Tonight, I was sitting with some friends and we were discussing where to go for some travel this upcoming November break.  You have to keep in mind that these people have been living abroad for quite some time.  They were throwing around countries, cities, resorts that I didn’t even know how to spell, let alone know the location of.  I was such a rookie siting amongst the veterans.  As we started to zero in on our destination, I finally admitted to my lack of Asia geography skills, at which they gently laughed as they remembered what it was like to be in my shoes, and pulled out the lap top.  I love technology.  So, we ended up booking our tickets to Kota Kinabalu (KK), Malaysia.  I have already started my shopping list.

Also, my website was recently updated by Aaryn of aaryn.com to include some photos of Hong Kong that are not posted on this blog.  Feel free to check them out when you get a chance!  Keep the comments coming!!!

butterflyonsleeve.com

My first trip to Hong Kong yesterday – what an amazing city.  We went on a photo tour and I can’t wait to go back.  I got only a small taste of it but it reminded me so much of New York.  I was under the weather for a couple of days and wasn’t sure if I was even going to be able to go, but I made it!  Enjoy the photos!

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This weekend marks my second weekend in a row of professional development, so I am a bit burned out.  However, this weekend’s workshop is in Guangzhou (Gwong-Joe) which is about 2 hours north (west or east) of Shenzhen.

As we were heading to the conference in the school van, I realized how much I miss driving and the freedom it brings.  It made me homesick for road trips.  Sometimes, people have a tendency to not always appreciate a moment when it is happening.  It takes a hard times or some just good old reflection to understand what you had.  Well, I never felt that way about road trips.  I always knew how much I loved them, especially with a coffee in my drink holder, my favorite music blasting, and the open road in front of me.  It was nice today to have a bit of that, even if it was in a crowded van with seven other relative strangers at six in the morning.  Sometimes, you just have to take what you can get.

After the first day, we decided to head to downtown Guangzhou, we took the hotel van for part of the way, and then fumbled the rest of our way to our destination through the congested subway system. I felt like a sardine within the deluge.  We had heard about this walking street called Beijing Lu which essentially turned out to be a bunch of shops with various restaurants in between.  However, we did find a bit of history.  Underneath the street, under some glass, was the original entrance floor to the Ming Gate, for the Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644AD). Very cool.

When we first arrived at Beijing Lu, I spied this old building behind a construction site.  It’s sad to say but it does seem that the ‘Old China’ is being knocked down to make way for more modern buildings, particularly for the Asian Games that are taking place soon.  So I just figured that it was worth a look, but probably won’t be much, so we waited until we were about to head back to the subway.  Boy, was I glad we checked it out.

We walked down this uneven path as the sun was going down, and headed into an actual construction site.  I was lucky because the people that I was with just walked in, right past the guard.  In my mind, a guard means stop and had I been alone, I probably would have turned around. So, I hesitantly followed and amidst the yellow hats and blue coveralls, was this grand but lovely Buddhist temple.  Inside, were three large, gold Buddhas, right there amongst the noise, rubble, concrete, yelling men, and dust, smiling at me.

Within this temple compound, there was incense burning and it reminded of being in church with my family when I was a child and my heart felt peaceful.  As I walked around, minding the holes and cracks, there was a shrine of flowers.  Unfortunately, we could not enter the building that housed these heavenly statues which I understood, but was still sad about.  It would have been good to just go in there and calmly sit surrounded by the angelic aroma and shiny Buddhas gazing down upon me.  I wish we had gone there when there was more daylight so we could have stayed longer, but I am so glad we were able to see it at all.  Even though it was off-limits, behind large gates, there was a feeling of tranquility.  I googled it when I got back to the hotel, but I couldn’t find this particular shrine anywhere.  It was as if I had discovered a celestial secret.

Even though I could not stay for long, I thought that maybe it is just these beautiful small moments that fill our souls to remind us of how wonderful life is.  Maybe this weekend isn’t as bad as I thought.

Below are some photos of Guangzhou, the crowded subway, the temple, and some other shots I thought were interesting – enjoy!

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For those of you that don’t know, I have a website dedicated to my photography.  My friend Aaryn of aaryn.com recently updated my site to include Asia.  Please check it out when you get a moment!

http://www.butterflyonsleeve.com/index.html – enjoy!

So last weekend I went to pick up two dresses that I had made in Lowu (Low-woo).  I was really excited because I think they are super cute and I haven’t had new clothes in like, forever.  However, last weekend I was exhausted.  I almost can’t imagine being more tired than I was. The only reason I left my apartment was to pick up these dresses.

The taxi ride to this place is about 30 to 45 minutes depending on traffic.  We get there and it’s kind of a nightmare.  It’s hot and busy; the people I am with want to make about 4,000 stops before we get to the dresses.  You know the feeling. So we get to the tailor and guess what?  My dresses aren’t ready.

I would have just told him to forget it, but I had already put down a deposit and they had my original dress, the one they were copying.  Plus, his English was limited at best. I was also afraid to speak because whatever I would have said at that moment probably wouldn’t have come out very nice.  I just walked away.  I was over it.

Arranging to pick up the dresses again was not an easy matter.  Lowu isn’t a place I feel comfortable going to by myself.   The long ride and crowded conditions aren’t easily navigated so a buddy is a must.  I recruited my friend Tammy and we had planned to go Sunday.  Neither of us really wanted to go because were at the tail end of a two-day conference on teaching English Learners. But next weekend was out because we are registered for yet another two-day seminar in a city about two hours away from Shekou.  However, at the last minute, we rallied and decided to make the trek after the workshop today, so we could veg out all day tomorrow.

Surprisingly, we got there easily enough, with the usual white-knuckle taxi ride.  The dresses fit, I paid, and we left.  When we got to the taxi station, the line was huge.  Keep in mind that there is zero personal space in China and people will jump in front of you to get the next cab.  We simply did not feel like getting jostled.  So I suggested that we go to the Shangri La to get a taxi.

Now, the Shangri La is a hotel in Shenzhen that caters to Westerners – it’s about a five-minute walk from Lowu.  So Tammy and I enter through a side door, use the very nice modern bathrooms, and walk out the front entrance whereupon the doorman hails us a cab.  They assumed we were guests.  We let them. As we drove by the very long taxi line in the hot streets, I did feel a twinge of guilt for using my Western Card.  But then I thought, all’s fair in lines and taxis in China.

There have been the craziest thunderstorms around here lately.  There was a major one the other night.  The God of Thunder must have been sitting on top of my building because it was just booming.  Think windows shaking and car alarms ringing in the street below.  As for the lightening, I liken it to a red carpet event, with millions of flashes going off.  The sky was blazing, like someone had the sky’s light switch and was moving it up and down very quickly.  CNN reported that there were approximately 20,000 bolts of lightning that night.  It was relentless and right outside my window.

On a more relaxing note, I just got back from a foot massage.  It was 80 minutes long and included a back and neck massage, with hot towels. Did I mention it cost about $10 US?  I have had more massages here in China in 5 weeks than I have had in my entire life.  TSC.

Uh oh… just heard some serious thunder and saw giant sparkles in the sky.  Time to batten down the hatches!

There is something that I have witnessed several times which I am told is quite common here is Shekou.  I didn’t really want to write about it, but I realized it’s a must.

It’s important to carry an umbrella around right now because it rains often.  One minute it’s sunny, and the next the sky has opened up and it’s pouring.  The drainage around the city isn’t so hot and when it rains, there are lots of puddles.  This is where the concern lies.

It’s normal to see small children using trashcans and/or the streets as public toilets. Small children might just start to go, right there, and no one really even looks.  It’s quite normal.  Now please don’t get the idea that I am walking home and dodging and/or stepping over children doing this – I have seen many more children going in and out of restrooms. However, there it is.  Now, I am not sure if it’s a socioeconomic thing or what, but there is an article of clothing for babies that I call the Split Pant.  Most babies I have seen don’t wear diapers, they wear these Split Pants – think of a pair of shorts with the middle seam cut out.  When the baby has to go, the parent will simply hold the child away from them, and let them go freely.  I haven’t witnessed this yet, but told it’s only a matter of time.  And that’s where the worry with puddles comes in.

As you can imagine, I don’t know what I am stepping in when I step into a puddle.  It’s something I’ve never really had to worry about before.  So Friday as I was walking home trying to stay dry under my umbrella, I avoided any and all puddles.  It’s a bit of a game with friends because that’s just the way it is around here.  Needless to say, I am on the lookout for some knee high galoshes.

Below are some photos of a shopping trip a few of us took yesterday. Cheers!

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Okay, so I got my hair done last night and it cost me a pretty penny but this guy knows Western hair and that’s not the norm around here.  We end up going a bit blonder for me and he did a really nice job – I am dead seksi with my new do… however, I digress. The hair appointment was in Futian, which is about 40 minutes outside of Sheko.  It ends up taking about four hours to create this blondeness.  As a side, I have learned that everything in China takes a longer so it’s about 10PM by the time I get out of there.

So, my hair guy helps me find a cab, but here’s the thing.  I realized, as I got into the cab, exactly how vulnerable I was.  I don’t speak the language, it’s nighttime, and I have no idea how to get home.  I am completely dependent on this cab driver.  Completely.  Then something interesting happens.

We are on a lonely stretch of the road and the taximeter turns off, goes blank, and he pulls over.  About a million Lifetime movies go through my head at that moment.  All of the sudden, I am the cautionary tale on the news.  He starts to talk to me in Chinese, and when I tell him, in English, that I don’t understand, he proceeds to speak louder.  Yeah, still don’t understand you.  Anyway, it turns out that he was cheating me.  By turning the meter off, I get charged more (10RMB) because he has to turn it back on, and it looks like he had more fares.  Happy that I am safe; but steaming because there was literally nothing I could do.  10RMB is like a $1.00 but I was sitting duck, a target, and I literally had no say.   But when I think about it, I would rather that then a corny Lifetime movie… right?

Back to the blonde… I am in Noodle King tonight ordering my favorite hand-pulled noodles with peanut sauce for about $2US, and I feel this tapping on my hair.  At first I think that someone just passed behind me.  I mean – there is no personal space here.  But then it happens like three more times, so I turn around to find this girl and her brother looking at my hair.  They were running by and touching it.  It’s funny because they were giggling and the parents were just watching as they did this.  There was no, hey, stranger danger or don’t touch that (seksi) girl’s hair.  They just watched and I smiled as I realized I might be one of the first Westerners they have ever seen.  Like the other day on the subway, a woman was thisclose to me and was just staring (that was before the blonde even…).  It’s takes a little getting used to, but again, many of the Chinese people living here are from rural areas and have never seen a non-Chinese person.

Gotta learn to speak Chinese!