Look at More Cultural Differences

It has been awhile since I have shared about some cultural differences I am learning about, so I figured this blog would be the perfect time to do that.

Before I get to that though, just wanted to let you know that I have posted some new pictures of my apartment now that I have gotten really settled in and moved things around to my liking. As a reminder I rented a furnished apartment, so the only thing I had to purchase was an oven (a picture is included and probably not what you are visualizing), bedding, and towels. And the quilt on my bed is the one my aunt made me and gave me at Christmas. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

For more things I am learning about the Chinese way of life.

* The Chinese celebrate Mother's Day, but not Father's Day. The viewpoint on this is that mothers are the nurturing and caring ones, while the fathers are strict disciplinarians.
* I have also learned that if a Chinese woman becomes pregnant with twins that she may keep both children - this is in regards to the one child policy.
* If you ever end up in a taxi with someone who speaks a little English, or even with a slight understanding of Chinese, you will always be asked these questions:

• Are you a teacher or student?
• Are you single or married? If single, then you are asked: Do you have a boyfriend? Would you date or marry a Chinese boy?
• How long are you here for?
  

* When you offer something to a Chinese person, you are to offer it three times. If a Chinese person truly wants something they will refuse it the first two times and then accept it the third time. If they truly do not want it they will deny all three times.

• On those same lines, it is considered polite to leave a small amount of food at the end of the meal. Failing to order enough food is considered a huge faux pas for a Chinese host and an empty bowl will be taken as a sign that you haven't had your fill, leading to either loss of face, or several more dishes being ordered.
• It is considered bad luck to stick your chopsticks upright in your dishes, but especially the rice bowl.

* The Chinese people love babies and children from other cultures, and it is considered a compliment if they want to hold or play with your kid; however, they have no discernment when it comes to if you want them to hold your child at that moment, or how your child is going to react. (This happened to one of my little friends, who is 2 1/2, the other day. A group of us were walking home when a Chinese man came up and picked the child up - pulling him away from his mother's hand he was holding - to which the child had a panicked look on his face (as he should since this was a stranger) and was reaching for his dad, while the Chinese man just laughed). Most of my little friends have now learned how to politely say please do not touch me, to which the Chinese respond very well.

Well, I hope that you all have a wonderful week, and that the weather is starting to move into nice spring like weather for you. Our weather has begun to be in the mid 60's to low 70's the past few days, with some rain mixed in for a week. Until next time...

Fireworks and a Surprise Visit

Welcome to the year of the Tiger. The official kick-off of the Chinese New Year has come and gone and definitely did not disappoint.
The night started with snow falling that was just enough to cover the ground to make things look beautiful with the city all lit up. Shortly before midnight a fog moved in making it somewhat difficult to see beyond about 50 feet in front of you, but that did not stop anyone from celebrating. People began coming outside in droves at that time and started the mass display of fireworks. Just to let you know, everyone here is a "professional" when it comes to shooting off fireworks. I am talking about fireworks that we would see being shot off by trained professionals at our celebrations were being lit and shot off by children and adults, and usually only 10 feet from buildings. It is rather scary and intriguing to say the least. You also have to watch for children who think it is funny to light firecrackers and throw them at your feet. It is somewhat hard to describe the chaos and fascination that occurs on this evening, so I put together a short video to give you a glimpse (which still does not do justice to this night). Also, just to let you know fireworks were being shot off 30 feet from me in every direction, but I was just filming those in front of me, so if you hear popping sounds when you don't see the flashes, it may be from ones behind me or to my left or right.

So, this afternoon I had a great surprise. I received a phone call from a friend whom I did a school with in Colorado, as well as someone who was on my team when I went to Colombia. She informed me that she was in Xi'an for a few days with a group of friends preparing to head to a remote village, and was wondering if we could meet for coffee. After my initial shock that I heard her correctly, I told her that I would meet her in an hour at Starbucks. We hung out for 4 hours and had a great time sharing about what has been happening in our lives the past year since we left to go our separate ways from Colorado. I truly am beginning to believe that it is a small world after all!

Wishing you a week filled with joy and little surprises to brighten your days!

Chun Jie

Well, Chun Jie (pronounced cha-wun g-uh), otherwise known as the Chinese New Year and Spring Festival, officially kick off with New Year's Eve tomorrow evening. This week has bit a little bit different in that the city seems much quieter and less congested with so many people heading to the villages, but yet at the same time stores have been extremely packed as people stock up on food for the holiday. During the holiday everything (restaurants, banks, stores) are all closed for at least three days, but many places are closed for up to two weeks. Due to that fact everyone has been at the grocery store stocking up to have enough food. The crowds at the stores are similar to what we see in the States when people are shopping for Christmas, yet here people literally load up pick-up trucks, vans from floor to ceiling, and even full buses worth of food in preparation for this holiday. It has definitely been a sight to see.

Here is a little history / insight into this holiday. Chun Jie, which is literally translated as 'Spring Festival' is a fifteen day period that starts off the lunar year. Due to the fact that the holiday follows the lunar calendar, Chun Jie begins on a different day every year, but still falls sometime between January 21st and February 20th. The ten days prior to Chun Jie, the family does a thorough house cleaning, known as 'Sweeping of the Grounds'. The family also places Spring Couplets (red scrolls with short poems written in Classic Chinese using black ink) on the walls or the sides of the gateways of the door to the home to signify good wishes for the coming year. They also place a paper-cut picture with the Chinese character 'Fu' on the center of the door to signify luck, or that fortune has arrived. Also during this time enough food must be purchased and is to include: fish, meat, roasted nuts and seeds, fruits, and candies. New clothes are also to be purchased, especially for the children.

On New Year's Eve members of the family gather for dinner, which is typically a very large and traditional meal. Then at midnight it is a custom in the Northern parts of China to eat a jiaozi (pronounced g-ow-za), otherwise known as a dumpling, and then to set off fireworks. Many families then stay up the whole night either watching traditional shows on TV, playing mahjong (kinda similar to dominoes), or talking.

New Year's Day is also celebrated with family, and with the tradition of the elders giving red packets with money inside to any children that have not graduated from college yet. The day after New Year's is spent visiting family and friends and typically includes a large feast as well. And finally Chun Jie concludes on the 15th day of the New Year with the 'Lantern Festival'. The Lantern Festival is the night of the first full moon of the lunar year and is celebrated with lanterns being hung everywhere, and representing many various beliefs including celebration of the Chinese zodiac signs.

As I have learned about culture and Chun Jie these past few months, I have a better understanding as to why there are so many barriers about important life decisions among the people here. Not that I believe that all traditions are bad, but when you truly begin to see how deeply rooted some are in things that are false, it takes on a new perspective. I know for me I have a renewed focus of thoughts for the people here now.

I am hoping to have some good pictures to share with you next week from the never-ending celebration of fireworks. I have been told to be prepared for the first five days especially that some places experience them 24 hours a day.

A Mountain of Snow Fun

So, the past week flew by and was pretty uneventful, but I did get a lot of studying done. As part of my studying I have decided to start over with book 1 and review all the vocabulary again and then to translate all the sentences at the end of each chapter. I am then going to have a tutor look over and correct my work to help me see where I am making mistakes. Once I am finished with book 1 I will move on to book 2 and do the same. I feel like the reviewing is definitely helping me to improve with my language.

Yesterday my friends and I decided to spend our weekly time together to do something different, so we spent the day at a mountain skiing, snowboarding, and tubing. I just went tubing since skiing and I have never really gotten along (always some injury occurs). And while I successfully made it without an injury by choosing to not ski, one of my friends was not so lucky and broke his wrist the last hour. Unfortunately for him it wasn't even his fault as a Chinese person crashed into him and landed on his arm. So, out came my athletic training education and first aid skills. My conclusion was a fracture to his wrist, so using some cardboard and socks I created a splint for his arm, and then made a sling with some scarves. He went to the hospital as soon as we got back into town and it was confirmed that he had a green-stick fracture to the ulna and minor fractures to two carpal bones. So he got a cast, and is doing well. Despite the injury everyone had a blast. The mountain that we went to provides free transportation to the ski place and back home again, so the whole day only cost us each between $9-24 ($9 for tubing, and $15 for skiing/snowboarding rental). I honestly can say I do not know anywhere else that I could have an entire day of fun in the snow for under $10. I posted a few pictures of the mountain in case you were interested.

I am closing here for now, but the countdown until Chinese New Year is now 10 days!!