Made it to the lantern show last Saturday - the last weekend before they take it down. It was on top of the city wall that goes around downtown Xi'an. The colors and lighting are really nice. There are 2 main lantern shows in Xi'an during every Chinese Lunar New Year Festival (at least that I'm aware of), and the other one is located more on the outskirts of the city. As the festival already passed, the admission fee was reduced from 100 yuan to 60 yuan. I don't know if the fact it was a reduced price, or the last few days of the show, or it is simply always this way, but there were a lot of people there!
All of the "lanterns" are made with a hollow frame. lighting inside, and then covered with fabric. Hope these pics give you a flavor of it!
That's it for today! It's staying warm enough here so that I don't miss the fact that the heat has been turned off!
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Friday, March 11, 2016
Get back here Spring!
A week ago we were basking in some good, warm weather. Then, it suddenly changed. Wednesday it actually snowed here (didn't stick). It is still early March, but we need the warm weather by March 15 because that's when the government turns the heat off! Weather forecast is calling for some warmer weather, so we'll see...
When spring hits here, they do some major clean-ups of the bushes and grass along the sidewalks and parkways. They also are as apt to just pull trees out and plant new ones as just prune the old ones. I don't get it, but it does provide people with jobs. They don't use a lot of mechanical equipment, they just use a lot of people. It's like a small army suddenly descends on an area, and voila, at the end of the day you have new landscaping! The sidewalks here really took a beating this winter (they are basically just tiles laid on a concrete-type foundation) and will require major renovation if they want to fix them up. Haven't seen anything happening on that front yet...
At my school, we are in "past papers" mode. That's when the curriculum is finished and you do nothing but study past test papers that have been released. It is what the Chinese excel at and why they do so well on the tests. Many of the students hardly pay attention during the regular school year, but once we are in past papers mode they suddenly kick into gear and just cram it all in. I find it boring from a teaching perspective, and having such emphasis on tests is not what education is all about in my book. But their education has been structured that way here for a LONG time (blame Confucius I guess!) and most of them seem comfortable with it.
Last night, I went with Sky to see Zootopia. They show 2 versions here - one in English and one in dubbed Chinese. You just have to make sure you get to the right one (and oftentimes the people that work at the cinema can't tell you unless they go ask the boss). We once had to leave a show when it quickly became apparent it was all in Chinese. Luckily they gave us a refund, because they won't always do that! (Once they have your money, they want to keep it!). Anyways, I did enjoy Zootopia but must admit I snoozed for maybe 10 minutes in the middle. (Hey, it was Friday night and I was tired from a week of work!). The movie is very popular here - the theater was sold out.
Since the new semester at school, we have started new extracurricular activities. So now I am teaching 13 eager Chinese teenagers how to play frisbee! They seem to really enjoy it - a few of them are naturals and the rest will get better with practice. Yesterday, I had them stand in the little semi-circle area that is out in front of the goal on the soccer field and just aim it into the back of the net - it's not very far). On the first round, not a single student got it inside the goal bars! By the end, though, they were getting it in more times than missing... I hope to eventually get them to play some games of Frisbee Ultimate...
Tonight, some of us may go downtown to see the Lantern show. It is part of the spring festival, which has already passed, but they continue to do the show for a while. It looks cool, and this is the last weekend for it, so I hope we can make it!
Hope everyone is staying dry, warm, and enjoying appearance of spring flowers (only a few blossoms here so far)!
Ggg
When spring hits here, they do some major clean-ups of the bushes and grass along the sidewalks and parkways. They also are as apt to just pull trees out and plant new ones as just prune the old ones. I don't get it, but it does provide people with jobs. They don't use a lot of mechanical equipment, they just use a lot of people. It's like a small army suddenly descends on an area, and voila, at the end of the day you have new landscaping! The sidewalks here really took a beating this winter (they are basically just tiles laid on a concrete-type foundation) and will require major renovation if they want to fix them up. Haven't seen anything happening on that front yet...
At my school, we are in "past papers" mode. That's when the curriculum is finished and you do nothing but study past test papers that have been released. It is what the Chinese excel at and why they do so well on the tests. Many of the students hardly pay attention during the regular school year, but once we are in past papers mode they suddenly kick into gear and just cram it all in. I find it boring from a teaching perspective, and having such emphasis on tests is not what education is all about in my book. But their education has been structured that way here for a LONG time (blame Confucius I guess!) and most of them seem comfortable with it.
Last night, I went with Sky to see Zootopia. They show 2 versions here - one in English and one in dubbed Chinese. You just have to make sure you get to the right one (and oftentimes the people that work at the cinema can't tell you unless they go ask the boss). We once had to leave a show when it quickly became apparent it was all in Chinese. Luckily they gave us a refund, because they won't always do that! (Once they have your money, they want to keep it!). Anyways, I did enjoy Zootopia but must admit I snoozed for maybe 10 minutes in the middle. (Hey, it was Friday night and I was tired from a week of work!). The movie is very popular here - the theater was sold out.
Since the new semester at school, we have started new extracurricular activities. So now I am teaching 13 eager Chinese teenagers how to play frisbee! They seem to really enjoy it - a few of them are naturals and the rest will get better with practice. Yesterday, I had them stand in the little semi-circle area that is out in front of the goal on the soccer field and just aim it into the back of the net - it's not very far). On the first round, not a single student got it inside the goal bars! By the end, though, they were getting it in more times than missing... I hope to eventually get them to play some games of Frisbee Ultimate...
Tonight, some of us may go downtown to see the Lantern show. It is part of the spring festival, which has already passed, but they continue to do the show for a while. It looks cool, and this is the last weekend for it, so I hope we can make it!
Hope everyone is staying dry, warm, and enjoying appearance of spring flowers (only a few blossoms here so far)!
Ggg
Sunday, February 21, 2016
Roads in Bali
The title is a play on the old movie title, The Road to Bali, with Bob Hope and Bing Crosby (1952). I don't recall ever seeing the movie, but it's probably the first place I've heard of the island.
I am sure that the Bali today is unrecognizable from the Bali of 1952. That's probably a shame, but is true of most places in the world today, undoubtedly. I enjoyed the time there (7 days), and kept busy doing different activities every day, but felt a sadness for what was assuredly a paradise in days past...
The people of Bali are very friendly, and always greet you with a smile. You can get by with English there, which is a good thing, because speaking Balinese would be no easy task! Most of the tourists I saw there were European - who all communicated with the locals using English. I don't recall seeing or meeting other Americans there although I'm sure they were around...
So about the roads - almost all the roads on the island are very skinny 2 lane roads (sometimes the line down the middle is just a suggestion, as 2 cars going in opposite directions can't really pass without one car pulling off to the side). Most locals use motorbikes. And I'm talking a lot of them! Sometimes all you see is a sea of motorbikes coming your way. Many tourists rent motorbikes, but I am not that crazy. The way they wind around traffic and zip through cars you can't figure out how they don't get run over all the time. One guy told me the only place he's seen it worse is in India. Well, cross that country off my list (it was never on it, actually). I got around by renting a driver at a cost of around $40/day. It's a big island, but not THAT big, and sometimes it would take a long time to go a short distance because of the traffic. Thank God for A/C. So, if you can forget about the traffic, good times!! I visited something like 7 different beaches. The water is incredibly warm. The surf was from very mild to some pretty good sized waves. A hotel guy told me there is good scuba-diving there, but after doing a little diving in Vietnam last year , I think I decided my diving days are over...
My favorite beach was probably Dreamland Beach - very beautiful setting with nice surf.
Visited 4 Hindu temples (Hinduism is the major religion there). Unless I'm missing something, the Hindu temples were not much to see. They do their worshiping outside (given the weather, it makes sense), so there are not elaborate indoor temples or ornate decorations. Some stone monuments on the outside guide worshipers to the area of meditation (basically a large rectangular tiled area which may or may not have a roof over it - but either way is open on the sides). Tourists are not allowed in that area. Saw one religious enactment at sunset at one temple which was interesting but went on for an hour!
Saw lots of monkeys (look but don't touch!), posed with a large fruit bat (I didn't know some bats get so large and are fairly heavy), rode a Sumatran elephant (they have a very nice elephant refuge there).
Other stuff - rode a banana boat, went parasailing, and took a 2 hour white water rafting trip which was much better than I expected!
All in all, a very relaxing trip, and, as with most vacations, just when you're getting into the swing of it, it's ending... It is hot there (90's), only got a little bit of rain one time. Stayed out of the sun as much as possible because I hate getting sunburned... The hotel swimming pool was of the infiniti variety and very nice!
So now I'm back in Xi'an, and tomorrow we return to school. Tuesday is a prep day, and Wednesday classes resume with the students. It's a downhill ride from here!
I am sure that the Bali today is unrecognizable from the Bali of 1952. That's probably a shame, but is true of most places in the world today, undoubtedly. I enjoyed the time there (7 days), and kept busy doing different activities every day, but felt a sadness for what was assuredly a paradise in days past...
The people of Bali are very friendly, and always greet you with a smile. You can get by with English there, which is a good thing, because speaking Balinese would be no easy task! Most of the tourists I saw there were European - who all communicated with the locals using English. I don't recall seeing or meeting other Americans there although I'm sure they were around...
So about the roads - almost all the roads on the island are very skinny 2 lane roads (sometimes the line down the middle is just a suggestion, as 2 cars going in opposite directions can't really pass without one car pulling off to the side). Most locals use motorbikes. And I'm talking a lot of them! Sometimes all you see is a sea of motorbikes coming your way. Many tourists rent motorbikes, but I am not that crazy. The way they wind around traffic and zip through cars you can't figure out how they don't get run over all the time. One guy told me the only place he's seen it worse is in India. Well, cross that country off my list (it was never on it, actually). I got around by renting a driver at a cost of around $40/day. It's a big island, but not THAT big, and sometimes it would take a long time to go a short distance because of the traffic. Thank God for A/C. So, if you can forget about the traffic, good times!! I visited something like 7 different beaches. The water is incredibly warm. The surf was from very mild to some pretty good sized waves. A hotel guy told me there is good scuba-diving there, but after doing a little diving in Vietnam last year , I think I decided my diving days are over...
My favorite beach was probably Dreamland Beach - very beautiful setting with nice surf.
Visited 4 Hindu temples (Hinduism is the major religion there). Unless I'm missing something, the Hindu temples were not much to see. They do their worshiping outside (given the weather, it makes sense), so there are not elaborate indoor temples or ornate decorations. Some stone monuments on the outside guide worshipers to the area of meditation (basically a large rectangular tiled area which may or may not have a roof over it - but either way is open on the sides). Tourists are not allowed in that area. Saw one religious enactment at sunset at one temple which was interesting but went on for an hour!
Saw lots of monkeys (look but don't touch!), posed with a large fruit bat (I didn't know some bats get so large and are fairly heavy), rode a Sumatran elephant (they have a very nice elephant refuge there).
Other stuff - rode a banana boat, went parasailing, and took a 2 hour white water rafting trip which was much better than I expected!
All in all, a very relaxing trip, and, as with most vacations, just when you're getting into the swing of it, it's ending... It is hot there (90's), only got a little bit of rain one time. Stayed out of the sun as much as possible because I hate getting sunburned... The hotel swimming pool was of the infiniti variety and very nice!
So now I'm back in Xi'an, and tomorrow we return to school. Tuesday is a prep day, and Wednesday classes resume with the students. It's a downhill ride from here!
Thursday, February 11, 2016
The Monkey Cometh
The mountains and scenery in Yangshuo (just south of Guilin) are really incredible. I haven't seen anything like it before and I'm not sure if there's anywhere else in the world with topography like that. Truly a gem! The area is full of caves, too, and the Chinese do a magical job of lighting up the caverns and stalagmites so that it looks very cool. Also visited an organic tea plantation, and an isolated village where they paint scenery on fans (a dying art - most of the fans you see now are machine printed). Took a short bamboo raft trip down the Dragon River and narrowly missed getting thrown overboard in the Class 5 rapids (ha,ha). It was cold there, too, but not as cold as Xi'an. It rained the first day, but after that just cloudy or partly sunny. It is not prime tourist season down there now, so it was nice not to have huge crowds (although the trees and bushes were not flowering which is also a big attraction). All in all, a nice, short, 4 day trip!
And now, it's off to Bali for 7-8 days. Weather there looks warm, maybe a bit cloudy with showers, but that's ok! More later...
Monday, January 25, 2016
Year of the Houzi (Monkey)
The last couple weeks at school have been pretty busy with end of term exams and marking. That has all finished now, and we have one last week of school before the spring festival starts (lunar new year holiday). Our holiday starts on Monday, February 1, but in a move designed to make sure that teachers don't get it too easy, we must teach on Saturday and Sunday (Jan. 30 and 31). I do not understand this at all, and with exams finished and everyone looking forward to the holiday, it is not easy to keep the students on task! We do have today off, though, Monday, Jan.25, but only because our host school has this day off for their students to study for their end of term exams (theirs makes a little more sense being right before the holiday!). So, 6 straight days of teaching and then we are off!
My holiday plans are looking like this: leave Xi'an on Monday, Feb.1 and fly to Guilin in southern China for 4 days. It is a place that is supposed to have some beautiful scenery, rock formations, caves, and the Li River which you can cruise down and see some rural China that is still left.
I'll return on Feb. 4 to Xi'an and then hang around here for about a week before flying to the island of Bali on Feb.12. Didn't think I'd take a vacation without visiting a tropical isle, did you? (Last year I went to an island off the coast of Vietnam if you recall.) Then I'll return to Xi'an on Feb.19 in time for the start-up of school on Feb.22.
We've had some snow this last week - I'd say 2-3 inches. The locals say it's the most snow in Xi'an since 2008. With it we've gotten some really cold weather - down around 10 at night, low 30's or high 20's in the day. Consequently, still snow and ice on the ground. Definitely the coldest weather I've experienced here! And I'm ready for it to go away! Long underwear is a necessity around here - it makes such a huge difference in your comfort level! I have to say that my apartment has stayed nice and cozy and I have no complaints in that area... getting consistent hot water can be an issue at times, however...
I saw my first american football game in China and it was a huge disappointment - all of the playoff games have been close from what I gather, but I saw Carolina clobber Arizona. It's hard to find a place to watch football here (you can't say just football or they'll think soccer). We located a bar in downtown Xian and got there at 7 am this morning to watch the game. There were only 4 Americans, one Welshman and 2 Chinese (one was the owner of the bar) in the place... I don't think I'll have an opportunity to watch the Super Bowl...
Well, I'm getting ready to cook up my specialty here - grilled ham & cheese sandwich. It's just too cold to go outside! More updates on the upcoming vacay later!
My holiday plans are looking like this: leave Xi'an on Monday, Feb.1 and fly to Guilin in southern China for 4 days. It is a place that is supposed to have some beautiful scenery, rock formations, caves, and the Li River which you can cruise down and see some rural China that is still left.
I'll return on Feb. 4 to Xi'an and then hang around here for about a week before flying to the island of Bali on Feb.12. Didn't think I'd take a vacation without visiting a tropical isle, did you? (Last year I went to an island off the coast of Vietnam if you recall.) Then I'll return to Xi'an on Feb.19 in time for the start-up of school on Feb.22.
We've had some snow this last week - I'd say 2-3 inches. The locals say it's the most snow in Xi'an since 2008. With it we've gotten some really cold weather - down around 10 at night, low 30's or high 20's in the day. Consequently, still snow and ice on the ground. Definitely the coldest weather I've experienced here! And I'm ready for it to go away! Long underwear is a necessity around here - it makes such a huge difference in your comfort level! I have to say that my apartment has stayed nice and cozy and I have no complaints in that area... getting consistent hot water can be an issue at times, however...
I saw my first american football game in China and it was a huge disappointment - all of the playoff games have been close from what I gather, but I saw Carolina clobber Arizona. It's hard to find a place to watch football here (you can't say just football or they'll think soccer). We located a bar in downtown Xian and got there at 7 am this morning to watch the game. There were only 4 Americans, one Welshman and 2 Chinese (one was the owner of the bar) in the place... I don't think I'll have an opportunity to watch the Super Bowl...
Well, I'm getting ready to cook up my specialty here - grilled ham & cheese sandwich. It's just too cold to go outside! More updates on the upcoming vacay later!
Sunday, January 3, 2016
Air we go again!
The air has been atrocious this winter. Multiple days labeled severe pollution. I was going to buy an air filter for the apartment, but all of the more 'economical' ones were sold out. I then asked Sky where I might find one and he said, "Hey, I've got an extra one still in the box." And there it is above. Free is a very good price! They talk about all the side effects of such bad pollution and I really can't attest to them one way or the other. All I can say is that I miss going out and seeing the sun and breathing fresh-smelling air!! There has been no precipitation this winter and on most days the wind is calm - perfect conditions for haze...
I saw my 2nd Chinese movie (English subtitles) on New Year's Eve. I think it was called Tomb's Legend or something like that (the translation is often totally different then the Chinese title). It reminded me of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Kind of the same story line. This one was in 3-D, however, and I must say the effects were some of the best I've seen in a 3-D movie. It played on a huge screen and the theater was sold out. At midnight (yes, I was up, but that's only because the movie was so late) there were some fireworks that people blew off - nothing spectacular but definitely higher than the 6 feet allowed for fireworks in Portland!
On New Years Day a few of us went to an attraction here where it involves some good puzzle solving and challenges to get through. There were 5 challenges to pick from, I think, and we chose the one called Alcatraz Island. They locked us into a couple cells and then the objective was for us to figure out how to get out. There are clues scattered around, but they tell you absolutely nothing. You have 1 hour to get out. We were slow in getting the hang of it, but gradually picked up speed. It was very challenging and not easy in the least. I'm sure they must've imported it from the US... We didn't make it out in the hour, but were probably 3/4 the way through. I would recommend it if you've ever heard of something like that...(you can pay for more time to finish, but it gets rather spendy...)
Then we finally made it to some hot springs. Not the kind of hot springs we usually think of, but a punch of pools (man-made) of various sizes filled with water to varying degrees of hotness. Some of the pools have medicinal herbs in them or other stuff for 'health' purposes. It is in a nice setting where it is quiet and we could actually look up in the sky and see a couple stars (and I mean a couple). We were there at night and it was very cold when you got out of one pool and raced to another!! I'm still thinking that somewhere here in China there must be some natural hot springs...
And to finish off the 3 day holiday there is a new German restaurant that opened in the mall that just opened close to my apartment. Had some breaded veal cutlets with good veggies, and ended with delicious apple strudel (unfortunately no ice cream). Do we really have to return to school tomorrow?
Oh, and lest I forget, I found a woman who can 'cure' toenail fungus!
It only takes a year of treatments. I'll let you know how that turns out!! I have to give her credit, though, she attacked my big toenails with gusto. It practically takes a chain saw for me to cut them. They're still bandaged up, though, so I don't know what they look like. I'm supposed to go back in a month for more...
Happy New Year everyone!!!
Sunday, December 27, 2015
I hope she said yes
I was startled from sleep this morning by a series of very LOUD bangs - sounded like they were just outside the wall of the apartment (quite a feat since I'm 19 floors up). Believe me, it was intense! I looked outside and saw a bunch of men dressed up in suits standing below a window in the building opposite mine. It was apparently the groom's method of proposing. It also created a huge volume of smoke - guess when you're getting married adding to the air pollution is not a big concern! So then the group of men traipsed inside the building and I heard nothing until 20 minutes later when the series of explosions repeated - it was their exit and I suppose symbolized a successful mission...
We have had a terrible week of pollution, but it did clear up for Christmas. Unfortunately, we are back to heavy pollution today... I don't recall having so much of this last year...
So I went to see Han Hong in concert on Christmas night. She is a Chinese singer of Tibetan origin who has a beautiful voice and large fan following in China. I reckon I was the only foreigner in the audience. The hall she sang in was huge and cavernous - the seats we had were the 2nd row from the very back. The had a couple large screens up front to show close-ups and there was a large screen behind the stage. So the venue basically sucked (the chairs were like plastic patio chairs), but the sound was ok and I thought the screen graphics were impressive. About halfway through the concert they turned the heat off and it was as cold inside as it was outside by the end of the show (and it was cold outside!). I couldn't understand any of the music, but it sounded nice and it was enjoyable! I heard 6 English words the entire show - "One, two, three, four" and "If you". She apparently also sang a song in Korean, Tibetan, and in Shaanxi dialect.
Then the day after Christmas, I went to see a movie. Very American thing to do, right?? It was at the new mall - they just opened up some cinemas. Only Chinese movies were showing. We saw "Mr. Six" - I don't know the Chinese name but I can tell you it doesn't translate to Mr. Six. It was in Chinese with Chinese subtitles and English subtitles. Interestingly enough, they have Chinese subtitles for most Chinese movies here - even the Chinese have trouble understanding themselves sometimes! I really enjoyed the movie - I heard it has been released in the US - I recommend it if you see it showing near you. It gives a nice portrayal of changing times and cultures in China told with a good plot...
Speaking of the mall, I just returned from their with a Starbucks latte in hand. It's dangerous having one so close now! As I was sitting there sipping on the coffee, I was looking out a window at the mall entrance. Lo and behold, there was a young boy (2-3 yrs. old) doing his business right in front of the entrance doors - ably assisted by his father. They wear these pants with a split in the rear-end (no underwear) that makes it really easy for them. People just walking by paying no attention... Some say this practice is going away but I have seen it often...
This week we have an unprecedented 2nd 4 day week in a row! Friday is New Years Day and we are being given it off as well! Supposedly it is a national holiday and everyone gets it off - but they always seem to have ways around that it seems. No plans at this time - a few teachers are flying off to a spot not too far away for a quick 3 day weekend (a place that resembles the land in the movie Avatar) but I guess I'm getting too old for that because pulling that off is just too hectic!
I want to say for my final words in this blog for 2015 how fortunate I am to have the family and friends who have helped me during these times so far away. I have met many people over here who do not have anything to help hold them up, and frankly I don't know how they do it. Thank you, to those at home in the US, and to those I have met here in China, for helping me stumble along.
To a great 2016!!
Ggg
We have had a terrible week of pollution, but it did clear up for Christmas. Unfortunately, we are back to heavy pollution today... I don't recall having so much of this last year...
So I went to see Han Hong in concert on Christmas night. She is a Chinese singer of Tibetan origin who has a beautiful voice and large fan following in China. I reckon I was the only foreigner in the audience. The hall she sang in was huge and cavernous - the seats we had were the 2nd row from the very back. The had a couple large screens up front to show close-ups and there was a large screen behind the stage. So the venue basically sucked (the chairs were like plastic patio chairs), but the sound was ok and I thought the screen graphics were impressive. About halfway through the concert they turned the heat off and it was as cold inside as it was outside by the end of the show (and it was cold outside!). I couldn't understand any of the music, but it sounded nice and it was enjoyable! I heard 6 English words the entire show - "One, two, three, four" and "If you". She apparently also sang a song in Korean, Tibetan, and in Shaanxi dialect.
Then the day after Christmas, I went to see a movie. Very American thing to do, right?? It was at the new mall - they just opened up some cinemas. Only Chinese movies were showing. We saw "Mr. Six" - I don't know the Chinese name but I can tell you it doesn't translate to Mr. Six. It was in Chinese with Chinese subtitles and English subtitles. Interestingly enough, they have Chinese subtitles for most Chinese movies here - even the Chinese have trouble understanding themselves sometimes! I really enjoyed the movie - I heard it has been released in the US - I recommend it if you see it showing near you. It gives a nice portrayal of changing times and cultures in China told with a good plot...
Speaking of the mall, I just returned from their with a Starbucks latte in hand. It's dangerous having one so close now! As I was sitting there sipping on the coffee, I was looking out a window at the mall entrance. Lo and behold, there was a young boy (2-3 yrs. old) doing his business right in front of the entrance doors - ably assisted by his father. They wear these pants with a split in the rear-end (no underwear) that makes it really easy for them. People just walking by paying no attention... Some say this practice is going away but I have seen it often...
This week we have an unprecedented 2nd 4 day week in a row! Friday is New Years Day and we are being given it off as well! Supposedly it is a national holiday and everyone gets it off - but they always seem to have ways around that it seems. No plans at this time - a few teachers are flying off to a spot not too far away for a quick 3 day weekend (a place that resembles the land in the movie Avatar) but I guess I'm getting too old for that because pulling that off is just too hectic!
I want to say for my final words in this blog for 2015 how fortunate I am to have the family and friends who have helped me during these times so far away. I have met many people over here who do not have anything to help hold them up, and frankly I don't know how they do it. Thank you, to those at home in the US, and to those I have met here in China, for helping me stumble along.
To a great 2016!!
Ggg
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)