Traveling in China is always an adventure for a foreigner. If you don't understand.. just ask, I have tons of stories. This weekend was a pretty special occurance though. I was going to Hangzhou as usual.. and I decide I'm going to save some money by taking the bus of the "yelling people" outside the station. I call them that because that's what they do.. they yell. Usually they see a foreigner and yell "Shanghai!".. and I say.. "Hangzhou." Then I bargain for a NON-foreigner price.. and continue to follow them through alley ways and shady places to a bus that is hidden. Well, this weekend it was a crowded street.. and basically a bus pulled up and the woman threw me on and the bus barely even stopped. haha. There were no seats.. so they tried to make a man get up for me, only have another woman take the seat. I didn't want to kick anyone out of their rightful seat.. so I sat on a stool. No problem. They charged me even less money.. which was nice, but they told me to stay hidden. haha.
When arriving in Hangzhou.. they just dropped me on the side of street. I am glad I know Hangzhou well. I knew where I was and how to get a taxi.
Coming back to Ningbo today was even better... I decide I am going to take the cheap way home.. because I never do. I bargained with a man for a long time.. he wanted 20 yuan more than the regular bus.. so I got him down and ended up saving about 20 yuan. Anyways.. he takes me to this little shack of a house. and sits me on the couch and gives me a piece of paper that he wrote Ningbo on. He told me it would be 15 minutes.. I said "hao de." Then I don't see anyone. I play with the little 2 year old girl for a while.. and talk to a random woman washing dishes. Then about 45 minutes later 2 girls come in and sit down. No English.. so I used me Chinese and asked when the bus would leave. They said in 50 minutes.......... more waiting around. I listened to my lesson podcasts and finally they usher us out to a minibus. It has no seats. Just these wooden stools that are basically 2 sticks glued together. I sit carefullly, to ensure that they stay in tact. I didn't want to be the "fat foreigner who broke the 2 stick stool." haha. When in fact one of the other girls broke her stool. Anyways. The minibus takes about 5KM and pulls over. He stands at the back of the van and a bus flashes it's lights. He opens the door and we all run out and jump on the bus. This one barely stopped either. Thankfully it was fairly empty so I got a row to myself. I got to sleep for the remainder of the trip. When arriving in Ningbo, the bus driver stops on a random road and tells me I have to get off now. I have no idea where I am.. I dont' know Ningbo too well. So I just start walking down random streets and looking for a familiar hotel, or landmark. Finally, these 5 girls say hello as I am passing.. so I ask in Chinese, "Nan Zhan zai nali?" and it turns out that's where they were going. So they walked with me. I really think they just wanted me to share the umbrella, because that was the first thing they did was just under my umbrella and latch on to my arms. haha.
Needless to say.. I made it home. I saved some money. I spoke Chinese. I learned a lot. I really love the random experiences I get to have in this amazing Country. If I were traveling in America.. I would have gotten in my car and driven. So boring and easy... never meet new people that way...
I am happy the TEM-4 is finished.. now I can have a life with my students and friends! Now if it would only stop raining.. The TEM-4 is the major English exam for sophomore English majors. It is a huge part of their schooling. My students have had morning and night classes/study time, and practice exams every weekend. I am so glad that is finished. We were all burnt out on TEM-4 talk..
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Yeah.. I know.. I'm getting bad at this
Hey guys. Sorry it's been a week. I know I am getting bad at this. Spring is so completely busy. I went to work in Hangzhou this weekend and it was wonderful. If you want to join a new social networking site for Chinese and Americans.. join nihaoareyou.com. It's pretty cool. At least go check it out. A lot of my students.. old and new are using it, and it's fun!
In other happenings.. DAD is doing incredible things in this part of the World. He is reaching people that I never thought possible. I have enjoyed getting to spend more and more time with my students and friends during the weeks and then seeing my Hangzhou family on the weekends. This weekend I am going to hang out with some friends from Ningbo, and family. I am pumped about this. The weather is beautiful and sunny and warm. I am in short sleeves and flip flops. If you know me at all... I am happy!! haha. Just when I needed some light in my life.. DAD gave me some "light." It's amazing to see his image in his children here.. eventhough they are unaware of it most of the time.
On the bus to go downtown on Friday, the boy next to me wanted to chat. So we talked for a little bit.. and we started talking about music. Best sentence ever spoken to me by a Chinese person...
Him: "I think we are the same. I like the Backstreet Boys, the Spicey Girls, the Kitty Dolls. I am good at KTV with them. I can sing all their songs, and even do the sex dance."
He really meant the spice girls, and the pussycat dolls, and the sexy dancing.. haha. I didn't even know how to respond. I just started laughing.. It was the best thing ever.
This week we are talking about incorrect English spoken in China.. often referred to as Chinglish. I realize how bad my English is, and how fluent I am in this made up language. I don't know if that is good or bad. I also found myself doing something my students do on a regular basis. I was typing something in Word, and i highlighted a word, found the synonyms and found a larger word that sounded more intelligent. haha. I can't believe I did that. I always laugh when my students do that, but my vocabulary has gone down significantly.
On Sunday, I ran into a few friends at the Hangzhou bus station. It was wonderful to get to see them. It was 2 friends that I haven't gotten to see much of because of work and distance. We didn't talk much, but just seeing them made my heart smile.
Everyday I fall more and more in love with this people, and their country. I still have my China Days of course.. the issues, but love it all inspite of those things. I wish I could show you what the "Real China" is... but it's just not possible. Sign on to nihaoareyou.com and you can learn from the actual Chinese. This is a new way to reach them.. they are so eager to talk to foreigners.
Peace is such an amazing feeling, and the past week and a half has brought that to my life completely. I can see exactly how DAD is taking care of me.. and I can see the side he is fighting in the battle for my heart with his enemy. It's easier to know who is on what side.. I can make better decisions when I know which side I'm on. I know that sounds like rambling, but it's what's going on inside that has torn me apart so much this term. To feel the Peace that IS HIM... is so wonderful.
Please keep the work here in your thoughts.. we have about 10 weeks left in Ningbo. Then I'm just not sure if I"ll be coming home immediately or later, but whatever it is.. it will work out perfectly. It always does. Thank you for the love and support. I talk to DAD about you daily.
In other happenings.. DAD is doing incredible things in this part of the World. He is reaching people that I never thought possible. I have enjoyed getting to spend more and more time with my students and friends during the weeks and then seeing my Hangzhou family on the weekends. This weekend I am going to hang out with some friends from Ningbo, and family. I am pumped about this. The weather is beautiful and sunny and warm. I am in short sleeves and flip flops. If you know me at all... I am happy!! haha. Just when I needed some light in my life.. DAD gave me some "light." It's amazing to see his image in his children here.. eventhough they are unaware of it most of the time.
On the bus to go downtown on Friday, the boy next to me wanted to chat. So we talked for a little bit.. and we started talking about music. Best sentence ever spoken to me by a Chinese person...
Him: "I think we are the same. I like the Backstreet Boys, the Spicey Girls, the Kitty Dolls. I am good at KTV with them. I can sing all their songs, and even do the sex dance."
He really meant the spice girls, and the pussycat dolls, and the sexy dancing.. haha. I didn't even know how to respond. I just started laughing.. It was the best thing ever.
This week we are talking about incorrect English spoken in China.. often referred to as Chinglish. I realize how bad my English is, and how fluent I am in this made up language. I don't know if that is good or bad. I also found myself doing something my students do on a regular basis. I was typing something in Word, and i highlighted a word, found the synonyms and found a larger word that sounded more intelligent. haha. I can't believe I did that. I always laugh when my students do that, but my vocabulary has gone down significantly.
On Sunday, I ran into a few friends at the Hangzhou bus station. It was wonderful to get to see them. It was 2 friends that I haven't gotten to see much of because of work and distance. We didn't talk much, but just seeing them made my heart smile.
Everyday I fall more and more in love with this people, and their country. I still have my China Days of course.. the issues, but love it all inspite of those things. I wish I could show you what the "Real China" is... but it's just not possible. Sign on to nihaoareyou.com and you can learn from the actual Chinese. This is a new way to reach them.. they are so eager to talk to foreigners.
Peace is such an amazing feeling, and the past week and a half has brought that to my life completely. I can see exactly how DAD is taking care of me.. and I can see the side he is fighting in the battle for my heart with his enemy. It's easier to know who is on what side.. I can make better decisions when I know which side I'm on. I know that sounds like rambling, but it's what's going on inside that has torn me apart so much this term. To feel the Peace that IS HIM... is so wonderful.
Please keep the work here in your thoughts.. we have about 10 weeks left in Ningbo. Then I'm just not sure if I"ll be coming home immediately or later, but whatever it is.. it will work out perfectly. It always does. Thank you for the love and support. I talk to DAD about you daily.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Amazing Weekend in Hangzhou
Well, this last weekend was tomb sweeping festival in China. That means that you go honor your ancestors. Needless to say.. it was a travel weekend for many many people.
We Americans decided to meet for a weekend of fun in Hangzhou. 2 of my friends from Wuhan came and we had a blast catching up and hanging out. They are so much fun and just encouraging to be around. It felt good to laugh a lot. There were times that the weekend was a little bit hard, and they were right there to talk to DAD with me about it. It was nice to be around girls who would drop everything for a few minutes of that conversation time. I appreciated it so much.
The hard part of the weekend was trying to figure out next year. It seems that DAD's plan and my plan are a little different. I didn't see his plan at first and I wasn't quite sure about it all. I was rather upset on Sunday because it looked like next year was going to be exactly what I feared it would be. I was prepared, but really upset. I got to spend some time talking with Rachel about it.. and the thought of leaving China just is not an option. I knew that whatever worked out.. was not going to be ideal. Well, then DAD answered my questions in a compeletly random way.
In this life people come in and out for a reason. We meet people and form levels of friendships for specific purposes. DAD uses those relationships for his purposes and it's hard for us to see sometimes why we might have met those people. Well, one of those "randoms" came back into my life this weekend... and offered me a job. It looks like I will be staying in China, but changing professions. I will be doing video production for a website.. and keep doing DAD's work too. It's the same deal except no teaching... I'm rather excited about this prospect. I have a couple things to work out, but it should be great.
Now.. I have to go to Shanghai to get new pages sewn into my passport so I can get my visa. It also looks like I might not be coming home in July.. or it will be a very short trip home. We'll see. Anyways...
Hangzhou is my Chinese home and I am so excited for next year. I will be busy and involved and get to be with my friends there. I know DAD always has a plan, and all things work for the good... It's just hard sometimes when I feel blind.
We Americans decided to meet for a weekend of fun in Hangzhou. 2 of my friends from Wuhan came and we had a blast catching up and hanging out. They are so much fun and just encouraging to be around. It felt good to laugh a lot. There were times that the weekend was a little bit hard, and they were right there to talk to DAD with me about it. It was nice to be around girls who would drop everything for a few minutes of that conversation time. I appreciated it so much.
The hard part of the weekend was trying to figure out next year. It seems that DAD's plan and my plan are a little different. I didn't see his plan at first and I wasn't quite sure about it all. I was rather upset on Sunday because it looked like next year was going to be exactly what I feared it would be. I was prepared, but really upset. I got to spend some time talking with Rachel about it.. and the thought of leaving China just is not an option. I knew that whatever worked out.. was not going to be ideal. Well, then DAD answered my questions in a compeletly random way.
In this life people come in and out for a reason. We meet people and form levels of friendships for specific purposes. DAD uses those relationships for his purposes and it's hard for us to see sometimes why we might have met those people. Well, one of those "randoms" came back into my life this weekend... and offered me a job. It looks like I will be staying in China, but changing professions. I will be doing video production for a website.. and keep doing DAD's work too. It's the same deal except no teaching... I'm rather excited about this prospect. I have a couple things to work out, but it should be great.
Now.. I have to go to Shanghai to get new pages sewn into my passport so I can get my visa. It also looks like I might not be coming home in July.. or it will be a very short trip home. We'll see. Anyways...
Hangzhou is my Chinese home and I am so excited for next year. I will be busy and involved and get to be with my friends there. I know DAD always has a plan, and all things work for the good... It's just hard sometimes when I feel blind.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
A Piece of My Daily Life
So this week in class we are playing taboo. I had my first class make a bunch of taboo cards.. and this is what I got. Instruction was to write one word and then 3 words that describe it.
Tea: green, bitter, health
Student: hardworking, childish, naughty
Person: kind, friendly, yellow
Boy: strong, handsome, wise
Earth: planet, vigorous, is being destroyed
Girl: beautiful, pure, innocent
Cartoon: Japan, interesting, various
Hat: black, small, ugly
Miniskirt: sexy clothes, mini, woman
Car: convenient, expensive, dangerous
Chocolate: black, sweet, romantic
Boyfriend: lovely, gentle, handsome
Building: huge, oringe, tall
Beijing: 29th, Olympic, sports
Phelps: swimming, 8, foreigner
Light: dim, hot, uncomfortable
Australia: beach, opera, reverse
Gay: two, boy, love
Eye: big, black, shiny
Hair: long, yellow, curl
Woman: beautiful, talkative, diligent
Love: sweet, absurd, forever
This activity taught me more about my student's mentality than anything else has this year. It's amazing to see the cultural differences.
Tea: green, bitter, health
Student: hardworking, childish, naughty
Person: kind, friendly, yellow
Boy: strong, handsome, wise
Earth: planet, vigorous, is being destroyed
Girl: beautiful, pure, innocent
Cartoon: Japan, interesting, various
Hat: black, small, ugly
Miniskirt: sexy clothes, mini, woman
Car: convenient, expensive, dangerous
Chocolate: black, sweet, romantic
Boyfriend: lovely, gentle, handsome
Building: huge, oringe, tall
Beijing: 29th, Olympic, sports
Phelps: swimming, 8, foreigner
Light: dim, hot, uncomfortable
Australia: beach, opera, reverse
Gay: two, boy, love
Eye: big, black, shiny
Hair: long, yellow, curl
Woman: beautiful, talkative, diligent
Love: sweet, absurd, forever
This activity taught me more about my student's mentality than anything else has this year. It's amazing to see the cultural differences.
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