Sorry my dears, here is the correct link for the photos
http://picasaweb.google.com/EcuadorGSE09
buena suerte!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
8 days and 7 cities later
Okay, so perhaps my last email was a bit dramatic, but it was still the feeling at the time. The whole first week here in Ecuador was go, go, go until about Friday night when we arrived in Loja. Granted it has not slowed down too much but even a little is good.
We left for Cuenca on the 10th and stayed until the 13th. In those 3 days some awesome things happened - and some not-so-awesome things too. First, the awesome things.
AWESOME THINGS
1. We visited 2 schools outside of Cuenca proper in the more rural countryside populated by the indigenous peoples of the area. The first school was kind of blah but the second school was amazing. There were 2 teachers and 2 classrooms and about 30 students in grades 1 through 7. The 2 teachers teach all of the subjects on a rotating schedule of direct instruction and independent work. They really did not have much for the students but they give them everything they have. Just like in the US, they have a big problem with the students not doing their homework because they go home and watch TV. Apparently a lot of the parents are uneducated so they cannot help their kids practice their reading or do their math. Some of the better students the teacher pointed out told us that they make sure they always do their homework because they want the kind of opportunities that the city children have. However, the school director told us not many children will grow up and leave this area,. The kids were pretty precious and some of the older ones put on a dance performance for us. It was a story about a fox (a little boy in the 3rd year) and a hunter (a boy in the 7th year) and the incredible hunt between them. The little one had been practicing quite a bit and died with quite the dramatic flair.
2. At the same school I had finally managed to make Heather^s camera work with my portable printer. (Thanks to one of my co-workers who suggested I invest in a portable printer and to Polaroid for making a printer about the size of a digital camera for $50.) Many of the students were dressed up for the dance performance and their parents were there to watch so I grouped some families together and took pictures of them. They thought seeing the pictures on my camera screen was cool until I actually printed out a little 2 x 3 for them to have. They were totally amazed. Some said it was the first picture they had of their family and others were excited to send the small photos to their parents so they could see their grandchildren for the first time.
3. The Canadians were again following us and were preparing in Cuenca to distribute about 200 wheelchairs. I am not sure if it was planned or by accident, but our group was waiting for our silly city tour/shopping day at the same time the Canadian group was preparing to distribute wheelchairs so we jumped in and helped. I am pretty sure none of the Canadians spoke any Spanish so even my clumsy sentences were enough to ask people what size chair they needed and to make sure they felt comfortable. The Rotary Club of Tomebaba has been working with this Canadian group for about 2 years to organize this mass wheelchair distribution across the country. The Ecuadorian club members have been carefully screening applicants to make sure they have a true need for the wheelchairs. At the club the people received certificates and their new chairs then posed for a quick photo. Some came in carried by family members and some where on homemade wheelchairs. Helping with the wheelchair distribution was probably one of the coolest things I have ever done. I might even have to stop speaking ill of Canadians.
NOT-SO-AWESOME THINGS
(This section needs to be kept short so as to not take away from the awesome things.)
1. While out for a run, I was attacked by a vicious monster (or perhaps some stupid dog bit my leg) and then he gathered like 20 (or maybe 3) of his friends to chase me down the street. Thanks to my awesome marksmanship (or sheer luck) I was able to ward them off with giant boulders (or maybe some fist-sized stones) and escape with my life.
OTHER THINGS
Of course other things happened in this last week too! We went on a shopping day around Cuenca where we got to eat a local delicacy (faint of heart, look away now) - guinea pig! Sorry, but it was actually pretty good. We also got to eat at some pretty fancy restaurants - although I am still trying to figure out how a super classy/expensive restaurant can say they serve local indigenous food when it costs so much and no indigenous people have probably ever been there. We went to another Rotary dinner (but the food was lacking and our presentation still did not work right). We also stopped in a couple little towns and looked around a bit at local life and culture. Our families here in Loja are great as they all live on the same block so we are not isolated. That was a hard part for me at the other homes. Well...that and the fact that I was the only one taking time to do all the pictures and update our group blog. Our first night here was kinda harsh as we first went to a presentation by a local group trying to get funding and then went to dinner. Dinner at 7 would not have been so bad but most of us did not eat on the bus ride here and we were starving. We went to some fancy hotel with a restaurant who apparently did not understand the idea of bringing us some bread. It was about 8:30 before we were finally served our dinner. We had left Heather behind when we went to the meeting and then left my host family behind for dinner. Then ended up showing up to dinner around 9:30 so the night continued to drag on despite everyone desperately wanting to go home. Yesterday we went to a small town outside of Loja to visit the countryside which included eating at some fancy spa hotel and then spending some time at the club president's village estate. It was a pretty relaxing day despite the biting flies and Maddy having an allergic reaction to something she ate. She is fine though as we had 2 doctors with us and enough epi pens for everyone. Last night Heather and Sherrilynn got roped into going out for a dinner with the cowboys who are in town and stayed up dancing until 2am. I actually liked getting my paper done and being in bed by midnight (although I kind-of got left behind).
Today we are going to see the cowboys then who knows what. Tomorrow morning we fly to Quito for the next 5 days and we will actually have some free time. We had to talk them into letting us fly instead of making the 13 hour drive. Our only concern is that they will not let us take all of our bags on the plane. Only time will tell.
My pictures are only at the group site for now and since my camera is not working most of my photos are under Heather's photo album. The link is picasa.google.com/ECUADORGSE09. Enjoy!
We left for Cuenca on the 10th and stayed until the 13th. In those 3 days some awesome things happened - and some not-so-awesome things too. First, the awesome things.
AWESOME THINGS
1. We visited 2 schools outside of Cuenca proper in the more rural countryside populated by the indigenous peoples of the area. The first school was kind of blah but the second school was amazing. There were 2 teachers and 2 classrooms and about 30 students in grades 1 through 7. The 2 teachers teach all of the subjects on a rotating schedule of direct instruction and independent work. They really did not have much for the students but they give them everything they have. Just like in the US, they have a big problem with the students not doing their homework because they go home and watch TV. Apparently a lot of the parents are uneducated so they cannot help their kids practice their reading or do their math. Some of the better students the teacher pointed out told us that they make sure they always do their homework because they want the kind of opportunities that the city children have. However, the school director told us not many children will grow up and leave this area,. The kids were pretty precious and some of the older ones put on a dance performance for us. It was a story about a fox (a little boy in the 3rd year) and a hunter (a boy in the 7th year) and the incredible hunt between them. The little one had been practicing quite a bit and died with quite the dramatic flair.
2. At the same school I had finally managed to make Heather^s camera work with my portable printer. (Thanks to one of my co-workers who suggested I invest in a portable printer and to Polaroid for making a printer about the size of a digital camera for $50.) Many of the students were dressed up for the dance performance and their parents were there to watch so I grouped some families together and took pictures of them. They thought seeing the pictures on my camera screen was cool until I actually printed out a little 2 x 3 for them to have. They were totally amazed. Some said it was the first picture they had of their family and others were excited to send the small photos to their parents so they could see their grandchildren for the first time.
3. The Canadians were again following us and were preparing in Cuenca to distribute about 200 wheelchairs. I am not sure if it was planned or by accident, but our group was waiting for our silly city tour/shopping day at the same time the Canadian group was preparing to distribute wheelchairs so we jumped in and helped. I am pretty sure none of the Canadians spoke any Spanish so even my clumsy sentences were enough to ask people what size chair they needed and to make sure they felt comfortable. The Rotary Club of Tomebaba has been working with this Canadian group for about 2 years to organize this mass wheelchair distribution across the country. The Ecuadorian club members have been carefully screening applicants to make sure they have a true need for the wheelchairs. At the club the people received certificates and their new chairs then posed for a quick photo. Some came in carried by family members and some where on homemade wheelchairs. Helping with the wheelchair distribution was probably one of the coolest things I have ever done. I might even have to stop speaking ill of Canadians.
NOT-SO-AWESOME THINGS
(This section needs to be kept short so as to not take away from the awesome things.)
1. While out for a run, I was attacked by a vicious monster (or perhaps some stupid dog bit my leg) and then he gathered like 20 (or maybe 3) of his friends to chase me down the street. Thanks to my awesome marksmanship (or sheer luck) I was able to ward them off with giant boulders (or maybe some fist-sized stones) and escape with my life.
OTHER THINGS
Of course other things happened in this last week too! We went on a shopping day around Cuenca where we got to eat a local delicacy (faint of heart, look away now) - guinea pig! Sorry, but it was actually pretty good. We also got to eat at some pretty fancy restaurants - although I am still trying to figure out how a super classy/expensive restaurant can say they serve local indigenous food when it costs so much and no indigenous people have probably ever been there. We went to another Rotary dinner (but the food was lacking and our presentation still did not work right). We also stopped in a couple little towns and looked around a bit at local life and culture. Our families here in Loja are great as they all live on the same block so we are not isolated. That was a hard part for me at the other homes. Well...that and the fact that I was the only one taking time to do all the pictures and update our group blog. Our first night here was kinda harsh as we first went to a presentation by a local group trying to get funding and then went to dinner. Dinner at 7 would not have been so bad but most of us did not eat on the bus ride here and we were starving. We went to some fancy hotel with a restaurant who apparently did not understand the idea of bringing us some bread. It was about 8:30 before we were finally served our dinner. We had left Heather behind when we went to the meeting and then left my host family behind for dinner. Then ended up showing up to dinner around 9:30 so the night continued to drag on despite everyone desperately wanting to go home. Yesterday we went to a small town outside of Loja to visit the countryside which included eating at some fancy spa hotel and then spending some time at the club president's village estate. It was a pretty relaxing day despite the biting flies and Maddy having an allergic reaction to something she ate. She is fine though as we had 2 doctors with us and enough epi pens for everyone. Last night Heather and Sherrilynn got roped into going out for a dinner with the cowboys who are in town and stayed up dancing until 2am. I actually liked getting my paper done and being in bed by midnight (although I kind-of got left behind).
Today we are going to see the cowboys then who knows what. Tomorrow morning we fly to Quito for the next 5 days and we will actually have some free time. We had to talk them into letting us fly instead of making the 13 hour drive. Our only concern is that they will not let us take all of our bags on the plane. Only time will tell.
My pictures are only at the group site for now and since my camera is not working most of my photos are under Heather's photo album. The link is picasa.google.com/ECUADORGSE09. Enjoy!
Monday, November 9, 2009
Ecuador (Behind the Scenes)
What? I have already read your blog! No, no you haven't really. Yes, I have been asked by my Rotarian leader to write a blog for our group (with the help of my co-GSE members) but that doesn't mean that I can say whatever I want - like I usually do. So, just because I can, I am taking you behind the scenes.
Anyone who has spoken to me, or at least tried to, in the last 2 weeks knows that I was a mental and physical wreck. It has been weeks since I had time to exercise and I think I left work maybe 1 time before 7pm in those 2 weeks. In addition to trying to plan for missing 3 weeks of school, I am trying to fight a totally illegitimate grade a nincompoop of a teacher is trying to give me, start my next grad school class, prepare for my trip to Ecuador, collect school supplies for my trip, create a blog for my trip and design an awe-inspiring PPT presentation to represent our team while we are traveling for the next month. Oh, and practice my Spanish, do my regular teaching work, and attempt to not die.
Note: Bad things happen in threes.
Background: The night before we leave, I am trying to run some last minute errands and instead run my car, at a decent and unstopping speed right into the wee little butt of a fully rebuilt totally stock '73 VW Karmen Gia. My car is a Huyandi, it isn't big, but it is half again as big as this particular car. Being that much bigger and driving without hesitation means that I possibly demolished this guys car. His little rear VW engine had parts of his trunk and rear fenders in it, the left fender was cracked all the way up to the driver's side door, and pieces of his rear turn signal were literally embedded in my front bumper. Yes, I know you are going to say the good thing is that no one is hurt. And while I do agree with you, that isn't my point. It sucked. Like those stupid vacuums that the bald dude is sticking onto bowling balls. You should have seen the look on the guys face when I said "This totally sucks as I am leaving the country first thing in the morning".
The second bad thing I am hoping was this next event but I might be mistaking the 3rd bad thing for the 2nd.
We are told that we have to be at the airport at 5. For this reason I don't get to see Chris one last time before I go but apparently that doesn't matter as long as I don't die. I also get to be the only person at the airport until 5:45. Joke is on me I guess. I end up having WAY TOO much stuff and have to scramble and throw my stuff into Heather's bag so that I can make weight and not pay for it. (Did I mention I didn't go to sleep at all Friday night? Well, I didn't go to sleep at all Friday night.) Then Marta shows up with what she insists are the last pieces of my Rotary uniform to which I insist are not. My cries fall on deaf ears and I am to believe that the sweatshirt I needed in XS will fit just the same in a M. Maybe if I was intentionally wearing my BF's sweatshirt.
We wait an hour, take an hour flight to LA, wait an hour, take a 4 hour flight to Miami, wait an hour, and then take our final 3 hour flight to Guayaquil. In that last precious hour before landing I am desperately trying to get some sleep when I get a rude awakening: my pants are cold and soaked through with some sort of liquid! What?! "Did she pee herself?" you ask. You wish! (hater) The guy next to me who has now polished off 6 bourbons since dinner has "accidentally" spilled his ENTIRE drink on my lap and I am sitting in its amazingness. He says he's super sorry but his words fall on deaf ears (probably like my same sentiments to the VW owner the night before). This is Bad Thing #2 in part because it was cold, wet, and uncomfortable, in part because there was still an hour left on the plane, and in part because I smelled like alcohol and was sticky from the soda. Oh yeah, and also it was terrible in part because we were set to be greeted by the President of the Rotary Club at the airport. Cool. Wet (check), smells like hard A (check), looks like she hasn't slept (check). What a great first impression. To make this experience even better, our team leader INSISTS I put on my Rotary sweatshirt at the airport. 1) it is humid in Ecuador and a sweatshirt is not needed, especially in the airport and 2) my sweatshirt is soaking wet. I try to explain this to her, as I also try to explain the wet pants but she'd too caught up on her feelings of goose bumps from meeting other Rotarians on the plane. (They were from Canada, who cares?) I put it on but attempt to take it off 3 more times without being detected to no avail. She says it is VITAL I wear it as these people are going to want to take my picture as soon as we get off the plane. They obviously don't have much experience with Americans and international travel.
Upon arriving in Guayaquil we are greeted by a bunch of important people but namely our host families. We are taken home where immediately it becomes clear to me that I don't speak a lick of Spanish, my thighs are sticking to my pants, and I have an assignment due for grad school. It was amazing to finally sleep however. Our first day here they decide it would be awesome to go for a sailing trip. Why does everyone who has a boat think that every other person in the entire world loves boats? Maybe if I loved boats so much I would buy one. Heather and I ended up with the same host family and while she and our host, Rafael, chatted away in their fluent Spanish, I decided to sleep for most of the 2 hour drive to Salinas on the coast. As soon as I step on the boat I feel nauseous. I take a "less drowsy" (BS) Dramamine and then proceed to sleep in awkward places and positions for the duration of the boat trip. I then slept the entire trip home, but so did Heather. A girl gets tired after partying on a boat all day.
Today was our first "vocational day". We also had to wear full uniforms. I think Marta, our leader, looks at us like dressed up purse dogs when we are in uniform. Thank goodness she takes a million pictures so that no one misses a moment of our shared clothing experience. We spent most of the morning and afternoon at a school where the 6th graders intimidated me with their Spanish and I digressed from speaking somewhat broken Spanish to mumbling and asking someone else to translate for me. It was also around this time that I discovered I forgot my camera battery charger at home (great move) and that it will most likely not be able to be replaced or delivered while I am here. Note 2: I would like to lump this event with Bad Thing #2 as the following just tops the cake and HAS TO have the final spot. We then spent the evening in even fancier Rotary uniforms and the situation digressed to everyone saying (in Spanish) that I don't speak Spanish at all and then proceeding to talk about how sad that is (or at least that is what I am going to say they were saying). Too bad I understand you buttfaces.
BAD EVENT #3: Yes, it is so bad I need to yell it. We get back from our formal gathering of shaking hands, kissing babies, too many photos, a 7 foot Canadian woman, a dirty old man hitting on Heather, and an open buffet/bar to an email from the man who was supposed to be my substitute for the next 3 weeks telling me something drastic came up and he has to cancel. It is likened to picking the perfect surrogate parent and then having them tell you that starting immediately you'll have to find someone, or perhaps a group of random someones to take over their position as the person giving your seed life immediately. I have no idea what to do. My kids could end up with a different person every day. They could learn absolutely nothing in the next 3 weeks. All of my VERY hard work in carefully planning my time away from my class could quickly be made a waste of time. I also still haven't done my grad school work. I didn't pack my Nike + IPOD running thing and I gave myself a goal of running everyday (not that the 2 are mutually exclusive but they make for good companions). I forgot to print out all the requested pictures of my friends, family, and life. I have turned into the tech go-to person which means I am in charge of making sure everything goes good with pictures, PPTs, blogs, emails, etc.
Tomorrow we leave for our 2nd city, Cuenca. I hope that things start turning around.
Anyone who has spoken to me, or at least tried to, in the last 2 weeks knows that I was a mental and physical wreck. It has been weeks since I had time to exercise and I think I left work maybe 1 time before 7pm in those 2 weeks. In addition to trying to plan for missing 3 weeks of school, I am trying to fight a totally illegitimate grade a nincompoop of a teacher is trying to give me, start my next grad school class, prepare for my trip to Ecuador, collect school supplies for my trip, create a blog for my trip and design an awe-inspiring PPT presentation to represent our team while we are traveling for the next month. Oh, and practice my Spanish, do my regular teaching work, and attempt to not die.
Note: Bad things happen in threes.
Background: The night before we leave, I am trying to run some last minute errands and instead run my car, at a decent and unstopping speed right into the wee little butt of a fully rebuilt totally stock '73 VW Karmen Gia. My car is a Huyandi, it isn't big, but it is half again as big as this particular car. Being that much bigger and driving without hesitation means that I possibly demolished this guys car. His little rear VW engine had parts of his trunk and rear fenders in it, the left fender was cracked all the way up to the driver's side door, and pieces of his rear turn signal were literally embedded in my front bumper. Yes, I know you are going to say the good thing is that no one is hurt. And while I do agree with you, that isn't my point. It sucked. Like those stupid vacuums that the bald dude is sticking onto bowling balls. You should have seen the look on the guys face when I said "This totally sucks as I am leaving the country first thing in the morning".
The second bad thing I am hoping was this next event but I might be mistaking the 3rd bad thing for the 2nd.
We are told that we have to be at the airport at 5. For this reason I don't get to see Chris one last time before I go but apparently that doesn't matter as long as I don't die. I also get to be the only person at the airport until 5:45. Joke is on me I guess. I end up having WAY TOO much stuff and have to scramble and throw my stuff into Heather's bag so that I can make weight and not pay for it. (Did I mention I didn't go to sleep at all Friday night? Well, I didn't go to sleep at all Friday night.) Then Marta shows up with what she insists are the last pieces of my Rotary uniform to which I insist are not. My cries fall on deaf ears and I am to believe that the sweatshirt I needed in XS will fit just the same in a M. Maybe if I was intentionally wearing my BF's sweatshirt.
We wait an hour, take an hour flight to LA, wait an hour, take a 4 hour flight to Miami, wait an hour, and then take our final 3 hour flight to Guayaquil. In that last precious hour before landing I am desperately trying to get some sleep when I get a rude awakening: my pants are cold and soaked through with some sort of liquid! What?! "Did she pee herself?" you ask. You wish! (hater) The guy next to me who has now polished off 6 bourbons since dinner has "accidentally" spilled his ENTIRE drink on my lap and I am sitting in its amazingness. He says he's super sorry but his words fall on deaf ears (probably like my same sentiments to the VW owner the night before). This is Bad Thing #2 in part because it was cold, wet, and uncomfortable, in part because there was still an hour left on the plane, and in part because I smelled like alcohol and was sticky from the soda. Oh yeah, and also it was terrible in part because we were set to be greeted by the President of the Rotary Club at the airport. Cool. Wet (check), smells like hard A (check), looks like she hasn't slept (check). What a great first impression. To make this experience even better, our team leader INSISTS I put on my Rotary sweatshirt at the airport. 1) it is humid in Ecuador and a sweatshirt is not needed, especially in the airport and 2) my sweatshirt is soaking wet. I try to explain this to her, as I also try to explain the wet pants but she'd too caught up on her feelings of goose bumps from meeting other Rotarians on the plane. (They were from Canada, who cares?) I put it on but attempt to take it off 3 more times without being detected to no avail. She says it is VITAL I wear it as these people are going to want to take my picture as soon as we get off the plane. They obviously don't have much experience with Americans and international travel.
Upon arriving in Guayaquil we are greeted by a bunch of important people but namely our host families. We are taken home where immediately it becomes clear to me that I don't speak a lick of Spanish, my thighs are sticking to my pants, and I have an assignment due for grad school. It was amazing to finally sleep however. Our first day here they decide it would be awesome to go for a sailing trip. Why does everyone who has a boat think that every other person in the entire world loves boats? Maybe if I loved boats so much I would buy one. Heather and I ended up with the same host family and while she and our host, Rafael, chatted away in their fluent Spanish, I decided to sleep for most of the 2 hour drive to Salinas on the coast. As soon as I step on the boat I feel nauseous. I take a "less drowsy" (BS) Dramamine and then proceed to sleep in awkward places and positions for the duration of the boat trip. I then slept the entire trip home, but so did Heather. A girl gets tired after partying on a boat all day.
Today was our first "vocational day". We also had to wear full uniforms. I think Marta, our leader, looks at us like dressed up purse dogs when we are in uniform. Thank goodness she takes a million pictures so that no one misses a moment of our shared clothing experience. We spent most of the morning and afternoon at a school where the 6th graders intimidated me with their Spanish and I digressed from speaking somewhat broken Spanish to mumbling and asking someone else to translate for me. It was also around this time that I discovered I forgot my camera battery charger at home (great move) and that it will most likely not be able to be replaced or delivered while I am here. Note 2: I would like to lump this event with Bad Thing #2 as the following just tops the cake and HAS TO have the final spot. We then spent the evening in even fancier Rotary uniforms and the situation digressed to everyone saying (in Spanish) that I don't speak Spanish at all and then proceeding to talk about how sad that is (or at least that is what I am going to say they were saying). Too bad I understand you buttfaces.
BAD EVENT #3: Yes, it is so bad I need to yell it. We get back from our formal gathering of shaking hands, kissing babies, too many photos, a 7 foot Canadian woman, a dirty old man hitting on Heather, and an open buffet/bar to an email from the man who was supposed to be my substitute for the next 3 weeks telling me something drastic came up and he has to cancel. It is likened to picking the perfect surrogate parent and then having them tell you that starting immediately you'll have to find someone, or perhaps a group of random someones to take over their position as the person giving your seed life immediately. I have no idea what to do. My kids could end up with a different person every day. They could learn absolutely nothing in the next 3 weeks. All of my VERY hard work in carefully planning my time away from my class could quickly be made a waste of time. I also still haven't done my grad school work. I didn't pack my Nike + IPOD running thing and I gave myself a goal of running everyday (not that the 2 are mutually exclusive but they make for good companions). I forgot to print out all the requested pictures of my friends, family, and life. I have turned into the tech go-to person which means I am in charge of making sure everything goes good with pictures, PPTs, blogs, emails, etc.
Tomorrow we leave for our 2nd city, Cuenca. I hope that things start turning around.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Finally updated pictures
Apparently I started this email back on August 6th and never sent it. Oops. Since I went to all the trouble of putting the pics up, I thought I would share now. Hope you all had a great holiday.
Rachael
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Original Message:
Since I have way too much free time now and nothing really constructive to spend it on, I decided to update my pictures. They are a bit old as all the pics from May and June never made it online okay. Browse at your discression... they will stay online for at least 6 months. Enjoy!
Rachael
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Original Message:
Since I have way too much free time now and nothing really constructive to spend it on, I decided to update my pictures. They are a bit old as all the pics from May and June never made it online okay. Browse at your discression... they will stay online for at least 6 months. Enjoy!
Japan Pics
July - week spent in Tokyo, Kyoto, and surrounding area
China Pics
June - last days in Pingxiang, Yangtze cruise, and travels with Heather
http://picasaweb.google.com/tarshor/ChinaJune#
May - trip to Beijing for the marathon on the Great Wall (they are all up there finally)
Monday, December 22, 2008
Holidays and Such
Two weeks off school finally gives me the opportunity to sit and catch up with life and what has happened in the last 4 and a half months since I last posted.
It has been just over 4 months since I have moved down to San Diego and things are slowly but surely coming together. I ended up moving in with someone I barely knew but she and I had more than the love of the same man in common. The good thing is that man is my best friend and not a romantic love interest. I only met Tricia once, the last time I was in SD in 2006 but she was kind enough to offer me her spare room and her friendship despite all the situations that would have made it awkward. We ended up living together for almost 2 months and having possibly too much fun while we were at it.
At end of August things were still suffering from still not having a job so I took a job at a little grocery store, working as much as I could. Most of the rest of my time was spent at the beach as its free and of course because its fun.
The last week in September I was finally hired at a middle school here in San Diego. I am now one of two 8th grade Physical Science teachers and I am starting to enjoy the position and my students. Within a week of getting a job, I was able to find a cute 1 bedroom apartment with the biggest bedroom closest I have ever seen - a match made in heaven.
Adam came home on leave and it worked out perfectly with my week-long Thanksgiving holiday so that was AWESOME. We spent our time doing a whole lot of nothing but did take time to watch a lot of movies, visit the wild animal park, and jump out of a plane at 13,000 feet. Nothing says fun like 120 mph free fall!
Three days after Adam left, my friend Eoin came from Ireland on the initial leg of his around-the-world trip for the next year. He spent most of the week on the couch as he had to have some dental work done but was up and running by the weekend. We took a road trip to Las Vegas for the weekend as I was set to participate in the LV Marathon. It was fun to see the City of Sin through fresh eyes and we had a blast enjoying all of the American debauchery...and I am pretty sure we covered every aspect of debauchery in our less-than-24-hour visit. As I was still working two jobs and being slightly lazy, I definitely wasn't ready to do the whole marathon so I just did the half. I hope to get my stuff together and really train for a full marathon and rock it next summer. Because the world is so amazingly small, I was fortunate enough to run into a friend from high school while going into the MGM. Meagan came to run the marathon too and in another act of fate, we ran into each other again before the race. Guess that obnoxious song is correct...after all.
December has gone by super fast. I finally quit the grocery store. I am starting to feel more comfortable with my teaching role. I am starting to make more friends than just Tricia in SD. I have rekindled my love for men in uniforms - cops in particular. I am looking forward to not being so stressed with the two jobs thing so I can spend more time coaching Girls on the Run this next season, feel like a better teacher, and have more of a life in general.
As it wasn't feasible for me to head to the beautiful village of Medford this year, I took the short drive over to Phoenix to spend Christmas with Craig. Apparently I have brought some rain from San Diego with me but I would like to blame Eoin for bringing it down from Seattle first. Now I just have to figure out what to do with myself for the week and will be entertained to see how much of my "list" actually gets done.
I have a job, an apartment, some friends, and a California license. Let's see if I can manage to stay here for more than a year. To anyone who might be feeling the travel bug, I have a comfy futon and the door is always open.
It has been just over 4 months since I have moved down to San Diego and things are slowly but surely coming together. I ended up moving in with someone I barely knew but she and I had more than the love of the same man in common. The good thing is that man is my best friend and not a romantic love interest. I only met Tricia once, the last time I was in SD in 2006 but she was kind enough to offer me her spare room and her friendship despite all the situations that would have made it awkward. We ended up living together for almost 2 months and having possibly too much fun while we were at it.
At end of August things were still suffering from still not having a job so I took a job at a little grocery store, working as much as I could. Most of the rest of my time was spent at the beach as its free and of course because its fun.
The last week in September I was finally hired at a middle school here in San Diego. I am now one of two 8th grade Physical Science teachers and I am starting to enjoy the position and my students. Within a week of getting a job, I was able to find a cute 1 bedroom apartment with the biggest bedroom closest I have ever seen - a match made in heaven.
Adam came home on leave and it worked out perfectly with my week-long Thanksgiving holiday so that was AWESOME. We spent our time doing a whole lot of nothing but did take time to watch a lot of movies, visit the wild animal park, and jump out of a plane at 13,000 feet. Nothing says fun like 120 mph free fall!
Three days after Adam left, my friend Eoin came from Ireland on the initial leg of his around-the-world trip for the next year. He spent most of the week on the couch as he had to have some dental work done but was up and running by the weekend. We took a road trip to Las Vegas for the weekend as I was set to participate in the LV Marathon. It was fun to see the City of Sin through fresh eyes and we had a blast enjoying all of the American debauchery...and I am pretty sure we covered every aspect of debauchery in our less-than-24-hour visit. As I was still working two jobs and being slightly lazy, I definitely wasn't ready to do the whole marathon so I just did the half. I hope to get my stuff together and really train for a full marathon and rock it next summer. Because the world is so amazingly small, I was fortunate enough to run into a friend from high school while going into the MGM. Meagan came to run the marathon too and in another act of fate, we ran into each other again before the race. Guess that obnoxious song is correct...after all.
December has gone by super fast. I finally quit the grocery store. I am starting to feel more comfortable with my teaching role. I am starting to make more friends than just Tricia in SD. I have rekindled my love for men in uniforms - cops in particular. I am looking forward to not being so stressed with the two jobs thing so I can spend more time coaching Girls on the Run this next season, feel like a better teacher, and have more of a life in general.
As it wasn't feasible for me to head to the beautiful village of Medford this year, I took the short drive over to Phoenix to spend Christmas with Craig. Apparently I have brought some rain from San Diego with me but I would like to blame Eoin for bringing it down from Seattle first. Now I just have to figure out what to do with myself for the week and will be entertained to see how much of my "list" actually gets done.
I have a job, an apartment, some friends, and a California license. Let's see if I can manage to stay here for more than a year. To anyone who might be feeling the travel bug, I have a comfy futon and the door is always open.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Exodus
"All roads lead to home."
Despite varying ideas of what home really is, this quote is easy to get for a girl who has rarely lived far from the I-5 corridor. I came back to my previous home of Seattle upon my return from China. Granted, I haven't lived there in over 2 years so it is more like home-once-removed. I did claim it as home for the past 2 years as it was for 9 years of my adult life. However, upon my most recent visit I realized it really isn't my home any more. People and places were foreign in general and I felt out of place.
I wasn't able to go home (place where I was born) before my grandfather passed away, but I was able to make it home (the USA) in time to call Mom to let him know I was safely back on US soil and he could stop worrying about me. Due to my lack of employment, I was able to spend a week with my grandmother keeping her company and running errands. I think that act in itself means more to my grandpa than any teary goodbye.
The Gods smiled on me in that at the last minute, my friend Brian was able to help me make my big move to California. All of my belongings were in storage in Seattle so I had to load up a 16 foot trailer and then hitch my car onto a tow trolley on the back. I had convinced myself I could do it solo, and I am sure I could have, but driving it the 1300 miles with Brian there made it a lot easier. We left Seattle right at rush hour on a Tuesday (bad idea) and headed south on I-5 for what would be the next 1,347 miles and almost exactly 48 hours. We drove through my old homes of Vancouver and Medford then past my old homes of Santa Cruz and Watsonville and into my new home of San Diego. We stopped 2 times to sleep, 7 times for gas and 1 time for an over heated engine.
That long in a car gives you lots of time to think. I thought a lot about this new life that I am starting here in San Diego and what I want for it. I thought about how stupid it really is to ask people where they are from. If you want to get to know someone new, why not ask them where they've been, what they've learned, and where they are going next. Yea, I am from (born in) Medford, but what does that tell you about me? I thought about why people would tailgate someone driving a 16 foot trailer and towing a car. I thought about delicious Chinese food.
I wish I could tell you that things here in SD are wonderful, but I can't. At least not yet. I feel pretty miserable here so far and I really have no one to blame but myself. I have put myself in situations where I knew my heart would be hurt and it has. I made my expectations of people and life too high and I have been disappointed. I keep telling myself that things will get better "if" and "when"...now I guess I just have to wait. I feel like I don't belong here but I'm not sure where I belong. I feel like all the things I had hoped for in my new life in sunny southern California don't exist. I thought I had everything figured out but I don't. I feel alone in crowds and like an outsider among friends. This new home isn't home yet.
Despite how totally wretched this update is, I know some of you usually really like my blogs so this is for you: I am no longer going to be mass emailing my life stories. If you are on MySpace you already know you can get them there. The other option is to get the blogs from my blog site. That is http://rachaeltarshes.blogspot.com/ You don't have to be a member to read my blogs on Blogspot and you can have them sent directly to your email if you don't want the hassle of coming to the site to check to see if I have anything amazing to say. (Usually not.) As I am still without my own computer, I can't update pictures and might send out one more mass email once that is done for those of you who want to see my last trips in Asia.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Re-re-reculturalization
Spending a week in Japan before coming back to the States was definitely a way of easing myself back into American culture. Granted Japan is quite different from China, but not as shockingly different from the US.
The first thing I noticed about Japan is how quiet it is. I heard literally one car horn the entire week I was there, people's cell phones don't ring in public, you can't hear anyone else's music, and when people are speaking to each other you have to strain to hear what they're saying. Almost 12.6 million people live in Tokyo but you'd never guess it - it's clean, quiet, and often not crowded. The Tokyo metropolitan area is composed of 23 wards and the outlying areas consist of 27 separate cities, 4 island districts, and 1 county. Heather and I spent our first 2 nights in Japan in the Asakusa area of Tokyo which lies just northeast of the main Tokyo subway station. The main points of interest in those few day were the Imperial Palace East Gardens which contain the ancient remains of Edo Castle, Meiji Shrine (the first of many Shinto shrines), the famous Harajuku area, and the Sapporro Beer Museum. The shrine was probably the most interesting as I don't know much about Shinto religion...if it can be called that. Shinto is the indigenous religion of Japan that is a collection of folk rituals and practices that have been mixed with ancient myths associated with the forerunners of Japan's imperial family. One of the biggest differences is that in Shinto, there are heaps of gods who are believed to live in the natural world.This "heap" includes local spirits and global gods/goddesses.These gods are often enshrined in...you guessed it, shrines. They can be formal buildings for gods/esses or rocks/trees/etc that are believed to contain spirits. Every day people can also be believed to be/contain gods if they do great deeds during their lifetimes. Shinto didn't actually have its' name until it was needed to distinguish it from the imported Japanese religion of Buddhism (around the 6th century).
The third day we took a bullet train to Kyoto, Japan's ancient capital and home to over 17 UNESCO sites and 1.5 million people. Kyoto didn't give me quite the impression I was expecting after reading about it in the LP. They claim it to be a culturally rich city that ranks with the likes of Paris, London, and Rome. Maybe we didn't go to the right spots. What we did see was Nishi Hongan Temple (home of the Jodo Shin-shu school of Buddhism), the Fushini-Inari Shrine (dedicated to the gods of rice and sake), and the Yasaka Shrine (Gion neighborhood guardian is enshrined here). The Inari shrine was the most interesting as it had huge red-orange archways called torii lining a 4km pathway up the surrounding mountain. In general I felt that Buddhist temples in Japan were quite boring, painted in bland tones of white and brown and without much decoration. This is in stark contrast to the bold red and yellow temples of China. Inside the temples there was often some decorations but still sparse. Before we left Kyoto we also saw the Kiyomizudera Temple (silver roofed but a let down), the Ginkakyju Temple (where we walked through the dark and touched a Buddha belly to simulate our rebirth into a world free of our previous sins), the Kinkakuju Temple (covered in actual gold). We diligently stalked all the areas where geisha's were supposed to be easily spotted but alas saw none.
For Heather's last night in Tokyo we hit up the supposedly hot social scene of Roppongi, took a gander at the Tokyo Tower (modeled after the Eiffel Tower), and checked out the bird's eye view of the city from Tokyo City View. The City View was quite disappointing because the ticket included other attractions withing the tower that we couldn't do and 1/4 of the 360 degree walk around view was closed for a private party. The next morning we went to Senso-Ji Temple near our hostel and checked out the surrounding bazaar. The temple got its fame for housing the golden image of Kannon, the Buddhist God of Mercy (which has never been verified) and was supposedly fished out of a river by two fisherman.
After Heather left that afternoon I headed to the crazy shopping area of Ameyoko Arcade (the city's famous post-WWII black market area) and wandered through the Ueno Park (Tokyo's first public park). I then took a train west of Tokyo to Kawaguchi-ko city on on of the 5 lakes that surrounds Mt. Fuji. While Fuji isn't still covered in snow, the weather at the top is still below freezing so I didn't climb it. The next morning I took a cable car up to a vantage point and saw what could be seen. It's infamous for being covered in clouds so I made it just in time. On the way back down from the cable car, the clouds moved over the peak and down the mountain and it stormed.
While heading back to Tokyo, I stopped in Yokohama, Japan's 2nd largest city with almost 3.6 million residents. It had a population of about 600 when it was made an international port in the late 1800's. I went mainly just to check it out and visit its Chinatown but also got to ride on its Ferris wheel - one of the largest in the world. The Chinatown was lame and the Chinese food I bought was terrible. Yes, I already missed Chinese food.
The next day I was scheduled to leave Japan in the late afternoon so I hopped on the train one last time and headed south again to the tiny city of Kamakura (another ancient capital city) and saw its Giant Buddha or Daibutsu, which is 11.8 meters tall and made totally of bronze. Its original temple was washed away by a tsunami but the Buddha remains just sitting on a platform in the middle of a park.
My departure from Japan was terrible as I caught the wrong train to the airport and it took me almost 3 hours to get there. I arrived less than an hour before my flight and had to rush to the gate. I didn't sleep the whole ride and there were only 2 movies to watch - one of which I had already seen. My flight was delayed and the food was also quite terrible. However I did arrive safely back on American soil so I should be happy about that.
I am now spending my time doing much of nothing while I should be preparing for my exam next week. Hopefully San Diego will provide me with a job, a place to live, and a passing score. What more could a girl ask for.
At this time, I am sorry to report that I have no current pictures as I am without my own computer so you will just have to wait with baited breath.
The first thing I noticed about Japan is how quiet it is. I heard literally one car horn the entire week I was there, people's cell phones don't ring in public, you can't hear anyone else's music, and when people are speaking to each other you have to strain to hear what they're saying. Almost 12.6 million people live in Tokyo but you'd never guess it - it's clean, quiet, and often not crowded. The Tokyo metropolitan area is composed of 23 wards and the outlying areas consist of 27 separate cities, 4 island districts, and 1 county. Heather and I spent our first 2 nights in Japan in the Asakusa area of Tokyo which lies just northeast of the main Tokyo subway station. The main points of interest in those few day were the Imperial Palace East Gardens which contain the ancient remains of Edo Castle, Meiji Shrine (the first of many Shinto shrines), the famous Harajuku area, and the Sapporro Beer Museum. The shrine was probably the most interesting as I don't know much about Shinto religion...if it can be called that. Shinto is the indigenous religion of Japan that is a collection of folk rituals and practices that have been mixed with ancient myths associated with the forerunners of Japan's imperial family. One of the biggest differences is that in Shinto, there are heaps of gods who are believed to live in the natural world.This "heap" includes local spirits and global gods/goddesses.These gods are often enshrined in...you guessed it, shrines. They can be formal buildings for gods/esses or rocks/trees/etc that are believed to contain spirits. Every day people can also be believed to be/contain gods if they do great deeds during their lifetimes. Shinto didn't actually have its' name until it was needed to distinguish it from the imported Japanese religion of Buddhism (around the 6th century).
The third day we took a bullet train to Kyoto, Japan's ancient capital and home to over 17 UNESCO sites and 1.5 million people. Kyoto didn't give me quite the impression I was expecting after reading about it in the LP. They claim it to be a culturally rich city that ranks with the likes of Paris, London, and Rome. Maybe we didn't go to the right spots. What we did see was Nishi Hongan Temple (home of the Jodo Shin-shu school of Buddhism), the Fushini-Inari Shrine (dedicated to the gods of rice and sake), and the Yasaka Shrine (Gion neighborhood guardian is enshrined here). The Inari shrine was the most interesting as it had huge red-orange archways called torii lining a 4km pathway up the surrounding mountain. In general I felt that Buddhist temples in Japan were quite boring, painted in bland tones of white and brown and without much decoration. This is in stark contrast to the bold red and yellow temples of China. Inside the temples there was often some decorations but still sparse. Before we left Kyoto we also saw the Kiyomizudera Temple (silver roofed but a let down), the Ginkakyju Temple (where we walked through the dark and touched a Buddha belly to simulate our rebirth into a world free of our previous sins), the Kinkakuju Temple (covered in actual gold). We diligently stalked all the areas where geisha's were supposed to be easily spotted but alas saw none.
For Heather's last night in Tokyo we hit up the supposedly hot social scene of Roppongi, took a gander at the Tokyo Tower (modeled after the Eiffel Tower), and checked out the bird's eye view of the city from Tokyo City View. The City View was quite disappointing because the ticket included other attractions withing the tower that we couldn't do and 1/4 of the 360 degree walk around view was closed for a private party. The next morning we went to Senso-Ji Temple near our hostel and checked out the surrounding bazaar. The temple got its fame for housing the golden image of Kannon, the Buddhist God of Mercy (which has never been verified) and was supposedly fished out of a river by two fisherman.
After Heather left that afternoon I headed to the crazy shopping area of Ameyoko Arcade (the city's famous post-WWII black market area) and wandered through the Ueno Park (Tokyo's first public park). I then took a train west of Tokyo to Kawaguchi-ko city on on of the 5 lakes that surrounds Mt. Fuji. While Fuji isn't still covered in snow, the weather at the top is still below freezing so I didn't climb it. The next morning I took a cable car up to a vantage point and saw what could be seen. It's infamous for being covered in clouds so I made it just in time. On the way back down from the cable car, the clouds moved over the peak and down the mountain and it stormed.
While heading back to Tokyo, I stopped in Yokohama, Japan's 2nd largest city with almost 3.6 million residents. It had a population of about 600 when it was made an international port in the late 1800's. I went mainly just to check it out and visit its Chinatown but also got to ride on its Ferris wheel - one of the largest in the world. The Chinatown was lame and the Chinese food I bought was terrible. Yes, I already missed Chinese food.
The next day I was scheduled to leave Japan in the late afternoon so I hopped on the train one last time and headed south again to the tiny city of Kamakura (another ancient capital city) and saw its Giant Buddha or Daibutsu, which is 11.8 meters tall and made totally of bronze. Its original temple was washed away by a tsunami but the Buddha remains just sitting on a platform in the middle of a park.
My departure from Japan was terrible as I caught the wrong train to the airport and it took me almost 3 hours to get there. I arrived less than an hour before my flight and had to rush to the gate. I didn't sleep the whole ride and there were only 2 movies to watch - one of which I had already seen. My flight was delayed and the food was also quite terrible. However I did arrive safely back on American soil so I should be happy about that.
I am now spending my time doing much of nothing while I should be preparing for my exam next week. Hopefully San Diego will provide me with a job, a place to live, and a passing score. What more could a girl ask for.
At this time, I am sorry to report that I have no current pictures as I am without my own computer so you will just have to wait with baited breath.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
CD313: Leaving China
My final goodbye to the Motherland was unceremonial to say the least and rushed for sure. The cruise on the Yangtze was amazingly beautiful at times while being incredibly disturbing in general. Almost everything we did or saw was presented by a local guide as being provided by the Yangtze 3 Gorges Dam Project.
"There was an ancient minority village here but now it is underwater. Thanks to the dam the villagers now live in nice new houses much higher up on the hill."
"This use to be a fishing village but now thanks to the dam, there are no fish left in the water so the fishermen/women now work in constructing new villages."
The dam itself is immense. Words can't really express its physical size. It is set to be finished next year and fully operational by 2011. In the end, it will produce 22,500 megawatts of energy. It was initially predicted to supply energy to 10% of China's people, but now with the growing population, it will provide only 5%. It will reduce the coal consumption by 31 million tons per year which in turn reduces 100 million tons of greenhouse gases, millions of tons of dust, 1 million tons of sulfur dioxide, 370 thousand tons of nitric oxide, 10 thousand tons of carbon dioxide, and a significant amount of mercury from being released into the atmosphere. It also will also require the relocation of over 2.3 million people. in October of last year, the government said that they are suggesting another 4 million people who live near the dam should also be moved. Over 1,300 archaeological sites have been flooded, 80% of the land in the area is experiencing erosion which is causing 40 million tons of sediment to slide into the river every year, 172 species have become endangered and at least 3 are believed to be extinct.
At the end of the tour we stopped in a city called Yichang which lies 40km south of the dam. We went to the city museum, which was made possible by the dam water's flooding of a small island which was an ancestral burial ground for the Ba people - who lived some 3000 years ago and have no written history so very little is known about them. The most troubling thing was that the tour of the museum ended in a room filled with treasures...ancient, priceless, burial relic treasures which the government is willing to sell because they need money for the development of relocation cities.
After the cruise I meant Heather back in Shanghai. We spent 3 nights there and the weather was miserable most of the time. Torrential rain and crazy humidity don't make for good times. I did get to see some new sites, namely the Jade Buddha Temple and YuYuan Bazaar which I didn't have time to see before. After Shanghai we headed south to Hangzhou. Sadly, the weather there wasn't much better. After 2 nights we came back to Shanghai for one last night in China before heading East. Our time wasn't really spent doing much of interest...we did put together a 3-D wooden carp puzzle which amused us for a while.
Early this morning we headed to the airport not realizing we'd be stuck in the middle of rush hour. It took over an hour and a half to travel the 50km to the airport and Heather almost missed her check-in time. While waiting on the tarmac for air traffic to clear i realized i was leaving China, perhaps for good. While it seems like i have been waiting for this day it some how managed to sneak up on me and i realized it didn't seem to matter as much as I expected as my excitement for Japan and then the US over shadowed any feelings of sadness.
We are now in Tokyo and my initial impressions of Japan are limited: clean, quiet, orderly. I of course will have more to say once I see more and I am sure that will happen in the week that I am here. No pictures will be updated until I return the the US however so these lowly words will have to do for now.
"There was an ancient minority village here but now it is underwater. Thanks to the dam the villagers now live in nice new houses much higher up on the hill."
"This use to be a fishing village but now thanks to the dam, there are no fish left in the water so the fishermen/women now work in constructing new villages."
The dam itself is immense. Words can't really express its physical size. It is set to be finished next year and fully operational by 2011. In the end, it will produce 22,500 megawatts of energy. It was initially predicted to supply energy to 10% of China's people, but now with the growing population, it will provide only 5%. It will reduce the coal consumption by 31 million tons per year which in turn reduces 100 million tons of greenhouse gases, millions of tons of dust, 1 million tons of sulfur dioxide, 370 thousand tons of nitric oxide, 10 thousand tons of carbon dioxide, and a significant amount of mercury from being released into the atmosphere. It also will also require the relocation of over 2.3 million people. in October of last year, the government said that they are suggesting another 4 million people who live near the dam should also be moved. Over 1,300 archaeological sites have been flooded, 80% of the land in the area is experiencing erosion which is causing 40 million tons of sediment to slide into the river every year, 172 species have become endangered and at least 3 are believed to be extinct.
At the end of the tour we stopped in a city called Yichang which lies 40km south of the dam. We went to the city museum, which was made possible by the dam water's flooding of a small island which was an ancestral burial ground for the Ba people - who lived some 3000 years ago and have no written history so very little is known about them. The most troubling thing was that the tour of the museum ended in a room filled with treasures...ancient, priceless, burial relic treasures which the government is willing to sell because they need money for the development of relocation cities.
After the cruise I meant Heather back in Shanghai. We spent 3 nights there and the weather was miserable most of the time. Torrential rain and crazy humidity don't make for good times. I did get to see some new sites, namely the Jade Buddha Temple and YuYuan Bazaar which I didn't have time to see before. After Shanghai we headed south to Hangzhou. Sadly, the weather there wasn't much better. After 2 nights we came back to Shanghai for one last night in China before heading East. Our time wasn't really spent doing much of interest...we did put together a 3-D wooden carp puzzle which amused us for a while.
Early this morning we headed to the airport not realizing we'd be stuck in the middle of rush hour. It took over an hour and a half to travel the 50km to the airport and Heather almost missed her check-in time. While waiting on the tarmac for air traffic to clear i realized i was leaving China, perhaps for good. While it seems like i have been waiting for this day it some how managed to sneak up on me and i realized it didn't seem to matter as much as I expected as my excitement for Japan and then the US over shadowed any feelings of sadness.
We are now in Tokyo and my initial impressions of Japan are limited: clean, quiet, orderly. I of course will have more to say once I see more and I am sure that will happen in the week that I am here. No pictures will be updated until I return the the US however so these lowly words will have to do for now.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
CD304: Moving Out and Moving On
Early yesterday night, I left Pingxiang. I am 99% sure that I will never go back there and I am 50% unsure of how I feel about that. Don't get me wrong, I am wanting to come home and there is nothing super about PX but...I just am not sure how to express how I feel. This last week was so super rushed I felt like I didn't really have enough time to do anything that I wanted to do before I left but I also can't tell you what else there was that I wanted to do.
I am now in Shanghai killing time before I fly out this afternoon for a 4 day cruise on the Yangtze. Heather will be in Shanghai the day after the cruise ends so I will meet her here and we will travel around Shanghai and who knows where else for about a week. That will be my last week in China and then she and I will head to Japan for a week before coming back stateside. My official arrival date is July 8th for those of you that care and are diligently marking it on your calendar.
My first month back home will most likely be crazy. I have to go to San Diego to have an interview (wish me luck), take an intense 5 hour all inclusive science mastery test (wish me more luck) and find a place to live (God willing). That is just 1 week. I also have to see friends, spend some time at home in Medford visiting the fam, go through all the stuff in my storage unit that I haven't seen in 2 years and then pack a moving truck and drive it down south.
Though I am not technically done with China I figured I would give you all a short (consolidated) recap of the past year.
Things I will not forget:
1. Liu Yan Jun
2. Shaolin monk doing sweet Chinese Gung Fu on me in a restaurant
3. Lady almost falling out of the train
4. Spin the bottle
5. Singing on a stage for a televised event
Things I will miss:
1. Not having to tip (perhaps linked with #1 below)
2. Everyone thinking I am special/interesting because I am white/foreign/different (haha)
3. Being able to argue prices
4. Relative cheapness of items
5. Everything I do being "lovely" or "clever"
6. Being complimented on my "good English"
7. Real Chinese food - American Chinese food is total crap
8. My ridiculously light work load and relatively extravagant pay
9. Trains being a viable and cheap travel option
10. Movies only costing $1 or less
Things I would have never gotten use to:
1. Bad customer service (perhaps linked with #1 above)
2. Unattended children 5 and under
3. People randomly burning things including plastic and Styrofoam
4. Unattended children being allowed to play with said burning piles
5. The volume at which Chinese people speak to each other
6. Hating to hear the word "hello"
7. People not understanding why I would want to go back to my country but laughing if I ask if they'd want to live anywhere else than China
8. Baijao - Chinese white wine, a liquor made with rice and gasoline I think :)
9. Chinese style toilets and squatting
10. High heels being the universal woman's shoe and reasonable to be worn for any occasion/type of weather
I am now in Shanghai killing time before I fly out this afternoon for a 4 day cruise on the Yangtze. Heather will be in Shanghai the day after the cruise ends so I will meet her here and we will travel around Shanghai and who knows where else for about a week. That will be my last week in China and then she and I will head to Japan for a week before coming back stateside. My official arrival date is July 8th for those of you that care and are diligently marking it on your calendar.
My first month back home will most likely be crazy. I have to go to San Diego to have an interview (wish me luck), take an intense 5 hour all inclusive science mastery test (wish me more luck) and find a place to live (God willing). That is just 1 week. I also have to see friends, spend some time at home in Medford visiting the fam, go through all the stuff in my storage unit that I haven't seen in 2 years and then pack a moving truck and drive it down south.
Though I am not technically done with China I figured I would give you all a short (consolidated) recap of the past year.
Things I will not forget:
1. Liu Yan Jun
2. Shaolin monk doing sweet Chinese Gung Fu on me in a restaurant
3. Lady almost falling out of the train
4. Spin the bottle
5. Singing on a stage for a televised event
Things I will miss:
1. Not having to tip (perhaps linked with #1 below)
2. Everyone thinking I am special/interesting because I am white/foreign/different (haha)
3. Being able to argue prices
4. Relative cheapness of items
5. Everything I do being "lovely" or "clever"
6. Being complimented on my "good English"
7. Real Chinese food - American Chinese food is total crap
8. My ridiculously light work load and relatively extravagant pay
9. Trains being a viable and cheap travel option
10. Movies only costing $1 or less
Things I would have never gotten use to:
1. Bad customer service (perhaps linked with #1 above)
2. Unattended children 5 and under
3. People randomly burning things including plastic and Styrofoam
4. Unattended children being allowed to play with said burning piles
5. The volume at which Chinese people speak to each other
6. Hating to hear the word "hello"
7. People not understanding why I would want to go back to my country but laughing if I ask if they'd want to live anywhere else than China
8. Baijao - Chinese white wine, a liquor made with rice and gasoline I think :)
9. Chinese style toilets and squatting
10. High heels being the universal woman's shoe and reasonable to be worn for any occasion/type of weather
Friday, May 23, 2008
CD 274: Journey to the Center of the (Chinese) Universe
I have returned victorious.
The Center of the Universe is of course Beijing. No, I did not run with the torch. No, I did not participate in the Olympics. Chinese people are supposed to be wise in all things Chinese, but yet they ask me these questions - even the teachers who should really know better. What I did do, not that it's as great as participating in the Olympic torch relay or in the Olympics themselves, but I participated in Adventure Marathon's Great Wall Marathon 2008. <the crowd goes wild in cheers and applause> Thank you, thank you! You are too kind.
I got to Beijing after a relatively quick 17 hour over-night train ride Friday (the day before the race). I knew I shouldn't be too busy so I didn't have much planned. I picked a hostel that my Lonely Planet said was next to the race day pick up - Beijing International Hotel, but made no real other plans.The city itself is huge and everything is totally spread out. There is a subway and an intricate bus system but neither seem to work to well - and I am really terrible with buses. I went by taxi to get my race day stuff then used my trusty map to discover I was "close" to the Beijing Zoo. (I will use "close" as in "close here means in totally relative terms and not very close at all") The zoo is supposed to be terrible but their new aquarium fantastic, so I decided to give it a go. The zoo was indeed miserable. The place stunk of fresh paint and miserable animals. For how terrible the zoo was, I really spent too much time there and not enough time at the aquarium but I just HAD to find the Giant Panda house which proved to be slightly allusive. There were workers everywhere frantically building and painting and apparently totally neglecting the animals in general who were mostly in filthy, tiny cages and all looked desperately distraught at their predicament.
Like I said, the aquarium was supposed to be all the rage, and it deserves every syllable! It's the largest inland aquarium in the world and absolutely stunning. The whole first part is set up like an Amazon rain forest and the fish are in these fun open tanks set into faux rock formations. If I come back as a fish, I will ask to be a fish in this aquarium. The coral reef exhibit was similarly spectacular with a huge aquarium with all the fishes living together in harmony with rays and corals and sea turtles (oh my!). There was also the obligatory giant shark tank and a great looking shark that literally had teeth so big it couldn't shut its mouth. It was so comical I took about a million pictures. Sadly I ran out of time to see the mammal exhibit or find the sweet piranha tank. They also had one of those penny machines (where it makes the flat penny with the picture on it) but the booth was closed to get the necessary tokens. If you know me well enough, you know this is like throwing salt in a wound for me.
I wandered back into the city center and stopped to have a look at Tian'an Men Square. I got there when they take the flag down at night and it's quite the to do. I wouldn't have really cared but it is one of the major things all of my students say they'd want to do if they could go to Beijing so I managed the crowds and the long wait to watch the military boys march out in formation, cross the street, take down the flag, and then go back. It was just about that exciting. I then got back to my hostel after some crazy bus/subway maneuvers to find that a person was in my room - and snoring loudly. I had hoped I'd be lucky and be solo. No such luck. It's at this point my story takes a turn for the worse. I had wandered all around my hostel looking for the Beijing International Hotel to no avail so I ask the girls at the front desk. They innocently tell me that this hostel use to be a hotel - The FeiYing Beijing International Hotel but there is another BIH on the other side of town. Craptastic! As pick up is at 245 I just accept I will have to take an expensive taxi there in the am, get up earlier than expected, and deal with these damn lemons life keeps chucking at my head. So I head back to my room and the snoring man - its like 8pm... and I have no idea how I am going to get my stuff ready. I have to check out in the am and leave my bag to pick up later and I have to be up at like 2am so I don't have much time to do anything in the morning. I drag my stuff into the bathroom thinking I can work without disturbing Snoring Man - though if he doesn't wake himself, God only knows what will. SM has managed to get the ENTIRE bathroom wet and his jumbo sized pants have apparently/maybe been washed and are hanging on the curtain rod. His shaving stuff is all over the sink...it's just terrible. I do what I can and just decide to leave my stuff in the bathroom so I can get ready quickly in the morning. It's about 10 by the time I get to bed, he is still snoring and I notice that his jumbo sized underwear has apparently/maybe been washed as is draped all over his chosen bed. Thank god he wasn't on my bed. I am busy trying to force myself to sleep and thinking about how the hours between then and when I have to get up are slowing dwindling, when a worker comes in to make up another bed and wakes me up. It's 11 by then. He finally leaves and I just get to sleep when another roommate joins us. It's now 12. This guy was dragging in a drum set or something and then setting it up - in and out for God only knows how long. He finally feel asleep about 130 but my sleep time was up so I just got up and got ready. So much for the good night's sleep the night before the big race.
Buses were supposed to leave the (correct) Beijing International Hotel at 2:45 but by 3:15 we were still standing in the parking lot waiting for them to get enough buses there for all of the participants. Once we all finally get piled into buses and headed on the road to the wall, I start talking with the woman next to me. She too is from the US, living in China (Hong Kong) and doing the race solo so instead of getting the sleep we need, we chat the whole ride up. There were 17,000 participants in 4 races (5K, 10K, 1/2 marathon, full marathon)
Over 100 people ran the full marathon. I decided to run with my new friend, Missy, since the companionship would be nice and I am sure encouragement would be needed. The start was fine enough - we went straight up a hill and on to the wall. The stairs were steep, narrow and tall...everything we'd been warned about. Coming out of the final tower and heading to the main part of the race, I got stung by literally the biggest bee in the world. I'm not sure if it was the bee itself or the combination of the sting and my running, but the inside of my arm where I got stung became pretty swollen and I could swear that I could feel the toxins curing through my body. (Note: I still have a mark from this sting that is literally 6 inches long.) The majority of the race was through countryside villages though we did run along a fair patch of road. The weather was good. It was clear and moderate but not really sunny. The air was okay, but the section along the road was difficult because of some tree stuff floating in the air (possibly cotton wood trees) and the big truck exhaust. Most of the people in the villages came out to cheer us on or to just stare but it was encouraging none the less. I am sure they were all saying - "Look at all the stupid foreigners. There's more than last year..."
Perhaps around kilometer 26 I drank some supposed "Gatorade" that made me crazy sick so Missy went on ahead and I attempted to not die. I feel no shame in admitting that I did walk here and there but probably for less than 10 minutes of the whole race - not counting the actual part on the wall. True torture came around kilometer 37 when we come out of the back pastures of the villages after dodging rocks and uneven ground for kms and then we run right by the finish line and back onto the wall to do it again backwards. By that time, people were literally crawling up the stairs and cursing the heavens for having ever though that this race would be a good idea. I am pretty sure I died there on the wall at some point. I had the goal of trying to catch up with Missy until then and then I just had the goal of not lying on the ground in the fetal position and giving up all hope. Once I saw that we were at the end of the wall and I reminded myself that the whole way to the finish line was downhill, I caught some divine 3rd wind and just went for it. It also helped that I mistakenly thought I was running for 40km instead of 42km. For the last bit I was passing people like a woman possessed coming down the hill (who walks down a hill towards the finish line?) and then another woman had caught up with me and we pushed each other to the finish line. It was very high-school track-esque and in my mind I was definitely thinking "Like hell I am going to let you beat me now old lady!" I finished at 4:59:42. My only goal was to finish so that was good enough for me. Missy was there waiting at the finish line too so that was great! We then scarfed down some Subway sandwiches and swapped race stories.
Missy then becomes my guardian angel because after hearing my stories of Captain Underpants and my hostel, she insists I come and stay with her at her 5 star hotel suite she is supposed to be sharing with her girlfriends who couldn't come. Gee...twist my arm. We also got foot massages and had dinner and wine to celebrate her birthday which was the next day. My body was aching in places and ways I never knew it could and we were both pretty hilarious trying to walk up and down the stairs. Sleeping in a huge, comfy bed was exactly what I needed. Missy left early the next day but worked it with the hotel that I could check out and I got to enjoy her free fancy breakfast in the private club with a view of Beijing so that wasn't too bad either.
Despite my aches and pains, I knew my time in Beijing was limited so I hobbled through the next couple days seeing what there was to be seen. I would have to say my overall feeling of Beijing is that the city completely lacks character, which is a shame. The city is geographically large but empty. It is old but new. It is clean but still dirty. The city is a tourist destination but not tourist friendly. Its population is nearing 18 million but there is no one out and about. In my 5 days in the city I mastered the subway but failed miserably with the buses at every opportunity.
As this is turning into quite the novel and I spent a total of 6 days in Beijing I will recap the rest and suggest you check out the INSANE number of pics I took.
The Summer Palace is an immense park northwest of the city and is where royalty would come during the summer to escape the insufferable heat of the Imperial Palace. There I saw a large lake, many pavilions, numerous gardens, a deserted pagoda, a very long corridor along the water's edge, a marble boat, the stunning Buddhist Fragrance Pavilion and Cloud Dispensing Hall, and a big Buddha.
The Peking Man Site is outside of the city about 60km to the SW and totally off the beaten path. For good reason - its boring as all get out. This is the location of Dragon Bone Hill in the Zhongkou village were the remains of the human ancestors from some 500,000 years ago were first found in the 1920's. I am a sucker for science, but other than being a historic site, there isn't much there. I saw where they found some of the first fossils and toured the rather small museum but left feeling like it verged on a waste of time.
The Temple of Heaven is quite possibly the symbol of Beijing. And it is quite spectacular. The Round Altar is what people think of when the Temple of Heaven is mentioned. It was originally the stage for solemn rites and is known now as "the most perfect example of Ming architecture".
Tian'an Men Square is technically the large area that runs from the Forbidden City in the north through the Monument to the People's Heroes, the Chairman Mao Mausoleum, and all the way down to the 2 ancient city's Front Gates. It is the world's largest public square after all. The square as we know it today is a modern creation because it ancient times, part of the Imperial Palace went far into the square area.
The Gate of Heavenly Peace (Tian'an Men...go figure) is hung with the vast likeness of Mao who looks out at his own mausoleum. It was formerly the largest of the four gates of the Imperial Wall that enclosed the imperial grounds. It was from this gate that Mao proclaimed the People's Republic of on October 1st of '49. Passing through this gate, you can get to the Imperial Palace, also known as the Forbidden City.
Forbidden City/Imperial Palace: The palace was given its more popular name because it was off-limits to use commoners for some 500 years. It is the largest and best-preserved cluster of ancient buildings in all of China. It was the location for 2 dynasties, the Ming and the Qing - the people of both eras not leaving the palace walls unless they really had to. It was quite spectacular. I wandered around trying to see every last inch of it that I could and tried to imagine the imperial life. There is a museum woven into the remaining buildings so you get a healthy dose of history while you wander as well.
Zhongshan Park is immediately to the west of the palace and doesn't offer much other than views of the palace walls and the palace moat.
Ming City Wall Ruins Park has been built...you guessed it, around the ruins of the Ming inner city wall. The watch tower is supposed to be the best part but its covered and under construction and I got there too late for tickets. This wall section is about 2km long and was just restored in '02. A sign at the site says restoration came from bricks donated by local people. The area was all apartments so that might explain why the restoration isn't too impressive. The park, however, is stunning.
Zhengyang Men and Qian Men are the two "Front Gates" at the southern end of Tian'an Men Square. Qian Men is the southern most structure and the technical front gate. It was once open only to the Emperor himself on his way to and from the winter solstice ceremony at the Temple of Heaven or his inspection tours of the southern regions. Qian Men is one of the only gates to survive with its gatehouse (Zhengyang Men) and arrow tower (Jian Lou) in tact.
Jingshan Park is just north of the Forbidden City and was created from the earth excavated to make the moat around the palace. Its views were amazing and the park itself was beyond beautiful. It is believed to protect the palace from evil spirits and was the chosen spot for the last Ming emperor to hang himself.
The Bell Tower and Drum Tower weren't much to look at and the originals were burnt down many times and the last rebuilding is from the 18th century or so.
The strongest feeling I got from Beijing was really while I was at Jingshan Park and I will end with that: I want to grow old like the Chinese I was to get up before sunrise to climb to the top of the tallest hill and yell at the sun and then peacefully stretch as the day slowly wakes up. I want to go to the park to walk around and enjoy time with my grandchildren. I want to play an aggressive game of badminton with my husband - us both egging the other on as to who will be the victor. I want to stand in the shade with my girlfriends and play hackysack while we gossip about the young people. In the afternoon I want to ride my bicycle to the market to by fresh food for dinner. And at night I want to go to the center square and dance in a big group under the lights of a fountain.
Pictures will soon be too many in number at http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/tarshor/ChinaBeijing
The Center of the Universe is of course Beijing. No, I did not run with the torch. No, I did not participate in the Olympics. Chinese people are supposed to be wise in all things Chinese, but yet they ask me these questions - even the teachers who should really know better. What I did do, not that it's as great as participating in the Olympic torch relay or in the Olympics themselves, but I participated in Adventure Marathon's Great Wall Marathon 2008. <the crowd goes wild in cheers and applause> Thank you, thank you! You are too kind.
I got to Beijing after a relatively quick 17 hour over-night train ride Friday (the day before the race). I knew I shouldn't be too busy so I didn't have much planned. I picked a hostel that my Lonely Planet said was next to the race day pick up - Beijing International Hotel, but made no real other plans.The city itself is huge and everything is totally spread out. There is a subway and an intricate bus system but neither seem to work to well - and I am really terrible with buses. I went by taxi to get my race day stuff then used my trusty map to discover I was "close" to the Beijing Zoo. (I will use "close" as in "close here means in totally relative terms and not very close at all") The zoo is supposed to be terrible but their new aquarium fantastic, so I decided to give it a go. The zoo was indeed miserable. The place stunk of fresh paint and miserable animals. For how terrible the zoo was, I really spent too much time there and not enough time at the aquarium but I just HAD to find the Giant Panda house which proved to be slightly allusive. There were workers everywhere frantically building and painting and apparently totally neglecting the animals in general who were mostly in filthy, tiny cages and all looked desperately distraught at their predicament.
Like I said, the aquarium was supposed to be all the rage, and it deserves every syllable! It's the largest inland aquarium in the world and absolutely stunning. The whole first part is set up like an Amazon rain forest and the fish are in these fun open tanks set into faux rock formations. If I come back as a fish, I will ask to be a fish in this aquarium. The coral reef exhibit was similarly spectacular with a huge aquarium with all the fishes living together in harmony with rays and corals and sea turtles (oh my!). There was also the obligatory giant shark tank and a great looking shark that literally had teeth so big it couldn't shut its mouth. It was so comical I took about a million pictures. Sadly I ran out of time to see the mammal exhibit or find the sweet piranha tank. They also had one of those penny machines (where it makes the flat penny with the picture on it) but the booth was closed to get the necessary tokens. If you know me well enough, you know this is like throwing salt in a wound for me.
I wandered back into the city center and stopped to have a look at Tian'an Men Square. I got there when they take the flag down at night and it's quite the to do. I wouldn't have really cared but it is one of the major things all of my students say they'd want to do if they could go to Beijing so I managed the crowds and the long wait to watch the military boys march out in formation, cross the street, take down the flag, and then go back. It was just about that exciting. I then got back to my hostel after some crazy bus/subway maneuvers to find that a person was in my room - and snoring loudly. I had hoped I'd be lucky and be solo. No such luck. It's at this point my story takes a turn for the worse. I had wandered all around my hostel looking for the Beijing International Hotel to no avail so I ask the girls at the front desk. They innocently tell me that this hostel use to be a hotel - The FeiYing Beijing International Hotel but there is another BIH on the other side of town. Craptastic! As pick up is at 245 I just accept I will have to take an expensive taxi there in the am, get up earlier than expected, and deal with these damn lemons life keeps chucking at my head. So I head back to my room and the snoring man - its like 8pm... and I have no idea how I am going to get my stuff ready. I have to check out in the am and leave my bag to pick up later and I have to be up at like 2am so I don't have much time to do anything in the morning. I drag my stuff into the bathroom thinking I can work without disturbing Snoring Man - though if he doesn't wake himself, God only knows what will. SM has managed to get the ENTIRE bathroom wet and his jumbo sized pants have apparently/maybe been washed and are hanging on the curtain rod. His shaving stuff is all over the sink...it's just terrible. I do what I can and just decide to leave my stuff in the bathroom so I can get ready quickly in the morning. It's about 10 by the time I get to bed, he is still snoring and I notice that his jumbo sized underwear has apparently/maybe been washed as is draped all over his chosen bed. Thank god he wasn't on my bed. I am busy trying to force myself to sleep and thinking about how the hours between then and when I have to get up are slowing dwindling, when a worker comes in to make up another bed and wakes me up. It's 11 by then. He finally leaves and I just get to sleep when another roommate joins us. It's now 12. This guy was dragging in a drum set or something and then setting it up - in and out for God only knows how long. He finally feel asleep about 130 but my sleep time was up so I just got up and got ready. So much for the good night's sleep the night before the big race.
Buses were supposed to leave the (correct) Beijing International Hotel at 2:45 but by 3:15 we were still standing in the parking lot waiting for them to get enough buses there for all of the participants. Once we all finally get piled into buses and headed on the road to the wall, I start talking with the woman next to me. She too is from the US, living in China (Hong Kong) and doing the race solo so instead of getting the sleep we need, we chat the whole ride up. There were 17,000 participants in 4 races (5K, 10K, 1/2 marathon, full marathon)
Over 100 people ran the full marathon. I decided to run with my new friend, Missy, since the companionship would be nice and I am sure encouragement would be needed. The start was fine enough - we went straight up a hill and on to the wall. The stairs were steep, narrow and tall...everything we'd been warned about. Coming out of the final tower and heading to the main part of the race, I got stung by literally the biggest bee in the world. I'm not sure if it was the bee itself or the combination of the sting and my running, but the inside of my arm where I got stung became pretty swollen and I could swear that I could feel the toxins curing through my body. (Note: I still have a mark from this sting that is literally 6 inches long.) The majority of the race was through countryside villages though we did run along a fair patch of road. The weather was good. It was clear and moderate but not really sunny. The air was okay, but the section along the road was difficult because of some tree stuff floating in the air (possibly cotton wood trees) and the big truck exhaust. Most of the people in the villages came out to cheer us on or to just stare but it was encouraging none the less. I am sure they were all saying - "Look at all the stupid foreigners. There's more than last year..."
Perhaps around kilometer 26 I drank some supposed "Gatorade" that made me crazy sick so Missy went on ahead and I attempted to not die. I feel no shame in admitting that I did walk here and there but probably for less than 10 minutes of the whole race - not counting the actual part on the wall. True torture came around kilometer 37 when we come out of the back pastures of the villages after dodging rocks and uneven ground for kms and then we run right by the finish line and back onto the wall to do it again backwards. By that time, people were literally crawling up the stairs and cursing the heavens for having ever though that this race would be a good idea. I am pretty sure I died there on the wall at some point. I had the goal of trying to catch up with Missy until then and then I just had the goal of not lying on the ground in the fetal position and giving up all hope. Once I saw that we were at the end of the wall and I reminded myself that the whole way to the finish line was downhill, I caught some divine 3rd wind and just went for it. It also helped that I mistakenly thought I was running for 40km instead of 42km. For the last bit I was passing people like a woman possessed coming down the hill (who walks down a hill towards the finish line?) and then another woman had caught up with me and we pushed each other to the finish line. It was very high-school track-esque and in my mind I was definitely thinking "Like hell I am going to let you beat me now old lady!" I finished at 4:59:42. My only goal was to finish so that was good enough for me. Missy was there waiting at the finish line too so that was great! We then scarfed down some Subway sandwiches and swapped race stories.
Missy then becomes my guardian angel because after hearing my stories of Captain Underpants and my hostel, she insists I come and stay with her at her 5 star hotel suite she is supposed to be sharing with her girlfriends who couldn't come. Gee...twist my arm. We also got foot massages and had dinner and wine to celebrate her birthday which was the next day. My body was aching in places and ways I never knew it could and we were both pretty hilarious trying to walk up and down the stairs. Sleeping in a huge, comfy bed was exactly what I needed. Missy left early the next day but worked it with the hotel that I could check out and I got to enjoy her free fancy breakfast in the private club with a view of Beijing so that wasn't too bad either.
Despite my aches and pains, I knew my time in Beijing was limited so I hobbled through the next couple days seeing what there was to be seen. I would have to say my overall feeling of Beijing is that the city completely lacks character, which is a shame. The city is geographically large but empty. It is old but new. It is clean but still dirty. The city is a tourist destination but not tourist friendly. Its population is nearing 18 million but there is no one out and about. In my 5 days in the city I mastered the subway but failed miserably with the buses at every opportunity.
As this is turning into quite the novel and I spent a total of 6 days in Beijing I will recap the rest and suggest you check out the INSANE number of pics I took.
The Summer Palace is an immense park northwest of the city and is where royalty would come during the summer to escape the insufferable heat of the Imperial Palace. There I saw a large lake, many pavilions, numerous gardens, a deserted pagoda, a very long corridor along the water's edge, a marble boat, the stunning Buddhist Fragrance Pavilion and Cloud Dispensing Hall, and a big Buddha.
The Peking Man Site is outside of the city about 60km to the SW and totally off the beaten path. For good reason - its boring as all get out. This is the location of Dragon Bone Hill in the Zhongkou village were the remains of the human ancestors from some 500,000 years ago were first found in the 1920's. I am a sucker for science, but other than being a historic site, there isn't much there. I saw where they found some of the first fossils and toured the rather small museum but left feeling like it verged on a waste of time.
The Temple of Heaven is quite possibly the symbol of Beijing. And it is quite spectacular. The Round Altar is what people think of when the Temple of Heaven is mentioned. It was originally the stage for solemn rites and is known now as "the most perfect example of Ming architecture".
Tian'an Men Square is technically the large area that runs from the Forbidden City in the north through the Monument to the People's Heroes, the Chairman Mao Mausoleum, and all the way down to the 2 ancient city's Front Gates. It is the world's largest public square after all. The square as we know it today is a modern creation because it ancient times, part of the Imperial Palace went far into the square area.
The Gate of Heavenly Peace (Tian'an Men...go figure) is hung with the vast likeness of Mao who looks out at his own mausoleum. It was formerly the largest of the four gates of the Imperial Wall that enclosed the imperial grounds. It was from this gate that Mao proclaimed the People's Republic of on October 1st of '49. Passing through this gate, you can get to the Imperial Palace, also known as the Forbidden City.
Forbidden City/Imperial Palace: The palace was given its more popular name because it was off-limits to use commoners for some 500 years. It is the largest and best-preserved cluster of ancient buildings in all of China. It was the location for 2 dynasties, the Ming and the Qing - the people of both eras not leaving the palace walls unless they really had to. It was quite spectacular. I wandered around trying to see every last inch of it that I could and tried to imagine the imperial life. There is a museum woven into the remaining buildings so you get a healthy dose of history while you wander as well.
Zhongshan Park is immediately to the west of the palace and doesn't offer much other than views of the palace walls and the palace moat.
Ming City Wall Ruins Park has been built...you guessed it, around the ruins of the Ming inner city wall. The watch tower is supposed to be the best part but its covered and under construction and I got there too late for tickets. This wall section is about 2km long and was just restored in '02. A sign at the site says restoration came from bricks donated by local people. The area was all apartments so that might explain why the restoration isn't too impressive. The park, however, is stunning.
Zhengyang Men and Qian Men are the two "Front Gates" at the southern end of Tian'an Men Square. Qian Men is the southern most structure and the technical front gate. It was once open only to the Emperor himself on his way to and from the winter solstice ceremony at the Temple of Heaven or his inspection tours of the southern regions. Qian Men is one of the only gates to survive with its gatehouse (Zhengyang Men) and arrow tower (Jian Lou) in tact.
Jingshan Park is just north of the Forbidden City and was created from the earth excavated to make the moat around the palace. Its views were amazing and the park itself was beyond beautiful. It is believed to protect the palace from evil spirits and was the chosen spot for the last Ming emperor to hang himself.
The Bell Tower and Drum Tower weren't much to look at and the originals were burnt down many times and the last rebuilding is from the 18th century or so.
The strongest feeling I got from Beijing was really while I was at Jingshan Park and I will end with that: I want to grow old like the Chinese I was to get up before sunrise to climb to the top of the tallest hill and yell at the sun and then peacefully stretch as the day slowly wakes up. I want to go to the park to walk around and enjoy time with my grandchildren. I want to play an aggressive game of badminton with my husband - us both egging the other on as to who will be the victor. I want to stand in the shade with my girlfriends and play hackysack while we gossip about the young people. In the afternoon I want to ride my bicycle to the market to by fresh food for dinner. And at night I want to go to the center square and dance in a big group under the lights of a fountain.
Pictures will soon be too many in number at http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/tarshor/ChinaBeijing
Monday, May 12, 2008
Earthquake
As many of you know, there was a huge quake in China yesterday. While the epicenter was 3 provinces away from where I live we did not feel it here in Pingxiang. The magnitude of the quake changes depending on what source you are reading from, but it was in the high 7's at least. The death tolls are also incredibly high - 10,000 and growing steadily. The quake hit during work and school so many people were trapped in or killed by falling buildings. I have no idea what China's earthquake codes are, but I know most people build their own houses of brick so they can't be that structurally sound. My thoughts now only go to the victims, their families, and the people attempting relief efforts. I hope that China accepts the foreign help it is offered and that foreign disaster relief is offered freely and quickly.
Friday, May 9, 2008
CD 262: Two Months 'Til American Soil
In 2 months (minus 2 days) I will be returning to the good ol' U.S of A. I'm ready. Things here are definitely winding down. There are only 6 more weeks of school and most likely 2 of those weeks will be mostly spent doing final exams. I find that my students are desperately sad at the prospect of my departure and this puzzles me. Many don't understand why I am not wanting to stay here forever. I have simplified things by saying I want to go back to America to find a husband and start a family - this is something they can understand. By their standards, I am quite past my prime for marriage and the such. My classes are going so-so. I am pretty sure all my juniors all cheated on their midterms. The most blatant cheaters threw temper tantrums saying they weren't the only ones cheating, just the only ones caught so now I have to retest all of them. This is also apparently incredibly unfair. They then proceeded to tell me that it was partially my fault they cheated because I didn't take away their books/bags/papers/etc. My bad. Cheating is widely accepted here in China but if you ask any teachers or department heads, they say to the contrary. All of my high school students cheated on their exam and their head teacher said, "Maybe they were too busy studying for their other exams to study for yours." Oh, yes. Well then, let's just let them cheat. Not. The Oral English classes are so much easier - you can't cheat when you are just talking. Thank God for that.
The weather here in Pingxiang is quite miserable and reminiscent of Seattle, which is slightly comforting, all at the same time. It rains almost every day and when it storms the rain comes from all directions and floods the roads. The skies are often gray but the rain clouds make it the most dreary. After the rain it often turns into a sauna and I am sure we are breeding half of the most dangerous/annoying bugs in the pools of water outside our doors. Despite being wet, sticky, and generally uncomfortable, the weather also makes me quite lazy as the idea of running in torrential rain inside a steam bath isn't high on my list. Speaking of running, my marathon is next weekend. I am excited to go but at the same time think I am perhaps not fulling realizing the incredible physical toll this will take on my body. I mean, its only 26.2 miles, how hard can it be? The Great Wall is only super steep in some places, not the whole route. I'll be fine...
Last week we had a 3 day holiday, which Andreana and I turned into 4 days and took a little trip. I mean, we're American - we don't work on Sundays! We went to the last real "top" destination in China - Guilin. Its views are written about in poems and its scenery is famous among painters. The beautiful Li River that runs though the city is surrounded by strange limestone karsts that are all mostly covered in trees. The whole city was covered with trees of all kinds - it reminded me of Seattle - the Emerald City of China perhaps.Most of everything there was to do was climbing to the top of the peaks and seeing the river or going to the river and looking at the peaks. We did do a pretty cool night tour along the rivers and lakes through the city. The next day we took a 4 hour cruise down the river to a small town called Yangshuo. The scenery along the way was amazing. It was pretty touristy but the only real thing to do was nothing. So we did a lot of that...and some shopping too. We stayed there for one night then went back to Guilin. Part of what makes the scenes of Guililn so nice is that it's so wet. Our last day it poured but that didn't stop us from visiting out last places of interest - a cave full of stalactites. Apparently it was once used as a air-raid shelter but now its just full of pretty lights and ancient rock formations. All in all the trip was pretty relaxing and a nice break in scenery from PX. I put new pictures up at:
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/tarshor/ChinaGuilinAndYangshuo
The next adventure is of course this silly marathon and Beijing next weekend. Fingers crossed...
The weather here in Pingxiang is quite miserable and reminiscent of Seattle, which is slightly comforting, all at the same time. It rains almost every day and when it storms the rain comes from all directions and floods the roads. The skies are often gray but the rain clouds make it the most dreary. After the rain it often turns into a sauna and I am sure we are breeding half of the most dangerous/annoying bugs in the pools of water outside our doors. Despite being wet, sticky, and generally uncomfortable, the weather also makes me quite lazy as the idea of running in torrential rain inside a steam bath isn't high on my list. Speaking of running, my marathon is next weekend. I am excited to go but at the same time think I am perhaps not fulling realizing the incredible physical toll this will take on my body. I mean, its only 26.2 miles, how hard can it be? The Great Wall is only super steep in some places, not the whole route. I'll be fine...
Last week we had a 3 day holiday, which Andreana and I turned into 4 days and took a little trip. I mean, we're American - we don't work on Sundays! We went to the last real "top" destination in China - Guilin. Its views are written about in poems and its scenery is famous among painters. The beautiful Li River that runs though the city is surrounded by strange limestone karsts that are all mostly covered in trees. The whole city was covered with trees of all kinds - it reminded me of Seattle - the Emerald City of China perhaps.Most of everything there was to do was climbing to the top of the peaks and seeing the river or going to the river and looking at the peaks. We did do a pretty cool night tour along the rivers and lakes through the city. The next day we took a 4 hour cruise down the river to a small town called Yangshuo. The scenery along the way was amazing. It was pretty touristy but the only real thing to do was nothing. So we did a lot of that...and some shopping too. We stayed there for one night then went back to Guilin. Part of what makes the scenes of Guililn so nice is that it's so wet. Our last day it poured but that didn't stop us from visiting out last places of interest - a cave full of stalactites. Apparently it was once used as a air-raid shelter but now its just full of pretty lights and ancient rock formations. All in all the trip was pretty relaxing and a nice break in scenery from PX. I put new pictures up at:
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/tarshor/ChinaGuilinAndYangshuo
The next adventure is of course this silly marathon and Beijing next weekend. Fingers crossed...
Monday, April 28, 2008
CD250: Counting Down
Is there anything better than to be longing for something, when you know it is within reach? - Greta Garbo
Today marks day 250 in China and 69 days until I return to the great US of A. I also have 19 days until my marathon on The Great Wall in Beijing. There is only 1 more working day this week and 2 days until I head to the hot tourist destination of Guilin with Andreana for our "Labor Day" 4-day holiday.
I think first things first and I must make a solid disclaimer about my last blog. I mentioned a boy - Lio. I used the term - boyfriend. Most of you, my dear friends, are thinking like the true Americans I know you are. I can hear you. The wheels are turning something like this: "Rachael mentioned a boy in her blog. She never does that. She called him her bf (boyfriend). This must be a REALLY big deal...I wonder what one wears to a Chinese/American wedding..." You must remember, I have been living in China for the better part of a year and have taken to some Chinese ways of thinking. This is how the Chinese wheels turn: "Rachael referred to a boy in her blog as her boyfriend. She is living in China and he is Chinese. Ah...he's a "Chinese boyfriend". That is just like the boy/girlfriend I had in junior high school. He/she was great! His/her best friend passed my best friend a note from him/her asking me if I'd be his boy/girlfriend. We often talked on the phone on the weekend. It was totally serious - we "dated" for at least a week!" In layman's terms, while Lio is great people, he is Chinese people and our relationship isn't serious. In China, you are "dating" someone if they are of the opposite sex and you hang out with them or talk with them at any time outside of when you have to (such as class). Please forgive me for using this term so casually and not considering the heinous repercussions I'd have to face by doing so. Now, hopefully that issue is cleared up and I can move on.
While life in general is going just fine, I am ready to come home. Outside of school I am keeping busy with planning for my return to the West Coast, planning some last minute travels I want to do before I leave Asia, and training for my marathon. While I feel like my dedication to my training schedule is spotty, I ran 20 miles the weekend before last and made it all the way home. I was absolutely filthy as the route I chose took me to possibly the dirtiest little coal mine city I have seen and quite disgusting in general, but I did it. The feeling of finishing even that far was quite liberating. Too bad there was no fanfare or adoring race supporters at the end - just Andreana asking if I was finished running yet and ready for dinner. I wasn't sore the next day so that was a good sign as well. I have just about 3 weeks before I head to Beijing for my race - which is over 6 miles longer - but I am feeling pretty good about it. I just have to get the motivation up for 3 weeks.
I applied to San Diego (of course) and LA (God only knows why). They both got back to me about interviewing but I can't do so until I come back stateside. Right now the plan is to put all my eggs in the San Diego basket as I would really rather live there than LA. Hopefully I can get a job for this fall otherwise the plan is to substitute. The alternative is to work at Vons (the Safeway of Cali) and try to get whatever I can. At any rate, the plan is to be settled into SD in August. I am moving there with my best friend Craig. Yes, he's a boy. No, we are not getting married. No we are not dating nor plan to date at any time in the future. We are both looking forward to the sand, sun, and surf.
Andreana and I are taking advantage of our short work week and going to a city called Guilin on Thursday. It is considered one of the top attractions in all of China for its natural scenery. I will tell you more about that once I return. I usually have to work at the high school on the weekend but she and I are hoping that when I get time off we'll be able to do a little more exploring of the province we live in. We are the china making capital of the world after all!
Today marks day 250 in China and 69 days until I return to the great US of A. I also have 19 days until my marathon on The Great Wall in Beijing. There is only 1 more working day this week and 2 days until I head to the hot tourist destination of Guilin with Andreana for our "Labor Day" 4-day holiday.
I think first things first and I must make a solid disclaimer about my last blog. I mentioned a boy - Lio. I used the term - boyfriend. Most of you, my dear friends, are thinking like the true Americans I know you are. I can hear you. The wheels are turning something like this: "Rachael mentioned a boy in her blog. She never does that. She called him her bf (boyfriend). This must be a REALLY big deal...I wonder what one wears to a Chinese/American wedding..." You must remember, I have been living in China for the better part of a year and have taken to some Chinese ways of thinking. This is how the Chinese wheels turn: "Rachael referred to a boy in her blog as her boyfriend. She is living in China and he is Chinese. Ah...he's a "Chinese boyfriend". That is just like the boy/girlfriend I had in junior high school. He/she was great! His/her best friend passed my best friend a note from him/her asking me if I'd be his boy/girlfriend. We often talked on the phone on the weekend. It was totally serious - we "dated" for at least a week!" In layman's terms, while Lio is great people, he is Chinese people and our relationship isn't serious. In China, you are "dating" someone if they are of the opposite sex and you hang out with them or talk with them at any time outside of when you have to (such as class). Please forgive me for using this term so casually and not considering the heinous repercussions I'd have to face by doing so. Now, hopefully that issue is cleared up and I can move on.
While life in general is going just fine, I am ready to come home. Outside of school I am keeping busy with planning for my return to the West Coast, planning some last minute travels I want to do before I leave Asia, and training for my marathon. While I feel like my dedication to my training schedule is spotty, I ran 20 miles the weekend before last and made it all the way home. I was absolutely filthy as the route I chose took me to possibly the dirtiest little coal mine city I have seen and quite disgusting in general, but I did it. The feeling of finishing even that far was quite liberating. Too bad there was no fanfare or adoring race supporters at the end - just Andreana asking if I was finished running yet and ready for dinner. I wasn't sore the next day so that was a good sign as well. I have just about 3 weeks before I head to Beijing for my race - which is over 6 miles longer - but I am feeling pretty good about it. I just have to get the motivation up for 3 weeks.
I applied to San Diego (of course) and LA (God only knows why). They both got back to me about interviewing but I can't do so until I come back stateside. Right now the plan is to put all my eggs in the San Diego basket as I would really rather live there than LA. Hopefully I can get a job for this fall otherwise the plan is to substitute. The alternative is to work at Vons (the Safeway of Cali) and try to get whatever I can. At any rate, the plan is to be settled into SD in August. I am moving there with my best friend Craig. Yes, he's a boy. No, we are not getting married. No we are not dating nor plan to date at any time in the future. We are both looking forward to the sand, sun, and surf.
Andreana and I are taking advantage of our short work week and going to a city called Guilin on Thursday. It is considered one of the top attractions in all of China for its natural scenery. I will tell you more about that once I return. I usually have to work at the high school on the weekend but she and I are hoping that when I get time off we'll be able to do a little more exploring of the province we live in. We are the china making capital of the world after all!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)