3000 Steps

(Drew)


I've been in China six weeks. It does not feel like six weeks have gone by. Before we left we figured out that 8 weeks is china is almost as long as our summer vacation. Our summer vacation feels like a very long time so, this thought scared me a little but now eight weeks is not enough. There is a chance that I "accidentally" miss my flight back (don't tell Viz she has too much to deal with already).

Well Friday we switched host families. I got last minute goodbyes with Mark and his mom, a few pictures and i was off to my new home. I walked my 600lb suitcase from Marks house to Joes house which is about 10 minutes walk. They live on the same street, which is also the street that the school is located so it makes it simple for my brain to remember how to get home after running. Joe sometimes has afternoon classes so some days he won't even be home when I get home.

My new host family...

Although I'm sad to leave my old host family I think I'm going to be very happy with my new host family. My host Dad just got back from a business trip to Italy. He brought back with him a several books showing Rome and other tourist sites. His trip was well timed to go with the new book I'm reading, "Angels and Demons". Unfortunately the "new book" is soon to be "old book" because I'm so addicted I've almost finished it in several days, tomorrow I'm headed to the bookstore to pick out a new book. One of the books has a DVD with virtual tours that you can look around famous sites in Rome. It really makes my book come alive. My host mother and father both speak English quite well, my host father is slightly bette! r than my mother but he has a thick accent and crude grammer.I can easily understand him but Joe is constantly correcting him. For some reason this entertains me to see Joe critisize his dads english and the banter that ensues. My family seems to enjoy my use of the small amount of Chinese I know because they laugh every time I can say something. My vocabulary in Chinese has definitely expanded since being here and hearing Chinese reinforces the Chinese that I already knew (or was supposed to know for that midyear i took). Saturday I went out with Team China and all our host siblings to Pizza Hut, delicious (hao chi). Joe was getting upset that everyone else was late; he kept repeating "my patience has ended". I couldn't help myself from laughing, I'm not sure if it was the way he said it or how Team China is just too used to each other being late. I also wondered later if he was quoting a video game where one of the characters repeats that same l! ine. Joe seems to enjoy messing with Jerry (it's hard to explain but Joe is a bit of a jokester).At pizza hut Joe had the Cady and Emily convinced that Jerry had a girlfriend and it was Cady's previous host sister Eve (this has been confirmed as not true). After Pizza Hut we met up with my friend Eric from class six along with a few of his classmates and our group friend "Baker the bread maker" who translates for all our morning class. He also translates our orders to the milk tea guy each morning.

KTV was so much fun, I love having your own room to just hang out with all your friends. I've been taught a new game with 5 die under a cup that you shake. Cady's previous host sister Eve also enjoys playing (I think it's because she can beat me almost every time). I'm getting better though, I can be sneaky too. Our KTV group was so large though, I think I wrote about this problem last time I wrote a blog. Our group of friends is growing so we invite more and more people, but I think 15 people in a small room is probably the limit.

Sunday morning I got up early to shower and eat breakfast before Joe, Lilly (my host mom who is leaving tomorrow on business in Beijing) and I went hiking. We took a taxi to Zhe Jiang University, the 3rd best university in China. We walked through the campus and saw the massive statue of Mao Zedong. I took several photos in front of the statue with my host brother Joe. Our hike began up a staircase with 800 steps. It actually marked off each 100 steps with a small carving. This massive flight of stairs brought us to the trail that contained several thousand more steps that would lead us a few miles around the mountains of Hangzhou. We took short breaks to take in the scenery and to eat some snacks. My host family quickly learned that I will never! refuse a pealed apple. My family also seemed amused at my ability to throw rocks far distances off the mountain. Joe said later that I probably killed someone below us. The trips final destination was the temple on top of the tallest peak in Hangzhou, Bei Gou Fun. The temple was for the god of money, naturally many people seemed eager to donate money to the shrines around the temple and rub the various statues for good fortune. I was exhausted at the top of the mountain. My host family seemed to be in amazingly good shape, they seemed to barely notice our 5 hour journey through the mountains. Instead of taking the cable car we descended a more direct root (the line for the cable car would have taken at least an hour) to the base which took very little time but descending at least 3000 steps in such a short time can be tough on your legs. We took a bus (I have developed an ill temperament toward overcrowded buses) to a nearby KFC for lunch. I love Chinese KFC, they have soft serve ice cream and French fries and chicken nuggets as well as all the normal foods you would find at an American KFC. After telling Team China about my hike on Sunday I think they want to go with me next weekend.