In Asia, it's customary to get together with your entire extended family on a regular basis, and it's all rife with politics.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
One wants to be together with one's family. That's what families are about.
People in politics always say they're spending time with their family, but in my case, it's a big family. We got 23 grandkids, so I get to spend a lotta time with them, and it's extraordinarily enjoyable.
Marriage Asian-style is practical, contractual and, to the western mind, deeply unromantic.
Those of us lucky enough to fall in love with Asia know that it's an affair that's as long as it is resonant.
Cross-cultural marriage is difficult, especially when one person has to live in another country. But I thought there was a very good chance of it working because people grow together if they have a common passion.
There is something about being people from your home country in a different country. It bonds you together.
The Chinese view the state, not just as an intimate member of the family... but as the head of the family.
When you're part of the first family, your life tends to get played out in front of the whole nation.
In Southeast Asia the world is understood to be a vast, complex network of interdependent relationships. So when global capitalism makes it impossible for small-time rice farmers to feed their families and make a living, it is a natural thing for anyone in the family who can find an alternative source of income to do so.
In Asia, personal relationships are important, but you cannot personalise diplomacy.