Shenzhen on a Monday evening. Hong Kong Tuesday midday.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
You can tell a lot about a place from its dogs!
There are many differences between cities of differing socio-economic capabilities. But one that I recently observed and that may not be as well known as GDP, unemployment rates, infant birth rates, drop out rates, etc is pure breed vs. mixed breed dogs. Here in Jiaxing I have only seen a couple of shi tzus and pekinese being walked on their leashes by their middle aged owners. I have not noticed young people with dogs. The remaining dogs I have seen have been muts, mixes, and worst of all (to Americans) feral. Jiaxing is full of homeless canines. It breaks my heart. I want to take every dog without a collar to my apartment and feed it, bathe it and let it know that it is loved. But that would be overwhelming, slightly impossible and more than slightly expensive. I have asked my chinese friends if China has "Dog Catchers" and they said "What do you mean? What this thing that catches dog?" From their response I could tell that China doesn't.
But, I have also seen the other side of this canine conundrum. I flew to Shenzhen and Hong Kong to transfer my tourist Visa to a work Visa (Chinese Green Card). Shenzhen is a city born in the last twenty years from a special economic declaration and development. It has grown from a rinky dink farming trade post to a ultra-modern city of more than 5 million people. Talk about growth! Well, in Shenzhen there are many well-to-do people. I was at the Starbuck's Monday evening around 10pm and its was packed. All these rich folk have alot of leisure time, I assumed. But then it happened. Two gorgeous pure bred Huskies came walking along the promenade. They stopped in front of the shop and let their owner get a coffee. They were the center of attention! Everyone was eyeing them and ooo-ing and ahh-ing. They were really pretty. Then, all of a sudden, from underneath the table next to me, a fawn colored pekinese started barking. I didn't even see her until she barked. So well behaved! The Huskies payed her no mind - too cool for school! Then to my delight, two Westies showed up, then a big white puff ball of a dog came along (its official name escapes me). The Starbucks' veranda was an impromptu dog run! I was very happy! Dogs rule!!
So I started to think about the differences between Jiaxing and Shenzhen. Jiaxing is a manufacturing/factory town of about 500k in the city and four million in the district. Shenzhen is a financial services/IT/Fashion prodution city of 5 million with Hong Kong next door (8 million) and Guangzhou (4-5 million) just down the highway. The point is - the financially more developed regions have more pure bred dogs. And the converse may be true as well - the more pure bred dogs, the richer the city. Think about the US - NYC is almost all pure breeds and West Virginia has the reputation of...well, let's just say it doesn't have the same reputation as NYC.
See, travel really does broaden, enlighten, and educate. I'm smarter because of it, and now, so are you. So go get a dog - people will think your rich!
Chinese dogs are like orange juice - they're not just for breakfast anymore! They are economic bellweathers! Good dog! Yeah. Good dog!
But, I have also seen the other side of this canine conundrum. I flew to Shenzhen and Hong Kong to transfer my tourist Visa to a work Visa (Chinese Green Card). Shenzhen is a city born in the last twenty years from a special economic declaration and development. It has grown from a rinky dink farming trade post to a ultra-modern city of more than 5 million people. Talk about growth! Well, in Shenzhen there are many well-to-do people. I was at the Starbuck's Monday evening around 10pm and its was packed. All these rich folk have alot of leisure time, I assumed. But then it happened. Two gorgeous pure bred Huskies came walking along the promenade. They stopped in front of the shop and let their owner get a coffee. They were the center of attention! Everyone was eyeing them and ooo-ing and ahh-ing. They were really pretty. Then, all of a sudden, from underneath the table next to me, a fawn colored pekinese started barking. I didn't even see her until she barked. So well behaved! The Huskies payed her no mind - too cool for school! Then to my delight, two Westies showed up, then a big white puff ball of a dog came along (its official name escapes me). The Starbucks' veranda was an impromptu dog run! I was very happy! Dogs rule!!
So I started to think about the differences between Jiaxing and Shenzhen. Jiaxing is a manufacturing/factory town of about 500k in the city and four million in the district. Shenzhen is a financial services/IT/Fashion prodution city of 5 million with Hong Kong next door (8 million) and Guangzhou (4-5 million) just down the highway. The point is - the financially more developed regions have more pure bred dogs. And the converse may be true as well - the more pure bred dogs, the richer the city. Think about the US - NYC is almost all pure breeds and West Virginia has the reputation of...well, let's just say it doesn't have the same reputation as NYC.
See, travel really does broaden, enlighten, and educate. I'm smarter because of it, and now, so are you. So go get a dog - people will think your rich!
Chinese dogs are like orange juice - they're not just for breakfast anymore! They are economic bellweathers! Good dog! Yeah. Good dog!
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Always learning - in and out of class!
I have finished my first week of teaching English in China and it couldn't have gone better. I prepared a detailed lesson plan and the students responded well. They are all so eager to learn and we laughed alot. I started them off with Self-Introduction questions like "What is your name?" and "Where are you from?" I had each student answer the questions. And to my surprise they stood up when answering. So cool! They had a hard time saying the name of their school in English - Jiaxing Foreign Language School - but soon they were doing it without my prompting. We also sang the ABC song as a review. And they got that, too. Yeah and whew! Now onto week two.
On other fronts, I had to go into Shanghai to get more pages put into my passport. That only took about 30 minutes. But since it is a two hour bus ride into Shanghai, I didn't want to turn around and head back to Jiaxing, so I spent the weekend sightseeing. I walked down the shopping street, well, one of the shopping streets. The one with the haute couture stores (because I am so high fashion!) BTW, Shanghai does have haute couture boutiques. The city may be in a communist country, but these folks are fashionistas, baby! Everyone is tailored and put together like Blake Carrington! Anyway, I walked around for a while and made my way to the Bund. This is the old European neighborhood. It's on the banks of the Huangpo river and has gorgeous last-century architecture. On the other side of the river is the new development area called Pudong. This is where the financiers do their number crunching in skyscrapers. And just to make sure you don't miss them, most of the buildings are lit up with neon signs. It's a little gaudy, but very pretty at night. Oooo, bright, shiny things! Oooo.
The entire time I was out and about, I was being stared at like an exotic animal. The people in China are very curious and have no boundaries when it comes to looking closely and sizing it (me) up. Many times I thought some old chinese lady was gonna ask "Doushou qian?"(How much?) and take me home and put me on display. But, alas, it didn't happen. Maybe next time.
But I must qualify this generalisation, the old people walked right up to me and gave me the once over, but the young ones, the twenty- and thirty-somethings, ignored me with a blase attitude that would make the French look twice and then continue to walk away. But, as I think now, this isn't such a Chinese or non-American thing. It happened to me in NYC all the time. Ah, the universals are forever a source of comfort.
Anyway, one thing the young people do like to do with me is practice their english. Everywhere I go, people are always saying "Hello!". Sometimes I stop and chat them up for a while. One time, while I was heading to the Shanghai Museum, a group of four college students wanted to practice their english on me, and we ended up going to a tea house for a traditional tea ceremony. It was really fun and I am glad I was open and trusting. I learned how to drink tea properly - three fingers, three sniffs, and three sips - make as much slurpy noise as possible and don't tip! Hey, those are the rules - I don't make 'em, I just follow 'em.
So things are going well here, but I do miss NYC and my routine. I miss Sam most of all, follwed by my friends, family and my doggies! God, I loved that job! Dog walking was perfect for me! But alas, dogs in China usually have a different role in society than they do in the US. I let you come to your own conclusions on that.
Hope you are all well. Miss ya.
On other fronts, I had to go into Shanghai to get more pages put into my passport. That only took about 30 minutes. But since it is a two hour bus ride into Shanghai, I didn't want to turn around and head back to Jiaxing, so I spent the weekend sightseeing. I walked down the shopping street, well, one of the shopping streets. The one with the haute couture stores (because I am so high fashion!) BTW, Shanghai does have haute couture boutiques. The city may be in a communist country, but these folks are fashionistas, baby! Everyone is tailored and put together like Blake Carrington! Anyway, I walked around for a while and made my way to the Bund. This is the old European neighborhood. It's on the banks of the Huangpo river and has gorgeous last-century architecture. On the other side of the river is the new development area called Pudong. This is where the financiers do their number crunching in skyscrapers. And just to make sure you don't miss them, most of the buildings are lit up with neon signs. It's a little gaudy, but very pretty at night. Oooo, bright, shiny things! Oooo.
The entire time I was out and about, I was being stared at like an exotic animal. The people in China are very curious and have no boundaries when it comes to looking closely and sizing it (me) up. Many times I thought some old chinese lady was gonna ask "Doushou qian?"(How much?) and take me home and put me on display. But, alas, it didn't happen. Maybe next time.
But I must qualify this generalisation, the old people walked right up to me and gave me the once over, but the young ones, the twenty- and thirty-somethings, ignored me with a blase attitude that would make the French look twice and then continue to walk away. But, as I think now, this isn't such a Chinese or non-American thing. It happened to me in NYC all the time. Ah, the universals are forever a source of comfort.
Anyway, one thing the young people do like to do with me is practice their english. Everywhere I go, people are always saying "Hello!". Sometimes I stop and chat them up for a while. One time, while I was heading to the Shanghai Museum, a group of four college students wanted to practice their english on me, and we ended up going to a tea house for a traditional tea ceremony. It was really fun and I am glad I was open and trusting. I learned how to drink tea properly - three fingers, three sniffs, and three sips - make as much slurpy noise as possible and don't tip! Hey, those are the rules - I don't make 'em, I just follow 'em.
So things are going well here, but I do miss NYC and my routine. I miss Sam most of all, follwed by my friends, family and my doggies! God, I loved that job! Dog walking was perfect for me! But alas, dogs in China usually have a different role in society than they do in the US. I let you come to your own conclusions on that.
Hope you are all well. Miss ya.
Friday, September 01, 2006
Experiencing Temporary Technical and Cultural Difficulties
So my computer is wireless and the modem at my apartment doesn't understand this. So up to now I have been coming to the internet cafe around the corner. Soon I will be able to surf the entire net in the comfort of my own communist flat, till then it's surfing amongst the surfers. Not so bad really - imagine having to send letters - actual letters!
I have yet to see the sky from all the smog - China has a grey sky with no distinct clouds. Just a grey, hazy sky. So I must pay attention to the ground and all the people going by for my amusement. It has been at least 95 degrees everyday I have been here. I have decided to start my exploration of the city and neighboring towns once the temperture drops. So, as of now, I have only gone shopping for my apartment. Today I went to the Wal-Mart here in Jiaxing. What a trip! They have everything the Wal-Marts and Targets have only in Chinese. However, they do not accept "Meiguo Ke" - American Credit cards. So I had to pay cash. But I didn't have enough on me. So, I found an ATM machine about ten minutes away and to be safe I withdrew 3000RMB (about US$270). I was hoping this would be enough. I was a little worried that I would have to put things back - No one wants to hear "I need a void. Manager to register 16, please" in Chinese. But as it turned out my total was only 685RMB (US$85). That's right 85 dollars. I was expecting US$250 or more and it only came to $85. Need it be said that China is very affordable. I think not! I furnished my flat for about 1500RMB which is about US$200. Hen Hao! Very good!
I taught my first class yesterday. It was fun and I got through it well - at least that's what my collegues said. I will be teaching four days a week with four or five classes each day. I will also do "Crazy English" during morning exercises. I don't quite know what it entails, but Kelly, my Chinese supervisor, has a book that I can refer to. Something about yelling short English phrases as loud as I can which the students repeat for fun! Lots of laughs, I'm sure.
Jiaxing is not a small town. It's bigger than Trenton or Newark and much busier. Lots of taxis, motos, electric rickshaws (although that's not what they call them - I haven't learned to correct name yet) I took one from the ATM machine back to the Wal-Mart - it cost 3RMB (about 40 cents). There is a military school nearby, and a couple of colleges and universities, too. Education seems to be important here.
I got a cell phone with the help of Lilian, an ex-pat from Camaroon who speaks fluent Chinese. What an ordeal! She insisted on haggling because that's how the chinese do it. But with our non-chinese faces the clerks wouldn't budge. After about 30 minutes of raised voices (can you imagine hearing chinese with an african accent - actually, it's pretty) I got one for a good price.
So now I need to figure out chinese phone numbers - oh lord this country is so different! But that's what I wanted - difference and diversity. And I got it!
I have yet to see the sky from all the smog - China has a grey sky with no distinct clouds. Just a grey, hazy sky. So I must pay attention to the ground and all the people going by for my amusement. It has been at least 95 degrees everyday I have been here. I have decided to start my exploration of the city and neighboring towns once the temperture drops. So, as of now, I have only gone shopping for my apartment. Today I went to the Wal-Mart here in Jiaxing. What a trip! They have everything the Wal-Marts and Targets have only in Chinese. However, they do not accept "Meiguo Ke" - American Credit cards. So I had to pay cash. But I didn't have enough on me. So, I found an ATM machine about ten minutes away and to be safe I withdrew 3000RMB (about US$270). I was hoping this would be enough. I was a little worried that I would have to put things back - No one wants to hear "I need a void. Manager to register 16, please" in Chinese. But as it turned out my total was only 685RMB (US$85). That's right 85 dollars. I was expecting US$250 or more and it only came to $85. Need it be said that China is very affordable. I think not! I furnished my flat for about 1500RMB which is about US$200. Hen Hao! Very good!
I taught my first class yesterday. It was fun and I got through it well - at least that's what my collegues said. I will be teaching four days a week with four or five classes each day. I will also do "Crazy English" during morning exercises. I don't quite know what it entails, but Kelly, my Chinese supervisor, has a book that I can refer to. Something about yelling short English phrases as loud as I can which the students repeat for fun! Lots of laughs, I'm sure.
Jiaxing is not a small town. It's bigger than Trenton or Newark and much busier. Lots of taxis, motos, electric rickshaws (although that's not what they call them - I haven't learned to correct name yet) I took one from the ATM machine back to the Wal-Mart - it cost 3RMB (about 40 cents). There is a military school nearby, and a couple of colleges and universities, too. Education seems to be important here.
I got a cell phone with the help of Lilian, an ex-pat from Camaroon who speaks fluent Chinese. What an ordeal! She insisted on haggling because that's how the chinese do it. But with our non-chinese faces the clerks wouldn't budge. After about 30 minutes of raised voices (can you imagine hearing chinese with an african accent - actually, it's pretty) I got one for a good price.
So now I need to figure out chinese phone numbers - oh lord this country is so different! But that's what I wanted - difference and diversity. And I got it!
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