Learneng's family

[Learneng]

Hi Luke,

Like yours my family is also very small. I would love to see your son's picture. he must have started talking in his baby language. Oh I love to hear that..please give him a hug from me. Would love to see his picture.

I live with my husband and my 15 year old daughter in a small town near Boston. My daughter is in high school and always busy with her studies. Ours is a very close nit family and I like it that way.

Learneng

[luke]

Hey Learneng,

You sound like you have a wonderful family. I told my wife about your daughter's success and she hoped Henry (our son) would follow the same path.

You mentioned you were Indian, is that right? Can I ask why you all live in the States?

btw if you want to see some photos of my son, have a look at this site I made to record his life
http://www.qilingo.com

I live with my husband and my 15-year-old daughter in a small town near Boston. My daughter is in high school and always busy with her studies. Ours is a very close-nit family and I like it that way.

[Learneng]

Henry is very cute. A lot of kisses from his aunt Learneng.

In his earlier pictures he looks like Hua but now he looks like you. When my daughter was young everybody told me that she looks like me but now she looks like my husband   . Only her eyes are on me but she is tall like my husband..thank god for that..I didn't want her to petite like me.

[luke]

Hi Learneng,

Thanks for your kind words. We actually get lots of different opinions about who he looks like, no two are the same! Even though you say your daughter doesn't look a lot like you, it seems she takes after you in study and hence personality.

In his earlier pictures he looked like Hua but now he looks like you. When my daughter was young everybody told me that she looked like me, but now she looks like my husband. Her eyes are the same as mine but she is tall like my husband - thank god for that - I didn't want her to petite like me.

[Learneng]

That is so nice of you to say that you want your son to be like my daughter.

I would not say this in front of him  but actually she went on my husband when it comes to study/brain. I think I am a bit slow .He is very knowledgeable person and can answer almost everything my daughter asks. Not only he answers her questions but explains it nicely as well.

Why we are in the state... Hmm...I am not sure but I think you can say for an exposure to the Western world. It's an unique experience. Now all of my sisters and my brother are in (the..not sure) North America so I don't miss my family and soon my parents, who are in India, will be visiting us for 5-6 months. 

[luke]

Hi Learneng,

Men need praise too! It's interesting you have so much of your family living in the States with you now, I wish that was true of my family in China. For Chinese people, when the parents visit for such a long time, it is to help look after a new grandchild. My wife's mother came and helped us for a couple of months after she gave birth, which was very kind of her.

btw, there's no need to be formal between us, so feel free to use more abbreviations (it's instead of it is)

Your writing;

I wouldn't say this in front of him but she actually takes after my husband when it comes to study and intelligence. I think I'm a bit slow! He's a very knowledgeable person and can answer almost everything my daughter asks. Not only that, he answers her questions but explains it nicely as well.

Why we are in the States? Hmm... I'm not sure but I think you can say for an exposure to the Western world. It's an unique experience. Currently all of my sisters and my brother also live in North America so I don't miss my family. And soon my parents, who live in India, will be visiting us for 5-6 months.

[Learneng]

Hi Luke,

Men need praise too!....I'll keep that in mind.

Same with Indian families too. My sisters' mother-in-laws came during the delivery and stayed with them for almost six months, which was very helpful for them. I was in India for my daughter's birth and stayed with my parents for four months.

During their visit to the US, my parents will be staying with my brother for the most of the time and will be visiting us for a week or two. My brother is still a bachelor and this is the right time for them (my parents) to visit him so they can stay for a longer duration. After marriage his wife may not want them to stay with them for that long. Also, my brother will be eating the home-made food after a very long time.

[luke]

Hi Learneng,

I adore eating Indian food, and being British we have grown up with it our whole lives. About 5 years ago the national dish in the UK was changed from fish and chips to curry, we love it that much. I would be so happy if your mother cooked her home-made food for me!

It's the same with Indian families too. My sisters' mother-in-laws came during their deliveries and stayed with them for almost six months each, which was very helpful for them. I was in India for my daughter's birth and stayed with my parents for four months.

During their visit to the US, my parents will be staying with my brother for the most of the time and will be visiting us for a week or two. My brother is still a bachelor and this is the right time for them (my parents) to visit him so they can stay for a longer duration. After he gets married his wife may not want them to stay with them for so long.

My brother has been looking forward to eating home-made food for such a long time.

[Learneng]

Hi Luke,

Not only my mom but I can also cook for you. You are my teacher and in India we respect our teachers a lot. According to our tradition and values, if we see god and teacher at the same time, we should greet the teacher first since he showed us the way to the god. Value apart, I'm a good cook too. I teach cooking at vocational schools and most of the time my classes run full.

When I landed at London airport, I didn't miss India. There were so many Indians all around, no wonder they changed your national dish. Did you have any Indian friend in school?

Learneng

[luke]

Hi Learneng,

If you could teach me how to cook a true Indian food, that would be a God-like experience for me. I am ashamed to admit I can't cook a classic authentic Indian dish, although I dabble a bit in cooking in general. Something I have loved cooking is a baked fish in yoghurt and mixed spices, which is sooooooo tasty.

To be honest, my best friend before I came out here was Pakistani, not Indian. When I went back with my wife for a holiday a few years ago he took us to a favourite Pakistani restaurant in Bradford, which is the Indian and Pakistani 'capital' of the UK. Fantastic food...

What were you doing in London?

Not only my mom but I can also cook for you. You are my teacher and in India we respect our teachers a lot. According to our tradition and values, if we see God and a teacher at the same time, we should greet the teacher first since they showed us the way to God. Values apart, I'm a good cook too. I teach cooking at vocational schools and most of the time my classes run full.

When I stayed in London, I didn't miss India at all. There were so many Indians all around, it's no wonder you changed your national dish. Did you have any Indian friend in school?

[Learneng]

Hi Luke,

During my last visit to India I stayed/waited at London airport for eight hours for my next flight. I didn’t know that getting a visitor’s visa will be very easy otherwise I could have applied for one. My friend and her family got the visa in few minutes and went for sight seeing during the break between their connecting flights. I wish I could have done the same. Anyhow, I’ll keep that in mind on my next trip to India.

Sorry, I won’t be able to help you with any non-veg and seafood dish since I’m a vegetarian. But I can give you recipes of Indian vegetarian dishes. There are thousands of them and being interested in cooking I know many of them.

Do you miss the UK? Are you planning to stay in China?

Learneng

[luke]

Hi Learneng,

It sounds a bit like that film 'The Terminal.' Stuck in an airport and wanting to get out but can't. 

Perhaps you can recommend a recipe for me which doesn't need too many specific things. To be honest, I can't buy spices here, and have only curry powder, paprika, cumin, and possibly some turmeric. Is that enough?

I don't know if I miss England, but we are moving back there in 2009 to start a new life. My job here doesn't develop as it should, and we need much more money and a place of our own. I must secure a good job and work hard to support us all, so the pressure is on for me. But to be honest, this feels like my home now. I haven't been around westerners much at all in the last 4 years, so it'll be quite strange.

~~~

During my last visit to India I transferred planes at London airport and waited for eight hours for my next flight. I didn’t know that getting a visitor’s visa was so easy otherwise I would have applied for one. My friend and her family got a visa in just a few minutes and went for sight seeing during the break between their connecting flights. I wish I had done the same, and I’ll keep that in mind on my next trip to India.

Sorry, I won’t be able to help you with any non-veg and seafood dishes since I’m a vegetarian. But I can give you recipes of Indian vegetarian dishes. There are thousands of them and being interested in cooking, I know many of them.

[Learneng]

Hi Luke,

yes, It was like "The Terminal" and my daughter and I were trenched by the time we reached my home in India. We had to wait eight hours at London airport and 10 hours at New Delhi airport.

Those spices are enough for many dishes. Do you have a specific dish in mind? I shared vegetable rice's recipe (It's called Pulav or Pilaf in Hindi) and it doesn't need a lot of ingredient. If you want I can send you that as well.

It will be easier for you to move now(2009) since Henry is still young once school starts, it becomes difficult for them to get adjusted to the new surroundings. My daughter had been through this and I have seen her struggling with the different culture, accent etc, which is quite arduous.

learneng

[luke]

Hi Learneng,

I'm hoping that our move goes smoothly, but my concerns are warranted as I have no career to jump into. It's a big risk for us, but has a greater payoff if we are successful. Stress! 

By the way, what do you mean by the word in red?

~~~

Yes, it was like "The Terminal" and my daughter and I were trenched by the time we reached my home in India. We had to wait eight hours at London airport and 10 hours at New Delhi airport.

Those spices are enough for many dishes. Do you have a specific dish in mind? I have a recipe for vegetable rice (called Pulav or Pilaf in Hindi) and it doesn't need a lot of ingredients. If you want I can send you that as well.

It will be easier for you to move in 2009 since Henry will still be young when school starts, as it later becomes more difficult for them to get adjusted to the new surroundings. My daughter had been through this and I have seen her struggling with the different culture, accent, etc., which is quite arduous.