut in good time, arriving at the ferry terminal just before lunch. We bought our ferry tickets and settled down at the jetty to wait. We chatted and laughed the carefree banter of youth. We took photographs and we threw rocks into the water until the ferry arrived. The ferry ride was a nice change of pace.  Balanced precariously on the rear railing of the ferry, we thoroughly salted our already sun-baked skin and hair.

Our camp at Pangkor proved the easiest of our three campsites. After what was a very satisfactory dinner of crabs and other local seafood delicacies, we roamed the island searching for a place to bed for the night. We finally rented a simple stilted shed on the southwestern most corner of the island, a remote beach that was filled with empty unrented stilted sheds. We were the only ones on the whole beach. The sunset was spectacular and we attempted photographs of our dark silhouettes wading in the surf against the orange sky.

The next day was a full day for us and we were determined to explore the island. There were only three ways to explore the island, by taken the notoriously spotty bus service, renting motorcycles or renting bicycles. We didn't want to squeeze into buses with the locals and only one of us had a motorcycle license. We deliberated renting motorcycles anyway and risking the day on motored wheels even without licenses but rationality prevailed and we settled for bicycles. On hindsight, the unlicensed risk would have been the better option as we underestimated the number of hills we had to climb on our round-island tour. From our base at the southwestern corner, we ranged far and wide and got as far as the northwestern tip and the southeastern tip before giving up from shuddering calf muscles. My bicycle was the worst, the cycle chain jumping so often that my hands were soon blackened from the grease of having to reset the chains. We left Pangkor island the next day, swearing to take a more luxury route, no more camping for us. Our next stop was to Penang.

Back onto the mainland, we caught a public bus from Pangkor to Butterworth/Seberang Prai. The bus rocked and bumped it's way north, stopping at villages and towns I never knew existed, some too small to even have a proper street, others large enough to have shophouses. The journey took half the day to traverse the final 200 or so kilometres along the old highway until we finally arrived at the ferry terminal opposite the island of Penang. We boarded a ferry to the island and were soon on our way to my grandmother's house.

The stay at Penang proved the most relaxing of the stops, eating and sightseeing, taking in a leisurely high-tea at the top of the TAR complex, the tallest building in Georgetown, the capital of the state of Penang. We also went to the famous Batu Feringgi beach, to Kek Lok Si Temple, to Gurney Drive and other interesting places with me acting as tourguide as I was the most familiar with Penang. Penang was also where a second traveller left the group leaving us with just two. He didn't want to go to Thailand and so Penang would be his final stop.

From Penang, the much reduced group of two were soon on a bus to Alor Setar, the capital of the state of Kedah where my aunt and cousins welcomed us to their home. My aunt made no disguise of her intention of introducing my cousin a year younger than I, to my friend but he played it cool. All through the stay, he must have been rather stressed to have my aunt on his back but he took it all in his stride. My little cousin acted as tourguide for our excursion up north across the Thai border into the small shopper's paradise of Haadyai. The three of us roamed the streets soaking in the sights and sounds of southern Thailand, drinking way too much of their local iced coffee which was made with boiled milk, coffee and crushed ice, giving it a distinctive taste that until today I order when eating at Thai eateries every chance I get.

We had by then, travelled more than over 1000km, backpacking along the way across 2 national boundaries and stopping over at multiple campsites and homes. Haadyai was the end of what was an enjoyable but tiring adventure. Our travel lust thoroughly satiated, we returned to Singapore not a little eager to resume the dull normacy of life at home, to return to the peace and quiet of everyday life until the next lure of adventure calls us again and we dust off our backpacks to go yet again on another wild adventure.