I’m writing this to explain why there won’t be many posts for the next little while on this blog. Problems have come up in my life (personal, work-related, etc) that have made things very difficult. I will probably still take pictures and add them to Flickr every so often, but I’m not sure about writing stuff down and putting it here. I’ll probably just keep my blog entries to trips I take here & there.

Once again, I’ve become pretty cryptic, I know. But I’ll explain it in this way – words, written & spoken, have a lot of power … more than some people realize, and sometimes you just can’t take them back. Too late, the harm has been done.

There are people in this world who's first thoughts are 'me, me, me' and those that think 'what can I do for others?' ...I hope the second group far outnumbers the first...or is that just wishful thinking?

Hi everybody!

I still haven't caught up blogging about my work trip to Shanghai & Nanjing, and as usual, something has come up. Life's busy as always and I don't really have time to write it all down at this moment...hopefully I will later tonight.

Yesterday, Mike & I spent the day as wedding photography models in a seaside town called Qinhuangdao, a three hour drive from Beijing. I wore a real wedding dress (actually two)! and makeup! with fake eyelashes! LOL! I thought that in August 2004 that I was able to skip all the frilly, fussy stuff for our wedding...but no! It's inevitable, lol! Try as hard as you can to avoid it and it comes back times 10 :)

We did it as a favour to a friend from school, and we had a great time playing in the sand & chilly water (think Mispec, only colder!). They're going to give us a CD with all the pictures, an album, and one large copy of the best shot for being their models. Too funny! I hope you all don't make fun of the hair, I think the style is so not me :)

Anyway, I must get back to...everything I have in my to do pile. I'll post more of our fun day at the beach, plus SH & NJ when I have the chance...with pics of the photoshoot to follow sometime. I can't wait to see how they turned out!

love ya, Kirsten

this picks up where the last blog entry left off :) :



I’m so happy I went! I really enjoyed wandering around the grounds. The landscape was mossy and green, and everything looked so weathered and worn. I took so many pictures! I hardly ran into other people as I walked about, so I took my time enjoying the spring plum blossoms just coming into bloom, the waterfalls and the views.

I eventually found the bat cave…and it was so creepy! It just kept going down, down, down further into the chilly ground. I was getting more and more nervous with each step, lol. The further I went, the more narrow and short the passage got. The rock formations were cool, dripping water everywhere, and the peacefulness of it…so quiet & eery. With no end in sight, and my footing getting slippery & slimy, I turned back after about 20 minutes.

I found myself at the end of the park grounds (not really an exit, more of a blending into the local residences nearby), in desperate need of a WC. Didn’t need to look long since I’ve been to enough rural places in China to know what the WC buildings look like :) As always, it was primitive & airy, but someone had placed two bricks, one for each foot, to stand over the slit in the ground. Someone’s aim wasn’t so great before me, but I had to go! Can’t exactly be picky :)

After my WC adventure, I took the chance to check out the homes of course. Mossy walkways led me to a gathering place, like an open courtyard, with some local older people chatting…about me. I smiled, said “Ni Hao” and received the same in return. They smiled and watched me watch them :). I took some photos of the little homes and the mossy pots & gardens, then said my goodbyes. I kept going, finding a steep roadway and followed it to its end, which was up on the main road. Then I took a wrong turn and ended up in another little apartment area, and got yelled at, lol! I apologized like crazy, took some wrong turns trying to escape, found my way back into the park. I nearly wiped out going down the steep road. On the sides of the road it was just moss, so one wrong step and I was skating down the hill.

I took a different path on my way back to the entrance and got to see some lovely gardens, the tiny local Buddhist temple, and took all kinds of pictures of the blossoms, trees & ponds. I loved being in nature, surrounded by the colours and scents, and enjoying my moments of peace.

The time came to head back to Chongqing. I really didn’t want to leave this place, but I had other things to see in the city and only what was left of the day to do it. I stood on the opposite side of where I was let off, and soon a bus came along to take me back.

As we bounced and bumped back, ZHAO text messaged me and I lost track of where I was, so of course I got a little worried, got off and realized it was the wrong spot, lol! I ended up walking for about 20 minutes, getting help from bus drivers along the way pointing me in the right direction. The rest of the way back to the city was just as nice as before, and it included a sign that made me smile – A local hair salon’s name was “Your Beauty I Decide”. I laughed about that one for a while :)

Once back in the city, I headed to my next couple of tourist spots. The Luohan Temple was under construction (but I didn’t know before I got there), so most of the grounds were off limits. It was 5 RMB, so I paid and went in, but there wasn’t a map or any English signs, and the layout was quite confusing. I was there about 10 minutes before I just gave up…right out into a taxi. Hong Ya Dong was my next destination.

I have to say that what quite a few people from China enjoy seeing when they’re tourists can be quite different from what a lot of foreigners like to do (at least from my experiences, lol!) ZHAO had an original plan for the day, but I had my own in mind and tossed his out…well…not completely. In case he asked, I wanted to tell the truth and say I went…so I went to Hong Ya Dong.

Hong Ya Dong is floor after floor of super ultra touristy tacky Chinesey souvenirs and snacky foods. And the outside was pretty over the top too. I took some pictures of the outside…once again, I didn’t last long at this spot and hailed a cab. Poor cabbie didn’t know what he was in for…

The taxi driver was originally headed in the opposite direction of where I wanted to go, but I saw his “for hire” light and waved. He motioned that he would turn around for me. As soon as he got to me, a girl jumped in the back. I really didn’t feel like waiting any longer (it had already been quite a while), so instead of letting it go I jumped in the front and wouldn’t budge. The cabbie laughed, told the girl I had hailed him first, so she got out….grumbling. My driver, my new friend! :)

I showed him ZHAO’s note with “Ci Qi Kou” on it, and he realized he had to turn around again. He griped and complained, about what I’m not quite sure (maybe the long drive to Ci Qi Kou?), but he tried to take me…yes, tried. We got stuck in a massive traffic jam going in both directions. No one could move, period. Sitting there for a while, getting nowhere with the metre running, I used my little Chinese to ask him to skip it and go to Pibashan Park instead. Easier said. It took 5 minutes of inching this way and that to get turned around. He laughed the whole time and was a good sport, but I’m sure he wasn’t happy with my whims.

The sky was quickly getting dark and his driving was getting crazier. We got to the park, but he wouldn’t let me go in the dark…he paid the 5 RMB to crive me around and up to the top…to a beautiful view of Chongqing at night. Definitely worth the roundabout trip :).

The driver then wanted to know where to next, and I showed him my hotel card, but he couldn’t figure out what it said (he kept pointing at his eyes, then back to the card). He stopped, asked someone, had a good laugh, then took me back to my hotel. Aw…our misadventures had come to an end. I was sad to say goodbye to my speedy (and crotchety) friend.

So, I had managed to hit (or try to hit) five sites in Chongqing in one day, but the way to and from each one was more fun :). Tomorrow Shanghai. I’m sad to go; I’ve really grown to love Chongqing.

My blogging has been pretty hit or miss...every time I would try to log in, it would boot me out of my browser. Today, I'm in luck! it works :)

I'm not in Beijing at the moment...tonight is my last night in Shanghai. I haven't even finished uploading all my Canada pictures! I'll have to do that when I get back to the school... I left BJ on the 5th, headed to Chongqing, near Sichuan province in western China. Since I had no internet in my hotel room, I kept a journal of my moments, and took some pictures along the way...read on :) and the pictures are here.

Monday, March 5th

I was told on the weekend that I’d be going on the educational fair tour starting Tuesday and that I’d be gone from Beijing for about two weeks. No problem, I’m always up for that. I arrive to work at 7am on Monday ready to tie up any work projects and give Martha (my assistant) any info she’ll need. At 8am, I head over to the Int’l office to talk with Bo, the secretary, to ask her when I have to be ready on Tuesday... She looks at me, shocked, and says "not tomorrow, today at 8:30am!"...HUH?!!! Less than 30 minutes!

I flew back to the office, called out "Mike! Help!" and scrambled to get everything together. He helped me gather my laptop, any work stuff I needed, I filled in Martha as all this was going on...then he & I dashed to the apt. I threw everything I could think of into my suitcase, then we ran to the fish pond where my van was waiting. Phew! I was only slightly late, lol!

I’ve never been ready for anything faster in my life. And then, in less than two hours, I was on a plane to Chongqing. The flight was terrifying! The turbulence and the panic I felt nearly killed me. Mr. Zhao held my hand when I almost jumped out of my seat, but I wish it had been Mike. At that moment, all I could think about was that I was going to be away from him for 10 days and I felt so lonely, even surrounded by hundreds of passengers. It’s nice to travel around and see new cities, but it’s hard on the head when you do it so often on your own. I like having someone with me to share the adventures.

Chongqing was misty & rainy when we landed. I arrived in the rainy season, go figure! It wasn’t warm or cold rain, but leaves you with a damp chilly feeling if you’re out in it too long. Hoped for sun...didn’t get it.

The area around our hotel is like the area that surrounds the Shenzhen school, all kinds of little shops & vendors selling everything. I liked the feel of the neighborhood. You know me, I like to walk and try to be a semi-local. I know, hard to be when everyone’s saying "hello", "laowai" (foreigner) all the time. I haven’t been stared at like this in a long time, lol! So, I went out, bought fruit, searched for a China Post and just wandered the streets.

I went out that first night with Mr. Zhao & Mr. Fan and checked out a famous shopping street. Everything was so wet and tropical feeling. Maybe the city’s different when it’s dry. And it was hard to stay clean in that weather. I splished my way around with the guys just seeing the business of the city.

We ended up at a Sichuan hotpot place and wheeee! It was spicy! Poor Mr. Fan was near death from how burning spicy hot it was. And Mr. Zhao suffered quite a bit through it. Me? I was in heaven! Thrilled to be having something so spicy! The liquid in the pot was like liquid fire, boiling spicy oil with red chillies in it. The bubbling stuff splattered my arm a couple of times and left these burned welts on my skin. Ouch, but worth it! The guys ordered tons of meat parts & seafood (tripe, intestines, octopus tentacles, etc.) but ordered tons of veggies for me...lettuce, lotus root, potatoes, winter melon, mushrooms... Fan used two packages of tissues to wipe the sweat off his face, lol! Yummy food :) I returned to the hotel that night very happy :)

Tuesday, March 6th

Hmmm. Did not want to leave the warmth of my bed this morning. Had to for a couple of reasons: had to have breakfast, but more importantly, the bed was like concrete and I was so stiff. Man I miss my cushy Tuanli bed...

I finally got moving at 8:15am, showered, packed my little backpack and headed down to eat. I had spicy veggies! I love this city :) spicy veggies anytime, anyplace! Then I found out from Zhao that I had to meet them at 12 noon, so I had about two hours to do my own thing.

Quickly changed out of my dress pants, I headed out in search of postcards again. I didn’t have any luck yesterday. I walked for a while, bought more fruit, asked about a bookstore (they might have postcards)...I eventually gave up walking and grabbed a taxi. I had remembered seeing a Xinhua bookstore, so I showed my dictionary to the driver, said "Xinhua" and received a ?? look. So I drew a landmark near the store and he got what I meant. Whee! I found postcards.

This section of Chongqing is pretty elevated...reminds me of Hong Kong (except on a bit smaller scale). The streets wind this way and that, up the hillsides and they’re pretty tight squeezes. It’s you in the taxi, then the guardrail and that’s it. No shoulders on the side of the road. Just enough room for two cars (or three by sneaky Chinese driving standards, lol!) No bikes! They’re forbidden in Chongqing!

Chongqing is like a mixture of Huangshan (soggy greenhouse feeling), Shenzhen (building styles & landscaping, wild west atmosphere) and Hong Kong (up & down streets, steep & winding all over). As we drive along in taxis, I feel like we’re in a video game. High speeds, tight lanes and turns, and not much room between you and the guard rail!

Wednesday, March 7th

I slept for almost 12 hours! I was bored last night, so I just went to sleep. I woke up at 7:15am, got ready and headed to the 8th floor for breakfast.

My plan this morning was to find the right post office to send my postcards. You wouldn’t believe how many post offices don’t send mail out of China. I have hit three in the last two days with no luck. Finally today is my day :) they wrote down the characters for me at the last one I went to, pointed me in the general direction yesterday, but I didn’t have time to check it out. Today it’s my mission to send these things off!

I walked in the opposite direction of the post office just to walk. I felt like walking...so I wandered up, down, around the streets. I ended up in a yarn district...hundreds of shops filled with every kind of yarn imaginable. I spotted some knit scarves I liked and bargained a bit, and ended up with three really nice ones. Long, comfy ones that remind me of my grammy’s knitting.

I headed back up & down the winding road to the fruit stand by my hotel, picked up some more of my favorite pear apples, then kept on walking, taking pictures as I wandered about. The homes are so typically Chinese around here, tiny places with laundry dangling everywhere. The streets are tight and in bad shape, but all the people seem happy to work, play cards, talk, drink tea and go about their thing. Even though the guide books say Chongqing is a dirty, seedy city, I love it! I love how alive it is. For a people watcher like me it’s a blast. Everybody is always up to something. People are cooking & preparing Chinese snack foods on every corner. Stinky dhofu, steamed buns, noodles, bbq...men with motorcycles & poles are waiting to hire themselves out for heavy bundles...or heavy passengers, lol! Babies are layered up and plunked in elaborate baskets, tied on to their parents’ backs. I’m fascinated by so much that I’ve just been watching it all a taking few pictures...I’m more interested in enjoying the little moments rather than photographing them.

Tomorrow I have the whole day to myself. Zhao & Fan have to meet with parents, so I’ll be on my own...hmmm, what will I do? This city has many things to see, and I think Zhao wants me to go see a couple of places. I’m a little worried, his idea of fun is um, a bit different than mine, lol.
...I’m really unhappy! I just found out how we’re getting back to Beijing! And I’m pretty upset about it, :( wish Mike was here to help me. So sad :( ...I just called Cynthia, then Bryant, then Dad, trying to get a hold of my father for help. Here’s what is supposed to happen:
We’re leaving Nanjing on the 15th, driving back to BJ by van. Driving all day on the 15th, staying in a hotel, driving all day the 16th...to arrive at Zhao’s house that day. Then, they won’t drive me back to BJ until Sunday the 18th. I have to stay the weekend at Zhao’s place with Zhao, his wife & son, Fan, the driver & his wife. After I’ve been away for more than ten days I don’t even get back to see Mike :(...very, very sad. I’ve been going to the WC to cry every so often because I don’t want Zhao to see how upset I am. It’s hard to hand out flyers at this educational fair with tears streaming down my cheeks. I just feel so sick about it. Dad said he was going to figure something out, just sit tight. Okay.

Thursday, March 8th

Dad text-messaged the solution to me...he’s purchased an air ticket to fly me out of Nanjing on the 15th, so I can be back to work for the next day. Okay. I’m happy again. I like Zhao, but I don’t know him that well...and he doesn’t speak that much English. I just don’t feel that comfortable spending the weekend in his home. And I’m feeling pretty lonely. I just want to be with Mike, Dad, and my friends back in BJ.

Today, I went to Bei Wen Quan, which means "north hot springs", about 30km away from Chongqing. Using an old guidebook (about 5 years old...hoping some info is still good), I grabbed a taxi through the speedy streets towards Chongqing’s docks. A girl who works for my hotel, Amanda, had written on her business card in Chinese characters for a driver to take me to the hot springs. I got the taxi driver to take me as far as Xinhua Lu by the docks, where, according to the book, I could get on a long distance bus for 6 RMB. Considering the age of the book, the 2007 price is 10 RMB...still good :)

The long ride was wonderful and full of interesting things to see. I got to watch the countryside pass me by. The hills were lush, terraced, filled with homes, farms & everything green. It made me appreciate this area so much more. The city of Chongqing and its surrounding countryside really give a feeling of what authentic China must be like. If anyone ever asks me where to go in China...this is the place. Everything about here makes me smile :)

At the end of my long distance ride, maybe 1 ½ hours later, I figured it was time to get off when the entire bus cleared out. I love this whole venturing out into the unknown. Who really knows what’s next? ...I stood there for a moment, looking at a loss I’m sure, then found a bus employee. I asked him about Bei Wen Quan, and he wrote 518 and the character for bus on my card. He then pointed for me to go thataway. I walked a little further up the road, found many waiting buses, found 518. I showed the ticket girl my card, gave her 1 RMB and settled in to the cranky old bus.

The seat groaned with every twist and turn, and the floorboards and doors were um, extremely air-conditioned, lol! But I loved it as we bumped all over...through the construction (rural China style) and farms.

The ticket girl grabbed me and pushed me to the door, said "byebye" and sent me on my way :) The bus dropped me off right at the entrance gate to the springs. I wasn’t there to go swimming in the springs or for a relaxing massage...I wanted to walk the grounds. The guidebook had mentioned a pretty park surrounds the springs...

to be continued...my fingers are tired of typing :)