Friday With Our Students

Friday was a good day. Though it is December, the sun was shining and we had temperatures in the mid-teens. The highlight of our day was Maureen's presentation on the campus. Of course the student interest was high as the presentation was about Canada and Canadian culture. After the presentation, the questions asked were interesting with only one question that didn't fit - that is unless you get to know Chinese students better - the wanted to know how she stays looking so young and beautiful.

With the presentation over, I remained on campus to work with two students as they prepare for open speech competitions while Maureen went grocery shopping with two of her students. When we got back together at the apartment, her two students got busy preparing us a great looking supper. The food was indeed as delicious as it looked. And, surprisingly, most of the food disappeared. We spent more than two hours at the table eating and chatting about all kinds of topics.

Contemporary Canadian Culture

Yes, Maureen is just hours away from being the featured speaker here at C.I.T. We expect a packed house, a different story from my time as the featured speaker for English Corner. All of the foreign teachers get their moment in the sun. Somehow, I think this will be the highlight of the season. I will post photos later of the event.

He Hai Lu

Just in front of our apartment there has been a lot of activity with the laying of underground large PVC pipes which will eventually be used for all the wires and cables and such. With all of the digging done, an access hole was made and now these men are hauling in cement blocks to cover these access holes for times of need. It's amazing how much "manpower" is used rather than heavy equipment. Notice the safety boots which are thin green sneakers.

A bit further down the street, the MingDu SuperMarket had been closed and already a new supermarket is taking its place. The new store is taking only four units rather than the eight originally used by MingDu. It appears as if the new supermarket will be ready with in a few days. It is nice having access to groceries just a half-block away.

And this is the Monkey King Restaurant, one of our favourite places to eat somewhat western food. For the past two weeks it has been undergoing renovations. Believe it or not, meals are still served using the second floor dining area while construction is still taking place.

This is just some of the highlights of life on our block in front of Sunshine Gardens/

Anticipating Another Excursion

This is a place we are hoping to visit on the week-end. Last week-end we just walked past the entrance of the building which is an exhibition-museum centre of sorts. One interesting thing was that behind the building was stadium seating which we assume must be for entertainments of a historical nature. We will see. This is located in YanCheng.

In front of this structure was a large series of displays featuring stone carving on miniature scale and progressing to some fairly large pieces. One piece that I really want is a pale green jade carving of an eagle to add to my collection at home. Maureen has larger ambitions as you can see.

Now that we are back in classes teaching, we are surprised at how fast the weeks are flying. Only four weeks left after this for most of the classes including exam week. Already, all of our course plans are tossed as we let students do and speak more in the classes. What we originally planned as a one-day class has often turned into a two-day set of lessons. It's a good thing no one actually checks what we do in the classroom with the original plan submitted to the office.

Now, back to getting ready for our afternoon classes.

Sunshine Community Police

We were able to spend an evening with the community police as we were told about the services offered to us as foreigners in the Sunshine Community. We first visited the local precinct house where we were shown the a map of the Sunshine community which took its name from Sunshine Gardens, the first residential compound in this new district. We also got to meet the officer in charge, Mr. Ruisheng Wang, and a new police officer, Ms Ning Zhou. Ms Zhou is our contact person as she speaks English.

Following the introductory session at the precinct house, we moved across the street to Jiandong University where we were entertained and given various gifts in the attempt to create a positive relationship between us as foreigners and the local police department. Mr. Wang proved to be a great PR man as all enjoyed a good evening, even the young ones in attendance.

One of the side benefits of the event was the opportunity to meet other foreigners who live close by in the Sunshine community in which there are between 100 and 200 foreigners in a population of about 15,000 for the community. People from France, Iran, England and Italy were part of the assembled group. I would have to say that we look forward to more of these kinds of activities that help foreigners feel welcome. This was a first ever event as some of those attending told us, some of them who have been living in Changzhou for fifteen years.

Of course, it is because of our FAO (Foreign Affairs Office) staff that we got to know about the event. We work with a good team that works hard to ensure that we feel at home so that we will make the choice to return to Changzhou and C. I. T.

YanCheng - Safari Park

YanCheng is a surprise waiting to be discovered in Changzhou. We always knew that the place existed, but we were always under the impression that it was not much more than canals and a museum with an old artifact that is evidence of people living here for more than 2,500 years. Located in the south of the city, in the Wujin District, Maureen and I took the B1 bus of the BRT system. Of course, the work of checking out the BRT system ahead of time so that we would get off at the right bus stop was done using the online system (see the online site for BRT maps in various cities in China). Thankfully, the bus had a digital display telling us the name of the various stops as it wasn't very easy to "hear" the bus stops as they were announced. With the name of the stop written down, we got off at the right stop. Of course, looking out the window of the bus would have given us enough notice about when to get off as there was a lot of evidence that we were in the YanCheng tourist area.

At the entrance to the zoo called the YanCheng Safari Park, one quickly gets the idea that the zoo will be child friendly. Surprisingly, the zoo was quite large. Many small families rented little motorised carts so that little legs wouldn't tire out too soon. After each little zone, such as the monkey zone, there would be play areas.

After we had walked a few hours covering all of the zones available for those walking, we arrived at a checkpoint where we had to board a train that would take us out into the safari park area where large animals roamed in relative freedom. At this checkpoint area a number of rides for smaller children were available for entertainment as well as two outlets selling food for those who had worked up an appetite. Maureen and I decided it was time for some noodle soup.

I would have to say that the giraffe was Maureen's favourite animal at the zoo. I think the giraffe was just as interested in her as she was in it. We did get to see a lot of birds, monkeys, lions, tigers, wolves, deer, bears, snakes, and other things that one would expect to see in a zoo. We were impressed with the quality of the displays and the evident care that was taken with the animals. All looked healthy.

When we had finished with the zoo, we walked the edges of the YanCheng area so that we could decide where we would visit next. There is little doubt that there are a few more days of wandering to be had in YanCheng.

Care Packages From Home

While walking, we passed these students outside of He Hai University who are busy sorting through packages looking for theirs. A similar scene is often played out in front of our university gates several times a week. There is no way to have the driver enter the campus and deliver these packages for the students, so it is all about being contacted by mobile phones and rushing out to collect the parcel, either from home or from shopping on-line.

Parcels can't be delivered as the students share a dorm with five or seven other students making it next to impossible to ensure that a parcel actually gets delivered. This process makes sure that the owner actually collects the parcel.

Maureen and I get our mail delivered to an office in the Foreign Affairs section.

In front of our campus gates, there is an old couple who come just before noon hour (11:30 to 1:30) in order to offer convenience to the students who want good food for lunch. As in almost every university in the world, cafeteria food is despised and the students want breaks from the cafeteria food. Besides, who wouldn't appreciate some custom made food almost on your doorstep?