Couplets

It is the time of the Chinese New Year Festival. People put couplets on the outside of their doors. There is one that goes on the right side, left side, and above (I couldn't step back far enough to get the top one in the picture). There is also a decoration on the front of the door. This is my apartment door - someone told me what all the chinese characters mean and I have forgotten - but I will get it again and this time write it down!

Above is one security entrance to my apartment complex. Banners and lanterns put up!

Above is a building near the wall of Xian. Very colorful and beautiful!

There are decorations going up all over the place - red laterns, lights, banners and sheep statues (it is the year of the sheep - of which I am a proud member!). We were downtown last night near the Xian wall where they have put up many decorations and will have a big celebration on the 19th. The sheep statues are very beautiful but my phone wouldn't take decent pictures of them so maybe I'll go back again.

Since our holiday from school (which started on the 12th) the weather has been pretty nice. Fairly unpolluted skies and spring-like temperatures. The actual Chinese New Year is on the 19th, and as we get closer to that date the streets are getting quieter and less crowded as people go home, wherever that may be, to be with their families. I'm told it's one of the most peaceful times around here (however many shops are closed which makes it more challenging...). Well, peaceful if you don't mind the firecrackers. They are LOUD, and I'm told on the 19th it is almost continuous from sun-up on. But for right now, it is only the occasional burst of noise... But I am leaving early morning on the 19th for Vietnam (cheap flights on that date), and will be heading to an island off the coast called Phu Quoc. I will be there for 10 days before returning back here. A colleague at school told me about it, and it sounds like a great place to relax, swim (scuba dive) and read books. All, of course, accomplished while sitting in the  sun or under a tropical tree. I've found a small little hotel near the beach and they speak English (or at least a little) so that should help. I've heard the food is great.

I'll be back in Xián on March 2nd in plenty of time before school starts up on the 7th (yes, a Saturday). But not to worry, I'm going to an AP conference in Suzhou from the 7th to the 9th so I get a small break there.

So somehow I have managed to survive the first half of the school year (well, actually, the new year this year is late so we have gone beyond the half-way point). My thoughts and emotions fluctuate on almost a daily basis as to what the future may bring. The one conclusion I have come to so far is that you don't want to try to predict what will happen in China. Because it will surely change. There are many things that are truly amazing here, and while many parts of the culture truly perplex me, I also find may things truly magical. I only wish the language were easier to learn - I feel like I still know next to nothing.

I am going to go out for a walk in the park now. And then later I am tutoring a student in English who is getting ready to take the English proficiency test they must pass to study in the US. Seeing a student outside of school has been a real eye-opener to their lives...

And so I wish you all: Chun jie kuai le.

10,9,8,7,6,....

The Good News: The Chinese New Year holiday begins on February 12!
The Bad News: We have school for 10 straight days before the 12th! We just finished day 4, 6 to go!
I don't understand why they do it - it almost seems like a competition to see which school can keep their kids in the longest. I asked the students what's the longest period of days they've gone to school straight without a break and they said 14 days. They just accept it and don't question it at all. The parents don't mind because they really don't take an active role in raising their kids (the grandparents do most of it) and so it's fewer days they have to deal with them. Of course the teachers, both Chinese and ex-pats, don't like it but are powerless to do anything about it...

The new look: It's the snake fang mask:

We actually had a light snow last week - maybe .5 to 1 inch. It cleared the air for a while, but we have had a few days of moderate to heavy pollution. People did drive less, and were more cautious - a nice change of pace!

So my tentative plans for the New Year are to hang around Xián until the 19th (that's the actually New Year) and then fly out to Vietnam (the flights are really cheap on the new year day itself). From Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) I fly to an island called Pho Quoc. They are supposed to have some good snorkeling and scuba diving there so I hope to get some of that in. Other than that, my intention is not to travel around much but just relax, read and swim in some warm weather. I return back to Xián on March 2. School resumes on March 7 (I know, a Saturday!) but I will actually not have to be there as I am going to an AP conference in Suzhou that weekend (it's outside of Shanghai).

We ate at a really nice Indian restaurant on Saturday. I didn't take any pictures but I'm sure we'll go back there. It's in an incredible mall that has very elaborate decor. Sky commented that the meat didn't have any bones in it (Chinese meat is full of bones), and we informed him that that is the way that most people prefer it! He agreed that it was nice not to have to deal with picking out the bones...

We have been embroiled in school the last couple weeks with controversy over teaching hours, loads, evaluations and grading. It could get interesting. I'm refraining from making any predictions on what will happen as I've discovered the Chinese to be very unpredictable. We foreign teachers are feeling powerless and treated as though we are just window dressing. There is certainly an amount of truth 

to that. The center in Xián is very unique for the company I'm working for - it is the only one where the Chinese and foreign teachers attempt to share classes. To say that's a challenge is an understatement!

I just paid my 2nd rent installment (you pay for 6 months in advance). It's quite a chunk but then at least you don't have to worry about it for a while...

This is the year of the Sheep. That happens to be what I am! If it's the year of your animal, you're supposed to wear red pants on the New Year (Feb. 19). Dang it! I'll be on a plane to Vietnam!