Food updates

I am the major eater in the family so I had to weigh in on some of these food posts. It all started on Thursday night with our weekly potluck. I love potlucks for both their delicious variety and the opportunity to keep sneaking up for more when no one is watching.

Friday night we had yummy hotpot as you saw in Alan's previous post. I really enjoy finding my food in a vat of boiling oil, it is almost like a game. When you catch something in your chopsticks (and don't drop it) there is a sense of satisfaction. I also love the community built around a shared hotpot. Friends find food another wants and the careful game of passing the food via chopsticks ensues. After hotpot we had some good conversations at English corner ranging from the economy to entertainment. I am amazed at how much more some Chinese college students know about American TV than me!

Saturday was my favorite not only because Kate and I won Catan (taking advantage of our opponents' weak eyes during earth hour) but also because we had semi-legit Korean food on OUR STREET!!!! We ordered some yummy bulgogi, kimbap, and bi bim bap. We have to help keep this place open! Some places on our street have already changed hands in our short time here. While I protest to presence of dog on the menu, I will faithfully visit this place as much as I can.

Sunday we were blessed with a good message and Turkish food at The Sultan. I can't get enough of the naan and hummus! Afterwards we went to a big store to buy some things we needed and of course some extras. Our cart was hard to push as we headed for the check-out and I wondered how we would get it all home in the taxi. Thankfully some parents from school were there and gave us a ride home! Thanks guys, you are our favorite Canadians!

So now we are all stocked and ready to receive Liz and Eric on Friday. We are going to have a lot of fun being tourists in Chengdu and chilling with some wonderful friends. We will try to keep you all updated on what happens as we host for the time and hope to see others follow the Weddles to the magical land of Xipu.

-rachel

a weekend of food

On Friday, literally half the school was gone at a soccer tournament in Tianjin. So even though a lot of our colleagues are out of town, it doesn't mean we are staying at home this weekend!

Last night we went to try a new hotpot restaurant. Their specialty is strips of duck intestines, which I am proud to say we nearly finished a whole plate of. I'd still prefer the beef and shrimp dumplings, but there is certainly a time and place for being adventurous.

While I did not bring a camera, I "borrowed" some from our friend Jing, who put some pictures up this morning.


Tonight, we will go out to try a new Korean restaurant that just opened this week. The other "Korean" restaurant on our street is not Korean at all, so I am interested to see how authentic this place will be.

After that, a game of Settlers of Catan back at our home. Ahhhh memories of Saturday night Catan. I am looking forward to it.

I brought some candles home from school, so theoretically I am prepared to observe Earth hour. Only question is, will our guests go along with it?

-alan

new toys for teachers

They're here! Dozens of new Apple Macbooks (courtesy of a grant from the fine people at Intel) just arrived at school and were being unpacked today. When one will get in my hands, I don't know...but the fact that they are in the building is a good sign!

Although I must admit, I am a little scared. I've never had a Mac. I've been a slave to Windows and Microsoft Office all my life. So what will happen - will I be liberated, or tortured by making the switch?

-alan

Another sign of spring

It's been a week of good weather, with no sign of winter returning. WOOOOOHOOOO!!!

My confidence in this is buoyed by the sight of winter slippers that have been washed and left outside to dry. I'm going to trust the locals that it won't get cold again.

-alan

Thank you scooter man!

We've been to the scooter repair shop three times in the last week.

1) I needed a replacement side mirror, and Rachel's accelerator wasn't working properly.

2) Rachel needed a new battery.

3) I had a flat tire.

The most amazing one was the flat tire - 45 minutes of labor to find and patch the leak in the tube, and the bill came to a whopping 3 RMB, which works out to around 40 cents US. Not bad. Now that we are all patched up and the weather is nice, I've got big plans - scootering to Metro, to go bowling, to go to the IF on Sunday... our world is expanding again!

The fun of being out there waiting during the repairs came in watching their little boy - probably no more than 3 years old, he wielded a hammer with confidence. Granted he simply used to beat the already-cracked sidewalk, but with a little direction he'll be just like his Dad. When he wasn't "working" he was busy chasing around his girlfriend - the neighbor from next door who was clearly a regular playmate.

One of the nights we were there, we also heard what could only be described as a marching band from the housing complex across the street. There was definitely drums, cymbals, and brass, and it HAD to be live music. We asked, and the shopkeepers replied that the music was supplied for dancing. They didn't seem to think it was all that strange.

I find marching band music to be strange no matter where I'm at. Well, other than a football game.

-alan

Science Olympiad

It's over!! Hooray!

On Friday, we all had a wonderful, science-filled day at CDIS. Science Olympiad went off splendidly, as long as you overlook the minor snafu here or there. (leaving some room for improvement, that's all!) Each student completed in 4 different events. Here were some of the more exciting ones:

"Storm the Castle" required the students to build a catapult that used a 10lb counterweight as the only means of flinging a marble as far and as accurate as possible.


Perhaps the most controversial event was Bridge Building, which required the students to design and build a structure to span a 35cm gap, and hold a very heavy bucket of sand. The controversy came because EVERY bridge violated some rule - not wide enough, not long enough, not make of the correct materials, etc. I'm glad I didn't judge this event - there were some upset kids!

This picture is our multipurpose room, where the bridges were judged. Here the middle school kids are huddled around, watching the bridges being tested.

This video shows a high school group being tested. Not only did it break, it was also not wide enough!

Rachel judged egg drop, which is probably the most popular event of the day. The students are given a bag of materials, and have to assemble a protective container for their raw egg, which was dropped 2 stories. The winner kept their egg safe AND were closest to the target below.

The final fun event I have video from was Bottle Rockets. In this event, the students converted 2 liter plastic bottles into rockets that were shot into the air using air pressure. The one that stayed in the air longest was the winner.

I enjoyed the day, and I heard a lot of good comments from my homeroom. They definitely enjoyed the day more than a normal school day.

Then again, that's probably because they got more basketball time than they normally do!

-alan

The trees got a haircut?

We came home from school on Thursday and got the funny feeling that something was different. There was lots of disturbed soil on the ground, and some stray branches. Ahhh yes, the landscapers had come through.

Take a look at the trees outside our building back in September:


And now, how things are different:

There's a noticeable difference. I'm just always amazed with the speed that things happen here. This took a matter of a work day to trim ALL the trees of the area.

-alan