Reunited

I spent three hours scrubbing and cleaning the apartment last night in preparation of being reunited with my roomie, Theresa. I dusted the furniture in hopes that T would not spend her whole time in Wuhan sickly like I have... I even did my best to make the squatter look a little more presentable. To top it all off, I put some fruit in a bowl on the kitchen counter. I thought it made things look a little more like a home. I woke up bright and early this morning so I could make my bed, take a shower, and do my once a week ritual of blow drying my hair. I wanted to look presentable for my friend! I put the final touches on the place by setting Theresa's welcome to Wuhan present on her pillow to await her arrival. I left for the airport around noon and drove out in a taxi to the airport. It took about an hour to get there. I ate a KFC chicken sandwich and paced back and forth inside the arrival gate. When they made the announcement that her flight had arrived I secured a close spot at the baggage claim exit. I had no idea how excited I was going to be to see my friend again. My heart was racing when she walked through the door! I knew that Wuhan was finally going to be a little bit of fun again! We caught a taxi to sit in for the next hour while we caught up and chatted about work. We set Theresa's things in the apartment and then went out for dumplings. After dumplings we attempted to walk to the river, but I once again did not know how to get there so we just got a taxi before we were lost. We explored the shops and I bought another bracelet, a hanging sun made from a coconut, and tons of kuàizi (chopsticks) - some for me some for home. We went through snack street and ate fried bananas! Then we went to the river to do some people watching.

Yes... he's dead. Not really sure what he is. Poor guy.

There are always interesting people hanging by the river. After the sun started to set we walked back through snack street and tried some chuan (pronounced- chwar). I could literally eat only one bite. It was so spicy that my mouth tingled for like 10 minutes. I guzzled down my watermelon juice to try to coax my lips into feeling normal again.

We perused the night market and then headed home.

I am happy to have my friend with me in Wuhan. I only have three more nights here. Wow.

Mandarin lesson:
Bù hǎo 不好 (no good)

Misty eyed

No... I did not fall in love with The City of the Yellow Crane. I do not stay up at night thinking I could call Wuhan my home. I am not devastated that I will no longer have to squat over a hole in the ground and call that my toilet. But- I am a little misty eyed.

Why? You loathe Wuhan!

Well, because of this girl-

I am so lucky to have met Candy. I am horribly sad that I will probably not see her again. I am trying to convince her to come visit me in Beijing, or even better, America! However, knowing how much money she makes I doubt she will be able to afford the trip. Candy is the one good thing I can always count on in Wuhan. She has been such a wonderful friend. I am sure I will be boo-hooing my eyes out on Wednesday when I have to say goodbye. I was almost boo-hooing my eyes out today just knowing that the time is coming so soon. Candy makes me think that Wuhan is really not so bad. Sue and Leslie- you two are lucky that you have such a wonderful assistant!

Four more days until I am back in Beijing.

PS- I finished reading The Help. Check out the discussion on my Book Club page. Also, I will be starting Room by Emma Donoghue on Wednesday (America's Tuesday night). I think it is going to be an awesome read.

Mandarin lesson:
mèimei 妹妹 (little sister) Kū 哭 (cry) Wǒ xiǎngniàn nǐ. 我想念你。(I miss you.)

Chuckles from children

always have me smiling =)

After morning classes today Candy and I spent our usual 30 minutes playing with the kids who stay behind after class. Thursday is a day when pretty much every student is a member. Classes pretty much run smoothly and the parents are all interested. I have grown to really appreciate many of the adults that come to class. In the morning it is mostly grandmothers and in the afternoon it is mixed between just mom or mom and dad. The involvement that families take in their children's education is unparalleled to anything I have witnessed in America. It is truly a whole nother world over here.

One of my favorites (am I allowed to have favorites?) was running around the gym after class today. I decided to go in and visit with him and his grandma. The only words I have ever heard grandma speak to me are, "xiexie laoshi," and, "laoshi hao." Meaning thank you, teacher and good teacher. These are words that I enjoy hearing. Chuen Chuen, the adorably round-faced little boy with the heartbreaking smile, is her only grandchild. Seriously, even when this kid is screaming crying he is unequivocally precious. Because this week is Going Buggy week at Romp N Roll, we have fake flowers placed around the gym. Chuen Chuen found a stuffed red rose and brought it to me and sealed the deal with a peck on the cheek. I am pretty sure he is a one-year-old and I am pretty sure I wished he were my boyfriend. He ran a few circles around me while I grabbed him and tickled him to the ground. His laugh is the sweetest thing in the whole world. It will literally bring tears to your eyes. After our tickle-fest he curled up next to me and we pretended to nap. I started fake snoring and he echoed my snorts.

It's not possible for me to actually be totally in love with working in Wuhan is it? I absolutely love working at this center. It is a shame that I pretty much despise the city that it is in. At least work is something I look forward to every day.

Mandarin lesson:
Ài 爱 (love) Wěn 吻 (kiss) Nán péngyǒu 男朋友 (boyfriend)

I am not a child

I was starting to feel a bit like ninety or ninety-three-year-old Jacob Jankowski as I was trying to purchase my usual dinner, noodles, at the market tonight. "Wǒ yào zhège," I said as a pointed to my noodles, I want this. The woman looked at me like she had no clue what I said. Please keep in mind I buy the same noodles for dinner from the same woman at least three times a week. I repeated myself, "Wǒ yào zhège," pointing a little more furiously this time, hoping that my sharp point would jar her memory of the only white girl on the block. She scooped it up and put it in a bag to go. "Rèdiǎn," I explained, hot. She shoved the cold noodles in my hand. "No," I repeated, "Put them here," I gestured to the hot grill. She spoke a lot of unfamiliar words to me and continued pressing the noodles towards me. "Bù xǐhuan lěng," I informed her, I don't like them cold. She continued talking a lot of nonsense to me. I had now begun making a scene, as I saw the crowd forming around my once favorite noodle counter. The lady behind me in line tried to sound all snide and intelligent when she remarked in English, "It hot now." Already knowing absolutely no one was going to understand what I was saying I went off on a tangent about how I did not want to ruin my noodles by heating them in the microwave. I can tell they are cold by feeling them. I would just like for her to take the 30 seconds of time to place them on the hot plate so that I can have a good dinner. There was never a night that this was a problem in the past. Why can't you just heat up by darn noodles?!?! They stood there silently for about 3 seconds and then the bag lady set down my cold noodles in front of me and started helping someone else. Another man behind the counter said, "Rèdiǎn," as he motioned for me to feel the container that housed my cold noodles. I said, "No.. they are lěng and why won't anyone listen to me?" I placed sān yuán in his open hand and sulked away. I am not a child, I thought as I shuffled out the door.

Mandarin lesson:
Qǐng rè de. 请热的。 (Please heat this.)