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The Diaries« The Last Day...June 23rd | Main | Happy Birthday America! » |
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July 1, 2009MIAPosted by KellyWell, it’s been awhile since I’ve last written on my China Diary! I owe a sincere apology to my 2 readers. (Hi Mom! Hi Professor Schrage! ) And to be honest, I hate to admit it, but I can’t even think of a good excuse for my absence! So, I’ve made it a goal to be faithful to my China Diary! Here it goes! Well, since I’ve last wrote a lot has happened! My mother came to China, conquered the art of chopsticks, and left. (Not first without showing off her impressive language skills. Side story: My friend Sophia was teaching my mom and me a few Chinese phrases. Things that I thought I had already mastered: “Thank you,” “You’re welcome,” “How are you?” etc. We were practicing and Sophia was VERY impressed with how well my mom could pronounce the words! Yes, I have failed to pronounce even “Thank you” as well as my mom. She was in China for 2 weeks, and I’ve been here about 4 months. Goodbye self confidence! Sophia still mentions how great my mom’s pronunciation was! ) I really wanted to write this diary entry detailing everything my mom and I saw, experienced, and heard. However, I think there’s limited space on this website, and I doubt I could adequately describe EVERY detail of EVERY experience. So I’ll just pick some of my favorites in no particular order! 2) Mom’s Literal Language Skills: In China, it’s not very common to receive cold drinks with meals. I’ve heard that warm drinks help with digestion and its practical─ refrigeration can get pricey! In Iowa if you want something to drink (especially in the summer heat) it better be darn cold. I’ve gotten used to the warm drinks. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, at work. It’s just normal to me now. With my mom fresh off the boat, she was still craving a cold drink to wash down the delicious Chinese foods. Since my language skills aren’t up to par, I would order her a drink and she’d ask for it to be cold. To do this she’d put her arms around her (like she was hugging herself) and make the “Burr” sound as if she was facing a brutal Iowa snow storm. And I thought people gave lots of strange looks before! I tried to contain my laughter till after the poor waitress left. Oddly, this method of literal language usually worked and my mom was happy with her cold drink! 3) The “I gotta go!” Taxi Driver: (Fortunately, I didn’t experience this with my mother.) After meeting a friend of mine downtown Dalian, my mom was on her way back to DDA via taxi. Since I live in an apartment building, it’s sometimes difficult for downtown taxi drivers to find. I can usually navigate them, but my mom was still a little confused with where my apartment was located. En route to my apartment, the taxi driver decided to pull off to the side of the road just outside the development zone area (aka my area). Not knowing what to do, my mother started to get out some money to pay and get out of the cab. The taxi driver shook his head and motioned her to stay put in the cab. Meanwhile, he moved closer to the side of the road where he started to “water the grass”. After his business was complete, my mom said he looked much happier and continued on the way to my apartment. If you gotta go, you gotta go! 4) The Great Wall: By the far, one of the best experiences I have ever had was walking on the Great Wall. My mom and I went to the site that was a little further from Beijing, but well worth the extra traveling time. We rode a cable car up to the top where we walked up the steep, uneven, handmade stairs and were overtaken by the beauty and the vastness of the Wall. It still gives me chills thinking about it. I did some exploring on the wall and saw a few interesting events. First, they were filming a TV commercial or film on the wall. I can’t imagine carrying up all that equipment and wearing a full tuxedo during the noon hour with no clouds and 90+ degree heat! Then came the generator. (This was not a part of the filming.) Yes, a group of strong, manly men were carrying a large generator along the wall. Why would you need a generator up on the wall? I have no idea. In the end, it was an awesome experience complete with a cable car ride in the same one that Bill Clinton took. Yep, President Clinton rode the same cable car up to the Great Wall in the 90’s. (You are probably wondering how we knew this; there was a sign in the cable car.) 5) The Lama Temple: The smell of incense flooded your senses as soon as you walked into the gate. It was a peaceful area filled with calmness, history, and beauty. My mom and I loved looking through the different buildings and watching people offer incense to different sculptures. 6) Peking Duck: This list would not be complete without the mention of food! We went to a nice restaurant suggested the by hotel staff in Beijing. My mom and I shared half of a duck and it was delicious! To eat Beijing duck you make a little duck burrito by placing pieces of meat on a small round piece of flattened dough and garnish with veggies, sauces, and whatever else floats your boat. It was yummy and I can’t wait to try it again! 7) My First Train Ride! We opted for the train to Beijing for two reasons: One, I’ve never ridden on a train, and Two, it’s cheap! On the way to Beijing we were on the “Soft sleeper” which is a really comfy room that contains 4 plush beds (aka two bunk beds.) We were lucky because it was just my mom and me in the room! It was very relaxing since there wasn’t much noise from other train riders and the train’s movements lulled you to sleep. I would recommend this way of travel! However, the way back to Dalian was different. I was late in purchasing the tickets and the soft sleepers were sold out. I had to accept two tickets on the hard sleeper section. Yes, cheaper, but not worth it! It was 6 to an open room that was noisy, warm, smelled like smoke, and uncomfortable. I didn’t like it at all! Since my mom and I were the only foreigners on the train, we had lost of strange looks. It didn’t help that my mom ate her noodles the “Italian way”. Even though the noodles came with a small fork, she had to use her fingers to wrap the noodles around the eating utensil in order to prevent any slurping. I tried to inform her that slurping noodles and broth is the only way to eat in China, but she insisted the “Italian way”. 8) Shopping! Between Dalian and Beijing, I’m in a shopper’s heaven! Dalian has all the trendy, newer fashions, while Beijing has the knock-offs, traditional gifts, pearls, and tons of other things you never know you needed! Good thing my boyfriend is packing light for his trip here—he’ll return to Iowa loaded down with all my new finds! 9) American BBQ: As I mentioned before, the UNI crew out did themselves by hosting a BBQ for all the Dalian Nationalities University students and staff. Hamburgers, potato salad, baked beans, and Chris Schrage’s famous apple crisp filled my stomach. Not only did I gain 5 pounds, I ate so much I felt horribly sick. Someone really should have stopped me! I don’t think my stomach is used to the American foods anymore! 10) Bug Bites: The weirdest thing happened. When my mom was staying with me she received two MASSIVE bug bites on her arm. And me? Nope! Not a single one! I was overjoyed that the mosquitoes had found a new victim. Unfortunately, my victory was short lived. A few days after my mom returned to the states I received 9, yes NINE, MASSIVE, ITCHY, RED bug bites on my legs! It happened at work. Since we leave the windows open and they aren’t equipped with screens, a few stray bugs come in looking for the buffet. Sadly, they don’t like my coworkers, they only go for me! I went to a makeup/drug store called Watson’s to look for a new cure for the bites. I showed my MASSIVE bites to the store clerk. She recommended a little bottle of tea tree oil. We put some on my bites. It helped with the itching, but at 135RMB a bottle, “No thank you!” Well, the next morning I woke up and the MASSIVE bites had become much smaller and not so red! I was shocked! I did some research online and found that tea tree oil is also good for blemishes, warts, athlete’s foot, irritated skin, etc! Since I did notice a huge improvement after one use, I bought the miracle oil and since then my bites are fading! My legs are beginning to look normal again and less like a mosquito’s buffet line. I win! 11) And to complete the list─The Forbidden City: (Since a list of 10 items is too original, I’ll go 11!) The Forbidden City was HUGE! The history behind the buildings, the artwork, the sculptures, everything was fascinating. I’ll admit I’m not a history buff, I only watch the History Channel if I can’t fall asleep, and I couldn’t tell you the names and dates of the dynasties of China, but I loved every minute of the Forbidden City! It was impressive to say the least! |
Map of ChinaJuly 7, 2009Flight homeJuly 7, 2009Golf lessons in ChinaJuly 6, 2009Happy Birthday America!July 1, 2009MIAJune 23, 2009The Last Day...June 23rdJune 23, 2009Last days in ChinaJune 22, 2009Nearing the End...June 22ndJune 22, 2009Goodbye DinnersJune 22, 2009DichotomiesJune 21, 2009Culinary Hijinks and other Tom FooleryJune 21, 2009Thursday-SundayJune 20, 2009Dalian...June 20thJune 20, 2009Funniest thing I've found on one of the student blogsJune 19, 2009Differences between China and the USAJune 19, 2009Observations on prices in ChinaJune 19, 2009Pressure is BuildingJune 18, 2009Tuesday & WednesdayJune 17, 2009KTV, McBinge, and the World's WorkshopJune 16, 2009Dalian...The Journey ContinuesJune 15, 2009Saturday, Sunday, MondayJune 15, 2009Chinese Student PresentationsJune 14, 2009City Tour, SlingShot and lots of “Měiguórén!”June 14, 2009Continued CommitmentJune 14, 2009US Food Rules that don't apply in this part of ChinaJune 14, 2009Settled in DalianSyndicate this site (XML) |
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