After 10 years in the capital, Alex Tan bids farewell to The Hutong and Beijing. Alex is relocating the family and his Chinese medicine practice to his wife’s hometown, Flagstaff, Arizona.
China Chapter – age 32 – 42 yo – what a journey it has been! What an influence it has had on Alex’s life, particularly on his worldview and perspective. In the words of Marcel Proust, “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” Alex arrived as a single, starry–eyed warrior on an internship after completing a 4-year degree in Chinese medicine and instantly fell in love with Beijing. He camped out for a few years on the 6th ring road south to reconnect with his Chinese family, absorb language and culture, continuing internships while working at the local university. Alex sought adventure at every opportunity and lapped up what China had to offer!
Like all good men, Alex fell in love, got married, and now has three children. Time to take life a little more seriously! Alex has been at The Hutong since its laid-back beginnings back in 2008. He put his heart and soul into a full-time Chinese medicine clinic and education practice at the Hutong for the past 6-years. He remembers when the current clinic was Stacey’s bedroom and Mark was cooking up ideas on how to offer more pumpkin recipes. Straight Bamboo and The Hutong naturally developed a relationship of symbiosis. They grew and flourished together, to the benefit of each other and the expat community at large.
Alex is no newcomer to travel, he has taken on 15-month adventures around Australia in a Landcruiser, 15-month solo backpacking in South America, 8-months solo hitchhiking in Europe, but alas China… it’s a different beast! The culture and its people seem to come from the opposite side of the viewing spectrum to the West. He loves it and likes to refer to this phenomenon as, ‘Parallax’ – like viewing the same star (life) from different viewing points. This is what I love about China! – The big panda gently guides you to question all your previous assumptions about life, logic and the universe!
This is where we really see benefits of differing cultural perspectives and how we can use the best of these differing perspectives in different aspects of our lives. Alex believes that Western analytical sciences and medicine are brilliant in saving lives and emergency care, but when it comes to the proactive preventative health and wellness practices, stick with relational and holistic views, and no one does that better than the Chinese. What maintains balance is the key to life, and always has been!
Your health journey is one of the central missions in your life. So much depends on your success here. Traditional Chinese Medicine has given guidance to and benefited the lives of millions of people for many centuries. I believe all cultures had their own folk medicines, but China, with its ancient civilization and refined traditions, took it to another level testing their theories and methodologies. Alex believes that in the modern day, TCM has become even more important. It teaches us a way to be proactive in the path of wellness and preventative against disease.
Alex leaves with a love of Beijing and when asked to leave some words of wisdom for those of us staying here, he says: “I feel I have experienced first-hand a fundamental truth at the core of Chinese medicine philosophy – What we can see, touch, feel and measure is secondary to what we cannot see. As foreigners living here in Beijing, remember this daily mantra! Take the best of China with you, and my tip is that it’s little to do with what you can see and touch – it’s the 5000+ years of history and culture – the central concept balance. What maintains it is the game and implementing it successfully is the art!”
If you would like to get a piece of Alex before he leaves – see below – a final 2-day workshop in Beijing, Chinese Metaphysics tours twice a week in July, and The Beijng Cold & Flu Book as a legacy to his clients and the expat community that supported him.
Final Beijing Eat Sleep Breathe Workshop – 2-day special – Alex’s keystone workshop condensing 20 years of research and practice in Chinese medicine and Qi Gong: Unpacking 5000-years of Chinese medicine health philosophy; master the 8 Golden Treasures Qi Gong; Integrate this wisdom into your daily life, sowing the seeds for personal growth and transformation: July 12th & 19th – for more details click here.
For a 90-minute action-packed version of what the emperor was doing at the altars, how that is related to Daoism and the keys to Chinese Medicine preventative health, join the Chinese Metaphysics Walk – twice a week in July – click here.
Alex is promoting his Beijing Cold & Flu book this month – The Easy to Use Guide of Prepared Chinese Herbal Medicines to Treat Cold & Flu. After 10-years in China as a qualified Chinese Medicine Practitioner and Educator, Alex addresses one of the most common questions he gets in an easy-to-use self guide. That is: What Chinese herbs do I buy when I have a Cold & Flu? This book gives you the best chance of getting through a cold & flu as quickly and effectively as possible, or even avoiding the cold & flu all together – click here.
