4--Walking in the rain

Sunday June 13, about 9:20 pm

Hi out there you all:

Where is the time going??? Today, Ashley and I holed ourselves in my apartment and brain-stormed about the oral exam we have to give the students on June 26, and 27. We are almost finished. Just have to fine tune it, and get some details from the Department, such as will there be another teacher besides us judging the exam? We hope so, but no one knows yet. After all, why rush these decisions? There is still almost 2 weeks left! Of course the students are getting very nervous about it--we are both spending extra time in the evenings helping with oral English, for those who want it. The opportunity to go to Yangshuo exists for 10 of them, but we won't know which 10 until after the exams. Right off the top of my head, I can think of at least 20 out of the 105 that should go. It will be difficult! The good news is that Ashley and I get to travel with these 10 students. We will all take the train to Yangshuo on about July 6. I have learned from Owen that I will be teaching in Yangshuo for summer school in July. I don't know who I will be teaching yet, but it will be nice to be in Yangshuo for a month or 6 weeks or so--see Maisie, and other people--play in Yangshuo.

I have told you about the 11-year old girl who always is so excited to see us--she gave Marcia and I a photo of herself as a baby when we first got to Yangshuo. Her name is Xiao Dan. Well, one day she came up to me on the street, very excited, and gave me some sheets of beautifully written Chinese! They were ones she had done for school, so I was very pleased and moved that she wanted me to have them. They had the teacher's comments on them--very good, excellent. Of course I can't read them, so I told one of my classes about them, and asked if anyone wanted the challenge of translating them into English for me. I told them I didn't want details, just the general idea of what the writings were about. Well I have 5 out of 6 back--each story is a little piece of magic. There is a story about the Spring Girl, about The Moon and I, Moon and Stars, A Mother's Love. I can't remember what else right now, but when the students give me back the translations, I give them a reward--2 packages of QQs (my favourite Chinese candy--they are like ju-jubes, but much, much better! I also ask the translator to read the stories in class. One day I will write one of the stories in an email to share with you.

A week ago Friday night, Ashley and I were out on our regular walk, and it started to rain. We had baseball caps on, so the rain didn't get into our eyes. We knew it would rain. We got about half way around our circuit and it started to absolutely pour buckets!!! Then to our horror, it started to lightning and thunder. We were about to cross a bridge when it flashed lightning. We ran across the long bridge, not wanting to get struck in the middle of the bridge--we would be the highest points. We made it to the other side before the lightning struck again--just barely. It was pouring harder and harder. We were soaked through--even our shoes were sloshing. We got back to the main part of the town into a little dip in the road--well the dip was full of water and there was no way around it, so we walked through it--half way up our calves! After that we were so wet, we didn't even try to find a way around the rivers that were running down the streets. One you get wet, mei guang xi! (it doesn't matter!) We started to laugh of course--that made us appear even crazier to all the Chinese people who were waiting out the storm in various shops. We laughed so hard we could hardly walk!! It was actually a lot of fun, but once we got home--we had JUST gotten in our doors, and all hell broke lose out there--thunder, lightning--much closer and faster than before. The next day it was as if it hadn't rained at all! A real gulley-washer, as we say.

The full moon was June 2 and it didn't disappoint me!! It was big, bright and beautiful. One night a few of the students took me down to the river to have a drink and we saw the big dipper!!! How exciting is that, to see my familiar mark in the sky--backwards and sort of upside down on the other side of the world!!

More and more students want to spend time with us before the semester ends. Yesterday, some girls took us to a nearby lake to go boating. The life jackets were a big joke--I don't think they would save anything! One of the boats that we saw some of the male students in had such a big leak, it looked like a fountain in the bottom of the boat, and they were bailiing with a big hollowed out piece of bamboo. Fortunately our boat had no leak, but we did have 4 homemade paddle/oar-type things to try to go somewhere in the boat. There were 6 of us. A lot of people were swimming. I didn't want to put my body in the water--I don't trust the water not to have lots of yukkies in it! Anyway we had a lot of fun! When we got back to town, they invited us for dinner. After dinner we went for a walk to the riverside--many tables and chairs set up there and it is so much cooler! Very nice--we talked and laughed and laughed and talked! I love it by the river here. The night before another couple of students took me to the same place by the river and we talked and talked. They were two of my favourite students--LiLing and Tracy. LiLing actually came for a walk with me one night--we met at the school gate--neither Ashley nor Xiao Ting were going that night, so he asked if he could come with me. It was awesome. He spoke English for almost 2 hours and said he wasn't tired of it. He actually seemed surprised when I asked the question. Many times Chinese people say they get tired speaking English. Speaking of LiLing, one night I went in to the classroom and he asked me to sit with him and help him with some pronunciation. I sat down and was immediately attacked by mosquitoes around my ankles. LiLing was so sweet--he took a little book and fanned the critters away so I wouldn't be bothered by them. I really appreciated that! Helping in the classrooms is not just helping one person. I am instantly surrounded by 6 to 8 people all wanting to ask questions. They are very patient. If I am helping one, and someone interrupts--the first one just waits it out. It's kind of confusing for me to jump from one book to another, one dialogue to another, but we get it sorted out. The culture is so different. It is not rude to interrupt, but it is rude to refuse something. It is not rude to spit, or pee on the street, but it is rude to call an unmarried woman a "woman"--they are "girls" until they get married. So many things!

The advertising here is very different than at home--at least in some of the smaller towns. There are parades here--people marching, beating on drums and carrying banners, advertising milk, cigarettes, etc. They say it can't happen in the big cities because it ties up traffic. They also say that in the big cities people don't drive 4 or 5 on a motorcycle. It is actually against the law here, but there is no one that will stop them, so it continues.

The big pressure here last week was the National Exams! It is the biggest thing every year. There is so much competition to get into universities here--so much pressure from parents and teachers, and the students themselves to get high marks. Everything else takes a back seat to this event. It lasts 2 days. The first day, when Ashley and I walked past the Middle School near where we teach, on our way to lunch, there was a huge crowed outside the school. We just walked through the big opening in the middle, not knowing what was going on. There wasn't even any traffic on the road. This went on for 2 days. We finally found out that they block the road with barricades so there won't be any street noise to distract the students. The crowds of people waiting outside the school were the parents of the students! I told our students that I thought their job was just as important, because someone has to teach the future doctors, chemists, lawyers, mathematicians, etc. Our students graduated from "Normal School", (Teacher's College). When they graduated from Middle School before they went to Normal School, the National Exams weren't happening, so many students regret that they didn't have the chance to take the exams. But there really is a lot of tip-toeing around, guards, the whole works. Very serious business, these National Exams.

Well, I have discovered a new breakfast drink--there is a lot of powdered soy drinks here. They are actually pretty good! They are a little bit sweet, you mix them with hot water--they have also real milk, vitamins and minerals. I mix one packet of soy stuff with one packet of coffee and have an excellent breakfast! It is also lychee season. I hate them in Canada--they taste vile! My friend Max (he is in the US) asked me to have some for him--I told him I didn't like them, he asked me to try one anyway--in China--different from Canada. Well, I made a face and tried one, then another, then another. They are wonderful!! Fruit that is ripened on the tree is so much better than it ripening in a warehouse somewhere. So now I can say I like lychees!

Children's day is also very big here. Everywhere we saw children practicing for their performances--it rained a lot during the 3 days the performances were to be held in Centre Square, but we did see one of them. The little children are so cute, and so talented! Some of the older kids are really good too--dancing, singing, plays, everything. We got VIP seats of course! That was nice.

I think this enough for you to take in for now--maybe too much. Anyway, keep the emails coming--I love hearing about your lives.

Miss you...Love Mom/Judy

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