On my day off today, drilling recommenced outside our window so it was time to get out and see some sights on this beautiful fall day. I took my camera and headed to the Lei Feng Pagoda which caught my eye on previous excursions but I never had a chance to visit. It's not in my tour book, and I didn't see any westerners! I saw some tour groups there but they were all Chinese. I learned it was originally built in 977 AD to treasure a lock of hair of Sakyamuni, a key figure in the Buddhist religion. I wonder if my hair will be so lucky when I'm dead? The pagoda was collapsed in 1924, and rebuilt in 2002, on West Lake's eastern shore.
The forest surrounding the pagoda was brilliant with fall colors.
The inside of the pagoda was decorated with many Chinese historical figures and depictions of the construction of the pagoda. The picture on the right shows the pagoda's ceiling which is done in gold leaf.
Some of the painting decorating the walls...
In this Pagoda there was an elevator which I refused to take, and instead hoofed it up 4 long stories of stairs. An easy climb after our twice daily (at least!) climb up the six stories to our apartment!
Some views on the way up...
Looking across an arm of West Lake to Hangzhou beyond...
There were some temple grounds on the other side of the pagoda.
The pagoda was in the middle of a little forest whose leaves were turning brightly colored. This is really in the middle of the big city, but it sure doesn't feel like it with all of this nature around!
... emerging from a walk in the forest to this huge pagoda!
Some of the striking red leaves on this Japanese maple. I think the Chinese are good at planning their gardens around the seasons so something is always interesting to look at!
... having some fun with the camera!
Emerging from the pagoda and the forest, I was treated to this charming little park.
Some of the features near the park...
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Lei Feng Pagoda
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Secret Santa Strikes Again!
The students are starting to perform their Secret Santa duties with each other. One girl offered, through a 3rd party, to wash an article of her recipient's clothing (they do it all by hand!) When she received the laundry, it was a whole basketful! It was definitely more than she bargained for! Other students have received, notes, cards, some store-bought tea drinks, candy, and pieces of cake. No one has been found out as a Secret Santa yet, so they are all being very secretive and creative! However, about 1/3 of my students have not received anything yet, so I have bullied, threatened and cajoled the remaining students to get busy or their GRADES WILL SUFFER!
It is fun to watch the students describe in class the items that they are receiving; I only hope that everyone receives SOMETHING their Secret Santa. I'm worried that a few of the boys will blow it off. We'll see!
Sue is doing a Secret Santa activity with her class and NO ONE has received anything yet, so I think she will have to start the bullying too.
Thank you thank you to those of you who have sent packages! We have been loving all of the U.S. goodies, and it's so much for for us and the kids to open up the boxes! The University has guards at all of the entrances and all around campus (creating jobs for everyone?). I was huffing and puffing under the weight of 3 big boxes as I carried them to the bus. A guard approached me and I thought he was going to take pity on me and grab one of the boxes. Instead, he wanted to know what was in the boxes and wanted me to open them all right there on the sidewalk. I certainly didn't want to do that and wreck the surprises for home, so I told him "Chocolate and Toys", and then played dumb until he got frustrated, so he pulled out a book and had me sign my name.
As I walked away he showed my signature to his guard buddies and they all had a good laugh. It's nice to know the Chinese can laugh at my messy handwriting just as well as Americans!
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Teaching Christmas in China
Well those of you who know my utter lack of religiosity will find this funny! I continued with my Christmas lessons with a discussion on the birth of Jesus. So I put up a Nativity Scene on the big screen in my class and we discussed all of the players; Mary, Joseph and Jesus, the Angel Gabriel, Caesar Augustus, the 3 wise men, the star in the East, and of course the virgin birth in the manger. I printed the story for them from a Christian website, and they were amazed to learn that a large part of the West believes that this story is completely factual.
I also discussed the concept of Original Sin and how many Western Christians believe that if you don't take Jesus as your Savior then of course you are going to hell. They noted that with 1.5 billion Chinese, perhaps hell will be a very crowded place!
Buddhism tends to be the predominant religion here, although the majority of the young people I have met don't have a religion. The older generation still has many superstitions and gods, but with capitalism in full force, the younger generation has left these superstitions by the wayside. It's interesting to note that the lack of religion does not indicate a lack of morality or caring for others. On the contrary, the Chinese we have seen do such a wonderful job taking care of their young and their old (and their foreigners! ) . They are very family centered, with Grandma and Grandpa involved heavily in the family and in the day-to-day raising of the children.
Christmas here is apparently a commercially driven celebration. The stores would like it to be a bigger deal so that more shopping will be done; it's certainly good for the economy. However, it's currently more of a Western imported novelty that doesn't appear to have caught on yet with the general population. That said, my students seem to enjoy singing the Christmas Carols and hearing the stories of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman and Santa Claus!
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Sunday in the Park
Sophie loved going back and forth over the rocks that were put as stepping stones across the water. All of the Chinese mothers cringed every time she hopped across. However, we are very aware of her Super Girl powers of levitation so we weren't worried.
Sue sat and watched the kids and tried not to look sleepy in the warm sun after a big afternoon meal. We all knew that her Weatbrook genes were kicking in to make her want to close her eyes!
The boys searched for awhile to find some way to gum up the water works...
... and they found it! They used some sticks and leaves to make a small dam for the algae that floated by. Jack was the engineer for a change as Peter was busy a lot playing with his hackey-sack.
Tim the blogger, on the wrong side of the lens for a change!
Tim at the Lan Ting Pavilion
... and Sophie in her binary, but unpredictable states of ON and OFF.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Trek to Shaoxing
We spent our Saturday on a visit to a nearby town called Shaoxing (shau-shing), which is about 1 1/2 hours away by bus. We ran into a traffic jam on the way there, so we spent 2 long hours on the tour bus visiting with the locals. We also hired an English speaking guide who was a lovely girl of about 24 years old. It was a Chinese tour company, so she spent a lot of time translating what the Chinese tour guide said, since she didn't know a lot about Shaoxing herself! So, trying to listen to her, navigate crowds, schlep all of our things around and keep an eye on the kids was exhausting!
Lin Xun's Residence
Lin Xun (1881-1936) is one of China's most famous modern writers. He's known for writing over 10,000 poems, as well as stories and books that were at one time considered too dangerous for the general public to read. Because of this he had to hide out in Shanghai's French Concession in 1927. Some scenes from his housing compound below.
The drawing room...
Around every corner, this guy was taking pictures of us (and Jack in particular, I think), so I aimed the lens at him for a change!
These plaques hanging in the main hall are the family rules. There were 12 plaques in all. I think we should get some of these for around the house - once I figure out what our rules are!
The bedroom area...
A nice big kitchen with a 7 burner stove!
Hanging out in the gardens...
... a look into some of the inner courtyards of the house.
Some of the garden areas under cultivation...
This little boy and his family were on our tour as well. They were on vacation from Wuhan, the same city that Sophie came from! So, he took to calling her "mei mei" which means little sister and they were fast friends. They both have the same outgoing personalities!
The boy did some martial arts posing for the camera that Sophie was trying to imitate.
The two goofballs, goofing off :)
Shaoxing Garden
Next, we took a short walk through Shaoxing to a garden on this warm fall day.
Sophie, going her own way, as usual!
Some workers repairing the waterworks under the street, the old fashioned way!
One of the little waterways that meanders through the city.
Peter and Jack enjoying the garden...
Some small buildings surrounded the pond of expired lilies, making this a very autumn looking scene!
East Lake
In Hangzhou there is the famous West Lake, and in Shaoxing there is an East Lake. There are many high cliffs and carved out stone grottos along the finger shaped lake. We had rides in small boats run by the locals.
There were only 3 allowed per boat, so Sue, our English speaking guide, Sophie, and another tourist were in one boat, and myself and the 2 boys were in the other boat. Girls in one boat - boys in the other!
It was interesting to watch them row the boats. They row a giant oar with their feet , and use a smaller hand oar as a tiller.
Sue giving the Chinese "peace" sign as they all do in their pictures!
Some gorgeous scenery by the lakeside.
The boys had a fun time on the boat but they wanted to rock it. When they started, they got a scolding from the boatman :).
Lan Ting (Orchid Pavilion)
Next we visited a wonderful garden called the Orchid Pavilion. It's the wrong season for orchids but it was still a great place with streams and natural surroundings that we all enjoyed.
Sue and the kids found some geese, and where there are geese, there are peddlers selling goose food!
The peddler told Sue to go across on the rock bank, past the Be Careful sign, to feed the geese.
I think any of these geese would outweigh Sophie!
In this little brook, the woman floats a small cup of yellow rice wine. The scholars would sit on pillows on the bank. If they took the cup of rice wine and drank, they would have to think of a poem to recite or sing a song.
Here is scholar-Sue, sitting on a pillow made of some sort of organic wicker material. She looks like a coat-holding Mom here!
... and here's Danger Girl, standing on the VERY EDGE of a pond of water. Can she back up 2 or 3 inches? No, she must be on the VERY EDGE or it's no fun.
"Hey Sophie! Let's get away from the edge and go look at some bamboo!"
We ran into a tour of deaf Chinese and they all motioned for a picture of Jack. He must have had at least 15 pictures requested. He needs to start charging money. He was a good sport and smiled for all of them.
The Incident of the Bus
After a long day of touring, we climbed back on the bus and were on our way home for the 1 1/2 hour bus ride when we were stopped by chance at a checkpoint. The bus driver had forgotten his license so they would not let him take passengers any further! They made us wait for a second bus to come get us out in the middle of nowhere. After an hour wait we climbed onto the second bus, and passed through a toll station. The toll operator saw all of us crammed into the much smaller bus and told us to pull over! Two of the tour guides got off of the bus so that we had enough seats for everyone. Very strange, since on city busses, standing room only is the normal mode of transportation!
Here's Jack entertaining himself by making a raft out of sticks and grass while we wait for the new bus.
Here's our old, comfy bus that we had to vacate due to improper paperwork.
This woman was stuffing rice into a bag that she had laid out to dry. Sophie and her new boyfriend rushed over to help her. She politely said that she didn't need ANY HELP! But Sophie and the other boy continued to help her anyway. They are so thoughtful!
Friday, November 23, 2007
Secret Santa Strikes Twice
I have also gained a Secret Santa! Today on my desk was a beautiful cake inscribed with, "To Sue and Tim Lewis' Family, Happy Thanksgiving!" I think I know who it's from, but I'm not sure! I will have to do more detective work to find out! I'm concerned whoever it is is spending WAY too much to be my Secret Santa.
The boys stayed home with Sue today. She was feeling a little lonely due to her lack of Chinese. She needed someone to speak English with and they were the best target! They had a good time shopping today, and found some sugar cane and pineapple to eat!
The boys at the market with all of the carcasses ready for purchase!
Peter, picking out just the right sugar cane.
Peeling the sugar cane - the whole cane was less than $1 US!
They also bought a pineapple which the salesman expertly peeled and cored while they waited. The pineapple was delicious!
On the bus to school today I saw the weirdest thing - a guy on a bicycle with two enormous gutted pigs bungee-corded to the back. They were way to big for the bicycle which sagged under their weight. Oh if I only had my camera for that one - what great blog material!
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Happy Thanksgiving
Our Thanksgiving Meal - dumplings, egg and spinach, ham with cilantro, and spicy edamame beans.
So here we are in China for Thanksgiving, and boy what a different experience! Turkey is not popular in China - when I told my students that Americans eat more than 19 lbs of turkey every year, per person, they were shocked! The Chinese word for turkey "hua ji" translates to "fire-chicken". I like these kinds of words because they're easy to remember!
Of course there is no Thanksgiving holiday here (the Mayflower and the Pilgrims did not land on the shores of China, after all!) so it was a normal workday - Sue went to school and taught and I stayed home, did lesson plans and hung out with the kids after school.
I asked the kids what they're thankful for this Thanksgiving (I told the boys - BESIDES their Runescape video game which we all know would top the list). Here's what we all said:
Sue & Tim: All of you of course, our friends and family! You all helped us make it possible to do this crazy China experience with all of your support and encouragement!
Peter: Thankful for all of the things that Grandma W. has been sending from the states (we all second that!)
Jack: Thankful for the new space heater in their room (ah, the small comforts of life!)
Sophie: She's thankful for gravity - because what else would keep her tethered to the earth? If you know Sophie, you know I'm not kidding.
We're also thankful for the internet which allows us to post all of our blog experiences online and have them be accessible immediately across the world! The ability to skype or email people to keep in touch is so convenient. Just ten years ago when other teachers have come, letters took more than 2 weeks to go to and from the U.S.!
I introduced Thanksgiving to my students, so they have been texting me Happy Thanksgiving messages on my cell phone today, and sending me Happy Thanksgiving emails. I made each of them tell me what they were thankful for in their lives. Mostly it was parents, friends, teachers, and their beloved China. A few of them even put ME on their list - aww, they're so sweet! Those students will definitely get an "A". Sucking up to the teacher is so under-rated. :)
I looked into some of the western establishments' turkey dinners around town but they are so expensive - more than $30 US PER PERSON, including Sophie - highway robbery in China where $20 will feed our whole family a very nice meal. So, our "ayi" made us a nice meal at home tonight which the adults enjoyed and the kids complained about. Some things don't change across continents!
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
A Spa Day for Sue
Today I taught class and Sue went to the spa and had a perfectly dreamy facial at Pandear Beauty and Spa. She received a facial, back rub, neck massage, and took a shower. The facial itself took about an hour and cost about $37 US. Quite expensive for China but then again things are more expensive in Hangzhou because it is a tourist destination.
Pandear Beauty and Spa has a 30,000 yuan package (a little over $4000 US) where you can go and take part in all of their services, every day, all day for a whole year! Sue thinks that is the perfect plan for her! :) We wonder how those people that sign up for the year-long package can get anything else done!
Our apartment is cooling down and the boys were cold last night, so Sue is off to the store to get another space heater for their room. They are both wearing long johns under their clothes now as their classroom has no heat and they tend to teach with the window open! I also wore long johns to teach today and I'm so glad I did! It was so much more comfortable to teach than yesterday. I sang "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" to my students today which they loved. I explained the story of Santa Claus, which they also found entertaining. I will be teaching them some choice Christmas carols over the next few weeks as well.
Here are some pictures that Sue took with some of her students last week:
Sue with her student, Sunny, who is also the classroom monitor. When someone skipped class, Sunny went and tracked him down and dragged him to Sue's office for a talking-to!
Can you find Sue? Do you feel like you're playing Where's Waldo?
Tomorrow, Sue is back to school and I am home with the kids for my day off, doing some lesson and trip planning!
Monday, November 19, 2007
Parents' Day at Preschool
On Friday, Sue was invited to preschool for Parents' Day, much to her chagrin, as she was looking forward to some non-Sophie time. However, once she got there she had a good time, even though the language barrier with the other parents was somewhat difficult.
Here is Sophie's class, dancing with some ribbons. Sophie is in the background in her pink coat. Most kids wear 4 layers as there is no heat in any of the schools. My university has no heat in the classrooms either, so everyone is very bundled up. Today was in the 40's so after class I raced to my office, turned on my heater and stood in front of it. It felt so GOOOOOD!
Here is Sophie's teacher with the kids. Notice her arm protectors. When women wear long sleeves, they wear these arm protectors to keep their clothes clean; especially if they're doing messy work like taking care of small children!
Their English wall - looks pretty authentic!
... more ribbon dancing!
We went to a local restaurant where the waitresses loved playing with Sophie. Unfortunately they were playing with her at the top of a very steep staircase so Safety-Dad had to take her back to the table.
Today I introduced Secret Santa to my students. I assigned each student another student in their class that they have to do something nice for. Most of the students don't know each other because they come from different majors. So they have to find out about the people they have been assigned on the QT, and find 4 nice things to do for them in the next 4 weeks. I am very curious what they will decide to do! I'll report back some of their ideas by Christmas!
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Alice in Wonderland
Alice has been coming to China for more than 30 years and is a wealth of knowledge on Chinese culture, history, politics, and living in China. She stayed for a night with us in our 2nd apartment that the University provides.
We told the boys for the last couple of weeks that today could be their home day, so Sue, myself, Alice and Sophie went to see some of Hangzhou's sights. Of course the first stop was the Botanical Gardens. It was sprinkling lightly, but we didn't mind. Though it was mid-50's and "misty", Sophie didn't want to wear her coat, which is so... Sophie!
Some scenes in the Botanical Gardens...
Sue and Alice...
Tim and Alice, enjoying the gardens...
The autumn foliage was sure colorful...
Sophie loved the Botanical Gardens. She ran top speed all morning and as soon as we got into the cab at noon she fell asleep within 30 seconds.
The cab took us to the Hangzhou silk market where Sue and Alice did some Christmas shopping. Alice said when she was here 10 years ago, these were rickety little stalls.
Business must be good, because in place of rickety stalls are clean, modern little shops, and so many of them! Alice was wondering where Old China went!
Sophie deftly held the umbrella, protecting us from the afternoon sprinkles...
There goes Old China, on a 3-wheeled bike!
Alice Renouf, doing some Christmas shopping.
Hundreds upon hundreds of silk scarves. My mother would be in heaven here!
We stopped of at Starbuck's to get the kids a sandwich, but then we couldn't get a cab due to the rain so we walked for 1/2 hour back to our apartment, and Alice needed to catch the train. She threw her things into her bag and went back out into the rain a few blocks away, but no one wanted to stop or go to the train station as it was near shift change time.
She whipped out a 100 yuan bill (the ride would probably only be about 20 yuan) and held that up and she got a taxi right away. So refreshing to see how the experts do it :)
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Sophie's 3rd Birthday
Sophie turned 3 years old today! I brought a cake to school today which she, her classmates, and her teachers devoured!
I bought another cake this evening, which, after a delicious curry dinner at a local restaurant, we also dug into!
Then, boy were we surprised when suddenly flames shot out over 1 foot into the air in a dazzlingly dangerous pyrotechnic display. Sophie got quite a scared look on her face! I'm glad no one was leaning over it! It would definitely not pass US safety standards, but it was fun to watch! Safety-Dad was nervous.
Here we are, the 5 of us with Sophie's birthday cake and the candle in it's pre-flamethrower mode. Had we done this picture a bit later, we might have been the only 5 person family without eyebrows.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Construction Scenes
This is the building we live in, lovingly referred to as Qing Gong Lou. I think this translates to, "Eardrum Replacement Needed." The sound of this drill below haunts our dreams, and our waking hours too!
The glass has been removed from the stairwell windows, and we need to take care going out the exit to look for falling debris, lest we get new brick-shaped holes in our heads. Sometimes they give us hard hats to wear to go our bicycles. No I'm not kidding.
Here they are demolishing some of the walls of the building, to make new doorways I suppose, or they are working with hammer and chisel to remove the outer orange concrete facing to expose the bricks beneath. 
This is definitely the most decrepit building in this up and coming neighborhood. I'm sure the neighbors in the beautiful hi-rise apartment buildings around don't want to look at this building the way it was. It is quickly being born (bourne?) from the old China into the new!
The main feature of my bicycle (below) is my bright red lock that stops any would-be thieves in their tracks (the crooked handlebars, squeaky cranks and purple child seat however may have something to do with it, too!) It's covered with dust from the construction and I leave it that way to make it look as worn out as possible. Peter wipes his with a cloth everyday because he likes it shiny... this is his 2nd bike in 3 months - will he ever learn?? I like to leave things in my basket like this half-empty water bottle to see how long it will be until it disappears. So far I have lost an English/Chinese dictionary and a Bungee cord, on different occasions, which each took about an hour to disappear. Sue's luscious pink bicycle is pictured behind...
A local wall near our apartment alternates between graffiti and white paint. This is Sophie's favorite monster picture that she always comments on when we ride by.
This week the score is: Graffiti Artists 1 ; City Paint Crews, 0.
I stopped by the local flower market to get Sue some flowers today...
This woman was trimming up a nice display but as soon as she saw me pull out the camera she ran inside. Check for the coy smile on her face! Afterwards, I bought some flowers from her - next time I will have to be more stealthy!
Tomorrow is Sophie's 3rd birthday, so I will be on the lookout for a birthday cake. Maybe I can have them write "Sophie" on it in Chinese. That would be a gas! Also, the program director from the Colorado China Council who found us these teaching jobs, Alice Renouf, is coming to Hangzhou for a visit and she will stay in our 2nd apartment. We just saw her briefly in Shanghai so we are looking forward to seeing her more in Hangzhou.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Dinner with the Girls
Here is Jack, showing excellent chopstick form - except they should be held closer to the top. It's easier with bigger hands!
Blond Jack gets lots of attention!
... more dinner fun!
... and Peter, hamming it up for the camera. Did he have beer instead of Coke?
On the way home we saw a couple of dogs that were well dressed for the cold. Sue went berserk and had to coo over them and get a picture.
In China it is very common to see members of the same sex with their arms around each other. Here are 5 buddies walking down the street. We see this so often on campus too
Sue went clothes shopping again and bought Sophie a few new outfits. Here are a couple of samples - a shirt with a fur collar and her red outfit with warm tights. It's getting colder fast and she is prepared now with boots as well. We needed to get dark colors because she gets SO filthy. She loves to drag her hand along buildings, fences, etc. as she walks along, so by the time we get somewhere (like school), her hands are black!
Saturday, November 10, 2007
How the Other Half Lives
Peter, Jack and I spent a wonderful morning with another teacher from school, her husband and son. They picked us up in their beautiful car and drove us to South Mountain, just south of West Lake. We had an hour long hike up the hill through the trees and fields of tea.
Our hosts: Hwang Yongmei and her husband, and their son Tian Hong
Jack wandered through a tea field, trying to determine which variety goes best with Skittles.
... and more tea fields as we made our way up South Mountain.
And from the top, a nice little lookout station with terrific views.
Peter and Jack bounded up the hill like mountain goats of course, no worse for wear! We shared some beef jerky that Grandma had sent from the states. Peter and Jack loved it but it wasn't too popular with our Chinese friends.
Tian Hong is also 11, but he was quite shy around the boys. It probably didn't help that the boys were talking about Runescape to each other so much, so it was hard to follow their conversations, even for me!
Some of the stone paved path that we took back down the mountain. Here you can forget the city of Hangzhou which is just next door! Not many people know about this hike apparently as there were very few people. Rare for China!
We were invited to see their apartment which they own, which is about 3 years old and very clean and modern.
Inside their sparkling apartment. The boys did not want to leave to go back to our apartment which, especially from the outside, is a disaster!
Some photos of the park-like setting in their development, which consists of 33 buildings, about 25 stories tall each. Half of them are empty - no internal walls or anything as people just hold them for investments and don't bother with renters. Yongmei said her apartment has doubled in value in the last 3 years!
... a beautiful indoor/outdoor swimming pool!