Matt & the Village

Matt has been gone since Monday, and unfortunately, it's not going as well as he'd hoped. It's not bad; it's just a difference in culture. In China, when you host someone, the guest is considered very special. Unfortunately, in the village, this means that most of Matt's time there has been sitting on the couch resting and watching TV, which is special to them. When he tries to help with the water buffalo or cooking, he is told, "No, no... Have a rest." He is, as you can imagine, a bit frustrated, as the original plan was to explore the surrounding villages, as well. It's hard for someone who grew up in a village to understand that just everyday village life is special to us.

It's not been all bad. He's had some great chats and met some great people. But he's ready to move. The purpose of this trip was to meet our friend's family, but also to tour the area looking for possibilities regarding a potential tourism business. So far, he's not seen much useful in the way of tourism.

Tomorrow, they are finally heading out of the village and going to another area. Hopefully, it will be a bit more productive! Keep them in your thoughts as they travel.

We're Back!

After a bit of trial and error, we have managed a way to bring our blog back here. Who knows if it will last... We may end up having to move it again, but at least for now, you can find us here!

You may be wondering about our journey to LinPing. Well, it was pretty good, actually! Not much to the town, but it is a nicer suburb than where we live. People seem to have cars a lot more, which probably means it's a bit wealthier. But it wasn't crowded. There were nice, wide, tree-lined streets and a park in the middle of town. We went to a museum there, which was pretty interesting, as well as some other places. It turned out to be a really good visit with some good time to talk while they showed us around. Apparently it's "famous" because an emperor once found safe haven there from his enemies (LinPing literally means safe hiding) and for its watermelons. There are street-side watermelon vendors everywhere. We stopped to buy some from a guy in ashed, with his watermelon patch behind. Turns out the tent is also his house; one bed for two adults and, at least, one kid. Pretty eye-opening.

The day after LinPing, Matt headed out. He is visiting a fried of ours who lives in the rural SW of China. This is Matt's first experience with village life, and I'm sure he'll have lots of stories to share when he comes back.

Things are starting to liven up around here as students are returning. My school is the first to begin classes on August 31, which Matt will start on Sept. 7. We are looking forward to jumping in, meeting new students, and reconnecting with past students!

To LinPing

Everyone we meet in China claims to have the best hometown. I know that at home, Knoxville people think Knoxville is best and Cleveland folks say that Cleveland is best... But here in China, it is taken to a totally different level.

Every town--no matter how small--is famous for something. If you've ever been to China, you know exactly what we're talking about. One town is famous for its umbrellas, another has the best apples, another has the cheapest shoes. We live in Hangzhou, which actually is a famous city--it's known for West Lake and is often written about in ancient Chinese literature. The suburbs of Hangzhou are not so famous. We live in Xiasha--there are people living in downtown Hangzhou who have never heard of it. Another suburb is called LingPing. Until two weeks ago, we had never heard of it, either. A friend's boyfriend kept going on and on about how LingPing is so much better than Xiasha (it wouldn't take much) and how we just HAVE to come visit there.

These invitations to our friends' hometowns come often. Who knows how many times we've been told, "Welcome to..." Nothing ever comes of it, though. Even when we wish it would--like when we have students who come from really cool cities.

This time, however, the invitation to LingPing has come through. Although our hopes for the actual town are pretty low, we are excited to visit our friend and her boyfriend in their hometown and meet their families.

We'll let you know how LingPing is...

Pretty Quiet Here

There's not a lot going on here, as the school semester doesn't actually begin until September 7. Students will probably start coming back around the end of the month, and we are definitely looking forward to it. A few of our former students did not go home this summer to stick around taking graduate school entrance exams or doing internships. Amy's students who are still around are pretty busy, but Matt's friends have a bit lower key schedule. So he's been able to have some great times to catch up and study together with them.

In a week or so, Matt will be taking off on a trip to one of his good friend's hometown. He is excited about this opportunity but not excited about the 36 hour train ride! Before he can take off, he has to get his temporary visa exchanged for a residence permit. We are hoping that can happen efficiently...

To the Airport

Today is Laurel's last full day with us. We will leave for Shanghai soon and take her to the airport tomorrow morning. We've had a great time with her the past couple of weeks and are sad to see her leave! This week, we've been introducing her to some of our friends, seeing a bit of our city, and celebrating Matt's birthday.

Yesterday, we went to a teahouse where we tried all kinds of new foods.

We flew back into the country last week, along with Matt's sister Laurel, who is staying with us for two weeks. Last week, we saw some touristy sites; and this week, Laurel is getting to meet some of our friends (the few who stuck around school for the summer, anyway).

Here are a few pictures from last week.