In The Throes of Autumn

I have been really lazy with my writing lately. No updates containing any earth shattering or even mildly interesting news. I understand. Things have slowed down here recently. Actually, I am not sure if it is that things have slowed or I have settled. I think it is equal parts both. I was sick recently, missed a couple of classes, but now I am back in full. That slowed things a bit. I also have gained a better handle on the geography of Tongzhou and Beijing so I think that has made it feel a little more like 'home' for me now.

It is getting colder here seemingly every day. There are things about the cold I enjoy now that I will hate after it has settled here for months. I like wearing my jacket and I like being warm in my bed. I hate how cold my feet get without shoes on and breathing in the cold air while outside. The chill in the air reminds me that this is the season for playoff baseball. I have been able to keep up with the Cardinals long strange trip to and through the playoffs with the help of video provided by MLB.com (thanks for the tip Larry). Watching the games does make me a little homesick/jealous. Homesick because I would love to be getting together with my friends at Mike Duffy's Sports Bar and watch the games. I miss the feeling of the collective exhale when our pitchers get out of tight situations and the high-fives that are exchanged when we score runs. I am jealous of Kevin Seltzer and all the other citizens of St. Louis for being able to go to the World Series. I am a cheering section of one when I watch the games live on my computer while still lying in bed at 7:00 a.m. I don't mind it so much but it does make me feel like none of it is actually taking place. It seems like it is all playing out before me and I am the only witness. Strange.

This past weekend I met with Gongbin Wang. Wang is the brother of a university professor my father works with in South Texas. He is a professor at Beijing Normal University. Wang's sister, Jinhao, arrived in McAllen about 15 years ago. I vividly recall going to a dinner at her apartment with my parents. I was around 10 at the time and remember being astounded by the fact that this woman came to a country halfway around the world to teach in a culture she was unfamiliar with. I was shocked and perplexed by the thought of doing something like that. Now...well, the irony is obvious. Here I am in Beijing visiting with her brother. The symmetry of this is very pleasing to me. We had a great time together. Gongbin, his wife, and I went to a small park and museum tucked in the corner of the Forbidden City. Afterwards, we went to eat at a restaurant on the other side of the Forbidden City. The restaurant was beautifully decorated and had phenomenal food. There was a wedding dinner taking place while we were there. After we ate we stepped outside and paused while observing the wedding party. There were people handing out cigarettes on a platter. One would hand out the cigarette, the other would light it. I asked Wang which couple at the table got married and he said it was the couple handing out the cigarettes. After we left the restaurant we walked the grounds of a near by park. It was a very peaceful place. After that we parted ways. They are wonderfully kind and funny people and I hope to get together again with them sometime.

Here are some things that I forgot to include in some of my previous posts:

When Bryne and I went to the Heavenly Temple we also went to the National Gallery which houses some of the finest artifacts related to early Chinese culture in the world (and rightly so). The Jade Suit, a burial suit for some ruler, was on display. This is one of the most famous pieces in the collection. It is like a suit of armor made out of thousands of jade pieces sewn together with golden thread. Really cool.

My camera is on the fritz. This is mainly due to the fact that batteries in China totally suck. They rarely work and when they do they only have enough juice to last for five pictures. Once I get this rectified I will get more pictures up here.

My Chinese TV debut occurred last week. I am referring to the video I made with Kevin, another English teacher from New York, for a TV show that is created by the kids to help them with their understanding of idioms and slang. I should be getting a copy of it soon. It is definitely YouTube material.

I get five days off coming up sometime in early November. That should be fun. I will DEFINITLY get out of Beijing this time around. I'll go anywhere; I just need to see more of China.

Alright time for bed. Take care. Be well. Namaste. Shalom, and all that jazz

P.S.- The picture at the top is from the first weekend I was here. I just couldn't put up two consecutive posts without a picture.

Feed Me Part 2

Let me first apologize for the lack of pictures associated with this post. I had an outing to Fragrant Hills Park that I will write about soon. The park was amazing and I have plenty of pictures to share.

But first...

The other day one of the Chinese English teachers invited a couple of us out to dinner. Little did I know she was springing for Beijing Roast Duck. It is a rather beautiful thing. They take a duck and puff it up with air, coat in something sugary like molasses, and roast the hell out of it. It is served with what amount to mini tortillas (except they are paper thin). They are more like spring roll skins. The way you eat this phenomenal thing is by placing some meat in the tortillaesque thing along with green onion strips and a piece of cucumber. The topper to all of this is a plum sauce that almost made me weep it was so delicious.

The Chinese teacher (Cindy) brought along her famous 'hus' (that is her nickname for husband). I call him famous because he kind of is. He directs stage plays and movies all over China. While at this wonderful dinner we discussed possible roles for a white guy. He told me that he will contact me the next time something comes up. Hopefully that will be soon because I can't wait to hit it big on the stage and screen here.

This dining experience was almost textbook. It was virtually identical to the ones outlined in all the books I read before arriving. Cindy's 'hus' was the perfect Chinese host. The first classic thing he did was order way too much food. There were twice as many dishes on the table as there were people. He was also ever vigilant regarding our drinks. Any time any of us got close to finishing our beers or tea he would swoop right in as soon as your glass hit the table and full you right up. He was also very careful to point the spout of the pot away from anyone at the table. This is also customary.

One dish that was served, and served in massive portions of 25 or 50, was duck head. One of the older teachers we were with refused to try it and the look on out hosts' faces were that of disappointment bordering on sadness. Bryne and I immediately decided it was up to us to restore the honor of our hosts. We cracked them right open and were instructed to eat the brain first. So, I did and then moved on to the eyes. There is really not much else to eat on the duck head but the Chinese in the restaurant sure found a way. By the time they were done with the heads there was little left but the bill and eye sockets. This got me thinking about how wasteful they would think out butchers are back at home. People all over the world eat more parts of more animals than we do. Tripe abounds here but it really is the one thing I avoid at all costs. Tripe and organ meat stew are off the menu for me. I have been served organ meat stew in restaurants when I have tried to employ the blind luck method of ordering. All the menus at the restaurants I frequent feature Chinese characters only. 90% of the time I get served something amazing by just pointing to a random dish on a random page. The other 10% consists of organ meat and other things I would describe as detritus. I have recently learned the words for beef, pork, and chicken and these words are proving almost as invaluable as hello and thank you.

Yesterday afternoon Bryne and I were patrolling our beat on the mean streets of Tongzhou when we were approached by a lady handing out flyers for a new night club's grand opening party which was occurring that night. It had a picture of Coolio on the front so we had to go. That night we arrived and the place was packed. No sign of Coolio. They had professional male and female dancers stationed around the dance floor. It was a pretty cool place. There were two Chinese gentlemen sitting at a table near the dance floor and they called us over and handed us beers. They were nice guys but one of them was wasted. His friend was keeping him in control all night. They bought us a few beers as we sat at their table. When the dancers cleared out and people started to get on the dance floor these guys were all over it. They were going nuts and got on a stage with a stripper pole and started dancing like the world was ending. They motioned for me to join them but I was a little reluctant. They then jumped off the stage and physically dragged me up there. (Some of you out there might be thinking, 'Yeah right. I know you and you went willingly.' It was late and I wanted to go get some hotpot before hitting the hay.) They had me in a sandwich on stage while they created new, never before seen dance moves involving a pole. These guys were out of control but we had a fun time with them and they were upset when we told them we had to leave. Many hugs and handshakes were exchanged before we got out of there. A fun time was had by all.

Mid-Autumn Festival and Back to Class

This past Friday marked the Mid-Autumn Festival. I am under the impression that the festival is something like a harvest festival centered on the full moon that occurs at this point in the year. The traditional food for this celebration is the mooncake, not to be confused with the equally delicious moonpie. Mooncakes are dense little cakes filled with an assortment of fruit and nut jellies. Each one is filled with a different filling but generally they taste something like fruit cake. On Friday night I sat out in the street and ate a mooncake while watching the fireworks through the ever present smog. There were many people on the street enjoying the holiday with their family members. It was kind of nice.

The day before my friend Bryne and I went to Temple of Heaven Park. This is a large green space in the middle of the city just south of Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. The park includes two of the most photographed structures in China, The Temple of Heaven and the Altar of Heaven. There were thousands of people at the park but not nearly as many as there were at Tiananmen Square. The complex was built in 1420 as a place for the sitting Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties to make sacrifices in order to ensure a good harvest. The north outer wall of the park is curved and the south wall squared. This design reflects the belief that heaven is circular and earth is square. It is a very impressive complex that attempts to balance heaven and earth, man and woman, north and south, and east and west. One thing that I was impressed with was the use of the Phoenix and the Dragon. The Phoenix represents the feminine and the Dragon represents the masculine in traditional Chinese culture. All over the park you see this balance. For every Phoenix you see there is a Dragon to match. Never on any one structure is there more of one than the other. The park is very peaceful and almost seems out of place in the middle of a city that is so chaotic.

I spent a few days in Beijing staying at a hostel in the Hutongs. Hutongs are old neighborhoods dating back from the Ming Dynasty. They are almost like suburbs within the city. Hutongs are small to mid sized homes, shops, restaurants, and ramshackle repair shops that are all connected by a system of alleyways. The small alleyways empty out in to courtyards that are commonly adorned with beautiful flowers and topiary. This is what people call 'Real China'. This is an old school lifestyle that exists to this day in the middle of Beijing. The Hutongs will probably not exists 10 years from now as they are being systematically torn down and replaced with 'economically viable' things like massive apartment towers and office buildings. Hutongs have a distinctive architectural style that is not displayed in any other structures built during the Ming Dynasty. It is sad that such a cultural treasure is being destroyed in favor of commerce. It was a really cool experience walking around/getting lost in the Hutongs.

Now it is back to work. I had to teach today (Sunday) because we were given an extra day off on the Friday before the break. When you think about it, a day off it was not. To boot Bryne is ill and I must take up the slack of his course load this week which means double the work at the same rate of pay. Awesome. I can't complain though I'd rather be working than suffering from impacted wisdom teeth. Impacted wisdom teeth at the age of 26!?! I guess should thank my mom for making me get those taken out over my spring break in high school...but I won't. I'm still bitter. Enjoy the pictures.

Golden Week

October 1st was National Day here in China. The day marks the anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Although it is meant as a celebration of the communist takeover of the country it really celebrates the birth of 'Modern China'. The holiday really celebrates the end of imperial dynastic rule in China. They celebrate Sun Yat Sen along with Mao (Mao gets most of the love though). Most people get 1 week off of work to travel and celebrate the holiday. They call this Golden Week.

I celebrated National Day as 1.5 million Chinese are expected to do; I went to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. I have been to the square before but this was a different experience all together. It was absolutely packed with people. There were giant flower arrangements, and pictures of Sun Yat Sen and Mao erected in the square. When I arrived it was already noon so I decided to get some chow. Most places around the square are extremely expensive as they prey on tourists who know no better than to pay such prices. I decided to head to the south end of the square where the McDonalds is located. I haven’t had McDonalds since I've been here and it sounded pretty damn good at the time, but when I got to the front door I smelled an exquisite scent coming from around the corner. There was a street vendor selling stir fried noodles. I just couldn't bring myself to go into Mickey-D's. The locals were shocked when I took my hand off the door handle. I could sense their approval.

After a hardy lunch I made my way back across the square and took some pictures. As I was clicking away I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was a girl asking to take a picture with me. I was confused but obliged. She thanked me and scampered away. Upon seeing this many other Chinese got the same idea. I took four more pictures with people. I think they confused me with a movie star or something, it was crazy.

After that experience I headed to the front gate of the Forbidden City. This is where Mao made his famous speech proclaiming the foundation of the new republic. It is also where his massive portrait hangs. Once you pass through the gate you are still not in the actual city itself. Through the gate is a massive courtyard stacked with schlock shops selling everything from cameras and film to posters of Mao. After I waded through the crowd I got my ticket and audio guide and headed inside. The City is magnificent. Huge and sprawling, I almost forgot I was in the middle of one of the largest cities in the world. The ticket I bought also allowed me access to the museum in the city. The museum houses various traveling exhibits. The exhibition I saw was a collection of pieces from 18th, 19th and 20th century Russia. There were various goods and wares that were used by Russian Tsars over the centuries. It was a real unexpected treat to see all that gold and silver but I didn't go to the Forbidden City to see Russian artifacts so after perusing the exhibit I was on my way.

Most of the buildings in the complex are well maintained. There were parts where the original paint and wood could be seen next to the restored pieces. Renovation of several structures was taking place ahead of the tourist rush expected during the Olympics. This was not new to me. I experienced the same disappointment when I went to Greece the summer before the Olympic Games took place there. The difference between the two host cities is that fewer places are closed for renovation here than were closed in Greece. I think that this is because there is a real effort to constantly maintain cultural relics and historical places here in China. I can assume that this is a backlash against policies and actions of the 1960's and 70's.

All around the palace grounds there are mini museums detailing life and culture of the imperial courts that called the Forbidden City home. There was even an exhibit on the early bronzes created for Chinese rulers. Some of the pieces dated as far back as 1600 B.C. Bronze work was perfected and ubiquitous in China around this time. Bronze items were a part of daily life for not only the rulers but for many upper echelon commoners as well. There were combs, boxes, and various vessels of bronze. It was really cool.

I ended up walking around the Forbidden City for almost 4 hours and it was still not enough time to see everything. The City closes at five o'clock sharp and they are serious about it. Guards trolled through the alleys and alcoves and hurried everyone out of there right at five. Outside of the north gate I was bombarded with people trying to sell a little bit of everything. This is the case in most tourist traps throughout China. I refused each and every one of them until I came to a man who was showing me pictures that were familiar yet odd. He had pictures of the Great Wall, but they were unlike any I had ever seen before. They were of sections of the wall that are not reconstructed or renovated. He called it "The Natural Wall". He was offering tours to remote and isolated portions of the wall. He said, and I have read, that the part of the wall that is around Beijing is 630 km long but only 30 km are open for massive tour groups. He takes small groups on what amounts to a hike around the "Natural Wall". I took his business card and look forward to writing about that experience at a later date.

After talking to the tour guide for a while I made my way to Wangfujing. This is an area that has many western stores and lots of glitz to entertain the eye. Near this street is the Night Market. The night market has many stalls lined up down the street all selling many different meats and veggies and stuff on a stick. It is a must for any visitor. I had been before but had forgotten my camera so this time I was there for pictures. You can see a picture above. After taking in the sights and sounds of the market I went to the English language book store for a map and a dictionary. There I met a man who approached me with some questions. He saw that I was an English speaker and had a few questions regarding an English language brochure he was writing for his company. After patiently answering his questions for 10 min. or so he stopped and looked at me and smiled. He told me that he believes in Karma and that by providing him with help I will be rewarded. He told me that I am a very kind man who deserves blessings and he will pray for those blessings. I was totally embarrassed and touched by his sentiments. I just told him to say, "Our company has engaged in the textile business for 40 years." instead of, "The company has had textiles since 40 years." That hardly makes me a hero, but it is strange the amount of English text here that is horribly misspelled and completely incorrect. Maybe there is a job for me somewhere in that observation.

Speaking of observations:

It seems that the Chinese people look at their empires and dynasties as silliness. They see that part of their history as somewhat shameful or irrelevant to today's happenings.

It is cool to see a world map with China in the center. It displays a different world view both literally and figuratively.

Mooncakes are the traditional food associated with the Mid-Autumn Festival. They are little cakes filled with an assortment of fruit jellies or nuts. Some are very good. Some are very bad.

Damon Jones is huge here. For those of you that don't follow the NBA he is a role player who played for the Heat two years ago and now plays for Cleveland. He has a shoe deal with a Chinese company and has 5 story posters on buildings throughout Beijing. The other day I saw a massive poster of him next to a poster of David Beckham. Damon Jones is huge here.

Hope all is well. Take care. Stay tuned.