Sanity

Through a random stroke of luck, we chose an apartment near Renmin University. In the hierarchy of Chinese universities, Renmin ranks third in the country--number one and two are a couple miles down the street. Though impressive, I am more interested in their swimming building.

Built for the 2008 Olympics as a practice pool, the US Team included (yes, I swim where Micheal Phelps and Dana Torres practiced), it is a beautiful facility. It has become a key component in retaining my sanity. I have met some great people, as well as freaked out many fellow swimmers with my amazing skill of freestyle swimming. I have been approached about teaching lessons, but will believe the offers when something actually happens. In the meantime, I will relish my time in the 50m water oasis.

Ying vs. Yang

Days off are glorious occasions--today was my day to run far away from Chinglish-ridden essays and lesson planning. After a fabulous impromptu Skype date with my sister and my staple breakfast of peanut butter toast (some things never change no matter where I am in the world), I faced a bustling and rather warm city.

I headed to the National Library. It has its own subway stop; one I have heard announced over the loudspeakers many times in my travels. I had been told it was a massive building with English books as an added bonus. I am a sucker for a good library.

 

Though massive, it is rather bland in appearance. Different shades of gray do not kitschy up a drab building. Finding an entrance was a chore and when I finally stepped into its foyer, I was stopped by a security guard mumbling Chinese. After the typical try-to-find-an-English-speaker scramble, through four people I was told my flip flops were unacceptable. As this was (finally) stated, a Chinese lady walked in with flip flops. 

I raised my eyebrow and pointed at her feet.

 

After the typical 'scramble-for-words' moment, I was told I couldn't bring in my backpack but needed to store it downstairs in the lockers. Making a move towards the lockers, that statement was quickly receded and replaced with an unintelligible reason as to why I wouldn't be able to store my bag in the lockers. Quickly losing my (thread bare) patience, I retorted, "I only want to browse your books. If you don't allow foreigners just say so instead of looking like inept puppets." I walked out, grumpy and bookless. 

I chose to nurse my frustration within the sanctuary of Black Bamboo Park. To my delight, it is practically on the doorstep of the library. Thankfully, it is rather refreshing and full of color and water unlike its drab behemoth neighbor. 

I had been told this park is a hidden (free) gem within the city limits. I was not disappointed. The abundance of water was a balm to my parched mermaid-hood. The simple Chinese design welcomed a frustrated soul and made me wonder why this country has practically thrown it aside and failed to incorporate it into modern design. I actually read an article recently that said that in its quest to modernize and show the world it can play with the big boys, Beijing failed to create an identity for itself and thus makes it forgettable. To some degree, I agree.

Though a ruthless plant tyrant when unchecked, I love bamboo. I weaved to and fro underneath its towering spires, enjoying the random and unique people and activities I ran into within the maze. Fairly quickly, I stepped from the bamboo forest into a water oasis. I found a cluster of large rocks and settled myself for an afternoon of sunbathing and reading. Ironically, I spent the afternoon in solitude reading The Psychopath Test. It was a good book.

As the sun slipped closer to the horizon, I walked away from the Black Bamboo park intending to visit many times in the near future.

Chinese Lantern

It may seem menial to most, but the feat of getting all the components for a Chinese lantern is rather daunting in China. Tonight, I finally got to hang my birthday present from Zach and that is cause for celebration. I love Chinese lanterns.

Xihongshi Jidan Wednesdays

It doesn't have the same ring as Tuesday Tacos or Meatless Monday, but every Wednesday evening we have found ourselves sitting in plastic chairs around a plastic table outside a hole-in-the-wall noodle shop.

We teach a business English course on the east side of Beijing on Wednesdays, so before trekking home, we eat. Five weeks ago, after our first night on the job, we stumbled across this shop and was prompted to eat there thanks to the feisty money lady and a customer who spoke English and raved about the food. Except for one week, we have satisfied our stomachs with great food at a super cheap price ($3 for two meals). Plus, it has been fun to see the crux of business move outside as the weather has warmed.

Zach's Quest

Solace and asylum within Beijing Catholic churches can only be experienced between the holy hours of 9-11am and 2-5pm as Zach discovered on his quest to actually see the inside the sacred edifices. It is China so it would not be surprising to see architectural marvels hailed as "we are tolerant" talking points, only to be filled with plastic tables and chairs alongside throes of dusty and broken framed Mao portraits. Thankfully, Zach sleuthed about the city, braved the wrath of sanctuary monitors and concluded that this city does have at least three viable Catholic churches.

I wasn't with him on this investigation as our teaching hours have become nearly opposite. It isn't a devastating fact, as over the past couple of months we have spent more time with each other than we ever thought was possible. We haven't driven the other to madness but the breathing room is refreshing. Also, it has sparked individual adventures; hence, Zach's expedition to find the holy buttresses.

Within the next month, I am sure Zach will post pictures and comments of his day on his blog, but for today I wanted to note his adventurous spirit and investigative skills.

Couchsurfing 101

Maxi waltzed through our door ladened with a sleeping bag, two canvas shopping bags, an infectious personality and a wealth of worldly tales. For the past four years she has traversed the world, hopscotching couches and floors across the continents. She was our first couch surfer hailing from New Zealand.

Through our friend, Joey, we have been introduced to the world of couch surfing--a worldwide connection of people who love to travel and travel cheaply. Through a website, people sign up, create profiles and reap the benefits of potential places to sleep around the world as well as to host many from across the nations. It is fascinating and seems to work amazingly well.

Granted we only have floor space to offer, but it is available and we look forward to hosting many more travelers in the future. Plus, we look forward to crashing a few couches ourselves in the months to come.

China: What I Know v.I

Frequently I find myself tucking away hodgepodge thoughts, quotes or observations about this foreign land. They are odd, eccentric, maddening yet so hysterically funny. I decided that an ongoing chronicle of such madness would be beneficial so that years from now when the odd has turned to the normal, I will be reminded of the early days.

This is the first edition...

Squatty potty instructions: If you have take your pants off, you are doing it wrong.

The ladies coddling babies beside the subway and bus stops are not just sunning their child; their child is a diversion so the police don't have a reason to arrest them for loitering when they are actually selling fake IDs. It also must be noted that many of these ladies "rent a baby" for this purpose. (I haven't found the office for this operation yet.)

Peking duck will dissolve when left in a refrigerator after the meter has ran out of electricity. 

Chinese apartment walls are the same as American apartment walls--not sound proof.

Maybe is the mantra of the Asian world.

A gem from one of my Chinese student's paper: Love is a condiment.

No Smoke Soccer

We rallied and cheered our way through another Beijing soccer game alongside our co-worker, Scott, and sans (very little) smoke.

On May 1 a law was passed banning smoking in public places; we were highly skeptical. We had actually forgotten about the law until we passed through security last night and saw the huge pile of lighters that had been confiscated. Unfortunately, there were rogue smokers, but by the end of the game we could still see the field without a dense haze. Actually the funniest thing was to watch people light up while sitting next to a cop and the cop not say a word. Efficiency at its finest.

Mail!

We received our first piece of mail today. It was exhilarating to open the mailbox and actually find something within its dark and dank innards.

Houhai

We have frequently heard the praises of the Houhai area--large bodies of water surrounded by a wild and entertaining nightlife. Zach teaches near the area and what little he has seen, he has liked.

After a shortened afternoon class due to my student being sick, we decided to explore the area.

The northern lakes are quite peaceful, with hordes of fisherman perched along the shore. The most hilarious piece to the scenery were the fishing poles in use. They were extremely large and complex contraptions that, upon first glance, would make one think they were fishing for Jaws. The one catch we spotted was approximately six inches.

The farther south we walked the rowdier it became around the lake. We walked through the entire pub area, serenaded with everything from KTV to bad Chinese love songs.

We searched for food, but was astonished to discover that filling our stomachs was not going to be an easy task nor cheap with the few options given. We chose to walk a block away from the 'tourist' trap and found a delightful Yunnan noodle shop. Cheap and scrumptious.

I am sure we will visit this area again, for it reminds us of Portland--outdoor seating, good/bad music and lots of water. We have been told that if we return to pack our own beer.

First of the Season

Watermelons are everywhere! There seems to be a fruit truck on every street corner loaded with watermelons and pineapple. Today, we chose our first watermelon of the season.

Joel would love choosing watermelons here--everyone of them has a 'tail.'

Amazing.

Rosy Reminder

The courtyard outside our office is filled with roses. While not the magnitude or vastness of the Portland Rose Garden, it is a beautiful reminder of our beloved city.

First Package

Today, we received our first package from across the pond thanks to the Richards family. I knew the contents, but I was so excited to see the final product--my Stripescape quilt. Ruth Ann had put the finishing touches on the masterpiece while I was packing the bungalow and my bags in preparation for the China move. Today was the first time I saw our collaboration in its full effect.

The office staff was intrigued to learn what comes in a package from the United States. They were even more perplexed as to why I would get so excited about material pieced together. As for explaining the concept of quilting, it was met with blank stares.

 

Thanks, Ruth Ann, for sending me such a treasure. I can't wait to put it together! 

Random Lecture

Our coworker, Joey, meets the most random yet interesting people. During the last holiday, we got to meet some of his random acquaintances, Robin and Muren. We loved our dinner with them. They are funny, witty and they work for NGOs in the area. Thanks to this meeting and our mutual love for environmental issues, we got an invitation to attend a lecture at the Zoological Center compliments of the Wildlife Conservation Society.We didn't know the details of the evening nor who was lecturing us.

After a Chinese introduction, we quickly learned that we were listening to one of the most renowned workers in the field of conservation--George Schaller. He was rather fascinating with his stories from around the globe, but we were a bit disheartened that he didn't present actual theories to the implementation of conservation. Granted, it is hard to do such a thing through a Chinese translator.

Overall, it was a great evening and I enjoyed learning a bit more about an NGO and I am intrigued to read his newly published memoir, A Naturalist and Other Beasts: Tales from a Life in the Field.

Ancient Observatory

Unfortunately, upon emerging from the subway station, we walked into a downpour that had not been part of the skypscape when we left our west Beijing hood. Under the sanctuary of our respective umbrellas, Zach and I walked the (soggy) Chinese Ancient Observatory grounds.

The observatory does not appear on the must do list of Beijing, but a fellow teacher had told us it was a unique place with odd astrology bits and bobbins. We just happened to pick the soggiest day yet to visit a site that is primarily outdoors.

Thankfully, there were a few exhibition halls that we could visit in an attempt to elude the rain for a bit. We didn't learn much within the halls, since much of the explanations were in Chinese. We did notice that a Chinese scientist did 'discover' pi and it is indeed 3.14 in these parts.

We greatly enjoyed the craftsmanship of the pieces. I am constantly amazed and utterly in love with the artistic depictions of the dragon in this country.

Restore Unity

The Rally to Restore Unity came into my radar thanks to BD's blog. The signs were rather hysterical and unique, but I really liked the concept and what the organizer was trying to initiate. As I was walking the other day (a frequent occurrence on this side of the globe), I was mulling over the concept of "companies" in this part of the world. Every foreigner has a story, and many try to figure what "companies" people are associated with or if they are even with a "company" at all.

My thought process inspired this sign.

Secrets, secrets, secrets. While necessary here, it reminds me that we are all ultimately working for the same "company" and it is nice not to blatantly know theologies, ideologies or efliptomologies.

Recuperation

Recently, one of my favorite music albums is Lady Antebellum's Need You Now. My urge for extensive country music exposure happens every spring, a byproduct of growing up on a farm in the middle of nowhere when the arrival of spring is a very spiritual and beautiful time. For some unknown reason, it makes my soul crave country music.

One of my favorite songs on the album is titled, Perfect Day; the chorus is: 

It was the perfect day
What I'd give if I could find a way to stay
Lost in this moment now
Ain't worried about tomorrow
When you're busy livin in a perfect day.

I write this intro solely to say--today was a perfect day.

The temperature was low 80s with a picturesque blue sky (a rarity for Beijing), a soft breeze and there seemed to be a bounce to people's steps and a smile to their weary faces.

We slept in late; recuperating from three days of non stop travel and late nights. I faced the day by walking to Renmin University's swimming pool. For two hours, I enjoyed the solitude of the water. This was after I passed my Chinese swimming test so that I could swim in the "deep" end.

 

Yes, they required and used a passport picture for my official card. 

After I told the swim instructor that I was a lifeguard/swim instructor in the states she said (in broken English), "I am so sorry that we made you take the test. Would you be interested in teaching here?" We shall see what happens, but I may be teaching English and swimming lessons in China.

On my (very slow) walk home, I ran into a girl that I had met at a life group. We talked for a long time, ultimately enjoying the warmth of the sun on our vitamin D deprived cheeks.

Zach and I spent a chunk of the afternoon in a park reading.

We met Christy in Wudauku in the late afternoon. She and I got pedicures.

Afterwards, we spent the evening enjoying Arabic food and discussing the pros and cons to the Harry Potter character list.

It was the perfect final day of a holiday weekend.

Beijing Monotheistic Tour

After extreme public bus navigational skills and a late night with new acquaintances around food, we decided to stay within city limits and visit monotheistic relics that have survived the chaos and destruction of the Cultural Revolution.

Our first stop was within the southeastern hutongs of Beijing. Surrounded by Arabian-hued architecture and stalls of yummy bread, the largest mosque within Beijing stands short and squatty. Chinese and Arabic architecture melds so well together. It was breathtaking.

So was the stylish skirt that I had to wear over my shorts.

This was my first visit to a mosque and I greatly enjoyed it. It is always interesting and intriguing to visit places of other faiths.

Our second stop was at the oldest Catholic church. The doors were closed to visitors, but the courtyard was filled with skateboarders, tourists, a weird-sounding band and a plethora of brides.

It seems the Catholic courtyard is the place to take wedding photos and we saw seven couples beaming with wedding bliss.

 

I reversed the RCP and took pictures of the couples. I have no idea who they are or their love story. It felt nice to do some reverse-gawking.