i was pretty shocked by my first experience with the whole joydeza thing or whatever you call it i don’t think that’s pinyin.
the diet was interesting - “shenghua” soup, stir-fried pig liver and “yao hua” (some other infernal organ), sesame oil chicken. supposedly these foods are very “boo” (scary).
customs were an interesting experience too. No drinking water (ironically soup is okay), no bathing (at least no hair washing), in fact no contact at all with cold water. i’ve heard this is borne of the fear of contracting illness from exposure to cold, as well as a purported link to rheumatism. oh and tie the stomach up real tight to let all the air out. and my wife said she couldn’t squat down because “my body would go breaaaah and bleeding and hurt” - her words. found an interesting article on the whole shebang:
geocities.com/Wellesley/3321/win14c.htm
so you know about these joydeza centers? most mothers opt to do the month at home or at the mother’s house, but they have professional centers that see to every need. they cost anywhere fromNT3,000-5,000 per day
oh and doing the month is not to be lightly dismissed lest we forget our own history. up through victorian days western women ritually underwent “confinement” after delivery - a month to six weeks at home replete with all manner of “superstititious” customs (the female body after birth was thought to be unclean) culminating coming-out church service. historians argue one reason Elizabeth the first didn’t marry wuz becuz she knew she’d be expected to produce an heir and knew all sorts of intrigues would happen when she would do the month
slurpy