Life has
been extremely busy here in China. The
weeks are flying by and before you know it, we will be back the US, running
here and there to see you all! Wahoo!!
First and
foremost, many of you know that we will be returning to China for another year. Our official transfer has arrived and we have
been in touch with our new university and coordinators. We will be at China Foreign Affairs
University in Beijing. From what we can
gather, this will be another great adventure in China. We will need to stop in Beijing for a few
days on our way to the US at the end of June to renew our Foreign Teaching
Certificates. We need to return to
Beijing before August 26th to renew our visas before they
expire. It will be a busy summer!!!
The middle of April we took a short trip
to a place in Sichuan province called Chengdu.
This is the most famous location for seeing the Giant Pandas. As China's National Treasure, the giant panda is
one of the rarest animals in the world. The total number is estimated to be
1,500, including those living in the wild, 80 percent of which are in Sichuan
Province. A breeding center for
giant pandas was founded in the north suburbs of Chengdu. In order to better
protect wild giant pandas, Chengdu has established nature reserves. We went early in the morning and it was
awesome. There is nothing quite like
seeing these beautiful animals close up
and personal. We spent most of the day
here touring around the huge facility.
We also saw the red panda which looks a lot like a raccoon. Very interesting. That night we went to the Sichuan Opera, a
variety show with lots of local and cultural talent. We did the V.I.P. package which included
Option A: massage (neck, back, arm, leg and foot) or Option B: an ear cleaning
with long tools which honestly look a little scary! You can guess which option we chose.
The next day we visited 2 famous sites in
Chengdu – Mount Emei and Leshan Giant Buddha.
The Leshan Giant
Buddha is a 233 ft tall stone statue,
built during the Tang Dynasty (618–906). It is carved out of a cliff face. The stone sculpture faces Mount Emei, with the rivers flowing below his feet. It is the largest stone
Buddha in the world. The scenic area has been listed as a UNESCO World
Heritage Site since 1996. Construction was started in 713, led by a
Chinese monk named Haitong. He hoped that the Buddha would calm the turbulent
waters that plagued the shipping vessels traveling down the river. When funding
for the project was threatened, he is said to have gouged out his own eyes to
show his piety and sincerity. After Haitong’s death, however, the construction
was stuck due to insufficient funding. About 70 years later in 803, the project
and the construction was completed by Haitong's disciples. Apparently the massive construction resulted
in so much stone being removed from the cliff face and deposited into the river
below that the currents were indeed altered by the statue, making the water
safe for passing ships. Cool huh!
We planned to ride the ferry out to the site as
it can be viewed best from the river, but just as we were running down to catch
the boat, it pulled away from the dock.
We hustled about and discovered there was a man a couple of docks over
that would be willing to put us in his speedboat and take us out to the
Buddha. This ended up being a fun way to
see the ginormous statue and kept us cooler than standing on top of a ferry
boat roof with 300 other friends!
We then went to Mount Emei, one of the
Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains of China and explored some
beautiful areas and an incredible monastery.
We just kept going up, up, up! It
felt like we were in the clouds with many monks wandering around us. Very interesting.
Our last day we went to church with the local
branch and then visited People’s Park in the middle of the city on our way to
the airport. The park was a bustling,
busy, noisy experience. There was
everything from dancing to rock bands, to theatrical readings, to parents with
signs trying to “hook up” their adult child with someone else’s adult
child. The signs were hilarious,
indicating height, weight, description of talents and work, etc. Nothing like a
good old fashioned blind date!
The end of April we took another trip to Sanya, located in the
southernmost part of China. Sanya's history dates to
the Qin Dynasty (221–206 bc).
Due to its remoteness from the political centers during the imperial period of
mainland China, Sanya was sometimes called Tianya
Haijiao, meaning "the end of the sky and ocean" or "the end
of the earth". As a result, the city served as a place of exile for
officials who found themselves out of favor with the country's rulers.
Although we have done nothing to deserve such
exile-ation, we did a “time out” and spent a few glorious days enjoying: a SOFT
king size bed, beautiful beaches and pools, clean air to breathe, refreshing
air conditioning and best of all… WE HAD GREAT INTERNET!!!!! It was a nice way to rejuvenate ourselves to
finish strong for the next couple of months.
We are still enjoying the incredible adventure
we are having in China. We have come to
love and appreciate the diverse culture and people here. We will be so sad to leave our combined 500+
students. It has been such an amazing
year! I have a “bucket list” of places
and foods to experience before we leave Xi’an so I have to hurry! Hopefully, I will be able to get one more
letter squeaked out before we leave for the US.
Thank you for your support and love.
We can’t do it without you!!!!!
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