It will be 5 months since we have been here in China in about a week, so I decided to do a post about our 5 month anniversary. We will be in Guangzhou on that day and may not be able to post until we get back from Hong Kong. Well it has been an amazing 5 months. I have learned how to teach English, met many new friends, and had many adventures.
Gary and I have spent the last week and Gary will spend some time this week in a recording studio being video taped. Gary and I have been asked to help the some friends at Qingdao University create some online classes. We were filmed doing some lectures on root words. This is for the free online courses. Qingdao University is trying to set up some classes that will be free and online. You would not need to be enrolled at Qingdao University to take them. They are being made to help students learn English better. It was fun and hard at the same time. I enjoyed working with the other teachers, but realize I would never want a life in front of the camera. I would rather be behind the scenes. Once they are up, we can let you know where to find them or maybe upload some videos here.
The biggest change that has happened has been with me. I came to China weighing about 65 kilograms or 143 pounds. There has been a transformation in me because of all the walking we do and because I eat differently. I wanted to show you the pictures.
The above is me at the end of July just before I left work.
This is me on September 1, 2014. We had been in China about a 6 days.
This is me in about on October 15, 2014. We had been in China about two months and I had lost 10 pounds.
This is me today, January 18. 2015. I have lost almost 20 pounds. I am now down to 56.5 kilograms or about 124.5 pounds. I have not been doing a lot except walking everywhere and not eating as much as I used to. Of course, having dental implants put in has helped a bit the last week or so. I also have not felt like eating as much and sometimes nothing sounds good. Other days, all I want to eat is chocolate. Most days I eat yogurt and fruit for breakfast, noodles or dumplings for lunch and any number of delicious things for dinner, mostly Chinese food. We do not eat a lot of American food anymore. I am looking forward to having Cafe Rio when I come home in July.
Well it has been a wonderful 5 months. I have learned so much about China, but I have learned more about myself. I have become more self confident and like myself a lot more. I have become more moody, but I am working on that. I have learned that I can go out in Qingdao on my own and be safe and ok. I have learned to rely on the Lord and on Gary more than ever.
China has changed me. I did not come over here thinking I would change the Chinese, but that I would change. One of the students Gary and I tutor found this article in China daily. It asks "How has China changed you." There are 10 things that may have changed you in China. Here they are:
1. Drinking warm and hot water.
2. Eating watermelon with a spoon and putting pineapple in salty water.
3. Using chopsticks more in both cooking and eating.
4. Being very open about salary.
5. Cooking too many dishes even when I'm cooking Western food.
6. Not getting angry with queue jumpers.
7. Cycling like the roads are an obstacle course race.
8. Showering before bed.
9. Taking off shoes before entering a house.
10. Eating a lot of intestine, liver, kidney, etc.
So China has changed me in all of these ways except for #2 and #8.
1. I drink only warm or hot water. They do not have much cold water because no one has ice or not much. It is hard to make ice yourself. You would say ice is easy to make. However, here in China, you have to boil the water first, let it cool and then put it in the ice trays. China's water from the tap is not potable, so it needs to be boiled first. This is too much work.
2. Again ate watermelon with a spoon in America often. They do not slice their watermelon here, but I do.
3. I usually eat with chopsticks unless we eat at home and even then sometimes we do. I am getting better and better at it. I do not cook with chopsticks though.
4. People are open about salary, age and weight. Ladies if you come to China be prepared to be asked about your weight and age. It's no big deal here.
5. I always cook too much food now. In China there is always too much food at a meal and people always bring food with them when they come to visit.
6. Usually there are not lines or queues. The few times there are, there may be people who jump the line or line butters. We don't worry about them. Most of the time we do not worry about lines either. You just get on or off the bus by pushing gently or not so gently.
7. I don't bike any, but walking and crossing the street is like going through an obstacle course.
8. I still don't shower before bedtime, but the student who told me about this article says he does because it helps him sleep better. I am going to try it and see if it works.
9. We did this at home, but here everyone does it. The streets are dirty. People spit and throw trash,so even the sidewalks are dirty. Taking off your shoes before you come in the door keeps the dirt out of your home.
10. Ok, so I don't know if I have eaten intestines, liver, or kidneys (I probably have but no one has told me that's what it is) but I have eaten bugs, octopus, chicken feet and all the other parts of a chicken, a lot of tofu (still don't like most of it) and many other things that are different than what I would eat in America.
Well that is my 5 month review. It has been a great 5 months and I look forward to the next 6 months before we come home. We should be home around the middle to the end of July. We will probably be home for only a month, so hopefully we can see everyone.
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