A slice of mocha cake, from Pink Box Bakery. Pink Box is the "Asian-European fusion" bakery that opened on Murray Ave. in Squirrel Hill on July 7. It's from the same Taiwanese family that owns Ramen Bar and Rose Tea Cafe, also in the neighborhood.

Dragons on the Lake Dragon Boat Festival at Ohio's Portage Lakes State Park, July 12.

The 2014 Dragons on the Lake Dragon Boat Festival will take place on July 12 at Portage Lakes State Park, about two hours northwest of Pittsburgh in New Franklin, Ohio. Dragon boats are 46-foot-long boats with 20 rowers each, and have been a part of southern Chinese culture for some 2500 years. An overview of this festival:

Festival day activities start with a ceremonial eye-dotting “awakening of the dragons.” Once the racing begins, it will be non-stop action with dragon boats heading to the finish line every 12 minutes. The races are fast and furious, typically lasting around two minutes. With entertainment and lots of beach front activities throughout the day Dragons on the Lake Festival will be a summer spectacle for the whole family. Admission is FREE for spectators.

The opening ceremony is at 8:30 am and the festival is held at Turkeyfoot Beach (map). Two Pittsburgh-area teams are competing: the Steel City Dragons Mixed Team and Pink Steel.

And speaking of Sichuan, a new restaurant is coming to Squirrel Hill.

A new facade is up on Forward Ave. in Squirrel Hill: Chengdu Gourmet. Work is still being done on the interior at 5840 Forward Ave. (map), though the restaurant does have a website and a menu.

And speaking of Sichuan, I'll have to check and see if it's a sister location of Sichuan Gourmet further up Murray Ave.--or the result of a split--as Chengdu Gourmet's menu is identical to a previous version of Sichuan Gourmet's. The Chinese name (老四川, Old Sichuan) references the other spot, too, though it's not an uncommon name. Both are regions of China; Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan province.

Groundbreaking for Sichuan University-Pittsburgh Institute held.

Via the Sichuan Daily.

On July 2 in Chengdu, China, a groundbreaking ceremony for Sichuan University-Pittsburgh Institute (四川大学-匹兹堡学院) was held. Provost Patricia Beeson---third shovel from the left---was among the University of Pittsburgh officials in attendance. Pitt announced its partnership with Sichuan University in the development of a Joint Engineering Institute on April 1, 2013. The institute at Sichuan University's Jiang'an campus is set to open in Fall 2015 with an initial enrollment of 100 undergraduates across three majors.

Scott Kofmehl and "U.S.-Vietnam Relations and the Rebalance to Asia", July 8.

The World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh is presenting a Breakfast Briefing with Dr. Scott Kopfmehl on July 8 titled "U.S.-Vietnam Relations and the Rebalance to Asia". Kofmehl, a Pittsburgh native, is currently Senior Vietnam Desk Officer at the U.S. Department of State.

Bong Joon-ho's Snowpiercer at AMC Loews Waterfront.

The 2013 film Snowpiercer, by Korean director Bong Joon-ho, made its US debut last week and is still playing at AMC Loews Waterfront (map).



It stars Song Kang-ho (pictured above) and Chris Evans, though 80% of the film is in English.

Pink Box to open July 7.

Posted by the Ramen Bar Facebook page.

Pink Box, the self-described "Asian-European bakery" under construction in Squirrel Hill, will have its grand opening on July 7. It's located at 2107 Murray Ave. (map) in the old Chaya location that's been empty for years, it's across the street from a Korean bakery (Sumi's Cakery), up the hill from a Taiwanese bakery (Bubble Pi), and down the street from two others.

After checking it out while under construction I suspected it was by the same ownership of Ramen Bar (and Rose Tea Cafe), and that the above poster turned up on the Ramen Bar's Facebook page offers confirmation.

Korean-style chicken coming soon to Pittsburgh.

Chick'n Bubbly just posted this to its Facebook page:



Signage went up for Chick'n Bubbly last month at 117 Oakland Ave. (map) in what used to be a nail salon. It would be the first place in Pittsburgh to offer Korean-style fried chicken, which features a "delicate crust, addictive seasoning and moist meat" ubiquitous in restaurants and delivery places in South Korea.

Chiharu Shiota "Traces of Memory" exhibition still at Mattress Factory.

"Stairway", from Chiharu Shiota's official website.

An exhibition by Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota that was scheduled to run through May 31 will remain on display for the foreseeable future. "Traces of Memory" is at the Mattress Factory's new satellite gallery, located at 516 Sampsonia Way (map), a few houses down from the museum's main building and down the street from the City of Asylum. The museum's website summarizes the exhibit:

Central to the artist’s work are the themes of remembrance and oblivion, dreaming and sleeping, traces of the past and childhood and dealing with anxiety. Shiota explores the relationship between waking life and memories through hauntingly beautiful installations that incorporate everyday objects like shoes, pianos and hospital beds encased in webs of yarn. Stretched in multi-layers in a gallery space, Shiota weaves disorienting cocoons of black yarn that reflect the artist’s desire to ‘draw in the air’.

The site-specific installation of new works by Shiota will fill the eight rooms in the building at 516 Sampsonia Way—a 19th-century row home with a storied past—which is suited to the artist’s work. Its interior is cosmetically untouched; the raw condition of the building lends itself well to reflections on the past and the conjuring of memories.

July's Let's READ English book selection, The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida, July 11.

"Let's READ English" is a monthly book discussion group at the Carnegie Library in Oakland for English as a Second Language readers.

We will read one book each month and then meet to discuss the story, improve our vocabulary and practice our English reading and conversational skills. And have FUN!

July's selection is The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism by Naoki Higashida. A summary from NPR:

A journey into the mind of a remarkable 13-year-old Japanese boy with severe autism shares firsthand insights into a variety of experiences associated with the disorder, from behavioral traits and misconceptions to perceptions about the world and social awareness. Translated by David Mitchell and KA Yoshida.

Further commentary in this 2013 New York Times review.

The next meeting is Friday, July 11, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm in the Large Print Room of the Carnegie Library in Oakland (map). Registration is required, and can be done so online at the event listing.

Taiwanese pitcher Liao makes debut with Pirates' farm team.

Earlier in the week, pitcher Jen-Lei Liao (廖任磊) made his debut with Pittsburgh's Gulf Coast League affiliate, "giving up," as Bucs Dugout reports, "a run on three hits in an inning and a third, while striking out two." The Pirates signed the 20-year-old pitcher in February. He's listed at 6'6" 260-ish pounds (198 cm, 120 kg), and he joins catcher Jin-De Jhang (張進德) and pitcher Yao-Hsun Yang (陽耀勳) as the Taiwanese players currently in the Pirates' system. In February the website Pirates Prospects profiled these three players and the Pirates' brief history of scouting in Taiwan.

University of Pittsburgh Chancellor Mark Nordenberg with the mayor of Pohang, Lee Kang-duk (이강덕) , on June 24. Nordenberg was in South Korea's steel capital giving talks at Pohang National University of Science & Technology on the 24th.

Pitt's Chancellor Nordenberg to speak about Pittsburgh, Pitt at Pohang University of Science and Technology, June 24.

Via POSTECH.

University of Pittsburgh Chancellor Mark Nordenberg will speak in Pohang, South Korea, on the 24th as part of this year's Advance Pohang Forum at the Pohang University of Science and Technology. He will give a lecture in the morning on "Pittsburgh and Pitt, The Rebirth of a Great American City" (피츠버그, 위대한 미국도시의 재탄생), and a lecture open to the public in the afternoon on "The Role of Research Universities in 21st Century America" (21세기 미국 연구중심대학의 역할).

Taiwanese inventors win 76 medals at INPEX 2014 in Pittsburgh.

Via the CNA and Yahoo! Taiwan.

At the 2014 Invention and New Product Exposition (INPEX), held at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center from June 18 through 20, Taiwanese inventors were again the big winners, earning 32 gold and 44 silver medals at the annual international invention trade show.

Green tea cake, from Sumi's Cakery.

Chinese, Korean shorts at the Pittsburgh Independent Film Festival this weekend.

The Pittsburgh Independent Film Festival begins today---sorry for the late notice, blame the local papers---and a few short films are of relevance to this website, including: one on "a group of renegade Chinese artists"; "Winter Shower" by Kyoungju Kim; and "Door God" by Yulin Liu. Steel Cinema has a full schedule and list of synopses. Movies are shown at the Ryan Event Center in McKees Rocks (map), and as the paper says, beware road construction if you go.

Ai Wei Wei: The Fake Case at Harris Theater, from June 27.

From the official website.

The 2014 documentary Ai Wei Wei: The Fake Case will play at the Harris Theater from June 27. A summary, from the distributor's website:

After 81 days of solitary detention world famous Chinese artist Ai Weiwei is put under house arrest. He suffers from sleeping disorder and memory loss, 18 cameras are monitoring his studio and home, police agents follow his every move, and heavy restrictions from the Kafkaesque Chinese authorities weigh him down. Picking up where Alison Klayman's Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry left off, AI WEIWEI THE FAKE CASE is more explicitly political, reflecting Ai's battle against the gigantic lawsuit thrust upon him by the Chinese government in an effort to silence him. Ai Weiwei is shaken, but during his year on probation he steadily finds new ways to provoke and challenge the mighty powers of the Chinese authorities in his fight for human rights and free expression.

The Fake Case made its US debut in New York on May 16. Times and dates for the Pittsburgh run have not yet been announced, but should be on the Pittsburgh Filmmakers site shortly. The Harris Theater is located at 809 Liberty Ave., downtown, in the Cultural District (map).

BonChon coming to Philadelphia.

Bonchon, a chain of Korean fried chicken places, is coming to Philadelphia, writes Philly.com.

[I]t's being built on the ground floor of a new apartment building at 1020 Cherry St. That is across the street from Simply Shabu, the hot-pot specialist.

BonChon will have a liquor license and is pegged for a September opening.

BonChon will open in the middle of Philadelphia's Chinatown; here's a map.

Pittsburgh police brutality makes the Korean news.

From the "Korean news watching us" category, the front page of Daum, the second-largest portal in the Korean internet, Tuesday morning has screen captures from a cellphone video showing alleged police brutality at the Pittsburgh Pride parade on the 15th.

K Missing Kings at Hollywood Theater in Dormont, July 19 and 20.

On Friday, the Hollywood Theater in Dormont announced on its Facebook page it would be participating in the United States premier of the Japanese animated film K Missing Kings on July 19 and 20. The distributor Eleven Arts provides a brief summary:

Based on the hit anime K, K MISSING KINGS picks up where the series left off. Featuring the same director and scriptwriter as the series, this movie brings the characters that you've grown to love in the same spirit of action, honor, and loyalty. K MISSING KINGS also sees the return of popular voice actors such as Daisuke Namikawa, Daisuke Ono, and Tomokazu Sugita, reprising their roles for the first time on the big screen.

The story starts some time after the Island Academy Incident, in which four of the seven great Kings crossed paths. Since this time, silver clansmen Kuroh Yatogami and Neko have been searching for their master, Yashiro Isana, the Silver King. Their search having turned up fruitless, the two begin to give up hope, until they encounter Anna Kushina and Rikio Kamamoto, two members of the red clan HOMRA being chased by someone.

According to Anime News Network, the movie will premiere at the Anime Expo in Los Angeles on July 5 and will have a limited US release from July 18. There are three shows scheduled on the 19th and 20th: Saturday at 7:00 pm, Sunday at 4:00 pm, and Sunday at 7:00 pm. Tickets for the Dormont shows will be available online, though online ticket sales are currently paused.

The theater is located at 1449 Potomac Ave. in Dormont, and is accessible by Pittsburgh's subway/LRT at a block south of Potomac Station. It frequently shows newish Japanese animated films on or near their US release date, including, in recent memory: the Madoka Magica series, Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo, Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, and Tiger & Bunny: The Rising.

Taxi fights in the old news: Pittsburgh almost had 대리운전, too.

Advertisements for a designated driver company lined up in Gangnam, from Sisa Channel.

Big local news in recent months has been the arrival of ride-share companies Uber and Lyft to Pittsburgh, and the pushback by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and the entrenched taxi services. Several years ago, Pittsburgh briefly had another para-taxi company called BeMyDD, which functions like the designated-driver (대리운전) services ubiquitous in South Korea. From an August 26, 2010 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article:

BeMyDD (Be My Designated Driver) started operations in Pittsburgh this week after launching in three Ohio cities earlier this year, he said.
"BeMyDD is a new twist on a transportation service which gives people an affordable alternative to the usual limo or taxi. The premise is that 'We drive YOUR car, so you don't have to,' " Mr. Simanovsky said.
The company offers two services: A customer can reserve a driver ahead of time who will meet them at a location of their choice, chauffeur them around in their own car, wait for them and take them home, for $12.50 an hour.
For those who are already out and in no condition to drive, the company will dispatch two drivers to take them and their car home. That costs $25 plus $2.95 a mile for the first 10 miles and $1.50 per mile thereafter.