China – Page 10 – HurricaneMaine

Thanksgiving 2020

This year for Thanksgiving I did not host a dinner like last year. Killian instead hosted at his place on actual Thanksgiving day. I had PD that day as well as a fall celebration so made cornbread and pies as my contribution. I think these were the best pies I have made.

The Thanksgiving dinner was great. Killian has an 0ld but cool apartment in Dongshankou which is a historic area of the city.

The Thanksgiving celebration before the holiday weekend was fun with corn hole tournaments, food and drink and live music with a teacher band.

We may not have had Thursday off, but we did have a three day weekend. Of course, I scheduled doctors appointments and tests for that day! But before that, I ran 17 km to train for the marathon I signed up for then went to my appointment. After leaving the Imaging center where i had a mammogram, I walked through Martyr’s park that commemorates those who fought for the current form of government. Even if it was communism it was better than the Qing Dynasty which ruled before that. Martyr’s Park is really beautiful and many people writing poetry with water and practicing TaiChi.

I took the subway to the sports center as it is a beautiful walk around there. My friend Elaine messaged me, so I went to see her at PoPark to grab lunch and walk around before my next appointment.

I’ve been eating out more than before… there is so much good food here! My favorite is Thai food and there is a great place in PoPark near the East Railway station. A good vegetable soup, Pad Thai inside a thin egg omelette with coconut jelled dessert.

We walked around and visited some of Elaine’s other friends that had rescued kittens. They are so adorable.

Over the weekend I also met with some other friends to hiking in Baiyun. I had not seen Joanna in some time! Morgana is also very busy at the Canadian school. Whenever we can make schedules work, it is amazing.

Afterwards, we traveled to Dongshankou to go to the Owl’s Nest whcih has a really nice brunch and coffee shop.

This is really reminiscent of the types of houses in the area at that time. Very romantic and beautiful.

It was a great holiday weekend and the start of the week was pretty spectacular too. Elaine, Killian, and I met near the river for Vietnamese Pho and then walked along the river to look at the light show. Some of it is paid entrance (in the amphitheater), but the rest was the pedestrian area of Huacheng Square.

It also was the first time that Book club met in person now that more of the teachers are back in China. Yummy food of grilled vegetables, an eggplant dish, and rice. The discussion was of the book Lizzie Borden which had some great analysis of all the past information about that famous persona.

November, 2020

It is easy to let multiple weeks go by without writing everything down. This year which is the longest year ever. Covid-19 had made this the most ridiculous year ever. No big travel trips this month but many little outings as school returns even more to normal and all students are on campus. We are almost back to the normal schedule. This has less to do with the virus itself but with finally having most of our teachers back in China. I’m also taking a leadership class on Saturday mornings (virtually …)

One of my really good friends here is Elaine from Canada. She and I live close to each other and we go out to eat every Monday. Sometimes Killian, my other good friend goes with us too. She works in an English language school so she works nights and weekends. Monday is our one day to catch up.

This portobello burger is amazing and the little restaurant is so retro.

I am still running to get ready for some races. My favorite place to run is along the river.

I also attended the AmCham ball. It is the American chamber of commerce. My school is a member and has a number of tickets. It was a great night with my colleagues. The food was amazing and the Garden Hotel never disappoints with atmosphere and food.

We also found a Poutine restaurant. It has original Poutine and also different nationality themes. Delicious!

Christmas displays at Parc Central in Tianhe!

I pulled out a Christmas tree I was given to decorate. It may become a cat climbing tower!

Dim sum, Diwali, and TedX

This was another foodie and experience weekend. I’m training (sort of) for a marathon. I can’t train fully as I still have a chronic hamstring issue. But I can run a half marathon and if I go slower I could run the full marathon. At worst, I can run and walk it and still finish in the time limit. It will be my one and only marathon and it is here in Guangzhou. I ran the half there last year. Crazy but up for the challenge.

After my 9 km morning run I had a leadership class on assessment at 8 am. At least I get the class done early enough in the morning. After that I went to dim sum with colleagues at the Luck Win Teahouse. Dim sum is the same in a lot of places. They have the same foods which you share as a table and sample everything. Each dim sum restaurant though has their one special dish you can’t get anywhere else.

You scan the code to order and then also to pay. So convenient.

This was the amazing dish that is a specialty here. A fried dough that is hollow on the inside and filled with a warm sweet coconut milk. Yummy.

Other dishes we ate:

This is fried radish. It was so good. Better than fried tofu or potatoes.

This had shrimp inside and was cooked perfectly.

This was really good. The rice roll on the outside is made with red rice.

Then off to a doctor’s appointment to check on the 4 stitches in my head (I had a cyst cut out the afternoon before. How many do I need in my lifetime?). I walked home and passed this little farmers market. I bought honey. The day before I stopped and bought pumpkins.

I went to a Diwali dinner that night but had to leave to go to another event. Shalini and Sai are wonderful people I’ve been working with while they help until all our teachers are back. A great night with authentic Indian food and spending time with friends and the meaning of the festival of lights and dispelling dark.

The next day was TedX Guangzhou at the Garden Hotel. It was a pretty long day but some great messages from a variety of speakers. They had translator devices we could use. The gardens there are beautiful. (Pictures a few paragraphs below.)

The theme was Embracing complexity. The first session was: It’s about us. It focused on having empathy for our own transformations. Another speaker spoke of the kids lack of connection with the natural world and the result we see in how students and people think about one another and the resources around them.

The second session was Nitty Gritty. One message about climate change is that it is all around us and how small changes in temperature have made large changes where others are not aware. Another speaker spoke of complexity in systems from large scale (Earth) to small scale (cells). The energy constraints on systems are a common property as well as feedback loops. Another speaker spoke of protecting animals, and not just the cute ones. An educator spoke of perception opening hearts and ensuring that education is not indifferent. I like the speaker on the food crisis. She engaged with people to make the point of knowing where raw materials come from, learn recipes, make food, eat, clean up…. It brings up the motto from 4-H: head, heart, and hands….. Know how everything is used and what it takes to bring food to our table.

Lunch was delicious and I followed it with a walk around the gardens.

The third was Full Spectrum. There were many messages here including migrants who want a better life and should be trusted that they are motivated to do just that. It also discussed economics such as inflation and other items that affect society.

I chose a breakout session where we broke in groups to find evidence of various things in a neighborhood. We then moved around groups to look at what each group found and heard interesting stories as each group interacted with people differently. There were some common assessments of the neighborhood and similar stories from the residents.

The fourth session was Onward and Upward. It focused on high density areas that are dealing with high livability issues. It also looked at serious environmental issues and local groups stopping destruction of old neighborhoods and environmental areas.

Food and friends

I am grateful to have a variety of friends from different activities and tours I have been in since arriving in China. They all have found incredible places to eat.

I am eating out more and more and enjoying the amazing delicious food in this city (it is really renowned for is cuisine and variety).

I started last weekend in a Friday afternoon at a golf driving range. I didn’t take pictures but I had such a great time whacking at a ball and talking with coworkers I don’t see everyday over snacks and drinks.

The next morning I juggled a long run with a leadership course in assessment. Of course there was homework, but afterwards I met my friend Morgana and co-worker Dirk for British day. If course there were fish and chips and pints of beer.

At night there were long established plans to go to a 2 star Michelin restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental hotel. The restaurant is called Jiang by Chef Fei. It is an amazing restaurant.

Drinks in the upstairs bar while others arrived. They have an unbelievable selection of gin.

Netherlands, Germany, UK, Canada, NZ, Singapore, and US represented here.

Part of the 9 course set meal some chose.

When did arrived and everyone takes pictures!

Some photo shots afterwards. We crowded into an elevator that had a bellman and trolley. He did not know what to make of us squeezing in that way instead of waiting for another elevator.

Downstairs in the Mandarin Oriental.

I also went to dinner on Sunday with my friend Elaine. She knows of a great Thai place in Po Park. The fish curry was amazing. So hungry we forgot to takes pictures. Another highlight was sitting in the Tesla cars in the mall.

Another dinner a day later at a different Cantonese restaurant to start the week.

Apple shrimp, a great mushroom fish, and a casserole with crab roe.

And more window shopping… This place was a one stop shop for a bunch of things. Stationary, snacks, wine (right next to the toys)…

Looking in a clothing store brought back memories of shopping for similar flannels for the kids and I to wear for the holidays….. Miss my family….

Kaiping

I traveled with Global friendship and Pachamama tour to a village outside of Kaiping for day of the dead celebrations. It was a two plus hour bus ride out of the city.

Kaiping area is home to hundreds of unique Diaolou-fortress watchtowers. They were used to protect the city from invaders and we’re built during the second world eat and with conflict with Japan. Kaiping is the hometown to many overseas Chinese many of which have an interest in maintaining and finding use for the many abandoned buildings. The villages are historic and surrounded by agriculture and traditional way of life. The Diaolou and villages are enlisted as UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Tangkou village

The TK-SPACE is a communal space for international people to get together and learn and interact in rural practices and developments.

Two old factories were renovated to build this hostel and restaurant. The largest part was an old watch factory and the other made lampshades.

The place was already decorated for Halloween.

We had lunch and settled in then took a walk around the village where the abandoned buildings and diaolous. Many of the buildings the owners cannot be found or descendents won’t spend money to transfer ownership. As all the owners here are from other countries many are not here anymore and are elderly.

The design asking the to of not in concrete but of pressed rice and has survived the years.

Wet painting. While the concrete is wet, the paint is applied and they must work fast. The color stays many decades later.

This old place is like a mansion. So sad to see it empty.

This is the post office and all collect calls in the area came here which means they needed to be arranged in advance.

The Diaolou.

An old Diaolou. There is writing on the wall from 1946 where soldiers used this as a hideout during the war and to keep a lookout for japanese.

In every rice field there will be an altar for good crops and always near a banyan tree which must never be cut down.

The flowers and seeds (rice) in this rice paddy. You know how you cook rice or open a rice package and smell the rice? Standing next to the rice paddy, that is what you smell…

We painted pumpkins or skulls and are mexican day if the dead bread made as gifts to leave for the dead on Nov. 1.

Day of the dead party

Morning run

We ran from village to village for a 10k run the next morning and saw this moon. It was the first full moon that fell on Halloween since 1944. The picture here in the morning is better than the one I took at night.

I also went through a UNESCO area but did not take pictures. Unfortunately we did not go back there later that day.

After breakfast, we toured the crops. This place leases land to villagers and then buys back the produce for their center. They supply jobs and economic incentives.

This rice is within two weeks of harvest.

This bathroom is state of the art for the area and had brought in tourism as a result.

In front of this Diaolou is water chestnuts.

Relaxing in Hainan

When I “planned” this vacation, I really didn’t plan it well. There were many places I could go from the well known Sanya to other areas. I didn’t want to be among really large crowds which I would find in Sanya. I really wanted to enjoy a beach without crowds. (*Even though masks are not required here, now that travel is really opened up here in China I thought it still a good idea to go to more remote places like Xiangshui Bay. They are expecting cases to increase again as asymptomatic people move around.)

People who know me also know I generally always keep moving and doing things. A remote area means more time in travel to go places or just learning to relax for awhile. I chose the latter.

This place is beautiful.

The first two days I did go places for part of the day then decided I would stay put. I spent my days reading using my Kindle app, swimming in the pool, laying out by the pool or beach, long walks or runs on the beach, boogie boarding, and taking naps. At first it was difficult to just relax but I’m glad I did. I’m the most rested I’ve been in a long time.

Even my run was relaxed. 9 km/hour.

Boogie boarding here is a bit different than when I lived in VA Beach. There you could walk out far from the beach and still touch sand. Here the water is deep close to shore. But fun nonetheless. It has been a long time since I’ve done that.

Images from a long beach walk:

I found a restaurant off site less than a km away where all the waitresses were nice. I went there every night. One night I decided to buy the live fish and sea urchin and have it cooked for me.

My whole meal was 121 RMB or about $17.70. it was delicious.

Other food I ordered while here:

I will miss this vacation as it was very relaxing. I met some nice people who were very friendly, only three other foreigners the whole time, and enjoyed lounging by the pool. Now back to relax a few days in my apartment before school starts again.

Nanwan Monkey Island and Daidai Island

This is actually one island but two different parts. Advice on the internet (and if which I agree) is to go early and arrive sometime close to 8 to avoid the crowds.

In trying to buy tickets (they wanted me to purchase from the app but you need a Chinese ID to do that) a person nearby who spoke English helped. She was so helpful. Nikki mentioned her friend told her to go to Daidai Island first. I decided to follow them and her family was very sweet. She has twin daughters and her parents were lovely. They invited me to Chongqing and Chengdu! It was nice to meet sometime new and share experiences.

Take the ferry across to the island.

Then you board s shuttle bus to go to the beach. Most of this part is photo props but there is a beautiful beach, diving, and places to relax. In fact Daidai means to stay and rest awhile. In a translate app from the person I bought tickets it translated as dumb. It seems we don’t have a literal translation for that.

The longest cable car in Asia takes you from Nanwan back across.

Lots of places to relax. Nikki’s family (mother and daughters) having a snack.

I love this. Nikki’s dad taking her picture.

From Daidai you take the shuttle bus past the ferry to the entrance of Nanwan monkey island. This avoids a lot of crowds.

Many come to the part at the entrance where you can purchase food to feed them. They are a sight jumping around and waiting for someone with a plastic bag to steal from!

Many of the monkeys come and go but they know eventually there will be food.

I was not interested in the shows as the Macaque monkeys are not well treated. I snapped this picture and decided to walk around and find them enjoying freedom in the trees. I left Nikki and get family there but could not find them later. We are keeping in touch on WeChat!

Those in the show so not look happy about their captivity.

Where the circus is held the monkeys seemed to like playing as no one was around.

At various places through the park..

Hide and seek. Do you see the mom and baby?

The swimming hole is a popular place for them to congregate, swim, or grab a drink.

At a pavilion people would get in the structure and monkeys would jump around on the outside. I’m not sure what that was about but I didn’t stay to find out.

After waking around awhile I headed back to the cable car. This is the longest cable car in Asia. It goes over the Danjia Fish farm. This is a village where no one owns land. They live on a mass of floating houses and fish farms and make their money from the sea. Since there life is so unpredictable and fragile they are called Danjia which means “egg people” as their lives are fragile like eggs.

Xiangshui Bay, Hainan

I decided to go to Hainan on October break which is billed as the Hawaii of China. Of course I know there is no comparison and this is still a tourist trap but I felt I should check it out. My other option, Chengdu, is not allowing feeding of the pandas right now due to covid and I’ll wait to see if that changes. (Honestly I don’t know how the world could go back to normal.)

I took the metro to the airport. It is a straight shot and cheap. Usually it is mundane and routine. Not this time. I really need to be that person who videos things. There was a scary yet spectacular fight between a man and a woman. Skip this part if you want: Both ended up with injuries and it took multiple of us to keep them apart. But when it was really crowded, they got into it and I yelled STOP. It got everyone’s attention as it was in English and I gestured to the packed car to show there were too many people here. A few of us got between them. It stopped it for a bit but when he left he spat on her. In the age of covid….

I landed in Sanya then took a train to Lingshui. It is easy here as the train station is right outside the airport.

As for Hawaii….

The Marriott is beautiful, the pools are nice, but just like the majority of places in Hainan, you can’t swim in the ocean. In the park across the bay I could see people in the water. I decided to run there the next morning and wore my swimsuit to cool down in the water. It becomes deep quickly. In defense I can see why there is surfing but no swimming. I know there are a few areas that you can if you look.

Views from the 11.6 km run.

There are a lot of places where development here has stopped due to Covid-19. The jungle quickly takes over.

This flower was pretty. There were fire ants that reminded me to just keep moving!

The beach I ran on where i stopped to get in the water.

First evening.

A little restaurant one km away from the hotel is where I ate the first two nights. They all want to help with my order and it was a way to use their translation apps. I’m amazed at the people who assume I just arrived in China and do not have WeChat or Didi apps. They forget people are here to work. Of course I practiced Chinese too.

Squid Teppenyaki and a pickled vegetable that was pretty spicy!

A friend recommended Gangmen Harbor.

I’ve thought about going off the path a few times but this reminded me not to.

It was pretty but a long drive for a short visit. As the Didi driver left I wondered if I would have trouble getting another car out here. I was right. After two failed attempts I decided to walk as I noticed that we traveled through a couple small villages.

I was definitely a source of amusement. I stopped for drinks and eventually noticed a taxi that would definitely have to be going past me again. I was lucky… These small towns have narrow streets and many bikes.

This trip has been easier without having to show documents over and over. People here are still taken aback at seeing a foreigner and I have not seen any others while here. The guard at Gangmen Harbor did ask me where I was going (in ‘hinese). I replied sight seeing. He at least stepped aside.

Wugong mountain hiking

Wugong Mountain is in Jiangxi Province. This is one of China’s three great mountains south of the Yangtze River. The view of the alpine meadows is spectacular. One I have not seen on other hikes.

I took a super long metro (over an hour) to get to the high speed train station. From there the three and a half hour train and shirt car ride put us at the hotel at the base of the trail. The next morning we hiked.

We hiked 2 hours through the bamboo forest.

As we climbed higher it began to change to alpine forest then alpine meadows.

Eventually we emerged on the alpine meadows. We walked up and down through the meadows to where we stopped for lunch.

A few more hours of hiking up and down through the hills we reached the golden peak. Here you are surrounded by fields of tall grass that turn golden in autumn. They were just starting to turn but not at their full colour yet.

There were also quite a few temples at the top including this Taoist temple called the fairy temple.

While we were hiking the weather changed dramatically with a lot of wind, some rain, and the clouds taking over. Every turn brought different weather conditions.

Another hour of hiking and we arrived at the tents we were to stay for the night. An earlier festival had been rescheduled for this weekend.

We hiked 18.8 km and covered much elevation. There were rough shower and bathroom facilities but grateful to have any!

The next morning some of us tried to capture sunrise but there were a lot of clouds.

We had breakfast, returned our sleeping bags and mats then started the hike down. Downhill is not my favourite (my knees are starting to hate that). There were many very steep sections in the meadows to get through.

The hill was called desperation hill. It spanned 1300 meters and we were all pretty desperate just to get to the bottom.

There were many rocks to maneuver over. Just when I thought it was so tough were saw this man carrying the drinks they sell near the peak. Carrying that much weight is a feat.

A landslide from 4 months ago destroyed much of the pathway and we had to find our way over and back across the stream which was still flowing around all of the debris.

At the end, we were picked up by a car and driven to the hotel we stayed in the first night. A nice shower, late lunch, and playing with the puppies that resided there was a nice end of the day before taking the train back.

Where to stay in Xi’an

If you visit Xi’an, you will want to stay within the city wall in the old city. Almost in the middle is where we stayed, just a few minutes walk to the Muslim quarter and great food streets.

Clarence Guo is a wonderful person who owns the apartment. He not only outfitted it with terracotta warriors statues which makes for a wonderful stay, but also will give a tour for you as well. A small group tour from a person who has done this for the last 30 years and lived here all his life was incredible. We saw other things we may not have seen otherwise.

Here is a map of the location of the apartment.

This fire station was an important landmark to know where you were facing. The apartment is behind it.

The morning we left I ran 12 km towards the east wall and then down along the south and part of the west Wall before heading back.

A market along the east wall which team for about 1 km.

You can even get a massage or a haircut.

We could not have picked a better location than this. It was fairly inexpensive and Clarence not only have us a tour to the warriors but also took us to and from the airport. He can do other tours as well.