TheBanyanTree: I'm in China

[Pat M]

A year ago, I would never have imagined I would be a qualified ESL teacher
with friends in China to visit and travel with.  In my wildest dreams, I
wouldn't have thought I would have the courage to travel to China alone to
teach English... but here I am!
I left Canada on July 12 and met my two Chinese friends, Mao and Joyce in
Taiyuan, China on July 13th and have already had five fascinating days here
which included having lunch with 1,000 Buddhist nuns with shaved heads,
(yes, 1,000!) observing Buddhist monks and their ceremonies (the chanting
was wonderful) and trying to communicate with them (they were very
friendly), as well as visiting numerous famous Buddhist temples. I'll be
sending photos when I am able to.

The Chinese culture revolves around food and it is customary to eat two
large meals each day (lunch and dinner) with 8 - 10 different dishes.
Everyone uses chop sticks to eat from communal bowls.  Meals are a very
social event with lots of chatter and lots of slurping.  I have eaten things
not knowing what they were and have also tried foods I thought I would never
touch such as sliced donkey meat (one small piece was enough) and roasted
pig's head which was actually quite tasty.

I have also utilized the most disgusting bathrooms I have ever seen (and I
have been to many countries).  Imagine a 6' x 6' pit topped with 2" x
12" boards with gaps between them.  One must straddle the boards and aim for
the gap between them.  In some places several people stand side-by-side and
go to the bathroom at the same time.  What fun!  When in China, you must do
as in China.

This is a land of contrasts.  In comparison, I am staying at my friend Mao's
home right now and it is lovely with all the modern amenities including a
'normal' bathroom, air conditioning, and elegant decor.

The weather has been sweltering and uncomfortable but I wouldn't have missed
this for anything.  I feel I could already write a book about what I have
seen and experienced.

Tomorrow I am heading off to Beijing with my friend Joyce to visit the Great
Wall and the Forbidden City.  The adventures are coming so quickly I have no
time to write them down.  I'll be writing some stories about my experiences
here and will send them along in installments.  My problem will be computer
access until I am settled in southern China.

I plan to fly to Guilin on Sunday, stay with a Chinese family for 3 weeks
(home stay), then move to the teacher's dorm while attending two weeks of
teacher training before starting to teach.  I still haven't decided which
area of China I want to teach in.

Things will get interesting when I have no one near to translate for me.

Must go for now...

Pat Martin