thankful.

At this point, it feels fairly futile to explain away blogging absence since it has been SO long, but needless to say...China internet problems. As always, my apologies.

Other than the sporadic availability of internet connections, life has been good since my last foray into the blog-o-sphere in October. Day to day life still looks the same: class in the morning, study in the afternoon, followed by a wonderful milieu of social activities. Initially, this new life pattern felt fabulous; a break from the hum-drum of the working world, a slower pace to enjoy and soak up life and evaluate new directions. However, after about four months of living the slow life, I'm gearing up for another change. Suggestions, anyone? Ideas on the table: Grad School, full-time China job, or move back to the beautiful US of A.

It truly has been a blessing to have this time, to step away from a life pattern that didn't necessarily feel like the most authentic fit, to move into a new environment and place that allows me to creatively envision a new way of being. Ahhhh. Also, as you can most likely tell, the new-ness of living abroad has worn off, and I'm moving into "evaluate life's deep meaning" mode.

In other news, I celebrated my second Thanksgiving abroad by actually participating in food making! A good friend was hosting Thanksgiving, and asked all participants to bring a dish. Considering how comfortable I feel in the kitchen, I hesitantly offered to bring mashed potatoes (how hard can THAT be?). However, after hearing the final anticipated head count (40), I began to fret. I can't even make food for ONE, let alone 40. Despite my discouragement, I persevered. I went to the grocery store and bought 20 potatoes to mash. You may think peeling twenty potatoes may seem like a fun way to spend your afternoon...but by potato 15, you're ready to do anything else. Anyway, after sloppily trying to cook and mash 20 potatoes, the final product was ready to bring to the Big Night (they didn't really taste all that awesome, but they got the job done).

Anyway, Thanksgiving was WONDERFUL...and I have to say that the meal was better than almost all the Thanksgivings I can remember at home (sorry Holle clan!). Everyone brought a dish to share, and despite our seeming inability to access ingredients, I was thoroughly amazed at how good everyone's food was! We had around 60 people in Mike's three-bedroom China apartment, and it truly was a beautiful time of sharing a meal with friends.

Although short, I unfortunately need to sign off.

Just a reminder to all my beloved---I'll be home from around December 20th-January 17th. Can I please see you? Save me a spot in your busy calendar!

Much love,

k

MIA

If anyone reads this post, I will feel amazed. Yes, I have officially been MIA for over one month...but I promise, this time it's not my fault! The lovely censored internet over on the East Side (of the world) has decided to wield its power once again, and block all of my favorite internet hot-spots. You've got it: blogger, facebook, youtube, and anything that would allow a person to stay connected with the world. Good news is...they have yet to block e-mail (whether or not that is actually good news I have yet to determine...but we're looking to stay positive here). SO, your question is...HOW ARE YOU ON THE INTERNET?! Well, dear loyal follower...I stole my roommate's computer, and she decided to invest in a wonderful VPN. For those of you that know me well, you know that I'm too cheap to shell out the monthly fee for a VPN. So, for now, using a stolen computer will work just fine. (Thanks, Pip).

SO, on that note, HELLO! Since it has been over a month (and a big month it has been), I'm going to give you the drive-by shooting of a life-update. I would add pictures, but since this is not my computer...I have no pictures to add. I think Lindsay Fendler tagged some pictures of me on facebook from her trip over the big pond, so you can check those out. Also, if I haven't responded to anything you've sent me on facebook, it's not because I don't like you...its just because I can't. Sorry. But, please do send me an e-mail! (katelynnrae@gmail.com).

SO, quick life update:

--STUDY: well, same old, same old. I'm still taking daily classes, and despite my best efforts, I still can't give up a social life for study habits. So, my Chinese is improving more slowly than it should be...but I'm enjoying myself thoroughly! I also feel that three hours a day of Chinese lessons is not a bad start; I just need to get in gear and put in the work outside of class needed to actually improve my minimal language skills.

--WORK: I turned in my sweet job voice recording for a new tutoring gig (mostly, I only stopped voice recording because I was finished with everything). SO, if you ever happen to enroll in an online English tutoring program...my voice may guide you to a higher English speaking ability. However, my new tutoring job is pretty awesome; its for a little 8 year old girl (Angel) who grew up in Canada and is now living in China with her family, and her mom wants her to stay fluent in English. Considering their driver picks me up (no public transportation for this woman!), they feed me Pizza Hut and I get to spend an hour playing Hangman and chatting...I think I hit the jackpot.

--FUN: Lets be honest, this is the most interesting category anyway. Life has been good to me recently. At the end of September, I had a dear friend Lindsay come and visit me in Beijing! It was a joy to have her here and share in my life for awhile. I took some time off of class, and we got to hang around Beijing, see many of the big sights and also just hang out and enjoy the great company of all the Beijingren. It was a great dose of home, and we enjoyed living life China style.

Also, the beginning of October marks a big anniversary for the PRC: their 60th birthday. In celebration of the founding of the Republic (and, of course, the Moon Cake festival), the whole country was able to enjoy 6 consecutive days off. To take advantage of this freedom, Matt and I decided to take a little trip up to Qingdao, a beautiful ocean-side city known for its German roots and great beer. We were able to spend a few days visiting some friends, sight-seeing, enjoying the water, warm weather, and having no commitments. We did some touring around the city, meeting new friends and seeing old ones, and relaxing on the rooftop of our great little hostel. It was a wonderful break from smoggy Beijing, and the little push we needed to get us to Christmas.

Speaking of Christmas...I will be coming home to Minnesota! I anticipate being in Minnesota from about December 20th to January 15th or so. I'll spend some time in Worthington, but also some time in the Twin Cities. PLEASE let me know if you'll be around, so we can be friends again and share some time together.

OK, my studies are attempting to call my name...but until next time I steal Pips computer, blessings and I hope to hear from you via e-mail!

zaijian,

katie

the 'jing thing

After one month in the new place, I'm still officially internetless. Yes, feel bad for me. Imagine how rough my life must be, how disconnected from the world I am, and how many sleepless nights I spend wondering what everyone is updating on facebook. Ok, so you've got it...I'm actually surviving fabulously sans-internet, but just haven't had the time to update the blog, e-mail my favorite people, or even stalk them online. Soon enough, my friends, soon enough. Why no internet yet, you ask? Well, let me tell you. Because, when in China, everything gets "China-fied". This means that a relatively simple task (like setting up a pretty essential utility) turns into a pretty exhaustive and intense process (travelling some distance, requesting internet access...I don't even know all of the details). Plus, with my language ability (pretty sure all I could chat about with the internet people would be their travel plans and family members), a trip to gather internet sounds about the last thing I want to do. Plus, I'm pretty sure all the talk about modems and internet connections may be a little above my level.

Anyway, HELLO! I hope this blog post finds you well. Actually, I hope that anyone even reads this blog post, since I have been such an inconsistent updater.

Life in the great Bei-jing is still going well; class, working odd jobs, and meeting great people is a recipe for a good life (or, at least a good stage in life).
Quick Update on all areas:
My Chinese classes are going well...although, I feel as though I've been going to class for almost two months (eeek!), and my Chinese skills are still bu hao (not good). If anyone has a sure-fire way to improve Chinese quickly, please do pass on the information. I'm pretty convinced that for a foreigner to truly learn Chinese, it would take a really smart person about three years...and even then, I'm not sure they would actually be "fluent". Anyway, regardless of the size of this mountain, I'm definitely heading in an upward direction. If you want to have a conversation in Chinese about your travel plans, going to the electronics market or sewing your buttons...you know who to call.
Work: as you may or may not know, I have been searching frantically for the last few weeks to find a part-time job. Although the life of a part-time student seems glamorous and worry-free, a girl's gotta eat. So, I went on a full-out job search, sending out countless resumes to English teaching companies to see what sort of teaching jobs I could find (teaching English is probably the quickest way to find a job). WHAT a response I got! Almost every place I applied to contacted me, making for a stressful week with constant phone calls from random Chinese people asking me if I "speaka zee English" and want an interview. Although truly a blessing, I was a little overwhelmed at the prospect of setting up so many interviews and finding a place to teach. So, after much heart-felt deliberation, I decided to pass on teaching with Easy Best English, Real Cool English, and other professional organizations, and took a part-time tutoring job that put some cash in my pocket and bought me a little time to work out what would be the best fit. In addition, I also recently got a job doing voice recording! Move over, James Earl Jones...Katie Wilson is sweeping Asia. Its actually a pretty great gig; I can head into the office whenever is convenient for me, and I get paid for the amount of time that I spend recording. I logged a couple of hours today, and actually almost enjoyed the work! At the very least, professionally recording "Chinglish" paragraphs is rather entertaining.
Booming Social Life. No update.
Just kidding. Although maybe not always the life of the party, I have truly been enjoying living and working in such a great city, and meeting and enjoying fabulous people. There is often the opportunity to meet new people who are doing really exciting work in all sorts of fields, to meet random people in class or on the subway and grab some lunch with them and hear their China story.

Well, I think it's time for me to sign off. I have good intentions of returning some much needed e-mails, so hopefully my energy stays up!

Until soon,
k

a belated return to the cyber-world.

I hate to do it...but I'm going to be "that" person. The person that sends out a mass apology for her absence in your life through her blog. Yes, not even a mass e-mail, but a blog post. As you probably know, I am still officially internet-less after the big move to the new apartment, and the times I find myself on a computer are few and far-between. Hopefully soon I will be a better friend and keep in contact with you. But until then, please accept my sincerest apologies, and feel free to e-mail me with your life updates.

Life in Beijing is great. It is starting to cool down a little bit (not much, but a little), which makes walking everywhere a little more bearable. The new apartment is fabulous; Pip and I are loving "settling in" and being able to finally feel at home. It's a great location, and it is warm and welcoming (so...please feel free to invite yourself over).
Language study is going alright; I finished my first book and am moving on to the second (yes, I finally made it to Elementary Spoken Chinese...slow, slow progress). I feel as though I spend three hours a day sitting in class, speaking with my teacher, and going home and memorizing twenty new words a night...and I still can only ask for directions.

Since the last post, I feel as though there have been several "oh, China" incidents (both great and not so great) that I have WANTED to blog about, but haven't been able to.
Biggest (recent) mafan issue to blog about: My visa.

So, after Pip and I moved into our new place, we needed to register with the local police. While we were at the neighborhood police station, I was told that my visa expired in three business days. I felt a little annoyed, since I had asked the company that issued my visa when it would expire, and they gave me some lame answer like "when your school wants it to". And, I asked my school, and they didn't know. SO, I found out about three days before it was to expire that I needed to get it renewed. Unfortunately, as a student, "renewing" your visa is a bit more complicated than it may seem. In order to apply for a student visa, apparently once you arrive to China, you need a physical exam (at a specific clinic, and the results take a week to process), plus you need various papers from various places. Once you get all of these things together, then you need to take them to the visa office, and submit for an extension. Once your extension is submitted, it takes about two weeks to process. Unfortunately for me, I had no idea.
SO, the morning I found out, I was in a mad-dash to get my visa done. I rushed out of my Chinese class at 10:15 in order to make it to the clinic in Beijing that does student physicals before it closed at 11. I show the driver the address (because of course I have no idea where it is), and assumed that he knew where it was. To his credit, he mostly knew where to go. Unfortunately, almost doesn't count. He dropped me off randomly (this is one of the many times my not-so-awesome Chinese didn't help me out), and I showed the address to someone else who pointed down the street. SO, I RAN down the street in flip flops and a backpack to get there in time. Once I'm in the building, I'm racing to get forms done...and then they ask for my payment. Which, of course I don't have since I wasn't expecting to do the physical. So, again, I run...this time to the ATM down the block, and then run back.
Once I got my money, I don't really understand what anyone is saying or what is going on, so I just follow people around. The first room I had to go to I got ushered into, urged to sit down, and then they had to draw my blood. Getting blood drawn by a little Chinese woman in a dingy room...not ideal. The following room was apparently some sort of an ECG. SO, I walk in to another dingy room, go behind this curtain, and lay down on this hospital-like bed. This little Chinese woman, who I didn't understand, took these metal clamps and clamped them to my ankle and my arm, and then motioned for me to pull up my shirt. SO, I pulled it up to my stomach, and she motioned very slyly for me to keep pulling it up...so I did, and then she motioned to my bra. Needless to say...I'm laying on this dingy table, exposed to this Chinese woman who is poking and prodding me, and putting monitors all over my chest. It was awkward, but pretty hilarious. The exam continued with an x-ray and all these other crazy little tests. The man who read my heart-rate printout seemed a little shocked my heart was beating so fast until I (tried) to explain to him that I was just running around like a madwoman.

Thankfully, despite all the craziness of running around town, I think my visa should be good to go. I need to go pick it up tomorrow. If it's NOT, then I need to head out of the country. I'm thinking Hong Kong might be a nice trip.

Anyway, a nap is calling my name.
More soon.

Miss you all!!

another word from the blogging machine.

I must say this: blogging twice in one week may be some sort of personal record. For those of you who wait daily in eager anticipation for the next words of wisdom and humor from China, don't get your hopes up. This will most likely never happen again. It's not even that I have much to say...it's that I just had a large mug of liquid energy (coffee), and am ready to conquer the world. In about 20 minutes, I will be able to do nothing other than lay around like a big lazy mess, so I must take advantage while I can. Also, there are a few dear people to whom I owe e-mails...trust me, I WILL get there. Soon.

But for now...more tales from China. On Tuesday of this week, my laoshi (laoshi is Chinese for teacher) invited my classmate Heidi and I to her parent's apartment to make jiaozi (a famous Chinese dumpling). It is times like this that I LOVE living in China. After class, the three of us made the trek from our school to ShangDi (one subway stop away). We arrived at her parent's place to a warm greeting from her mom, friend, and about 3 other people (maybe they were cousins? friends?). Anyway, I loooove Chinese hospitality. We were urged to sit down and relax in the cool airconditioning while her mom and company got everything ready to make jiaozi. We were served drinks, a barrage of yummy treats, and basically treated like royalty. AND THEN...the jiaozi was ready to make. Hopefully my laoshi will send me pictures soon so I can post them, and you can see. Making jiaozi is involves the use of small flour-based pancake-like things, of which you put in your hand and then put in the stuffing of your choosing (we had pork and celery). THEN, using special care and a lot of skill, you gently pinch the outsides together to make a dumpling. Once you put the jiaozi together, it must then be boiled to cook the meat inside. All in all, we probably made about 200 jiaozi (enough to feed a small army...or Heidi at least :). We were jiaozi machines. Most people choose to dump their jiaozi in either vinegar or soy sauce. Regardless of your sauce choice, the jiaozi is delish, and maybe one of my favorite chinese foods. Mmm, hen hao chi. (very delicious).
After the jiaozi, we sat around and chatted (meaning I sat there and smiled and nodded while everyone around me spoke Chinese, and tried to ask me questions that I couldn't answer). And then, our laoshi's friend/cousin/relation played us a beautiful song on this Chinese instrument (and, of course, I can't remember what its called...but you would most likely recognize it). It was great. I love being around Chinese people (hence, the reason I live here).

In other exciting and much anticipated news...WE FOUND AN APARTMENT. If you can't tell my the capital letters, I feel very happy about this. Yesterday we did a lot of looking; some places were OK, some were about the caliber of my last apartment (for those of you who visited, you know this means it was practically unlivable). SO, after much searching, deliberating, number crunching, and fighting with potential landlords...we landed a place. Pip and I are excited, and feel blessed to have found a relatively good space. In comparison with most Chinese apartments, it is great; no cracked floor tiles, the bathroom sink and shower drain into a DRAIN (no icky water floating on the floor). The living room is spacious, the place is clean, there is good light. It even came with a big, jolly buddha (unfortunately, he doesn't quite fit the look we're going for, so he'll have to go...) I will post pictures once we settle in.
Now that we found a place, I feel that I can officially offer you a place to stay. If you are even considering an Asian visit...consider it more seriously, because you now have a place to stay in a great location! We have an extra mattress, and truly hope that our place will be welcoming to all who wish to visit.

Ok, as promised...I'm crashing fast. I think my afternoon nap is calling my name (eat your heart out full-time employees, I can sleep during the day!).

much love and misses,
k

a weekend in the 'jing.

It is Monday afternoon, and I find myself at the end of my third weekend in Beijing. I was reflecting last night on elements of life in Beijing that seem "normal" to most of us foreigners who live here, especially the ones that have resided here for awhile, but how they may not seem so average to most.

One element that I love about this city is that it is such an international city; a melting pot for incredibly interesting people from every walk of life, every area of the world and each person's draw to China is completely unique and different. Also, as I have stated many times before...I find much enjoyment from observing the absurdities of Chinese culture. Let's have a peek into a weekend in the 'Jing...

Friday night, indulging in Beijing's variety, we decided to grab some Russian food in the Dongzhimen area. Now, I'm aware that Russian food may not seem so "out there", BUT, Russian food with a Chinese flare is always an adventure (and by "adventure", I mean amusing). My favorite element of the evening was the Russian duo performing on a stage at the front with a large, plasma screen TV behind them playing a cooking show (of course, who wouldn't watch to learn how to cook while listening to Russian music).

Saturday featured a visit from THE Michael Bumann (lovely to see a Minnesota face and bond over a shared love for our great state). After meeting up in Wudaokou, we hopped on the subway and headed down to the Forbidden City to one of Michael's favorite hole-in-the-wall Chinese joints. Of course, upon our arrival, the restaurant had been demolished in place of a newer, renovated shop. SO, we set back out in search of a hole in the wall...and we succeeded. We relished in a delicious plate of Kung-Pao Chicken laced with MSG, and some interesting leafy veggie. Afterward, we strolled around Tiananmen, musing how we get to call this beautiful and incredibly interesting place "home" (at least for the time being). It is also worth mentioning that we were asked for our picture 5 times during our little Tiananmen visit.
Saturday evening featured a celebration of the birth of the one and only Philippa Nelson (aka, my roommate). The evening commenced with a fabulous meal at our favorite neighborhood spot, Lush, followed by an evening of crazy dancing at Wudaokou's new hot spot, "The Chamber".

Sunday featured another celebration of Pip at our favorite neighborhood Xinjian restaurant, enjoying great chuanr and beer, the pinnacle of a Beijing summer evening.

I realize that as I'm wrapping up this post (I need to go buy some groceries) that this really isn't the most cohesive post. BUT...another glimpse into a weekend in the life.

until next time,
k

a day in the life.

Most excellent blogs about a life abroad give the reader, at one point, a peek into the daily world of life in another country. Since the majority of my energy is being poured into the occasionally-daunting task of "settling in", I thought I should pass on the information (and of course, I'm looking for any excuse to put off the Chinese study for a few minutes).

My time as a ZhongGuoRen has yet to reach one week, but I anticipate that many of my days will start to look similar as I settle into a routine.

7:15--rise and shine!
7:30--actually get out of bed (surprisingly, even though Chinese mattresses aren't known for being plush, it is STILL hard to get out of bed). Shower, brush the teeth, eat my over-priced Cheerios, decide which outfit I'd like to sweat through today.
8:30--head out of my temporary apartment at Dong Sheng Yuan, and walk through the apartment complex past groups of old women tai chi-ing, and 12 year old guards watching my every move.
8:35--walk out into busy WuDaoKou, past restaurants of all flavors (Xingjiang food being my personal fav), delicious piles of garbage, taxi cab craziness, and bikers galore.
8:47--arrive at my school, located on the 20th floor of a 23 floor office building. Push the button, wait among a throng of anxious Chinese buisness folk for the next available elevator
8:50--probably still waiting for the elevator
8:53--squeeze into an elevator meant for 15 with 20 other people
9:00--class starts. My class consists of myself, and my classmate, a delightful woman named Heidi from Tahiti. Heidi has been studying for a month before I arrived, and her Chinese is definitely better (and I'm pretty sure she's quicker than I am). Most of our class is spent speaking, which is actually really great and helpful. WELL, only time will tell if it's actually helpful...at this point, it seems almost like a hopeless cause
9:50--break from humliation
10:00--nose to the grindstone
12:00--after nearly going crazy, finally finished for the day. After class, a bunch of students usually wait around and grab lunch together. Today I ate with Heidi, Juan from Mexico, and Stephanie from US for a great (and cheap) Western meal. It was like music to my stomach after a barrage of very mediocre Chinese food.
1:30--nap. This is when I realize that I am indeed no longer a working woman...I can have a long lunch, head home, catch up on some news and e-mails, and grab a quick snooze. It's almost always at this point in the day that I say to myself "I love my life right now".
2:15--nose to the grindstone, again (except for days like today when I make up excuses not to study...blogging is a valid reason not to do work, right?).
3:00--I get distracted by facebook, e-mail, news and general problems related to an un-diagnosed case of ADD.
3:15--back to the grindstone
5:00--evening activity. So far, this has consisted of a wide variety of things. The last few nights, I have headed over to the East side of Beijing to hang out with Matt and others (a 40-minute trip each way). Tonight, it seems that my latest impulse purchase (Twilight) may occupy much of my evening.

If you are still reading this, you deserve the "great friend" award. So far, it seems that most of life consists of settling. Soon, hopefully, there will be tales to tell of adventure in the Far East, most likely consisting of much frustration, excitement, ingenuity and a little bit of good luck.

Until next time,
Zai Jian!
k