Restart!

Still recovering from our journey through Vietnam and southern China, our two week training in Chengdu was another shockingly emotional journey. After the excitement of seeing some of our friends from pre-service training that we hadn't seen in months, we started our first training session by hearing the terrible news from our country director that one of our fellow Chongqing volunteers had died (official Peace Corps statement here). We didn't know him well, but empathized with our fellow volunteers who did, unable to imagine what his family must have been going through. It was also a stark reminder of our own mortality, and how important it is to take care of each other and ourselves during our service. With that dark cloud hanging over the group, we kept up a brisk pace of training sessions, including language, TEFL training, safety and security, and health. Colds started going around, health issues started springing up, and people generally were feeling run down after all the sessions, particularly since many people were arriving at training after keeping intense vacation travel schedules (and it was hard to go to bed at a decent hour when there was so much socializing to be done with all our training pals). But despite it all, some of the sessions were really helpful and got us thinking more critically about how to improve our teaching for the upcoming term and how to create secondary projects that might have a lasting impact in our site communities. It was particularly exciting to have guest speaker Rob Gifford (NPR correspondent and author of China Road) come and talk to the group, and even more exciting when he showed up at the bar that evening to continue his discussions with volunteers. We ended our training with a touching candlelight memorial for Cannon, and after our goodbyes with friends from far flung sites, headed back to Chongqing exhausted, but ready to get back to work.

Our first week of classes started right away. I was pleased to be assigned all English-major writing classes, and Richy seemed content with his oral English workload. Starting with our usual introduction lessons, we have been working on streamlining our classroom rules and expectations to avoid some of the pitfalls we ran into last term - such as the several students who freaked out (channeling their frustration into incessant phone calls) when they didn't pass my oral English class, even though they had only attended a fraction of the classes. Luckily I found myself sitting next to the English department head one morning on the bus and he was able to explain to me the English department policies in more detail (we were provided an English translation of the policies at the beginning of the term, but they didn't make much sense at the time). Apparently if students miss more than 1/3 of classes for the term, I shouldn't allow them to take the final, because if I let them take the final, they have the right to a retake the following term. If I don't give them the final, they get a zero and have to retake the class. Although hopefully I won't have that problem with my writing classes this term, as English majors are much more engaged in their English classes (surprise, surprise) and have much fewer problems with attendance.

We are still waiting for word about the on-campus apartment situation, although it seems like something will definitely happen this term. In the meantime, I am planting up every container I can find and fit into our window-cages (our 5th floor apartment features cages around all the windows for security), keeping myself busy with craft projects, reading student papers, daydreaming about secondary projects (my students seem way more excited about cooking club than a resource room or anything else), and trying to keep the construction dust from building up on everything. We are ready to enjoy the Chongqing springtime as we know all too well that the sweltering Chongqing summer is on its way.

~ Katie

Last legs in Vietnam and a Happy New Year Homecoming

We arrived from a long, suffocating bus ride in Nha Trang 5 hours late due to traffic, only to be met with the disappointment of gray, drizzly skies over a beautiful beach and canceled hotel reservations. We were all running on our last nerves and it took considerable willpower not to freak out at the hotel desk lady who seemed to insinuate that the bus being late was something we could have foreseen or controlled. At last she found us a room for the night, one suspiciously cheaper than the one we originally booked (we later found out she had automatically booked us more expensive air-conditioned rooms the first time, although unnecessary without warm weather).

With the weather uncooperative for beach-side lounging, we decided instead to wander the town and sample its unusually cheap and delicious international food selection, particularly the Indian food and the gelato. On the second day, we decided we needed to take drastic measures in order to find some semblance of vacation-like fun and excitement under the overcast sky. Those drastic measures meant buying tickets from the hotel desk for a theme park situated on an island across the bay. It was a hard core tourist move and one we had hoped to avoid, but one that paid off in a day of hedonistic enjoyment. For about 15 dollars, we took a 3311 meter cable car to an island which has been turned into a resort/amusement park/water park and spent the entire day riding amusement park rides, playing arcade games and splashing around in the water park. Everything but the food was free and unlimited. It was a bit of a harrowing ride back after dark on the cable car as the winds picked up, but we kept ourselves occupied trying to come up with the most horrific disaster scenarios we could think of.

Thankfully we were finally rewarded the next day with beautiful blue skies and sunshine to enjoy the beach with - which we did despite the wind and the sand blowing in our faces. I managed to get myself a hearty sunburn across my back, but otherwise we were able to head off to Saigon proud of our vacation-y accomplishments.

We found Saigon much warmer and more alluring than Hanoi, with its street side iced coffee, expansive markets and interesting historical sites. We visited the Reunification Palace and the War Remnants Museum, which were both interesting contrasts to the Hanoi Hilton prison we visited previously, as they seemed to show the "American War" in a richer context and made more light of the lasting legacy of the conflict for Vietnamese people. We also enjoyed watching Vietnam's largest city prepare for Tet, the Lunar New Year. Yellow flowers and red lanterns were going up everywhere, while women stuffed fried tofu with minced pork in alleyways and men mounted ladders to scrub down the shop signs. On our last day in Saigon before catching our plane back to China, we regretted having to leave the warm weather, amazing food, and sassy shop ladies (who we found had a strange preoccupation with discussing marriage and baby-making) for the grit and grime of China.

But, China had a few tricks left up her sleeve. Even as our plane landed in Chongqing, we were dazzled by the array of New Year fireworks lighting up the night sky, and as we took the shuttle back into the city, we were even more dazzled by the transformation of the city streets. It seems that in our absence, every single tree in the city was covered with electric lights and lanterns and every roundabout became a spectacle of holiday displays. Between the bus stop and home, we bought ourselves some sparklers and firecrackers, and with our backpacks still strapped to our backs, rang in the year of the Rabbit (year of the Cat in Vietnam!) with our own little show in the apartment parking lot. As I sit writing this post, the sky around us on all sides is erupting with flashes, blasts and crackles of fireworks, while the neighborhood car (and motorbike) alarms sound from the vibrations. Xin Nian Kuai Le!

From Hanoi to Hoi An

On the bus to the border and the train to Hanoi from Lao Cai, we met
up with two 19 year old Danish backpackers who probably out of respect
for our Chinese language skills decided we would be a safe group of
people to hang around. Unfortunately since our language skills
evaporated once we crossed the river we all ended up equally helpless
and exhausted in Hanoi. We showed up at a hostel which advertised dorm
beds for only 4.50 USD, but they charged us twice as much since we
didn't book online and they gave us a terrible exchange rate since we
were paying in Vietnamese Dong. Once Richy and Leo realized this, they
worked up a healthy dose of indignance and went to work on the hotel
desk staff with their Chinese bartering skills. After almost getting
us all kicked out of the hostel, they were finally able to get the
owners on the phone, who agreed that we could pay the online booking
price. The whole incident made walking past the reception desk for the
next three days an awkward experience, but one that saved us a decent
chunk of cash.

Richy and I got to see our third preserved communist leader under
glass, with Uncle Ho looking less dead than Lenin but slightly more
dead than Mao. It's worth mentioning that being put on display for
eternity was expressly against all of their wishes, making it all the
more macabre. We followed it up with a visit to the very interesting
and ultra modern Ho Chi Minh museum - only to get rushed through and
kicked out as the staff took their 1.5 hour lunch break. We're
starting to think Americans might be the only people in the world
without some kind of afternoon siesta, much to our cultural
disadvantage.

We parted with our Danish friends as they went to party it up with the
Australian college students in Halong Bay, a reportedly beautiful
UNESCO World Heritage Site which has apparently become the Cancun of
Asia. We decided we'd rather skip the rainy booze boat parties for yet
warmer weather further south.

After our previous exhausting travel experiences, we decided we could
use some of the money we saved at the hostel to splurge on some soft
sleeper train tickets. When we arrived at the train station, Richy and
Leo went off to find a corkscrew for the bottle of wine they had
bought for the journey while Katie D. and I went to find the train,
which required a bit of a hike around other trains and over several
sets of tracks. Some "friendly" helpers came out of the woodwork to
help us find the train (although we already knew where it was)
obviously wanting tips for their unsolicited assistance. When Richy
and Leo arrived, we locked them out of our cabin as they alternately
banged on the door and pretended to be the train conductor looking for
our tickets. After the train pulled out of the station we were met
with a friendly Swede, a Scotsman and a Dutch kid who we had
previously run into twice back in Kunming. We shared stories, drinking
games, wine and rice "vodka" as the train rattled violently through
the night and into the historic city of Hue.

Although Hue seemed to be a perfectly nice town, the pervasive drizzle
left us feeling less than energetic. In our wanderings around the city
we met a few interesting characters including a former South
Vietnamese soldier, who despite his good English and training can now
only make a living as a farmer since the North won the war. We also
were lucky enough to stumble into a restaurant that we had previously
seen featured on the Globe Trekker series, run by a deaf mute man and
his family. Not only was the food reasonably priced and delicious, but
he also entertained us with his bottle opening antics that he devised
with his own bottle opening invention. After our second meal there, he
gifted each of us with one of his homemade bottle openers as long as
we promised to send him a picture of us using it in our home towns.

After a 3.5 hour bus ride that turned onto 5.5 hour ride due to a flat
tire, we arrived to enjoy the 70 F temperatures and dry overcast skies
of Hoi An. Although the food is delicious, the prices are higher and
portions smaller than in Hanoi and Hue, but we found that even meek
attempts to haggle over prices are usually rewarded with discounts.
One banana pancake seller immediately dropped her price by 50 percent
when we protested paying 10,000 Dong for a pancake.

Most people here assume that because we are Americans, $1 for
something sounds cheap, but after living on China for so many months,
we know exactly how far a dollar should go.

Next we are heading off to the beach town of Nha Trang, hopefully to
finally catch some real sunshine before heading to Saigon and back to
China.

~Katie

Escape from China

Although Kunming, Yunnan had been billed by our Chinese friends as
"spring city" (where the weather is always like spring!) our very
chilly reception there left us doubtful. The assault was especially
harsh because we had left our winter clothes in Chongqing thinking we
would be finding warmer weather further south, not colder. When
snowflakes began to fall, we were prompted to inquire with the locals
about their so-called spring city. Apparently we were lucky enough to
arrive in the midst of the coldest weather in 50 years.

Needless to say we departed in search of warmer weather as fast as the
Chinese transportation system could carry us. When the bus attendant
started hassling us for 5 kuai extra (on top of the 140 kuai we had
already paid for tickets) we reacted with premature indignance until a
patient Chinese English speaker explained that the extra fee was to
pay for toll detours around snowed out routes.

Upon arriving at the border, we discovered that our original plan of
first heading to the Vietnamese mountain town of Sapa was a dud since
snow was in the forecast and the whole point of our trip was to escape
the cold. So after the sudden shock of not being able to speak the
local language again, we decided to hop the first train to Hanoi (a
bargain for only 104,000 dong/30 kuai/4.50 usd and 8 hours of your
life) with predicted temps in the mid to low 60s.

~ Katie

A New Year in Chongqing

I have to admit that when we first arrived at our site in Chongqing, I
was really not enamored with the place. Now that we are beginning to
see more of the rest of the country, I am beginning to appreciate
Chongqing more and more.

Take, for example, the grey skies and humidity: keeps me from getting
too homesick from those cloud blanket PNW winters and helps keep my
skin and nasal passages moisturized. Or the constant 45-50 F indoor
temperatures: putting on a few extra layers inside with relative
comfort outside sure beats the frozen toes, ears, and hands every time
we stepped outside in Xi'an last weekend. Of course there is also the
fact that Chongqing is not a particular tourist destination but is
still a large Chinese transit hub: we get all the cool stuff to
ourselves and frequent, relatively cheap trains and buses.

"The above stated facts of the preceding statements lead me to
conclude," (stole that line from my students' final exam essays) that
despite having a lovely new years weekend in Xian, what I am really
looking forward to in 2011 is a new start in our adopted Chinese
hometown. And a nice vacation to Vietnam to enjoy the sunshine and non-
Chinese flavors probably won't hurt either.

~ Katie (written on my ipod while I was crabby, trying to sleep in a top 3rd class bunk on the night train back to Chongqing. The sooner China makes smoking illegal on trains - not just confined to the "smoking area" between the cars - the better for my train moods and sinuses. Xi'an was actually really awesome, but I do find myself looking forward to heading back to my Chongqing home these days.)