Who's for Wuhan ?

So I spent much of this week in the capital city of Hubei Province "Wuhan". I had some final details to be arranged such as a health examination and paperwork so that my residence permit is given. Great time for a health examination whilst I'm still feeling the aftershock coughing frenzies from my cold. Anyway another chest x ray, blood tests and a thorough going over and all is ok.. My guides for the four days were gracious hosts, even though they had very limited English vocabulary. We saw sights such as the famous Wuhan Museum, Wuhan University, walked through Hubei University with umbrellas in the rain, ate at roadside stalls, restaurants and drove around a massive city with taxi drivers with fire in their eyes :-)Yes maybe you can get more in Wuhan than you can in Yichang, but I am very glad I am in the beautiful city of Yichang, maybe a bit like the comparison of Melbourne against Perth..just on a much bigger scale. Oh I've kind of almost stopped asking what I'm actually eating, everything is so different..the other night I was eating "Fern" and "Lotus"...was actually very nice ! The only things I've had some trouble with is the very bony fish and the extreme spiciness of some dishes. The Chinese people have this amazing compartmental thing with their mouths when they eat, they can eat a mouthful of fish a spit out the bones, chilli peppers etc onto a side plate...Quite amazing! Hope I can get that good :-)Better go and continue lesson planning, school starts tomorrow and I have 4 classes of 2nd year juniors (I think equivalent to our year 9's)

Oh...Do I have to !

Not much to show photo ways as I have been sick with a cold. It's hard to imagine that I also managed a Chinese hospital experience in my first week also,but....i did.
My friend Swallow was worried about my cough and took me to the hospital (even with my complaints).I think if the school was properly open I would have been able to go to the medical facilities there, but of course we don't start until next week. It is a totally different health care system to Australia. I was scared, I mean really scared..there's no dilly dallying around, it was blood tests, chest/lung x-rays, along with routine check of temperature etc. The thing is though, we walked in paid hardly any money (very cheap health care costs)walked straight into the doctor (no wait)walked to another room and had the blood test (no wait) went to another room and had the chest x-ray (no wait). Got given the x-ray pictures walked back via the blood test room got given the blood test results, stopped back at the doctors room and get told what he thinks is wrong. This was at about 7.30 pm. We would have been finished in about half an hour....I couldn't believe it..Anyway...the verdict ....Bad cold
I'm on antibiotics.

My School

 

My School

Feeling Hot Hot Hot !

So there's me saying "oh the summer won't be a problem I'm from Western Australia" YEAH RIGHT ! Whilst the report says 35 degrees c, I don't remember feeling this hot at home. It is Sticky and humid and the sun is unrelenting, I have even taken the drastic move of buying and umbrella just like all the local women...it is too humid to attempt sunscreen because your skin is always wet. It is again, another new experience. I have been told it is not always so bad because it usually rains a lot here in Summer, but apart from the first two days I was here, I haven't seen any more rain. My apartment has very efficient air conditioners in each room, but I don't like to use them too much as it aggravates my throat. I thought that it would be my stomach that would succumb to the hot spicy food but for the last couple of days I have had some kind of cold/flu to deal with. I guess it is to be expected with an international plane flight and all the drastic changes (new country,new food, new friends, new job, new apartment,new lifestyle, new culture etc etc)
I have just returned from the school where I get given two free meals a day. I think it gives the local kids much amusement to see me trying to eat things such as corn with my chopsticks. Lessons have not actually started yet, but all the new students are having their training.
Yesterday i was feeling quite ill with my cold but I had to go to the city and try to find some honey, lemon, bread, milk....Some more normal stuff that I am used to and to help with my cold. One of the teachers came with me to show me some good shops and help find the groceries I wanted. I also don't think I have mentioned...but Swallow and the school were very thoughtful and organised a really great water filter/purifier machine for in my apartment. You fill the top of the bottle and it filters the water through and then all you have to do is hold down either a hot or cold button for fresh filtered water. No more boiling water and in my case (buying hundreds of bottles of mineral water)Don't even have to boil the kettle for a cuppa !!

No #2

The photos are all taken around my apartment...the view of the city is no more than 3-5 min walk past the school and behind my building
It seems that 4.00-5.00 am the street outside begins to awake and begin the day.I am laying in bed writing this listening to someone with a broom sweeping the pavement outside, others pushing things up and down and talking, whilst the traffic is getting more frequent after the nights rest. I have the bedroom window open to let in the cool breeze. It's nicer than the air conditioner. Sometimes I get up to have a look at the vehicles trundling up the road during the night. I hear something coming that sounds so unusual, I have to look. This morning in the sky I notice a bright round China moon as I look out my window. I took a walk through my district yesterday. Many people on the street where I live have shop fronts for various businesses. They live much of their daily life on the pavement outside, cooking, eating, playing sport, exercising and playing mahjong. It's all very interesting. Many smile and say hello. When I speak to them in Putonghua, I have to explain that I only speak a little as they start speaking back to me and I mostly have no idea what they are saying other than "you speak very well", the obvious greetings and questions etc.I often have to say "wo bu mingbai, ni shou shenme"(I dont understand what your saying" but they smile and indicate everything is good. I am finding the money difficult to get used to. My maths isn't good at the best of times and combining that with a new language is problematical.
Part two
So today I was brave...I decided to go into the city all by myself. Now I know you probably think whats the big deal, but when you cant read Chinese characters and only speak some essential Chinese and are living in a totally different culture, believe me, it's a challenge!
I have to say though, that my China shock only really hit me big time when I arrived at Guangzhou airport, I questioned just why I was there and felt very scared at the prospect of what lay ahead and how I would cope BUT, from the moment I stepped of the plane and was welcomed into "Yichang" by Swallow and friends, I have felt relatively calm and am enjoying seeing a whole different lifestyle. By the way, I have still not seen one other foreign person and many of the locals are keen to say hello and try to chat. Anyway...so today I trotted across the road to catch the bus to the city. They run every few minutes. The first one arrived and basically had people hanging out of the doors it was so full, so I opted out and waited for the next one...Yeah really clever, the next one was worse, so I took a deep breath, sucked in my tummy and basically stood with my face against the door...and still more squashed in, quite an experience and you do feel a little paranoid at the amount of eyes looking at you! When I got out in the city I took a while to get my bearings, the bus had stopped at a different place to when we had gone in previously. Swallow did warn me of this, so basically I wandered around and found lots of interesting shops, markets (selling so fresh it's still alive) vegies, bits and pieces stores, huge modern department stores, had a "Yichang" cappuccino (interesting) had McDonalds for lunch (I know!!but I couldn't resist I had to see how different it tasted)
I bought many items I needed quite easily with the vocab I have. The locals really do seem to love it when you can speak Putonghua and they constantly praise you. It's great fun ! I don't know how people living or visiting here would go if they had no speaking skills, it must be extremely difficult, I would think.
Swallow rang me on the mobile and then met me in the city and I ate again, this time very good spring rolls. We then went to a department store and I purchased a new camera. The trusty old canon didn't make the journey, so tomorrow I will start taking some snaps.

First Diary entry

Helen, the diary has come in very handy seeing as my first few days here are seemingly without the internet or a phone. I have to put something in writing about China, it is quite extraordinary. I have already experienced much of the culture. The day started with one of the Chinese/English teachers showing how to eat breakfast here. Just outside my apartment (almost next door)there are a couple of very good street restaurants that serve Baozi(steamed dumplings)and noodles for breakfast. They cook it outside on the pathway, they are delicious! After that my new friend (Swallow) who's been looking after me, showed me how to catch the bus into the city(the roads are crazy)We organised my Chinese mobile phone, saw the city sights and then went back to her house where her family had cooked me an authentic Chinese meal with many dishes to choose from. I knew that it would be different to Chinese cuisine, but not so different. It was full of tastes that my palette had never tasted before and again..it was amazingly delicious. We then went back to the city for shopping before coming back home on the bus. This evening as I look outside my bedroom window I see the Yangtze river, only here they don't call it that, it is called the "Chang Jiang".It is on the opposite side of the road to my apartment(literally, honestly)and very beautiful scenery, so green everywhere.There are two ladies playing badminton outside on the pathway and it all feels quite surreal. Everyone is extremely friendly and really appreciate my attempts at speaking Putonghua (Chinese Mandarin)I got to practice it a lot at Guangzhou airport where I got very very lost trying to find my way around(whilst in a state of shock). I have just looked outside my lounge room window (which faces the city of Yichang) and there are many fireworks going off over the city! Where am I? York to Yichang, quite a sensory overload I must say. So that is my first day in Yichang. Now I will settle down to watch the Olympics for the evening. Till next time, Zaijian !

Footnote : I'm very tired tonight so i will attempt to catch up more with the diary posts from the last few days maybe tomorrow and add some photo's (if possible)
extra footnote..ok, the view with the Yangtze is from my bedroom window, the view looking at the city is from my liunge room window!

I'm online!

O.k, so I've just managed to get online. I have been putting the diary to use and writing down my first few days. It is a whole world of new experiences here. I will try and put some of it across for you. The posts are copied from my diary.

I'm here, but not online...just yet!

Hi all,
I'm here but have no internet connection that is currently working in my apartment...so I'm at the school, just to say I have been keeping a diary of my first week and I will start blogging with pictures as soon as my connection is fixed.
So much to tell everyone about, so stay tuned...to my family and friends on SKYPE, sorry, I miss talking to you all very much as soon as I get online hopefully we can catch up on the news..
Speak to you all soon