Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Life in the DAIS Apartments
The New Year dawned for me in Hawaii, but on January 3rd I flew back to China via Seoul, Korea. You know how I lived December 21 twice? Well I lost most of January 3rd and 4th. Getting into Seoul at 5:30 p.m on the 4th, I missed the one early afternoon flight a day to Dalian. So I had an almost 24 hour layover in Seoul. I found an airport hotel and promptly slept like the dead for twelve hours! It was a great way to transistion to Asian time, but I missed out on the few daylight hours that I had to see anything in Seoul. Oh well, the Incheon airport is gorgeous and there are a million shops to wander through and delicious food to eat.
I was picked up at the Dalian airport by a school driver and of course the first question I asked was whether I was going home to the apartments or back to the Kerren Hotel. Happily the reply was that I was going to my apartment!!! At long last, I had a home. The month of January was spent making forays into a Costco like store called Metro. There I was able to outfit my apartment with bedding, towels, cleaning supplies, area rugs and cupboard organizers. Metro and the A
nshan market in KaiFaQu supplied basic food supplies as well as weekly groceries. Who would have thought that I would be thrilled to be housekeeping again. But after 4 months of hotel life, it was simply pleasant to be cooking, cleaning and doing laundry for myself! Okay so now that more than a month has passed, the hrill is gone, but it lovely to have a place to cozy into and given how small the place is I can clean it stem to stern in about an hour. The construction dust that gets kicked up on the grounds does mean that a thorough cleaning is necessary each weekend, like it or not.So I have a home sweet home here in JinShiTan and it is swell to come home from school, kick off my shoes and fix dinner. There is a wonderful market each Saturday in the village of JinShiTan proper and it is a lively place to find fruits and vegetables. There is also a school van that one can take into town (KaiFaQu) Tuesday and Thursday evenings if you want
to visit the Trust Mart grocery. And also each Saturday, the van goes to the big Metro store so I can pick up those western staples that I am sometimes craving.... cheese, bread, peanut butter, brownie mixes.There is also a great village just up the road from the apartments about a 15 minute walk. The shop keepers and villagers have gotten over the shock of westerners appearing in their
doorways. The first visit that Leslie and I made we each bought a gallon of water and fruits and veggies. We happily carried our goods home only to discover that the gallon jugs of water that we had bought were in fact "firewater!" The smell is quite potent and our first exeperiment to see if the liquid was actually flamable flopped miserably. The jug now acts as a useful doorstop to hold open the small patio door each night. We joke about taste testing the rot gut, but I value the health of my liver and I can find really fine Jameson Whiskey and good Grey Goose Vodka which suits my taste much better. The ROT GUT purchase does make a great story though. Illiteracy has its drawbacks.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Winter Vacation in Paradise
So the winter school break from December 21st to January 7th found me on my way to Hawaii. I flew from Dalian to Seoul, Korea on December 21st, leaving a t2:30 in the afternoon and arrived in Hawaii at 8:30 a.m. on December 21st. Wrap your mind around that one! I had a hard time doing that and also found myself in culture shock as I spoke English and was understood!
I rented a car at the Honolulu airport and after five months of not driving experienced another round of culture shock. Each car stays in its own lane. So three lanes of traffic are really only three lanes. Lo and behold huge trucks, buses and vans do not turn in front of you. In awe and wonder I drove to Kailua on the eastern side of the island of Oahu. The drive was gorgeous and the views that I had of the ocean with its multiple colors of blues was breathtaking. I was fortunate enough to stay in the apartment of a friend of Tanya's who was on the mainland!
After settling into Kailua, I called David Stodden and Elisa and Joanna who were staying with David's brother, Bob on Oahu. Well, guess what? It turns out that they were at Waimanela which was about 6 miles away from where I was staying. I immediately drove over and spent a glorious afternoon and evening playing in the ocean and eating hamburgers with them. David's brother, Bob and his family have a home right on the beach at Waimanela. Can you say beautiful, idyllic, paradise? What a treat to spend time with these dear friends and to bear witness to their continued courage and determination to carry on as a strong family unit. What a tribute Mary and Susanna.
Reid arrived on December 22nd and he and I played drove all over the island exploring beaches, snorkeling, eating local mixed plates, going to a rather tacky luau, strolling along Waikiki, getting sunburned and generally being good Hawaian tourists! We were able to spend another great afternoon and evening with David, Elisa nd Joanna. Reid and I had a grand few days together and I cannot express how fortunate I am to have children with whom it is so much fun to play. We missed Tanya, but know that she was with us in spirit and cheering us on in our adventures. We all hope to travel together this summer in China.
On the 27th, I flew to the big island of Hawaii and spent a glorious week there adventuring with Roger. We stayed in a funky, but sweet place in Hilo and then drove to the northern part of the island to stay for several days in Ka'apu and Hawi. I was able to spend time with my dear friend, Robyn Skudlarek and to finally meet her sweetie, Clark. They live in a beautiful home surrounded by jungle. It is an amazing setting and it was great to visit and catch up with Robyn.
Roger and I hiked, lay on beautiful beaches and drove around to see the variety of climes of the area. We also had humpback whale sightings everyday. We were even able to see them breaching.... what amazing creatures!
The last days that we were on the island we drove to the volcano and did much touring there. We stayed in a beautiful lodge for New Years. It was very elegant and made for an exceptionally special way to welcome 2007.
We saw a great deal of the volcano and the areas that have had lava flows in the last several years. We hiked for quite a way to where the lava is spilling into the ocean, but did not make it all the way as the hiking on the lava is arduous and we were concerned that we did not have the right gear for hiking out in the dark.
It was a grand week with Roger and while we barely made a dent in all there is to see and explore on the big island, I feel like we did alright for ourselves and enjoyed each other's company. Life is good!
While I was on vacation I heard that there had been an earthquake in Taiwan and that fiber optic cables had been damaged crippling the internet connections between Asia and the United States. Upon arriving back in Dalian, I have found this to be true. I am not able to access my email very often and Skype connections are almost impossible to make to all my loved ones' phones. Reports are that it may take until the end of January and possibly into Febraury for all to be fixed! So know that I am thinking of family and friends and will try to post although blogspot is very hard to access too. Wish me luck and send me energy. Love to all.
I rented a car at the Honolulu airport and after five months of not driving experienced another round of culture shock. Each car stays in its own lane. So three lanes of traffic are really only three lanes. Lo and behold huge trucks, buses and vans do not turn in front of you. In awe and wonder I drove to Kailua on the eastern side of the island of Oahu. The drive was gorgeous and the views that I had of the ocean with its multiple colors of blues was breathtaking. I was fortunate enough to stay in the apartment of a friend of Tanya's who was on the mainland!
After settling into Kailua, I called David Stodden and Elisa and Joanna who were staying with David's brother, Bob on Oahu. Well, guess what? It turns out that they were at Waimanela which was about 6 miles away from where I was staying. I immediately drove over and spent a glorious afternoon and evening playing in the ocean and eating hamburgers with them. David's brother, Bob and his family have a home right on the beach at Waimanela. Can you say beautiful, idyllic, paradise? What a treat to spend time with these dear friends and to bear witness to their continued courage and determination to carry on as a strong family unit. What a tribute Mary and Susanna.
Reid arrived on December 22nd and he and I played drove all over the island exploring beaches, snorkeling, eating local mixed plates, going to a rather tacky luau, strolling along Waikiki, getting sunburned and generally being good Hawaian tourists! We were able to spend another great afternoon and evening with David, Elisa nd Joanna. Reid and I had a grand few days together and I cannot express how fortunate I am to have children with whom it is so much fun to play. We missed Tanya, but know that she was with us in spirit and cheering us on in our adventures. We all hope to travel together this summer in China.
On the 27th, I flew to the big island of Hawaii and spent a glorious week there adventuring with Roger. We stayed in a funky, but sweet place in Hilo and then drove to the northern part of the island to stay for several days in Ka'apu and Hawi. I was able to spend time with my dear friend, Robyn Skudlarek and to finally meet her sweetie, Clark. They live in a beautiful home surrounded by jungle. It is an amazing setting and it was great to visit and catch up with Robyn.
Roger and I hiked, lay on beautiful beaches and drove around to see the variety of climes of the area. We also had humpback whale sightings everyday. We were even able to see them breaching.... what amazing creatures!
The last days that we were on the island we drove to the volcano and did much touring there. We stayed in a beautiful lodge for New Years. It was very elegant and made for an exceptionally special way to welcome 2007.
We saw a great deal of the volcano and the areas that have had lava flows in the last several years. We hiked for quite a way to where the lava is spilling into the ocean, but did not make it all the way as the hiking on the lava is arduous and we were concerned that we did not have the right gear for hiking out in the dark.
It was a grand week with Roger and while we barely made a dent in all there is to see and explore on the big island, I feel like we did alright for ourselves and enjoyed each other's company. Life is good!
While I was on vacation I heard that there had been an earthquake in Taiwan and that fiber optic cables had been damaged crippling the internet connections between Asia and the United States. Upon arriving back in Dalian, I have found this to be true. I am not able to access my email very often and Skype connections are almost impossible to make to all my loved ones' phones. Reports are that it may take until the end of January and possibly into Febraury for all to be fixed! So know that I am thinking of family and friends and will try to post although blogspot is very hard to access too. Wish me luck and send me energy. Love to all.
