Beijing With the Boys

Boys weekend to Beijing + me. To be fair I was in on the weekend before all the boys decided to go. But hey I'm not going to complain. So, we made it here after our adventure on the sleeper train. Step 1: find our hostel. I love having Jerem because he takes charge when it comes to travel and I'm sure he hates it at times but I love it because it gives me a break and for once means I don't have to do it. Sometimes it's fun to be the follower. However, major shout out to Jerem and all the hard work he put(s) into planning! So he got us to our hostel. 

Isn't  that a fun courtyard? We are down a little narrow alley way that is totally typical China. After we dropped all our bags and dealt with the incredibly rude lady at the front desk we headed to the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. 

The palace was huge! HUGE. We were here for a couple hours and only saw a fraction of it. 

The architecture was beautiful.

These knobs on all the doors bring good luck.

That's Taylor. He oozes personality. 

That's Joe. These rocks were all over the garden and so neat. 

This place really is beautiful. We definetly needed more time but it was closing and we were starving. So starving so we had to leave to find food. Ended up eating some weird pancake egg burrito with wontons and lettuce inside. Then headed to the market to find some breakfast for tomorrow. It's 8 and in already in bed. Travel is exhausting and tomorrow we are headed to THE wall. ✌️

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Train, China Style

Smells, smoke, people, crowded, hard seats, food on the floor, people packed to the brim. And on and on. Oh the horror stories I heard about the China trains. 

So when I found out we would have to spend 12 hours on a train to Beijing I was worried to say the least. My only hope is that it was going to be a hard sleeper. 

Horizontal, my saving direction. It gave hope of sleep. 

Best money ever spent.

We got to the train station and boarded the train. We were greeted with a three stack high of bunks and guess whose ticket was the top. 

Yes, me. 

Up I went on my climb to be greeted by disgusting sheets. Good thing I ordered my sleep sack, from China, to bring back to China. Really though, it's amazing. It's like a sheet sewn in half and with a pillow case attached. What a beautiful sanitation invention. 

So the boys and I hung out on the bottom bunks until it was time to take our cocktails. Some had a melatonin and NyQuil mix others threw in Benadryl and some dramamine. As it got later things got funnier and funnier, you knew the medicine was kicking in so up the bunks we went. 

The bed is about one and a half feet wid and luckily has a safety bar. 

I didn't know why the safety bar was going to be so important until I learned the following:

As you roll into a station you are first greeted by the most horrific screetching noise and then a whap, bam, slam! The breaks go on with the most horrifying jolt you've ever felt. You are then slammed into the side of your safety bar, holding on for dear life. Then you drift back into your drugged sleep only to be rudely awakened by the next stop. Ba-bam. Slam. Ah. Not the best way to spend the night. BUT horizontal. Made it possible to sleep. 

Don't even get me started on the toilet situation. I'm actually okay with the squatters. I am not okay with squatters in a rocking train. Now do you remember when I told you about the random slamming on of the brakes. Now imagine being in a tiny, tiny bathroom with a hole in the floor and a bucket of water. Im not sure what the bucket of water was for not do I want to know. But I had to pee. I finally got the nerve after four failed attempts. In I went and the rest was history. Disgusting. Don't even use a hole in the floor on a train that is a rockin. 

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A Bakery, In China

Welcome to the land of anti sweets. Seriously their "pastries" have no sugar. Time after time I get excited and try something only to be disappointed by the lack of flavor. 

I'm telling you even the pies at McDonald's are filled with red beans, you heard me right. Beans.

It's been rough people. Especially for a sweet-a-holic like myself.

Until today. 

Today I found a bakery. A real American sugar bakery. 

REAL SUGAR. 

I went a little crazy. 

Of course I did.

But look at all those good treats! There were sugar and chocolate donuts, cream filled breads, crossaints and so much more! 

They were soooo good. 

Then as we were leaving a baguette, a real life baguette was being carried out and the overpowering scent of garlic flooded my nose. Garlic bread!!!!

I had to buy that. We will see if it lasts until dinner. It's amazing the pure joy a bakery can bring me.

Oh China. I think we are going to get along. Oh. So. Well. 

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Finally. Real China.

I've been in China for a week and a half but I didn't feel like I was in China, until today.

 There it is folks. The scenery that made me feel like I was finally in China. 

The sad part? We got there twenty minutes too late and it was closed but look how beautiful this temple is!

I also found a bird.

When you find a bird you have to ride it right? Well I sure did.

After finding this temple we walked under the wall and behold a lake of beauty. 

It was stunning.

We have to come back here and explore in the warmth. You can rent little electric boats and drive them around the lake. 

It was so calm and beautiful. There was a layer of fog or here probably pollution which gave it an eerie feel. 

Some yoga had to be had. 

That is my roommate Claire. She is awesome. After we found the lake we started to head back. 

Oh! As we walked through the city we started to see trees. It got to be a little crazy like planet of the apes or world war z. It was huge city with trees and plants all up and down the side walks. It's hard to explain but it was like the city and forest were coexisting. 

Today's adventure was China. Real stereotypical China. 

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Pop A Squat

I made it 11 days. 

11 days in China before I had to pop a squat, suck it up and use the squatter.

I consider it a major accomplishment that I did not pee on myself.

I also consider it a win that my roommate had tissues and hand sanitizer.

Did I use it correctly? I do not know. How do you know the front from the back when the toilet is just a hole in the wall. Talk about confusing. 

Not sure how I feel about it either.

Part of me thinks hey cool I don't have to share the toilet seat with other people's hind ends but the other part of me thinks that it was so gross. Maybe if there was a way to keep the squatter clean then it wouldn't be so bad. 

11 days. Now I have been initiated. 

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Crossing China

Have you ever tried to cross a street in China?

Probably not.

But I have.

See. It's not like America. In America you have cars and pedestrians. 

In China you have cars, buses, pedestrians, bikes, scooters, carts, mini cars, and anything else with wheels including strollers, trikes, and kids with toys. All of the afore mentioned try to cross the street at the same time all while honking and screaming. If you are lucky there is a cop blowing a whistle. Normally though good luck. 

Now take 11-20 white girls and and attempt to cross that street. 

Run.

Stop.

Freeze.

Grab your friend so the scorer doesn't take her out.

Scream bus turning right. 

That's the life.

Good luck crossing China.

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China Cheese

We got an email yesterday.

It was a blue dot on a map and a message that said cheese is sold here and other American Products for cheap. Immediately we started jumping up and down. Cheese! Cheese!

Mind you it's been a week since being in China but the thought of a grilled cheese Sandwhich was almost too much too handle. 

Immediately a trip was planned for the next day when school was out. 

So we got on the metro. To burn time and beacuse we were in China we decided a Chinese fire drill was necessary at every stop. Thus as soon as the doors opened and not a second before everyone had to switch seats. It was quite the sight to see 11 girls try and switch seats at every one of the 13 stops. The people around us thought it was funny. What was great was when the Chinese stole our seats and then a few were left standing. Hahahaha.

Once we arrived we tried to follow streets to the blue dot. The dot was all we had. No name. No instruction. No clue as to where we were going. And I, Jessica, was in charge of getting us there. If you know me you know why this is funny . I have no sense of direction. Zero. Zip. Nada. And there I was directing 10 girls through the streets of China. 

We walked and walked and walked. 

Passed a canal. Saw al sorts of new streets and felt like we were in China. Dirty, smelly, lots of people, scooters and poodles.

After about an hour of walking we were exactly where the cheese store was supposed to be.

Supposed to. 

See that fridge. That was the shop. Yes that's a cart in the middle of this hole in the wall. See that brick of cheese. It was huge. It was also expensive. This cous t be what we traveled two hours for could it? 

Oh but it was. We left. Like sad children who got no presents on Christmas morning. It was a major let down. But we kept exiting. We found this beautiful place:

Then as we continued our walk we kept seeing these groups of chinese dancing on the sidewalks so we stopped to watch and joined in on the fun! Then got to take pictures with them. So much fun dancing on the streets and watching them. 

Then we continued to walk in search of food. However we could not find anything and at this point we were HANGRY. We got bananas.

And as we walked we ended up passing our station but we found another one. 

We got off at the main station. 

McDonald's ice cream is huge here. They just have all these small booths that are just ice cream. Oh boy is it good! So much better than America.

Then came the chocolate boba milk drink. 

It. Was. So. Good. Wow. Wow. Wow. I sure did feel sick after though. Ice cream and chocolate milk for dinner. A real winner. I will be the only volunteer in the history of volunteers who comes back from china gaining weight. 

I am however working on the exercise. We walked for 5 hours tonight and in the mornings I am doing T25! WOOHOO! 

Tonight was an adventure.

My feet are going to fall off. My body is going to collapse. But I am happy. Oh so happy. 

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Stereotypes

Before I came to china I had a preconceived notion. 

Cute little asian children.

School comes first.

Impeccable behavior.

Preconceived it was. Stereotype? Oh yeah.

Cute? Yes.

Little? Some.

Impeccable behavior? Please excuse me as I fall off my bed in fits of laughter. 

As soon as the kids came in. No. Back up. As soon as I heard the kids coming in from outside I knew my notion was all wrong. 

One after another the masses flooded the tiny halls. Uniform after uniform. They just kept coming!

Opening was a little rough. The kids didn't want to listen so much. 

One kid grabbed a volunteers chest.

Multiple times. 

One kid decked another in the head.

One spun his token bag around his head like a maniac.

And so on and so on.

Thus began my journey as a head teacher.

From room to room I went with my loud and stern teacher voice. Drilling into the classrooms, explaining strike cards and how they would have to come see me if they got three strikes. 

I swear I frightened some of the teachers, let alone the kids.

But they behaved after that. 

For a couple minutes lol.

The next day went so much better! Openings were beautiful! 

I will say I have the best group of volunteers ever! Their strike cards are gorgeous! The amount of work they put into getting their group ready, incredible. 

Their patience levels are amazing. 

Really.

They rock. 

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China Facts

-don't put your chopsticks straight up in your food, it is offensive

- they have really fresh and really cheap produce

- you bargain for everything

- you can't use ripped money so don't accept it

-you eat everything with chopsticks

- spit your bones directly onto the table 

- all food comes with bones and eyes 

-Be careful when crossing the street they can turn right even with people in the crosswalk

- drivers will speed up if you walk when you are not supposed to, there is no pedestrian right away

- they are very giving and take you to elaborate dinners 

- anything you think is chocolate, is not, it's red bean

- they drink a lot of tea and it looks like s bunch of weeds in a water bottle

- horns are the main communication on the road and there are no real rules 

- there are really no lanes when driving and it's quite scary

- going to dinner is a grand ordeal with 20 courses.

- the chinese can be very generous and giving 

- if you rip a banana off a bunch they get really mad. They have scissors in the stores and markets and they cut them off

- nothing is sweet here it's all blan

- red bean ice cream is nasty

- the furry stuff ontop of bread and food is dried fish fluff, vomit

- they don't heat anything but bedrooms so the hallways are freezing. When you see a table with a blanket over it go sit at that table because there is a fire underneath to keep you warm

- there are not necessarily doors to places like grocery stores instead it's a bunch of hanging plastic pieces you have to push through 

- Muslim noodles or pulled noodles are delicious and everyone here is addicted to them except me

- you can get ice cream cones for 30 cents 

- the men and some women grow out just their pinky nail, insanely long 

-they mop the floor with toilet water

- Muslim pulled noodles are bomb!

- they eat a lot of very different meats

- everyone smokes 

- meat comes vacuum sealed, even a whole chicken

- there is a whole aisle of meat candy 

- totally normal to sing and dance in the park

- spitting. So much spitting 

- kids pee and poo in street

- yogurt comes with a straw since there are no spoons 

- anything with a motor can be driven even if it's a lawn motor with a cart attached to the back.

- the smells, oh the smells

- they like their drinks. Their are boba and smoothie places everywhere in nanjing

- there is no sanitation

- food comes on sticks

- you better push if you want a seat on the subway

- getting onto a train is like being in a horse race. Everyone lines up in stalls and then runs

- almost everyone smokes 

-little kids have slits in the back of their pants to pop a squat 

- stinky tofu is the worst smell I've ever experienced 

- squatter toilets no toilet paper no soap

- people slurp soup, loudly

- they wear little blankets when driving their scooters that also have hand warmers

- the bottles of brown stuff on the table is straight up vinegar, not soy sauce. Don't get confused.

- there are a lot of bikes

- stand on the right when going up an escalator

- the Chinese love to take pictures of us, some try and be discreet others just pull out their phones and go for it 

- we attract attention wherever we go, 20 white people in a huge group 

- you better buy a chinese blow dryer or your room with blow up and you won't have electricity 

- they eat dogs

- they butcher animals on the sidewalk in the market

- there are tons of street food vendors that will cook up fried rice etc but remember there is no sanitation

- there are no traffic laws, at least no one follows them 

- people drive wherever they want and however they want

- don't drink the water

- dove chocolate is really really good here

- snickers are everywhere, good thing I don't like snickers 

- they pack a lot of people into transportation 

-they drink warm water 

- some of the stop lights have timers that count down how long until the color changes

- you can turn right even if there are people in the cross walk 

- grandmas restaurant has the best shaved ice cream ever and it's peanut butter flavor 

- little kids wear crotchless pants

- when you are a couple you announce it by wearing matching shirts 

-lines done exist here you just push

- they have music between classes instead of bells which is really nice

- kids do daily eye exercises after recess and during recess they do synchronized memorized exercise routines 

- they wear a lot of clothes in winter even if it is a warmer day

- the doctors is cheap like only a few dollars cheap 

- not too many people run outside and they look at us funny when we do 

- wearing a medical mask it totally normal 

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The Underground

Yesterday was sweet.

However...

Upon waking up and being sick of not having a blow dryer to do my hair I decided to risk plugging in my blow dryer to my converter and give it a chance.

It blew up.

All I did was plug it in and POP everything in the room went quiet. No electricity. No heat. No fridge.

Death to our room. 

And- it can't be fixed until Monday. 

After getting ready we met Bell and Mickey, our neighbors, who so kindly offered to take us to the shopping areas around town.

We got on our metro and headed 13 long stops into town. When we got off and turned the corner hello Vegas on steroids.

Underground miles upon miles of shopping halls set up with neon lights, flashing signs, colors dancing on the walls, adorable store fronts and shopping that would make even the most resistant shopper drool. 

Immediately I was slapped in the face with regret. Why oh why on my third semester abroad did I decide I needed to pay for a second bag and waste $100 which is 600yuan. Seeing that I can buy everything I ever needed in China and for half the price. Vomit. 

Converse. $12

A new coat. $40

Over the knee socks $2

And on and on. 

Finding the jacket was a little rough but luckily I had my personal shoppers- Cierra and Ashley. They went from store to store to help me find a decent coat. It too a really long time because my arms are too fat to fit into the sleeves. Finally we found one right before we left.

Success.

Now with my heat out I had to get creative. I think this is a perfectly acceptable solution:

PICCACU!

I was nice and toasty last night.

Kayla Cioffi I bought this for you. Hay early birthday. 

We also got to go to Walmart.

Whee they sell dove chocolate and most of the other things I brought that weighed down my suitcase. Major bummer.

But they also have fun things like:

Nasty.

Once we came home from this adventure we started another one in the land of KTV.

We paid and entered a private VIP Lou he where all twenty of us had a dance karaoke party complete with tambourines  and dance skills that make you smiles. Seriously though, our boys can dance. 

They had a great selection of american music.

Really, it was a sweaty blast! So much fun! 

Went home. Got in my Pokemon suit and fell fast asleep. 

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China Church

Today we went to church. In China. Where you can't have church. Lucky for us a foreign passport is a ticket into our branch. 

The branch has about 60-90 people, 20 of which are us.

We took 3 metros and then walked to a hotel. Up to the second floor, past the wedding, and into a room decked out with lanterns and banners. 

Then church went as normal except there were about 6 primary children, all from the same family and maybe 1 

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Hello China

It has been two days. 

Two very long and awesome and stressful and exciting and tiring and.... Hahahaha days. 

So let's talk about the basics. 

1. Our first food experience. Thank goodness someone helped us because we had no idea what to do or how to order. The food... Day one was bad. I ate a spoonful of peanut butter and chia seeds instead. 

But then we had a good dinner and a good lunch the next day. WOOHOO!

2. There has been no one to help us. Jerem and I have been left alone. No  coordinator came the entire first day. We thought we would have someone to show us the school, take us to get money, answer our million questions. Instead we were stuck alone with no internet and a binder with hardly any information at all. It was very stressful and still is. Apparently we will figure it all out on our own. Good thing we rock. 

3. We took everyone on a tour of the school that we known nothing about. Made us laugh. Our school is very big. The kids liver here Sunday through Friday. There is a garden and even some animals. 

4. We met bell and Mickey who live on our floor with us. They teach here and they offered to take us to the mall and help us exchange our money. They are so nice! They showed us around and gave us some tips. The atm ate Claire's card though!  And I couldn't get $ but never fear I fixed that. 

5. Our ILP classrooms are awesome! The drama room has a little stage, the kitchen is a full set up, they are big and beautiful! We have two buildings. One where we teach second grade and one for first and third grade. 

6. We got to go to the grocery store! A double decker one. You better believe I was excited! I need to go back and buy more! After the atore some people are a full squid on a stick. Nasty. We got some dumplings. 

7. My roommate Claire is so awesome and perfect for me. She is a neat freak same as I am. Our room is immaculate. 

8. I bought a smoothie made with ice and then shared it with 8 people. I, Jessica, let 8 people drink from my straw! This year I said I was going to conquer fears. Fear conquered lol. Still can't believe I did it. 

9. We figured out how to get on the metro on our own which was great. 

10. It's very cold here. Our hallway is freezing. FREEZING I can't even describe how cold the hallway is. We run to eachothers rooms and then run in and shit the door as fast as possible. Thank goodness we have heat in our room. The first night we couldn't figure it out and froze to death, almost. 

Nick in our group wrote an amazing blog post, had me laughing like crazy. Check it: 

http://www.nickinnanjing.blogspot.com/2015/01/in-beginning.html?m=1

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