mhairimcdonald's TravelStream™ — Recent TravelPod.com entries TravelStream™ news feed for member mhairimcdonald on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/mhairimcdonald en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Thu, 20 Jul 2006 06:08:31 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com Good bye Yantai — Shanghai, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1151656020/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1151656020/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1151656020/tpod.html Thu, 20 Jul 2006 06:08:31 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Shanghai, China

Hello hello all, sorry its been such a gap! Will all become clear soon. Anyway back to what we (the royal we since I am now officially Helen less) have been up to.

After visiting Penglai, a magical eastern but very Chinese city further east of Yantai (que even more staring, pointing and spitting than usual) with an a amazing view of a 'floating island' of 50000 Chinese soldiers who only ever came ashore once every two years... and packing and sending a few things home by post(it cost around 5 USD a kilo) it was time to leave Yantai. I couldn't believe my two months was up. Having had a love hate relationship with China I had decided quite firmly that its good points outweighed its bad, especially at the school I was teaching at. In our last week me and Helen visited a rural Chinese secondary school, which was the most intensive experience of my trip so far. Average class size numbered 70 and me and Helen had to 1st answer questions, 2nd sign about a million pieces of paper as 'autographs' and 3rd sing and teach the children a song. It was quite a surprise test of nerves even by Chinese standards - usually any notice is good notice (we were told from hour to hour what they wanted us to do with the kids). But it wasn't to end there. We also had to sit at the head of a very long, round table and answer questions on teaching methods in the UK for the morning which was nerve racking for me as I wasn't sure what they wanted to hear of me and my 'teaching methods' And it didn't help that two of the teachers continually grogged for the duration of a few of my miniature monologues (Helen got an early reprieve) in a very 'rural Chinese' fashion. The most eye opening section of the day was without a doubt the lunch. We sat round a table that whirled around and presented 'delicaciess' in front of you whenever someone at the opposite side of the table felt like offering them to you. There were around 40 toasts to me and Helen for various different spurious reasons. An incredible amount of alcohol was consumed by all parties other than myself whom I deemed 'too young to drink' (never have I ever said this before)One of our translators had to be excused to go and vomit (to be able to return to the table to continue drinking to the toasts as it is considered rude not to be able to inhale the contents of you glass within a moments notice of 'gam bai' being announced from the top of the table) two of the secrateries got so drunk they told me and Helen they were quite in love with us and by the end all this extra food was covered in beer, cigarette ash and dark Baijo from all the glass clinking in the center ( Baijo-the worst 'local spirit' that you have to try to be polite I have ever come across- it smells and tastes like methanol and strength varies from 53% to 63% yet it is still offered to you as 'wine') and I felt like I was participating in some macabre version of family fortunes.

The time came to say goodbye to my students, some of whom I had also had a love hate relationship with but by the end I was sad to say goodbye, especially to some of the teachers who had been helpful to me. But they do say that you always meet people twice in life. We had one final night out with a few people we had got friendly with that lived in Yantai and the other volunteers. I then stepped up into the limelight for my 1st ever Kareoke performance, a rendition not to be missed of Stings Roxxane Red Light. A sight for sore eyes let me tell you all. Then all of a sudden me and Helen were off on the night bus to Shanghai. And this is where my 1st bad travel experience in China comes in, during the night the driver decided that it would be a good idea to sell off the spaces in between the beds (whats an extra 10 people in China) and I got lumped with a fat middle aged Chinese man next to me. The next 8 hours proceeded to be a battle between me and him as to whether or not it was acceptable for him to spread his arms and legs over my abdomen em. Always travel train if possible in China people.

Feeling super elated at being off the bus, me and Helen skipped along the Bund at 5 AM watching the sunrise, and all the insane Chinese Tai Tchee activities. You name it they were doing it on the Bund that sunny morning, everything from walking backwards to clapping their hands behind their back to 90 year old ladies almost in full splits with their legs on walls. Was the best 'old people doing crazy tai tchee' spotting in China so far.

Me and Helen had a wholesome few days in a rather disgustingly hot shanghai, at 60% humidity it was almost too much to bear. We went to the Shanghai art gallery, which I really enjoyed; it was full off old communist socialist realist paintings, an amazing black and white photography exhibition and cool pop art plus some interesting contemporary works on the ground floor. Comes highly recommended as a cheap way to spend a day in pricey Shanghai. This and a tasty Italien meal plus a few excellent goodbye nights out made up our last few days together in Shanghai. Was sad to say goodbye. Felt like a lose end staring into a big abyss of about a month and a half to fill all by myself :( I had to pick myself up though so I went straight to the nearest star bucks and bought myself a ludicrously overpriced Double Chocolate Frappechinno and went to see the 10000 Mao badges in the new 'Dong Lu cultural zone' (you will be cultured in the cultural zone)And it would of made a great picture, however my camera was broken. Hoping to get a new camera sometime soon! I declined to go up to the top of the Gin Mao tower (tallest building in China, 4th in the world) mainly due to the fact that during the day Shangai is as smoggy as Beijing so Im not sure what there would of been to see. ALso, much of my week in Shanghai was spent either hung over, dazed and confused because of the heat or in a deep melancholic state as me and Helen had parted. This laziness was also in part because I rather got in with some of the creatures of the night that seemed to reside in the hostel (you guys know who you are) and I had a few memorable nights out in Shanghai, getting down and (literally) very dirty in a hole of a western club called windows (which was just what I needed after spending 2 months in nightclubs in Yantai trying to fathom how it was possible for Chinese people to dance so completely out of time with any 'music' that was playing and making our own fun.) Other than the nightlife there is not a lot a I can recommend of Shangai. I also jumped on a random bus along the bund and went to see the loading and shipping at the docks which was really cool. One side of the docks is linned with say around 1 million crates which is the daily delivery for Shanghai and on the other side is Walmarts daily delivery- average of 2 million crates.

Having though rely 'done' Shanghai (nights) it was time to go and I hoped on the sleeper with an Aussie guy called Mark to Guilin. We discovered a shared love of Rummy and passed the time easily. The past few weeks have been quite exerting on the old travel brain: (its been out of education two years now guys, whaddya expect) me and Helen had a Godfather moment before we left. Iv been learning and playing as many new card games as possible (Hearts, 25s, Chinese poker, Poker; Texas hold em and 5 card stud) and been listening to much previously unheard of deep house music, que much clicking and whirring as opposed to 'banging' house music that comes highly recommended by Andy whom Im traveling with just now- Isolee and Squarepusher I can so far recommend. Jane Eyre and the Little Prince have so far also proved meaningful travel reading. And not to mention the sudden panic at the end of Shanghai as I realised I was missing a few essential phrases to get myself from A to B (for some reason this seemed to matter less when I was part of a twosome) A desperate attempt to learn as much Chinese as possible seemed to of paid off and I could say pretty much everything that I needed to for my last month in China. Nothing short of a miracle. Strangely enough I met on my travels very few people who seemed bothered by their lack of ability to communicate at all (not that mine was perfect) and it proved very useful in collecting friends on my travels in southern China. Take note anyone who is thinking of traveling in China alone. Anyway enough for now, take care everyone love m
]]> Beijing — Beijing, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1150280340/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1150280340/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1150280340/tpod.html Tue, 27 Jun 2006 22:40:02 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Beijing, China

This weekend I was off to Beijing, and it was a weekend of strange coincidences. I went on the train with Andrew Carlos and Hong. It was my 1st experience on a train in China, and they seem really efficient but I saw a few older trains in the station and they looked painful. There are 3 class of seats, the hard seat which is just a cramped seat for 15 hours and not a good idea if you have anything valuable with you (on the older trains I saw these were literally one big seat for about 4 people and wooden), the hard sleeper which is a thin bed which is perfectly comfortable with 6 to a cabin. Go for the bed on the bottom if your with people you can socialize and the middle if your on your own because everyone can see you as they walk by if your on the bottom bunk ( and you feel like a goldfish for 15 hours.) There is also the soft sleeper which is about a hundred yuan more but really not that different except your cabin door closes, you get a lace curtain and some flowers. I was awoken at 4 AM but two policemen shouting at me in Chinese with a torchlight, which gave me a bit of a fright, however they were just telling me to hide my bag. After that incident Carlos claims I spent the next 3 hours talking in my sleep about policemen, which I think is fair enough especially as he had already been warned about my nocturnal habits. When we arrived in Beijing Carlos and Hong stayed with friends and I stayed in a hostel to meet Paul with Andrew. It was called the Beijing Feiying International youth hostel, its in the lonely planet and I would recommend it to anyone as its only 30 Yuan a night and really nice and clean but not very sociable. Good Internet access and communal phone though. However take the tube there, or if you get a taxi get out when you see the Mcdonalds its near otherwise the taxi driver takes you on a huge detour as its location isn't that great. This was the 1st of two strange coincidences, Ben your huge Chinese instrument was lying next to my bag in storage behind the counter. Out of all the hostels in Beijing! That afternoon we went to the silk market which is full of really good fake Ralph Lauren, Gucci Armani and North Face but other than that the fake clothes are of poor quality. The handbags and sunglasses are amazing though, I couldn't believe how accurate they were. That evening we went out with Jason and Noah who live in Beijing to a really nice local rester aunt and Sanlitun, which was an eye opener for me as I had never been out in Beijings main bar district before. Of course it was choc full of black men selling drugs (they are usually the people to see if thats what your into in Beijing) and prostitutes after 12 and in some of the bars. Which I always really hate to see as its always older western men with beautiful young Chinese girls, so embarasing (apparently Iv got it all to look forward to in Thailand.) The following day I said goodbye to Andrew which was sad as he has gone home for good. I then met Lofty in the afternoon, we met traveling in South America on the tour bus I was on. It was so crazy seeing someone you met right at the beginning of my travels and now one year on, especially as he hasn't been home yet, hes still working his way back home overland via Mongolia, Russia eastern Europe, Europe home. We caught up and went out to watch the game. The Sunday was the last coincidence of the weekend, me and lofty woke up in our dorm in Bejing international youth hostel (really nice and modern, sociable, good location right across from the train station but a bit more pricey at 60 yuan for a dorm) to find none other than our tour leader from South America, Kate in the bed across from us. The look on my face was priceless apparently. I have decided that we are living on the smallest planet in the universe. We then had a really nice day catching up and went to the Drum and Bell tower area in Beijing, and had a few beers on the river next to the Hutongs. The Hutongs are an old fashioned style of Chinese housing, small bungalows that surround a small courtyard where everyone socializes in the evenings playing cards and Chinese chess. which are good to see as you feel like you could actually be in China as opposed to in the middle of any smoggy, sky scrape red city and if it wasn't for the many tourists groups that go by on Phut Phuts (push bikes with boxes on the back for people to sit in) with matching red yellow or green hats so they dont get lost. The weather in Beijing was much improved, and I even got a glimpse of blue sky through the haze at one point. We had to say goodbye that afternoon, which was sad. Over all though Beijing left a much better impression in my mind this time than on the previous occasion.
This weeks lessons have consisted mainly of descriptions of people. Which has turned up some funny cultural differences. Apparently its ok to describe a friend as a 'little fat' or not very beautiful if its obviously true. (Iv decided they are banned from describing me though for this very reason.)
With the arrival of the Americans DVDs this week have been so far American themed with not much to recommend. Though I can advocate having a home alone DVDs evening as it seems to bridge cinematic cultural differences. And have been listning to Massive Attacks Mezzaine and feeling the most homesick I have since the start (choice of music probebly not helping) I think its the two month mark, I remember it was difficult last year also. Must go to class now, missing everyone lots,m x
Ps Happy Birthday to Rona and Sheri
]]> Hello from Qing dao and Yantai — Qing Dao, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1149498421/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1149498421/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1149498421/tpod.html Thu, 15 Jun 2006 03:23:52 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Qing Dao, China

Hello everybody

Since I last spoke to you I have been to Qing Dao beach resort, said goodbye to Ben and Sam and welcomed 3 new volunteers single handedly!(kind of)
Last weekend we (me Sam Ben and Helen) all took the bus to Qing Dao (around 4 hours south of Yantai- where the sailing part of the 2008 Beijing Olympics is going to be held.) It was incredibly wet for the 1st day, so we just looked around the shops which are really good in Qing Dao, all very unique little bootiques which are owned and run buy the people who make the clothes themselves. And then got ready to go out to the 'John Lennon' bar, which btw probably doesn't exist! Beforehand though we had a few drinks in the hotel and I learned 2 new drinking games: never have I ever where you say something like 'never have I ever had my ears pierced' and everyone who has to have drink. 21 which is a great game but slightly too complicated to explain but what I will say was that Bens rule that no one could drink without removing and replacing the little green man on their drink was rather too effective and should be banned from all games of 21. A bottle of great wall wine or two and a few un savoury revelations later (which will never ever be discussed again) and we were off on a lying planet (aka 'Lonely planet') wild goose chase to find the John Lennon bar. In the end we settled for the taxi drivers 'many white people here' bar which was fine, but I didn't see much of the famed Qing dao nightlife to be honest. But we were offered a job in a supermarket que, and I think if I come back to China to teach it would be to Qing Dao from what Iv seen so far.
The following day the weather had cleared up and we went to the beach, me hoping to go for a swim. However I discovered that along with using beauty products to whiten the skin Chinese woman dont go in for swimming in the sea/sunbathing to keep themselves as white as poss. So I was surrounded, to my horror, by middle aged Chinese men in black speedoes which made for a speedy retreat up the stony beach on my part. The pier that evening was lovely though, and I would recommend Qing dao to anyone with the time. That evening we said goodbye to Sam, which was sad as he had been with us in Yantai a week and had virtually become part of the furniture. We went home on a private run bus that night which was 10 yuan (60p) cheaper than the air con comfy government bus, not worth it. The next day me my head and my ass were definitely what is termed travel hangover.
Monday was 'back to school' and Iv discovered (kind of by accident) that the best way to get through to my moody high school/western Korean students is to make them laugh. SO all week Iv been miming ' picking up smelly sock' and 'drinking beer and watching TV' etc etc for verbs. Which has been lots of fun and I have even made a few friends in high school, who today gave me a huge bag of cherries! (My 1st present!) However I cant really eat them as Im trying to cutback. Im really starting to like Chinese food. If you are a vegetarian in China it is only difficult if you eat out in resteraunts a lot or dont like spicy food. If you buy from street vendors what you see is what you get you just have to experiment at the start. In Yantai at almost all 'plastic chair, alfresco beer from a keg places' (as I call them, as they all appear around 6 and disappear at 1 and remain nameless) you can get any kind of seafood you want, lots of different kinds of tofu deep fried, veggie pates, veggie crepes, deep fried spinach/cabbage. Its very cheap but is also mostly deep fried and it is this and a combination of the stodgy school dinners that are getting me a little portly (lol fat) I also have two food revelations for those that know me well, I have started actively ordering spicy food as opposed to just eating it sometimes, and... Have started eating a very particular kind of mushroom! The Wood ear mushroom (hopefully with more to follow.)
During the week me and Helen said goodbye to Ben, who was off to India for a month and as he had become a stalwart part of me and Helens little crew, a sad occasion. But we were soon cheered up by the arrival of Carlos, a Phillipino who is studying at Tenasse, and has already accrued many humorous catchphrase such as 'Its not anti bacterial wash, its hand cream!'and 'Whos drinking my protein shake?' (yes he brought protein shake from the states and is on a major healthy makeover, so I dont come home 2 stone heavier rather than thinner) On Wednesday evening Hong arrived, who is originally from China but has lived in Colarado most of his life. Me and Carlos thought Hong was going to be a girl though, and were rather bemused at the sight of him (classic China communication error) and on Thursday Jenny arrived whos family are from Hong Kong but she was brought up in Torronto. All are here for a month in summer break and all speak good to fluent Mandarin and Jenny speaks Cantonese. So I have spent the whole weekend playing the odd westerner out :) and saving money because of it as Helen went to Gulin (southern China) to meet up with Sam.
Friday night I took the new volunteers out on the tiles in Yantai, which was weird as I was no longer the new volunteer but the only one who new where anything was. Also as there is only two bars, I am getting to know almost every ex pat in them, which is funny. Think Cheers but in China and with lots of mangy sailors hanging around the bar. Jenny and Hong seemed to think the bar/red light area was a bit dodgey but apparently there is worse that we just haven't seen yet. I guess most people feel like that when they come to a new city. Nothing has happened here yet though to change my mind that Yantai seems to be reasonably safe, I certainly feel safer here than I do in Glasgow or South America.
That weekend was also my 1st evening out in a proper seafood resteraunt in Yantai, you cant beat being right next to the sea for seafood and in Yantai 90 % of the seafood you eat was alive 10 minutes before you ate it (very big on fresh meat out here.) Natuarlly it was really good.
SO its back to school today after a generally lazy weekend eating/shopping/going out. I have discovered a new shopping buddy in Carlos, who likes to go to random markets and shops just as much as me, and has been well trained by many female Phillipino relatives. He also offered to put me up in Manilla in the Phillipines if I go after I finish teaching (which is a big incentive to actually go for it and stop being such a baby.) We also have group plans to go to Qing dao again at some point, and to Beijing (poss this weekend) to meet Paul or Lofty or the Loft as he is better known who I traveled with in South America last year (what goes around comes around)
Last week films that I watched of note were Princess Mononoke, one of Miyazakis best that I have seen (creepier than Spirited Away) and would definitely recommend. As I was feeling a bit lonely I also had a Leo night and watched Catch me if you can (really good film, would recommend) the Aviator(good but a bit on the long side) and The Basketball diaries. This week there is going to be an Arnie evening and a Kung fu action movie evening but you will all have to wait for up dates on those! As you can tell although one of my packages with my 1st year reading list for Glasgow has arrived (currently reading Emma) but my Chinese language Cd has gone AWOL somewhere between Glasgow and Yantai and is presumed M.I.A (too many war films guys). So still plenty of time for dvd watching, I should really be doing film studies.
This weeks lessons are mostly based on directions and games of knots and crosses which is always fun. Ok must go update photos, look out for funny random videos, bye bye for now, will update on plans for weekend soon! Love m
]]> Childrens day — Yantai, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1149150360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1149150360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1149150360/tpod.html Wed, 14 Jun 2006 05:57:27 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Yantai, China

Got up on my day off today to see the Childrens day show. Today is national childrens day in China and for those of you that are short enough you can get into any Chinese monument half price. The show was really impressive, with costume changes every scene and well rehearsed dance moves. It was even better because as Helen had been helping her primary school kids rehearse she got a staring role singing at the end and backstage passes. At the beginning all the heads of school came on and sat in a row with red scarf's tied round their necks and talked for nearly an hour about god knows what (one of the lowlights) I also got to hear Auld Lang Syne in Korean, Chinese and English, however no one seems to believe me that this was a Scottish song and they think Im just a crazy Scottish person.The highlight of the day had to be the primary 4 kids dancing around in red army uniforms. Que lots of cute photographs in my photo album. Although it was painfully hot, 3 hours long and all in Chinese it was totally worth it to see Helen warbling at the end and a few cute kids falling and getting lost on stage, however there was not much of that in this super ordered communist country, and the backstage word is that they were really punnished for making mistakes. Im definitely off to Beijing this weekend with Andrew, Carlos and Hong. Give me an email anyone who is going to be there too. Ciao
]]> My time in Yantai so far — Yantai, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1148452380/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1148452380/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1148452380/tpod.html Fri, 26 May 2006 07:25:06 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Yantai, China

Hello everyone

Sorry about gap in contact, but I've been trying to settle in here and wait for some news to appear. Yantai is a pretty average Chinese city to stay in I think, although Sam who has come to stay thinks that as there are no tourists the locals do more bizarre things and stare more (which I would have to agree with) but the area Im living in is really good and having my own little space has to be the best thing that has happened, ever. There is a fresh sea food market most days, and another indoor clothes market which sells lots of cheap hand made fabulous clothes. Unfortunately China is not what I was expecting in terms of cheap electrical goods, everything seems to be a few paces behind the UK. They still sell tapes and tape players everywhere. News since I last spoke to you all being Iv decorated my room, its now got a few Manga posters up and souvenirs from Beijing. Music Iv been getting into and I recommend everyone should listen to is Cat Power, The Greatest, Stereolab and Iron and Wine. As my package from home hasn't arrived yet (with Chinese learning pack) My hand has been forced, and Iv been indulging in super cheap DVDs from the local market (at around 8 Yuan each its about 50p a piece) Our local DVD shop as a secret door at the back covered in posters where you can get DVDS that are out at the cinema or just coming out and some other rather less appealing titles (such as a huge collection of porn films that western stars have starred in that are banned in the UK) Recomended viewing for this week is John Woo's Hard Boiled (if you like beautifully shot and well choreographed Kung Foo) Farewell My Concubine (an excellent Chinese film that manages to deal with the issue of homosexuality in China very effectively considering it was only declared not to be a serious mental illness about 4 years ago by the government)and Top Gun (many humorous homo erotic overtones and excellent 80s sound track makes for an entertaining viewing) Going out to buy myself a pair of aviators today as a tribute to Goose.
Teaching has been harder this week, the novelty of being the new foreign teachers has worn off and Iv lost my temper twice. The 1st time was quite humorous, my 'kim jong il' class of Koreans were being very surly in general and when one of the boys started imitating my accent I lost it and screamed 'If you would shut up for just 5 bloody minutes you might actually learn something'(in true frustrated teacher fashion) Spoken in rapid Glaswegian though, so as not to actually be understood. And of course they just continued to stare blankly. The fact that I have difficulty with they're facial expressions seems to work both ways, they cannot read mine either so it took them around a minute to figure out I was angry. I have also been discovering that around half of the middle school boys do not speak English, and this is accepted by the teachers which makes my classes with them difficult as they do not wear signs on their forehead. Yesterday I had a go at two of them only to be told that 'they dont learn English' by the teacher, which would be fine if they didn't disrupt my classes by giggling and saying rude things in Chinese. Thankfully the language barrier comes in handy in these moments and I get to call them whatever I want in the most sarcastic of tones and they will still nod, smile, and say 'yes miss mhairi' when they figure out that Im pulling an angry expression. Humorous moments have been plentiful this week though and the lows are outweighed by the highs. In my last class I was doing the differences between the UK and China on the board and after a few perfectly PC answers about the weather food etc came shouts of 'Yellow' 'Yellow' teacher. As they grew louder and louder and I could not ignore them any more I then had to try and explain that this was 'not good English' and 'Asian' was better, much to their confusion (I think they are taught this at school.) Also my Korean kids on doing the differences between China and Korea said that 'Chinese people dont shower' and 'Food is made of oil here' I then took much delight in teaching them 'greasy' and 'smelly' as really showering and oil free food are not high on some peoples agendas out here.
Last weekend in Yantai was by far the funniest so far. There was a big group of us out and we have all ranged to go on a 'Road Trip' (yes Iv been hanging around too many Americans) to Qing Dao this weekend. Its about four hours south of Yantai and its a major beach resort where the locals think its good to be tanned. In China people (especially woman) use parasols in the sun, and often wear gloves and always tights partly to protect themselves from the sun and partly to cover up. Or big 80s looking visor things that cover the whole face, which along with the gloves are just as much to protect themselves from dirt and pollution as the sun. And as I have been discovering much to my skins anguish, just like most beauty products in the UK are geared towards the 'bronzed' look, in China they seem to be aiming for the bleached look (Im on my 3rd bar of soap now, as the other two turned out to be skin bleaching soaps.) The nightlife there is also supposed to be better(which means less Chinese dance music/phillipino band schmaltzy coldplay covers.) However this week there has been a bit of a weird one socially. Helen has had a friend from Beijing staying (I prefer 'fling from Beijing' actually) hes called Sam and Bens been in Beijing sorting out his visa for India as he goes next week. So Ive been doing lots of organizing decorating and lesson planning, but hopefully this weekend will make up for it. However as its been a bad teaching week for me I've been having thoughts about how Im going to cope with another month of surly teenage faces (as Im not sure if me and Helen are going to swap primary for secondary as was originally planned) as we feel we have got to know our kids too well to start over again. But then again when I have a good class I want to stay on here over the summer! It really is true that you only feel as good as your last class. Me and Helen are also supposed to be visiting a rural primary school where they have never seen a foreigner before which should be fun. Anyway got to pack for Quing Dao now,should be lots of sun sea and sand! Byeee
]]> Losing my mind — Beijing, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1144637700/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1144637700/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1144637700/tpod.html Thu, 18 May 2006 08:14:56 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Beijing, China

Ni Hao
I have arrived safely in Beijing, and although I may not of been so nervous about coming here it has deffinetly been more challenging than South America so far. So Im going to have a 5 minute rant about China if no one minds. Most Chinese men seem to proud to be letchy towards me and people don't seem so obviously poor and desperate as Latin America. So from a safety aspect it seems much improved, although it may be that Im simply finding it impossible to read peoples facial expressions correctly. The language barrier is huge (as to be expected with 4 phrases of Mandarin) and as Im staying on my own at the moment western faces are few and far between so its been a very quiet few days (almost eerily so.) Food and public transport are more than difficult to negotiate as is just wandering around this huge sprawling smoggy metropolis, which has very little redeeming factors in the city center itself. I would recommend flying British Airways though, you get free drink, socks, toothbrush and blanket.
Story so far: My friend from home John met me at the airport which was really good of him. 1st impressions of Beijing were standard big city stuff; hot, under construction, polluted and a previously unseen on my travels bizzare mix of 3rd world and western sights. We got to the flat where I met Johns flat mates and we proceeded to spend the next few days eating out, going out and seeing some sights. We tended to eat out in non Chinese resteraunts (with one edible exception) As Ive been discovering on my own real Chinese food from markets, street vendors and non western resteraunts is extremely suspicious and one must be wary of it: it may still be alive. Although Im learning a little everyday, food is cheap from street vendors and some of it is really tasty you just have to be one your guard, in China things are not always as they seem.... (I think Ive been on my own too long already.)
The day I arrived we went to the summer palace, which was more how I imagined China to be, temples, green grass, huge gray lakes, weeping willows and Blossom trees in flower. Although some of it was under construction for the 2008 Olympics (which everyone seems really exited about already)it was still a mystical place. That night we went out to a bar, which was called bed and was similar to Chai Ovna but full of beds and things were easy especially as John spoke good Chinese. However they were to depart on their own camping trip and I was to finally feel the force of culture shock, and its not been a pretty few days people let me tell you!
I was staying in this really nice (but still strange) flat of Johns, as he gave me the keys to house sit when I had this sudden realization that there was absolutely no one I knew in this huge city, that I was jet lagged without a clock (Im still a bit nocturnal as a result of this) and I had visions of going a little bit crazy. Managed to go out shopping yesterday to find myself a clock and saw some strange sights in the markets, everything from terrapins to bullfrogs to Congor eels can be bought for yer tea, again some strange pictures will hopefully follow. And as for today I was on a mission to conquer the Beijing subway system, and just about managed to get to Tianamen Square. I also discovered pretty quickly that the Chinese have no concept of queuing, just running q jumping and pushing (a note to all other travelers: read your lonely planet before you arrive in the country.) Tianamen Square was an amazing sight, especially considering its tragic history juxtaposed with all these huge portraits of the current head honchos in the communist party and many a red flag flying. You would be forgiven for thinking that communism had all but disappeared from Beijing until you get to Tianamen. I then got in touch with Vivians friend Marie, and she might be coming to the Great Wall with me tomorrow. We had dinner together tonight, which I wolfed down in a rather unladylike manner due to a combination of the fact that the bizzare variety of pungent smells in Beijing had made me lose my appetite and also I wasn't sure what was what or even how to ask for it. So I have a friend you will all be pleased to know.
Speak to you all soon soon

Love m

PS thanks to Sheri, Dee, Ruby, Greer, Connor and heath for helping me get my i pod together, its been one of the few things keeping me sane the last few days.... Good read? This entry has not been rated

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]]> Saucer Eyed — Glasgow, United Kingdom http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1146035100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1146035100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1146035100/tpod.html Wed, 17 May 2006 01:52:05 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Glasgow, United Kingdom

Evening all

Its 2:04 AM and I feeling very much awake and a bit saucer eyed. Looking forward to this journey to Beijing more than going abroad last year, no feeling of mounting dread yet. However still a bit uneasy about being pulled out of my comfort zone by yours truly. Looking forward to having someone to meet me at an international airport, so exiting after some lonely moments last year seeing lots of other names on placards. However Im not sure if that is really appropriate to have a placard for someone you knew beforehand, seems wrong somehow, and I may start blushing with the lies. Im sorry to those who I did'nt get a chance to say a proper goodbye to, but hey Il be back and we'v all done this before and will not doubt be doing it again... Next time I speak to you it will be with love from China. So exited... Night

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]]> Giant Budda and 1st evening on the tiles — Yantai, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147413900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147413900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147413900/tpod.html Wed, 17 May 2006 01:23:53 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Yantai, China

Hey hey we'r the monkeys

Today I took the bus with ben to Nanshan(around 1 hour south west of Yantai) where he was getting his tattoo finished (a bamboo forest on his calf) to see the famous Nanshan Grand Budda statue of Sakyamumi. Its 40 meters tall, weighs 380 tons and is made of bronze and tin. It really was an incredible sight and was surrounded by amazing views, many temples, pagodas and ancient gardens. It took a while to climb up the steps and I had to keep stopping as it was quite steep but it was worth it as the views really are breath taking once you got to the top. Underneath the giant Buddha in a dark room there is 999 miniature bronze Buddha lit up with (electrical) lotus tea lights. This room was very atmospheric and one of my favorite sights of China so far. The grand Buddha plus the little Buddha make 10000, which is supposed to make you feel purified and tranquil, which I can vouch for (or it may of been more of been more the fact that I had boards of Canada and Zero 7 on my i pod and had just hiked up this hill.)
The night before had been our 1st night out in Yantai, which was interesting to say the least. Something had been bothering me about Yantai, it is a seaside town and smells and has similar weather to say Brighton for example. However It was only over the weekend that I realized that for Yantai the sea and the port is still its main source of income, and there were always many little boats and big boats coming in and out of the harbors. At home most boats tend to lie unused and shipbuilding not the same as it used to be. Imagine my shock at wandering into the bar to find real sailors. They couldn't stop staring at us, and being mostly from the Netherlands were rumored to have later drank the bar dry. It was so funny, it looked like they hadn't seen a female for years and to make matters worse were all about my dads age. This made for some light entertainment on our nights out. We also met over the weekend a group of guys from England and some Americans who are all over here studying/working and are all living together, whom we saw again on Saturday night. There are only 2 ex pat bars (and 2 clubs, as yet unvisited) that are any cop (and by that I mean not /strip bars/saunas) but that doesn't mean to say the music is any good by western standards. On Saturday evening we had the pleasure of the company of some Chinese sailors (who were scarily persistent) and some Chinese students. The Chinese in Yantai seem to have a style of dancing which is, different shall we say. And taste in music which is just terrible (think late 90s cheesy pop songs speeded up to early 90s rave music) But until about 12 its your usual mix of rnb dance and pop which is actually becoming more and more appealing. But me and Helen still managed to have loads of fun and the measures were half and half in 'Cape of storms' bar and 'Havanas' club so I cant complain too much. Anyway got to go to class now, its guess the verb time everybody. M xxxxxxxx
]]> Humorous moments teaching — Yantai, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147262040/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147262040/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147262040/tpod.html Wed, 17 May 2006 01:16:27 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Yantai, China

Top 5 humorous moments so far in Yantai:

Mhairi on her 1st day asking one of the Korean boys to introduce himself, I realize my error only at the last moment when writing on the board: Kim Jong Il (I was had) Que much hilarity in Korean language class for the rest of the period.

The classrooms all have small stages where you stand to teach. Me falling over a chair at the side of the stage then onto a bin when stretching to write something in the corner of the black board was an excellent moment. Especially as it was in front of 40 near adults. I didn't no whether to laugh or cry.

Mhairi's various spelling mistakes: Adjetive (where is the C Miss Mhairi?)

An escapee crab running over my flip flopped foot in the local sea food and suspiciously illegal looking items market (they appear to be selling real coral, puffer fish and pearls down by the sea)Que much squealing on my part and much enjoyment on the part of the locals and some of my students.

Will keep you updated with more
]]> A rude awakening — Yantai, China http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147085700/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147085700/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mhairimcdonald/glasgow_06/1147085700/tpod.html Wed, 17 May 2006 01:14:50 -0400 On the road from China to Bankok, although slightly censored for various reasons...
Yantai, China

Hellow hellow hellow

This morning I got a telephone call from Madame Chen at 7.30 to say I was teaching this afternoon :) This would of been fine, however it turned out I am not teaching cute attentive 3 to 10 year olds as I originally prepared for, but about half of my classes are middle school (13 to 16) and the other half are high school (17 to 20.) It turned out to be ok for my last two classes today as they were Chinese middle school, the Chinese children are generally very attentive and seem to have a lot of enthusiasm for learning. However my 1st class was Korean students learning English which was a bit of a nightmare to be honest as about a third of the class is under 11 and has an elementary level of English, and the rest are about 12 to 18 and seem to be more intermediate. Was the most nerve wracking 45 minutes. Don't think I have ever perspired so much without actually lifting a finger. But teaching seems like it can be a lot more fun than I thought it was going to be (when it all goes well) especially as I can have a laugh with the older students. Things unfortunately seem a little disorganized, almost like we are supposed to fit and work our way round this huge beaurocracy that is the school, but Helen has been here for 3 weeks and has been really helpful. Being a flame haired she gets the brunt of the gawking from the students and locals, but I still get the odd stare and hello that seems to come from no where. In China its not considered rude to hold some ones gaze and not speak to them, which can be a little unnerving at times, but within the school most people will start chatting to you. Communication is still a problem, not to the extent it was in Beijing because many of the people where Im staying either learn English at the university across the road or school. And my new friend Ben from Minnesota speaks Chinese so he helps out sometimes. Its still very frustrating though and you feel like a small child or a really drunk incapable adult at times. Canteen seems to be ok so far, its strange how school dinners taste like school dinners no matter where you are. After classes we went on a bus ride into town and up to Bens for a wander. Went to the supermarket which is all on one floor but has to be the biggest supermarket I have ever seen. You can buy everything here, including bullfrogs and its apparently owned by Tesco. Home from home eh, must sign off, lessons to prepare! Love m
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