Random

Over the past week and a half, and yes I can’t believe I have only been in China for that short of a time, I have realized that I like to document what is happening by what I have done. For example, I feel that the only note worthy things to talk about are actions and places like going to the Bund, walking through back alleys, setting up my classroom, getting lost in the streets, trying to find cereal in the grocery store, etc., but I am realizing that these things are important to remember but it is even more important to note what I am learning. As a teacher, or soon to be teacher, my job is to teach so that my students will be able to apply what I am teaching to the real world. If they memorize a bunch of words but can’t hold a conversation then my teaching has been worthless. This applies to me too, if I can only remember the places I visited but can’t take anything away from the experience then these experiences are merely going to be pictures in my memory without any meaning.

In the short time that I have been here I have realized that it is impossible to know everything. I have been to Mexico and the U.S. and have been able to communicate b/c I know the language so the easiest of tasks were doable, but the same does not apply in China. I know what I need but I have to figure out how to do it. I know that I need to get soy sauce from the market, but knowing what type to get or even if it is soy sauce is a task. I know that I need to get to the Metro stop, but finding the right bus or giving the cab driver instructions is another issue. Through these remedial tasks I am finding that I have to depend on others more than before, and that it is ok to do so. At home it is often difficult for me to admit that I don’t know how to do something or that I need help, but if I don’t ask for help here nothing would get done and I would be lost, figuratively and literally.

Language is a funny thing. For example, today I wanted to order iced coffee and got hot coffee. Since it is hot and humid the thought of drinking hot coffee was not appealing so I had to figure how to tell her. So I pointed to the menu that said “cold” thinking that that would help, but it didn’t. My friend Laura and I sat trying to figure out what to do, till we found where they stored the ice and pointed to it, and she understood. Language is definitely the biggest barrier that I come across but despite this barrier I have learned that there are two things that every culture understands: patience and a smile. I have to be patient knowing that I don’t know Chinese so I will get things that I didn’t want or expect. But even more important, I am grateful for the patience others have with me. The lady that helped me at the coffee shop was able to be patient enough with me to try to figure out what it was that I wanted, many cab drivers have been patient as we try to tell them where we are going in out very broken, mispronounced Chinese. Smiling is also crucial. It is amazing how any smile, no matter who it is from, will make situations more bearable. When dealing with language barriers the best thing is to remain positive and laugh about it. Also, people are a lot more willing to help if you are smiling instead of standing around with an angry look.

Simplicity is sometimes the best things. Two things that I love are sports and eating good food, but in China there is nothing better than the simplest of these two things: running and peanut butter and jelly. I LOVE soccer, but it is not always the most accessible sport. To find enough people and fields (although there is a field at the school) is not always easy, but running requires only my shoes and myself. No matter where I go I will always be able to run. There is nothing better than a good run to relieve stress and to get in shape. Not to mention, running allows me to see things that I normally would not. Driving sometimes makes things fly by too fast so that I can’t really see what is outside, walking is really good, but I find that I only walk in places that have things that I want to see or do or to get me from point A to point B, but running takes me to places I would not normally go and allows me to see things that I would not see. When I am running there really is no specific destination so I am free to go anywhere. Shanghai is basically flat, so is does not matter where I run because I do not have to decide if I want to do a hill run or not because they are all the same. As a result, I can run in different areas, areas I wouldn’t walk to because there is no attraction to see or something to do, which allow me to see sights that I would miss out on. Sure team sports and other activities are great, and I would love to be back on some soccer teams and out on the beach playing volleyball, but the assurance that I can run allows me to accept that I cannot do these things. Now you may be wondering what the heck peanut butter and jelly has to do with anything, but nothing beats the good old PB&J. Don’t get me wrong, the food in china is REALLY good, not to mention cheap, but it gets old and sometimes the oil is a little too much and something basic is the best. What I have been enjoying most are my PB&J sandwiches for lunch. There is something so comforting knowing that it is easy to make and you can’t go wrong. I do love going out to eat with large groups and ordering enough food to feed a small army that spins on a lazy susan in the middle of the table as chopsticks attack the plates, but I also love coming home to my apartment and making a PB&J sandwich almost just as much.

I am realizing that there is so much out there and so much to learn and experience. There is so much more that I can say, but will stop here for now. If you read this far I applaud you because it was a lot of rambling, but at times I can be somewhat contemplative J

moving... the never ending saga

We are finally moved into our apartment. This may seem like a small task, but it has been drama. We have been here two weeks and are now in our third apt. We strated in our temp housing and had two weeks to be there. In the mean time, we were given a 3 BR apt that we had to furnish and everything. That in itself was a task getting everything from kitchen supplies to couches to closets (not to mention having one of the closet getting dropped off a second floor patio). Well, yesterday we finally got everything moved in (thank God). Anyways, today at work we were informed that they actually gave our apartment, yes the one we just moved into, to a couple. Sooo, we were told we had to be out today. Yeah, I was pissed. We made a deal w/ the housing guy (Frank) that if they provided us movers, and not the one that hoisted the closet out of the balcony, that we would call it even. Besides, out new apt is nicer. Well, today we spent the day repacking everything we packed. The movers came, filled up the truck for the first trip, started unpacking, and it began to pour. Now, we were scared everything would get soaked. Anyways, in the meantime Frank came by to talk w./ the movers. Turns out they didn't think we would have furniture (Not sure what they thought we would have, but hey, it's China). Snce they were charging "too much" Frank said that we could have the guards move our stuff. At this point I was fuming seeing that all our stuff was packed, 1/2 of it was in the truck, and it was raining. After to heated dicussions w/ Frank and some lady, not sure who she is, we got them to agree to pay the movers the rest of the money. Needless to say, our stuuf finally got moved, we signed our contract, and I am moved in!!! As the saying goes, third time is the charm!

My new addiction is forming

I realize that addictions are bad, but I think I have one forming. Today a group of us went to the fabric market. Basically it is this three story complex divided into smaller untis that have a ton of different fabrics. The awesome thing is that you can get anything made for really cheap! When winter comes I am screwed because I can get custom cashmere peacoats for like 700 RMB which is less than 100 bucks! I got a pair of nice dress shorts for 11o RMB (around 12 bucks). Walking through and seeing all the possibility of pants, jackets, dresses, and skirts that can be made kills me b/c I don't even know where to begin. Oh well, next week I go back to pick up my shorts and I have a feeling it may be a weekly ritual getting new clothes made. I just can't wait till winter so I have an excuse to get a long coat (or two).

Getting ready for school

I now have a new respect for Kindergarten teachers as we try to prepare for the first days of school. At this time we are basically sorting and organizing supplies from the past years, which is no small task. We also have to decorate our rooms. I have narrowed my theme to a "Fun in the Sun" theme. I plan on making pillars in my room into palm tree type things and having a beach scene with kids playing. On the first days of school I will have the students help to decorate by coloring pictures to post. It is funny because the chairs are so small, they don't even reach my knees. Every morning we start out with a half hour exercise session which consists of a sort of dance routine (think of it as slow line dancing for little kids to this happy Chinese music). This is then followed by a kung fu type routine to some other music. We are in the midst of learning both of the routines. I just can't wait to see the kids doing it. There are close to 300 kids from ages 2 1/2 to 6 that will be doing it so it will be awesome. I will definitely send a video (once I can freaking figure out how).

Yesterday we had a school wide saftey presentation so that we know what to do in case of an emergency, this also included a fire saftey drill. Well, by drill I mean they taught us how to put out fires. It was pretty funny because all the teachrs went outside where they lit a trash can lid full of gasoline on fire. We all waited in line and had to put it out with a fire extinguisher. I guess now I can say that I know how to use a fire extinguisher.

Other than prep, not too much else is going on right now. Everyone pretty much works during the day setting stuff up and at night we run errands, go out to eat, hang out, watch movies, etc. We are slowly moving into our new apartment which is a task of its own b/c it always seems like there is more to buy. I haven't had my furniture delivered yet so my room consists of a mattress, but hopefully that will all change within the next week.

Poked and prodded

Today I was pretty violated by the Chinese government as I had to pass my phyiscal health exam to get my work Visa. We were bussed to some random medical facility and had to put on blue booties to cover our shoes and white robes (w/ out tops off). First stop: weigh in and height measure (this was not bad). Next stop: getting blood drawn. For those of you who don't know I HATE needles and I have never gotten my blood drawn, well, I have but not for awhile. Surprisingly it wasn't too bad, I just had to turn my head and not look. The only bummer was no lollipops or Snoopy band aids. From there, on to the eye exam. Thank God I had my contacts in... I think I passed. Next room: the ultrasound. Not sure what they were looking for but turns out I am not pregnant so that is good :) After that I had the chest xray. From there was the EKG where they stuck metal sunction cups to me and printed out my heart rate which looked pretty regular, but what do I know? Last stop, blood pressure and some stomach test where they had to feel for something, what I don't know.

So that was the beginning of my day. Kind of funny that all foreigners have to do it, but such is life I guess. I am just happy I didn't pass out from getting blood drawn, that was the high light of my day!

Overwhemed is...

Being overwhelmed is grocery shopping in China. Yesterday we went to Carrefore (think of it as a Super Walmart). It is absolutely nutty! I had to buy random stuff (cell phone, bathroom stuff, towels, food, microwave...) and I pretty much was lost. Trying to buy a cell phone from someone who speaks no English is not a fun task not to mention my lack of Mandarin, along with a microwave among other items. I wandered around trying to figure things out, but was getting kind of stressed out b/c I could not ask questions. My friend Trey says we are like 2 year olds, we know what we want but the adults don't understand. I can point, make hand motions, and random noises, but that's about it. I have to say it is kind of fun and entertaining for awhile, but it kind of gets old. Oh well, I guess that is what living in another country is like. I kind of wish Chinese people spoke Spanish b/c then I would have luck with communication. This just goes to show that I NEED to learn Chinese.

Some pics from the town

Today we went downtown to explore. It was amazing. China is a beautiful city even with the craziness of all the people. I have not decided who is crazier: the drivers or the bicyclists that don't get out of their way, but that is part of the China fun I guess. The language barrier makes me remember that I am not in the US anymore, but it's fun. My friends have been figuring out everything for me, so I need to step it up. It seems like just when we have hit a wall in regards to launguage someone comes to our rescue to help out with Chinese. It reminds me that I need to be more patient back home with people who do not speak English. Today I had a random person come up to me and want my number to do modeling/acting. Kind of random, but I'll see if he contacts me. He gave me his card, so at least I know it's not completely a scam. It cracks me up how much people here love "Americans". We have a game going to see who has the most people ask to take take pictures with them.

I made a video that I will post when I figure out how. I was just proud that I made one, but now I have to figure out what the heck to do with it. Anyways, enjoy these pics for now and the video should be posted soon.




Me at pearl tower



Some bikes in an alley



The street and the lights



At a pond w/ traditional Chinese architecture




The ever so populated China

The last couple of days...

I realize I have not posted anything in the past couple days, but believe me a lot of randomness has happened. To begin, I LOVE Shanghai. The city is so awesome and beautiful. Today my friends and I journeyed the streets of Shanghai. We went down Pedestrian Road which is a huge street with shopping, lights (at night), etc. This then lead to what is called the Bund which has the most amazing architecture ever. From the we just walked around random streets.

I realize this is vague, so here are random stories from the past couple days:

* My roommates and I have to furnish an apartment which means we have to buy everything. John, my boss, took us to this furniture warehouse that is broken down into little segments that individuals sell various items. Anyways, from this little excursion I managed to buy my bed (full), closet (yes, our apartments don't come with them), and a bed stand for a total of 1400 RMB (in USD that's $150). Pretty amazing since it is all custom ordered.

* My roommate Janai bought her closet from some people who live in the apartment across from us. Well , the closet was on the second floor so we had to get movers to disassemble it and move and and the reassemble it. I guess this is what we thought they would do but instead they decided to try to tie a rope to ir and levy it down over the balcony to the first floor patio. Turned out to not be the greatest idea as the rope got loose and the closet fell. Luckily the wall in the patio caught the closet so it didn't fall the whole way, but let's just say the closet probably won't stand straight for the remainder of its life.

* I have realized that being white kind of makes you stand out in China, but what I didn't realize was that it also causes people to not only stare but want to take pictures with you. Today many of us were asked to be in picutres with random Asians. I even had a father hand my his son (prob around 7 mos) to have him take a picture of me holding his son. On the flip side, I learned that the random people in back alleys don't like their pictures taken.

* Things about Shanghai bathrooms: don't flush toilet paper down them. make sure to bring your own b/c many public restrooms don't have it. in addition, some bathrooms are what we call "squatties". Basially it is a hole in the ground. The irony is that they are made with porcelain like a "normal" toilet but just lower (actually a lot lower) to the ground.

I am alive!!!!

Well, I made it to China. Over 20 hours of travel and I am here! To be honest it isn't bad. I was a little bummed because we are in the suburbs a little, but we can get into town pretty easily via taxi, bus, subway, etc. Hopefully we will go into Shanghai this weekend. My first day was pretty crazy. After travelling for so long, we found our apartments, well, temp housing. I will attach a video tour soon. The set up will be the same as our real apartment and is three bedroom, two bath, great size! We then went into town. My first Chinese meal was this seafood thing that I thought was just shrimp but had octopus and some other unidentifiable sea food thing. It is funny becuase you don't know what you are ordering, you just point to wat you want and they cook it.

I will be teaching K1 which consists of 4-5 year olds. Pretty much they speak English so it won't be bad at all. I am actually excited.

Well, I am off to play soccer. I will tell you more later.

And I am off...

I am officially off to China. Right not I feel like I am more than bipolar because my emotions change every second from being excited to nervous to scared to stoked to feeling like I want to vomit... My bro tells me that I will probably feel like I am going to vomit for the first week. At this moment I am sitting in the waiting area to board my flight at 1:30 am for probably the most exciting, life changing year so far. My friends are not here yet, so it is just me but I keep looking for them with anticipation so that I know that I will have at least 4 English speaking friends in China. I am not sure what to think at this moment, so I am trying my best not to think at all.

So, for all of you that are going to be following me around this year, I hope you enjoy what I have to say and do. I have no idea what to expect, so enjoy this journey with me. Hopefully I will get to see some of you over this year if we do any travelling together, but for those that won't make it to China (or other various countries) I will post pictures and videos (if I can figure out how) so that you can see what is going on.

So tune in for stories from the other side of the world.