Tiny People

11 OCTOBER 2016

Today during opening, Midge and I got out the calendar and asked, "What day is it today? Who's being good that wants to come show us?"

That's when we realized our calendar was still on "September", and of course, parents were watching.

It dawned on me very recently that I'll miss all these kids when the semester ends. I'd read countless times about how that happens, and I guess it's happening once more. I already have put to memory their abilities and respective English levels, their likes and things to avoid with them, and most importantly their names. I really hope that some years down the road I will be able to see them again, even just for one conversation.

For the seniors, it's Hannah, Lucy, Sarah, Rako, Andre, Kingsley, Ivan, and Jay. For the juniors, it's Clara, Donut, Sera, Joanna, UT, Vivian, and Allen. Allen is a little stinker, and Donut is going down that path as well. (I thought she would've been my star student, now Clara is taking her place.)

I didn't realize how much I know about them until Midge asked, "Who's that one?" and I said, "Nelson. He's pretty smart." "And her?" "That's Hannah. She's precious. She does my hair and gives me back rubs during lessons." And then Kingsley with his little anklet runs up to me and buries his face in my belly.

He comes up to me during snack regularly to hop into my lap and give me big slobbery kisses on my cheek!

Hannah and me

Sera with Vivian and UT in the background. Vivian is looking down. (She is very good in English!)

Here in China there doesn't seem to be a distinction between "breakfast food" and other food. For breakfast we eat corn, greens, noodles, chicken, dumplings.. basically anything the USA would usually eat for "Chinese night."

Little Lucas, who always whispers Chinese nonsense in my ear

Kingsley and I

Peter knows how to take pictures!

Andre and Michelle

Michelle is a sweetheart who is eager to learn and very observant. She is so sweet and sometimes gets left out. 
That's the tough part about teaching, helping everyone feel included, especially the quiet ones. I was the quiet one growing up too, and I know exactly how it feels to be on the outside looking in. I hope none of my kids feel that way.

And then for a moment, everything is still.

Photo Dump: La Grande Muraille de Chine

中國的長城

We met some friends!

Waving to our friends...

It was a foggy, perfect day. Some rain at the beginning and lots at the end. The hike was nice even though it was a bit crowded; that's what I get for going on a National Holiday!

 At some points, I wonder how it is that people long ago walked this area every day. Then I think of how muscular their legs must have been.

This is one of those places that you have to see in all it's forms, at all seasons, in all hours of the day. I wish I could spend time on each section.. but that would be a long long time to walk.

Advices that get me through hard days

Get thicker skin and be wise.

--Brush those things that bother you off of your shoulder.

Success comes to those who find opportunity in hardship.

--It can if you let it. Learn something from everyone.

Choose to be a completer or a whiner.

--In everything you take on yourself, you can push through the tough parts or you can sit in the corner and complain. Hate complainers and don't become what you hate.

Seek to understand before being understood.

--I think this is important in all types of relationships. Unfortunatley it's easy only in theory

Nothing has stopped you up until now; why would this?

--What I tell myself on a daily basis.

While it won't always be clear, the path will always be clear.

--Sometimes if you're lucky, you'll know the general direction of the path. Other than that, it's all one step at a time.

Repeat small efforts day in and day out and you will be successful.

--Enough is said.

Confidence is silent, insecurities are loud.

--Oh yes they are, and they never shut up.

Don't raise your voice, improve your argument.

--I'm usually spending so much time improving the argument that I forget to speak up.

And lastly,
Comfort begins where progress ends. Get busy living or get busy dying!

A Day in Paradise: Chimelong Amusement park + tips!

The day we went to Chimelong Paradise was quite memorable.

Firstly, we went on a Saturday after the Mid-Autumn Festival Holiday and the park was empty. 

We had the rides all to ourselves! This was amazing and I couldn't get over this fact the entire day. We essentially waited 2-3 minutes in line every time with the longest wait being 7 minutes. For some rides, we were the only ones in line! We rode the bigger attractions like Giant Frisbee and Dive Coaster 3-4 times each throughout the day!

While the picture doesn't look like much, this ride was intense. I kept my eyes closed at the drop until we were falling and this really heightened the experience.!

For half-pipe, we went twice, making some Chinese friends along the way.













Thanks random guy for the picture!
We didn't spare the 4 and 5D theaters nor the stunt and magic shows. We met other expats and Chinese there too.

Some important points:

The coolest thing, I think, about being here and being an attraction ourselves is getting to meet random people who are constantly taking pictures of us, and then us adding them on WeChat to see what they took! This happened twice and I have some great memories thanks to them. Oh, and thanks to WeChat. (If you're planning on going to China, download it now!)

With that tip said, I've compiled a few others for your visit:

Getting There
It's quite easy.
Take the metro from wherever you are to Line 3 station Hanxi Changlong. From there, take exit A, follow the crowd over the highway and into the park (about a 10 minute walk) and there you are, at the South entrance!

Tickets
We got pretty lucky. Our airbnb host kindly helped us book our park tickets. Online they were only 190CNY per person instead of 250. Plus we went on a Saturday so we had an extra hour at the park. If you can, BOOK ONLINE! There are no student discounts peeps! (Book before 4pm one day in advance.)

Food and Water
The food and drink in the park is quite expensive according to Chinese standards. Normally you should be able to eat a full meal for under $2 here in China. That is, if you are choosing correctly and know where to look. In the park you can eat things like fried squid, roasted duck, and chicken, bones included. These meals average to be around 30CNY. The more expensive meals like the burgers and fries, those cost 40-50CNY. Water and drinks range from 8CNY-12 with ice cream for 15CNY and smoothie and other drinks being the worst around 20-30CNY, and they're tiny. (Once you've spent about 2 weeks here, you'll realize that 8yuan for a bottle of water is horrendous.) I bugged some servers at the burger place about just buying a bag of fries. I didn't want to eat a burger, but I mainly just didn't want to pay for it. She kept saying no so I left. I came back with the translation of "vegetarian" on Pleco (download this app right now if you're going to China) and she made me a deal. I bought one small bag of fries for 15CNY and my heart broke a little. (So expensive!) Luckily, I made some friends next to us and one of the guys totally just gave me a bag of fries. The Chinese are pretty nice!




Bags
At every ride there is a place to put your bags. I could've gotten away with bringing my 60D into the park, but I'm glad I used the weight to bring in my own food and water, You'll read mixed reviews online about park rules but to be completely honest, security saw my food and let me in with it anyway. Before heading for the park we bought fruit, water, and pastries from a bakery nearby our airbnb hostel. Best choice ever and I can't stress it enough. BRing your own FOod!

This picture was sent to me through WeChat from a random girl

Be prepared to walk
The park is quite large and the rides far spread out. We must have walked the entire park 3 times. Luckily the park closes at 7 on Saturdays because if not, we might not have been able to ride every ride (except the kiddie ones of course).

Make friends!
Trust me on this one. Your day will be even better! When you hear music, be like our group and dance in line! You'll cheer up the ride operators and they might turn up the music so you can hear it on the ride, and people will film you and snap pictures left and right.

A Weekend in Guangzhou, Guangdong, CHINA

Planning the 1st Holiday on ILP!

Our first vacay falls on some not-to-pleasant dates.. holidays in China are tough to get around in because there are just so many people and places. So since we're traveling during a festival, our inital plans of going to Yangshuo were quickly dismissed due to the unavailability of train tickets. We took our coordinator's advice and decided on going to Guangzhou, a city just north of Zhongshan.

After some resesarch, I found that the amusement park I'd written on my bucket list is there and te night markets are full of authentic food and treasures.
So we are going! I've booked lodging and am currently in the process of planning our route from our apartment here to there.

The tentative itinerary goes something like this:

Bullet train from Zhongshan north --> Guangzhou south

Metro line 2 to Chonggang --> line 8 to WanShengwei
At that point we will go out and explore, find some food, and maybe head over to Shangxiajui Square where the market starts.

Day 1 will be Chimelong Paradise. With a student discount, the ticket is 165RMB, plus 100RMB for the fast-pass (well worth the $15 to jump in front of 1000s of people), and 20RMB for the all-day train pass if we want. All in all, the entire park ticket will cost less than any American amusement park.
We'll take a free shuttle into the park after getting to Hanxi Changlong station.

Day 2 will be touring the temples, memorials, and other sights in Guangzhou, unless the group wants to do something else.

Day 3 will be .... shopping! The best thing to do in China! We'll hit the night market this day if we haven't already and maybe do some day shopping as well. Since we're only a quick bullet train away from home, souvenir shopping here is a great idea !

"The man who goes alone can start today, but he who travels with another must wait til the other is ready." - Henry David Thoreau -