Macau City of Dreams and Shenzhen Shopping Heaven

We flew back to  Hong Kong and from there took a ferry straight from Hong Kong airport to Macau.This was as easy and straightforward as other travelers on the Internet described as you bypass customs and immigration in Hong Kong and your bags are transferred directly to the ferry boat. It is only one hour by ferry and then there was a special line in Macau for oldies of over 65 and they let me go through with D so all was well.

On arrival at Macau ferry terminal we wanted to take a free shuttle but were too tired and the bags were too heavy so we just cheated and got a cab to our hotel the Metropole, in the Old Town, not on the Cotai strip where all the casinos are.The hotel was lovely except for one thing-it was being renovated and it was rather bizarre to look out of the bedroom window and see a workman with a yellow hard hat standing on bamboo scaffolding! The noise was not so bad but we couldn’t open the window or really relax in the room.So that was a bit of a bummer. Nevertheless we went out into Macau Old town to sample the strange mix of Portuguese and Chinese cultures. Next thing we notice-cars drive on the left? Why is that ? We have been to Portugal and it was not the case there. Macau old town was delightful- clean and lively with the streets still decorated from the Chinese New Year.

We saw the ruins of St Paul’s which was beautiful and just strolled around town and had a great Portuguese style meal.Then we took a bus to the Cotai area where all the huge casinos are and looked around the kitschy Venetian like the one in Las Vegas. It is a mockup of Venice complete with fake gondolas and fake painted sky, lots of casinos of course and also very luxury shops.

Ruins of St Paul’s

THe next day we had intended to do a bit more sightseeing before moving on to Shenzhen but as it turned out the shuttle to the port was at 11.30 so we decided to go with that and take the 12.15 sailing to Shenzhen. It was a quick trip but the sea was a bit bumpier than on our arrival.ON reaching Shenzhen we took the subway straight to our hotel,the Sunon Villa which was great,slap bang on the pedestrian mall of Shenzhen where you can buy anything and everything. We walked around a bit,bought a few things and went back to rest in the room. Then went out to eat and had a great day.Next morning we got up and took the subway to OCT (Overseas Chinese Town) to visit Splendid China,which is a sort of Mini China-all the famous sites of the country in miniature.

Fake Mosque for Xinjiang Province

Minority group show-Va people

IT was also kitschy but endearing especially the people-watching and waving and taking photos with mums,dad,grandparents etc. We especially enjoyed the mockups of the ethnic Chinese villages,with their folklore shows. We saw three of these demonstrations of minority group customs and the highlight was the Mongol battlefield show complete with costumed riders with lances and other weapons reenacting various battles and horses jumping over flames and other obstacles.I found it thrilling and almost felt I was 6 years old again watching it.

Splendid China Kitsch

Next day we flew back to Xiamen and got here early in the morning ready for our new semester which will begin on Monday.

Gulangyu Island Part 2

We had visited Gulangyu Island when we came to Xiamen last December but it had been a rather rushed visit and had wanted to go back so this weekend when the mercury shot up to 24 C in the daytime we decided the time was right.So we popped onto the BRT right to the end of the route and from then walked to the Pier for the 5 minute crossing to the wonderful island.IT is car-less and bicycle-less,has a mountain in the middle called Sunlight Rock,and 2 museums,one a Piano Museum and one Organ Museum. The island is home to about 25,000 people and has lots of old colonial buildings and some beaches and is a relaxing getaway but to be avoided over national holidays.The best thing to do however is just meander aimlessly around the streets,look at the twee little shops selling knicknacks and relax. IT is a very relaxing place. This time we thought we would climb up Sunlight Rock which we didn’t do last time,but again the visibility was poor despite the sun,so we passed on paying 60RMB each for that and made do with the Piano Museum which was most rewarding.WE then went to the Park surrounding it,and another small museum of Chinese artifacts,and just hung out generally.

Piano Museum

 

colonial buildings

The beach is lovely,maybe not world quality but a pleasant place especially because it is not crowded and sweaty.WE will return to Gulangyu again and make it up to Sunlight Rock next time. In the evening we had intended to hear a rock band in the village of Zen cuoAn near to Xiamen University but were a bit tired and since the last BRT home is at 10pm we didn’t fancy returning by taxi so we had dinner at Pizza Hut and caught the bus home.Today we have the long awaited Xmas dinner at the five star Royal Victoria Hotel Xiamen as guests of the University so I guess that will deserve another blog entry. On a side note,Danny’s collection of Chinese sleeping in weird places is coming along nicely!

In another 3 weeks we will be back in Israel so I am not sure how much I will be blogging then,but time will tell.Today,on the teachers’ bus to Metro supermarket we met a couple from Ireland ,Stephen and Lavinia,who are Bahai,and they will be in Israel end of January so of course we will invite them over to have dinner with us in Jerusalem.

Xiamen from the ferry

Trip to Yongding- the Hakka Tulou villages

Trip to Yongding Hakka Earth houses (TULOU)

 

This was a trip I had been wanting to do for ages,but which got postponed because of the hospital trip(see previous post). We decided to go with two student friends of ours Sue and Echo who don’t study at our university but are English majors from nearby Jimei University.

We met up with them at the BRT station to go downtown to the Hubin Nan Lu bus station where we got a bus to the village of Hukeng,a trip of 3 and a half hours through progressively more picturesque scenery hillsides dotted with villages, persimmon trees,and tea terraces. On arrival in Hukeng we were met by Stephen,the guest house owner who was holding a sign with “DAN” written on it!

inside the guest house

Stephen explained that we had to buy entrance tickets to the village,which is a preserved Unesco heritage site,and then took us on two motorbikes (3 people on each) to the village and his Fuyulou Changdi Inn where we had booked two rooms. The guest house building is 130 years old,and built in traditional Hakka style. There is a central courtyard surrounded by rooms on three levels.This would have been shared by several different families. There are apparently thousands of these houses in the area,but nowwadays many of the Tulou houses (made of earth) are empty,or inhabited by only one or two families who maintain them as the children have moved to the city. The whole of the surrounding area is used for cultivating tea,rice,persimmons,and other different fruits and vegetables.

Tulous from above

After checking in,Stephen gave us a map of the village. The plan was to walk around the village for the rest of the day and the following morning we would have a car and driver to take us to visit the surrounding villages and see different styles of Tulou houses. Some are round and some square,but the basic idea is the same,an earthen house with several floors and shared by several families,who use the communal area in the middle to cook,sell stuff and generally hang out.

The village was serene and relaxing,with the houses dotted along the length of a river. There were many tea houses, and huge fat chickens running around everywhere. After eating a great lunch of local Hakka food at the guest house,We walked around the village,and found a temple area where the girls explained the important families had tombs. We also went to a tea house where we sat for a long time with the tea grower who filled and refilled our cups. His great grandfather had originally built the house,and had been a fighter in the Kuomintang. We also bought something which Sue described as a “tea pet”.I thought she meant “teapot” but she was insistent. Itis a small animal made of artificial jade (mine is a frog) used to check if the tea water is hot. When you pour water onto it,it changes colour.

Hukang village and countryside

In the evening we saw dancing outside in a square,returned to to the guest house where we met a group of Russians from the far eastern part of Russia. One said his grandfather was Jewish,and another said he was Jewish himself ,from Birobidjan,and that his brother was a teacher of Yiddish in New York.

We went to bed as we had an early start in the morning.

The next day we set off at 7.30 in a minivan with 3other people and the driver Mr. Wu, to tour the area.

The other people were Mike,a young guy from Hong Kong and a retired couple from Beijing whose names we don’t know as they didn’t speak any English. We drove to a number of different tulou villages and admired the scenery. It was very peaceful and pleasant. We stopped to pick persimmons on one hillside. The whole day was highly relaxing and enjoyable.Some tulous were huge,and some smaller. All had the same basic design of tiered floors made of wood,walls of earth and a central area. We had lunch in a village restaurant, in the traditional Chinese way of sharing all the dishes,and we shared the bill to treat Mr Wu the driver. We saw the last “King of Tulous” which I found disappointing and overcrowded,full of tourists and too many people selling trinkets. It had cost an extra 25RMB each,and I would recommend skipping it. Its supposed attraction is that it has over 200 rooms .But I found other tulous more atmospheric and interesting. At 3pm we got the bus station to return to Xiamen which dropped us at a different bus station but fortunately Sue figured out how to get to the BRT station to go home.

Old lady inside Tulou

 

 

Return to China -Chapter Two

(warning : Long Catching-Up POST)

So after a break of a couple of months,in which we returned to Jerusalem to be with family and to attend to various bureaucratic things we are back in China.

The situation is a bit weird and I am not going into all the details but suffice it to say that we are now in a lovely seaside location, on the 17^th floor of an 18 storey block,with a view of the mountains from the living room and the mountains and the sea from the bedroom. The apartment has all mod cons,except that the aircon is only in the bedrooms for the time being but Sunny,the lady in charge of our accommodations has said that there will be a unit in the living room “some time”.

View from living room

The journey back here was amazing. We were booked on KLM via Amsterdam with a 6 hour layover in that splendid city. WE had intended to go sightseeing but after leaving Ben Gurion at 4am and Jerusalem at 1am we were just too tired to do anything but sleep and eat at Schipol. So then we boarded the continuing flight and suddenly the air hostess asked to see our passports and when we looked alarmed said”Don’t worry I just want to move you to better seats”- imagine our surprise and delight when she led us to Business class comfy seats that lie flat and asked us if we would like champagne and Belgian chocolates! We were also presented with a huge menu on which we were to indicate our choice of meals for dinner and breakfast! They then proceeded to shower us with little extras and gifts! The only explanation for this I can come up with is that I had mentioned on Twitter that Swissair were crap and had not responded to our complaints on our previous trip back home and we had therefore chosen KLM who also had the added advantage of being cheaper and flying directly to our destination.I think maybe KLM are hoping to enroll me as a spokesman for them on Twitter and were rewarding us for my positive tweets,but that’s just a guess.

Of course we arrived in China delighted and well fed and rested.

The massive Living room

We were met at the airport by Sandra of the International Office who drove us straight to our aforementioned apartment.

It transpires that our neighbours are nearly all teachers at our university or a neighbouring one,both foreigners and Chinese. Next door we have Shannon from Texas and his wife Amber from Arkansas and their 3 small children, upstairs Jonathan from Texas and his wife Allie a Chinese American and their 2 kids,Jonathan S and Jessica also Americans and Alex from Montreal and the UK and his Chinese wife whom we have not met yet. On our floor is a guy called Bob from Scotland don’t know much about him yet. Shannon has now become known as “Wikishannon” because he is a mine of information and incredibly helpful .The first thing he did was present me with a list of bus numbers and where to take them around the area, useful bus stops down town and how to get set up with a water cooler. He then with the help of Jonathan J helped set up our broadband and wifi,since the Chinese guy from the company didn’t manage to do it.

WE were taken the next day together with a lot of other teachers,to the International hospital for our medical,and then to the bank to get set up there. They gave us sim cards for our phones and an ecard for travelling the buses,meals on campus and to use the library.

On Thursday we had our first faculty meeting which was pretty weird. WE were collected by minibus from the apartment and amazed to see about 40 foreign teachers in a huge boardroom. The first item was a long and boring talk by Kevin Lin about the structure of the university and 2 talks by veteran teachers here about their teaching styles. We then divided into two groups,those teaching EFL and those teaching other subjects. We went to a different building and met Dr. Narcisco Hayashi Domingo,the Philipinno head of the EFL department who told us to call him Matthew and who signs his emails Dr D -go figure. Most of his talk was flaunting his Phd and telling us that we have to use the books he distributed to teach. About 10 teachers will be teaching Sophomores so they started teaching on Monday, and the rest of us are all teaching Freshmen ,who only begin classes after the National Holiday,that is to say after October 7^th! We are therefore on holiday now,which leaves us time to explore the city,find our way around the neighbourhood and buy stuff for the apartment.

Our neighbourhood is kind of a suburb, the city being about 3 million people and a BRT ride of 35 minutes away. The BRT is a wonder to behold. IT is a bus that runs on a raised roadway,running from 6am till 10pm and is easy and comfortable to use. Yesterday we took it to downtown and enjoyed looking out of the window and seeing the view.WE went to a shopping mall with Carrefour supermarket, a French chain and then from there we took another bus to a second huge but fancy mall where we found a shop selling imported goodies such as whole wheat pasta,curry sauce,cocoa powder,feta cheese and other rare things. The university also runs a “Shopping Bus” every Saturday morning which picks up the teachers and takes them to the Metro Supermarket downtown.

So far we are happy with our neighbourhood- one colleague described it as being in Brooklyn and the city is Manhattan.Anyway that’s really enough for this incredibly long post so I shall continue later.

Yundang Park

From Chengdu to Qingdao-hotpot to seaside

Warning- this may be a bit wordy since a lot has happened and I didn’t have a chance to write for a while,and the laundry has been piling up! Well we got back safely from Chengdu all chuffed at the new contract etc. and immediately started to plan the rest of the time we have here in China before we leave for Israel. THis may sound a bit weird but we felt that we needed a bit of a holiday and since I had wanted to see Qingdao,the seaside place made famous by beer, beaches,Germans and the 2008 Olympics we decided to head off there for a bit of relaxation. WE were originally going to take a boat from there over to South Korea across the Yellow Sea but decided it was too much, added to which the weather forecast there gave rain and more rain, and then the University here said that we were not supposed to leave before July or we would not be paid for June and July. So we thought we would take it easy, spend a few days in Qingdao walking along the beach and so on and then come back to Lin’an to pack up and hopefully spend a few days shopping in Shanghai before we get to Eretz Israel.

WE took a bus to Shanghai from Lin’an,spent the night at our old friend the Asset Hotel, and then bought train tickets from Shanghai to Qingdao. The train is the fast one which does the huge distance in only 6.5 hours and can reach a speed of 320 kilometres per hour. Actually it only went up to 307 but believe me that was FAST. This journey was really comfortable,but it was also more expensive than the plane we discovered AFTER we had already bought our tickets. Due to our crappy Chinese the lady sold us first class tickets.but we weren’t sorry as the trip was so incredibly smooth and comfortable.

lovely promenade full of statues in Qingdao

We were offered three different places to stay in Qingdao,one with a couple called Pia and Gareth from Couchsurfing,one with Andrea also couchsurfing and a third Chinese guy. We didn’t want to impose on anyone and had never slept at a couchsurfers’ place before so we fixed only 2 nights with Pia and Gareth and then took a cheapo hotel for another 4 nights. We had a lovely time with Pia and Gareth,who are a young couple-she is from the US and he is from Ireland. We found much to talk about with them and they kindly hosted us and showed us round some places in the city, the night market and the old part of the city with its German buildings. We also went on our own to the Qingdao Brewery built by the Germans in 1903 and we took a sailing boat on the sea with a Chinese couple and their kid.

Olympic Marina

In the evening we went twice to Beer Street which is a street full of bars and restaurants selling typically Qingdao beer (which some people carry away in plastic bags!) and lots of seafood. There are also people singing and playing guitars and it is generally a lot of fun there.

We also had dinner one evening with Andrea, a teacher from Texas who I met from Couchsurfing and exchanged teaching experiences.It was very pleasant,and she said she might come visit us here in Lin’an to look around ZAFU.

On the Saturday morning as we were leaving Pia and Gareth’s place we chanced upon a Chinese wedding which was just beginning outside their apartment so we stayed to watch and take photos. It was great to see the dancing and the dragon and lion costumes, the drummers and canons shooting confetti over the bride and groom.There were also people breathing fire! It was great.

Wedding Drummers

We also took a ride up the top of the TV tower to see a view of the city but unfortunately it was very cloudy so we didn’t see much. All in all we enjoyed the trip immensely and had a good rest and some sea breeze and flew back to Lin’an to pack up and get our heads round the idea of returning to Israel in a couple of weeks.

Homesick? Or just the “Mayday Blues”

So I was forewarned that at some point homesickness would kick in ,and having been here for 8 months and no sign of it I thought I was immune. But suddenly,this holiday weekend it hit me. The main catalyst was the nasty head cold I got as we were away in Fuzhou, Fujian Province. But the second element was definitely the horrid journey back which was fraught, and which cost us a fortune due to a ridiculous error on my part and the fact that all of China was busy attempting to go somewhere, just as I had been warned.

Mao in the square

So we had a great trip down to Fuznou,on the 6  hour fast train from Hangzhou. The hotel didn’t look too bad,despite the complete lack of English and their unwillingness to give us a receipt tor the deposit money. Deposit is something we are already accustomed to in China but not the fact that the hotel refuses to acknowledge you have paid it. We got to the room which “looked ok” actually was pretty huge. The bed turned out to be even harder than usual in China but that was not the main fault. At 4.30 am we were awakened by military music outside the window. Being positioned “punkt” in the main square of Fuzhou right about the Mao statue we bacame part of the morning flag raising ceremony and this happened the next nights also except ironically enough on the morning of May 1 when we had to get up early to leave in any case!

Musicians in Xihu Park Fuzhou

Firefox

Fuzhou was nice enough,not nearly as pleasant as nearby Xiamen,though. We looked around a couple of Unis ,the Agriculture and Forestry campus,which was as nice as ours,full of plants,trees and a lake etc.,but the Technology campus out in University city was way out in the middle of nowhere. We also saw the White Pagoda,,Xihu Park and lake which is a kind of Mini version of the Hangzhou one,but nowhere near as big or beautiful, and the adjoining Panda centre complete with pandas and firefoxesIt was fun watching mums and kidddies ogling the pandas and taking photos..In the evening we saw the renovated part of the town near the river called “Three Lanes and Seven Alleys” a kind of yuppified area of bars and restaurants and old style shops,very attractive. The area around the White Pagoda was really lovely ,on the top of a hill called Wushan right behind our hotel. The main square (the Mao one) was however,definitely a bit too “soviet realism ” for me,despite having a huge shopping centre across the road, with ads for Armani and all the other brand names, and a parade of shops with the statutory KFC,McD and Pizza Hut adjoining.

The disaster really was on the day when we returned home. Because of a stupid mistake I made (or the ticket lady?) when we arrived at Fuzbou south station we discovered our return tickets were in fact Hangzhou to Fuzhou and not vice versa. A nice boy took us down to the ticket office and wrote on a piece of paper in Chinese that we had been sold the wrong tickets and we wanted to exchange them. However this being May 1 and a ver BIG public Holiday,there were no tickets until the next afternoon. We had to be back to teach May 2 at 8am. We therefore jumped in a taxi to the airport (200RMB) and asked for any flight to Hanghzou. There WAS only one flight- 9pm at night,(it was 10am ). So with no other option we  coughed up 1700 RMB and prepared to do nothing at the airport for an entire day, by which time my head cold was brewing nicely. At 8.30 pm it appeared all was well but at 9pm they told us the flight was delayed (which did not come as a big surprise, since all the preceding flights had been delayed due to the raging thunderstorm outside). We finally took off at 10.30pm and arrived in Hangzhou at 1am or so. We then had to get a taxi to drive us the hour to Lin’an (another 450RMB) and we got home at 230am so made it to morning class despite feeling crappy. All of this and my main thought was ” I really want a bowl of vegetable soup like at home, and a crusty loaf like at home”. Homesick? or Just sick?

TIme will tell…

Renee and Barry Shanghai weekend-Shul and Jazz

Since this last weekend would be our last opportunity to visit our dear friends Renee and Barry in their Shanghai apartment before they return to Hawaii we were delighted that the weather was fine and we were finally able to see them.We arrived in Shanghai at 5pm and were met at the South Bus station which is a convenient short walk from the apartment given them by Shanghai Normal University. So it is different from the Lin’an setup as it is not a campus university. WE had a wonderful noodle supper lovingly prepared by Renee and then went out on the town. We went down to East Nanjing Road , the throbbing pedestrian street at the heart of the city and walked down to the famed Peace Hotel,where Barry assured us there would be live Jazz. Sure enough we were treated for the sum of 100 RMB including one drink to a marvellous band of old Chinese guys playing lots of smooth classic Jazz.Then at 10pm another younger band came on accompanied by a guest artist from New York, a sax player called Eric Wyatt, After Barry told him that he was from Brooklyn the guy game over to us and chatted, autographed a CD for us and also played a song about Brooklyn for Barry! It  was a terrific evening,as the hotel is a sort of Colonial style luxury hotel looking like something lavish from the 1920s. IT was great fun.

Next day we got up and after a splendid Renee breakfast we went down on the metro to the old Jewish Quarter of Shanghai called Huangpu where Jews had been taken in during the Second World War. There was a reconstruction of the Ohel Moshe Synagogue now a Museum and we had a wonderful guided tour from a young Chinese woman volunteer called Lulu who was most knowledgeable.

Ohel Moshe Shul Shanghai

WE then walked to the little park in the neighbourhood which had been where the Jewish children of the ghetto played, now full of the requisite Chinese doing their exercises, and old men playing cards etc. It was a charming place. IT is interesting to know that when most of the world turned its back the Shanghainese welcomed the Jewish refugees as best they could. We then stopped at a wonderful bakery next to Dalian Metro station for a coffee and a bun.

We took a metro to a place near the Pudong Tower where you can see a view over the whole city. But instead of going up that one we took the lift to the 85th floor of the Grand Hyatt Hotel where there is a bar. From there you can also see all the lights of the city,which is a truly amazing sight.

Roof of Hyatt Hotel

Then we took the metro again across town to eat at the famed Grandmother restaurant on Sichuan street which was wonderful and cheap. WE had planned to pop next door to the House of Blues but unfortunately it was too full and there was no room to sit, so we got a taxi home and fell into bed exhausted from our wonderful day.

With the Jazz musician Eric Wyatt at the Peace Hotel

The following day some other friends of Renee and Barry from Hawaii who are going to be staying in China for 5 weeks arrived and we all went off to take photos in the nearby park. This park was an oasis of green and calm in the city,full of Chinese doing whatever they like-exercises, cards, mahjong, singing folk songs,flying kites, walking dogs or just relaxing with their kids. IT was a wonderful finale to our weekend,as 3pm we had to get the bus back to Lin’an. We felt as always so close to Renee and Barry,happy to meet their friends Chuck and Meli and hope to see each other again really soon. It is great to meet people who share our love of China and the Chinese people who have always been so friendly and hospitable even if we can’t speak much Chinese.

Crazy St Patricks Day in Ningbo ( thanks to new friends)

After finally getting some decent weather we decided to take advantage and jump on a bus to Ningbo -3 hours away and near to the sea. We packed up and left the flat only to get drenched by a downpour lugging our suitcases to the bus station. Never mind, three hours later we arrived in Ningbo,rain still pouring down. We got in the line for the taxis ,where we stood in the rain for an hour waiting to get a taxi. Apparently all of Ningbo decided to get a taxi too. Well we (kind of ) chatted to two girls next to us,and I asked them why they didnt get the bus since they can speak Chinese and they said they were from Shanghai and were not familiar with the buses! Anyway we finally arrived at the delightful Orange Hotel,sister of the one we stayed in in Nanjing (see blog entry) complete with goldfish (this time called William) , Rubiks Cube,and free oranges in the room,as per before.

After changing out of our sodden clothes we headed of to Laowaitan the newly yuppified old Bund area which is now a pub and restaurant area. There we found the Shamrock Inn,a laowei”s Home away from home,complete with fish and chips,curry and all accompanied by Queen Bohemian Rhapsody, Lola by the Kinks,Delilah and sundry other blasts from the past.

Next day we got up and went exploring on foot, and to our delight the sun beamed down. We walked along the main drag, Zhongshan Lu up to the Moon Lake park and from there to the Tianyi Pavillion, the oldest Library in China. The most amazing part was the building itself and beautiful gardens surrounding it. Then we proceeded to the main square called Zhongshan Square with incredible modern shops and a sound and light show. Next to the square is a Catholic Church suitably illuminated.

We went for a quick nosh at PIzza Hut and then on to publand again where we returned for a second dose of Shamrock Inn. Noting happily that the next day was March 17th ie Paddy’s Day we vowed to return.

Next day we ventured off to find a Pagoda around which was meant to be a large old fashioned market in a restored part of town,we failed to find the pagoda,despite having purchased a map in English. Retiring to a nearby park to eat our oranges we chanced upon a massive crowd of mostly Chinese men and some grandmas who were all clustered around in large groups. We set off to investigate and discovered that it was some kind of Chinese Jacobs Ladder festival.In each group were singers and musicians performing traditional Chinese music. WE were much smiled and waved at as we took pictures. This was far more fun than the Pagoda. After that we went back to the room for a rest,and proceeded again to the pub street. However, Shamrock was dead as a doornail,no live music and no fun. But the pub next door had a group of English teachers from some school and their students who invited us to join them at their table and gave us Mao caps and  Green Guinness Top Hats to wear. We soon found ourselves onstage with David from North Carolina,Alfonso from Madrid, Chris from Melbourne and a guitarist called Cesar singing the Wild Rover and subsequently dancing the Salsa and various other things. We ended up sitting outside on the street ,drinking Guinness and talking to all of these,plus a Chinese lawyer and his wife, and a guy called Kyle from South California who is Jewish and wishes to go to Israel on Birthright and knows the Alef Bet.

It was a wonderful weekend and we really found Ningbo to be a lovely city-modern and clean with bridges and tree-lined boulevards with canals and rivers everywhere,and pleasant to walk around.

We returned to Linan and on the bus back to campus met some students of mine returning from the interpreters’ exam in Hangzhou. Strange and nice to be back especially now the weather is warming up nicely.

The North Wind Doth Blow…

So in case you are all wondering where we disappeared to… it’s like the poem says” The North wind doth blow, and we shall have snow, and what will the Robin do then,poor thing? He’ll sleep in the barn,and keep himself warm,and hide his head under his wing,poor thing”.

so we have been in hibernation for the last two weeks or so. We wanted to go to Hangzhou a couple of weekends mainly to get our computer fixed,and also to meet up with Yoan and Mango again, but it’s just too nasty outside to bother,So we stay iin over the weekends,watch movies on the computer and thank god for the internet. We have either nipped across the way to the Camphor tree restaurant to eat,or to Weekend Sunny ,or just made soups at home. IT is not really that cold,around 7 by day,but very wet and overcast and generally not pleasant. And then today there was snow in Jerusalem too! We also spoke to friends in Nanjing and Hangzhou and it’s much the same there too. So meanwhile we have made a few tentative plans for the summer. Assuming we finish up here around first week of June that means we have a month before we fly home,since our ticket is booked for July 10th so we are considering various options. The first,which I think we have pretty much abandoned,was to nip over to Australia and drive around there. However we really would prefer to do a more in-depth trip there and maybe take in New Zealand,plus it will be winter there so ’nuff said. Then we thought about touring somewhere in the China area such as Tibet,but having read up a bit it is very expensive and you can only do it on an organized tour so I am not keen on that. Then we suddenly thought of South Korea,which is currently the winning contestant. We could even take a train up to Qingdao,a city I have long wanted to see,and then take a ferry boat from there to Korea.Then we would fly back to Shanghai from Seoul.But more of this anon,breakfast beckons….

 

P.S Prize for best student excuse ever goes to Bruce Kim my student who came late to class on Thursday. He told me in the break that he had saved two newborn puppies from the garbage,taken them out, washed and dried them,wrapped them in a blanket and fed them milk. His story was corroborated by the fact that he brought them to class in a cardboard box. Sorry I didn’t have the foresight to photograph them! Well done Bruce!

The “Renee and Barry weekend”

So after months of chatting on skype and by email we finally got to meet Renee and Barry who lived here in our apartment before us last year and told us so much about life in Lin’an. They are returning to China after some months back in the US meeting their family and travelling,and Renee will be working at Shanghai Normal University.So they arrived by bus in LIn’an on Friday afternoon and came over. The first evening we had a dinner for them and invited some old friends, Mark and Diana and Patrick. IT turned out to be Patrick’s birthday on Saturday so he brought a massive cake from the renowned 85 bakery and  we had a lovely relaxed evening together. Then on Saturday we arranged a meeting for Renee with a lot of her former students who came to the recreation area in the library to catch up -they told her what they have been doing and she told them about her travels. Following this was much hugging and taking of photos.. We had dinner at Renee’s favourite campus restaurant the Camphor Tree along with Mark and Diana and Becky.Then the four of us (Renee,Barry ,Danny and I)  talked a lot into the night and now of course we are old friends and feel as though we have known each other for years.

Next day Renee and Barry had intended to get the afternoon bus back to Shanghai but as there were no tickets left they got tickets for this morning (Monday) and so we had another day together which fortunately was lovely and sunny so we got to walk around the campus lake and drink tea in the tea house and look at all the city kids flying kites,roller blading and racing remote controlled boats on the lake.In the evening we had soup and jaozi and were joined by Zhou Ting the art student who teaches me Chinese.IT was such a lovely memorable weekend.

The four of us at the lake