July 3, 2006
Coming home
Was a process. Like I said, I left school Saturday and headed to the east side of Beijing for debriefing. We stayed in a nice hotel where we had meetings, said goodbyes and talked about what it'll be like to head back to America for a few days. Tuesday morning we loaded a China Post truck full of all of our 70-pound bags and boarded a bus to Capital Airport. Our first leg was to Shanghai and then on to LAX. I remembered and was dreading flying home after the awful, awful flight to China in August when I got sick and puked because of the smell of airplane Chinese food. I really think that was my worst experience of the entire year. Compared to that, the flight home was great. We landed in LA Tuesday around noon PST and I was back on American soil. I saw a flag out the window of the plane while taxiing and was happy to hear rude English phrases coming from everyone. Honestly though, I was surprised at how friendly everyone was, not that I think Americans or Californians aren't, but I'd just come from China where everyone constantly wants to help a foreigner. I just expected to feel a little more ignored. The friendliness was nice. Ryan and I each had red eye flights that left about 12 hours later, so we dished out $8 or something crazy for some Mexican food in the airport and went to the hotel we'd reserved for the day--to shower and sleep. That day I went to Burger King, bought a Butterfinger at a drug store and watched SportsCenter. Wow. The flight to Pittsburgh left at 11:30 PST and landed after 7 a.m. Wednesday EST. I was home. On the flight to the 'Burgh, I met a Chinese woman who was in America for her first time, on her way to meet her husband who's doing his post-doctorate work at Pitt. We talked about China and it was good to know while I've left China, it isn't gone. My first couple days here have been great--a little busy--but wonderful to see family, friends, and two Pirate wins!! I've played two rounds of putt-putt and while I've eaten well thus far, the variety and options available of good food astound me. It'll be a while before I get bored of the options we have here I'm sure. And then I'll miss Chinese. The biggest surprise so far was while landing and looking out my window, I was shocked by the wide-openness of Western PA. SO many trees and hills and space between neighborhoods. I really couldn't believe it. After so long in such a crowded city, Pittsburgh looked like the middle of nowhere. Being on the ground made it seem a little more normal, but I missed nature. And Pittsburgh sure is a beautiful place.
A few more
I pulled this one off my school's Web site:
And this is me and my "Pre School" class, who I really loved a lot. Sweet, sweet kids:
This class started small and a bit tough to handle, as most of them were kids who were passed over in being accepted to Primary school for one reason or another. The majority didn't see their parents all year, either, which was tough. They grew throughout the year, adding such studs as Canadian David and Jaker, and I might've loved this class most of all (I named a bunch of 'em, too). They learned a lot this year, and with the help of Anna, I saw them become a really well-behaved, sweet class, definitely ready for Primary school. You could say they were my Sandlot kids, a rag-tag group of misfits who really came together in the end. I'll miss them all.
And this is me and my "Pre School" class, who I really loved a lot. Sweet, sweet kids:
This class started small and a bit tough to handle, as most of them were kids who were passed over in being accepted to Primary school for one reason or another. The majority didn't see their parents all year, either, which was tough. They grew throughout the year, adding such studs as Canadian David and Jaker, and I might've loved this class most of all (I named a bunch of 'em, too). They learned a lot this year, and with the help of Anna, I saw them become a really well-behaved, sweet class, definitely ready for Primary school. You could say they were my Sandlot kids, a rag-tag group of misfits who really came together in the end. I'll miss them all.
Tina & Tiger
One of the neatest things I did all year was spend my final free Saturday in China with two of my students and their families. That Saturday morning, Michelle and I were picked up by our student Tiger's family (himself, his mom and dad) in his dad's shiny new black BMW and we drove north to the Ming Tombs. We saw some of the country sights, talked about everything from speeding tickets to the Da Vinci Code (with the help of Michelle translating) and it was just awesome to see a great Chinese family interact. The folks own some sort of a business together, I never quite figure out what it was but I'm settling on architecture. Tiger is excited about 1st grade in a month or so now, and they were all afraid of big dogs. I'd say they're a pretty typical well-off middle class Chinese family, one son, a nice car, etc. They gave me a great album of some pictures from the day, but unfortunately it's not digital. Now that I'm home, though, ask to see it! Tiger's a riot of a kid. Really a little man. He's got this huge head, he chose the name Tiger, and he's a child TV star. I'm not quite sure how big, but Michelle tells me when he travels to another city people recognize him. I guess he's famous for talking like an adult on TV, enough so that he gets a paycheck from CCTV (sometime I hope to post on CCTV, as Chinese TV is one of the most ridiculous things on planet Earth). He's in love with Michelle (whom he calls Miss Gao) and yeah, funny kid.
Later that afternoon Michelle and I said goodbye to Tiger and his folks and headed to a student's place who lives near our school, a girl named Tina. Tiger, I'm guessing is 6 going on 7, wheras Tina is 5 going on 6. Which makes a difference. She's an adorably cute girl and that day it was just her and her mom at home. Her dad's often away and her mom, too, is a pretty serious businesswoman. Tina's apartment home was an ok-size in my estimation, but still small for American standards. It was easy to see the "Little Emporer" complex played out in Tina and Tiger, though they're both good kids, they're the center of the family. Tina's home was decorated with huge pictures of her in crazy outfits, everything from cowboys to butterflies, and her toys took up most of the place. Tina and I played together the whole night as her mom prepared a delicious seafood dinner. Her mother, like I said, is successful, but she never finished high school. As a result, she's really pushing Tina to do well in school... I'd say too much. Tina and I watched an English video together, we jump roped (inside, oops), we played Pictionary where she had to answer in English and me in Chinese, and lots of other fun games. She is generous with her stuff and candy, but she sure has a lot of it. Good kids both, and a very interesting and eye-opening day all around.
Me & Tina:
Later that afternoon Michelle and I said goodbye to Tiger and his folks and headed to a student's place who lives near our school, a girl named Tina. Tiger, I'm guessing is 6 going on 7, wheras Tina is 5 going on 6. Which makes a difference. She's an adorably cute girl and that day it was just her and her mom at home. Her dad's often away and her mom, too, is a pretty serious businesswoman. Tina's apartment home was an ok-size in my estimation, but still small for American standards. It was easy to see the "Little Emporer" complex played out in Tina and Tiger, though they're both good kids, they're the center of the family. Tina's home was decorated with huge pictures of her in crazy outfits, everything from cowboys to butterflies, and her toys took up most of the place. Tina and I played together the whole night as her mom prepared a delicious seafood dinner. Her mother, like I said, is successful, but she never finished high school. As a result, she's really pushing Tina to do well in school... I'd say too much. Tina and I watched an English video together, we jump roped (inside, oops), we played Pictionary where she had to answer in English and me in Chinese, and lots of other fun games. She is generous with her stuff and candy, but she sure has a lot of it. Good kids both, and a very interesting and eye-opening day all around.
Me & Tina:
July 2, 2006
Goodbyes
I didn't follow through on my promise to write more this past month, but now here I am home and finally I have a good chance. I'm not sure what to think of my near-11 months in China now, as being home it feels (honestly) like I never left. As I look through pictures and remember stories and see the bags of stuff still half-unpacked on my bedroom floor, it seems like such a short time I spent away, and yet so significant. It was tough to say goodbye to the kids, and harder to say goodbye to my friends. I gave each of the kids a picture of myself and a letter to remember me bye, and lots of hugs. The last week of classes we watched Finding Nemo and it was a nice way to chill and say goodbye. My Middle Pink class cried (a lot) but I never did in the classroom. I left school last Saturday and had a teary goodbye with Michelle, Janice, Paula and so many of the other people who had meant so much to me this year. Last meals, gifts, pictures, and times shared will last with me for a long time.
June 14, 2006
How about 3 yuan?
First, some background, then the punch line.
Big Purple class has been learning about going to the market and how to bargain (albeit simply) in English. For example, the student will tell me, “I want to buy apples,” to which I reply “that’ll be 5 yuan” to which they say, “No, no, no. How about 3 yuan?” Simple enough, right?
Next background: Foreigners have big, ugly noses. This is a well-known fact in China. In fact, even my nose is big and ugly—which I suppose it is compared to most Chinese noses, as they run pretty small and cute. This doesn’t bug me all that much (really at all), but when my students are kind enough to point this out to me (that my nose is big and ugly), I tickle them or give them some sort of hard time. After all, that’s my job. One of the other things I do is cut them off at the pass by asking them questions about my nose: if my nose is beautiful, if they like my nose, etc. I do this in Chinese so they know they can’t talk about my nose right in front of my nose, because, hey, I ting de dong (understand). Or I just do it to get a laugh out of them, which it does. Today, however, one of them got a good laugh out of me.
I was goofing around with some girls from Big Purple on the playground. They’d ask me to say things in Chinese and would laugh hysterically when I said them. So I said in Chinese, “You know, I can speak a little Chinese?” “We know,” they said, and kept on laughing. We continued chatting and eventually, I asked this one girl Cocoa a question. “Cocoa, is my nose beautiful?”
To which she replied, in English, “No, no, no. How about 3 yuan.”
Big Purple class has been learning about going to the market and how to bargain (albeit simply) in English. For example, the student will tell me, “I want to buy apples,” to which I reply “that’ll be 5 yuan” to which they say, “No, no, no. How about 3 yuan?” Simple enough, right?
Next background: Foreigners have big, ugly noses. This is a well-known fact in China. In fact, even my nose is big and ugly—which I suppose it is compared to most Chinese noses, as they run pretty small and cute. This doesn’t bug me all that much (really at all), but when my students are kind enough to point this out to me (that my nose is big and ugly), I tickle them or give them some sort of hard time. After all, that’s my job. One of the other things I do is cut them off at the pass by asking them questions about my nose: if my nose is beautiful, if they like my nose, etc. I do this in Chinese so they know they can’t talk about my nose right in front of my nose, because, hey, I ting de dong (understand). Or I just do it to get a laugh out of them, which it does. Today, however, one of them got a good laugh out of me.
I was goofing around with some girls from Big Purple on the playground. They’d ask me to say things in Chinese and would laugh hysterically when I said them. So I said in Chinese, “You know, I can speak a little Chinese?” “We know,” they said, and kept on laughing. We continued chatting and eventually, I asked this one girl Cocoa a question. “Cocoa, is my nose beautiful?”
To which she replied, in English, “No, no, no. How about 3 yuan.”
Stuff vs. things (or is it all a bunch of dongxi?)
The Chinese word for “stuff” and “things” is the same: “Dongxi.”
Dongxi literally means east (dong) – west (xi), and comes from the old center street, which would run east-west, where all the markets would be set up. It’s where you went to buy all your stuff and all your things. To me, the two are different. You don’t really need stuff; you need things. Stuff you can do without; I really like my things. Get where I’m going with this?
I’ll admit I’ve always been a pretty materialistic person (as in I like my stuff and my things), but I’ve tried this year to think more about stuff and things and see how different they really are. Whether I’m going to buy necessary apartment “things” or just to spend money on silly Chinese “stuff,” it’s all the same in the pu tong hua (common language): mai dongxi. In my head, “mai dongxi” (buying things) sounds negative. Bored wives with their husband’s credit card “mai dongxi,” foreigners with their Meiguode qian (US dollars) “mai dongxi.”
How much of my life do I want to “mai dongxi?” How much of my “dongxi” do I really need? China’s made me ask these questions, and I think that’s a good thing, stuff, whatever.
Dongxi literally means east (dong) – west (xi), and comes from the old center street, which would run east-west, where all the markets would be set up. It’s where you went to buy all your stuff and all your things. To me, the two are different. You don’t really need stuff; you need things. Stuff you can do without; I really like my things. Get where I’m going with this?
I’ll admit I’ve always been a pretty materialistic person (as in I like my stuff and my things), but I’ve tried this year to think more about stuff and things and see how different they really are. Whether I’m going to buy necessary apartment “things” or just to spend money on silly Chinese “stuff,” it’s all the same in the pu tong hua (common language): mai dongxi. In my head, “mai dongxi” (buying things) sounds negative. Bored wives with their husband’s credit card “mai dongxi,” foreigners with their Meiguode qian (US dollars) “mai dongxi.”
How much of my life do I want to “mai dongxi?” How much of my “dongxi” do I really need? China’s made me ask these questions, and I think that’s a good thing, stuff, whatever.
Apologies
It's been way too long since I've posted, so for that I apologize. I've been slacking off for sure of late, but I guess I feel less of an urgency considering home is now less than 2 weeks away. Actually I'm trying to figure this out: It's currently 5:10 a.m. on Wednesday at home, which means in 2 weeks I'll be somewhere 30,000 feet over the Midwest, 1 hour and 40 minutes away from landing in Pittsburgh. Craziness. Anyway, expect more stuff between now and then, but if you don't see much, you'll see me soon enough, and hopefully all of this will be even better in person.
May 25, 2006
Thunder claps & rocket booms
Last night it rained for real. And then, when the real rain stopped, they made it rain.
At about 9 o clock p.m. it started. The sound of the falling rain on the windows was nice as I sat inside, but far too often it's come and gone in a matter of minutes here on the edge of the Gobi Desert (plus, Beijing is in the midst of a draught) and then you forget about it. But last night it really started pouring. There was thunder and there was lightning and it was definitely the realest storm we've had in Beijing this spring. It kept coming down for a decent while, and then it petered out and eventually, it stopped.
A little while later, sometime after 11 p.m. (as I'm trying to go to bed) there is a loud BOOM outside that was assuredly not thunder. Just after said boom, the rain started up again. What was this boom, you ask? Somewhere, some member of the People's Liberation Army pointed a rocket launcher of some sort at a cloud and shot rain-producing chemicals into the night sky. Most likely from the back of a jeep, cruising the streets of Beijing. Picture that.
As I drifted off to sleep, the artificial rain kept falling, i.e. the Beijing sky spat out whatever they just shot in it.
At about 9 o clock p.m. it started. The sound of the falling rain on the windows was nice as I sat inside, but far too often it's come and gone in a matter of minutes here on the edge of the Gobi Desert (plus, Beijing is in the midst of a draught) and then you forget about it. But last night it really started pouring. There was thunder and there was lightning and it was definitely the realest storm we've had in Beijing this spring. It kept coming down for a decent while, and then it petered out and eventually, it stopped.
A little while later, sometime after 11 p.m. (as I'm trying to go to bed) there is a loud BOOM outside that was assuredly not thunder. Just after said boom, the rain started up again. What was this boom, you ask? Somewhere, some member of the People's Liberation Army pointed a rocket launcher of some sort at a cloud and shot rain-producing chemicals into the night sky. Most likely from the back of a jeep, cruising the streets of Beijing. Picture that.
As I drifted off to sleep, the artificial rain kept falling, i.e. the Beijing sky spat out whatever they just shot in it.
May 24, 2006
"His name is Mr. Jon"
I've been teaching "introducing others" this week. We've been working on "his" and "her" and "he" and "she" specifically, as in Chinese, the female and the male pronouns sound the same: "ta," but look different when written. A lot of Chinese people have a tough time with this then, calling a guy "she" or a girl "he" for example. My kids have done a good job with it (better than I expected) and today they produced this gem of a moment...
Little Jane is a jokester. We were on a field trip a few weeks back and we were passing the mic around the bus to let the kids tell a story or a joke or whatever. Jane got the mic and immediately started into a joke. I could understand the basics of it, a classic joke set-up; there was a Chinese person, a Japanese person and an American person, perhaps in a bar, having a conversation, and at the end the Japanese person said something and then the Chinese person said something that made everyone die laughing.
Anyway, in class today, as we were saying each other's names and we came to a boy who said he didn't have an English name. It ended up he didn't like his English name and wanted a new one. Class was relaxed today so we were all talking about it, and I asked if anyone had an idea for his name. Jane spoke up: "Mr. Jon." Everyone laughed and said, his name is Mr. Jon! They had the sentence we'd been learning down.
I'm laughing (a lot) but I say, "he can't be Mr. Jon, I'm Mr. Jon." And Jane says, "You are Mr. Jon, and he is Mr. Jon." I tell them that he can be Jon, but he can't be Mr. Jon. She recognizes the comedic value in this (as did I) and she picks it up later. We continue with class and eventually we come to some point where Jane has the oppurtunity to say his name: so she does. "Mr. Jon." I laugh... no, he's not Mr. Jon. He's talking later... "Mr. Jon, be quiet," Jane says. She keeps looking for a chance to say it, and everytime the class loves it. I give in and call him "Mr. Jon" once. They go nuts.
I weighed the benefits and the costs of really giving this kid the English name "Mr. Jon" and decide it has to go. After class I talk to them all and we decide on plain-and-simple Jon. The now-named Jon's cool with it, Jane's cool with it, and so's the real Mr. Jon (me). Then I say to Jane, you're one funny girl. "Thanks, Mr. Jon."
Little Jane is a jokester. We were on a field trip a few weeks back and we were passing the mic around the bus to let the kids tell a story or a joke or whatever. Jane got the mic and immediately started into a joke. I could understand the basics of it, a classic joke set-up; there was a Chinese person, a Japanese person and an American person, perhaps in a bar, having a conversation, and at the end the Japanese person said something and then the Chinese person said something that made everyone die laughing.
Anyway, in class today, as we were saying each other's names and we came to a boy who said he didn't have an English name. It ended up he didn't like his English name and wanted a new one. Class was relaxed today so we were all talking about it, and I asked if anyone had an idea for his name. Jane spoke up: "Mr. Jon." Everyone laughed and said, his name is Mr. Jon! They had the sentence we'd been learning down.
I'm laughing (a lot) but I say, "he can't be Mr. Jon, I'm Mr. Jon." And Jane says, "You are Mr. Jon, and he is Mr. Jon." I tell them that he can be Jon, but he can't be Mr. Jon. She recognizes the comedic value in this (as did I) and she picks it up later. We continue with class and eventually we come to some point where Jane has the oppurtunity to say his name: so she does. "Mr. Jon." I laugh... no, he's not Mr. Jon. He's talking later... "Mr. Jon, be quiet," Jane says. She keeps looking for a chance to say it, and everytime the class loves it. I give in and call him "Mr. Jon" once. They go nuts.
I weighed the benefits and the costs of really giving this kid the English name "Mr. Jon" and decide it has to go. After class I talk to them all and we decide on plain-and-simple Jon. The now-named Jon's cool with it, Jane's cool with it, and so's the real Mr. Jon (me). Then I say to Jane, you're one funny girl. "Thanks, Mr. Jon."
May 23, 2006
Canadian David
He's Chinese, of course, but he lived in Canada for a few years. He's also one of my newest students (post-May holiday) and he speaks some pretty fine English, which is really awesome (especially because I hear that Canadian accent in his "yahs" for example). I've been wanting a student all year I could talk to a bit, and it's great to have David. He's not a native speaker as his parents speak to him in Chinese, but living overseas has made his English way better than the rest of my kiddos. It cracks me up the answers he gives to my questions--normal kid answers--but a riot compared to his classmate's words or two (which are sometimes hilarious too). I'll try to get a picture and post some funny stuff he says in Canadian.
Today after class David asked me if I'd see him tomorrow. I told him no, since we don't have class, but when he seemed pretty disappointed, I said I'd see him Thursday. He asked if I could meet him tomorrow outside his class to say hi tomorrow, and I told him I'd look for him. Warmed my heart, it did, to know I have a little friend I can talk with. And as I stood there, thinking about David, this other kid Jake ran up to me, licked his finger, put it on my arm, pulled it off real fast while making a sizzling sound, shook it and said, "ooh, hot."
They're all special in their own way, ya know? Be it Canadian David or Smooth Jake. (And yes, I am teaching my kids ridiculous pick-up moves.)
Today after class David asked me if I'd see him tomorrow. I told him no, since we don't have class, but when he seemed pretty disappointed, I said I'd see him Thursday. He asked if I could meet him tomorrow outside his class to say hi tomorrow, and I told him I'd look for him. Warmed my heart, it did, to know I have a little friend I can talk with. And as I stood there, thinking about David, this other kid Jake ran up to me, licked his finger, put it on my arm, pulled it off real fast while making a sizzling sound, shook it and said, "ooh, hot."
They're all special in their own way, ya know? Be it Canadian David or Smooth Jake. (And yes, I am teaching my kids ridiculous pick-up moves.)
May 19, 2006
Wo ai ni, Western food
My buddy just found a menu from Red Robin (an amazing burger place, if you somehow don't know), home of "Bottomless Steak Fries" and this great strawberry lemonade, and was reading off some of the burgers... my favorite is the one with egg and three strips of bacon... oh man.
We had neck of duck (and other various duck parts) in the cafeteria for lunch.
We had neck of duck (and other various duck parts) in the cafeteria for lunch.
May 14, 2006
"OK"
The globalization of the word/phrase "OK" is something really amazing to me. I was talking to my buddy Dave tonight about it (he's travelled Europe a lot, and he's just smart) and he says it's not just in China, that everyone knows "OK."
But, the meaning's often pretty unclear. I'll get frustrated sometimes with a taxi driver, for instance, who responds to all my questions (I'm speaking the best I can in Chinese, keep in mind) with "OK." Wait, I asked if you understood what I said... "OK"... do you understand? "OK." Do you know the place I just asked you to take me to? "OK." Can you take me there? "OK." Okay, I say. And we go... did he understand? Sometimes yes, sometimes no.
I might ask, are you from Beijing? "OK." Are you married? "OK." Got kids? "OK." You like robots? "OK." Do you understand anything I'm saying? "OK." Okay it is.
And then there are my students, who when I ask, "okay?" in class, they often respond with their classic negative reply: "nokay."
Okay? "Nokay." Okay...
"OK."
But, the meaning's often pretty unclear. I'll get frustrated sometimes with a taxi driver, for instance, who responds to all my questions (I'm speaking the best I can in Chinese, keep in mind) with "OK." Wait, I asked if you understood what I said... "OK"... do you understand? "OK." Do you know the place I just asked you to take me to? "OK." Can you take me there? "OK." Okay, I say. And we go... did he understand? Sometimes yes, sometimes no.
I might ask, are you from Beijing? "OK." Are you married? "OK." Got kids? "OK." You like robots? "OK." Do you understand anything I'm saying? "OK." Okay it is.
And then there are my students, who when I ask, "okay?" in class, they often respond with their classic negative reply: "nokay."
Okay? "Nokay." Okay...
"OK."
Bilingual eye exam
So tonight, my American buddy Ryan and my Chinese friend Michelle and I set out to buy some glasses. I've been enamored with Asian style since I set foot in China and Ryan and I'd been talking about getting some sweet specs of our own. We ended up all buying a pair for $50 each, but there's far more to the story than just the ending... my only regret is that none of us brought a camera.
Part 1: "Guanxi"
Doing anything in China is never as simple as it seems. For starters, there's this thing called "guanxi" which has to do with relationship, expectations, obligations and, in the end, cheap glasses. We asked Michelle to come along with us because she's hilarious, she too wanted glasses, and because we needed a translator since, for some reason, we haven't yet studied the chapter on "Purchasing prescription lenses" in our Chinese language book. We met up with her and the first thing she did was tell us that she knows a shop nearby where her cousin's boyfriend's sister works (actually she was the manager) and we should go there to get a good price. This goes way beyond shopping at your uncle's store or getting a discount because your friend works somewhere: this was all-out workin' the guanxi, and Michelle played her cards like a pro. Not only we were guaranteed a fair price, but most likely a better product and definitely better service.
Part 2: "Better?"
We arrived the glasses shop two busses and twenty minutes later and began perousing the selection of stylish Asian frames. Michelle's cousin's boyfriend's sister was working there, as well as another guy who spoke a little English. Very little. He started helping me and Ryan while Michelle talked with her cousin's boyfriend's sister. We'd brought along our contact prescription and our own glasses but decided we ought to do an eye exam just to be sure. As the shopboy led me into the eye exam room, this was definitely one of those moments when you forget you're in a foreign, non-English speaking country. I've done eye exams in the States tons of times before, but those examiners always spoke English.
There was the typical read from left to right (with E-looking objects that point left, right, up and down--is that what they have back home now?)... so that was no problem with my Chinese, his English and my ability to point my thumb in said direction. Next we moved on to looking through lenses which seemed a little extreme to me... it moved from "mei can" (I can't see) to "better?" awfully quick, and I was worried whether we were actually making progress. A couple times we had some confusion with 1 or 2, what was ok, what wasn't, and what was better and best, but we made it through the left eye, right eye, and finally, both. And I could see! The test lenses he made up worked like a charm and a "fei cheng hao" (very good!) was in order.
Part 3: The price
It seemed to me there's a different time allotment in a Chinese person's mind and an American person's mind as to how long it takes to pick out a pair of glasses. Michelle was ready in five minutes flat and many-a Chinese folk came and went while Ryan and I were still making our decision. "Do I go with the sweet black and red frames with the curvy edge, the black and tan frames, or the undeniably-exciting blue and yellow frames with the sharp, pointy corners?" These are important decisions to be made, as I'm guessing I'll only buy glasses in China once. (Although, the shopguy really enjoyed it when I pointed out that my American-bought glasses were of course, made in China.) I ended up going with the sweet black and red frames with the curvy edge and it was there that Michelle took over, working her guanxi to ensure we paid the lowest price for the best lenses. It's not like bargaining as there's no verbal exchange, it's instead more like a Jedi mind trick as suddle, indirect clues are dropped and the price with it.
Ryan and I each got a 200-kuai discount on our total (with the best lenses they had) bringing each of our prices to just over 400 kuai, or $50. This was our price as Michelle's friends. She's coming back next week for what will I'm sure be an even better deal and a pair of sunglasses thrown in to boot.
Part 1: "Guanxi"
Doing anything in China is never as simple as it seems. For starters, there's this thing called "guanxi" which has to do with relationship, expectations, obligations and, in the end, cheap glasses. We asked Michelle to come along with us because she's hilarious, she too wanted glasses, and because we needed a translator since, for some reason, we haven't yet studied the chapter on "Purchasing prescription lenses" in our Chinese language book. We met up with her and the first thing she did was tell us that she knows a shop nearby where her cousin's boyfriend's sister works (actually she was the manager) and we should go there to get a good price. This goes way beyond shopping at your uncle's store or getting a discount because your friend works somewhere: this was all-out workin' the guanxi, and Michelle played her cards like a pro. Not only we were guaranteed a fair price, but most likely a better product and definitely better service.
Part 2: "Better?"
We arrived the glasses shop two busses and twenty minutes later and began perousing the selection of stylish Asian frames. Michelle's cousin's boyfriend's sister was working there, as well as another guy who spoke a little English. Very little. He started helping me and Ryan while Michelle talked with her cousin's boyfriend's sister. We'd brought along our contact prescription and our own glasses but decided we ought to do an eye exam just to be sure. As the shopboy led me into the eye exam room, this was definitely one of those moments when you forget you're in a foreign, non-English speaking country. I've done eye exams in the States tons of times before, but those examiners always spoke English.
There was the typical read from left to right (with E-looking objects that point left, right, up and down--is that what they have back home now?)... so that was no problem with my Chinese, his English and my ability to point my thumb in said direction. Next we moved on to looking through lenses which seemed a little extreme to me... it moved from "mei can" (I can't see) to "better?" awfully quick, and I was worried whether we were actually making progress. A couple times we had some confusion with 1 or 2, what was ok, what wasn't, and what was better and best, but we made it through the left eye, right eye, and finally, both. And I could see! The test lenses he made up worked like a charm and a "fei cheng hao" (very good!) was in order.
Part 3: The price
It seemed to me there's a different time allotment in a Chinese person's mind and an American person's mind as to how long it takes to pick out a pair of glasses. Michelle was ready in five minutes flat and many-a Chinese folk came and went while Ryan and I were still making our decision. "Do I go with the sweet black and red frames with the curvy edge, the black and tan frames, or the undeniably-exciting blue and yellow frames with the sharp, pointy corners?" These are important decisions to be made, as I'm guessing I'll only buy glasses in China once. (Although, the shopguy really enjoyed it when I pointed out that my American-bought glasses were of course, made in China.) I ended up going with the sweet black and red frames with the curvy edge and it was there that Michelle took over, working her guanxi to ensure we paid the lowest price for the best lenses. It's not like bargaining as there's no verbal exchange, it's instead more like a Jedi mind trick as suddle, indirect clues are dropped and the price with it.
Ryan and I each got a 200-kuai discount on our total (with the best lenses they had) bringing each of our prices to just over 400 kuai, or $50. This was our price as Michelle's friends. She's coming back next week for what will I'm sure be an even better deal and a pair of sunglasses thrown in to boot.
May 12, 2006
Packing up
No, I'm not quite to the point of packing yet (though it was great to send a duffle bag-full home with Scott and Jaime), but that day does get closer every day. Another week of teaching's done and I'm sitting here talking to Matthew on IM about packing up for the end of his Junior year of college! Craziness.
He leaves for home tomorrow, and it's almost imcomprehensible to me that an entire year of college for him has past with me being away. I left Pittsburgh for Beijing before Matthew packed up to go to school, and here he is packing up to come home. The last eight months+ in China have felt like a long time, but not enough time to have consumed an entire quarter of my little bro's college career... I'm thinking I never saw his dorm room, didn't attend any of his Student Activities stuff, and never hung out with him and his buddies. I'm thankful we've kept in close enough contact so it feels like there's no way time could've flown this much, but I'm feeling more and more ready for my homecoming, and feeling more and more glad I'll be home for his Senior year so I won't miss his year in my old Arms apartment building, see him on Student Senate exec staff, or on his graduation day. It's tough to be a big brother, you know.
I imagine when I get home it'll feel like I've been gone for this long as I go back to now not-so-familiar places at Geneva and see my old profs and friends, but I'll face that day when it comes. For now my mind is boggled at how time flies and how Matthew is a Senior while Eddo, Nate and Chris are college grads. Congrats guys, and I guess I'll be home soon as it seems my time to pack is coming sooner than I think...
He leaves for home tomorrow, and it's almost imcomprehensible to me that an entire year of college for him has past with me being away. I left Pittsburgh for Beijing before Matthew packed up to go to school, and here he is packing up to come home. The last eight months+ in China have felt like a long time, but not enough time to have consumed an entire quarter of my little bro's college career... I'm thinking I never saw his dorm room, didn't attend any of his Student Activities stuff, and never hung out with him and his buddies. I'm thankful we've kept in close enough contact so it feels like there's no way time could've flown this much, but I'm feeling more and more ready for my homecoming, and feeling more and more glad I'll be home for his Senior year so I won't miss his year in my old Arms apartment building, see him on Student Senate exec staff, or on his graduation day. It's tough to be a big brother, you know.
I imagine when I get home it'll feel like I've been gone for this long as I go back to now not-so-familiar places at Geneva and see my old profs and friends, but I'll face that day when it comes. For now my mind is boggled at how time flies and how Matthew is a Senior while Eddo, Nate and Chris are college grads. Congrats guys, and I guess I'll be home soon as it seems my time to pack is coming sooner than I think...
May 7, 2006
Adventures with toothpaste
For the last few months (actually it's more like since October or November... I can't remember for sure), I've been brushing my teeth every day with Chinese toothpaste. This in and of itself is no biggie, as at this point nearly all of my America-stuff is long gone.
However, those months long ago when I first bought the new stuff I experienced quite a shock to my recently-awoken taste buds. It was Crest toothpaste so I wasn't expecting anything weird, and I went with the classic green box like I buy at home; I even got a two-pack as it was on sale. But, that next morning when I squeezed out the new tube onto my electric tooth brush, it wasn't "fresh mint" I tasted, but "green tea"!
It took some getting used to, for sure, but as I finally squeezed the last out of tube #2 this past week, it was strange to head back to the local supermarket to pick up what I hoped was the mint I was looking for those months ago. Just to be sure, I went with the one-pack this time around; I recognized what not to buy and landed "fresh mint" successfully. To be honest, though, I was a little disappointed...
There's just nothing like that taste of green tea toothpaste in the morning.
However, those months long ago when I first bought the new stuff I experienced quite a shock to my recently-awoken taste buds. It was Crest toothpaste so I wasn't expecting anything weird, and I went with the classic green box like I buy at home; I even got a two-pack as it was on sale. But, that next morning when I squeezed out the new tube onto my electric tooth brush, it wasn't "fresh mint" I tasted, but "green tea"!
It took some getting used to, for sure, but as I finally squeezed the last out of tube #2 this past week, it was strange to head back to the local supermarket to pick up what I hoped was the mint I was looking for those months ago. Just to be sure, I went with the one-pack this time around; I recognized what not to buy and landed "fresh mint" successfully. To be honest, though, I was a little disappointed...
There's just nothing like that taste of green tea toothpaste in the morning.
Scott & Jaime
I put the world travellers back on a plane today and said bye to my break as well. Classes are back in session tomorrow and I'm heading back to my 5-kuai noodle shop for dinner. Routines and familiarity can really be a great thing. But so can taking a week off to sightsee with your brother and his wife.
It was an awesome visit--we were all worn out by the end, but we saw a lot, did a lot and ate a lot, but after it's all said and done, we really didn't see much. All week they were overwhelmed by the size and scope of the city, of its buildings, and of the Chinese people and culture around us. Well, ok, Chinese people aren't big, but for sure we only scratched the surface of this place in 8 days' time. It was a full 8 days, don't get me wrong, and it's been a full 8 months for me, but like I said, it's all just the tip of the China iceberg.
I'm going to direct you towards Scott's web site once he has that up because it looks awesome so far, and it'll be a better documentation of our travels than I can do here. Here's a quick rundown:
Split pants and Chinese cheeks, the subway, common sense, super style, fun with beginners' Chinese, "xiao peng you"s, "er shi yi shi ji xue xiao", pizza bread, awesome food, food street, stinky dofu, taxi drivers, foot massages, Sweater Cuts, the Green Umbrella, the Five Friendlies, a fanny pack, fake pocketbooks, bargaining, sightseeing, eating, more eating... and of course, lots more. But like I said, that's a start.
It's 2 months til Stacy's wedding meaning less than that til I'm back in the Mei Guo. Woot.
It was an awesome visit--we were all worn out by the end, but we saw a lot, did a lot and ate a lot, but after it's all said and done, we really didn't see much. All week they were overwhelmed by the size and scope of the city, of its buildings, and of the Chinese people and culture around us. Well, ok, Chinese people aren't big, but for sure we only scratched the surface of this place in 8 days' time. It was a full 8 days, don't get me wrong, and it's been a full 8 months for me, but like I said, it's all just the tip of the China iceberg.
I'm going to direct you towards Scott's web site once he has that up because it looks awesome so far, and it'll be a better documentation of our travels than I can do here. Here's a quick rundown:
Split pants and Chinese cheeks, the subway, common sense, super style, fun with beginners' Chinese, "xiao peng you"s, "er shi yi shi ji xue xiao", pizza bread, awesome food, food street, stinky dofu, taxi drivers, foot massages, Sweater Cuts, the Green Umbrella, the Five Friendlies, a fanny pack, fake pocketbooks, bargaining, sightseeing, eating, more eating... and of course, lots more. But like I said, that's a start.
It's 2 months til Stacy's wedding meaning less than that til I'm back in the Mei Guo. Woot.
May 4, 2006
May holiday
Holiday's are a funny thing here in China. It's nice to get a week off (for sure), but, as usual, things work a little different...
It was a big deal, I guess, when a few years back May Holiday was extended from 3 to 7 days. What a great thing for the government to do, right? Let's take a look at this year's May holiday schedule to see:
May Holiday began Monday, May 1. Happy Workers Day: take seven days off. However, work didn't end Friday as usual, but continued into Saturday and Sunday, right to the end of April. Monday was literally day 1 of the holiday. I picked up Scott and Jaime Saturday afternoon after teaching that morning, for example. I taught today's classes actually, the following Thursdays--if that makes sense. (I had Sunday off; Chinese people didn't. It was tomorrow.) So, holiday began Monday and goes for the following seven days. People have off work, students have off school, and stores, shops, and markets remain open. The idea is to get people to spend money, basically. Chinese sociliasm at its finest: celebrate the workers by spending lots of kuai.
Classes and work and all normal activity will resume on Monday, which means over a course of 14 days, we'll have worked 7 and had 7 off. Over a course of a normal 14 days, you work 10 and have 4 off. Which means you really just get 3 days off. Which is exactly what May holiday always used to be. Hmm, very interesting... That's China for ya.
Here are some photos from Scott and Jaime's visit thus far:
That picture of me is at the Alpine Slide at the Great Wall: the coolest thing in China. Really. Awesome. I'm about to go for the ride of my life. The others are Scott and Jaime on top of the wall and in front of some colorful Chinese building. They're loving the food and Jaime's especially loving the cute Chinese kids (and their split plants). We've been to Sweater Cuts more than once and to hot pot, so you really can't go wrong there.
It was a big deal, I guess, when a few years back May Holiday was extended from 3 to 7 days. What a great thing for the government to do, right? Let's take a look at this year's May holiday schedule to see:
May Holiday began Monday, May 1. Happy Workers Day: take seven days off. However, work didn't end Friday as usual, but continued into Saturday and Sunday, right to the end of April. Monday was literally day 1 of the holiday. I picked up Scott and Jaime Saturday afternoon after teaching that morning, for example. I taught today's classes actually, the following Thursdays--if that makes sense. (I had Sunday off; Chinese people didn't. It was tomorrow.) So, holiday began Monday and goes for the following seven days. People have off work, students have off school, and stores, shops, and markets remain open. The idea is to get people to spend money, basically. Chinese sociliasm at its finest: celebrate the workers by spending lots of kuai.
Classes and work and all normal activity will resume on Monday, which means over a course of 14 days, we'll have worked 7 and had 7 off. Over a course of a normal 14 days, you work 10 and have 4 off. Which means you really just get 3 days off. Which is exactly what May holiday always used to be. Hmm, very interesting... That's China for ya.
Here are some photos from Scott and Jaime's visit thus far:
That picture of me is at the Alpine Slide at the Great Wall: the coolest thing in China. Really. Awesome. I'm about to go for the ride of my life. The others are Scott and Jaime on top of the wall and in front of some colorful Chinese building. They're loving the food and Jaime's especially loving the cute Chinese kids (and their split plants). We've been to Sweater Cuts more than once and to hot pot, so you really can't go wrong there.
April 27, 2006
Go fish
I took this last week before May Break to teach my Big Class students (5- and 6-year olds) the game Go Fish--a simple game of course, but a little tougher when you play it in your second language. I didn't know how the whole thing would go but I really wanted to give it my best shot, so I made a game plan.
I broke the whole thing down into simple concepts (such as making pairs and not having any more cards, etc.) and played smaller games all week building up to the final day (today) when we put it all together. Since it is English class, I taught them the question "Do you have a ____?" and how to respond, either yes (and then you give the card to who asked) or you say "Go fish!," which they said with all the gusto they could muster (really, it was quite a site to see). The week went great. They spoke a lot of English, learned some stuff, including a new game, and we all had fun.
I had other things planned to go along with the game but ended up throwing all that out and just playing the games building up to Go Fish every day, all week. I couldn't have been happier with this morning, which was our first go at the real thing. It was so, so awesome to see the kiddos saying "Do you have a 5?" to their friend, who would either wince and give up their 5, or they'd shout "Go fish!" They were so excited to make a pair and hated to give up their card to a rival student, and then whenever there was a disagreement they'd argue in Chinese. They would call me over ("Mr. Jon!") spout off something in Chinese (I would sometimes understand a little) to which I would respond "Mei shi" or "Mei guanxi, which mean "It's nothing" and "No problem" respectively, and then get them playing again. Most Kindergarten problems, after all, are nothing or no problem.
They played with a few modified rules, such as they only asked their person to their left if they had the card they were looking for, but no biggie, I was way pleased. This one girl would say "so cool" everytime I would shuffle the cards for them and they loved to say "I am the winner!" I don't really know if they always were the winner, but I responded with "Give me five" and a congratulatory hand slap. Such is a good day in the Kindergarten.
I broke the whole thing down into simple concepts (such as making pairs and not having any more cards, etc.) and played smaller games all week building up to the final day (today) when we put it all together. Since it is English class, I taught them the question "Do you have a ____?" and how to respond, either yes (and then you give the card to who asked) or you say "Go fish!," which they said with all the gusto they could muster (really, it was quite a site to see). The week went great. They spoke a lot of English, learned some stuff, including a new game, and we all had fun.
I had other things planned to go along with the game but ended up throwing all that out and just playing the games building up to Go Fish every day, all week. I couldn't have been happier with this morning, which was our first go at the real thing. It was so, so awesome to see the kiddos saying "Do you have a 5?" to their friend, who would either wince and give up their 5, or they'd shout "Go fish!" They were so excited to make a pair and hated to give up their card to a rival student, and then whenever there was a disagreement they'd argue in Chinese. They would call me over ("Mr. Jon!") spout off something in Chinese (I would sometimes understand a little) to which I would respond "Mei shi" or "Mei guanxi, which mean "It's nothing" and "No problem" respectively, and then get them playing again. Most Kindergarten problems, after all, are nothing or no problem.
They played with a few modified rules, such as they only asked their person to their left if they had the card they were looking for, but no biggie, I was way pleased. This one girl would say "so cool" everytime I would shuffle the cards for them and they loved to say "I am the winner!" I don't really know if they always were the winner, but I responded with "Give me five" and a congratulatory hand slap. Such is a good day in the Kindergarten.
April 26, 2006
Walls
China builds it's walls for a lot of reasons. Privacy, protection, and keeping people in the right places (be it physically or socially) are a few. Keeping out foreigners was a great reason for one Great Wall. Basically, for thousands of years, if a problem has arisen in China, the solution has been, simply: build a wall. To keep people in or out.
An American friend who's lived in China for a lot of years tells the story of a strange man lurking in an apartment building scaring some of the residents. A meeting of the residents was called to find a solution and immediately someone said, build a wall! There was no mention of replacing the non-functional lights in the hallway or the other numerous problems that actually were safety concerns, instead, simply and naturally, build a wall! The wall was never built because other questions soon arose... we'll need a gate. We'll need someone to guard the gate. We'll need to pay this person, and pay for the wall. Who will pay for this? But all this shows the natural Chinese reaction and feeling of safety behind walls.
Today, walls are still being built all over the country, despite the many modernizations it's undergone in the past 25 years or so and is still undergoing. And, currently, a wall is being built right in my own backyard. An adjacent building to the headquarters of my comany here in Beijing recently put some windows in a wall of their own that looks right into our property. Whether for reasons of air circulation, for the view, or for other reasons (...the adjacent building with the new windows happens to be owned by the Public Security Bureau), the windows were put in and caused a problem for our company seeking to keep some of it's own going-ons private. Our solution? Build a wall!
Here's the progress of the wall construction (a couple of days apart), specifically so those windows don't see into our windows. Seems pretty funny to me, but it's certainly the Chinese way of doing things. Whatever view the PSB wanted, it's now just of some old-fashioned brick and mortar.
An American friend who's lived in China for a lot of years tells the story of a strange man lurking in an apartment building scaring some of the residents. A meeting of the residents was called to find a solution and immediately someone said, build a wall! There was no mention of replacing the non-functional lights in the hallway or the other numerous problems that actually were safety concerns, instead, simply and naturally, build a wall! The wall was never built because other questions soon arose... we'll need a gate. We'll need someone to guard the gate. We'll need to pay this person, and pay for the wall. Who will pay for this? But all this shows the natural Chinese reaction and feeling of safety behind walls.
Today, walls are still being built all over the country, despite the many modernizations it's undergone in the past 25 years or so and is still undergoing. And, currently, a wall is being built right in my own backyard. An adjacent building to the headquarters of my comany here in Beijing recently put some windows in a wall of their own that looks right into our property. Whether for reasons of air circulation, for the view, or for other reasons (...the adjacent building with the new windows happens to be owned by the Public Security Bureau), the windows were put in and caused a problem for our company seeking to keep some of it's own going-ons private. Our solution? Build a wall!
Here's the progress of the wall construction (a couple of days apart), specifically so those windows don't see into our windows. Seems pretty funny to me, but it's certainly the Chinese way of doing things. Whatever view the PSB wanted, it's now just of some old-fashioned brick and mortar.
April 23, 2006
Easter Great Wall adventure
It all started last Saturday night at around 7 p.m. when myself, Dave and Ryan, and four girls, Janice, Karyn Marie, Shannon and Jess, climbed into a van we'd rented (for about $75 total... China = cheap) and headed north to the Great Wall. The ride took around 2 hours and we took the time to practice asking and answering ridiculous questions in Chinese, one of my favorites being "Ni xihuan jiqiren ma?" which means, "do you like robots?" I like the Chinese word for robot because it means "machine person" with the same word for person, ren, as American person (Meiguoren) or Chinese person (Zhongguoren). For some reason I think that's funny... I asked a Chinese person one time, "so it's like Chinese person, American person, machine person?" And they said no but couldn't convince me of any good reason why it's not just like that. I guess they're taking robots to their natural conclusion.
Anyway, back to the story: the van arrived at a hotel adjacent to the wall where we settled in for a few short hours of sleep. The place was better than I expected for $10 a bed, but as we guys headed downstairs to see where the girls were staying, we ran into a huge, sacry rat, literally, hopping up stairs. We decided not to tell the girls about said rat, and we realized this was definitely a good idea when a few minutes later they freaked out about a bug. We settled into bed at around midnight with our alarms set for 3:30 a.m. to beat the sunrise. This is an awful short amount of time to sleep ever, but especially when you have the oppurtunity to sleep in a comfortable bed (the most comfortable I've been in in China), all 3 and a half hours of it. Ugh.
We headed out into the darkness and towards the wall, realizing we were a little unprepared for the climb ahead with only our cell phone flashlights and iPod screens. Ooops. We walked about 15 minutes down the road to the spot where we were supposed to be able to get on the wall, though the near side looked impossible. It was a little too dark to see anything very well, but we could see the one thing that stood in the way of us and climbing the wall on the other side: a small reservoir and dam which was quickly dubbed "The Scary Dam" by me and Dave. And it was scary. In truth, the top was maybe 5 feet and the fall maybe 100-200, but trust, me, at 4 a.m. with my cell phone lighting the way, I was freaked.
Here is Scary Dam in more light:
We made it across Scary Dam and closer to the wall, only to find the path we were looking for was not so clear as we'd hoped. It led up the hill to a point in the wall we came to refer to as Scary Window, a small window in a tower about 6 feet off the ground. Ryan climbed in, again with only a cell phone as flashlight and came back to tell us that he couldn't find a way out the other side and onto the wall, as we'd hoped. We decided to head back down and back across Scary Dam to try the wall on the other side, as we really didn't know how to get up it here, and it was nearing 5 a.m., the time we thought the sun would rise. The choice between Scary Window and Scary Dam was a tough one.
We hurried back to the street, at which point Ryan, Karyn Marie and Jess decided they wanted to give the wall one more try. I, meanwhile, led the camp that was more than content to stay away from Scary Dam again, forever. We climbed the hill on the other side of the road to the point where at least we were looking at the wall. (It turned out to be a great view!) We stayed there as the clouds covering the sky lightened (there never really was a sunrise) and we watched our little speck-looking friends from across the valley successfully find a way onto the wall (through that same tower and Scary Window), climb up to the top and then, somehow, back down again. I was happy to be eating donuts at my spot on the hill. At one point it did turn scary on our end, though, as Shannon found some loose rocks and went into a split as she slid a few feet... ouch.
It ended up being a nice morning. We discovered some interesting things later, including this Chinglish sign telling us that the wall we crossed the dam to climb was indeed "closeo."
We also met this Chinese guy with a 7-month old St. Bernard pup named Rex. Rex and his owner were a riot (owner not pictured).
At about 7 we loaded back into the van and returned south to be home in time for church. On the way home we told our driver about some of our adventures, and we told the girls about the rat from the night before. I tried to tell the driver what we'd seen but didn't know the Chinese word for rat. Instead, I said "big, scary mouse." The driver was adament in telling me, however, that it was not a mouse I'd seen. Because, and I quote, "mice are very cute." Hun ka ai was the word he used, the same I'd use to describe a little kid or a puppy. He was right though, the hopping rat was not very cute. And it wasn't a mouse either.
And that's the end. A great time was had by all. And despite the lack of sleep, it was a great Easter morning. Last couple pictures: Here's the wall at first light, and here I am back on Scary Dam, reliving and facing my fears.
Anyway, back to the story: the van arrived at a hotel adjacent to the wall where we settled in for a few short hours of sleep. The place was better than I expected for $10 a bed, but as we guys headed downstairs to see where the girls were staying, we ran into a huge, sacry rat, literally, hopping up stairs. We decided not to tell the girls about said rat, and we realized this was definitely a good idea when a few minutes later they freaked out about a bug. We settled into bed at around midnight with our alarms set for 3:30 a.m. to beat the sunrise. This is an awful short amount of time to sleep ever, but especially when you have the oppurtunity to sleep in a comfortable bed (the most comfortable I've been in in China), all 3 and a half hours of it. Ugh.
We headed out into the darkness and towards the wall, realizing we were a little unprepared for the climb ahead with only our cell phone flashlights and iPod screens. Ooops. We walked about 15 minutes down the road to the spot where we were supposed to be able to get on the wall, though the near side looked impossible. It was a little too dark to see anything very well, but we could see the one thing that stood in the way of us and climbing the wall on the other side: a small reservoir and dam which was quickly dubbed "The Scary Dam" by me and Dave. And it was scary. In truth, the top was maybe 5 feet and the fall maybe 100-200, but trust, me, at 4 a.m. with my cell phone lighting the way, I was freaked.
Here is Scary Dam in more light:
We made it across Scary Dam and closer to the wall, only to find the path we were looking for was not so clear as we'd hoped. It led up the hill to a point in the wall we came to refer to as Scary Window, a small window in a tower about 6 feet off the ground. Ryan climbed in, again with only a cell phone as flashlight and came back to tell us that he couldn't find a way out the other side and onto the wall, as we'd hoped. We decided to head back down and back across Scary Dam to try the wall on the other side, as we really didn't know how to get up it here, and it was nearing 5 a.m., the time we thought the sun would rise. The choice between Scary Window and Scary Dam was a tough one.
We hurried back to the street, at which point Ryan, Karyn Marie and Jess decided they wanted to give the wall one more try. I, meanwhile, led the camp that was more than content to stay away from Scary Dam again, forever. We climbed the hill on the other side of the road to the point where at least we were looking at the wall. (It turned out to be a great view!) We stayed there as the clouds covering the sky lightened (there never really was a sunrise) and we watched our little speck-looking friends from across the valley successfully find a way onto the wall (through that same tower and Scary Window), climb up to the top and then, somehow, back down again. I was happy to be eating donuts at my spot on the hill. At one point it did turn scary on our end, though, as Shannon found some loose rocks and went into a split as she slid a few feet... ouch.
It ended up being a nice morning. We discovered some interesting things later, including this Chinglish sign telling us that the wall we crossed the dam to climb was indeed "closeo."
We also met this Chinese guy with a 7-month old St. Bernard pup named Rex. Rex and his owner were a riot (owner not pictured).
At about 7 we loaded back into the van and returned south to be home in time for church. On the way home we told our driver about some of our adventures, and we told the girls about the rat from the night before. I tried to tell the driver what we'd seen but didn't know the Chinese word for rat. Instead, I said "big, scary mouse." The driver was adament in telling me, however, that it was not a mouse I'd seen. Because, and I quote, "mice are very cute." Hun ka ai was the word he used, the same I'd use to describe a little kid or a puppy. He was right though, the hopping rat was not very cute. And it wasn't a mouse either.
And that's the end. A great time was had by all. And despite the lack of sleep, it was a great Easter morning. Last couple pictures: Here's the wall at first light, and here I am back on Scary Dam, reliving and facing my fears.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
