Back!

Well, here's the post we have all been waiting for! I am back in the USA!

Phew! IT was actually pretty painless traveling. I managed to sleep on the flight from Beijing to Chicago and I got to catch up on The Office, Glee, Simpsons, and even CSI. I also watched Harry Potter 6....and the guy next to me must've though I was crazy because I always choke up when Dumbledore goes down.

Getting through customs was surprisingly easy. I have not flown in to the country in a few years, and now the government makes you watch a video about going through customs. And...it scares the poop out of you. It really really really really really does. Ever other sentence is, "if you lie, then you will be severely fined and punished." I have to say- I'm from the family of I only claim $100 dollars just so I can get through customs ASAP....and all of a sudden I felt like the USA government was about to give me the shake down. Put me in a room by myself with the single, hanging lightbulb. I would crack so easy: I confess! I have Chinese Candy!

But I made is through. Had to go back through security, which is always a joy. And I would like to announce....that I got the full body scan....and have lived to tell the tale. I felt bad for the girl next to be in line, who couldn't stand up because of the cast on her leg. She couldn't do the scan and had to get the pat down. AND they had to pat down her cast! Poor thing!

I promptly got a bagel with cream cheese once I was in the terminal. Oh man was it good! Had to wait around for a few hours....killed time calling people on my CELL PHONE! Finally got on the little tiny jet to DC and landed at 11:50! 5 minutes early!

I finally met Ainsley- the most beautiful little girl in the WHOLE world. She's so tiny and snuggly. Eamon is of course huge. I've included a picture of him impersonating Michael Jackson.

We ate Mexican food. I took a power nap. We mostly decorate the Christmas tree. And hung out with the fam. For dinner we did Mama Lucia's Pizza. Which was just about the best thing ever, ever.

ALSO- My reintroduction to faceybook has felt so good. I really am having to tell myself not to post every 5 minutes...

But I love you all! LOVE LOVE LOVE! Happy Holidays!

PS- I hope you like the picture of Emma playing jianzi. I know that dog was Chinese.

Screen Shot FROZEN

Here...for your viewing pleasure...a screen shot of my dash board.

Please note the CURRENT temperature in Beijing China. 10 F. 10. As in...the one after 9. 

And still no snow.  I will be walking to work today...and hoping I freeze to death on the way.....

You may also note the countdown clock that tells you I am down to 4 days 22 hours 59 minutes....before I get on an airplane bound for the USA.

Bad Blogger

 Well- I've been a bad blogger. Look at me. Starting out with 28 posts in July, then down to 18, then 13, November with a pitiful 5(!) and December will now have 6 blogs.

It's not that I don't miss everybody.

Life has just swung into full blown monotony. Or maybe I've lost my cleverness.

Maybe I've just been so darn frustrated by work lately. One thing about Chinese culture- is that when somebody messes up- nobody has to pay for it. Not that I believe in vengeance, but where I come from: you screw up, you get told WHY you screwed up and how NOT to screw up again and everybody moves on. Right? Right. But here in China you can do pretty much do whatever you please. And cause all your coworkers as much strife as you want.

Our sales department is the BEST at just doing WHATEVER they want. They like to schedule random classes at random times. Then they don't tell us- you know the ones who have to TEACH the classes. We also have one worker here who I'm pretty sure is a misogynistic PIG. I think he thinks because I am female I don't quite have the same capacity that he does. And let me tell you- this boy is NOT the sharpest tool in the shed, nor the brightest crayon in the box NOR (and in honor of the season) the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree. He knows better then me or Jill or anybody in the education department. If there is a 10 student limit for a class then they SURELY can have 12 students. Or how about this: He can just add students willy nilly to art classes at the last minute. Never mind there might be stuff to prepare for the students to paint.

I explain to my managers why this can't be done. And they say they talk to them and ask them not to behave that way again. And sure enough....3 days later... he'll do it again. What has happened is- I personally grab a translator and speak to him sternly about it. But it's rather useless. It's more or less like buying a puppy and letting him pee on the floor. Solution: Kindly ask him not to do it again. The dog doesn't understand or care....and neither do my co-workers.

On top of the stress of those classes, I'm still writing RnR curriculum, interviewing candidates for positions, AND re-painting the RnR murals. I took on a lot because I was having to do a lot of the work either way. Only after somebody did it wrong the first time around. And we had a hiring incident here- where they hired somebody completely wrong for the job. Her only qualification being that she spoke English. She lasted 1 month. Since then I have really wanted to be in the loop...and thus the work load.

So phew: There is my venting.

I'm also excited about coming home. But have sh*t tons of work to do....and can't manage to see over those piles. I just...I can't wait. As I post this we are down to 6 days 6 hours. And I can't wait.

Love. Love. Love you all.

10 days out....

checked the 10 day forecast......

Snow for Chicago and D.C. For the first time in my life....I'm praying for no snow.

Temple of Heaven

SO busy! And swamped with work! But wanted to share pictures...from another Beijing Landmark.

Temple of HEAVEN....if you want to learn more.....wikipedia it! haha sorry!

3rd update today *UPDATED* this IS REALLY why I don't drink coffee

Chinese baby cuteness! To the MAX!

Why DO American's win at the Olympics every year?

The above question was posed to me a few months back by a Chinese co-worker. And I really didn't have the answer....

But I am starting to get an inkling why....

Last weekend we had a company vacation. We went to the north end of Beijing to the natural springs. There are many large complexes all surrounding some hot spring pools. We got a free night's stay, a pass into the hotsprings, and breakfast! It was awesome to have a little vacay time. It ended up being a little more stressful then intended. Our co-workers were indecisive to say the least, and we really lost our voice because of the language barrier. They were so wishy washy- Jill and I were just along for the ride. There was so much debate about what to do at the springs and then last minute everybody decided to go get dinner...but they didn't know where. When finally we got sick of it- and went off and got full body massages. In the time it took us to get the massage and to join our co-workers at the restaurant, our co-workers were only able to  decide on a restaurant and transport all 25 of them to the restaurant and eat appetizers. 

We returned back to the resort and got into the hot springs. It was really gorgeous setting- which we were NOT allowed to take pictures of. :( They had 8 small pools filled with 3 feet of water; one large pool with water falls and about 3 feet of water; and one olympic size swimming pool that was 5 feet deep of water.

Jill and I- without hesitating- jumped into the big big pool and started splashing around. We were excited because a few of our co-workers had told us they knew how to swim. But once they got in the pool they all clung on to the edge for dear life. They got scared that they would drown in the 5 feet of water-  Out of the 15 chinese female employees, 2 claimed to know how to swim. Out of the 2 that claimed to know how to swim, 0 actually did any swimming.  Even worse they started ooh-ing and ahh-ing that Jill and I knew how to swim. And then got quite cross when we wanted to continue swimming. Out of our 3 male employee's- all three could swim. But not that well.

Now- I'm not trying to stereotype. But let's look at the facts. 0% of the female employees demonstrated swimming ability (although 13% claimed they could.) 100% of the male population could swim- but not that well. 

Here is my confusion: Are they naturally not as genetically pre-disposed to being athletic.... OR are they culturally not expected to be. AND- furthermore: If Americans are naturally more athletic- why are we so much fatter?

Just to prove a point: yesterday at the gym I was waiting for a machine that works your pectoral muscles and shoulder muscles. A gentlemen about 6' tall and slim was on the machine. I waited patiently while the gentlemen grunted and puffed and when he finally got off the machine, I jumped on. He was lifting 22 lbs. This is a machine that I (a weaker, smaller, female) can at least lift 33 lbs. And this is not a-typical. Jill and I typically run a 5k in anywhere from 25-30 minutes (Jill being more on the 25 minute end- I on the other.) We regularly have people who get on the treadmill next to us, check our speed, crank it up to match, and run for about 5 minutes. Then too winded- they give up and go do free weights while checking themselves out in the mirror.

I'm not trying to stereotype. There are many people here who are super athletic.  I'm trying to be a reporter of observations. But as I said earlier...I am starting to understand why our medal counts...tend to be a little higher. 

The Re-Amerification of Anna Czaplicki

Well well well. We are officially under twenty days until I step foot back on the sweet soil of my mother country. 

It got me thinking- I have been living in a different culture for 180 days....I have completely and totally embraced this Beijing world. I have even attempted to assimilate myself. In essence- I have been attempting to be Chinese. But now I'm faced with a problem and a reality: I need to re-educate myself in my native customs. So- here's a list for myself of do's and don'ts for any Chinese person coming to America. Also- this is a refresher course for myself.

1. No hocking of loogie(s). I won't say that this is a custom that I partake in. But it is a VERY Chinese thing to do. It's "unhealthy" to swallow spit- so you have to get rid of it any way you can. Which most often is anywhere you see fit (the sidewalk, the train platform, etc) you dislodge your loogie in the loudest most obnoxious way possible. Make sure the person down the road can hear it. But (thankfully!!!) in America, people keep their loogies to themselves.

2. No slurping of food. In China, another way of saying yum. Also a quick and easy way to cool down your tong (soup) or tea. America=Rude, crude, uncivilized.  

3. No cutting in line. American's frown upon the idea that sometimes some people are really in more of a hurry. You cut in line you might get cussed at or worse....not in sunny down town Bei Jing. You gotta be somewhere quick: get ahead of me. I won't smile about it- but I won't hex you either. 

4. Stand at least 18 inches from the person in front of yourself. Obviously- with 1 billion people the personal space bubble is smaller. Coming back to America people do not like feeling encroached upon. Step back- Saplick!

5. No pushing. Pushing just happens in China- whether it be getting on or off the subway or getting through a crowd of people. It's not rude- it's survival. In America- nto so understood.

6. Do not throw your food scraps on the table. In China we pay somebody to scrub the table- so that's where scraps go. 

7. You cannot negotiate price. I have fallen in love with bartering. Everybody wins! You leave feeling accomplished, with something, and you feel like it's a fair price. But the good ol' U S of A is a the land of set prices. Like it or not.

8. While driving: do not honk at EVERYTHING. Here in Beijing, you see a couple of people near the side walk: Honk. Another car turning: Honk. Leaves blowing in the wind: Honk. A stick in the road: Honk. A pedestrian 50m from an intersection: Honk. You are having a bad day: Honk. 

9. Bring your food to you- not the other way around. In China they pay honor to their food by taking themselves to food- not the food to them. I may no longer bring my face to my plate and chow down. I also can no longer let food hang out of my mouth. Damn Western Manners!

10. Throw your TP in the toilet. In China we use the trashcan for all paper waste. Stinky, yes. But in America it all goes down. 

11. Dessert comes last. Always. We don't really have set 'courses' aka appetizers, dessert, main course- come out whenever they damn please. This will be something that I will not mind readjusting too.

12. Pay your bill afterwards. You order all at once in BeiJing. You pay first thing.  As soon as you are done- get the hell outta dodge!

13. Take your time eating. In America we enjoy hanging out, enjoying the meal, and not rushing through and getting out of there. (Are you sensing a theme of efficiency)

14. There are other utensils other then chopsticks and spoons. Use them.

15. Fashion is no longer 'whatever goes.' I sadly, will have to start coordinating my outfits. But I was starting to believe plaid and houndstooth went together!

16. You do NOT have to answer your cell phone. It will go to voicemail. Whaddya mean? I don't have to sprint across the office, pushing co-workers out of the way, knocking over small-children and dive into my purse to answer my cellphone?? Dropping whatever I was doing in the process? 

17. Say 'Bless you!' when people sneeze. Here we laugh at sneezes. You know...cuz they're funny....

18. People will now understand what you say. Edit your conversations in public accordingly. Jill and I abuse this way too much on public transportation. We talk about whatever we want, or who ever we want...in front of whoever. The fact that we get stared at all the time, in a weird way, can be freeing. You start acting goofier because it doesn't matter. You are already getting stared at! Might as well give them something to stare at.... cue Jill doing the Alice the Camel dance down the subway train. 

Today's Lecture: Skiing and Gender Roles

Well this past weekend, Jill and I got a mini-vacation. Our friend Nana organized a 48 hour ski trip about 3 hours outside of Beijing. For 200 yuan we got transportation, hotel room, breakfast, and two days worth of ski rentals/lift passes. AKA- for a little over $25 USD we got a bomb-diggity vacay!

Our journey began early Monday morning as we metro'd our way across Beijing to the pre-arranged meeting point. We piled into a TINY van and 10 of us headed on out of Beijing. This is my first time leaving the Beijing area- but we traveled into the Northern reaches of Hebei province. This is the province that Beijing is nestled in- but is a different province. It's weird. Sort of how Washington DC is neither a part of MD or VA- it is it's own district.

We drove and drove and drove in our tiny van- our legs all cramped up- and watched as the surrounding terrain switched from the mountainous edges of Beijing into the flat and water covered parts of Hebei. We passed a Nuclear Power Plant with 6 cooling towers. And we passed fields and fields of Wind Turbines- which I find very delightful. It's like giant pinwheels thrown across fields. 

Slowly but surely the landscape begin to change and get more rugged and mountainous. And then- before we knew it- the ground was covered in snow- as well as the street. A few more kilometers and we were pulling into our ski resort. Our hotel was NICE! Each room has two full size beds, a flat screen T.V., a western toilet, and hot water form 8pm-12am! :) It sat ON the ski slopes and allowed easy access.

As soon as Jill and I got there we were ready to hit the slopes- we had a few snacks- and then we were off. Jill is an avid snowboarder, so it was the first time in a while that she was skiing. And it was the first time in 5 years that I was skiing. We both tentatively scooted out on to the bunny slope and slid down hill. Now instead of the typical t-bar ski lift, they had a giant conveyor belt lift. It was painfully slow- and generally resulted in Jill and I as quickly as we could slowly scooting ourselves forward. 

Nana and Max were inexperienced skiers and hit the slopes about an hour after we had. With two bunny slopes and one blue square open- it definitely was a beginners resort. Jill and I came down from our run of the 'big slope' to see Nana stuck on the edge of the bunny slope. Max was no where to be seen- so we skied to her and gave her our first official ski lesson (pizza/french fries!). Nana told us that Max had decided to go up on the blue square and she had decided to stay. Jill and I stayed behind and bunny sloped it up a lot. Nana was very fearful and shrieked and screamed out a lot as we skittered down the bunny slope. At one point- she fell over on the conveyor belt and began screaming 'Save my life! Save my life!' (hilarious- yes. But don't worry. Even though I was giggling to myself as the ski employee dragged her off- 10 minutes later I too fell over on the conveyor belt and only could right myself but knocking a ski off....half way down the hill. Karma!) 45 minutes later Max reappeared- he had not had a 'successful' run down the mountain. We were encouraging Nana at this point to TRY the blue square- just to have the experience. Jill and I seem to be from the Nike school of thought- and 'Just Do It' seemed to be our motto. Max though put his foot down. As the male here he told us that it was 'Too dangerous' of a slope for Nana to try and attempt. Jill and I laughed. But- the more we talked about it- the more we just noticed how different gender roles are here in China.

In America, women are raised with the idea that they can do ANYTHING that their male counterparts can do. And other then the physiological differences- men and women are equal. Here in China women are raised as the weaker sex. Our male employees struggled for a long time to let us move the equipment around the gym. They truly believe we were not physically capable. At our gym, men gawk, open-mouthed, as Jill and I get on the machines and manage to lift anything more then 10 lbs. There is a list 10 miles long of what Chinese women CANNOT do during 'that time of the month,' most of which are laughable to a western woman (they aren't allowed to eat ice cream!)

 And once more, we were seeing this gender inequality on the slopes. Even worse- women seem to agree with the idea that they are fragile little flowers. Ski instructors would run across slopes to help a woman who had gently taken a tumble. And now Max has deemed the mountain too dangerous and Nana would not be going on it. That immediately made me cross- my inner feminist wanted to come roaring out and ask him 'How he knew what Nana could and couldn't do.' But, I backed down. 

Jill and I started to feel very out of place. Here we were- the freakish American women who could ski successfully and do so with out shrieking or eating it. Nana stayed on the bunny slope for the rest of the day. Max actually joined her- I think he had over estimated his own skiing ability.

The next day, Jill and I got an early start. We ate breakfast, bundled up, booted-up, and were on the ski-lift lickedy split. Nana had gotten separated from Max, so she decided to sneak up the mountain with Jill and I. Jill and I waited at the top, but when it came time to disembark, Nana freaked out again. She put the bar up, and as soon as she got near the station she slid out, flopping on the ground, screaming 'HELP! HELP!' Those ski-park employees we're earning their money that day. We got Nana situated- and we all set off. We pizza'd the whole way down. Nana fell once- but got right back up and kept pizza-ing.  Max eventually caught up to us- and was happy to see Nana on the slopes. We ended up doing the run again and again. But before too long it was time to pack it up, and head back to the big BJ. 

Eventually I hope to get some video on this blog- and show you guys a bit of what we did.

But my days here in BeiJing are numbered- well for the first half of this voyage at least.  So- hopefully a few more blog posts and I will be writing to everybody about how weird it is that EVERYBODY speaks English, and how good PIZZA tastes, and how my table manners are now atrocious. :)

Love. Love. Love. 

30 days!

Just for the official record! It's 30 days till I'm back on US soil!!

AHHHH! :)

Old MacDonald

I recently was reading David Sedaris' Dress Your Family In Corduroy and Denim. He brings something up, that I have always been fascinated with: The different sounds that animals make in different cultures.

It's funny to think that how many ideas are cultural- even though at one point in our lives we all believe that OF COURSE a dog in Guatemala, Portugal, and Vietnam all would BARK. But alas, no, they all make a strange assortment of noises. Being a pre-K teacher, of course, these animal discussions have come up. And I wanted to share with you- what I have learned- what animals say in China.

Dogs go Wong Wong. No joke. This one- has been the hardest one to accept. I have actually tried to listen to dogs barking here desperately trying to hear a 'W' or an 'ONG.'  

Ducks say Ga Ga

Frogs say Gua Gua

Roosters crow GeGeGeGe (Pronounced Guh Guh Guh) This one has made me wonder which is weirder- their version or our western Cock-A-Doodle-Doo. I also heard that they say OhOhOhhhhhh!

Hens don't cluck, they say GeGeDaaa!

Cows go Mer (Muurrr) I agree whole heartedly, I have never EVER heard a cow 'moo!'

Birds call Jiu Jiu (Ju Ju)

I didn't include any that were boringly similar. Chinese Cats DO say Meow. Lame. 

Believe me- this has led to some VERY interesting renditions of Old MacDonald- where I loudly and proudly sing out my western animal noises- as the Chinese parents stare at me with the most puzzled look on their faces. 

Also- they sing the ALPHABET wrong! The rhythm is all wrong- they don't say 'LMNOP' quickly- they keep time. Which ends up messing up your end AND you are forced to sing "XYZ- XYZ- Now you see- I can sing my ABC's" :)

One Sick Puppy

I wish there was a puppy. 

Alas- no puppy- just some kind of chest cold. And a new turtle...but thats a different story.

Still no heat. The official OFFICIAL word is some time on the 15th the heat will go on. But who knows if they meant November of this year....or possibly November 2011. Here's hoping.

This cold struck me earlier in the week. Sore throat, achy ears, wheezing. But when you are just 1 of 2 instructors the show must go on. Actually- I chose to work. I'm sure if I asked they would cancel classes in a heart beat. But I got through all my classes and now I have staked out a very comfy spot on the couch. I'm surrounded by two heaters and two comforters with a hot water bottle tucked in to my shirt. I'm just trying to rest and I have been gifted some chinese medicine.  Thank you Luyin! (Although- Luyin did not initially tell me it had to be mixed with water. So thank you to Nana for saving me from taking my medicine improperly.)

Now they gave me two types of Chinese Medicine. Which surprisingly are in boxes that look much like anything else you would pick up at a CVS in the 'cold/cough' aisle. They say OTC on them- so they can't be anything too bad. I asked my boss about it once- since he has lived in America for a long time about his views on Eastern vs Western Medicine. His view: Western Medicine does a good job treating the symptoms. Eastern medicine treats the cause. I guess we shall see. (I'm TRYING to be open minded about this)

Once opened- inside the package are 20-30 little envelopes. You open up the envelope- and it looks like a big package of yeast. Seriously. I got out a warm glass of water and mixed it in. And well- bottoms up. The first packet I took today tasted a lot like brown-sugar water. No complaints there. The other type of Eastern Medicine (Ganmao Qingre Keli) tasted like moth balls. So- I'm not sure if I will continue to take this one.

Am I feeling better? It remains to be seen. But- when in Rome..... 

Another thing about Chinese medicine is that it's goal is always to squelch the 'inner fire.' Now- I think 'inner fire' is a good thing. And when put to proper use, 'inner fire' can be a great thing. But the Chinese are VERY much against it. Jill and I asked what happens if you have too much 'inner ice'- but everybody looked at us like we were crazy. So apparently- no such thing as 'inner ice' (which may explain why they don't turn their heat on until November. I personally think that I have developed a bad case of inner ice from sleeping in 30 degrees night after night.) So- my sickness is coming from too much fire in a certain part of my body- and the herb will seek and destroy wherever my fire is. So here's hoping it puts my fire out. Or else we just might have to make s'mores. :)

(Mis)Communication

So here we are...it's already NOVEMBER! 

Jill and I have started our tutoring lessons- hoping to finally grasp a bit of this foreign language. But- it hasn't stopped the communications errors along the way.

How many of you have heard of ood? Ood (rhymes with food) is a word we hear a lot over here. And yes- it is in English. Here- let me give you some examples. The forest is filled with Ood. Or how about this one: My dining room table is made of ood. Catching on maybe? Yes- ood = wood. Except everybody who is a native chinese speaker was taught to pronounce it 'ood.' What makes is harder is that it doesn't even rhyme with it's base word- so as you sit there mid conversation your brain has come to a SCREECHING halt. 

"It will be easy for us to find cheep ood bracelets."

"Oh.......really.........Ood is cheap here in China?"

"Oh yes, you can get many things cheap if they are made out of ood."

"Wow-......ood isn't really found in the US....so cheap....I think...."

Till finally two minutes later your brain somehow make the connection and you interrupt the conversation that has inevitably meandered on, shouting "Wood! Wood! You mean Wood!"

Now- I'm not criticzing. Not at all. I am the queen mother of mispronouncing chinese words- or actually I should say mis-toning chinese words. My pronunciation is good. But I can't melodically make the words fall out of my mouth in the correct tone. They get stuck up my mouth like honey and all of a sudden my falling tone just falls flat. Or my rising tone didn't start low enough. My chinese tutor politely looked at me the other day and said, 'You really need to listen to the audio CD." Point taken. 

SO that's it from here. 46 days. I love love love all of you. :)

And I hope you all voted. Twice.

Happy Halloweenie! :)

Chills Down Your Spine

Some of you may have been wondering where I have been the past couple days. I have been decidedly absent from my blog. But don't worry- it's not because I don't love you. It's just that I've been defrosting my fingers. I tried writing a blog a few days ago- but had to take my gloves off to be able to type. While I was formulating my thoughts- my fingers froze to my macbook's metal case- and I've been defrosting them ever since. Imagine the scene from 'A Christmas Story'- except nobody double dog dared me.

Ok- enough with the silliness. It it fricken' cold in Beijing. And I mean COLD. Now- many of you- when I tell you the temperature ranges have scoffed at my complaining. But let me explain something to you. 45 degree to 50 degrees in Beijing doesn't just apply to the outdoors. No, no. Apparently, we are legally prevented from turning on our heat until November 14th. None of the buildings have it on. Which means 45 degrees is also your indoor temperature.  Just think about that for a minute- while you go to bump your thermostat up a couple of degrees. Imagine ALL day being in 45 degree weather. ALL DAY. No relief. Also- for you Virginians, it's not suppose to be this cold on Oct 1. Maybe mid-November. I've been wearing my winter jacket for 2 weeks!

So- Jill and I have resorted to layering. Layering like it is nobody's business. At one point Jill and I- while sitting at work- each had on 3 pairs of pants, 2 t-shirts, a sweat shirt, a jacket and a hat. Another trick is shoving hot water bottles in various layers of cloths. At night we sleep with layers of blankets, in addition to multiple pairs of pajamas. Let me tell you- this sucks.

**UPDATE**

Our prayers have been answered. Our apartment complex is 'testing' the heating systems and have turned the HEAT ON! For real! We have HEAT! :) Jill and I had the first good night sleep and I did NOT have to sleep in my FLEECE JACKET! Hallelujah! 

Introducing.....

My niece! WELCOME TO THE WORLD BABY GIRL! Only 60 days till I get to squeeze you!

I'm an ALIEN! LEGALLY! :)

Nobody can stop me now! I got documents everywhere- I'm legal and coming to your home!

Death of a Salesman

Right now- I need to use my blog as a tribute to fallen members of RnR Beijing.

Xu (pronounced Shoe) quit two days ago. This was a hard day for all of the office members because Xu is a much loved member of the team. He was always happy, always friendly, always willing to joke. Jill and I held him especially near and dear to our hearts because Xu was a true friend. Not just a co-worker. And even those his English wasn't very good (and our Chinese is even worse) we always managed to crack each other up. He even recently painted us beautiful masks from the Chinese Opera.

Over a month ago we lost Cici. Another friend at the office and a real personality. Now- very sadly- Cici is moving back home, away from Beijing. Cici was always there to joke around or give a big hug. She also is boy crazy and I still miss her "An-nuh! I want a boy-i-friend!"

I know they are not dead. But it is very sad losing two dear friends that we have made here and I know now we will hardly see them. Our social circle is small here and it feels like there is a hole in it now. 

So- a big I LOVE YOU shout out- to Cici and Xu. 

Double Update Power

Alright Gigi. I got my act together and you are getting two updates for the price of one! (With the chance of a third posting any minute now!)

Quite honestly- I've been busy. Jill had two sets of visitors (Krysti/Amy & Tasha) and in addition to that I've managed to pack some major work hours in.  Yes- this comes on the heels of a 5 day vacation. But in the first two days back to work I have managed to pack in 22 hours of work. 

But we have been busy in such a good way. With our visitors we were back at the Great Wall of China (TWICE!)  We discovered a new part of the Great Wall that may quickly become our favorite. We saw the Acrobatics show, went to the Ming Tombs, discovered the Beijing Zoo Market, revisited the Birds nests and the Llama temple and have even learned a little bit more Chinese. It's been busy, busy, busy, crazy crazy.

So where to begin? I do believe I will work BACKWARDS in time.

-Successful Food Ordering. Jill and I have a favorite dumpling place nearby to our house. A common way to order food in China is to be given a piece of paper with the menu on it- only in characters and you write on it what you want. Most places also have an expanded English Menu that has lots of brightly colored pictures. What we normally do is just match the characters in the English menu to those on the order list OR point at what we want and the waitress checks it for us.  I have been teaching myself Chinese characters and have decided my first focus should be on food. So- every day or so I pick 2 or 3 characters and learn them. Copy them. Write them. That way I can atleast eat. Well, at our dumpling restaurant they changed the menu and got RID of the English menu. We were truly up a creek with out a paddle. Jill and I hunkered down and used our existing knowledge of dumpling cuisine and my small repertoire of characters and ordered food for ourselves and our American friend. They even gave us the wrong dumpling and we were able to convey to them that it was incorrect and to give us our correct dumplings. It was an amazing feeling- especially when we are so reliant on our bilingual buddies.

-Great Wall of China: Mutianyu This was a welcome surprise. Jill, Tasha and I rented a car for the day (no small feat) and then got them to drive us to a new part of the wall. It was about a 2 hour drive from our apartment- although still a part of the Beijing area. It was one of the MOST beautiful parts of the wall that we have visited. On top of being a well preserved, long, winding, elegant part of the wall they have a few travel options.One option is the Gondola up and down form the crest of the mountain. The other option for getting down is a metal toboggan slide ride. I'm sure you know how we got down from the great wall. It ends up being a twisting, turning, 5 minute long ride where you get to control your speed.I have a video and I'm working on converting it.

-Llama Temple 3.0 Jill and I went to the Llama Temple for the 3rd time each- accompany her friends for a sightseeing stop. It is a very beautiful refuge from the city, and I constantly enjoy the brightly colored halls and traditions of Buddhism. Although- in one of my guide books it hinted that the Government has infiltrated this temple long ago- and that there are no real practicing monks here. That they are all just paid guards and actors. I choose not to fully believe this....although it wouldn't be shocking if it were true.

-Beijing Zoo Market Jill and I did this in the in between time when no friends were visiting. It is a 7 or 8 story tall building, with each floor filled to the brim with hundreds (if not thousands) of tiny stalls. You can find all the clothing you can ever want or dream for AND best part is- it's a bargaining market. Now Jill and I have developed a system for bargaining. This is the system: Jill negotiates the numbers and when they won't go ANY lower- I grab her arm and say loudly "LETS go somewhere else!" And we will turn around- usually to the dismay of the sales person. Then they come after us shouting 'OK! OK' Deal is done. Jill and I got 2 pairs of sunglasses for 50 yuan aka $3/pair, I got 2 scarves, 1 jacket, and 1 hat. Jill got a sweater, sunglasses, a hat, nail polish, and a pair of shoes.  It's good fun- although sometimes frustrating. I had one woman REFUSE to bargain with me- just setting the price at 60 yuan. I caved- I really wanted the damn scarf.

-Acrobat Show While Krysti and Amy were here we took them to see the acrobats show. It is one of the more famous shows here in Beijing and although a very low production value the shoe was FUN. The kung fu show we saw took itself a little too seriously- this one had a sense of humor AND a ton of tropical birds. We had balcony seats that the bird wranglers set the birds loose from behind us- so we got to see the BEAUTIFUL macaws up close.

 

-Ming Tombs The Ming tombs is was the choice burial place for the Ming emperors. It has good Feng Shui being tucked in a valley with mountains to the North, East and West. There is also a strong North wind to help keep the evil spirits away. It is a largely forested area- and has a lake nearby so, making it rather picturesque. The Ming Emperor's each chose a spot for burial and would start the construction of their tomb very early in life. When it was completed they often would hold a party in their tomb to celebrate their completed burial home. A special gate was constructed that ONLY the emperor was to go through when he died- so to go through it now you must announce to the spirt world, "I am coming to paradise." When you leave the tomb you must enter back through the gate, shaking all the evil spirits off of you and now proclaim, "I am leaving paradise!" If you don't- your soul will be trapped there forever. We decided early on that when we did it- we would say it in Chinese- for fear that the spirits might not speak English.

-Great Wall 2.0 Jill and I took Krysti & Amy to the Great Wall at Juyoungguan. This is where we went before. This hike was a lot nicer this time- the temperature was about 25 degrees cooler then last time- and there were very few tourists. The highlight was Nana came along AND again we got paparazzied- but this time we have pictures. The sky was also a lot clearer and it made for a picturesque morning of hiking. 

Pictures are:

1. Llama Temple

2. Great Wall Juyounguan Jump

3. Paparazzi

4. Great Wall Twist

5. Ming Tombs Ghost Gate

6. Great Wall Mutianyu

7. Ok- So we like Jumping on the Great Wall

8. Great Wall Toboggan Ride

9. Great Wall Gangsta's

A long time coming.

So- about 3 weeks ago, Jill and I finally hit up the art museum. This has been on my list of things to do and was second behind the Art District- which we haven't done yet. Or I should say- I haven't made it too yet.

But the Chinese National Gallery: It's a large building- but not as big as the VMFA. They don't really have what I would call a 'permanent collection.' All that was on display was part of a current competition talking about the current world culture and the environment. They dedicated MOST of the galleries to Chinese Artists with smaller side galleries dedicated to Non-Chinese Artists.

I must say I enjoyed a lot of the Chinese art work that used traditional techniques- especially the water color and the ceramics. There were some very breathtaking pieces. One of my favorite was the birds trapped in the net. Beautifully executed. Tragically sad.

Other notable pieces was the mouth burger- super creepy. A Vietnamese painting of a small fish skewered through with a giant hook. There was a room full of art from Chile- my favorite being hundreds of clear plastic containers with tiny bugs delicately painted inside of them. From a distant your mind filled in the illusion of movement and you almost did not want to approach. The bugs in closer inspection were simply painted but with the right amount of expression to animate them. Great effect.

I've included a few other favorite of my pieces. But I'm happy to cross that off my list of things to do- although I wish they did have more of a permanent collection and a wider inclusion of artists. One thing that was especially disappointing was the lack of voice in most of the pieces. There was very little social commentary- which in one way surprised me- but in another did not. Sometimes, being in China, you forget the heavy hand that the government plays. You become slightly blinded to it- or don't notice it. Because that is just the way things are. I can understand if I grew up here how I would not notice it at all. But- all I have to do is type 'www.facebook.com' into my browser to be quickly reminded: The government is ever present here. And they are good at what they do. 

The art had the forced blandness of a county competition for artwork about 'bus safety.' It all said very little- and never hinted at any flaws of Chinese society. There were some that spoke to the fragility of nature- but never to the fact that China's one of the worlds largest contributors of pollutions (to the extent that it's own citizens are dying from it.) Although China is slowly opening it up- these people lack the same freedom that us American's take for granted. Especially American Artists. They have the right and the privilege to do as they see fit and say as they see fit it and judge as they see fit. And nobody will exclude us or send us to 're-education' camps or to jail or exile us. All of which have been documented as happening here.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not Anti-China. I'm just more aware now- more then ever- of the blessing of the first amendment and the freedoms guaranteed by our forefathers. 

I am now a master chinese painter

So. To help business at Romp N Roll Beijing we decided to improve our Feng Shui. How does one go about doing this? Paint some bamboo on a gold column. Well....we had the gold column. Then all they needed was  somebody to paint it.......

And that somebody turned out to be me.

Which leads me to my next point. When I come back from US I would like to officially announce my new business. Anna Paints Your Walls, Inc. 

One Little Package....filled with so much Care :)

Awesome. 'Nuff Said. Thanks FAM!!!!

Good Eats #3

We'll start out with my meal from 7/11. You get a huge heaping of rice and then pick what goes on top. My two favorites are eggplant and green peppers in what i'll call 'thick brown sauce.' Then my other TRUE favorite is Chinese Hash browns. These potatoes are sliced super thin- then cooked in some flavorings and vinegar with HOT peppers. SO GOOD. That day I got aloe/grape juice (with REAL chunks of aloe!) and a pastry with choco-chips in it.  I really don't 'need' the pastry- but I mean. C'mon. This cost me about 15 yuan (just over $2USD.)

Meal two is from the our favorite FAT NOODLE restaurant. It's called Su Chao Bing or roughly translated  pancake stir fry. Again-  they call it "pancake" but its more like a flatbread or griddle cake. It's not sweet at all. They shred the pancake up and stirfry it with veggies and egg, sometimes with meat. It's a little on the salty side. But the texture of the pancake is amazing- especially when lightly fried. The serving sizes are huge and Jill and I usually split my Qing Tian Mian with her Su Chao Bing. It's a great trade. We are officially an old married couple.

In China.....

Child Labor Laws aren't strictly enforced. Here you can see our new front desk worker @ RnR Beijing.

Moon Festival- the Festival nobody understands.....

Good News! Our first BIG Chinese holiday is upon us. AND it is the Autumn Moon Festival. Well- I missed updating you about it. It was yesterday.

So what is the moon festival? Well that's a great question.

Most common answer: "We eat moon cakes and look at the moon." Why? Well....that's where it gets a little hairy. Nobody could tell me exactly what the deal-i-o was. 

I kept asking. And asking. And asking. And same response. The Chinese don't even know. But- no worries- the internet to the rescue. 

So the festival originates in a legend. There was a great warrior and he was exceptionally skilled with a bow. Now back in ancient Chinese days- there were 10 suns! The scorched the earth and made people very unhappy. So- the warrior was enlisted by the Emperor to shoot down the the suns. And he did- well- he shot down 9 of the suns leaving the one we today behind. As a reward for his bravery, strength and skill he was given a special pill to let him live for all of eternity. But he was instructed to fast for 1 year before taking the pill. The warrior came home, hid his pill, and began his year of fasting. Now- people heard of this great gift he had been given and wanted it for themselves. But nobody would dare attack him due to his skill and might. (This is where the story varies- but I'll give you MY favorite interpretation.) The warrior was called off again by the Emperor leaving his wife at home alone. People seized this opportunity to attack- and went after the pill. The wife in great distress, grabbed the pill, swallowed it and  gained the ability to fly. She flew off into the sky and the winds carried her to the moon. She brought with her a hare and it lives on the moon with her. Her husband returned and saw what had happened. He ended up building a house on the sun. One night a year they are reunited and that is what makes the moon so bright. This also ties in the sun being a symbol for males (yang) and the moon being a symbol for women (yin.)

What did we spend our moon festival doing? Well. We worked a little- due to a scheduling mix up. We finished Mad Men on DVD. We went shopping for groceries. And indeed- the moon was full and bright. The weather here has quickly turned from warm to what I would almost classify as 'cold.' It's 50 degrees most nights here and barely getting into the high 60's during the day. It felt a lot like what I think of when I think of Halloween. Crisp, cool night. Clear skies. Bright shining moon. 

In Chinese tradition the man on the moon (the face you see in the crators) is actually the hare on the moon. He lives with the wife and they work together to make another pill. This hare- is actually made of jade. 

SO there you go. Another Chinese culture lesson.

LOVE. LOVE. LOVE.

PS Mark your calendars....Dec 20th.... There will be a U.S. invasion of the Czaplicki kind.

Good Eats # 2

Alright....well I'm going to smack you and your momma upside the head with ton of food pics. Today's post should really be subtitled, "Use Your Noodle"

So- what do you get to see today.

We are going to start out with some Dan Dan Mien. Picture #1. It is one of my favorite dishes here. Long long long long long long long long noodles. It reminds me of Ramen Noodles but homemade and delicious. Yes- for those of you out there- that is ground beef on top. But I scoop it off and give to my neighbor. There is a healthy helping of cilantro and hot crushed pepper. Today's version was actually a little too hot- so spicy it made your lips burn. 

Which was OK because I had some of Nana's Tomato Egg Soup Mien. Yummy yummy. A blander soup. I have had better versions then the one we got today. But you get the idea. Vegetable broth. Chunks of scrambled egg and tomato quarters and long long noodles.  Usually a little salty.

Picture #3 Korean hot stone noodles. Everything is served on a black stone that has been heated up. The food cooks in front of you. I'm a noodle person- what can I say. The noodles sizzle and cook in bright red, slightly-spicy sauce. It also has carrots and other vegetables cut into. It sizzles as you eat. And you counter-intuitively use metal chop sticks. Which when left on the side get REALLY hot. They have plate versions (what your seeing in my picture) and deep bowls filled with rice.

A note on using Chop Stick- there are lots of versions and variations. Some work better for certain things- others not so much. Most of the cheap chop sticks are bamboo. You split them yourself when you pull them out of the package. Now their are long versions (9 inches) which is considered Chinese version of chop sticks. Then there are shorter, slimmer versions which are Japanese style chop sticks. Nice establishments usually provide you with lacquered wooden chop sticks. They are a little slippery and can make eating noodles not so fun. Then there are Korean chop sticks which are metal and by FAR the most complicated to use. You have no traction for eating your food. Kid's don't start learning to eat with chop sticks till they are 4-5 years old. Before that they JUST use a spoon. No forks. One of my co-workers admitted at an Italian restaurant the other day that she didn't know how to use a fork to eat noodles. I laughed for a moment- remembering my constant struggle with noodles and chopsticks. Chopsticks, according to the Chinese, are more refined then stabbing (and disrespecting) your food.

So. Finally. I will close with a delicious breakfast 'pancake.' I say 'pancake' because thats what they call it- but it doesn't resemble our pancake. The pancake is filled with spice and sausage and lightly fried. And good god. It's like heaven. Savory, slightly salty, buttery. Mmmmm. Also one of the spices is rosemary! My favorite!!!!

So I hope you enjoyed this entry into Good Eats. Sorry Sarah, I'll try to take a break from posting pictures of yummy food.