Tales from the Trip…

Happy Halloween from Shanghai!

We spent Halloween weekend….

1) Watching the St. Louis Cardinals win their 11th World Series title.

-We’ve been following the games mostly through ESPN’s GameCast since the games have been on while we’re at school. For those of you that aren’t familiar with it, GameCast is simply a “real time” stat updater thingy. I use the quotes for real time because as you can guess, that isn’t the case in the land of Mao.

-Game 6 was genuinely tortuous to follow online but of course, the victory made in worth the angst. We’ve been able to watch it in parts since it aired live, which was still pretty great.

-Saturday morning, we went to a local sports bar, The Big Bamboo, where they had ESPN’s international feed playing. It was great but since it’s wasn’t Fox’s coverage, we didn’t get Joe Buck’s insightful and witty commentary…but we also didn’t have to listen to Tim McCarver hem and haw and argue with himself.  There were mostly Rangers fans at Big Bamboo but a small gaggle of Cards fans trickled in as the game progressed. Anyway, some of our new friends here jumped on the Cardinals bandwagon (for obvious reasons) so, that made the victory even more fun! Needless to say, we’re super stoked and proud to be representing Cardinal fan-dom over here in Shanghai!

2) We had a game tournament with our group of friends Saturday night. I’ll just say that Tie and I won the tourney…the Cards inspired us. We had to dress in costume so we were E-mail (e-male) and it’s attachment (paperclip). Quick and easy!

E-mail Attachment

Tonight is actually Halloween and we’ve had some trick 0′ treaters. Halloween is not a holiday that the Chinese celebrate. However, where there are expats, holidays follow so living in our expat neighborhood means we get to celebrate Halloween. Our neighborhood actually put out some decorations in the complex as well. Spooky!

Spooky in Shanghai!

We hope you guys enjoyed the World Series…in particular the Cardinals winning the World Series.

Love and hugs to all!

-Katie

Whew! The past few weeks have been pretty busy. Here’s what we’ve been up to:

We had a week-long October break from school so we took a trip with friends to Yangshuo, China in Guangxi province. You can read about it here if you wish.
The scenery was otherworldly, even serving as inspiration for James Cameron’s movie Avatar…or so we were told. Our hotel room…not so awesome but it was memorable nonetheless.

In Yangshuo we took a 7-hour bike ride. We got lost, found and lost again. We climbed to the top of Moon Hill, toured Buddha Cave and almost ate chicken beak for lunch one day. Surprisingly I also had some of the best chicken parmigiana I’ve ever eaten. It really hit the spot after kayaking on the Li River. Overall it was a great time with our twelve new(ish) buddies. Traveling in China on a national holiday is certainly quite an adventure in itself!

Ben, Erin and Katie at the top of Moon Hill

Lady with sideways baby

Water buffalo; riding through thick mud; Erin is about to fall into a rice paddy

Sign before entering Buddha Cave

Kayaking on the Li River

We made it back safely from our trip and surprisingly coming back to Shanghai already felt like coming home. For the first two weeks after our trip I had a substitute teaching gig working in the high school visual arts department as a teacher assistant. The school then asked me to continue doing that until February to fill-in for a teacher on maternity leave. I’m glad for the opportunity to work at the school for a bit and to have a regular working schedule. I’ve been really busy so far and am learning a lot about various art techniques and artists as well.

In addition to work we’ve also had some excitement at home. We adopted a kitten last weekend. We got her so that Scout could have a companion while we are at school during hte day but so far it’s a Mexican standoff (or maybe a Chinese standoff…if we knew what that was). They’re both a little bit afraid of one another but I’m sure they’ll be friends soon enough. She’s pretty cute, playful and annoying when you’re trying to sleep so she’s been relegated to the living room at night. We named her Lucy. She forgets that she doesn’t like Scout sometimes…kinda how Lucy (Peanuts) felt about Charlie Brown. Scout is too old for a name change.

Lucy the cat

Lucy

Katie had an exciting Thursday at work. The VP of the CollegeBoard (SAT, ACT, Advanced Placement) came to SAS to observe and video tape some AP classes. He observed Katie’s AP US History class. He had great things to say about her class and surprisingly she didn’t say anything too heinous while she was on camera.

So we’ve received some complaints about the infrequency of our blogs and I’ll admit, it’s my fault. Instead of posting too often about trivial things I’d rather wait until I have more to share and not try to force things. Forcing things is how you get hemorrhoids and I don’t want any part of that.

In the month of September both Katie and I had birthdays (she’s 30 by the way). We celebrated her birthday by eating large quantities of Shanghainese food on Saturday night with friends, which was nice. On Sunday, which was her actual birthday, she and I had brunch on the 7th floor terrace at M on the Bund overlooking the Huangpu River. We had traditional Chinese fare like blueberry pancakes, eggs Benedict and croissants. It was delightful.

Overlooking the bund

Even though it’s been fast-paced and challenging, Katie is enjoying school so far. She’s been working very hard and certainly feels a sense of accomplishment at the end of each week.

I’m trying to get involved more with the school and have been substitute teaching a couple days per week so far. Also, the middle school soccer season starts this week and I’ll be helping coach that.

Other than having a mouse in our apartment the rest of the month has been pretty normal. I think it might still be hiding under the kitchen cabinets where the pipes go through the floor so I used some spray foam to seal it’s entry point. I might have used too much foam.

Oh, we also got some houseplants.

Katie’s fall break it next week and we’re traveling to Yangshuo, China for a few days. I’ll be sure to take plenty of pictures to share.

Yangshuo, China

Later.

I miss some things…some particular things. No, I’m not homesick. I promise. I’ll be sure to fess up if that happens. And just because I miss things, doesn’t mean I shouldn’t have moved to China…yeah, you know who you are thinking that!

Of course I miss my family and friends…at the moment, I particularly miss

-Half & Half; I don’t think it exists in this land. I think I would have to milk a skinny cow and a fat cow somewhere in a field and stir it up if I’m desperate. I’ve been using skim milk, which is the equivalent of pouring white water in the coffee and consequently has zero positive effect. Occasionally Starbucks has whole milk available but that’s the equivalent of turning the coffee into a milkshake, which is also gross. And flavored creamer?! I’d have to hope there was a cinnamon or Irish cream cow in the same field as the skinny and fat cows and I just don’t see that happening…

-Hugs; I haven’t been a hugger my entire life. In fact, I used to not be so crazy about them. However, upon becoming a teacher, I realized that hugs serve two extremely important purposes. The first is that a hug is an easy and harmless way to appear human. You know, because teachers are…teachers…not humans. And secondly, hugs are especially useful in dealing with tears. In most cases, logic and rational thought have no hope of combating tears (remember, I teach high school). A hug says you care but also eliminates the need to actually have a convincing look of care or concern on your face. I know this sounds harsh but it’s the truth. A normal human has a limited capacity to truly care about teenage melodrama. Hugging it out always seems to help though. So, I’m a converted hugger and now my only option for hugs is Tie. He’s a great hugger but I need some variety! And I’ve made great friends and my students are darling but I’m not sure we’re to the hugging stage yet. In fact, I’m sure we’re not. Blah…I’ve got to remedy this situation.

there are several other little things that I miss that I would think I could find around here somewhere but…it’s kinda a big city and I kinda don’t feel like it’s a good use of my time to go in search for:

-mints

-Hagan-Daaz coffee ice cream (no creamer necessary)

-Greek yogurt

-anything from Target

-skinny highlighters

-throw pillows

Shanghai is great…really. But it has none of these things. So, it could be greater.

Ah….am I in Shanghai, REALLY?

Several times over the past week, I’ve thought about how my surroundings don’t really seem very Chinese…or Shanghainese to be exact.

I teach in a school that for all intents and purposes, could be in any American city or town. See my classroom: it looks a lot like my room back in Nashville!Teenagers are teenagers, no matter where they live or learn.

They sit in the middle of the hallway and block my door…here, there and everywhere.

They take pictures of themselves, incessantly…here, there and everywhere.

They hug each other too tightly, too often, too disgustingly…here, there and everywhere.

They use too much perfume/cologne…here, there and everywhere. Both literally and figuratively!

Of course, there are many other examples of how my students at SAS are quite similar to my students back home. Which has been kind of a surprise to me, actually. I was warned by other staff here at school that many of the students were shy and quite, withdrawn and generally averse to class discussion and participation. This was actually my biggest source of anxiety leading up to the start of school. The way I teach is pretty much entirely contingent upon students offering their perspective on the history we study. Of course, I assist with the initial understanding but their unique insight is the steam that powers the engine and keeps things interesting.

Fortunately for my teaching career, these kids have been engaged, talkative, inquisitive, spunky even. And of course, I find spunky endearing so, that’s working out pretty well.

There are differences though…

the slurping of noodles (it’s rude/bad luck to cut or bite them),

the Shanghainese word of the day on the board in my Homeroom,

the Ayis (maids) that come to pick up their charges from school.

These and other differences are things I only notice when I’m out of the classroom. They don’t really have any impact on my teaching or the classroom vibe. Until I learn how to say “shut-up” in Shanghainese. At that point, I’m sure the chi will change.

Outside of school, in our neighborhood, there are MANY similarities: Starbucks, several Western grocery options, a park, a Home-Depot-esque store, an Apple Store, etc. It’s great…sort of. It’s been a great place to land and to transition into Shanghai and China.

Things are relatively easy and certainly convenient. We can get around and get what we need just as we would at home. I even made strawberry cupcakes this week with all the ingredients I needed from the local grocery store. And they were yummy…just like at home.

And therein lies the problem. I’m not at home. I’m in Shanghai and I want to feel like I’m in Shanghai. I prepared myself for the smells and noises of a city of 23 million (documented) residents…Chinese residents. I looked forward to getting lost in neighborhoods I don’t know and taking the wrong subway stop. I pictured myself meeting Shanghainese people and asking them about their lives and getting invited to their houses for dinner (where I would slurp my noodles). These things haven’t happened primarily because we live out in the ‘burbs…the expat ‘burbs. We’re talking about moving downtown so we can experience all the above-noted excitement. We have to live where we are now for the school year but after that, we’ll see. But…these are the reasons why we’d like to live downtown!

So it’s been awhile since either of us has posted and for that we are truly sorry. Since the last communication we’ve been to Ikea three times, eaten bugs, seen the biggest bullfrogs EVER and watched a little cricket being played in the field next door.

The past week has been full of orientation activities for Kate at school and I’ve kept busy working around the house and exploring.  After a game of 4-on-4 basketball vs some local Chinese guys last Saturday we took a tour of some apartments belonging to other SAS teachers. It was great to see the things other people have done to their places to make them feel like home and we were inspired.

When we first got here our place looked like this.

It’s spacious and great but it lacked any color whatsoever and we immediately felt the need to personalize the space. We don’t have an ayi (housekeeper/maid) yet so on Monday I cleaned the place REALLY well, on Tuesday/Wednesday I painted a few walls and this weekend we acquired a few new pieces of furniture which are making it feel more like home. It’s amazing what a chair, a few shelves and a red bench can do for a place.

Now it looks like this.

Yes we know that the blue furniture is less than pretty but we’ll change that soon.

I’ll write more this week, I promise, but for now I’m going to enjoy the rest of my Tiger beer and Skype with Daff.

Peace out.

For all of you anxiously waiting to hear from China Tie…I’m sorry, but you’ll have to hang on a little longer! He seems to have caught the head/chest cold crud I had right before we came so he’s not up to writing just yet. Will be soon though…

It’s Friday morning here and we just got back from that Ikea trip we were headed out to last Saturday! Not really…but, we were there for 6 HOURS! The first three were great…the last three, yeah, not so much. But, we got a lot of stuff we needed (hangers, trash can, duvet) and maybe even a few things we didn’t need (I can’t think of any right now).

As if Ikea wasn’t enough shopping, a few of us went to a place called Metro afterwards to look for some specific things, like…a coffee maker. Ahhhh, the saga of the coffee maker. The ONLY ones we’ve seen here are either a) the HUGE, way-too-good-for-me espresso makers that cost $1,000ish or b) the TINY little, dinky ones you see in hotel rooms that make 2 cups of coffee. Of course, neither of these are what we’re looking for, so the search continues. And, even though Metro didn’t work out for coffee, they did have a few of these that we considered having for dinner…

Sadly enough, I can’t really remember what we did Sunday or Monday! I know it involved walking around, being super sweaty, drinking lots of water, shopping, wishing Scout was here already and being tired. Other than that…I’m completely drawing a blank!

We’ll just fast forward to Tuesday…my first day of orientation at school (SAS). Us new folk had/have orientation from Tuesday of this week through Monday of the upcoming week. So far, many different administrators have spoken to us about how happy they are to have us, why we were chosen, what the values/mission/goals of the school are and how we fit into those and other such stuff. We got the grand tour of the school on Tuesday and let me tell you, it’s jaw-dropping. Not only is everything pretty new and clean and aesthetically pleasing, the place is ginormous! I’m generally pretty good with direction and physical placement and after 3 days, I could no sooner find my classroom than walk on the moon! But, as long as I can figure it out before the students come on August 17, I’ll be ok!

On Wednesday, all of the newly arrived teachers and their families (minus tiny humans) had to go to the Shanghai Health Bureau and have a health exam. Before we came, we all had to have physicals and tests (AIDS, TB) and submit that paperwork as part of our work permit applications. But…apparently, that information isn’t good enough for the Shanghai government, hence the health check. Each of us had to put on a robe (with nothing on on the upper halves of our bodies) and proceed through a sort of assembly line of various exams: blood drawing, EKG, ultrasound, vision test, blood pressure, etc. While we’re being herded through this process, we’re all sitting together in our bathrobes. It was so goofy. And unnecessary. No one could tell us why we were had to have the health check and we all pretty much determined that it’s just a means of giving people jobs and making money off foreigners. The most interesting thing that happened in our group probably happened to Tie though. During his ultrasound, the tech told him he had a kidney stone. Apparently it was quite reminiscent of the infamous Joey and the kidney stones scene from “Friends”. This was the first indication Tie had of his new ailment and we’re really, really hoping it either was a misread or that it magically disappears.

Thursday was another school day: more orientation, team-building, that kind of stuff. Thursday night was a dinner with all the new people and the principals and staff at near-by Mexican restaurant that was pretty good. The school was buying the margaritas too!

Friday…SCOUT came home. Tie was here when the local dog groomer lady we hired to pick him up brought him home. Apparently, when he had to stay overnight at the airport last Friday when we arrived, they didn’t let him out to go to the bathroom. So, he peed in his little carrier and on himself.  Of course, that means that all week long at quarantine, he was very dirty and smelly. As soon as he came home, Tie gave him a good bath and he felt much better. I got home from school shortly thereafter and we had a great reunion! He’s enjoyed many treats in the past 24 hours and all our new friends think he’s precious and cute…which of course he is!

Lastly (for now), we went to dinner at a super cool place last night in downtown Shanghai (Puxi) called Southern Barbarian.  The cuisine is from the Yunnan province of China, which is a south western province. It’s sort of a mix between Chinese and Laotian/Thai food. I will admit that I was a little nervous but, the food (whatever it was) was great: many spicey things (which Tie and I love) and even some crazy things, such as woodbug! We all tried a bite, as you can see Tie doing. I probably won’t be doing it again but, whatever…it was a teeny tiny bite!

We’re planning a post for the next day or two with pictures of our apartment, our complex and our neighborhood. Stay tuned for that.

In the meantime, love and hugs from Tie, Katie and Scout!