You know you’ve landed ‘down under’ when the waitress at the local pub tells you, the chef forgot one of your meals because he had an...um.. “brain fart!” My eyebrows arched in amusement, I gigged…but it was oddly comforting. I was home. Then, later, she seemed to have no trouble keeping an eye on our table should we need anything else, like say, another drink! Yes please! I didn’t have to frantically wave my arm off and shout at the top of my lungs “Fu wu yuan!” (Try saying that in a hurry!) She even offered to clear away the empty plates before the table resembled a 15-plate pile up! It’s the little things. Like the ‘small talk’ for instance….yes, it can be slightly annoying sometimes when you just want to do your thing and the retail assistant is asking you how your day’s been and you want to tell her it’s been crappy but remain polite…and then it gets even more intense when she won’t stop… and practically asks what colour undies you’ve got on! FYI, in China, when they can't speak English they just follow me around very very closely, almost nipping at my heels, eagle eyeing everything I glance at. Sometimes, I'm not sure which is worse. But what about when you really do want to engage in small talk, just a little “how’s your week been?” In a country that speaks a totally different language to you, where ‘hello,’ ‘see you this afternoon,’ ‘thank you,’ and ‘see you tomorrow’ is the limit in small talk, it’s enough to have you crying into your Chinese book. Watching television is also one of those little things I used to take for granted. You don’t really ever stop to think about how it might be if they weren’t speaking English. It’s a guessing game at best. There might be fifty-plus channels on China television but none are in English (apart from BBC and CNN, of which I am extremely grateful to have access to, living in the hotel). You can appreciate my recent obsession with Netflix….and absolute devastation that it’s soon to be banned to all those using a VPN. Let it not go unsaid though, I do try to watch local TV. I’ve found myself on more than one occasion watching a Chinese soapie, in silence. This one’s set in the military (actually most of them are) and I think I’ve even worked out the plot. Enough said! You can imagine how mesmerised we are in Australia by the little things like, those pesky, annoying adverts! And don’t get me started on those new shows like “Married at First Sight!” One treasure-laden episode of trashy TV and I was utterly hooked! And of course, there’s morning television, which, as intended, makes it feel like I’m hanging out with my mates (English alone is enough in common, for a lasting friendship, surely?) Then there’s driving. When you drive everyday, well.. I can hear you thinking it’s kind of a burden isn’t it?! You jump in the car, throw your bag in (forget the keys), start it up, sigh…petrol’s low…go through five hundred toll gates, in bumper to bumper traffic. It’s all a bit tiring. (And let’s not forget the expense of owning said car…let alone the cost of petrol. (It’s been so long since I’ve fuelled up, I’ll admit, I’m a little nervous at the pump. Last time I put petrol in, I was a bit flustered, walked off and left my phone on the car roof!) You probably think having a Mercedes waiting at your beck and call is “like totally awesome!” Sounds all a bit celebrity-like doesn’t it. And don’t get me wrong, I’m not one to shy away from a bit of Hollywood action, but in Xi’an having a driver is a necessity not a luxury. Driving here would be sure to send you into cardiac arrest. And while it’s easy stepping into the back of a waiting car jolted off, horn’s screeching whisked away to your destination without much thinking (apart from the brain strain of trying to use your mandarin to communicate where you’d like to go to the non-English speaking driver), it also means a distinct lack of freedom. With a detailed itinerary of your week required well in advance, spontaneity is right out the window. Want to head to that cafe on Friday, you need to let them know on Monday! Change of heart on the way home…errr it’s not in the itinerary love, forget it! The car is booked for another event. (Except of course, he wouldn’t be saying that and I would need to make a few phone calls to someone who speaks English first to find that out.) And just quietly, in celebrity land, I’m sure the driver is not slumped over the wheel, asleep when you come to get in the car. So these days, jumping in the car and cruising up the road, music humming, is one of those little things that gives me a tingly feeling of immense joy and freedom! You can picture the scene! Yes, I can go anywhere I like without being held hostage by my itinerary and my language! Road trip, anyone?!! I would like to point out though, having become a little bit used to China’s slightly ‘laissez faire’ attitude on the roads (i.e. seatbelt optional, helmet not required, eating/talking on phone ok, five people on a bike perfectly acceptable -- (side saddle if necessary), sitting in the tray on the back of a small three wheeler ok, road rules optional, every man for himself...) it’s fair to say, I did find Australia a little… rigid. ;) I mean, drivers actually waited at pedestrian crossings for people to cross the road, they managed; for the most part, to stick to their own lanes and drive at a similar speed, let alone abided by rules of wearing a seatbelt, a helmet, not using phones and parking in a manner you might regard as courteous (aka between the lines). There is also that feeling in Australia that somebody’s watching over your shoulder. Oh wait! They actually are (and that’s not just the hundreds of street cameras, waiting to catch you out for any minor mishap). Indulge me for a minute while I relay this little tale. It’s the Easter weekend holiday - we’re cruising down the highway (the police presence is in overdrive, as you’d expect), I am NOT driving. I am in the back seat, seatbelt on! But…one of my bad habits is putting it under my shoulder. (I know!!) I mean really, they should be lucky I’m wearing one, I am after all Chinese now. Anyway as I was saying, I had an eery feeling someone was watching over my shoulder, glanced out the window….and… a few expletives under my breath…there’s a police officer on a big, bad motor bike right beside me, peering in my window, madly gesturing at me…in the middle of the highway!! Did I mention we are not stationary! I looked up in a panicked state, I couldn’t for the life of me think what I had done, except perhaps I wasn’t even allowed to be on my mobile phone in this country anymore, in the back seat?! Was it a new rule, I’d missed? Then it dawned on me, my seatbelt!! I quickly shifted it over my shoulder and he gave me the big thumbs up and roared off! I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, but in all honesty, I was pretty impressed. Now that’s looking after your people isn’t it? FYI, the road toll over Easter was zero. Did I mention I’m on the market for a scooter in Xi’an? If you can’t beat ‘em, join 'em, I say! (May start with push bike first!) So, while I found myself giddy with excitement over the driving, I also found myself in a frenzy over the food! It seems cafes and restaurants have taken things to a whole new level. Just between you and me, I am ‘advised’ to eat gluten free food, but living here in Xi’an, it’s nigh on impossible, unless I live on one type of bland, boring piece of bread for the duration of my time here. My excitement at gluten free wraps and well, pretty much GF everything was palpable, let alone the ordinary staples…one trip to the supermarket and I’m in paradise (and I don’t even cook!). Of course, I don’t mind Chinese food (in fact I had it for dinner last night) and I’m especially partial to a good plate of Dim Sum, but in Xi’an, spicy may be everything, but variety is not the spice of life. Still on eating, kind of…one thing I’ve come to take for granted living in China, is that, just about every cafe has a power point at the table to charge up your phone….here I was in ‘Straya’ - staking out cafes looking for a plug! Never mind about the food they were selling! I’ve said it before, and you’ll no doubt agree, everything is made in China, right? But, to most people’s surprise, it’s not sold in China! This means I am faced with the awful task of living and breathing the shops for much of my days, for the entire holiday. Such a chore isn’t it?! ;) The mere fact that I no longer seem to know how to use the card machines has not stopped me in my tracks. I keep apologising and find myself embarking on a big explanation of how I don’t live here, only to be looked at like I am indeed an alien. “Just put your bloody pin number in, love!” (But I don’t have one…..) Now, many of you who’ve lived in China, will say 'bollocks', you can get everything you need here….and while that may be true….partially…..if you can in fact get it, usually it’s just one single brand and usually there is no English on the packet/box/tube, so how do you even begin to know what it is? I am learning Chinese characters but with 50,000 of the buggers, at this point, I’m unlikely to decipher much more than 'made in China'. (Like the time I bought face wipes that were actually wipes for um, ladies’ parts.) Of course, there is as always an upside to this shopping frenzy I must embark on …..for the rest of my time in Xi’an I don’t ever have to go to the shops out of necessity. Nor do I have to have any appointments because I’ve just spent my entire holiday stocking up, replenishing, rebooting, reinventing, reinvigorating!! That includes ’maintenance’ …as a woman over, um 29…I need stuff! Waxing doesn’t take place in Xi’an, period. Facials are not really the order of the day, and well don’t get me started on hair! I will say though being able to get a decent blow dry for under $20 in my Xi'an ‘hood is not to be sneezed at!! (Yes that's US$20 ladies.) Then there’s medical! I used to take the fact that I could go to a doctor, whenever I need to, for granted. Who doesn’t? Now any trip out of China will have me booking into a doctor, usually begging for an arm’s length list of drugs. Of course before I lived in China, a sunny, blue day, was just that, a sunny blue day. Nothing more, nothing less. Today as I look out of my window at the hazy, brownish sky, I’m trying hard to remember the high definition, oh so blue, sharp, clear skies that had me staring up into the cloudless wild blue yonder more times than is probably deemed 'normal'. And, don’t mind my husband, who’s launched himself onto that brilliantly green grass alongside the footpath to take a feel! “Is it fake”, he says? “No honey…this is just normal grass.” And I guess that's just one reason stepping outside your comfort zone is totally worth it. To make you appreciate the little things. … [Read more...]
Why Sleeping in Ikea is Perfectly Acceptable, in China.
The more I live here, the more I realise that China is a force to be reckoned with. As I begin the mammoth task of researching for my own book on life in China, for me, it’s really about the people in China. Who are they? What makes them tick? Whether I’ll ever really know, remains to be seen….. in the meantime, it’s intriguing and a lot of fun trying to work this nation of 1.3 billion people out! A visit to Ikea in China - the world’s biggest furniture supplier is a classic case in point of watching locals at play. Entering the store is like entering a vortex and if you’ve ever been to Ikea (anywhere in the world), you’ll know once you’re in, there’s only one way out, FOLLOW THE ARROWS! It was Sunday afternoon and as you might expect, it was chaos. Cars, motorbikes and trikes all making a beeline for the place many have come to call their second home. Making it through the carpark without getting run down….we take a deep breath and enter the vortex. There are trolleys everywhere and I note they are being manoeuvred in much the same way cars are driven on the roads. They are on full throttle - powering ahead, but beware they may stop, dead in their tracks at any given moment. Usually in the middle of the road or aisle as it may be. Sometimes two or three trolleys at a time, their drivers stopping for a chat. There will be no indication this sudden stop is about to take place, and after it does, no sly look up to see if they’ve inadvertently stopped anyone else in their tracks. And they may well meander in that lane for as long as they see fit, seemingly oblivious to the two thousand other trolleys/cars on the road. And just like the cars, the trolleys are being driven dangerously close to one another….our Small Person has begged for a ride in the trolley….I firmly tell her to keep her hands in, at all times! One side swipe and we’re clearly cactus! Looking around, there are people parked (literally) in every nook and cranny. Ikeas are built extra large in China and it doesn’t take me long to work out why. Of the ten biggest Ikea stores in the world, eight are in China! For the thousands making their way through the store’s mock up homes, this isn’t just a Sunday chore, where you get in and get what you need and get out, hoping to God you can assemble the dam thing once you get it home. This is a serious outing! Search Ikea in China on the internet and it doesn’t take long to confirm that I haven’t been submerged in some farcical dream. Here, many locals treat a trip to this Swedish furniture supplier as an all-day event that includes shopping, eating and most importantly, relaxing! True to form, I spy a couple of ladies - clearly friends, who’ve decided, why wait until they hit the cafeteria, it’s BYO lunch, brought out and opened - on the display table - which is covered in tags hanging off both it and the surrounding chairs! Who knows what they’re chatting about… but they are huddled over the table, happily deep in conversation over lunch, despite hoards of people filing past them and their picnic for two. We move forward, battling our way through the traffic, around a few bends and we reach the lounge chairs followed by the bedroom section. Well… say no more! This is clearly where it’s at, the hot spot to be. This, my friends, takes testing furniture out to a whole new level! There are people splayed everywhere! On the beds they are lying, legs stretched out chatting on their phone or chatting to each other, or simply getting some well earned rest! (See above!) Other couples are canoodling, one man gently rubbing his partner’s head while she’s having a much needed lie down. If there are no beds available don't worry, grab a couch and a few pillows to snuggle up with (after all, this furniture testing is tiring work). As we cruise through, I try not to let the alarm show on my face… but as I feel several pairs of eyes on us….the foreign family sauntering through the slumber party, I can tell they are almost as intrigued as I am. Probably wondering why we are not feeling the need to get cozy under the blankets. Some people are feeding their children and babies…after all they’re in for a long day ahead. Others in the bathroom section are touching up their make up. While some just play house for a little while. In the kids’s toy area parents have set up a little play area, they’re down on the floor with their toddlers playing cheerily and it’s looking like a nice happy family scene at home, except well, we’re in a shop. Many are just kicking back in those fabulous lazy boy chairs…. sipping their flask of tea, probably enjoying the free heating on a cool winter’s day. When I posted a few photos onto my Facebook page because of course, I took a few sneaky ones; a few people giggled and others expressed their shock, some questioning whether they have any respect. I thought about that…. and while often it definitely appears that way, it’s a situation that is simply indicative of a nation where 1.3-billion people reside….all trying to survive. There’s no time to think of the next person. In almost every aspect of China life, it’s a case of the 'survival of the fittest'. Many homes cater to three generations under the one roof, all sleeping, eating and living in just one or two rooms. Privacy is not an option. So the fact that you’re on the bed relaxing, surrounded by a gazillion other people, is all par for the course and in this overcrowded nation, easily overlooked. The furniture is probably more comfortable than they have at home and for many, snaring a spot on the plush double bed is probably a much better option than hanging at home for the day. Until Ikea arrived in China in 2000 (and just a few months ago in Xi’an) there’s never been anything like it in China, a place where locals feel like they can actually experience the goods on display for themselves. In 2015, word got out that there would be a Great Ikea Crackdown in Beijing and Shanghai, stopping locals from lounging in the stores; despite newspapers spouting headlines like “Rude Awakening,” Ikea clearly knows which side its bread’s buttered on and power napping remains part and parcel of the China Ikea experience. But, are they just chilling out for the day in this 'furniture theme park' or are they actually buying something? For Ikea, China has been a tough market to crack. It took 12 years to make a profit…. but China is now the fastest growing market followed by Russia. While in the past, locals haven’t had the money to spend on decorating their homes, these days home ownership is growing at a rapid pace (much like the rest of the country) and people are looking to learn how to furnish their homes. Marketers say instead of the Chinese-inspired designs the company quickly learned, people here want the western experience. While Ikea is seen as a mass produced, cheaper brand in developed countries, in China it’s targeting that new growing middle class. Middle class it might be but prices have still been lowered by half since the year 2000 to draw in shoppers and many products are sourced and made locally to avoid the high import taxes. Ikea has such a following, couples have even tied the knot in the store. Yep, the showrooms providing a chic Swedish affair for a loved up couple in Nanjing. Here, Ikea is not just a cheap and cheerful furniture store, it’s a phenomenon where Swedish meatballs go down a treat with chopsticks! This is China. … [Read more...]
Dressed for Success, at Face Value – China Style.
It all started with the frock. I was informed the theme for the event I would be hosting was “Hollywood”….. and yes, I realise Xi’an is about as far removed from the bright lights of tinsel town as you can possibly imagine, but who am I to shun a red carpet! Sequins and a long dress were the order of the day, both of which my closet sadly no longer possesses (bar that lone dress hiding in the back that quite possibly won’t do up any more...sshhh!) So, the quest was on to find a red carpet-worthy gown in downtown Xi’an. It quickly became apparent that it wasn’t going to be an easy task. Turns out (surprise, surprise) shops selling ‘ball gowns’ are few and far between. I’m told, ’Rent a dress’ is how it’s done. So, mad school drop off done, one smoggy morning; with my gorgeous Chinese friend in tow, we hit the city … A towering, rather majestic looking building is our first stop. Step inside and it’s like stepping into a chic palace, swathed in velvet…chandeliers glisten above lush carpets and more attendants than you might see on a first class flight, are hovering - fairy godmothers ready to turn you into Cinderella with a swoosh of their wands. Ushered upstairs, it is quite possibly every girl’s dream. Beautiful gowns in every shape, size and colour drape themselves exquisitely around the plush room. As we excitedly flick through the decadent options, it’s like being a kid in a candy store. There are plenty of “Oooohhs and aaahhhs, look at this! How about this?” First up, as all sensible girls do, we check the price…no - make that double check and triple check! This is China, after all - where misunderstandings rule the world. Now my Chinese is clearly not good enough to carry on a conversation as detailed as this, so with the help of my friend, we establish it is to be 300 yuan…full stop! Thats to try the dress on and take it home for the week. And, even if we don’t rent one, it’s still 300 yuan. Got it? Got it! That all seems fairly reasonable to me at around US$50, if not a little on the cheap side. But again this is Xi'an...for the most part, things are not expensive. So we get busy choosing possible candidates fit for a glamorous affair. The process not unlike trying on wedding dresses! Behind the velvet curtains, the shop assistant helps me into each dress…(wait did she just hoist my boobs up/ I think she did!…Reassure myself this is all part of her daily job). Dress on, some diamonte heels thrust at me, I’m told to stand on a boxed platform and voila the curtains are whisked open for me to display er… myself. Retails assistants snap away, jabbering excitedly in Mandarin. We try on about six dresses for size - why stop at one?!… Of course we are strictly told we are not allowed to take photos but my trusty sidekick snaps a few blurred shots for good measure. The assistant is clearly enjoying this as much as we are and starts bringing in crowns and jewels to wear… of which I politely tell her there will be no need for a crown. The service is second to none…they even tell us they will hem the dress to my requirements….we smile, chuffed with our find. Dress chosen, smugly happy with ourselves, we get organised and I reach for my purse. Suddenly I see my friend out of the corner of my eye looking slightly more animated, her previously relaxed poise stiffening …. I spot the calculator. (Here in China, many shops and stalls, no matter how big or small (unless they’re a global brand name with fixed prices) have a calculator close to hand - usually for bargaining). However knowing we’ve set our price at 300, when I hear the numbers 3500 I try not to let my eyes boggle, right out of my head. Remain calm I whisper under my breath. Just a deposit perhaps?? Extremely hefty.. but I guess….. it’s possible. They are nice frocks. But nope this is no deposit, there’s been a “misunderstanding!” As soon as I hear this, I know it’s time to throw in the towel. Misunderstanding is possibly the most frequently used word in China. Both in English and Mandarin! There are MANY many misunderstandings…constant misunderstandings on every level (just ask the hotelier whose days are filled with misunderstandings). I am still to work out if this is cultural or simply the fact that Mandarin as a language is open to much interpretation. In this case, it seems, the lovely retail assistant has (conveniently?!) failed to mention that each dress has a specific price, all ranging in the thousands on TOP of the 300! To 'buy' I question? Surely! No. This is not to buy. With a lucky discount of 20 per cent we may hire our chosen dress for 3400yuan. That’s more than US$500. Now clearly that obviously seems a little ludicrous… when you don’t get to keep that beauty in your closet and wear it again and again….and again. By now, my Chinese friend has raised her voice several decibels and is on the verge of tears, while the manager is brought in to appease us. But she nonchalantly points to the price on the price tag which is clearly no help to us…… All I can do is stand there with my hands on my hips and try to show my extremely forlorn, disappointed face. The fact that I am a Waigouren (White face) and therefore automatically deemed loaded is perhaps my downfall here. As we huff and puff and woefully get up to leave….dismayed and annoyed at half the day wasted….the banter continues between my friend and the sheepish assistant. I manage a ‘Bu Gaoxing’ (Not Happy) at her as we walk towards the door. One foot over the threshold and a calculator is again whipped out and suddenly thrust in our faces. It seems I am now allowed the dress for….wait for it…. 800yuan!! But I am only allowed it for 24 hours. Hmmm, ok, I nod…. well it’s still expensive and probably almost as much as what I’m being paid for the tinsel town gig, but with only a few days until the event, I decide it’s a much better option than turning up naked… and dam! I really like that dress! So, it seems the bitter sweet saga is over and the deal is done. We leave with our receipt and many apologies from the retail assistant. Unclear on what my friend said to get them to dramatically reduce the price, she tells me she mentioned something about them not paying tax and calling the bureau(?) and that clearly had them running for cover (or more importantly my dress). Clearly these prices are not fixed at all. Some research later tells me, they call this place the 'Dream Factory' in China. It's the place many young 'brides to be' come for their dream photo shoot. You can read more about how that works in this post here. Deep breaths, we leave and I quietly hope they have the dress ready for me on Saturday morning as promised and don’t decide they’ll pay the difficult white lady back for being so picky with the price and tell me it’s not available! A week passes and I arrive (nervously) to get my dress… all is ok but I’m told it needs to be taken downstairs for 15 minutes to be hemmed up. (Ahh you don’t think you could’ve done this before I picked it up.) I can’t say this in Mandarin, so I wait, fidgeting. Finally my dress is presented to me….not hanging gracefully as you might expect in such a glamorous shop for such an extravagant price, but rolled up, in a creased ball, in the bottom of a bag. Now if you don’t live in China you probably just think well, that’s a bit rude or unprofessional, or maybe they just think “$#*@ you lady!” Which is highly possible…. but in actual fact it is a small but very representative symbol of China itself. On the outside things often look extremely impressive, together….polished. But lurking beneath the surface it’s more often than not, a case of quantity not quality. It’s all about that little thing called “Face” which is probably the single most important thing in China. We all know 'first impressions' count, but China takes it to a whole new level. What comes after doesn't matter (so much). The event I MC for that night is not too different…. A beautiful grand ball room in a 5-Star hotel is presented to an excited crowd. Four (yes four - which is rather customary in China) glamorous (if I do say so myself, at this point!) Master of Ceremonies of different nationalities take to the stage…. Two of us are blonde with little Mandarin up our sleeves and it's about now I (rather naively) realise we are (whilst at an 'expat' event) standing in front of a largely Chinese audience. But this clearly does not matter because we are here for show! I'm told, Western faces automatically give every event that added ‘face value’ if you like. A small red carpet peeling off the floor the only evidence we are in Hollywood….but determined to embrace the glitz, I teeter up it in my shiny heels (secretly waiting for Channing Tatum to make his appearance, but alas, we are in China….he’s not coming.) A program listing stellar performances promises an entertaining evening, but I watch on in horror as the lectern nearly wobbles off the stage…..performers lug their own gear on stage and the agenda is hastily thrown out the window. Acts don’t turn up, some turn up twice. Wait, where’s the organiser? MIA. The audience doesn’t seem to mind the ‘Shamozal’ that ensues…. they swarm the buffet like it is possibly the last meal on earth and glug the jugs of red wine. Santa makes it into town and is literally crushed as the local kids pounce on him, almost swiping his sack from underneath him! My meek calls for them to line up sensibly, rather futile. The table is set but within the first hour looks like a mini tornado has swept through it (did I really just see a small child offered wine)?! I guess I fit in well… I have the fancy frock, but who knows I am only wearing one contact lens! My designated MC partner (who’s an English teacher and never MC’d before) is politely both astounded and amused. I tell him, “Don’t worry, it’s all about Face!” This is China. … [Read more...]
Good Morning Xi’an! How China Wakes Up……
7:30am and the streets are bustling with locals…many are elderly Chinese (often with their grandchildren)….they’re in their element, out and about, primed for business (and socialising)! There’s an awful lot of yelling (which for a non-morning person, seems a tad extreme) but it’s all par for the course when you step into the whirlpool of commotion that is the morning wet markets, in the middle of north west China! It’s a fascinating kaleidoscope of colour, set up right in the middle of a quiet village street, which come afternoons, will resume its place as a peaceful haven of tranquility. But for now, it seems, everything and anything is up for grabs…. Cooking up a barbie? This is where you get your fresh meat, looking, well extremely fresh, perched on the back of a truck for your perusal… Note: Large axe at the ready, sitting on a tree stump - (obviously the perfect chopping board)! Just across from the meat truck, fresh crisp bread (that make the perfect pizza bases) is being baked in a giant kiln at a rapid pace… A trike loaded with fresh flowers sets off for the day. Further into the flurry of heaving bodies -- noodles are being frantically weighed and chopped on the back of bikes; truckloads of Tofu stand at the ready and people are hastily exchanging their hard earned cash for tonight's dinner. Eggs of every shape and colour overflow from baskets on the footpath and vegetables in every shade of green are laid out along the ground, ripe for the picking. Fresh fish (and I mean so fresh they are alive) flap in buckets until you make your selection. (Don’t mind the 'Wai guo ren' (foreigner) stifling her shriek as she spies the fish being retrieved and hastily hit over the head ready for purchase.) It’s clearly a feast for the eyes and at times an assault on ones senses…. Just to the side of the markets is a large park. Wednesday morning and it’s brimming with life. Every single nook and cranny is occupied. It occurs to me that no one does mornings like China’s senior citizens! Pockets of the park are punctuated with groups of women dancing in unison…. Lone men sit playing their favourite instrument. There’s no busking, this is simply playing for pleasure. Others stand under the shade of a tree practicing Tai Chi. Stationary exercise machines are being given an emphatic work out and strange sports that clearly involve a high degree of skill are underway with gusto! Men huddle together playing Mahjong; a choir is gathered under a small pagoda singing to their heart’s content. Just nearby rows of ping pong tables are witnessing some lively games. Others, content to go it alone. And then this…. a traditional sword dance! Good Morning Xi’an! This is China. … [Read more...]
A Week in the Life of One Expat in China…..
One of my delightful blog readers said she’d love to hear about a typical day in my life, here in China. While I’ve rattled on about various expat experiences, I’ve probably tried to spare you the gory details of my day to day trivialities! And at the risk of boring you all to tears, mostly my days are not too dissimilar to those I might have back at home. Still, visitors always ask me, “What do you do all day, here in this mad city?” Well, in a nutshell, I take my daughter to and from school, I work, I do chores, I have coffee, I shop! The usual! But wait! Before you hit delete…. there’s (probably) more! Yes, admittedly, there are a few little challenges/hiccups/weird 'China moments' in between that run of the mill stuff. A year in, for much of it, I don’t bat an eyelid… Perhaps this is my new normal? I’ll let you be the judge. Instead of a day in the life, here’s what a “typical” week might look like in the middle of China! Monday: Brace myself for the mad school run! These days most drivers we have (which is whoever happens to be available from the hotel, where we live) don’t speak any English. Like nada! This means there’s a lot of nodding, smiling and charades. But at 7:50am, charades can be a bit much so it's with a 'Nihao' we roar off along Xi'an's roads, swarming with erratic morning traffic. Ava is strapped into her car seat, but it’s not compulsory. (She could be sitting on the roof for all they care….Yes really!) Depending on the driver, I’m either listening to blaring talkback radio in Chinese (at least it sounds like it to my oblivious ears), Country and Western (in English) or some big tunes from seventies rock stars like The Eagles! (Don't ask me about the latest hits…...Ed Sheeran who?) Or it’s radio silence…just the cacophony of horns to hum along to, with the odd crackling of random fire crackers to break up the relentless screeching of horns. 40 minutes later, (at least) 20 near misses with various busses, bikes and trikes (a few expletives under my breath later) and we arrive at school. (For more on what it's like...you can read this post!) We stumble out of the car and weave our way through cars coming in all directions to cross the road to school. (In the early days we could be stuck there for who knows how long! I now (smugly) feel quite accomplished at crossing the road.) The security guard at the gate greets us with a big, smiling ‘Zao Shang Hao’ (Good Morning) and we roll in to what is one of Xi’an’s three international schools. Ironically most of the foreigners here, happen to be teachers and their kids (and make up a large portion of my new found friends). Ava’s school is an International Baccalaureate school with students made up largely of Koreans and Chinese and then about two dozen or so are westerners from England to America, Europe the Middle East and beyond. At the entrance, a board tells us the temp for the day and the all important pollution levels. If its over 200, it means the kids won’t be playing outside. For most of the spring/summer months it’s low and we don’t think about it too much. Come winter, it’s a different story. Coal powered heaters are fired up across town and it’s a speedy run through the chilled winter air, up to our necks in puffer jackets, scarves and masks, ready to do battle with a smoggy environment. Tuesday: A year in China and it’s time for a visa renewal run, so that we can stay another year! (If we so wish). Thank God, we are not required to go through the ridiculous rigorous medical we were subjected to last year! (Read about that debacle here.) Nope this is just a quick sit down in front of a camera for a photo and a very smiley (please let us stay) ‘Nihao’ to the lady, who it seems has the power to push this through very quickly IF we give the right look (and enough cash). Without the hotel's HR person to fill in countless forms and visit several different departments, we would be utterly lost! No two ways about it. There is zero English spoken in any of these departments. I head to school with Ava while the hotelier hails a cab and tells the driver where to take him in Chinese! (A proud moment in itself!) This afternoon, it’s time for my Chinese lesson, which usually fills me with a mix of both dread and determination. I pick Ava up from school (aka drag her kicking and screaming from the playground) to make the slightly less chaotic afternoon run home. The driver is asleep as we approach….it seems in China they will take every opportunity for a quick snooze. I have to knock on the window and probably scare the living daylights out of him! Home (well, to the hotel’s business centre where I have my 1.5 hour lesson) and my Lao shi (teacher) meets us in the hotel lobby (while our Chinese Bao mu (babysitter) who also works in the hotel restaurant, takes Ava (which usually involves too many cupcakes, barbies and some Chinese singing for an hour or two)! This afternoon we are learning the ins and outs of a house…furniture, computers, washing machines….upstairs, downstairs, front gardens…..I inhale yet another coffee to keep me focussed…… Wednesday: International day at school means everyone’s dressing in their local costume and bringing dishes from all over the world. Small Person is dressed as an Australian cow girl in her Akubra. Most days after school, I let her play for half an hour in the playground with the other kids who aren’t taking the bus (most do, many of them as young as three). I’m always intrigued by the myriad of different languages that buzz around me while I wait. It’s interesting to see how birds of a feather flock together. Most of the Chinese parents huddle together in one corner, the Koreans in the other, and the rest of the westerners hang about….(usually waiting for the inevitable scream of a child galloping through the playground in tears of either joy or the 'someone's just pushed me' variety…). The lack of mingling is largely due to the language barrier… That said, for the Small Person, having children in her class that don't speak English is perfectly normal and inspiringly, no obstacle to their communication. There is a huge Korean population in Xi’an due to Samsung having its largest plant outside of Korea, here. Many of my neighbours are Korean and many of Small Person’s classmates are Korean. There's even a Little Korea Town, where I've just enjoyed my first authentic Korean BBQ. Tonight, I arrive home to a new addition to the house! We have a new lounge! I didn’t ask for it, but it's all part of the original ‘hotel residence’ plans that went on hold. Now it's finished, I'm not complaining. But this construction site on my balcony means I’ve had many random strangers hanging outside my home day in, day out for several months, now. Sometimes they are sleeping, often they are spitting, shouting and smoking and occasionally they are eating lunch or dinner with their families (on my outdoor table) as the sun sets! Nice for some! Thursday: We (excitedly) have visitors in town all the way from the Land Down Under…and today I accompany them to see the famous Muslim Quarter. It’s Golden Week, so crowds are even more mammoth than usual. We inch through the chaos, shoulder to shoulder. Bikes loaded sky high try to defy the law of nature and squeeze through the solid crowds (hopefully without running over someone’s toes)! Our visitors' eyes have that boggled look that says, "Get me the hell out of here!" Today smoke is thick in our faces from so much street food being sizzled and seared…. we escape down a side alley way to the Great Mosque entrance for some tranquility….and breathe. After a wander around, the big question: If it’s not street food, where to eat? We decide, with five kids in tow, Maccas is a good option. For a start they have toilets. The line though is out the door. With a long day ahead, we have no choice but to wait almost an hour in the queue - the only white people being eye-balled up and down by rather amused locals. A few are game to take photos and attempt to snuggle into our small people. There’s a good reason my first words learnt in Mandarin were “Please don’t touch her!” We pray there is a western style toilet at our destination, but at the end of the line we find three terribly messy (and believe you me, this is being polite) squat toilets …even better with doors that don’t lock and keep swinging open revealing all and sundry! (Those revealed, don’t seem to mind)! We decide to grimace grin and bear it and I attempt to give my visitors a quick lesson in the art of squatting, whilst wearing jeans and boots! There’s a lot of shrieking and giggling amongst the undeniable horror! Chant the mantra: Friday: It’s the Australian Football Grand Final….our expat friends invite us over for a good ole Aussie shindig. How can we refuse!! Of course the number of Aussies in town is few and far between so we rally in the Americans and the English as well (who stare blankly at the fast paced game of footy) and we chow down on some homemade Aussie pies. A non-baker I’m usually the one bearing the cheese platter and wine (also because living in a hotel I’m fortunate to have access to some decent cheese!). Later and we’ve agreed to meet some newbies in town. An american couple (readers of this blog) have been asked to come on secondment to Xi’an. They are keen to get the lowdown. I try not to scare them too much as they sit with us not knowing whether to laugh or cry, gripping their glass of wine just a little too tightly. (I remember the feeling, well!) Saturday We’ve signed up (or rather my lovely husband signed me up) for a Charity Run as part of the Starwood Hotels ‘Run to Give’ campaign. I am not really a runner, so the fact that we are up early and standing on Xi’an’s ancient city wall on a Saturday morning ready to race around it is in itself quite baffling, but admittedly quite a stunning start to the day! There’s a huge turnout, the sky is unusually blue with not much hint of pollution and it’s warm. As I huff and puff my way around the wall built thousands of years ago, looking at the red Chinese lanterns swinging in the morning light, I wonder how I got here. A friend's birthday means we are all going for Chinese Hot Pot, which is an extremely popular outing in much of China. This time we are given our own little pots, which sit just to the left of us on hotplates hidden under the table. Once they are bubbling, you add your fresh meat, noodles and cook yourself. (Note to self: don't put phone on table near hot plate!) Sunday The hotel is on high alert today, the red carpet has been rolled out (literally)! Despite Xi’an’s location (seemingly in the middle of nowhere), we seem to get a lot of VIP’s popping in. (Indian PM, former US President Jimmy Carter.) Today it’s the Russian Deputy PM along with China’s Deputy. (Both women I might add!) Police have closed off roads around the hotel and seem to be hanging everywhere! A mobile scanner is set up outside the hotel for bags and for a brief period no one is allowed in or out. The hotelier is running around like a chook with his head cut off….(nothing new there) and the grand ballroom is fit for a king! Later I manage to escape from the hotel to get to the hairdresser for a blow-dry. I can’t mention my typical week in China without mentioning this place. It is a place that has both intimidated and invigorated me over the last 12 months. For a start only one of the dozen staff can speak any English…so over the year there has been a lot of staring at me - repeat, a lot! Thankfully as time goes on we are all becoming more comfortable with one another. I am no longer the foreign species on the block to be prodded and poked. My visit is not your typical visit to a hairdresser where it’s all about the endless flow of coffee, head massages and trashy magazines. Sadly, there are none of these luxuries….instead, I am given a full immersion into Chinese, whether I like it or not. My Chinese book is ogled by the locals, keen to see what this strange foreigner is learning….I am made to repeat the words out loud…and conversation is mostly in Chinese. (Which whilst at the time leaves me feeling like I've been dragged through a bush backwards is ultimately invaluable.) This week I’ve been shopping and my excited bevy of onlookers want to know what the crazy lady has in the bags. For a brief moment (again) I feel like I am on another planet ….and then I hear Madonna’s ‘Get into the Groove’ playing across the salon and I smile to myself. You see, I know the words! It’s the one moment in which I have the upper hand in an otherwise alien environment. I walk home to get ready for the afternoon school run…. I see a mum holding her child over a drain, for the toilet…..someone else is squatting down low on the side of the road eating their lunch (who needs a seat), street carts are parked on every corner bearing all sorts of indecipherable goodies, cars ride along pavements, their horns honking…. and people are generally shouting at each other (all in the name of normal conversation). Of course, the rest of my week I can be found at my desk, writing, working….doing chores…just like any other working mum. A week in my life….all fairly normal stuff. Or is it? I don’t really know anymore. This is China. *Note: I may take creative license with the actual days and times of said events. … [Read more...]