Of festivals, medicine and grandparents 节日、医学和祖父母

Hi everyone, this is Owen and this is my podcast for Friday 17th July. I hope you are all well and welcome to my last podcast before the summer holiday. Last week the rain arrived here in Kunming, so I'm happy I'm going on holiday for a month. Hopefully I'll avoid [1] the whole rainy season. Espero evitar [1] toda a estação das chuvas. China has been in the news for all the wrong reasons again. A China voltou a ser notícia pelas razões erradas. 中国再次因为负面原因成为新闻焦点。 You might have heard about the dog meat festival that took place in southern China a couple of weeks ago. 您可能听说过几周前在中国南方举行的狗肉节。 As crazy as it is, I must point out that few Chinese eat dog meat. Por muito louco que seja, devo salientar que poucos chineses comem carne de cão. 尽管这很疯狂，但我必须指出，很少有中国人吃狗肉。 I have never been offered dog meat for example. 例如，从来没有人给我提供过狗肉。 However, you might remember that I told you about a marathon I was hired to take part in. That marathon took place in the same province as the dog meat festival. Esta maratona teve lugar na mesma província que o festival da carne de cão. The day before the marathon I was exploring the town a little bit. To my surprise there were a lot of dog meat restaurants. In Kunming, on the other hand, I have never seen a restaurant that serves dog meat. But there are a lot of pet dogs. And there is another funny thing you see in the summer that I didn't mention last time. When it gets hot some people shave their dogs. Quando está calor, algumas pessoas rapam os seus cães. They don't shave the heads, necks or tails though, so the dogs end up looking like little lions with big manes [2] and skinny bodies. No entanto, não rapam a cabeça, o pescoço ou a cauda, pelo que os cães acabam por parecer pequenos leões com grandes crinas [2] e corpos magros. Today, I'll be talking about a recent festival - don't worry, not the dog meat festival! -, getting sick in China and another story about grandmothers. -, ficar doente na China e outra história sobre avós. -，在中国生病以及另一个关于祖母的故事。

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A couple weeks ago we had a one day holiday. Há duas semanas, tivemos um dia de férias. The holiday was to celebrate Dragon Boat Festival. It falls on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the lunar calendar. So each year it is on a different day. The festival is celebrated in honour of [3] Qu Yuan. Qu Yuan was a poet and minister. Qu Yuan era um poeta e ministro. He lived from 340 to 278 BC during a period called the Warring States. Viveu entre 340 e 278 a.C., durante o período denominado "Estados Combatentes". At that time there were seven states which were fighting for control. Nessa altura, havia sete Estados que lutavam pelo controlo. Qu Yuan was a minister in one of the states. He suggested to his emperor that an alliance be formed in order to protect themselves from the threat posed by another state. Sugeriu ao seu imperador a formação de uma aliança para se protegerem da ameaça de outro Estado. His emperor disagreed with him. As a punishment Qu Yuan lost his job and was exiled. Years later the warning he had given his emperor became reality. Anos mais tarde, o aviso que tinha dado ao seu imperador tornou-se realidade. When he heard that his state had been taken by the other state he committed suicide by jumping into a river. Quando soube que o seu Estado tinha sido tomado pelo outro Estado, suicidou-se, saltando para um rio. Legend has it that Qu Yuan then became a water spirit or water ghost [4] after his death. Diz a lenda que Qu Yuan se transformou num espírito de água ou fantasma de água [4] após a sua morte. And to keep his ghost happy, people had to feed him. E para manter o seu fantasma feliz, as pessoas tinham de o alimentar. They started by throwing rice into the water, but the rice was always eaten by the fish. Qu Yuan reappeared to tell the people that they must wrap the rice in bamboo leaves to stop the fish from eating it. Qu Yuan reapareceu para dizer às pessoas que tinham de embrulhar o arroz em folhas de bambu para impedir que os peixes o comessem. So in honour of him people traditionally eat ‘Zong zi' on Dragon Boat Day. Por isso, em sua honra, as pessoas comem tradicionalmente "Zong zi" no Dia do Barco-Dragão. ‘Zong zi' are made with sticky rice, a filling and bamboo leaves. Os "Zong zi" são feitos com arroz pegajoso, um recheio e folhas de bambu. The filling can be either sweet or savoury, such as red beans, pork or dates. O recheio pode ser doce ou salgado, como feijão vermelho, carne de porco ou tâmaras. You make little parcels using the bamboo leaves with the rice and filling inside. Fazem-se pequenos embrulhos utilizando as folhas de bambu com o arroz e o recheio no interior. To cook them most people steam them. Para as cozinhar, a maioria das pessoas cozinha-as a vapor. Very tasty indeed! Muito saboroso mesmo!

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I was sick recently. I had some problems with my stomach. It happens quite frequently and not just to me. Acontece com bastante frequência e não apenas comigo. For a time I thought my stomach was becoming more resistant. Durante algum tempo, pensei que o meu estômago estava a ficar mais resistente. But now it seems to be the opposite. Mas agora parece ser o contrário. When you get sick here, you have two choices: Western medicine or traditional Chinese medicine. I have tried both. I'm quite interested in Chinese medicine and if I need to take anything then I usually opt for [5] Chinese medicine. Interesso-me bastante pela medicina chinesa e se preciso de tomar alguma coisa, normalmente opto pela [5] medicina chinesa. 我对中药很感兴趣，如果我需要服用任何东西，我通常会选择[5]中药。 For example when I had a problem with my skin. Por exemplo, quando tive um problema com a minha pele. I had a rash [6] on my face and I went to a big hospital in Beijing where they have both Western and Chinese medicine. Tinha uma erupção cutânea [6] na cara e fui a um grande hospital em Pequim, onde existe medicina ocidental e chinesa. The dermatologist offered me both. O dermatologista ofereceu-me ambos. She warned me though that the Chinese medicine might taste a little bitter. No entanto, avisou-me que a medicina chinesa poderia ter um sabor um pouco amargo. I nonetheless chose a ten day course of Chinese medicine. No entanto, optei por um curso de dez dias de medicina chinesa. She made a prescription of numerous ingredients. Ela fez uma receita com vários ingredientes. I then went to the pharmacy where they mixed all the ingredients for me. Depois fui à farmácia onde me misturaram todos os ingredientes. I was given 30 packets, 3 per day for ten days. Deram-me 30 pacotes, 3 por dia, durante dez dias. They told me to mix a packet with a little warm water and then drink it. So I went home and prepared the first packet. Even though the doctor had warned me that it might not taste nice, I didn't think it would be that bad. Apesar de o médico me ter avisado que o sabor poderia não ser agradável, não pensei que fosse assim tão mau. What can I say? It was by far the most horrible thing I have ever tasted. Foi de longe a coisa mais horrível que alguma vez provei. It wasn't just bitter, it tasted and looked like mud [7]. Não era apenas amargo, tinha sabor e aspeto de lama [7]. It was almost undrinkable. Era quase intragável. I had to force myself to drink it. And I couldn't help but think that it might make my skin better, but that it would surely make me sick. E não pude deixar de pensar que poderia melhorar a minha pele, mas que de certeza que me deixaria doente. 我禁不住想，它可能会让我的皮肤变得更好，但肯定会让我生病。 In the end, I managed three days of it. No final, consegui três dias de trabalho. I threw away the remaining seven days worth of mud or medicine or whatever it was. Deitei fora o resto dos sete dias de lama, remédio ou o que quer que fosse. 我把剩下的七天的泥土或药物或任何东西都扔掉了。 However, my skin did get better. Was it actually medicine? Era de facto um medicamento? I don't know. There was another time when I was a little more seriously ill. Houve uma outra altura em que eu estava um pouco mais gravemente doente. I had just returned from a holiday in Bangladesh and I thought I had malaria. I quickly found a hospital in Beijing which has a department for tropical diseases. Encontrei rapidamente um hospital em Pequim que tem um departamento de doenças tropicais. When I got there I was feeling really ill but I didn't have to wait long to see a doctor. The doctor walked in and before I had said anything to her, she looked at me and said: “You need to drink more warm water.” And that generally is the advice they give you in China – to drink more water. Whenever you aren't feeling well, they'll tell you to drink a glass of warm water. At first I didn't think much of the doctor. No início, não pensei muito no médico. But when it turned out that I didn't have malaria, I changed my mind. Mas quando se verificou que eu não tinha malária, mudei de ideias. Best doctor I have ever met!

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I was telling a Chinese friend that I'm going home to visit my family this summer. Estava a contar a um amigo chinês que vou visitar a minha família este verão. It's been two years since I was home last, so I'm very excited to see everyone. Já passaram dois anos desde a última vez que estive em casa, por isso estou muito entusiasmado por ver toda a gente. I'm especially looking forward to seeing my grandmother. Estou especialmente ansiosa por ver a minha avó. I then explained to my Chinese friend that my 97 year old grandmother lives on her own, she still drives everywhere and she does all her own shopping and cooking. Expliquei então ao meu amigo chinês que a minha avó de 97 anos vive sozinha, ainda conduz para todo o lado e faz todas as suas compras e cozinha. Naturally my Chinese friend was very surprised and shocked. Grandparents don't tend to live on their own in China. Na China, os avós não costumam viver sozinhos. Once a child gets married and has a child of their own, the grandparents will move in with [8] them. Quando a criança se casa e tem um filho, os avós vão viver com ela [8]. Family and family ties are paramount [9] in China. Na China, a família e os laços familiares são fundamentais [9]. There is also a very practical reason for three generations to live together. It is so the grandparents can look after the child while both the parents work. É para que os avós possam tomar conta da criança enquanto ambos os pais trabalham. I've met a lot of young Chinese who were raised by their grandparents because their parents were busy working. Anyway, I then told my Chinese friend that my grandmother recently got a new driver's licence. I pointed out that she has now been driving for exactly 80 years. Fiz notar que ela já conduz há exatamente 80 anos. My Chinese friend looked at me and asked: “Is she rich?” I replied: “Well… I have my fingers crossed [10] but I don't think so. O meu amigo chinês olhou para mim e perguntou: "Ela é rica?" Respondi-lhe: "Bem... estou a fazer figas [10] mas acho que não. 我的中国朋友看着我问道：“她有钱吗？”我回答道：“嗯……我祈祷[10] 能有钱，但我不这么认为。 Why?” At first I didn't understand why my friend would ask me something like that. I have been here long enough though to know that it's an acceptable question to ask, so it didn't bother [11] me. Mas estou cá há tempo suficiente para saber que é uma pergunta aceitável, por isso não me incomodou [11]. There is no taboo in China when it comes to talking or asking about money. In fact I would go as far as to say that in modern China people have a rather unhealthy obsession with money. De facto, diria mesmo que na China moderna as pessoas têm uma obsessão pouco saudável pelo dinheiro. 事实上，我甚至可以说，现代中国人对金钱的痴迷相当不健康。 Especially for a self-proclaimed [12] socialist country! Sobretudo para um país autoproclamado [12] socialista! 尤其对于一个自称[12]社会主义的国家来说！ My friend explained by saying: “Well, she's been driving for 80 years, that would mean she got her driver's licence in the 1930s. Did she have a car in the 1930s?” It's a good question. I actually don't know if she had her own car back then nor have I ever really thought about it. Na verdade, não sei se ela tinha o seu próprio carro nessa altura, nem nunca pensei nisso. But of course for a Chinese person to have had a car in the 1930s would mean that they were very very rich at the time. Mas é claro que para um chinês ter um carro nos anos 30 significa que era muito, muito rico na altura.

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As I mentioned already I will be going to Europe on holiday for a month. I wish you all a very beautiful and relaxing summer. Don't forget that you can listen to the podcast by downloading our app or by visiting our website www.podclub.ch where you can also find all the information about upcoming episodes. I'll be back on 11th September. Until then, have a great time! And, as always, thank you very much for listening. Goodbye!

Glossaire: Owen in China [1] to avoid: here: to miss on purpose Glossaire: Owen na China [1] evitar: aqui: falhar de propósito

[2] mane: the long hair on the neck of a lion or horse

[3] in honour of: in order to show respect to someone

[4] water spirit or water ghost: a mythical creature that lives in the water

[5] to opt for: to choose

[6] rash: red skin caused by illness or an allergic reaction

[7] mud: soft wet earth [7] lama: terra macia e húmida

[8] to move in with: to start living in the same place as someone [8] ir viver com: começar a viver no mesmo sítio que alguém

[9] paramount: more important than anything else

[10] to cross your fingers: to wish for good luck

[11] to bother: to annoy or upset

[12] self-proclaimed: what something or someone describes itself as