Post from Macau 3/21-25

Well, it seems that I've been pretty much out of touch lately. After starting Chinese lessons at my new language school and having a change in my weekly schedule, Chase and I are booked 24-7. We are tired all the time, but really enjoying getting better at Chinese. My class is review mostly, but I have forgotten so many characters (hanzi) so it's useful for me to be there just so I can get better at my reading and writing.

So we decided to take a vacation. This weekend we are in Macau! We made a few last minute changes to what was supposed to be a yoga vacation to Shenzhen to take the Anusara intensive. It became too expensive (as most yoga is these days for me) and I think at this point I am just more ready to take an Immersion or something that will further my studies. I know that even Intensives are going to be "useful". I am not saying that I know enough, but given that it was going to cost almost half of a year long membership to a Beijing yoga studio, I thought I would pass and save for the Immersion. Look at me, I am trying to justify my reason, but I am fine with it. I know there will be yoga in my future. 

Here are some pictures from the weekend. I am having trouble loading them so they are out of order. 

Here we are at the MGM, then a Chinese hotel called the Star World hotel had dancers in front of it which intrigued us to say the least, a light show including a dragon and a lotus flower at The Wynn, and the Grand Lisboa Hotel which I write about below.

So back to the narration: 

So we arrived yesterday in the afternoon and after we got checked into our hotel, Chase made it just in time for a poker tournament going on at the largest and most glamorous hotel in Macau, The Grand Lisboa. It was built by Stanley Ho, the founder of gambling in Macau and it really is a glitzy, golden, structure sticking out for all to see. I can't really explain the Chinese version of opulence... maybe gaudy, wild, over-the-top, comes to mind. So while he played poker, I went back to the hotel room. I watched non-Chinese television. By that I mean I watched Sumo wrestling. The Chinese would never broadcast a national sport of Japan, are you kidding?! And then I took a shower. A long shower. In our apartment in Beijing, we rarely get hot water for more than 5 minutes per person. We have talked to our landlords about this but somehow we just don't know to get it to work. So I sat in the shower for 30 minutes. It was great! I got all dressed up and sat at the bar while Chase was in his tournament. 

When he busted out I was pretty lit up on my one apertif and two glasses of wine. So we had another and then walked around the hotel and out to the Lisboa Hotel which is the old version of the Grand Lisboa. My high heels were carving holes into my heels so I was walking barefoot around the hotel. We were in the search for food and ended up on the lower levels of the hotel underground where there are many stores, restaurants, and high end shopping. So it was like a shopping arcade just for the hotel. Low and behold, the shopping arcade was just a place for prostitutes to prowl. It was so obvious because they just walked from one end of the shopping arcade to the other making eyes at anyone who would notice. It seemed so sad to me to see them sell themselves in that way. Chase thought it was amazing to see how they paraded themselves in such an organized fashion and in public so easily- in China. Remember, porn is banned here. 

So the rest of the time we were in Macau, we relaxed, ate good food at a restaurant that is the sister restaurant to Southern Italy's most Michelin starred restaurant. It was called Don Alfonso. 

We made it to Hong Kong the next day where I had a job interview. And now I must break the news. I am actively looking for another job because my current situation did not turn out as I wanted it to. I had a good interview at a school that I have had contact with over the past few years and then we went to Discovery Bay to spend time with Aruna and Ruchita (my cousin Venkatesh's wife and their daughter). We treated them out to a meal on the island and then had to leave the next morning to have another meeting with a fellow Montessorian I have had contact with in Hong Kong (this time it wasn't an interview, it was an inspiring session to talk about Montessori in China and Asia and its future) and then make it back to Macau.

Our flight was pretty uneventful except that when we got home to Beijing, it really felt for the first time that we were returning home! What a great feeling that was. After so many months in Beijing we feel that we have a place to return to that's ours once again. We really hope that because of my current job situation, we won't have to move again. We really do like our life in Beijing. So I will keep you updated in the next few blog posts, which will be in quick succession because I have been behind on posting. 

I look forward to you reading my blog and thank you for you continued support. It's nice to have readers who enjoy a glimpse into my life. 

Today

I was going to go to dance class today but find myself glued to the couch. I was so motivated. I came home made dinner real quick and then couldn't move.

I really wanted to practice yoga today so I think that after my food digests, that's just what I am going to do.

Chase and I practiced together on Sunday and I think he did great. It was just hard for him to get going because he has to accept instruction from me and that's difficult for him to swallow. (He's used to being better at most everything we do together- biking, running, climbing, etc.) And I can't say that I'm the most forgiving teacher. He's a beginner so I just forget how beginner my instruction needs to be. But once I helped him over the hump and we got going, it was great.

Well, it's time to study some characters and then practice.

Ode to the San Lun Che (Pedicab)

On dreary winter mornings,
I've put my faith in you
My three wheeling dynamic buggy
Usually have been late to work,
But you work the cold streets

Weaving in and out of traffic
Going the wrong way, sideways,
Just to get 2km to SOHO
What a relief to get there on time
My five kuai well spent

But my conscience is heavy
As I smell the dirty fumes
From the noisy three stroke engine
And remember my poor bike
Collecting Beijing dust inside

So from this day forward I say goodbye
Happy days they were, my san lun che
Spring is coming- have no excuse
But to use my own two feet

Hiking and Dining

What a great day! Well, it started last night when we went out to dinner with some friends and then to our first house party in China. Being that you can't really "own" property in a Communist nation, people in China do not place much importance in their home, decorating it, or inviting people over. It's not like the "American Dream" where your house is your pride and joy. So it was a treat to be invited over for a housewarming party. (Well, they are foreigners after all and believe in these sorts of things.) So we got to bed late and getting up this morning was pretty tough.

We booked a trip with the Beijing Hikers Club and made it to the meeting point by 8am. Chase had to use the bathroom at the last moment and so we were late getting on the bus and there were no more seats available. So we were given spots in a private car and enjoyed the space and pleasure of looking at trees, roadside villages, and taking a nap to catch up on sleep.

We got to the village and I don't remember the name but it was far out of Beijing city limits and we started our hike right away. We stopped at an old couple's home and here's the old man fixing his corn huller (husker? I'm not sure).



Inside the home, the walls were pitch black because of the coal they burn to keep themselves warm. It was startling to me that people still live in conditions where they are inhaling carcinogens while they sleep. But they don't have another choice. Or maybe they still don't know the implications of it all. Very sad.



A sweet donkey was on their property and I had a great time petting him. Part of the reason to get out of the city was to see wildlife, insects, and flora of China. But I forgot that it's still the dead of winter. Apart from a few buds and leaves of grass that are starting to poke through, everything's dead. I think I saw one insect- a red tick. There was so many dead twigs, sticks, and grass. Infact, about half of our hike was through fallen snow that had yet to melt.



Here we are at the top of the first mountain we climbed. We climbed down this one and then up another one and down again. I am not sure how many kilometers we went but I was so tired! I realize now how much I have let my health slip these last few months in Beijing. I am so overworked and always making excuses not to work out or do yoga (it's boring just by myself without support and enthusiasm like I had in Austin). But with the wedding less than six months away I am more determined to take time for myself. I am taking modern dance on Wednesdays and going to Chinese class on Tuesday and Thursday nights. Part of what I have also let slip is keeping up with my Chinese (which is one of the main reasons we came to China) and so these classes will help me with that. I love learning the language. It's exciting.



At the end of the trail we came upon a house where chickens were roaming and there pet cat. See I told you I wanted to see the wildlife! The owner had come up and spread the feed on the ground and the cat felt entitled to it all and was clawing at the chickens who dared grab her food. Gotta love the feline species....



Several dogs were tied up on this property and there was one that had obviously given birth as her teats were still full of milk. So immediately my maternal radar went into alert mode and I found these pups. The owner had moved them away stating that they were being weaned from their mother. The mother was heartbroken as she could see her pups and wanted so much to be with them. She was circling, howling, barking, jumping in anxiety knowing her babies were so far away from her. My heart hurts just writing that. It was painful to watch her reaction but I enjoyed petting the pups and hopefully that made them feel loved.

I have also been made aware recently that having a pet and loving one changes hormones in the body. And I feel that being away from Lola these few months. Having a pet certainly makes me feel more wholesome. More connected. More loved. And all those feelings have not been experienced in the recent few months. I know that not bringing her to China was a good decision. But something has to be done about the emptiness I feel without her. Maybe therapy is what I need. But having a dog is therapy. So who knows what I should do....

After the hike they provided snacks, tea, coffee, and beer and we were back on the bus. Almost everyone was asleep, mouths wide open, necks angled to one side or the other. An hour and a half later, we made it back. Chase got some ice cream from Baskin Robbins. We bought groceries and ate at a restaurant called Pure Lotus. It's a vegetarian restaurant owned and run by monks, so I have been told. The decor was beautiful. Each dish tasted excellent. Except that I have decided I do not like lotus flower. I mean, I love lotus root. I could eat that every night cooked differently, but the flower petals, yuck. They taste powdery. But anyways, the food was great besides the lotus flower dish. What Chase and I enjoyed the most was the presentation. So artful! Here are some pictures from our meal.




Here are the interesting serving dishes for the lotus flower dish and for the steamed dumplings.




I'm looking weird in this picture but notice that our second order of dumplings (fried ones this time) were served on (we asked and they said it was geniune) a jade sculpture. Also check out the hearty brown rice in the foreground.



Dessert was a bowl full of mandarin oranges. They served them with dry ice!

So now we are back home. I'm beat. I'm soaking my feet in lavender oil and epsom salts. It will be time for bed in a few minutes and I know I'm going to sleep well tonight.



This is how they wrapped our to go bag. How cute!