Mid-Autumn Festival at Pitt, September 29.

The University of Pittsburgh's Vietnamese Student Association and Chinese American Student Association will host a Mid-Autumn Festival on September 29 from 5:00 to 8:00 pm in the William Pitt Union's Assembly Room.

Netsuke programs for adults, children at Maridon Museum, September 28.

Butler's Maridon Museum is holding two netsuke programs on September 28; one for children at 11:00 am, and one for adults at 1:00 pm. Netsuke (根付), Wikipedia says,

are miniature sculptures that were invented in 17th-century Japan to serve a practical function (the two Japanese characters ne+tsuke mean "root" and "to attach"). Traditional Japanese garments—robes called kosode and kimono—had no pockets; however, men who wore them needed a place to store their personal belongings, such as pipes, tobacco, money, seals, or medicines.

The cost for each is $5, and registration is required. The programs are led by local Japanese and history teacher Dixie Lipnichan, and attendees

will learn the history of the Netsuke, and about the folklore behind the carvings, they will visit the Maridon's wall of over 100 Netsuke, and make their own carving to take home.

The Maridon Museum of Asian Art is located at 322 N. McKean St. in downtown Butler, some 40 miles north of Pittsburgh (map).

Wong Kar Wai's The Grandmaster (一代宗師) still in Pittsburgh this week.

Wong Kar Wai's The Grandmaster (一代宗師), which opened nationwide on August 30th, will continue to be in Pittsburgh theaters at least through September 27. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has local showtimes; it's playing at AMC Loews Waterfront, Waterworks Cinema 10, Chartiers Valley Stadium 18, and North Versailles Stadium 18.

Photos of Conflict Kitchen's trip to Anyang.

Earlier this month Conflict Kitchen shared photos of their August trip to Anyang, South Korea, made in preparation for their North Korean menu this fall.


Naengmyeon (냉면), a specialty of Pyeongyang and of numerous South Korean cities, too.

Conflict Kitchen is "a take-out restaurant that only serves cuisine from countries with which the United States is in conflict" located in Schenley Plaza in Oakland.

Follow along at home with "History of East Asia" and "History of Early China" classes.

Indiana University of Pennsylvania's Alan Baumler has a couple of syllabi online for two of his courses: "History of East Asia" and "History of Early China". As I pointed out last winter, unlike other "free" "classes" that are merely reading lists without the readings, Dr. Baumler's courses often provide the chapters and journal articles online for students. In previous terms he offered "Introduction to Asian Studies" and "Modern Japan" courses, though they are currently unavailable online.

Dr. Baumler is also a contributor to the Frog in a Well China blog, the most active and best-written of the Frog in a Well series.

Via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes about an Asian-inspired garden in Reserve Township that won in the small garden category of the paper's Great Gardens Contest.

"Small spaces can be made to be very dramatic and beautiful and affordable to pull off," [homeowner Ed McHugh] said. "Many people do not have the luxury of having large, expansive spaces."

Hong Kong movie Drug War at Harris Theater, from September 20.

The Harris Theater (map) will show the 2012 Hong Kong movie Drug War (毒戰) from September 20. The Onion's AV Club wrote in a July review:

Drug War belongs to a subgenre that’s particular to [director Johnnie] To: crime movies that blend real-world details with oddball characters and narrative left turns, resulting in something that feels both realistic and heightened. Set in the mainland city of Jinhai, Drug War follows a group of narcotics agents who score a big break when they arrest Louis Koo, a Cantonese meth supplier. Faced with the possibility of the death penalty under China’s strict drug laws, Koo becomes an informant for the police, offering them an even bigger break in exchange for clemency: the chance to nab his boss.

The Pittsburgh Filmmakers website has information on showtimes, with the first screening at 8:00 on Friday and three additional showings through the weekend.

Korean totem in Indiana, PA.

Sinobi---a Korean restaurant with Korean owners and a Japanese name---has this totem outside their location in the Indiana Mall foodcourt. The inscription, 제36회교정작품전시회, refers to an art and cultural artifact exhibition held in the Korean city of Suwon in 2007. This sort of totem (장승) is a common piece of art throughout Korea, historically found at a village's entrance but today frequently seen at festivals and folk museums.

Pitt student 2nd-best Yu-Gi-Oh player in the world.

Pitt student David Keener placed 2nd in the World Yu-Gi-Oh Game Championships in August. The final match is available on YouTube:

Chinese grandparent bobbleheads and maneki neko in Greenfield.

Asian knick-knacks at Beautiful World Variety Store in Greenfield, in Squirrel Hill Plaza at the corner of Murray and Hazelwood Aves (map). It's worth a visit if you're in the area, and has a mix of household stuff and Asian accessories, like those pictured, though it's the kind of place where you'll find neat, random stuff but probably won't fare well with a shopping list.