Qufu Train

We are finally at our new home in Qufu!  We took an overnight train last night.  This is us at 7:30am after a decent night's rest in a soft-sleeper car (which we shared with an older Chinese woman and a cute little Chinese girl).  Today we have walked around the university, found where to buy groceries, and slowly started setting up house.  We will post pictures of the apartment soon!

Chip's Chewables: 9 day traffic jam

"BEIJING — Thousands of vehicles were bogged down Monday in a more than 100-kilometre (62-mile) traffic jam leading to Beijing that has lasted nine days and highlights China's growing road congestion woes." (Click on the title to read the article)

The Great Wet Wall

The Great Wall of China

We walked up about 700 of these just to get to the wall!

Not the classic "Great Wall" shot I was hoping for. . .

Saturday we made the trek to The Great Wall of China.  Unfortunately, it was pouring rain and we had a heavy dose of Beijing smog. Our pictures aren't great, but it honestly was still a great day.  We chose not to ride up on the gondola, so we got a workout taking the steep steps all the way up to the wall.

A little history:  The wall was originally started during the Qin dynasty in about 220 BC!  What we think of today as "The Great Wall" was built during the Ming dynasty during the 1400s to keep out the Mongols, although much of it has been renovated since.  For our China savvy viewers, we visited the Mutianyu portion of the wall.

Mallary's First Hot Pot

Sweet potato, mushrooms, tofu, and yep, those are quail eggs (and nope, I did not eat them)

Hot Pot before we threw in our meat and veggies

The restaurant even provided aprons!

Our friends, Jan and Lloyd. They will be teaching in the birthplace of Hot Pot--Chongqing, China.

The Chinese have eaten hot pot for over 1,000 years.  Mallary had her first this week.  The outer ring contains fungus and green onions in a savory broth.  The inner ring contains spicy broth!  We ordered all sorts of raw meats (mostly mutton) and veggies, threw them in the broth to cook, and then pulled them out with chop sticks.  It was a fun meal.  They even served sweet tea gelatin with watermelon and raisins for dessert!

Chip's Chewables: Garbage Floods the Three Gorges Dam

"The recent floods in China, which have now killed more than 1200 people, have also swept an immense amount of trash to the Three Gorges Dam area, threatening to block the dam’s gates." (Click on the title to read the article).

Daylight Donut

We found a Daylight Donut here in Beijing!  We had already had breakfast when we stumbled across it, but we indulged in a second breakfast of apple fritter and coffee.  Delicious!

Chinese Karaoke!

I went out with some fellow teachers for Chinese karaoke. Students in China love to sing karaoke (and take it very seriously), so we are getting in some practice now before we get to our universities. Me and my friend, Jeanna, sang Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl." Me and Avery (in pink above) are pretending to sing to get warmed up.

Note: Chip is not in these pictures. Somehow he weaseled his way out of coming. . .

Qianmen

Qianmen is a new street in China that is made to look like the "old face" of China. It is a really beautiful street with a trolley that runs down the center. Off on side streets, you can see the "real face" of China. Check out the photos below.

We came here with some friends the other night to walk around, get dinner, and then do some class reading at a Starbucks. It was a delightful night!

Chip's Chewables: The Ant Tribes

"If you are a Chinese university graduate born in the 1980s, working an unstable job that pays less than RMB 2,000 per month, living in a shared RMB 350 apartment and spending over two hours a day travelling to and from work, then you're officially an “ant.” Welcome to the ant tribe."
(Please click on the title to read the article)

Danny, what would we do without you?

Danny is a student at Spring Arbor University in Michigan (where Chip & Mallary used to live and work), but he is a native of Beijing and home for the summer.  Danny was an ESL student of Chip's when he first came to America.  Two years after living and studying in the states, his English is fantastic.

Today Danny said, "You helped me when I came to America, now I am helping you in China."  And boy did he ever!  He helped us get cell phones and SIM cards.  He helped me figure out how to order vegetarian dishes. He also came with us to Wu-Mart, and translated product boxes so I would know what I was buying.  And he showed us a great whole-sale clothing market.  We are so grateful for his help!

Chinese Acrobatics

Tonight I went to a Chinese acrobats show.  It was an incredible performance of strength and flexibility.  I absolutely loved it!  As a former gymnast, I have great respect for their talent and training.

Check out some videos on youtube.

(We were not allowed to take photos, so I found these on Google images and they really do capture what I saw!)

The Three-Self Church

We attended the Wagashi Three-Self Church in Beijing last Sunday.  Three-self churches are controlled by the Chinese government, but are self-governing, self-propagating, and self-supporting. 

I was surprised to see people rush and press to get in the doors between services.  It was quite crowded in the sanctuary and there was even seating outside and in a separate room.  We got seats in the main sanctuary when some people sacrificially gave their seats to us because we were guests.  The Chinese are very hospitable.

The service was in Mandarin, but we were able to wear headsets with the English translation.  The sermon was about examining your heart for selfishness and arrogance--similar to sermons in the states.  Joy was truly evident on the face of the pastor!

(Sorry the pictures aren't great.  They are all I have, and I wanted to share the experience with you.  If you respond, please remember to follow communication guidelines.)

McDonald's Delivery

That's right.  McDonald's delivery in a backpack on a moped.  I'm lovin' it!

Temple of Heaven

The Temple of Heaven is where the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties came to sacrifice on alters and offer prayers to heaven for a good harvest.  Emperors were known as the "sons of heaven."  The Temple was built around the same time as the Forbidden City.  It is surrounded by a calm and quiet park which I much appreciated after a week in this loud and busy city. 

Our days this month are filled with classes on Chinese culture in the mornings and time to explore Beijing in the afternoons.  It is great to be able to go visit the places we are talking about in our classes.  China has such a rich history!

Read the information about the 70-year old door above--a fun little history fact!

Blueberry potato chips?

Check out these blueberry potato chips!  Crazy, huh?  But not half bad.  Thank you, China, for a little bit of variety in my diet.

The Forbidden City

We visited The Forbidden City--home to emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties (from 1425 to 1911).   It covers 7,800,00 square feet.  It is huge!  The last emperor lived there until 1926 (even after the dynasty had fallen).  If you haven't seen "The Last Emperor," it is a movie that I would highly recommend.