Leaving for home in 15 days

We are headed home for good in three weeks.  I have thought about that first day in Maine in our home with our dog and neighbors so very much.  Will it be peace that I feel?  Elation? Exhaustion? Day after Christmas let down?  What does this whole repatriation mean?  I have been reading "The Art of Coming Home" about this topic and honestly it scares the heck out of me, so much that I had to stop reading it.  Can it really be worse than the culture shock of our arrival two years ago?

And I have been thinking about the collective effect this trip has had on all of us.  What if Vic and I have less in common because he is so sad to leave and I am pretty tickled to leave?  Had we not ever gone, which I am not suggesting would be a good thing, perhaps we would be more on the same page.  What about our real home is so distasteful to him? Is it any surprise that I take it personally and resent his criticism of our Maine life? That is our life, right? 

What if Renata is right, that all of her friends have changed and she will have to start all over again in school and life here?  Was that fair to make her go through that painful process twice?  Will she remember this time as a great time or a terrible time, this almost home time?

And Luca who is incredibly happy to return to all that has been familiar and good in his life in Maine.  What if his old life has also shifted slightly since he has left and it isn't what he wished for or imagined? Will he feel  the same kind of betrayal that I suspect his sister does?

What if coming home to what was a wonderful life in Maine for so many years is no longer that?  What if coming home is a solo trip for each of us?  What then?  How will we repatch together our life?

What Southern China is having for dinner tonight

                                                                     chicken feet

                                                                     dog feet

                                                                       octopus

                                                                  very fresh duck

                                                               very fresh chickens

Pandas in Chengdu

Of course most everyone knows that pandas are near extinction and live in the mountains in Sichuan Province in western China. They estimate that only between 300 and 1000 still live in the wild. So we went to Chengdu after our Guizhou trip to visit the Panda Research base. We learned all about panda sex and artificial insemination there at the base. We even saw male and female panda parts preserved in jars at the museum which claimed that Teddy Roosevelt killed a panda in his visit to Sichuan province in late 1800's. Fact check needed!
Anyway, blah, blah, blah. China is working very hard to repopulate their country's mascot. Want to know what we came away with? Pandas do not take uncute photos. Everything they do is inherently cute and kind-- chomping on bamboo, rolling over another panda, growling, strolling, sleeping in trees-- serious cute factor. Check out my pics!!!

Guizhou Project

We just returned from one of the most exciting trips we have had here in China. No beaches or Buddhas, or bahama-mamas ( I don't actually drink these, I am more a margarita girl, but it started with b) Anyway, we learned last year about a partnership between Shekou International School and the Guizhou Province in western China. Since 2004, Doris King and other interested and invested people have been traveling to and meeting with Communist party members, mayors, farmers, school teachers to find out what people need in this poorest section of China. So far, under the guidance of Doris King, a Chinese teacher at the school and the PSA, SIS has raised enough money to fund a new elementary school, water collection units for the farmers and most recently 31 biofuel units for Guizhou farmers.






Biogas or biofuel units look like a concrete well with a small pipe that leads from the unit into the farmer's house. The biogas is created by collecting and recycling all of the human and animal waste on the farm. The power of methane. And what I found particularly amazing-- this biogas source is enough to constantly power simple lighting and gaa fuel for cooking. What is left goes to fertilize the farmer's crops.

So a group of 6 seventh grade boys from SIS including Luca learned about this project and decided to create a plan to visit during spring break and capture film and still photos to make a documentary to showcase the partnership between Guizhou and SIS. Vic and I were invited as chaperones. Renata went as well.

We were warned to expect desperate conditions, but it really wasn't that different than northern Maine. In fact Guizhou is also famous for their potatoes and potato products. We took a train from the capital of Guizhou, Guiyang to He Shitou, one of the villages, and it was the most beautiful train ride I have ever taken, terraced farming interspersed with field of rapeseed flowers in full blooms, small, rural villages with dirt roads. People of all ages in the fields planting or walking their water buffaloes or resting on their haunches for a cigarette break. Really incredible.

What I will miss in China

We are now less than four months from the end of post here and will be returning to our home on June 12th. With the time left so short, I am getting a bit melancholy about the great parts of living here.
Here are a few things that I will certainly miss:
1 our e-bikes and not having a car
2. the easiness of life-- no bankbook, no cleaning, no yard work, no shoveling snow, no voting, no Church
3. lots of freedom for Renata and Luca
4. Watching them develop confidence b/c of all of their freedom
5. cute Chinese babies
6. my lovely students
7. struggling and sometimes succeeding with the language
8 learning about the culture from Cindy and Heather
9. Chinese food, duh
9 amazing travel
10 riding on the back of Vic's bike, even on silly errands
11 seeing unbelievable scenes of daily life everyday (yesterday mom and three kids on one e-bike, kid in front is facing her)
12 fabulous colleagues
13 walking to work
14 shopping everyday instead of once a week
15 cute little shops

That is all that I can think of for now. I am sure that I have missed more. Next post will be what I won't miss...
Renee

Flower Market, Shenzhen for Chinese New Year, 2012

Luca enjoying carmelized strawberries on a stick. Other treats featured at the Flower Market were baked potatoes, roasted nuts, corn on the cob, sugar cane juice and coconut juice. So healthy!
Red lanterns and messages of good fortune for a good year are sold in many kiosks at the Flower Market here in Shenzhen. Note the sky scrapers in the background and the smog. This guy who is making door messages with calligraphy was great to watch. He did laugh at my Chinese though when I asked how much twice. Talented, but kinda mean.

Year of the Dragon decorations abound. The year of the Dragon is an auspicious year to have a son. When we asked our Chinese friends, the Lius who have a son and a daughter, which sign of the zodiac was auspicious to have a daughter, Alex laughed and said, "None."

Entrance to the Flower Market. One part of this holiday that I love is having new, blooming plants and flowers in your home. We bought two paperwhites, shui shian or "water fairies"in Chinese. They are just now opening and so fragrant. They remind me of forcing bulbs at Christmas time with R and L.

China Day, 2012 Year of the Dragon

Luca getting a super sized cotton candy at China Day at SIS. In the background is the track and Chinese building on the lower school campus.

Renata and Michael, a grade 1 student from Canada, getting ready to play the musical chairs Zodiac game. He won a chicken card.

Ms. Cindy and I on the track. Cindy is my amazing TA. I will miss her kindness, wisdom, and humor so very much when we go home. Hands down, I have learned the most about China from after school conversations with her.

Even though this is the dog eating time of year, more and more wealthy Chinese in southern China have designer dogs as pets. As seen in this great shot of a chow-chow, many dogs are dressed up. Just another way to show how much money you have. Really.

Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Renata and I admiring this corner piece of Angkor Wat.Ruins of Naga, the many headed sea serpent, who helps create the world out of an ocean of cosmic milk. Yeah, whatever.

Fish Foot Massage in Cambodia

Here is one for cheap thrills. For $2/person, we were able to get our feet massaged (nibbled on) by hundreds of fish. Yum!

Incredibly ticklish. Victor giggled so loudly when he stuck his feet in that he embarrassed the kids.

Definitely worth the price of admission.

Angkor Wat

This is a side photo of the BIG Angkor Wat. It is the one on the Cambodian flag, the one that you picture when folks talk about Angkor Wat. Look at that sky! We never get skies like that in southern China.

Here is one of many carvings in the sandstone in a smaller Wat in Siem Reap. After going to the museum, I learned that she is an ASPARA, a dancing Hindu nymph. Isn't she fabulous? She does that thing with her fingers and wrists that all the Cambodian girls in Portland can do. So cool.

Cambodia, first impressions

We are in Siem Reap, home of Angkor Wat, one of the seven man made wonders of the world. I honestly never thought that I would go to Cambodia, so this is such an amazing feeling to be here.

When we arrived at our airport which had Asian flares on the roof, we were greeted with the welcome smell of grass and various Christmas trees. Immigration was a breeze and then our driver from our hotel found us. He guided us to a motorcycle driven tuk-tuk. Luc's eyes lit up when he realized that that was going to be our airport transport.

Tanei Guesthouse is tucked into a busy street in Siem Reap. We walked into an entrance with a giant buddha and myriad plants and bushes. Luc picked up a fruit, asked what it was, and the driver said, "Mango".

We generously thanked the men who carried our bags up three flights of stairs to our room. The ATM gave Vic a $100US bill which is not so great for tipping. We thanked them a lot, tho'.

Then we turned on the AC, noticed the many TV channels not blocked here as opposed to China and fell asleep.

A 5:00 tinny, repeated tune carried up to our room from the street. It even woke the rooster next door who also started crowing. I thought it would be like Malaysia with a brief and loud call to prayer and then stop. So did the rooster, I think. But now it is 7:32 and the tinny tunes remain, unending. As my colleague Tami says, Really?

The Great Wall of Beijing

So, the great wall really is as amazing as everyone has said. I totally get that 7 wonders of the world thing...
We were lucky because today was a Monday and there were few crowds at Mutianyu part of the wall. To add to the excitement, we had a choice of a gondola up or a ski tow up. We took the ski tow up, enjoyed a sunny lunch and much walking on the wall. (Can you see that atypical blue sky over Beijing??) Magic! Finally, we took toboggans down, making a great day even better. I kept saying to myself, "I can't believe I am here, I can't believe I am here....." as Vic asked me,"Did you ever think you would be here?"

Silly scenes in Beijing

The kids inside of our hutong. What's with Luca?After lunch at Bei Luo restaurant. We got great food and a Mandarin lesson.
Cold!!! Renata models her new panda hat!!
Chloe and our clan being nutty!!

Hutong Hotel in Beijing

Here is Vic entering our hotel in the hutong in Beijing.
The hutongs which are connected traditional buildings were first built in the Tang Dynasty in the 700's. They were added onto in all of the subsequent dynasties and dramatically expanded during the last Qing Dynasty two hundred years ago. The reason I am so taken with these neighborhoods is because they were where the regular folks lived around the Forbidden City. So families who wanted their boys to have a better life first made them eunuchs (ouch!!) and then sent them up to the royal empire of the Forbidden City.

Here am I getting ready for the day in our hotel. The bathroom is tiny, but functional-- referred to by expats here at "shit, shower, and shave". The other great part of the hutongs is how they are adapted to and lived in now. Here are Marie Laure, Luca and I enjoying a more commercialized section of the neighborhood.
The crowds, as all over China, are massive. Victor shot this photo because he liked the dancing Pooh balloon over the sea of Beijingers.
Here are construction workers fixing the roof...

Hiking Dragon Back on China National Day, 10/2011

After what began as a tough day for some of our family, this turned into an amazing day on Dragon's Back on Hong Kong island. Can you believe that this is the most densely populated city in the world? Look at these views. This city continues to surprise and impress me.
A view of Big Wave Bay....
A slim and fit Mr. Serio...
I like this shot because with a little imagination you can kind of see the bumps in the dragon's back. Right? And oh yeah, the kids are touching AND not hurting each other.

Shekou International School X-C meet in Guangzhou

On September 24th, the SIS cross country meet competed in an invitational 5k in Guanzhou. Although we have a small team, we managed to snag a 3rd place for the boys under 16 division. Well done, Noah!

Victor and I are co-coaching along with fellow SISers, Brandon Little and Hillary Lauder. The coach to runner ratio is a two-to-one; this must be all the talk about small class size in the private schools...

Featured to the left is Cindy finishing her run with Renata next to her. Renata due to her summer illness decided not to compete in this meet. She did happily run the last 200 meters with Cindy, the last female finisher. Great shot, I think.

Below is our whole team. I have grown very fond of these high schoolers and one middle schooler and really enjoy spending time with older students two afternoons a week. Coaching staff rocks as well.

Home?

So this is our new view from our office here in Mount Orchid. As you can tell, it is a smoggy day and also looks like it may rain. I am so contented these days so much that the terrible air doesn't even touch me.

Home, I am learning, is a sense of place for sure, but truly my pack. So for me, that is V, R, and L. It helps when they have friends over and are noisily enjoying the Wii. It helps when cookies are baking in the oven. It helps when NYPD delivers a large cheese pizza promptly at our door. It helps when Discovery has Shark Week on, but even without all of these creature comforts here in China, home is just us four + Patch, but I am not even stressing about his absence. We lived together this summer and he adjusted surprisingly well to all of the home hopping. I have every confidence that he will love us equally when we return to Portland.

I know we only have months left to this very cool international post and I am trying to drink it all in this year. Watching Vic weave in and out of traffic on his e-bike, watching Luca stop goals on the soccer pitch under my gym window, listening to tinny Chinese music in Sihai Park, noticing all of the special moon cakes on display in Vanguard and Park n Shop.

So certainly not perfect, but home, just like our real home.

Amy our ayi

Here is Amy, our amazing ayi. Renata and I just flew back last night. After my shower, I was delighted to see our ayi, Amy, in the office ironing Luca's t-shirts. I know, I know, but she irons everything.
I took her picture and told her that she was the person about whom most folks back home wanted to learn. She laughed and smiled for the camera. And when I showed her the photo, she said, "That's good."
All ayis make ex-pat life easier, but our ayi is especially excellent at helping our life run smoothly. When she helped me unpack my suitcase, she found a skirt with a broken zipper and said that she will bring to a tailor to replace it. She also had our beautiful Chinese tapestry framed for just 180 yuan--about $25 because she compared shopped on our behalf.
Please post questions about Amy or ayis and I will try to fill in any blanks. Renee

What did I learn this year in China?

We've been out of school for 4 days and it seems like a good time to reflect on the year here in China. So here is a list in no particular order of what I learned this year.

1. Kids are really adaptive given time and opportunity

2. Geography is more interesting if you know people from there.

3. Bad air really sucks

4. I am functional in Mandarin, but the worst in my family

5 It only bugs me that Victor is better

6. Ovarian cysts, when bursting, hurt a lot

7. Water is good for you

8.Chinese and Korean children work really hard; a joy to teach

9. Grade 1 rocks

10. Living in an apartment is so much easier than a house

11. Really still miss Patch

12. Skype is a godsend for those of us away from our families

13. My father in law knows so much about China

14 Fresh local fruits are a true treat

15 Starbucks still rules the planet, even here

16 Online news is useful, but not like a real paper

17. Christmas and Easter in China are just terrible

18 Having an ayi is such a luxury

19 Chinese people, one on one, are so interesting and lovely

20. Chinese people are terrible drivers. the worst

21. Driving an electric bike is a thrill every time

22. Sweating all the time really stinks

23 Chinese babies=so CUTE

24 love Facebook now more than ever

25 Reading Workshop really works

26 Raising chicken and duck eggs is gratifying and terrifying at the same time

27 Dog meat does not taste like chicken

28 Turtles should never be part of a soup

29 Miss my mom

30 Moon Festival and Chinese New Year are very cool holidays

31 It is okay to be stared at-- a lot

32 Don't miss any of the processed food

33 But peanut butter is a daily thing for me

34 Dumplings and bao are so good

35 travel in Asia is cheap and quick

36 It is lovely to see my husband so relaxed and engaged

37 Pirated DVDs should cost only 1.00 everywhere

38 Living without a car is really easy

39 Ex-pats take care of each other

40 New Zealanders use some very funny expressions

41 Constant construction is noisy, messy and a pain to negotiate on a e-bike

42 the Corrieas are the nicest family

43 Max and Zoe were the lovely guests

44 It is not so hard to cook a western feast in China

45 Walmart products are really different in China, but still a terrible place

46 Having a mountain behind our apartment is a godsend in a city this congested

47 Really hope we have more guests to share these cool experiences with next year

48 It is easier to drink too much when you don't have a car

49 Thailand really is all that

50 Playing eucher with Vic, Renata, and Luca in various places is still my favorite family activity

Poetry Jam, April, 2011