Tampons and Sharpies

What do these seemingly unrelated items have in common other than their obvious similarity in shape?  They are the two prized possessions I bring back to China with me and beg others to use as filler/packaging peanuts if they are so kind to mail something to the Middle Kingdom anyway.

A dear friend of ours unfortunately left China in the spring to relocate back to Iowa.  I nearly wept when she offered her gigantic plastic tub of tampons to me just hours before we said goodbye.  You think I’m joking.  Honestly.  As I unpacked the colorful array of wrapped cotton tubes beneath my sink, I was overcome with what I can only describe as the deepest gratitude and love for my friend.  I sure will miss her, but she couldn’t have expressed her friendship in a more meaningful way.

Needless to say after the monster gift of tampons, I didn’t need to bring back many from the States this summer.  Which allowed me to pack even more Sharpies than expected.  Fine Point.  Ultra Fine Point.  Chisel Tip.  Look it up, they exist and I love each of them equally.  Black, lots of black…but also the color packs.  I got them all and they will be used and appreciated each time I replenish the supply in my classroom and around the house.  Check any drawer in our apartment and you’ll find one.  They are so handy and helpful.  Having my fingertips brush across a pointed, juicy (full of ink) Sharpie in the dark depths of an abandoned corner in the art room is always sure to brighten up my day.  The one clipped on my smock is vital to everyday art teacher survival and almost as important as the one in the kitchen drawer next to the forks.

So I know what you’re thinking.  Of all the things in all of the world that I could miss from the States while in China the past 2 years, this is all I’ve got?  My answer…yes.  You mean tampons and permanent markers don’t exist in China?  Kind of.  Yes, there is ONE brand of tampon here, but it can be hard to find and not of the quality or type that is likely comfortable for any woman.  (Sorry gentlemen for the topic, but it matters.)  As for permanent markers, yes China has them and I have bought all types, colors, and brands.  They typically end up not actually being permanent and washing away into a muddy smear when painted over or washed…or when uncapped in the moment of shear joy to use for the first time, they disappoint by being nearly out of ink or completely dry…jipped again by the friendly old lady at the art store!  Sharpies are reliable, bold, and above all else, PERMANENT.

To review our summer holiday, we spent awesome time with family and friends, ate some good Mexican/Thai/American/Spanish food, and drank plenty of microbrew beer.  I packed pretty much nothing but gifts to give away when we came to the U.S. and returned to China crossing my fingers that the stern Chinese customs guy wouldn’t confiscate my bag full of tampons and Sharpies…the only thing that stood between me and another harmonious year in China.

Chinese Changes

There are certain mannerisms and habits we have acquired during our 2 years in China that we often don’t notice until an outsider picks up on it and points it out to us.  For example, I was sitting outside of the café yesterday, chatting with Chen (part owner of the café) and Ralf (friend, foreigner, and fellow resident of Beilun for the past several years).  As I was talking to Chen in my broken Chinese and her broken English, Ralf interrupted me, “Maybeeee…” and chuckled to himself.  I gave him a strange, questioning look…what’s that about?  He was amused that I had picked up saying “maybeee” as a kind of space filler when speaking to the Chinese, as many of them do this when speaking English.  I laughed aloud…did I really do this?  Nooooo, I don’t do that.  So I continued talked to Chen and sure enough, the next sentence out of my mouth had a “maybeee…”.  I caught myself and we had a good laugh.  Maybe it seems like nothing too out of the ordinary, but there are plenty more.  While we haven’t worked our way into the public urination habits, Erich and I find ourselves doing plenty of other “Chinese” things that we rarely did two years ago.

One: Being pushy.  In a crowd here, you have to be aggressive.  Push through, make room where you want it, and have no concern for personal space.  If you don’t, you get left behind and end up more frustrated than you ought to be.  Yes, we still have manners and encourage queuing at the cash register or scales to weigh fruits/veggies, but it hasn’t quite caught on in China, so when in Rome…we’ve learned to hold our own, let’s just say that.

Two: Noises.  To tag onto the original story here, there are a lot of noises that the Chinese make to mean things like “yes”, “no”, “I’m listening/I understand”, etc that are just noises, not actual words.  I find myself and Erich using these in mid conversation with others.  I guess you could equate it with the “oh”, “okay”, “uh-huh” and “hmmm” in the States.  I also have adapted some of these noises that are used when confused, excited or surprised from my Korean and Chinese middle and high school students who are quite animated and can communicate an alarming amount of information by noise rather than words.

Three: Eating Habits and Manners.  There really are none here.  The only no-no I’ve experienced is not to place your chopsticks vertical in your food (it is a symbol of death).  Other than that, spit your food (peels, bones and other inedible parts) on the table, place your mouth to the bowl and shovel in or slurp, and eat from anyone’s plate…eating is extremely communal here.  We really enjoy the sharing of food and have come to like the practicality of the Chinese style of eating.  Erich has also come to use the Chinese style of toasting when out with friends.  Say some kind words and a thank you, clink glasses with everyone at the table (making sure the rim of your glass is lower than the person who you are toasting with…a sign of respect), then move on to another table and toast them…or if with a small group, continue toasting at regular intervals.  The local beer here is usually about 2% alcohol or less, which lends to high quantities of toasts and drinking until you actually feel any effect.

Four: Gift Giving.  It’s a very simple but important part of this culture.  People are very giving, but you have to do the same.  Someone comes to the café and brings a huge bag full of local fruits to share.  You pretend not to accept, say “no we couldn’t possibly take them”, compliment the gesture and after some time of this banter, you accept and eat and share with anyone around.  But then you must bring that person a gift of the same equivalent in the future.  Making sure it is not more extravagant or less significant.  Gifts are given for attending events, holidays and just because.  We’re still working on being better at this since we hate buying “stuff”, but fortunately fruit and food in general is a very acceptable and common gift in China, so we’re not bad at that.

Still having another year here, we’re sure there are more habits to come, some more noticeable than others…some that we will see and some that others will point out to us…some that will become more apparent when we leave the country and they don’t seem so “normal” anymore.

Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect $200

A day to mark in history: the day we unknowingly stumbled onto a Chinese naval base while on a bike ride and were detained, questioned, and locked down for 6 hours.  It’s like something you’d see on “Locked Up Abroad” but this time we really didn’t do anything wrong.

It all started when Erich, Matt and Kari (fellow teachers) and I decided we wanted to take a bike ride to the coast and try to get onto an island we saw on Google Earth.  It was a beautiful, sunny day…the first we’ve had in weeks without rain and I have the sunburn to prove it.  As usual, we quickly got off of the main roads to wander off the beaten path, through local villages…getting lost, turning around often, and problem-solving our way around highways and waterways.  We stopped for lunch at a mom and pop shop around 2pm to fuel up for the last stretch of the ride.  We could see the bridge to our island in the distance and confirmed with the restaurant owners the directions to our destination.  As we approached the water, we couldn’t figure a way to the island that didn’t involved a heavily trafficked highway/bridge that meant sudden death.  So we ventured toward a hilltop to try and find a good view and another possible way across the water.  After huffing and puffing our way to the top of the steep hill, we had to make a decision at the top: do we go back down and circle around the mountain to see what’s there or do we park our bikes and take a dirt path to see the view of the water and island from there.  This is where our day turned around.  Had we decided to go with option #1, we would have ridden halfway down the hill and seen the huge military base entrance that was there.  Instead, we locked the bikes up and began wandering through patch after patch of farmland before coming to an opening with a great view of the water, shipping ports and island we were scheming to visit.  We stood and talked and enjoyed the view for about 10 minutes, during which time we saw a farmer and waved to some guys looking at us from their window (remember these guys…they are why we encountered our next friends at the bottom of the hill).

Anyway, then we descended the hill back to our bikes only to be met by a black car and about 5 gentlemen in uniform telling us to please come with them.  HUH?  We looked to the left to see about 5 more men in uniform running towards us with shovels raised and ready to attack.  Really?  What was going on?  So we really had no choice but to be escorted by these men down the other side of the hill and into the military base.  The first man to talk to us had limited English and was polite but curious about who we were.  At this point, we knew what had happened and why we were there…we had been hiking on private Chinese military property.  It was like we were the people who had hiked over the Iraq/Iran border and were accused of bring spies/journalists in a classified area.  Not really that serious, but it’s the closest thing I can think of for now.

They walked us into a room and allowed us to sit together for about 5 minutes, finding out if we had cameras (I did but luckily hadn’t taken any photos all day), and then separated us into different rooms.  This is the fun part.  We sat isolated in these rooms until 9:30pm.  That’s about 6 hours of sitting alone with a variety of military guards standing at attention in front of you…just staring.  Occasionally, someone with a little English would come in and ask some questions.  Medial things like where are you from or small talk about being a teacher, having kids, and your hobbies.  We were told just to wait a little, wait a little and when we thought something might happen and there was talk or commotion among the guards, we were told to wait some more.  To avoid falling asleep and to make time go a little quicker, I practiced my Mandarin with the guards who would listen and reply, looked for Chinese characters I knew in a newspaper laying around, and stared out the window to the going’s on in the lot outside of the building.  At one point, I asked to go to the bathroom to stretch my legs.  On my way being escorted to the toilet, another military man handed me a drawing and told me that my husband had drawn it (in Chinese).  It was a sketch of one of the guards standing at attention.  It was actually really good and he asked if he could keep it…”sure, yes, of course, it’s your’s” I assured him with a smile.  At least I knew Erich was being entertained by drawing his captors.

At about 6:30, I was told I could eat dinner.  Really feeling like a prisoner now bring told when I could and could not get up, sit down, drink and eat, I told them no, I wasn’t hungry but thanks anyway.  He insisted and after a few minutes, he added “your friends will also eat with you”.  I quickly agreed.  It seemed like I had been bored to death for too long and after being alone in a room for 3 hours waiting for something to happen, this sounded like a better option after all.  So he led me into their kitchen where 4 separate tables had been set with feasts of Chinese food and seats had been placed strategically so that when we sat, no one would look at the others.  I sat at the table that seemed to have the most vegetables and waited to see a friendly face.  As Kari and Erich filed in, we laughed at the rediculouslness that we had gotten ourselves into.  Kari and I started to joke about the situation and were quickly told by one of the soldiers to be quiet and eat.  OK, roger that.  We just wanted to leave…so your wish is my command if it wil expediate the process, whatever that may be.  At this point, we still had no clue what was taking so long and when we asked, they only said “Wait a moment, Sorry”.  When Matt came in to join us, he hadn’t heard the warning to not talk, so he began chattering away.  Making jokes, asking questions and enjoying other English speakers.  He must’ve thought we were being rude to him because all we could do is muffle laughter and try to stay quiet while momentarily glancing at the guard to guess when Matt would get the same warning we did.  It never happened, but I think it was because no one responded to Matt.

At 7:00, one guard came in and said the translators were here and they needed to interview us individually.  I volunteered first…let’s get this over with.  They walked me into a room, closed the door and began asking questions about who I was, what I did for a job, who my husband was and what he did, the names and contact information for my boss, my boss’s boss and pretty much any other Chinese friends of mine, all of the places I’d been in China, why we were here, did we know where we were, did we know that this area was restricted military zone, did we regret our decision…the list went on and I answered easily and honestly.  After all, it was a genuine misunderstanding and we had nothing to hide.  I did suggest that they should have a sign or a fence where we entered the hill from the road.  The path looked like a hiking path and there was only farmland in view.  How were we to know?  They didn’t seem too receptive to the idea.

Later, I found out that they had also asked Kari similar questions, but had been more stern and serious with Matt and Erich, asking questions like, Who is your leader on the tri today?  Are you in the FBI/CIA?  What is your role in the military?  Why don’t you have a job (Erich)?  How do you live without income (Erich)?  Apparently women can not be spies so there is no need to take them seriously or consider their ability to be an FBI agent.  I was a little offended yet still relieved that I didn’t get these questions.

An hour later, I was taken to another room where Kari was and she was taken to be interviewed.  The new guard in this room was either much more friendly or as bored as we were and willing to bend the rules to make the evening more comfortable.  He initiated conversation with me, wanting to talk about America, sports, my job, and at one point (with paranoid and frequent glances down the hall to make sure the coast was clear), he asked me to teach him some yoga poses and we had a little class together.  Haha.  Much more calming and relaxed.  He let me get out my phone and I texted some friends about the insanity of my day.  He also gave me pen and paper (which I used to do some school work and write student narratives for report cards as I waited more).  But he always straightened up when another came into the room.

I got texts from Erich and Matt who were in the other rooms, apparently with other guards who decided to loosen up on us.  It was becoming more and more amusing as hour after hour passed, but also more and more alarming as we all began to come to terms that we’d likely be staying the night at this military base.  But at 9:30, our knight and shining armor arrived.  Lisa, our Chinese financial manager at the school pulled up in a school bus and they quickly shuffled us out of the building and onto the bus with our bikes.  We apologized one more time and thanked Lisa profusely for coming to help.  They had contacted her, among other Chinese staff at our school to find out more information about us.

And so ended our epic bike ride to the coast to visit the islands.  Best story I’ve had in a long time and we’re fine other than some lost hours of daylight sitting in isolation, jumping to conclusions about our fate in China.  I have a feeling it’s not over yet.  Our School Board director has already called me into her office for an early morning meeting and I can guarantee we’ve been red flagged in the Chinese system.  Our emails, phone calls and every move are under surveillance (more so than before even), and who knows what else.

So does this story make up for not blogging in over 2 months?

Mother Nature, Wo Ai Ni

If I could get paid for it, think I could blog solely about hiking, biking and trekking across China (and the rest of the world if you let me). There is something about breathing fresh air, sun shining on your skin and the serene silence of nature that gives me a high like I can’t describe. Today was one of those days. Our friend, Chen, asked me to go on a hike with her to see the spring trees (peaches and pears) in blossom. I couldn’t turn down the offer. As we headed towards a mountain park near our home that we often bike to, Jiu Feng Shan, I saw a sight like nothing I’ve seen at a mountain park before. Cars parked for 100’s of meters along the entrance and literally swarms of locals filing into the park. I guess we weren’t the only ones who thought we’d get out on this beautiful, sunny and clear day to see the blossoms!

Don’t get me wrong, I love the Chinese, but I wasn’t so excited about being elbow to elbow with a couple hundred of them as we hiked the paths “taking in the nature”. So I was thrilled when Chen suggested we head deeper into the mountains to another hiking path she knew. As we rode a bit further into the mountains, she showed me the small village where she was born, which was unfortunately being torn down (the whole thing) to make room for new development. Chen was born and raised in Beilun and has a lot of pride in local culture and sharing it with Erich and I often.

As we pulled onto a random street and parked the car, we walked through a little village and came to the entrance of another park with hardly anyone else there. So we hiked, or rather climbed, stair after stone stair, coming to an opening where people barbeque and pick tea. There was hill after hill of “cha shu” (tea trees), which aren’t quite ready for picking, but Chen assured that they would be soon. She grew up near these fields and would go to fields similar to this as a child to pick tea after school and during her free time in the spring and summer. As she told me more, she led me scrambling up the hill that had no path, only small tree after tree (more like bushes really) planted on a steep hill. At one point, we got stuck finding our way back down and had to slide a little ways between tea trees to another landing. Eventually we made it back to the trail and came to a fork. The few others we saw there went to the left, so we naturally opted to go left and see what no one else was.

Up we went, and then some more, and when we thought we had reached a peak, we went up more from there. It was a good steep climb made even better by the fact that we saw almost NO ONE the entire way up! Maybe this doesn’t seem like a big deal, but let me refer you back to paragraph #1 and the swarms of people entering the other park. Let me also remind you that we live in China. There is no such thing as being alone with 1.3 billion other people living in this country. So this made the journey upward even more enjoyable. Just me, Chen and the great outdoors. There weren’t any peach or pear blossoms on this hike at this park, but honestly, it didn’t matter. The peacefulness of it all was better than any flower on any tree.

After about 2 hours of working the ol’ legs and several false alarms of getting to the top, wo men dao le (we arrived)! I had to help Chen overcome her fear of heights to stand on the rocky peak and enjoy the view, but we could see for miles and miles. We walked along the peak for a bit, passing a few other people finally, and then found a path back down. Along the way, we came to a point where we could see the peak of the other mountain park (the one with all of the people). I should have taken a photo, but it looked like sprinkles on top of an ice cream cone. TONS of little dots of all colors scattered about the peak, poking out of the trees. Boy, was I glad to not be one of them.

We scrambled back down, discussing everything from the cost of tuition in universities across the world to how to walk down a steep incline so you don’t slip and fall to Chen’s proposed curriculum to make me learn Chinese characters faster. Before we knew it, we were back at the car, heading out of the park. Just another hike really, but on such a perfect day with just the right person.

West Capital

Erich and I traveled to Nanjing this weekend. The trip was initiated by a conference that I attended and we thought, why not Erich join and relax/explore somewhere new too? So we took the 5 hour train ride to China’s old, Western capital city andhere are a few things to share that we found fun and interesting (almost none of which you would find in a guidebook). Really, it’s the little things that entertain us.

1) On the train ride there, upon exploring the reading materials in the backs of the seats, we stumbled upon this image. Of course I get what they were trying to convey. However, the placement of that watering can is not well thought out. On top of that, it doesn’t help that on the average day walking around the streets of Beilun you will see your fair share of people relieving themselves in the middle of a busy public street in this exact position. It kept us amused for a good 10 minutes of the train ride…then we had to find other ways to entertain ourselves for the other 4 hours and 50 minutes.

2) We love the subway. Any city we go to in China that has one, we ride it often and wish there were more around here. It makes getting around so easy and much faster/cheaper than taxis. Plus, you always make interesting conversations with locals who want to practice their English. We were offered a small gift (something that looked like a wooden ornament) this time, but kindly turned it down. Anyway, Nanjing had a subway system that was very small and less crowded compared to those of Beijing or Shanghai, but we took this video of a typical ride on the line. Trust me, this is not at all crowded compared to what we’ve experienced in the bigger cities. We’ll have to record video in Shanghai next time we go. Have you seen the YouTube videos of subway security literally packing crowds in like sardines? Kind of like that. Erich likes to play, “who showered this morning?” by sniffing out culprits.

3) After the conference, we did findtime one day to visit ZhongShan park. It was HUGE and very beautiful/peaceful by Chinese standards. It was the first time I saw tents and picnics set up like we’re used to in the States. This park is also the site of Sun Yat-Sen’s mausoleum as well as the burial site for several other famous Chinese leaders. Sun Yat-Sen is the “Father of the Nation” and was China’s first official President in 1912. I guess you could think of him as China’s George Washington? Anyway, there was a building on a large hill that you could climb up with several hundred other Chinese tourists to pay your respects. So up we went, step by step to the top. Along the way up, at the top and down, we must’ve been stopped by at least 10 groups who wanted photos with us. This is fairly common practice and we typically joke around with them that it’s 5 yuan per photo. After several peace signs, arms around each other and “qie zi”’s (sounds like “cheese” when you say it, but translates to mean “eggplant”), my cheeks hurt. Who knew we’d be the local celebrities of Sun Yat-Sen’s final place of rest? Also at the top, we saw these gnarly trees that were pretty cool looking. After a closer look, we concluded that the top of the tree was actually the root system of one tree turned upside down and grafted to the trunk of another tree. So essentially you had the two bottoms of two different trees grown together to create these new odd and fun looking trees.

In all, it was a fun and restful weekend away. Oh, and the conference was okay too J

Time of Your Life

Have you ever used this phrase? You’re at a point in your life where things can’t seem to be better, life is treating you well, and you are happy as a clam just to be living your life each day. Erich and I said this a lot in Colorado. It was the first time we had lived in the same state, let alone the same house. We both had jobs that we loved and worked with colleagues we called friends. The Rockies were outside our window and we took advantage of the great outdoors as much as we could…hiking, biking, snowshoeing, skiing, camping. We were surrounded by micro breweries, local foods, and live music…life was good.

Then we moved toChina. And before we did, I distinctly remember having a conversation with Erich that included thoughts like, “You know, it’s going to be hard for life to get better than this. We are at the peak of our lives here in Colorado. Why are we leaving again?” And we were right. In that moment in time, we felt like we had it all. So why were we leaving? I think we’re both “gut” people…when something feels like it needs to happen, don’t question or analyze. Do. We live with our instinct and our hearts, which isn’t always a good thing, but it has worked for us thus far in life. So we left Colorado because there was something inside both of us saying that there was more out there for us somewhere.

When the dotted line was signedto come to China, we both still thought…really, China? It was the last place we thought we’d end up, but we decided to go with it. Some of the best things in our lives have happened because we least expected or planned for them. Couldn't hurt to test that theory half way around the world.

And here we are now, amazed that we can have conversations about our life here and say…no THIS is the time of our lives. Colorado was outstanding, but this is a different kind of outstanding. Erich owns his own café and community center. I work with the most wonderful students on the planet. Our friends, we consider family. We can travel all over Southeast Asia and China. We have the opportunity to live in a place SO different from our home country and consistently question our own values and thoughts on life. We are staying a third year for many reasons, but I think one of them is because there’s nothing else that seems likeit could possibly be better for us right now.

So is it the place or the person that determines your state of satisfaction and overall contentment with life? Have Colorado and China been “the best times of our lives” because of the places we were, or is it because of our outlook and approach to life? Either way, we count ourselves lucky to be able to feel this way. I guess the true test will come when we decide to leave China and see if this pattern of good luck in life experiences follows us to the next place…

Ni duo da le?

"How Old Are You?" My friend, June, asked. Having just celebrated my birthday, I was fairly sure I was 28 years old. I was corrected today. I am actually 30. Who knew? We were sitting in the café, discussing our Chinese zodiac signs and ages, and upon saying I was a 28 year old mouse, June began doing some mental math and was quick to let me know nicely that indeed, I was wrong. Yes, I am a mouse according to Chinese astrology. This is based on the year I was born. Easy math since there are only 12 animals on the Chinese zodiac which cycle and all the Chinese know the order so can quickly figure out what “you are” by working backwards from the current year in multiples of 12.

Anyway, back to why I am 30 according to the Chinese. June began explaining that when you are born, the Chinese believe that you turn one. Okay, I thought, this isn’t too uncommon. Most of the Korean students at my school go by the same rule, so when asked their age, they have a “Korean” age and an “other” age. But where did that extra year come from? The Chinese also believe that on Spring Festival (Chinese New Year), you celebrate another birthday (along with 1.3 billion other Chinese citizens who also celebrate their birthday during Spring Festival). SO, since I turned 1 year old upon being born, when Spring Festival came in January of 1985, I became 2 years old with the rest of the country. Then when my real birthday came soon after on February 7 in ’85…can you guess? Yup that was actually my 3^rd birthday. Silly me. Haha. After that, the birthdays stayed the same, but it all added an extra 2 years to my age. Confused yet? Yeah, it took June a few times to walk me through the math and calendar to understand the logic behind it all. It makes sense when you look from the perspective and traditions of Chinese culture.

Just when you think you know everything…

Sticky Backs and Kidney Cures

Scams are everywhere. Even in my small town of Beilun, China (600,000)…well small by Chinese standards. Our town is incredibly safe. I have never felt more safe in any other country I’ve traveled. There is very little crime that I see or hear of here and when I do it is usually a bike stolen or shotty construction, that’s it. But nonetheless, we are a growing community with very few foreigners, so when opportunity strikes to take advantage and make a quick yuan (buck) sometimes people do. With that said, I have a story about my dear friend and a scam she encountered on her wayto the grocery today.

After working all day on school work, she decided it was time for a stroll to RT Mart (our local grocery). Sunny day, brisk winter air, and a smile on her face I’m sure, she saw a small group of monks dressed up at a major intersection as she approached. One had a drum, playing the beat while the others hung around. She crossed the street and one of them approached her and spoke a little English. They grabbed her hand and began to read her palm (or at least she thinks…at this point communication was all in Mandarin). Then they showed her some little pamphlets, did some hand gestures towards her back and left her totally confused as to what they were getting at. So she politely smiled and began to plan her departure from this weird show to the grocery. Suddenly, one of the “monks” pulled up the back of her sweater and stuck two pieces of paper on her back. The papers were covered with a super sticky tar-like substance, so when she pulled and started to feel them, they were stuck. She immediately called a Chinese friend to ask what was going on and get advice onwhat to do. Her friend told her this was a scam and to walk away because they would be asking for money soon. Sure enough, the so-called monks were now showing my friend the hand signal for the number 6, “liu”. They wanted her to pay 6 yuan (about 1 USD) for the “help” they just gave her. She refused and walked away. After following her for a short distance, they gave up and headed back to the intersection as my friend went on to the grocery in shock and disbelief. What just happened and why her, oh why her?

After a quick trip into the grocery with the sticky papers still on her back, she came to the café to share her story and get a little help removing the odd papers. She explained it all and after another friend and I scrubbed most of the sticky stuff off of her back (seriously the stuff was like tar), we asked another Chinese friend about the papers and overall experience. We were told that this was a scam for the people who were dressed as monks to make some money. They read your fortune and tell you they can bring good health to you by placing the sticky papers on your kidneys and then once they do (with or without your permission) they charge you money. Strange but true. I have never seen or heard of this before, so was in disbelief that it just occurred less than a mile away.

My friend has a tremendous sense of humor so told us this in the midst of laughter. I can’t help but imagine this going down in the U.S. I see an arrest and charges somewhere in that scenario. Such an odd violation of personal space. Luckily my friend only suffered from a bruised ego and a sticky back, but to me it kind of signifies the end of something I held so dearly in my town. I don’t know what to call it…Trust? Genuineness? Respect? Of course this is the exception, not the rule. There are so many helpful, caring, and generous people here who just want to assist you, talk to you, and be friendly to a foreigner. But I guess now I must admit, that like anywhere else, there are people out there with the wrong intentions who are willing to take advantage of any opportunity to make some quick money…even in Beilun.

So next time I am walking to the grocery, I will guard my back…tuck my shirt into my pants…whatever it takes to avoid a sticky back and a sequel to this blog post J Thank you unnamed friend, for allowing me to share your story...

Knitters Unite

I had my birthday this past week (thanks for all the emails and facebook wishes). I thought about blogging about it, but I really don’t like celebrating my own birthday (although Erich and my friends in China did a wonderful job surprising me with a vegetarian potluck party). So that’s all I’ll say about the birthday…because I’m much more excited about talking about my new hobby…knitting! J

Seriously. Itall started when I found some needles and wool in the art room and wished I had use for them. I asked my Canadian friend, Line, if she knew anything about knitting and her eyes lit up! We began making plans to purchase more supplies, and after talking about it to other friends, found that there was a whole group of people who knew how to knit. It was our job to unite the knitters of Beilun! So we met one Sunday after ordering needles galore and wool of many colors and thicknesses. I was surprised at the things my friends had made…gloves, leg warmers, hats, sweaters, socks and of course scarves. They all looked store bought and I was immediately inspired to learn.

We also had another source of inspiration. A friend we had made this year, Lisa Carducci (also an internationally published author who has lived in China for over 20 years), has been collecting winter coats and accessories for children in the minority cultures/provinces of China who need the added warmth but cannot afford it. She also provides funds for education for many of these children…a truly amazing person. Google her and read one of her books. Anyway, in our imaginations, our little knitting circle would knit until our fingers fell off to give these little ones some warm winter clothes. But realistically, Line is working on a pattern for a durable, warm scarf/hat that will last and be simple enough to make a lot of. Next year, we hope to mail a bunch of knitted goods to Lisa and the kids. Line and Kari (fellow knitter and Nursery teacher) are leaps and bounds ahead of me and have been making some beautiful and complicated things. As for me, I have successfully completed 2 scarves and am currently learning socks J Baby steps, but I am getting better with each thing I make.

So every Sunday at 4:00, we meet at Cup O’ Joe in front of the fire place, with mugs of tea or glasses of wine and knit away as we chat, laugh, pull apart mistakes, and teach one another new stitches. It has become something I look forward to all week. I knit at home and it is a relaxing escape from typing on the computer and lesson planning. But there is something about being in the company of good friends with a shared interest…bonding over something so simple and ending the evening with a big hug and smiles all around. In the States, they call it “stitch and bitch”, right? There was a recent resurgence of knitting and crafting when I was leaving that I loved. It’s a very authentic way of creating art that is practical and carrying on a tradition that has been passed down through families and friends over generations. Being able to literally “warm” someone with something you made is pretty cool and I am sometimes amazed at the things I see knitted here. Makes you look at the racks of winter hats and scarves differently when you go shopping now… “oh, I can make that…”

As we sit and knit, we have also struck up all kinds of conversation with other customers at the café as well. First, there are all of the Chinese women who come in and stare to see that the foreigners can knit. So many women here knit…you see them in storefronts or shops knitting away between customers. So when they come across our little group, they often ask to knit a row or two, learn a new stitch, or just want to praise you on your skills (even though most of them were at my level when they were under the age of 10). And then there are all of the European and British men who hang out at the café that reminisce about how their mothers and grandmothers taught them to knit when they were young or how they created some random knitted project in school as a child. I guess it’s like riding a bike, you never really forget. They even use the terminology as they poke fun at our knitting group…knit one, purl one…untangling our wool for us and asking to try on the finished pieces J We even joked (but are somewhat serious) about coming up with a knitting club name and creating little clothing tags to sew onto our knitted work once finished…it’s all definitely “Made in China”. So we’re open to any creative suggestions…

Time Off

What do you take time off of work to do? Vacation, care for a sick relative, attend a conference, dentist appointment? All of the above I imagine. I doubt your answer included anything about terminating a pregnancy, which is why I was taken a bit by surprise when recently a Chinese friend of mine gave this as her answer for taking 2 weeks off of work. Before I expand, note that I am not interested in pro-life/pro-choice debates...it's not about that. I have my opinions and others have there's...I respect that even when I don't agree. It's more about the fact that in my culture this stirs controversy and in Chinese culture it is just a part of life. There is a one-child policy. If you do not have the financial stability to pay the tax/fee for having a second child, there really is no other option. I researched and found that an abortion costs about $88 here, which is not cheap by Chinese standards, but it’s affordable and the operation is standard procedure…about 13 million are done in China alone each year. And although statistics ranged depending on the sources I checked, about 35%-50% of women in China who have one abortion have at least one more in their lifetime.

With that in mind, it made me wonder about birth control here. I have heard from a foreign friend that one of the primary forms of birth control besides condoms is IUD in China, but I don't know what percentage of women even use this. From what I can gather, China seems to be on the fringe of a “sexual revolution” where it is becoming more acceptable to have casual sex, have sex at a younger age, and express sexuality in the way you dress and act. But I’m not sure about the education of it all..are the coming generations informed about STD’s, sexual health, and the like? Why are there so many abortions? I wonder if it is cheaper to get an abortion than to pay for a year of birth control? Does health insurance (for those that even have it) cover and make birth control a priority? I know my Chinese health plan does not include or cover the cost of any birth control. Is there a stigma against those who use birth control? I wouldn't think so in a country where family planning is such a big deal. So many questions the more I consider this topic.

But back to my friend. It was no secret really. My Chinese girlfriends openly told me, although she did not want to discuss it with Erich. But that is more about the social standards of Chinese culture than the issue of abortion. Women here tend to mainly hang out with women and men with men. Even my younger Chinese friends will invite only girlfriends to movie, dinner or to hang out...the men hang out separately somewhere else. (It’s not an issue of one sex being more superior to another…communism emphasizes that the women contribute and work as hard as the men and are awarded the same benefits. Just because you are a man or woman doesn’t mean you can’t contribute to the betterment of society as a whole. Men and women share that responsibility. That’s a whole different blog though. I digress.) So the fact that the news was shared openly with me but whispered in front of Erich was more of a reflection of social interactions in general in China rather than a reflection of any embarassment or shame in having the procedure done.

So I wonder…would my friend (who already has one child, so would be breaking the law to have a second) have the baby if this wasn’t a legal issue? Does that thought even pass through her mind? In the States, the concern is for women’s rights and choice. Pro-choice advocates defend a woman’s right to choose if abortion is right for her and to decide what happens within her own body. Pro-lifers are concerned about the rights and choices of the unborn baby. And here in China where the act of abortion is a non-issue, the issue seems to be more centered on “can the government force abortions?” A complete 180. It’s not about, “Are abortions right or wrong?”, it’s about “Should abortions be the choice of the individual or the society?” Right now, it’s the latter…and an entirely different issue of women’s rights. In the States women struggle to have the right to terminate a pregnancy by their own choice, in China, women struggle to have the right to birth multiple babies by their own choice. It’s an interesting shift in perspective for Erich and I as we consider our friend’s time-off.

Celebrations

Our first Spring Festival in China. What a wonderful week it's been. Last year, we opted for a week on the beach with friends in the Philippines so missed out on all of the festivities related to Chinese New Year. Now that we've been in the country long enough to make friends that are like family, own a cafe, and speak more of the language, we were looking forward to experiencing China's biggest holiday.

First off, China's New Year is based on the lunar calendar, rather than the Western solar calendar. So the date of the new year changes annually. This year, it fell on January 22/23. We were invited to the home of Chen, one of the other owners of Cup O' Joe to celebrate with her family. Chinese New Year is not much different from Christmas in the ways that we all celebrate by visiting family, eating a lot of food and just hanging out, watching TV, playing games and enjoying time off from work. So we were honored to be invited into her home on the most important night of the holiday.

We arrived at her apartment with Chinese sweets and jars of nuts in hand as gifts (you should see the mounds of nuts/seeds for sale at the stores here this time of year...cashews, pistachios, almonds, watermelon seeds, sunflower seeds...they are a very popular and traditional gift to give and food to offer at your home for Spring Festival). Chen was quick to apologize for the temperature of her house (about the same as outside, only no wind chill :)) and insisted we put on slippers and perhaps keep our coats on. Smells of homecooked Chinese cuisine wafted in from the kitchen and we went in to check it out and offer to help with no avail. There was some arguing over who would sit where and after persisting that Chen and her husband should take the seats of honor at the head of the table, finally we all sat down. Chen does not eat red meat and knew I was vegetarian (or as she puts it..."You...no animal"), so there were plenty of veggie options...tofu, mushrooms with greens, noodles and cabbage, da tou cai (literally "big head vegetable"), green beans, glutinous rice balls, cherries and kumquats...and then there was the meat, oh the meat...fish and egg, chinese chicken soup, dried shrimps, and more.

We sat and ate for a bit before Chen was back in the kitchen, cooking up more dishes and bringing out plate after heaping plate. They came out in courses and just when we thought we could eat no more, an empty dish would be replaced with a new hot treat to try. In the midst of all of the initial eating and cooking, Erich and I noticed Chen's husband and son anxiously looking at their watches and then the TV in the other room. We had heard that at 8pm on New Year's Eve in China, there was a nationwide broadcast that everyone watched. It seemed that our late dinner was about to coincide with the kickoff of the show and they didn't want to offend their guests. So Erich and I asked if it would be okay to move the table into the living room so that we could watch the program. They smiled wide at the suggestion and had the whole feast moved in front of the TV within seconds :) So there we sat for the next 4 hours, watching Chinese entertainment at its best...acrobats, musicals, opera, comedy skits, singers, dance numbers. Most of which was easy enough to understand and enjoy with our low level of Mandarin skills, but Chen's family was happy to translate the especially funny or poignant parts. As the program played, we ate more, drank some homemade family alcohol that was 3 years in the making, laughed, shared stories and cultural curiosities, and shot fireworks out of the window as the rest of the neighborhood was doing.

As the countdown began, we all went to the window and watched as thousands of fireworks were set off around our town. (The same types of fireworks that we set off in the states, only there are no permits or special licenses needed here. They are sold on the streets to children/adults, set off as you walk down the sidewalk and pretty much a part of daily life in China...the multitude of them at this moment was just amazing.) This video is the view from our apartment building at midnight. This fireworks show went on as far as the eye could see...it seemed that every family had purchased 1,000 fireworks and all set them off within a 30 minute time frame. I especially like Line's footage of the morning after...such a peaceful contrast to the night before...haha. Thanks to our friend Line for lending me the link since I only took photos that weren't so great of all the fireworks. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bE7qRFuqAZg&feature=autoshare

We stuck around for a bit after midnight, toasting to the hosts and to a prosperous New Year and getting invited to celebrations for Chun Jie next year with their family again, before bundling up, shooting off one more set of fireworks, and walking home. It may have been the bitter cold that evening, but our faces were frozen in large smiles as we left to go home...a memorable first Chinese New Year with our growing family here. Xie Xie Chen and Family.

Chun Jie/Spring Festival

It's the middle of winter...I'm seeing snow on Facebook posts, scarves are being knitted at Cup O' Joe, mulled wine is brewing, and the season of long underwear is among us, but in China we are about to celebrate Chun Jie (Spring Festival)...or "Chinese New Year" as the rest of the world seems to call it. The Chinese base their New Year on the Lunar calendar, so it does not correspond to Western New Year and in fact Dec. 31/Jan.1 in China is just like any other day of the year here. Last year, we went to the Philippines for Chun Jie, soErich and I are pretty excited to experience our first Spring Festival in Beilun over the next few weeks.

As with every day we've lived in China, we expect to hear the fireworks going off in celebration. But we've been told that during the days of/before/after Chun Jie that they will be going of at all hours of the night...continuously. It does not surprise me...the Chinese love their fireworks and they are set off to celebrate and "scare away the bad/bring in the good" at all occasions...weddings, openings of stores, births, ground-breaking for construction, birthdays...you name it and if there is reason to celebrate, there will be fireworks. Mostly the HUGE rounds of firecrackers are set in the middle of the road or parking lot and let rip! It still shocks me tosee people and cars zoom by who seem not to notice the gun-shot-like firingoccurring at their side. Maybe we will get some of our own and set off in celebration of the year of the dragon :)

There are somany traditions associated with this holiday, the largest and most celebrated of the Chinese year. We are constantly learning more and more about how the Chinese from different regions celebrate. Mostly, it sounds like Christmas in the States (minus the Christianity). Everyone gets off work and school for 2-4 weeks, they travel to hometowns to be with family, and everyone eats, drinks, watches TV and enjoys each other's company especially for New Year's Eve and New Year's Day (this year on Jan. 22 and 23). There are traditional foods specific to different regions and families. We were given a rice/corn based noodle to cook in a soup on New Year's Day from a Chinese friend...it will bring good health and prosperity. We're planning on having friends and Cup O' Joe staff who couldn't go home/are alone over to our place to make dumplings and some other foods on the 22/23. And I'mhoping to find a recipe or a place to buy "ba bao fan" (eight treasures rice), a sweet rice dessert stuffed with 8 "treasures" like dates, plums, seeds and cherries...one of my favorite Chinese foods, which happens to also be very traditionally eaten this time of year...mmmmm. Looking forward to this Chinese style holiday feasting :)

Today, wehad friends from the local community center come by to wish us "Xin Nin Kuai Le" (Happy New Year) and gave us the traditional "fu" posters and red lanterns to hang on our front door. "Fu", pronounced "foo" (not the disrespectful American "F. U."), means good luck/good fortune. The Chinese hang the fu characters on their door this time of year to bring in good fortune to their household for the New Year. Just in time too...we had taken down our Christmas tree and decorations the week before :)

Beyond the fact that we have another week off of school, I am eager to be out and celebrate Chun Jie with some of our Chinese friends who will be around for the holiday. Video and photos of the celebrations are sure to come!

Back in Time

We've just returned from an amazing trip to Guilin/Yangshuo/Longji, China and I wish I had the time to blog about all of the fun and adventures we had over our 11 days. Highly recommend. We forgot how much we love being outside, exploring and biking/hiking...which we did every day over the holiday. Since Xmas/New Year are not traditional Chinese holidays, and it is the middle of winter, there were little to no tourists and we basically had all of the trails, mountains, rivers, and rice terraces to ourselves. A typical day consisted of being mostly outside and only coming in to eat or sleep...it really made us miss living in a place like Colorado where you can be active and outdoors all year 'round.

We felt like time travelers, in more ways than one. First, since we traveled south, the weather was somewhat warmer (in the 40's-50's) so we experienced some autumn-like weather and scenery. I loved the colors in the leaves falling as we hiked around. It always seems like the fall season comes and goes so quickly wherever we live and that I miss the colors changing. So this was a perfect step back in time to sit back, relax and enjoy the refreshing, crisp fall air and natural beauty.

During our favorite part of the trip we also seemed to travel back in time to days when life was more simple, technology was limited and self-sustainability is key. Upon arriving in the Longji Rice Terraces, we were dropped by the bus at a gate surrounded by 70-something year old ladies in traditional dress, offering to porter your bags through the hillside on their backs. We threw our packs on, politely declined the offer, and viewed another Chinese couple pay one of the ayis ("aunti") to carry their luggage and 3 year old daughter in her bamboo basket. We were told there was no road, only a footpath to get further into the villages among the rice terraces. So we hiked in, up green-ish stones, around enormous rice terraces, through the mist of the winter fog. And 45 minutes later, we reached our village and a place to stay...a wooden guesthouse, kind of built like a reverse rice terrace...smaller on bottom and each floor above getting gradually wider. It was built in a traditional method, using only wooden pegs to join the lumber, no nails or screws in the foundational structure of the building.

We checked in for about $12/night and headed up the creaky stairs to our room, which had large, traditional wooden windows looking out onto the rice terraces...breath-taking. Since peak season is in the warmer months, and everything was pretty traditional here there was no insulation in the building. We found a hole in the wooden wall that had been repaired with a piece of duct tape...all that separated us from the great outdoors :) Needless to say, after some hikes in the now winter-like weather (we had snow flurries and ice one day), it didn't take us long to find the "xiao kou" or small fire/grill in the family's kitchen. So we would sit around the open fire in the corner of their kitchen with the Chinese family that lived there...adding wood, peeling garlic, practicing our Mandarin, and eating...as we dethawed from a hike or passed the evening hours when it was dark and you couldn't go anywhere. This, I think, was my favorite part of the trip. We really felt like a part of their family in that kitchen and they welcomed us as such. We had a taste of real life in the countryside as we shared time with them...and during this time of year, it was lived around the fire...source of heat and food. We saw and appreciated the time and effort of preparing a meal in a place where a 45 minute uphill hike on foot was necessary to get anything from outside of the small village. They picked their dinner from the garden in their backyard and slaughtered the chicken walking around the front door. During the days, clothes were mended and new designs sewn on them...at night, meals cooked and stories told...all around the fire. Erich and I would hike around the countryside all day until our toes or fingers were numb, then knock on a wooden door and ask to come in to a random stranger's home to sit around the fire and warm up...and they were all so happy to share the warmth they could provide along with tea or snacks and broken conversation. The simplicity of it all was alluring to us. Part of me thinks that had we gone here first rather than last on our trip, we might've stayed the whole time there.