A few words about food...

All this for a little over a dollar...

One of my main curiosities when we travel anywhere is what the food is like. I have a habit of taking pictures of meals, but now that we're here it's hard to remember to photograph food that we'll probably be eating for a couple of years. I also forget that most people won't ever see the food we are consuming. :) So here's an update on what we've been eating.

One of Donnie's favs

Nachos at the Mexican cantina

We live in an area of Shenzhen called Shekou. There is a very large population of expats in this area, so the food here is very diverse. There is a specific area of Shekou called Sea World. I'm not sure why it's called this, but it is the center for international restaurants. There is a Pizza Hut, Starbucks, McDonald's, a Mexican restaurant, and Indian and Thai restaurant, a Paulaner Bierhaus, and Irish pub, and many other international delights. Any worldly food you are craving you can pretty much find, but for a price. Since they are importing quite a bit of their products, you definitely pay for it. A meal at one of the Sea World restaurants will probably run you about 80-100 RMB per person, which is like $12-16 per person. It can get pricey, but when you need some nachos, you are willing to pay. ;)

Fish...

The spread at the Red Lantern

Little India Dinner for Two

We have also found some local places that are a little more reasonable in price, and just as delicious. Our school hosted a welcome dinner at a Chinese restaurant called the Red Lantern. The food was incredible, but it was all ordered for us, so re-creating that meal might be a little difficult. You see, if there are no pictures, or no food to point at, it's rather hard to know what you are going to get, or even order. We also discovered a noodle shop down the street from school where you can get an awesome bowl of steaming hot and spicy noodles for 11 RMB (a little less than $2). There is also a fabulous Indian food restaurant that delivers for no charge. You can get a spread of delicious food for only 140RMB (about $14), it will feed two people for at least two meals.

At the German Bakery

Delish bruschetta

We've also enjoyed some yummy Italian food, and there's a German bakery not too far away that also sells other German food. We are also spoiled in the fact pretty much any type of food we want, we can either go eat it at a restaurant or pick it up at one of the many international grocery store. We've even managed to fix ourselves some bean and cheese tacos. :)

I look forward to finding some more local places for picking up some dinners for cheap. But it's so easy just to settle into habit and just use the places we already have found.

I'm sure I will post more about food in the future, especially if we find a place that really stands out. But now I'm hungry... :)

Muggy, with a bit of rain

So today seems like a good day to write about what the weather is like here in Shenzhen. I say this because I am home on a Friday morning when I should be teaching classes at school because of the weather!

You can feel the humidity when you first step out of the airport. It's like a dense, damp blanket being laid across your whole body. The air is heavy and beads of sweat start forming on your forehead immediately. I thought that being in Hawaii all summer would somewhat prepare me for the humid climate of this place, but it seems no, it did not. The temperature may only be 81 or 82 degrees, but the heat index will be well above 100 degrees.

Right, so what? I grew up in Phoenix, where it is regularly well above 100 degrees, and I have most recently been living in San Antonio, where there is more humidity than Phoenix, and just as much heat. I guess it gets to me more here because I have less control over my surroundings. I seriously don't even make it to the elevator door from my apartment door before the beads start forming. So on a given morning leaving for work, we walk to the bus stop, wait in the sweltering humidity for around 10 minutes before catching a crowded bus to our stop in front of school. It takes about 20 minutes once we get to school to recompose ourselves and come back down to normal temperature.

This post is full of complaining, but I have to say humidity is my Achilles heel. When I am uncomfortable in that way, my temper is short, I become more tired, and almost desperate to get cool again. People say that the humidity doesn't lessen at all really, you just get used to it. I hope I do. I can sense in small ways that I'm getting used to it, but it will take much more time.

The other type of weather we get here that I'm not entirely used to is rain. The first week we were here there was a typhoon of sorts. It was rainy and windy and pretty hard to get around in. We had to be at work those first few days for orientation, so we didn't see a lot of it, but Paul had some mighty mud puddles to enjoy. :) The storms here have been intense; thunder, lightning, driving rain, but it doesn't seem to really stop people. Even today, the day started with dark clouds and loud, crashing thunder, but it moved on quickly and now it's hardly raining.

The good news is there's a storm warning system, and once it is in the 'red' zone, schools have to be cancelled. So there we were, after drudging through the rain and puddles to the bus, and sitting there on the muggy bus, when the text came that school was cancelled today.

So we may not get a Labor day holiday on Monday, but we do get to enjoy a Friday at home. I'm pretty sure Paul has no idea why we suddenly changed our minds about sending him to school today, but he's in really good spirits.

Actually, we all are. :)

A visit to a Chinese hospital

I know the title of this post sounds kind of foreboding, but it was just a routine part of the visa process. Since we are applying to be residents of China for at least a year, they require that you must get a physical at one of their clinics. So to acquiesce to their trust issues, all of the new teachers piled into a van two weeks ago to go get our physicals.

We luckily had secured an ayi (nanny/housekeeper/superwoman) to watch Paul for the afternoons when he is out of school, and we are still at work. For the first two weeks we needed her quite a bit more than that, and she was very willing to pick up more hours. She is wonderful, her 'name' is Amy(her Chinese name is too hard to say), and she and Paul get along pretty well, so we decided to leave Paul with her while we went on this adventure.

So when the van unloaded, we were escorted upstairs to a clinic that specializes in this sort of thing, and luckily, our school had splurged for the VIP service, so we were ushered into an air-conditioned waiting room. We were given our paperwork, and in-processed and suddenly we were on an assembly line style physical process. We had our weight, eyes, blood pressure and color-blindness checked in one room. Then we were sent for ultra-sounds (men too!), then an EKG with a crazy old machine. Off we went for a chest x-ray, then a blood and urine test. I have to say I think the whole process only took 15 minutes. Faster than any clinic I've ever been too, especially a government run one.

Throughout the whole process I never really found out what they were looking for, or why they need a physical to begin with. But their documentation is very thorough of incoming workers, I do know that.

It was not an unpleasant experience, although I think the non-VIP service would have been less streamlined. Donnie and I happily ducked out to run a few errands before we were due back to collect Paul. (He had a good time while we were away too.)

This coming Wednesday we go for our immigration interviews. I'm not really sure what they'll ask us, or why they have to interview us at all. But after that there is only one more hoop to jump through (I think), and then a waiting period until we get our passports back.

We should have them just in time to travel for our September break. :)

Ikea Nightmare

So from where I left off, we awoke Sunday morning ready for some exercise and a trip to furnish our apartment. It was our only day left free from official business, so we decided to to try to take a walk down to Ikea. From the looks of our map, it was only about 3 miles away, so we set off early and had high hopes.

About an hour after we started, we realized our map was not to scale, but had no choice but to continue on. Up staircases and down, down under highways and into the unknown. It was quite an adventure. We ended up at a highway intercsection that crossed over a bridge. There was a narrow walkway, and I gave up. We had been walking for 3 hours with no sign that we were even in the right place. We were sweaty, tired and frustrated, and we had no clue where we were. So we turned around and tried to find a cab.

Luckily we found one, and it turned out we were only about 100 steps from Ikea, but it was hidden by trees and we had no clue it was even there. We walked into Ikea feeling sweaty, but pretty accomplished.

Unfortunately, we walked into an even more stressful situation. After our long, hot walk, we were hungry and thirsty, but when we walked into the restaurant at Ikea, it was madness. There were no seats to be had, and the line was miles long. It seemed hopeless, so we abandoned it and luckily found a vending  machine tucked away and quenched our thirsts with milk tea and pear juice.

It was enough to give us energy to keep going, so we started our shopping trip. Luckily, Paul had napped during the epic walk, so he was in ok spirits. He did not like the constant attention and people trying to touch him, so his patience quickly wore out.

It was crowded beyond any Ikea I've ever seen before. I know that Ikea's are madness by nature, but this was a whole new level. There were people lounging in the living rooms. Sitting and chatting at all the dining tables, and every bed was occupied with someone either sleeping or resting. I was at my breaking point. We couldn't move, Paul was anxious, and I was sweltering.

We spent 4 hours shopping. We hoped we would never have to go back, but it was bound to happen. I have to say it was the worst form of culture shock I could have imagined and I was so thankful to be back in our oasis apartment by the end of the day.

I have no pictures of this day, I was too frazzled to even think about documenting it, but we went back today, and I recorded one shot of what it was like. (Today was no where near as bad as that first trip.)

Since that day it has gotten easier, but I was defeated that day, and I won't forget that feeling soon. We have since learned that it's much easier to take a cab.

A long time coming...

Half of our haul.

 So I have been trying to write this post with some difficulty for quite a while now. Firstly, we have not had internet at our apartment at all, so I am writing this on a text document with the hopes of copying it onto a blog post later today. Secondly, there has been very little time to do any kind of personal reflection. We arrived two weeks ago, and have since been involved with building a life and starting a school year here. And thirdly, the computer I was using kept turning my words into Chinese symbols! Ugh.

I think this post would be way to long if I had to fill you in on all of the goings on for the last two weeks, so I'll probably do it in segments. The first being our travel here and the weekend we first arrived. 

On the morning we left San Antonio, we got to the airport early enough, and checked our 11 bags. We also had 3 carry-ons and 3 personal items, so we were pretty loaded down. The check in process was fine, but slow and we managed to stay well below our travel budget, so it worked out for the best. We decided to go have breakfast at Magnolia Pancake Haus since we had so much time left before our flight. So we enjoyed a delicious breakfast with Ron and Angie, and the food was wonderful, but the impending departure had made everybody feel a little sad and anxious, so the mood was not as wonderful.

We headed back to the airport and said our goodbyes in the parking lot. We will see Ron and Angie in December, but it was still hard to say see you later. Paul was especially upset, and that's when we all got a little bit choked up. They've done so much for us and we miss them a lot! We waited for our flight to Chicago, and settled into the short flight to O'Hare.

Wearing his "ear muffs" watching Mickey

In Chicago, we had to switch terminals, re-check in and get back through security. This left us precious little time to eat, and before we knew it, we were boarded and on our way to Hong Kong! Paul was surprisingly good on the flight, up until about the 12th hour. Then he began to get a little rowdy. Luckily, he fell asleep for the last four hours of the flight and Donnie and I were able to eat and watch a few movies before we touched down in HK. The flight was about 16 hours long, and although we left Chicago at 3 pm on Thursday, we didn't arrive in HK until 9pm on Friday night. The time difference is 13 hours between San Antonio and here. 

When we finally de-planed, we were full of nervous energy, but extremely exhausted. We floated through passport control, and after a short wait for our bags to show, we weren't even stopped in customs! We wandered over to the meeting place where our driver was supposed to be, and luckily he found us. We packed our stuff into two vans (although they definitely could have fit into one), and started off for Shenzhen. 

On the way, we drove across a brilliant bridge, and you could see the skyscrapers of HK across the water, but that's all I've seen of HK since. After about an hour in the car, and passing through customs at the Chinese mainland border, we finally pulled up to our apartment. Our school's director was there, and the new teacher liaison, Jack, and they showed us up to our 7th floor apartment. It was hot, the A/C hadn't been turned on, and it was bigger than we had expected it to be. At that point, Paul lost it. He was so confused, and this was not what he was expecting to find. I think he thought we were going to Nana's house, or back to Honolulu. Not to mention being hungry and exhausted. When the director and Jack left, we tried to process our new place, but decided it would be best to try to sleep (even though it was midday back at home). So when Paul finally stopped crying, we all settled in to watch some Thomas the train and fall asleep. 

First morning in China, the street outside our apartment.

It was a restless night, and we were up wide awake at 4:00am. We looked through our new place with more detail, and made ourselves some breakfast with the welcome pack that was left for us, but Jack was back to pick us up at 9am to take care of some business. He took us to school to withdraw some money from our school account, and then took us to take visa pictures which they keep on file at the police station and for any kind of government paperwork, and then he walked us over to the cell phone shop to get reconnected. We had brought our windows Lumia 920's with us, so we bought sim cards, popped them in and we were connected again. But even with a data plan, you can't really do any kind of smart phone apps or internet surfing on the network, you have to be connected to a wireless network. But at least Jack could get a hold of us. :) From their we headed to lunch in Sea World (which is not a water park, but an area of Western shops and restaurants). After a delicious meal of Indian and Thai food, it was time to get bus cards and head back to our apartment. So Jack escorted us on the bus back over to the Wal-Mart which is located down the street from our apartment. We wandered around Wal-Mart in search of things like hangars and some other basic food. It may be called Wal-mart, and even has some of the same brands, but it is unlike any Wal-Mart I've ever seen!

Needless to say we were exhausted. I haven't mentioned that its dreadfully humid here. So along with the jet lag, all three of us were completely drained of energy and covered in sweat by the time we finally found our way home. We had intended to take a nap and head out to find some food for dinner, but we fell asleep at 4pm and didn't wake up again until 2am. Luckily, we fell back asleep until around 5, when we woke up and started to measure and develop a decorating plan for our apartment. 

We had survived our first day in China! It feels like so long ago now, but it was only two weeks ago!

Ok..more later...and we have internet now! So I will try to post more in the coming days. :)

Tomorrow

Candied bacon...whaaa?!

Since I last wrote, it's been a whirlwind of traveling, preparations, hellos and farewells. On Saturday, we flew from Kauai to Honolulu with the intent to wander around Waikiki and go to a few restaurants that Donnie had researched. Unfortunately, I had stubbed my toe pretty badly and it left me in no walking condition. :( So when we arrived in Waikiki, we ambled around town for a while and finally ended up at a really cool gastropub away from the tourists. We ate delish tapas and sampled their beers and chatted with the people around us. It was a fun way to spend the evening. The highlight of the food was an order of candied bacon, whoa it was amazing.

My toe :(

After that, we headed to our beach side hotel, and woke up in the morning refreshed, but my toe looked worse. Our flight back to Phoenix wasn't until the evening, so we had a leisurely morning in the hotel, then went to the movies to kill time. The Conjuring, yuck, but it was a really well made movie, and when it was over it was time to head to the airport. After a long wait, it was time to go home!!

Bye Waikiki!

The flights seemed to stretch on forever! I was so anxious to get back to see Paul I couldn't stand it! We had a 8ish hour layover in Phoenix, which we had planned to say goodbye to my parents. My dad had to fly out that afternoon on business, so he met us at the airport. :) I was so happy to see him, and he looked happy too. He's got many adventures ahead of him and I love him so dearly. We chatted over breakfast sandwiches at an airport eatery for close to two hours before he had to head off to catch his flight. As he walked towards security, and Donnie and I headed town to be picked up, I had a flashback to when we parted in Florence some 8 years ago. My dad has been a rock in my life for so long, and I know the distance won't change that. Love you, Dad.

Thomas is ready to go home

My mom picked us up from the curb downstairs and we headed back to her house. We had nothing planned, and those are the best kind of days. I hung out and chatted with my mom while Donnie took a nap. My mom is so amazing. She is such a powerful woman, but at times doesn't give herself enough credit. She gives  me the strength to take on challenges I never thought I could face, and she supports me in every decision. I love her more than words. From their we visited our favorite place in Tempe, Four Peaks Brewery. Mom joined us for the first time! I think she liked it. ;) We went straight to the airport from there.

Finally on the plane home, I couldn't make those two hours go fast enough, and when the plane landed I ran (as fast as I could with a messed up toe) down to see Paul. The moment he saw me, he broke out into a run and jumped in my arms. It was the best feeling in the world, I felt whole again.

I'm whole again.

The last few days have been a blur, just like I knew it would be. Tuesday I dyed my blond hair back to brown, and got to enjoy a delicious lunch with a few special ladies. I've worked with them for sometime now, and they've been amazing friends to me. I will miss our chats, our laughs, our goofiness and having them in my daily life. I know they will be in my heart forever and not far away. :)

Friends for life. Amazing women.

After a little bit more packing, we headed over to a farewell dinner at one of our favorite places, Los Generales. It was fabulous to see all the friends and families that have made our lives so rich here in San Antonio. I will miss them all.

Today has been amazingly low key. Donnie left for golfing for most of the day, Paul and I ran errands and hung out at home. After a bank visit, and then dinner at Chuy's with Ron and Angie, Donnie and I made an epic push to finish packing. It's mostly done as I sit here, a few odds and ends in the morning, but we're mostly done.

Zach and Paul, buddies.

I've been writing this post in my head for months now. Waiting for this moment and wondering how it would feel. I can honestly say I'm overwhelmed. I have so many emotions right now I can't even process them. I'm sure they will all hit me hard at some point and there will be some serious tears. I fought them back several times today. The past six years here in San Antonio have been more than I could've wished for. The people I have met, the family that has loved me, and of course having a baby here have made my life so much more than I ever imagined. I only hope my further adventures can compare.

We'll miss you guys!!

So tomorrow, we leave midmorning, we will arrive in China on Friday night. It's a 16 hour flight from Chicago (our connection) to Hong Kong, from there we will be shuttled to our apartment. I will finally get to see our home for the next two years.

It will continue to be a whirlwind until we're settled, and a few weeks after school starts, but I'll post as soon as I can.

Much love San Antonio, you are a part of me, and I will cherish my time here forever. :)

Mahalo Kauai!

Sacred Falls. 

Well, our time on Kauai is coming to a close. We leave today for Honolulu and then are traveling overnight on Sunday night to be back on the mainland by Monday. I am so anxious to get back to San Antonio and scoop up Paul and never let him go! :) Donnie set out this week to keep us busy, so we wouldn't be just waiting around to leave.

Tuesday and Wednesday we spent working on some paperwork and watching some movies. We were expecting the tropical storm that was headed our way to be more of a force, so we didn't have much planned. We did go on a few really challenging runs, and had some good conversations about what we need to get done before and when we get to China.

A challenge...

J+D makin' wishes :)

Thursday we woke up early and drove down to Kapa'a for a kayaking and hiking trip. The trip left from the Wailua river marina, and it was pretty much our first experience with kayaking. We kayaked up the Wailua river and parked our kayaks on the shore, then climbed up the banks to a trail. We walked for about a mile before coming to the Sacred Falls. We were the first group to go that morning (there are about 300 visitors there a day), so it was really peaceful when we arrived. The tradition is that you swim out to the waterfall, stand behind it and make a wish. So Donnie and I did just that, we were the first ones of the day. :) Hopefully our wishes come true. After a snack, we hiked back to the kayaks, then had to paddle against the wind back to the marina. It was a rough ride, and we were both sore when we were done, but it was a great experience. We also learned that kayaking with your partner is really hard to do in coordination, and to steer it correctly. Overall, Donnie and I worked well together, but there were a few crashes and some frustration too. :)

The "Grand Canyon" of the Pacific

From there we jumped in our little Mazda mini van and scooted over to the other end of the island to see Waimea Canyon. Although it was only 30 miles away, it took us well over an hour to get there, but it was worth the drive. We stopped off at the view points, and then parked for a short hike out in the canyon. We didn't get very far on the hike because it started to get very narrow, and was along the cliffs of the canyon. My fear of falling overcame my desire to see another waterfall, or even finish the hike, so we turned around after about two miles of hiking. We didn't make it back home until after 8, and needless to say we were exhausted.

Holding on!

The trail goes down there...

Friday saw another hike down the Kalalau trail. It was very wet and slippery this time, so we had to step carefully. We walked the other direction this time, not towards the waterfall, but towards the camping grounds. We only made it a mile past the beach before our fear of falling took over again. The trail was so wet, narrow and on the side of a cliff that it really didn't seem worth the stress. :) We hiked back down to the car, then headed home. We cleaned up, then headed down to Hanalei to spend our last afternoon at the beach. It was super relaxing, although there were a ton of people around because there are some big canoe races in the bay today. Everybody was out there setting up tents and practicing their canoeing skills. It was fun to people watch. After a few hours, we headed back up to town and stopped at Kalypso for some refreshments. We said goodbye to our friends there, and were in bed early again.

One of many!

Rainbows galore!

I have to say Kauai is a really fantastic place to visit. It's filled with active things to do, and lots of friendly people. There are a few oddities that are unique to Kauai, though. One is all the chickens. Anybody who has come to Kauai knows that they are everywhere, the beach, parking lots, side of the highway, and even on golf courses. They are feral chickens who have been wild on the island for some time. It's kind of funny to be minding your own business and hear a rooster crow right nearby. I don't think I'll miss that. ;) The next strange thing is the weather. It will be completely sunny one moment, and raining the next, or even sunny and raining at the same time. It's not too bad, unless you get caught in a random downpour, and the rainbows that appear because of the weather are stunning! But it's strange, nonetheless.

Splashing in mud puddles for Paul

Our time here has been beautiful and challenging. I am ready to go, but I know I'll miss this time we spent here and this incredible place. This time next week we'll be settling into our apartment in Shenzhen. We will literally fly around the globe in the next week. But I can't wait. :)

Mahalo Kauai, for all the good times, and maybe someday we'll see you again.

Aloha, Hanalei!