This has all changed in the last couple of weeks. Things have happened. Initially I wanted to write this blog twice a month but sticking to that would mean you having to read about my breakfast plans and the new video games and dvd's I've seen recently. You don't want that and I don't want that. It is better to wait, that way I can amass a few anecdotes and have enough time for things to happen to me and around me. The wait was worth it and I hope you'll agree.
This last month has been about uncertainty. Towards the end of 2007 I was uncertain whether I wanted to keep being the good soldier in regards to my job. I was trying to organize a short vacation to South East Asia but that was.....rife with uncertainty. I couldn't decide what to do about learning Chinese (take classes or get a tutor).
Lets begin at the beginning.
December was an unusually warm month in Beijing. The weather couldn't decide what it wanted to do so the temperature remained around 50 degrees for most of the month. This unfamiliar circumstance confused many of the local people and the topic of global warming was discussed openly and often. This is a rare topic of conversation in my experience. Many of the Chinese people I talk to every day were concerned about the environment. Usually this conversation ends up going down the path of the party line, "Economic development is a priority and the environment can be dealt with later." Not this time. Now people are starting to wonder.
As December pressed on I lowered my head and began to focus on ending the year strong at work. Long ago I proposed the creation of a basketball team at my school. My boss, an Englishman, was keen on the idea and left it to me to organize. I had some problems finding a good court but with the help of some eager students and staff members a site was found. We had our first practice before December was out and it served as preview of what is possible. See, my boss, the Englishman, wants to create a team that will compete against the 11 other Wall Street English schools. We think that by the numbers alone we should have the best basketball team among the Wall Street schools in Beijing. We have 2,000 students giving us the largest talent pool from which to draw. Only time and many difficult practices under my watchful eye can mold us into a formidable team to be feared.
As December, and 2007, drew to a close I was at a New Years party. The party was held in the ever popular 798 Factory. This is an old Mao Era factory that has been converted to an art space. There are many many buildings on the grounds and on New Year's Eve one was converted to a club. It was an interesting location for a techno infused New Years party. Immediately after the first kiss of 2008 I shouted, "The Olympics are so close now!" It's true, they are. A second round of ticket orders was supposed to take place in October but, due to technical difficulties in the online ordering process, it was postponed to December. I placed two more ticket orders; one for boxing and one for basketball. I will find out if I get the tickets sometime around January 30th.
On the first morning of 2008 I headed to Vietnam. I had been trying to get there for several weeks but as always, everything in China is difficult. I was heading there to meet up with Dee Dee and Garry for a short four day visit and to take in the sights and landmarks of this oft conflicted land. The first things I noticed after stepping off the plane in Ho Chi Minh City were the humidity and the lush vegetation Both are extremely rare in Beijing which is mostly gray and concrete. The motorbikes, even at 12am, are stunning not only for the awesome visual display the throngs of them create on the street but for the collective hum of the engines as well. The next morning I woke and met Garry and Dee Dee for our first day of touring. It was great to see them and it felt like ages since our last meeting.The first order of business was heading to the Mekong Delta for a trip to the other side of the Mekong River. We crossed the 2 kilometer long river by boat and arrived at a small fruit plantation where they were making a fresh coconut candy that smelled and tasted terrific. They also had a large, clear, plastic water dispenser. This was no ordinary water dispenser. This
container housed a special local liquor made of snakes. In the jug there were about ten snakes coiled up adding their natural juices to this strong alcohol. I tried some and it wasn't bad. I even bought a bottle of it that had a cobra on the inside. I am not sure if it is customary to eat the cobra after the liquor is gone as you would with the worm in a tequila bottle. The trip to the fruit plantation was really great. We even visited a villager's house and were able to see how the average Vietnamese person lives. This was not a scheduled stop on the tour but It was glad we did it. The terrain was mystifying. How could anyone think that a war there was winnable? The Vietnamese have a long history of tossing out invading forces going all the way back to Genghis Kahn and the Chinese. Everyone we encountered was great. They were all very nice and that was something I didn't expect. I thought ill will would persist. Our tour guide told us that her father died in the war. I didn't probe her regarding which side he was fighting for but later in the trip she told us he was fighting with the Americans. She said that he died fighting for American freedom. Is this what she really thought or was she being ironic or making a comment about the nature of the war? I was confused and still am. American freedom? War is a terrible thing and that point was reiterated the next day when we visited the Kuchi Tunnels. 
The Kuchi Tunnels are a system of tunnels that the Vietcong used during the war. The site is set up to accommodate the throngs of tourists that must visit there but the day we went there were very few other tourists. The site is chilling. Set in the middle of the jungle about 5 kilometers form the Cambodian border, it serves as part history museum, part war memorial, and part house of horrors. They showed us all the booby traps that were created to maim and kill American soldiers and that was a bit too much for me, thinking of how many of my uncle's friends were hurt or killed by such horrendous devices. At one point in the tour we were given the option of entering the tunnels to see what they were like. I decided to go. The tunnels are quite small, made for Vietnamese men not big westerners. The tunnels were pitch black as well.
Most of the rest of our trip was spent laughing and catching up with one another. We had some great meals together. I never knew much about Vietnamese food but it was all made with very fresh ingredients and lime abounded.
We received some bad news on the second to last day of our trip. Our loving family dog Bari died. She was 17 years old. I got her when I was 8 and we had been through a lot together. We rescued her from the pound where she was weeks from execution. She was a great dog and we all loved her very much. Bari even went to college with me and although she didn't earn her degree she enjoyed the experience. She slipped into a coma and died sometime later. She had been diagnosed with complete kidney and liver failure in May of 2007 and given weeks to live. She hung on long enough for me to see her while I was back in the USA and I appreciated that very much. She had a good long life and she was a very loving dog. She will be missed by everyone she knew.
Here is the last picture taken of Bari in her new winter gear.
I had a really great time in Vietnam with Garry and Dee Dee. They are both a lot of fun. This was my first international vacation with them as an adult. It was great to be alone with them and pick their brains and laugh with them. They are, for some reason, very proud of me. What seems strange for me to say, but it remains true, is that I am proud of them. They go on all these vacations and have tons of fun and that is what they want to do. they are living their dream and I admire that.
After our goodbyes I boarded the plane and returned to Beijing and its frozen plain. When I returned I had the weekend before returning to work. I decided to do something that I had put off doing for several years now. I joined the other members of my generation in the 21st century and bought an iPod. I am glad I did this because I have now discovered podcasts. Podcasts are like radio shows you can download and listen to at any time on your iPod. I have downloaded Chinese lessons and I listen to them on the subway as I commute to and from work every day. This is great because I was starting to become regretful about not maintaining my Chinese study.
In another bit of technology news, I was the recipient of a Slingbox. You may remember from my previous blog entry that I expressed a desire in this fabulous new technology that allows a user to watch and control a TV from across the globe. Well my grandmother bought one for me for Christmas (thank you very much Mimi) and my father installed it on his television (thank you very much Dad). So far I have had a few battles over the remote with my Dad but we generally like the same things (sports).
Things have become a little more comfortable here in Beijing with the addition of the Slingbox and my iPod. I was also given some good news recently. My sister is coming to visit me in March. I am super excited for that. My father will be coming here at some point as well. I welcome all visitors. If as a reader of my blog you would like Blake's Tour of Beijing, just send me an email and I'll see what I can do for you. All visitors are welcome.
In February I will be going on vacation for a week for Spring Festival (Chinese New Year). I am still trying to decide where to go (maybe Taiwan). If anyone has any suggestions please feel free to send them my way.
I wish all of you health and prosperity in this new year.
Dsai jien.
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