On Thursday Evan took Andy and I out to lunch. It was very good! They put a broth/soup thingy on a burner in the middle of the table and then Evan put in meat, tofu, green things, fungus, quail eggs and things that looked like little pieces of bread. It all cooked in the soup and then we dipped it in a funny sauce Evan made for us. It was really good and lots of fun!
Friday morning I was sitting in my office sending emails when two students came in and asked to talk to me. Their names are Spring and Apple and we have become very good friends since. They text me and want to do things with me. That's the nice part about teaching older students vs. little ones. After they left Andy and I went to catch the bus to Zhenjiang. I rode my bicycle and made it there long before Andy did. So I bought the ticket all by myself and figured out which bus to get on all by myself. It was actually very easy. All you have to say is Zhenjiang and hope that they nod instead of replying in Chinese. The ticket lady took my ticket and ripped it so I assumed I was in the right place. The bus ride was about an hour long (Which by China standards is very close). My friend Aaron was the one that was coming to pick me up because his classes ended the earliest. I texted him and told him I was standing by the WalMart. Andy left to catch a bus that was by his friend's and I wandered around the square by WalMart to wait. Katie texted me and said I was farther away than they thought and Alicyn was going to come and get me instead. A few minutes later Alicyn called and asked where I was in WalMart. That was when I became worried about getting picked up. I had been walking around long enough to realize this WalMart was under construction and there was no way I could be inside. There was slight panic and then Alicyn told me to meet her at KFC instead which was right by WalMart. It was as we were both standing outside different KFCs that we realized something had gone terribly wrong. It turns out there are two WalMarts in Zhenjiang. One that I was at which was under construction and one were Alicyn was at which was not under construction. Once we got everything worked out Katie was able to come and get me and we took a bus to her house. Total I spent 2 hours waiting at the station, next time we will know how everything works and will be able to cut down on the time. :)
The conversations that we have are funny now. Our conversations revolved around hot water, how many times we've showered since coming to our cities, the horrible experience we had while showering, heaters, how many layers we wear during the day and night, where we've purchased the best layers and the price of them, and the fun we've had trying to communicate with people who don't share the same language. It was so comforting to talk to people who have the same frustrations and share the same sort of experiences with you. Side note: The most anyone had showered since coming to their city was twice. I know that if I were in America and didn't have to heat up my water for hours before even considering showering and that the bathroom had a heater in it so it wasn't an ice box I would think that it's disgusting how little we shower. But trust me, your perspective on personal hygiene change severely when showering isn't as easy as just turning a faucet.
That night I spent the night at Alicyn's house. Getting there was an adventure all its own. We caught a bus from Katie's house and accidentally got off on the wrong stop. We decided just to walk because we weren't that far. That wouldn't have been so bad except Alicyn took a wrong turn and we had to push our way through some bushes. Even that wouldn't have been so bad except it was super dark and I tripped over a root. And I went all the way down. Even THAT wasn't as bad as what happened next. I attempted to roll onto my side to get up and realized I couldn't move. My backpack was so heavy that I couldn't get up. I was able to roll onto my side but after that I just had to lay there completely helpless, just like a turtle (Actually we compare that to Chinese kids here. Their parents' bundle them up so good that their arms stick straight out and when they fall they can't get up either). Alicyn didn't even notice and kept walking so I had to yell to get her attention. I was worried that she wouldn't be able to help because she is very little. After lots of laughing and squirming I was able to get up and the rest of the walk home was uneventful.
On Saturday Alicyn's liaison, Ling, picked us up and took us to see a grandma of one of the student's in Alicyn's class. I guess on Thursday the grandma came over to Alicyn and felt how many layers she was wearing (People in China do that all the time. They feel your sleeve and then tell you to put on more layers). The grandma was not satisfied and said that she was going to give Alicyn some clothes on Saturday. So that's where we thought we were going. To get clothes for Alicyn. Neither of us brought our cameras because that's not really something to take pictures of. I still don't know how everything changed. We met the grandma at Jinshan National Park. She works there and was able to get us in for free. Can I tell you how mad I was that I didn't bring my camera? Basically it was a giant temple and sacred grounds. It was BEAUTIFUL! After we wandered around for an hour or so the grandma bought us noodles for lunch. Ling then took us to the Zhenjiang Museum and to a street that is 300 years old. It was amazing! Again, the no camera thing? Such a bummer.
We met up with the rest of the group at WalMart. It was not like any WalMart in America. The meat section? Live fish and live frogs and eel looking things...Really weird. While we were looking at the fish a Chinese man came up to my friend and I and told us we were fat. Just out of no where. The Chinese are very honest about those things. He was quite right, with all the layers I wear I do look fat. You just have to take things with a grain of salt in China.
That night we met up with Brad, he taught in China before in Zhenjiang so he was introducing us to his friends there. We went to a Muslim Chinese restaurant and it was delicious. Then we went to KTV (a Chinese version of karaoke). That was SO much fun. I was a little worried because that's not always my thing, especially with random other Chinese people. But it was a lot of fun!
On Sunday we went to Nanjing for church. We took a G train which is the fastest. It was 20 minutes to Nanjing and then a 5 minute subway ride. Church was held in a hotel, on the very bottom floor. It was very small but it was nice to be somewhere that was familiar to me. All of the China Horizons people in Nanjing came running up to me saying they had been so worried about me because I was supposed to be in Zhenjiang. We all got a good laugh about my experience, glad it was good for something! After church we went to visit the apartments that the others were living in. They were super nice, these Nanjing people are spoiled. They even have a dryer!
Getting back to Zhenjiang was an adventure. We got on a bus but we were worried that we wouldn't be able to figure out which stop it was. Alicyn speaks the most Chinese so she asked someone on the bus. She was told that this bus didn't go where we wanted to go. Aaron called Brad who started laughing and told us we were on the right bus just going in the wrong direction. We got off on the next stop and ran across the street to the bus station. We just barely missed the bus and had to wait 15 minutes for the next one. The three of us that were going back to Yangzhong were a little worried because we already bought bus tickets back at 6. We finally made it to the train station and bought tickets for the next train...at 6:10. Obviously we didn't make the bus. Luckily we ran into a Chinese friend that told us he would help us exchange the tickets. That was such a relief! We only had to pay half price instead of the 17 yuan it would have been to get new tickets. We finally made it back to Yangzhong safe and sound.
I thought all the excitement was over after that but it just kept going! I got a text from my friend Spring saying she wanted to come over a see my dormitory. She oohed and aahed over it and I shared some chocolate with her. Then she took me to her dormitory. It was a small room that had bunk beds lining the walls. Spring and her friend were the only ones living there but there were six bunk beds total. They had a stone floor and the heater was broken. It was a very humbling experience. Spring shared her favorite treat with me and I think it is my new favorite treat as well. It was a cookie of sorts. Quarter after eleven I finally decided I needed to go home. Spring insisted on walking me home because I forgot my umbrella. I tried to tell her that I had a hood so I didn't need an umbrella but she insisted that an umbrella is better. They are all so nice here! It's really ironic that they are not a Christian nation because they are the most Christ like people I know. I love being here with them and hope that some of it will rub off on me! :)
No comments:
Post a Comment