My China Musings

This blog is my thoughts on many things and about my adventures of living and traveling in China.

April 28,2007

Here, I am in Xiangfan, for another long weekend. May holiday is about to arrive and like most foreigners, I dont want to be on the road when the trains are little better than sardine cans. I had given some thought about going to Sichuan Province, but instead came here to go with my American buddy on a short trip up Wu Dang Shan. We have climbed the mountain before, but choose to do it again. Besides, tradition says one  should climb the mountain once a year and give thanks for all that was good in in the last one. Many things have been very good in the last year, so I guess I will go up the mountain and give thanks.  Brian will go home after this term. He has had enough of teaching. Maybe he will come back to China in the future...but who knows. maybe I will have returned to the US or maybe he wont come back. So this is our farewell. Besides, when I get home, I have alot of writing to do for the online magazine that  I am doing an internship. If I had gone to Sichuan, I would have spent all my time and not gone back as soon as I should. Writing is a fun thing for me...and I am having a great time. I am enjoying myself here. I love being with my Chinese little sister. We have the best time together.  Like I said before, it is great to walk familer streets, go into familer stores and know where to go to find something or have something done.

The train ride here was different....In the compartment I had the joy of being, was a couple of ladies and their young daughters. I am guessing that they were 3 and 4. I like kids, so that wasnt the problem. These girls were full of energy, just like most children their ages. The moms had thoughtfully packed a couple cute pink, very pink, back packs with goodies. Lots of candies and sweet things. One of the little girls ate so much candy she lost her cookies...she was so sick for a little while. She upchucked and she upchucked.  She had the where-withall to use the rubbish can. She didnt mess the floor at all. After about a 20 minute rest, she started eating candy again and guess what she did again? Yes, you are right, she upchucked again. Where was mama? She was laying on her bed, right there, sympathizing with the retching little girl. After another rest, she started on the candy again, but this time mama stopped her before she ate so much.  After about 45 minutes, these kids were bouncing off walls, as the sugar high set in. When they finally went to sleep for the night, everyone in the cabin was grateful.  They got off the train about half way to Xiangfan, so the rest of the trip was very peaceful.  I understand, that with only being able to have one child, it is easy to spoil it. But I think that letting a child eat so much candy that she gets sick twice is a little over the edge. I spoiled my 2 kids...and I spoil my grandkids, but I dont think I would let them just have their way when it is so destructive.  Just a bit too much for me.

This flu is not been the easiest thing I have ever gotten over. I still have touchy tummy. Food is not that wonderful. It is okay if I dont smell many things cooking. And still feel a little on the weakish side at times. A couple of my friends said that they knew of people who were sick for more than a month. I can see why..Thanks for all your good wishes.  Stay well, till next time.

posted by: CarolenChina at 08:19 | link | comments |
china, travel, living in china

April 21, 2007

This morning when I went out to do tai chi, the air was cool and slightly breezy. The sky was overcast. Clouds were not heavy and gray, just could not see blue sky. I have my own order to my routine. I walk around the track a few times, stretch out my legs, loosen my shoulders, do some yoga stretches and then I do the tai chi forms. About half way through, a light rain started to fall. It was so gentle...and it wasnt cold. It was like Mother Nature, or Gaia, if you wish, was sending kisses. What a wonderful morning.

I went a couple of rounds with the flu or influenza.... I woke up Wednesday, not feeling just right. I thought since I had traveled the day before from Xiangfan back to Guangzhou and taught that afternoon, that I was just tired. I went down to the supermarket to get some  yogurt and gatorade....(please, no comment), and on the way down the stairs, I noticed that it hurt in every joint to walk, every muscle was cranky....still I thought, I was just tired.  I got back home, decided,  maybe, I should have a nap. I needed to go back to school and teach a class that evening, so I laid down.  I dont think I had been in the prone position more than 10 minutes when the stomach stuff began. My repeated, extended periods of sitting and ...you know, was followed by the chills. My head to started to ache and my body ached like you cannot believe. I took my temp....well over 102... Now the retching started, finally got that under control between sits.  Took some aspirin...managed to keep it down.  Went to back to bed, a few hours later, I called the school, told them there was no way I could remain in an upright position to teach. Took my temp again, hadnt come down at all, if anything went up. So I took ibuprofen...thought maybe that would also help the aching body.   Took an anti diarrehal medicine, my stomach and other parts of my anatomy couldnt take it any longer. Now it is at least 8 hours since I first laid down. My fever had not budged at all. So I took a shower, hoping that would relieve the now almost 103' fever (F).  Three hours after the shower, still had a high fever and booming headache. I drank water and gatorade as much as could keep down. Finally, I called my little doctor friend to ask if she could recommend something that would the break the fever.  She brought me Panadol and rice soup. I took the Panadol, and ate 1/2 a bowl of soup....went back to bed...Within the hour, my fever dropped to below 101.... This is day 3, and I am still not 100%. Even today, my joints are still achey... My advice, do not get the flu....it is not a bit of fun. I would have rather faced a class room of angry parents then spend another 24 hours like those.  Stay well, till next time.

posted by: CarolenChina at 05:12 | link | comments (1) |
living in china

April 16, 2007

To all of you that leave comments, Yes, I read them...and I appreciate them. Thank you for taking time to write to me.

I have been in Xiangfan (Shong fan) for the past few days. I lived in this Hubei Province city for 5 years and I consider it my Chinese hometown. I have lots of friends there. It felt good to walk the familiar streets and go into familiar stores.  Best of all, it was so good to see my friends and to spend lots of time laughing and carrying on like we did when I lived here. Xiangfan is an ancient city, I am sure I have mentioned this before. It is at least 2800 years old. Sitting on the Han River, Xiangfan was an important city during the Three Kingdoms  period. This city has more history and stories about it than Beijing. Maybe not as grand and big as Beijings, but interesting non the less. Through out Xiangfan District, there are many old village sites and ancient battlefields. Every now and then, the Han River uncovers another sword from a long past battle. In Long Zhong, near Xiangfan, sits a Buddhist temple that is 800 years at least. A tree there is claimed to be more than 1000 years old. An unique stupa showing showing eastern Indian influence and the only one of its kind is here.  WuDang Mountain, famous for its ancient Taoist temples and Wudang tai chi is a couple hours away.  There is really a lot for tourists to see and visit if  they knew about this place. Xiangfan does not have the press that Beijing, Xi'an and other places get. So it is relatively unknown to tourists.  

Famous people came from Xiangfan. Mi Fu, Tang Dynasty poet, lived in this city.  Zhuge Liang who was a military strategist in ancient times, lived in the nearby hills.  His home area is now a tourist park with a pagoda still standing tall on the top of a hill.

This past  weekend there was a celebration of Zhuge Liang, leaving his mountain home and going to help Liu Bei, 1800 years ago. Zhuge Liang never got to come back and live on his beloved mountain farm. I think he would have been very proud of the show that was put on in his behalf. Talent was plentiful. Singers, dancers and opera players were wonderful. One of the performers was a man who can sing and sounds like a woman.  He sang a beautiful song in a soprano voice,  dressed in a gorgeous, gorgeous woman's costume of the Zhuge Liang period. His face was made up to look like a woman and he wore an elaborate wig of an ancient hair style. A beautiful picture.  He finished singing his song and then spoke in his own voice, which is a very deep and very masculine.  My brain nearly short circuted when looking at this gorgeous woman, speaking with a bass voice.  His performance was wonderful.

Another of the perfomances was of traditional opera. It is much different than the Italian or European operas. Beijing Opera is world famous and just about every province has an opera that is very similar. Much of the music and choreography has been passed down through many ages. Costuming will astound you at how elaborate it is.  The opera segment of this show was great! The singers were good and the costumes gorgeous.

One last performance, I will mention, was a man who sings very well, but does the "drunken form"  of wushu or tai chi chuan.  If any of you practice this art, you know that every move is intentional and has a self defense application, as does the "drunken form". Li Xiao Long  was great, his muscle control and strength, amazing. One could easily be fooled into thinking he was helpless.....and drunk. I guarantee you, he was sober.

This is but 3 of fourteen wonderful performances. I wish I could just bottle them all up and put them on this blog for you all to see. But! Alas! I cannot, so.......  Till next time.

posted by: CarolenChina at 01:01 | link | comments |

April 11, 2007

The country in which I reside, has a great firewall...in fact, it is called The Great Firewall of the country I reside in. This country in its infinite unwisdom thinks that it needs to control everything including blogs. After all, what people write in their blogs could cause harm to the harmious society.  I have to do some creative posting in order to put this on the net. I will not share my secret how I get this out.  I just do.

Most of the time, I really enjoy living here. The culture is a bit different, yes, but that is part of what makes it fun. I dont, after all these years, appreciate the stares...I have said for a long time, I should take pictures of all the people who at stare at foreigners and write a book about the stares and the stairs. Buildings in this country I reside in are not required to have an elevator even if it is more than 5 stories tall. If one wants to go climb a mountain such as Tai Shan, stairs have been placed all the way to the top. The last time I went to Wu Dan Shan, stairs placed there a couple  hundred years or more ago,  made out of slabs of rock, were replaced by concrete ones.  Hence the name of the book would be, the country I live in, Its Stares and Stairs.

I wouldnt change many things about this country. First, it would lose its personality. And that isnt why I came here. But one of the things that I would change, if I could,  is its system of criticism. Dont praise your students! Critize them so that they will do better.....wrong...wrong....wrong.  I was walking by a nearby primary school. I would venture to guess that the students lined up were maybe 5 or 6. The male teacher was standing among them yelling in a not so nice tone of voice. What was even worse to me was the fact that he was pushing around a small boy, jerking his arms and yelling at him. It took all of my whatever to keep walking and keep my mouth shut. Criticism is the one thing I would definately change.

Living in south of the country I reside in is different than the central part. People here are far more independent of the capital than the other area. I, also, see where some of the traditional things are not done here. I watched on the subway, a young boy ran to an empty seat that a very elderly lady was trying to get to. He got there just as the lady was lowering her hiney....and he stayed there. I see many very young people sit while elderly people stand. In the central area where I moved from, that doenst happen. Respect is still important, there. Of course, things here are a little more modern and the pace of life is faster. I miss the real country that I reside in that I left.

Today, the sun came out. And it was so nice. We have had many many days of overcast, dark skies, sometimes with rain. Today, it was so warm and bright. Humidity of course, was present, but who cares when you can see the sun.

I have a very long weekend, because some of my students are gone on work study. I am going on a long weekend trip. I may not write for awile. Besides, I have lots of writing to do for the cyberspace magazine that I am writing for, so time may be limited. But I will try to write here. Till next time.

posted by: CarolenChina at 13:40 | link | comments (3) |
living in china

April 6, 2007

I know that I have asked this question before, but I still don't know why 50'F is so cold in Guangzhou and so warm in Alaska. It has been in the 50's again for highs and lows dropping into high forties. This is April and sub tropic China, hard to believe these temps. I am back to wearing my fleece jacket and have turned the little electric heater on.

One thing the cooler weather has brought is beautiful flowers. It gets so  hot in summer that unless the flowers are heat resisitant, they quit blooming.  Plants on the veranda are so pretty, right now. African violets have bloomed and bloomed. A Christmas cactus has had the most beautiful peachy pink flowers. All those who are just leaves, no flowers, have grown pretty big. A mum bought last fall has bloomed at least 3 different times. It would be covered with flowers, they would die off, and few weeks later, covered with blooms again. It is so now.  At school there is a covered walkway that is full of red flowers, no I dont know what kind. They are on a vine, and triangular shaped. Very red. Also, a tree blooms with red tubular looking flowers before it makes leaves. There are a couple of those right out my classroom window. My classes and I watched these little tiny birds, hover in front of the blossoms. I thought at first they were humming birds, but their beaks were not long enough. One of the other teachers said they catch flies and bees that are feeding on the flowers.  Butterflies are not so plentiful. Maybe, it is too early. In Xiangfan, there would be clouds of butterflies dancing everywhere.

China has, in my opinion, a decent public transportation system. Mostly, out of need, because many people simply cannot affort private cars.  Riding on a bus can be the focus of a real adventure. I went today to Clifford Estates...where you can guess by the name, lots of foreign people live and there are stores that carry western foods.  I am not sure which driver was worse, the one going or coming. To start with, there may have been room for a sardine, but not another person. Both drivers seemed to delight in taking corners fast, stopping fast and swerving from lane to lane. You can guess what those of us were doing, that were standing and hanging on for dear life. If you said cussing, that was a given, so try to imagine something else. Just think, if I had rode the subway, I would have missed out on all  the fun.  Practicing tai chi chuan had helped my balance in more ways than one. I held on to a little old lady who was having a terrible time. She kept telling me: "xie xie, thank you in Chinese.  When I let go of her, she was knocked off balance again. So I just held on to her till she got off. My good deed for the day. Such is life in China this week. Till next time.

 

posted by: CarolenChina at 15:10 | link | comments (1) |
living in china

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