Weekend Outing (6-30)

Since exams are over and I finished all my paperwork, there wasn’t much to do last week. On Monday we had the final Monday discussion group. The three girls who came didn’t want to stop talking and end our time together.

Wednesday was the ceremony for teachers to get their certificates of participation in the oral English classes. Since the administration made classes go until Week 18 and then has the ceremony in Week 19, most teachers can’t attend because they are administering final exams. Of the thirteen who attended, three were in my class. It would be so much nicer if they’d do it a week earlier so more could attend.

Grace invited me to go to dinner at her “sister’s” apartment on Friday. When she called Friday morning, I realized that the dinner was a lunch. Fortunately, I was free. She also invited Jack Yeung, Bennie, and Rice. First we went to the market to purchase the food. They bought chicken and fish, since I eat those. The fish was, of course, live in the tub when they bought it, and the woman clubbed it and gutted it. Bennie had me step away so we didn’t have to watch that process. When she invited me, Grace had asked if I wanted to prepare a dish. I decided on peas and carrots—something different from Chinese food but not too different. The girls also bought a fish plate on which to serve the fish.

When I stopped to take a photo of ducks hanging to be sold, Bennie said she can’t wait to see that in America. Her dream is to go to the U.S. after she graduates, maybe for grad school. I informed her that we don’t hang our meat like that and certainly not along the street. And we don’t have heads and feet on meat in the U.S.

Rice and Jack Yeung did the cooking. They prepared lotus root, chicken and a squash-like vegetable, chicken extras—neck, feet, wings—boiled soy beans, and steamed fish. Then I boiled the peas and carrots. All in all, cooking took two hours. The food was delicious. Bennie especially liked the peas and carrots and ate a lot, which made me happy. Grace and Bennie cleaned up after the meal. It was a really nice several hours.

Since I had two weeks without much going on, I decided that I needed a weekend outing and decided to return to Stone Elephant Lake to see the flowers. Saturday I went to Chengdu so could get an early bus Sunday morning. When I bought the ticket, I learned that there are now only two departures each day. It’s not the main tourist season there. Then I went to Tazishan Park for a few hours. It has a pagoda and a couple interesting sculptures. 

One is a circle of interestingly carved Chinese zodiac and other animals. 

The other is a double-sided wall with very interesting sculptures. 

I wish I knew their significance. 

In another section there is an aviary. Some of the larger birds are free to walk around, but the smaller ones are chained or are in cages. 

They even have an American turkey. It was an interesting way to spend a few hours.

Sunday morning I arrived at Stone Elephant Lake at 10:30. It didn’t take long to notice the absence of a crowd, which made it really enjoyable to walk around. The elephant sculptures were not surrounded with people posing for photos with them, which almost felt eerie. Since it wasn’t the main tourist season, there were also very few food vendors. 

I had remembered that sunflowers were advertised for June or July. It was too early for the main blooming time, but there were a few sunflowers. In a week or two, the whole area will be yellow. 

One section had verbena in bloom. There were also a couple other types of flowers blooming. So I did get to see some flowers. 

It was interesting to see the former tulip gardens covered with plastic. Although it rained very lightly all day, I enjoyed walking around the park, taking in the beautiful flowers, the forest, and the fresh air.

The World Cup is advertised at the park with stand-up figures and with banners at gates.

Back in Chengdu, I had a goat cheese and walnut pizza as my special treat. Then I headed home.

Just before arriving at the bus stop, Jinchuan called to see if I could meet her for a drink. So I met her and Daisy when I returned to campus. They had a gift for me—a small purse they had purchased in Huanglongxi. Jinchuan said again how much she will miss me. In class, she always looked at me very intensely, but I didn’t realize until last month that she considered me so special. With the purse, she had a note saying that I am the “best teacher I have never met.” Daisy is quieter, but she later sent a text message saying that although she didn’t talk much, she loves me very much. They, too, had a hard time ending our conversation and time together.

Question of the week: Are all American women as tall as you?