October 2008

Last Sunday, Bo and I  climbed the largest coastal mountain in China, Laoshan Mountain, which is located only about 45 minutes from downtown Qingdao. The scenery was extraordinary because as you are climbing, your mind is blown by the beauty of the mountain on one side of you  and the Yellow Sea on the other. Pictures can’t do it justice, of course, but I tried…

The mountain is known as the birthplace of Taoism and there are several ancient temples at the foot of Mt. Lao, so we decided to take a tour of the Taiqing Palace Temple, the largest one. There are still practicing monks living there (and making a killing on tourism, I might add $$$).

This is the entrance to the temple. As we walked in, I noticed that all of the Chinese people would reverently rub the stone carvings along the sides of the walkway. This is probably considered good luck, because everything here seems to have something to do with luck…

And here is a gorgeous view of the mountain behind the temple…

As we wandered around, I noticed a woman who appeared to be praying and holding burning incense in front of her. When I asked a friend about this, he said that the Taoists will stand before a god (idol) and send good thoughts up to the heavens. Then they will stick the incense into a special censor (incense holder), where it will continue to burn. The idea is that the smoke carries the good thoughts to the heavens. As I was listening to this, I was thankful that my every whisper is even as unto His ear.

And more lucky stuff… this is what we would call a wishing well, a pool of water filled with coins. But here, you do not simply throw your coin in, instead you try to make your coin float. If your coin floats, you are lucky! I thought that this must be impossible, but then I noticed a few coins actually floating on the surface of the water. I hope you can see it.

The last thing I’ll show you from inside the temple is this huge, ancient cypress tree. Of course it was impossible to photograph, due to its size, but I still wanted you to see at least a part of it. This tree is believed to date back to the Han Dynasty, which means that it is over 2000 years old. When I heard this, I immediately thought about the fact that this tree was probably a tiny baby when His Son walked the earth. I have to say, I smiled many times that day as He constantly reminded me of Himself… even in a Taoist temple.

Okay, and now for a few final photos, more random in nature. First, this fruit stand outside of the temple. I have never seen anything like this. Does anyone know what those crazy looking yellow things are?

And finally, in true China fashion (meaning strange sightings), we were totally shocked when we passed a souvenir stand selling hats and saw this… (this is for you Bri-Bri)…

I promise this is real. You can even see the tag on the hat. An Alabama toboggan for sale at a Taoist temple in China. ROLL TIDE!!!

It looks like I didn’t totally miss out on the Olympics after all!

Bo’s company has their own annual Olympic games, where all of the subsidiaries compete against each other in various track and field events. This is a BIG deal. Complete with an opening ceremony with pomp and circumstance that rivaled the actual Olympic ceremony…well, almost.

The ceremony started with a huge parade where a select group from each subsidiary marched (the way only people from a communist country can march) around the track, proudly displaying their colors, while the employees in the stands cheered and cheered. It was amazing.

I took tons of photos, but they hardly do the day justice. Here are a few:

And in the stands…

The company gave every single employee a track suit. Each subsidiary wore a different colored suit with a different country’s name on the front. Hisense International (Bo’s group) was Scotland.

Yes, these are people. They filled the stands on the opposite side of the stadium from where I was sitting. Their red and white shirts form the Chinese characters that represent the company.

No surprise here. Bo got ahold of the drumsticks somehow and entertained everyone with a not-so-communist beat.

Here is Bo, with our sweet friend Diana (who, by the way, is going to be my Mandarin tutor), getting ready for the 100 meter race. He was supposed to participate in this event and the long-jump, but due to the language barrier, he missed both events. Oops!

And no day in China would be complete without a group of strangers wrangling me for a photo. I don’t know any of these girls except for my beautiful friend, Melody, who is peeking over my head.

To all of you who lovingly chastised me for being a lazy blogger, I apologize. I’ll try to do better from now on. Although, I must say that I am shocked by how many people are reading this thing, as that little hiatus worked as a bit of a roll-call for my silent readers. So, for the record, I’ll do my part (blogging) if you do yours. This means I had better start seeing some comments from those of you who made your presence known recently. And this goes for you blog-stalkers, too!

Bo and I are both working now, and every spare minute over the last 2 weeks has been spent looking at real estate. Yeah, you heard me. I think we hold some kind of record for how many times you can move in 6 years. When we settle in to our new place next week, it will be home-sweet-home number 8. I kid you not.

The lovely little condo where we have been residing for the past month has a great view of the Yellow Sea. But I can’t fit all of my shoes into that. And a studio apartment is cozy and romantic for about a week, but then it hits you that nothing has a “home” and that all of those piles of “stuff” will be there forever unless you MOVE!!

So we are moving, and I can’t wait. The process of finding a place was exhausting and frustrating. The language barrier is a problem, and you pretty much have to accept the fact that you are going to pay at least 20% more for a place just because you are foreign. So we looked at SO many apartments, and finally decided on a great place in the cutest little beach community. The central business district of downtown Qingdao (where we both work) is only about a 5 minute bus ride from the new apartment, but the neighborhood feels like the suburbs.

It is so quiet and peaceful. No more waking up at 5am to the sound of saws and hammers (there is a high-rise going up next door). Yay!! And the best part is that we are even closer to the ocean, which pretty much sealed the deal for Bo.

Here’s a peek at our new backyard…

This is the street that leads to my bus stop. I am SO exctied that I get to look at the ocean every morning on my way to work.

And here is a better view of what the beach looks like. There are white sandy beaches a bit farther down the coast, but here we get to watch the waves crash against the rocks and cliffs. It is breath-taking and I love it!

Qingdao, China- No one played hooky last week at AroundAsia Foreign Language school, as students filed in to catch a glimpse of the new American English teacher. Rebecca D, the teacher, was surprised and flattered by the enthusiasm. “I felt like a Hollywood celebrity,” she said with a smile, “students would approach me between class periods and ask me when I would be teaching their class. Then, they would wait in the hall to watch me come out of the teachers’ lounge and walk to class. Sort of like a red carpet moment.” 

When asked for her reaction to the new teacher, a female student remarked, “I think she has good education and has a good temperament and very beautiful. I like her very much and hope to be friends with her.” Most students agree that the new teacher is very  friendly and helpful, but there is also speculation among students that the American is hiding a secret. “I think maybe she has some Asian in her family. Maybe her mother is Chinese,” said an intermediate student. “She must not be full-American because she is not fat and Americans are fat. She has Asian hair, too.” We will be investigating this matter over the next few weeks.

The other teachers, originating from various cities in Europe and Australia, seem to enjoy the idea of having another foreigner to hang out with. Although, during the last week, they have experienced abandonment issues, as most of the curious students have piled into the new teacher’s class and left them with only a handful of pupils to teach. “She’s the flavor-of-the-month,” said a male teacher hailing from Australia, “in a few weeks, she will be old news and the students will be drooling over the next new teacher.” But for now, it is all about the American.

Yesterday morning, as I was preparing to call my family on Skype, I heard a soft knock at my condo door.

I cracked the door and peeked out to see a woman in a suit. Part of my building management, no doubt, armed with a clip-board.

So I opened the door a bit wider and raised my eyebrows to indicate “yeeeeeessss???” At which time she started speaking Mandarin about a mile a minute. I just stood there not comprehending anything. 

So, I shrugged my shoulders and shook my head and said “I don’t understand” and hoped she understood. But she didn’t.

I opened the door even wider, asking her if she needed to come in. But she just reached through the door and placed her hand on my light switch. She turned my lights of…blah blah blah…then she turned them back on…blah blah blah…then off again. I shrugged my shoulders and shook my head and said “I don’t understand.” She finally gave up and left.

I closed the door, sat down with my laptop, and called home. When my mom picked up, I told her about the strange scenario…”She just kept turning my lights on and off and I couldn’t understand a word she was saying…”

And in that instant, my computer screen went blank and all of my power went out.

You can’t say she didn’t warn me.

Today was a big day. Today I had to find my own lunch.

Yesterday was Bo’s first day back at work, but he met me for lunch to sort of ease my transition into the reality that I am living in a foreign country and trying to fend for myself in a city where hardly anyone understands my language.

So today I ventured out into Qingdao in search of food. I have eaten a lot of yummy stuff here, but so far hadn’t had lunch like a local. But now I have. I left my building and browsed the many street vendors selling food that I don’t recognize (I don’t recognize anything here, yet). I decided on a little sandwich cart.

An old lady was chopping meat (don’t ask) and vegetables on a hot grill, then putting it on a flat roll and adding some kind of sauce. The whole thing reminded me of Steak Escape back home, so maybe that’s why I was drawn to it.

Anyway, I walked up to the little cart and held up one finger, indicating that I wanted one sandwich. The man that was also working at the cart looked at me and said “buy two, very delicious.” And I thought, ‘I’ll never be able to eat two of these…but hey, he spoke ENGLISH to me!’ So of course I bought two.

2 sandwiches for less than a dollar. Not bad.

As for the taste, the food was great…but HOT! The sauce nearly burned my taste buds off (red pepper, I think). However, I can’t complain because I’ve been fighting sinus and allergy junk for a week, and I think the sandwich pretty much cleared me up. 

My first week in China has been great. The timing for my arrival really couldn’t have been any more perfect because Bo had the entire week off work for China’s National Day Festival. National Day is one of their biggest holidays of the year, so everyone was off work and the city was bursting with activity and excitement (even more than usual).

All week, I have been welcomed by Bo’s friends and colleagues, not to mention the general population of Qingdao who frequently call out “welcome to China!” when they notice my foreign appearance. I have to admit I was surprised by the warmth and hospitality that has been poured out on me by the locals this week. But after spending only a short period of time with the people of this charming city, I realize that I shouldn’t have been surprised at all. That is just how they are. They believe that we are guests in their “home” and that they should do whatever they can to make us feel comfortable and welcomed. Hmm, what a concept.

Earlier this week, a sweet girl took Bo and I to a hotel rooftop for a “tea experience.” We had a breath-taking night-time view of downtown Qingdao. We sipped Laoshan green tea, and chatted about our contrasting cultures with mutual curiosity and appreciation. It was a great experience, and I loved it.

A few days later, Bo’s boss took us out for Peking Duck, a very famous (and delicious) Chinese cuisine. The Chinese are very family oriented, so I also got to meet his wife and 10 year old son. It was funny, because one of the entrees (duck gizzards, I think) was very slippery and I kept dropping it on the table (I am usually so good with chopsticks). They were very gracious… however, I think I provided much entertainment for young Henry. I loved it.

And last night, we went to Qingdao’s annual International Beer Festival with a married couple that Bo has befriended over the last couple of months. They were great fun to be with, and we had a blast walking around, listening to music, eating local food, and bargaining for useless souvenirs. I loved it.

So my first week was wonderful. There are so many stories to share, and I hope to do so in the near future. The sights, the sounds, the smells, the food, the energy-all so exciting, but the best part of my week had to be my introduction to the people of Qingdao. Yes, to sum up first impressions of my new home, I would definitely have to write about the people. I love them.

My first day in Qingdao was great. Surprisingly, my plan to avoid jet lag worked, and I adjusted to the 13 hour time difference with no problems. Bo picked me up from the airport and we took a 30-40 minute cab ride into the city. I was quite impressed as Bo spoke Mandarin with the cab driver, navigating him to our condo. He has really come along way with the language in the past 4 months.

After being in airports or on a plane for 36 hours, pretty much all I cared about was taking a long hot shower. If you know me, you know I am a germ-a-phobe (and I fully expect China to cure me of that), so sitting, sleeping, being in so many public spaces for so many hours in a row was giving me the heebie-jeebies.

Once I felt human again, I was ready for my introduction to downtown Qingdao and my first authentic Asian meal. Bo took me to a Korean place right around the corner from our building, and he showed me the ropes of dining in China. It was fun. They brought us a pot full of stuff I couldn’t identify. Then we stirred in a tasty red sauce. I didn’t ask too many questions, just tried to be brave. mmmm. Luckily, I am pretty good with chopsticks, but drinking hot beverages (usually tea) with every meal is going to take some getting used to.

Okay, I know it is sort of a cliche to post funny Chinese signs where they mess up the English translation, but I couldn’t resist posting this. (Notice the sign behind Bo. The circled part is the text that I magnified). Keep in mind that I had to stare at this “typo” all the while wondering what was actually in my bowl!