saturday began for me at about 3 am as i am still struggling with getting enough rest. jetlag is a weird thing! for awhile, the city is quiet, but it won't be long until the honking and sounds of life fill the air. we've enjoyed the panoramic view from our place on the 22nd floor. after downloading photos, posting them and then blogging for awhile, the rest of the house began to wake up and everyone ended up on my bed as they all took turns checking in with the outside world on facebook. we are pretty spoiled here, and it sure helps us feel like we're not so far away.
between laughing and sharing what was going on back home, we all marvelled at a city of 3.5 million people with the world's loudest and callingest rooster in all of the world. seriously, this guy begins at 4 and doesn't let up until at least 10. that would wear anyone out, but not mr. rooster. he must live on coffee! (which we don't as we haven't been able to find any coffee. but, we do have a lovely french press!!)
after a morning spent "in class" learning about the history and culture of this province, we prepared sandwiches from the bread we got at the superwalmart since we were responsible for the "main course" at a picnic with chinese students. peanut butter and jelly or honey, or if you were really adventurous, pb & banana. won't the chinsese students be surprised!
rebecca and i took becca to the market near our apt to score some supplies for the meal we will prepare on sunday as we are hosting our morning gathering time with friends and will then have a pot luck afterwards. should be interesting. the kitchen has two gas burners and a portable oven thing. i think we found some pasta in the cupboard and we bought chicken, tomatoes, onions, peppers and garlic (a ton of garlic!). who knows what we'll come up with!
sandwich making was a success, and we gathered our things for a quick busride (about $1 to transport our team of 7 girls) to the gates of the park. i don't remember the name of it, but it had lots of little chinesey buildings at the base of the mountain and it looked like there were perhaps restaurants. . . but above this was a flat picnic area with stone tables and places to mingle. at one o'clock, friends and students of our team began to arrive, and we enjoyed a feast of sandwiches and the snacks that our chinese friends brought. we snacked on tofu in some sort of soy sauce, lotus root marinating in some sort of battery acid sauce that was so hot i thought my eyes might explode! some bread (which is an interesting snack, especially since it was just some kind of dense, dry roll with no flavor, and nothing to put on it. chinese can't figure out why americans like bread so much, but they don't realize we don't eat it plain, either. oh well, this is what cultural exchange looks like in action!), watermelon, lychee fruit (a first for many on our team) and some small to-go containers of fried rice with the hottest spices sprinkled on top. we all had a great time mingling, snacking and getting to know each other.
we left our picnic supplies behind as we climbed to the top of a small mountain to reach a viewing platform at the top where we enjoyed thr view and had unhurried time to spend with the students. we talked about everything from barack obama to school choice to why chandler had a duck and a chicken on "friends," a show it seems many of the students watch. . . ALOT. we played a game that was awkward and hilarious and every last one of us enjoyed like crazy.
the rest of the day was spent experiencing some sights and activities that guiyang has to offer. after a dinner at a muslim noodle place (delicious) we managed to navigate the busride home by ourself and came home where we all promptly fell into the couches, exhausted from another very full day.
on a side note, i must say that i am pleasantly pleased, well ecstatic better describes it, over how well each and ever person on our team is acclimating. no complaining, much hilarity, easiness of relating, voyaging outside comfort zones, willingness to engage. . . i can't tell you how blessed i feel to be leading this team. for those of you who are parents represented here, let me tell you that you have raised some pretty incredible women, and they are making my responsibilities here a piece of cake!
rest easy, friends. . . a) you don't have jetlag, and b) your team here is exactly where they are supposed to be and are getting a real sense of why they have been dragged halfway around the world. eyes are opening and seeds are being planted.
and he is happy. i can't imagine why he wouldn't be.
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