Christmas Day…humm…lets just say it was an adventure.

My first Christmas waking up to an empty house. I didn’t want to get out of bed as there just didn’t seem like any point. The usual hustle and bustle of Christmas morning was not there nor did I have the pleasure of looking forward to it. I finally dragged myself out of bed and over to the computer excited for my Christmas call home. I finally made it through but to my disappointment, as it was still Christmas Eve in the States, everyone seemed busy and some where not even home to chat. I did an unusually short call with and become rather childishly disgruntled by the whole thing.

I finally just turned my attention to the afternoon and weekend in Qingdao! One frustration of living alone is the fact that I have to remember to prepare the house for a trip. Mom thank you for all you do! I hate coming home to a dirty house which means the morning before a trip the usual list includes: laundry, dishes, trash, sweep, organize and close and lock up.

Christmas morning!

A few students dropped by to give me Christmas cards and Wendy dropped off a gift. I sat down and try to recreate a little Christmas opening my gift and reading cards. By 11 I was headed out the door to meet up with the  Gang at the train station.

Katie and Thomas invited a new friend along to join our foreign group for Christmas, no one should spend Christmas alone. The train was crowded as usual. The plan was to have a big familial Christmas dinner then hand out blankets to the homeless. [Last Christmas Victoria had experienced her coldest day in China and was horrified to see homeless people sleeping on the streets under nothing but a sheet of plastic. This year she vowed to correct this and purchased blankets to hand out to the homeless. We Weifangians were happy to help deliver the purchased blankets.]

Americans and Canadians

We arrived and headed to THE DINER for Christmas dinner. We were a merry party! There were about 28 of us in all, and the table next to us was all foreigners too! You felt like you were back in the states. It was interesting to be able to eavesdrop again, to be fair both tables were doing it because we were commenting on each other’s conversations. THE DINER had a wonderfully scrumptious Christmas menu but it was just out of my price range so I settled on a lamb sandwich. Not as good as their steak sandwich but NOT Chinese in the least so I’ll take it. Some days I just don’t want Chinese, Christmas is one of them.

After dinner the hostel hunt began. Thank heaven for Katie and her prepared self or we would have being sleeping on the sidewalk accepting blankets from Victoria. This Christmas was the coldest day in Qingdao and it even beat out last Christmas Victoria said. The BYU teachers headed back to the university and told us they would call when they were going to head out to deliver blankets. The Walk: we decided to forgo the bus and just go for a cab wrong idea. There was no cabs to be found and we were forced to keep walking to keep warm we finally ducked into a hotel and asked the door man to find us a cab. We soon realized we had headed in the opposite direction of the hostel. The doorman returned empty handed explaining there were just no cabs to be found on a night such as this! Oh just keep piling on the frustrations. We were all froze and our brief stay in the hotel lobby only seem to half thaw us. Working from a small google map we found a bus that would take us west and hoped for the best. We got off hoping the map was spacial correct, wrong again. After what seemed like eternity in the cold we found the hostel at the top of a hill. Katie had been unable to book a hostel online due to technical difficulties on the website, “Welcome to China”. Big Brother Hostel’s, yes no lie on the name, dorms were all booked and they only had a 4 person room at 200Y. That is hotel prices by the way and no way were we going to pay hotel prices for hostel accommodations. By the way the dorms had been 25Y so you understand our hesitation here.  Prepared Katie had a back up plan, we ventured out into the cold and by some miracle were able to find a cab within 5min. Mind you we were a double fare but hey we were out of the cold and sardines are toasty when they are packed together. I don’t know if the first passenger was fully aware of what he agreed to when the taxi driver accepted us. Somehow we were able to cram 6 people and all our luggage and bedding into a small cab not using the trunk.

Hostel Lobby

We finally made it to the next hostel when I realized I didn’t have everything that I needed to check in. At that point we were near the train station and I just figured I would catch a train back to Weifang if I had to. The Receptionist was kind enough to let me slide with numbers and a Driver’s License. She was even kind enough to give us member prices and we settled in for the evening. Victoria called and said there were no homeless people out so we would not be venturing out either. We dropped off the bags and headed down to the lobby to chat.

All decked out for Christmas

Okay this is were I go off on hostels! I LOVED THIS PLACE. The rooms were clean and warm once the heater got going, the lobby was phenomenal and the help well I don’t have enough glowing words in my vocabulary to cover how amazing they were. Their English was excellent (boy does that sound snobby) and they were extremely accommodating. We threw ourselves into the center lounging area and were soon joined by a British guy who had been sitting at the other end.

His name was Lew, he took a hiatus from school to study Martial Arts for a year in China. He is a drama major with a growing resume. We all had a lovely chat for the rest of the evening. It is always nice when you can sit and have a stimulating conversation at a normal speed with a normal vocabulary, excepting of course the occasional translation hiccups between British and English. We turned in around 11.

Christmas was an adventure or to be more honest was one adventure after another. But the company and accommodations at the end made it all worth it!

I sadly realized on the bus ride home this evening that besides my Nativity blog, I’ve not written about Christmas in China. Where to begin, humm, maybe that’s why I’ve not written it I have no idea how to.

The Reason for the Season. I have the star of my scene.

 With the nativity saga my baby Jesus did arrive in time. I got it two weeks ago actually. It was just a single piece and didn’t warrant a bag I guess, so I just slipped it into my coat pocket. It always caught me off guard when I would slide my hand in, I’d finger the object for a second to figure out what it was.

It is now on my coffee table and will most likely stay there through January. A reminder of home. Mom would you take some pictures of my favorite nativities so I will have them for next Christmas. Children’s Christmas Pageant, the Russian Nativity and don’t forget the Black Bears.

Christmas lights are up all over the city but that really isn’t Christmas that is just typical tacky Chinese decorations, they are up year round. Surprisingly for a country that doesn’t celebrate Christmas beyond apple exchanging there are quite a few decorations up. Of course there only seems to be one set of window stickers in all of Weifang.

(add picture)

Surprisingly my students are quite familiar with Christmas and its customs. It is strange though when you talk to children they know who Santa is but they will tell you straight, “Santa doesn’t come to China”. Don’t tell and American child that they would be horrified he is suppose to go to every child.

All though they know the traditions they do not participate in them. The only gift they really give is an apple. The apple is a symbol of peace.

Christmas music has been playing in the stores for the last few weeks. Most songs are in English and sometimes you can even close your eyes and just focus on the bustle and almost feel like you are back in the US, then you get one good whiff of that China smell and you are right back here.

Christmas is most definitely a unique experience in China.

I walked into class feeling completely prepared with a min by min planned lesson. It never goes as planned, the children caught be off guard from the very beginning. I decided to make the board festive and drew a Christmas tree, I left it blank as I continued setting up for class.

Ke Xin the student I walk to class with proudly shouted out “Christmas Tree!”  “I decorate?”. I wasn’t expecting much, but boy did she knock my socks off.

First she added strings of lights, bows, bells, stars, candy canes and ornaments. I was shocked, well her English teacher in school was thorough. So my lesson was not going to be as planned at that point. I was thinking vocabulary lesson here but instead we moved to sentence structure and prepositions. I at least learning to think on my feet.

My favorite had to be the Primary song “Once There was a Snowman.” First we built a snowman on the board and sang the song and helped in melt.

While building they corrected me I had cut buttons for the eyes but they insisted using them for the body. They keep me honest that’s for sure.

Yes I’ve fallen in love with my children’s classes.

Keeping with tradition the Qingdao Branch had a Branch Christmas Party. Victoria planned it and it was spectacular.

Sister Shields and the Stevens

Our Korean Members

It was potluck style and oh so delicious. Jenifer made the most delicious potato salad sandwiches. I ate way way too many.

President Halladay

Shelly and Peter they sang Jingle Bells in Korean with their son. (Ding Ding Dong)

The Shields - Canada

The Blakes

Jennifer, she has such an amazing voice both in English and Korean.

The Yong Children, they are so well behaved at church, Rosy on the end is just the friendliest child you've ever met.

On to the White Elephant, I came prepared and was so excited. Victoria read a variation of the Night Before Christmas which added Left and Right all over the place. Each person began with their own gift then through the reading you passed the present according to the direction read. It was quite entertaining. The funniest was the fact that Adam had purchased a live turtle and cage. He placed it in a paper bag and gave explicit instructions not to shake his gift. Well needless to say some people forgot those instructions as the poem continued and poor Fred ended the night with fried nerves I’m sure.

I got Chinese Yo-yo’s! I was exstaticed!

Tonight is the Branch Christmas Party, there will be a White Elephant* gift exchange. I’ve always disliked White Elephant exchanges as I am terrible at selecting a gift. I think the games is fun and I love participating but my gift is always so unoriginal.

This year I finally did it!! I got the best gift.

The White Elephant gift of White Elephant gifts in my opinion.

The mismatched, pieced together, furry toilet seat warmer.  And for the novice or those who can’t figure out how to get this thing on the toilet I found the instructions while wrapping.

Even the foreigner can follow the pictures.

So I can proudly attend the Christmas Party armed with this gift. Hehehe

*White Elephant is a party game where each guest brings a small gag gift to be exchanged in unique or random fashion. Traditionally people try to bring a random item that will get a good laugh.

If I didn’t know with certainty that the Chinese are incapable of subtle hints my first Christmas present would have offended me. Two students dropped by for photos Friday afternoon. I’m really quite touched my students want to take pictures, they don’t seem to want to pay attention or participate in class. But hey the Chinese will never miss a photo sho0t, which is what “Can I come to your apartment for a quick picture” really means.

By now I know the drill. The standing half hug with the victory sign, then the stoic face, then the sitting leaning, then we get all crazy and take pictures all over my living room (the backgrounds varying, the nativity and scrolls seem to be the biggest hits). They always come bearing gifts, usually oranges, crackers or the occasional  bracelet. Today’s was a shocker. It was a Christmas gift Lucy said as she knew Christmas was coming soon. I was touched, my first Christmas gift of the season!

I really hope my face didn’t give away my taken back feelings.

I’ve stopped wearing make-up as of late because well I’m just lazy and really who am I trying to impress around here? My first thought was she was trying to make a statement but that was very very wrong of me. Lucy would never, could never make such a statement, wish I could say the same for some of her classmates. I was debating to pick up a new blush so now I’m good.

So Merry Christmas to all!

One of the BYU teachers asked if I had any Christmas activities to share. I sheepishly had to admit I haven’t nor do I ever plan that far in advance for classes. I told her I would begin looking online and I would get back to her if I found anything good.

So the basic google search began “ESL Christmas Activities”. Oh how I love google, I mean really, what would I do without it? The hardest part is removing Christ from Christmas, which is a requirement in China. As Christmas has become quite secular in the States it would not seem that difficult at first but still it is acknowledged as a Christian holiday. So many of the traditions and customs so cherished are steeped in Christian symbolism and require a basic understanding of the Christian faith.

I am so grateful I have my nativities up as a constant reminder of what this season should be centered around. Tis the reason for the season!

Okay back to lesson planning, I stumbled across this lesson plan and thoroughly enjoyed the information.*I’ve included the information at the end.

I was intrigued by the explanation of the presence of apples on the Christmas tree. We have always had small apples on our tree but I could never figure out why. I just figured it was a family tradition from my mom said and never asked. My mother’s side is German and that explains it!

I am learning so much about my own culture as I prepare to teach it and true bonus to this job!

*The Origins of the Christmas Tree

(http://teacherlink.ed.usu.edu/tlresources/units/Byrnes-celebrations/christmas.html)

Holidays abroad are always tricky. The Gang decided to get together Tuesday night for Thanksgiving dinner as Thursday was going to be a busy day for all of us. Katie and Thomas were kind enough to host and we all were eager to pitch in for a real feast. Dantzelle and I headed over early to help with the food and the guys did a last min Wal*Mart run for essentials.  

The table, the most important part of Thanksgiving!

Katie had done a beautiful job preparing . My heart melted when I walked into the apartment. She had Nat King Cole playing in the background, one of my Mom’s favorites, the table had been set and she had splurged on a center piece. It felt like home.

We all ate with forks excepting the Chinese guest, June who got chopsticks.

I promise to add more pictures when I get them from Katie. The meal was delicious. We had Idaho mashed potatoes, canned creamed corn from the States, Stoffers Stuffing, street sweet potatoes, green beans, delicious rolls, spicy roasted chicken (turkey is EXPENSIVE here) and Ocean-Spray Cranberry Sauce.

June was running late which allowed us to have a prayer which we were all grateful for. As we sat around the table we shared what we were thankful for. Current situations always play a strong role in what one is thankful for and being in China only makes this so much more true.

What I’m thankful for:

• I am thankful for my family, both at home who support me and love me unconditionally and the one acquired here in China.
• I am thankful for the opportunity I have to travel and experience first hand the many wonderful cultures and peoples on the earth.
• I am thankful I’m an American and that I will always have a country to come home to when I am tired of being abroad.
• I am thankful for the many freedoms I enjoy and the knowledge that all men are created equal.
• I am thankful for education and the freedom of information we enjoy in America.
• I am thankful for the Church and the comfort and security it brings when I am thousands of miles away from home. I am thankful for the instant family and protection it gives.
• I am thankful for a job that has given me the opportunity to come to China and learn to appreciate America and it’s freedoms in a way that NO other country could.
• And last but not lest, I am thankful for the opportunity to learn Mandarin. (whether or not I will actually be able to speak Mandarin is still to be determined but I’m grateful for the opportunity none the less)

Left-overs! Katie and June

No complaints here.

 

We all stuffed ourselves in true Thanksgiving fashion. It was wonderful.  I got a lot of leftovers, which is not a complaint! Dinner covered for the next few nights, yippee!So the after dinner we road home and yes mother the following is true, Dantzelle and I listened to Christmas music. I even sang along. All in all Tuesday was a wonderful Thanksgiving!

 

To be honest I woke up this morning and forgot that it was Thanksgiving. In class this morning a student asked when Thanksgiving was as she thought it was coming up. It took me a second to realize today was Thanksgiving. She kindly replied with a Happy Thanksgiving and then inquired about my plans for the day. I had already arranged to meet Bonnie for lunch but I no plans for the evening.

I had an enjoyable day between Bonnie and about a half a dozen students who stopped by in the evening for a chat. I ended with a Thanksgiving dinner for one. I decided to go out in true Thanksgiving, make a pig of oneself style. I ate through the rest of my left-overs in one go. I have to admit chopsticks are starting to become second nature.

Solo Thanksgiving Dinner!

Just like any other night excepting the food was so much better.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

 Will someone please enjoy a few Deviled Eggs for me, that was the only thing missing from our feast.

To all my family and friends, thank you for always being there for me. Your support and kindness is irreplaceable.

I had made plans to carve the pumpkin on Tuesday so as to be completely ready for Halloween but with this week being as crazy as it was that did not happen. I finally got a chance to sit down and carve this evening.

Okay so as much as I love carving designs were never my forte

There was not a single large pumpkin to be found at any of the grocery stores. I purchased my pumpkin Tuesday afternoon and had to settle for a small one. But in its defense it was a beautiful orange with great symmetry. I strategically drew the face to carve out the moldy spots*.

So a carving knife sure would have been helpful.

Originally buying a carving knife was on my shopping list or at least a steak knife for the serrated edges. But finding cutlery around here is like a Where’s Waldo Page. You know it is there you just have to hunt and lets face it sometimes you just don’t want to put in the effort. I made the mistake of assuming a vegetable knife would substitute just fine. I hadn’t take the knife into consideration when I drew on my pumpkin. In the end my Jack-o-Lantern received a face and my pumpkin carving craving was satisfied.

For a little guy it sure was stuffed!

 There are some definite pluses to a small pumpkin, less carving time, as much as I love carving I get frustrated quickly with my lack of artistic skill.

It is impossible to stick one’s hand in the pumpkin which then necessitates a spoon for scraping the inside. In turn this releases one from the obligation of sticking one’s hand inside and getting all the slimy pumpkin innards on it.

Surprisingly though, my little pumpkin was full of seeds.

All done!

三颗牙齿 San Ke Ya Chi

 *Quick lesson I’ve learned about China, the hard way. In China they make anything and everything, and they also sell ANYthing and EVERYthing. I have learned that just because the grocery store is selling it does not mean it is consumable. I have purchased moldy bread, obviously as above moldy pumpkins as well as expired milk. So really when you go grocery shopping is not a matter or looking at brands as much as it is looking at expiration dates and quality. If I don’t gain an immunity to mold this year and don’t know when I will. I made it through half a bread cake once before I realized it was moldy, I just figured it had an earthy taste to it.

To prepare for class I wiki-ed Halloween (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween). I didn’t have a firm handle on the origins of Halloween and its traditions and I wanted to be prepared. Intriguing article by the way, really sad that most reported cases of candy poisoning actually turn out to be the child’s parent’s fault.

1st class: I begin by explaining the origins of Halloween, the Celtic belief that on October 31st the Spirit world had power to cross into the real world and haunt the living . People would dress up to scare the spirits and keep evil at bay. Halloween began being celebrated in America in the 1840’s when the Irish, fleeing from the potato famine, brought over many traditions.

We still dress in costumes today but not all are scary. It is a time now to dress up in fun costumes that can represent anything.

Jack-o-Lanterns we originally carved into turnips and were passed of a fable about a man named Jack who tricked the Devil into the trunk of a tree and then was cursed to roam the earth with the only light he had at the time a candle.

2nd class: By the second class I had dropped the part about Halloween being brought over by the Irish and where Jack-o-Lanterns originated from.

3rd class: The Celtic tradition was gone by the third class, it was just getting to hard to explain and they really didn’t get it.

4th class: I think I finally had the structure down but trying to explain costumes to a culture who never dresses up is depressing. I would ask them to think about what they would be if they went trick-or-treating, it was liking pull teeth! For heaven sakes who doesn’t have a costume on the tip of the tongue? Even if that might not be really what you want can’t you just think of something, anything?

5th class: I had watered it down even further and just gave examples of what we did rather than try to explain why we did it. Costumes: Scary outfits most popular, Children often wear fun costumes. Parties: Bobbing for Apples, the String game (what do we call that game?), watch a scary movie or go to a haunted house. Jack-o-Lanterns a fun tradition to scare away evil spirits.

6th class: To be honest I’m glad I had watered it down because the last time I gave the lesson it was to my most difficult class. I had a hard time keeping their attention with this version. I can’t imagine if they had been my first class.

The blackboard by the end of the lesson.