This past weekend

I think I'm probably far enough removed from the situation to be able to laugh about it now, so I will tell you the story! This past weekend, Stan and I got invited to an overnight trip with some former students to a place called Lingshan. It's just outside of Hangzhou and some of Stan's former students at Shuren University asked us to come. We were told the cost would be 75 yuan. We didn't think that was too bad, and we wanted to see them, so we said yes!

In preparation for the two days we would be gone, we looked up the forecast for Saturday and Sunday. Both days had a 100% chance of rain all day. The trip consisted of hiking up and down a mountain and going into caves. Obviously, we would not be getting wet for the cave part, but for the rest, we would. So, Stan called Aileen (the one who invited us) and asked her if they were planning on going through with the trip if it rains. She said, "Rain or shine, we are going." So, here we go... since we live in Xiasha this year, we had an hour and a half commute to our old school, Shuren. So, we got up early and headed that way...pouring down rain. The thing about rain here is that you are always in it. You don't have a car you can get into and run away from the rain...you're just in it and that's that. So, I started off the trip with a good attitude, knowing I couldn't change anything about my circumstances, and just tried to have fun!

The first part of the trip went rather well, considering all the rain. We got on the bus and drove up to this area where a lot of people were cooking bar-b-q style. So, the students we were with pulled out all their food and began cooking as well. It was just hilarious because you could tell almost none of them had ever done this before. Some of them didn't even know how to open an aluminum foil box. I'm not making fun, it was just a funny situation to be in. They were having a blast whether the food caught on fire or not! And it did. They got the hang of it later on and it was pretty good, we were just concerned they weren't getting the mean cooked all the way...



Anyway, after we ate, I went to find the bathroom. It was around the corner and up some stairs. Keep in mind it's still raining. I got to the top of the stairs and there was a mossy patch I didn't see and I tripped and scraped up my leg. Bummer, but it wasn't that bad.

After everything was all cleaned up from lunch, we headed down the mountain (stairs- slippery from the rain and moss). We didn't get to see much on the way down, for fear of falling on my face, but we made it down, rain and all! This is where we went inside the cave. It was cool, but the one thing that is disappointing about natural things in China is that they always add something that isn't natural to the mix to make it more "beautiful". They added a walkway and some cement pools for the water to filter in. We got to the "end" of the cave and were told we were going to climb 36 flights of stairs up to the top. So we did, and it sure did feel like it too! Once we got to the top, we climbed down the mountain outside to get back to where we came from. Then it was time to go back to the hotel. We walked about 1/4 to 1/2 a mile to the hotel. Everyone found their rooms and got settled in. I pulled out my comfy clothes and they were all wet. :( So sad. So I laid them out to dry (which didn't do much good. Anyway, we were all milling about when one of the girls said, "Stan, there is nothing to eat. We didn't bring anything and there are no restaurants. What should we do?" As if we planned this thing? This is how the rest of the conversation went:

Stan: "Well, hmmmm. Can we cook something?"
Girl: "There is no supermarket."
Stan: "Hmmmm"
Girl: Blank Stare
Girl: "What will you do?"
Stan: "I don't know. What will you do?"
Girl: "I don't know, there is no food." Blank stare.
Stan: "Hmmm...."(Looks at me. Shrugs his shoulders.) "I guess I'll see if we can find some food."

So Stan, Aileen, a boy named Orange and I went to search for food. We walked for a bit and found some people cooking in what looked like their home. The students who were with us asked the people if there was a restaurant anywhere near. The people said, "I don't know, go that way." And pointed down the road. They live there and they don't know. Ok. So, we finally came upon what looked like another house and asked them and they said, "Yeah, this is a restaurant!" They led us back in through their house (or boarding house...not quite sure) to the restaurant. It was cracking me up because it was just such a funny experience. We got food in our bellies and Aileen called the other students, but they didn't seen interested. So they just snacked on stuff.

I feel like I'm leaving something out...oh yeah, the beds. I think I might have been in such shock over this experience that I didn't take any pictures of the room we slept in. So you're going to have to imagine what the bed felt like: Imagine a table with a comforter on top of it and a blanket to cover up with. That's it. Don't let your imagination run wild, because that's all there was! There was a dog that barked until 3 or 4 in the morning. I had my headphones in and I could still hear that dog! One time, as soon as the dog quick barking Stan started snoring. haha! It was like something off of a sitcom! I'm jealous of Stan because he can sleep just about anywhere! :)

All in all, it was just another story to add to the book we have of unusual Chinese experiences. I hope you enjoyed the story and I'm sorry I don't have many pictures. Thanks for reading! I love you all! Don't forget to think about me in China!

The Thing is...

So here's the thing...about living in another country for an extended period of time. The thing is, the Chinese people do things which seem so incredibly different from the way I do things. I get irritated with it, and then I convince myself that ALL of the people of China do EVERYTHING differently. I am quick to judge, and I become less objective. It's difficult for me to stay objective, because after being here for a while I have embraced this culture, but I have also embraced my own even more. (You'll probably think I'm a horrible person after reading this blog, but I would like to be transparent here). So, the other day I saw a girl eating an ice cream cone and for some reason I thought she was eating it the wrong way. I thought, "She doesn't know how to eat an ice cream cone." Instantly I wanted to smack my mouth because I completely and totally judged her based on appearances, AND it was about an ice cream cone for cryin out loud!

The other thing is...not speaking the language but being expected to is frustrating. Me, Stan, and Kevin (don't know Kevin? Click here) have tutors but we've only met with them a couple times. Short story: The other day I was sitting at the front of the classroom. It was break time in between classes and I was looking down. I heard the word for "teacher" said in Chinese and I looked up. Two students were standing to the side of me, both boys. One of them said a long string of Chinese words to me and set a packet down in front of me. The packet had only Chinese characters written in it and it was about 8 pages thick. One of the boys kept gesturing to the paper and looking at me. I looked at the back to see if there was a place I needed to sign. Nope. So I told him I couldn't read it. He spoke more only Chinese. Then he laughed. Then he said, "You...a...can'ta...uhh...uhh..." More laughter. (Laughter is common when they are nervous.) I said, "kan bu dong." Which roughly means, "I can't read it.") So, I got an 'eye roll' and he left the room, leaving me with the 8 page packet of Chinese characters. He later came back and picked up the packet. I have no idea what he was doing, or what he wanted me to do. I still don't.

Then I was reminded of Spanish speaking people who come to America, not knowing the language. Many Americans become frustrated with those people and try to fix the problem by speaking more slowly and more loudly. That's what I feel like a lot of days. Most students understand that I can't speak the language and they are forgiving of it, but those two students were not as forgiving.

When things like that happen and I become irritated with life and the people here, I remember that I am the one who decided to come here voluntarily. These things are proof to me that this work comes with some trials. I just need to concentrate on not letting those things control my thoughts. That's where it will matter. That's something you can THINK for me about. Thanks for reading! I love you all!

Shanghai

October 1st is China's National Holiday. Unlike America's National Holiday, China gets 7 days off for the celebration of one day! October 1st through the 7th is a HUGE holiday in China. One of the biggest. This means, any type of traveling will be stressful, and most definitely a test of patience. So, what did we decide to do? We went to Shanghai to the World's Fair! (Expo) Probably the busiest place in China at this time. Well, it turned out to be very busy, but actually not as bad as we expected. The "we" in this case is me, Stan, Kevin Westmoreland, and Emily & Paul Richardson. So, while we were in Shanghai, we did other things than just going to the Expo. We went to see "The Bund" which is very famous in Shanghai. We walked up to where everyone would be to see the skyline of Shanghai at night and it was packed! It was just ridiculous. During these situations, I have learned to not try to fight it if I can. I didn't care about seeing the skyline with no one in front of me enough to fight the crowd, so me, Kevin, and Emily stepped back and had plenty of room around us. All three of us were standing in a horizontal line, looking at the skyline. We were close to each other, as in inches between our bodies. There was a 5 foot circumference surrounding us: plenty of room for anyone to walk by us without getting touched. Well, here's the reason for blogging...


Let me set this up for you: As if you were looking at the three of us from behind, Kevin is on the left, Emily is in the middle, and I am on the right. We were standing there, minding our own business when Kevin and Emily are blasted from behind and pushed out of the way by a woman who just NEEDED to get a picture of the skyline. So, when this happened we gave each other the "Oh China" look, chuckled, and quickly returned back to our spots. So, this woman took her much needed picture and turned around to go back through where she decided to enter the first time (through 2 human beings). This time, Emily and Kevin stood their ground and looked straight ahead. (Their stone-like ability was artistic). After the woman knew she wasn't getting through that side, she came to the other side of Emily to where I was and tried to burst through us. Keep in mind, we are completely facing forward...looking at this woman. Also keep in mind the 5 foot circumference surrounding us. Yeah. So, then the lady decided to call out to the person she was going to retrieve, and THEN walked around us. After that, we all shared blank stares and then Kevin said, "You need to blog about that Juliane." Haha! So, I did. I can't tell you how many times I have been pushed and shoved in this country in the past year. And it's something you can get used to (somewhat). But I have never seen anything like this. It was just crazy. This country is just so different and it definitely never gets old!

I knew all of you who have been in China would appreciate this one! I just hope you made it through it and understood. I'm sure you did. :) Well, thanks for reading! Don't forget to think about me in China! I love you all!

First Hair cut!

Hello all! You may or may not know that last year, I went almost the whole year without a haircut because I was afraid what the Chinese cosmetologists would do to my hair! But that's just crazy talk now after living here for a year, I have more confidence in them! :) Stan cut it once last year (with the help of Erin over Skype) and he did a fabulous job! Well, after getting it cut this Summer, I knew I would have to get it cut here. So, Erin, this blog is for you! I got my first haircut here about a week ago and he didn't do that bad of a job. (Yes "he". I don't think I've ever seen a woman cutting hair in China. Only men. The women give massages and greet you at the door.) I digress...Now, first I wanna show you a picture of what I showed the man who was cutting my hair.





And here's the finished product!



It's not as angled as the picture, but I think he did an okay job. He certainly didn't do as good of a job as Erin would have, but ya know...I'll take what I can get! :) I was frustrated at that fact at first right after he cut it, and Stan even told me I was being "a little whinny" about it (rightfully so). But I'm good with it now and I love it! I just gotta find the word for more angled in my Chinese dictionary and show him next time. haha!

Oh! One other thing...when he was looking at the picture and looking at my hair, he kept saying my hair was curly and it wasn't going to work. Over and over and over again, he would take my hair and wrap it around his finger to show me it was curly (as if I didn't know that about myself) I just kept saying, "I know, I know. It's ok. I will straighten it. It's ok, it's ok." He almost couldn't handle it. He didn't know what to do with my curly hair! haha! Oh China...

I have video of the whole thing (well most of it), but I need to piece it together and show you the whole thing at once. I just wanted to give you a sneak peak now!

Nothing insightful from me today, haha! I just hope you have a good day! Thanks for reading, and don't forget to think about me in China! I love you all!!