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?

Luodai (6-20)

Two weeks ago when I went for a Sunday afternoon walk and passed the auditorium, I was quite surprised to see Mickey Mouse at the entrance. And Minnie joined him shortly after I arrived. I noticed that a number of boys in kung fu outfits and girls in pretty dresses were going in. It was interesting that they paid very little attention to the characters standing there. 

A few boys approached them and hit them and two girls posed close to Minnie, but most just ran by. Since something was obviously going on in the auditorium, I decided to check it out. I sat down at 1:40, thinking the program would begin at 2:00. Wrong. When 2:00 came and went, I figured it would start at 3:00. Wrong again. Since I had my book, I enjoyed sitting in the comfortable chair reading and watching the children run around and rehearse for their performances. Finally at 4:00 the program started. It looked like a school’s end-of-the-year program.

It was fun to watch the children perform—mostly dances,

but there was also a kung fu demonstration. An unexpected, enjoyable afternoon outing.

Last Saturday I went to Luodai to see the Ancient Town and the nearby Jinlong Great Wall, which is the largest simulated Great Wall. (I like to refer to it as the fake Great Wall.) I arrived at the Great Wall at 9:30, having stayed in Chengdu Friday night so I could leave early Saturday morning. 

It goes up a mountain and down the other side and then across and up another mountain. The wall is 3 meters wide and 1 kilometer long. 

Lots of steep, uphill steps. Since it was still early, it wasn’t crowded yet. 

Along the way there are vendors selling drinks, snacks, souvenirs, and incense. 

At the end of the wall there is a temple. There are vans one can take back, but I decided to walk down. That way my leg muscle usage would be balanced. I enjoyed the experience and being out of town in the mountains and fresh air. It was also interesting to see the Hakka vendors.

Next I went to Luodai Ancient Town. It is advertised to be a Hakka minority town. The architecture is a distinctive style, 

especially on the side streets, 

and I could see that the vendors look different. 

On one side, they are in the process of opening a new art district that has upscale-looking buildings and cafes and shops where art items will be sold. Otherwise it was just another touristic Ancient Town. Since I had just been to Huanglongxi two weeks ago, it was too soon to be doing that again. 

Luodai’s shops seem to be noted for shooting rifles to pop balloons and for renting dresses to dress up for photos. There were many of the latter shops along the main street. Since I arrived at 1:30, it was already beginning to be crowded, and by 3:30 when I started back down the street, it was packed, as usual. 

When I started back to the entrance, I met a young family who wanted photos of me with their 6-month old son. His name is Nicholas, and he already has an English name because his parents want him to learn English well and study abroad.

Then I began the 3.5 hour trip back to Wenjiang. I arrived home weary from the walking up and down many stairs and the heat, as it was a hot day.

The school year is almost over, as is my time with Peace Corps. Students have been sweet; many have asked if I will be their teacher next term. The reality is that, even if I were here, I wouldn’t be their teacher because the university does not offer oral English with a foreign teacher to sophomore English majors. They only offer it to non-English majors, the reason for which none of us have figured out. After her final exam, one girl told me that she wanted to let me know that she enjoyed my class very much and I am very special because I am like a grandmother. Another made a similar comment. In China, that’s a very high compliment; so I always feel honored when I hear that.

Discussion groups are dwindling for the end of the semester. On the last couple Thursdays one girl has come each week; so she gets to talk with me a lot. I had a good talk with Sophie last week. She told me that I am her first foreign teacher and the first foreigner she has talked to and I have made her confident. That makes me feel good. I can see the growth in her over the year as she has matured and become a stronger individual. She is so strong that she is not joining the Party because Party members have to follow the group and she wants to be independent. She doesn’t care if she has to accept a lesser job because the better jobs go to Party members.

I met my discussion groups for the last time. I had invited most of the regular girls to come so I could give them something. It’s cleaning time at home, and I had a number of small items that needed to leave my apartment and life. We had good final chats. Thursday’s group was especially poignant. Most are English Education majors and have a lower level of English then the English majors, but they try hard—maybe harder than the others because of their struggle to express themselves. They have become more confident. Our session ended with hugs and lots of photos. One of the girls gave me a long hug and had tears in her eyes. This was unexpected. I know there is a strong bond with some students, but she was a surprise. One never knows how you are affecting others. Zoe gave me a long letter in Chinese, as she said it’s more meaningful that way. This means that she could express her feelings without the limitations of English. I’ll ask Diao Min to translate it for me. Another girl and her friend gave me stone bracelets. Bennie gave me a set of bookmarks with “paintings” of Chengdu sites and a set of postcards with Sichuan sites. She had written personal comments to me on seven of  the cards. Very touching.

Final exams are over. The one for teachers was this week. Most of my teachers told me how much they like me and how much they enjoyed the class and that they will take it again with me. Yang said that the teachers in my class and Dale’s class were very happy with us. Now it’s quiet time for two weeks until I do my Peace Corps Close of Service on July 7.

Wednesday night the piano teacher who is in my teachers’ class was accompanying for a recital. It turned out to be a vocal recital for teachers. What I found interesting was that the music sounded like Western operas sung in a foreign language.

Google is now blocked and can only be accessed with the VPN.

The World Cup is big news here. It’s on the radio or TV in many shops. When I went to Carrefour on Sunday, the sales section in the front of the store was decorated for the World Cup.

Huanglongxi and Chengdu (6-7)

Last weekend was the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday. It was another Saturday, Sunday, Monday. Since Monday was the official holiday, we didn’t have to make up Monday classes. I spent the three days in Chengdu, where I met up with another Peace Corps Response Volunteer who arrived this year and whom I had met during the In-Service Training in January. She was in Chengdu to meet her 76-year-old friend Willoughby, who is a PCV in Kyrgyzstan. It was a good opportunity for me to play tour guide since I know the city.

Ercilia had sent Willoughby a list of places to visit in Chengdu and she chose Du Fu’s Cottage, a lovely garden area with replicas of the thatched cottages where he lived and wrote poetry. So we headed there Saturday morning. I hadn’t been there for over a year and it is a lovely place to walk around and the flowers are different each season; so I enjoyed hanging out with them there. I didn’t take too many photos because I’d taken them all before. 

But I couldn’t resist a few more especially in the bonsai garden where the huge bougainvillea was blooming. 

In one place a man showed Ercilia how to hold her tablet to take the photo and then insisted on taking photos of the three of us. 

Another highlight was a man painting with his fingers. Amazing work. 

And the exhibition room had a display of Australian aborigine art. That was a surprise that we all enjoyed.

When we left Du Fu’s Cottage, we were ready for lunch. I took them to the food court place that I had liked so they could see the choices and select what they wanted. Willoughby, of course, wanted Sichuan food; so they chose a dry pot and a dish with beef and eggplant that Ercilia wanted. The latter came without eggplant. The former was pretty typical—mostly lotus root and potatoes. Willoughby was not impressed, but it was typical low end Sichuan food, not the delicious variety she wanted.

At a grocery store we stopped at, the country of origin of products was displayed with flags. It was fun to see where various item came from.

Sunday we went our separate ways, as they wanted to take the boat to see the Leshan Big Buddha. I did that last year and wasn’t interested in spending a total of three hours on the bus (which ended out being over four hours due to holiday traffic) for a 30-minute boat ride. So I went to Huanglongxi Ancient Town. April had told me about it, and it’s only an hour out of Chengdu. When I arrived at 9:30, there were already a lot of people there. A specialty of the town is floral wreaths worn as hats. 

Vendors make them along the streets, and both women and men buy them to wear. 

Another specialty—at least for the Dragon Boat Festival (I’m not sure it is available other times or not.)—is seasoned beans wrapped and cooked in corn husks. I decided to buy some to share with my friends. Willoughby was not impressed; so Ercilia didn’t even try them. I ate the rest from that packet and liked them OK. When I gave them to Chinese friends, some recognized what they were and said they are delicious. I have to agree because as I ate more, they grew on me and I liked them a lot.

The town is known for its river. One area was full of people—mostly children—shooting each other with water guns that they refilled in the river. 

I walked down a street away from the river and came to a beautiful covered bridge. 

Then I walked back through a series of tea houses and cafes along the river. Since it was only 11:00, they weren’t crowded yet, and I decided that it was a perfect place to relax for a while and purchased a glass of flower tea. When I sat down, a woman came to offer a shoulder-head-back massage. I told her I didn’t want one, but she massaged my shoulder to entice me and said I did want one. She was correct; I just thought the price was high; but it’s a tourist town and one expects higher prices. The massage was short—about 10 minutes, but it was good. And she was right, I did want it. With my newly relaxed body, I enjoyed my tea and read for almost an hour. 

I had seen fresh tofu, which I like and don’t see other than in these ancient towns. So when I encountered a woman selling cups of it, I bought one. I was happy. 

By the time I finished, the area was crowded and most of the tables were full, as it was after noon.

Next I headed along the river, which was then more crowded than when I had arrived. After the play area, it gets wider and there’s an area with bridges and islands. So it’s a lovely walk. And it wasn’t crowded. When I wandered to the shopping area, it was crowded; so I didn’t stay there long. I wasn’t interested in shopping that day, anyway. By three o’clock, I was done and was ready to get back to the bus. However, that was a challenge. There were so many people on the sidewalks that it was hard to maneuver through them. Then I didn’t quite remember how I’d gotten into town and followed the signs to the bus station. That path went all the way through town with packed sidewalks the whole way. I did see places I hadn’t been to, which as nice, but I was ready to be out of town. An hour after starting to leave, I arrived at the bus station and got in line. Another 45 minutes later I was on a bus.

Ercilia had commented on the high number of twins she has seen in her city and suggested that they were not all by chance. Since the one-child policy allows only one birth, some women use in vitro fertilization to produce twins. I noticed three sets of twins as I walked around Huanglongxi. Either there were more that day or my heightened awareness  noticed more.

Ercilia and Willoughby arrived back shortly before I did. We went to the restaurant at the hotel next to the hostel, as I had noticed that it looked pretty nice. Conveniently, the servers have a tablet with pictures of the dishes. So we were easily able to find a few we wanted. And, happily, Willoughby loved this Sichuan food.

Sunday morning on the way to a park we stopped at the vegetable market in the neighborhood we were in for In-Service Training. Surprisingly, the market was closed. But many people were selling and buying long plant fronds that obviously were special for the Dragon Boat Festival. I learned later that these are used for bathing. They are put in water to add their special scent. Or they are rubbed on the body for the scent. The scent can also be used for protection against mosquitoes.

Our destination was River Viewing Park, as Ercilia wanted to go there during the day and to show Willoughby the bamboo, one of the things the park is known for. I’d been there before, too, but it was another pleasant place to hang out together. 

We especially enjoyed a few young women in costumes waiting to be photographed.

Next we went to the art market so Ercilia could buy some gifts to take to friends in the U.S. She was successful. After a quick lunch, it was time to return to the hostel and head our separate ways home. I really enjoyed hanging out and chatting with the two women who are both near in age to me. I haven’t had that opportunity for a long time.

At school, last week was the final week of classes. It was sad to say “good-bye” to a few of the classes that I’ve especially enjoyed. I did the mini-assessment that I usually do, and, as usual, many students made nice comments about my teaching and how the class has helped them. A few told me in person that I am a very good and professional teacher, which was nice to hear.

Saturday Grace and her roommate, Stacey, came to cook dinner here. They brought only vegetables, which was nice. Stacey did the cooking: fried green beans and fried corn with green pepper. Grace prepared steamed yams, steamed corn on the cob, and pineapple. My job was to wash the yams and put them in the rice cooker to steam. I learned that the secret to Chinese fried green beans is to boil them prior to frying to make them soft. Stacey took each corn kernel off the cob whole, where I would have just cut them. The food was good and it was fun to prepare it together. They cooked for over an hour, and then we ate and chatted for almost two hours. A nice evening.

Grace had surgery last week. Her problem was something about bad water in her stomach—or somewhere in that region. She had not been able to eat for over a week and had taken both Western and Chinese medicines. She is not to eat cold foods for another week. Cold both in temperature and in the Chinese traditional medicine sense in which foods are considered to be hot or cold: watermelon is cold; pineapple is hot. She cannot use cold water. So her roommates are washing her clothes. She is taking Western medicines. An interesting combination of the two medical practices.