tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77242103275970179752024-03-05T18:41:47.681-08:00Stein Family China Travel BlogI taught a four week course in Critical Thinking in Changsha, China during the Summer of 2012 and have been awarded a sabbatical to return for the full 2013-14 school year with my wife and five children. I will be teaching and doing research on NPR's fraudulent reporting on the Chinese Apple factory abuses. Obviously, we are all quite nervous and very excited, so I believe a blog would be a useful way of discussing our preparations and our cultural observations in China.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-29169890471790643412014-06-06T22:16:00.000-07:002014-06-08T08:07:53.575-07:00Cave of a Thousand Buddhas, Goddess of Mercy, and Reflection on Time in ChinaIt's been a while since I last blogged, but let me share with you some of our recent experiences. We had a really fun Easter and the kids decorated small baskets for the Easter bunny. Evelynn and Lucy kept asking if the Easter bunny would come to China. I explained that I was fairly certain he would be coming to China. They then said, "Isn't the Easter bunny a girl?" I told them no and that he looked a lot like Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. Stacie says I use too much humor that goes way over their heads, but I'm doing it to amuse myself, not them. We ended up having three different Easter parties. The first was done through the American Studies Center. We invited students from HNU and other members of the community and their children to dye Easter eggs and to do an Easter egg hunt. Our egg hunt got rained out and we had to do it indoors, but it was still fun. The better Easter egg party was done at a local park called Wang Ling near our apartment. All of the small children from Annie's class and their families got together to dye eggs and again to have an egg hunt. It was really fun. There's not much to say about it as it was very much like something we would do in America, except with Chinese people everywhere. I've posted some pictures of it below. We also went down to the Parreno's house in Xiangtan and did an Easter egg hunt with them. It was really a nice visit because spring was in the air and there were these beautiful pink blossoms on many of the trees. After such a freezing winter, we have all been very happy to see so much vegetation coming back.<br />
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We also had the opportunity to travel to another city in Hunan province called Loudi. It is the hometown of a former student of mine, Xue Fang (Alice), who I recruited two years ago to come to SUU. For some reason, she felt so grateful for me "making her dream come true" to go to study in America and wanted to repay our family somehow. We really tried to be her family and help her feel comfortable when she was at SUU and she REALLY wanted us to go to Loudi to meet her family so they could show us some things in their area. To be honest, it is sometimes hard to travel on these smaller excursions with all the children and they get really tired, but we try to be strong because these opportunities will not come again. Although we had some reservations about traveling to Loudi (which we really knew nothing about other than that Alice's family lived there), we ended up having such a wonderful time. It was a beautiful city that was very clean by Chinese standards and not as crowded as other places we have been. Also, being in the heart of Hunan province, it was very green and lush. We were surprised and very impressed.<br />
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The train ride to Loudi was about 2 hours and Lucy and Evelynn were thrilled to take the slow train. They were really disappointed when we took the high speed train to Beijing and then the slow train from Beijing to the Great Wall was set up like airplane or bus seating. They wanted to ride on the slow train that has the bunk beds stacked up and they jam huge crowds of people into them. In essence, they wanted the REAL Chinese train experience. Well, they got their wish. We ended up riding the whole way to Loudi on these bunks and we all faced each other and talked. Alice brought some duck meat that we snacked on and it was super spicy, but delicious.<br />
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When we got to Loudi, we were greeted by Alice's parents and they were immediately super sweet and hospitable. They drove us to our hotel and we discovered that it was more expensive than we thought and they paid the difference. Then, Alice's dad picked up a giant suitcase we packed for the whole family (very heavy) and he would not let me help him at all. They were so concerned about how comfortable we were. The rooms were very nice and spacious and we were very comfortable. We did so many things while we were in Loudi that it's hard to list them all, but let me give you some highlights. The most extravagant thing we did was took a paid tour from the city of Loudi to this incredible cave system. The bus ride there was so fun because the entire tour was booked out by Alice's dad, who brought all of his friends and their family. So, everyone was comfortable with each other. The tour guide wanted us to entertain the guests by singing. I'm sure my face exhibited complete shock when the tour guide wanted me to sing an American song to the passengers. I think Stacie jumped in and helped me because I was struggling, but we managed to belt out Jingle Bells. They loved it, cracking voices and all!<br />
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Once we arrived at the cave, we had to take a boat to get inside and then we could walk once we were inside. The cave is said to have like a thousand buddha faces inside. We saw many that were man-made and others were apparently "natural." It kind of reminded me of the people seeing mother Mary's face in the grilled cheese sandwich. If you look hard enough, you can see anything. Alice kept telling me that this rock or that rock had Buddha's face in it. I kept saying, "I don't see it" or "I think that's a bit of a stretch." I know Alice pretty well now and feel comfortable telling her what I think, but I think Stacie might have thought I should just humor her. It was a pretty impressive cave system with many unique and beautiful rock formations. Sometimes the ceiling would drop very low and I would walk hunched over for hundreds of yards at a time. That was a bit of challenge. After the cave, we went to this enormous statue of the Goddess of Mercy. As soon as we got out of the car, we all said "Wow, look at that huge statue!" In the beginning, we had no idea where they were even taking us or that this statue even existed. I had never heard of it before. You can see from some of my pictures how spectacular it is. Alice's parents told us that it hasn't been open to the public for more than a couple of years, so it's still new and not crowded. I even tried to look up some information on it when I got home to our apartment and there wasn't much about it. We felt privileged to be able to see it. We had to climb hundreds of stairs to get to the top. Once we were up there, we relaxed for a while and Nicolas did a wushu (kung fu) demonstration for all the other people at the top. I thought it was very social of him and they loved his performance. He had people clapping and congratulating him on having such good skills for a foreigner. The view from the top was amazing. There is a giant pond below the statue and we did not realize until we got to the top that the pond is in the shape of a giant lotus flower. We've seen some beautiful things in China (especially with Zhangjiajie), but this view from the mountains outside of Loudi was some of the most stunning scenery we have witnessed.<br />
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We also did some other really unique and fun things. We went to a 5D movie, which might be a little unfamiliar to you. They also have 7D movies here. If you have ever been on the Star Tours ride at Disneyland, you know something about how this works. They put you in some seats that move mechanically with the motions on the screen. During one movie scene where we flew over a volcano, we could smell something burning and when we went through a blizzard, they would blow snow out the ceiling at us. The children absolutely loved it. We also rented four seat bicycles and rode up and down the main river in Loudi. We also had some quiet and more intimate moments with Alice's family. They are such good people. Alice's mom was very affectionate with the little girls and would hold Evelynn's hand as we walked various places. Alice's dad would perform magic tricks for the boys. And, Alice' grandparents invited us over for some delicious food at their house. In short, we are so glad we went.<br />
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In terms of work and school, things have been much smoother this semester for me. They dropped my course load down to a reasonable 3 classes (120 students) as opposed to the 7 classes (350 students) last semester. I could totally handle it and manage my ASC responsibilities. My student assistant, Karisa Rosander, has been amazing and all I really need to do this semester is be helpful at various activities and address any concerns that the higher ups might have about what we are trying to accomplish. The highlight of the semester at the ASC in my opinion was a mother's day event that we held where we invited a Chinese mother and an American mother to speak to HNU students and members of the community about cultural differences in attitudes about motherhood. Stacie and her dear friend, Lily, were outstanding. I was so proud of Stacie for how much confidence she exhibited in talking to these young students about the importance of families and how much joy she gets from mothering our children. At one point, a girl said "I'm afraid to have a baby because it's so painful and my body will change" or something like that. Stacie looked right at her and said: "Let me tell you something...motherhood is NOT a disease!" She said it with so much passion I was really proud of her. She explained to these girls that they should not worry about the potential difficulties of pregnancy and that in the end it was all worth it. I recorded the entire presentation and plan to transcribe it for our children. They did not attend the event because we wanted Stacie to be able to focus on her speech and the children would be absolutely bombarded at an activity like this. Unfortunately, the American Studies Center has persuaded some schlup from America to be the Father's Day speaker this month. Any guesses who that might be?<br />
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I know this is a long blog already, but since we are winding down and I'm not sure I will have time to write another blog, I want to reflect a little on our overall experience here. We have
had a wonderful time overall in China, but our life here as been
fraught with many difficulties as well. I think it would be challenging
for a single individual to adapt to a new culture, but it magnifies the
challenge when you bring young children into the equation. We were surprised to find that our children adapted
much easier to their surroundings than we thought they would. Now that
we are in our last 3 weeks here of a ten month journey, we often reflect
about what we have learned here. First, we feel that we have
experienced a level of kindness here that we have not seen before in
America. There has been an outpouring of love and hospitality toward our
family that truly makes us want to be better people when we return to
the U.S. We have also learned that there are specific nuances within
American culture that we never think about that guide how we behave, how
we make decisions, and how we communicate with others. I brought this
unique set of assumptions about the world with me when I came to China
and some of these attitudes clearly did not jive with the people in
China. I was initially surprised at how rude and inflexible the Chinese
were in negotiating certain aspects of my job here, but over time I
realized that I needed to adjust my thinking to accommodate a different
worldview. Now, I find the experience of communicating with the Chinese
to be only slightly aggravating rather than completely paralyzing
(joking a little obviously). When I asked Stacie about her experience
in China overall, she simply said she was "really glad she came" and
that "she grew so much from the experience." We often discussed certain
metaphors in our family to help us cope with the challenges. We
describe our time in China as sort of like panning for gold. You have
to scoop up a great deal of seemingly useless dirt and mud to start
extracting the gold flakes. At times, it seemed our experience was all
dirt and mud (such as freezing to death in our apartment with
uninsulated walls and trying to cook in our kitchen with a single hot
plate), but then we would see these great aspects of Chinese culture
that will forever change us. We've seen the natural beauty of the
physical surroundings here (Zhangjiajie--the inspiration for the film
Avatar), learned to speak Mandarin very poorly, visited historic sites
like the Great Wall, and spent time with real Chinese families and
friends. As a homeschooling family back in the U.S., we could
not think of a better way to teach our children about their place in the
world and how they can impact others in positive ways.
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I also think my perspective on the world has actually broadened in a variety of ways. I now realize that there are some absolutely beautiful
things about American and Chinese cultures, but also some less desirable
things about each culture. The Chinese have security and safety, but
less personal freedom than Americans. Americans have a great deal of
freedom, but sometimes abuse that freedom. Our family is squarely in
the camp that chooses freedom in spite of its limitations, but it has
been fascinating to live amongst a people that are on the complete
opposite end of the spectrum. We knew once we started hearing Chinese
people compare the tyrant and architect of the Chinese cultural
revolution, Mao Zedong, to George Washington that we were clearly not on
the same page politically or culturally. We also discovered that the
Chinese lead a much more simple life and I believe the simplicity
can sometimes lead to greater happiness. However, it's also difficult
to live in a country that doesn't have the conveniences that we were
used to back home. The lessons we learned from this are: 1) We freely
admit that we can't wait to go back home to have some of those
conveniences; and 2) We could do with a lot less in our life and still
be happy. It's an interesting sort of contradiction. The experience also
refined my personal perspective on life and what is important. There is
an incessant need in Chinese culture to be as successful as possible and
this usually means monetarily. I think it comes from most families
having only one child and it puts a tremendous amount of pressure on the
one child to earn enough money to take care of his/her parents and also
grandparents. Seeing this really solidified my previous outlook that
our relationships with others (particularly our family) is the most
important thing and that success is a means of cultivating some
happiness, but is not paramount when it detracts from other life pursuits.<br />
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I think I've also changed a great deal as a teacher too because China has such a drastically different
educational system, it has really forced me out of my comfort zone. The
style of teaching and learning are completely different from America.
The Chinese teachers stand at the front of the room and talk (well I guess some
teachers still do this in America) and the students simply listen.
There is typically very little, if any, participation from the
students. They will not raise their hands to ask questions and a class
"discussion" is a really painful endeavor to try to instigate. My
teaching style in America consists of lecture, discussion, and many
examples to illustrate key concepts. I try to make it an engaging
environment when I can by bringing in news clips, videos, and popular culture examples to help student make connections. In China, I tried to do the same thing, but was
met with abysmal failure in the beginning. I could not get the students
to laugh at any of my jokes, discussions were painfully one-sided, and
students had little interest in applying any of their new knowledge (they just want to memorize and regurgitate for the exam).
However, over time, the students warmed to my unorthodox and very
foreign teaching style and would eventually speak up, albeit somewhat
reluctantly, in class. We ended up meeting in the middle and they
learned some things about not only my discipline of Communication, but
about alternative styles of learning. And, consequently, I learned how
to be a better teacher by realizing not all my students are alike even
back home and that I need to be a bit more flexible in my approach to
education. <br />
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Today is Annie's last day of teaching her class and last day of tutoring her Chinese friend. I finish my oral examinations on Monday and then will take about a week to grade them. But, it's still a very busy month. Our family is taking one last trip to Feng Huang (an ancient Chinese city) next week for 3 days. Then, I go to an academic conference in Shenzhen (near Hong Kong) the week after that. Once I return home to Changsha, I will conduct a few focus groups with Chinese students for a research project I'm working on and then we come home to America. Everyone is a little anxious to return. We are still having fun here, but it's hard not to think about our life back in America after being here for 9 1/2 month. We only have 18 days to go, which seems crazy soon. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieXpfcGDV0UqxWADBdz47U6C_ZcmX9XVAaBEMMWdysn071CWiN-_2962CRdS-rwhqD8KMh1VjYSr7PZcBwmBXVlLc4DJAkbYa9BMCAMp5Ag56O_o-1wcDqz-ojeP4oGsH-QbshIChJw2QJ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.32.54+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieXpfcGDV0UqxWADBdz47U6C_ZcmX9XVAaBEMMWdysn071CWiN-_2962CRdS-rwhqD8KMh1VjYSr7PZcBwmBXVlLc4DJAkbYa9BMCAMp5Ag56O_o-1wcDqz-ojeP4oGsH-QbshIChJw2QJ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.32.54+AM.png" height="640" width="420" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They have grown a lot, but still no match for the strength of dad.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8hYd5ZeK9gu6ufrI2OpgDIfpKxkuY-wijvEU8k3eU4HUvhxpIHC9iMNsWJSGEjvXfLYOi5V1AoqpTD6idGzcaQ-mDCvXR8gqf18z090QDsBtq8fjtvyz6q_RR5hzXS8mp_A0Y3E7OkN4s/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.33.09+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8hYd5ZeK9gu6ufrI2OpgDIfpKxkuY-wijvEU8k3eU4HUvhxpIHC9iMNsWJSGEjvXfLYOi5V1AoqpTD6idGzcaQ-mDCvXR8gqf18z090QDsBtq8fjtvyz6q_RR5hzXS8mp_A0Y3E7OkN4s/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.33.09+AM.png" height="640" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy still not cooperating with pictures.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUge5sDl9sRu8Zw5FSv0RdPYbJIQ6gMC5fqJ6E60PPG8Yg7Jhn8EmRjVsKSVAiWatpylo7I217eejy7OIHbMxQxaIgAyCFrPVb_-Bo-0PoUQ4WaGvvd1PxGOP5ZlixVoaKY0bHJgQg_6le/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.33.24+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUge5sDl9sRu8Zw5FSv0RdPYbJIQ6gMC5fqJ6E60PPG8Yg7Jhn8EmRjVsKSVAiWatpylo7I217eejy7OIHbMxQxaIgAyCFrPVb_-Bo-0PoUQ4WaGvvd1PxGOP5ZlixVoaKY0bHJgQg_6le/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.33.24+AM.png" height="430" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm always trying to convince these half Spanish half Ecuadorian children that America is the best country in the world. Seems to be working. Check at that flag she is waving. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMzDLeeQHacM9akDOWTvMxNJT0HaF_fvajiLYHTLQ3WIn8E2fL0DOwt55KAvC1rg7mcrqdvo_568RtXrd67QS14wflUEzHjotcBArXm-31vy-1IWf8m60OZiLbROIom3rL-PEb2fEnaWY5/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.33.39+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMzDLeeQHacM9akDOWTvMxNJT0HaF_fvajiLYHTLQ3WIn8E2fL0DOwt55KAvC1rg7mcrqdvo_568RtXrd67QS14wflUEzHjotcBArXm-31vy-1IWf8m60OZiLbROIom3rL-PEb2fEnaWY5/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.33.39+AM.png" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steins and Parrenos at Taozi Lake.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ0GJ40AQP7YLkEqsmV_WjvEfkYQ_JC6ZqsVcYRWLQiH_V3CHzavfBsxM3UELLAKskKciCxyrk4yeJdiCn1ZYIRrYe_oyJfs18PkxpuIbpwzGyDNg-8SbXPxdqtes8ruCeJ9gaQ6xDny0B/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.33.51+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ0GJ40AQP7YLkEqsmV_WjvEfkYQ_JC6ZqsVcYRWLQiH_V3CHzavfBsxM3UELLAKskKciCxyrk4yeJdiCn1ZYIRrYe_oyJfs18PkxpuIbpwzGyDNg-8SbXPxdqtes8ruCeJ9gaQ6xDny0B/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.33.51+AM.png" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy just loves Karisa and will follow her anywhere.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeiHQF6HvR-M0iTQ4LJ7TFQSnKk-VwKLciNdzhtj2nDe3wQdxu2y52FEsA0QfE_o4QCVIJMY_yNiLPB1w3viWC8xOz_RowhoCDfAC6JuSvLgsuHd_3bXvNxSA1Dvlm_Iwq_YeGsSJf-MVh/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.34.18+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeiHQF6HvR-M0iTQ4LJ7TFQSnKk-VwKLciNdzhtj2nDe3wQdxu2y52FEsA0QfE_o4QCVIJMY_yNiLPB1w3viWC8xOz_RowhoCDfAC6JuSvLgsuHd_3bXvNxSA1Dvlm_Iwq_YeGsSJf-MVh/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.34.18+AM.png" height="640" width="436" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Newspaper clipping of first trip on the Changsha subway line. They let all foreigners ride as a special promotion before the official grand opening.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu7RLAc5JW-PG9BRcKaW5iFnzGhu4KkCDkKDe1YKQK-yFuTXl1MCk61uXP-6TKj3hUKviJM0cjszY61-UfSJYYlFakjhJiR9suqx7nOIG7YeZ0ggIbN3tFMwNYWiQuYjjBSdOZPjUA0_xz/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.34.30+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu7RLAc5JW-PG9BRcKaW5iFnzGhu4KkCDkKDe1YKQK-yFuTXl1MCk61uXP-6TKj3hUKviJM0cjszY61-UfSJYYlFakjhJiR9suqx7nOIG7YeZ0ggIbN3tFMwNYWiQuYjjBSdOZPjUA0_xz/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.34.30+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Who invited the press? Why are we such a big deal everywhere we go?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg795wccGp0NGeODfluChpSBD8VknVqidlWeKSQNmPHvouqdupWJitJiwxJH_vEs8G46kPmMULFYR3VNipH6hb-_E_SzPvneEA81n0kZmovPJWHJghbOwY6pwtR5JnlIdl8-biA_qPdSPPV/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.34.41+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg795wccGp0NGeODfluChpSBD8VknVqidlWeKSQNmPHvouqdupWJitJiwxJH_vEs8G46kPmMULFYR3VNipH6hb-_E_SzPvneEA81n0kZmovPJWHJghbOwY6pwtR5JnlIdl8-biA_qPdSPPV/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.34.41+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Decorating baskets for the Easter bunny.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMxjoFsU8jaBKnF_MUEu-YbAATx7AgA8dqHPXTMV5hQOJoMecTGGO80-8KVwPc6OQE4Wlsfpfdl-TF4qB6OxfS22SjrT_bzLm2ppdc677D-b5hCd_YfLwUZqEW9LGbbJtvHBV1JaLWyTZ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.35.09+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMxjoFsU8jaBKnF_MUEu-YbAATx7AgA8dqHPXTMV5hQOJoMecTGGO80-8KVwPc6OQE4Wlsfpfdl-TF4qB6OxfS22SjrT_bzLm2ppdc677D-b5hCd_YfLwUZqEW9LGbbJtvHBV1JaLWyTZ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.35.09+AM.png" height="476" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The face says it all.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyphenhyphenosLDcQP2AwWS9CJHpTo_QvR1pEJSOEkAioIvw7jJEM7CtzUV5TwLUtmntIxArnVj4sRcTE_4HYS6OjmXKawbt348AsSwwUlhDJx4wBM62GJMJ7K_Ybcti_Ua78LhQZkNJnlzfXGVlS_/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.35.21+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyphenhyphenosLDcQP2AwWS9CJHpTo_QvR1pEJSOEkAioIvw7jJEM7CtzUV5TwLUtmntIxArnVj4sRcTE_4HYS6OjmXKawbt348AsSwwUlhDJx4wBM62GJMJ7K_Ybcti_Ua78LhQZkNJnlzfXGVlS_/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.35.21+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie teaching these children how to dye Easter eggs.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWWyINfLPW5MfmxZhWPS6dFAWO7NoOQITr8uDGhf0A_cRzOeTcOsERqKyeYgEbngyzp3jBRgB1muDtBhMt7wWp6MxVHWrowTVVNpxR9Gpm72m4R_S6efXfKJHo49B75wWzK61AclE6xD76/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.35.32+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWWyINfLPW5MfmxZhWPS6dFAWO7NoOQITr8uDGhf0A_cRzOeTcOsERqKyeYgEbngyzp3jBRgB1muDtBhMt7wWp6MxVHWrowTVVNpxR9Gpm72m4R_S6efXfKJHo49B75wWzK61AclE6xD76/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.35.32+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This guy in the middle is a total stranger. He's just curious about what we are doing with these eggs.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjufyPt947som0iucnWaexpnYzL_O-_WlinccSm3n0AC8oUio0lQ2hSCUdwJ-1Vlw7KKZduy4KzZFmE1VhPoRsoWv-8MPFA9EdutbM8_PoFdJsrE3VssFbLKKLKs-UCMuWwiBmfRXUO9qHZ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.36.10+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjufyPt947som0iucnWaexpnYzL_O-_WlinccSm3n0AC8oUio0lQ2hSCUdwJ-1Vlw7KKZduy4KzZFmE1VhPoRsoWv-8MPFA9EdutbM8_PoFdJsrE3VssFbLKKLKs-UCMuWwiBmfRXUO9qHZ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.36.10+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yep, we didn't invite them either. Welcome to the party, pal.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9SYMZCeGawLOeX0A-Dgx1-t3trfwwcnToCPFyT75rw05Bx2GU3EQj2fuTyOiqf7WEVTtzukDwhURXGoDK8TGa-9MkJMvE6MtoE8GtisDsd6-iYg3_iPMZ7Q7W0Z6uaUyNU4s1haISYkxP/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.36.37+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9SYMZCeGawLOeX0A-Dgx1-t3trfwwcnToCPFyT75rw05Bx2GU3EQj2fuTyOiqf7WEVTtzukDwhURXGoDK8TGa-9MkJMvE6MtoE8GtisDsd6-iYg3_iPMZ7Q7W0Z6uaUyNU4s1haISYkxP/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.36.37+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Obstacle course at Wang Ling park is no problem for me even at 39 years old.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2LyYhVFCNkxIbSNJJVJxzBUC2-3UROikEWHX0l2DeD3HdvcTGkIv-RANvaQVkwiPtJpampq7Et9QJk4Zdrw0fupytjmg0vWUR6wzGOp1s6abLhuHdm9NmLWXtVobYsQGdo74b_JmSr2mp/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.36.52+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2LyYhVFCNkxIbSNJJVJxzBUC2-3UROikEWHX0l2DeD3HdvcTGkIv-RANvaQVkwiPtJpampq7Et9QJk4Zdrw0fupytjmg0vWUR6wzGOp1s6abLhuHdm9NmLWXtVobYsQGdo74b_JmSr2mp/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.36.52+AM.png" height="482" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie's first time trying stinky tofu.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOJe0h9haroenx0iSqTxjG6BgSKF45zD9aw6AzVXLEPUMGyxIC2JcEjUWQ9sQ_S0jnZ49W2k7tkMyZ5_eFP6o9dwcl3oofFk0kw4IrhRhyphenhyphenNSHov-dtrS_HZvUpfd4w2-usE4rkpplRmgg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.05+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOJe0h9haroenx0iSqTxjG6BgSKF45zD9aw6AzVXLEPUMGyxIC2JcEjUWQ9sQ_S0jnZ49W2k7tkMyZ5_eFP6o9dwcl3oofFk0kw4IrhRhyphenhyphenNSHov-dtrS_HZvUpfd4w2-usE4rkpplRmgg/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.05+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicolas' first time trying stinky tofu.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiDwEq-86ks4INsPr2Do71kt5n4Kcx354PMz93wekVZ06d2J4hhEjWcWSXUryIog4p2Otb7Up9IiwiunnVx7XXhakt9Yr2__VmFkv3coKqqJoK-IxQXy7n6kN8gXyG6rD-i6cEAoN2TntR/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.16+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiDwEq-86ks4INsPr2Do71kt5n4Kcx354PMz93wekVZ06d2J4hhEjWcWSXUryIog4p2Otb7Up9IiwiunnVx7XXhakt9Yr2__VmFkv3coKqqJoK-IxQXy7n6kN8gXyG6rD-i6cEAoN2TntR/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.16+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evelynn's first time trying stinky tofu.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtniDXMhUqHR2zmhsPcPSEQSGBzneY7SVB3qRsN6HB2eBP8UbA1N9V4lXPP-SpINPfcBcZZcuCj9FZrZwcP2GLSUTP1YqbQj7T4ZPqSYWk95bJqxCzJi7kzeDqwP5rCmKvvj0DoESf_t94/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.31+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtniDXMhUqHR2zmhsPcPSEQSGBzneY7SVB3qRsN6HB2eBP8UbA1N9V4lXPP-SpINPfcBcZZcuCj9FZrZwcP2GLSUTP1YqbQj7T4ZPqSYWk95bJqxCzJi7kzeDqwP5rCmKvvj0DoESf_t94/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.31+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy refusing to try stinky tofu.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOTR0oFFKyauIl6TLLhvXRKjOdgVBO5Gz2N9wWEUQOspPbQ4Rq-_-RIcpObZ-YLmE-CkZlZRmown8K1CW9o-TNq3ly9NK3-bngli0RDeOovpMbTHXRF92KjzLhTB5t_Rr9Hbdsk5ioTrBo/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.45+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOTR0oFFKyauIl6TLLhvXRKjOdgVBO5Gz2N9wWEUQOspPbQ4Rq-_-RIcpObZ-YLmE-CkZlZRmown8K1CW9o-TNq3ly9NK3-bngli0RDeOovpMbTHXRF92KjzLhTB5t_Rr9Hbdsk5ioTrBo/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.45+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cooking vegetables in a stone pot covered with foil.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdSoucTFNi0n03mFViL36aoR1Gj_jVTxHEyIhlnA5zqON4mvJ3pRdQtNEOjQSihaG0uGV3mvfGGZy9UYrySEuf7bdG6BBQ3AcfzvmAJr7iO6KEWnRlcYRG17VU6ydJZE44K4DHSKw3rvGV/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.58+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdSoucTFNi0n03mFViL36aoR1Gj_jVTxHEyIhlnA5zqON4mvJ3pRdQtNEOjQSihaG0uGV3mvfGGZy9UYrySEuf7bdG6BBQ3AcfzvmAJr7iO6KEWnRlcYRG17VU6ydJZE44K4DHSKw3rvGV/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.37.58+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our makeshift ping pong table.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj52TS0Pyd6HX63TDMuiJNXlcAWpnLWBzZJhgUyOjYuhzvABMQ8tYY8DtEZAC22VseAoTtkaVr2w4hb5BcM5D80tSA6eXouFWx4gMoItO8Xs6XKtqt53Y0vzpjPTzlY6ChZ5GstaVyAeFfO/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.38.13+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj52TS0Pyd6HX63TDMuiJNXlcAWpnLWBzZJhgUyOjYuhzvABMQ8tYY8DtEZAC22VseAoTtkaVr2w4hb5BcM5D80tSA6eXouFWx4gMoItO8Xs6XKtqt53Y0vzpjPTzlY6ChZ5GstaVyAeFfO/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.38.13+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">China is so second nature now. Here we are in the train station waiting to go to Loudi.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-l-VgDkrFUYgJaCk1ZPyk40GGSkwHx57sE9gvxnIcvRd5_9QT8ilJ9uV-B1yNuqJ234lk0Ci5udQM4XYmrqqNlJ0mqx2ys6_OqpQPTK0T1cbHYtuy3dSYxbeiIY2Bpm9TozaKnSihEz9U/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.38.26+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-l-VgDkrFUYgJaCk1ZPyk40GGSkwHx57sE9gvxnIcvRd5_9QT8ilJ9uV-B1yNuqJ234lk0Ci5udQM4XYmrqqNlJ0mqx2ys6_OqpQPTK0T1cbHYtuy3dSYxbeiIY2Bpm9TozaKnSihEz9U/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.38.26+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alice needed to take us to Loudi during the May Grave Sweeping holiday (like our Memorial Day) because she has school. It was super crowded in the train station.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXfV5gNUPuvOYbVhmQiNMHh9_p37N4wy_NDahdYva7loGiMNxTl8NKA12zWFpr-ywc9kMYsuICM9UARwW_loJaY4sKdJkN43StZkdipQ0EBsL2jdFAz3ALh-DMPqbhb0XH-cK7AncpMFq/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.38.39+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXfV5gNUPuvOYbVhmQiNMHh9_p37N4wy_NDahdYva7loGiMNxTl8NKA12zWFpr-ywc9kMYsuICM9UARwW_loJaY4sKdJkN43StZkdipQ0EBsL2jdFAz3ALh-DMPqbhb0XH-cK7AncpMFq/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.38.39+AM.png" height="482" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here are the bunks on the slow train.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaSmd46k50gEb2E2pOiHLZhjZ0uXzZrYdqjDBT0ddyCE3vZm_fayhxb30ghOESpCFYEIlDpdinGx3DHvvAwrYFmAdbT4-LYz4hS-QH4c-jtf3i8zj8HhBLffJAUmheeXJFQide-8SEBzrd/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.38.57+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaSmd46k50gEb2E2pOiHLZhjZ0uXzZrYdqjDBT0ddyCE3vZm_fayhxb30ghOESpCFYEIlDpdinGx3DHvvAwrYFmAdbT4-LYz4hS-QH4c-jtf3i8zj8HhBLffJAUmheeXJFQide-8SEBzrd/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.38.57+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I nibbled a little on this turtle foot, but I kept hearing my cousin Lisa's voice in my heading saying, "How could you, Kevin?!" so I stopped. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7NgIRte4xpW9zp0HOKD4HmIs66qMxOxEcsX6bbR6Bd3rZN0Hj1bNbYqvKIrljRp9fd3xTp3zwqMRevpfRfqmgyZERSb6gW0rR7w1qa4PDRp_rwuvaWj0XzHIbGDModyrDP-edFvPq_9LV/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.39.09+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7NgIRte4xpW9zp0HOKD4HmIs66qMxOxEcsX6bbR6Bd3rZN0Hj1bNbYqvKIrljRp9fd3xTp3zwqMRevpfRfqmgyZERSb6gW0rR7w1qa4PDRp_rwuvaWj0XzHIbGDModyrDP-edFvPq_9LV/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.39.09+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicolas eating squid in Loudi.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0h510hIuJVdNFhUh92GOni8BJeFxHVo5wiK7hXOfO1RkqSNYKIxHTLcw2L5EdC3bkK5n07xvb48uIrQR-9O0oKDEagWVHQlZFMJRDSyrrTksB-SYRyof0Bb0uku-XljhF1WBii1uVZP2d/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.39.24+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0h510hIuJVdNFhUh92GOni8BJeFxHVo5wiK7hXOfO1RkqSNYKIxHTLcw2L5EdC3bkK5n07xvb48uIrQR-9O0oKDEagWVHQlZFMJRDSyrrTksB-SYRyof0Bb0uku-XljhF1WBii1uVZP2d/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.39.24+AM.png" height="476" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love this picture. It reminds me of the movie Reservoir Dogs. If you haven't seen it, there is no hope for you.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5e-aKS6mt8QqLqetQ8qmDI3gTIvPdakGHkE1kHurvjoIV2KxSGUX8CsVJbSzym81aiQxhIbOieSlz0rUYb59O6jB13TzyA-9GxVYkVAv-_kIsrRH5OUuKkT9M9gP9TdXLVYInaBmh58dM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.39.38+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5e-aKS6mt8QqLqetQ8qmDI3gTIvPdakGHkE1kHurvjoIV2KxSGUX8CsVJbSzym81aiQxhIbOieSlz0rUYb59O6jB13TzyA-9GxVYkVAv-_kIsrRH5OUuKkT9M9gP9TdXLVYInaBmh58dM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.39.38+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Riding bicycles down by the river in Loudi.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixnCYzUK_9BZ1720lgB9IUwtsRNRbaJM78SgwSJTtpBe3RjBrYX7dmdotw5xGUQaD3tftaP9A7tF6BW6b2NWCMtllmhlETaheJaNK7pPY-IHU4F_n2jITJlC3saPZjHv9Arfd-PJKCXNTR/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.39.52+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixnCYzUK_9BZ1720lgB9IUwtsRNRbaJM78SgwSJTtpBe3RjBrYX7dmdotw5xGUQaD3tftaP9A7tF6BW6b2NWCMtllmhlETaheJaNK7pPY-IHU4F_n2jITJlC3saPZjHv9Arfd-PJKCXNTR/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.39.52+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Chinese are very superstitious about the number 4. Everywhere there would be a 4, they just put "f" for "four."</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBfAf3GF1Y20qp2GPx7CwoNRhxiVXXPFW8YP5daLReymCsX_MLrfTArEzdH8QRH-xhCZg-_ObV8NihQ3-7uHGDDfmAsQ8vZLAD546i16ERpVi0NB0z9ijyXqfRs-PGKEdeyGQ9Q2cH1UDa/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.40.05+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBfAf3GF1Y20qp2GPx7CwoNRhxiVXXPFW8YP5daLReymCsX_MLrfTArEzdH8QRH-xhCZg-_ObV8NihQ3-7uHGDDfmAsQ8vZLAD546i16ERpVi0NB0z9ijyXqfRs-PGKEdeyGQ9Q2cH1UDa/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.40.05+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful spread of food at Alice's grandparent's house. Wow!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwxpuqGSWSwmiKA9WqylJaRyuZC_Cpgs6vgjRn2xrlK-w6AZm61pzAYn0en7gtpxOYSmDnWquCYfXlvamaq0xkNqH9fAqJmntZIwgsVB-UWTclgrlb64Uah_PDVxIYXsrQ763GaDOoFd5X/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.40.18+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwxpuqGSWSwmiKA9WqylJaRyuZC_Cpgs6vgjRn2xrlK-w6AZm61pzAYn0en7gtpxOYSmDnWquCYfXlvamaq0xkNqH9fAqJmntZIwgsVB-UWTclgrlb64Uah_PDVxIYXsrQ763GaDOoFd5X/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.40.18+AM.png" height="476" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another picture with the grandparents. Such sweet and kind people!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc7jfAIaBebL2EHbkW2fZIfQKpkSYGYaga2VSA3bw4fp1BzWY-1jz2eY1yvs3JSmuBMWZqjo1C4Fw6vW4PUETGnRyqLBfZWz5DoB2ZfDG3efJHGC6ZECia2GwOZrHHb9rLiLvlsSMa3-0O/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.40.46+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc7jfAIaBebL2EHbkW2fZIfQKpkSYGYaga2VSA3bw4fp1BzWY-1jz2eY1yvs3JSmuBMWZqjo1C4Fw6vW4PUETGnRyqLBfZWz5DoB2ZfDG3efJHGC6ZECia2GwOZrHHb9rLiLvlsSMa3-0O/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.40.46+AM.png" height="482" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Well, if I forgot my underwear, I know my fancy hotel has me "covered."</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6I_QJcVJ0ajE8ZjnqtVL8-e-nymYQohdpAOuS3l8UQ6O5GvbUxBqZSXn7iRQWlo8dBnTPE2uA9ywuENjubFl3VMS5PKYMQnaejEZ4ZofrFeaOvhiaJba_hCO_lwJLAm6pkdhlg5WDrXKb/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.40.32+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6I_QJcVJ0ajE8ZjnqtVL8-e-nymYQohdpAOuS3l8UQ6O5GvbUxBqZSXn7iRQWlo8dBnTPE2uA9ywuENjubFl3VMS5PKYMQnaejEZ4ZofrFeaOvhiaJba_hCO_lwJLAm6pkdhlg5WDrXKb/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.40.32+AM.png" height="474" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We always run our kids around so much on these trips that by the end of the day they are wiped out.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm_RoYPIaCLShRiUei2klpDQfMKzCBO5Y__GG7H57yiRKy5OyEXDi9YSXQkNu2RZ9Z4D7hZHveDjGbupEZIXnmrE8_jdFkxEGTW6FLEB2M0k5rUtDxC4RbjTJUzmN4m1635l7WsVCgg-Y9/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.04+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm_RoYPIaCLShRiUei2klpDQfMKzCBO5Y__GG7H57yiRKy5OyEXDi9YSXQkNu2RZ9Z4D7hZHveDjGbupEZIXnmrE8_jdFkxEGTW6FLEB2M0k5rUtDxC4RbjTJUzmN4m1635l7WsVCgg-Y9/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.04+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the lotus-shaped pond from the top of the mountain near the Goddess of Mercy statue.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWUa6_vTvoHCuRoAmZwyWhDGLBHTIfmCn2rgnbbG9NqWLypFsx08S8vcXlA3rghwPzwBEXU_2qCUMKMlyXD_A2c5pIT0r2UEGUE0RUe3O5EsGVgs3Y7AfqfkSLvVTWzAVqPXWI9-eJQMpA/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.41.50+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWUa6_vTvoHCuRoAmZwyWhDGLBHTIfmCn2rgnbbG9NqWLypFsx08S8vcXlA3rghwPzwBEXU_2qCUMKMlyXD_A2c5pIT0r2UEGUE0RUe3O5EsGVgs3Y7AfqfkSLvVTWzAVqPXWI9-eJQMpA/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.41.50+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's apparently good luck to rub Buddha's belly.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkf0R4c_DHGmg7cU0_lg1vHNU44gUwx2-PLu5cpYXLDBGHC4TZbjBeanwuk-7RPgUMT_sA6INsLid8ahS2XVwBAdl4R5Y1uPijXfHMcuQyyly1l6-P98geWg5Eia9Yab1wQVuTAU2XHOrJ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.41.35+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkf0R4c_DHGmg7cU0_lg1vHNU44gUwx2-PLu5cpYXLDBGHC4TZbjBeanwuk-7RPgUMT_sA6INsLid8ahS2XVwBAdl4R5Y1uPijXfHMcuQyyly1l6-P98geWg5Eia9Yab1wQVuTAU2XHOrJ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.41.35+AM.png" height="640" width="478" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One goddess next to me and one behind me.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfiToA6xJrGhgHIxZpp5vmbCzlEf8U7o8La9r_kz-A2HrsJn9dTMdbswgdttjzFSIwZOxO0To24FfIoUXC2QOGo34ZcUH4mE8iA0NfJTBZ6yegbYbSNq7DgGqLps_UnGLelukg0E4EgCEw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.41.15+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfiToA6xJrGhgHIxZpp5vmbCzlEf8U7o8La9r_kz-A2HrsJn9dTMdbswgdttjzFSIwZOxO0To24FfIoUXC2QOGo34ZcUH4mE8iA0NfJTBZ6yegbYbSNq7DgGqLps_UnGLelukg0E4EgCEw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.41.15+AM.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This Buddhist temple has like a thousand of these gold Buddha's. Apparently, Chairman Mao with his supernatural powers (according to the Chinese) was able to determine which single one of these statues was real gold and the rest are fake. Stacie must also have supernatural powers because she simply said, "I bet it's the one behind the glass." It WAS.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPcAbH-SSmrPFV3HHrCnRX_18HMkkeg46RlKUfvvq3CDN_vuJKKo_pK1oBpsddldehASgIGKrYPjk0n71u9IstpyymntzI7PkodcsI0KQQEkmhN39BOeSj9wx5ttxGu7LwhRiKuUNL6RkT/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.41.04+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPcAbH-SSmrPFV3HHrCnRX_18HMkkeg46RlKUfvvq3CDN_vuJKKo_pK1oBpsddldehASgIGKrYPjk0n71u9IstpyymntzI7PkodcsI0KQQEkmhN39BOeSj9wx5ttxGu7LwhRiKuUNL6RkT/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.41.04+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here, we are learning a little about the Buddhist temple. People are inside praying, so it seems like it would be inappropriate to take pictures, but I did get permission in case you thought I was a total dunce.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwI0NvF3n3tnor-wS1ENKe8eqJVSDSaA9or9kENs_m4RHC46MHDEMdAbXtpaPhfuniTasz38NXcRZOd17Yrn8Ydrm7KjfrsCRc3HDg0C_IInExb5n8NtIUXYe7AC6iKdPJLoM4K1ENoWjP/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.16+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwI0NvF3n3tnor-wS1ENKe8eqJVSDSaA9or9kENs_m4RHC46MHDEMdAbXtpaPhfuniTasz38NXcRZOd17Yrn8Ydrm7KjfrsCRc3HDg0C_IInExb5n8NtIUXYe7AC6iKdPJLoM4K1ENoWjP/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.16+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful view of the Goddess of Mercy from the Lotus pond.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWJ0tjrkSea7iCTqbTfhy-ayC-AbOM1hn1OZrnKk37Rrwis-SL_xs_jSUzjuDaEE-iK3W8BX-V7m3ZwHkw_98X7a_dOlgMiZ1WBkkB5YnXP1zjF5XsfT3_SP7bg3wZIwymHzVJBDAaVqMN/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.30+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWJ0tjrkSea7iCTqbTfhy-ayC-AbOM1hn1OZrnKk37Rrwis-SL_xs_jSUzjuDaEE-iK3W8BX-V7m3ZwHkw_98X7a_dOlgMiZ1WBkkB5YnXP1zjF5XsfT3_SP7bg3wZIwymHzVJBDAaVqMN/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.30+AM.png" height="482" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm not sure what Nicolas did to irritate this Chinese soldier.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYHzxLIEUiuRq1Cxydl6kX-Hl_4Hp4Rs8T7SZiBL3pDcAr6a0ShP3gPn4h9HjhbnQO270FvEr563XJNJWPCJcM0v_qRF5BC5Ax9zW7LWtnohmNSxHJ9vMh67qICbWPpeZZgCea9qJz-oQX/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.44+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYHzxLIEUiuRq1Cxydl6kX-Hl_4Hp4Rs8T7SZiBL3pDcAr6a0ShP3gPn4h9HjhbnQO270FvEr563XJNJWPCJcM0v_qRF5BC5Ax9zW7LWtnohmNSxHJ9vMh67qICbWPpeZZgCea9qJz-oQX/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.44+AM.png" height="476" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The entrance to the cave about 2 hours from Loudi.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-O1qTLKenQW32DH2I-XkHe1I_L_Ck-q6fUjvHMi0MRQY_1y9a9milEfXabad3s13ldolt1jCr1wsde5NmSfqKjjGQEPd8teY6Uk-1wXB5y9q_yHx7PeVvX5E38TcibCNbIiQN2zdCtOr8/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.54+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-O1qTLKenQW32DH2I-XkHe1I_L_Ck-q6fUjvHMi0MRQY_1y9a9milEfXabad3s13ldolt1jCr1wsde5NmSfqKjjGQEPd8teY6Uk-1wXB5y9q_yHx7PeVvX5E38TcibCNbIiQN2zdCtOr8/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.42.54+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Xue Family. We have never received so much hospitality in our lives.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiIgZ_FfW4JHJQSlNZjeOCcpDPjPyv_5Z_QdyI5DmTL-OjZ2f-5tKD_t6E5Ym2jo1A-cxHH5vavffi-C_7Bmd8zTk8MvRpidGd-2Alan6sq3n721j94v1mIQH4prhmsk95zDOrCKK3L5oS/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.43.05+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiIgZ_FfW4JHJQSlNZjeOCcpDPjPyv_5Z_QdyI5DmTL-OjZ2f-5tKD_t6E5Ym2jo1A-cxHH5vavffi-C_7Bmd8zTk8MvRpidGd-2Alan6sq3n721j94v1mIQH4prhmsk95zDOrCKK3L5oS/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.43.05+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two years ago, I met Alice when I came to HNU to teach for a month. I recruited her to come to SUU where she came for a year and we got to see her there too. Now, we are here in her home town. It's nice to have good friends in China and America.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx2K_cv4OP30UogcOGEbXA2X1qEQt39FaUnuGzUtgE9ATSmf6szJRS5qTl7VQIJPb1WRCFJPr35tpCzGTWwGvn05ju7fGzuzcFONPoWWMKS9gD7MwAutrHcTzly4p3F09P4NV4oE3UBp_B/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-07+at+11.52.56+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx2K_cv4OP30UogcOGEbXA2X1qEQt39FaUnuGzUtgE9ATSmf6szJRS5qTl7VQIJPb1WRCFJPr35tpCzGTWwGvn05ju7fGzuzcFONPoWWMKS9gD7MwAutrHcTzly4p3F09P4NV4oE3UBp_B/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-07+at+11.52.56+AM.png" height="482" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra has an infected tooth and will need a root canal. This picture is at our second visit to the Chinese dentist. The first two trips were a little drilling and some treatment of an infection. Then, next Friday they will do the root canal. I hope they know what they are doing. I have a little mistrust of Chinese medicine since nothing they have done for us all year has helped even a bit. If it works, though, all three treatments cost 1000 RMB (about $150). Pretty cheap for a root canal, right? But, expensive if it doesn't work at all. Poor Ezra! The picture above is Ezra holding the anesthetic that we had to purchase separately and bring to the dentist. When they first started drilling without it, I was like "What the heck do you think you're doing?" I had my friend who was translating tell them never again to drill without numbing. They were like, "Well, if we want to be pampered, you'll have to pay extra for that!" So, here is Ezra with his well worth it bottle of anesthetic for 40 RMB ($6.50).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFa8nPf8iTrZs6pxXinKtR-ckCvPVza9F3EiAFF1g4G6pMdJp0kGp1x-B1Hl7-JL4GzczvlW0aaCk3zHlKiBKrpLR57D6raUP9zO_lJ1zv_VkZQcrB7lTfpiOWydUPBOgSX173Q8WURPtE/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-07+at+11.53.27+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFa8nPf8iTrZs6pxXinKtR-ckCvPVza9F3EiAFF1g4G6pMdJp0kGp1x-B1Hl7-JL4GzczvlW0aaCk3zHlKiBKrpLR57D6raUP9zO_lJ1zv_VkZQcrB7lTfpiOWydUPBOgSX173Q8WURPtE/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-07+at+11.53.27+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I snapped this photo outside the window of a bus. I just had to capture one of the hundreds of ladies riding around on scooters in their dresses and high heels. A very frequent sight here in Changsha.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD-c8mYk-Q0CBL730g4-RjheMYj6ZafKT03fyVJedxes9977b9hEHD9bNJfd_5Lk3ZK1pif0CJMefhDWnNTsA9pcYDM5KLvv8HhnVYeEynfuQevTmF_qofJZoKiFWsktDxlDuLdypckwAF/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-07+at+11.53.43+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD-c8mYk-Q0CBL730g4-RjheMYj6ZafKT03fyVJedxes9977b9hEHD9bNJfd_5Lk3ZK1pif0CJMefhDWnNTsA9pcYDM5KLvv8HhnVYeEynfuQevTmF_qofJZoKiFWsktDxlDuLdypckwAF/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-07+at+11.53.43+AM.png" height="478" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We see a lot of strange things in China. This guys is headed to the market to sell his eels and he's just chillin' on the bus next to me. Freaky.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoLE7nK5nM3pWOeO44d876fEOFHO3cA6GnaPwcGLTpeZV9cHkq7YdxHQYuNsqCf6gUpHX7KN01J0UGrJ1zIIOspiqlBxxl8cY6-nENLT4L4mx1EAzFQD7LDKcv91eYVvQLIkwM8XW-Tpy_/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-07+at+11.55.50+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoLE7nK5nM3pWOeO44d876fEOFHO3cA6GnaPwcGLTpeZV9cHkq7YdxHQYuNsqCf6gUpHX7KN01J0UGrJ1zIIOspiqlBxxl8cY6-nENLT4L4mx1EAzFQD7LDKcv91eYVvQLIkwM8XW-Tpy_/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-07+at+11.55.50+AM.png" height="346" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I know public speaking and this one was awesome.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_h8YqnueZPj_fzH4Yy-nV6gELywRc2hxUDWoYQIdlwYIF4hsB4ZFP5o9i7mpnkms1ItTi4aZ4cOMZNPohpOkvxBIUbih4eeZ3yk39RbLQIWlSI3sWkbt6KGs7Nd1QJla84q2sNW769Thx/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.43.18+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_h8YqnueZPj_fzH4Yy-nV6gELywRc2hxUDWoYQIdlwYIF4hsB4ZFP5o9i7mpnkms1ItTi4aZ4cOMZNPohpOkvxBIUbih4eeZ3yk39RbLQIWlSI3sWkbt6KGs7Nd1QJla84q2sNW769Thx/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-06-06+at+11.43.18+AM.png" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">During the holidays, the trains are so crowded in China. These guys don't have a seat so they have to stand for hours.<br />
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<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-87715415756814690082014-04-01T01:40:00.001-07:002014-04-01T02:31:10.139-07:00Touring Changsha and Beijing with Garrett and Bethany I deliberately waited to post an entry until after my brother Garrett and his wife Bethany came to visit us. I knew I would have plenty to write about since they had never been to China (or anywhere in the Eastern hemisphere). Plus, Stacie, the kids, and I had yet to venture outside of the Hunan Province since we arrived last August. We had been to a few place in Hunan and I have written about those (Zhangjiajie, Jinggang, and Xiangtan), but never farther than that. We were all looking forward to the visit from family and the opportunity to share in this experience with them. <br />
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Garrett and Bethany arrived on a super late Sunday night flight on China Eastern Airlines that went through Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Shanghai, and then our new home city of Changsha. I hired a driver to take me to the airport to pick them up. Well, my fluent-in-Mandarin SUU assistant, Karisa, made the call initially. I simply had to get picked up, tell the guy in Chinese what the flight number was (I'm getting very good at numbers) and that they were coming in on China Eastern. I basically said in Chinese "China East airplane," but I think he got the idea. The conversation was very limited for the 45 minutes to the airport. I burned through all my Chinese in about 2 minutes and then watched a movie on my iPad while we drove. When we got to the airport, the plane was delayed. The driver seemed a little impatient, but he was very nice. There were a few other foreigners wandering through the airport from other flights and my driver kept looking at me as if to say "Hey, there are some foreigners, how about them?" as if any foreigners would do.<br />
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Finally, after waiting an extra hour, Garrett and Bethany finally came through the gate. I was so excited to see them. It had been so long since we've seen any family that it was a bit emotional for me. We had a difficult first semester adjusting to life in China and were just starting to do well in about January. Personally, I worried a little that seeing family would trigger that "I want to go home now" impulse in me. But, that didn't happen. I was just excited to see my brother, who just dropped a fortune to come visit me. Plus, anyone who thinks he may have come to Changsha for the vacation and planned to see our family on the side has never been to this place. I did discover later that it was kind of their big anniversary trip. How romantic! I'm sure that staying in a small apartment with a family of 7 in a less-than-hygienic country killed the mood pretty quickly. However, Garrett assured me that after all the island, Mexican, and Alaskan cruises they've been on, they were ready for a new kind of experience.<br />
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The morning after the arrival (Monday), they were pretty jet lagged. I was kind enough to not plan anything that morning. We woke them up just before noon and took them to Liu Jie's. Garrett and Bethany had been reading about our favorite restaurant in this blog (we eat there about 4 times a week) and his favorite SUU teacher (besides me of course), Earl Mulderink, had just come to Hunan Normal University for a guest lecture and raved about the great hole in the wall restaurant I had taken him to. So, Garrett was primed and ready to try the food there. And the verdict...they loved it of course. We ended up eating there twice during his stay because it's so good and so cheap. After lunch, we took him over to the university and showed him the scenic spot on campus with the pagoda and the pond with the goldfish just at the base of Yuelu mountain. We hiked the back side of the mountain and showed Garrett and Bethany the interesting grave sites and monuments on the mountain. The Japanese had invaded many parts of China during what they call the War of Japanese Aggression (1937-1945), including the city of Changsha. On the top of Yuelu is a monument of a Japanese soldier kneeling in apology. Stacie's friend, Lily, told her that the monument was created by the Chinese to show what they think the Japanese response should be following the war. We found it interesting and thought Garrett would too since he is a huge history buff. Plus, Stacie and I have been a little surprised by the continuing level of hostility the older Chinese exhibit toward the Japanese people. In fact, our friend Wouldbe told us that the characters for Japanese person (<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">日本人) also mean (go f*&# yourself). So, if you say "Japanese person" in the right context, you are using a profane expression. And, it's probably no coincidence that they chose the Japanese as the basis for this slur. </span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">After we hiked the back side of Yuelu, we went down the mountain and walked over to east entrance of the mountain, which is very near to our apartment. We took the cable car to the top, enjoyed the views of the city since it was such a clear beautiful day, and then took the mountain chute/slide down to the bottom. We kept joking that Garrett and Bethany were such good luck with the weather. It was supposed to be raining the entire time they were in Changsha, but it didn't really rain at all. Plus, the sky was blue and the pollution was minimal. When you book a flight months in advance, you can't possibly know what kind of weather you're in for, so we were very fortunate in that regard. After the mountain, everyone was tired. We chose a very unique kind of dining experience for dinner, the local Pizza Hut. Garrett really wanted to try this pizza they had with salmon and wasabi on it, but they were all out. Must be in high demand or something! Anyway, the food was very good and the Pizza Huts here in China are considered upscale dining. The people look a bit better dressed when you go in there, which is strange compared to how the restaurants are in America. </span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">The next morning (Tuesday), we left very early to catch a high speed train to Beijing. None of us had ever been on the high speed train before and it was quite a nice experience. There was plenty of leg room, the chairs were pretty comfortable, and the ride was very smooth since we are obviously traveling on rails. Plus, the security lines are a joke in China. They figure that nobody would really dare do anything so they make you just put your bag on a conveyer belt and walk through the metal detector. It takes about 5 seconds. Then, you go right to your gate. It's much easier than airport travel. I was a little nervous about traveling so soon after the knife attack at the railway station in Kunming that killed 29 people and injured a 130 more, but most places in China are fairly safe. The high speed to Beijing takes about 6 hours compared to the slow train, which is more like 20 hours. Stacie and I had talked about taking the slow train, but thought Garrett and Bethany would probably not want a 20 hour train ride after just getting off an 18 hour flight. Originally, I thought we would be going to Beijing without a Chinese guide and I was scared to death. My Chinese is NOT sufficient to get around, but I hoped the subway system would be easy (in most cities it is) and I thought the hotel staff could help us find our tours to the various sites. However, we lucked out and our friend Wouldbe agreed to take us around Beijing. He is from Changsha and couldn't afford the high speed train (and we couldn't afford to pay his fare), so he left a day early on the slow train and met us at the train station when we arrived. Actually, he wasn't waiting for us when we got there. We exited the train station and stood right out front for about 45 minutes as I tried to call Wouldbe and figure out where he was. He kept saying, "I'm in the South Plaza" and I would reply "I'm in the South Plaza, just look for me." Then, he would say "Tell me what you see" and then I would describe the surroundings. Eventually, we discovered that Wouldbe had gone to the wrong train station and had to take the subway back to where we were. It was frustrating at the time, but how do you get mad at a guy who slept on a wood slat for 20 hours so he could help your family have an easier time in Beijing. Wouldbe is the best! </span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">We found our hotel, which is in a university district where Wouldbe's cousin Wu Kai is going to school. We thought it would be easier for Wouldbe to be near his cousin and the subway provided very easy access to the city center. We were very happy with our hotel accommodations, especially considering how cheap it was. We paid 100 yuan per room per night (about $33). Since we had three rooms for three nights, our total hotel bill was $300. So cheap! Plus, the beds were softer than the ones we've been sleeping on for 7 months and the toilet and shower were Western-style if you know what I mean (no squatting). Garrett, Bethany, and Nicolas slept in one room (again, damper on any anniversary getaway stuff), Ezra, Wouldbe and I in one room, and all the girls in the other. First thing Wouldbe said to me when we got in the room is "Do you care if I sleep in just my underwear?" I said "Knock yourself out." Wouldbe then said, "Huh?" Wouldbe also very much enjoyed using the shower. I think he showered morning and night during our stay because the water was "free." In China, he explained to me that the students usually only shower once a week because they have to go to a special place and pay to shower. Otherwise, they just clean themselves in the sink at their dorm room. So, Wouldbe was living it up with his twice per day showers. </span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">That first night after we checked in, we headed over to the famous Wangfujing Snack Street where they sell all kinds of delicacies like silkworms, sea horses, star fish, and scorpions. The place was at the very top of Ezra's To-Do list. He REALLY wanted to go here and we all wanted to take him. He made a special deal with his Uncle Garrett that he had to try everything that Ezra would eat. I told him he needed to make a deal that he would eat anything Lucy would eat. It's a much safer bet. But, he was stuck. If the kids ate it, he would have to man up and eat it too. When we got to the snack street, I had a harder time wrapping my mind around what we were about to do. I guess seeing the live scorpions squirming around on those sticks really brought it home for me. I was carrying Lucy and she buried her face in my neck and said "I don't want to eat it." I told her she didn't have to eat anything she didn't want to eat. She felt better, but still would not look at the bugs. We purchased a stick of scorpions for 25 yuan (about $6). That's pretty pricey for food in China, but they know the foreigners will come and pay it. And guess what, they were right. Ezra took the first nibble and said he thought it was pretty good. Then, it was my turn and I nearly put it in my mouth about 4 times before finally sticking it in there and chewing. Then, Garrett ate one, Annie, and then Nicolas. We all agreed that it tasted a lot like a potato chip and the battle was more psychological than anything else. Next, we tried the starfish. We all took a bite, but it was kind of hard to chew. The consensus on that one was that it tasted like tree bark or wood of some kind. That's all we tried. We guessed the fried sea horses would probably also taste like potato chips and nobody really wanted to try the giant juicy looking bugs. So, that was that.</span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">The next morning (Wednesday), we got on the subway and headed to the train station to catch a train to the Badaling area of the Great Wall. Wouldbe and Wu Kai (the boys and I kept calling him Wookie) were our guides. I was concerned about going to the Badaling area since it is the most heavily visited part of the wall, but we were willing to go wherever they wanted to take us. We waited at the train station for about an hour since we barely missed the earlier train. As we waited, we noticed people forming a huge line to get to the train. I asked Wouldbe what they were doing and he said that the seats were first come first serve. This always makes me nervous since we had such a big group and the children needed to sit close to us on the train. We got in line, but were kind of far back. When they opened the gate everyone started pushing and shoving and running to the train. Stacie told me not to worry and that we would get seats. So, we walked quickly to the train, got on a car and there were still plenty of seats. I'm still not sure why the Chinese are so averse to forming real lines and to having reserved seating. It's just nuts over here sometimes when you are trying to get on a bus, hail a cab, or do anything that normally requires a little bit of etiquette.</span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">When we got to the entrance area to the wall, it was about 1 p.m. and everyone was hungry. There really wasn't much to eat at the bottom of the wall since it was mostly souvenir shops. We did find some fried rice and fried noodles that were pretty terrible, but we ate them anyway. Plus, everything is overpriced as you might expect, like having to pay $1.25 for your noodles instead of 75 cents. My favorite part of going to the tourist sites (apart from the sites themselves) is bartering for souvenirs. I think the children would agree as we always give them their own money and let them loose to negotiate. They've gotten really good at it too. Annie and Nicol got a sweatshirt that says "I climbed the Great Wall," Lucy got a shirt that says "I love China" (she SO doesn't love China), Evelynn got a shirt that says "I love Beijing," Nicol and Ezra both got those conical straw peasant hats, and Lucy and Evelynn both got little stuffed animal Pandas (Lucy appropriately named hers Souvenir). Oh, the little girls also got a version of those Russian Matryoshka dolls (nesting dolls) that were Pandas (did I mention they love Pandas). Lucy is so good at naming her souvenirs. This one was called "Tons of Heads." </span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">Oh, so the highlight of the Great Wall was not souvenir shopping and eating bad fried rice. The wall was absolutely incredible. It's hard to describe how amazing it was. The climb was pretty steep in places, but the weather was moderate, the crowd was pretty minimal, and we very much enjoyed the scenery in the area outside of Beijing. It's always nice to get out of the city a little. When we were in Zhangjiajie back in September, we felt rushed by our tour guide. This time, we were able to go very slowly with the children and just enjoy the fact that we were on the FREAKIN' GREAT WALL OF CHINA. I felt like father of the year taking my children to this glorious place. You can look at pictures in a book or on the internet, but I was really looking forward to seeing how high the wall was and making some snap judgments about the viability of climbing over the thing during a siege. Plus, the amount of labor that would go into building a wall that size that stretched across all of China is astounding. As I walked along it, I kept thinking about how many of the workers were killed during its construction, either from exhaustion or from trying to run away and getting buried alive in the wall by their masters. We kept asking Wouldbe questions about the wall and apparently he knows as much about his country's history as American students know about theirs. Anyway, we spent all day at the wall, which is what we really wanted to do. When we got home, everyone commented that this was their favorite part of the trip. After we returned to the city of Beijing, we found a very nice Japanese restaurant and had Japanese style tofu, hot pot, fresh sashimi, and some other dishes that were suspiciously like American dishes but we loved them. For example, what kind of Japanese restaurant serves chicken fingers? Also, who serves tuna salad with garlic on white toast? We liked it, but the national origins of the food were a bit puzzling. The restaurant owners took our picture with a Polaroid camera, we wrote some English sentiments on it, and posted it on the wall. The Stein family is forever enshrined on the wall of a restaurant in Beijing.</span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">The next day (Thursday), we intended to hit the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace. We ended up spending far too much time at the Forbidden City and never had the chance to get to the Summer Palace. I really wanted to see it, but I've never been too big on rushing things. Often what happens is you barely see a few things instead of seeing one thing really well. Plus, everyone was enjoying the walk around the Forbidden City. There was so much to see there and so many interesting stories about events that happened in each of the buildings. The site is absolutely massive and I know we barely scratched the surface of what was there, but we feel like we saw a great deal. One of our favorites was touring the Treasure Gallery where we got to see some really old relics from different dynasties. I think sometimes I forget just how little history there is with my country compared to China. I remember traveling to London in 2006 with Eric and we were amazed at some of the architecture from the 1500s. The Forbidden City was even more fascinating because of the design of the buildings and the age of course. My favorite moment from the Forbidden City, though, was when someone came up to Garrett and Bethany and tried to sell them a souvenir book with pictures of the Forbidden City. I had taught Garrett that "Wo bu yao" means "I don't want" in Chinese. With great confidence, Garrett said to the man, "Wo bu wow." The man laughed and corrected him. Then, I started helping Garrett to negotiate. The man was persistent, but we ended up getting Garrett a pretty good deal on the book. Then, the man made the mistake of trying to sell to me, but I'm a seasoned professional barterer now. I'll tell you how the conversation went in English, but we spoke in Chinese (as much as I could anyway). He said, "Do you want a book?" I said, "I already have one." He said, "Do you have this one?" I said no and he offered to give it to me for 20 yuan. I told him, "I'll give you 1 jiao for it" (less than a penny). He pulled a coin out of his pocket and said "This is one jiao!" I said, "I know!" Then, he said something in Chinese I couldn't understand (probably called me a Japanese person if you know what I mean) and stormed off. Maybe it was rude of me, but they are so pushy at these tourist sites and think they can take advantage of the foreigners. One person actually tried to barter with Annie on some item and Annie offered her 50 yuan when the lady wanted a hundred. Finally, she agreed to give it to Annie for 50, so Annie gave her a 100 yuan bill expecting change. The lady gave her fake money in return. But, Annie has been using Chinese money for months, so she refused to take it until the lady gave her the real change. So, I don't really feel badly about offering the guy one penny for his book. I do want to add that Garrett was picking up Chinese pretty well for only being here for just a few days. Some of the words I heard him use in Chinese were: this, excuse me, thank you, hello, goodbye, one, I want, and how much is this? Not bad, eh. It was kind of funny how Garrett and Bethany thought our Chinese was good. I tried to explain to him that it's terrible, but I guess a guy that knows a couple hundred words probably looks impressive to a guy who knows like 5 words.</span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">After we saw the Forbidden City, we took a bus to Tiananmen Square. I really wanted to see the scene of the 1989 student demonstrations. We had to go through security to get into the square. The square looked very massive and we could see Mao's mausoleum in the distance. However, we took a wrong turn and ended up back inside the Forbidden City. Unfortunately, once you've entered the Forbidden City, they will not allow you to go back through to Tiananmen. So, we were stuck and said "Well, at least we kind of saw Tiananmen Square. That night for dinner, we went to an amazing restaurant and had Peking Duck. Stacie really wanted to try the world famous Peking Duck and so we made it a priority to try this. In the end, we all loved it, but Stacie thought it was just ok. She said, "Next to the bacon wrapped duck at the Painted Pony in St. George, this is nothing." I would probably agree, but this was pretty good stuff. Also, the duck came with a sauce that everyone thought was amazing. They were like "What is this sauce???" Finally, I told them "It's just hoisin sauce, haven't you ever had that before." Apparently, they hadn't. </span></span><br />
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<span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="zh-CN"><span class="">The next morning (Friday), we departed from Beijing. I won't bore you with the details about how we missed our first train and had to take a later train. It was quite stressful, but I refused to let it ruin the trip. We had a glorious time and nothing will ever take away from it. I think this blog has gotten long enough, so I won't tell you about our Saturday outing to Orange Island in Changsha, the Hunan University barbecue where we ate oysters, snails, eggplant, and stinky tofu, or Garrett and Bethany's first experience having church by conference call. I'll let them tell you about it if you ever have a chance to ask them. Garrett tells me he is working on a blog entry himself to add to my commentary. I think that will be wonderful to hear his perspective on the trip too. When he sends it to me, I will add it to the bottom of this blog and repost the link for everyone. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Garrett, Bethany and I with Liu Jie and her husband. They own the restaurant together and they work very long hours. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evelynn apparently LOVES Beijing. We like how her shirt has English and Chinese or what we call "Chinglish."</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Garrett and Bethany on Orange Island in Changsha.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our entire travel party at the bottom of the Great Wall.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's not often I get a picture with so much love between these two. They do like each other, but arms draped around each other? A definite keeper.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Out to eat with Garrett and Beth. The chopsticks were difficult for them and I think they started getting mad every time we would ask for a spoon for them to use.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The view from the top of Yuelu Mountain in Changsha. It was such a nice day even though the forecast predicted rain.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We gave up our bedroom to our guests. Hope they enjoyed the most comfortable bed in the house with it's whopping 2 inches of padding on top of a wood slat.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kids are obviously psyched about our hotel in Beijing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here we are at the Forbidden City.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maybe their anniversary was a bit romantic after all.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I introduced Garrett to my motto for China, which is "close enough." The maps, the translations on T-shirts, the quality of products. Everything to me seems to point to this motto that close is good enough. In this case, calling South America "South Afarica" is clearly NOT close enough.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Of course we had to play ping pong while Garrett was here. We often had people walk by and watch us as we played. For those wondering the score. I won the first two games and Garrett won the third. His argument was that he was just getting warmed up those first two games. My argument was that I started getting tired the third game and that's why he won. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The cable car ride up to the top of Yuelu Mountain is always so beautiful and relaxing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's always nice to have a little English on the menus. It helps you know what you are in for. In this case, Garrett and I really wanted to try this pizza, but they were all out of them.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Something tells me Ezra will remember this for the rest of his life.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had to eat something and to our not so great surprise, they had noodles and rice. It wasn't very good.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We got this a lot in Zhangjiajie National Park too. People are at one of the most popular tourist sites in the entire world and what do they want to take a picture of? That's right, the famous Stein family children!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our wonderful guides. That's Wouldbe on the left and Wu Kai aka Wookie on the right.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Uncle Garrett was absolutely amazing with his little nieces. They absolutely adored him and cried when they had to say goodbye. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The children wanted to touch the Great Wall. You can walk on top (which we did most of the time) and you can walk on these sidewalks next to the wall.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It cost us 20 yuan to dress each kid up in traditional Chinese clothing. Everyone liked it except for Lucy, of course. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Garrett found this shop with all these traditional Chinese instruments. He ended up purchasing this one and bringing it home to America. The guy also had a regular violin hanging on the wall to the left of where Garrett is in this picture. Garrett motioned to the man that he knew how to play it and the guy pulled it off the wall and handed it to him. Garrett played a little music for him (even though he had a hard time with it being out of tune), but the people around us were all impressed. I think it gave Garrett some added credibility in buying this Chinese instrument that he at least has some familiarity with music and isn't just another dumb tourist. The man taught Garrett some techniques for playing and he plans to practice when he gets home.</td></tr>
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stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-41717472340292889572014-02-27T07:56:00.000-08:002014-02-27T17:47:08.942-08:00Chinese Spring Festival and Stacie's BirthdayIt has been a great month here in China. I posted a blog right after Christmas providing an update on everything that happened during the holiday season. I should say American holiday season because nobody cares about Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas here in China. Since that time, we've been right smack in the middle of Chinese holiday season. The Spring Festival (known in the U.S. as Chinese New Year) went for an entire month and was pretty interesting. The first thing we noticed was that everyone left. Well...not everyone, but we noticed many fewer people on the sidewalks near our house, which was wonderful. We didn't have to elbow our way through crowds of people to get where we wanted to go, so we went for many leisurely walks along the streets of Changsha near Hunan Normal University (which was especially empty with all the students gone). Unfortunately, all the business owners left too, so practically nothing was open. The big supermarkets were open most of the time, so we did not starve, but we did have to cook all our meals. Because school was out and I was incredibly burned out from a busy fall semester, we tried to take advantage of the down time and rested quite a bit. But, we also had the opportunity to do some fun things during the break.<br />
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One memorable activity was attending the Changsha city fireworks. I have written about the fireworks before since they light them off from Orange Island (which divides the city) every Saturday during the warm months. We have enjoyed this before since we live right by the river and can walk to the fireworks in less than 5 minutes. But, this time was absolutely spectacular. The city really put on quite a show for the Chinese New Year. Wow were we impressed! It's so interesting how the Chinese can design fireworks that look so much different from the ones we are used to in the U.S. They often explode into various shapes and designs and we find ourselves sort of mesmerized while we watch to see what might come next. The ones in the U.S. sometimes look the same and I get bored after a while. We also finally had a chance to buy some of the Chinese lanterns from a vendor on the street. He sold them for 5 yuan each. I bought one for everyone in the family. The lanterns have some kind of wax square that you mount to the bottom of the lantern. Then, you have to work pretty hard to get the wax to ignite (holding the lighter to it for a minute or two). Once it's lit, you have to wait for the lantern to fill with hot air before gently pushing it skyward. A couple of times, I didn't wait long enough for the air to fill the lantern and I pushed it up only to have to descend into a row of bushes and nearly ignite them. A really kind Chinese man helped me rescue the bushes from burning by continually jumping into the them and grabbing the lantern. He kept saying "bu dui" (not correct) and smiled. The children really enjoyed watching the glowing lanterns get higher and higher and smaller and smaller. I think it helped that they had seen these lanterns in Disney movies like Mulan and Tangled. Although we very much enjoyed the fireworks, we generally did not appreciate the constant barrage of firecrackers that were being lit off almost every day and during all hours of the night. Seriously, people were lighting off firecrackers right outside our apartment all night long. Plus, it's not just the sound of the firecrackers going off, it's also the car alarms that are triggered from the firecrackers. It was really hard to sleep for many of days in early February. But, we admired the enthusiasm that the Chinese exhibited during the New Year (the year of the horse apparently). <br />
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We also had a chance to go to Orange Island for a picnic. The children have always wanted to walk across the bridge to Orange Island since we pretty much see it every day across the river and have taken the bus over the river many times. Even though it was during the colder months of the year, it was still quite beautiful. We packed some sandwiches, laid out a blanket, and played some badminton with the children. We also walked around parts of the island to see the fireworks square (where they light all the fireworks off), some ponds with big orange fish in them, and beautiful trees with flowers. The only bad part of the trip was that we are always celebrities when we take the whole family out. We don't get as much attention when we go out in smaller groups or if we stick close to campus where people are getting used to seeing us. But, any time we go somewhere with the entire family and it's an area where people are not used to seeing us, we get an unbelievable amount of attention. Some of it is very friendly as people will ask us questions or smile at us. Other times, they will look at us with completely expressionless faces, with their mouths slightly agape. It's a little uncomfortable, especially if they walk right up to us (within a few feet) and just stand there and look at us. A couple of times, I would say "ni hao" (hello) just to break the awkward silence. Many times, they will just say nothing in response to my greeting. I'm not sure how it's my fault that the situation is awkward. I'm trying to be friendly. I joke with the children sometimes when I tell them the scene reminds me of a line from the fairly stupid movie Madagascar. In it, these penguin characters say "Smile and wave, boys...smile and wave." That's how we feel here sometimes with our limited language skills or a lack of responsiveness from some of the Chinese people. All we can do is smile and wave. But, we always try to be friendly with others regardless of how much of that friendliness is reciprocated. And, I must say it is often reciprocated in the most wonderful ways. It's just those few awkward moments we have to laugh about sometimes.<br />
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Another special experience we had during the break was the chance to help the Parrenos in Xiangtan. Jackie was expecting their third baby in January and needed Stacie and Annie to come down to help with the children when they needed to go to the hospital and when they returned home after the delivery. Two days past Jackie's due date, Stacie and Annie headed down to Xiangtan thinking the baby would be coming very soon. It ended up being kind of a nice break for them as they waited for a whole week with no sign of the baby. They didn't want to return home because they were worried the baby would come right after they left. So, they just waited. Meanwhile, I was home with the younger four children cooking, doing laundry, and keeping everyone entertained. I consider myself a pretty capable dad, but everything is more complicated in China and the laundry situation is a little tricky without a real dryer. After that first week away from Stacie, I was very confident I had figured it out and had mastered the art of parenthood (joking by the way). I told Stacie I was doing fine, but she didn't believe me and told me to bring the kids to Xiangtan. So, we went down and were there for another week helping the Parrenos with their new baby. It was such a neat experience staying in their house with them as they awaited their new arrival, being able to show them our friendship, and seeing them show their other small children their new little brother for the very first time. I think they were worried they were inconveniencing us by having us there for so long, but we were so happy to do it. <br />
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Anyway, school has started up again (2 weeks now). They cut my class load from 7 classes and 320 students to 3 classes and 120 students. Much improved! Plus, I've pretty much decided to do whatever the heck I want in my classes. I don't think the university really cares. They seem to just want a foreigner to go in there every day and speak English to them. So, I'm going to teach them some stuff they'll never learn over here, like public speaking, critical thinking, debate, intercultural communication, and listening skills. Should be much more fun for me and hopefully for them too. I noticed when I did pronunciation drills with them last semester that they had this "We have been doing this since kindergarten" attitude. So, maybe I should let them more "naturally" pick up on the right pronunciation as I teach them other things. Who knows. I'm also excited to have more of a chance to continue my own research projects. I've been working on two projects simultaneously right now, preparing to submit them to an upcoming academic conference. It feels good to be a communication scholar again. I really feel more like my previous self professionally than I did last semester when I was just buried with things to do. Apart from teaching and research, we are also getting the American Studies Center underway for this semester. We had our grand opening in January and then closed the office for the holiday. My new student assistant, Karisa (a delightful person who speaks Chinese from serving an LDS mission in Taiwan), just arrived and will be helping me get activities planned for this semester. We will also have more regular office hours in the ASC, with English tutoring and walk in visits for people wanting to learn more about American culture.<br />
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Things continue to be interesting around here. Every day is something new and exciting. Nicolas, Ezra and I witnessed a fight at the local supermarket between two of the employees. One employee screamed at the top of his lungs at another female employee as he swung a mop handle at her head. Then, he tried to stomp on her foot and when that didn't work, he spat on her shoes. Same store where the incident occurred with the "nut" lady if you recall that story. There was also another incident where we were walking toward this man on the street. I was holding Evelynn's hand and I saw him walking toward us. As he walked by, he unscrewed the cap on his thermos and threw the water on Evelynn's leg. It was clearly intentional. I yelled "hey" really loudly, but he just kept walking by. Someone needs to teach me some Chinese profanity and soon! I don't know a single word to be honest. Anyway, there is a mix of good and bad experiences here, but most are very pleasant. <br />
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The next big things happening for the Stein family (to be reported in the next blog) is that my brother Garrett and his wife Bethany will be coming in two and half weeks to visit us in China. They will be staying with us a few days in Changsha and we will also be going up to Beijing, where we will visit the Forbidden City, the emperor's Summer Palace, the Great Wall of China, Tiananmen Square, and the famous Wufangjing Snack Street, where you can buy and eat scorpions, cicadas, starfish, seahorses, and a variety of other delicacies. Also, Nicolas and Ezra have been invited to join a 14 week Kung Fu class starting this Saturday. Of course they couldn't be more excited. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When we went to Martyr's Park (while Stacie and Annie were in Xiangtan), I paid this guy 50 yuan to draw a portrait of me. The sign said it would take 15 minutes, but it took him one hour. I think he had trouble drawing a foreign face and his big bizi (nose). We eventually drew a crowd of over a hundred people (I had Nicolas count) who wanted to watch the giant foreigner. After he was finished with his drawing, I said "Wo yao toufa" (I want hair). The artist laughed and took off his hat to reveal he had the same haircut I did.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our favorite restaurant Liu Jie's. The back room has a window looking into the kitchen.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKc38TXS212WY6QJmp1HdIgwax5wRY2KQPcBTraBqSQuqfhMeTJO5mycxJ5DhTMUuyv0EKB8BEJLIXUIQc3h2W6OD5YNarJHK655_sAW4v9qo81WjMZEY6QrY4R9GEavjFyjLJG5H-Tak/s1600/2014-01-15+17.20.29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKc38TXS212WY6QJmp1HdIgwax5wRY2KQPcBTraBqSQuqfhMeTJO5mycxJ5DhTMUuyv0EKB8BEJLIXUIQc3h2W6OD5YNarJHK655_sAW4v9qo81WjMZEY6QrY4R9GEavjFyjLJG5H-Tak/s1600/2014-01-15+17.20.29.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When Stacie and Annie were in Xiangtan, I was trying to find things to feed the children. I had this bag of frozen tuna, but how on earth do you defrost this? I tried this method, which worked surprisingly well. Stacie told me later that I could just run water over it for a few minutes. Duh!!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha9IXcLF1C29ZXXgAdBFSByRxAu2U2mcHNecWeD80fKAvA-lweFaqvHh6OXavZeDyQgjlUF2HAiBS0Du7CnxZ70_MwwSSSM_qcn3H1OlcQundDUV7X1IhIKoLsnZ41rGclkZfexnHTgvE/s1600/2014-01-19+17.02.48.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha9IXcLF1C29ZXXgAdBFSByRxAu2U2mcHNecWeD80fKAvA-lweFaqvHh6OXavZeDyQgjlUF2HAiBS0Du7CnxZ70_MwwSSSM_qcn3H1OlcQundDUV7X1IhIKoLsnZ41rGclkZfexnHTgvE/s1600/2014-01-19+17.02.48.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More pictures from when Stacie and Annie abandoned me in Xiangtan. The girls wanted me to try to braid their hair since that's what Stacie and Annie always do for them. They absolutely LOVE having cute hair. This was the best I could do unfortunately.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmLJvy2gnokxH4IDkAuvAiqsKubgshTbi7vd2XzQLD-CJnkv_jszdq_7V4ZzR7f4c3TOsdhpKivb_eCBJBDC5f1R3zmpeoIEgNKQvgpFxX5qVN44N3OGu_GV3cqC4hJ6tFXilXj-vN_yE/s1600/2014-01-19+17.03.32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmLJvy2gnokxH4IDkAuvAiqsKubgshTbi7vd2XzQLD-CJnkv_jszdq_7V4ZzR7f4c3TOsdhpKivb_eCBJBDC5f1R3zmpeoIEgNKQvgpFxX5qVN44N3OGu_GV3cqC4hJ6tFXilXj-vN_yE/s1600/2014-01-19+17.03.32.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And Lucy was NOT ok with the result!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9yuWaq7dhNmHCDU4Yn0mVA2KMQgcpl6sS_hrmnjZXRXM7EtcAAStu9Doq3rXr2KHzS2s1iuMNqFIw76jB1v7eOvBUYH_8nV5EMRt3B0YYHtBeYJRTz63JBp4Ws2zPlupbsASv7Y2cYkQ/s1600/2014-01-21+12.04.33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9yuWaq7dhNmHCDU4Yn0mVA2KMQgcpl6sS_hrmnjZXRXM7EtcAAStu9Doq3rXr2KHzS2s1iuMNqFIw76jB1v7eOvBUYH_8nV5EMRt3B0YYHtBeYJRTz63JBp4Ws2zPlupbsASv7Y2cYkQ/s1600/2014-01-21+12.04.33.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie insisted I bring the children down to Xiangtan since she had already been gone a week, but I really did not want to face the bus station during the crowded holiday time. See what I mean?</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobYJaQAiRjJxEvSYCVxsMH5KrZK4xH8_1OsZgPF60s2-6aZW6Zhfdja6i3DSU_-K1RHW11SpfADDOXSIroZECvstowKjz6mtKah6tsBx_OgYitEkHvj9HNuy_B-zEr65nIhdHmGBsaCE/s1600/2014-01-23+11.37.12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobYJaQAiRjJxEvSYCVxsMH5KrZK4xH8_1OsZgPF60s2-6aZW6Zhfdja6i3DSU_-K1RHW11SpfADDOXSIroZECvstowKjz6mtKah6tsBx_OgYitEkHvj9HNuy_B-zEr65nIhdHmGBsaCE/s1600/2014-01-23+11.37.12.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Parreno's new baby, Victor.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPT7edThD7scLEm7P4kvjA9gxvwF6MJF1sBMRNRPyjWziDkuhGord6mSbYc3eOYyXuOajja6hSagZhiqN4sUFDfgT-vc3R-eJsQKYXR2bbnD7Ru89Z7647RndE9Oo6I5qMS6vkDR4-mak/s1600/2014-01-23+19.39.14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPT7edThD7scLEm7P4kvjA9gxvwF6MJF1sBMRNRPyjWziDkuhGord6mSbYc3eOYyXuOajja6hSagZhiqN4sUFDfgT-vc3R-eJsQKYXR2bbnD7Ru89Z7647RndE9Oo6I5qMS6vkDR4-mak/s1600/2014-01-23+19.39.14.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We tried a new fruit. Starfruit. Looks interesting, tastes not so great.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijltysAcfphAD4h1oSp2q7gwIitEfI3W7V9hDn6y5JLUbifDqyegJrW_gfGR8u5oNFgLiHN7cs7vFqBO73ZLB4a-iwG68Z2Sw-8mXrmB2UqWvydeiXwBvYL6pfNz-2OSYTJIKajbK9Em0/s1600/2014-01-29+14.28.11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijltysAcfphAD4h1oSp2q7gwIitEfI3W7V9hDn6y5JLUbifDqyegJrW_gfGR8u5oNFgLiHN7cs7vFqBO73ZLB4a-iwG68Z2Sw-8mXrmB2UqWvydeiXwBvYL6pfNz-2OSYTJIKajbK9Em0/s1600/2014-01-29+14.28.11.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The wonderful street we live on during the Spring Festival. Where did everyone go?</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Z03PeC04u75ozt4aNw4qZWTuTyu15iKi6FOg5SkKgkAJaTDwChn5yydnJwAZw2JbdjOvzeGxsYX9_ah9l2St-TP4my8XzQ8eYc-tRsuNJ0LJlUW6WkavIpDWzb_m7E7vJC3ybNdYmlw/s1600/2014-01-30+14.43.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Z03PeC04u75ozt4aNw4qZWTuTyu15iKi6FOg5SkKgkAJaTDwChn5yydnJwAZw2JbdjOvzeGxsYX9_ah9l2St-TP4my8XzQ8eYc-tRsuNJ0LJlUW6WkavIpDWzb_m7E7vJC3ybNdYmlw/s1600/2014-01-30+14.43.03.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Family walk around Taozi lake near our house. We come here often since it's so close by.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-QkKS3vCJ5GmAtt7jSdDp72MYGgwVglfzFZKjtuQKN8LiW6Xcw5StSFKFF6anglfeeElH17aReqfSOO45KT-rU4_9USUOH935OKWjxr9ay_KrrhRxUtTyIguTXrL1bS53bMYwrRQVaQ0/s1600/2014-01-30+20.19.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-QkKS3vCJ5GmAtt7jSdDp72MYGgwVglfzFZKjtuQKN8LiW6Xcw5StSFKFF6anglfeeElH17aReqfSOO45KT-rU4_9USUOH935OKWjxr9ay_KrrhRxUtTyIguTXrL1bS53bMYwrRQVaQ0/s1600/2014-01-30+20.19.57.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We are trying to figure out how to light this Chinese lantern and fill it with the hot air.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVBibScEnn04QpGyzTMKXf5GGL_Al7vKYAshlRl1b3u3pq4rlAqP-I-K0pR6A5kQrcGSggor32JCwJftKRe9s2laoCv1PyUlMpVbODxPjVUb95a3vh6pFgdPFgod62DoN77TaM3_5PEyM/s1600/2014-01-30+15.05.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVBibScEnn04QpGyzTMKXf5GGL_Al7vKYAshlRl1b3u3pq4rlAqP-I-K0pR6A5kQrcGSggor32JCwJftKRe9s2laoCv1PyUlMpVbODxPjVUb95a3vh6pFgdPFgod62DoN77TaM3_5PEyM/s1600/2014-01-30+15.05.35.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Same Ezra he always was. Loves to be outside and collect bugs and other creatures. Here, he found a frog.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6CG46CFNFWdgdHrw8FhDhqNjh8ArDYFe3BM0XvEY5Klwbd_CiDqU5TL8AaEXKmC-EJcakA8a0DDTbIQdDVYNyDBhlnIxnfAjum_YUXueJQYn8h0REENWmDis971_ueR4-axHwO6NLUzo/s1600/2014-01-30+20.33.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6CG46CFNFWdgdHrw8FhDhqNjh8ArDYFe3BM0XvEY5Klwbd_CiDqU5TL8AaEXKmC-EJcakA8a0DDTbIQdDVYNyDBhlnIxnfAjum_YUXueJQYn8h0REENWmDis971_ueR4-axHwO6NLUzo/s1600/2014-01-30+20.33.56.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chinese New Year fireworks.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeBtAfuUnfBOE_qtfufNrCw5xLiNYwLja0FvsqDe6iBJk0kcdeB9wA1ltcs7c2wKMKJne0FHsf_RXUfJugDMjEsjtmShHvr9Ozc2SWEe2c1QKTJAK6GWozGXcz8kc3Ufp38x_DCx_7VXo/s1600/2014-01-31+15.27.25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeBtAfuUnfBOE_qtfufNrCw5xLiNYwLja0FvsqDe6iBJk0kcdeB9wA1ltcs7c2wKMKJne0FHsf_RXUfJugDMjEsjtmShHvr9Ozc2SWEe2c1QKTJAK6GWozGXcz8kc3Ufp38x_DCx_7VXo/s1600/2014-01-31+15.27.25.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We wanted to ride the Changsha ferris wheel, but it was closed during the holiday. Bummer! Apparently, it's tied for 5th tallest in the world.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb-JPNGS7au9wIyRrVLto49an0j-izCeveVPw7y2GdKc6eGq_AyAmC2HqOfTXukinPwnyBPAy9qpVuHOUZYFDLt2IjzedESo6i9kcavA5wizYyUCgVJ-Qa2CXrzzOPTWQGoV0Ux1wqr30/s1600/2014-01-31+17.28.18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb-JPNGS7au9wIyRrVLto49an0j-izCeveVPw7y2GdKc6eGq_AyAmC2HqOfTXukinPwnyBPAy9qpVuHOUZYFDLt2IjzedESo6i9kcavA5wizYyUCgVJ-Qa2CXrzzOPTWQGoV0Ux1wqr30/s1600/2014-01-31+17.28.18.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the local Saibaiwei. Tasted just about as good as back home. Hard to find sandwiches in China in general. Even had that distinct Subway smell inside.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvsmn0la96RjY-GuhICxvJT4Fe1pmvJmyqFi1f6HkRl2xK-Z1XQ4fBOHukuNkJkV_E7fBVHW3cD97mviz_7SF9LYXjgfkcXmxhIvqzCdRqweMdZ1rnXd8K2_jSTtqXDFni8Ta0yWYWh6A/s1600/2014-02-01+13.26.43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvsmn0la96RjY-GuhICxvJT4Fe1pmvJmyqFi1f6HkRl2xK-Z1XQ4fBOHukuNkJkV_E7fBVHW3cD97mviz_7SF9LYXjgfkcXmxhIvqzCdRqweMdZ1rnXd8K2_jSTtqXDFni8Ta0yWYWh6A/s1600/2014-02-01+13.26.43.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our picnic at Orange Island. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgib_ySlD-MLCbgSASzC1pXdafI0nnNaypodBiKsOeNEP6H50fu2AuMUkrXo_cGla7bc3gsYBG3oiNcCSGoYeruHqnyKQFUOqBQyvxcQcoO3pKkydGRQFZKg4FnTM0P3O-3rvOrkF3R06s/s1600/2014-02-01+14.04.29+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgib_ySlD-MLCbgSASzC1pXdafI0nnNaypodBiKsOeNEP6H50fu2AuMUkrXo_cGla7bc3gsYBG3oiNcCSGoYeruHqnyKQFUOqBQyvxcQcoO3pKkydGRQFZKg4FnTM0P3O-3rvOrkF3R06s/s1600/2014-02-01+14.04.29+(1).jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Good looking kids. Keep in mind that like 5 other people are taking pictures of my children at the same time I am.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkffeOmgy-XUwyzLjiaPuxJJ5sgNRnGgZ6ZIWKR38YO4UxTeBYr845D_X7kxkl4fdmYanVrQbYLPKoxJbHMRwTZTHh22d0MCJi41nAxTUTZngNLVH46gaZirP_Z3QRL5lCZmbDd0PX7Zo/s1600/2014-02-01+13.15.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkffeOmgy-XUwyzLjiaPuxJJ5sgNRnGgZ6ZIWKR38YO4UxTeBYr845D_X7kxkl4fdmYanVrQbYLPKoxJbHMRwTZTHh22d0MCJi41nAxTUTZngNLVH46gaZirP_Z3QRL5lCZmbDd0PX7Zo/s1600/2014-02-01+13.15.06.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Year of the Horse.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjDBPaSnkAb1HHto5c0AP5BifgcFKeFh9ehpotdLp4AVGQ0u0DpmHj3FqSxj2cl8A-j62dYydF77NIij8sF7tdRWwSqbW0x0lZDultRaYqJu39Sl0nLR19X4_gIZ1PUSSj0rn-Gc91FWU/s1600/2014-02-06+15.37.59.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjDBPaSnkAb1HHto5c0AP5BifgcFKeFh9ehpotdLp4AVGQ0u0DpmHj3FqSxj2cl8A-j62dYydF77NIij8sF7tdRWwSqbW0x0lZDultRaYqJu39Sl0nLR19X4_gIZ1PUSSj0rn-Gc91FWU/s1600/2014-02-06+15.37.59.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The little girls having fun in the apartment. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKKnkolQdN53HSoRY4W1igMRnJ8iZOq3RVxuAwBJBGuvv4nLH9RDCm-6_mR4r2e4D3Fd63mblTsvyjqN1XTXNgjVvlL02xXzqqLzWhAnyu2tbmXNGQ1UeD-j4SOV1obUO3gxbc6tvqDoU/s1600/2014-02-07+18.03.59.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKKnkolQdN53HSoRY4W1igMRnJ8iZOq3RVxuAwBJBGuvv4nLH9RDCm-6_mR4r2e4D3Fd63mblTsvyjqN1XTXNgjVvlL02xXzqqLzWhAnyu2tbmXNGQ1UeD-j4SOV1obUO3gxbc6tvqDoU/s1600/2014-02-07+18.03.59.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie on our 16th anniversary (February 7th). We went out for Ch...Japanese food. Yum!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZVCeAAORMnSfQ8Al7Bj9lk1W7oY4Mh3qQsgPAhFgP7hVEfM0YifAVQNiBXbRg9D3IgJxg_-1SB2NwT5cz9wpYhQUSdiG1vopBarAtKbnhXIZYPNnNJ2O4N1gigpvqSzvjdLzPHuZvuK0/s1600/2014-02-10+12.35.31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZVCeAAORMnSfQ8Al7Bj9lk1W7oY4Mh3qQsgPAhFgP7hVEfM0YifAVQNiBXbRg9D3IgJxg_-1SB2NwT5cz9wpYhQUSdiG1vopBarAtKbnhXIZYPNnNJ2O4N1gigpvqSzvjdLzPHuZvuK0/s1600/2014-02-10+12.35.31.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still freezing here all the time. Everyone is ready to go outside.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjEvpz1swJikuWtUPaqOuLQNPcopsQQnJ05JXzbMfuf9EIHoQC8a_NQn4YVEGq2ylLU-a1Qn4foFkxS1nmtDHgH2VRGg_9xJnX4iOArCuzuq28K_hBNnM0JTlgIdEH5Tg-drKJHdKIUY/s1600/2014-02-11+13.04.34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjEvpz1swJikuWtUPaqOuLQNPcopsQQnJ05JXzbMfuf9EIHoQC8a_NQn4YVEGq2ylLU-a1Qn4foFkxS1nmtDHgH2VRGg_9xJnX4iOArCuzuq28K_hBNnM0JTlgIdEH5Tg-drKJHdKIUY/s1600/2014-02-11+13.04.34.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can you believe how nice this Pizza Hut is? In China, it's like fine dining.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpx8RGzmBJwivpdSxUFHyUfZQTdYUn-QRvJIGMni8qon4MGleUXqhSen7tsDPAkEb3uG8FZP2OWxpVk7OMqEFUMBWPE4PLgjsUTjGz1R96V4ZI5Pf8m27opYsc7KAF5L6fOKHSa3arj1I/s1600/2014-02-11+12.37.22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpx8RGzmBJwivpdSxUFHyUfZQTdYUn-QRvJIGMni8qon4MGleUXqhSen7tsDPAkEb3uG8FZP2OWxpVk7OMqEFUMBWPE4PLgjsUTjGz1R96V4ZI5Pf8m27opYsc7KAF5L6fOKHSa3arj1I/s1600/2014-02-11+12.37.22.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The blog probably makes it seem like we eat fast food all the time. Maybe like once a month is all, but it's always fun when we do.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I baked Stacie a chocolate cake from scratch for her birthday. It turned out really great. In fact, she said it was too chocolatey. First time I have ever heard her say that since we've been married. Also, see that sweatshirt she's wearing. I went back and bought the funny sweatshirt from a previous blog. It says "New York Massachunats" on it. Yes, spelling is a problem here in China. We got such a kick out of it, I decided she had to have it!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL4Ou2r4b8CJ709RmzCL1CF9j91HHxy7vv9tf6fl0-kKZSYwJZw-1wiXjFor2-Yinwd5VjfWkno_fMJzHKMt51euAouxEFIvACXwPqlgjS1PJ3OurtOrd3teI9sqPjqEOE1su9hLTtRz0/s1600/2014-02-21+11.00.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL4Ou2r4b8CJ709RmzCL1CF9j91HHxy7vv9tf6fl0-kKZSYwJZw-1wiXjFor2-Yinwd5VjfWkno_fMJzHKMt51euAouxEFIvACXwPqlgjS1PJ3OurtOrd3teI9sqPjqEOE1su9hLTtRz0/s1600/2014-02-21+11.00.56.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ok, my Chinese is bad so I'm not sure what those first two characters say, but the last two I do know. They are the characters for "dog" and "meat." What kind of restaurant is this?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdGIIx9lf64juGmj6ES8UVigmRZaYNYRw1f41KiDmOpo9Pda_vIqsavnSr-T9fSWfklOehQNmoJOGLs0yQZwtJI_Gt5X-3ANjHE_6JD2QQew_kCt74wFfw9BCUEl31xVqvfT73VTWlkGA/s1600/2014-02-21+14.34.59.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdGIIx9lf64juGmj6ES8UVigmRZaYNYRw1f41KiDmOpo9Pda_vIqsavnSr-T9fSWfklOehQNmoJOGLs0yQZwtJI_Gt5X-3ANjHE_6JD2QQew_kCt74wFfw9BCUEl31xVqvfT73VTWlkGA/s1600/2014-02-21+14.34.59.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is more what I'm used to eating. These chickens are always here just roaming around whenever we walk up this street. Apparently, when they first get a new chicken, they tie it's legs so it can't leave the vicinity. After the chicken is used to his/her surrounding, they take the string off and the chicken knows to stay home.</td></tr>
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Second video of people staring at us in China as they drive by. </div>
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I love this video! This guy has a big wooden top and he whips it to spin it. I SO want to get one of these before I come home. The video doesn't do it justice, but it makes this really loud cracking noise when he whips it.<br />
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<br />Kevin Steinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14978691521870812951noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-13146244564014080212014-01-11T08:40:00.001-08:002014-01-12T06:27:12.254-08:00Holidays, ASC Grand Opening, and Crazy Lady Throwing Nuts at my HeadI really thought that just a few people in my family were reading my blog even though I am aware that I made it a public blog. It turns out that 11,000 people from 10 different countries have looked at my blog at least once since I started it. I'm a little surprised that anyone actually cares what we are doing over here apart from just being safe and sound. The only reason it's a "public" blog is because it doesn't have anything too personal and I'm just too lazy to send everyone in my family and my closest friends a private invitation to join my blog. So, it's out there for the world to see. I sincerely apologize to everyone for not posting anything since November 22nd. I want to be honest and disclose that things got a bit rough there for me for a short while. With the heavy teaching load (7 classes and 320 students) along with trying to get the American Studies Center up and running, I really didn't have much time to write anything. And, when I did have some time at the end of the day to write, I was simply too exhausted to do it. The other factor was that I was trying to cope with my new surroundings, which has been a little difficult at times. The culture shock has been more extensive at times than I had anticipated and it has sometimes led to a bit of mild depression. But, I'm doing well now and thought it would be a good time to update everyone on what has been going on for the last month and a half. <br>
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Maybe I've seen too many movies that mess with chronology (like Pulp Fiction and Memento), but I don't think I will go in order of events. I want to begin with something that happened just today because nothing like this has happened to me in China since I arrived and this story absolutely must be told before I forget it down the road. Stacie and I needed to go to the local market to buy some food for the next couple of days. We had Evelynn and Lucy with us since they wanted to spend some money they got from Grandma and Grandpa Stein for Christmas. They had been saving up to buy new winter coats and they both bought ones they absolutely adore. After we went coat shopping, we were wandering around the market looking for some new wool socks for Stacie and a winter hat for Nicolas (he left his other one at a restaurant too far from home to retrieve it). As we were shopping, I noticed that this lady kept following us. She walked right up to the children and looked directly at their faces from just a foot or two away. Her behavior up to this point isn't too strange for the Chinese, but it became even more odd after she had been following us for about 10 minutes and seemed to go wherever we went within the store. This aisle, that aisle, left, right. It didn't matter. I told Stacie, "Hey, something is wrong with this lady," but Stacie is used to people giving us unwanted attention, so she didn't think anything of it. But, I knew something was wrong. I said, "Let's go checkout right now." <br>
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So, we went to the checkout line and waited. In China, the checkers are really slow, so we sat there for several minutes while this lady continued to hover over us. She was eating these hazelnuts and she would give us dirty looks while throwing the nutshells into our basket. Then, she started throwing the nutshells into Lucy and Evelynn's hair. I was starting to feel VERY threatened, but still didn't want to make a big scene. So, I created a wall between myself and the children (who thankfully knew nothing of what was going on by the way). Then, she went around me and started to bother Stacie. She threw some nutshells at Stacie and Stacie yelled "Stop it" really loudly. Stacie knows how to say "stop" in Chinese, but she was too mad to care. Conversely, the crazy lady wasn't speaking at all. Everything she was doing was just communicated nonverbally. We continued to move through the line and try to ignore the lady without creating a confrontation, but she started pelting me in the back of my head with hazelnuts. I'm thinking, "What the heck are you doing, lady? Do you not know I could kill you with one American sized punch to the throat?" She continued to pester us. <br>
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I looked over at some other Chinese people nearby and they were watching, but were obviously not sure what to do. It kind of reminded me of this YouTube video I saw a while back where a guy got run over by a car in the streets of Beijing and a hundred people just stand there and watch curiously. Fortunately, a Chinese man about 30 years old in the other line saw what was going on and told the lady to stop what she was doing. She did not stop. The man looked at me again and pointed to his head to indicate that the lady was mentally ill. By this point, that was already quite obvious. He saw that she was not stopping her harassment of us and motioned to a security guard to help us. When the crazy lady saw the situation was escalating, she exited the store, but the security guard knew who was causing the trouble and followed her out. As we left the market and started walking home, we wondered if she would be waiting for us outside, but we never saw her again. I hope we never do. We generally feel safe in China and people are mostly kind to us. It was a little jarring to have this experience and hopefully we don't have many more like it. <br>
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Moving on...in December, when all of my colleagues were posting on Facebook that they had turned in all of their grades and were ready to start the holiday season, I was so jealous. I still had weeks to go at that point. Now, it's January 11th and I know everyone at SUU has started the new semester and yet I don't have to teach until February 15th. So, it's now my turn to to enjoy a much needed break. And boy do I need it! The last month of the fall semester at Hunan Normal University was especially brutal for me. I had to grade 320 Oral English exams and figure out how to input the grades. It was such tedious work trying to match their student ID numbers to their Pinyin names and then to the simplified Chinese characters. My Chinese friend who is visiting SUU as a faculty this year offered me some software to help, but it was for a PC computer and wouldn't help with the organizing of the grades, which is where I was really struggling. I made the mistake of taking attendance by having them sign a sheet each day, but later regretted this decision when I had to try to read the chicken scratches on the page. You think it's hard to read English names written out poorly. Try reading some handwritten Chinese characters. It took me about a week just to calculate my grades and submit them even after the exams were already graded. Not fun at all! But, I made it. Once I turned in my grades, I was wondering how the Chinese students would respond to their grades. Would they whine as much as American students do? Some of the Chinese students scored quite well on their exams, whereas others did poorly. It was not unlike grading in America in this way. The big difference in China, though, is that the students never complained about their final grades (at least not to me personally which is all I really care about). They can complain all they want to each other as long as I don't have to hear about it. <br>
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It was a little stressful trying to finish up my grades and to enjoy Christmas in China, but I think our family managed just fine. We went to Xiangtan to visit the Parreno family (as we did with Thanksgiving as well). It was so fun to spend the holidays with them. They are such wonderful people and we have become quite close friends with them. Stacie and I are convinced this is one of those friendships that will last a lifetime. In fact, Manolo and Jackie are expecting their third child soon (due date is January 8th so we are already beyond that point). Jackie was crazy enough to have their second child in China a couple of years ago and is even crazier to do it yet again. Stacie and Annie will be going to Xiangtan the day after tomorrow to help with the Parreno children while Jackie is in the hospital. So, it's just me and the other four kids in Changsha for a few days. Anyway, for Christmas we opened presents from Santa on Christmas morning, watched Christmas movies every night, and cooked a turkey in a toaster oven. It was sublime. I was told by Manolo that the Chinese don't believe the turkey is actually a turkey. They believe it's just a giant chicken that has been overfed. When he tried to explain that it's, in fact, a totally different bird, they just laugh at him. The most interesting thing we did at Christmas was a series of parties the Parrenos threw for different groups of Chinese children. They organized three parties and invited 8 children to each party. They decked their whole apartment in trees, lights, deer, snowmen, wreaths, and many other items. It was quite lovely. When the children arrived, they got to help decorate Christmas trees, frost cookies, sing Christmas songs, and get a visit from Santa (any guesses who got to play Santa?). We did this hour and a half long party three times and it was really fun to see these children experience a real Christmas. In China, Christmas is nothing more than a big shopping day. You see pictures of Santa Claus in store windows, but the holiday doesn't mean anything at all to the Chinese. After all, such a small percentage of people in China are Christians. The majority religions are atheism, Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism. We all had a great time celebrating this very special holiday in China. We missed our families a great deal at this time and were very homesick and felt blessed to have such a wonderful Christmas so far away from home.<br>
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When we returned home from Xiangtan, I finished my grading and began preparations for the grand opening of the American Studies Center at HNU. My colleague Kurt Harris (Director of Global Engagement at SUU), myself, Jay Sorensen (SUU student), and Ethan Gali (also an SUU student) have worked very hard to organize activities for the fall semester, to get the center furnished and ready for daily operation, and to prepare for the grand opening. In the fall alone, we taught the Chinese students how to play baseball and football, welcomed Dr. Sun from SUU to give a lecture on American composers, taught the students about Thanksgiving traditions and served them pie with whipped cream, decorated the American Studies Center for Christmas, visited the local Changsha orphanage with gifts and supplies, and decorated gingerbread cookies for Christmas. We also had the new office painted, furnished, and set up with a computer, printer, and office supplies. It was quite an extensive undertaking. Finally, just a few days ago, a delegation came from SUU (with our Provost Brad Cook, Kurt Harris, and Earl Mulderink) to join with HNU administrators for a formal ribbon tying ceremony to commence the opening of the center. As part of the opening, we all gave speeches about the center and it's purpose in bringing our two cultures together. I was flattered to receive big cheers from the students when I was introduced as Dr. Stein (they always pronounce it "stain"). I guess all those A's I gave out paid off because now I'm the popular teacher I suppose. Actually, they don't even know what an "A" is. When I told the students in my classes about the American grading system, they were particularly critical about the fact that we skip the letter "E" when we go straight from "D" to "F." They thought this made no sense at all. Anyway, I got to speak to the audience about some of the activities we had been doing in the fall and to try to promote the upcoming spring activities. I was impressed with the size of the crowd at the ceremony, but later found out the students were forced to attend by some of their teachers (not unlike America either). I only found out that the students were coerced into coming when we had an open house to tour the center between the ribbon tying and Dr. Mulderink's guest lecture. We intended the tour of the office to be kind of a break time between these two parts of the ceremony and we had cookies and soda prepared for the guests. However, none of the students would leave their seats because they were worried about getting into trouble with their teachers. So, we only served cookies to a few dignitaries and I ended up taking about 200 cookies home to Stacie and the kids. They didn't seem to mind at all.<br>
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Well, this blog is already long enough. At this point, I'm hoping that the rest from school will help me to cope even better with life in China. The last 5 months have been challenging and rewarding at the same time. The people here have a goodness about them that is hard to describe, but they think much differently than we do in America. You just know you are in a different place when you see T-shirts that say things like "Freedom leads to violence" or "freedom is anarchy." Or, if a student comes up to me and says, "Why do you believe that citizens should be able to say anything they want about their government? Don't you think they should be stopped?" These comments lead to lengthy discussions that are probably helpful in generating some understanding between us, but it reminds me we are not in Kansas anymore (for the record, I hate Kansas). <br>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We get invited to do many day outings with the Tang Family and one of our favorites was to drive outside of the main area of Changsha to a local farm where we got to pick carrots, turnips, cabbages, and some red hot peppers. The kids had a blast!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjoeySLdSapenegdrvBNpm6Q_z3Dw-TctfH7vGk0kYZE6VxhnE98nSYfxhxJsAzBi3uXkwAy2H5JkADOuR0z39DICz_1YiwipYed43oS8TqSm93pgRTofel7d2oXx8NlNS23VdSAZvQuHZ/s1600/2013-11-30+12.41.55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjoeySLdSapenegdrvBNpm6Q_z3Dw-TctfH7vGk0kYZE6VxhnE98nSYfxhxJsAzBi3uXkwAy2H5JkADOuR0z39DICz_1YiwipYed43oS8TqSm93pgRTofel7d2oXx8NlNS23VdSAZvQuHZ/s640/2013-11-30+12.41.55.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We went home with so many vegetables. We were stocked for a week or two I think.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and gave them to this grandma and one of the young children. Of course they had never had them before and they seemed to really enjoy them. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaqIi8lpemBnuS5QpDH3qLzRBhSTsHjgJvhxh6-U3RmEQ6UICMuBV1zOGTXneJpDtXpgvR_Kw7wUxQuODATKlTjTaPVWWCIZHadpmnNLSPiKupQ_rOAInnBeawxcjVp4BKF-tIcnWJCBQ9/s1600/2013-11-30+15.01.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaqIi8lpemBnuS5QpDH3qLzRBhSTsHjgJvhxh6-U3RmEQ6UICMuBV1zOGTXneJpDtXpgvR_Kw7wUxQuODATKlTjTaPVWWCIZHadpmnNLSPiKupQ_rOAInnBeawxcjVp4BKF-tIcnWJCBQ9/s640/2013-11-30+15.01.03.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeanie was having a great time playing with the Chinese children. She kept jumping off of this ledge here once some of the boys showed her how it was done. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpohH3DMZllD-556hDNJvRWVDci49HOBEoNqpsZzZanBPk_JIiyp-on20GQ5YU-lYuPJZiFeBRp6aVYpY188g0lMFrDNVX1eujxpOAmURodySWmc4aYooCsKbHY_F7MXatMNoqaMXGXxOS/s1600/2013-11-19+13.34.52.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpohH3DMZllD-556hDNJvRWVDci49HOBEoNqpsZzZanBPk_JIiyp-on20GQ5YU-lYuPJZiFeBRp6aVYpY188g0lMFrDNVX1eujxpOAmURodySWmc4aYooCsKbHY_F7MXatMNoqaMXGXxOS/s640/2013-11-19+13.34.52.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This picture shows the Chinese students taking a xiuxi (rest) during the day in front of the school library. Most Chinese take a rest between 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. every day. They would rather start the day early and end it late than to have a short lunch. Americans would rather have a 30 minute lunch and go home at 4:30 p.m. I think.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkR33It7X1ridzbkZRV3Fa5GUOWBvQ2j2cSEfwHw-WS7iXWd51SeiUR0zkKXAoU2hTcqTGCkLWgvFLv23D6Qziny55F7yvrBzboX0-xQiIQntAcb_fttXm7GOPvGB68D7LLmiI0NHgDDyw/s1600/2013-11-20+13.29.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkR33It7X1ridzbkZRV3Fa5GUOWBvQ2j2cSEfwHw-WS7iXWd51SeiUR0zkKXAoU2hTcqTGCkLWgvFLv23D6Qziny55F7yvrBzboX0-xQiIQntAcb_fttXm7GOPvGB68D7LLmiI0NHgDDyw/s640/2013-11-20+13.29.03.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm glad I finally got a picture of this. This is how the mail often works in China. I know sometimes things get delivered directly (such as my packages to the International Building--don't worry family, they do arrive safely). But, often these mail carriers just set up all the packages on the sidewalk and students have to come pick them up here.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSVhucaLWVnUv6AeAEp0CcvIv7Sqqz0tr37vdVP177cFyNOHNtHigjJNN97YlabBTliCkudbpLAJZHqj_2t-yZkReWJCap0NXfNZCt1z_lipi5b37bgIO8GPyQRHnD8ugZEO0MdWF-zxpc/s1600/2013-11-24+10.30.19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSVhucaLWVnUv6AeAEp0CcvIv7Sqqz0tr37vdVP177cFyNOHNtHigjJNN97YlabBTliCkudbpLAJZHqj_2t-yZkReWJCap0NXfNZCt1z_lipi5b37bgIO8GPyQRHnD8ugZEO0MdWF-zxpc/s640/2013-11-24+10.30.19.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hanging out with the Parrenos. Little Manolo (we call him Manolito) just loves Stacie! Here, she is reading a book to him. This is the kid that speaks three languages and he compartmentalizes people by language. One time, I said something to him in Chinese and he said, "No," meaning I have to speak English. His dad speaks English to him and his mom speaks Spanish to him. Then, he learns Chinese from the locals.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0rTCTpJQRfbUPpllu7VZ_aCBu6m0G-Kajr_f5P-s2IZWFplK7uVIKOOxLkOB0NkL6SyiXIc16nFDSvIZTelDKJbtNeCW2QeKGzqLswdAjDtnu4mhdaUGtu8NsIcPz_TAVoCzXVGdLwU2Y/s1600/2013-11-25+19.00.22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0rTCTpJQRfbUPpllu7VZ_aCBu6m0G-Kajr_f5P-s2IZWFplK7uVIKOOxLkOB0NkL6SyiXIc16nFDSvIZTelDKJbtNeCW2QeKGzqLswdAjDtnu4mhdaUGtu8NsIcPz_TAVoCzXVGdLwU2Y/s640/2013-11-25+19.00.22.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here we are at Thanksgiving. We had pork tenderloin (made by Jackie), cole slaw (also Jackie), mashed potatoes (made by me), pumpkin pie (made by Stacie), and Cheesecake (made by Angela at the bottom right).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicZSXrnj3gH3wEs12RSJrhMmGVKf6Kr0VAjdfacGOff7_4KP6-XUPrsL29Du8WCQL0ZdKny7XV3MIlwIg9wrooPKxMv5aE7m2oems-Qgd51r0wUjLlD2z1YrJVY6j9cTjKsavhQivB2IdY/s1600/2013-12-02+19.37.32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicZSXrnj3gH3wEs12RSJrhMmGVKf6Kr0VAjdfacGOff7_4KP6-XUPrsL29Du8WCQL0ZdKny7XV3MIlwIg9wrooPKxMv5aE7m2oems-Qgd51r0wUjLlD2z1YrJVY6j9cTjKsavhQivB2IdY/s640/2013-12-02+19.37.32.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was hard to say goodbye to Jay and Katie Sorensen, who left on December 5th. We had a nice goodbye dinner for them before they left at a steakhouse. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFAdHvpkaAwJsr8Gz23g-UeIBzpQ7g1Vd9Nim0szeJqbLm51nNj1CoKLESKEYgX4e7OyNAaZzlbVHky9HbJ3NVGvB3rOkRaWCYxzs6IeF34TYQSrO1Y-TCRCGYlk1oOWRaSBEO8ibr5lK/s1600/2013-12-06+18.21.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFAdHvpkaAwJsr8Gz23g-UeIBzpQ7g1Vd9Nim0szeJqbLm51nNj1CoKLESKEYgX4e7OyNAaZzlbVHky9HbJ3NVGvB3rOkRaWCYxzs6IeF34TYQSrO1Y-TCRCGYlk1oOWRaSBEO8ibr5lK/s640/2013-12-06+18.21.06.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">For months, we toted plastic forks to the restaurant for Lucy and Evelynn. Guess what? We don't need to do that anymore. They've got it down!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4WmQsc0pMS01H85JM-cHOn-0nT0PEbpk-H1GrC6mN2FnOCVSta1rpix8B7gtvM2B00Z44e3ZYCxTeJGoC-Tql-xe7LzYR7ggFDaVht6fwgw92DC7MMt1MuQlBydpDA45TMd4D4Ayt3sUm/s1600/2013-12-25+08.51.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4WmQsc0pMS01H85JM-cHOn-0nT0PEbpk-H1GrC6mN2FnOCVSta1rpix8B7gtvM2B00Z44e3ZYCxTeJGoC-Tql-xe7LzYR7ggFDaVht6fwgw92DC7MMt1MuQlBydpDA45TMd4D4Ayt3sUm/s640/2013-12-25+08.51.49.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Christmas morning in Xiangtan.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkA-90dp6Yipq6rVtTjV3sT9kKvtoeFs43BfadSo5HQAqvcYXXa3wBF6pODs7Nea7ncmX5ASsSEmIU76L5FEib4_y_7I1ME6Swaii_RXqshPoiuyQRjQKORU_KFeN4w3eV9hnuOAnDgzM/s1600/2013-12-16+20.21.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkA-90dp6Yipq6rVtTjV3sT9kKvtoeFs43BfadSo5HQAqvcYXXa3wBF6pODs7Nea7ncmX5ASsSEmIU76L5FEib4_y_7I1ME6Swaii_RXqshPoiuyQRjQKORU_KFeN4w3eV9hnuOAnDgzM/s640/2013-12-16+20.21.01.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of our favorite parts of China is the constant mistakes on t-shirts. First, I'm not sure why New York and Massachusetts are on the same shirt. Did they just randomly choose two states and, if so, why is New York more important than Massachusetts. And second, Masachnatts????</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDthd73gLIHJvtxk9i7pSaACKS7CKdkvfjrhLmdRUdsz8FP3IJVlnj9hp2bcSe64dh1SIAO8COXjlymA2zNxTHoBUmllw3bbrQfvWHy5IEn6Tw6B6pxE52LB4TLQLBs3uk5ohTLhrv8Io7/s1600/2013-12-16+21.26.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDthd73gLIHJvtxk9i7pSaACKS7CKdkvfjrhLmdRUdsz8FP3IJVlnj9hp2bcSe64dh1SIAO8COXjlymA2zNxTHoBUmllw3bbrQfvWHy5IEn6Tw6B6pxE52LB4TLQLBs3uk5ohTLhrv8Io7/s640/2013-12-16+21.26.01.jpg" height="640" width="480"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's so cold here that everyone has to wear Chinese style quilted pajamas when they are in their houses. I had to order mine special online and they were 5XL. The Chinese are so tiny here. In America, I wear a 2XL. When I try 2XL on in the Chinese stores, I can barely get it over one arm (or leg). I know the sizes are different, but it hurts my self-esteem to have ballooned 3 whole sizes since coming to China.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit4htJuEw9sXRS30P2U1dN068bfBBwax8rukwVkVbGvkZyPVEZMFBHM99-ExuIrIQTvR-d2qp6-RePb9Q-KcIwn1nQs2SzGydQE3DnoLG2ipr6hm7vx-kTVFevY1J0M2q-4oQ1J_mnYvpN/s1600/2013-12-31+21.42.47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit4htJuEw9sXRS30P2U1dN068bfBBwax8rukwVkVbGvkZyPVEZMFBHM99-ExuIrIQTvR-d2qp6-RePb9Q-KcIwn1nQs2SzGydQE3DnoLG2ipr6hm7vx-kTVFevY1J0M2q-4oQ1J_mnYvpN/s640/2013-12-31+21.42.47.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is what we did for our New Years Eve party. Decorated gingerbread cookies and watched movies. It's a Stein family tradition to watch movies on this night. Side note--Stacie's mom sent us these packets of gingerbread cookies. I don't want Kurt Harris thinking I stole some of the gingerbread he sent for an ASC activity. Just thought I would clarify that.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLSIYzlWuZ9kxlyirP2MdsW-rQltM9UNSWIH7qbv0i1AHo6PL1S8cHkY9nKihGAIA2doxRs6dPiOZvPQNt1M2sjdy_D8GhpBY-jfNzbM4ZowH5Vm2HEe8du25kDgbg7bPJWcqN3hRoT3BQ/s1600/2gk1yucse9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLSIYzlWuZ9kxlyirP2MdsW-rQltM9UNSWIH7qbv0i1AHo6PL1S8cHkY9nKihGAIA2doxRs6dPiOZvPQNt1M2sjdy_D8GhpBY-jfNzbM4ZowH5Vm2HEe8du25kDgbg7bPJWcqN3hRoT3BQ/s1600/2gk1yucse9.jpg" height="426" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All of the important SUU and HNU administrators and faculty who are in some way affiliated with the ASC. Obviously, some worked harder than others. You know how PR photo opportunities go, right?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhL94pgGSijEbJtQ4PlXmKpzlw4zye6gA41A3K2e0KEHqA39G2YoxtvFHpAfBjs4mXgQvLzNFZszh5FZq7uwULpILiM3Au32gSu5Ibe8Gk-n5vX2Yqb-v6duSqt8hjxrhVd0ewyGLVcsDB/s1600/2014-01-08+16.19.41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhL94pgGSijEbJtQ4PlXmKpzlw4zye6gA41A3K2e0KEHqA39G2YoxtvFHpAfBjs4mXgQvLzNFZszh5FZq7uwULpILiM3Au32gSu5Ibe8Gk-n5vX2Yqb-v6duSqt8hjxrhVd0ewyGLVcsDB/s1600/2014-01-08+16.19.41.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love that Brad Cook and Kurt Harris are important enough people for the Chinese to show them a good time. Since I followed them around for three straight days, I got to join them on some of their itinerary activities, such as this delightful foot massage. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX3KbVaH6_WSXy2M5rkPCNu2F7ecnD9Nwzxapz6KLJBSJ4Vwasi8INvkS2brqQcoja7pNM9j1RqgYLYNsN9MjBUS4czODuGZApRSKpl7Y0b9GFtWduLR93SzFxNo5YYswLaFAsbBx76y04/s1600/2014-01-08+13.08.47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX3KbVaH6_WSXy2M5rkPCNu2F7ecnD9Nwzxapz6KLJBSJ4Vwasi8INvkS2brqQcoja7pNM9j1RqgYLYNsN9MjBUS4czODuGZApRSKpl7Y0b9GFtWduLR93SzFxNo5YYswLaFAsbBx76y04/s1600/2014-01-08+13.08.47.jpg" height="480" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Provost Cook, Dr. Harris, Dr. Mulderink, and Dr. Stein. Like 4 peas in a pod. Here we are at the favorite restaurant of all foreign students, particularly SUU students, and the Stein family of course. When I told our Chinese hosts that the provost wanted to see where his SUU students were eating, she thought I was crazy. He toured the foreign student dorm and went to eat at Liu Jie's (Miss Liu's). They said it was some of the best food they had on this trip, although the expression on the provost's face doesn't look to pleased.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9vXrApLV1dtO0Tu_wryiIGO-sYDUC77_hem_quAzTt9HMOR18ynNvp0mUd_X6fSRlSzoMthuwLQYFOBMeoYixhoViTGewMnxPC5eJE57r5Of_W9fIK1KNbUxwly2QA0rVUyvVzUq8VBXm/s1600/DSC_0087.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9vXrApLV1dtO0Tu_wryiIGO-sYDUC77_hem_quAzTt9HMOR18ynNvp0mUd_X6fSRlSzoMthuwLQYFOBMeoYixhoViTGewMnxPC5eJE57r5Of_W9fIK1KNbUxwly2QA0rVUyvVzUq8VBXm/s1600/DSC_0087.JPG" height="424" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Santa Claus is comin' to town! Who else can say they played Santa for 24 Chinese kids!? What a great memory I will always have of this very special kind of Christmas.</td></tr>
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<span id="goog_1720054837"></span><span id="goog_1720054838"></span><br>stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-10643106242974332202013-11-19T03:43:00.002-08:002013-11-19T03:44:51.244-08:00Halloween, Jing Gang, and Stein Family Visits College ClassMy semi-weekly blogs turned into weekly blogs after a while. Now, it seems they are coming once per month. My apologies to my family and friends who have wondered what is happening with our family. We are not dead...yet...and we were a thousand miles from the typhoon that hit the Philippines last week, so we are just fine (and so happy our niece who is in the Philippines is safe and sound too). So much has happened that I don't know where to begin. I told myself before I left for China that I wanted the blog to be less of a travelogue and more of a series of interesting observations about our life here. So, I will revert to that formula and try hard not to go through every event from the last blog to now in chronological order. But, it may be fun to share some experiences that have happened over the last few weeks.<br />
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We did have a chance to celebrate Halloween here in Changsha and we even got to do it a day before all you guys back in the U.S. This is one of the perks of being across the world. We still celebrate things when it hits that particular date here and we don't calculate the time difference to see when it's Halloween in America. After all, the world doesn't always revolve around the U.S. and it's hard to argue it isn't REALLY Halloween until it's October 31st in America. I remember back in 2000 when London was doing its millenial new year celebration 9 hours before the U.S. People in America were saying the Brits were stealing our thunder because the new year should be when the Time Square ball drops and not the fireworks over the Thames. Another advantage of being on China time is that I often forget my friends' and family members' birthdays, but when I remember the next day, I'm still on time. It's wonderful. So, for Halloween we tried to keep as many traditions alive as we could. The children still dressed up in costumes and we carved pumpkins. Well, they weren't actually pumpkins. We couldn't find any pumpkins so we carved watermelons instead. You can see from the pictures below just how well this worked (hint: not well at all). The benefit of using watermelons is that you can actually eat them as you are hollowing them out for your jack o lanterns. In terms of costumes, Annie was a weird witch I think, Nicol was a Rubix cube, Ezra was the bearded man, Jeanie was a tiger, and Lucy was a giraffe. I was a stressed out professor (no costume required). We decorated our apartment the best we could with some wonderful items we received from Grandma Coston. The last thing we did to celebrate was to attend a Halloween party organized by Stacie's 7 year old Chinese class. These kids were so adorable and Annie was pretty much the M.C. of the entire event. She opened with a powerpoint presentation on the origins and traditions of Halloween at the request of Stacie's friend Lily. The Chinese children were all dressed up in their little costumes and were really chomping at the bit to get on with the trick or treating, the bobbing for apples, the costume judging event, and the lantern decorating. Jay Sorensen had brought his little girl Eva to the party as well and we were sort of laughing at the fact that the Chinese really know how to take the fun out of these activities sometimes. Don't get me wrong. They planned some super fun activities for the children to do....eventually, but they made them sit there for 45 minutes listening to a powerpoint before they could do any of the things they really wanted to do. Annie was an amazing presenter and I was really proud of her. She had to shout over a decibel level that would have rivaled the Utah Jazz' Energy Solutions arena on any year (except for this year of course). But, the kids clearly wanted to get on with the show. Jay and I judged the costume contest and pretty much awarded the prizes to the children who looked like they would cry if they did not win. There was no American favoritism going on. We thought that this would have looked bad, although Nicol's rubix cube was pretty creative. I demonstrated how to bob for apples (which the Chinese kept calling "biting for apples") and got pretty wet in the process. It didn't dawn on me until I had dunked my head that the water probably wasn't clean, but it did not hurt me in the end. For the trick or treating part, we went outside of the building on campus where we held the other activities and all the parents simply found a spot in the parking lot and passed out candy as each kid ran around in circles hitting every candy station about 20 times. It was great fun to see these little Chinese running around and screaming "trick or treat" at the top of their lungs. It's a great holiday and candy is candy no matter what country you come from, right?</div>
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The following week, we were invited to go with the international students to visit a small city on the outskirts of Changsha called Jing Gang. Apparently, it was where the main government operated in the Hunan Province during the Qing dynasty and it was interesting to see this little harbor city. At once it was the biggest city in the province and all the boats used to come in here to trade. But, now it's dead as only about a thousand villagers live in this town. There was a really interesting feel to the town, but the number of vendors there trying to sell junky souvenirs really detracted from the "old China" feeling that should have been there. We enjoyed traveling with the international students and were grateful to Richard Tang (Lily's husband who works for the international office) for arranging for us to tag along. I was offered a chance to go to this spot with the foreign faculty a few weeks before but declined when they said I could not go with my family. They had originally told me it was fine, but then they changed their minds. This happens often, it seems, as adminstrators seem to forget just how big a family of seven in China can be. I have posted a few pictures of this town with captions. We were really glad we went although there wasn't much to do there except to buy dried fish and very breakable toys. </div>
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Just a few days ago, I brought Stacie and the children to my four freshmen classes. I had told my students early in the semester that I would bring my family sometime since Stacie had told me she was willing to do that. So, the students were asking me every week when they were coming. I guess I waited for too long (only about 2 1/2 months into the semester) because my students had worked themselves into a frenzy. Stacie and the children were a little late to the first of four classes and so the students were practically running around the room and pounding on the desks waiting for this American family to arrive. If you think it sounds a lot like an elementary school classroom, you wouldn't be far off. I have never had so much difficulty controlling my students in my life. What's really funny is that collectively, they act absolutely insane. But, when I silence them and begin class, it calms down quite a bit. And then, if I ask one of them a question individually, you get crickets churping. It kind of reminds me of how the Borg operate in Star Trek (ugh, did I just make a Star Trek reference). They all feel perfectly safe when they are part of the collective group, but you isolate them with some indivdiual attention (at least in a public setting) and they act as though you are sticking a knife right in their belly. It's a really interestin dynamic and I'm really glad I've had the opportunity to see it. I will probably walk into a classroom now anywhere in the world and think to myself, "If I can make a Chinese student talk in class, I can accomplish anything!" </div>
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So anyway, back to the visit. Stacie and the kids walked into the classroom and all the students came out from behind their desks and started to try to grab Lucy and Jeanie and to take pictures of them from less than a few inches away. It was a little unnerving to Jeanie and absolutely terrifying to Lucy. She buried her head in Stacie's shoulder and would not look at any of the students. This whole fiasco was entirely my fault as I had forgotten to set the ground rules before we began. I just assumed that the family would walk in, I would introduce them, and then we would have a little Q&A if I could get them to ask their questions. I finally told them to get back in their seats and we would continue only after they calmed down. They complied with my wishes, but you could still see this high level of enthusiasm on their faces. I got some video of it that posted below because I knew it would be hard to believe unless you saw it for yourselves. The video shows Nicolas simply saying he plays the piano and you could see them jump up and down and cheer for him. Then, Jeanie introduces herself and says "Da jia hao," which means "Hi, everyone!" They just erupt. I think you'll enjoy watching this video. After each of the kids had a chance to talk and we answered a few questions about life in China, the things we like and don't like, and about how we home school our children, I broke the class into sections and let each of my children engage a different group for a few minutes. This was a mistake since the class environment again reverted to utter chaos. After that first class, we were all about ready to give up and not go to the other classes. But, I assured Stacie I had misjudged the way they would react and I would definitely get a handle on things for the last three classes.</div>
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During class #2, I told Stacie and the kids to wait outside while I put the fear of God into them and told them they needed to stay in their seats and that they could take pictures from their seats. I told them they would have an opportunity to take pictures with the family at the very end of class, but not before. I knew that this stringent warning would put a damper on their desire to ask questions in class (which was already at zero), but I wanted Stacie and the children to feel comfortable when talking with the class. So, I balanced out the strict warning with another warning that the family would have to leave if the students didn't have any questions. So, I created some anxiety. On the one hand, they think that Professor Stein will get mad if I jump out of my chair and try to hug his children. On the other hand, if I don't assert myself a little, the family may leave. Luckily, they decided to engage my family with questions and they were very good questions. All four classes ended up being very interested in how we home school and what that involves. They don't have ANY home schooling in China because children cannot legally go to college unless they go to public school. And with the ultra-competitive environment here for education and eventually securing high paying jobs, there is no way any parent wants to handicap their children in this regard. We explain to them that home school children are as educated as public school kids (I would say more, but I know opinion varies on that) and that they can go to college just like any other kids. We talk to them about the things the children are learning, such as Chinese, reading, writing, music, etc and they seem dismissive of some of the things (like music). I don't think the Chinese think much of music in terms of creating opportunities for success in life. But, we believe music changes the way you process information and the way you see the world. This is valuable to us even if the Chinese do not view it this way. <br />
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In terms of my teaching in general, I'm starting to get used to the students and the way they think, which is much different than the way American students think. For one, they believe that it's the teacher's job to spoon feed them the content they need to know. Skills that we try to teach our students in America such as critical thinking, problem solving, and leadership are absolutely meaningless here. I asked how many of my PhD students had ever given an oral presentation in a classroom before. NONE of them ever had. To me, that's nuts. If surviving in the real world had anything to do with memorizing book content, American students would be in real trouble and the Chinese would take over the world as the new global superpower because American students can't remember a fourth of the content taught in our classrooms. I think the reason our students succeed is a certain level of adaptability that comes from practicing some of those skills I mentioned above.<br />
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My work with the American Studies Center is moving forward. The Foreign Studies College, where our center will be housed, is currently painting the room and refinishing and/or purchasing the furniture. A delegation from SUU will be arriving in early January for the grand opening, but in the mean time, we recently had an activity teaching HNU students how to play baseball. We have planned upcoming activities for Thanksgiving and Christmas as well. The process has been a little slow because all of the decisions related to the center are made by committee, which creates a sense of group cohesion, but can sometimes come at a snail's pace.</div>
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Let me finish this blog with just a quick summary of how we are doing generally. We are starting to get a handle on how things work here. But, some of the following are still a bit of an adjustment:</div>
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1. People pushing and shoving in lines. They really will try to get in front of you if they can.</div>
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2. Spitting in the street. </div>
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3. The toilets</div>
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4. Nearly getting run over every time we walk the streets</div>
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5. People taking anywhere from 3 days to a week to respond to emails.</div>
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6. Crawling internet</div>
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7. Sleeping on a wood slat with about a half inch of padding is seriously affecting our sleep over the long term. We used to wake up every morning sore, but now we don't. However, I think over weeks or months it does affect the sleep quality.<br />
8. Having to take the bus everywhere. <br />
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Things we will miss when we leave China:<br />
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1. Tremendous kindness of the people<br />
2. Baozi (steamed buns with meat)<br />
3. Not having to drive ourselves everywhere. <br />
4. Chinese chess<br />
5. Lush vegetation<br />
6. Virtual church branch (only 1 or 2 hours of meetings depending on which classes are taught that week).<br />
7. Singing and dancing in the streets (Americans are too image conscious).<br />
8. 10 yuan haircuts ($1.64). Often they come with a shampoo and a head massage. You can't beat that!</div>
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The Chinese is coming very slowly and we often want to come home tomorrow. Other times, we can't believe that we have the opportunity to be in China and are so grateful for all the people we've met and the things we have seen so far. In many ways, our life is much harder than we thought it would be. In other ways, it is...nope I think it's mostly a great deal harder than we thought it was going to be. We are very aware of the stages of acculturation (adapting to a new culture). We've passed beyond the honeymoon stage and are now squarely in the negotiation stage, where individuals feel a certain amount of anxiety about the stark differences between the home country and the new country. Next up is the adjustment stage, where we will hopefully start to feel more comfortable in our new surroundings. The last stage is the "mastery" stage, which we are not sure we will ever reach. If we do, it will likely be on June 20th of 2014 and we fly out on June 25th.<br />
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Here is a funny video of the family visit to my class: <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/HXZXwVJr8Ko?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Zhū jiǎo (pig's feet). Actually very flavorful, but a little fat as you might expect and very hard to pick up with chopsticks because they are heavy.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuEFz95ollM_Kf3LDuHQ0ni-Imfe14WlvNcSCPiUuYZOaktF6Q2_e1L6mh7hRfhyphenhyphen5tAAa9_tbhTbkcJ4M0PMWBXu1NXCEblho1uk8kXbZAt2LP3TJwtFE7hEZE5BGNeAoO44pylSvXgp-I/s1600/2013-10-29+08.05.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuEFz95ollM_Kf3LDuHQ0ni-Imfe14WlvNcSCPiUuYZOaktF6Q2_e1L6mh7hRfhyphenhyphen5tAAa9_tbhTbkcJ4M0PMWBXu1NXCEblho1uk8kXbZAt2LP3TJwtFE7hEZE5BGNeAoO44pylSvXgp-I/s640/2013-10-29+08.05.13.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We will miss these baozi (steamed meat buns) when we get home. We eat these pretty often.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuRaF0kH8rzZG-HxrlcsFYZ7sQfCZbSIu7iTFTU1NwSnzafEYRBRo9-WXo8RcDR7BDDEo8eZhnArQW-UMJ-nOGcOiNKmjURGw7IGmA-uKOjBlEE4FbvMfjxIZrw4IOpggStDi_wVfChl95/s1600/2013-10-29+08.14.16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuRaF0kH8rzZG-HxrlcsFYZ7sQfCZbSIu7iTFTU1NwSnzafEYRBRo9-WXo8RcDR7BDDEo8eZhnArQW-UMJ-nOGcOiNKmjURGw7IGmA-uKOjBlEE4FbvMfjxIZrw4IOpggStDi_wVfChl95/s640/2013-10-29+08.14.16.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After those metal rolling doors on the right is the entrance to our apartment complex. Our street has been under construction for a couple of months now and the cars have decided that since the street is blocked, they should just drive on the sidewalk.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha2AK60DKqZyA73C4jkNHmY8hHgS6EvT483072tkj4Wn8-8j8_D1Nn-BqelKf28NmZSvckRULk9hKjSlSd9r6l-M2dnWlfyaeGACjiYhGGTx8xHRoPbDQr4IzT9BEwSz6eAfVbcKhoG5Z6/s1600/2013-10-29+10.42.00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha2AK60DKqZyA73C4jkNHmY8hHgS6EvT483072tkj4Wn8-8j8_D1Nn-BqelKf28NmZSvckRULk9hKjSlSd9r6l-M2dnWlfyaeGACjiYhGGTx8xHRoPbDQr4IzT9BEwSz6eAfVbcKhoG5Z6/s640/2013-10-29+10.42.00.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's very common to see Chinese people walk down the street in their pajamas. At first we thought it was weird, but then realized we wear our pajamas to the stores and to school too. Our pajamas just look different from their pajamas, but if you think we don't look pretty sloppy in America, you're fooling yourself. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdPWS3_g8Y4n0vs7VBEuqVqw_0jTFwIhgi-_GVc4wyc34aZ6dbGgUvSFhy6elmiTmgBq5WQjMzx5GZDb0ZwKxpI2gftYNI8eRPsWahdQa9fOEvLmZQ0K-VNmRHzIhMjT7zcb4RSIpgfo6n/s1600/2013-10-29+12.15.15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdPWS3_g8Y4n0vs7VBEuqVqw_0jTFwIhgi-_GVc4wyc34aZ6dbGgUvSFhy6elmiTmgBq5WQjMzx5GZDb0ZwKxpI2gftYNI8eRPsWahdQa9fOEvLmZQ0K-VNmRHzIhMjT7zcb4RSIpgfo6n/s640/2013-10-29+12.15.15.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another guy rockin' the jammies and more cars and scooters on the sidewalk.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcmgEc7XgU8wbtOhyphenhyphenSeG8DLRRk5xjgr2RrVthzanb8vSOc95ya_9mtkzxq2iz_6Tb-tA1H049HJzyeJQpky7JbvndqGTIQ5dkUwlzP2Lf3NVYr1ZZpIVa5EIJ2ypjzWeKJOYnsKI6aYpa5/s1600/2013-10-31+14.30.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcmgEc7XgU8wbtOhyphenhyphenSeG8DLRRk5xjgr2RrVthzanb8vSOc95ya_9mtkzxq2iz_6Tb-tA1H049HJzyeJQpky7JbvndqGTIQ5dkUwlzP2Lf3NVYr1ZZpIVa5EIJ2ypjzWeKJOYnsKI6aYpa5/s640/2013-10-31+14.30.07.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our pumpkin...er...watermelon carving party. I like this picture because the Sorensen's girl Eva looks so cute as a panda.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsMnmhc18Tc94P4zjHh9corsR1zpCFlyKglLnefMOmALaYRfvicqTvFjW2yRRPfGIImRsd9PxYxISe4U3khIR3hQClvHxZz2-LUmIx2qriFbh_kV2v9tx6C0a3F6iipDeML7YSd8oAUCbk/s1600/2013-10-31+14.32.59.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsMnmhc18Tc94P4zjHh9corsR1zpCFlyKglLnefMOmALaYRfvicqTvFjW2yRRPfGIImRsd9PxYxISe4U3khIR3hQClvHxZz2-LUmIx2qriFbh_kV2v9tx6C0a3F6iipDeML7YSd8oAUCbk/s640/2013-10-31+14.32.59.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the major difficulties of carving watermelons instead of pumpkins. They all cracked! But, it was much more delicious to eat the watermelon as you carved than the raw insides of a pumpkin.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKAsZ6OCsP_3jhgVJ8sGAmvT2mhYNnK1AlcriUknqKP01AioNq1JAyfpW_miz5M_pBf0D1YXL6IfPQLf1grfbL5Dtdl3zBZvrKGqdKExfs0SzTUb0FB5OY4TIc0zvdyo2JN1Hoa6feA96Q/s1600/2013-10-31+15.31.21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKAsZ6OCsP_3jhgVJ8sGAmvT2mhYNnK1AlcriUknqKP01AioNq1JAyfpW_miz5M_pBf0D1YXL6IfPQLf1grfbL5Dtdl3zBZvrKGqdKExfs0SzTUb0FB5OY4TIc0zvdyo2JN1Hoa6feA96Q/s640/2013-10-31+15.31.21.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We did what we could with what we could find at the metro. We've got masks, towels, and some kind of apron.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLOl_LqtSO8Bkeenue9HA2r5XBoW6Hii1IX5u1XOIxLQTxc88ktMxWGLNVXQLKYgRrPlt0v8cCBY6BFEozbEFBwmxR-E4F-Dr31Ws3DX7oeiS0s5l0NhQWVUPFR2YKpgvr0A718iEpux8Y/s1600/2013-10-31+15.38.25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLOl_LqtSO8Bkeenue9HA2r5XBoW6Hii1IX5u1XOIxLQTxc88ktMxWGLNVXQLKYgRrPlt0v8cCBY6BFEozbEFBwmxR-E4F-Dr31Ws3DX7oeiS0s5l0NhQWVUPFR2YKpgvr0A718iEpux8Y/s640/2013-10-31+15.38.25.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicol is a Rubix cube, Ezra is a bearded man, and nobody knows what Annie was but she looks cute.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCBJX-4Djm1H6Oy9jP4DyslVWkeiXKfQTnSTqLgZBFK-AueECrKgmwPKCUx74Xjcvx4PcZJXzUbXwAJPAIn9E8mEaZvYpB4vGfpzMjf7JUEVYq3gxAqw_tow00ocGkI4BijHVWL7SAbiV7/s1600/2013-10-31+16.25.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCBJX-4Djm1H6Oy9jP4DyslVWkeiXKfQTnSTqLgZBFK-AueECrKgmwPKCUx74Xjcvx4PcZJXzUbXwAJPAIn9E8mEaZvYpB4vGfpzMjf7JUEVYq3gxAqw_tow00ocGkI4BijHVWL7SAbiV7/s640/2013-10-31+16.25.01.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You thought your Halloween was scary. Jay and I found these mannequin heads on the sidewalk as we walked toward campus.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvOC3OrQjXpcYxO2yJ03UEUX44g4ilmJp8j0Rtim4EqpWbQqvZQbjWV2sk7cKYzamk-D_My7iafY20MqO4eez04gfT8HZZvGfkpA1ZzbShXBBy93NNstyfT5B2p5c1GTnhD1PLKlKI8cOW/s1600/2013-11-01+18.59.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvOC3OrQjXpcYxO2yJ03UEUX44g4ilmJp8j0Rtim4EqpWbQqvZQbjWV2sk7cKYzamk-D_My7iafY20MqO4eez04gfT8HZZvGfkpA1ZzbShXBBy93NNstyfT5B2p5c1GTnhD1PLKlKI8cOW/s640/2013-11-01+18.59.02.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great costume!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh34s7S206d-0aLJ2DxKdHBSuPria2c0QbsKKQ0HjjzHQ0juR3lVT26ggGhX2UVPHA9cQ68VtUJFea8WzZ9CiHUW4v5Mh9wTH2-ije4ENcVY_cvi5PjqSIbK0XJVK4NOvk_n4bbFtMN1W2g/s1600/2013-11-01+19.50.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh34s7S206d-0aLJ2DxKdHBSuPria2c0QbsKKQ0HjjzHQ0juR3lVT26ggGhX2UVPHA9cQ68VtUJFea8WzZ9CiHUW4v5Mh9wTH2-ije4ENcVY_cvi5PjqSIbK0XJVK4NOvk_n4bbFtMN1W2g/s640/2013-11-01+19.50.35.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love the gender neutral nature of Chinese costumes. Who says a girl can't be Superman for Halloween.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwO3NVcN8e4EG__a0h1VtnKUyfthtReU7WujT1xsIxotyMJYwVmhOST6p6XktPj-tg3Cbkf09dxHpmg9C0aWNe03g5cXxILBRQmzhZ-3Stvg6qcchOIrAgE9A9Lx2A-36cEnnZssJNHjyk/s1600/2013-11-01+19.58.26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwO3NVcN8e4EG__a0h1VtnKUyfthtReU7WujT1xsIxotyMJYwVmhOST6p6XktPj-tg3Cbkf09dxHpmg9C0aWNe03g5cXxILBRQmzhZ-3Stvg6qcchOIrAgE9A9Lx2A-36cEnnZssJNHjyk/s640/2013-11-01+19.58.26.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jay and I judged the Halloween contest and pretty much awarded the prizes to the kids that looked like they wanted it the most.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjipEB1bClg88tjsXPe27UDG1kW1dEIN0YbEPeTBIDXO0UlYBu9vdXubukHA2uToNV3_4EPRi1rLZ-qdnGyCtiJk2Wv3KbOe_zsIRoaFqGWfDcYxL5nihkSe_3CmucAn5MjI-WvCDGMpbHP/s1600/2013-11-01+21.38.36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjipEB1bClg88tjsXPe27UDG1kW1dEIN0YbEPeTBIDXO0UlYBu9vdXubukHA2uToNV3_4EPRi1rLZ-qdnGyCtiJk2Wv3KbOe_zsIRoaFqGWfDcYxL5nihkSe_3CmucAn5MjI-WvCDGMpbHP/s640/2013-11-01+21.38.36.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ok, let's be completely honest here. Our candy is WAY better than their candy.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4T9YHxRZOrp9wWkgu1SsTkskUZTB3zN8dTXA-q8oMltb6RN9yUau2MT4UDHXGz2HqtLSoiXJHGm7dQTnPAuw_rTJfYJD0f2ju1TA97hzGAxVrriXudV74pOrRG-5tsr0ATddK-R9lb7He/s1600/2013-11-14+16.09.29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4T9YHxRZOrp9wWkgu1SsTkskUZTB3zN8dTXA-q8oMltb6RN9yUau2MT4UDHXGz2HqtLSoiXJHGm7dQTnPAuw_rTJfYJD0f2ju1TA97hzGAxVrriXudV74pOrRG-5tsr0ATddK-R9lb7He/s640/2013-11-14+16.09.29.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One swing of Jay's makeshift baseball bat (PVC pipe) and it was out of commission.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy7FUwG_e5L8cxcz3Sj7zQHZNcfEj8U6f8vAMaR4MN25IAfoZxJKFncwEyugOf6mzGNghUOIEYnTY4EdgU1J1RXz2WZcBUL25ySKwKpyLFb_J_uaErB7wbgWQrzn-WBSRWbnKoMwPey8FX/s1600/2013-11-14+16.35.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy7FUwG_e5L8cxcz3Sj7zQHZNcfEj8U6f8vAMaR4MN25IAfoZxJKFncwEyugOf6mzGNghUOIEYnTY4EdgU1J1RXz2WZcBUL25ySKwKpyLFb_J_uaErB7wbgWQrzn-WBSRWbnKoMwPey8FX/s640/2013-11-14+16.35.38.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Everything needed for a good game of baseball in China. Chinese man (check), American (check), a tree branch for a bat (check). </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRKqf1MJAKhPBuP_90GW1qeUMD702QZiAQXnqIwJR45EOGI_4QTVkhC37LXRHxscq6FuaRsj7wQa48JHpipCojrbfkiTPPsWcWoXvJ_open1SifNoHyyHsw5jTi8C0t5CM2zy7LYvzTKOi/s1600/2013-11-14+16.40.58.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRKqf1MJAKhPBuP_90GW1qeUMD702QZiAQXnqIwJR45EOGI_4QTVkhC37LXRHxscq6FuaRsj7wQa48JHpipCojrbfkiTPPsWcWoXvJ_open1SifNoHyyHsw5jTi8C0t5CM2zy7LYvzTKOi/s640/2013-11-14+16.40.58.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The way these girls swung the bat, I thought they were naturals. Until they headed around the bases with the bat still in hand.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwrrEp5SY3UoB6nM6ER29qMcxfF1VnA4RR-XwQ-HHhpARmh-Sz1CpjVC93n1tLSpjsnEN-EaLif2Hf16Weu1NrXFA-mAb5wzjx9H77F_mV_xd5D1oP-WDx3Qks6tKAJRR7sXbwiUYhHgKe/s1600/2013-11-14+17.24.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwrrEp5SY3UoB6nM6ER29qMcxfF1VnA4RR-XwQ-HHhpARmh-Sz1CpjVC93n1tLSpjsnEN-EaLif2Hf16Weu1NrXFA-mAb5wzjx9H77F_mV_xd5D1oP-WDx3Qks6tKAJRR7sXbwiUYhHgKe/s640/2013-11-14+17.24.07.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This old guy was awesome. He was playing basketball across the way from our game and he kept yelling at cars that would park near his court. At one point, a few of our baseballs came near him and he started to walk over to us. I thought we were in trouble. But, he simply said that our bat was no good and that if we came back tomorrow at the same time, he would get us a real bat. Very nice man. It was his 84th birthday and he was out there playing ball. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhzJ8cMkJUkvOeQ4PmW4ALDD9P-g5CGszM1Sn7z74UO0ORm6eIZc91tHp-6SvNfHdmqlIJedaBjYdZcqLo9oWtsTDnihBD-XboSg-bCzinMWcsvI3sCBIMRHEU0t5-1xyCnn8e_tOY-laV/s1600/2013-11-16+14.28.04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhzJ8cMkJUkvOeQ4PmW4ALDD9P-g5CGszM1Sn7z74UO0ORm6eIZc91tHp-6SvNfHdmqlIJedaBjYdZcqLo9oWtsTDnihBD-XboSg-bCzinMWcsvI3sCBIMRHEU0t5-1xyCnn8e_tOY-laV/s640/2013-11-16+14.28.04.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our favorite section of the grocery store. Or perhaps I should say the most interesting. The smell is not pleasant.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIaxGeGteF_EDeFGL7VIQrWg3BB_KoYbwYZZOyKmn9sK4_9CyEqY4DttGkmq2Mg56RNYfkaSDuQQtPkkOc1QcYG1cmOCnYFTLvZ4tr9CULx_K3Its0JuyaY9kL7Nf82-CuHPKDL8OHj55V/s1600/2013-11-03+16.48.47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIaxGeGteF_EDeFGL7VIQrWg3BB_KoYbwYZZOyKmn9sK4_9CyEqY4DttGkmq2Mg56RNYfkaSDuQQtPkkOc1QcYG1cmOCnYFTLvZ4tr9CULx_K3Its0JuyaY9kL7Nf82-CuHPKDL8OHj55V/s640/2013-11-03+16.48.47.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two beauties from worlds apart sitting together on a nice fall day. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCpQE5P-JvUGhI-fv0vwAlKu_ndGsda1aGV1FSt61lpizKK3AuT28JBiWhkOh3af_d4UsjPsSRlpOmvZHk-AZXz7rQzXwB-8UUiW7utkM6m8MxEqobP-dkj6wwZQKFxGNR_gP8X2r0wmak/s1600/2013-11-03+17.18.51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCpQE5P-JvUGhI-fv0vwAlKu_ndGsda1aGV1FSt61lpizKK3AuT28JBiWhkOh3af_d4UsjPsSRlpOmvZHk-AZXz7rQzXwB-8UUiW7utkM6m8MxEqobP-dkj6wwZQKFxGNR_gP8X2r0wmak/s640/2013-11-03+17.18.51.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Changsha doesn't have parks like we have in the U.S. They are beautiful and well cared for, but they don't have any of the things we usually see in America for kids to play on, such as swings, slides, etc. These toys here are for old people to exercise, but the kids will take what they can get. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNhvRauymu2bvT7iS8pnsyoEubgtyUQQvvWQ1f2O5rb4AUhD0EhmoVReRxRN-BjRy1UmUmnTaQ6_W4QmDF0VGjauUWs51Jvkc1URsPWIzCZYUo7CAA0uaFRc40kKB4Y0rBUleY0qIAR-ab/s1600/2013-11-04+16.08.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNhvRauymu2bvT7iS8pnsyoEubgtyUQQvvWQ1f2O5rb4AUhD0EhmoVReRxRN-BjRy1UmUmnTaQ6_W4QmDF0VGjauUWs51Jvkc1URsPWIzCZYUo7CAA0uaFRc40kKB4Y0rBUleY0qIAR-ab/s640/2013-11-04+16.08.27.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I had my PhD students sign up for days to deliver their speeches. I was worried they would push and shove each other and so I gave them a little lesson on the way people form single file lines in a civilized society. Probably the only time I'll see something like this while I'm in China. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWqc1aD0ZloOYlj6sIs5M44vg8lT2xsxfIpmIT3Bgl9-lmtnKIv8VGFvaMoTQGHFnxpwJvjlWZwtdJ_14raoNNPj4Mnj6ETFCv9A8MWnru5D-sqwg7e-YsdtlUoIjDKfv2vcSDKdcX9RqB/s1600/2013-11-06+15.27.31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWqc1aD0ZloOYlj6sIs5M44vg8lT2xsxfIpmIT3Bgl9-lmtnKIv8VGFvaMoTQGHFnxpwJvjlWZwtdJ_14raoNNPj4Mnj6ETFCv9A8MWnru5D-sqwg7e-YsdtlUoIjDKfv2vcSDKdcX9RqB/s640/2013-11-06+15.27.31.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The harbor at Jing Gang. Apparently this city used to be the seat of government during the Qing dynasty. Now, it's pretty much dead, with only a thousand villagers living here. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrjNAQNfD_oWuhv0Mw8QAHT1bK4fCxViwFY9sGKaM6_-0AXA53qxYrYy1tjQVu7EWC2zkGGrQQkNQ71ERJ9nEPXzSLhGSdAR1oQ47VAYJ62NieMmW2yh81-ytfZFZs5jDCMwSe4kF4KB4I/s1600/2013-11-06+15.50.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrjNAQNfD_oWuhv0Mw8QAHT1bK4fCxViwFY9sGKaM6_-0AXA53qxYrYy1tjQVu7EWC2zkGGrQQkNQ71ERJ9nEPXzSLhGSdAR1oQ47VAYJ62NieMmW2yh81-ytfZFZs5jDCMwSe4kF4KB4I/s640/2013-11-06+15.50.53.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The dried fish for sale in Jing Gang.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgVaqxj0DmaP3vWl6dwp9iWtkcLN3_bedOYWmTAPgIS7SZSipLSXI_9nFi4rgttVeZIaQKpRCGv1e14YanG0KOypUKxsfQ2hzigWBuByZeb34tvr709O64r2d-i0a3m12whQTj6TwUtTLL/s1600/2013-11-06+16.04.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgVaqxj0DmaP3vWl6dwp9iWtkcLN3_bedOYWmTAPgIS7SZSipLSXI_9nFi4rgttVeZIaQKpRCGv1e14YanG0KOypUKxsfQ2hzigWBuByZeb34tvr709O64r2d-i0a3m12whQTj6TwUtTLL/s640/2013-11-06+16.04.27.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The kids found cotton candy at Jing Gang. I so want that guy's outfit in the background.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS2ANodxeQxQhYw9cJs0rkme6DqhyQ6cNwhph49D0FdAZ1q1qT572plVlD5yeKMwajaeBbYOSaQILqd83ilZwdic5jixEripELInNZl0KimV7ibVAl8mTjazB2Yfhs2RN_vCTeSp-tSogA/s1600/2013-11-06+16.11.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS2ANodxeQxQhYw9cJs0rkme6DqhyQ6cNwhph49D0FdAZ1q1qT572plVlD5yeKMwajaeBbYOSaQILqd83ilZwdic5jixEripELInNZl0KimV7ibVAl8mTjazB2Yfhs2RN_vCTeSp-tSogA/s640/2013-11-06+16.11.46.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another good view of the harbor. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibmDxKG6qGOz7GTiVupZtbB-9Ylput26pyLvI_FwTp6GiwcgXNxz45vbhFzv9xScJnA5587EbQZlB4nUbvFm3lp3NlJadFi0vErPRXcq8IOOSDwufkDW3jFPv0CXjM2nNM3HMHffYvWE5D/s1600/2013-11-06+16.13.14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibmDxKG6qGOz7GTiVupZtbB-9Ylput26pyLvI_FwTp6GiwcgXNxz45vbhFzv9xScJnA5587EbQZlB4nUbvFm3lp3NlJadFi0vErPRXcq8IOOSDwufkDW3jFPv0CXjM2nNM3HMHffYvWE5D/s640/2013-11-06+16.13.14.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At first, we thought the soldiers on the fort were real, but they were just cutouts.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hey, where's Lucy? Oh yeah, she hates China, Chinese people, and taking pictures.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoLxDKqvP_cN9Zb5NBUpCRHq4f-YFxAypneA9jYpzgJfuYJysKWlEfN67sFBzTkAdRUa8C52OEPMdgaWTIgKi7E0-bE3y-dYhZLD90rhCuGR4sP0HmZkGZSUAllnY0_K-2d2x-B1gGGior/s1600/2013-11-09+18.49.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoLxDKqvP_cN9Zb5NBUpCRHq4f-YFxAypneA9jYpzgJfuYJysKWlEfN67sFBzTkAdRUa8C52OEPMdgaWTIgKi7E0-bE3y-dYhZLD90rhCuGR4sP0HmZkGZSUAllnY0_K-2d2x-B1gGGior/s640/2013-11-09+18.49.56.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie was home with Evelynn who was sick, so we went to dinner without her. There is always a noticeable drop off in manners whenever mom is not around. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On our side of the Xiangjiang river that separates Changsha, there are three universities: Hunan Normal University (my school), Hunan University, and Central South University. This picture was taken at Central South University, which was very distinctive to us with so many bicycles everywhere. Someone told us that most of these bikes are abandoned and they just sit around rusting. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Because of the limited number of boys in our branch, we received special permission for Nicol at age 12 to be my home teaching companion. This is our second visit and it was a fun bus ride to the campus of Central South University. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So many bikes and one handsome young man.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our new friend Wouldbe (as in "What Wouldbe a English name to choose?" playing Chinese chess with the children. He beat them pretty handily even though they are getting much better every time they play. We'll have to show Uncle Keith and Uncle Garrett (the chess masters of our family) how to play this game when we get home.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evelynn lost her very first tooth in China. She was ecstatic!</td></tr>
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stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-70265486712079052202013-10-27T04:08:00.003-07:002013-10-27T06:36:46.937-07:00Xiangtan and Professor Stein's Big Beautiful NoseFor Lucy's birthday, we went shopping on the old walking street (formerly named Taiping Street). It's very crowded and there are many different kinds of shops there for buying traditional Chinese goods. The best thing about the street, though, is the fact that it's blocked off from cars. They can't get in there even if they wanted to. And trust me, they want to. If there was a gap big enough for them to squeeze in, they would gladly drive on a sidewalk to make their way on to the street. The only bad thing is that bicycles and motorcycles can still fit, so you still have to avoid getting hit by them. Lucy wanted to go into these little shops and pick out a variety of items to be her birthday presents. Some of these stores are so cheap that we could buy her 10 items and it would cost us the equivalent of like 10 dollars. However, she feels like she is on this huge shopping spree. Makes for a cheap birthday. I can't remember exactly what she bought, but I do remember a yellow stuffed animal duck, a snow globe with a dog inside, a rubber snake, and a scarf. She also bought a robotic dog at the Chinese Wal-Mart.<br />
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Once we got home, she opened more presents from her brothers and sisters. They are so sweet and spent almost all of their allowance on her birthday. Lucy was cracking us up when she was opening these presents. Nicol gave her some popsicles that were orange and mango flavored. Lucy took the orange ones and gave the mango ones back to him saying, "You can keep these. I don't like them" Annie gave her some presents too and she told her "I like this one much better than this one."<br />
We also had American birthday cake. We bought a cake mix and some frosting at the Metro (see last blog), but had no way to cook it. So, Stacie found a recipe online for making cake in a rice steamer. It turned out incredible and it was so moist from being in the steamer. We loved it! We also found candles and a lighter, so it felt like a real American birthday. The only Chinese touch was that Lucy wanted us to sing happy birthday in Chinese (which we do know the words now). For dinner, we went to McDonalds. We always, as a tradition, let the kids choose whatever they want for dinner on their birthdays. I'm surprised they don't yell out "steak and lobster" more often. They generally want fast food or french toast or something like that. At McDonalds, we all ordered hamburgers or chicken nuggets. I really don't like McDonalds much in America, but there is something comforting about it here in China. The Chinese keep telling me, "I hate American food." Then I say, "What American food have you had?" They then proceed to tell me they've had McDonalds and KFC. I try to explain that they shouldn't judge our entire food culture on these two restaurants, but they don't listen. I guess I'll have to hit that Hasty Generalization fallacy (making generalizations from too few examples) a bit harder in my classes. <br />
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For Nicol's birthday, we went back up Yuelu Mountain. It's so close to our house and the kids absolutely love it. It's quite a trek up to the top. At full speed (i.e. without children), we can get up there in about 45 minutes. With children, it takes about an hour and a half. The kids had already been on the slide/chute that goes down the mountain, but they had been eyeballing the cable cars for some time now. So, Nicol chose to have us hike to the top of the mountain and take the cable cars down. I must admit, I would have preferred to take the cable car up and then walk down, but he was pretty motivated to do it his way. The cable car ride was super relaxing and the cable cars moved very slowly. I think it took us 30 or 40 minutes to get down the mountain on the cable car. When we reached the bottom, a man took pictures of us and offered to sell them. We gladly purchased them since it was such a good deal (10 yuan each). You have to admire the entrepreneurial spirit of the Chinese. Anywhere there is an opportunity to make money, you'll see someone trying to use that avenue. And, they never have a "this task is beneath me" attitude. They do whatever is necessary to take care of their families. After we got down from the mountain, I had to teach all afternoon, so I was disappointed not to be able to spend more time with Nicol on his birthday. But, we gave him presents before I left and planned to have dinner together as a family when I was finished. For his birthday, Annie gave him some underwear with an American flag on it (pictures to come later on Stacie's blog), Ezra and Jeanie gave him candy, and Lucy got him a Chinese Checkers set. Stacie and I bought him a remote controlled helicopter (which has already been crashed and destroyed by the way) and a very nice wooden Chinese Chess set. Chinese chess is much different from American Chess and the kids have really taken to it. After I taught my classes, we decided to try this new restaurant called "Wow" that we had heard about from Jay Sorensen. It's kind of like a bar and grill, but doesn't really get that whole bar feel until much later in the evening. We went and ordered the most delicious pizzas and french fries. We also ordered Nicol his own piece of cake. It was chocolate and came with red and green maraschino cherries on top. On the side was a cherry tomato carved into the shape of a bunny rabbit. We thought it was kind of weird.<br />
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During that week, we also had the chance to visit our new friends we met through church. Manolo is from Spain and his wife Jackie is from Ecuador. They have two children. Jackeline is 5 and Manolo (also called Manolito) is 3. They wanted us to come down to Xiangtan on the bus to spend the weekend with them and to celebrate little Manolo's birthday. We were a bit nervous to take the bus by ourselves out of town. We had never been to the main bus station in Changsha and weren't sure about how to purchase our tickets. But, we took a leap of faith and just did it. When we got off the city bus near the bus station in Changsha, we were a little lost and someone pointed out where we should go to find the bus station. Then, when we arrived, we didn't know where the ticket counter was. Some nice young girls who spoke English helped us purchase our tickets, walked us over to the bus, showed us where to put our luggage, and waved goodbye. It was so nice getting so much help. We often feel helpless here because we can only communicate a little. When it comes to technical things like communicating exactly which bus you want and which time, it's very hard for us. We often need help. We rode the bus for about an hour south of Changsha and arrived safe and sound at Xiangtan. Manolo was not there when we arrived like he thought he would be and asked that we wait for him in front of the Pizza Hut. So, we put our luggage down and just stood there waiting. This drew a tremendous amount of attention. Xiangtan is a bit smaller than Changsha and they had never seen us before. I think the people near our apartment in Changsha are getting used to us, but the people in Xiangtan were immediately intrigued by this big American family. I would say we had at least 30 people surrounding us on the street asking us questions. They were friendly, but our language skills only get us so far. We can tell them we are Americans, that these are indeed our 5 children, and that I teach English at Hunan Normal University. That's about it. Some of them tried to speak a little English to us, which was nice. One guy (who got a little too close to my face) said to me: "Hey, friend, are you missing?" I explained that I wasn't lost and in broken Chinese said "My friend is coming here." He seemed to understand.<br />
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When Manolo arrived, he took us back to his apartment and we were greeted warmly by Jackie and their children. It was so nice to have Lucy and Jeanie play with their children and we spent a lot of time just hanging out with them during the weekend, picking their brains about life in China, and eating Jackie's delicious cooking. Because they are members of our church, it was nice to be able to communicate openly with them about religious topics because we are not allowed to discuss our religion at all to Chinese nationals while we are in China. We kept thinking it must be hard for them to entertain all seven of us, but they were so kind and even suggested we come back every month to stay the weekend. They even said they hoped that on one of the weeks where students are given Monday off that we might stay for 3 days instead of two. They have been in China for 3 years now as Manolo is studying for his master's in Chinese philosophy. He speaks Chinese fairly fluently and has adapted to life in China pretty well. In addition to introducing us to the Metro, he taught me how to order things off of Chinese Amazon, what types of clothes should be purchased for the rough winters here, and how to purchase bus tickets. I've got this guy on speed dial, so things are looking up.<br />
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In my classes, things are going well even though they are working me like a dog. I've never taught so many students in my life, but they are sweet kids and I enjoy teaching them. They certainly don't laugh at all my jokes, but then again, American students don't either. However, Americans will give the courtesy laugh and the Chinese won't. When you bomb here with your material, you really bomb! I got sick the other day I think from sheer exhaustion and had to take one sick day. I emailed the 70 students to tell them we wouldn't have class on this day and why. I got 68 emails back saying they are so sad and they look forward to my class all week. Some gave me tips for getting healthy more quickly and others just expressed that they hope I feel better soon. From a few students, this would have seemed normal, but from nearly all of them it was a little overwhelming and humbling. I had a funny experience in class the other day. When one of my freshmen classes was over, a student came up to me, stood about 8 inches from my face, and just started to stare at me. At first, I just said "hi." She smiled and kept staring. Then I said, "Do you have a question about class?" She then said, "Your nose is so big and so beautiful. Can I touch it?" I said, "Um...ok." She then squeezed my nose, said thank you, and walked away. I told Stacie and she just laughed about it. After all, this girl wasn't telling her anything she didn't already know. I guess I do have a big nose, especially for around here. Plus, big schnozes run in my family anyway.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At Manolo and Jackie's apartment in Xiangtan, I offered to take their trash out. Manolo told me I could try to throw the bag from their 6th floor window to the trash can down below. As a big basketball fan, I thought "What can be better than this?"</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From the 6th floor window. Manolo is down below with my iPad trying to capture my amazing shot. Oh, that blue bucket closest to me is the trash can.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready, set....</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRWOXNMLsUR3uAKTkP7sg6bP2vIX3gK1ZG_BpOlp9tDoTy91NJYavLZfQppJHcdlrDMgGwSO6HDM-96nkr12nqo9Gd1Nc_ss2ToyWtMqfhxqKxcKuQcaFcK72KQ-4PCyFDlp9gJUFInkmp/s1600/photo-7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRWOXNMLsUR3uAKTkP7sg6bP2vIX3gK1ZG_BpOlp9tDoTy91NJYavLZfQppJHcdlrDMgGwSO6HDM-96nkr12nqo9Gd1Nc_ss2ToyWtMqfhxqKxcKuQcaFcK72KQ-4PCyFDlp9gJUFInkmp/s640/photo-7.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Go!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVDV7xeScw6zqadOQv-VQ8CY3-C5_e3QaXZ5WC45zvhyKXyzdCffuziOJ3V5XHT8Iv-MASROsX-3_BHQlbolcA7h4Q5mkwh89g4KxIYdw3Jqee6z0FJZamXbpUVYrIY7IA9_jED2_jtdeL/s1600/photo-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVDV7xeScw6zqadOQv-VQ8CY3-C5_e3QaXZ5WC45zvhyKXyzdCffuziOJ3V5XHT8Iv-MASROsX-3_BHQlbolcA7h4Q5mkwh89g4KxIYdw3Jqee6z0FJZamXbpUVYrIY7IA9_jED2_jtdeL/s640/photo-8.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yikes, I must have gone to the Shaquille O'Neal school for shooting free throws. My aim is a bit off.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIgnAj2qJptIuEXCOyzcGWYsCW3-RoJW1VmOn5BYCaMsFsT_V9xUEkoK1ucjbBIn59xpro6QG90v47q5icVmpNQ4uz9c74C4DWSJc7sWcI7fekoN9ca30wK0Bvarm6AEPmCxqsxRvy4ODg/s1600/photo-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIgnAj2qJptIuEXCOyzcGWYsCW3-RoJW1VmOn5BYCaMsFsT_V9xUEkoK1ucjbBIn59xpro6QG90v47q5icVmpNQ4uz9c74C4DWSJc7sWcI7fekoN9ca30wK0Bvarm6AEPmCxqsxRvy4ODg/s640/photo-9.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yet, I celebrate anyway. "A" for effort, right?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3bqd2OryBvwiFHs0aPY6FEwaB-TmBI7PLJ3ooADudE0AmOi2rJqx4tErlIxRjofVSx9LgRf1vNR0u0TmhjA-91Atr8fy3CewYSctW7GUeY_m4tS3JHplx6Cz2eARdJcVYIf4WkSZs8evh/s1600/2013-10-24+12.56.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3bqd2OryBvwiFHs0aPY6FEwaB-TmBI7PLJ3ooADudE0AmOi2rJqx4tErlIxRjofVSx9LgRf1vNR0u0TmhjA-91Atr8fy3CewYSctW7GUeY_m4tS3JHplx6Cz2eARdJcVYIf4WkSZs8evh/s640/2013-10-24+12.56.13.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This path leads up to the cableway. The children hiked a long way to get to this spot.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv6BBRsYeX4rDMENswDj-G0FVUFybZAiyrFyCobb-CiCqIQL4jVPXzk4W2k0v_XcpbZBjW5MXTgfnstgXRVf5ItPdMVl_2Sf_mKaiOrVgM3kfAu7oA7VNgt_PVSWzkrT2S_5MaoK-Mwdav/s1600/2013-10-24+13.03.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv6BBRsYeX4rDMENswDj-G0FVUFybZAiyrFyCobb-CiCqIQL4jVPXzk4W2k0v_XcpbZBjW5MXTgfnstgXRVf5ItPdMVl_2Sf_mKaiOrVgM3kfAu7oA7VNgt_PVSWzkrT2S_5MaoK-Mwdav/s640/2013-10-24+13.03.50.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie, Nicol, and Ezra rode in one cable car. Stacie and Jeanie in another. I got to ride with this beauty. I kept this death grip on her the entire 30 minutes down. Made me nervous.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitfH2OG7rP42j0xEE9CiwsbxMFXlmxzYrgcsj5owp26SYy9w5DqcHb6fGO_Z_qrBeu7mkSSy8bAisseXr__iJXGwFNuK_kt8hyphenhyphenJ4SeC3BpHerAZxWVlyCBRuLnoH6CsWHLvM7gc2_t0eh8/s1600/2013-10-24+13.03.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitfH2OG7rP42j0xEE9CiwsbxMFXlmxzYrgcsj5owp26SYy9w5DqcHb6fGO_Z_qrBeu7mkSSy8bAisseXr__iJXGwFNuK_kt8hyphenhyphenJ4SeC3BpHerAZxWVlyCBRuLnoH6CsWHLvM7gc2_t0eh8/s640/2013-10-24+13.03.57.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was quite green and beautiful.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiamn5crsbrX1UZpr8MuN5LZUm87bVylgHjdaFubEtIbmcH8cAQCeaRVRq6-JpTlbjntIDNNFxpzE_C8GxPweuR7DSx75QH8wOusVdC6er32vdYGbd6zsN9hRt0SUhVwqcziydzZwVUmET_/s1600/2013-10-24+18.29.34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiamn5crsbrX1UZpr8MuN5LZUm87bVylgHjdaFubEtIbmcH8cAQCeaRVRq6-JpTlbjntIDNNFxpzE_C8GxPweuR7DSx75QH8wOusVdC6er32vdYGbd6zsN9hRt0SUhVwqcziydzZwVUmET_/s640/2013-10-24+18.29.34.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the Wow restaurant.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRNJE-Z4GCT9B7Wc1EY3QkteakHzUA2WdkKiyqhDMB3jMWu-1ZrljjBnsEdY2-q90AZSYKxSP72ZX6_CYthUgUFI_twrtFhZ-dgn0JcaxuB8z0bsU_CiCVD_BFa6YR6GBHpD2G2khSn7hf/s1600/2013-10-24+18.44.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRNJE-Z4GCT9B7Wc1EY3QkteakHzUA2WdkKiyqhDMB3jMWu-1ZrljjBnsEdY2-q90AZSYKxSP72ZX6_CYthUgUFI_twrtFhZ-dgn0JcaxuB8z0bsU_CiCVD_BFa6YR6GBHpD2G2khSn7hf/s640/2013-10-24+18.44.02.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We got a nice care package from my colleague Jon Smith and his family. It was so thoughtful and the kids are pretty excited about it. If you have any doubts about their enthusiasm for this stuff, just check out Ezra's eyes.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUk9FBMI_aQahmatbmS-wObe7JBIAgYJyOea2fqUKpx3GuieBuMb_f44AfLGrxTLI73UVUC6o9faAv7G_nJRJqU9KHEbqhlSU34XfZT2e9yPVA2jn7mTPDb9OSms1xX_l7Czy4MTptYPR_/s1600/2013-10-24+19.08.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUk9FBMI_aQahmatbmS-wObe7JBIAgYJyOea2fqUKpx3GuieBuMb_f44AfLGrxTLI73UVUC6o9faAv7G_nJRJqU9KHEbqhlSU34XfZT2e9yPVA2jn7mTPDb9OSms1xX_l7Czy4MTptYPR_/s640/2013-10-24+19.08.02.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This pizza was so good. In China, I would have expected to have hot dogs on it or something, but this was magnificent.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdtXASS3JRF8Sq4-bj4RWFM7BjxfrYBoiSBYwBYulgU_ocJgZUu9oawNpybJcINKbbKH_tuTPmXjT0XqAzKgiy8zh4mWibxhQcT-iaZuz9jSGjU0R4ZaUB__Mz0Nj3noQkF5tiVIZmvYkm/s1600/2013-10-24+19.17.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdtXASS3JRF8Sq4-bj4RWFM7BjxfrYBoiSBYwBYulgU_ocJgZUu9oawNpybJcINKbbKH_tuTPmXjT0XqAzKgiy8zh4mWibxhQcT-iaZuz9jSGjU0R4ZaUB__Mz0Nj3noQkF5tiVIZmvYkm/s640/2013-10-24+19.17.56.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicol's birthday cake. We went out for ice cream too later, so he did get both. He looks so handsome in this picture. Growing up too fast.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMEIj2DrckK9VeUVWd6ZgsqU7oY6lYLjLLFekqIogoPerfD2rFpQTlwqXHyCTcmrVJxSQt8jdeMQx_y7lOc2PAleFXQtjmoliny8gXF-15ZnNizdIjLVDxQ-ybDlrDc50o-hWabz5-0Qpc/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-10-25+at+1.17.55+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="598" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMEIj2DrckK9VeUVWd6ZgsqU7oY6lYLjLLFekqIogoPerfD2rFpQTlwqXHyCTcmrVJxSQt8jdeMQx_y7lOc2PAleFXQtjmoliny8gXF-15ZnNizdIjLVDxQ-ybDlrDc50o-hWabz5-0Qpc/s640/Screen+Shot+2013-10-25+at+1.17.55+PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Speaking of handsome...just kidding. I could go anywhere in the world as long as this girl's with me.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVPu5m9F5qp1zCo_ulTbkiOYLXTG1qHYCL70kVCMhALFELP2-K2UGaErqlPw8BK_0xv9dYDVGZvGYCzLvM1SMZvuIE7OcrHsNp9IgVHyrNPwsV15e6kxdzfCcqkYWwm0eEdNtTza4Vh9SI/s1600/2013-10-17+19.09.30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVPu5m9F5qp1zCo_ulTbkiOYLXTG1qHYCL70kVCMhALFELP2-K2UGaErqlPw8BK_0xv9dYDVGZvGYCzLvM1SMZvuIE7OcrHsNp9IgVHyrNPwsV15e6kxdzfCcqkYWwm0eEdNtTza4Vh9SI/s640/2013-10-17+19.09.30.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy's birthday dinner at McDonalds.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZWq-B5hQKh-KQ1_rt_FIlCUdYNZAdbwHV4ch-l6IQPsWSXsHRONLNcc8lRuxy_cAmcgfktEG7c1jwsncNqUOasBDVziaeAvzjNRMWQfDu0bUPivdmGYOJKgHY7OIP6-cHsORQRWcxECSC/s1600/2013-10-18+10.58.52.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZWq-B5hQKh-KQ1_rt_FIlCUdYNZAdbwHV4ch-l6IQPsWSXsHRONLNcc8lRuxy_cAmcgfktEG7c1jwsncNqUOasBDVziaeAvzjNRMWQfDu0bUPivdmGYOJKgHY7OIP6-cHsORQRWcxECSC/s640/2013-10-18+10.58.52.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An evil Chinese version of a friendly mouse you might be familiar with back in the United States.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzhytRFBbIT7jJgWt0w5yzQcyTyvIiD8PsXOxDlbLhBgPO33e236zdIrUcIJAF_kN0bv6V-SvT6ecSljMy0awTSBGyz8iBEsNSU-o3EsLyTQpriIuNv_uULxtJ2ThwXWZDjvbOf2nplz7U/s1600/2013-10-19+10.47.33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzhytRFBbIT7jJgWt0w5yzQcyTyvIiD8PsXOxDlbLhBgPO33e236zdIrUcIJAF_kN0bv6V-SvT6ecSljMy0awTSBGyz8iBEsNSU-o3EsLyTQpriIuNv_uULxtJ2ThwXWZDjvbOf2nplz7U/s640/2013-10-19+10.47.33.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">People, motorcycles, and cars all jockeying for position in this narrow alleyway. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrWbblGWc4Wtnx2jkkIepyFLoU5wRdpXBzSGGBU2JRVH3fu3Fky9p5kmMvO8UgWZ0ePZ05Fb-JcYMtrjS7kCM8VihpvyXRavpKPRUhyphenhyphend4Nk2wiTQy6F64UDDV_Sy2VIj_9QWUWP5C5brbC/s1600/2013-10-19+18.18.18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrWbblGWc4Wtnx2jkkIepyFLoU5wRdpXBzSGGBU2JRVH3fu3Fky9p5kmMvO8UgWZ0ePZ05Fb-JcYMtrjS7kCM8VihpvyXRavpKPRUhyphenhyphend4Nk2wiTQy6F64UDDV_Sy2VIj_9QWUWP5C5brbC/s640/2013-10-19+18.18.18.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sophia does such a good job teaching our family Chinese.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMmxoqTdkUzkWVdTzCxVO1NdwU0mMFDqERTCCKGTi2MUjBgbSl4EmRaBS3fO9GPtDCHtJy5HP7PJMOg-LWhzbAlkUUzvZTqXzMxFaRVBXTuHQuQ302A47ZlLtcSr8wvui2YUXPaEjh60ZD/s1600/2013-10-19+18.54.11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMmxoqTdkUzkWVdTzCxVO1NdwU0mMFDqERTCCKGTi2MUjBgbSl4EmRaBS3fO9GPtDCHtJy5HP7PJMOg-LWhzbAlkUUzvZTqXzMxFaRVBXTuHQuQ302A47ZlLtcSr8wvui2YUXPaEjh60ZD/s640/2013-10-19+18.54.11.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here she is teaching the kids how to play Chinese chess.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIJbzFOQ_WVWjLdfkb-hvg1_qlGT8majb6kdwpQKJ0K1FKtVSsQQP9E2cadQbnvt25kcciT_FbUcpgUA0Q5h0PFzISOYijsIrQR-93QN3P5I-YNFU-03cgU3K2IiKO23UJXQm6MR39amCD/s1600/2013-10-20+13.34.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIJbzFOQ_WVWjLdfkb-hvg1_qlGT8majb6kdwpQKJ0K1FKtVSsQQP9E2cadQbnvt25kcciT_FbUcpgUA0Q5h0PFzISOYijsIrQR-93QN3P5I-YNFU-03cgU3K2IiKO23UJXQm6MR39amCD/s640/2013-10-20+13.34.03.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of those VERY rare times that the bus is practically empty.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45BkLI4nx_EhXvtRAOtXMVunmuxl5C314wwzaQUMCMrzwcgVP6k_N-slE9Hc-MKI2_SHMkYJk5n0l5HlXAP7ytpKxRz94Oq_YnMY5zegQAd9XihbDFMBW7M_90KnW8LaPqU9q82uI3FC3/s1600/2013-10-20+15.53.25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45BkLI4nx_EhXvtRAOtXMVunmuxl5C314wwzaQUMCMrzwcgVP6k_N-slE9Hc-MKI2_SHMkYJk5n0l5HlXAP7ytpKxRz94Oq_YnMY5zegQAd9XihbDFMBW7M_90KnW8LaPqU9q82uI3FC3/s640/2013-10-20+15.53.25.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is before the crowd in Xiangtan got much bigger. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg391iK8Yh9fS3hpEsBbg82ItpFxzo44jEwHhnrJXz6m80Gdih2FtXGWdUkL8fmswz8toRaY2tSIYIacSjeNhNP8UiqZGLih09cu-OYsRrSPit5sz89i23VdSvgzTeAsKovSPy1eDHq7DaZ/s1600/2013-10-20+17.57.48.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg391iK8Yh9fS3hpEsBbg82ItpFxzo44jEwHhnrJXz6m80Gdih2FtXGWdUkL8fmswz8toRaY2tSIYIacSjeNhNP8UiqZGLih09cu-OYsRrSPit5sz89i23VdSvgzTeAsKovSPy1eDHq7DaZ/s640/2013-10-20+17.57.48.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is my Spanish friend Manolo on the right. We went to a small park for the birthday party. The kids had a blast.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH4g7nlNTpaYh7ss2xqsZDV-Hh39XJ8-itR4cl2gEEHe30XC1b3CRWd2Vzp0RXMISsS6jzIUkoOIMo_D7CuHthTwmD1c7f-MK38d1lL75gWkwVpIDgn2kf_KOc-_mpqYI2INbQUjiS1z5s/s1600/2013-10-20+17.57.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH4g7nlNTpaYh7ss2xqsZDV-Hh39XJ8-itR4cl2gEEHe30XC1b3CRWd2Vzp0RXMISsS6jzIUkoOIMo_D7CuHthTwmD1c7f-MK38d1lL75gWkwVpIDgn2kf_KOc-_mpqYI2INbQUjiS1z5s/s640/2013-10-20+17.57.53.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More party fun. We filled some of the balloons up with little fun tasks that the kids had to perform, such as trying to break the balloon as quickly as possible using just your back side.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcsk6ezmHQEW72m8o_XcvAAN85wS6T1USi7QsQUXFkmLa_F-EsZTpvWNPVkhngVqx-c3XBSkne5KqYyZxarz0ctw5Wo5gBsL728SyG8YA5sMa3v4N-rrJyrXhY3sEQacvt6u33MBHIj3dT/s1600/2013-10-20+21.20.36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcsk6ezmHQEW72m8o_XcvAAN85wS6T1USi7QsQUXFkmLa_F-EsZTpvWNPVkhngVqx-c3XBSkne5KqYyZxarz0ctw5Wo5gBsL728SyG8YA5sMa3v4N-rrJyrXhY3sEQacvt6u33MBHIj3dT/s640/2013-10-20+21.20.36.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Little Manolo loves his birthday. This impressive kid is only 3 years old and speaks English, Spanish, and Chinese. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnD-xJMJGoGJijW4trR8WMfyblMKHBi7X-NSUGA2czvnvJOSi7665yx_A6JGgm-UxK1jCsMdh3TkMt1HFWRadl21Y7LFGrsLGXS6ZD2GARwk_zrSdixTeFwNeBm3ACXSj4bLizsqbyHJB1/s1600/2013-10-21+13.34.43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnD-xJMJGoGJijW4trR8WMfyblMKHBi7X-NSUGA2czvnvJOSi7665yx_A6JGgm-UxK1jCsMdh3TkMt1HFWRadl21Y7LFGrsLGXS6ZD2GARwk_zrSdixTeFwNeBm3ACXSj4bLizsqbyHJB1/s640/2013-10-21+13.34.43.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is about as friendly as Lucy gets in China.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguS29gFVH6wBA4dT2sFMt8VYk2YWFTEcWqm_fgSjM26D-pZmrwBP1nej_v5T1yBk13QX0Q8hmLfruwSOJYXdQukuspGVUcGRJ7kp2Ae0drxv4ElT_-6cEkGQlGjlIqHrDxLQD84Iyf_Nlo/s1600/2013-10-22+15.22.34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguS29gFVH6wBA4dT2sFMt8VYk2YWFTEcWqm_fgSjM26D-pZmrwBP1nej_v5T1yBk13QX0Q8hmLfruwSOJYXdQukuspGVUcGRJ7kp2Ae0drxv4ElT_-6cEkGQlGjlIqHrDxLQD84Iyf_Nlo/s640/2013-10-22+15.22.34.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I have a 10 minute break in the middle of each hour and a half class and sometimes I just look out the window. I love that I can see this great view from my classroom and it's even better when the Chinese are outside dancing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiagIfdPTuaTRnsOimLuZH9_R3TP1AHUQWdvi25VEu1S77UWCHcbc9ttMh_-df-3FTI4uJ2hPpP9coUp-9zJ-kqzi4GDscWe69w_P5K-WEiyvBEnnJZb6RKHLZgiwxeDFp2hncOMxkJi3bh/s1600/2013-10-22+20.11.40.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiagIfdPTuaTRnsOimLuZH9_R3TP1AHUQWdvi25VEu1S77UWCHcbc9ttMh_-df-3FTI4uJ2hPpP9coUp-9zJ-kqzi4GDscWe69w_P5K-WEiyvBEnnJZb6RKHLZgiwxeDFp2hncOMxkJi3bh/s640/2013-10-22+20.11.40.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is there any question why people are curious about us. I think the cuteness factor is high in this picture. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifYCz6xPbP2jdgPzqLrkgS2hKMQ8TkHqZP53K0_hgjx-pu6s_7OTCf8V20A5fvTIAVH8HlxV_JfIAGd2CMB10xnss7sCDDtTteMAb9uKIKU8mfNOq1PdZ3Fu6m0C3bse2jk4JltX5_Qycq/s1600/2013-10-23+07.04.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifYCz6xPbP2jdgPzqLrkgS2hKMQ8TkHqZP53K0_hgjx-pu6s_7OTCf8V20A5fvTIAVH8HlxV_JfIAGd2CMB10xnss7sCDDtTteMAb9uKIKU8mfNOq1PdZ3Fu6m0C3bse2jk4JltX5_Qycq/s640/2013-10-23+07.04.49.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My friend Alexander teaching the older children how to play tennis.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhROPUQI1DtD1199E5xkBSCnR-3buc0hZHnVhjRJQ0NiD2PLKpe4oh8LJ13ukI4QB-HYXu5y0Jy4Q3j6_ozq-CNbKDVKaYs4sPk7l3C7LDdT1KB4-_l43a8AL2hZ19floV5wzd1zEdMTeSc/s1600/2013-10-23+07.25.24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhROPUQI1DtD1199E5xkBSCnR-3buc0hZHnVhjRJQ0NiD2PLKpe4oh8LJ13ukI4QB-HYXu5y0Jy4Q3j6_ozq-CNbKDVKaYs4sPk7l3C7LDdT1KB4-_l43a8AL2hZ19floV5wzd1zEdMTeSc/s640/2013-10-23+07.25.24.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Chinese spend 90% of their time practicing and 10% playing. My kids were like, "What's up with all these practice swings? Let's get out there and play." </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzhlL3A9vEH01dxTs-Fy08d25x6I23XMvqPwHC0GCwjd3kMn1A-rTOQJRsqe5SE_OECdfsRAzJOsWXETl-Wlb4GWnX4Fz4IlZOY2vVgUv_BWLQ_pfx_M5HjjF9Oe0MJ4k88GoP6LSh4zq/s1600/2013-10-23+13.19.19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzhlL3A9vEH01dxTs-Fy08d25x6I23XMvqPwHC0GCwjd3kMn1A-rTOQJRsqe5SE_OECdfsRAzJOsWXETl-Wlb4GWnX4Fz4IlZOY2vVgUv_BWLQ_pfx_M5HjjF9Oe0MJ4k88GoP6LSh4zq/s640/2013-10-23+13.19.19.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We finally tried the restaurant near our apartment called Krave. It was opened by an American and a Canadian. I thought the food would only be good because we are hard up for American food, particularly a good sandwich. But, I think the food was excellent by any standard. Plus, that dark beverage is none other than classic A&W root beer. Expensive, but worth it. </td></tr>
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<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-77291244019247705102013-10-15T07:28:00.000-07:002013-10-15T07:28:00.840-07:00We Found a Store that Will Change our Lives Here in ChinaI won't keep you in suspense. We found the market the locals call Mai De Long (the Metro). It's basically a giant Costco type store run by a German company and they have tons of foreign food brands. One of our new friends from the virtual branch (church for those who don't know what that is) rode the bus up from a city south of Changsha called Xiangtan to meet us at the front entrance. He left his house at 7 and arrived at the Metro at 9 am this morning and Stacie and I left our house at 7:45 and spent an hour on the bus ourselves weaving through the streets of Changsha trying to find our bus stop. Since we don't know Chinese, our friend Sophia said: "Just get on the 132 bus near your house. Once you cross the river, count 8 stops and then get off." Lucky for us, it got us to the correct bus stop, but it took a long time. Once we got off the bus we got lost and had to ask for directions. We are getting smarter about asking for directions and know that we should always ask someone under the age of 25. They will sometimes speak at least a few words of English. So, we asked this 20 something year old and she said, "I'll take you there." She was so nice and helpful.<br />
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When we got to the store, our friend Manolo, greeted us, helped us get a membership and asked the customer service desk to hold our luggage for us. Yes, we were advised by Manolo to bring a huge suitcase with us to fill with all the stuff we would certainly buy. He gave us other pointers about how to tell which brands were Chinese and which were imported because even the imported food has Chinese characters all over it. Apparently, items that have a serial number starting with "6" were Chinese and we would avoid those. It's not that they are bad. It's just that we can get that anywhere so why ride the bus for an hour each way to buy Chinese stuff. We also learned how to tell if the price listed was per unit or per kilogram. This was really helpful because we were keeping a running total of our purchases. We knew we could easily get carried away in a store like this one. So, we systematically went through the aisles hunting for stuff we could not find anywhere else. It was so exciting! Stacie and I had Annie watch the children while we went on this particular adventure and we really enjoyed our date to the Metro. Let me list for you some of the foods that were very exciting to find: Hunt's marinara, wheat pasta, brown rice (surprisingly not common in China), canned tuna, Tyson's chicken drumsticks, salami (imported from Italy), German chocolate bars, cereal, German milk, wheat bread, Philadelphia cream cheese, Irish imported white cheddar, Swiss Miss hot chocolate, parmesan cheese, barbeque sauce, Italian seasonings, cinnamon, tortillas, tortilla chips, refried beans, granola bars, Betty Crocker cake mix, and much more that I can't remember off hand. The ride home was pretty difficult because my suitcase weighed a ton. I could barely get the thing on the bus it was so heavy. After I managed to get up to the second floor of our apartment building, we opened up the suitcase for the kids and they absolutely freaked out. I don't remember them being this excited even at Christmas time. It was pretty funny to hear all the oohs and ahhs as we pulled out each item.<br />
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This weekend, we will travel down to Xiangtan to visit Manolo, his wife Jackaline, and their two children. It will be our first time getting on a bus by ourselves and heading out of the city entirely. It's only about 30 miles south of Changsha, but to us it's an adventure each time we take the children somewhere we have not been before. They (the Parreno family) will meet us at the bus station and take us to their apartment. We will spend the night Saturday and come back late on Sunday night. It will be nice to spend some time with them because they really are delightful people. He is from Spain and she is from South America (I can't remember which country). They have been in China for 3 years as Manolo studies for his master's in Chinese philosophy. They had their second child here in China and she is due with their third this spring some time. Manola said the hospital experience was a bit dicey, so they are definitely a brave couple. We have lots of questions we want to ask them about life in China as we still struggle to adjust after only 2 months in Changsha.<br />
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In terms of work and school, it continues to be quite a challenge for me. Many students still don't understand me even though I feel like I'm speaking at a rate of about 100 words per minute. Believe me, it's dang slow. The PhD students and the freshmen are all on about the same level and I feel exhausted at the end of long days in the classroom. My students email me quite frequently with questions or just wanting to practice their written English. I have 320 students total (at SUU I might have 100 on a busy semester). So, I struggle to keep up with all these emails, but I'm doing my best. Even though I find the teaching part a great challenge, I still think the students are delightful people. They really do want to learn and they feel deep shame when they can't perform. It's part of their culture to want to answer questions correctly and so they hate to speak up in class for fear that they will feel embarrassed. One student emailed me the other day and apologized profusely for the entire class doing poorly on a very simple listening exercise I had them do. I assured her that everyone is progressing just fine and not to worry. <br />
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To be quite honest, my teaching style just doesn't work that well over here. They are used to having the teacher just lecture them and they take notes and memorize the content for an exam. To me, this is a really boring way to teach AND to learn. I try to engage them in the classroom and I'm usually pretty good at this back home, but often I push them hard to respond to questions or to discuss things and you can hear crickets chirping. My freshmen are much more animated than the PhD students. The graduate students are too serious at times and don't really see the value of discussing concepts in class. I explain to them that the best way to learn English is to speak English. Many of them are very good at writing and reading English, but not speaking it because exams don't require an oral component, so they don't prepare for that part. For this reason, I use powerpoint presentations (which I detest) and speak very slowly from the slides. I do my usual schtick in between where I share offhand stories and examples to illustrate things, but usually they don't get my humor or how the example applies to the concept. Sometimes, I will see the light go on and they will respond to what I'm teaching, but I wish it would happen more often. I know when I return to the United States, I will be a different kind of teacher. I hope to be more adaptable and I have given a great deal of thought since arriving in China to how my teaching style might be adjusted in some ways.<br />
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Next week, Stacie, myself, Annie, Nicol, and Ezra will start a free Chinese class on campus that is being taught by students in the Foreign Studies college. We are pretty excited about it. Our friend, Sophia, is currently teaching us for an hour every Saturday and we really enjoy her lessons. Now, we will add a class twice a week that runs for 15 weeks. We had to go to the college and take a pre-test to determine our Chinese level and we did pretty poorly, but we knew a few things. I'm sure we are all going to be in the beginner class. That's probably good, though. Annie was invited to attend a regular university level Chinese class. The class ran every day for 3 and a half hours and she loved it. We were told that she might be able to take the class for free, but then we found out the university would not negotiate on that issue and wanted 16,000 yuan per year ($2600) for just the one class. We love our Annie and would love for her to have this opportunity, but we can't afford it. So, she is now stuck taking the free class with us. I think we will have a good time, though. The children are generally doing very well. Lucy was struggling for a while to adjust, but she is very happy now. She runs around, plays, and sings songs out loud. We are so happy that she is doing so well. She still doesn't want the Chinese to look at her, talk to her, take her picture, or touch her hair, but otherwise she seems to like it here just fine.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPY-AR1UosXjHA0zOAL54bbakroaij7Jxyq5sfC0IVH97mvRY98kzwjxZ65e344vt2V1Y8DQLTfoHUWW0yp3Pm9-sX52-qhbEmq3bRePrtd_GxC2E8qb4XUAuoMVuFvYZZV5lVqJ2yPYCO/s1600/2013-10-16+18.26.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPY-AR1UosXjHA0zOAL54bbakroaij7Jxyq5sfC0IVH97mvRY98kzwjxZ65e344vt2V1Y8DQLTfoHUWW0yp3Pm9-sX52-qhbEmq3bRePrtd_GxC2E8qb4XUAuoMVuFvYZZV5lVqJ2yPYCO/s640/2013-10-16+18.26.46.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie spotted this spider in the mini-market store we shop at around the corner from our apartment. Yikes! The spiders here are huge too.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8S59r_kHR6hPqlpxg_2xWpl8zcVgeM0bV8j7LWNsSWlxfbDLofXWQObzedQHRphDUdGVgpkJlBelvQRCXmCJoZvjxR6HBSbeXepXH65ynE0q3XxfPFi_juitEIzzdK4w39-9rYI_XjO6z/s1600/2013-10-14+19.17.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8S59r_kHR6hPqlpxg_2xWpl8zcVgeM0bV8j7LWNsSWlxfbDLofXWQObzedQHRphDUdGVgpkJlBelvQRCXmCJoZvjxR6HBSbeXepXH65ynE0q3XxfPFi_juitEIzzdK4w39-9rYI_XjO6z/s640/2013-10-14+19.17.13.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie decided to buy these out of curiosity. Gross looking on the outside, strange purple color inside, taste was...delicious. Almost exactly like a sweet potato.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgreBQ1H13Zq_yc5iS3Rswj6ImT23tPATluEQymfPFB6JxogiHKBuRlNH_5uTgZKSl_-wraZXUwRjR_mhn436Mcssxww6fgviRaVWg_Cpo8RC26bKnrVtGbXfmJg26D_M6nvFEwsXyf8Nd2/s1600/2013-10-15+12.20.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgreBQ1H13Zq_yc5iS3Rswj6ImT23tPATluEQymfPFB6JxogiHKBuRlNH_5uTgZKSl_-wraZXUwRjR_mhn436Mcssxww6fgviRaVWg_Cpo8RC26bKnrVtGbXfmJg26D_M6nvFEwsXyf8Nd2/s640/2013-10-15+12.20.46.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two of my PhD students wanted to meet the family, so we all went to lunch. These guys have paid for my lunch 4 times before this and now they pick up the tab on the entire meal here. Nobody will let me pay even though I offer every time.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW5KRZ8qMJKf-7lIzRkc0JcK5_Xa-1w-q1gq243iOhzNWjsKrA9O1c1bu99rzFUlPhD1AM9XujUKQucRyNccZBODG-DB9UNhW6mM8AUtw8tnV0HXFZ3EqN_kufftftIGYIvYcYi_g_ooNP/s1600/2013-10-15+12.27.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW5KRZ8qMJKf-7lIzRkc0JcK5_Xa-1w-q1gq243iOhzNWjsKrA9O1c1bu99rzFUlPhD1AM9XujUKQucRyNccZBODG-DB9UNhW6mM8AUtw8tnV0HXFZ3EqN_kufftftIGYIvYcYi_g_ooNP/s640/2013-10-15+12.27.50.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Underneath the green onions is a fish head. Ezra and Nicol will pretty much try anything and they liked it. Stacie and I liked it quite a bit too. The meat on the cheek bone is especially delicious. Annie tried the eyeball out of curiosity and said it was gross, but I know it doesn't really taste like anything (except fish perhaps).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwUHJkkWGOHBDbSXM2YBy7uVX1E02erc920NfjXg6-0SfuV6_d7YgqiQ5HC_cxcdkn4F16ofaYSnngTnC6KZ7i62cf5EOIL_xq3AJJIJISBLCWOvR1_0h4PShD8B3NfoFEBVmLegBkYiBC/s1600/2013-10-15+19.08.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwUHJkkWGOHBDbSXM2YBy7uVX1E02erc920NfjXg6-0SfuV6_d7YgqiQ5HC_cxcdkn4F16ofaYSnngTnC6KZ7i62cf5EOIL_xq3AJJIJISBLCWOvR1_0h4PShD8B3NfoFEBVmLegBkYiBC/s640/2013-10-15+19.08.01.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not again!!! I hate using the squatters in China and avoid them when possible. Now I know why. This little (or should I say big) guy scurried out when I opened the door to the stall. It's hard to tell scale from a picture, but he was about the size my hand (fingers excluded).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHfjZEDGAzzjuArmWGoyMb_aH8P23Bffu8fpzW7HuVtz_xbS3OLC-yAU3ybbkZ5i5GdjvaGuYgAPWbpI16QW4AjY9MopAfO17ot5jmri_5pfRQdUUM3XIlxk3mOc7sjAjOe0uVq0syN3zv/s1600/2013-10-16+10.45.39.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHfjZEDGAzzjuArmWGoyMb_aH8P23Bffu8fpzW7HuVtz_xbS3OLC-yAU3ybbkZ5i5GdjvaGuYgAPWbpI16QW4AjY9MopAfO17ot5jmri_5pfRQdUUM3XIlxk3mOc7sjAjOe0uVq0syN3zv/s640/2013-10-16+10.45.39.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is Stacie so excited to be at the Metro store. We both hugged each other and almost cried when we saw how many familiar foods they had.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ4aeI7yPSSCdxUjRMCgPC_NQuDGdGqUVOt0v5hbZNmOQhOjhZI7YeZopRB7b2VFdYaps5ysMU8-zo_UKeqP_iHR4mOTa0N1xWet_iJSy2pqy_sVDFxPUOGYFifV_BoZom-J2PoxOtQACn/s1600/2013-10-16+12.35.19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ4aeI7yPSSCdxUjRMCgPC_NQuDGdGqUVOt0v5hbZNmOQhOjhZI7YeZopRB7b2VFdYaps5ysMU8-zo_UKeqP_iHR4mOTa0N1xWet_iJSy2pqy_sVDFxPUOGYFifV_BoZom-J2PoxOtQACn/s640/2013-10-16+12.35.19.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is our suitcase with all the Metro food in it. The scale said it weighed 80 pounds. You would think from my face that it weighed 180. Maybe I need to hit the gym. I've lost 12 pounds since arriving in China. I know because I stepped on the scale and then converted from some weird thing called a kilogram.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRiru2xYF5dkiS7IR_wnsUT_67-UVAPLr7jgdMB1Bh3Igkug_12JFnlsnbUK4Ji-CygOlltumj5VhWy04vklzPZ_ZLe-6j03H4VHTIF0UcuvXw4azrZteL7HJezV1rhf_JI49TNLNpu6bP/s1600/2013-10-16+12.40.41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRiru2xYF5dkiS7IR_wnsUT_67-UVAPLr7jgdMB1Bh3Igkug_12JFnlsnbUK4Ji-CygOlltumj5VhWy04vklzPZ_ZLe-6j03H4VHTIF0UcuvXw4azrZteL7HJezV1rhf_JI49TNLNpu6bP/s640/2013-10-16+12.40.41.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kids are so excited to get all the Metro food. The front is the German milk in boxes. Then, there is a cake mix box on the left. Annie is eyeballing those Snickers. You can see she has one hand already on them.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHIYVnhF2-fs3a4OeUJOUH34TkVvy-_RQrt5Bn2BijJ7ZdqE5ZefqW2wbmtZwdMA64xL2tDpI4Eiet2_z7uG5LVkbvLYy6Ek1txpwPWlRy72SQs8bi6H8J4T13lMNleOHYh2oEi8GAQNgc/s1600/2013-10-16+15.16.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHIYVnhF2-fs3a4OeUJOUH34TkVvy-_RQrt5Bn2BijJ7ZdqE5ZefqW2wbmtZwdMA64xL2tDpI4Eiet2_z7uG5LVkbvLYy6Ek1txpwPWlRy72SQs8bi6H8J4T13lMNleOHYh2oEi8GAQNgc/s640/2013-10-16+15.16.38.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walking up the street near our apartment. I wanted to capture an image of how bold the Chinese are about parking on the sidewalk. This guy with the white car would get towed away in the U.S.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIVyKv7jd-gf-puipYT26vQjL3qL1VJlJP9ksDLzcIYbxc5zB2CsHmqqfvLNGD2ICwlz1K08JWMHahqADaLe8gNM2CFGw4XCvHn-tlysAdXsVfnOIpbG0WlerRHdZTZ5N2EyuztAkliCQv/s1600/2013-10-10+14.29.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIVyKv7jd-gf-puipYT26vQjL3qL1VJlJP9ksDLzcIYbxc5zB2CsHmqqfvLNGD2ICwlz1K08JWMHahqADaLe8gNM2CFGw4XCvHn-tlysAdXsVfnOIpbG0WlerRHdZTZ5N2EyuztAkliCQv/s640/2013-10-10+14.29.46.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So, my freshmen all had military training a couple of weeks ago, but the first day of class was last Wednesday. I show up to the class I'm supposed to teach in for the first day and nobody is here except for one student. That's his backpack in the back. I asked him where everyone was and he said they were all sleeping, but that he would call over to the dorm to get them to class. Sure enough, in about 15 minutes the room was full with 35 students. Apparently, nobody told them it was the first day of school. It puzzles me sometimes how disorganized yet studious the Chinese can be. It is such an interesting contrast. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc-6r2Ts_C2WgG6zLpjIrHtT49jT39Q7Nv2IM1bx2AWtOIWH4x47hVb3YL96tlNFv5dRScKOdAcOn79u4spiC-G7DeEhZEyS4BRtQ5_w_PMNjQ1zGAVecAwbNkyfPMxW0P7otzmIVZjJ9-/s1600/2013-10-11+08.40.22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc-6r2Ts_C2WgG6zLpjIrHtT49jT39Q7Nv2IM1bx2AWtOIWH4x47hVb3YL96tlNFv5dRScKOdAcOn79u4spiC-G7DeEhZEyS4BRtQ5_w_PMNjQ1zGAVecAwbNkyfPMxW0P7otzmIVZjJ9-/s640/2013-10-11+08.40.22.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is what my email has been looking like lately. It takes me forever to go through all these. First, look at the times they are emailing me. Then, look at how many messages say "This message has no content." The reason they have no content is because the students will write the ENTIRE text of their email in the subject line.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Tgspd7YzGyxVDYrKWnnZl_Y8-YlCbUYr0kSvIWp9HnKZ7I6HAGNuLSHOHDSbd57npQBhZNpKlXHAf4tFdppGaNJah2xGFqkMndY9V__Ngv5IR8T4am5CZ9LZ0MNyI6lN0apTAUGG7xt2/s1600/2013-10-11+18.22.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Tgspd7YzGyxVDYrKWnnZl_Y8-YlCbUYr0kSvIWp9HnKZ7I6HAGNuLSHOHDSbd57npQBhZNpKlXHAf4tFdppGaNJah2xGFqkMndY9V__Ngv5IR8T4am5CZ9LZ0MNyI6lN0apTAUGG7xt2/s640/2013-10-11+18.22.57.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I just like this picture because it shows what a sweet big brother Nicol is and how much Lucy loves him. We may have challenges here in China, but at least we have each other.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXW01zmFeV7VVRtNkxOfsWiKGt260WCkRyp2DZRwLsGLyuzH6NxRfivodFAZScYINJOif3JEwo_3F3wV9Xn8ZO5cLBgaU23p57SR5rPC_NU1DkjOOMU4SMlgU3S-KcH_gSih7HGCl5meka/s1600/2013-10-12+17.37.43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXW01zmFeV7VVRtNkxOfsWiKGt260WCkRyp2DZRwLsGLyuzH6NxRfivodFAZScYINJOif3JEwo_3F3wV9Xn8ZO5cLBgaU23p57SR5rPC_NU1DkjOOMU4SMlgU3S-KcH_gSih7HGCl5meka/s640/2013-10-12+17.37.43.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is this crazy American teacher making us do group work? These are freshmen and they quite like the activity. I introduced a news story about the prevalence of American pop culture in China and asks the students to discuss certain questions about it in groups. Then, we rejoined as a whole class and continued the discussion. I had to go around the room and remind them not to speak any Chinese. It's a rule they love to break, but hey, this is an Oral English class.</td></tr>
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<span id="goog_605451332"></span><span id="goog_605451333"></span>stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-64561379251328550412013-10-05T05:55:00.001-07:002013-10-05T05:55:16.555-07:00Oysters, Snails, and Prawns..Oh My!It has been pretty busy since the last blog post. We came home from Zhangjiajie absolutely exhausted. Then, we ALL got sick except for Ezra who was already sick when we first got to Changsha. The symptoms were congestion, sinus issues, and really bad coughs. We were so miserable for about a week. Now, we are starting to feel much better. Those few days right after Zhangjiajie were especially tough on me because: 1) I'm the biggest baby in our entire family and I don't like to be sick; 2) I had to speak in church via conference call the morning after our return; and 3) Monday was my heaviest teaching day at 4 1/2 hours in the classroom. It was hard to get through all this being sick as a dog. We all just wanted to lay in bed and feel sorry for ourselves. But, we made it. Also, there is something interesting that happens psychologically when you are sick in a foreign country. You wonder if you might just die from the common cold because you can't get the medicine you need at the pharmacy or a doctor who speaks English. <br />
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Annie and Nicol were invited to go with the Tangs and their son, Joey, to the countryside to visit their parents (Joey's grandparents). I referred to them in a previous blog post in which we all sat across from each other at our apartment not being able to communicate at all. They are all very kind people. Anyway, Annie and Nicol have traveled a few hours from Changsha to stay with them for a few days. We feel really comfortable with the Tangs and know that they will be safe and have a wonderfully enriching experience. I'm sure they are getting some good practice on their Chinese this week. It will be like a little weekend immersion program for them. We've gotten a few text messages from Annie indicating that they are having a great time. Apparently, they have been getting some of the best Chinese home cooking ever from Grandma Tang and even got to play laser tag. Supposedly, laser tag in China involves dressing up in Chinese military fatigues and hunting each other in the forest with fake sniper rifles. Annie and Nicol were a little scared because they were simply told they would be going to the forest to shoot at each other. That's it! No additional information. The most recent text message said Grandma Tang was washing Nicol's clothes in a mountain stream. I can't wait to get more details on this interesting adventure.<br />
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We could all use a little more practice on our Mandarin. We are trying so hard to study and learn this language, but it is so difficult. We have learned many words and quite a few characters, but it just doesn't click sometimes. I had a fun Skype call with my brother, Eric, yesterday and I told him some of my frustrations. He said, "So, let me get this straight. You've been in Changsha for 6 weeks and you are upset that you aren't fluent yet?" Then, he rolled his eyes. It kind of put it into perspective for me. I need to work hard, but also be a little more patient with the process. It's hard to be patient, though, when every day we have encounters that are frustrating. We want to be just a little more "conversational." I think it would really make our experience a bit more tolerable.<br />
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I found out today that my resident permit ends on June 30th. It was my understanding that the semester was over on July 15th and that we would be flying home to the U.S. around July 20th. I guess not. I will be wrapping up my classes and flying home before the 30th of June. So, we will see you all 3 or 4 weeks earlier than we thought. I'm not going to lie. We were pretty excited about this news. We are in the second stage of culture shock right now. The honeymoon stage is over. Now, we are squarely in the hostility/depression stage where we are a little uncomfortable and homesick. But, don't worry about us. We have a great deal of confidence that we will move through this stage and get to a place where we have a better attitude about things. I don't want to speak for Stacie, but for me, I have days where I can't stand to see another person stare at me, to watch someone spit really loudly on the sidewalk, or have people yelling at the top of their lungs over something so insignificant. It's just a very loud and overstimulating environment sometimes and I go home with big headaches. Of course, all these things I mention are minor compared to the goodness in the Chinese people. But, some days the small trumps the large because of my fatigue and lack of patience.<br />
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This week, the Chinese are celebrating the Chinese National Holiday. The holiday goes from October 1st to October 7th, but the really important day is October 1st, which commemorates the day in 1949 when the Central Chinese government passed a resolution at Tiananmen Square forming the People's Republic of China. The schools are all closed and nobody seems to be working much this week. The people who own businesses or sell things on the street are still very active since this is an opportune time to make money. But, it's pretty crowded on the streets during this week of celebration. Richard and Lily Tang invited us to go to a museum on the morning of October 1st to celebrate the national holiday. We thought it would be a fun experience, so we agreed to go along with them and some other friends of their family. It seems like every time they invite us somewhere, a mob of other Chinese families are there too so that their kids can practice their English and spend some time with our children. I should mention that this isn't the only motive for inviting us. They are very kind people and are trying to help us adjust and have an enriching cultural experience as well. <br />
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So, we drove to a museum in downtown Changsha that holds mostly British art. There were some really interesting paintings and sculptures in the museum and I enjoyed them for their aesthetic beauty. However, the descriptions were mostly in Chinese and I couldn't really learn much about the art. My tour guide was Richard and he was pretty quick about moving through the different rooms. Stacie, on the other hand, was guided by Lily who took forever to go through the museum and explain things to Stacie. I'm sure she learned much more than I did in the end. Outside of the museum was an old house that was the headquarters for the emerging communist party of Hunan during the 1920's. Mao Zedong used the house as a home for he, his first wife, and his mother-in-law and also as the political headquarters for the party. When we walked in the house, a man pointed at the picture and said to Lily to ask me if I knew how the young picture of Mao was different from some of his other pictures from later in his life. I responded that he didn't have his prominent mole in the younger pictures. The man was apparently delighted that I had noticed this and told Lily to tell me how smart I was. It's probably the first time in China I've felt anything but completely stupid. You feel kind of like a baby again when you don't know a foreign language. You need people to take care of you all the time and you can't speak more than a couple of words. Anyway, understanding that Mao had a mole emerge later in his life was a great accomplishment for me I suppose. Also, we found out the Chinese people view the mole as almost magical. Because the mole became more prominent as Mao's power increased, people feel that having a mole in that spot on the chin is an indication of leadership potential. After the museum, we went to a park called Martyrs park that was absolutely beautiful and absolutely huge. It was so incredibly crowded, we could barely move around, but it was fun to be a part of the Chinese culture during one of their most important days of the year. <br />
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With Annie and Nicol gone, we decided we would finally try to find the BIG barbecue place down by Hunan University (a neighboring university to Hunan Normal University). My friend, Brenna, who was on exchange here last year with her husband, Chance, told me how to get there. I invited the Sorensens to go with us and we hopped on the bus toward Hunan University. Unfortunately, I didn't read Brenna's instructions as well as I thought I had and we took the wrong bus. However, it dropped us off not too far from the barbecue place. Once we arrived, we saw about a hundred tables and a couple of dozen different vendors selling all kinds of different food. One lady ran up to us and asked us to sit at her table. She showed us a menu and we quickly realized that you can't just sit anywhere. You have to buy food from the places where you want to sit. So, we said in Chinese that we just wanted to look around. Once we found some vendors with some of the food we wanted to buy, we sat down at a nearby table. The barbecue place near our apartment (from previous blog entries) is delicious, but more limited in the food choices. Here, however, we ended up getting fish, river snails, oysters, eggplant, corn on the cob, fried rice, and chicken legs. It was pretty delicious. Ezra and Stacie were both good sports about trying the snails and oysters, but the girls would only eat the chicken and corn (once we washed all the spices off with some bottled water). Lucy ate some fried rice, which she has never done before and seemed to like it. But, later at home I asked her if she liked the fried rice and she said no. So, we are back to square one. I really thought we had added a new food to her very short list of things she will eat. Ezra said he wants to try to prawns next. I've had them before and they are delicious, but Americans are used to having the shrimp peeled for us and eating the tails. In China, they give you the whole shebang, so you have to know what to do with it. On the way home, we got lost because we had to wander around to find the barbecue in the first place. We jumped on the bus to head back to HNU, but apparently the bus went the opposite direction. We ended up in the middle of nowhere and had to take a taxi back to our apartment. It was quite a fun adventure.<br />
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For those interested in my classroom experience, it has been pretty interesting. It still remains very difficult to teach students who range in English proficiency from perfectly fluent to can't understand a word I'm saying. But, the students are very kind, respectful, and hardworking. I have taught the 3 PhD classes for 3 weeks now and just started two of the Freshmen classes last week. There is quite a difference between the two groups as you can imagine. The PhD students are a little older and more mature. The freshmen are very young and energetic. Surprisingly, there is absolutely no difference in the overall English skills between the two groups. The PhD classes contain many students who are teachers at HNU. I assume they are trying to finish their doctorates for more money and their fields of study differ greatly representing things like biochemistry and physical education. But, the English skills are fairly weak at this point and it's a struggle for me to try to teach the very good speakers and the very poor students at the same time. My PhD English classes have also sort of evolved since the first day now that I have a better sense of where they are and what they need to learn. I would say my class right now is kind of a hybrid English, public speaking, critical thinking, and introduction to graduate studies class. In my opinion, this is what they need the most to be effective professionals once they finish their degrees, so that's what I'm going to do. I received a discouraging phone call from Amy at the International Office the other day. She indicated that the students were trying to sell their books back since I wasn't using the book that was given to me. I was told that I could use whatever materials I wanted and so that's what I have done. The book they gave me to "take a look at" was mostly on resume writing and other useless topics for an ORAL English class. Once the students started to sell their books back (or however they return them), it started to irritate the Graduate School and so they contacted Amy to see if she couldn't persuade me to use a portion of the book so that the students would be forced to buy it. I asked Amy how much they wanted me to use. She told me at least half of the book should be integrated. I kindly explained to her that the book wasn't of use to me since it was mostly to teach English and she said that she would explain that to the Graduate School. I haven't heard anything more about it, but I am concerned that maybe I should be more accommodating at times. I really try to choose my battles carefully and this one was an important one to me, so I stood my ground. I had already structured the class and had a pretty clear game plan for the semester.<br />
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One thing that I think would be shocking for the people back in America to discover is that the Chinese never really take a holiday. We have been officially on holiday for a week now and the students have all been away. Yet, the university requires that all the students (and consequently the professors) make up for every day missed during the holiday. Imagine being told you had to teach class on Saturday or Sunday to make up for a Christmas or Thanksgiving break. Our students would clearly be up in arms over this. But, the Chinese students willingly make up for every missed day. I can't believe their dedication sometimes. The very first time I met two of my freshmen classes was on a Sunday. Yes, the first day of class was a make-up day for a day they would miss the following week. When I showed up to class 20 minutes early to get my projector and things set up, EVERY single student was there already. I couldn't believe it! They used that 20 minutes to snap photos of me as I was getting ready. I'm the celebrity American teacher over here I suppose. I really hope that I'm a good teacher because I'm likely the only foreign teacher they will ever have. That's some pressure. My favorite parts of teaching so far are how the students do a slight bow whenever they address me or they hand in their papers with two hands grasping it. I also quite enjoy the funny emails I get from my students. Here are a couple of samples:<br />
<br />
Dear Dr.Kevin A. Stein,<br />
<div>
There is a Chinese traditional medcine, its name is called the Polygonum multiflorum Thunb in Latin. There is the website<a href="http://chinesenaturecure.com/tag/polygonum-multiflorum-thunb/" style="line-height: 1.7;" target="_blank">http://<wbr></wbr>chinesenaturecure.com/tag/<wbr></wbr>polygonum-multiflorum-thunb/</a><span style="line-height: 1.7;"> <wbr></wbr>related
with its function and how to use it by human beings. I hope this is
helpful for you almost bald head. And it is nice to accept your PPT. I
should say thank you for your lecture notes and kind patience for our
chinese Ph.D candidate student.</span></div>
<div>
Kind Regards, </div>
Liu Leihua(<span class="il">Andy</span>)<br />
<br />
Dear Dr Kevin,
<br />
<div>
I am 何莎莎,my English name is <span class="il">Angela</span>.
Yesterday you taught us a lesson. And you showed your lovely family to
us. I was moved by your warm family .I am very happy that you teach me.
You are my first foreign teacher. And I really cherish the chance as you
are my teacher .I will try my best to learn English .I know,my English
is not good,but ,I would not give up ! I will speak English as often as
possible to practise my speaking,and I will do more reading to improve
my reading .In a word,I will be a good student ! Ha ha!<img src="http://rescdn.qqmail.com/zh_CN/images/mo/DEFAULT2/28.gif" /></div>
<div>
By the way,your children are so cute! They are
attractive and pretty. I hope I can visit your family one day! Best
wishes to your family!<img src="http://rescdn.qqmail.com/zh_CN/images/mo/DEFAULT2/0.gif" /></div>
<div>
<wbr></wbr> <wbr></wbr> <wbr></wbr> sincerely,</div>
<div>
<wbr></wbr> <wbr></wbr> <wbr></wbr> <span class="il">Angela</span>.</div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
My Dear Teacher, </div>
<div>
I've received your E-mail.Thanks for you all suggestions.I will be
appreciate that if you can point my grammar or spelling mistakes in the
future.I'm also glad to sing songs with you.Do you love Taylor Swift?I
still remember that you love Chinese culture and wonder more about
us.Our nation,geography,politics,army and so on.They are all different
from such of "Uncle Sam".We will have more happy communication later.I
think we will be good friends.
Sincerely
zhang can <br />
</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie and I have been watching Burn Notice each night as our little guilty pleasure show. Don't write to me and tell me that you are embarrassed that I'm watching this. We know it's not going to win an Emmy, but we find it watchable and entertaining. Unfortunately, it's very loud in our apartment with all the wood and tile floors, so we can't watch the show together unless we put both laptops side by side with headphones in each computer. Then, I slowly pause and start until the two computers are synced up. Then, we can enjoy it together, but we have to yell at each other when we want to discuss. Kind of defeats the purpose doesn't it?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra is almost ready to defeat some Chinese foes.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8IGTyTkOCD1ZWmkGWMVVwy5L_iLPHYnQ35AUicHKJI9lNQUDrI7A2QRfyk09RK1lqoZipNcSik7iq3OUYN62JYnSBKRHKkI2YbWK5fKlKHaXAsw4b0ay0Z4Avytvk32EcxMyir1-g0IbZ/s1600/2013-10-02+17.23.06+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8IGTyTkOCD1ZWmkGWMVVwy5L_iLPHYnQ35AUicHKJI9lNQUDrI7A2QRfyk09RK1lqoZipNcSik7iq3OUYN62JYnSBKRHKkI2YbWK5fKlKHaXAsw4b0ay0Z4Avytvk32EcxMyir1-g0IbZ/s640/2013-10-02+17.23.06+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My feet were so sore one day that I decided to soak them in a hot water bath with some essential oils. I tilted my head back to relax and when I finally looked up again, Lucy had stripped every bit of clothing off and jumped in. Here is her very guilty looking face.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1VN_656FFyvoYssP1n9LzOz0cA_29NaC7wfAhM1jG-vqDBtkhQec3A-jmIgdJpny59MLaPzzLSZ4hm5ApozLjtxMfrXnIUfv2xxYIsj7Sx9N0b6Zh_AlTNJeoybLsyVs46ahrc5sghhts/s1600/2013-10-03+14.04.31+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1VN_656FFyvoYssP1n9LzOz0cA_29NaC7wfAhM1jG-vqDBtkhQec3A-jmIgdJpny59MLaPzzLSZ4hm5ApozLjtxMfrXnIUfv2xxYIsj7Sx9N0b6Zh_AlTNJeoybLsyVs46ahrc5sghhts/s640/2013-10-03+14.04.31+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of my favorite parts of clothes shopping is that the men do not use the dressing rooms to try on shirts. I find it super entertaining that no matter what their build, they are perfectly comfortable just taking off their shirt and putting on the one in the store. You can see a guy doing this in the background. It's a bad shot because I wanted to be discreet and because I look a little gay doing it.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2_2V2qY1iwTbKcKkcpOA1kcMwoxDB00vb0pEd94AOuK8Izo5z7ye4hlkZDXollJE_UsMzJXkclJQy0PekBSIn3yzREwfIaEH7XkWp6n7oOY_WCmxhuJ8iPuIsUMBZWV8uUhR49ciHP4Ku/s1600/2013-10-03+16.07.37+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2_2V2qY1iwTbKcKkcpOA1kcMwoxDB00vb0pEd94AOuK8Izo5z7ye4hlkZDXollJE_UsMzJXkclJQy0PekBSIn3yzREwfIaEH7XkWp6n7oOY_WCmxhuJ8iPuIsUMBZWV8uUhR49ciHP4Ku/s640/2013-10-03+16.07.37+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra celebrated Annie and Nicol's departure to the countryside with a Big Mac. First time we went to McDonald's while we are here. I should add that it didn't taste like a funkier version. It was spot on and even better actually because they used real cheddar instead of American cheese, which really isn't a cheese at all.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra is getting a lesson on how to get the snail out of the shell using a toothpick.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here we go. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The children were excited about this little amusement park at Martyr's Park. It looked to have some pretty fun rides, but they charge per ride and this could get a little pricey. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Huh, I've heard of 3D before.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So crowded on the lake at Martyr's Park. We decided to go out on the boat anyway and it was fun.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr0BUWtkqjrr_j5bJFAcE1xkv1osmGwWkwWnNZE2iFArQbGJhj8Ej1iHiDRpJWVUEf27lqGEB8MB2SyOae7s9zkZ8ssYgCp46lRP8VozhAkmxkwdJPIi-pEm4PjHKW1XnpIjmKMvCZgj6A/s1600/2013-10-02+14.41.03+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr0BUWtkqjrr_j5bJFAcE1xkv1osmGwWkwWnNZE2iFArQbGJhj8Ej1iHiDRpJWVUEf27lqGEB8MB2SyOae7s9zkZ8ssYgCp46lRP8VozhAkmxkwdJPIi-pEm4PjHKW1XnpIjmKMvCZgj6A/s640/2013-10-02+14.41.03+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy thought she could get a better view this way. One time, she had the upper half of her body out the window and I had to reel her back in.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty girl among the pretty flowers.</td></tr>
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The following video is of Annie teaching the Chinese children about America's Independence Day. Obviously, we also had a chance to learn from them about their National Holiday as well.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCA0GJNBT8nvAXRE_BU9apTTWwXDqwTMDsB7lq1s5LOONG-kW9SMV1wUFmFuXSbCXPymYkUSOhZkojjWihgYZWkUAC6pcvYmdAj1pPp8aDURRtkxhgfOhrqiTgCJSr8UswjRk-VKhVZGZw/s640/2013-10-02+11.40.22+(1).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The entryway to Mao Zedong's house and headquarters in the Hunan Province. The Chinese believe that Mao had these supernatural qualities and often compare him to George Washington. I was offended at first, but then realized they are just trying to explain to me how much they revere him. I kept silent, but I'll say it here. He ain't George Washington!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside of the Mao headquarters.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPtjXC58U9yikuLUMohsRI2DOmF2UBf-FSP_6BGCtkdPZPW6LgsQ395RwiNvt1c1-ejLfHDzPJX1ualO_bUcSNsqH9rCBWrUyl-LFRMNy8bhWD1EDnklsTrJEmFwfDqN6FYNgtcPBIWDnm/s1600/2013-10-02+11.51.59+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPtjXC58U9yikuLUMohsRI2DOmF2UBf-FSP_6BGCtkdPZPW6LgsQ395RwiNvt1c1-ejLfHDzPJX1ualO_bUcSNsqH9rCBWrUyl-LFRMNy8bhWD1EDnklsTrJEmFwfDqN6FYNgtcPBIWDnm/s640/2013-10-02+11.51.59+(1).jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This tree had some massive grapefruits. They were at least as big as Nicol's head.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrbNpcmgjjkTdXnUH3G8IX-epapWf72AzErKwhtFk9qRYbwzR3qM0y4gaFbYsTlL7nGzdFpUVHXIFFTmJs3XobN3k-5e13jH6VELJTIwFzxmMf6ErjNFwzkBQGIO_EcNFpfkoQ8KUcqvYL/s1600/2013-10-02+12.02.22+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrbNpcmgjjkTdXnUH3G8IX-epapWf72AzErKwhtFk9qRYbwzR3qM0y4gaFbYsTlL7nGzdFpUVHXIFFTmJs3XobN3k-5e13jH6VELJTIwFzxmMf6ErjNFwzkBQGIO_EcNFpfkoQ8KUcqvYL/s640/2013-10-02+12.02.22+(1).jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm told this is the biggest aluminum statue of Mao in Changsha. You would be impressed if you knew just how many statues there are.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">People everywhere stopped to watch Jeanie draw on the sidewalk with chalk. We really should be charging for this stuff.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixx3FP8bnIRCBwoPF1JhS5bABfzl3klhjPM4lbEXrZ4V2TSLOcbiYQmDge2SqqE0I6T9YG6IUSdsaqzImSKvJwlaRtQd1q0JiGy8vP6gVj5U4Gvd8vjXXAN3JhAuvWv43JVCQ4sKJmTeSf/s640/Screen+Shot+2013-10-02+at+12.19.35+PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
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This is a picture of the candy that my brother, Eric had in his fridge when I Face Timed with him. I
randomly said, "I miss American food. Show me what's in your fridge."
This is what I saw. It was so depressing. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjf8mVDBVoayMSDTqra_aKUIHvkboMbvfNVxdOQKJq8lT-_g_98KwBhhpCEXykSlQZmSpBzofKq582h2zHaHri-rWPZaFxc4ZMcQjgfwV0hEsMWiGsFatLPZxSNfI1ni2zMKRIfmoflvFU/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-09-13+at+4.22.42+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjf8mVDBVoayMSDTqra_aKUIHvkboMbvfNVxdOQKJq8lT-_g_98KwBhhpCEXykSlQZmSpBzofKq582h2zHaHri-rWPZaFxc4ZMcQjgfwV0hEsMWiGsFatLPZxSNfI1ni2zMKRIfmoflvFU/s640/Screen+Shot+2013-09-13+at+4.22.42+PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My brother, Keith, likes to entertain his nieces and nephews on
Skype. He kept getting mad because every time he would do something like
this, he would hear the sound of my computer taking a screen shot. At
one point, he challenged me to try to get him stripping down. I was
successfully because I'm pretty quick on the draw, but I can't include
it on a public blog.<br />
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<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-81357230792874385302013-09-24T09:39:00.002-07:002013-09-24T19:02:57.505-07:003 Day Tour to Zhangjiajie National ForestLast week was a pretty busy week. I had my first day of teaching, which was exhausting. Then, we celebrated the mid-Autumn festival (which goes all week it seems) with Richard and Lily last Wednesday. They showed us how to make dumplings, which is not too complicated, but there is a process with the folding of the dough that is a bit intricate. Once you fold the dough, you boil, cool, boil, cool, boil, cool and then they are ready to eat. They were delicious and I can't wait to show off my new skills when I get back to the U.S. Richard's mother was there as well as a family friend and her 16 year old daughter. She and Annie talked quite a bit and exchanged phone numbers so that they could hang out together. The whole meal was very casual and the food was delicious. The only somewhat awkward moment was when we all sat down for dinner. Chinese families are small and so the Tangs are used to only having themselves and their son, Joey, at dinner. The table was pretty big, though, and fit our family when we crowded around it, but there was clearly not room for anybody but the Steins. So, everyone graciously watched as we ate. The others ate standing up and then moved into the open spaces when the children were finished. Richard and Lily are so easygoing that it wasn't too bad of a situation. Apart from dumplings, there was a delicious cucumber dish, a seaweed salad with cilantro, a kind of stringy tofu dish, and bamboo shoots. I should add here that I always kind of liked tofu, but I wouldn't say I loved it. Now, however, I can't get enough of the stuff. I think my brother and sister-in-law (the Hansens) would be so proud of me.<br>
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After dinner, we went home and immediately started packing for our trip to Zhangjiajie. For those who aren't familiar with this park, it is the first area of China declared as a national park by the Chinese government. The terrain is very unique with tall, thin pillars of rock and trees everywhere. James Cameron was so struck by the beauty of this place that he used it as the backdrop for the flying scene in Avatar. He simply digitally removed the bottom parts of the pillars so that it would look like they were floating. The movie probably helped boost the tourism here because there are promotional materials for Avatar all over the place in the park.<br>
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We departed our apartment for Zhangjiajie at 6:30 a.m. on a Thursday morning. We were all pretty exhausted. We took a bus across the city just to get to the location of the tour bus, boarded our bus, and then staked out a place near the back for our family. Jay and Katie Sorensen were with us and we were all glad to be together on this adventure. Our guide, since no one should really go anywhere too far from home without a native Chinese speaker, was Sophia Sun. Even though Zhangjiajie is only a 4.5 hour drive from Changsha, she had never been there before and was excited to go.
After we boarded, our tour guide immediately started talking on this really loud microphone. He talked and talked and talked. I realize it's a tour and that he was probably telling the tourists some really interesting information, but to me it just sounded like the "wah wah wah" from the Peanuts cartoons for like 3 hours. I started to get a headache and wished he would stop, but he never really did. Part way through the trip, the tour guide walked down the aisle of the bus to collect money for those extra sites that tourists could pay to see. Not everything was included in the tour fee and so we had to decide what we wanted to do. We all clearly wanted to go up the Bailong Elevator, which is the tallest outdoor elevator in the world. But, there was a cruise around Baofeng Lake that many reviewers on Tripadvisor.com said was a complete waste of time and a dance performance in the evening that we knew the little ones wouldn't sit through. These latter two activities were very expensive and so we decided beforehand that we would pass on them. The travel agency told us they were optional, so we figured it would be easy to say "no" to them. However, when Sophia explained that we wouldn't be attending these activities, the tour guide became a little irritated with us. He refused to take our money for the elevator (which we did want to do) and just walked away. I asked Sophia what was going on and she said that he was going to leave and then come back in a few minutes to persuade us to do these activities. When he came back, we refused to pay for the activities again and he told Sophia that he wouldn't take us anywhere unless we paid and that everyone else was paying for them. Then, he left again. That was all we heard that day.<br>
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The next day, Sophia called the travel agency to confirm the activities were optional and they told her that what this guy was doing was illegal. He apparently was getting a kickback for all the "extras" he sold and so that's why he was mad. They apologized and told Sophia to tell us not to let it ruin our trip and that they hope we have a good time. So, we just let it go. In the end, we didn't pay for anything we didn't want to. Well, we did have to pay some extra fees for Nicolas because Sophia accidentally booked him as a child and he is over the Chinese standard for "child height." That was no big deal, though. It's funny how the Chinese don't go by age when determining price. They go by height. All of my children, except for Jeanie and Lucy, are considered adults over here based on height. It's hard being in a short culture sometimes. Stacie loves it, though. She feels a kinship with all these short people everywhere. For me, I kind of enjoy being able to look over the top of everyone whenever we are in a crowd. It makes me feel less claustrophobic.<br>
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When seeing something as beautiful as Zhangjiajie, it's hard to really describe in a blog just how beautiful it really is. I will let the pictures speak for themselves. The children were such troopers and we walked so much over the course of those three days. We were all very tired. Lucy wanted to be carried most of the time and so Stacie and I would do that in shifts. The highlights of the trip for me were the visit to Yellow Dragon Cave, the top of "Avatar" mountain, and the walk through the bottom of the valley floors and looking up at the peaks. We also saw many museums with old relics from this area of China, which is apparently one of the earliest settled locations. We even got to see a preserved house from the Qing dynasty. It was pretty impressive! I think if I asked the children what parts they liked the best, they would probably say the cable car. We took the elevator to the top of the mountain, but we took a cable car to the bottom and it was absolutely frightening. We were so high up and it just seemed dangerous hanging off of a wire for about 10 minutes as we rode to the bottom. They weren't too impressed with the elevator ride on the way up because the Chinese people all pushed their way into it and the kids couldn't see well. I picked up Nicolas and Ezra for a few seconds for them to catch a glimpse, but they still didn't see much. I think we would all agree that the pushing and shoving here are starting to get on our nerves. There is absolutely no respect for lines. Every time we would get on the bus, we were always the last ones on because people would just shove us out of the way. In the line for the Bailong elevator, people kept cutting in front of us. When we neared the front, this old lady tried to get between me and Stacie. I had my big backpack on and so I strategically turned so that my backpack would knock her out of the way. Stacie said, "I can't believe you just hit that nice old lady with your bag." We kind of laughed because we were both frustrated. We absolutely HAD to have our family together when we stood in these lines because we didn't want to be put on separate elevators. In the end, we waited in that one line for 2 hours.<br>
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One fun moment at Zhangjiajie was when we reached the area on top of the mountain that has the world's tallest natural bridge. Along that path that leads up to this bridge is a collection of locks that people had put there to symbolize their love for each other. I saw them last year and the romantic in me wanted to prepare a lock for this trip. I had one all ready to go and placed it near the natural bridge. Annie was behind us with Sophia and didn't see me put the lock where I did. When she finally caught up to us, she said, "Hey, I was walking back there and I noticed one of the locks looked a lot newer than all the others. Then, I saw it said Kevin and Stacie on it. I was so surprised"<br>
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Another part of the trip that was very fun for the children was finally having an opportunity to barter. China is very much a bartering culture, but you don't really do it in the bigger stores. It has to be done with people on the street and we haven't dealt with too many street vendors in China (that aren't food vendors). In Zhangjiajie, there are people selling stuff everywhere. I told the boys to watch me bargain. I walked up to someone and said (in Chinese of course): "How much does this cost?" They responded, "30 yuan." I said, "How about 15?" They countered with 25. Then, I offered 20, which they took. I said to the boys, "Easy, right." So, Ezra goes up to a man and asks how much something costs. The man said, "20 yuan." Ezra said, "How about 50?" The man smiled and said, "No, twenty." Ezra then paid. I asked Ezra why he was trying to pay more than the man demanded, but he just looked puzzled and then laughed and said "Oops." Nicol wanted to buy a walking stick. I saw that the price listed on the stick was 40 yuan to begin with. Nicol walked up to the man and asked how much was the stick. The man told him 80 yuan. Apparently, they jack up the prices for the foreigners, so you have to be careful. Nicol negotiated him down to 40 and was really proud of himself. He did a good job of getting the price more reasonable, but he didn't save much because 40 was the normal price. Anyway, we really enjoyed trying to get things for as cheap as possible. I was prepared to step in if they were going to rip him off really badly, but I was fine with him just paying the list price since he was having fun.
Now we are home and everyone is a little sick. Katie Sorensen was deathly ill for the whole last two days of our trip and Annie started to get something on the last day. When we got home, the rest of us started to show signs of sickness. We are exhausted and a little under the weather, but are proud of ourselves for surviving a 3 days jungle tour with our five children. I hope Beijing next year is easier. We will see, I guess.
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho_Xd3s7akuU6mo9s02d7BTWOwRiN-kZnxdtShWgUBPGa2l6-Sc0P4pPECDJZnvz7TgE-3s_liGjLPzq9IR0QQ0d9XsMYqmWU51ejE2qr6Vo5-1F9JyMDS171WSrMWy3oQzrzTQgmzUjJ1/s1600/100_0539.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho_Xd3s7akuU6mo9s02d7BTWOwRiN-kZnxdtShWgUBPGa2l6-Sc0P4pPECDJZnvz7TgE-3s_liGjLPzq9IR0QQ0d9XsMYqmWU51ejE2qr6Vo5-1F9JyMDS171WSrMWy3oQzrzTQgmzUjJ1/s640/100_0539.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeanie gets asked to take her picture with people all the time and she always is so accommodating. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQyI-zOyjZP6dTnDc-VLzELVeqBH1YNV96rG-StJe4AipmXCtqo2KZsMwcagEi6gGQ_BVlHBaRaqOdvD8z5iJaTsadzyDatUI8HQR_suRbxDZzntcqa1Fsqj_RWThVIBYCyKv2FlOtGJ46/s1600/100_0617.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQyI-zOyjZP6dTnDc-VLzELVeqBH1YNV96rG-StJe4AipmXCtqo2KZsMwcagEi6gGQ_BVlHBaRaqOdvD8z5iJaTsadzyDatUI8HQR_suRbxDZzntcqa1Fsqj_RWThVIBYCyKv2FlOtGJ46/s640/100_0617.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We are all born in the year of the rabbit, so we thought we would pose with him. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzy8RlQ6wMKwDa-sociaeLTVWCFVGf-w-Pgi9GzPIRgzvCba-ngtv5Mbg3xMkTprlrQhwTCNFRSC9cOyJfpVIuFpAdd1KNsYWkgD_9hts5NpwD1zfTDv6aC-hZrG7xy2FNNTU6zc1NWym9/s1600/100_0735.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzy8RlQ6wMKwDa-sociaeLTVWCFVGf-w-Pgi9GzPIRgzvCba-ngtv5Mbg3xMkTprlrQhwTCNFRSC9cOyJfpVIuFpAdd1KNsYWkgD_9hts5NpwD1zfTDv6aC-hZrG7xy2FNNTU6zc1NWym9/s640/100_0735.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We don't often get full family pics because we have to ask people to take them for us. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgblKEyb7hHwkvm82mZTqKYN-jAHk4GljgjdXoq7UX3ym0wA2w7vtKKQphvLE22Wlna2gqA8o8HSwVr7sVQsxnNZfIY6GauK99WxPqX49ZemfvNsFHPwi6oeN0oxWKZM12KfqnGjwVH4AkI/s1600/100_0745.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgblKEyb7hHwkvm82mZTqKYN-jAHk4GljgjdXoq7UX3ym0wA2w7vtKKQphvLE22Wlna2gqA8o8HSwVr7sVQsxnNZfIY6GauK99WxPqX49ZemfvNsFHPwi6oeN0oxWKZM12KfqnGjwVH4AkI/s640/100_0745.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra is practicing his crane technique.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqy8g0Y8w9SxluOAQ1qXQoSln_lqMztY4x4M9b9P0kk44tEuJN-6-vmxqCR6fNlWk98Mkw47WMo_BzNSfoVtYRzZvxW-GCsaAjUBA6Og-IyTwT155PDLKWfuz835SaPhrGKcPjvlEp-7Zk/s1600/100_0804.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqy8g0Y8w9SxluOAQ1qXQoSln_lqMztY4x4M9b9P0kk44tEuJN-6-vmxqCR6fNlWk98Mkw47WMo_BzNSfoVtYRzZvxW-GCsaAjUBA6Og-IyTwT155PDLKWfuz835SaPhrGKcPjvlEp-7Zk/s640/100_0804.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the Bailong elevator.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj74VbCxTapehS25r8JcZg_IFyjAYaEBo3wm8xm6dr-Aeq38NTd4b1AYGMBCj18P1yE9-lhXjTGD1WALv0ebJ1boI8zHnumXKfliuaOlO4whtzn-KPXXJwbvKGu8H8gZf5rTBQyDya-CRFG/s1600/100_0843.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj74VbCxTapehS25r8JcZg_IFyjAYaEBo3wm8xm6dr-Aeq38NTd4b1AYGMBCj18P1yE9-lhXjTGD1WALv0ebJ1boI8zHnumXKfliuaOlO4whtzn-KPXXJwbvKGu8H8gZf5rTBQyDya-CRFG/s640/100_0843.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Personally, I think this stuff kind of ruins the park. Zhangjiajie was already cool before Avatar came out.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB4qcD2-Htms463peVG4PQ3X4q-bo5ZGVrt8HFWRDicEJiws6j30DP7O7Z5hbPIlOa-a5FAB6D4izh8BY4umpxuZE5mR9wY0a_VmyH9KoXG5tj-PryhYCgeg9EObV2WQy4J5YWCTBR7MTy/s1600/100_0853.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB4qcD2-Htms463peVG4PQ3X4q-bo5ZGVrt8HFWRDicEJiws6j30DP7O7Z5hbPIlOa-a5FAB6D4izh8BY4umpxuZE5mR9wY0a_VmyH9KoXG5tj-PryhYCgeg9EObV2WQy4J5YWCTBR7MTy/s640/100_0853.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the top.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9D8W5qRuBFxtDf2-_yyG8IiVbQxHjTblbG5xoO1v8x19Z7WgYlXomb8U605gT42MfoiZNLVK60d9-kX4PcpqhlAK2KtW6iQckSXhXJjov9xDqj_d7vHhQLUseKOycPnmSl1_ajPlGAyKc/s1600/100_0879.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9D8W5qRuBFxtDf2-_yyG8IiVbQxHjTblbG5xoO1v8x19Z7WgYlXomb8U605gT42MfoiZNLVK60d9-kX4PcpqhlAK2KtW6iQckSXhXJjov9xDqj_d7vHhQLUseKOycPnmSl1_ajPlGAyKc/s640/100_0879.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hey, American girl! Can I take my picture with you?</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW-8LVEOKGav3Tq7DSQ5agxXr1VnIKuMTgzSJcK5UjKEfa1ZDS1bMJ6pzFKRz4v1XAVwOdUgLugye7TaM3dm2vAd1a2mRREDX9nBUNlibyFli7flDg-_6fvNJACZPyR-c_oHYMg1kLYsgt/s1600/100_0882.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW-8LVEOKGav3Tq7DSQ5agxXr1VnIKuMTgzSJcK5UjKEfa1ZDS1bMJ6pzFKRz4v1XAVwOdUgLugye7TaM3dm2vAd1a2mRREDX9nBUNlibyFli7flDg-_6fvNJACZPyR-c_oHYMg1kLYsgt/s640/100_0882.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tallest natural bridge in the world.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHcf5uD9s0GamxMvXWgD5Q4l0E5x1Nb3jIvunVHJD64XgNTFAR_vAfnZSKkvnxcA9NtZ2Z6t2VTh4fRd4VtnZJTca1XW58j7OU4CfWh0vxqbYB6v5ljRIVeJBuz9ak13-XaCz1PSLGgInp/s1600/100_0885.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHcf5uD9s0GamxMvXWgD5Q4l0E5x1Nb3jIvunVHJD64XgNTFAR_vAfnZSKkvnxcA9NtZ2Z6t2VTh4fRd4VtnZJTca1XW58j7OU4CfWh0vxqbYB6v5ljRIVeJBuz9ak13-XaCz1PSLGgInp/s640/100_0885.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie posing in front of the natural bridge.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisKSJ6xdoSRJ6ivVJbGqbJAS7eFiRYya_3ELYG1pH1olPEly4yJ9McPO6p7vp-t5Fl-r5ejHtC_K_GwhAQH_KHaTdtx-91jg10wRd3mzGNr0Ro-xixzS07pz22I3kADwaPHv8h9KFUm-Oc/s1600/100_0886.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisKSJ6xdoSRJ6ivVJbGqbJAS7eFiRYya_3ELYG1pH1olPEly4yJ9McPO6p7vp-t5Fl-r5ejHtC_K_GwhAQH_KHaTdtx-91jg10wRd3mzGNr0Ro-xixzS07pz22I3kADwaPHv8h9KFUm-Oc/s640/100_0886.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finally proved my love to Stacie. It will be difficult to come back here and remove this thing if it doesn't work out between us.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheS14dea14vvPXK8xRYo04m3I-9E_XUVMW7redIed5fqxe_IHB-M2fUesrDCWv0EAnlfrCbzUdG5CizUXpArNFI6Ed-ARX8yn0Bp7zOPbibapG3RIzR9YIwKLkrI1pgLKemuIu8H-yATeL/s1600/100_0945.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheS14dea14vvPXK8xRYo04m3I-9E_XUVMW7redIed5fqxe_IHB-M2fUesrDCWv0EAnlfrCbzUdG5CizUXpArNFI6Ed-ARX8yn0Bp7zOPbibapG3RIzR9YIwKLkrI1pgLKemuIu8H-yATeL/s640/100_0945.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Had a fun conversation with Annie (age 14) about this ancient chastity belt.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGo26H2lxVsOmX_emxNxu_ebrAnhjNIgWt2QZ18DABGJzhO0YPDRg_KES0oYMfxUUqVULA_5g2-sB0qjW8yIG9klewRzTHZaSRGS46q3K9qmt43ZVdEPB9h_SX0GsDhiQGFR_JSDVab7Q8/s1600/100_1008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGo26H2lxVsOmX_emxNxu_ebrAnhjNIgWt2QZ18DABGJzhO0YPDRg_KES0oYMfxUUqVULA_5g2-sB0qjW8yIG9klewRzTHZaSRGS46q3K9qmt43ZVdEPB9h_SX0GsDhiQGFR_JSDVab7Q8/s640/100_1008.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old tea house from the distance. Eventually, we would go up to it and climb to the top. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCZyXKP7UAUprkkjCxYRyvVnynEnT94moZ3dWxlWvqpqFbFzp6Z_-OVkP-k8hxjJFIISw3-Hgls0sb1lY5aYPldWY0crlOkCkdG5S0SG4hmrWyF0cwUv2rj9OWaX0Zox6N6NbG8CCxZ5MF/s1600/100_1009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCZyXKP7UAUprkkjCxYRyvVnynEnT94moZ3dWxlWvqpqFbFzp6Z_-OVkP-k8hxjJFIISw3-Hgls0sb1lY5aYPldWY0crlOkCkdG5S0SG4hmrWyF0cwUv2rj9OWaX0Zox6N6NbG8CCxZ5MF/s640/100_1009.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Well, when you put it that way....Can I just add that don't is already a contraction. You can't "contract" it anymore.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEnWniF4jwlZaW6uo53LVx-qv5LHsAmBIJuDW5QsKm7QhNKNuPaYhwDfW0RANdrjS4WNKsWhz2uG_ab9q4b7193HHZuMQBZnw7fTdZqbJnlf-JrsdY78kIW_DkoI_SYSLyV-st5iXLXYqR/s1600/100_1030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEnWniF4jwlZaW6uo53LVx-qv5LHsAmBIJuDW5QsKm7QhNKNuPaYhwDfW0RANdrjS4WNKsWhz2uG_ab9q4b7193HHZuMQBZnw7fTdZqbJnlf-JrsdY78kIW_DkoI_SYSLyV-st5iXLXYqR/s640/100_1030.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The kids' favorite part was this ride down from the top of the mountain in the cable car.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8lP_YmLph-bq0EwpyaNtiKSLOoU58iWXo8f6oZCA6jlvFBuIDaO_egTrIj5j9yINMRZVGMCBdqWixFX6QpbthUpxmeWaAY1rqeaaRQQDOGz-kvgj_8qHFpMKm8Zj9xruvZP32gP9NtUof/s1600/100_1031.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8lP_YmLph-bq0EwpyaNtiKSLOoU58iWXo8f6oZCA6jlvFBuIDaO_egTrIj5j9yINMRZVGMCBdqWixFX6QpbthUpxmeWaAY1rqeaaRQQDOGz-kvgj_8qHFpMKm8Zj9xruvZP32gP9NtUof/s640/100_1031.JPG"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was really high and pretty terrifying.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf8TiQXjT6Z4xbHEdWCID0NgXEdRNm68kJ1cCc0xkXhr3DYMrLKIvz_u7buKTIoalI8cp6S-WgDQpfomdwmUVdh4JOH0DZk_BnZ_rKYK4MFFOvS_OsLkYuGIzBb9x-UAOSpXqIpKhZ3ApV/s1600/2013-09-20+13.08.58.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf8TiQXjT6Z4xbHEdWCID0NgXEdRNm68kJ1cCc0xkXhr3DYMrLKIvz_u7buKTIoalI8cp6S-WgDQpfomdwmUVdh4JOH0DZk_BnZ_rKYK4MFFOvS_OsLkYuGIzBb9x-UAOSpXqIpKhZ3ApV/s640/2013-09-20+13.08.58.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Making friends. Annie is so cute with all the little Chinese kids. She just loves them!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcB327BgyjEjo6ZZitWvxTGiueEm0kDw8zKEa91bvdXadPPlm7os8KGKxJh6mffoCeZnURl_xJFWHYbLqrXFklbfPmMoSh7nyK4la1v2iS3BMj1eGwatBqWjoqAA5wBMbZK9s-9fVlMc18/s1600/2013-09-20+18.21.19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcB327BgyjEjo6ZZitWvxTGiueEm0kDw8zKEa91bvdXadPPlm7os8KGKxJh6mffoCeZnURl_xJFWHYbLqrXFklbfPmMoSh7nyK4la1v2iS3BMj1eGwatBqWjoqAA5wBMbZK9s-9fVlMc18/s640/2013-09-20+18.21.19.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They made us get up at the crack of dawn for breakfast. The kids pretty much hated most of the food they served on the tour. Stacie and I thought most of it was good, but some of it was kind of like cafeteria food...if you can imagine a cafeteria version of tofu, seaweed soup, and other things.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiexfPgElFSmtyUgV-MsOW4q2ZJ0o6CVaA-PWsmcOMaFa8AUTzCBIJSA58El4yERmWPtSNFi3zWz1_Ql9WEx8-hW9IDSdWLWwhVnMp_4DiqiC3IDdzPReibZ71O6mWPA_KX598AzQkHDOGg/s1600/2013-09-20+18.58.36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiexfPgElFSmtyUgV-MsOW4q2ZJ0o6CVaA-PWsmcOMaFa8AUTzCBIJSA58El4yERmWPtSNFi3zWz1_Ql9WEx8-hW9IDSdWLWwhVnMp_4DiqiC3IDdzPReibZ71O6mWPA_KX598AzQkHDOGg/s640/2013-09-20+18.58.36.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our hotel room. Annie, Nicolas and Sophia stayed in the room with three beds. Stacie and I stayed with Ezra and the two girls. Jay and Katie took the third room. I was hoping for a real mattress, but we got hard beds yet again. Just can't catch a break.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtJdZKiFzEQBY9Aa5n14ExbjQE0iqwFA1kGpucUUEbcS1Lio6YEUPasw6wQD44KO-DLmzue0e5MWlNRpRt7VLPghcCL0DNn9PxeImzK5pTU0hfCdHDdZBJXsacU0SZT8F7wZr_jf7i4Cae/s1600/2013-09-20+19.56.51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtJdZKiFzEQBY9Aa5n14ExbjQE0iqwFA1kGpucUUEbcS1Lio6YEUPasw6wQD44KO-DLmzue0e5MWlNRpRt7VLPghcCL0DNn9PxeImzK5pTU0hfCdHDdZBJXsacU0SZT8F7wZr_jf7i4Cae/s640/2013-09-20+19.56.51.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This guy really wanted to take his picture with Annie. I think he thought she was older. Don't worry. I was prepared to lay him out if need be, but he was a perfect gentlemen. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigVXBQnpmeaC4Ok4gM-KpDDuGd30Is7r-bYsxIwqoIfeqLL7g2M-RM6D2XsPawRCVxZ4bBTLlcHWfzkoIax_z-vv-s8zsmxuyJYgJm339a9Q8fkis-4urfce32qGr3f9krxSvHj_QR3161/s1600/2013-09-21+07.24.44.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigVXBQnpmeaC4Ok4gM-KpDDuGd30Is7r-bYsxIwqoIfeqLL7g2M-RM6D2XsPawRCVxZ4bBTLlcHWfzkoIax_z-vv-s8zsmxuyJYgJm339a9Q8fkis-4urfce32qGr3f9krxSvHj_QR3161/s640/2013-09-21+07.24.44.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside our hotel room in the city of Zhangjiajie.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsnyfi5uxvUcG1oOYYqKi39-sCeuadAqwHsfxb1WbSu9SKm3H92JLY1ZnRJH4iolBe21mbsd0KU707uyljve0qVDACX0kvKKRfUyfMXgiVK8nLnnf87BhdWC0QRuI3T1vHXzMzBCkQLqX/s1600/2013-09-21+08.25.30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsnyfi5uxvUcG1oOYYqKi39-sCeuadAqwHsfxb1WbSu9SKm3H92JLY1ZnRJH4iolBe21mbsd0KU707uyljve0qVDACX0kvKKRfUyfMXgiVK8nLnnf87BhdWC0QRuI3T1vHXzMzBCkQLqX/s640/2013-09-21+08.25.30.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kids can't resist performing on any stage they can find.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtpoChZf4n3QvdN9NaeWPq1uXS7TVqIVBHJs1SIv1B32v0BuYH7E1-RD6ZF48UXpbORqwU5ZkgrHK-VIK3hzGFb4q4GWEMH4VDPHACUkTR6S5iaqXEgvLYA2xweMCqsVXMdNkxpA0-SlKh/s1600/2013-09-21+10.41.18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtpoChZf4n3QvdN9NaeWPq1uXS7TVqIVBHJs1SIv1B32v0BuYH7E1-RD6ZF48UXpbORqwU5ZkgrHK-VIK3hzGFb4q4GWEMH4VDPHACUkTR6S5iaqXEgvLYA2xweMCqsVXMdNkxpA0-SlKh/s640/2013-09-21+10.41.18.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The two hour line to the Bailong elevator.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYjAHi_MagsUjKScuMxBgmEARV4NRRZxnI4p32-9Kn4s-WtQUebfhArsJwuLy_gfSt_vKNnmVVhZQ5EStQAb-O97A-DMuO4nDy-ImixK4HxfDi_dsDuHNUJid042y8Hyxl1spOw5p7znBn/s1600/2013-09-22+07.58.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYjAHi_MagsUjKScuMxBgmEARV4NRRZxnI4p32-9Kn4s-WtQUebfhArsJwuLy_gfSt_vKNnmVVhZQ5EStQAb-O97A-DMuO4nDy-ImixK4HxfDi_dsDuHNUJid042y8Hyxl1spOw5p7znBn/s640/2013-09-22+07.58.49.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our tour guide held up a flag and we had to follow him around everywhere. It was kind of annoying to be on a tour because we were rushed through too many places where we wanted to spend more time. It was sort of like that scene in Vacation where they get to the Grand Canyon, stop for two seconds and then head out.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpdvxIihHCtFuqNOeSClHg5er2zN2dfqxQm70v8tXHcFlBtdOuKSRUio62F2pS3n6MKaI_dFqGgRbKo3JYImuF7p0avuNh6N8HvpuKX66hCc6x_cNcgVQNJWWjj9EQEqQrDF_Nbcqv3_T9/s1600/2013-09-22+08.48.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpdvxIihHCtFuqNOeSClHg5er2zN2dfqxQm70v8tXHcFlBtdOuKSRUio62F2pS3n6MKaI_dFqGgRbKo3JYImuF7p0avuNh6N8HvpuKX66hCc6x_cNcgVQNJWWjj9EQEqQrDF_Nbcqv3_T9/s640/2013-09-22+08.48.57.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Along the valley floor, which I thought was just as beautiful as up top.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeKNEZvhyphenhyphen5ajPMF-6hX-uJ6Mp5Phm9XParK_OhtXoXt1XrQjH2N1dL3-3nGfnNEncQ24BQSspPpNQMKXi-UM0CoaKOF9qpYHa_XT0Qh1NfXJQ3B_PPs71QpsICHfjQRlA010emu9SJGjSr/s1600/2013-09-22+09.07.30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeKNEZvhyphenhyphen5ajPMF-6hX-uJ6Mp5Phm9XParK_OhtXoXt1XrQjH2N1dL3-3nGfnNEncQ24BQSspPpNQMKXi-UM0CoaKOF9qpYHa_XT0Qh1NfXJQ3B_PPs71QpsICHfjQRlA010emu9SJGjSr/s640/2013-09-22+09.07.30.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We were told that if we were lucky, we might spot a monkey. I felt like the father of the year when I yelled at the kids to come check this out.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxGKfq497z6sdOnOUSwq3RuydIBRiyzKFzus-oelmfKsFAMlqPpKu8jXsFWYF-xlRyX63nPDdmnboHo9FKisCvuGw_z6phcK76LijDYQeW3E9y4qVR5xUexNOovGAcr74tzO2CEVxFSaVm/s1600/2013-09-22+09.07.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxGKfq497z6sdOnOUSwq3RuydIBRiyzKFzus-oelmfKsFAMlqPpKu8jXsFWYF-xlRyX63nPDdmnboHo9FKisCvuGw_z6phcK76LijDYQeW3E9y4qVR5xUexNOovGAcr74tzO2CEVxFSaVm/s640/2013-09-22+09.07.56.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We also spotted this baby monkey. The mother from the previous picture started to get nervous and proceeded to come toward us (and a crowd of Chinese who had gathered around). We snapped a few pictures and took off because we know monkeys bite and have rabies. As I walked away, I looked over my shoulder and saw a Chinese man trying to feed the mother. I should have stayed and recorded in case the dumb guy lost a finger, but I didn't. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPXIhBDNrLeCTOSaxlw7eixeo0zirHuZ5VOrFZIJntTK-yA6VReNvfzMu8Ki6FLHAcfRVx3sAyIStiYSyJJu14SlNSdT3K6GYKnQAEQJ_bDj_wl9L_5HrJQaTMdSagUcbDsdhJ-tAVv7VO/s1600/2013-09-22+09.23.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPXIhBDNrLeCTOSaxlw7eixeo0zirHuZ5VOrFZIJntTK-yA6VReNvfzMu8Ki6FLHAcfRVx3sAyIStiYSyJJu14SlNSdT3K6GYKnQAEQJ_bDj_wl9L_5HrJQaTMdSagUcbDsdhJ-tAVv7VO/s640/2013-09-22+09.23.56.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra found this slug. It was at least 6 inches long. Big sucker. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTB6lGBY2AOLfsL5ikhtb2RfzJ5QtED8wVtK9DM2ga6f7UjkNo1KCHomTl8s1YsMWCF5xeFDNEdMkUXL4ThSugG3UjGq62z-DcmX_aCqLTPqoAiSNquc0gy3yKDl1R14oNtNRYJpFNMoUQ/s1600/2013-09-22+09.24.37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTB6lGBY2AOLfsL5ikhtb2RfzJ5QtED8wVtK9DM2ga6f7UjkNo1KCHomTl8s1YsMWCF5xeFDNEdMkUXL4ThSugG3UjGq62z-DcmX_aCqLTPqoAiSNquc0gy3yKDl1R14oNtNRYJpFNMoUQ/s640/2013-09-22+09.24.37.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here he is trying to touch it. Gross.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-WbRyX0jUjDHD-rt0zll1RNolC_JpiUlFJyr06mhfYOqjOEM0iXuW2NPdCz2lOJFF3FaaaEBCN5wUJsKv2x9B_YRPUV1oKCx9SYZkGFsE6jECzr8C_AcyzjyuTGD1eq57-ZC3JnTVVHQ/s1600/2013-09-22+10.27.34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-WbRyX0jUjDHD-rt0zll1RNolC_JpiUlFJyr06mhfYOqjOEM0iXuW2NPdCz2lOJFF3FaaaEBCN5wUJsKv2x9B_YRPUV1oKCx9SYZkGFsE6jECzr8C_AcyzjyuTGD1eq57-ZC3JnTVVHQ/s640/2013-09-22+10.27.34.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hey, American children. Can I take your picture?</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA3iyQsjVlhl5Hw3N4cuSqXlrhyQaYb3Utlbz6-KpXVwnxtxP5u2YrZPskVNpQjlbZAEC0o9hxeOvFybFNzxTYTssLZqhRpSHBqcJyzmV5Zjy7ScsI6mojAnIYTnfbpJILCBWkK05R7hK8/s1600/2013-09-22+10.28.18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA3iyQsjVlhl5Hw3N4cuSqXlrhyQaYb3Utlbz6-KpXVwnxtxP5u2YrZPskVNpQjlbZAEC0o9hxeOvFybFNzxTYTssLZqhRpSHBqcJyzmV5Zjy7ScsI6mojAnIYTnfbpJILCBWkK05R7hK8/s640/2013-09-22+10.28.18.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful mountains everywhere and all they want is a picture of us.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj794FONlOFff5wqX1kSbTRSXraGR9LCsnI_fFKQk6CheWAqw9jTrfoGtOzYoT1lEztO38CFoUE-9TQm9zCjNNsZfpUROfJHREiMmD2-uuLatZfipE_KbV-0DZ4DbKHRpQ4o7EJnhT89q19/s1600/2013-09-22+10.37.40.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj794FONlOFff5wqX1kSbTRSXraGR9LCsnI_fFKQk6CheWAqw9jTrfoGtOzYoT1lEztO38CFoUE-9TQm9zCjNNsZfpUROfJHREiMmD2-uuLatZfipE_KbV-0DZ4DbKHRpQ4o7EJnhT89q19/s640/2013-09-22+10.37.40.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We really should start charging for this.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibDeGeBbzFH4t6C6boqChA-b9h9MK3fJ_yruuYVui3SoyEpl7a3fFH_0lLnk7ZKhyeuM5dTZsyOPQ9gW3ofNpNidL0CXKCh9CPIJCeVN3i8KRg_9jKKam8dlv6KSHAox3Pj6hqjr1w44qQ/s1600/2013-09-22+10.38.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibDeGeBbzFH4t6C6boqChA-b9h9MK3fJ_yruuYVui3SoyEpl7a3fFH_0lLnk7ZKhyeuM5dTZsyOPQ9gW3ofNpNidL0CXKCh9CPIJCeVN3i8KRg_9jKKam8dlv6KSHAox3Pj6hqjr1w44qQ/s640/2013-09-22+10.38.35.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Katie was super sick the last day and she just chose to ignore all the attention. I don't blame her.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8gWU9d-2CB4OJc_fI-u9vgGGeCcJlLKk0cbuRRgkwh607Woit6JRQHcLOXc3N7SvWB3fjUjWh-iXhnd9ZwGlhOGk7X6L46i_mYta0Ima1RFyvrm3PcI6dlYsoRaeIh2-MMHIhTdUOpKdM/s1600/2013-09-22+10.50.16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8gWU9d-2CB4OJc_fI-u9vgGGeCcJlLKk0cbuRRgkwh607Woit6JRQHcLOXc3N7SvWB3fjUjWh-iXhnd9ZwGlhOGk7X6L46i_mYta0Ima1RFyvrm3PcI6dlYsoRaeIh2-MMHIhTdUOpKdM/s640/2013-09-22+10.50.16.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I wish I could say Stacie took this romantic picture, but it was me. I thought it was cool they came all the way into the park to take these lovely pictures. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk9IExQtqPEUsGtMtVq0kvZs1FMi7smXtETo43RO6WKVhThsGPux-_NRnGAUM_ltU9jdg_CevlAzR3CoPVRUfCp-rIZ2PzlMXzYlN1-Dpwco9b5F8Z3wndXGDU6-2J_OXJZibDE4ujp7FS/s1600/2013-09-22+10.59.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk9IExQtqPEUsGtMtVq0kvZs1FMi7smXtETo43RO6WKVhThsGPux-_NRnGAUM_ltU9jdg_CevlAzR3CoPVRUfCp-rIZ2PzlMXzYlN1-Dpwco9b5F8Z3wndXGDU6-2J_OXJZibDE4ujp7FS/s640/2013-09-22+10.59.46.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Let me guess, picture time? This lady actually wanted Lucy's picture. Lucy doesn't like to take pictures or talk to Chinese people. She has successfully avoided it so far and honestly we don't make her do it. Some people just smile and walk away when we tell them she is shy. But, this woman was a little more pushy. On a side note, that guy in the background is wearing a hat that says, "Daddy don't play" or something like that. I also saw a shirt that says "Bananas help with cramps." Not sure where they are getting these clothes. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcVgliwhZh9MNRisJ3GWZdWdLJhm1_6iJD7cwpgjrFZM6T0dhqeIyeb7EFbj7HuFSO6_pCdiexgNGJMGMYE2mWplB8BmG-KeEAa0fEtsnX1IVDVeFgHaNMaFEjJm7vHeRuIj-8_IbfN8X0/s1600/2013-09-22+11.04.37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcVgliwhZh9MNRisJ3GWZdWdLJhm1_6iJD7cwpgjrFZM6T0dhqeIyeb7EFbj7HuFSO6_pCdiexgNGJMGMYE2mWplB8BmG-KeEAa0fEtsnX1IVDVeFgHaNMaFEjJm7vHeRuIj-8_IbfN8X0/s640/2013-09-22+11.04.37.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our friend and guide, Sophia, with Nicol and Annie. She is a very sweet girl.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzZqbITkmoePH2a5TYNkEUf0R1hy8GhCBxutz2iEjyug5OMVUYflbgKgtpYdLY_K_QwsylLgfBQ56OWDMsHO6GA22hQjbOFPMoTWHkpkkEcOA85dw-QZJmf0g1-pXSm_wmy8DFlN-MTOg9/s1600/2013-09-22+11.11.28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzZqbITkmoePH2a5TYNkEUf0R1hy8GhCBxutz2iEjyug5OMVUYflbgKgtpYdLY_K_QwsylLgfBQ56OWDMsHO6GA22hQjbOFPMoTWHkpkkEcOA85dw-QZJmf0g1-pXSm_wmy8DFlN-MTOg9/s640/2013-09-22+11.11.28.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Say cheese! Well, in China they say, "Chee eh zi," which is the word for eggplant. Anything to make the picture taker say the "ch" sound I guess.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNtB93F3lTEI9ZShf9tJy7W5KwiOLJdTkN4yjMGSn7r7tD_eVptKAEIFqS6BZZ5mabcbIQzG3WMXaywSaRDwvAPIv13PTCUfuFQOuMFAUeizTCW0tyTs6V-jXRr06gGuAwscNZX2x8-EV-/s1600/2013-09-22+11.59.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNtB93F3lTEI9ZShf9tJy7W5KwiOLJdTkN4yjMGSn7r7tD_eVptKAEIFqS6BZZ5mabcbIQzG3WMXaywSaRDwvAPIv13PTCUfuFQOuMFAUeizTCW0tyTs6V-jXRr06gGuAwscNZX2x8-EV-/s640/2013-09-22+11.59.42.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicol and Ezra were nervous about eating these fried fish whole, but they ended up being their favorite food on the trip.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvNP4Gqd4DGFoh8BR3Kxd0bNw5jOGJWXHARAIphXUyYTMCjKPZcQj_rCHY-RRB6r_4nzSqo-aKHAKzA8AF1SbhvaNQEVdH2Y_Zlq6idaaKIAySvR3YoJqJfiP0nPjy5L2oxrmXALsWNJE/s1600/photo-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvNP4Gqd4DGFoh8BR3Kxd0bNw5jOGJWXHARAIphXUyYTMCjKPZcQj_rCHY-RRB6r_4nzSqo-aKHAKzA8AF1SbhvaNQEVdH2Y_Zlq6idaaKIAySvR3YoJqJfiP0nPjy5L2oxrmXALsWNJE/s640/photo-1.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grandma Marene sent a care package with Junior Mints. If they weren't in a Junior Mints package, we would have not known what these were since they certainly didn't look like Junior Mints when they arrived.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwCjQsDI9eznu0JbTKhcxAOBC_CovIOTRr1mYAbP8n2YMP-21XvuYnGaFr4F83N8sca7oIURAsMrCOzcP-TzvyGbpXVyjPQPbCeRf3ZIdTlU2EyX0AvcR3LoB93W6E36C898qJZyDYzEEU/s1600/photo-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwCjQsDI9eznu0JbTKhcxAOBC_CovIOTRr1mYAbP8n2YMP-21XvuYnGaFr4F83N8sca7oIURAsMrCOzcP-TzvyGbpXVyjPQPbCeRf3ZIdTlU2EyX0AvcR3LoB93W6E36C898qJZyDYzEEU/s640/photo-3.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Doritos! Yes!!! We also got duct tape, oven pads, baking soda, baking powder, books, stickers, jerky, and crystal light packets. Thanks, Grandma! It will probably be the only care package we receive all year since this is clearly not a financially viable option. But, it certainly made our day!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuFajjnlsw0wevAiRb0Ec8hL2T4rEF_rVTPQkfO83ZEKqfjr4klGL-1XlFhjxD6NJnt5nmjfW_hVYofCTR4CjPOJ-n6fDLeXbC6k-KGuPcv7JFyCIt4wEygQIawLYc9sSpij4L32nQ4rCm/s1600/photo-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuFajjnlsw0wevAiRb0Ec8hL2T4rEF_rVTPQkfO83ZEKqfjr4klGL-1XlFhjxD6NJnt5nmjfW_hVYofCTR4CjPOJ-n6fDLeXbC6k-KGuPcv7JFyCIt4wEygQIawLYc9sSpij4L32nQ4rCm/s640/photo-4.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes, you read that correctly. It cost $77 to send an 11 pound package to China and it only took 13 days to get here. </td></tr>
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stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-11205441016229922112013-09-17T20:56:00.000-07:002013-09-17T22:56:33.357-07:00Sliding Down the Mountain and First Day with the Ph.D. StudentsIt has been difficult to keep up with the blog because we went from doing nothing except adjusting to just being in China to actually having to work in China. Both Stacie and I are very busy all of a sudden preparing our classes and trying to keep Lucy happy. I believe that latter job is much harder than our teaching. We can tell that Lucy doesn't like being in China. She hates the attention from the Chinese people, she hates the food, and she probably hates us for bringing her here. But, does she tell us that in a rational manner so that we can all talk it out and figure out what we can do to help her transition? No, she's only 4. She communicates her frustration by refusing to eat anything except rice and oatmeal and by fighting with her sister all day. It's become a pattern that we can expect on a daily basis. She does have some nice moments during the day, but it's usually right after we have given her whatever she wants. Believe me, we are trying to be good parents, but the chapter in the parenting manual on helping your 4 year old adjust to life in a foreign country where everyone wants to touch your hair and take your picture doesn't seem to exist. Side note, they even want to touch my hair and I don't have any. You just have to get used to some extra uncomfortable touching here. The other day, we were at our favorite restaurant and Liu Jie (one of our favorite people here and a wonderfully sweet person) started rubbing my head and then my back. I looked over at Stacie with that deer in the headlights look, but she just said "oh, she's just being friendly." Even so, I don't think I have permission yet to visit the "friendly" massage parlors.<br />
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The kids' Grandma Brenda asked over the phone the other day what everyone liked the most about China. I gave them time to think about it and here are their replies:<br />
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Me: Taking the family up Yuelu Mountain for the first time<br />
Stacie: New friends she has made here<br />
Annie: Anything with the little Chinese kids, particularly helping Stacie in the classroom.<br />
Nicolas: The slide at Yuelu Mountain<br />
Ezra: He can't decide. He likes so many things. I would guess he loves the snacks, though.<br />
Jeanie:Slide at Yuelu Mountain<br />
Lucy: Slide at Yuelu Mountain<br />
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Hmm. I guess the slide at Yuelu has been pretty popular with the kids so far. I supposed I better describe it a little. About two-thirds of the way up the mountain (about a 45 minute walk uphill for our family), there is a metallic chute that winds down to the base of the mountain. It costs 35 yuan per person (they even charge for the little ones), so it can be quite expensive. Just to give you some perspective on price, it cost me 500 yuan for one all expense paid ticket to Zhangjiajie for 3 days. The chute cost our whole family 235 yuan. So, we won't be doing it often, but it was a big hit. You sit on a sled-like car and you have a brake that you need to pull just a little when you go around corners. You could fly off the track if you don't use the brake. If you brake too much, though, the ride isn't quite as fun. You have to strike a balance between recklessness and caution to get the most out of the experience. I've posted a video below of Nicolas coming down the last part of the track. They are really excited to go back up there and use their own allowance for a whole week just to ride this thing for 2 minutes.<br />
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We are starting to get a little bored with the food because we are sometimes afraid to go into new restaurants that we haven't been in before and to try to make out the items on the menu. It's necessary that we expand the number of places that we feel comfortable frequenting, but it's easier said than done. Many times, we have walked by a restaurant that looks promising only to just keep going and end up somewhere we have been before. We have been to Liu Jie's restaurant every day this week for dinner. She has an extensive menu, but it still feels like we could be stretching ourselves more. Liu Jie is always so sweet and patient with us and the kids really like her food. It's also cheap too. We usually pay about 50 yuan for our whole family. This is about $8 in American money, but we are trying to live on about 100 yuan per day on food. Remember that we have about 1500 yuan per week for all of our expenses. So, 50 yuan is pretty good, but not quite as outrageous as $8 sounds to people back home in the U.S. Liu Jie photocopied her menu for us and Stacie and I have been gradually translating it over the last month. We now understand about 3/4 of the menu and have learned so many new characters related to food. In fact, Stacie and I went on a date to a new restaurant near our home just the other day. We walked in, Stacie grabbed the menu and said "Oh, here are the characters for chicken and noodles. We ordered and were very happy with what we got. So, we are making progress. <br />
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I had my first day of teaching on Monday. In many ways, it was wonderful. But, in many ways it was extremely frustrating. The students were generally very warm and receptive. They seemed to respond to my easy-going nature in the way that I hoped they would. They answered my questions when I asked and were very respectful. One of the activities I did on the first day was to have them fill out cards with their names in Chinese characters and Pinyin (the standard Romanized spelling for Chinese). The roll sheets the university gave me are all Chinese characters and I simply can't read them. So, they need to write their names in Pinyin (with the tone marks so I know how to pronounce them). That way, I know the name is Luo Hui instead of just a character. I also asked them on these cards to do a self assessment of how well they understand spoken English and how well they feel like they speak English. Some didn't fill this part out, so I guess that answers my question (0 out of 10 on the scale). The last thing I asked them to write was anything they wanted me to know before the semester begins. Some said things like, "I'm really looking forward to improving my English" or "I can tell this is going to be a fun class." Others wrote, "I can't understand a word you are saying." Sigh. When the students would hand me their name cards, they would do it in a very traditional nonverbal style by bowing their heads slightly (Japanese do full bow, but Chinese just a slight nod) and then handing me their name cards with two hands (they do the same thing with business cards). I discussed aspects of the syllabus and then did my own small assessment of their English. I'm sure the structure of my class is probably different from what they are used to, but I have the freedom to do what I want and that level of autonomy is always dangerous with someone like me. The only people I know who are probably crazier than me are my colleagues in the English department at SUU.<br />
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One aspect of the first day that really threw me off was that I had 55-60 PhD students in each of my three classes. I was told that there would be 35 in each class. I'm due to pick up 4 more classes of freshmen in 3 weeks and those classes are also supposed to be 35 students each. With 7 total classes and potentially 50 kids in each class, this should get pretty interesting. I have to be out of my mind trying to remember all of these kids' names. But, I'm going to give it a shot. Stacie had a great suggestion to have them all write their names on the chalkboard and then take their picture with them standing next to the name. So, I have pictures of all my students already and am starting the process of trying to memorize the names. One girl wrote me an email after class, though, and said that my decision to have them take their pictures made her feel like a prisoner and that I could have just as easily given them the assignment to take their own pictures and email them to me. Ha. I wasn't counting on my students who couldn't understand a word I was saying to get this done on their own. I was taking matters into my own hands. This same girl also told me that I once referred to their English names as "American" names. Oops. I guess my ethnocentric tendencies are starting to emerge already. However, in my defense, some names strike me as more "English," such as Richard or George. But, if you name yourself Steve, I feel like I have every right to call it an American name. One kid's name was B-Z. He said, "I like it because it sounds like I'm really "busy." This very same girl also was upset that I said I would provide them the materials they needed and that they wouldn't need to buy a textbook. She said that I didn't need to say that. She said, "Teachers providing material to the students just goes without saying." It's interesting that she used that expression. I was thinking she could say a whole lot less to me in the future and we'll get along swimmingly. Other things were difficult as well. One is the fact that my classes were in a big lecture hall and many students sat in the back. Then they squinted at my powerpoint because that couldn't see it very well. There was also no air conditioning and I probably looked like that really sweaty American with the hairy arms. <br />
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The bright spot of the day was right after the second class. It ended at 11:40 a.m. and my next class didn't begin until 2:30 that afternoon. A student came up to me and said: "It would be our great privilege if you would joint me and some of my friends for lunch today." I told him I would be honored. He smiled and I watched him walk back to his desk and then give his classmate a high five. It was kind of an amusing moment that they were so excited that I accepted their invitation. They took me to a restaurant and we all lined up around a big table. There were 8 of us I think. They pointed to a chair and suggested I sit down. Once I sat, they all sat down around me. The two kids that extended the invitation sat to my left and right. I think this was a formality rather than a coincidence. The dishes were all about 60 yuan each and they ordered about 12 dishes. I generally eat for about 7-9 yuan per dish, so this was very nice. We had a wonderful conversation and they were very kind people. They offered to help me with anything I might need during the semester, particularly with questions about China or the university. I offered to pay even though I didn't have nearly enough money in my wallet to cover it. I knew they wouldn't let pay anyway, but I suppose it was a risk acting like a big shot when you don't have any money. <br />
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When the whole day was over, I was completely spent and my feet were throbbing. I had spent 4 1/2 hours on my feet teaching, then I had an hour and half meeting with Martin Tang (Directing of International Office), and then spent 2 more hours at the English corner conversing with Chinese students wanting to practice their English. For now, though, I only teach on this one day. After October 9th, it will be long days on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, plus research and American Studies Center responsibilities. It's starting to get very busy.<br />
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In terms of how Stacie and I are doing emotionally, we have our struggles. I don't feel like we should just put the good moments in the blog and not describe the hard times. We have been here almost a month and the honeymoon period is certainly over. We both want to come home at times, but other times are so grateful to have this opportunity. Our language skills are still very poor after a month, but we are doing the best we can. Stacie and I went to the mall the other day to try to find her a new shirt or some pants. Shopping is always stressful because the workers try to talk to us and ask us questions about what we are looking for (makes sense, of course). One time, Stacie was looking at a shirt and I told her "You're looking too long. They are going to come over here and talk to you." We had a good laugh over that. It was like a covert mission to look at a shirt without attracting too much attention. Most of the time, we just pass people on the street and they say things to us and we respond with simple expressions.<br />
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I did have an interesting experience the other day when Jay and Katie Sorensen came over to the apartment with their daughter Eva. We had a nice visit and then the kids' friend Joey came over to teach them some Chinese. Usually, Joey's mom Lily (Stacie's new friend) would come over, but she was busy and sent her in-laws with Joey. Well, these in-laws spoke zero English. Her mother-in-law sat at our kitchen table across from Stacie and her father-in-law sat on the couch next to Jay. Jay and I both looked at each other with an expression of "Uh oh, we are all SITTING down and will have to try to converse." Jay started to say, "We better get going" and I basically sent him an evil glare that said, "You are gonna sit there for at least a few minutes and not leave me alone here." So, Jay and I started to quickly use up whatever Chinese we knew. Lily's parents were incredibly nice and we were able to communicate with them that we were happy to meet them and make basic introductions. We always worry that we will come off as rude simply for not understanding, but a smile, a shrug, and a hello seem to go a long way.<br />
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Anyway, it's such a roller coaster being here. We leave for Zhangjiajie National Park tomorrow and will be gone for 3 solid days. We will be completely off the grid, but don't worry about us. We will update you on everything about this trip when we return. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipzZ-JVwVOMRRPqVn9hXzdXKY_atWQyVY24EQa4ZooeTyeU9s0SANw7SFkf2mVfwTVm21VLbZJQoHqDkXp5CVdnic5oa9BBhfScOohJgZakXG0H26oSLu28PTOJIbG_F3aEstYU9Gsei-p/s1600/2013-09-13+13.58.12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipzZ-JVwVOMRRPqVn9hXzdXKY_atWQyVY24EQa4ZooeTyeU9s0SANw7SFkf2mVfwTVm21VLbZJQoHqDkXp5CVdnic5oa9BBhfScOohJgZakXG0H26oSLu28PTOJIbG_F3aEstYU9Gsei-p/s640/2013-09-13+13.58.12.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie loves the trees and flowers in China. She is always stopping to take a picture of plants so that she can go home and look them up on the internet.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpUjchV8H2lBxMT7RxKK7sW1ZOsC4yaujgBJSos7UZT3xpY079FEVx7n-tS-XCCSkKYlR9BqiI9IE-AN0g2pBx7EsrPa_a-I-E6V1F-jLnelLdfni00Re_X8cWCL6gM79Keadvl55wpbMb/s1600/2013-09-13+14.46.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpUjchV8H2lBxMT7RxKK7sW1ZOsC4yaujgBJSos7UZT3xpY079FEVx7n-tS-XCCSkKYlR9BqiI9IE-AN0g2pBx7EsrPa_a-I-E6V1F-jLnelLdfni00Re_X8cWCL6gM79Keadvl55wpbMb/s640/2013-09-13+14.46.53.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This week is the mid-Autumn festival in China. It's a really big deal and Lily and Amy both gave us big boxes of moon cakes to celebrate the festivities. I think Stacie will write about the holiday in her blog, but she and the kids are reading about the holiday on the internet before we taste the cakes.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIoiCIAQ2hHOe0GXrT0kh1QKZ3170lgpXLfUm4XA5tW9OKBlA7uqx3oiTSsM2q5wKkwkNnlWnNECh1rUN9zgy488tOhgxeGPXbwFNJNerJ97cWMg6Z7DDbVS22e_6lgOFYhwvPDUvgrZBE/s1600/2013-09-13+14.48.30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIoiCIAQ2hHOe0GXrT0kh1QKZ3170lgpXLfUm4XA5tW9OKBlA7uqx3oiTSsM2q5wKkwkNnlWnNECh1rUN9zgy488tOhgxeGPXbwFNJNerJ97cWMg6Z7DDbVS22e_6lgOFYhwvPDUvgrZBE/s640/2013-09-13+14.48.30.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The cakes come individually boxed and the whole package is very ornate.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrjbcB1KuD0BbL2q8TQtTYSV4mlYAeePIEE6G4smKKeEQSRpyjZBr0_XJLaqtN-O4xWZiEtR_R0asPwWiyAsGddUrnzjgozvh21NpaWqKUKrSrN-E1LfHuOE2sFpUBw7Q3X2e3h3uEAyHI/s1600/2013-09-13+14.51.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrjbcB1KuD0BbL2q8TQtTYSV4mlYAeePIEE6G4smKKeEQSRpyjZBr0_XJLaqtN-O4xWZiEtR_R0asPwWiyAsGddUrnzjgozvh21NpaWqKUKrSrN-E1LfHuOE2sFpUBw7Q3X2e3h3uEAyHI/s640/2013-09-13+14.51.07.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is one of the moon cakes. Some of them were delicious and some were not very good. It was kind of a variety pack, so it was luck of the draw.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitkt55wm7065B4WKEHBEuRa9RU_F4TBw82-TxpaSZiTfBbLPLOOnpigcTNXaUIC4VyNU7tzvnNl9mm0SwBi8rFUXMLEj1SvNPBamKWzGDEZK0aTG2oIy-yCDKUHmZk3MXGYjaPhTLpb5IO/s1600/2013-09-14+10.16.55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitkt55wm7065B4WKEHBEuRa9RU_F4TBw82-TxpaSZiTfBbLPLOOnpigcTNXaUIC4VyNU7tzvnNl9mm0SwBi8rFUXMLEj1SvNPBamKWzGDEZK0aTG2oIy-yCDKUHmZk3MXGYjaPhTLpb5IO/s640/2013-09-14+10.16.55.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready for football and basketball seasons even in China. I may have to set my alarm and get up at 4 a.m. to watch the games.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh80UNkgGtDdi_BNJvF693Kb1NoGJRYTtMxozJHu_zyOH1xkDa8nCT15ZCN_DfF8Fy11h8w_qkNBYFZBfu50JCdkxlG9NHz_GUWYP5j6N1Q63H8hKu1iMLu8lVAJA8dLcX7GjCxahoPTvc1/s1600/2013-09-14+14.52.51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh80UNkgGtDdi_BNJvF693Kb1NoGJRYTtMxozJHu_zyOH1xkDa8nCT15ZCN_DfF8Fy11h8w_qkNBYFZBfu50JCdkxlG9NHz_GUWYP5j6N1Q63H8hKu1iMLu8lVAJA8dLcX7GjCxahoPTvc1/s640/2013-09-14+14.52.51.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy's favorite thing so far. It's not easy to make her happy, but this did the trick.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Her happiness was fleeting as she cried after it was over because she only got to go once and it was too short.</td></tr>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwG_A_1TEajz7jhwk7CoV_xKV3rCQnbSqQmSTdFPzjdstAbs6Kci_9oGL8Z8egxnygb841H6N1nDLWRgxE6pA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDDYRNFeoMEZKA0ofzizk4MNJFseybk2pN_hWPqQvhGmMBcu0qgWbdMn2jZTvlP6nSbSDI57hzXUHboUjPbvJVBl1H4IPL6wgdA5wG3mWXzJaprjkogm4vRhgyF9a9zFMqLPMrLE2LWKSK/s1600/2013-09-15+09.02.39.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDDYRNFeoMEZKA0ofzizk4MNJFseybk2pN_hWPqQvhGmMBcu0qgWbdMn2jZTvlP6nSbSDI57hzXUHboUjPbvJVBl1H4IPL6wgdA5wG3mWXzJaprjkogm4vRhgyF9a9zFMqLPMrLE2LWKSK/s640/2013-09-15+09.02.39.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I haven't looked up what the characters mean yet, but it kind of scares me. It's our neighbor's car. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJGWglN2k8jSpIzdnkXCDiBvdYpikn-MGJUVb1xWq0XCjCUJnIIrtinb56Z9gPRyF5da1dyt2x8FIciN37pIEOeksi310pF0Td4RXwj8v_t-F-4ZE8-nX-b-tdIgLaQVgQZ8tY50SbmF5/s1600/2013-09-15+14.39.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJGWglN2k8jSpIzdnkXCDiBvdYpikn-MGJUVb1xWq0XCjCUJnIIrtinb56Z9gPRyF5da1dyt2x8FIciN37pIEOeksi310pF0Td4RXwj8v_t-F-4ZE8-nX-b-tdIgLaQVgQZ8tY50SbmF5/s320/2013-09-15+14.39.46.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We bought this at the bakery. It sort of tastes like a pizza, but not really. The boys liked it, but I thought it was just ok.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGBgRikCI4P2VUSWSebdTDg_xxS1blKoLYWy0fwExjLYLZbHJyYbhBIzmrMn-oE6gT4590-N-n83RqP3U6hk2LpFS82uHyJUm67mLaY1d2b-Uh28FHjlmDqe9WkUWbEdQcLwLYApaWTD3L/s1600/2013-09-15+16.36.48.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGBgRikCI4P2VUSWSebdTDg_xxS1blKoLYWy0fwExjLYLZbHJyYbhBIzmrMn-oE6gT4590-N-n83RqP3U6hk2LpFS82uHyJUm67mLaY1d2b-Uh28FHjlmDqe9WkUWbEdQcLwLYApaWTD3L/s640/2013-09-15+16.36.48.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We found a giant book store down town. It was at least the size of a very large Barnes and Noble here and they had many books with Chinese characters on the front, but English printed inside.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs-sTViWWBJSyTUp0aV3ACx70kIOfoZBnJMtZdI3r1fSWWQ0V4KQhmAonaYxzeToA9v1MYtCd2ePDiuH1PBl9mDzeniXZttFSDvs8sB6fgce7iCrRDzEPfxjq5c2jMfIj3YgOCA8WrJ6OH/s1600/2013-09-17+12.51.15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs-sTViWWBJSyTUp0aV3ACx70kIOfoZBnJMtZdI3r1fSWWQ0V4KQhmAonaYxzeToA9v1MYtCd2ePDiuH1PBl9mDzeniXZttFSDvs8sB6fgce7iCrRDzEPfxjq5c2jMfIj3YgOCA8WrJ6OH/s640/2013-09-17+12.51.15.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the students who took me to lunch on Day 1 of class. The dishes come out gradually, so I never really knew how many were coming. It ended up being 12 I think. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFwCr3DPknrqx05OLQSPize2VCL-zGShrK7DjOO5kDGurFpadDjZWyh8W2vbUIYIhtvJiQ3jFtCovs7qGAFblGYxpG5VJc8fSIXGpiUkDsTXMQ8KIzwJmwfqBsbTMTeQLYSwv69Vpm7wO6/s1600/2013-09-18+07.07.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFwCr3DPknrqx05OLQSPize2VCL-zGShrK7DjOO5kDGurFpadDjZWyh8W2vbUIYIhtvJiQ3jFtCovs7qGAFblGYxpG5VJc8fSIXGpiUkDsTXMQ8KIzwJmwfqBsbTMTeQLYSwv69Vpm7wO6/s640/2013-09-18+07.07.49.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These guys from class invited me to play tennis at 7 a.m. It's a little early for me, but I needed to burn off some stress. The guy in the orange (American...er...English name is Alexander) was pretty good. The others were not so good.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKGav_h3yAGgWQiX1o5b8yHtMIYwSLBC8zfkykoPYYMxzmokq_anpEdW0Dme6EtSmwTq0ryV4AGowXvQzz48eXmB9iXxy9IrB0_eSPHfQF707h79fUcc1RAzm2vTAyuNWp3pffLUotFeQ/s1600/2013-09-18+07.07.54.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKGav_h3yAGgWQiX1o5b8yHtMIYwSLBC8zfkykoPYYMxzmokq_anpEdW0Dme6EtSmwTq0ryV4AGowXvQzz48eXmB9iXxy9IrB0_eSPHfQF707h79fUcc1RAzm2vTAyuNWp3pffLUotFeQ/s640/2013-09-18+07.07.54.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We practiced for about 50 minutes and then played for about 20. I would rather have just played the whole time. Americans are so competitive.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsTT1EFKYbvTVOqmQ1K2EnE0DFUc1XoLkxakt8T2-MATWKiQQbnJiYKtIn-tU_MmM0T2c2pVR3WVGm6P4GBVi1tGvYg0P0DOrDieaOl69tEBKlRvnEK9705kZy3pXj4KCk8kQZDGZ0WoT/s1600/2013-09-18+08.06.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsTT1EFKYbvTVOqmQ1K2EnE0DFUc1XoLkxakt8T2-MATWKiQQbnJiYKtIn-tU_MmM0T2c2pVR3WVGm6P4GBVi1tGvYg0P0DOrDieaOl69tEBKlRvnEK9705kZy3pXj4KCk8kQZDGZ0WoT/s640/2013-09-18+08.06.57.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm pretty sure I'm not allowed to take this picture since it involves the Chinese military, but this is a training exercise for the freshmen class. I'm glad they are doing this because it means more time off for me from teaching them.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPzckhXH5Lt88OCEH1TFiIUnelB6iymm9ibo7Xg0luriQldlK1ihgTnIel9QVhKjRo8xnAXkCdSKuZGx9LywArT4x_5bMFRGYHz2Ar7oVZ83cx1yMBV0q7VYH5slvh-p692x_nh6WHbIn3/s1600/2013-09-18+11.29.15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPzckhXH5Lt88OCEH1TFiIUnelB6iymm9ibo7Xg0luriQldlK1ihgTnIel9QVhKjRo8xnAXkCdSKuZGx9LywArT4x_5bMFRGYHz2Ar7oVZ83cx1yMBV0q7VYH5slvh-p692x_nh6WHbIn3/s640/2013-09-18+11.29.15.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We always have the kids buy their own stuff. They have plenty of opportunities to use the Chinese they are learning. This guy's shirt says "Uniquely in us, nature opens her eyes and sees that she exists." Um...ok.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7CUko9sOah-snU3cSXpmDBg1eozqzPMzU-ERh_Fv0iAn7FL5JrBaaW_ym8dqz9ffc2LD2h9JHhteYiN64mwstcok_SqofiNWTC6HRsDi_96ESBXDitcv9e3ntjBzY5Tb1a7XNjBJRh5N/s1600/2013-09-18+12.37.28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7CUko9sOah-snU3cSXpmDBg1eozqzPMzU-ERh_Fv0iAn7FL5JrBaaW_ym8dqz9ffc2LD2h9JHhteYiN64mwstcok_SqofiNWTC6HRsDi_96ESBXDitcv9e3ntjBzY5Tb1a7XNjBJRh5N/s320/2013-09-18+12.37.28.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Good stuff. This is true Chinese style right here. Not rude at all.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUCeLS40SvMmqUh2d3f1_eFQWwJSmvFd9H1mFI2beGUbCKtYy2wPz4c-GWdeDf_ChYzYybf28NDZwz4ZcVJwpB7SKZ7Ik-Lfn4Ra8tpHD06Kr_OovyG2_ldMT37csxdRTAZnfMPcPZSOCn/s1600/2013-09-18+12.46.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUCeLS40SvMmqUh2d3f1_eFQWwJSmvFd9H1mFI2beGUbCKtYy2wPz4c-GWdeDf_ChYzYybf28NDZwz4ZcVJwpB7SKZ7Ik-Lfn4Ra8tpHD06Kr_OovyG2_ldMT37csxdRTAZnfMPcPZSOCn/s640/2013-09-18+12.46.57.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We laughed that this bowl was bigger than Stacie's head. And, they don't give you a spoon. You eat with chopsticks and then polish it off the way she is doing it here.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaHor92uNb_aql45_ApeUtCGJEnsdbU6wO4yss86aKm0p8-qMRX1rM1oherO0QPc6xXUg85ZZMLOnldgEMOeygX4mHuECTRQe1VU5tFdAU-eOmGeoW4aXe0aY0PYhs7vnx-X7ZbIH8h4xS/s1600/2013-09-18+21.42.20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaHor92uNb_aql45_ApeUtCGJEnsdbU6wO4yss86aKm0p8-qMRX1rM1oherO0QPc6xXUg85ZZMLOnldgEMOeygX4mHuECTRQe1VU5tFdAU-eOmGeoW4aXe0aY0PYhs7vnx-X7ZbIH8h4xS/s640/2013-09-18+21.42.20.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When we bought these, we thought they were lifesavers the way they were packaged. They were small discs of fruit leather. Weird.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Class number two completing the grammar and pronunciation assessment I gave them.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The view from my classroom. Wow!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is an older picture, but I just found it and it's one of my favorite. We just flew into China the day before and the kids couldn't keep their eyes open during the day. This was at about 6 p.m. the second day. Lucy is out cold in her mom's arms and Jeanie found a good spot to doze off too.</td></tr>
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<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-2715986506722090142013-09-11T07:18:00.004-07:002013-09-12T00:49:54.742-07:00Fireworks, Park, and National Teachers' DayMy blog frequency took a serious hit once I found out my teaching schedule. I begin this coming Monday and could do very little prep before I had my schedule because the Chinese are notorious for changing things up at the last minute. Last summer, I was told how many classes I would teach each week and began to prepare a bunch of material for those classes. Then, when I arrived in China, it was totally different. I felt like I had wasted quite a bit of time in planning out the class and so this time, I was committed to the idea of doing almost nothing until I felt like my class details were firmly nailed down. Teaching Spoken English is quite a bit different from my usual communication classes, but I plan to integrate some components of my SUU classes, such as critical thinking and public speaking into the class. I brought some of this material with me (the ones I forgot were scanned for me by Tammi Miller--thanks, Tammi, and so I have them). The oral English component will be taught out of a few different textbooks I brought with me. However, I hadn't structured the class or decided which topics to do week by week until just a few days ago. I work well under pressure, so everything will be just fine.<br />
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The biggest adjustment to teaching in China is that nobody thinks I'm funny here. Wait, maybe there isn't much difference between HNU and SUU. The students also are not used to an interactive environment. They simply want to take notes, memorize the material, pass the final exam, and get their degree. I suppose they aren't much different than American students in believing that a degree is the ultimate payoff for an education rather than to simply "be educated." Anyway, last summer was difficult for the first couple days of class, but I noticed over time that they became more comfortable with me and would open up. I WILL break them down eventually. They can only resist my charm for so long, at least that's what I'm telling myself to get psyched up. I went to this spot on campus called the English Corner where every Monday and Thursday from 7 p.m. until about 9 or 10 p.m. students go to practice their English. It was quite fun to go and engage these dedicated students who are there after all the time spent at work and school just to practice conversing in English. I asked one kid about the learning style of Chinese students and he said, "We prefer to be bored." I pushed him a little for clarification and he elaborated by saying, "We are so used to the teachers just lecturing and having us take notes that we don't know any other way. We accept it." I said, "Well, I plan to meet my students in the middle. I'll give them a little of what they are used to, but they are going to have to stretch themselves quite a bit to adapt to my style." He looked at me, smiled, and said, "Good luck." I'm really excited about starting and will update you with pictures from class next week. Yes, I plan to wear my teacher hat and my tourist hat at the same time and snap a few pictures of the class environment.<br />
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I wasn't aware of this before, but Tuesday was National Teachers' Day in China. Apparently, it is quite a big deal here and students will often go visit their elementary (called Primary here) and high schools to give gifts to their former teachers. I think I blogged a few days ago about being asked to take some pictures teaching for the Hunan Normal University website. On Tuesday, Amy called me in for a meeting and gave me a gift of a framed picture of myself teaching and a card with pictures of all of the most famous teachers in China (along with me). Of course I felt a little out of place in this collage of famous teachers, but it was a nice honor and a really flattering gift. I thanked her for the nice gift and she asked if we honor our teachers in America. I didn't really respond verbally, but I think my chuckle communicated the answer loud and clear. They also made me business cards with the HNU logo and my Chinese contact information. Today, Lily came over and told me I was on the web and showed me which links to click, so I could find it. I'll post a screenshot I took of the website below. <br />
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I'm not sure if Stacie blogged about this yet, but we finally got to see the weekly Changsha fireworks. Apparently, Changsha (and also the Hunan Province in general) is the fireworks capital of the world. I remember watching the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony and thinking how spectacular was the display of fireworks. I was recently told that all those fireworks came from the Hunan province and some from Changsha. So, it's a big deal here. I wondered why so many thousands of Chinese people would go to these firework shows every single Saturday and not get bored with them, but I discovered that each week has a different theme. I'm not sure what the theme was from last week, but there were some remarkable things I had not seen before, such as fireworks exploding into different shapes (such as hearts) and different visuals overall than I have never seen at the Utah Summer games or 4th of July firework celebrations. We walked down to the river, which is really only about 100 yards from our front door and found a spot on this little bridge extending over the water about 150 feet. As crowded as it was, it was really nice to find such a quiet spot to ourselves. I've posted a video below of Jeanie in absolute euphoria over these fireworks. It cracks me up every time I watch it! She kept saying "Boom," "Woohoo" and "Pink!!!" <br />
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We also went to the most beautiful park with four other Chinese families. I know this is going to sound strange, but they were all just really wonderful normal people. I'm not saying I expected the Chinese to not have good families, but it just reminded me that people are people anywhere in the world and the Chinese are not that much different than we are. They love to take their kids to the park, play frisbee (Chinese word here translates to "flying plate"), ride bikes, fish in the pond, go on leisurely walks, and eat snacks. That about sums up our family too, so we are fitting in well. Lily told us today that the other families really enjoyed spending that time with us and want to plan a variety of other activities. Stacie wrote a good deal about our park experience, so I won't go into too much detail. I should add that the poor shrimp that Lucy brought home as a pet has died. We planned to release it into Taozi lake the day it died, but we never made it. We put that poor shrimp to rest the old fashioned way (Hint--flush). Surprisingly, Lucy seemed ok with her shrimp being gone, so we didn't make too big a deal out of it.<br />
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Lily told us the next family outing might be to visit a traditional Chinese farm to see how it operates and to buy some "organic" food. We are so hungry (no pun intended--really because it's so stupid) for any experiences that we can have here that we would not pass up an opportunity to go anywhere and do anything. In fact, next weekend is the mid-Autumn festival and all the students are out of school. Today, I booked a tour for our family (with our friend Sophia) to go to Zhangjiajie for three days. I blogged about my trip there last summer, so most of you know what this park looks like. The tour includes the bus, the food, and the hotel. In addition to going up the world's largest outdoor elevator, we also will get to see this spot nicknamed "Heaven's Gate." It's a big hole in the mountain that let's a huge stream of light through (hence the name). We are all set and leave next Thursday in the early morning. Everyone is so excited! Surprisingly, it was only 3300 yuan for all eight of us ($540). It will probably be our one big trip this semester and then we'll have to wait until the winter break to hit Beijing and see the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, and the Summer Palace. I'm not sure because of my teaching schedule if we will be able to do much besides Zhangjiajie and Beijing. We will also have a short trip during the semester to Shaoshan, which is the birthplace of Mao Zedong. <br />
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Anyway, we are doing well. Everyone is adjusting to life here in China. It's only been 3 weeks, but we are starting to feel like we might be able to do this. If we can't, it's a little too late to change our minds anyway. I have my angry moments where I get sick of people treating a face-to-face conversation like they are shouting to an auditorium of people, or people almost running over my toes when they drive by on their cars or scooters, or having Chinese food for lunch and dinner every day, but overall we are seeing a really wonderful culture up close and personal. Obviously, the language barriers prevent us from really learning about these people or their experiences in great depth, but we are working on that. We study hard every day as a family and have picked up quite a bit of vocabulary that's helped us on the street. We still aren't quick enough to be able to understand it when it's spoken to us quickly and the characters are a whole different ball game (even though we are learning those too). It's nice when someone speaks English and we tend to gravitate toward them. I can now understand why the foreign students at SUU are hesitant to branch out and make friends outside of their cultural group. I definitely feel their pain. <br />
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One more quick story before I sign off. There's a scene in Karate Kid (the new and inferior one with Jackie Chan) where Jaden Smith tries to speak Chinese to this guy on the airplane to Beijing. The guy just looks at him and says, "Dude, I'm from Detroit" in a perfectly native American accent. Well, I was walking up the stairs to our second story apartment and saw this Chinese guy. I said "Ni Hao" (hello) in a very strong American trying to sound as Chinese as possible accent. He said, "Hey, man. Whassup?" Turns out he's from California and his parents are Chinese, so he's lived here since 2008. But, he was raised in the United States. Now, after embarrassing moments like those, I just say "Hello Ni Hao" to everyone. It's a little repetitive, but I don't feel like such an idiot. I can't tell you how many times, though, that I have said "Ni Hao" to a Chinese person and they responded with "hello" back. I also will sometimes try to speak Chinese with great difficulty and then I find that it's a word they actually know in English and I could have avoided the trouble of speaking Mandarin. The exchange would go something like this: "Women yao zhe ge cai chi" (We want this dish to go). They respond with "Oh, you mean to go." Keep in mind that it probably took me 30 seconds to spit out that one sentence. Nonverbally, they communicate to me: "Oh that's so precious. Look at that American guy trying to speak Chinese." I'm convinced that if you don't have a thick skin, you will NEVER learn a foreign language. They laugh at you, point at you, and smile when you make mistakes. They don't mean it in a hostile way. It's just sort of funny to them. Imagine a grown man saying in English: "I want food. This kind. Thank you." He might as well be saying "Mama" like one of those little baby dolls with the strings you could pull. Stacie also looks kind of nervous when I try to "represent" the family with my Chinese skills. I think I'm a little embarrassing to the family because I'm certainly not very good. But, I'm brave. I asked Annie why Stacie has that look on her face and she told me it's just kind of funny how nervous and unconfident I look when I'm speaking Chinese. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8b_WcU4F34hw9FulBPBUZUyA-Dy-A7YMV2sduxsvBAl8TkuJpRjtqOrzT4f-0GIlK7ZeXzAJSefvJoqXoP1_S34tXqnGewx-i5Smjxsou6aJNW3kLc5dAUBgx_TVPF6DCXrzU5i34gu65/s1600/2013-09-11+17.58.59+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8b_WcU4F34hw9FulBPBUZUyA-Dy-A7YMV2sduxsvBAl8TkuJpRjtqOrzT4f-0GIlK7ZeXzAJSefvJoqXoP1_S34tXqnGewx-i5Smjxsou6aJNW3kLc5dAUBgx_TVPF6DCXrzU5i34gu65/s640/2013-09-11+17.58.59+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I hunted all over for this thing. Finally found it at a an appliance center on our side of the river. It's a zip up wardrobe with a heating unit on the bottom to dry our clothes. Stacie said "Enough" after it once taking 5 days to dry a single load of laundry. We aren't sure exactly how long this one took, but it was more like an hour to an hour and half. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfEin8H-nE-mILNBsjg8WFPdUTMSXHqG_ZPWCv4dRE-NigCV6sDu65qLGCKbc8Pw8XNVoW1NoZtzHIVmY8nCmqvwQgll0j3emBQPceLLh7nrBjKDSk120AHmvkk-NIaV26HmKnoMwhs2V1/s1600/2013-09-11+19.24.25+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfEin8H-nE-mILNBsjg8WFPdUTMSXHqG_ZPWCv4dRE-NigCV6sDu65qLGCKbc8Pw8XNVoW1NoZtzHIVmY8nCmqvwQgll0j3emBQPceLLh7nrBjKDSk120AHmvkk-NIaV26HmKnoMwhs2V1/s640/2013-09-11+19.24.25+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra loves to try new treats. This ended up being barbecued chow mein noodles.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1upBLJS_60g9fjC79fB77em88mnMjtT8xvOKjL7YL3H5XC4wEYRUNpckBa57f7u9ICMTVSTcbugGqVk-RPpUKy7WYLL3OD8CMnRzXOyQUVDLcFJgr1zM6IZb8ILdMDaFYhQpO5AXXT64/s1600/2013-09-11+21.56.15+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1upBLJS_60g9fjC79fB77em88mnMjtT8xvOKjL7YL3H5XC4wEYRUNpckBa57f7u9ICMTVSTcbugGqVk-RPpUKy7WYLL3OD8CMnRzXOyQUVDLcFJgr1zM6IZb8ILdMDaFYhQpO5AXXT64/s640/2013-09-11+21.56.15+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is how I kept Stacie happy in Cedar and this is how it's done here. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCjjoN3lBWGXDSE_XBFR028T62tGEohAFHfPz_jzksVaulLTzDTF8usUEXeu0KLIMMaGfZl9KweWoMH8gdwkpl1VKrLPU0OpT2tNcalNUJ649P25Tsm0TNIQ8xyEgpJNXIHVCAdHIb_XGK/s1600/2013-09-11+21.58.45+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCjjoN3lBWGXDSE_XBFR028T62tGEohAFHfPz_jzksVaulLTzDTF8usUEXeu0KLIMMaGfZl9KweWoMH8gdwkpl1VKrLPU0OpT2tNcalNUJ649P25Tsm0TNIQ8xyEgpJNXIHVCAdHIb_XGK/s640/2013-09-11+21.58.45+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm on the wall of fame, baby!!!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT5l60aSBzmd783oA7FFdwxLWx6u6pkkNV1Ns1YSHdnB9-PEdKxizd-_d_vU5zs1-biP0BSxrhA_OoG0C-Mrs5JYm00fLiMFrp716R1Nc4wbiF_pEc5rjkXAZgEduppDsKgHeF2BUboh9s/s1600/2013-09-11+21.59.50+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT5l60aSBzmd783oA7FFdwxLWx6u6pkkNV1Ns1YSHdnB9-PEdKxizd-_d_vU5zs1-biP0BSxrhA_OoG0C-Mrs5JYm00fLiMFrp716R1Nc4wbiF_pEc5rjkXAZgEduppDsKgHeF2BUboh9s/s640/2013-09-11+21.59.50+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All the inspiration I need to be a great teacher. A textbook they gave me (in Chinese) and a picture of the person I admire most in the background. J/K</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOEJcc1AvPbZ4U1HrCRu9KRMXSSP6B3NLncZgcwae927nbfoXZh79548Bu3U8EUci-GNw6P5dEyXic1cU0Elk43nLUCck0hZJJFy1AV9WS8ufT8uQY101zdu21rP1xXIM25gEbm6q6g_uY/s1600/2013-09-11+11.00.26+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOEJcc1AvPbZ4U1HrCRu9KRMXSSP6B3NLncZgcwae927nbfoXZh79548Bu3U8EUci-GNw6P5dEyXic1cU0Elk43nLUCck0hZJJFy1AV9WS8ufT8uQY101zdu21rP1xXIM25gEbm6q6g_uY/s640/2013-09-11+11.00.26+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So this is what homeschool looks like? I think most people envision homeschool families churning butter and making their kids do household chores (well, they do that too).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih1Eo7KYx2V489DaSg9RBCAf2iRBUzbFxwdYTsHZV2BtJ192BRceAaihJRg1r9jElGc_PBaZm37qMrS6hazs7eLYTq8PgT5gYkTUjj1HoCLZalGdOGDJP0xLa7cP0TMbRHRM2IkxS0pMix/s1600/2013-09-10+19.26.14+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih1Eo7KYx2V489DaSg9RBCAf2iRBUzbFxwdYTsHZV2BtJ192BRceAaihJRg1r9jElGc_PBaZm37qMrS6hazs7eLYTq8PgT5gYkTUjj1HoCLZalGdOGDJP0xLa7cP0TMbRHRM2IkxS0pMix/s640/2013-09-10+19.26.14+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Do you think Jeanie likes this new dessert we found. Fried bananas drizzled in caramel.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKw4FOzTSL3szSWYwItS9euCUZN5VWFqjBsMnq8sGauWxDTuBaqPEMvh2CH-e4_fEWum3ZIjNYz_TWrTjdx6kOFfH7EmL8ESlPwMv32h8q8fMsCtM9sSSJ1K5-xk7O749YhzCtyYZo8inP/s1600/2013-09-09+17.14.34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKw4FOzTSL3szSWYwItS9euCUZN5VWFqjBsMnq8sGauWxDTuBaqPEMvh2CH-e4_fEWum3ZIjNYz_TWrTjdx6kOFfH7EmL8ESlPwMv32h8q8fMsCtM9sSSJ1K5-xk7O749YhzCtyYZo8inP/s640/2013-09-09+17.14.34.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">AKA "Shrimpy." Rest in peace, little guy.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYiuBjx8Z3OK_97cFOKgXkX_QPD2itBeTfAlaNpta-QKUNUUj1KO5eG8iW7CLdr7S514SSFplLDhwrcYPh1P2hbhXFu2A80YEruqrthxXoQTUD1H9MKcJivkpJXC9OyRe6dpix1wiqABwd/s1600/2013-09-09+17.07.18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYiuBjx8Z3OK_97cFOKgXkX_QPD2itBeTfAlaNpta-QKUNUUj1KO5eG8iW7CLdr7S514SSFplLDhwrcYPh1P2hbhXFu2A80YEruqrthxXoQTUD1H9MKcJivkpJXC9OyRe6dpix1wiqABwd/s640/2013-09-09+17.07.18.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No, Nicol! Don't do it!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiivcSYcbLunkSuwOQbLwyzL1qR4xUd83ziqM1cmu9W9i4DiV7hsI9q5rt6f_VfdNFes7-iBFsBAcnoa1NOD63FOS8xKKxknXWGGHofcHTkGLaKERV2atNSsdiv3a3jD9VGNl0mdtSUVEtc/s1600/2013-09-09+16.56.46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiivcSYcbLunkSuwOQbLwyzL1qR4xUd83ziqM1cmu9W9i4DiV7hsI9q5rt6f_VfdNFes7-iBFsBAcnoa1NOD63FOS8xKKxknXWGGHofcHTkGLaKERV2atNSsdiv3a3jD9VGNl0mdtSUVEtc/s640/2013-09-09+16.56.46.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the couples we went with to the park and a continuation of my quest to find the Asian Doppelgänger for everyone I know. That guy on the right reminds me of my colleague, Matt Barton.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGfnlZtZGGfwt3vZSI-kt07ej6OULqVsubGdCpJdKcxpgPE0RviIPpRrfaT5MKCPrZZUY3U5R-O-at1chnW6OdxvhfVXhSQ-u7GUbU3U5Mq7aUU3RX_SsCzmg4yfS2wDJopRL1EHNf_Zu7/s1600/2013-09-09+16.14.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGfnlZtZGGfwt3vZSI-kt07ej6OULqVsubGdCpJdKcxpgPE0RviIPpRrfaT5MKCPrZZUY3U5R-O-at1chnW6OdxvhfVXhSQ-u7GUbU3U5Mq7aUU3RX_SsCzmg4yfS2wDJopRL1EHNf_Zu7/s640/2013-09-09+16.14.50.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Watch out for the "flying plate."</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi75Qg9Gq9zoEPC3vHR2l2FhMoLWkxYA5nzl1cSeUix3CAXuzxujiLKaWaGEbxWTdqAzNmKK4-uCp7wc7b1j4HOVpZDBxyAZDc1VSmFFFwTLPBC6y6aKNOS67H07lY2BVuzWrkjKVRB_79P/s1600/2013-09-09+16.02.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi75Qg9Gq9zoEPC3vHR2l2FhMoLWkxYA5nzl1cSeUix3CAXuzxujiLKaWaGEbxWTdqAzNmKK4-uCp7wc7b1j4HOVpZDBxyAZDc1VSmFFFwTLPBC6y6aKNOS67H07lY2BVuzWrkjKVRB_79P/s640/2013-09-09+16.02.35.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Such a beautiful park. I like this picture because is shows everyone all lined up.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3vpRHn-3twPRBYATOItmFVUp_oMjvG4xnq_3dSXAbBP9oBfLIHq51QJepparS07aEIMwr76ot4F1pGhOFZSb1ysYQ7a1zLTEB_B2mZLobv1vSVQVLf81R_B2e6lhRkkBGCeUJQnFfG3zf/s1600/2013-09-09+15.56.21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3vpRHn-3twPRBYATOItmFVUp_oMjvG4xnq_3dSXAbBP9oBfLIHq51QJepparS07aEIMwr76ot4F1pGhOFZSb1ysYQ7a1zLTEB_B2mZLobv1vSVQVLf81R_B2e6lhRkkBGCeUJQnFfG3zf/s640/2013-09-09+15.56.21.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie is always making friends. She is so popular here. I think it's the cute freckles. This lady on her right had a daughter named "Happy" who would take Jeanie around and hold her hand. It was really sweet. Hey, is that Matt Barton again :)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhas9to5v3vY4BjgMfj_5XOTZdzlId8SbTCIvaO4BIymmuSYD0QV3aaH1R6jkLnd0x6x_P-QAaQwe8HLqfRuk6CkmfxCM5ryJSuicOtWpAkH1HxjL7n1r8llS60w2sV92GFzlP3so9ZOVfk/s1600/2013-09-08+20.47.20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhas9to5v3vY4BjgMfj_5XOTZdzlId8SbTCIvaO4BIymmuSYD0QV3aaH1R6jkLnd0x6x_P-QAaQwe8HLqfRuk6CkmfxCM5ryJSuicOtWpAkH1HxjL7n1r8llS60w2sV92GFzlP3so9ZOVfk/s640/2013-09-08+20.47.20.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie hates the fireworks, but everyone else is having a good time.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkOJprsZbpKS8ArHG4PZzqPqrhx5I_lDdgMq2RV4rYo5CEPBPoNTNhF1r8DoxIjlMqxx1A5sy9xsrh2JTlpwgSo1JMifYt_tjD150RVnbiRuDozxJrkVbIj6DKlUnwMveFgr3VTYejD4Ok/s1600/2013-09-08+18.39.11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkOJprsZbpKS8ArHG4PZzqPqrhx5I_lDdgMq2RV4rYo5CEPBPoNTNhF1r8DoxIjlMqxx1A5sy9xsrh2JTlpwgSo1JMifYt_tjD150RVnbiRuDozxJrkVbIj6DKlUnwMveFgr3VTYejD4Ok/s640/2013-09-08+18.39.11.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Who's the hero of the day? That's right. It's Dad who made french toast and served up Minute Maid orange juice.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxK_SJHT9DniiImKiCdqKvEYrNFHJkMtZtuUB10pj7y_S3rNZal7aE3mZ_wYcKZwrpzMqnjGPCDrXG3uWcHIgftpp9o2VHXz_MJsYG24DhxMR72FA9ADOa9U_DPLln6Vr669yqFjBxjO0z/s1600/KevinonHunanNormalWebsite2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxK_SJHT9DniiImKiCdqKvEYrNFHJkMtZtuUB10pj7y_S3rNZal7aE3mZ_wYcKZwrpzMqnjGPCDrXG3uWcHIgftpp9o2VHXz_MJsYG24DhxMR72FA9ADOa9U_DPLln6Vr669yqFjBxjO0z/s640/KevinonHunanNormalWebsite2.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm famous for at least a few days. Not sure how long this thing will be up.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This largest outdoor elevator in the world is on our tour next week. I went on it last year, but it's going to be even better seeing the look on the kids' faces.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the spot I didn't get to see last year, but is on the agenda this time. I can't wait. It's called Heaven's Gate.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This glass walkway is built into the side of Tianmen Mountain (Hey, I actually know that means Sky Door without anyone telling me). The pathway, which was built in 2011 is much like the glass-bottomed walkway at the Grand Canyon. This 70 foot bridge is 4,000 feet above the ground and tourists can look through the glass bottom which is 2.5 inches thick. Not sure I'll be going on this one to be honest.<br /><br /></td></tr>
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<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-31421383105194753962013-09-08T08:49:00.000-07:002013-09-08T08:49:36.240-07:00fashion<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The class went well on Saturday. Love the kids! Love their families as well. We all went to a beautiful park this Sunday and the children fished for fry sized fish with a net. No one was able to catch one, but we fed these guys a lot of crackers. It looked like it was raining in the pond because so many fish were rising to surface to eat the cracker crumbs.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYVbW5i0O4_T3hntcyUFSZkDWCOrG0NAjoly3IG05HkPzhx9J0Nm0sQE0eiH52QgSrCmL8prHLtxqmruynQ91dH5hFx2m0iJMe3kKQheFe3-tbXU3qYyysVYWrhEFh-Y6SsOfeXnqVeGs/s1600/DSC_0307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYVbW5i0O4_T3hntcyUFSZkDWCOrG0NAjoly3IG05HkPzhx9J0Nm0sQE0eiH52QgSrCmL8prHLtxqmruynQ91dH5hFx2m0iJMe3kKQheFe3-tbXU3qYyysVYWrhEFh-Y6SsOfeXnqVeGs/s400/DSC_0307.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">feeding the fish</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLwe_pfrGIMo4cXQlnthIX_-6ruXj3xBWz8qUZL5Jhz6ymRXkiZEn3KS73jvK82QK80qP31ekC5ESwidIT4I8BvMKQxiW1x8VqSn5ZHKNBeKdC0M2ZVXrOIiMtSZHdFGJsnpIsbAPwAM/s1600/DSC_0309.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLwe_pfrGIMo4cXQlnthIX_-6ruXj3xBWz8qUZL5Jhz6ymRXkiZEn3KS73jvK82QK80qP31ekC5ESwidIT4I8BvMKQxiW1x8VqSn5ZHKNBeKdC0M2ZVXrOIiMtSZHdFGJsnpIsbAPwAM/s640/DSC_0309.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">catching fish at the park, Lucy is learning how to do it</td></tr>
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We walked a little ways through the park and the children played frisbee for awhile. It was really fun. They are great kids. They shared their food and toys with us and tried to teach us a little Chinese (it didn't work on me though I already forgot it all.) All of the children had a great time together with very little common language to use. It is awesome to me.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhftwGkNv_5T6ADG4Cf9cG9lW8kdAywoXhI6e28JHsQ053cMGyyIFFB7hKXU_7fxKoV-_BNhdgpOUV9oZfj3kBCavHbFxW4ZIO7prWqjBi7VH-Ug4sr3vS0bfqO_DE6S-PiOzarKl0avZU/s1600/DSC_0306.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhftwGkNv_5T6ADG4Cf9cG9lW8kdAywoXhI6e28JHsQ053cMGyyIFFB7hKXU_7fxKoV-_BNhdgpOUV9oZfj3kBCavHbFxW4ZIO7prWqjBi7VH-Ug4sr3vS0bfqO_DE6S-PiOzarKl0avZU/s640/DSC_0306.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie and me at the park</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii7M1BRsoiRC02ZHDgC2wI_OwmEf86nQFOSHSj1OU_9oPZFdc2Ozg5oIOhOGO1W4oxmHxh3gN8Yan9wGvpOKVWUelJx3ArVWbVXw3DX-JiNeb8qbJVWGwso7vMjD4egZaB3C_DT553KSo/s1600/DSC_0315.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii7M1BRsoiRC02ZHDgC2wI_OwmEf86nQFOSHSj1OU_9oPZFdc2Ozg5oIOhOGO1W4oxmHxh3gN8Yan9wGvpOKVWUelJx3ArVWbVXw3DX-JiNeb8qbJVWGwso7vMjD4egZaB3C_DT553KSo/s400/DSC_0315.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy and "Shrimpy" Notice the smile!</td></tr>
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Lucy has gone from completely miserable here, so far away from her American home, to having many daily triumphs. First we noticed she would let us put her down to walk in the busy streets while we held her hand, instead of being held constantly. Then we noticed she would run ahead of us when we reached our apartment complex and go inside without us. Then she was singing in public! Yesterday we went to the fireworks and she actually looked at the kind people that talked to her instead of hiding her face. She even let a young student take her picture. Today she came the rest of the way out of her shell. She let my friend Lily take her to the pond without me so she could try to catch a fish. She had a great time with her for about an hour. Of course it helped that she was dying to catch a fish. She would try to get one then "Ohh!" in disappointment over and over again. Then on the way home we had to split up and go in the different families' cars in small Stein groups. Lucy went in a car with Annie and a very kind Chinese family. She was upset at first and the father said "I bet she is hungry," and offered her a chocolate bar. She grabbed it and apparently enjoyed every bite, loudly and messily, even reclining like a cough potato for emphasis. She then began to act like the little nut she is for us at home. She said random things like "apricot chin" and laughed loudly. She sang and teased, and was way too loud. This kind family also gave her a pet prawn or shrimp, I don't know the difference exactly. She is now as happy as ever, and completely herself. She named the shrimp "shrimpy" and told me all about how it wishes it was home with its family. (She doesn't wish that though.) She decorated it's container with stickers and took it on a picnic on her special blankie. She has played with it all evening. Her brothers and sister keep referencing "Darla" from <i>Finding Nemo.</i> It is such a relief to see our baby girl happy.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYjtEi_iHZklpxweEPDQnmRWwc3cQRU51FjFTcPxmxzjYNwVDrZ9JPc_y2841EA_INnrCvxnrfJzlZPi2iKNWoAJGfHNrBXbLKwg76qFqX_iYCetss6ROpYjD0r0l4Z29Y-mQFcOYnvlg/s1600/DSC_0314.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYjtEi_iHZklpxweEPDQnmRWwc3cQRU51FjFTcPxmxzjYNwVDrZ9JPc_y2841EA_INnrCvxnrfJzlZPi2iKNWoAJGfHNrBXbLKwg76qFqX_iYCetss6ROpYjD0r0l4Z29Y-mQFcOYnvlg/s640/DSC_0314.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crossing the pond with our friend "Happy"</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDCq1YeeLIsWNxxrPOZrK1ZRuQUGrv1OKjIvBq-uEfoD_z29fvMf3dOnaqrjCCyJePrOIPAUkRFhl1LTdbm-HRJgEpNRYD4wulejfU5u5ei-KqR7qo1Hew6AyBbxva-DerZLgxjdHDPxE/s1600/DSC_0278.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_50_6PmxxwrTYJucIP_oYeFPd5UVZbT0U2q_RmcnBLXQaHHeRMne7eemKPIMHT9neTEknPzeaIZotgMeetU0xC6L7kiHahgKKsronYirnAuqdQgvek0-NW30hKJoA-REnpGyTFnyVS0c/s1600/DSC_0308.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_50_6PmxxwrTYJucIP_oYeFPd5UVZbT0U2q_RmcnBLXQaHHeRMne7eemKPIMHT9neTEknPzeaIZotgMeetU0xC6L7kiHahgKKsronYirnAuqdQgvek0-NW30hKJoA-REnpGyTFnyVS0c/s640/DSC_0308.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I know the photo is blurry, but this park had 15 to 20 bride and groom couples at any given time around the pond. Most had these traditional Christian white gowns. Three had pink gowns, which is not usual in China. One couple was wearing revolutionary military fatigues, both of them. Our friend explained that couples wore the military dress clothes to their wedding during the 60's and this couple was taking pictures in this old style. See the pink dress?</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDCq1YeeLIsWNxxrPOZrK1ZRuQUGrv1OKjIvBq-uEfoD_z29fvMf3dOnaqrjCCyJePrOIPAUkRFhl1LTdbm-HRJgEpNRYD4wulejfU5u5ei-KqR7qo1Hew6AyBbxva-DerZLgxjdHDPxE/s1600/DSC_0278.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49wB12YVHCjzOmMKOMBVJfGVao2Ow_B-VixsuEZhrZvsDHwqd2vklRi_8i3ihZy0FTXLz9SF76SmA0uIG-UgS9wp3me5vhP-mkuliITkFSoZwEAdJYrYkpCFWnI94ZDGWbyTSz_h2IY0/s1600/DSC_0279.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49wB12YVHCjzOmMKOMBVJfGVao2Ow_B-VixsuEZhrZvsDHwqd2vklRi_8i3ihZy0FTXLz9SF76SmA0uIG-UgS9wp3me5vhP-mkuliITkFSoZwEAdJYrYkpCFWnI94ZDGWbyTSz_h2IY0/s640/DSC_0279.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evelynn loves these jeans with ruffles and buttons. It has a large bow in the back too. Her t-shirt says "sweet babe, make your life tasty"</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8C8ZyJvWVJGWgjejSsDnUGrtDWPRWr5pQTKIVRyPnzsNNWsN9W229O6ADWc4JbAW_pHvOyGXzH4vRgFX_Fl1LuTgM855BmAjCu1px-hN2_6U5YJDGOR6KDkT66KibMSndzwMim2A-15I/s1600/DSC_0277.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8C8ZyJvWVJGWgjejSsDnUGrtDWPRWr5pQTKIVRyPnzsNNWsN9W229O6ADWc4JbAW_pHvOyGXzH4vRgFX_Fl1LuTgM855BmAjCu1px-hN2_6U5YJDGOR6KDkT66KibMSndzwMim2A-15I/s640/DSC_0277.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy's new clothes. The word below the bear is something like "Darbng" Maybe it is suppose to say "Darling"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-oBTQUCmd_1hKsNGJB1rykK2ry7wmV-ZFM5R5z4uvg4qnSPsejh6HACWdhxTgcQD7Rx4Ia5gc3GjQr_MV41ZnX7CmGlLd4GjsOoMX10EYzWzA0K15jY94U90p0vOGkOMi31SaMLpqW3w/s1600/DSC_0275.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-oBTQUCmd_1hKsNGJB1rykK2ry7wmV-ZFM5R5z4uvg4qnSPsejh6HACWdhxTgcQD7Rx4Ia5gc3GjQr_MV41ZnX7CmGlLd4GjsOoMX10EYzWzA0K15jY94U90p0vOGkOMi31SaMLpqW3w/s640/DSC_0275.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting our favorite treat and attracting a lot of attention :)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQmcbNYfqEDejKSlA0KvGAoTZuHyrYTgrP_PoeBHMa86TJa3jm4I6thapLqsblkrzUeFSSxHe_ttBc__jvwHXFQeVGY6AVBEqDuf7lZSJdJGrN2xjSmQlB0IPTD8EeGDcSEiE9Zzk9ydY/s1600/DSC_0276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQmcbNYfqEDejKSlA0KvGAoTZuHyrYTgrP_PoeBHMa86TJa3jm4I6thapLqsblkrzUeFSSxHe_ttBc__jvwHXFQeVGY6AVBEqDuf7lZSJdJGrN2xjSmQlB0IPTD8EeGDcSEiE9Zzk9ydY/s640/DSC_0276.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chinese Ronald McDonald on his way to the McDonalds All Stars demonstration. I missed his face, which was the interesting part!</td></tr>
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Another thing we have noticed is Chinese fashion. We will try to gather a few examples to post another time, but here are Evelynn and Lucy trying out some chinese-style clothes. There are a lot of t-shirts with English words on them. A small few of them were really cool shirts. Most of them are complete nonsense. We have seen these statements: "a little bit sweet and a small amount tasty" "corn-trast iphone coordination" and some uses of grammar that make us cringe. We are going to start writing them down and sharing them with you. Also best-friends often are seen in exactly matching dresses. They are really cute. Couples will wear the same exact t-shirt. I saw a couple with t-shirts that each had two pandas on them. Another couple had an English shirt that said 2 friends + 2 gether = 4ever. Another couple had t-shirts that said "love" (in English) several times on them. There is a lot of interesting fashion, but it is hard to take pictures of it because it is rude to take people's picture without asking them (even though they often take ours on the sly.) We like to read the shirts as we are walking around town, because the poor English is amusing.<br />
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staciehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06939225086403064027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-28960642206348359602013-09-07T02:36:00.004-07:002013-09-07T18:11:07.030-07:00Stacie's First Day of Class and Important Family Decision About FoodSo, today was Stacie's first day of teaching. I'm sure she will blog about it in detail and give you her perspective. From my perspective, she was wonderful, the children in her class were adorable, and Lucy was super demanding for me while I kept her occupied during this 2 hours of class time. The class runs every Saturday from 9:20 a.m. to 11:20 a.m., so we had to get up about 7:30 to get everyone ready. It was difficult because we only have one working shower (the boys shower at night and the girls in the morning). It has something to do with hair and makeup or some other nonsense. It works, though. We adjusted our hours a little so that the kids would go to bed at 10 p.m. instead of their usual time of 9 for the little girls and 9:30 for the older ones. We just had too many nice Chinese people wanting to do fun things with us in the evening and Lucy was falling asleep during these excursions. However, our plan backfired and now the girls are staying up super late. Those of you who are parents will recognize this pattern, but they are constantly getting up for drinks, to tell us it's too dark in their room, that it's too light in their room, that they are hungry, that the blanket is too warm, the bed is too squeaky, Nicol and Ezra are talking too much, and on and on. I went to bed last night at just after midnight and Lucy was STILL awake. So, when I nudged her this morning at 7:30 a.m. to get her breakfast and ready for Stacie's class, she was not pleasant. We did manage to get there on time, but just barely. The class is in the International Building, which is about a 15 minute walk from our house.<br />
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When we arrived at the classroom, we were told to wait a few minutes because Stacie's friend Lily was teaching another group during the hour before Stacie's class. When we finally went in, the children were visibly very excited to see us "Meiguo Ren" (Americans). In the back of the room were 7 mothers, presumably there to support the 7 young Chinese students I counted. As you probably know, most parents just have one child and so the mothers are very involved in the education of their children. I'm not implying that families with more children don't have dedicated parents, but the only child pressure (probably on the parents and on the child) is clearly evident here. I did notice that there was only one boy (Lily's son Joey) and all the rest were girls. Joey was clearly the class clown, which could be attributed to his mom being a teacher or him showing off for all the cute little Chinese girls in the class. He is only 7 years old, so he probably isn't quite old enough to take notice yet, but he was certainly animated in class and really enjoyed being playful.<br />
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Lily asked Stacie to introduce herself. Then, Annie, Nicolas and Ezra went up in front of the class and told the kids their names and their hobbies. Jeanie and Lucy refused to participate in any way (although Jeanie said she plans to join the class next week). Stacie began the class by showing the kids a few pictures of our family and some scenic spots in Utah that we like to visit. We brought pictures of things that represent our family well, such as trips to Yellowstone, the movie theater, the Tiki Shack, camping, fishing, etc. The kids were very interested in these pictures. The mothers in the back were interested too, but they didn't want to interfere with the class much. Instead, they stayed back about 10 or 15 feet and took pictures of their children with their new American teacher. I told Stacie that these mothers would likely be in the back of the room when she taught, but not to be nervous because they are very supportive of the kids and the teacher and they are often there to refine their own English skills as well. So, it's not a threatening environment at all.<br />
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After the pictures, Stacie did some phonics drills, sang a song, read a story, and some other things. She was very natural with the children and they really enjoyed the class. I think Stacie was nervous for the first day (as anyone who teaches knows this feeling). There is always uncertainty regarding what the class dynamic will be like in terms of personality of the students and their starting proficiency in the subject matter. It turns out that Stacie's first hour class could speak English well enough to at least interact with her. The second class had slightly younger children and their English was a bit less advanced. Stacie used the same material as in the first class, but she had to go much slower and providing instructions about what to do, such as "repeat after me" or "please read this part" were harder to communicate. My favorite moment from the second hour class was when the kids were introducing themselves. All of the kids in both classes had such unique and wonderful English names. They often choose the names themselves or with the help of their parents. So, you hear names that you might expect, such Ariel, Jerry, and Lucy. But, we also learned some new names today, such as Music, Morning, and Happy. Annie and I sort of chuckled (discreetly of course) when we discovered a couple of the boys were named Pearl and Betty. To them, it did not matter if the names were fairly feminine sounding in Western culture. They like the names and have chosen to run with them. I actually really admire that.<br />
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One of the sadder moments from class was when this adorable little boy got stuck with a really hard phonics exercise. Apparently, there were more people in the second class than Stacie was told there would be and so she ran out of the easier exercises. She had to give this boy one from the first class. He was receiving help on it, but he still felt frustrated and started to cry. It was heartbreaking. I just wanted to give him a hug, but his mom had it under control. Also, they already look at me like I'm the strange foreigner. I'm not about to start going around hugging their Chinese children. I know I'm not creepy, but they don't. Overall, it was a big success and I think the foundation is now set for Stacie to have a very good experience this year teaching these children. I forgot to mention that another very positive aspect of this experience is that Annie, Nicol, and Ezra got to assist with the class. They would all go around and help the kids sound out words or complete the written exercises. It's a great way for them to feel like they are contributing to their own person growth, but also to the growth of these sweet little kids. One more side note--these kids are studying English for hours on Saturday. What are American kids doing on Saturday? Stacie and I have talked about how we think one huge limitation of our culture is that we do very little to encourage bilingualism. And, don't tell me having high school kids suffer through a year of Spanish in high school is encouraging the learning of a second language. I'm telling you. We are going to get left in the dust and it won't be a surprise to me at all.<br />
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Moving on...we started a new tradition today of going out to lunch as a family each Saturday after Stacie teaches. We decided to go to one of our two favorite restaurants. It's the one down the narrow (and and not so slightly dirty) alleyway near the university. We went there are on first day to get Gua Ba Rou (sweet and sour pork) and Tu Dou Shao Ji (potatoes and chicken) and the kids absolutely beg us to go there every time there is even a hint that we might go out to eat. It's owned by Liu Jie (means Miss Leo) and her husband (I just call him Shifu or Master since I don't remember his name). He laughs when I call him this, so he's clearly not offended that I don't know his name. The other favorite family spot is the place we went for Annie's birthday where you put skewers of whatever meats or vegetables you want on to a tray and take it to a man who grills it on the barbecue for you. I'm fairly certain that both these restaurants are going to be frequented often by our family.<br />
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As alluded to in the title of this blog, we are starting to come to grips with a certain reality here about food. It's incredibly difficult to cook three meals a day in this apartment and to clean up after each meal. It's certainly much more complicated than at home and we found ourselves cooking for one hour and then cleaning for another hour. Multiply that by 3 meals and you see the problem. We discovered that if we can find the right restaurants, i.e. establishments that have food that isn't ALL fried and that are relatively affordable, we can eat out for about the same amount of money than we could going to the grocery store and buying our food. However, our health is super important to us. Stacie has always been a healthy girl, but I have struggled at times. I'm doing really well right now resisting the foods that aren't good for me and taking in a lot of fruits and vegetables. I don't weigh in regularly here (who knows kilograms anyway?), but I'm certain I've dropped a few pounds from the way my clothes are fitting. I would say I'm probably only eating about 10% animal products right now. It's progress for me even though some might not think it's such a big deal. Anyway, we are going to eat out once a day (probably for dinner most nights). We'll have oatmeal, bread, or fruit for breakfast, something simple for lunch (liked steamed rice or steamed vegetables, and then dinner out at an affordable restaurant. I think that will be our pattern and will allow us more time to do fun things and to work on the things we came to China to work on. The kids were understandably thrilled when we told them we would probably go out to eat every single day. I personally tried to play it cool, but I can't believe it either. I LOVE eating out. I always have. I think it comes from traveling with my dad when I was a kid and it was just a special thing to go to a diner or to go out as a large Jewish family and eat and talk for 3 hours while the waitresses tried to clear us out for more customers. For Stacie, the pleasure of food lies in a good home cooked meal. I agree that this is very nice too, but that ain't happening very often here in China with our one rice steamer, hot plate, and now a couple of small tupperware bowls.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxWDs73E2KLkB19MyOqYlhRoMX0QVqfsEaj0jjeNk1J5pCf6lZpfDpWYVvJzr-ja80LQmkLyN3eMUDoLJgr7xo5-NiKNFnhRCYxcO7yO3RboTcG5-cI-oCB2yl2-SAy9jwg18qzMAcPOAH/s1600/2013-09-08+10.40.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxWDs73E2KLkB19MyOqYlhRoMX0QVqfsEaj0jjeNk1J5pCf6lZpfDpWYVvJzr-ja80LQmkLyN3eMUDoLJgr7xo5-NiKNFnhRCYxcO7yO3RboTcG5-cI-oCB2yl2-SAy9jwg18qzMAcPOAH/s640/2013-09-08+10.40.53.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I thought these younger kids were crackups. The kid in the blue shirt up close is "Betty." The one girl in the group, Lucy, was really excited after I told them my name and that I love movies. She just went off at a million miles an hour in Chinese. I have no idea what she said, but she was probably running off a list of all her favorite movies. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here Ezra is helping these kids with their assignment. He's usually so quiet and mild mannered. It was nice to see him asserting himself a bit and helping out.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These are the moms in the back of the room watching.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibUOdYc63czRUMPBGIqqi4qhyphenhyphent6n9k4l88387HD8aVErwSuA8FRJImmKOm8G2WYcrBIqLfXEoS5Hx7rhrBJCXJVxTXT6e6OWtEUuyRrMnOmi1PNd9qVlBDeQChfobnyjmZ_lUvfcnUth-8/s1600/2013-09-08+11.18.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibUOdYc63czRUMPBGIqqi4qhyphenhyphent6n9k4l88387HD8aVErwSuA8FRJImmKOm8G2WYcrBIqLfXEoS5Hx7rhrBJCXJVxTXT6e6OWtEUuyRrMnOmi1PNd9qVlBDeQChfobnyjmZ_lUvfcnUth-8/s640/2013-09-08+11.18.06.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the kid that was really sad that he got such a hard question. Annie is also trying to cheer him up, but it's not working very well. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can you tell this is a super fancy restaurant? You never know where you will find the most delicious food. Those things in the background that look like straw dispensers are actually chopstick dispensers.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie with Liu Jie.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Liu Jie's husband is the master chef. Check out that SUU T-shirt he is wearing! Chance and Brenna (two SUU exchange students) gave it to him last year as a gift.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The road back to campus from the restaurant.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This guy grills every night starting at 7 p.m. We absolutely love it and the prices are reasonable. The kids (the older ones anyway) would eat here every single day if we would let them. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWHDWq740wj8Jijr4PQU74eH3JoG2-fcp9v7_GWKzETY-PcXCnZd6elwGEjgsx2EgqoiOgHUV9UQhHNSSC-uD4CUfXBeXJUAnqiSZte9nJ55wRdIYd3kiqqsioqu14nIGsqoy_Al0LTFIM/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWHDWq740wj8Jijr4PQU74eH3JoG2-fcp9v7_GWKzETY-PcXCnZd6elwGEjgsx2EgqoiOgHUV9UQhHNSSC-uD4CUfXBeXJUAnqiSZte9nJ55wRdIYd3kiqqsioqu14nIGsqoy_Al0LTFIM/s640/photo.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is how it works. You grab one of those trays at the top of the display. Then, you grab whatever you want and take it to the grill. Then, wait about 20 minutes. In the front is a wide variety of meat sticks. Toward the center just below the corn on the cob are chicken hands. I think I'll try that next time. I didn't get them before because they look kind of fatty. My personal favorite is the eggplant (top right) and Stacie loves the Man Tou (marshmallow looking things at the top left), which is a type of bread. It's all good, though. We even got the octopus once and it was delicious. I guess you can barbecue anything and it will taste good.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmeKS_UbubybbvoeBze76pwziFGKKdWFNiVm6Mv1mqxeI8PJH2v8Ti7D0KLrKShNlGsVyAews8w5hOo1bfGDDAl9CSqgH41mHCi7HuMuHoz0Rc0dhM6w4LO4WL0F3F-cjRLotG2bxXC9Zl/s1600/2013-09-06+14.40.08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmeKS_UbubybbvoeBze76pwziFGKKdWFNiVm6Mv1mqxeI8PJH2v8Ti7D0KLrKShNlGsVyAews8w5hOo1bfGDDAl9CSqgH41mHCi7HuMuHoz0Rc0dhM6w4LO4WL0F3F-cjRLotG2bxXC9Zl/s640/2013-09-06+14.40.08.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The children are really interested in going to McDonalds. This gives you an idea of the prices. Twenty yuan is about $3.25, but we are not going by American money anymore. We are paid in Chinese money and are living on Chinese prices, so this is much more expensive than the other local places. Plus, who wants to eat at McDonalds anyway. It pretty much sucks in every country. Anyway, the kids are saving their allowance, which right now is 40 yuan a week for the older kids and 20 yuan for the little girls. I guess if they wanted to blow it all in one shot, they are more than welcome to. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdecAZqVeOapmqEHKwk5tKS_lrJzWXJjSlDY9OnJs7i9woBvigZL8NdDVxrGtNPmFIF_wuxTc2dzZpBPKjU0aquMjgkiRKfXtXIpV1f1AbpyQMOesu4wRuWAMsIxM447V76O0gDtjdwZYo/s1600/2013-09-06+15.42.41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdecAZqVeOapmqEHKwk5tKS_lrJzWXJjSlDY9OnJs7i9woBvigZL8NdDVxrGtNPmFIF_wuxTc2dzZpBPKjU0aquMjgkiRKfXtXIpV1f1AbpyQMOesu4wRuWAMsIxM447V76O0gDtjdwZYo/s640/2013-09-06+15.42.41.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I walked in on this scene and just had to ask what they are doing. They said they were trying to solve a mystery. Someone stole a pink flower and they were identifying suspects. I asked if they were Chinese police or American police and they answered "American." Then, I asked if the bad guys were American or Chinese and they said "Chinese." Hmm, they've seen too many of my movies about Chinese Opium smuggling. Then, I asked them to make their best police face and this is what I got.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL37f5OdKNIEWhco-pMLSfOxEEcyzIj4M0nIADUfhZLRdxrlzA6mwW4ev0JW4T2Ap-xGTFDmgOhMgzmUjtayg7O191EHosTPPD9SjeU2ydtOQTYVTaVmS3DvKwDis-F_tIPHAlKciZQt4j/s1600/2013-09-06+17.06.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL37f5OdKNIEWhco-pMLSfOxEEcyzIj4M0nIADUfhZLRdxrlzA6mwW4ev0JW4T2Ap-xGTFDmgOhMgzmUjtayg7O191EHosTPPD9SjeU2ydtOQTYVTaVmS3DvKwDis-F_tIPHAlKciZQt4j/s640/2013-09-06+17.06.50.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last summer, I was able to find the Asian equivalent of my father-in-law, Mark Huish. This time, I find the Chinese version of my sister-in-law, Summyr Stein. I'm still on the look out for the Chinese Shannon Stoddart (by request), but that's going to be tough. Irish-looking doesn't always translate well to Asian. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil_pVte8BnVzYEfyXKkRbRwiPjLnQNTdpDJi0XUfqr0uBfMvcyLpT4YDyqPSNYsO37SI3sOdtX4nXVZ8xXAQwDybP6m3ZJgQk6rlrQQiAEAO60nBjgH0bugAFQxECxxy7ifpz32-sZ7viL/s1600/2013-09-06+19.07.58.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil_pVte8BnVzYEfyXKkRbRwiPjLnQNTdpDJi0XUfqr0uBfMvcyLpT4YDyqPSNYsO37SI3sOdtX4nXVZ8xXAQwDybP6m3ZJgQk6rlrQQiAEAO60nBjgH0bugAFQxECxxy7ifpz32-sZ7viL/s640/2013-09-06+19.07.58.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I couldn't get a good picture out the back of our apartment, but here are those bars I was telling you about and the wall with the glass shards on top embedded in concrete. </td></tr>
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stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-27082182974134268362013-09-06T08:02:00.001-07:002013-09-06T08:03:28.972-07:00Eating and lions, by StacieI feel this back and forth response to being here in China. I love it, and I feel helpless. I love so many things here, and even the adventure of things, but it is difficult to take care of yourself and your family when you can't communicate well enough to be able find things or to do some things. It is the end of our second week here, and I feel a little unsettled still. We are rolling with it, and enjoying being here anyway.<br />
I love it here, especially the people. One saving grace of being helpless in China is my new friend Lily. Lily teaches children English here in Changsha, and she grew up at the beautiful national park in the Avatar movie: zhang jia jie. I am always in her debt. She helps me with all my questions, and I have to be careful about what I ask her about or she might buy me something. She helped Ezra with his cough and asked one of her doctor- friends to take a look at him to make sure it wasn't serious, he is fine now. She has given me my teaching project, and now I feel useful and happy. She is always checking up on me. She is extremely kind!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9BLwlCZamCIX60iEniYogxBhkjLjqookv4NtBsmILVOLTLcwyLREND8viUm9MXwuSjRJLiKeLKSt32A-UZjnxLRTPEFLJZUTBITxUXKCXr2C9D2TGGTIH72ZN9ofhNKWQ_o2Dv6_Goe8/s1600/2013-08-26+02.30.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9BLwlCZamCIX60iEniYogxBhkjLjqookv4NtBsmILVOLTLcwyLREND8viUm9MXwuSjRJLiKeLKSt32A-UZjnxLRTPEFLJZUTBITxUXKCXr2C9D2TGGTIH72ZN9ofhNKWQ_o2Dv6_Goe8/s400/2013-08-26+02.30.50.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lily and her son Joey (their American names)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8R34D31NBHOxnwAudYXPcUXh1BayTCVAK2DC6gpOUiQiFEsvhyKJYjGS4FJbb_582IWfbW_erGWfn0XX0jTcIAmPUXtH5bBszzW6TMt_pzMgklxxRbZDTYG27JKEM4QVhC6FpapQM6As/s1600/2013-09-03+17.55.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8R34D31NBHOxnwAudYXPcUXh1BayTCVAK2DC6gpOUiQiFEsvhyKJYjGS4FJbb_582IWfbW_erGWfn0XX0jTcIAmPUXtH5bBszzW6TMt_pzMgklxxRbZDTYG27JKEM4QVhC6FpapQM6As/s640/2013-09-03+17.55.27.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The building dedicated to the revolutionary general</td></tr>
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The other day we went to look around at the HNU, and she explained one of the buildings there. I found it really interesting. The building was dedicated to a General in the Chinese Revolution. After the war, the ashes of the fallen soldiers from Changsha were kept in the building to honor their loyalty and sacrifice for China. Eventually the ashes were returned to the soldiers' homes. Their are two lions outside flanking the front entrance. The lions are guardians to keep the occupants healthy and safe. You might notice that the ears are back and the tongue is out, that is because they are playful. Also this one has a child, the left one has a ball instead. The chinese above the door is in the pre-revolutionary style of writing from the right to the left; today chinese is written left to right except for special things like this.<br />
Lily explained that many people's homes have lions flanking their front door as well. The lions keep the family healthy and safe. Then inside the home there is often a picture of a tiger, another guardian with the same job. The city of Changsha has many of these lions in front of banks and other buildings as well. My kids like to stick their hands in the lion's mouth and pretend they are being eaten. :-D Some of the lions have a stone ball in their mouth that was carved as the mouth was carved and is too big to take out, it rolls around in the mouth, again to show they are playful. (It is okay that they are playing on them if you are wondering.) Also, the older lady in the photo is doing tai chi (very slowly). There were other people around this building doing tai chi as well. <br />
Cooking here is interesting too. We are trying to find place to eat out that fit our criteria: not super greasy, our kids will eat something there, not too pricey so we can go often, and within walking distance. It is likely we will find a few places, but for now no place has fit all those requirements. It is hard to walk in somewhere and ask about the food and prices because of our lack of language skills. We have been trying to eat at home too, but it has its own challenges. As far as eating out, China is really interesting. Their are plenty of nice, well-established restaurants around. There are also tons of little shops that sell food too. The small food vendors can have a street cart or they can be in a small storage-unit like store. When we walk down the large streets the food-vendors are about two to five per block. Also, when we walk down small apartment filled alleys and side roads that seem quiet and off the main road, there are still all these small food vendors.Some of them are in the bottom floor of the apartment building.<br />
As far as cooking, the fruits and vegetables are different. We have found potatoes, corn, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, and other familiar things to eat; but all the leafy greens are foreign to me. I have been trying a new one each time. One tasted like asparagus, another turned the water purple like a beet green would. The greens we ate today smelled and looked like leaves off of a tree, but tasted mild like spinach. I find it fun to try the mystery greens. Even funner is the mystery fruit. We ate a mangosteen today and the fruit was slimey and looked like white orange sections inside a woody purple peel, but it tasted delicious. The other day we had longan, it was in size and texture like a peeled grape. It tasted good too.<br />
We generally eat fruit, oatmeal or bread for breakfast, the kids find it familiar and it is a nice break from eating Chinese every meal. We often have soup or rice or noodles, any of those with a vegetable or two for lunch. They all taste like Chinese food because they are flavored with soy sauce. We have made corn on the cob and mashed potatoes at home, which was a more American flavored meal. We buy the imported Skippy peanut butter in a tiny jar. We also keep a supply of soda crackers and cookies of some kind in case the little girls, or anyone else needs something they can eat without cooking. We have a hot plate and a rice steamer and that is it, one for each of the two electrical outlets in the oven-free kitchen. The fridge is small and doesn't stay cold too well, so we are careful about what goes in there.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia5rCtmaPgMH7fH9HCIy0K1w2C6uKlL-FHSpVDxdfupJcQJkVB5BoW68hrhpI5pkHtNZqi9h7_h13PZccw9CbS5hdSlt5hjnDVc9QMlhdphMC_PLgdQJHsDnLaE6Abu4LN_OK0YC5-sbU/s1600/SAM_3445.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia5rCtmaPgMH7fH9HCIy0K1w2C6uKlL-FHSpVDxdfupJcQJkVB5BoW68hrhpI5pkHtNZqi9h7_h13PZccw9CbS5hdSlt5hjnDVc9QMlhdphMC_PLgdQJHsDnLaE6Abu4LN_OK0YC5-sbU/s400/SAM_3445.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">homemade soup</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSFd07gkmDhCeJufjU2Np1g5Uz85Pwc6gEFD5E68loFTKrJMn8rU_me0D3AL0VPFx0YdY9RodS0EDmbf1waAfBzOcvv03c3DcOvRTzsEh13zvusPPhgC03yLQ03NoeGzcON7TtwhsxvT4/s1600/2013-08-25+15.48.15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSFd07gkmDhCeJufjU2Np1g5Uz85Pwc6gEFD5E68loFTKrJMn8rU_me0D3AL0VPFx0YdY9RodS0EDmbf1waAfBzOcvv03c3DcOvRTzsEh13zvusPPhgC03yLQ03NoeGzcON7TtwhsxvT4/s400/2013-08-25+15.48.15.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">eating at home</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW4NCBPTyOxK4-Lw25Y4eU8768_3EthuW-1ayVaomivikpctADTwAAy8aMAus4puS5jk3XYOwSrl7-4X12d-yiRHd9gjiUr1hi1yxjfW4Ne6urt2Z82cf9yLkPV7sjFnynRR_5HmGkDxg/s1600/DSC_0239.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW4NCBPTyOxK4-Lw25Y4eU8768_3EthuW-1ayVaomivikpctADTwAAy8aMAus4puS5jk3XYOwSrl7-4X12d-yiRHd9gjiUr1hi1yxjfW4Ne6urt2Z82cf9yLkPV7sjFnynRR_5HmGkDxg/s320/DSC_0239.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">maozi bread and the very soft white bread they sell here</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrEjS2LpjGaFiJuniJXHC0j2jiBLAOiJxEeGhzw_YoiNl_sVnCxkyvK0qyyNtc7qYbFbP-VAAyNdgNgqfkKhbut2stWu6oqyJV2QKKWcwdhNYSUJ3cjUEW-8EZS85EYQtaKrtaOj94tm0/s1600/DSC_0243.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrEjS2LpjGaFiJuniJXHC0j2jiBLAOiJxEeGhzw_YoiNl_sVnCxkyvK0qyyNtc7qYbFbP-VAAyNdgNgqfkKhbut2stWu6oqyJV2QKKWcwdhNYSUJ3cjUEW-8EZS85EYQtaKrtaOj94tm0/s320/DSC_0243.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">bing bread</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTNtHCU7ySGrdFEaKqiYeGxYucRnogtwQEZvBfVPgwJ4In-ZPD3hZw1H1bq1Ao4yYmmnSbhcbwwpI07dNM0EbRi8qsCn1ZBKlX2_riJhD3Sr6rJpqjWe3AZcb0GQpPtszmz1zJw_eVpsI/s1600/DSC_0244.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTNtHCU7ySGrdFEaKqiYeGxYucRnogtwQEZvBfVPgwJ4In-ZPD3hZw1H1bq1Ao4yYmmnSbhcbwwpI07dNM0EbRi8qsCn1ZBKlX2_riJhD3Sr6rJpqjWe3AZcb0GQpPtszmz1zJw_eVpsI/s320/DSC_0244.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">mangosteen fruit</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxr3pj-hZnCRyOZtnBRFqH63uDqDozHnHRzfvi3iK4TldsEDD-k07i_JduR_wbn4rdyuJWBa6fPfsYYsvNAallchzaUNU7PFmYbGKVp4ylfJx_WZjpbVA5M24OkL4GyXFkEKr30cSiTKw/s1600/DSC_0245.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxr3pj-hZnCRyOZtnBRFqH63uDqDozHnHRzfvi3iK4TldsEDD-k07i_JduR_wbn4rdyuJWBa6fPfsYYsvNAallchzaUNU7PFmYbGKVp4ylfJx_WZjpbVA5M24OkL4GyXFkEKr30cSiTKw/s320/DSC_0245.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4g7o9rAmn_nhrN9Bap4o3PQNM47ZU7_AT8nlkaBtjhGOdgi4kbzfNXVg64H0Y_heod69l4Ba4aEw8glwFjNb1YfGssNw_c2G8q9blPbd2sBNDRIKgxmdk_Tomfeuj4Hm0xDIMUGZUMM/s1600/DSC_0247.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4g7o9rAmn_nhrN9Bap4o3PQNM47ZU7_AT8nlkaBtjhGOdgi4kbzfNXVg64H0Y_heod69l4Ba4aEw8glwFjNb1YfGssNw_c2G8q9blPbd2sBNDRIKgxmdk_Tomfeuj4Hm0xDIMUGZUMM/s320/DSC_0247.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">mystery greens of the day</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIVgxib-VpxVhoIRgP6zifvA7tjFtleFZyC-8fZwDa1oD1htOapeyh-8V2Raftk9GIPBz2hDc0jRADWIax8XJTBgHgVfd9xbYjQFUvtYD3j6-T8KTMg33bvWk8minK94B5jXAJj72j_E8/s1600/DSC_0248.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIVgxib-VpxVhoIRgP6zifvA7tjFtleFZyC-8fZwDa1oD1htOapeyh-8V2Raftk9GIPBz2hDc0jRADWIax8XJTBgHgVfd9xbYjQFUvtYD3j6-T8KTMg33bvWk8minK94B5jXAJj72j_E8/s320/DSC_0248.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">trying the mangosteen</td></tr>
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<br />staciehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06939225086403064027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-76721589731808099752013-09-05T08:48:00.000-07:002013-09-05T18:44:45.448-07:00Finally Got a Teaching ScheduleI want to clarify a few things at the onset here. First, I probably
complained a little too much in the blog about the water situation and
the air quality because many people offered to help us get water
purifiers or air filters for our apartment. We are grateful for these
offers (we have wonderful friends and family), but we haven't seen any
purifying systems locally (surprising isn't it?) and we aren't sure one
from the U.S. would fit anyway even if some kind soul were to send us
one. I looked at the faucet in our kitchen and it's looks to be a
pretty unusual size. Keep in mind that Stacie and I spent a week trying
to find a plunger, duct tape, contact lens solution, and a hot pad for
our frying pan. Imagine us trying to communicate that we would like
some kind of advanced filtration system for our house? It would be rather difficult. Additionally, some wondered if we were being a little overly paranoid. I really don't think so. <span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">I think we are being
cautious, but I don't think overly cautious. The locals don't drink the
water either if that tells you anything. I think they will wash their
vegetables in it and say it's fine, but they don't drink the water to
satisfy thirst. Also, the travel clinic in Cedar told us to absolutely
not consume the water, so we are following those instructions. In fact, just to give you an idea of the level of caution, they told me to be careful at fast food places like McDonalds and KFC with fountain drinks because the machines mix local water with the syrup and the ice is made with that water as well. So, the message is clear. Do not drink the water! After this blog, I probably won't talk about the water much anymore. We'll move on to other topics.</span><br />
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d"><br /></span>
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">We all are constantly having experiences where we feel like we understand something or are communicating something clearly only to find that we are oblivious to what people are saying. It's happened to me so many times, but I would rather share one of Stacie's amusing moments. We were at the McDonalds buying the two little girls ice cream cones. Stacie said she wanted "Liang ge" cones (two cones). The lady responded in Chinese, "Liu," which means 6. Stacie said, "No, I want two cones." Then, the lady said again, "No, six." Finally, we figured out she was telling us it costs 6 yuan for two cones. We laughed about it because it happens so often. We'll just have to keep practicing. </span><br />
<br />
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">We weren't sure how safe we would feel here with the children. We still do NOT let them go anywhere outside of the apartment by themselves. But, we do leave the kids with Annie sometimes while Stacie and I go on a few errands. It's much easier to get things done without the whole family (the pace of the kids and the constant barrage of people wanting to talk to us). Our apartment is pretty much a fortress with the bars on all the windows and the big iron gate outside our regular front door. There is also a big wall around the back side of our apartment building with shards of glass on top of the wall. The Chinese are very inventive and have used broken glass and concrete to create a very burglar proof barricade around our house. So, we feel pretty good about leaving Annie for a while at home. This is good because our apartment is like a cave with some major echoing of Lucy and Jeanie's sweet (no sarcasm here) voices reverberating off of the walls. Stacie and I need to get out of here sometimes. </span><br />
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d"><br /></span>
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">We try to go on a new walk every day. You've seen pictures of Yuelu Mountain and Taozi Lake on the blog. We recently walked down to the Xiang Jiang river, which is only a couple of blocks from our apartment and separates the campus community (with its three large universities) from the more urban parts of Changsha. We took the kids and walked along the river where they really enjoyed the more sparse crowds and the nice cool weather. I think the heat wave is over and it's now been in the low 80's or even 70's here with the rain. It's been very pleasant to go outside and to do some of these family walks. Sometimes, we will just take a side street or any alleyway just to see what's there. Many times, there are unique little shops or new food places in the spots you would least expect to find one. Neither Stacie nor I have taught yet, so most of our days at this point are filled with shopping for interesting things to eat, going for walks, and hanging out at the apartment (which usually involves playing with the kids, studying Chinese, or just watching TV). We are pretty well "hooked up" in the entertainment category. We have Hulu Plus, Netflix, Dish Network, and a whole DVD case full of movies. Projecting them on to the wall has been pretty sweet too. I guess there are perks to living in an apartment with bare white walls and nothing to put on them. </span><br />
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d"><br /></span>
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">Stacie starts teaching her first class of young Chinese kids (and our kids of course) on Saturday. She is a little nervous, but has much experience over the last two years homeschooling our own children. She is a very natural teacher and will be good with them. She has been prepping hard over the last week trying to get some material together. </span><br />
<br />
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">In terms of my own teaching, I got called in for a meeting the other day at the international office. Amy wanted to introduce me to the dean of the tourism college where I will be teaching a few of my classes. My understanding was that I would be teaching 6 once per week classes (hour and a half each), that they would all be freshman, and that the classes would begin in the middle of September due to military training for all new freshmen. I was then told that none of my classes would begin until about October 9th. So, I was stunned because I was asked to be in China before August 25th only to be told I'm not teaching until October 9th. So at this meeting with Amy, I'm now told (at least for now) that I have 3 classes starting on September 16th that are all PhD students. Then, I will add the other four classes of freshman later on October 9th. I'm actually quite excited that my teaching begins in a week and a half rather than a month down the road. Of course, I do have other projects including my research on the NPR's fraudulent reporting on the Chinese Apple computer factories as well as my involvement with the new American Studies center, but I really didn't want to wait too long to get into the classroom. Perhaps it's by sheer habit that I feel like I should be teaching at the end of August every year. So, my first question to Amy is obviously how much better the PhD students are at English than the freshmen. She tells me that are equally bad, which is strangely reassuring to me since it means that my lessons plans (including the actual course content and my sometimes poorly received dry humor) can be equally applied in all my classes with equal success (or failure). Amy did mention that one of my freshman classes has particularly poor English skills. This should be pretty interesting if I speak their language poorly and they speak my language poorly. I'll do my best, though. After my meeting with Amy, a student (named Joyce) showed me the buildings where my classes would be located. Every class had a blackboard and a screen for projecting, so I should be good to go on that front. </span><br />
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d"><br /></span>
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">Today, I had a meeting with Jay Sorensen and an American kid from Wisconsin who is here to assist with HNU's debate team. I didn't know they had a debate team here in Changsha. In fact, I didn't know there was even organized debate in China, but there is. They have competitive tournaments where they do parliamentary style debate and teams travel from different universities to compete. It's a great deal like the U.S. debate circuit. One of Jay's responsibilities over here for his graduate internship/project is to propose events and activities that we might sponsor through the American Studies Center. One of his ideas to to coordinate a debate tournament where teams can debate topics of relevance to U.S./Chinese relations. I'm not sure if we can logistically pull it off, but it would be a great event to promote the center and HNU's debate program. We are targeting this for the spring (March perhaps), but still need to discuss the merits of the idea with Kurt Harris, our Global Engagement Director back at SUU, who is the author of the State Department grant to create this center and provides final approval on the center's activities (Kurt, if you're reading this, I will be in touch). The priority for the center right now, though, is to have HNU assign us an actual space for it. We have created a counterpart at SUU in the form of a Chinese Studies Center and are awaiting the final approval of a space for our center. Once approved, we will utilize grant money to furnish the space and decorate it (any suggestions would be welcome of things that would promote harmony between our two cultures). Kurt has indicated that he would like to have a formal grand opening for the center in October if we can pull this together quickly enough. So, the debate tournament will take a backseat to actually having a physical space for some of these activities. </span><br />
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d"><br /></span>
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">On the way back from this meeting with Jay and the American debate coach (A.J. Carver), I received a call from Amy indicating that she had something urgent to discuss with me. I'm thinking that I'm now teaching my classes starting in 30 minutes, but I was relieved to find that they simply wanted me to take a picture. Sometime in early September in China is National Teacher's Day and the administration at HNU wanted to commemorate this event by creating a poster and a web page with some pictures of their teachers. They wanted foreign faculty to be represented. I asked Amy if they wanted someone a bit more "handsome" on their posters. She laughed and simply replied "You'll do." I found out later that I'm currently the only foreign faculty in my college and so I was really their only choice. They brought in a photographer and had me "fake" teaching in front of three people. I've done this before and it's pretty awkward pretending like you're teaching a group of students when you have a photographer, Amy, and an administrator staring at you blankly while you talk about some aspect of your discipline. At one point, they told me to point to a projector screen with nothing on it. It was kind of strange, but the weird part was yet to come. Once we took the photographs, they took me down to the international office and asked me to write a short passage about how I feel about teaching at Hunan Normal University. I said, "Ok, I'll email you something today." They responded: "No, we need you to write it now." I said that would be fine and pulled out a piece of paper. They said: "No, use this paper and this pen." Pushy, but I agreed. I wrote something about how delighted I am to be teaching here and that I look forward to working with such bright and hard-working Chinese students. As I wrote, they all stared at me. It kind of reminded me of photos I have seen of U.S. presidents finally signing a piece of legislation into law. You would think this was the most important paragraph ever put to paper. I wrote very slowly and tried to make it as clear as I could. When I was done, they took the paper and I asked, "So, will you retype this for the poster?" They said: "No, we are going to take a photograph of your paper and place it next to your picture." Once they said this, I was horrified because I realized that my handwriting is not very good. Also, I write in upper and lower case letters (like a normal person) only when I'm trying really hard and I write in all caps when I'm just being me. So, I started this passage in upper and lower and then digressed to my normal style about half way through. When this poster is finally completed, everyone will see that the foreign teacher of English doesn't know how to write in one particular style, but fluctuates all over the place. Oh well. I'll post this thing when I finally get it so you can see for yourself the disaster. </span><br />
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d"><br /></span>
<span id="bc_0_3b+seedz_8D" kind="d">Anyway, we miss our family and friends. It has been so good to correspond with everyone by email, Facebook, Skype, and comments on the blogs. Our favorite is being able to see people on Skype or Facetime, so please try to get your webcams and microphones updated to the 21st century so we can see you face to face. We'll take what we can get, though, and love any communication that we can have with you.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCfppGSz6DXVplvcnEql8F9z-PGcZtFw6Pop92fyIhRhUKYIqwJ9CNAsPVF0jQLRWTeqCUMvC5wTE29STHr4tpzSPusqwYyXRaQW254tXqvwyCI3NGySVTZCbdPiGtb5N0y3wXaT4i8M4/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-09-05+at+2.26.41+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCfppGSz6DXVplvcnEql8F9z-PGcZtFw6Pop92fyIhRhUKYIqwJ9CNAsPVF0jQLRWTeqCUMvC5wTE29STHr4tpzSPusqwYyXRaQW254tXqvwyCI3NGySVTZCbdPiGtb5N0y3wXaT4i8M4/s320/Screen+Shot+2013-09-05+at+2.26.41+PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My favorite spot on campus. You can see an assortment of fish swimming in the pond on most days, but today it had rained and was kind of muddy.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVxvzp181hDyYYLYtml0FDqUQBcDcWQZXFGdhBlfMjZyG71eZ-4usbTJLlQZq5aLo3WQlJ_GJ32Ad4aTYb1HgU5cAjBuiqvIp_6jINAYT6SDExAxV15bzj_Cd6h6K-TBZNI12FiOszX0xt/s1600/2013-09-04+15.06.33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVxvzp181hDyYYLYtml0FDqUQBcDcWQZXFGdhBlfMjZyG71eZ-4usbTJLlQZq5aLo3WQlJ_GJ32Ad4aTYb1HgU5cAjBuiqvIp_6jINAYT6SDExAxV15bzj_Cd6h6K-TBZNI12FiOszX0xt/s320/2013-09-04+15.06.33.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I typed into Google Translate that I wanted them to cut both boys 1 centimeter on sides and back and 2 centimeters on top. However, I warned the boys that they could end up with anything and to be prepared. It turned out well in the end. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeMYoqkkshQ4LMyvak1DXX-05HjX1_zj3AcQpNXoemhHU1G0wQOvetkOBpB7282lM0KbSvWLQ-IjpN9ZQIYxAAH3g5uCJ-FuQKfyzCf2b3yd4Ur2fd9FK36Pq9U7nkjD8ukptzfV6pDj6q/s1600/2013-09-04+15.20.44.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeMYoqkkshQ4LMyvak1DXX-05HjX1_zj3AcQpNXoemhHU1G0wQOvetkOBpB7282lM0KbSvWLQ-IjpN9ZQIYxAAH3g5uCJ-FuQKfyzCf2b3yd4Ur2fd9FK36Pq9U7nkjD8ukptzfV6pDj6q/s640/2013-09-04+15.20.44.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I think Nicol wanted a bit more length on top, but he's a good boy and said he was fine with it. The lady in the background there was really nice. She was missing an eye, so we wondered what happened there but of course we didn't ask. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdKKCOnhOmIIdGMyBuFqVknElUDNWCIJOtqw6t4xz70Wn2JwF1SEMx0Sc9DLHaqJ2VgkiK0opxZRfPjp7toIygBz2lXuiRIHgQ6CWmxqstfY_6MKIgDN0xT0UUksO2-ZhDUCp9d4SUdnGu/s1600/SAM_3447.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdKKCOnhOmIIdGMyBuFqVknElUDNWCIJOtqw6t4xz70Wn2JwF1SEMx0Sc9DLHaqJ2VgkiK0opxZRfPjp7toIygBz2lXuiRIHgQ6CWmxqstfY_6MKIgDN0xT0UUksO2-ZhDUCp9d4SUdnGu/s640/SAM_3447.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I showed the barber pictures of my kids and he excitedly showed me a picture of his child on the wall. I said "Piao Liang" which means "beautiful," but he corrected me saying "No, Shuai ge," which means handsome. Apparently, I had just called his little baby boy "pretty," which is not good. He was nice about it, though. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifsUDDuUmZIXFTs0ZUCYYpIsN8uZv9TbaGEIqvCqeBKvm63RwwjFERHxgsx8ibJV7ohHpYTuL3qt_JQLPdihGuncMBHfjWHR4uS5XrjOcbdmPN9iCE9EWYSKdc_SwaqyHch2MMatlWiQnp/s1600/2013-09-04+16.40.00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifsUDDuUmZIXFTs0ZUCYYpIsN8uZv9TbaGEIqvCqeBKvm63RwwjFERHxgsx8ibJV7ohHpYTuL3qt_JQLPdihGuncMBHfjWHR4uS5XrjOcbdmPN9iCE9EWYSKdc_SwaqyHch2MMatlWiQnp/s640/2013-09-04+16.40.00.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sophia is explaining to this guy at the electronics store where to deliver our printer. He is so confused, which I don't understand because it's just right across the river and not far from where we were at the time. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLGQ1Y7-7Ocb1deFSs9gCnOTlJTufaHPYEo7DwHjBOFuA7gUd1lvKY4uXlHSZJjagwtHVvY-kWVJoCHHsmRDAGpvZ_s1ImU40PdP4rRjwjArWG1IwAQl1_9mI4zVdaKw1lDIKNZyn0gBEO/s1600/2013-09-03+18.14.47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLGQ1Y7-7Ocb1deFSs9gCnOTlJTufaHPYEo7DwHjBOFuA7gUd1lvKY4uXlHSZJjagwtHVvY-kWVJoCHHsmRDAGpvZ_s1ImU40PdP4rRjwjArWG1IwAQl1_9mI4zVdaKw1lDIKNZyn0gBEO/s640/2013-09-03+18.14.47.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the back entrance of Yuelu Mountain. It's right behind the pond and bridge you see in the other pictures. We haven't gone all the way up yet, but are looking forward to it soon. Apparently, there is a mountain spring at the top of these steps where the students bring their jugs for fresh cold water. Sounds wonderful!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFkPvlb8a7gYDs6rCrEfLXl3UIA69WQ-xm9UOgV_tgUCKlsfXKDn9HS5esW62VF2NGdmNyJ2poYzDBvnT5M7zOevUOReQBhxEnM66JNAidztg7UhWHVPZVe9nZZRcLIhqNKDheD1s_o9Ct/s1600/2013-09-03+17.55.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFkPvlb8a7gYDs6rCrEfLXl3UIA69WQ-xm9UOgV_tgUCKlsfXKDn9HS5esW62VF2NGdmNyJ2poYzDBvnT5M7zOevUOReQBhxEnM66JNAidztg7UhWHVPZVe9nZZRcLIhqNKDheD1s_o9Ct/s640/2013-09-03+17.55.27.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All of the kids took turns sitting on this dragon thingy. Sorry, I don't know more about the cultural artifact. Shameful, I know. That lady in the background is doing Tai Chi. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh37zLhjBWPdk3PFv8GtNgD_aNe4OY5BLjwGF5BYHf6rS5_U0NZsSVn7seWbQ_Gmfh_E0igRxhwqboN35jEy4_ltPYrRiODnkPg67oFf-mkHwEJKfw5QPoVwanZCpWw3QuTYhnJ_ycK7XkN/s1600/2013-09-03+17.58.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh37zLhjBWPdk3PFv8GtNgD_aNe4OY5BLjwGF5BYHf6rS5_U0NZsSVn7seWbQ_Gmfh_E0igRxhwqboN35jEy4_ltPYrRiODnkPg67oFf-mkHwEJKfw5QPoVwanZCpWw3QuTYhnJ_ycK7XkN/s640/2013-09-03+17.58.07.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy didn't want to get down.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK06JK-oyiLPAn5p4-zMVw6OIEsThioZU5BUXf_EQyNURqwo_DYUgaHetknEN_sINTN_48cMdyEokSRPHajpsjJCNdcYFDHCA8hdRIkEHByYJOag3ImXhsPXtxqMx9NLTlfD7aOvBqj3Zu/s1600/2013-08-29+21.29.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK06JK-oyiLPAn5p4-zMVw6OIEsThioZU5BUXf_EQyNURqwo_DYUgaHetknEN_sINTN_48cMdyEokSRPHajpsjJCNdcYFDHCA8hdRIkEHByYJOag3ImXhsPXtxqMx9NLTlfD7aOvBqj3Zu/s640/2013-08-29+21.29.42.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thanks to my brother Eric, I can watch Sportscenter on the wall.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZZk6YQs3yGLAJL52mQd7ydSTQEOifVRw_7qa8OeBSR6h_RUmcPjreG1cwVtCygM1mSlEylmJZ_aqjRctyJkg_pOE72vRFmfbBF6_k84V2_k_Fp4uzA5hlg05gGT3-xZYVmFc6rC67IFKf/s1600/2013-08-29+18.43.21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZZk6YQs3yGLAJL52mQd7ydSTQEOifVRw_7qa8OeBSR6h_RUmcPjreG1cwVtCygM1mSlEylmJZ_aqjRctyJkg_pOE72vRFmfbBF6_k84V2_k_Fp4uzA5hlg05gGT3-xZYVmFc6rC67IFKf/s640/2013-08-29+18.43.21.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wal-Mart has several levels and you can take your cart up and down since the escalator is just a flat incline. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsdSMi1B0ua-3hoZSPeDxpjYkvgaQAZUejnvnYlHZHUfmE9B-xSeOPwm-zovjyoQjov-haV7iN52IFPEYbySRGLs7Ac3lCP3uGJyR3wBMF4JW8gKVZ8o4SN182u3NshLOvxZnk2umipSJE/s1600/2013-08-29+18.51.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsdSMi1B0ua-3hoZSPeDxpjYkvgaQAZUejnvnYlHZHUfmE9B-xSeOPwm-zovjyoQjov-haV7iN52IFPEYbySRGLs7Ac3lCP3uGJyR3wBMF4JW8gKVZ8o4SN182u3NshLOvxZnk2umipSJE/s640/2013-08-29+18.51.02.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy now thinks China isn't so bad after all.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJcE4OVpaShY-E-EzbXX3ruY484MaFaoSD-kSsmW2OrAoIkGGKBMdfiJ3A_536nxWu6sKgCQaVLQduEEnalHWM7D5o9-NstqGA4LTKZkikDWAOj2ykHLnyjFENmuJ8dpn2wKV-v25JJY1t/s1600/2013-08-29+19.17.39.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJcE4OVpaShY-E-EzbXX3ruY484MaFaoSD-kSsmW2OrAoIkGGKBMdfiJ3A_536nxWu6sKgCQaVLQduEEnalHWM7D5o9-NstqGA4LTKZkikDWAOj2ykHLnyjFENmuJ8dpn2wKV-v25JJY1t/s640/2013-08-29+19.17.39.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's interesting how a giant American corporation can put its stamp on this part of the world. It looks very similar in a lot of ways to what we see in America...except of course for the frogs, eels, and other things. Plus, they don't pretend that everything in Wal-Mart is made in America like we do. They KNOW all this stuff is manufactured in China. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSAhRx-DoUU-prBvvrDnyHbtkN1RA4tC6FNoqRRJ5o2qZIyAdVTrTWeYDfmU0fT4WKFs9U1ohoTzC71If6JxbdFczEvakQrF0Ek3nQsJoVKJDgOdwD30KIdvWLTlh-PsbfqORnX7lvsWQp/s1600/2013-08-29+19.28.45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSAhRx-DoUU-prBvvrDnyHbtkN1RA4tC6FNoqRRJ5o2qZIyAdVTrTWeYDfmU0fT4WKFs9U1ohoTzC71If6JxbdFczEvakQrF0Ek3nQsJoVKJDgOdwD30KIdvWLTlh-PsbfqORnX7lvsWQp/s640/2013-08-29+19.28.45.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some construction in the downtown area. They were working on this when I was here last summer. Must be a big project.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm7XR07Fz3E06I5DLjW9_ch35h2VrSGuP7ANZGecGD9WXJWva4BB2RZZdxgR6dIKfaH6gk8OESzbRwzHWrLlQzPQAgazpQHJbkW6tHnC5wvKcg3ZEA6jPFQJyuVXGFDdMc9Y_CAcC4cImD/s1600/2013-08-29+19.44.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm7XR07Fz3E06I5DLjW9_ch35h2VrSGuP7ANZGecGD9WXJWva4BB2RZZdxgR6dIKfaH6gk8OESzbRwzHWrLlQzPQAgazpQHJbkW6tHnC5wvKcg3ZEA6jPFQJyuVXGFDdMc9Y_CAcC4cImD/s640/2013-08-29+19.44.35.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Having some ice cream with the girls. Annie got a Dairy queen and the other two got McDonalds cones. It didn't take us long to learn Bing Qi Lin (ice cream).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFi5JqhV73nD7xCIHd-IKUwhrqtKTgFJLTnUk_vgblVsIx5sOU4npklablyN-RXxl5ektxuDbm2NbVH0pon_54401CchAQFVLToITC5sRXubAKDTOEbMLGpN6bvlO3970t_8Kuh4eiiL9-/s1600/2013-08-29+20.04.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFi5JqhV73nD7xCIHd-IKUwhrqtKTgFJLTnUk_vgblVsIx5sOU4npklablyN-RXxl5ektxuDbm2NbVH0pon_54401CchAQFVLToITC5sRXubAKDTOEbMLGpN6bvlO3970t_8Kuh4eiiL9-/s640/2013-08-29+20.04.35.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">McDonalds here apparently has hamburger buns that are black.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmvGJD0bW0BCy-j5XvoKYyuKdxbV_zqo1sg7GNrYA3OGx16QESB6jCb-CZoICj4y2EgPOl5mayq96Lf9eFVBWawuYGZsRHrHLrqUQk8lcAhGwd-Vi68TMXx-nH0QUnHITsTtXiePshV-bG/s1600/2013-08-28+21.10.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmvGJD0bW0BCy-j5XvoKYyuKdxbV_zqo1sg7GNrYA3OGx16QESB6jCb-CZoICj4y2EgPOl5mayq96Lf9eFVBWawuYGZsRHrHLrqUQk8lcAhGwd-Vi68TMXx-nH0QUnHITsTtXiePshV-bG/s640/2013-08-28+21.10.27.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The river is about a block from our apartment and this is the view across to the city side. The side we are on has three large universities, so there is a different feel over here. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilOB11NlXRomLysauh7g6LgdB8TTMEKoIccf76GZPaHINKHSB7QzOXD5dTmOIlrZgaDGkm0rEqs5v9ikWCHra9YL4GBbUfQrwuxizC88lLxMFM4K33c5dgKa_pBSQ3RVFEJR5pxx5CjsnI/s1600/2013-08-28+21.12.43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilOB11NlXRomLysauh7g6LgdB8TTMEKoIccf76GZPaHINKHSB7QzOXD5dTmOIlrZgaDGkm0rEqs5v9ikWCHra9YL4GBbUfQrwuxizC88lLxMFM4K33c5dgKa_pBSQ3RVFEJR5pxx5CjsnI/s640/2013-08-28+21.12.43.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicolas enjoying the view of these old boats and the city.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhydpYhvnwV01pVLYSPm0hTr9Mf4NBhoI-zeDZywm33x3axSi5dcI7SzVyfldBA9v3tfWqOeh1_lBXPbEP0-IUPkLXbIcJmqIobOXIJy0Ix57IjhYGnrET4pT5lIkkew2gkT98gpOdRctvq/s1600/2013-09-05+20.11.47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhydpYhvnwV01pVLYSPm0hTr9Mf4NBhoI-zeDZywm33x3axSi5dcI7SzVyfldBA9v3tfWqOeh1_lBXPbEP0-IUPkLXbIcJmqIobOXIJy0Ix57IjhYGnrET4pT5lIkkew2gkT98gpOdRctvq/s640/2013-09-05+20.11.47.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is my formal schedule. I guess I has better learn how to teach Spoken English real good before September 16th. Somehow this sketch doesn't give me much confidence that things won't be switched on me before all is said and done.</td></tr>
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<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-55539197572737557752013-09-03T08:27:00.001-07:002013-09-03T08:27:39.047-07:00Stacie says ni hao y'allHello friends and family,<br />
I do not have a lot of time, I always have water to boil :-D. I am sorry I have not posted yet.<br />
I read Kevin's blog and he covers a lot of what has happened, so I will just add a few things from my perspective.<br />
China is an awesome, welcoming place! I love the friendly people, I love the beauty that is all around us (once you get off the streets), and I love the food! The people say the same things a lot to us... beautiful... 5 children, wow!... look, foreigners... helloo... They are really quite kind. There is a dialect here so sometimes I can't understand words I have learned like "water," "7," "8," and "9" for instance. Our neighbor came over to ask if our water was working and I couldn't understand her at all, so she grabbed her granddaughter who could speak English. I was shocked to learn that she had ever used the word "water!" I know that word and it was not used in our discussion. ha ha<br />
The most frustrating thing is not knowing what is being said. Two adorable older ladies wanted to talk to us at the grocery store today. They went on and on in Chinese and... couldn't understand a thing! This happens everyday. I wish I could respond to these conversations because they are so friendly and interested in meeting us. Being a mom means it is hard to find free time to make studying a new language very effective, but I am trying. The schools here teach the children English, so the younger generation can often say a few things.<br />
This is a beautiful place. I love the plants and trees. I saw a bird that looked a little like a woodpecker in body-type but with bottle-blue, sheeny feathers all over it's back! I love birds so I was thrilled. The waterlilies in the photos are lotus and are sometimes nearly 2 feet in diameter. The top of the lotus flower stem is full of seeds that are sold everywhere here and I tasted one- they taste almost like a pine nut. Since I have never left American before, sometimes I am surprised that the trees are real. Other times I think "so that is where this plant comes from before I see it in a store." Buying two small plants for the apartment was a bright spot for me in this busy first week.<br />
Speaking of nature, there are many small dogs in Chengsha. This attracts Evelynn's attention. There are many miniature poodles, and other small, fluffy dogs but I am unsure of their breed. Evelynn notices them all, "so cute," "so fluffy!" Most often the dogs are not on a leash and just sit next to the owner's chair while they are at work, the littlest ones are carried around, just like my Lucy.<br />
The food is really good. The meat can look very questionable in some places, and there is the local specialty "stinky tofu" sold all over the place that smells like something DIED :-P. Other than this I think everything tastes great. The dumplings, fried rice and noodles, the skewered meat, barbequed eggplant, and breads, all so good! The food is more flavorful than in America, I think. Either that or I am more hungry. The breads always tempt me. They fry it, steam it, barbeque it, boil it. There is plum, sesame, nut, honey, onion, sugar... It really tempts me. Everytime I see bread I feel hungry.<br />
I am excited to teach this Saturday, wish me good luck. I am teaching phonics to 7-9 year olds. (B says "buh" buh-aa-tuh, bat!) I always feel nervous to teach, but I love the challenge of it too. I don't know what will work and all that, I have never taught a foreign language before. Also I can NOT speak their language. So, I feel nervous. A baby boy was crying for his mother while we were walking the other day, and I said to my family, "I can't even understand what HE is saying, and he is a baby! I know less Chinese than a Chinese baby!" It is true too.<br />
I think I have lost a little weight, all my clothes are loose. That means I need more bread, right? Speaking of weight, the people here are all sizes, thin to fat, short to tall. The difference is that the thin ones are thinner than a thin American, the fat ones are more rare than they are in America, and anyone taller than Kevin's 6' 2" height is hard to find. I have seen one, he was about 6' 4". Everyone looks the right height because they are generally close to my 5' 3" size, especially girls. Appearances make me think of my new haircut...<br />
I got my hair re-cut into my favorite pixie, and I love it. Our Chinese translating-helper and friend Sophia took me to a hair salon to get it done. She got her hair done at the same time. I went to the back of the store to get the shampoo first. They had me lie down on a bed-table with the sink at the top to do the shampoo. The stylist then shampooed my hair for at least 5 minutes. Shampooing and massaging my head with a lot of pounding and rubbbing. I was thinking "are we done yet?" for most of the experience. Then I was led up front for the cut. Most stores like this (and notably a dentist office on our street) have big glass storefronts so everyone can see in while the service is being done. (None of us want to go to the dentist here now.) So I sit down and the stylist says something in Chinese. I figure he wants to know what to do with my hair, but I just shrug for fear that he might get going and I won't be happy with that result. Sophia is still getting a head massage in the back, a lot of good it did to bring her! Luckily the girl in the next chair is a university student and tells me what he said (how do you want your hair cut, obviously) then I pull out a photo, and tell the student the rest. Sophia comes along about now, and I am pretty sure she adds that I want to look like Anne Hathaway, because she asked me earlier if that was what I meant by really short. It is a great cut. I love it. Had some trouble paying because of the 7 and 9 in Chinese like I mentioned earlier. All the stylist I have seen in these big shop windows so far are men. Just like in America you can tell by the big, colorful, edgy hairdos that they are hair stylists. They were really nice to the clueless American girl with 5 kids and professor husband (I could understand that part of the conversation) that can't understand "70" (he had to write it down.) My haircut was only 19 kuai, 3.5 US dollars, the 70 was about something else.staciehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06939225086403064027noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-8373863172018344542013-09-01T04:37:00.000-07:002013-09-03T07:04:19.837-07:00First Walk to Taozi LakeWe are starting to develop a bit of a routine here. Sometimes our life seems a little complicated, though. We certainly are not used to having to wash all of our food in boiled water before eating it, sterilizing all dishes before using them, brushing our teeth with boiled water, and having to plug in a water heater and wait 20 minutes every time we want to use hot water to bathe. I also must admit that Stacie and I are not sleeping particularly well because we sleep on a box spring with a very thin pad covering it. You know that stiffness you feel after a rough night of camping? We feel like that every morning. I'm hopeful that I will eventually find someone who sells a real mattress so that we can start sleeping better. We also have difficulty finding various household items that would normally just be a quick trip to the grocery store. Stacie spent three days trying to find contact lens solution and I looked for several days trying to find a plunger for our toilet. The toilet works, but it drains very slowly and I'm told the pipe is very small. So, we need to pump it just to get water to go down. Warning: too much information about to come so skip forward if you would like. Going #2 in our master bedroom is absolutely out of the question due to the difficulty just getting water to go down the pipe. We have banned the children from using the toilet in our room because we don't trust them to get into a habit of following the #1 is ok, #2 is not ok rule. Alright, moving on to livelier topics...<br />
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Ezra has developed some kind of infection/inflammation in his throat. He's been coughing since we got here. Stacie's new friend, Lily, gave him some herbal lozenges to help soothe his throat, but they didn't seem to be minimizing the symptoms. So Lily called her friend He Yisheng (Dr. He-pronounced Dr. and then the "e" sounds like the "u" in "put"). She met us at the international office with her medical equipment and looked Ezra over. She said he needed antiobiotics, so we immediately put him on some pills that we were given by the travel clinic in Cedar City. We have a dose of antibiotics for every kid and so Ezra is now using his up in the very first week. Something in the physical environment here has really not jived with his system. He's been on the pills for a day now and we hope it will continue to improve. Personally, I think it's the "Beijing cough." This term was coined to describe the health problems related to living in the pollution-rich environment of Beijing. Politically, it has been a very controversial term as many Chinese diplomats believe it is a tool for foreigners to mislabel the health risks in China and to scare away potential foreign investors. But, it is what it is. It's clearly polluted here and it is likely affecting poor Ezra. Stacie says that when she goes outside, her contact lenses immediately start reacting (in a bad way) to the particles in the air. I should add that some days are better than others and I frequently check the pollution index to check and see how bad it is on a particular day (but I don't often tell Stacie this). She has enough to worry about.<br />
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Yesterday, we finally had a chance to take a walk around Taozi (pronounced "tow" like tower and just a "dz" sound. It was so close to our apartment and such a beautiful walk. Sometimes the city can be a little overwhelming with all the honking horns and people with microphones trying to get us to buy things in their stores. It's wonderful to have Taozi Lake, Yuelu Mountain, and other pretty parts of campus to go to in order to decompress. You can see some of the pictures posted in this blog and how gorgeous this lake is. It's hard to believe it's actually part of the Hunan Normal University campus. We arrived on August 23rd and apparently have until the middle of September before I have to start teaching. I was initially told that I would be teaching on September 2nd (which is tomorrow), but found out that I am teaching all Freshmen and since they have military training, I have to wait for that to conclude before I begin. I'm not sure if we would have chosen to stay in the U.S. for an extra two weeks had we known that this would be the situation, but I'm glad that I have this time to help Stacie and the kids get settled. To be honest, I'm getting a little nervous about the teaching simply because the Chinese provide me so little information about what I'm actually supposed to do. I've had one person tell me that I need to use their textbook and another tell me I can use my own. I had one person tell me I'm teaching 6 classes of 35 students and that this constitutes 12 individual class periods per week. However, the Chinese classes are 1 1/2 hours long with a ten minute break in between. Am I teaching for 12 separate 1 1/2 hour blocks or 12 of the 50 minutes periods? You can guess which one I'm hoping for! Anyway, when the information is finally provided to me (likely one week AFTER I begin my classes), I will make whatever adjustments are needed. I'm trying to be more adaptable and sort of "roll with the punches." Those who know me well know that I am a very organized person and I don't like it when people don't provide me the information I need to do my job. On the bright side, I will have no teaching evaluations. If I bomb in the classroom, the only people that will know it are me, the students, and whoever is monitoring those video cameras at the back of my classroom. <br />
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Stacie is feeling a bit more comfortable every day that we are here. She is orienting herself to the immediate environment, knows her way around the grocery store, and even went to get her hair cut at a Chinese hair salon while the rest of us stayed home. It was a big step for her. She had been growing her hair out for months trying to get it to the point where she could put it in a pony tail. And, this process was so aggravating for her since she felt her hair was in that "in-between" stage. Well, today she decided to chop it all off. The rest of all are calling it the "Anne Hathaway" haircut because that's what it looks like. We all love it and she is so happy not to have all that sweaty hair hitting against her neck. Stacie is also making so many friends here and making them more quickly than I thought she would. They are just gravitating to her and want to help her with whatever she needs. She has felt very warmly received by the Chinese people. Her friend, Lily, and our personal assistant, Sophia, have been absolutely wonderful to us. Lily asked Stacie if she would like to teach English to her son and some of his Chinese classmates. Stacie, who has homeschooled our children for 2 years now and taught a U.S. liberty and constitution class to other kids is very comfortable in this environment and I think it would be very good for her. I thought this opportunity might come her way eventually, but I didn't think it would be this soon. She is ecstatic to start doing this and I'm happy that she will have something fulfilling to do while I'm busy at the university. Then, on the weekends and during holidays, we can hit those places we want to see like Xi'an, Beijing, Hong Kong, and Ziangjiajie National Park. <br />
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Today, we did a monthly budget for our Chinese salary. As many of you know, the Stein master plan for the next year is to live humbly on our Chinese salary and to sock away my SUU salary (well 80% of it since this is the policy on year-long sabbaticals). Then, we can buy a house when we get home. We looked at our financial situation in great detail today and what our potential expenses might be. I was told by Amy not to disclose the amount of my salary since it is likely higher than some of the other foreign faculty salaries. Apparently, the Chinese Foreign Expert bureau felt that my credentials warranted more money than some of the others. Not sure how that happened, but I'm certainly not complaining. We have allotted a certain amount for food, fun, allowances for the kids, and household expenses. Luckily, the university is paying for our apartment and our utilities so we should be fine. We spent a ton of money this week getting little things we needed for house and are now ready to stop buying every little thing we see. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR6KU_kJPqZVTr_h2Dkfzjz04cJactscoMM8vsvOACuWD_PnWhb93Km_-l4j7af_mI_iGCgoj2xjhPSHCDnmitt8gTCiJFZo1uSQ1-UUB099PhMkaGCYvKb8KBsRkjvsYL5ULKOn4E55zQ/s1600/2013-08-27+23.03.08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR6KU_kJPqZVTr_h2Dkfzjz04cJactscoMM8vsvOACuWD_PnWhb93Km_-l4j7af_mI_iGCgoj2xjhPSHCDnmitt8gTCiJFZo1uSQ1-UUB099PhMkaGCYvKb8KBsRkjvsYL5ULKOn4E55zQ/s640/2013-08-27+23.03.08.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra being examined by the Yisheng (doctor).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxge9GoSgGqwqDd5T6fwEk9nxZbrUddw3aB6aFFrNuoa1iFHOVRMkqwuLLPSuBEsQnYJfeaisqCVeqLo_pnTtCpkj-74zbUeQB4tKbChyphenhyphenniQASikRdWg2Ep7MstxA_-01lMInPIQVpiZGh/s1600/2013-08-27+23.05.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxge9GoSgGqwqDd5T6fwEk9nxZbrUddw3aB6aFFrNuoa1iFHOVRMkqwuLLPSuBEsQnYJfeaisqCVeqLo_pnTtCpkj-74zbUeQB4tKbChyphenhyphenniQASikRdWg2Ep7MstxA_-01lMInPIQVpiZGh/s640/2013-08-27+23.05.49.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It seemed a little inappropriate to be taking pictures of my son while he was being examined, but I really wanted to capture the experience. It probably seemed like I was more concerned about the photo op than the health of my son.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5nUO5tgdosV2vWxNXjYAG9rwd9u5KQtUL5urtCl_SpfouSbkJ_i8LAyFb8VgLTKCtYLVh91S-oJj2pTVgSS77BO783z7k_aU0Kz7Bm8VCyXIx1PSMcL7aAGTy-7cftWQekvgyw6BmyopE/s1600/2013-08-27+19.12.25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5nUO5tgdosV2vWxNXjYAG9rwd9u5KQtUL5urtCl_SpfouSbkJ_i8LAyFb8VgLTKCtYLVh91S-oJj2pTVgSS77BO783z7k_aU0Kz7Bm8VCyXIx1PSMcL7aAGTy-7cftWQekvgyw6BmyopE/s640/2013-08-27+19.12.25.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Along the road to Taozi lake. Just around the corner from our apartment.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc1swq97YrOlQF8KOoifPtxNZKx9HmKeCei0mIw8phyphenhyphenuObG3ywT0oWuDjFuIsF5DL2zNVvAVMqG0vxKNXc54j_FgSGvtmJMGB4d47LBumafo3KaLmQKDL3AW5vMMbRQq6vFrnEWFU7Isnr/s1600/2013-08-27+19.50.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc1swq97YrOlQF8KOoifPtxNZKx9HmKeCei0mIw8phyphenhyphenuObG3ywT0oWuDjFuIsF5DL2zNVvAVMqG0vxKNXc54j_FgSGvtmJMGB4d47LBumafo3KaLmQKDL3AW5vMMbRQq6vFrnEWFU7Isnr/s640/2013-08-27+19.50.53.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My favorite place for fried rice (chou fan) and fried noodles (chou mein). I went here a million times last summer and was excited to show Stacie and the kids. That mop of blonde on the left is Lucy watching intently.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh1G-Z1ouj1jXnBt3mlmscZyakFWZSuuVLyPmKC2DKI62XhfYvYCOQVy4S8LRcI0qCByCnrZ0MQmotnr-_-kz9JC1karwbTKTQyJPR1SC2a-EoRN3MqSmoHMbgxQfiydRZOkSQDqhgGTbm/s1600/2013-08-27+19.50.59.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh1G-Z1ouj1jXnBt3mlmscZyakFWZSuuVLyPmKC2DKI62XhfYvYCOQVy4S8LRcI0qCByCnrZ0MQmotnr-_-kz9JC1karwbTKTQyJPR1SC2a-EoRN3MqSmoHMbgxQfiydRZOkSQDqhgGTbm/s640/2013-08-27+19.50.59.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The counter of the fried rice place. It's basically just a small room with a rolling door (kind of like a storage unit). Many of the businesses are run out of these types of places. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiabmj_lLYF1OVpZ6N_cTMYWOJp-cOjdgNwi-s3MQp9MQwVUmUpbwzQJ_zpXKlZ65fCsIrHlzMKBi2R4uRCy4IYQwkpKqUpaneLbX56TIJAwETnM84679XXq4lZfLuPakAeD623l_LcZdRv/s1600/2013-08-27+18.59.16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiabmj_lLYF1OVpZ6N_cTMYWOJp-cOjdgNwi-s3MQp9MQwVUmUpbwzQJ_zpXKlZ65fCsIrHlzMKBi2R4uRCy4IYQwkpKqUpaneLbX56TIJAwETnM84679XXq4lZfLuPakAeD623l_LcZdRv/s640/2013-08-27+18.59.16.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We couldn't possibly come to Hunan Normal University without taking a picture in front of the main entrance. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7J-BMavJzB0FBKY_F_bo7NKBcTV0rrqlW7Vjf_9M-jjvB9xtOHB3CEQ5i9KhRtJfeBsoyxuQG8uTxuJ-pTVzbcfw4dE0CIDTEJtDmi8on1_mgrdAgBuNzdgT94LoOILYpvDjYiZivAiXB/s1600/2013-08-27+19.01.54.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7J-BMavJzB0FBKY_F_bo7NKBcTV0rrqlW7Vjf_9M-jjvB9xtOHB3CEQ5i9KhRtJfeBsoyxuQG8uTxuJ-pTVzbcfw4dE0CIDTEJtDmi8on1_mgrdAgBuNzdgT94LoOILYpvDjYiZivAiXB/s640/2013-08-27+19.01.54.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful bridge running along Taozi Lake.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVC52QKTaw753d08KLm4AD2st0dYWVQUQtRnxhcExECEKBeUP-yn0VSAlrTTQ6oteOUIJxzb0B4Cg7f0Cq_cO_2Y9YOWHV-n3ftzO9idhdWIdkoABDvo2USJpujbesMkQr_d8iPXGhjtUt/s1600/2013-08-27+19.02.04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVC52QKTaw753d08KLm4AD2st0dYWVQUQtRnxhcExECEKBeUP-yn0VSAlrTTQ6oteOUIJxzb0B4Cg7f0Cq_cO_2Y9YOWHV-n3ftzO9idhdWIdkoABDvo2USJpujbesMkQr_d8iPXGhjtUt/s640/2013-08-27+19.02.04.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View across the whole lake. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdq7PTskFpK4LfEjBQFpAa70DMPB_YbnjuLBPA2aWjofkkc9LFkhuMMBA7BboP97DRRfRZIitX8dts80am8gDNiJCjc2haixRZB4ql_Vsyn-23O8qyHXc_CMPMvT9TVUu_WPwYZ7VBPgil/s1600/2013-08-27+19.02.16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdq7PTskFpK4LfEjBQFpAa70DMPB_YbnjuLBPA2aWjofkkc9LFkhuMMBA7BboP97DRRfRZIitX8dts80am8gDNiJCjc2haixRZB4ql_Vsyn-23O8qyHXc_CMPMvT9TVUu_WPwYZ7VBPgil/s640/2013-08-27+19.02.16.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Someone tell me what are these awesome plants. I still don't know. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2u7DnKbzsbOokjlBfyKJh1iGDhQaAmJxQX1VRJUtkR2-6oO5hypl9_uclhL8q2cq5Ii9GjcSHNiZIZgg-kQ4kotpjR7Z1kZBWPYZyFkFYe9D1JW_k-35AWJE-kYGaZJ73PHBEGiWgGMG/s1600/2013-08-27+19.04.31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2u7DnKbzsbOokjlBfyKJh1iGDhQaAmJxQX1VRJUtkR2-6oO5hypl9_uclhL8q2cq5Ii9GjcSHNiZIZgg-kQ4kotpjR7Z1kZBWPYZyFkFYe9D1JW_k-35AWJE-kYGaZJ73PHBEGiWgGMG/s640/2013-08-27+19.04.31.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I guess the Stein family is good luck. He just caught a fish right when we walked up. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlb__uybe2W5WBMX9AWFX9UNqlU83xjf7h-6nrdEgzol85vFsCh8dAnkGPDTrvkCzecBWiw8CpP_ASMk7j5Zz3GiSXYeqSoE7mzI3_NKHCTn7yteUPtu73JxKsN1PFKP69MJGb1FZta5Rr/s1600/2013-08-27+19.05.36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlb__uybe2W5WBMX9AWFX9UNqlU83xjf7h-6nrdEgzol85vFsCh8dAnkGPDTrvkCzecBWiw8CpP_ASMk7j5Zz3GiSXYeqSoE7mzI3_NKHCTn7yteUPtu73JxKsN1PFKP69MJGb1FZta5Rr/s640/2013-08-27+19.05.36.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This girl just started talking to Stacie and then decided to walk with us a ways. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Y6YxG3QKUKtc_7nVPKrnAd-cA3wbKmazp8PSCpSe5pDSnEQqTwBX98lV1Yd7_uwpJT2CvvvyncbNa7SA76EzZvLDkhlKQGW9Zmdt2eONd2XhI5bW2eOG4DeoHzq0lUqqBnFeqXjY3Gw5/s1600/2013-08-27+19.08.08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Y6YxG3QKUKtc_7nVPKrnAd-cA3wbKmazp8PSCpSe5pDSnEQqTwBX98lV1Yd7_uwpJT2CvvvyncbNa7SA76EzZvLDkhlKQGW9Zmdt2eONd2XhI5bW2eOG4DeoHzq0lUqqBnFeqXjY3Gw5/s640/2013-08-27+19.08.08.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie looking cute in front of the lotus plants. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGq4fs_V6jac4efaqzI6aI3EoHvbcAfgssDhtB9FO_8q8XozxlRFwDQE2xgrmFZ8WCFCy0JeS03i4mekm47GwHTS9deWY4uGgHbzELTUfvzx-7QB5jkc2KdU3lGA0Qe_w7K4KQYqy8JQib/s1600/2013-08-27+19.08.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGq4fs_V6jac4efaqzI6aI3EoHvbcAfgssDhtB9FO_8q8XozxlRFwDQE2xgrmFZ8WCFCy0JeS03i4mekm47GwHTS9deWY4uGgHbzELTUfvzx-7QB5jkc2KdU3lGA0Qe_w7K4KQYqy8JQib/s640/2013-08-27+19.08.13.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeanie just loves everything we do. No culture shock for her. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUII-ex0oFBvU4b3tUpAVvyZ-p_lHcXoCHMbgYihvtb3k_0Q_ZXXXZNwHPp2liFQzQe46FO7KxtbDCBN4Mu-I6V3RiHy5_hE8_Oed40Uvfts-8mBLJeTjI8lc9ZiZgwQWgqWiODwIKwNG5/s1600/2013-08-27+19.09.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUII-ex0oFBvU4b3tUpAVvyZ-p_lHcXoCHMbgYihvtb3k_0Q_ZXXXZNwHPp2liFQzQe46FO7KxtbDCBN4Mu-I6V3RiHy5_hE8_Oed40Uvfts-8mBLJeTjI8lc9ZiZgwQWgqWiODwIKwNG5/s640/2013-08-27+19.09.50.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another fisherman showed us these small fish, which are the size you are most likely to catch if you fished at Taozi Lake. That other guy just got lucky.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha9-xHz1ld9wVdjsVS0vjBQTbpVq01135rFd1OVY9_Be46npVJxXAVFjL9yU2sXoaFNMyIUnRb0ykYu3vDv4cXHIkhSmi6baouJpyUnFXxqjpUFdeQklmcHllA5wx6NZcHT2dlLwlnOrzO/s1600/2013-08-27+19.13.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha9-xHz1ld9wVdjsVS0vjBQTbpVq01135rFd1OVY9_Be46npVJxXAVFjL9yU2sXoaFNMyIUnRb0ykYu3vDv4cXHIkhSmi6baouJpyUnFXxqjpUFdeQklmcHllA5wx6NZcHT2dlLwlnOrzO/s640/2013-08-27+19.13.56.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It looks like this walkway goes all the way around. It's a perfect place to go for a walk. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49SZ9jGoFwNXwoTTGBG6dg-Q0zO553alcujkQ2ovqXI4guk6BjeDulTGfFwXIAUP_Z31_DBYP_lv6FXNPJrCsPytAkMl9KobgtqMsZvWXJgz9KPOXiGPqF01SS1olh3M6Y8gQRzpX-WBZ/s1600/2013-08-27+19.15.00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49SZ9jGoFwNXwoTTGBG6dg-Q0zO553alcujkQ2ovqXI4guk6BjeDulTGfFwXIAUP_Z31_DBYP_lv6FXNPJrCsPytAkMl9KobgtqMsZvWXJgz9KPOXiGPqF01SS1olh3M6Y8gQRzpX-WBZ/s640/2013-08-27+19.15.00.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I tried to get a closeup of this because the head of this plant looks like a shower head to me. Apparently, there are seeds inside that taste a little like pine nuts and they sell them on the street here. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdeZsg2AoHgEVCO8oT5H3O2Bs3ifK8ZoOvmi4ya3zQvJOwFr3-cfQ4nu8ihqyKEiZFL0etuJfhQlFuzgWVj9pHD-snl9ljV5uB35fTWFGh3NohwPLFolG82F9ydVfCUoaE5IP_qlm2OJQ2/s1600/2013-08-27+19.20.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdeZsg2AoHgEVCO8oT5H3O2Bs3ifK8ZoOvmi4ya3zQvJOwFr3-cfQ4nu8ihqyKEiZFL0etuJfhQlFuzgWVj9pHD-snl9ljV5uB35fTWFGh3NohwPLFolG82F9ydVfCUoaE5IP_qlm2OJQ2/s640/2013-08-27+19.20.13.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The vegetation here is just amazing. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiGD_2MBNsNtRLa_sLO8cI3d0u8xxwhy8KSaGIql94q8gukx1mdwHJHxS0a1ellwRf224rC2gUDgoOYF6vLtWpePqp2FYArNKjygAKXM0q5XImQhaoEkY8ISqHjNH-4eZknS3WW4mOMQDy/s1600/2013-08-27+19.24.37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiGD_2MBNsNtRLa_sLO8cI3d0u8xxwhy8KSaGIql94q8gukx1mdwHJHxS0a1ellwRf224rC2gUDgoOYF6vLtWpePqp2FYArNKjygAKXM0q5XImQhaoEkY8ISqHjNH-4eZknS3WW4mOMQDy/s640/2013-08-27+19.24.37.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This sign clearly says no fishing or swimming allowed. To the left, you can see yet another group of fisherman ignoring the sign. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSWu3cmEJJUObwkSetTXtXpO21JsZUkesYaXxcHBrfvyFNkrYVbg21aEHaVniSeh_7lbAYsto5DKQx_zDdmJYpg1XmC0O8XRNPYsvg1L9pHitUMEztNOjQCYOlU_UMQuOKtkQoyy9VtiFY/s1600/2013-08-27+19.37.41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSWu3cmEJJUObwkSetTXtXpO21JsZUkesYaXxcHBrfvyFNkrYVbg21aEHaVniSeh_7lbAYsto5DKQx_zDdmJYpg1XmC0O8XRNPYsvg1L9pHitUMEztNOjQCYOlU_UMQuOKtkQoyy9VtiFY/s640/2013-08-27+19.37.41.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dinner time. Oh wait...the CDC (Center for Disease Control in the U.S.) recommends we don't go anywhere near live poultry due to risks of Avian flu. A picture never hurts, though. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDa4khKgrrUlJA90u7gopt66-7laloWbjFH-05U5_e0y-bxAM40mEw6__8Rl2IQQajaTbxzC1wvzIMq9L3gXXMG1cc5xHkmw_6uzIQSYwXufy7mvRGJhkf3p6_aKLLntx3aPqYkkmuQNaL/s1600/2013-08-27+16.53.24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDa4khKgrrUlJA90u7gopt66-7laloWbjFH-05U5_e0y-bxAM40mEw6__8Rl2IQQajaTbxzC1wvzIMq9L3gXXMG1cc5xHkmw_6uzIQSYwXufy7mvRGJhkf3p6_aKLLntx3aPqYkkmuQNaL/s640/2013-08-27+16.53.24.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicolas and Ezra playing with their new friend Joey. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxtzxTbduFhstRRs9L21FiaXW0b3sTneMEGC73I1HWjle2kiKsrHjLIjuYdffN4sex95A8pZ-zKr5N0Of9M5e6edIIkgA4-iDCFVlup_-Gz3pN2LH67Iaei3SJ0DB7s-FeoHb20ywdIRMc/s1600/2013-08-27+16.54.17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxtzxTbduFhstRRs9L21FiaXW0b3sTneMEGC73I1HWjle2kiKsrHjLIjuYdffN4sex95A8pZ-zKr5N0Of9M5e6edIIkgA4-iDCFVlup_-Gz3pN2LH67Iaei3SJ0DB7s-FeoHb20ywdIRMc/s640/2013-08-27+16.54.17.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lily is talking to Stacie about the new class Stacie will be teaching. Starting in one week, she'll be teaching Chinese kids English for 200 yuan class ($32).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFsBVVaeGIbkIAnBS3sXHd3xhIiYLdCAYqPvPWRP0wdkjXDA3DqvEDIYB02ovA_TH5PBFgCxLCbxx4jyB2PiVI8PhwZYe6AoW35kBICkldH8MBeJBPaq19tPi73L0vdDuizqzVUscIw51n/s1600/2013-08-27+18.51.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFsBVVaeGIbkIAnBS3sXHd3xhIiYLdCAYqPvPWRP0wdkjXDA3DqvEDIYB02ovA_TH5PBFgCxLCbxx4jyB2PiVI8PhwZYe6AoW35kBICkldH8MBeJBPaq19tPi73L0vdDuizqzVUscIw51n/s640/2013-08-27+18.51.57.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Every time I post something even remotely friendly about the environment, someone jumps on me for being a tree hugger. But, I was really happy to see that the government chose to build an enclosure around this giant tree rather than chop it down because it blocks most of the sidewalk. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On our walk, we saw these pools behind some of the HNU buildings. We weren't quite sure what they were for, but possibly irrigation or maybe even the university water supply comes from here. We'll try to find out. Also, see that tower in the background. We were just up there (see Yuelu Mountain blog post)!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguFPo-wxbqO_hRoSGB0WaccDPOejYDR25kO8-6fYZldit90YE3l50xZtNKgMW78bEr1LvV98VKeIw0o-XL4xb-q236dyB9zs_Q001Xc1VaXv6BWQq8K8nboFgAGWh_fK0NjFOjyxPm90rq/s1600/2013-08-28+18.50.14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguFPo-wxbqO_hRoSGB0WaccDPOejYDR25kO8-6fYZldit90YE3l50xZtNKgMW78bEr1LvV98VKeIw0o-XL4xb-q236dyB9zs_Q001Xc1VaXv6BWQq8K8nboFgAGWh_fK0NjFOjyxPm90rq/s640/2013-08-28+18.50.14.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie's new cut.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN4igQMgMy_ntPEBCTDoh5YTypeJ1tV8uCr3aYZCHPXYnrcKnuxNKLyFsmAwU0J54iOjWha-xb196Lq3S4NtglhzH9BEX058ILDa-FdJ88-w0dCqB7PnOsENh1IXU26FPtsOkIeDsf2vWk/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-09-01+at+7.27.23+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN4igQMgMy_ntPEBCTDoh5YTypeJ1tV8uCr3aYZCHPXYnrcKnuxNKLyFsmAwU0J54iOjWha-xb196Lq3S4NtglhzH9BEX058ILDa-FdJ88-w0dCqB7PnOsENh1IXU26FPtsOkIeDsf2vWk/s640/Screen+Shot+2013-09-01+at+7.27.23+PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So, the air quality index measures the--yes, you guessed it--air quality in various cities across the world. The index below shows you where Changsha's number of 125 falls on their scale of potential health risks. It could be worse of course. Beijing's number (at least as of today) was 155 and Los Angeles is 135. So, when you're thinking about our level of pollution here, think about L.A. </td></tr>
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<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-37414113449108704352013-08-30T08:21:00.005-07:002013-08-30T08:21:51.068-07:00Yuelu Mountain and the Chinese Movie TheatreWe are starting to get the hang of some aspects of our life in China. We just passed the one week mark and are pretty proud of ourselves for surviving this critical adjustment period. Now, we only have 47 more weeks to go. We seem to be picking up a handful of new words and phrases each day in Mandarin and will hopefully be able to get by even better a few months down the road. Stacie is definitely studying the hardest. She has a little notebook that she writes expressions in and then studies them throughout the day. Then, she goes through the Chinese textbook at night after we put the kids in bed. I wish I were as diligent as she is. I usually just blog or watch tv (Netflix and Dish Network thanks to my brother, Eric), but I know that's not going to do much for my language skills. When the last season of Breaking Bad is over, I'll reassess my priorities. Hopefully, I can find the time to do both. We both have some apps on our phones that have proven to be critical. One is called Hanping and it helps us translate English words into Pinyin and Simplified Chinese characters. It also has a speaker icon that when pressed pronounces the word for you. We also have Google Translate, which allows us to type English in full sentences and then translates them for you into Mandarin. Stacie's phone (I'm not sure why mine doesn't) let's her say the sentence into the phone and it types the English text and translates it. It's kind of a crutch for now, but we really pay attention to the words that we have looked up and try to learn them for next time. The children are also doing well with their Chinese. So far, they have had many opportunities to interact with people and to practice. It certainly helps that we are quasi-celebrities here and can barely walk down the street without people coming up to us and wanting to take our picture and converse. Even though we don't understand them very much, they are very kind and usually just tell us our children are beautiful or that we appear to be a very happy family. We can recognize questions such as "Where are you from?" etc. and can reply that we are "Meiguo Ren" (Americans) and that yes, we do in fact have "Wu Ge Haizi" (five children). <br />
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Today, we finally had the opportunity to climb Yuelu Mountain. It is such a beautifully scenic spot and one of the more popular destinations in Changsha. And, the entrance to the trail (more like a paved road) is only about 3 blocks from our apartment. The mountain is so lush and green and has many different kinds of vegetation. I knew Stacie would love this area and I was really looking forward to showing her this beautiful spot. She's always been a nature girl and I knew the scenery would lift her spirits. It's also good to get away from the honking horns and the constant threat of being run over by crazy drivers. It was a much cooler day (high of 88 degrees) and we enjoyed our 2 1/2 hour trek up the mountain and back. Lucy wanted to be carried most of the way, but the other kids did just great. We went through about 9 water bottles in all. The risk of dehydration is pretty good in this weather and we are trying to be careful. When we reached the top, the view was tremendous. We could see a large portion of the city of Changsha (which is just massive by the way), but we could also see spots of vegetation around the city. It gave us a glimpse of what the terrain really looks like in our area and how things might appear had there not been so much urban development. When we got home, we were just exhausted. Luckily, we had cups of noodles (almost like our Ramen noodle cups in the United States). We are becoming pros at boiling water to do our dishes, so making noodles was not a big stretch. <br />
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Tonight, we were invited by my friend Ya Lun and a couple of her friends to the movies. Ya Lun is the girl who was assigned to be my personal assistant last summer (I know that sounds weird to have a personal assistant). She helped tutor me in Chinese and helped me to shop and get money from the bank when I needed it. It was nice to introduce her to my family and to spend some time talking with her. We decided to go see Monsters University in 3D. Last summer, I had the chance to see The Avengers and Men in Black 3 at the very same Imax theatre and the movie was in English with Chinese subtitles at the bottom. I found it annoying at first, but then I got used to it and was grateful to be able to watch these movies at all so far from home. I assumed that this is what the kids would encounter when they went to Monsters University. I even told Jeanie to expect some subtitles so that she wouldn't be surprised. When we went into the theatre, the movie had already started because we were a little late. We discovered that the movie was actually dubbed in Chinese. Jeanie said "Daddy, you said this was going to be in English!" I responded that she would just have to watch it anyway. After about 10 minutes of getting used to Chinese voices for all these characters we know and love (the big void without John Goodman and Billy Crystal), we laughed and enjoyed ourselves immensely. Ya Lun bought the kids popcorn (caramel since they don't have butter popcorn in China) and cokes. Our kids don't drink caffeine, but it was one of those times we just said "the heck with it" and let them drink them anyway. We worried they would be up all night, but I guess the Coke was no match for the exhaustion following the long hike up Yuelu Mountain. Below are some pictures (and a couple of videos too) of our recent adventures. The videos don't allow captions, but the first one is me filming a few seconds of the Chinese version of Monsters University. The second video at the very bottom is the sound of the construction we have been dealing with at our apartment complex since we arrived. I sure hope they are finished soon. We lost our water for a few hours today, but it wasn't a big deal.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie and Jeanie having fun with Ya Lun and her friends at the movies.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirxy2bMI0_1MHqHDQ_i6so401LbfEXeGwOqLzeYdzo61IJbrP5GJ73xFKzctEvQmWzxg-76wLDV_ZnTiHNUseLwOmRiq0-8Ftzy_dMa00lBE4Lys3JPMvAcCrjqo7uKfJP7zBQrY-yjHuN/s1600/2013-08-26+21.23.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirxy2bMI0_1MHqHDQ_i6so401LbfEXeGwOqLzeYdzo61IJbrP5GJ73xFKzctEvQmWzxg-76wLDV_ZnTiHNUseLwOmRiq0-8Ftzy_dMa00lBE4Lys3JPMvAcCrjqo7uKfJP7zBQrY-yjHuN/s640/2013-08-26+21.23.50.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sully and Mike Wazowski ain't got nothin' on Jeanie.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjDwu-_kv45RCcj7ZOpVZJHQe-o9N4bOYQ2zgi30edtACENhgmT6I0RagCh9iYquBgoXHeLh9MWXmVmamTYGw7xocZaKl0zoizQVr75bdtQitnXZpQ2bvDj2cUzuhwTHowAgYbgGMvHAFu/s1600/2013-08-26+18.02.39+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjDwu-_kv45RCcj7ZOpVZJHQe-o9N4bOYQ2zgi30edtACENhgmT6I0RagCh9iYquBgoXHeLh9MWXmVmamTYGw7xocZaKl0zoizQVr75bdtQitnXZpQ2bvDj2cUzuhwTHowAgYbgGMvHAFu/s640/2013-08-26+18.02.39+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We pretty much try a new snack every time we go to the store. These are peanut crackers with seaweed flavor. When they first hit your taste buds, you aren't sure, but then they become addictive.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of about 75 rests we took on the way up Yuelu Mountain.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2UzOoIeDrM-RhpakpBvbhMG3jLllR1Hok0QkNIuUGjSN0_YiJjcak8ZI7bICnWUydsqCiOqJZlFHN5d0ZsrnXhkPwrnMoZGkHIGdJiWu1UF9I457yeNfb4zSxtfxRCuRzTu9YYAhuz3nB/s1600/2013-08-26+15.19.52+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2UzOoIeDrM-RhpakpBvbhMG3jLllR1Hok0QkNIuUGjSN0_YiJjcak8ZI7bICnWUydsqCiOqJZlFHN5d0ZsrnXhkPwrnMoZGkHIGdJiWu1UF9I457yeNfb4zSxtfxRCuRzTu9YYAhuz3nB/s640/2013-08-26+15.19.52+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These girls wanted to take their picture with Stacie. It's not often they see such an American beauty.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuhCfZc0NiexSJzvGVvIFH7aZvbFV1tpEfjlTrWJYqjA9dbcTAklhI9uJMD85bhUzfp_YKeshcYPjSMOehvPafQcT17cLRxyiZRlMA8DZ553aPy1KV5_35J9VxD-oK6Fpk5vUaItYR6tt-/s1600/2013-08-26+15.19.36+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuhCfZc0NiexSJzvGVvIFH7aZvbFV1tpEfjlTrWJYqjA9dbcTAklhI9uJMD85bhUzfp_YKeshcYPjSMOehvPafQcT17cLRxyiZRlMA8DZ553aPy1KV5_35J9VxD-oK6Fpk5vUaItYR6tt-/s640/2013-08-26+15.19.36+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie practicing her Chinese with these young girls. I didn't hear all of their conversation, but I think the girl on the left is shocked at the amount of Chinese profanity that Stacie knows.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6-JilQdSQJirYgfa1259Nk2-jTD-ABQCYPwGtc0BV_tUa3prHsziD0JWz8iRwea5_-4HwYPPE1RChltt3N6mGKkYswMh_AjlAosVJWfWFuMsp3zM8cCISE8j014W6iHW1isjFYdfteWgd/s1600/2013-08-26+15.11.04+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6-JilQdSQJirYgfa1259Nk2-jTD-ABQCYPwGtc0BV_tUa3prHsziD0JWz8iRwea5_-4HwYPPE1RChltt3N6mGKkYswMh_AjlAosVJWfWFuMsp3zM8cCISE8j014W6iHW1isjFYdfteWgd/s640/2013-08-26+15.11.04+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here we are at the top of Yuelu. We don't yet know how to ask someone to take our picture or we might have got the whole family in this one. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpZ5RafLTbw1EVb02XQnIaG4rqSiZZJAfwtMz9-2-pAYg2wXmk-EE95sB730qKgTvPEzVqD2y5eE7_KCQaX6SBDe3m3wS2e1cGV-tu6X30TmblxHf13czOjKZHP4knhlHufG2NRfUEc5kE/s1600/2013-08-26+15.10.17+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpZ5RafLTbw1EVb02XQnIaG4rqSiZZJAfwtMz9-2-pAYg2wXmk-EE95sB730qKgTvPEzVqD2y5eE7_KCQaX6SBDe3m3wS2e1cGV-tu6X30TmblxHf13czOjKZHP4knhlHufG2NRfUEc5kE/s640/2013-08-26+15.10.17+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another great view of the city of Changsha from the top of the mountain. This was a surprisingly clear day. It's usually a bit hazy from the pollution. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhesk7JSLJhaWu8e6IX-Q-36Tg2OX65P6gKdkNYT1UgReCP2lO8I1dDxQ935KgPvvLktsIelrMsa3AVq_nuXx_gxhH-vyIz1EKf93gd6XXzpnywzq_2QqGmOqU7sJjvUbWv4IpMpDI3pU2p/s1600/2013-08-26+14.58.23+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhesk7JSLJhaWu8e6IX-Q-36Tg2OX65P6gKdkNYT1UgReCP2lO8I1dDxQ935KgPvvLktsIelrMsa3AVq_nuXx_gxhH-vyIz1EKf93gd6XXzpnywzq_2QqGmOqU7sJjvUbWv4IpMpDI3pU2p/s640/2013-08-26+14.58.23+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What's all the fuss about here? Oh yeah...a tiny caterpillar.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoZ9tPeiLIVDymE7WzN3U_vx9MMGVBYtxeWqzoe-00iKCqKUb8BNZOzefM7VPE8dYBcy3U2fqj5DNKwzLBfnBxaquXYn_8YqM6heLtoZbMMtemhnsGfazPaAmNTPie4kiGPKYsPRjWvxbr/s1600/2013-08-26+15.06.38+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoZ9tPeiLIVDymE7WzN3U_vx9MMGVBYtxeWqzoe-00iKCqKUb8BNZOzefM7VPE8dYBcy3U2fqj5DNKwzLBfnBxaquXYn_8YqM6heLtoZbMMtemhnsGfazPaAmNTPie4kiGPKYsPRjWvxbr/s640/2013-08-26+15.06.38+(1).jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The television tower at the top of the mountain. You can see this thing from all over Changsha. Seems like a lot of work for one channel that doesn't have anything good on it.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2pmhyphenhyphen_asSYBqQASjgUdahSGycYd7C8nioyWVQNTCXDZ7HyQinKIfZK6uvMdu0Y6JFm5YX3gDqrw6uLUqjJJ7zxmHM8Y-QxkpoduAXiNUREI0Q_rH3jNkLrng2kn8hkcfK546BAGQMwVnd/s1600/2013-08-26+14.22.47+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2pmhyphenhyphen_asSYBqQASjgUdahSGycYd7C8nioyWVQNTCXDZ7HyQinKIfZK6uvMdu0Y6JFm5YX3gDqrw6uLUqjJJ7zxmHM8Y-QxkpoduAXiNUREI0Q_rH3jNkLrng2kn8hkcfK546BAGQMwVnd/s640/2013-08-26+14.22.47+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More people wanting to take their picture with those famous Steins. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR_uIqDHKUezoF3eEprC8bq3NvR8xOFnHToWfUfw4iQYKiMGo05mrbRhgj46DBKHInrARZzYd8b0kw5BWtcQNanzpgzSDhXEiWno89nC-6YAZGIMnFHfj2xd-V8-sii2g2xKdIB-OznLT8/s1600/2013-08-26+14.27.41+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR_uIqDHKUezoF3eEprC8bq3NvR8xOFnHToWfUfw4iQYKiMGo05mrbRhgj46DBKHInrARZzYd8b0kw5BWtcQNanzpgzSDhXEiWno89nC-6YAZGIMnFHfj2xd-V8-sii2g2xKdIB-OznLT8/s640/2013-08-26+14.27.41+(1).jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I guess Annie's orthodontist has a little contest to see who can take their picture with one of Andertson Orthodontics' t-shirts from the farthest place on earth. I'm not sure how anyone is going to beat her. We are literally on the opposite side of the world. Even the North Pole is probably closer to Utah than we are right now (although I'm not sure how to confirm this).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgci7189MDg9MbOGqnNYMkYXuz4tXKht7Ks0GoTQGDIMAdUB_sn1l80tBNau_gdMxIkfLkdfO_bPyFUlKa0NJz_AUbLPasA0Ew2N8yXVc_fEmt5nG42fs5W_4k6YQBdfrN2NvpJGXzwC09i/s1600/2013-08-26+14.38.31+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgci7189MDg9MbOGqnNYMkYXuz4tXKht7Ks0GoTQGDIMAdUB_sn1l80tBNau_gdMxIkfLkdfO_bPyFUlKa0NJz_AUbLPasA0Ew2N8yXVc_fEmt5nG42fs5W_4k6YQBdfrN2NvpJGXzwC09i/s640/2013-08-26+14.38.31+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy being carried up the mountain by her mommy. On the left side of the photo is a representation of the most common attire for men during this crazy heat. I know there's that expression "When in Rome...," but I'm not quite ready to show off my body yet.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDd7uPNNv069wYYerUc_b_7MiMw70gqeQoeXPauoPUUcP_pwtrbFFrIqYzWycIzl1RlVJMmZd8mlz-3rAGCUu93PbSMPQcM-YeKwrAZOILHdwRfnsI_S4OWWB0WKp__bhUTxWVq2bk4tCq/s1600/2013-08-26+14.49.28+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDd7uPNNv069wYYerUc_b_7MiMw70gqeQoeXPauoPUUcP_pwtrbFFrIqYzWycIzl1RlVJMmZd8mlz-3rAGCUu93PbSMPQcM-YeKwrAZOILHdwRfnsI_S4OWWB0WKp__bhUTxWVq2bk4tCq/s640/2013-08-26+14.49.28+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra has this look that says "Dad, I know this was an open bench, but this sleeping dude is making me a bit uncomfortable."</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimxQ1ADjhyphenhyphenHFwvx9fdKN2ZAEQ_re3DJPD11hjaIP1INXy_8Rm_rm2muAQmIBkpLZUyuT912lezi5hGzS7xTNF-F7iJ2zfOD3piF5AMb3aMUZ1O6Ih9oah8pUBgAFFEWRFjWZSE3cR3leg/s1600/2013-08-26+13.51.31+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimxQ1ADjhyphenhyphenHFwvx9fdKN2ZAEQ_re3DJPD11hjaIP1INXy_8Rm_rm2muAQmIBkpLZUyuT912lezi5hGzS7xTNF-F7iJ2zfOD3piF5AMb3aMUZ1O6Ih9oah8pUBgAFFEWRFjWZSE3cR3leg/s640/2013-08-26+13.51.31+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Base of the mountain.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1jny82E2JcfYtiZh2rgWwuElq_K9Nu1IdaIFrqtUIzaULBxE1N25OjkGAsMsqKaRwH3CnWZOe2-J78KSxxDmaveo25rXdzUAQ_i2IwOF58ZhqBuMX_k7H4_RNbxcm-6vwFUTL_ePCS18i/s1600/2013-08-25+21.08.15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1jny82E2JcfYtiZh2rgWwuElq_K9Nu1IdaIFrqtUIzaULBxE1N25OjkGAsMsqKaRwH3CnWZOe2-J78KSxxDmaveo25rXdzUAQ_i2IwOF58ZhqBuMX_k7H4_RNbxcm-6vwFUTL_ePCS18i/s640/2013-08-25+21.08.15.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie chopping vegetables for us to cook for dinner. We finally expanded our one kitchen tool operation (the rice steamer) and bought a frying pan. We are going to saute tonight.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO8NiDWVS6yaYNTS_piirRKv-cN099qA9q7VstStd7ahvLAkmkcuFpAkRE9ziduks2-ermx6izAUJczOQoyJ5Es3fe2HDIajbMZqsAnJcVMr4rNwDFzKtjIR_CGsHDNDthzDoe2azauQs5/s1600/2013-08-25+16.52.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO8NiDWVS6yaYNTS_piirRKv-cN099qA9q7VstStd7ahvLAkmkcuFpAkRE9ziduks2-ermx6izAUJczOQoyJ5Es3fe2HDIajbMZqsAnJcVMr4rNwDFzKtjIR_CGsHDNDthzDoe2azauQs5/s640/2013-08-25+16.52.50.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is such hard work. I first wash the food off the dishes in the regular Chinese tap water. Then, I boil hot water in the kettle and pour it all over the dishes and stack them up to dry. Then, I pour boiling water on the dish rag and wipe the countertops. Sheesh. I won't complain about helping load the dishwasher when we get home that's for sure.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSO9FTAXT8Q7NIyb8eRJMtnJnm2KYAudUaalaUIPov5HSViDR_NmzPKK_W2iMcU7JyJCMPSflTrA-etGGGTKsnUgoKP5yPVRCq-Wp3yGpj_H6YoKZL7yd9_K_cJbBxa_hzxEkAdlXKI_Q_/s1600/2013-08-25+15.48.15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSO9FTAXT8Q7NIyb8eRJMtnJnm2KYAudUaalaUIPov5HSViDR_NmzPKK_W2iMcU7JyJCMPSflTrA-etGGGTKsnUgoKP5yPVRCq-Wp3yGpj_H6YoKZL7yd9_K_cJbBxa_hzxEkAdlXKI_Q_/s640/2013-08-25+15.48.15.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Family dinner.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYhCYCXjf5JAZIw9-qztok398WOLv4SEweY90MoF7KMjY_H54MQvj0d0IzwTw0OWRglHM8evhyphenhyphenX5wrF9JyiBXE9kBocKcgF8jDMm7eBnEjkX-Ls0cu1A-C9K1RS53Fxj7Bc_lHbcFL9jp3/s1600/2013-08-25+16.51.31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYhCYCXjf5JAZIw9-qztok398WOLv4SEweY90MoF7KMjY_H54MQvj0d0IzwTw0OWRglHM8evhyphenhyphenX5wrF9JyiBXE9kBocKcgF8jDMm7eBnEjkX-Ls0cu1A-C9K1RS53Fxj7Bc_lHbcFL9jp3/s640/2013-08-25+16.51.31.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes, we still make the kids do chores. They are hanging their own laundry up to dry in the sun room.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0byWBWUDhEe4Q2dw1usBb84A5KKBfAmpTzgB7oU9OKN7ZQEXqqdPPVBcy-FzBOseg6KpB_MVhyjyUEcdx-xZ6AT_cfZw3MM6c-VxSAkxg7xlKTeHYaennuujSLTYk34595REchdVI3_4u/s1600/2013-08-25+14.01.58.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0byWBWUDhEe4Q2dw1usBb84A5KKBfAmpTzgB7oU9OKN7ZQEXqqdPPVBcy-FzBOseg6KpB_MVhyjyUEcdx-xZ6AT_cfZw3MM6c-VxSAkxg7xlKTeHYaennuujSLTYk34595REchdVI3_4u/s640/2013-08-25+14.01.58.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy loves to shop. Can't you tell? Oh, and more people staring at us again.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyXOhK6WeMnEb8SRA-HAchMl_Uc80YWSrwj5_Hu4zJ8p9AvE1CSI-niPX-0gLHiK_tq2GRoFomdYc7czcvjcYnisS6PYKZxOd5TkYJXKwjSUtuKQ2FvWEMALGekHmiqccpravQ8DQGudXN/s1600/2013-08-25+14.43.34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyXOhK6WeMnEb8SRA-HAchMl_Uc80YWSrwj5_Hu4zJ8p9AvE1CSI-niPX-0gLHiK_tq2GRoFomdYc7czcvjcYnisS6PYKZxOd5TkYJXKwjSUtuKQ2FvWEMALGekHmiqccpravQ8DQGudXN/s640/2013-08-25+14.43.34.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The secret to Lucy's happiness in China is Oreo cookies.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready to check out.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sidewalk leading from our apartment to the university. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This road leads from the grocery store back to our apartment. We walk one more block straight and then left.</td></tr>
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<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-41778897306696037222013-08-28T09:07:00.000-07:002013-08-28T18:49:24.403-07:00Annie's Birthday and the Tang Family<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We have been walking just about everywhere because we can't all fit into a taxi and I would have to shell out a whopping 7 yuan every time we want to take the bus (about a dollar for the whole family). We actually have taken the bus a few times, but it's kind of a pain to fish out all those one yuan bills and then keep the kids from falling all over the place when the bus driver speeds off like a crazy man. So, everyone is a bit tired from walking around in this terrible heat and humidity. Then, combine that with the jet lag and everyone is about dead every time we return to our apartment. The other day when we had dinner with Martin Tang (see other blog post), Lucy and Jeanie zonked out sitting in their chairs during the meal. We weren't even holding them and the time was only about 7 p.m., but they were wiped out.<br />
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Yesterday, we had a super fun day with Jeanie for her birthday and we really wanted to show Annie a good time as well. Initially, she asked to go hike Yuelu Mountain, which is this lush green mountain very close to where we live. Stacie and I talked her out of it because we worried it would be her last birthday if we tried to hike it in the hot weather. We have been drinking a ton of water just trying to stay hydrated when walking around the city streets. Instead of hiking the mountain, Annie decided she just wanted to go shopping. We visited many stores along Lushan Road, which runs along campus. Annie seemed to enjoy trying on all the clothes and looking for souvenirs for her friends back home. On the way back to our apartment, we stopped to get another cake. I told the family, "Wait here, I've got this covered" because Jeanie's cake was so easy to purchase. However, the bakery didn't have the cake Annie wanted ready and so the bakery worker had trouble communicating to me that I needed to pay now, take my receipt, wait for the cake to be finished, and then respond to a call when the cake was done. It was very difficult and I left frustrated by how little Chinese I can speak. We did have some fun moments as a family on this particular excursion. Ezra bought a pomegranate all by himself, Jean bought some grapes and was mad that she couldn't eat them until we had a chance to wash them with clean water, Nicolas bought a red army style cap (hopefully he isn't turning on me, although he has been watching some MSNBC lately). Oh, Ezra bought a hat too that has built in sunglasses and a fan that is supposed to cool your face when powered by these little solar panels. The hat didn't work and we didn't have time to go back and get our money refunded. Ezra was so upset that it didn't function properly. I guess he hasn't purchased too many Chinese goods from Wal-Mart lately or he would know better. We also stopped along the way at a clothing store where Annie bought some pajamas and Stacie bought a couple of shirts that she thought would repel the sweat a little better. The rest of us sat outside and waited. So many people would walk by and stare at us. Sometimes they would do a double take by glancing once and then jerking their heads back for a second look. One really nice man kept staring for a long time and then proceeded to walk into a candy store. He came out a few minutes later and gave all the kids some flavored yogurt cups. He was probably staring so that he could count how many kids to buy for.<br />
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When we got home, we sang to Annie and ate cake. Annie liked the cake for the most part, but I think she was a little disappointed that even the chocolate cake she chose had fruit inside. I guess all the cakes in China have fruit. Personally, I think they are better than the cakes we have in the U.S. After cake, Sophia came over because we invited her to dinner with us. She told us earlier in the day that the police would be coming to our apartment to inspect it and to ask us a few probing questions. She said we didn't need to hang out at home and wait, but that she would call us when they were ready to come over. When she arrived for dinner, I asked her why the police never came. She explained to me that sometimes the police are lazy and they just have too much to do to interview every foreign expert. She said that the police actually did file a report saying everything was fine with the Stein family even though they never talked to us. I thought this was kind of disappointing because I wanted to have the experience of being interrogated by the police. Oh well. Maybe next time. <br />
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We decided to go to a barbecue place near campus that I had been to last year. A man and his wife lay out a spread of skewers with different kinds of vegetables and meats. You grab a tray, choose what kinds you want, and then take them over to the man at the grill. Then, he grills them while you sit at these outdoor tables and visit. Although we all got different items, some of the things represented were potato slices, hot dogs (which I thought tasted a lot like a churro), mantou (bread dough), beef sticks, eggplant, red bell pepper, meatballs, and needle mushrooms). It was a bit spicy for Lucy and Jeanie, but everyone else seemed to love it. Speaking of Lucy, she is having kind of a hard time adjusting to life in China. Because she is young, outside of her routine, jetlagged, and overwhelmed by all the Chinese people wanting to talk to her and tell her how "Piao liang" (beautiful) she is, she closes off and either cries or buries her head in our chests when people approach. I think she'll adjust soon, but we are trying to be patient with her in the mean time. Stacie learned how to say "she's very shy" and I'm learning how to say "back off, mother scratcher" (I stole that Mormon profanity from my colleague, Matt Barton).<br />
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Today was pretty interesting. Amy sent a student assistant and a driver to pick Stacie and I up at 8:30 a.m. to travel into downtown Changsha for a medical exam. We had heard that the doctors are sometimes not too impressed with our American doctors and may want to do all of the exams over again that we had prior to coming to China. This concerned us since we had had a physical, an eye exam, blood work, a chest x-ray, and an EKG. We were also a little concerned leaving the children with Annie in a foreign country for a couple of hours. Fortunately, Stacie and I both have cell phones and we have an extra one we use as a home phone. Additionally, I'm not sure if you could tell this from the pictures of our apartment building, but every single window has bars on it. Even the front door has an extra door with bars on it that closes with a big clank (almost like a prison door). Nobody is getting in or out of our apartment without some explosives or possibly a spare key. We took the long ride into the city, waited about 45 minutes while the student assistant showed the doctors our paperwork, and then we left. I asked why we didn't get an exam and we were told that everything was "all good."Hmm...so why did we have to be there again?<br />
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After the doctor visit, the driver took Stacie back to our apartment and drove me to the university where I had to read and sign my contract. It basically says I have to teach my classes, follow the laws in China, and groom myself. While I was filling out the paperwork, Amy introduced me to the Deputy Director of the International Office. His name is Richard Tang (no relationship to Martin Tang, the Director of the International Office). I figure it must be a common name, like Smith is in the U.S. He wanted to drive me to his apartment to meet his wife (Lily) and son (Joey). They were very pleasant and indicated that they would like to have their son and some of his classmates at school get to know my children. They also invited us to dinner later that night. The afternoon was spent lounging around the apartment. It was the first day we did virtually nothing for such a long stretch and it was wonderful.<br />
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That evening, the Tangs picked us up in a van to go to dinner at a fancy restaurant right off of the Xiangjiang River. They had their family, but also a couple of children from Joey's class. Their names were Yuki and Ariel. They were such beautiful little girls and very sweet. The kids (except Lucy) had a great time playing with them in the restaurant. The food was wonderful and consisted of more exotic fish, balsamic pears, Chinese watermelon, a variety of different mushrooms, and other kinds of meat and vegetable dishes. The kids didn't like it as much as the other meals (perhaps too many strange vegetables), but Stacie and I really enjoyed it. Once we finished the meal, we walked out to a little playground area outside of the restaurant and the children all played while we visited with Richard and Lily. I think we have started a pretty good friendship with them. They talked of all of us going on a bike ride around the park, swimming, trading English and Chinese lessons for our kids, and other kinds of activities. It seems like every Chinese person we meet is the nicest person we have ever met...until we meet the next Chinese person. Stacie and I both felt that the generosity and kindness of these people is something we should really try to emulate in our own lives. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the van on the way to dinner with the Tangs.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some fun toys for the kids to play on. Nicolas said: "Hey, I've seen those things in the Karate Kid."</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3oG01zxqgmA2VorXsjtc-B3m20bHPB-UFJLxjG0a8c9L-lX0_PDD9tpPTiLHvOWU_cF6eYC6VsDZhMB6y6POKicA60-2gntxmw4y7c4Rn0iDWi4Y4P66hdsZkAaRGu7Ko43dbdvk91sFw/s1600/DSC_0828.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3oG01zxqgmA2VorXsjtc-B3m20bHPB-UFJLxjG0a8c9L-lX0_PDD9tpPTiLHvOWU_cF6eYC6VsDZhMB6y6POKicA60-2gntxmw4y7c4Rn0iDWi4Y4P66hdsZkAaRGu7Ko43dbdvk91sFw/s640/DSC_0828.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ariel (Left) and Yuki showing Jeanie how to make things out of these building blocks. After dinner, they would give it to her as a gift.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joe is showing Nicol and Ezra how to play with his Chinese toy.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Line to get in to see the doctor.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The doctor is in. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chinese barbecue.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annie is excited for her cake.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This cake was so good. The lighter brown parts are chocolate mousse. Stacie thought the sugary nuts on top were the best.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9PifaKCs481HZqiBcaMICx9ud7yMSBHeFhOjJvqES7J31rkMuk5EtvnUSWXuBoREoRD4bj1wA6w1DglEJiKe4FCAv_ymKHib92oYK8AhUFxIlXJuUpM34rii2CnQd0Hx9V67AsuSXlEp/s1600/2013-08-27+18.49.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9PifaKCs481HZqiBcaMICx9ud7yMSBHeFhOjJvqES7J31rkMuk5EtvnUSWXuBoREoRD4bj1wA6w1DglEJiKe4FCAv_ymKHib92oYK8AhUFxIlXJuUpM34rii2CnQd0Hx9V67AsuSXlEp/s640/2013-08-27+18.49.06.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sophia gave Jean a cactus for her birthday the day before.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9QyNiA7VRtHjC3cbXdVdWGdIxH2HuQEGFgUxLxD_OmIwo_7M6cGFM4XX04LTYIbJ4lR0uwBWnf3XvK-asDcstmHIYQC7NnFx1CVvR-dm858KTyMbLK20-OxKc7NC3vpktgOlj79Mvzpu/s1600/2013-08-27+15.30.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9QyNiA7VRtHjC3cbXdVdWGdIxH2HuQEGFgUxLxD_OmIwo_7M6cGFM4XX04LTYIbJ4lR0uwBWnf3XvK-asDcstmHIYQC7NnFx1CVvR-dm858KTyMbLK20-OxKc7NC3vpktgOlj79Mvzpu/s640/2013-08-27+15.30.35.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taking a rest in the shade from the heat. This is a quiet spot on the Hunan Normal University campus.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAZIzk1Lou4uhcovfBVw-PM4gXToM1C9FmOBBXebuRWmiB2rk8ZyUrStyxEGNXcmF-YH7qzJCSaiL6ULdAxf5hFPbDnINmo6wAEezjkuaQw8jlobxAONzZklVNaaHr3_-if7yFrB7EahQZ/s1600/2013-08-27+15.50.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAZIzk1Lou4uhcovfBVw-PM4gXToM1C9FmOBBXebuRWmiB2rk8ZyUrStyxEGNXcmF-YH7qzJCSaiL6ULdAxf5hFPbDnINmo6wAEezjkuaQw8jlobxAONzZklVNaaHr3_-if7yFrB7EahQZ/s640/2013-08-27+15.50.57.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicol posing with the man who sold him his hat.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrPravgVYY9VUnrEuBLWr_Q3fPGSDzQYLG4VPewvJ1fcMzJ5By2fUDwEPAEy8HteEOmDA-NjRZ98Nh0Yj8Ai52BkGegDeMVvs8-KzzdxMe45tPpbZhMxTqwZVzpuig81p4SvSm7_gRJV1H/s1600/2013-08-27+16.51.32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrPravgVYY9VUnrEuBLWr_Q3fPGSDzQYLG4VPewvJ1fcMzJ5By2fUDwEPAEy8HteEOmDA-NjRZ98Nh0Yj8Ai52BkGegDeMVvs8-KzzdxMe45tPpbZhMxTqwZVzpuig81p4SvSm7_gRJV1H/s640/2013-08-27+16.51.32.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the guy who bought all the kids mini yogurt cups.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUs-rAl0f3ERVtHSCllh43l2ryNljWHGmZ7vJCAPe5WgiwV3xLgHf2hxJrOgpcSxXii3KyTVBe8IuBjbicT1jupRjSXfZRapHlZ_e2I5df3ydH1kvsOyY-vagZEkVOmS_j7QvK8hk0Dev/s1600/2013-08-27+10.21.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUs-rAl0f3ERVtHSCllh43l2ryNljWHGmZ7vJCAPe5WgiwV3xLgHf2hxJrOgpcSxXii3KyTVBe8IuBjbicT1jupRjSXfZRapHlZ_e2I5df3ydH1kvsOyY-vagZEkVOmS_j7QvK8hk0Dev/s640/2013-08-27+10.21.49.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra wrapped his present for Annie three or four times. I can't remember exactly.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJfGAwx7zLG22s3g8pA6vzmYtBWpu8jS-gQb3C8KlGNCewgTFRqSbyqFUdwqkTHMKHmahIB-9C20NzBOhJI0_MXtymUFyEI0N1bfXihOsXCtyq4j2_8w0TDpBgr6YKKu8UCh8IveulK_JW/s1600/2013-08-27+10.23.30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJfGAwx7zLG22s3g8pA6vzmYtBWpu8jS-gQb3C8KlGNCewgTFRqSbyqFUdwqkTHMKHmahIB-9C20NzBOhJI0_MXtymUFyEI0N1bfXihOsXCtyq4j2_8w0TDpBgr6YKKu8UCh8IveulK_JW/s640/2013-08-27+10.23.30.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicol wasn't smart enough to wrap his present before coming like Ezra. Either that or Ezra used ALL the wrapping paper. Anyway, Nicol got creative and wrapped Annie's present in...yep you guessed it...a smelly sock.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2-QhyphenhyphenvTfI-qirwLgEvqIsPqUqHN510DpM7K8mjI-cHyY5dXG1gnWN3yL_4KHoFO-CYTgmHwweTG1mdSuPFfadqr0lhsq7mOLqVpHnToZ3oyLateaqPX91fgDCJttOcePx4rEEiyP4SBBT/s1600/2013-08-27+10.24.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2-QhyphenhyphenvTfI-qirwLgEvqIsPqUqHN510DpM7K8mjI-cHyY5dXG1gnWN3yL_4KHoFO-CYTgmHwweTG1mdSuPFfadqr0lhsq7mOLqVpHnToZ3oyLateaqPX91fgDCJttOcePx4rEEiyP4SBBT/s640/2013-08-27+10.24.03.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicol's present to Annie was a pair of sunglasses with a fake mustaches that hangs down.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Zn3a8aIJHI-emcD1y6F1d-rsTbdgSUYfx3oyEcXWisJ7WOfgWLYTXeNt6UGhg1uVD3YOnPh-GMQSutBbqDGxhbvlncQej918FC3qzRvyR_1KKS8r2aSLhI01RYf2Hb6YBXT1h7ePaAKJ/s1600/2013-08-27+10.25.36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Zn3a8aIJHI-emcD1y6F1d-rsTbdgSUYfx3oyEcXWisJ7WOfgWLYTXeNt6UGhg1uVD3YOnPh-GMQSutBbqDGxhbvlncQej918FC3qzRvyR_1KKS8r2aSLhI01RYf2Hb6YBXT1h7ePaAKJ/s640/2013-08-27+10.25.36.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our present to Annie. Now, if we could only think of something she might want to take pictures of.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB6JPcbeKXTjJn1ucV58hsZeaCPI7nCX_i4kLFkZxZM5Pts9cVkLAohi0WJVesXCWlClWknK3pD6dq057BdNtsItfiXFy1TJ7FAOQQTYDPtjcQ_cEHkDX7qjwifvh0-FCsWTmaB2DXdDhl/s1600/2013-08-27+12.14.51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB6JPcbeKXTjJn1ucV58hsZeaCPI7nCX_i4kLFkZxZM5Pts9cVkLAohi0WJVesXCWlClWknK3pD6dq057BdNtsItfiXFy1TJ7FAOQQTYDPtjcQ_cEHkDX7qjwifvh0-FCsWTmaB2DXdDhl/s640/2013-08-27+12.14.51.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was Stacie's best day in China so far. We left the kids for an hour and wandered around the store by ourselves. She had an opportunity to check things out without having to worry about the little ones. She bought this bamboo plant she has in her hand. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ks1XZ52ZJXWl4iWEqhZKo72n4f33RKD7na0whNr23-4fm1PzOwxqhPwLSA-0q9ZrorsKFXxaK5liDUUGZHIaM5DJYfpiq1Dmyq-81o9pLepwOphhlxVYTx-tuukcTxh9nUrB5zS59m50/s1600/DSC_0814.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ks1XZ52ZJXWl4iWEqhZKo72n4f33RKD7na0whNr23-4fm1PzOwxqhPwLSA-0q9ZrorsKFXxaK5liDUUGZHIaM5DJYfpiq1Dmyq-81o9pLepwOphhlxVYTx-tuukcTxh9nUrB5zS59m50/s640/DSC_0814.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Chinese know just the solution for keeping a teenager in check.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYx0_BniWU9LrreYJiKngl-MNfoh7v6OSQwZqCjdehxhwvRym0s1ylPExpP-kCDGegnWG4udJSVAQnqPxx3e6Js9q5fdcLKO5qAYO8gTWwdVpc6-BLq9KvcTTOdAAG_mjpTMll0-_Gxdq8/s1600/DSC_0818+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYx0_BniWU9LrreYJiKngl-MNfoh7v6OSQwZqCjdehxhwvRym0s1ylPExpP-kCDGegnWG4udJSVAQnqPxx3e6Js9q5fdcLKO5qAYO8gTWwdVpc6-BLq9KvcTTOdAAG_mjpTMll0-_Gxdq8/s640/DSC_0818+(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ezra used his snap electronics kit to build a radio. And, guess what? It actually picked up a few Chinese radio stations.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />stein suuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10020872298872438515noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-21657987744156799422013-08-26T09:35:00.001-07:002013-08-26T09:35:21.881-07:00What do you mean we don't have Internet?<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s been 4 days since our last blog entry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I intended to write more regularly, perhaps
as often as once per day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, when
we arrived at our new apartment, we did not have Internet installed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our main contact over here for dealing with “foreign faculty” issues, Liu Chenhui (aka Amy), indicated that she would
have the Internet guys come over and install it on Monday (we arrived on
Friday).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I began to feel the withdrawals
immediately from not being able to access email, Facebook, Netflix,
Dishnetworkanywhere.com, bank accounts, blogger (of course), and Skype.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were just totally cut off and knew that
our family back home would wonder if we arrived safely and how we were
doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, we had no way to reach
anyone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s now Monday and we should
have Wi-Fi by the end of the day, but it just occurred to me that I don’t
actually need the Internet to keep a journal of what has been happening with
our family in China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, let me describe
how things have been going since we left Incheon airport in Seoul.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The flight into Changsha was pretty pleasant and seemed
incredibly short compared to the earlier 12 ½ hour flight from Vegas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we arrived, we were greeted by Amy (see
above) and Sophia, an undergraduate student who has been assigned to be our
personal assistant while we are here in China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She was very sweet and certainly willing to answer any questions that we
had.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her English is very good and the
family warmed to her fairly quickly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
walked to the curb where arriving passengers were to be picked up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Up pulls a pretty good size bus (although not
like the buses Americans would picture).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They clearly called in the cavalry not knowing how much stuff would be
brought by this family of seven and the Sorensen’s (our traveling companions)
family of three.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We loaded all of the
luggage into the front seats of the bus and we all sat toward the back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of the kids sat on the very back seat
and we moving around trying to get a good vantage point as we weaved our way
through the streets of downtown Changsha.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They don’t really use seatbelts in China (as far as I can tell) and it
was a little unnerving to the parents to see the kids jumping around so much in
this bus that was swerving in and out of traffic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, we survived.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you can imagine, it was quite fascinating
to everyone to look out the window and see everything in Chinese
characters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only every once in a while
would we see anything in English.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a
bit disorienting to be thrust into a different culture and not know what
anything means.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just tried to imagine
how many written words someone in America sees every day and how many of those
words they can actually live without.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When we walk down the street, does it really matter that this is a phone
store or that’s a store with musical instruments?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Probably not, so I try to think about that
when I see all these Mandarin characters over here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the sights that the children thought
were interesting were the people riding scooters (mopeds) wearing rain ponchos
(did I mention it was pouring rain) and a man carrying a bunch of dead ducks on
the back of his vehicle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Evelynn and
Lucy were fighting to see the ducks, but Annie was trying to get a picture for
her blog, so I think they may have missed out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They will see plenty of dead birds later, so I wasn’t particularly
worried.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We arrived at our apartment and unloaded our luggage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were very anxious to see where we would be
staying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had anticipated for a long
while what the arrangements would be because the Chinese hadn’t told us much
about them except that we would probably be in a 3-bedroom apartment and that
it would be furnished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, it turns
out the apartment exceeded our expectations and we were all initially pleased
to have a place that was spacious enough for our needs and relatively
clean.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ally way leading up to our
apartment and the stairwell were kind dark and reminded me a little of the
movie Saw, but once inside we could see the walls were clean, the floors were
tile and wood mostly and that we had beds and couches to sit on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were some things that immediately
needed some attention before we could be comfortable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, one of the bedrooms had two sets of
bunk beds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sophia kept telling us that
this bedroom was for the four little kids and that they second bedroom was just
for Annie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were kind of insistent
that Annie should get her own room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
found out that Amy and Sophia had spent a great deal of time assembling the
bunk beds for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They weren’t here when
the last foreign teacher occupied this apartment, so we were really flattered
that they went to so much effort to make us comfortable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a really nice gesture on their part
and made us feel so welcome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Unfortunately, the bunk beds just had a piece of plywood on each
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, we had to figure out how to get
mattresses, sheets, blankets, and pillows for everyone before the end of the
day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>In terms of the rest of the apartment,
there was a master bedroom and bathroom for Stacie and I, a small kitchen, and
an extra bathroom for the kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
kitchen does not have a stove or a microwave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Those things aren’t common in China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We do have an electric hot plate, which we use to heat up water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The water here cannot be consumed because of
bacteria so everything we ingest has to be boiled or purchased (bottled
water).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We bought a big kettle and we
use the hot plate to boil water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then,
we use this water to wash our vegetables, to rinse our dishes, to fill up our
drinking water bottles, and to brush our teeth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We can shower with the Chinese water, but I personally try to make sure
my mouth is closed until I get out and dry off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It can be a complicated process, but we are getting used to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another aspect of the apartment that is a
little difficult is having to plug in and turn on the hot water heater every
time we want to bath or use hot water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We have one water heater that runs the kitchen and main bathroom and
another for the master bathroom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So far,
the master bathroom water heater doesn’t work and so we haven’t been able to
use that bathroom for showering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stacie
would tell you the most difficult part so far is having a washing machine that
is broken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amy is sending a maintenance
man today to fix it and so we are hopeful that we won’t have to wash our
clothes by hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We already have to dry
them in the sunroom and it would be hard to do everything by hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The washer would certainly be a time saver
for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Toward the end of the day, I went with Sophia and the
Sorensens to Wal-Mart across the Xiangjiang river.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I desperately needed to get bedding for the
family and some towels so that we could shower.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The carts at Wal-Mart were about half the size of a cart in America and
I was trying to buy six mattress pads (no mattresses unfortunately) and all the
bedding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I gathered everything up (I’m
going to skip this part, but it took hours to find everything) and ended up
filling four carts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I needed Jay, Sophia, myself, and a really nice Wal-Mart worker to
push this stuff out to the street so I could load it in a taxi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the time I shoved it all in the taxi’s
trunk, front seat, and back seat, there was barely room for me to squeeze
in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jay had to ram the door shut just to
get me in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was crazy trying to do all
this with small carts and a taxi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
used to throwing things in the minivan and driving home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not too complicated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
On the second day (Saturday), we all woke up a little jet
lagged.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think Ezra and Nicolas woke up
about 3 a.m.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All of us are slowly working
our way back to a normal schedule, but so far we seem to be going to bed very
early; the kids about 7 p.m., Stacie about 9, and me about 10.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, we all wake up early.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We took those herbal jet lag pills during our
travel and they are probably helping it to not be worse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems manageable so far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyway, on Saturday we pretty much cleaned
our apartment from top to bottom, shopped for little things we needed, and went
to lunch at one of my favorite places from my last trip to China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The restaurant is owned by a wonderful lady
named Liu Jie and her husband.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Chance
and Brenna (the students I met in China last summer) became really close with
Liu Jie and wanted me to deliver a letter with some pictures of their new
baby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, we went to her restaurant for
lunch and she was absolutely delighted to see us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She took the Sorensen’s baby, Eva, around the
restaurant showing her off to everyone and fed us an insane amount of
food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The kids and Stacie loved
everything we ate (personal favorite was Guo Ba Rou, which is sweet and sour
pork).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we finished eating, we asked
for the bill and Liu Jie refused to let us pay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We couldn’t believe it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a
TON of food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told her we would treat
her next time and that we really appreciated her generosity. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Most of our weekend was occupied by organizing our
apartment, walking around the streets near our home, and trying to figure out
how to feed ourselves every day without having to eat every single meal out at
a restaurant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> The kids and Stacie enjoy talking to people on the street. We are drawing a great deal of attention as we thought we might. We are quasi-celebrities as people seem to point as us and say things in Chinese. However, many people actually come up to us to ask us questions. We can usually understand the main parts of what they are asking and have mastered the art of saying "Wo men you wu ge haizi" (we have 5 children), which elicits expressions of shock. When, we were in the mall the other day, someone walked past us and started singing "do re mi fa so la ti." The kids have seen the movie, so they know the reference.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>I think everyone would agree that the
highlight of our weekend was when we were invited by Martin Tang (the Director
of the Office of International Exchange and Cooperation) to dinner with he and
his wife.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Martin is the one who
initially invited us to come to China and he is an important person on
campus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a wonderful conversation
with them over dinner and the food was extraordinary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the dishes that I recall eating are
lamb ribs, goose, pork ribs, swordfish, dragon fish, rabbit skewers, soups,
breads, and different kinds of green vegetables.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was pretty exotic compared to what we are
used to eating back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Martin talked
about his various travels, particularly in the United States and we talked at
length about our family backgrounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was really interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had many
questions and I found myself not being able to answer many of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of them involved the elevation of the
Wasatch Mountains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have no idea!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the course of the dinner, I was trying
to be receptive to certain social cues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I know many of the rules, but still find myself breaking them from time
to time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, I did point across
the table with my chopsticks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
considered to be very rude, but I only did it momentarily (like a baseball
batter partially swinging the bat, but pulling back at the last second).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also mentioned to Martin that I once ate a
Chinese food and realized it was a decoration and not edible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He corrected me by telling me it was edible
and quite delicious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, I basically
told him I thought this Chinese dish was inedible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not my finest moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also wore a nicer shirt to dinner because
Martin wore a tie last time I visited China and had lunch with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time, he showed up in a polo shirt and
shorts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, there is a certain
flexibility sometimes with the social etiquette.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One rule that doesn’t seem to change is the
assigned seating based on hierarchy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Martin sat at the head of the table, I sat at his right, and Jay
Sorensen sat at his left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before we ate,
I offered Martin and Amy a gift, which is very traditional in China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We brought them dream catchers, a description
of the origins of this Native American symbol, and a few postcards of
Utah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unlike last time, they did not
have a gift in return.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course this is
not a big deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would rather have a
gift for them and be safe than to have them offer me a gift and not have
anything in return.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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Today (Monday) was Evelynn’s <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6<sup>th</sup> birthday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The day was kind of boring for her at
first.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had to meet with Amy to go over
my contract and to sign up for a bank account so that they could deposit my
paychecks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will be paid once per month
6400 RMB (about $960).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know it doesn’t
sound like much, but it’s not that bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In the afternoon, we were able to get her a beautiful Chinese cake with
whip cream and fruit (kiwi, peaches, strawberries, dragonfruit).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t think she liked it much, but Ezra ate
3 pieces of it and everyone else seemed to enjoy it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I asked her if she liked the cake and she
said, “Yes, but sometimes I’m just full.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>About 20 minutes later, she was eating some other kind of candy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After the cake, we took the bus across the
river and went down what the locals call “the walking street.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think it’s one of the older streets in
Changsha and has a bunch of really interesting stores and food places.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had exchanged the children’s money that
they had been saving all year for Chinese yuan and they had a ball looking for
things to spend it on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stacie enjoyed
looking at some of the more ornate things and I could see her thinking she
might like to come back again and really buy some things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn’t have as much time as we hoped
because we had to meet the maintenance man to fix our washer and water heater
(which he did).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hooray for hot showers
and clean clothes (even if we have to let them dry for 3 days before we can
wear them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ok, that’s about it so
far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tomorrow, I will report on Annie’s
birthday adventure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She wants to get a
more chocolatey (is that a word?) cake than Evelynn got and also wants to hike
up Yuelu Mountain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We sure miss everyone
and wish you could be here…to take our place.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VGgXEAiEsQc/Uht6NnuOZMI/AAAAAAAABF4/tZDyeVPv1cY/s1600/DSC_0812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VGgXEAiEsQc/Uht6NnuOZMI/AAAAAAAABF4/tZDyeVPv1cY/s640/DSC_0812.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wait...how much are we spending?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-U0lWlYlkDck/Uht6Kb2YJmI/AAAAAAAABFo/fLCO9lVaNi0/s1600/DSC_0816.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-U0lWlYlkDck/Uht6Kb2YJmI/AAAAAAAABFo/fLCO9lVaNi0/s640/DSC_0816.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy loves these tiny watermelons. And, they are bright red on the inside. Really delicious.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oqD2qPm4hEo/Uhtudwh7kEI/AAAAAAAAA_Q/smpx5TzWSD0/s1600/2013-08-25+17.17.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oqD2qPm4hEo/Uhtudwh7kEI/AAAAAAAAA_Q/smpx5TzWSD0/s640/2013-08-25+17.17.02.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cleaning our new apartment.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LVMVfqA-uZw/UhtvRXAPFXI/AAAAAAAAA_s/5Xz8P4EshYo/s1600/2013-08-25+17.17.26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LVMVfqA-uZw/UhtvRXAPFXI/AAAAAAAAA_s/5Xz8P4EshYo/s640/2013-08-25+17.17.26.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just hanging out.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TspSTzfYZMA/UhtvRF0H59I/AAAAAAAAA_o/y_x6lrh7730/s1600/2013-08-25+17.21.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TspSTzfYZMA/UhtvRF0H59I/AAAAAAAAA_o/y_x6lrh7730/s640/2013-08-25+17.21.09.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evelynn in her new bed. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qApZ067QHMs/Uhtv84AW7ZI/AAAAAAAABAU/tfPrxajr22M/s1600/2013-08-25+17.21.21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qApZ067QHMs/Uhtv84AW7ZI/AAAAAAAABAU/tfPrxajr22M/s640/2013-08-25+17.21.21.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The four younger kids seem to be doing just fine in the one room. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fIPzmFMuCQY/UhtvykrnfKI/AAAAAAAABAI/6T0LkrBoOyw/s1600/2013-08-25+17.21.44.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fIPzmFMuCQY/UhtvykrnfKI/AAAAAAAABAI/6T0LkrBoOyw/s640/2013-08-25+17.21.44.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dining area in the main room. That's the kitchen off to the right and the main bathroom near the front door. The tv has been moved out of the way altogether since nobody wants to watch China Central television. I showed the kids the huge tv tower at the top of Yuele Mountain and Annie asked: "Why do they need such a big tower for one channel?" Good question.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UgQOREmFLjU/UhtvyP-LwJI/AAAAAAAABAE/8P2fK65A3LA/s1600/2013-08-25+17.22.34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UgQOREmFLjU/UhtvyP-LwJI/AAAAAAAABAE/8P2fK65A3LA/s640/2013-08-25+17.22.34.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master bedroom for Stacie and I.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bP9cacFiUlo/Uhtwc1gyOnI/AAAAAAAABAc/7QLJ92jL5gk/s1600/2013-08-25+17.23.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bP9cacFiUlo/Uhtwc1gyOnI/AAAAAAAABAc/7QLJ92jL5gk/s640/2013-08-25+17.23.07.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kitchen. We use the hot plate in the corner to heat up water in the kettle. We use that to clean the dishes and to fill our water bottles.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9KF6MRL6Bq8/UhtwpeV8_OI/AAAAAAAABAs/9T4mLObJ_0E/s1600/2013-08-25+18.45.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9KF6MRL6Bq8/UhtwpeV8_OI/AAAAAAAABAs/9T4mLObJ_0E/s640/2013-08-25+18.45.50.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fancy dinner with Martin. That's Katie Sorensen on the left trying the soup, Martin Tang's wife (Lucy) in the middle, and Martin's assistant Amy. That pitcher in the middle is some kind of bean juice (very sweet) and the dish on the left is the goose. They bring everything out in stages, so we are just beginning our feast here. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lURVkGbJWOs/UhtxHFrZ5zI/AAAAAAAABA8/ZGFSet6W5pI/s1600/2013-08-25+18.46.22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lURVkGbJWOs/UhtxHFrZ5zI/AAAAAAAABA8/ZGFSet6W5pI/s640/2013-08-25+18.46.22.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jay and I aren't wasting any time.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-peyVxDCe8Hk/Uhtx1elyPxI/AAAAAAAABBU/CleWD0A86Ic/s1600/2013-08-26+07.04.32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-peyVxDCe8Hk/Uhtx1elyPxI/AAAAAAAABBU/CleWD0A86Ic/s640/2013-08-26+07.04.32.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evelynn is so excited to open her birthday card from Uncle Garrett.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dNFQ1HBNl58/Uhtx5cVUm1I/AAAAAAAABBc/qFlU6tJbTfw/s1600/2013-08-26+09.04.31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dNFQ1HBNl58/Uhtx5cVUm1I/AAAAAAAABBc/qFlU6tJbTfw/s640/2013-08-26+09.04.31.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Good shot of the apartment. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4T8VVUBaMmI/UhtyjhBV_6I/AAAAAAAABBk/F5nA9wSrbDI/s1600/2013-08-26+09.31.17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4T8VVUBaMmI/UhtyjhBV_6I/AAAAAAAABBk/F5nA9wSrbDI/s640/2013-08-26+09.31.17.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can't remember what she is carrying, but you see this technique often.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The walk down the ally from the main street toward our apartment. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside of our apartment. Most places aren't much to look at from the outside. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the entrance to our apartment building going the other way toward the main road (Xingmin Road).</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evelynn and I went for a stroll with her daddy on the morning of her birthday to get her cake. Behind her is the entrance to Yuelu Mountain and to the left of that is the most wonderful little bakery where we purchased her cake. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful...and the cake too.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up shot of the cake. I bought a candle with a 6, but had nothing to light it with.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy is sporting a look common in China during the summer with their 125% humidity. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here we are at the old walking street.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stacie's first crowded bus ride with the kids. She was nervous, but it turned out just fine. You really have to hold on during these rides because the drivers are CRAZY!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evelynn got some pretty good stuff for her birthday. There's an umbrella with a Panda face, a mirror with a blue flower on top, an instrument that seems to be a flute piano hybrid, a bracelet, and rabbit pencil, and a small toy shark that grows big if you leave it in water for three days.</td></tr>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-54252622993916271522013-08-22T14:59:00.000-07:002013-08-22T14:59:05.732-07:00Finally Traveling to ChangshaIt was a pretty eventful day. You know you've been on a plane for a long time when you leave on August 21st and land on August 23rd. In the morning, prior to our departure, we were all a little nervous. Bags had been mostly packed for several days and we were sort of just counting down the hours until we would finally leave. We received an outpouring of love from friends and family as we made our final preparations. In fact, we sometimes would joke that it seemed our family was expecting to never see us again. We assured them that 11 months would go very quickly and that we would be very safe in China. One of the benefits of living in a less free society is the controls that are in place to prevent crime. Certainly petty crime happens in the city of Changsha (with its 6 million people), but there isn't an excessive amount of violent crime. So of course we had nothing to worry about. <br />
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Anyway, we loaded two cars full of luggage and departed for the airport around 3 p.m. Our flight didn't leave until 11:50 that night, but I wanted to leave ample time in case of vehicle problems. I also thought it would be nice to visit with my dad, Stacie's mom, and her stepdad over a nice meal in the evening. That "nice" meal ended up being Chipotle (best fast food franchise in the world). After eating, we found that we really didn't have anything to do and it was still five hours before our flight. I think everyone was a little annoyed with me because I had given us too much extra time when we could have rested up a bit more in Cedar before heading out. I may have made a very long trip unnecessarily longer, but how was I supposed to know that the cars would run great, that everyone would eat in 45 minutes and be done visiting, and that the line for security at the airport would have nobody in it! Oh well.<br />
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Once we got on the plane, the children were noticeably excited. Ezra, Jeanie, and Lucy had never been on a plane before, let alone an international flight. We weren't sure if they would hear the rumble of the engines and freak out about the take-off. But, they LOVED it all!. In fact, there were a few times where the turbulence was so bad, we could feel the plane drop and the passengers would let out a simultaneous "Ugh." I looked over at the little girls and they were smiling. In their minds, the experience probably rivaled their best memories of Lagoon amusement park. <br />
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In terms of the flight itself, it was very long (12 and a half hours). But, the kids were all troopers. They watched movies, played games, ate junk food, and slept (remarkably similar to their day-to-day lives--at least when we give them free time). One unique thing happened during the flight that is worth mentioning. Some had a serious medical complication during the flight and the flight attendants performed chest compressions on her for over an hour. As we excited the plane after landing, we could see that she probably didn't make it. It was very sad and I kept wondering why they didn't stop Japan to get her medical help. I know I would have willingly added a bit more time to the flight to try to get this lady some help. But, I don't really know the reasons for not landing and I don't want to assume that Korean Air just doesn't care about the well being of their passengers. <br />
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Now, we are at the Incheon International Airport, just outside of Seoul, Korea. We have a four hour layover before boarding our last flight (3 and a half hours) to Changsha in the Hunan Province. We are all tired from sleeping irregularly on the plane. I hope we can all stay awake once we arrive (around 11:20 a.m.) so that we can go to bed tonight at a normal time.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Packed up and ready to go! We managed to only bring 8 checked bags, 4 carry ons, and 7 personal items.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They are so proud of themselves, but their mom had to repack all their luggage and then do it all again when they would dip into their bags and take things out. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last meal in America at Chipotle.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I know grandpa wanted Italian food.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the check in counter. We are already getting some attention.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our version of that scene from Reservoir Dogs.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We are going to be here for a while. Might as well make ourselves at home.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grandma is a flight attendant, so she gets to hang out with us at the gate without a boarding pass.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My graduate student, Jay Sorensen, contemplating the reasons why he decided to come along.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Out for the count.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Can we please watch Iron Man 3." The answer is "no."</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bibimbop</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Sqq7qWkM__Q/UhaH77XGoFI/AAAAAAAAA_A/VKmdKN6UsLw/s1600/DSC_0777.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Sqq7qWkM__Q/UhaH77XGoFI/AAAAAAAAA_A/VKmdKN6UsLw/s640/DSC_0777.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classic Korean dish. Tater tots, eggs, and salsa.</td></tr>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-64620656134771420852013-07-05T13:12:00.001-07:002013-07-05T13:36:19.523-07:00Six Weeks Until We Depart to ChinaWe are certainly feeling the pressure now. We have our plane tickets and our passports, but we are still waiting for the Chinese Foreign Experts Bureau to issue the paperwork needed to apply for our visas. Apparently, it's a bit complicated since I need to apply for a work visa and then later turn that work visa into a permanent resident card. Eleven months is a long time to be in China and there is no formal visa for that length of stay. Stacie and the children will have visas that are "under" my work visa. I'm not sure how it all works to be honest.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TJZ7KZR8HKk/UdcoFGV-t-I/AAAAAAAAA8Y/6Q9BeBBn8Tk/s1600/LucyJeanFlashcards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TJZ7KZR8HKk/UdcoFGV-t-I/AAAAAAAAA8Y/6Q9BeBBn8Tk/s640/LucyJeanFlashcards.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These kids are surprisingly good at the fruits and vegetables. I may have them do some shopping for me in China (not alone of course).</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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It was quite complicated completing the paperwork needed for their expert bureau. They wanted Stacie and I to submit results of a physical examination, an eye examination, a chest x-ray, blood work, xerox copies of all our passports, my vitae, and a photograph of my doctoral diploma. We have most of our shots done, but are still in need of a few last minute ones. <br />
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At this point, as we wait for the opportunity to apply for our visas here at the Chinese embassy in Washington D.C., we are busily making lists of things we need to bring with us and practicing our Chinese. For those of you who don't know much about Mandarin, it is an incredibly difficult language. There are five different tones and the tone influences the meaning of the word. I frequently find myself thinking I recognize a word and then realize that I know that word, but in a different tone. It's really hard for me to "tune" in to the what is being said most of the time. I do take some comfort in knowing we can get by with minimal Chinese skills as this was primarily what I did when I was in Changsha last summer, but I would really like to take the opportunity to learn more Chinese and to exercise some courage when I get over there next month. My wife, myself, and my children are all utilizing various study aids, such as computer software (Fluenz program), flashcards, textbooks and workbooks from my Mandarin I class at SUU last year, music cds with Chinese songs, and movies with Mandarin subtitles.<br />
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It's still hard to believe that we are going to be gone for nearly a year. This is going to be such a wonderful experience for our family. I really hope it gives my children the opportunity to see that life is different outside of the United States and that there are wonderful and not so wonderful elements of our own culture here and also in China.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gTDiczAPZzg/UdcodhF6D_I/AAAAAAAAA8k/NZR6vjI08YI/s1600/PassportPicBlog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gTDiczAPZzg/UdcodhF6D_I/AAAAAAAAA8k/NZR6vjI08YI/s640/PassportPicBlog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's pretty cheap when you only need one. Taking five children abroad certainly complicates things a bit.</td></tr>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-41595758755949051682012-06-03T22:33:00.002-07:002012-06-03T22:33:30.004-07:00Last Day in Seoul and Now Headed Home<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Ok, there probably isn't much to write in terms of commentary here. We pretty just went all over Seoul seeing the sights and taking pictures. It's probably best just to write describe a bit of where we are and what we are doing in the captions.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SC0rVfo6CTE/T8w_KyTtmXI/AAAAAAAAA0A/dEtupoxaJ0Y/s1600/IMG_5660.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SC0rVfo6CTE/T8w_KyTtmXI/AAAAAAAAA0A/dEtupoxaJ0Y/s640/IMG_5660.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An elevator takes us up to a cable car which then takes up to the top of the N Seoul Tower. The tower sits on this peak in Seoul and supposedly has great views of the city. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-do7w6Jah6BM/T8w_MXrO_NI/AAAAAAAAA0I/cTDRmavG-Sc/s1600/IMG_5662.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-do7w6Jah6BM/T8w_MXrO_NI/AAAAAAAAA0I/cTDRmavG-Sc/s640/IMG_5662.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can see the tower and the cable car the takes us up. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EvC3FNQm6Mo/T8w_N3xUOyI/AAAAAAAAA0Q/epE7CRkDCIw/s1600/IMG_5680.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EvC3FNQm6Mo/T8w_N3xUOyI/AAAAAAAAA0Q/epE7CRkDCIw/s640/IMG_5680.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I saw something similar in Zhangjiajie. I guess the Chinese and Koreans are very romantic people.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qbD6JobYV6g/T8w_OqTg-mI/AAAAAAAAA0Y/3f0BB7UinO0/s1600/IMG_5684.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qbD6JobYV6g/T8w_OqTg-mI/AAAAAAAAA0Y/3f0BB7UinO0/s640/IMG_5684.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Super hazy day. The views were not that great.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gFvq1CcD4U0/T8w_VD_okII/AAAAAAAAA0o/gVaD4g7-B0M/s1600/IMG_5706.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gFvq1CcD4U0/T8w_VD_okII/AAAAAAAAA0o/gVaD4g7-B0M/s640/IMG_5706.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The tower is a pretty green color at night and can be seen from many places in Seoul.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r3agg9CQc04/T8w_WTBc2yI/AAAAAAAAA0w/vr09c1GjFsw/s1600/IMG_5732.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r3agg9CQc04/T8w_WTBc2yI/AAAAAAAAA0w/vr09c1GjFsw/s640/IMG_5732.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jezreel wanted to have a donut party since there is a Dunkin' Donuts on every corner.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Oblzxyci5-c/T8xAIj1d3RI/AAAAAAAAA04/vQeLj1JbM28/s1600/IMG_5639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Oblzxyci5-c/T8xAIj1d3RI/AAAAAAAAA04/vQeLj1JbM28/s640/IMG_5639.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More food. I can't believe how much food we are eating on this weekend.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8gmustu_qL8/T8xAKKSE4SI/AAAAAAAAA1A/HjRQT47m4Pg/s1600/IMG_5754.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8gmustu_qL8/T8xAKKSE4SI/AAAAAAAAA1A/HjRQT47m4Pg/s640/IMG_5754.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just a random door going nowhere.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9OAZHLJQ6vg/T8xALTWulhI/AAAAAAAAA1I/3Can3dN0qRw/s1600/IMG_5758.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9OAZHLJQ6vg/T8xALTWulhI/AAAAAAAAA1I/3Can3dN0qRw/s640/IMG_5758.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jee-Young at I at Gyeongbokgung Palace. She wouldn't let me post any pictures on the blog showing her face. So, here I am with the mysterious woman with the black visor.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AqyGyDPjCLo/T8xAOxEyiyI/AAAAAAAAA1Q/WLAWMsdgmo8/s1600/IMG_5775.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AqyGyDPjCLo/T8xAOxEyiyI/AAAAAAAAA1Q/WLAWMsdgmo8/s640/IMG_5775.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The palace is a fairly large area with multiple buildings. It was destroyed by the Japanese when they colonized and then rebuilt. It was then partially destroyed during the Korean War and then rebuilt again. Jezreel thought it was pretty amusing that so many Japanese tourists were roaming around the grounds with a tour guide. We wondered what they were telling them. Would they say: "This place used to be even more beautiful until we burned it to the ground!"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Jys4jTs4CPc/T8xAUO1qYPI/AAAAAAAAA1k/GufEv7zflpo/s1600/IMG_5790.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Jys4jTs4CPc/T8xAUO1qYPI/AAAAAAAAA1k/GufEv7zflpo/s640/IMG_5790.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We got to see a recreation of the changing of the guards ceremony. It was really interesting!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-h1eKaez0xzM/T8xAadyU69I/AAAAAAAAA10/HGq3TEwdjYU/s1600/IMG_5839.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-h1eKaez0xzM/T8xAadyU69I/AAAAAAAAA10/HGq3TEwdjYU/s640/IMG_5839.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love the look of the architecture here.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hW1V6lPPJOI/T8xAcf14YuI/AAAAAAAAA18/ZZrCxX77-E4/s1600/IMG_5848.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hW1V6lPPJOI/T8xAcf14YuI/AAAAAAAAA18/ZZrCxX77-E4/s640/IMG_5848.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The king's throne.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-COTiIBHtWY0/T8xAdq9C5eI/AAAAAAAAA2E/DYVPmXYHQDg/s1600/IMG_5855.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-COTiIBHtWY0/T8xAdq9C5eI/AAAAAAAAA2E/DYVPmXYHQDg/s640/IMG_5855.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This girl came up to me and pointed at her camera. I thought she wanted me to take a picture of her with her friends. But, she wanted to have her friends take a picture of her with the foreigners.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bAdwpfqmsvg/T8xAfMSs92I/AAAAAAAAA2M/y9i3jDuZMPg/s1600/IMG_5859.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bAdwpfqmsvg/T8xAfMSs92I/AAAAAAAAA2M/y9i3jDuZMPg/s640/IMG_5859.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hyunjin kept telling me: "You aren't doing it right. Drop your knees lower." I said: "I'm trying!!!!"</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5l18mxxTD6s/T8xAgO-tD8I/AAAAAAAAA2U/ISny4LUm6Xo/s1600/IMG_5877.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5l18mxxTD6s/T8xAgO-tD8I/AAAAAAAAA2U/ISny4LUm6Xo/s640/IMG_5877.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love this shot. Lily pads, traditional Korean building, typical looking mountain in Korea. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sjyA9XEU8wk/T8xAjMsBRcI/AAAAAAAAA2c/dm2NJqlI4oM/s1600/IMG_5913.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sjyA9XEU8wk/T8xAjMsBRcI/AAAAAAAAA2c/dm2NJqlI4oM/s640/IMG_5913.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I was born in the year of the rabbit. Thought he needed an extra set of bunny ears.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jwHq_kHnEdE/T8xBaxjO3hI/AAAAAAAAA2o/WtoVKgr6_hI/s1600/IMG_5949.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jwHq_kHnEdE/T8xBaxjO3hI/AAAAAAAAA2o/WtoVKgr6_hI/s640/IMG_5949.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I was excited to take a bite of what I thought was a Korean marshmallow. Turns out it was a moist towelette for cleaning your hands before eating.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7zIT5t1MoN4/T8xBcux3LmI/AAAAAAAAA2w/V2xMRqKH1sE/s1600/IMG_5970.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7zIT5t1MoN4/T8xBcux3LmI/AAAAAAAAA2w/V2xMRqKH1sE/s640/IMG_5970.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You see why I can't get a decent burger in Korea. They have no clue!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eUhAKEK4Ke8/T8xBkP7TMnI/AAAAAAAAA24/1jq9uN5pm3o/s1600/IMG_5981.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eUhAKEK4Ke8/T8xBkP7TMnI/AAAAAAAAA24/1jq9uN5pm3o/s640/IMG_5981.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was in an older residential area in Seoul that's been preserved. People still live in this area and the architecture looks like this.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EHYzycnVlXw/T8xBmnI3mhI/AAAAAAAAA3A/CfZVxwQR-KY/s1600/IMG_6001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EHYzycnVlXw/T8xBmnI3mhI/AAAAAAAAA3A/CfZVxwQR-KY/s640/IMG_6001.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I like this picture because you can see the old Korea with the new Korea.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qK1mqYJj9kM/T8xBpi-BabI/AAAAAAAAA3I/9btcPF81wvw/s1600/IMG_6015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qK1mqYJj9kM/T8xBpi-BabI/AAAAAAAAA3I/9btcPF81wvw/s640/IMG_6015.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another good shot contrasting the old and new.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sX9b6Tho6sA/T8xBs5A2FzI/AAAAAAAAA3Q/z5GIuGtWP7I/s1600/IMG_6027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sX9b6Tho6sA/T8xBs5A2FzI/AAAAAAAAA3Q/z5GIuGtWP7I/s640/IMG_6027.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jezreel and Hyunjin could not have been more hospitable. We had such a great time! </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Standing in front of the National Assembly building. The National Assembly is Korea's version of Congress.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm trying to look tough, but I can't quite pull it off.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The shot right after this is me falling, but I didn't include that one. I like this one better.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The start of the sequence where I try Bundaegi, which is a steamed butterfly cocoon (yes, with butterfly included). You can see my reaction if you scroll down.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I came so close to throwing up. The taste was indescribable. I kept burping it up during the day and even had to refrain from thinking about it.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I saw this and so badly wanted to have my kids with me. They would have loved this park right on the Han river.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From the top of the 63 building, which used to be the tallest building in Seoul. Wonderful views from up here. We all thought it was crazy how far the city went in all directions.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sign for the LDS temple in Seoul.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xKh8YjQ_Huo/T8xCInH7NKI/AAAAAAAAA5I/hrIJNN9EEwE/s1600/IMG_6157.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xKh8YjQ_Huo/T8xCInH7NKI/AAAAAAAAA5I/hrIJNN9EEwE/s640/IMG_6157.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was hard to get good shots at night, but we tried.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QhiPhkD1_nM/T8xCJytbhnI/AAAAAAAAA5Q/2vM_ehmYNcY/s1600/IMG_6180.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QhiPhkD1_nM/T8xCJytbhnI/AAAAAAAAA5Q/2vM_ehmYNcY/s640/IMG_6180.JPG" width="425" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jezreel agreed to take a picture in front of the temple with me, but kept saying "There better not be a guy waiting with pamphlets."</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fAEauD2EVsw/T8xCKmGrRnI/AAAAAAAAA5Y/FG3s1pzj9TA/s1600/IMG_6187.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fAEauD2EVsw/T8xCKmGrRnI/AAAAAAAAA5Y/FG3s1pzj9TA/s640/IMG_6187.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I didn't plan this, but a missionary from California who is working at the temple came up and asked who we were. Really nice guy. It was Sunday night in Korea, so the temple and vistors center were closed.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aFNGUSroUYA/T8xCLt3k50I/AAAAAAAAA5g/BkWx33V7cHU/s1600/IMG_6198.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aFNGUSroUYA/T8xCLt3k50I/AAAAAAAAA5g/BkWx33V7cHU/s640/IMG_6198.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not the best picture, but I like the spires, the moon, and Korean flag all in one shot.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SOpouy-zhno/T8xCMTgM5DI/AAAAAAAAA5o/A-Ho0CNhHTs/s1600/IMG_6207.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SOpouy-zhno/T8xCMTgM5DI/AAAAAAAAA5o/A-Ho0CNhHTs/s640/IMG_6207.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I was surprised that the driveway going up to the temple was right off of this alley way.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xQJAS6dZOUk/T8xCNSDdXmI/AAAAAAAAA5w/Upuj5futPX8/s1600/IMG_6240.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xQJAS6dZOUk/T8xCNSDdXmI/AAAAAAAAA5w/Upuj5futPX8/s640/IMG_6240.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jezreel wanted to challenge me to a dart throwing battle.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1d-1YUa-bzY/T8xCOCbpL4I/AAAAAAAAA54/4LOyGEuL6yM/s1600/IMG_6244.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1d-1YUa-bzY/T8xCOCbpL4I/AAAAAAAAA54/4LOyGEuL6yM/s640/IMG_6244.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I won!!!! I did like this pig better, but it had a big rip in it, so I had to exchange it for another.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Km8jELgkpCc/T8xCO8nPuZI/AAAAAAAAA6A/t94lz99BVzc/s1600/IMG_6264.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Km8jELgkpCc/T8xCO8nPuZI/AAAAAAAAA6A/t94lz99BVzc/s640/IMG_6264.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I sure got a great many stares on the subway ride home carry my pig with me. The sacrifices I am willing to make for my little girl, Lucy!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K2dMIWLCnyU/T8xCPt4iyPI/AAAAAAAAA6I/E3sxICenUmI/s1600/IMG_6268.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K2dMIWLCnyU/T8xCPt4iyPI/AAAAAAAAA6I/E3sxICenUmI/s640/IMG_6268.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Very typical scene in Korea. They are so attached to their gadgets. It's a little disturbing actually.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sH17gj-UApg/T8xCTkGnT7I/AAAAAAAAA6Q/95o6FA6NMAA/s1600/IMG_6278.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sH17gj-UApg/T8xCTkGnT7I/AAAAAAAAA6Q/95o6FA6NMAA/s640/IMG_6278.JPG" width="425" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He is so jealous of my pig!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aNGMV3Trv8Q/T8xCVRsr32I/AAAAAAAAA6Y/S-5ZEwjZGFI/s1600/IMG_6292.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aNGMV3Trv8Q/T8xCVRsr32I/AAAAAAAAA6Y/S-5ZEwjZGFI/s640/IMG_6292.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm taking such good care of my new friend.</td></tr>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-42106685095629503972012-06-02T09:24:00.002-07:002012-06-02T19:32:17.712-07:00The Demilitarized Zone and Joint Security Area<div style="text-align: left;">
I need to offer a disclaimer right at the onset. I was less excited about going to Seoul than I was to go to the demilitarized zone (DMZ) and joint security area (JSA). The same thing happened to me when I went to San Francisco. People kept telling me that I need to go to the windiest road in the world or Chinatown or the Golden Gate Bridge. I just wanted to see Alcatraz and I made it a priority. In Korea, I mostly wanted to visit with my friends and to ride up to the North/South Korean border. I had seen pictures of the North and South Korean soldiers staring each other down at the military demarcation line and wanted to feel the military and political tension that exists at the spot. I had my chance to finally embark on this adventure this morning, but I needed to go alone since there were no seats available for Jezreel and South Koreans are not allowed to go without completing a very lengthy approval process. I think the United Nations Command that controls the DMZ worries that the South Koreans will not be able to control their emotions in the presence of the North Korean soldiers and will do something to provoke them.</div>
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So, I got up at 6:30 a.m. for a quick shower before heading out. Jezreel and Hyunjin have a control panel on their wall and you have to actually turn on the hot water in order to shower. I can't read Korean and I couldn't remember how to turn on the hot water. I fumbled around with the switch and finally got the water to heat up. I later found out that I had not only turned on the water heater, but I had turned the apartment heat way up. This caused Jezreel and Hyunjin to suffer while I was gone because they were still in bed and not aware that I had changed the temperature. I had trouble with their control panel the night before as well when I accidentally pushed the wrong button and the security system went off and kept repeating in Korean "emergency" over and over. </div>
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After getting ready, I headed to the subway and made my way to a hotel downtown where the tour would depart. Checking in was a breeze because my friend, Johnny Oh, had booked and paid for my entire tour as a gift (thank you so much, Johnny). When we got on the bus, the tour guide inspected all of our clothes to ensure that they met their strict guidelines. They really worry about anything that might provoke the North Koreans, so they have specific rules about what can and cannot be worn and what physical behaviors are allowed. Some of the rules made sense and others I did not understand. Some of these rules include not wearing jeans that have any kind of wear, holes, or faded color. No sandals are allowed. No tank tops are allowed. No clothing that looks military in any way. No tattoos can be showing. No gum chewing is allowed. We were also instructed never to come up behind the South Korean soldiers or to gesture or point toward the North Koreans. Not only will it possibly provoke them, but they also take pictures of what the tourists do and may use it as a propaganda tool on their side of the border. </div>
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The bus departed on time and it was very comfortable. The DMZ is about one hour north of Seoul and the road runs along the Han river and through green mountains and fields of rice. As we traveled along the Han river during the initial stages of the journey, the river was lined with miles (well...kilometers) of razor wire and outposts where South Korean military personnel would watch the river in case the North Koreans tried to enter this way. Not all of these posts were occupied, but we could see soldiers periodically keeping guard with their weapons. Apparently in 1978, a group of North Korean soldiers entered South Korea by hiking down the Han river in the winter because it was frozen over. They killed several people before they were stopped. Now, the South Koreans worry about the Han river being a viable access point for an attack on the South. We got to a military camp where our passports were very carefully examined and then we were briefed on how to behave once we arrived at the Joint Security Area. We were asked to read a document outlining the potential risks and sign a waiver indicating that the United Nations Command and the South Korean military are not in any way responsible for our safety. </div>
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We then departed the camp, but this time on special military buses to go the additional 2 kilometers to the JSA. During this short ride, we were told that we were traveling through the land mine area. The tour guide told us that planes had dropped thousands of land mines in this area, that they weren't armed individually, and that they didn't know where they all were. Hmm...kind of scary! When we pulled up to the building that stands between the JSA and the North Korean border, our tour guide pointed out a small park in front of the building. Apparently, this was the location where a Soviet defector tried to run across the border from North Korea into South Korea. He ran into this small park and instigated a firefight between the North and South. Several soldiers were killed on both sides, but the Soviet survived and went on to live in the U.S. Interesting story. We waited our turn to get into the JSA. This was the moment I had been looking forward to. You can see from the pictures what this area looks like. The South Korean soldiers look directly ahead across the border to the North. Occasionally, there will be North Korean soldiers standing directly across the demarcation line (but faced sideways). They won't look toward South Korea. I think it's to show a lack of recognition of their sovereignty or something like that. This time, though, those soldiers weren't there, but there was a soldier in the building just on the opposite side of the border looking carefully at all of us through his binoculars. It created some anxiety in me to be so close to the border and to know that if I did anything stupid, I could be shot. I didn't plan on doing anything out of the ordinary, but Jezreel mentioned to me how I could have been famous all over the world and my name on every cable news network if I were willing to run across that border. </div>
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We were only allowed to take pictures in designated places and this spot was one of those places. However, some buildings were off limits and we were told which ones they were. I wasn't surprised when one man got yelled at by our tour guide for pointing right at the North Korean soldier. They only told us not to do that like 50 times. Earlier, someone else had taken a picture of the military camp, which was off limits. His shutter made a loud noise and then the military officer on the bus said in a completely serious tone, "If we find out who took that picture, very bad things could happen to you." After getting some shots of the outside part of the JSA, we went into the MAC building, which is a building that sits right on the border. It's purpose is to provide a neutral location for the North and South to meet if ever a negotiation is required. The room was very interesting. There were tables with small microphones and two South Korean soldiers guarding the inside of the building. They allowed us to take pictures with the South Korean soldiers standing guard, by they remained emotionless and we weren't allowed to get too close. </div>
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After we left the JSA, we made a couple of other important stops along the way. We stopped at the Bridge of No Return, which was the place where (after the armistice was signed) the POWS had to choose which side of the border they would permanently reside in. Many Koreans were permanently displaced from their families at this very point. Sometimes we think more about the fatalities during a war than some of the other effects. It was interesting to think that some families were separated never to see each other again. It kind of made me think of my own family members who went through the holocaust. Some of the Jewish people were herded into different groups and the Nazis clearly didn't care about keeping families together. What a tragedy! We also drove by North Koreans' propaganda city, which is an artificial city that they constructed along the border to try to convince the South Koreans that the good life resides on the other side of the border. The tour guide told us that many of these buildings only have the front walls and are often missing windows, but that this can't be clearly seen from the South. </div>
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We also stopped to see a monument to the poplar tree, which was the center of an international incident in 1976. Apparently, the poplar tree was blocking visibility to one of the checkpoints and it allowed the North Koreans to more easily kidnap UN Command officers (which they had already attempted many times). So, members of the U.S. Army and South Korean personnel attempted to trim the tree. The North Koreans crossed the border to warn them to stop, but the soldiers refused to stop. The North Koreans attacked them with their own axes, killing both U.S. Army soldiers. The monument marks the spot where the incident took place. Another interesting site we saw was the railway that the South hopes will eventually run all the way to the North Korean capital of Pyongyang. Of course at this point that isn't possible, but the South Koreans are still hopeful that reunification will one day be possible. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Departure location in downtown Seoul near the City Hall.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not sure who decorated this thing. I'm thinking the blue, red, and purple is not a good combination. But, I'm a man. What do I know?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rice fields were common during the drive North.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That small park outside the window is where the Soviet defector ran causing an international incident. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">North Korean soldier looking at us from their business center on the other side of the demarcation line.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8zP-XaeVjrE/T8o6PTAoF9I/AAAAAAAAAxM/O0bT1ZHHYfc/s1600/DSCN7734.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8zP-XaeVjrE/T8o6PTAoF9I/AAAAAAAAAxM/O0bT1ZHHYfc/s640/DSCN7734.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's hard to see, but there is no fence at the military demarcation line. Much of it is just these little white markers you can see in the middle of the photo.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">U.S. and South Korean military.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is he catching his breath by leaning against the wall? The South Korean soldiers would never do that.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our tour guide.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cameras mounted everywhere.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H4Ra5WPJ5y8/T8o6UtWLRFI/AAAAAAAAAx8/GsRz3g8L9lw/s1600/DSCN7750.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H4Ra5WPJ5y8/T8o6UtWLRFI/AAAAAAAAAx8/GsRz3g8L9lw/s640/DSCN7750.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">See that concrete strip going across from left to right? That is the very line separating North and South Korea.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-u6b2RQnUvOw/T8o6V5Q8DYI/AAAAAAAAAyE/VoaUF9f39Qw/s1600/DSCN7752.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-u6b2RQnUvOw/T8o6V5Q8DYI/AAAAAAAAAyE/VoaUF9f39Qw/s640/DSCN7752.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's kind of odd to be at a location with so much tension, but be on a tour at the same time. It ain't Disneyland that's for sure!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E0ciexzHOFA/T8o6WoGy64I/AAAAAAAAAyM/PTaZBY6qweg/s1600/DSCN7753.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E0ciexzHOFA/T8o6WoGy64I/AAAAAAAAAyM/PTaZBY6qweg/s640/DSCN7753.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The North and South will occasionally meet (sometimes with intermediaries) to negotiate.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a-CVRkIQnaQ/T8o6XfIT9WI/AAAAAAAAAyU/gTB3kupOt1A/s1600/DSCN7754.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a-CVRkIQnaQ/T8o6XfIT9WI/AAAAAAAAAyU/gTB3kupOt1A/s640/DSCN7754.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They told me not to get to close, so I didn't. All of the soldiers kept this exact stance the whole time with fists clenched. It's a classic nonverbal cue indicating he is ready for a fight. And...he probably should be.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pmShrrZE07Y/T8o6ZF74sKI/AAAAAAAAAyk/_x8qtI4WSqw/s1600/DSCN7764.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pmShrrZE07Y/T8o6ZF74sKI/AAAAAAAAAyk/_x8qtI4WSqw/s640/DSCN7764.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Building on the North Korean side. No one know what is in it.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I474sJfYwtE/T8o6Z7seW5I/AAAAAAAAAys/JDWZ03TaIsA/s1600/DSCN7775.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I474sJfYwtE/T8o6Z7seW5I/AAAAAAAAAys/JDWZ03TaIsA/s640/DSCN7775.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monument for the poplar axe murder incident in 1976.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qXgZ9Ypso24/T8o6a3IJoyI/AAAAAAAAAy0/GF5feYcUSDo/s1600/DSCN7779.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qXgZ9Ypso24/T8o6a3IJoyI/AAAAAAAAAy0/GF5feYcUSDo/s640/DSCN7779.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bridge of no return. Prisoners of war were allowed to cross over this one time never to return again.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fg0Ami4gMSc/T8o961NRV3I/AAAAAAAAAzw/GjOD_nf3qIA/s1600/propaganda+village.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fg0Ami4gMSc/T8o961NRV3I/AAAAAAAAAzw/GjOD_nf3qIA/s640/propaganda+village.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Propaganda Village on the North Korean side. The whole village is apparently a fake just to show the South Koreans what they are missing. See how tall the flag pole is? Apparently, it's sets a world record for tallest flag pole. They kept making it taller and taller in order to ensure it was taller than the flag on the South side of the border.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-toFCgaGSiGg/T8o6bmL03yI/AAAAAAAAAy8/wU2UpGBJUEw/s1600/DSCN7794.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-toFCgaGSiGg/T8o6bmL03yI/AAAAAAAAAy8/wU2UpGBJUEw/s640/DSCN7794.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Near the freedom bridge where families pay tribute to lost relatives, whether deceased or whereabouts just unknown.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cV9FF4O-WdE/T8o6ccLb6eI/AAAAAAAAAzE/gvkWevF8kU0/s1600/DSCN7800.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cV9FF4O-WdE/T8o6ccLb6eI/AAAAAAAAAzE/gvkWevF8kU0/s640/DSCN7800.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is what remains of a locomotive destroyed by North Korean bombs during the Korean War.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R9CCkh1atlI/T8o6dIiurwI/AAAAAAAAAzM/dHQ3Qi009r8/s1600/DSCN7806.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R9CCkh1atlI/T8o6dIiurwI/AAAAAAAAAzM/dHQ3Qi009r8/s640/DSCN7806.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The railroad that will hopefully go to Pyongyang in North Korea some day.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6tHheaZZx3s/T8o6eAWS5GI/AAAAAAAAAzU/yzKfi7e4NxY/s1600/DSCN7818.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6tHheaZZx3s/T8o6eAWS5GI/AAAAAAAAAzU/yzKfi7e4NxY/s640/DSCN7818.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Common sight all along the Han river.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wBsGxPBNcsA/T8o6emV0GeI/AAAAAAAAAzc/S-uXMJSDCmM/s1600/visitor+declaration.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wBsGxPBNcsA/T8o6emV0GeI/AAAAAAAAAzc/S-uXMJSDCmM/s640/visitor+declaration.jpg" width="463" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The waiver I had to sign before going in to the JSA.</td></tr>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7724210327597017975.post-71154537659066966892012-06-02T07:36:00.000-07:002012-06-02T07:36:19.640-07:00Bulgogi and the Han River CruiseI have already written a little about my second day in Seoul. It started with me teaching in Jezreel's back to back Global Business Communication classes and a trip to the local noodle restaurant for some naengmyeon. It's a cold noodle dish (nang means cold, myun means noodle). It was kind of an interesting dish because I'm not used to eating things like noodles cold. Not only were they cold, but they were ice cold. They put the noodles in an ice bath and it's considered a really refreshing summer dish. I not only had trouble with the temperature, but also thought the flavor was a bit bland. However, I added quite a bit of their hot pepper sauce and that actually made it taste much better. We also had mandu, which is a kind of Korean style dumpling. Personally, I thought they were much better than the Chinese dumplings I had been eating before. <br />
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After lunch, we rested for a while back at Jezreel and Hyunjin's apartment. We were all a little tired from the oppressive heat in the classroom and from not eating lunch until 3 p.m. At about 6 p.m., we headed out again for dinner. None of us were really hungry yet, but we had a cruise of the Han river booked for 8:40 p.m. Jezreel and Hyunjin have been trying to take me to different restaurants so that I can really get a sense of Korean cuisine. This time, they brought me a restaurant and ordered what they argued was a very traditional Korean food. It was called bulgogi, which is simply a marinated barbecued meat of some kind. Usually it comes in beef or pork and we decided to get both. They were very delicious. We also ordered Kimchi-jeon, which is a kimchi pancake. I know some people don't like kimchi because it's fermented cabbage and has a very strong and very spicy flavor. I admit that sometimes I don't like it when it's cold because it's too strong. However, over the last few days, I've been eating a great deal of hot kimchi (whether grilled or barbecued) and it's always wonderful. I think the heat cooks out some of the really powerful flavors and makes it more mild and tolerable. I've really come to enjoy this Korean food staple. After dinner, we walked the street a little and found a street vendor who was selling hotteok, which is kind of like a scone with cinnamon inside it. It was wonderful.<br />
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After killing some time walking the streets, we took the subway down to the Han river for our river cruise. Jezreel thought it would be a good opportunity to see the Seoul skyline since the river splits the city into two halves. When we are actually in the city, it can feel very claustrophobic because of the crowds and the tall buildings. The cruise lasted about an hour and 15 minutes and the night time views of the city were spectacular. We passed under several large bridges and could see very clearly the high rise skyscrapers and apartment buildings along the river. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Um...don't ask.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gi0HJKvWT6o/T8ogkKwv5WI/AAAAAAAAAuo/dGr3ToYMmlA/s1600/IMG_5233.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gi0HJKvWT6o/T8ogkKwv5WI/AAAAAAAAAuo/dGr3ToYMmlA/s640/IMG_5233.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hotteock is such a great dessert.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KCVdI6OR1uo/T8ognih_xvI/AAAAAAAAAuw/kTGyg9YjJqc/s1600/IMG_5254.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KCVdI6OR1uo/T8ognih_xvI/AAAAAAAAAuw/kTGyg9YjJqc/s640/IMG_5254.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I actually tasted this one before I knew what it was. Turned out it was a plateful of the tiniest fish I had ever seen. They were probably the size of a very small paper clip and you eat them whole. Not bad, but not that good either.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aTS9kGIf7T4/T8ogti4OYgI/AAAAAAAAAu4/yzsxS6lHTiE/s1600/IMG_5257.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aTS9kGIf7T4/T8ogti4OYgI/AAAAAAAAAu4/yzsxS6lHTiE/s640/IMG_5257.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The pork bulgogi was my favorite dish of the night. It had this chili paste spice on it that was very good.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zkStekpOpKo/T8ogxXxVG-I/AAAAAAAAAvA/GohmTx5v5kc/s1600/IMG_5265.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zkStekpOpKo/T8ogxXxVG-I/AAAAAAAAAvA/GohmTx5v5kc/s640/IMG_5265.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beef bulgogi.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mHfGBDp5k5o/T8og0QHnEYI/AAAAAAAAAvI/7tXsWyNQv6U/s1600/IMG_5266.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mHfGBDp5k5o/T8og0QHnEYI/AAAAAAAAAvI/7tXsWyNQv6U/s640/IMG_5266.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kimchi pancake.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cgBwlGgCGcg/T8og8FF2xOI/AAAAAAAAAvU/Y_RtrvXnRSI/s1600/IMG_5279.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cgBwlGgCGcg/T8og8FF2xOI/AAAAAAAAAvU/Y_RtrvXnRSI/s640/IMG_5279.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the N Seoul Tower in the background.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0Su16_F5nDM/T8ohCLymjsI/AAAAAAAAAvc/lLf3Pt5w4fU/s1600/IMG_5352.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0Su16_F5nDM/T8ohCLymjsI/AAAAAAAAAvc/lLf3Pt5w4fU/s640/IMG_5352.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Definitely missing my family. I wish they could see this!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5ALTPcHAD4E/T8ohHVuhrKI/AAAAAAAAAvk/zhizJmgWTaE/s1600/IMG_5417.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5ALTPcHAD4E/T8ohHVuhrKI/AAAAAAAAAvk/zhizJmgWTaE/s640/IMG_5417.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's been great to see my good friend Jezreel again. He left SUU in 2010. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FBRIYRojVXQ/T8ohPO0i35I/AAAAAAAAAvs/b9FHLZQA5qY/s1600/IMG_5594.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FBRIYRojVXQ/T8ohPO0i35I/AAAAAAAAAvs/b9FHLZQA5qY/s640/IMG_5594.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We kept laughing at this picture. We can't figure out why my hand looks so huge in it!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2DIahivkobI/T8ohU-TdOyI/AAAAAAAAAv0/tMnM5tU0lX4/s1600/IMG_5605.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2DIahivkobI/T8ohU-TdOyI/AAAAAAAAAv0/tMnM5tU0lX4/s640/IMG_5605.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the entrance of the main gate to the cruise.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QI9dl3y5IG0/T8ohasRBdoI/AAAAAAAAAwA/Oev1zKkxV44/s1600/IMG_5617.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QI9dl3y5IG0/T8ohasRBdoI/AAAAAAAAAwA/Oev1zKkxV44/s640/IMG_5617.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These were interesting. Korean peninsula made up of coins.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mcpi1AibwV0/T8ohiQyeMXI/AAAAAAAAAwI/WYuI8fHvIQQ/s1600/IMG_5624.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mcpi1AibwV0/T8ohiQyeMXI/AAAAAAAAAwI/WYuI8fHvIQQ/s640/IMG_5624.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">North Korean money. You don't see this too often!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hI9Q5ap_LV0/T8ohmvclAoI/AAAAAAAAAwQ/6_gBWRhUF8w/s1600/IMG_5629.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hI9Q5ap_LV0/T8ohmvclAoI/AAAAAAAAAwQ/6_gBWRhUF8w/s640/IMG_5629.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the subway. I used to complain about how the young people in America are involved in their gagets. It is 10 times worse in Korea. Everyone has a smart phone and they are super absorbed with them. At least they are too busy to care what the foreigner is doing.</td></tr>
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