My Chinese classes used to be mostly in English but now my class is majority in Chinese. It makes my brain hurt but I can understand most of it. What I don't I have been told I will get eventually.
This lesson is reviewing a dialog in our book. Mali and Luolan are discussing something they read. Luolan asked Mali if she understood the reading and Mali says yes. She uses the word for some which in Chinese can be used with or with out repeating what is the some of. In this case Mali says that she understood some of what she read and some she did not. She asks Luolan if she can repeat the reading and Luolan answers of course.
Liu Wei Wei then illustrates the different ways to use of course.
Can you sing a song? Do you wash clothes? In your home do you do housework? At home do you cook? Dang Ran!!!
Awake, thou wintry earth -Fling off thy sadness!
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forthYour ancient gladness!
~Thomas Blackburn, "An Easter Hymn"
June is finally here.The flowers are just beautiful here. The roses, bogenvelias, purple and white flowering trees are providing pleasant scents throughout the neighborhoods.June marks my 9th month anniversary of my stint in China. I feel fairly confident in my arrangement here. I have a strategy and a routine. I have been enjoying getting to know Kunming more.
Earlier this year, around March, I was really struggling to go to school, get out of bed, or go outside. This was a typical 6th month culture shock way to feel and for those of you who knew about this struggle and kept me in your thoughts, Thank you so much, for those of you who are hearing about this for the first time I want to tell you that it was a hard couple of weeks but that as my dear friend Laurel told me once, “Winter is not forever” and neither did my struggle to live and be happy here in Kunming.The kicker to this rough time in my life was the bus system, here in KM.
The day was cloudy and I was tired and really didn’t want to get out of bed, not that I ever do but that day it seemed even harder. I dragged myself out to the bus stop and waited for a bus. Now this morning there were about 25 people waiting at the stop. When bus number 56 drove up about 15 of the 25 people (including me) moved toward the bus, which had like two people on it. I happened to be very near the door once the bus driver opened it and the only person who was in front of me was a very old woman who was all hunched over. She had some difficulty getting on the bus, so I stepped up on the first step and just waited until she got further on the bus, however the entire time (5 min) I was just standing in the doorway of the bus the people behind me were pushing me and not once but the entire time and as I made my own way to the rear of the bus it took all my strength not to lean backward to prevent people from getting on the bus fast.Right there I knew that I would not be able to love these people. Father would have to bring me to a loving place.
Father has brought me through that valley of mild death and I am again enjoying and loving KM these days.In the beginning of May, I traveled to Dali City with a friend and I have been exploring some of Kunming’s own gems, such as Xi Shan Mountain, Da Guan Gong Yuan Park, and Shi Lin Park. I even attended my first Chinese wedding! I am looking forward to the approaching summer and all the events that are ahead of me. I have several people who desire to visit me, a possible trip back to the states for a couple of weeks, and a trip out to the leprosy clinicat the end of July.
My class at school has grown from four people all from England or America to ten people, five of which are from Thailand and do not speak English. This has been very good for me, although extremely hard, because I have to communicate with them in Chinese.Yunnan has had a record drought this year and so my school took our entire class out to a village to donate water and school supplies. I was really excited to go and be a part of this trip and then it got canceled and rescheduled to a day that I had agreed to babysit. But my class went and I look forward to being able to go on the next trip and sharing my stories with you.
One week ago (as I write this), April 14, 2010, a 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck the Qinghai Province in western China killing 2,039 people. I did not feel the physical affects of the earthquake (Qinghai is north of the Yunnan Province, bordering Tibet).Many of the NGO’s in KM are trying to figure out how they can help this area of China, since it is highly restricted to Chinese government organizations.
Please continue to petition Father for my growth in Him, that His love would grow in me in order that I can love those around me, for the thousands of people dealing with grief and destroyed lives due to drought and earthquakes, lastly for my language skills to continue to grow.
I have recently found that my irritations here are not only special to me. Although I deal with these irritations slightly differently than Whitney does, for I only text vent or call a friend, whereas Whitney vents on her blog. Because I forget to include you in my daily issues, this is relatively helpful for me. In this particular post Whitney discusses the joys of a large, normal sized trash can. I concur. However, where Whitney just takes her trash out daily, I have just added more tiny trash cans scattered throughout my home. Enjoy!! http://whitneyheins.blogspot.com/2010/06/coveting-your-trash-can.html
Right round the corner from my apartment is this vast apartment complex and one of the many wonders it hold is a gym. So, around March I joined it. I have been pretty chicken up until last week. The gym has a variety of lovely options for one who wants to stay in shape. There are weights, treadmills, elliptical machines, stationary bikes, spinning, ping pong tables, pool tables as well as a nail salon and spa.
I have attempted to have a steady exercise routine in the past but once more I am going to try it again. The immense choices here I hope will keep my interest piqued.
Last week or so Whitney and I ventured into the Hot Yoga room to partake of an evening of sweating and holding our own weight suspended from the floor. But the true joy of this place, for me, is the dance classes it offers. Now after last night Whitney and I have decided to take in a different class every week.
My great intention is: Every Tuesday night go to Hot Yoga, Every Wednesday to go to Ballet, and then on Friday, Saturday, or Monday (one of these days) to go to one of the following:aerobics, body balance, classical dance, latin dance, folk dance, belly dance, body combat, hip hop, new jazz, or latin aerobics.
The options are endless for a while. I am currently very excited about the future weeks!! I will try to keep you updated on how long this exercising streak lasts!!!
If anyone has ever wanted to try out body combat just let me know and we can check it out together!!!
The beginning of May I turned 30!It was a fairly fabulous birthday. I traveled with my friend Faye, to a small old town called Dali.
There we spent three nights and two days in one of the most peaceful little towns I have been to yet.
A Group of Men Playing Mahjong.
Saturday we woke leisurely and meandered through the center of town amidst thousands of Bai Festival participants.
This man was making cotten candy using his bicicyle!!! How cool is that??
These green chicks were accompanied by orange and blue siblings!! What are they feeding the chickens in China??
Maybe these green noodles??
On our way through the middle of Dali we came across two men butchering an animal, I am convinced that it was a horse.
We attended a musical performance
Thought we were lost for a short while as we followed the map to the mountain lift.
We finally found the National Geopark of China!!! Check out that Dinosaur picture!!!
Riding a ski lift up the mountain. This ski lift ride was easily a 45min ride up the mountain through a Chinese grave yard.
It would have been an amazing haunted chair lift ride if we had been riding it at night. We ate a lunch of noodles and toured a Buddhist temple, then we rode back down the mountain.
I was surprised that the crowds had not disperssed.
We had high tea at an adorable little sandwich shop.
Faye and I then went to see the Catholic church that was established in Dali in 1927.
On Sunday, we lounged until almost 1 and then ventured into the town to window shop and eat yak steak.
It was delicious. We had diet coke and fresh squeezed orange juice and the most delicious brownies we had had in a long time.
Faye and I returned to our adorable hotel (The Sleepy Fish) where I proceeded to open all of the Birthday wishes that were brought to me by a friend in the beginning of April.
As you can see I was gifted a puffer fish toy which I named Ronnie, I was also gifted an octopus stuffed animal which I named Gerald. They are fond reminders of my family.
Thank you so very very much to all my family and friends who sent birthday greetings to my company. I got them even a little early!!
They provided much happiness. As I hope you can tell.
