Hotpot newbies

Sichuan province is known for its spicy food. If you've ever seen "Szechuan" food in the states, that comes from this region of China. And of all types of food, hotpot is the king of spicy around these parts.

We had avoided hotpot successfully until now - not because we didn't want to try it, but because it was just too dang hot outside. But now, the weather has cooled and a rainy fall day seemed perfect to go with some friends to try it out.

Here's how it works: Your table has a large metal pot in the middle, with its own gas-powered burner underneath. The pot is filled with chili-enfused oil (and a type of non-spicy soup, which is considered optional) that is heated up to boiling.


You drop raw meat and veggies into the pot and let it stew in the bubbling cauldron of death. After it sits for awhile, you snatch it out with your chopsticks and dip it in sesame oil (more oil?!?). From there, let it cool and enjoy!



We dropped beef, lamp, squid, lotus root, potato, cucumber, tofu, and shrimp into the pot - and all were very yummy!

Here we are before:


And after:


Notice any difference in my glamorous wife?

In all, no major complaints about the experience. Though we were nervous, it was tasty and much more palatable than we expected. Granted, Rachel did have to visit the bathroom three times - but, perhaps that was all unrelated to the hotpot meal :)

Which brings up the lingering question - does hotpot guarantee diarrhea for all foreigners? That's what we've heard, but the food and oil has not been swimming in our stomachs long enough for us to really know yet. We are loaded up on Immodium, so I hope that helps!

-alan

Done retreatin'

Floraland was a success! Huzzah!

The big concern this week was weather. As you would expect with any amusement park, rides are weather-dependent. And the past couple weeks have brought a remarkable increase in inclement weather. On two nights this week, we awoke to powerful thunderstorms and heavy rain. As of right now, it has rained on 5 of the last 6 days. This has had an effect on our apartment (as well as my general mood - I hate the rain!) Take a look at the water damage to our wall, and new paint job...


So back to the retreat. As Thursday approached, we were all praying that the rain would cease. Thursday morning was still soggy, but by the time we got to the park it had slowed and we were relatively dry. Here's Rachel outside the main gate to the park:


In the morning, we broke into groups - with each teacher taking some students around the park on a photo scavenger hunt. Here's some of my students -

Thankfully, I managed to avoid most of the pictures, expect this one by the carousel....(it is supposed to be a shot of team members mimicking a carousel ride)


But I fared much better than Rachel. She went on one ride (pictured below) that she shouldn't have. It spun around in a circle, then swung back and forth in the air in a pendulum motion. Her group had gone on together - and when the ride was complete, the operator informed them that they would all be getting a second ride. Unfortunately, this was too much for Rachel's stomach, who went with another student back to the hotel to throw up and sleep for the rest of the morning. So much for teacher supervision of that activity!!


In the afternoon, kids were free to roam through the park. I spent much of the time explaining to disappointed students that we did NOT have extra tickets to replace the ones they had lost/destroyed/gotten wet. [Actually, the kids were having a lot of fun, and were very cute in inviting us to come with them on rides. I've never had students who didn't think I was completely lame! There was one crazy ride (that would never be allowed in America) that was a giant rotating trampoline. The operator played music and violently shook the trampoline in synch with the song. Result: bodies flaying widely on top of each other as all are knocked hopelessly off balance.]

So during the afternoon, I did have time to see some of the park, and visit what can only be explained as the Floraland Shrine. Notice the weird Mickey-esque Panda mascot they had...

In the evening, we sang some songs and had some serious group time, followed by some very silly games led by Rachel and another teacher. Other than some vomiting on the part of the students (related to drinking and eating contests) it was a fun time.

We awoke in the morning to more hard rain. Yuck. We walked/ran/waded across the park for breakfast, and then decided that it was best to simply return to the school. Then we got to walk/run/wade back to the hotel, clean up, and walk/run/wade with our bags back to the main gate. Not fun. Everyone was pretty well wet, but there was little complaining.


So we spent the day at school, playing dodgeball and mafia. Unfortunately, the rain meant we had to cancel an activity in which we would host students from a local migrant school for an afternoon of sports and games. Maybe we can reschedule.

In all, it was a success! Now, we can use this experience to help us think about the spring trip - which will be a longer, more serious retreat that will take us out of Chengdu. I'm excited! It was fun to spend the time outside the classroom with the kids.

In all, not stressful or too taxing...though we did sleep 10+ hours afterwards. Definitely more than usual. It was nice.

-alan

Milk?

Seems there is something going on with milk round these parts....though honestly I have learned a heckuva lot more from the foreign media than my own firsthand snooping. Yes, the milk we were drinking was one of the "tainted" brands that is now off the shelves. Ours was poured down the drain a couple days ago. I imagine milk will be hard to come by (or expensive) for a little while until this all sorts itself out.

But, we were not using too much milk anyway. It's a bit different here and I think I was losing my taste for milk anyway. Oh well.

But on the subject of dairy (even the subject of tainted dairy), I could still go for some cheese. Mmmmmmmmm cheese.

-alan

Retreats a comin'

A couple big things just around the corner!

Later this week, both of us will be going with the middle schoolers to Floraland! What is Floraland, you might ask? Well, at this point I don't actually know. But I DO know that it is a Chinese amusement park of some sort. It has rides and junk food, so what else do you really need?

I'm looking forward to it - we will be spending the night, so I know it will be fun to hang out and play with the kids.

Also, next week is an October holiday - National Day, to commemerate the founding of the PRC back in 1949. We'll have some days off of school, but the first two days will be an all-staff retreat in Dujiangyan. This city is a couple hours west, at the foothills of the mountains. It is famous for an ancient irrigation system, and now is infamous because it is in the hard-hit earthquake zone. I am helping to plan some music for our time there, so it is nice to feel a little more invested. We'll let you know how it goes!

-alan

Painting time!

We've been here for almost 2 months now, and we still have yet to much (well, anything) in terms of decorating. Everything was on hold, until we could get our place painted. We've actually HAD the paint for several weeks now, but never got around to doing anything with it.

Now in the states, we would certainly take a weekend, put some tarps down, and get the place painted using some good 'ole fashioned elbow grease.

Not here. SURPRISINGLY, we have not had too much trouble adjusting ourselves to the local customs and culture, which says - Why do it yourself, when someone else can do it for you?


So that is why we are sitting on our porch right now, taking refuge from the painters who are doing their thing inside. It is a bit of a disaster in there, with dust everywhere from sanding the walls and all our furniture turned this way and that. The funniest part is that our furniture is used as ladders - look closely at the picture and you can see footprints on our desk.


We'll let you know how it turns out! It's all very exciting!

-alan

The Great Eva Chow Shoe Mystery

In August, Angela was in China visiting Beijing and some family in Shanghai. While in Beijing, Angela was kind enough to purchase 3 pairs of shoes for Rachel.

You see, Rachel came to China with 1 pair of black shoes, Tevas, a pair of flip-flops, and tennis shoes. And the local shops really only carry shoes up to American size 7. So Rachel's large foreigner feet just cannot be accommodated here. So when you work full time, having only one pair of respectable shoes to wear is not really sufficient. [editor's note: on multiple occasions prior to coming to China, I encouraged Rachel to look at shoes. Did she listen? Hmmmm.....]


Which is why Angela, when in Beijing, purchased shoes to send to her here.

August passed. No shoes.

September rolls around. No shoes.

Rachel checks with Angela, and confirmed that her aunt mailed the shoes from Shanghai.

Several weeks ago, there WAS a package at school. A shoe-sized box. That had "SHOES" written on the side. Problem was, the package was addressed to Eva Chow. So it sat.

And sat. And sat.

And then, poof! It disappeared.

The plot thickens. Rachel then gets a message from Angela - a friend of hers in Beijing got a call from Chengdu, saying that she would be receiving a package. Apparently, our school - which was equally confused about the Eva Chow package - called the phone number on the box and got a hold of this girl in Beijing. They got her address and sent it off to her.

Our theory? Auntie in Shanghai confused the names and sent Rachel's shoes to us, but with a mislabelled name. But the mystery continues - it was a small box, probably containing only 1 pair of shoes. Did Angela only send one? Was the Eva Chow package not really Rachel's shoes?

And in the end, Rachel still wears black shoes to school everyday. And if Rachel's shoes really did get sent to Beijing, the fact remains that in all likelihood, the money spent on shipping has far surpassed the actual cost of the shoes. Ohhhh well.

-alan

because it's been a few days...

Ohhh so much has happened! Where to begin?

• Rachel had a fun sleepover with some of the girls from school. Alan got to eat meat on a stick off the street and enjoy a quiet night at home.
• We woke up at 6am on Sunday to watch NU cream the Salukis from SIU. Go Cats!
  
• We scootered to fellowship on Sunday, for the first time in a few weeks. Somehow, we made it without getting lost as we crossed to the other side of the city! Afterwards, we went to computer city and music street. If you want to buy something in this city, chances are there is a street where it is sold.
  
• We won 30 kuai in a poker match.
• We spent our earnings buying pizza at Papa John's. Mmmmmm pizza! (more to come on this)
  
• We went to work on the mid-autumn festival holiday. Though the students stayed home, we worked. It's kind of like going to work on Christmas. Not fair!

Sorry for the lack of detail and wit - I'll be back with more pictures soon!

-alan

a round of poker and case of pox!

So, I've (Rachel) been delinquent in my posts, so I worked really hard to make you a pretty picture in paint. It is not entirely accurate but it could have been said right?

Those of you who know me well know that I would never have to ask where the brownies are, because I have the highly trained skill of finding and eating whatever is close by! Anyway, back to poker. We had a girl's poker night and I had a great time. I didn't win, but I didn't lose so that was a good thing :-)

I really like my fellow female staff. I sometimes think girls can be annoying and petty but none of them are like that! It is fun to chill with them and get to know them more. This weekend I will attend my first girl's sleepover (high school girls this time) for the club I help out with after school. I am looking forward to a good time but minimal sleep!

OK OK, so I was a little cruel with my blog title, but I had to get you to read on. I have not be stricken with some deadly disease (I hope) but have been attacked by vicious flying monsters aka mosquitoes.

I think they have particularly enjoyed feasting on my flesh while I'm helpless, defenseless, and asleep. I have recently tried to catch them in my hands to no avail (Alan is much better at that). I do like using our handy-dandy electric flyswatter/tennis racket when ever it's handy, although it is disturbing when the poor guy is completely incenerated!

Talk to you later. Hopefully, I have something more exciting to say after this weekend!

Ahhh 2-0...

Just finished watching the rest of the game, and all I can say is PHEW! Way too close, and way too reminiscent of last year's loss to Duke. Thankfully, the ACC website did stream the game and we were able to watch the 2nd half. Finally.

Let's hope they can improve!

Go Cats!

Where has my NU football gone?

We are now two weeks into the college football season.

WOOOHOOO! I'm excited!

The highlight of every fall for the past 7 years was using my season tickets to spend Saturday afternoons at Ryan Field in Evanston, watching my alma mater take on foes from throughout the Big Ten. They are far from the best team to follow. They merely strive to reach the middle ranks of the Big Ten. Most of my friends who I graduated with could care less about the team. But it does not matter to me that they are far from the national spotlight - they represent my school and they are pretty darn entertaining to watch!!





Sadly, those days are gone.

[Now before I get all weepy, I should insert that I cannot complain too badly - I saw their win over Syracuse in its entirety, and I saw the first half against Duke. Not bad for being across the ocean and not having only 1 TV channel in English.]

But I am left tonight in suspense. Because of the time zone difference, halftime against Duke coincided with when I had to leave to go to church on Sunday morning. Go figure. Now the dilemma - I have a slight hope that the ACC website I bought the video from will archive the games and release them by tomorrow. So I have been avoiding ESPN and my college football sites as I await the possibility of watching the rest of the game. Chances are, I am waiting for nothing. Yet, the anticipation and nervousness builds. Did they win? Sigh.

Go Cats!

-alan

a traffic memory

I'm not sure that I ever commented on this, but I had a video saved from a few weeks past that is an excellent example of Chengdu traffic at its most aggravating.

We were in a van - the first problem! - leaving the "bulk market." This is a sprawling shopping district where you can buy just about anything in large quantities (as the name suggests). We've gone there a couple times for fabric - to make our curtains and sheets. On this particular trip, it started to rain HARD just a few minutes before we were leaving - the second problem. Our friend Brian, who was driving, was kind enough to get the van and pick us up. As we pulled away, we had to turn around at a major intersection. This intersection was underneath an overpass - the third problem. While cars and trucks are plentiful, the roads are still chocked full of bikes, scooters, and pedicabs that are like cheap taxis. Because of the rain, all these were camped out underneath the overpass to stay dry, even though it meant stopping in the middle of a major intersection.

Now, you have to understand that driving here is slightly different. Drivers work under a different rule book. Traffic lights are suggestions. There is no concept of "right of way." If there is space for you, you go for it. Patience is most definitely NOT a virtue - problem number four.

So Brian pulled into the intersection, turning left on a green light as he was supposed to, and was met head-on by another car from the opposite direction. On our left, a fleet of pedicabs have closed within centimeters as they wait for our van to pass by. Behind us, cars have pulled right up behind us as they try to make the same turn. Then the light changes, and now cross traffic enters the intersection from both directions. We are blocked on all sides. Horns blare. Tempers flare. Nothing changes.

I have no clue how long we were stuck there waiting to move....it felt like forever. It was at least long enough for me to take my camera out. Here's a short video to give you the visual.




THANKFULLY, our drive to and from school is not nearly so eventful. I think I have gone through a metamorphosis - suddenly, I am not so against life in the suburbs.

-alan

it started!!!

We started Chinese lessons this week. Oh my... I have a lot of work to do. I began with Book 1, Lesson 2 and have already moved to lesson 3. It doesn't sound like much, but it really is 100 pages into the book!

[It's not THAT impressive. I went out to a restaurant today and still had to order by pointing. Like I said....I have a lot of work to do.]

Rachel is in Book 2 (even though her teacher wants her to move to Book 3) because she doesn't know how to read in this country. She learned fancy-schmancy "traditional" characters and needs to back track a bit. Oh well.

Tomorrow is Friday - yay weekend!

-alan

A change in the weather?

For several days now, the sun has been shining! The clouds are always around, but blue sky was prominent for most of the day. When we got home, I noticed that the humidity has been dropping as well - our dehumidifier usually works hard to keep the relative humidity at 60%, but right now the air is at 37% all on its own. It's a wonderful thing!

There was another quake southwest of here - a 6.1 rumbler that cost more lives and damage. Nothing felt here, in my opinion, but if you ask Rachel she's been feeling lots of little earthquakes. It is sad to hear about more destruction being put upon this area - it probably cannot get much worse. After all the jubilation over the Olympics, this is definitely sobering news. It will cartainly give me something good to discuss this week in Earth Science - along with Gustav as it hits the gulf coast. This crazy planet of ours...

Rachel spent the weekend downtown with the student government, on a retreat. She had a fun time with the students, which I am happy about. She doesn't get to be so carefree and silly too much nowadays. Time with teenagers is a good remedy for being too serious. For my part, I enjoyed the time to talk with friends in the states on Skype, and to see new friends around here.

Now, a new week has started and there's more to be done. Rachel is still at work writing some type of assignment, while I am reading Survival of the Sickest. I have enjoyed it so far - it is a look at different diseases and the potential genetic origins of them. For example, hemochromatosis (which involves the body storing excessive amounts of iron) is thought to have helped Europeans survive the plague in the Middle Ages. Becuase it gave an advantage to those people, it stayed in the gene pool and persists through today.

Unfortunately, I'm going to be out of reading material soon! Ack!

-alan