Brooklyn to China

After living in the heart of China, it was almost a shock to be in a thriving metropolis like Hong Kong. In many ways it was so much like New York that we felt quite at home. We took to the subway (MTR) like fish to the water, and used it to travel all around Kowloon. We also took the ferry around on a 2hr trip to Macau.

Our host in Hong Kong was an amazing woman from Singapore, teaching in the anthropology department at the Chinese University. Her home is beautiful and large, a great luxury in Hong Kong. And she was the most gracious host. Saroja if you are reading this, you are welcome to come stay with Lester and I anywhere on the globe, anytime. Just send an email and our house is your house.

Highlights include the big buddha and the sky trolley, the Hong Kong city lights, quick tour of Macau and the Avenue of the Stars. Check out the gallery below for all the best pictures.

Our time in Nanjing was bittersweet. The city is beautiful. Young population with dozens of schools. Very spread out and lots of great attractions. We travelled to Nanjing to explore the universities, to find a place to study. It was a very production trip. And visited many schools, and places of interest. Our train ride there was fun. We travelled on a spacious train for 4 hours. There was even free entertainment for Mayehu, by the young women eager to hold him.

But we made a crucial mistake. Just for future reference for anyone of you who may have the oportunity to travel in China, never travel with a one way ticket, especially up to a month before and after the Chinese New Year. We were stuck in Nanjing with no tickets home 3 weeks before the crazy rush for tickets even began. Lester worked tirelessly that week, standing in line and texting whoever we knew until we finally got bus tickets. Needless to say the busride home was not quite as pleasant.

We have a Chinese teacher. She took us to her home this week-end. Her mom is amazing and cooked us our first dumplings in China, (with no eggs) along with three other delicious meals. I made French toast for them both.

I do not know our Chinese teacher’s Chinese name. We call her Daisy. Nor do I know her mother’s name. How terrible is it that I don’t know their name? Most people have an English name in our school. When I tried to do a roll call in my first class all my students laughed at me. Speaking Chinese is a bit like speaking Vulcan. It is not the sort of thing you can rush into. Daisy is one of Lester’s students.

Daisy took us to her hometown, Luoyang. First we visited the Horse and Chariot Pits from an Emperor of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. Then we saw the Longmem Grottoes. Longmen means Dragon Gate and is one of the possible locations of this mythical gate. The legend refers to a carp that saw the top of a mountain and decided he was going to reach it. He swam upstream, climbing rapids and waterfalls, letting nothing get in the way of his determination. When the carp finally reached the top he found the mythical “Dragon Gate” and, when he jumped over it, he turned into a dragon. Several waterfalls and cataracts in China are believed to be the location of the “Dragon Gate” and the Dragon Gate legend is often used as an allegory for the drive and effort needed to overcome obstacles and achieve success in life.

Learning to speak Chinese is my newest challenge. China has a lot still to teach us.

Our First Walk Around

Ok, so we have a roof over our heads, basic amenities taken care of and we are waiting until after the next holiday to start work. We are feeling confident about teaching at Shengda College. On our first morning here while trying to overcome jet-lag, we were awakened by the sound of students marching in time. Apparently, “Right Left, Right” is a universal soldier song. We soon found out that all freshman have to march for two weeks straight at the start of their four years. That’s good news as far as I’m concerned, cause I’m figuring discipline will not be an issue in the classroom.

At this moment, about a week since we have arrived, we are pretty much settled in. Our only concerns consist of eating, and securing whatever little things we need to be comfortable at home. Most things are easy to come by. After all this is ground zero for that “Made in China” sticker that is on everything sold in the US. And the food, incidently, is great! So good in fact that I’m saving the pictures, videos and details for a later blog entry.

Dorm Living with Flair

But there is a secret about China, at least rural China where we are, that I’ve got to let you in on. All the babies and toddlers wear clothes with a hole at the butt. The little pants and overalls that they wear are made exposing their behinds. You can just imagine my surprise when I first saw this.

Everywhere that Lester and I go, we attract attention. Everyone wants to see the baby. We are among the first Black people that they have seen, and Mayehu is definately the first Black baby. They all want to touch his skin. Well Lester has been loving the attention, he loved to carry Mayehu around even in NY, and now all the Chinese mothers gather around with their babies. Except, we can always see they little behinds. Today in the supermarket, there was one little fat baby siting in the shopping cart with his little weaner jutting out between the cold metal bars.

Smile Mayehu!

Haha. It was pretty funny. Potty training is a whole other experience in China. In fact, I’m guessing it doesn’t even exist. When the babies have to go, they just go, and if mom is quick enough to catch it good for her! She’ll just hold him or her over the edge of the pavement to finish the job. The mothers hold wash clothes over the hole for the smaller babies, and when the toddlers stand-up or run around you can’t really tell there is a hole, which is only apparent when they squat.

So there is no need for pampers, hence our dilemma. I’ve been thinking about it though, and they probably think we are being very unsanitary by forcing the baby to wear his pee around with him. Haha. And I have to admit, as a new mother, I’m am not looking forward to potty training.

Turns out that the pampers were not as hard to find as we had imagined. We were able to get some at the main supermarket that we’ve been buying our household goods and groceries.

The next problem is finding pants, with no holes. hmmm