tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62570572011-04-21T14:24:42.221-07:00Chris in ChinaThe Adventures of Christopher Esing, English Teacher, ChinaChrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.comBlogger731100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1092280917066064252004-08-11T20:13:00.000-07:002005-02-09T11:33:23.986-08:00Saturday July 17th The Journey Begins Despite being somewhat of a slow but tiring afternoon,today has marked the beginning of my Great and LongJourney to the South. Waking up early this morning, itwas quite surprising to see Nancy in the other bedexcited and watching T.V. She explained to me that itwas hard for her to sleep in during the morning as shealways woke up early. I am not sure if 7:00 Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1090028557882963672004-07-16T18:41:00.000-07:002005-02-09T11:35:52.183-08:00Today has marked the end of my work in Chengde and thebeginning of my journey to the south of China. Wakingup around 6:00 this morning, my day began meeting withDragon Lady down at the school hospital. She treatedmy to a nice breakfast. It was a boiled egg, stirfried green beans, meat wrapped in dough, egg plantboiled in chicken broth, and porridge. Not too badthough I really was not hungry. Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1089900340555711112004-07-15T07:05:00.000-07:002005-02-10T17:15:15.046-08:00Thursday: Friends and Food!
Today has been a nice and relaxed atmosphere despite cleaning, packing, and preparing for my journey home. It was a little hard to wake up this morning though after getting to bed so late yesterday. Dragon Lady gave me an early call in order to escort me to the class as I could not find it yesterday. Little does she know that I rarely loose my way to a place twice in Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1089844957428685302004-07-14T15:38:00.000-07:002005-02-10T17:18:49.703-08:00Tuesday: The Day of Feasts.
Today has felt like a magnificent holiday. It is not very often that one eats two big feasts then receives a large monetary bonus, but this day I have received both. Waking up around seven o¡¯clock this morning, I took a quick shower and dressed then rushed out to the street corner to meet Dragon Lady for my first class with the senior middle school students. At first,Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1089689878982911542004-07-12T20:37:00.000-07:002005-02-10T17:20:20.133-08:00Monday: Packing Preparations!
Today most of my time has been consumed by taking some time to make my journey home as soon as possible. My
morning was farley slow as I slept in until 8:00 being extremely exhausted from a late evening last night. Waiting for the water to warm, I decided to take a hike to the Mountain Resort in the meantime. On the way there, I ran into Dragon lady. She was quite Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1089340362102284372004-07-08T19:32:00.000-07:002005-02-10T17:27:59.243-08:00Monday: The World Exploded into Love all Around Me. To say that the sky was the most beautiful that I have seen in China would be an understatement. The light blue heaven was lit up by ray of light which reflected from the white of the most spectacular clouds that have ventured over this city. I thought that this may have just been my opinion, but after speaking with many of my students, they Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1088961674805228792004-07-04T10:21:00.000-07:002005-02-10T17:43:04.083-08:00Friday: Mongolian Majesty!Words can not express the complete majesty of the landscapes which my eyes have seen today. The Mongolian Grasslands are truly an incredible paradise that await to be rediscovered by each new and curious traveler. Crawling out of bed this morning at 5:30, my journey began with an incredibly early start. After showering and dressing, I walked to the street corner and Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1088812817779336912004-07-02T16:59:00.000-07:002004-07-02T17:00:17.780-07:00Thursday: Failed Attempt
Feeling a little lonely this morning, I headed down to
the Mountain Resort in order to preoccupy my time and
put my mind at ease. Arriving at around 10:00, I got
there just in time to catch another puppet show.
Before the opening curtains, I managed to peep around
the corner to catch a glimpse at what was occurring.
Today¡¯s show was a lot lager then the one yesterday.
Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1088043951756547282004-06-23T19:25:00.000-07:002005-02-09T11:42:17.690-08:00Wednesday: Time!
Sitting here this evening and for the last several
days, time has lost all sense of meaning for me. There
seems to be so much of it, and I simply try to figure
out how to fill it. My life has gotten to the point
where it feels all that I do is plan on where and how
I am going to travel and what I will eat. My classes
have all been planned out for the past several months,
so Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1087948796850917222004-06-22T16:59:00.000-07:002004-06-22T16:59:56.850-07:00Tuesday: Saying Goodbye
Getting Claire off to the train station this morning,
it was quite an early start for me as I am not
accustomed to waking up at 5:00 in the morning.
Feeling quite sad, we hugged for awhile then said
goodbye as she boarded the train. It has been an
amazing three days, and I would not trade them for
anything in the world. Coming home, the apartment
seemed so lonely and Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1087869901432106502004-06-21T19:04:00.000-07:002004-06-21T19:05:01.433-07:00Friday: Drenched in a Flood!
Going to teach my Friday morning section, frustration
appeared across my face as none of them had done their
homework. Not having much to discuss with them, they
ended up getting off early as I was a tad bit
disgusted. Coming home, my first task was to give
Melissa and Alex a phone call and wish them a happy
wedding. This was a bit more difficult than I though
that Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1087418011886083242004-06-16T13:33:00.000-07:002004-06-16T13:33:31.886-07:00Sunday: Everything turns to Dust!
Arising to the early morning sun and the sounds of
trains passing by, my day started off well as I
watched a travel program on C.C.T.V. Seeing one of the
souvenirs on the show, it was interesting to see what
it was used for. They call it a love ball, and it is
brightly decorated with many colors. The women of the
area sing to the boy that they like while Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1087336997548343322004-06-15T15:00:00.000-07:002004-06-15T15:03:17.546-07:00Friday: Wicked Heat
The heat was so monstrous today, it felt as if my skin
would melt from the sweltering waves of hot air that
blew through the windows and encircled my body in a
halo of misery. Although my day was not awful, the
humidity hindered my ability to enjoy my journey and
travel in Beijing. Waking up early this morning, there
was a sense of excitement as my bags were packed and
my Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1086914832028625812004-06-10T17:46:00.000-07:002004-06-10T17:47:12.026-07:00Thursday: An Early Morning But a Good Day!
Despite being woken at 6:00 A.M. for the second
morning in a row with a phone call from Toy Man, my
day has proved to be quite wonderful. To be honest
though, Toy Man is about to drive me out of my damn
mind. Although thinking it quite funny when he calls
and wakes me, the expression on my face is anything
but humorous. Excitement can go to far, and at Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1086838928322751432004-06-09T20:41:00.000-07:002004-06-09T20:42:08.323-07:00Wednesday: The Big Mac Attack
After reading Jane's web log several days ago, it
seems ironic that my Wednesday night class decided
that they wanted to discuss the world's obesity
problem. The first question that they asked was "why
are Americans so fat." My simple response was fast
food. Americans are inundated with T.V. and radio
commercials by large food chains which advertise late
night snacksChrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1086745590659488532004-06-08T18:45:00.000-07:002004-06-08T18:46:30.660-07:00Tuesday: Never Never Land.
Waking up at 6:00 this morning in order to teach a
class seemed so early despite the fact that the light
from the morning sun had been shinning through my
window since 4:00 A.M. The sun rises so early here and
makes it a little difficult to sleep, somehow one
manages to roll over and ignore it if they want to
catch a few more hours of shut eye. After doing my
Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1086652051109825922004-06-07T16:47:00.000-07:002004-06-07T16:47:31.110-07:00Monday: Drifting through the day!
Reading my morning e-mails tends to be a highlight of
my day, but today began on a very somber note for me.
Receiving a letter from my father entitled sad new, I
expected it to be on Ronald Regan's death, but instead
it was a note telling me that my Aunt Jerry had died
of a heart attack on her way to the hospital. Taken
back by this news, it took me awhile to Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1086541460669201952004-06-06T10:03:00.000-07:002004-06-06T10:04:20.670-07:00Saturday: What Part of No Don't Chinese Understand!
Waking up farley Early this morning, my plans were to
meet the Dragon Boat Man whose name is Robin then head
back and spend some time with my students and enjoy
myself. And although my day began this way, several
phone calls and knocks on my door later meant that
more people decided to help fill up my schedule
despite every attempt to avoid Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1086397653912108042004-06-04T18:06:00.000-07:002004-06-04T18:07:33.913-07:00Thursday:
Receiving a phone call from Chris and Holly this
morning, they asked my to be their guide for the
Summer Mountain Resort and wanting to help them out, I
happily agreed. Taking the bus to meet them, they
checked out of their hotel, and we began our journey
through the Park. My favorite area are the two huge
topiary dragons that meet you at the Entrance. They
are just gigantic and Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1086316638732212472004-06-03T19:36:00.000-07:002004-06-03T19:37:18.733-07:00Tuesday: The Tour Guide!
Waking up this morning, a sense of excitement came
over me as it seemed refreshing to be able to show my
friends around the city. Everyone seemed so happy for
me as I paraded them through the street and into my
favorite restaurants and temples. Feeling that they
should have a proper Chengde breakfast, the
supermarket was my first stop as I stocked up on
Mahwha and Lulu. Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084282269751861372004-05-11T06:30:00.000-07:002004-05-11T06:31:09.753-07:00Monday:
Today was one of those slow days in one makes that
transition from week of fun filled fantasy back into
the drudgery of everyday life and work. I did not mind
this too much as I was rather tired, and it was a
beautiful day outside. I was very happy to get my
things unpacked and sent to the dry cleaners in order
to get them cleaned. Especially, my very dirty and
nasty jeans which I had Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084282232328599072004-05-11T06:29:00.000-07:002004-05-11T06:30:32.330-07:00Friday:
Hell has a new Guise:
Today I discovered a new form of hell disguised as the
sleeper bus from Lijiang to Kunming. Taking the bus
seemed to be like a good idea as it would allow Mr.
Who and I to get back to Kunming and go to Shilin and
enjoy the beautiful natural park. Although the journey
was a smart idea, I would recommend going to Dali and
taking the train if possible. The sleeper bus Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084116332794468522004-05-09T08:24:00.000-07:002004-05-09T08:30:03.576-07:00Well, I apologize for my delay in writing, but as I
have been on the road and in remote villages, I have
been unable to send e-mails. I will try to recount my
adventure the best that I can by using my Journal so
hopefully you will get some idea of what it was like.
I will just go ahead and pick up where I left off last
time.
Tuesday:
Tiger Leaping George
Today was a day which words can not Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084116246678369032004-05-09T08:23:00.000-07:002004-05-09T08:28:37.390-07:00Sunday! Day on the Lake!
This was one of the most wnderful days that I have
spent in a while ther than the ending where I felt
that I might truely die. Mr. Wh and I wke up this
morning and packed ur bags. Went dwnstares and checked
out then headed dwn the street to get smething t eat.
We had sup and ndles fr dreakfeast along with this
awaming Tibetan Monk Milk Tea which was incredibly
sweet. Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084116203903264682004-05-09T08:22:00.000-07:002004-05-09T08:27:54.623-07:00Friday: Taxi, Bus, Taxi, Plane, Taxi, Train!
Today has absolutely been the busiest day of traveling
that I have ever done in my entire life. It was a
little much. Tried to eat some breakfeast, finished
packing my bag then headed out the door. Caught a Taxi
to the train station and waited on Mr. Who. It is
intresting that as I waited Nancy showed up who was
the student who really wanted to go Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084116117973546162004-05-09T08:21:00.000-07:002004-05-09T08:26:28.716-07:00Today the rain came and the cold returned, but I have
been too excited about my trip to let it bother me. My
traveling partner came over this morning, and we
planned our trip. We tried to make our bags as light
as possible by sharing certain items such as shaving
cream and medicines. I also showed him how to roll up
his shirts in order to save space. My bag is packed as
tight as I can get it. We Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084116082637078442004-05-09T08:20:00.001-07:002004-05-09T08:25:53.390-07:00Today I packed for Yunnan, but in doing this, I
realized that I had way too much stuff. I am going to
try and have to figure out how to put everything into
my back pack as I simply can not carry two bags with
me. Especially when I will be hiking in the deepest
gorge on the planet. I am so excited. The pictures
look so beautiful. My traveling companion and I are
going to be buying flu masks for Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084116042431433092004-05-09T08:20:00.000-07:002004-05-09T08:25:13.186-07:00Today, I have learned a lot about Chinese culture, but
I have learned a lot about my own as well. In talking
about some of the greatest issues which China will
face in the future, one of the issues to arise was of
course population control. After asking them, the best
way in which to enforce the one child policy, most
said either through surgery or through birth control
pills. In the past, China Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084115999412073392004-05-09T08:19:00.000-07:002004-05-09T08:24:30.170-07:00Every time that I get into a vehicle in China, I begin
to understand the fragility with which we travel
through life. I can honestly say that riding in a car
or bus here has been on the most scariest things that
I have done in my life and that is no exaggeration. I
guess that if you can not tell, I came back to my
apartment today. I had planned on taking the train,
but after getting very sick Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1084115962268517432004-05-09T08:18:00.000-07:002004-05-09T08:23:53.046-07:00Well, being in Beijing has been a nice get away, but I
am very tired. One does not realize how tireing
traveling can be until their touring around a country
where they can not speak the language. I think that it
is all of the unconcious stress that just wears you
out. Unfortunatly, after you get tired, it starts to
become concious stress. Today was actually not bad. I
have just been trying to Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1082755065302866272004-04-23T14:17:00.000-07:002004-04-23T14:21:54.483-07:00Well, I am back in the Big City. I am glad to get away
for a day or two as I need it. My day has been farely
well though I am a little tried, but I am not quite
sure why. Woke up around seven then packed my bag.
Took a quick shower, dressed then headed out the door.
Caught a Taxi to the train station then caught the bus
to Beijing. The ride was very beautiful as all of the
Mountains are starting Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1082755022371094782004-04-23T14:16:00.000-07:002004-04-23T14:21:11.560-07:00Today the Medical College’s Sports Day began and ended
with a bang. Although I was not there for its entirety
what I did see was an amazing spectacle. If Beijing’s
Olympic Committee hopes to impress the world, they
will put on an opening show like these students put on
this morning. Although I was not really thrilled about
waking up at seven o’clock this morning, the students
made it worth my Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1082754974220436192004-04-23T14:15:00.000-07:002004-04-23T14:20:23.420-07:00Today, I took a vacation from myself and enjoyed the
company of several of my fellow teachers. After having
a night of vivid dreams, I woke-up a little confused
as to were I was, but I eventually figured it out then
hoped out of bed and started my water for a shower.
After eating some cake for breakfast, I did some
cleaning and showered then journeyed to Laura’s office
to find out about my plane Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1082754926224922082004-04-23T14:14:00.000-07:002004-04-23T14:19:35.436-07:00There are times in my life when I feel as I have lost
my ability to taste the newness with which I used to
view everyone and everything. During these moments, I
no longer see the bright colors with which the world
is painted. Shades of gray confuse my vision so that
life seems to be only a faded portrait of its former
glory. Although it is in times like these I feel as if
the world will drown me Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1082754819899482562004-04-23T14:13:00.000-07:002004-04-23T14:17:49.140-07:00Today has been wonderful, but it has also been a
little too busy and crazy. I woke up this morning
around seven o’clock and showered then dressed. I ate
a piece of cake and drank some milk then waited on my
company to arrive. The man and his wife got here then
we took a Taxi to The Summer Resort. He knew the gate
keeper who then snuck us into the park. It was simply
stunning. There is a huge lakeChrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1082754706840088972004-04-23T14:10:00.001-07:002004-04-23T14:15:56.110-07:00I have been without e-mail for the last four days, so
here is what happened.
Friday:
Today has been a well needed escape from the hustle
and bustle of the city. I have been about to go crazy
for the last several days, but I managed to slip off
into the Mountains for awhile. I still have not heard
anything from the English Teacher which I am supposed
to be taking to Yunan, and if he does not Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1082754640516379792004-04-23T14:10:00.000-07:002004-04-23T14:14:49.793-07:00O.K., I must now say that I am totally sick of seeing
Santa Clause posted everywhere. Every time I see his
face, it feels like a bad Christmas hangover that
simply will not go away. I do not know why they
plaster him in all of their windows and paint him on
the sides of restaurants, but I simply want them to
stop. This is not welcoming sign for westerners. It
simply says that you have not taken Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1082754591700203402004-04-23T14:08:00.000-07:002004-04-23T14:14:00.983-07:00I really love teaching, but there are some days and
some instances when I simply do not like to be the
teacher. This evening was one of those occasions. My
classes actually went fine, and I enjoyed them
greatly. It was the after class discussions which
irked me a little. I do not mind talking to my
students for a little while, but when they trap you in
the corner and talk to you for an hour and aChrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081907963709509992004-04-13T18:59:00.000-07:002004-04-13T19:03:18.840-07:00Today has been one of those strange Chengde Days in
which someone just shows up on your door step, and you
end up spending the day with them somehow. I did not
mind as I was actually planning on getting out of the
city for the morning, so I suppose that it all worked
out for the best. My morning started out farley slow.
I did not want to get out of bed as I was extremely
tired. Still have no Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081808963823205162004-04-12T15:29:00.000-07:002004-04-12T15:33:17.763-07:00Today has been one of those somber days in which one
feels that slight sense depression while returning to
the normalcy which we call reality. I have struggled
with this feeling all of my life, but luckily it
always fades to the background and gets lost in the
shuffle of the day. For some reason, I have felt
extremely exhausted today, but there is no reason for
me to feel this way. I did wake up Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081703213829859462004-04-11T10:06:00.000-07:002004-04-11T10:10:46.420-07:00I am going to start out today simply by saying that I
love riding a motorcycle. There is simply nothing like
it. It is truly one of the best feelings in the world
to be on the back of a bike and have the wind blowing
through your hair. Today has been an intresting Easter
for me. One of my most unique ever. I have had nothing
which would remind me of a traditional Easter other
than my Vampire Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081633573329405772004-04-10T14:45:00.000-07:002004-04-10T14:50:04.450-07:00Today had been absolutely incredible. I am actually
farley exhausted as I have been going all day, and I
have not went all day in a very long time. I woke up
really early this morning as I have for the last week,
and I do not know why. I went back to bed and did not
rise until 7:30. At that time, I read the news then
took a kick as hot shower which made me feel ready to
face the world. I then Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081611774554688902004-04-10T08:42:00.000-07:002004-04-10T08:46:45.403-07:00Today has been one of those days where you loose
yourself in the events of the moment at hand. It has
actually been farley busy today. Had to wake-up around
7:oo in order to make it to my 8:00 class which I had
rescheduled for missing on Monday. My students were
happy and Eager, and I smiled at their childhood
memories and words of wisdom. Many of my students are
simply amazing. They have lived Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081611737517436132004-04-10T08:41:00.000-07:002004-04-10T08:46:08.340-07:00Today has been one of those Magical Days in which one
comes back to that place of sanity from which he
occasionally departs. After taking a break with
reality due to my stress over my travel, credit card,
and life difficulties, I have finally reached that
happy place which exists somewhere between the halls
of stability and chaos in the fathoms of my
imagination. Although I woke up quite bitchy, Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081611694796303212004-04-10T08:40:00.000-07:002004-04-10T08:45:25.640-07:00Although today started out to be a day of rest and
recovery, it blossomed into a Credit Card Nightmare
that I think that my parents have gotten solved, but I
am not sure of this at this point. Today was actually
a nice break. I received a call last night to move my
4:00 class to Friday, so I did not have to teach until
7:00 this evening. I was so excited. I spent a good
portion of the morning Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081303411565613352004-04-06T19:03:00.000-07:002004-04-06T19:07:17.873-07:00Friday- Succumbing to Temptation!
Today was one of those days where you simply have to
take a break from your surroundings. It was one of
those days when I felt that China might swallow me
whole, and in an effort to hold on to my Americanes. I
simply latched on to those uniquely American things
that I could find. Waking up today, I heard water
dripping out on my window seal and though Oh Dear, Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1081131292705386892004-04-04T19:14:00.000-07:002004-04-04T19:18:36.140-07:00testChrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1080783312915334742004-03-31T17:28:00.000-08:002004-03-31T17:38:50.610-08:00Here is the last of my stories. At least, until I get some more. I am going to do the exercise again. Oh well, enjoy the reads.
Christopher
Chinese Valentine's Day:
On the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, the Chinese celebrate Valentines Day. Once Upon a Time, To the west of Nan Yang City lay a village named Niujiazhaung. (Niu is a family name). In the village, there was a boy called Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1080616057156072852004-03-29T18:49:00.000-08:002004-03-29T19:11:12.466-08:00As Promised here are the rest of my stories. I will try to get more, but most of my students did not show
up for this day. They had a large test that they were studeying for.
Supernatural Writing Brush:
Long Long Ago, there was a smart boy named Ma Liang who lived in a tiny village. He liked drawing pictures
very much. But he was so poor that he had not enough money to be able to persure a Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1080495470095654802004-03-28T09:31:00.000-08:002004-03-28T09:41:23.030-08:00Hello,
I hope that your day went well. Mine was less exciting than yesterday, but it was still good. I woke up and
read the news as is normal with my morning ritual. I have grown very tired of the dreariness of the press.
It is just a little overwhelming to read every morning. I then decided to go out and explore the city. I went to the market and looked around. I love to see all the different Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1080435267117236952004-03-27T16:50:00.000-08:002004-03-27T16:57:59.653-08:00Today was a lot of fun,
I went with two of my students to the two stone Monoliths on the other side of the Mountains. It is still considered Chengde City, but I went a very long ways to get there, Thirty minutes by bus. It was a little steep to get in. Thirty-Five Yuan. Four Dollars, but it was well worth it. The two natural stone towers are huge. The stand side by side to each other. I am not Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1080349939395215852004-03-26T16:59:00.000-08:002004-03-26T17:16:50.640-08:00Chinese Folk/Fairy Tales
The Swan Fairies
Long Long Ago, There was a very beautiful lake and a small village was near to it. Many swans lived on and near the lake. Every January 15th, some fairies came to the lake and changed into swans to play in the lake. They sand, danced, and laughed, and their voices were very nice and beautiful. In the Village, there was a man named ArNiu. As he was veryChrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1080174853781885922004-03-24T16:31:00.000-08:002004-03-24T16:37:41.810-08:00Today my weekly assignment in my classes went from the Brother's Grimm to simply grim in their themes. Most were actually fine and interesting. There were some that were great as my other classes had been. I
especially liked the one about why bats sleep in the day and work at night. It was a creation myth about
the origins of the Night Time. There was also some others that I liked that involved Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1080091991476678682004-03-23T17:29:00.000-08:002004-03-23T17:36:38.246-08:00Hello!
Finally got my e-mail fixed yesterday. It sure did take a long time. Laura and I worked on it all day. She finally told the computer technicians to come and fix it, and they did. I had an amazing lunch of chicken with cooked cucumber, heart of palms, and a strange but delicious mushroom. It was absolutely fantastic. My class was very small last night. Most of them were out taking a Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1080010911563243252004-03-22T18:57:00.000-08:002004-03-22T19:05:52.640-08:00I have been working all morning on trying to get onto the internet. Apparently, they have changed everyone's IP Addresses for some reason, so I got a new one. The only problem is that they gave me someone's old one, and I can not get onto the internet until they change their address. Calling up Laura to get her to help me, she got a little frustrated and said screw it. She gave me her I.P. Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1079929590276626582004-03-21T20:11:00.000-08:002004-03-21T20:29:54.500-08:00i got behind in posting chris's stuff again... sorry - enjoy! ~jane
Hello,
I am a little sore at the Moment. My students complained that I have wore them out this week, but it is they who have made my muscles ache. I guess that I have been playing to hard. I learned a really neat
version of Duck Suck Goose Today. I am not sure that I can explain it in words. Other than people stand in
Pairs Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1079491467674962362004-03-16T18:42:00.000-08:002004-03-16T18:47:44.593-08:00Wooh Hoo!
I just found out today that we get a seven day vacation the first week of May. I am very excited about this and plan on traveling somewhere, I am just not sure to where I will be going. I must say that I am very excited about it though. They asked if I would teach another two hour class for the teachers. The
will pay me sixty yuan for each hour which I am fine with. They actually Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1079406062708535052004-03-15T18:51:00.000-08:002004-03-15T19:04:18.856-08:00(sorry, i didn't get a chance to post yesterday's email from Chris.... so today I'm posting yesterday's email, followed by today's. ~jane)
Since I did not get a chance to write last night as I was in extreme pain and exhausted, I will do so this
morning. I woke up this morning and decided to go explore the city. I waited around the hostel to see if
anyone wanted to go, but the girls had already Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1079209138096534462004-03-13T12:15:00.000-08:002004-03-13T12:22:10.966-08:00Wow!
Today was absolutely my best day in China. It was truly fabulous. I woke up this morning to do the Great Wall of China tour. The Mexican was supposed to come with me, but I guess he was too tires as we
stayed out until around midnight last night. It was O.K. as I joined the tour and met four of the most
amazing young ladies that I have ever met in my life. The first two were Ecuadorian Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1079145818098965302004-03-12T18:41:00.000-08:002004-03-12T18:46:49.716-08:00Greetings,
I am in Beijing right now. Extremely tired at the moment. I arrived several hours ago. It has been an
interesting day. It started out with teaching my students this morning. I sand them a song then one of
my students came up to serenade me back. She was singing Richard Marx. She started to stumble on her
words and forget, so I san with her then the class joined in, and we sang. Where Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1079058522985994542004-03-11T18:25:00.000-08:002004-03-11T18:31:53.263-08:00The Chinese language has four tonal levels, and I can not diferentiate between them more or less be able to mimic them. I am a little angry with Laura as she was supposed to help me with my Chinese, but she did not, so I went to the English Departments Office and Mrs Yee helped me with my pronunciation, but she kept telling me to pronounce it differently than Laura, so Beijing with be interestingChrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-107888787175602892004-03-09T18:59:00.000-08:002004-03-09T19:07:39.653-08:00It is interesting how Mom's always seem to know what there children would need. And once again, my mother knew exactly what I would be needing. Three weeks ago when I started packing to come to China my mother insisted that I pack many things which I did not believe that I would need. Interestingly enough, I have used many of the them. However, the one item that I did not expect to use at all hasChrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078796050876991072004-03-08T17:31:00.000-08:002004-03-08T17:37:16.903-08:00It has been a rather warm day outside, although I am not sure how I know it as I spent most of the morning inside my room. In an effort to stay ahead on my lesson plans, I went ahead and made a plan for the entire semester. I spent most of the morning coming up with ideas and preparing a twenty week lesson plan. It took a little while, but I finally finished and was glad to have it done and over Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078684836690952302004-03-07T10:31:00.000-08:002004-03-07T10:43:40.890-08:00There are somedays which I think are a little odd then there are the days which I know are extremely strange, and today was definitely one of those days. Dragging myself out of bed this morning, I turned on my hot water heater then sent out a few e-mail and read the news. I showered and was dressing when I heard a ringing. I thought that it was the telephone as I told mom to give me a call, but Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078602553354341742004-03-06T11:37:00.000-08:002004-03-06T11:52:16.123-08:00There are two sides to every coin, and I suppose today that I have seen the other side of the yuan. Money has come to mean everything in China, and in this cold and harsh world, you either have it or you don't. Now one would expect there to be exceptions to this rule, and the first place in which I would expect to find an exception would be at the religious institutions upon which the country's Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078540006000978122004-03-05T18:16:00.000-08:002004-03-05T18:29:48.076-08:00It is truly the little things in life that make a difference, and two small changes have made life here so much better. Despite being fairly uneventful from the tourist gaze, it has been monumental from the standpoint of a person who has chosen this city as his home for the next five Months. There was no way for me to know that these things would take place, but they seemed to happen Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078452324363142592004-03-04T17:38:00.000-08:002004-03-04T18:54:46.483-08:00Hello,
Not much news to report on today. It snowed briefly for about an hour, and it was very beautiful. A nice little flurry. The first time since I have been here. Did not do to much today except teach one class. I
walked down to the market and bought a few food supplies. I had a fantastic breakfast. A pineapple
flavored cake roll with a glass of milk. Absolutely, fabulous. I also ate an Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078373897903104222004-03-03T20:13:00.000-08:002004-03-03T20:21:17.450-08:00Hello,
Did not do much yesterday as I was trying to figure out my schedule for the remainder of time that I am
here. I have been trying to determine where it is feasible for me to travel in a weekend. I have also been looking up festivals on line, so I can travel to destinations while they are having a celebration. Only had one class yesterday from 4:00 to 6:00. They were very excited as was I. Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078275026446538202004-03-02T16:47:00.000-08:002004-03-02T16:53:23.966-08:00Today was good. I had my class with the other teachers. Most of their English is good, but some of
them need a lot of work. My other class this evening with third year students was a lot of fun. They can
speak fairly well. Just need a lot of work on their pronunciation. I ate some chicken and cabbage soup for
lunch today. It was piping hot. Burnt my mouth. I thought that I was ordering eggplant, Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078196247871903672004-03-01T18:49:00.000-08:002004-03-01T20:40:00.640-08:00Well, since I did not write you about my adventures yesterday, I suppose that I will do so now as I wait
for Laura to get back from lunch, so I can go print out my students work. I have finally figured out my
shower problems. My hot water heater is hooked up to the same switch as my light for the bathroom, so if I turn it off I will have no hot water. Unfortunately, If I leave it own, the hole Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1078009178332533492004-02-28T14:53:00.000-08:002005-02-10T17:49:02.696-08:00I have had the most wonderful experience today. It was truly fantastic. Although it started off a little frustrating, it ended wonderfully. I woke up this morning and tried to take a shower, but unfortunately, there was no hot water. I am not sure why though. It may be because I flushed the toilet last night, but I really do not know. I may become like the French and only shower occasionally. I Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1077929776339859612004-02-27T16:51:00.000-08:002005-02-10T17:47:13.113-08:00Nee How,I am in Chengde. I have been sightseeing several of the different temples that are located here. My legsand feet hurt greatly after climbing up the sides of Mountains. I have beem taking the bus to the nearestdrop off point, but then you have to walk about a mile to the bottom of the temples and climb up a mile long steep hill to get to the top. The are truly stunning. Most of them look Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6257057.post-1077675897215950252004-02-24T18:11:00.000-08:002005-02-10T17:45:13.163-08:00I am a little nervous about where I am living. It is almost like the end of the earth. I have been experiencing some major culture shock. My ride over here is almost indescribable. I would compare it to the taxi or bus ride in Costa Rica, but those examples would not do it justice. There is a reason why foreigners are not allowed to drive in China, and it is simply because they would kill Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08424581311205589595noreply@blogger.com0