Urban Fishing

(Alaina)

Hello!

On Saturday I had a great evening with my host parents. After the school-organized events, they picked me up and took me to a new part of Hangzhou along the river, where a large theater is located. It was a gorgeous day and the whole area was beautiful, particularly noteworthy for the innovative architectural design. The main courtyard was scattered with people flying kites and also enjoying the nice weather. We had a lovely time walking and lurching through conversation. My host father speaks enough English that we can usually communicate everything to each other with the help of many gestures and a tiny red dictionary (at first I thought he was toting Mao’s Little Red Book!). He is so good humored and enthusiastic in his efforts to ask questions and give information. Interestingly enough, he’s the first person to ask me what I don’t like about China; I appreciate that his curiosity runs beyond the typical pleasantries and factual basics. (My answer was the structure of high school and the university entrance process... in simplified language of course.)

We walked to a great dinner at a restraint overlooking the river. We got fried dumplings with pork and vegetables, eggplant and snow peas, potatoes in a dark soy sauce (they ordered those not me!), sweet “beauty soup” with watermelon and little clear jelly things, extremely spicy beef and peas, and lotus root in a sweet honey sauce. Not only was the food great, but in the next hour I ended up laughing so much my life span must have increased by at least five years. For this, I have three things to thank. First: one of the menu dishes was translated as “Fire man is a bowl of beans.” Enough said. Second: I was having extreme difficulty picking up a bloated dumpling with my chopsticks so after significant fumbling, I snatched it with my hand and plopped it onto my plate. Three young waitresses were standing nearby watching and all three absolutely cracked up. They literally ran away to conceal their blatantly laughing at me, and for the rest of the night they avoided the table and cracked up while serving. I was very amused that they were so embarrassed that I had seen them making fun of me (someone should’ve told them it happens regularly), so I exacerbated the matter by making faces and speaking kindergarten Chinese. Finally, the most epic of the comical moments: my host dad walked into a pool. The restaurant was built above the river, so in several places the floor turned into clear glass we were able to walk over. It got dark while we were eating, so when we left the restaurant I was excited to see that the large decorative pool, which was perfectly level with the ground, was lit from underwater with multicolor lights. The water was so still it looked like an illusion similar to the glass we walked on earlier. I ran up and pretended to step on it, saying that it was very dangerous because the water looked like glass. My meaning was clearly lost, because my host dad then strolled over, made a big show of raising his leg... and actually walking right into the calf-deep water! If I’ve succeeded in conveying even the smallest degree of the true hilarity, you will be laughing out-loud right now, as I currently am. He and my mom genuinely laughed too, so no worries. He also thought it was funny when we were heading home and I told him I was scared he would drive into a lake.

Speaking of lakes… on Sunday we went fishing. I’m not exactly sure why, as all the students I shared the plan with agreed that only old men go fishing. Nonetheless, Yimei had assembled a posse of 6 kids and Sandy to go with us. I always enjoy meeting people in settings that let us get to know each other better, so it was really the good company that made the day enjoyable. Hong Ye came along (it was funny to note the distinct awe with which the first years regard her) and a second year student named Dawn who will be coming to America! They were both excellent to talk with.

When we got to the fishing destination I was disappointed; it wasn’t a real lake!! I shouldn’t have been surprised by the large manmade rectangle of murky water, crisscrossed by docks full of people fishing. We rented poles and sat for a while, watching other people catching fish, before tiring pretty quickly and calling it quits. While wandering around I was interested to see pits of giant snapping turtles, ducks, chickens, and a pond teeming with hundreds of painted turtles. Turns out, of course, all the animals are born and bred to be eaten, a fact that caused me to revoke the names I had begun assigning to the turtles. We ate at a restaurant in the complex, the lobby of which included bins of frogs, red eels, and many more turtles. I enjoyed the vegetable dumplings (and redeemed my chopstick skills!).

I want to update my impression of my host sister Yimei. I am very impressed by her. The two attributes that stick out most are extreme motivation and a strong faith/pride in the larger forces of her life, including the government, the school system, and Chinese culture. She is extremely busy. On most days she goes straight from school, to dance class, to extra school, and she spends most of the weekend in classes. What confuses me is that she doesn’t seem to enjoy any of the things she works so hard for. Her dance class, for example, revolves around competitions, but from what I’ve witnessed it only stresses her out and degrades her confidence. Regardless, she chose the competitive class because the competitions force her to “be the best.” She even likes homework because it makes her improve and “be the best.” Her most definitive career goal is to get a PhD, though she hasn’t decided in what yet. I am in awe of her steadfast work ethic. I’ve realized that since I normally choose my friends, it’s very rare for me to get to know a person with whom I share little in common. It has been interesting to spend so much time with someone whose motivations and goals differ greatly from my own.

Today (Monday) was not particularly noteworthy. This is our last full week in Hangzhou and I can feel the clock ticking. I know this time will fly by. Today started with Technology, during which we made tiny flutes out of bamboo. This was my favorite project, probably because it’s my first product to function correctly. After lunch we had Chinese, when we learned about foods and holidays. The teacher, who usually teaches advanced Chinese literature, tries so hard and we really appreciate his efforts. The class has been a challenge for us all. The five of us then took some time to plan out the speeches that we’ll make during the “thank you” banquet we throw before leaving. These speeches must be made in Chinese, so we’ll have them translated first. I’m nervous that no one will understand my pronunciation.

At English corner we met another girl who will be going to America! I was quite stunned to find out that her English name is Alina, which she pronounces just like Alaina! Aaahaha!! She immediately decided to change it… I was going to protest, but it really would be too weird, particularly if she ends up in my house! We started suggesting names, and the favorites were Lea and Sophia. She seems to like soft sounding names especially that end in a’s; any suggestions?? Oh! Also, Hong Ye wants an English name that’s related to leaves or trees because her Chinese name translates to “leaf.” She’s looking for the perfect name, since she’ll be coming to America long-term. She would really appreciate some help! Willow is the best I’ve come up with. (Come on mom, you should be good at this!)

Today we also picked up and tried on our silk garments! Some alterations will be made, but I think all in all we’re happy. While it’ll be fun to wear once or twice, sadly Traditional Chinese may not be my best look. We did all choose blues and greens, so our impeccable matching pleases me very much. As no one actually wears traditional silk clothing anymore, the students are generally perplexed and amused by this endeavor; I expect there will be significant exclamation when we show up to the banquet all decked out. It’ll be fun.

Hm, I seem to be out of things to say.

Thanks for reading!