The Lost Weekend

Yes, there's still a blog.  Even though I can't see it (blogspot is blocked here), and even though whenever I have time to write, I don't feel like it.  But I'm making myself now, as I indulge in downloaded General Hospital on our awesome dvd/mp4/avi media player.  Yes, technology in China allows us to play all sorts of ill-gotten media, not to mention the dozens of DVDs stashed in our apartment – including 5 seasons of Desperate Housewives, 3 seasons of "24", and 20 seasons of the Simpsons!  I'm in pirate heaven!  Argh maties!

Oh yeah…and I'm an English teacher! I've been teaching, on and off, for a little over a month now.  I say on and off because here in China, the one constant is that things change.  I didn't teach for most of the first week of classes because my students had military training.  Then, I worked through the weekend last week in preparation for the Mid-Autumn holiday, during which (I found out a few days before) I got about 10 days off.  So, about teaching.  It's challenging and exhausting, yet somewhat rewarding.  I might have mentioned that there are around 80 students in each class.  They range in age from about 14 to 16, and although they are quite well-behaved, it's pretty hard to manage the class, or teach in a meaningful way.  I teach 14 classes in what they call Grade I (about 9th grade in the US) and 4 Grade II (or 10th grade) classes.  So, I really only have to do two lesson plans a week (one for each grade), but repeating the class 14 times is a bit trying.  I can't complain, though, as the experience is pretty enjoyable.  I might have mentioned that the students live here on campus (as do we) and are involved in studies from before 7AM until after 10PM, when we still see them in their classrooms!

Being in a small town in China can be challenging, and I suppose we are both experiencing some culture shock.  Matthias is suffering a bit more from his "celebrity status", as it really bothers him when people stare, point, or call out "hello!". And they do…every time we go out!   He said it makes him feel like a monkey in a cage - like they're trying to make him dance.  And, despite having to work so much, the students here all want to be my "friend".  They call (I made the mistake of giving my number during the first few classes) and some even stop by the apartment.   Apparently, the last teacher – who was here by himself and also quite a bit younger (closer to the age of the students) made a lot of friends among students.  So, to make myself at least a bit more available, I eat lunch nearly every day in the students' cafeteria.

So, we just got back from our somewhat last-minute-planned holiday (since I wasn't sure how many days I would have off until just before.)  We decided to go to Xi'an for a few days, and then when we found out I had more than a week off, we added a city called Xining to the mix.  Our goal was good food, which we knew based on previous experience we would be able to get in Xi'an.  The food here in HuaiYa is pretty limited (or at least our ordering ability is.)  They make lots of noodle dishes, which we love, but they add some kind of red hot chili oil to everything, which seems to upset Matthias' stomach.  Now, I don't mind spicy food, but everything here tastes just like the red chili oil, and if you ask them to hold the chili oil, the dishes don't taste like much at all.  Actually, there's an exception – a guy near the market makes a great vegetable/tofu noodle soup (sans the red stuff), which Matthias eats for lunch every day.  And there are dumplings and steamed buns.  Oh, and this yummy pita-like bread stuffed with stewed meat (or veggies.)   Actually…what am I complaining about?    

Now, back to Xi'an.  It was a combination of China's National Day (the 60th Anniversary of the People's Republic to boot) and the Mid-Autumn Festival, so we were worried about travel.  We were able to get a reservation at a nice hotel (just a bit more expensive than usual) and although the streets of Xi'an were pretty crowded, we didn't have any issues with travel, or with finding good restaurants!  There are a few pictures on the web album from our favorite place near the south gate, where we ate ribs, veggie dishes (with plenty of garlic!) and good dumplings.  We also found another place that specializes in dishes that they grill in the window, where we had a few beers, some grilled scallops and meat kabobs, and grilled eggplant (again with lots of garlic!)  And, when some other foreign teachers (with placements in other cities around the province) saw us through the window, they joined us for a few more beers and talk of school life in China.

Of course, we did a little bit more in Xi'an than eat.  We walked a lot around the City, spending some time in the Muslim Quarter and around the city walls.  We even tried to go to the local history museum, but the line to get in was overwhelming (probably due to the holiday.)  

Our next stop on our Mid-Autumn odyssey was Xining, in Qinghai province.  Going here from Xi'an didn't really make sense, since we had to backtrack past our neck of the woods to head west into the Himalayan plateau.  But we chose it for a few reasons.  First, we thought it would be interesting to see an area close to Tibet (actually traveling to Tibet requires a special permit and a lot of money.)  Second, at 2000 meters high, it might be too cold to visit later.  And, third, since my passport is still in Yangshuo (where they are processing my work permit) I needed to find a hotel that I could contact in advance – in English - to see if they would allow us to check in using a copy.  

Xining actually turned out to be a great choice.  The city itself isn't beautiful, but the mix of cultures there was interesting and refreshing. After being in a small town where we're the only ones who look different, it was a nice change.   Tibetan Buddhism originated in the surrounding area, and the current Dalai Lama was born in a village not far away.  So, in the bustling and colorful markets you could rub elbows with Tibetan monks, Chinese Muslims, as well as people who looked more like Mongolians than Chinese (at least to us.)  And did we eat??  We feasted on lamb, Mutton, noodles, stews, and even a yummy leg of pork.  Our favorite place was a large food court, where you could order dishes from various stalls, sit inside (where it's warm) and drink beer, and (for a small fee) use the not-so-overwhelmingly-disgusting bathrooms.  The weather was pretty lousy during our three days in Xining – rainy and chilly most of the time – so we didn't make the side trips out to the countryside, but we still managed to have a nice time.  

Now we're back in HuaiYa and waiting for internet access to resume.  We've been without internet at home for a few weeks while the school is in the middle of upgrading its network.  We've been told we'll be back online next week – obviously, this won't be posted until we're back online, so it may be a little dated by the time it's there.  Oh, one more thing – I've lost all access to Facebook (my way around the firewall is no longer working), so my apologies to anyone trying to contact me that way.  Email is best.  

I'm posting this via email and am not sure how to post links, so I'll include a link to the latest photos (October 2009) and hope for the best:
October photos:  http://picasaweb.google.com/jrosenyc/100910#