Posting a Letter in Lang Fang

from Aug 2


Today the preschoolers went on a field trip to the post office. We talked yesterday about different ways we communicate with other people: face to face, on the telephone, via email and by sending letters. We discussed the fact that you have to pay money to buy your stamp, put it on your envelope and put it in the mail box. We learned about delivery of the mail.


You would be surprised, perhaps, by how many blind children - even teens - in the states, don't know why we put stamps on the letters. (One kid in a class in Washington took a guess: "it tells when the letter was mailed?"). It's one of the things that falls between the cracks for blind students.


So, these preschoolers are now ahead of the game. They "wrote" letters to one another (e.g. "scribbled" using a Brailler and put foam stamps all over their pages. The ones with a little vision scribbled with a pen as well). Then we put our letters in the envelopes and Rosa wrote their addresses on them (since they cannot do this themselves).


Today we completed the learning experience with a trip to the post office in two taxi cabs, (since Bethel's van is down). Each child went to the window and said: "I would like to buy a stamp, please." They gave their one yuan (one dollar) and got back two jiao (20 cents). Then they glued on their stamps (with help from me - and yes, this involves putting glue on the stamp with a brush) and put them in the mailbox. The postal workers were pretty sweet about the whole thing. Fortunately there was only one other customer in the post office at the time, so we did not create an inconvenience for other customers.


The taxis waited for us, so we hopped in and returned to Bethel. Back in the little school room we taped another envelope into our "experience" books, and I gave them each one jiao to put into their envelopes.

MuTianYu (continued)

While looking out between the ramparts, I saw below that there are alternate activities to be had in the vicinity of MuTianYu – one of them being horse riding. This particular horse and rider were not in agreement about the activity involved, and the horse was definitely in charge. This rider disembarked shortly after the photo was taken as the horse kept ramming its butt up against that cement wall.


One of the charming aspects of the wall were the occasional little side openings, like the one in the photo. This provided a nice spot for a rest from the hiking and gave Vida a chance to tell us a little more about the history. I’m going to try to get a short video of her on YouTube so you will get in on the action.


Shuli was absolutely right about “the most fun part” of going to the Great Wall. The Wall was awe-inspiring but the luge (I had to look that word up to find the spelling – and written down is sounds like something you might blow out your nose) was a thrill. As you can see from the photo (and sorry, there’s no photo of me zooming down it) there’s a metal chute. You are provided with a little sled thingy that has a joy-stick; when you pull back, it brakes, and when you push, it zooms. I put my baseball cap on backwards (less wind resistance☺) and away we went. A group of Chinese standing along the way got a great kick out of me for some reason???


Soon after we got off the luge, we saw this unlikely group. Two elderly Chinese fellows dressed up in the ancient soldier’s uniforms, along with the African teenagers, lined up for a group photo. Of course this is a money-making scheme, but it was an interesting combination of faces. Sorry I didn’t get my camera out quicker, but you get the idea.

More about MuTianYu

Everything about the trip to the Great Wall of China was magic for me - so I could go on at length - but let me hit the high points.

This particular day was overcast, so really a perfect temperature. That part is impossible to plan in the summer, so if you want temperate weather for the adventure, you will have to go in spring or fall. But we lucked out!


Riding on the ski lift gondola (unless you are afraid of heights) is the way to go. Then you can expend all your energy actually hiking on the wall itself, which as you can see from some of the photos, is not a walk in the park. Friends who went to the BaDaLing site, complained about being hot, tired and sweaty before they even got to the ancient structure. This way you arrive fresh, serene and poised for adventure. Just be ready to be hauled off the moving ski lift if you happen to be daydreaming as you cruise into the landing area:)


Walking on the wall, (the only man-made structure that can be seen from space - and I will have to look for photos online) and looking out over the expanse below, was transporting. As I stood by the enclosed structures with their scary protecting dragons and looked out through the ramparts, I imagined what it must have been like for the soldiers through the centuries when this actually served a defensive purpose. Awesome.

The Wall is not a continuous structure, but exists in sections that have been built at different times. These sections stretch over about 1500 miles and are of various lengths. The construction started during the Qin (pron Cheen) Dynasty (221-206 B.C.) when sections were built to keep out invading Mongols. These sections were built of earth and stones in wood frames. Construction of the "modern" walls begin in the Ming Dynasty (1388-1644 C.E.). Rising from the basic undulating structure of the wall are the guard stations (where soldiers ate and slept) and watch towers.


You have to keep your wits about you on the wall, since the steps are very uneven. Some of them are 2 or 3 inches high and others are 18 inches or more. In some sections you see people angling their bodies sideways to take the steps down (and I'm talking young people, not just those collecting SS checks) - so that tells you something. If you are over 50, or somewhat out of shape,(or both) be prepared to take breaks.
(to be continued...)

Great Wall of China at MuTianYu (2)

Finding our hotel and actually getting registered were adventures in themselves - but for now, on to our Great Wall experiences.


We were up and hunting for breakfast by seven, and returned to our favorite little neighborhood street where we were greatly entertained by all the activity. There was lots of cooking going on outside: dough being rolled out for noodles, long doughnut-looking things being deep-fried, and some small flat rounds of bread being cooked on a grill. Those looked most appealing to us, along with some bananas that we figured would be safe because of the fact that they are hermetically sealed in their skins before cooking.


We met Vida on our return to the hotel and quickly gathered together our things for the day. When we went outside, instead of the expected tour bus, we found a black audi with tinted windows and the air conditioner running. Our driver, Mr. Guo, opened the doors for us and we clambered into the back seat, thinking that maybe we were going to be delivered to the “coach.” Instead, we soon discovered that for $30 we had a private car with driver and our personal tour guide. On top of that, lunch was included. We were incredulous but happy as clams at high tide.


Vida works as an HR person at her regular 9 to 5 job and does this on the weekends in order to earn some extra cash. Mr. Guo was a very friendly and helpful fellow, and on top of that, he was an excellent driver – something you do not take for granted here in the Beijing area, as I’m sure you have concluded by now. Before long we were out of the worst of the city traffic and heading down a highway that was more pleasant than the route to Lang Fang. We were traveling north of Beijing – new territory – to Hairou County. After a while we could see the faint line of hills in the distance, emerging from the density of the ever-present Beijing smog. Farms started to appear – lots of corn and other vegetables growing by the highway and eventually some apple orchards.


We chatted along with Vida and complimented her on her English, and Mr. Guo on his excellent driving. It was soon time to disembark and run the gauntlet of vendors who line the sides of the street that lead to the ticket booths. Before heading up the hill, it was time for perhaps the least pleasant part of the experience: using the public bathroom. This had the usual pit toilets, which stink, and the added danger of a stone floor (maybe marble) which was totally soaked with…water?


We purchased our tickets and with Cindy and I in one ski-lift type gondola and Vida (her adopted name) in the one behind us, we headed up the hill to the Great Wall of China. Yes, this is Vida. Let me know if you are going to China and want a wonderful tour for a steal of a deal. I will connect you with Vida:)

The Great Wall of China at MuTianYu (1)

Last year when others were contemplating a trip the Great Wall, I cowered. The thought of riding for over 2 hours in a hot taxi, squished in with two others in the back seat did not sound inviting. Also, the thought of climbing up to the Wall in the heat and humidity was majorly intimidating. Then, as timing worked out, and due to other members developing “travelers complaint,” the trip to the Great Wall at BaDaLing did not happen. I had heard that the site at MuTianYu was less crowded and more beautiful, so that was where I really wanted to go, in any case.


This year Cindy and I discussed the option of the Wall and decided that we both wanted to go. We talked to the 20-somethings who had all been to MuTianYu and loved it. Shuli told us that the toboggan ride down from the Wall was the best part – and not scary. But the trip there did sound rather scary. First getting to Beijing, riding the subway and finding our hotel, then getting up at the crack of dawn and taking public transportation to the bus that goes to Hairou County. We would have to get off and find a second bus…oh dear. My language skills are very basic, and Cindy knows how to say “Ni hao” and “shie shie” (hello and thank you).


We were due to leave for our Beijing hotel weekend on Friday, when I finally got a brainwave the night before: why don’t we do it the American tourist way and take a tour. I went online and found “Beijing E-tours” which said that we could have an air-conditioned coach ride, there and back, a guide who spoke English and lunch was included – for $30. Hey, that sounded like the ticket. We could relax, view the scenery without worrying about our language skills or getting lost.

The photos show the approach to the entry gates of the Wall at MuTianYu - where there are the usual troupes hawking their wares.
to be continued....

Trip to Tian Jin - final episode

This is the last installment of my trip to Tian Jin (about 2 hours from Lang Fang) to visit little Chun Yu in the hospital. In the photos you see a hospital staff woman dragging the laundry cart into the hospital, the funky little vehicle that some water was delivered in, the child playing near the elevators (forget about children's play areas!) and a shot of Jude with a plate of delicious snap peas that we ate on the way home.

10:30 a.m. July 26th

We’ve just had another conversation with Dr. Wang who has a different opinion from another doctor in Wuhan, who is widely recognized for his expertise. Jude is doing his best to navigate through this maze of varying opinions and politics of doctors who don’t wish to coordinate with one another. Jude is walking the delicate path of trying to communicate another way of approaching the problem, without offending Dr. Wang. I don’t envy his position, as when it comes down to it, he is having to sort through the options and make a decision that will affect Chun Yu’s life.

We are now in an office, which is used by the other doctors on this floor. It is most basic, having half a dozen desks along the wall by the windows and a couple of cots on the opposite wall. The terrazzo floor dates back to the 40s or so, is pitted and it’s impossible to tell whether or not it is clean. Jude is now having a discussion with one of the younger doctors – I don’t know what this means, but will soon find out.

As I said, this is a hands-on hospital, most of the hands being attached to relatives of the patients. Just now, as we were waiting for the elevator, a gaggle of people came into the are with a man on a gurney. Of the 5 people surrounding the gurney, only one was a nurse. As you could see from the previous photos, the nurses here wear the traditional white uniforms with the cute little white caps. The other four attendants were sweaty men in T-shirts and slacks.

In the waiting area people sit in a variety of chairs – the kind we would take to the beach. On the 8th floor near the elevators, one mother had brought interlocking squares of foam rubber for her child to sit on while he played with his toys (see photo above). This hospital is strictly bare bones, as witness the doctor’s offices I described to you.

Later:
A couple of days after our trip to Tian Jin, Jude came to the volunteer’s quarters, which also houses the medical room where there are some supplies and medical charts for the children at Bethel. He was in a bit of a panic, because Chun Yu was not doing well and he needed to find a piece of equipment. What he was looking for was a metal tracheotomy tube, size 5 or 5.5 mm. When he finally did find what he was looking for, it turned out to be 6 mm, which I assume was too big. The hospital did not have one the right size. Jude didn’t know what other options they had, since the one he had found wasn’t right.

This piece of information really gave me pause. There is so much we take for granted regarding our medical infrastructure in North America. We rightfully have a fair amount of confidence that we will not die because the hospital lacked an essential piece of life-saving equipment. I didn’t see any of the operating rooms, of course, and I have to say, in retrospect, that I am thankful for that.

Tidee Didee

This time I will provide a couple of photos, to offset what might be considered an unseemly repetition of subject matter...These photos of lotus flowers were taken at Beihai Park, which I will tell you about in due time.

I stayed in Japan for a night, at the Hotel Emion Tokyo Bay, where all is spiffy and neat as a pin. In contrast to the complaints of my last blog about the facilities in China, the Japanese toilet is something to behold. One might think that these amazing devices are provided only in the 5-star hotels, but no! they are also at the airport, and a woman en route to the hotel told me that they are all over the place in Japan.

OK. In the downstairs bathroom of this hotel there is a little dispenser of sanitizer that you can squirt onto a piece of TP and use to clean your toilet seat (more ecologically sound than paper toilet-seat covers, don’t you think?). When you sit down, a little humming noise immediately begins. Not to worry; that is just your toilet seat warming up to a cozy temperature. When the reason for your visit is complete, you have some buttons to choose from. There are three larger ones that say “Shower” “Bidet” and “Stop” and two smaller ones that allow you three “strength” choices. What is the difference between “Shower” and “Bidet” you might ask. Well, it has to do with the part of the anatomy that is struck by the flow of water from beneath. Let’s just say that “Bidet” is especially for women. Of course, you are still provided with TP for the purpose of drying your derrière.

Now for the best part of all. In public toilets, (such as the airport ones) another button is provided. This one says “Flushing Sound” – that’s right, just the sound, without the actual flushing. This is what we would call a “cover-up” sound, if you take my meaning. At first I had a hard time believing this, so I decided I would push the “Flushing Sound” button right before I pushed the actual flusher. The somewhat embarrassing thing was that the fake “flushing sound” went on a LOT longer than the actual flushing sound, which meant that I sheepishly left the stall with the sound still reverberating forth. But, of course, no one gave the slightest indication that anything was amiss, in this land where people are trained to provide for one another’s privacy.

Freud was right~

Sorry, I don't have any photos to go with this blog - actually, I'm not sorry:)

After using pit toilets in China, I have to say that Freud was right. I admit it: I have penis envy. Now let me first say that, for the sake of health, pit toilets may be a good idea – gravity being a fact of life on earth. If it weren’t for the necessity of clothing, they might even be convenient. That said, let me continue.

One learns to take a deep breath before entering any public toilet in China, holding it till the procedure is complete. Another thing to keep in mind is that none of the public facilities provide a supply TP, so check your purse or pocket before venturing forth. (point number one: men don’t have to worry about this when peeing). Next, remember to check your pant legs and, in fact, the other parts of your pants (or skirt) to make sure they are bunched up around your knees and that nothing is hanging down in danger’s way (point number two: men don’t have to worry about this either).

The next thing is aim: this can be trickier than you think, when you are a female. I wish I could say that Chinese women are experts in this, due to practice, but from the evidence on the floors, I regret to say this is not the case (obvious point number three: men actually enjoy this part).

Probably the most insulting experience in this arena, was the one I had at the hospital in Tian Jin. As fate would have it, these were automatically flushing squat toilets, unbeknownst to this unwitting user. Fortunately I had a wad of Kleenex in my right hand when the water exploded beneath me, it saved my physical face, if not my metaphorical face (in the Chinese sense of the word). I was very happy that I had some of those handy pre-moistened towelettes in my bag to take care of my very damp derrière.

The final offense came at the Beijing airport, when a kind Australian girl that I met in the first class lounge, (thank you Matthew, for the frequent flyer tickets!) offered to watch my bag while I used the facilities. Yep, you guessed it. In spite of lotion, Q-tips, fancy little hand towelettes and a real sit-down toilet, there was no toilet paper – although the dispenser was there. Thank you for the little hand towelettes, and welcome to China: “We pursue to be excellence.” ☺

Trip to Tian Jin Part 3 (July 26)

9:20 a.m.

We have just spent about half and hour with the doctor who is the director of the 8th floor. We went into his office with Chun Yu’s nanny and he and I sat (as the older people) while Jude and the nanny stood. The doctor explained Chun Y’s condition, which has deteriorated. She now has an infection in her brain and so the shunt is not functioning properly. They want to remove the shunt as soon as possible and replace it with an external drain, treat her with antibiotics and later replace the shunt. Needless to say, things are not looking great for this little suffering orphan.

The director’s room (considering that he is the head of a neurology ward) is “interesting,” as we say. Hospital green seems to be a universal phenomenon since, yes, it is also here in China. The walls the doors, the wooden lockers and desks were all painted the same nondescript green, with smudges around the handles where it has worn off. Crammed into this little (perhaps 12 x 12 ft.) room was a single bed with blue bottom sheet, and a green army-type sleeping bag shoved up against the end wall. Presumably this is where the doc takes a nap when he’s here at night or after a long haul in the operating room. Under the bed were various cardboard boxes and a very dusty brown suitcase. I had lots of time to observe, since I could only understand the odd word here and there, in a long conversation.

The doctor was very kind and explained in detail about Chun Yu’s condition and the fact that a decision needs to be made as soon as possible. Jude is in a slight panic as he has to coordinate the decision by communicating with various people about the options.

We went into the room to see Chun Yu for a few moments and I took a few photos. The nurses were kind, but I could tell that they were concerned about Chun Yu and didn’t want us hanging around. I put my hand on her forehead and prayed for her. Then we left the room. Jude borrowed the films of her brain scans and had me take photos of them against a window at the end of the hall.

We took the elevator downstairs so Jude could make a couple of calls away from the noise and confusion in the waiting room of the 8th floor (men smoking). When we stopped at the 6th floor, three women pushed a gurney carrying a young man onto the elevator. He was lying on his side, wearing regular clothing and his head was bandaged. One of the women was in uniform and was obviously hospital staff; the other two were relatives. (In the photo below, you see another case with relatives helping to transport their loved one to another place in the hospital>)

This whole hospital is for neurological problems and there are 500 beds. Not surprisingly, there are generally at least 1000 people in the hospital at any given time, not counting staff members. This is because much of the care is provided by family members.

Post office video

from Aug 2


Today the preschoolers went on a field trip to the post office. We talked yesterday about different ways we communicate with other people: face to face, on the telephone, via email and by sending letters. We discussed the fact that you have to pay money to buy your stamp, put it on your envelope and put it in the mail box. We learned about delivery of the mail.


You would be surprised, perhaps, by how many blind children - even teens - in the states, who don't know why we put stamps on the letters. (One kid in a class in Washington took a guess: "it tells when the letter was mailed?"). It's one of the things that falls between the cracks for blind students.


So, these preschoolers are now ahead of the game. They "wrote" letters to one another (e.g. "scribbled" using a Brailler and put foam stamps all over their pages. The ones with a little vision scribbled with a pen as well). Then we put our letters in the envelopes and Rosa wrote their addresses on them (since they cannot do this themselves).


Today we completed the learning experience with a trip to the post office in two taxi cabs, (since Bethel's van is down). Each child went to the window and said: "I would like to buy a stamp, please." They gave their one yuan (one dollar) and got back two jiao (20 cents). Then they glued on their stamps (with help from me - and yes, this involves a put of glue with a brush) and put them in the box. The postal workers were pretty sweet about the whole thing. Fortunately there was only one other customer in the post office at the time, so we did not create an inconvenience for other customers.


The taxis waited for us, so we hopped in and returned to Bethel. Back in the little school room we taped another envelope into our "experience" books, and I gave them each one jiao to put into their envelopes.

Trip to Tian Jin Part 2 (July 26)

We are now in what appears to be Tian Jin’s morning rush hour. There is a bike lane on the right which is packed with hoards whom I assume are on their way to work, as it is 8am. When they attempt to cross the major streets, the westerner’s activity is equally divided between the urge to gawk in fascination and the urge to cringe and cover her eyes. As I mentioned lat year, staying in your lane is an extremely vague concept around here. Much of the time, especially in the city, cars straddle the line.

Now I am writing, partially to avoid watching the traffic. At every other minute, what would be considered a “near-miss” in the States are happening, and we are in scary proximity to these events. One good thing is that this increases one’s prayer life and appreciation for an accident-free existence. A guy on a bike just wobbled precariously in our direction, his orange lunch bag clutched in his left hand, along with the handlebars. I’m including some photos of bikes in close proximity to cars, so you can see what I mean.

In spite of the McDonald’s invasion (the one in Lang Fang is open 24 hours) – I still haven’t seen any grossly overweight people in China – not one, even in Beijing. You occasionally see someone who looks like they ate a few too many delicious dumplings, but in general they are all slim. No wonder, with all this bike-riding. Add to that the tons of vegetables, fruits, and fish in their diet – then the only offence, by USDA standards, is the ubiquitous white rice, which is the staple of the diet.

We must be getting close to the hospital now, as it is 8:25 and our ETA was 8:45 or so. Traffic is vey heavy in this town, and combined with the smog, it is pretty oppressive. Ahhhhh! Zhong just turned on the air conditioner, right when I was about to melt into the seat. He must have read my thoughts.

Trip to Tian Jin Part 1 (July 26)

I’m sitting in the second seat of the big van with Zhong, the driver, waiting for Jude. We are on our way to see Chun Yu, who has been moved to Tian Jin, a city to the east of here. We’re heading out with the local pop station playing the Chinese versions – right now a Chinese Cheryl Crow. We’ve just passed a corner where there were a couple of traffic cops and a street sweeper, a female one. It’s kind of amazing seeing a woman with a big twiggy broom actually sweeping the street. When you’re a country with close to 1.6 billion people, you gotta find ways to keep as many a possible busy and employed.

We are speeding along in the morning smog on the freeway. The speed limit on this highway is 110 km per hour, but that is irrelevant. I’ve never seen a cop car on these freeways, let alone one that is pulling another car over. There are jillions of transport trucks on these roads and you can almost never tell what they are hauling. Most of them are battened down with some non-descript brown canvas-looking stuff. Some are lumbering along at about 40 or 50 km per hour, while the cars are doing their best to go 110. This involves a lot of jockeying for position, as the trucks don’t stick to the right lane. They travel in both lanes and sometimes seem to intentionally block the other traffic by “holding hands.” This involves car driver getting frustrated and leaning on the horn – a favorite activity here, as I mentioned last year.

At the moment we are cruising along nicely. This probably has to do with the fact that we are heading for Tian Jin and not Beijing. The road from Lang Fang to Beijing is always busy.

Chun Yu’s condition is stable as far as we know at the moment. She is still in a coma, but the symptoms on her brain scan have improved somewhat. For those of you who have been praying for her – I will personally deliver your love to her today.

Sitting beside the driver is Jude, who is a fine young man in his 20s, who works on the medical staff at Bethel. He is overseeing the care of Chun Yu, and meets with the doctors and nurses on a regular basis to discuss her treatment. Jude is taking a nap at the moment, after having stayed up late last night with the other 20-somethings. There was quite a gang of them the other night, as our three girls returned from a trip to Shanghai (Shuli, Rosa and Theresa). Also included were two girls who live next door (whose parents run a foster home) and one of their volunteers. Along with Chris and Miriam, that made a lot of card players.

One of their favorite card games is “Mao.” The person who is Mao gets to initiate the rules for that round of the game – but Mao doesn’t just come right out and tell you the rules. He/she indicates them in subtle ways - for example, sneezing every time she lays down a Queen. If you don’t follow suit, you are penalized. I could go into detail about how this relates to history, but as I mentioned before, I am paranoid.

The smog is terrible today – it reminds me of a very foggy day on Lulu Island, the Fraser River Delta island, where I grew up. Notice the biking ladies who are wearing various kinds of smog protection. They are in the minority, but at least a few are making an effort.

It’s interesting to speculate on how they plan to clean this up before he Olympic Games, which will be held here next summer. Apparently part of the plan is to just shut down a bunch of factories and tell people who live there that they can’t drive their cars to work, but have to take public transportation. In a communist country, this works.

I’m starting to sweat profusely now, which is something I don’t do at home. Just ask my daughters. I go for my speed-walking exercise *after* taking a shower. I will now use my notebook as a fan. To be continued….

Be careful! Landslide

I think I have enough material now, that I will be able to keep blogging for about a month after I get home – but for starters I will make a few comments on English signs here.

As you can see from the photos, there were some interesting warnings in our Chinese hotel. The “Take care of your head” sign was found on the circuitous route to our room, is open to various interpretations, some of which might apply to mental or emotional states. From the height of this sign, we assume that it’s true purpose might be to warn people who are over 6’5” to be careful not to bang their heads on the sign.

“Be careful! Landslide” found above our toilet in the bathroom was a little unnerving. Were we in a geologically unsound area, much like California or Taiwan?
After having a shower this morning, the true meaning became apparent. The shower is designed to spill out water by splashing on the tiled area at the foot of the tub and onto the floor in copious amounts. If you are not forewarned about the “landslide” – you might slide onto the “land” (floor) and bonk your head on the slippery marble floor. I decided that the “Take care of your head” sign might really belong in the bathroom.

Of course this is clearly explained in: “The Sweet Hint.” In case you can’t read the smaller writing (since I can’t check to see how it looks on the blog) it says: “In order not to the water splashes please pull up the bath curtain.” There was another “sweet hint” downstairs that had to do with making sure that all your bills were facing the same way when you go to make your money exchange. Sorry – I didn’t copy that one down.

One of my favorites is the highway sign “Rear End Collision….Keep Space…200 meters” Hahahahahaha!!

One of the restaurants down a side street near our hotel had this written on their front window: “Welcome to Beijing! We wish you have A good holiday and journey. Welcome to my home. We will offer the best dishes and services. Absolutely our menu price is as same as chinese’s. please come in, our beautiful smile and honest is waiting For you!” How can you not love these people?

We decided to take them up on it and they made good on their word. Above you see the delicious sweet and sour pork and yo mai tsai (kinda like spinach, but less intense) stir-fried with garlic that you see in the photos. Yum!

Apparently there is an effort being made to correct all the English errors before the big event: the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Fortunately there are so many of them that they will never manage it.