Ni Hao!

Hey Guys! okay, im just gonna start at the beginning.... ps sorry this is kinda long: **************************************** PART ONE: Getting Owned Given the grace of time, I’ve adopted a humorous and even affectionate attitude towards our first few weeks in China, but still WOW, we got owned. BUM BUM BUMMM.....  Kev and I arrived in Beijing together on August 29th, 2011: a day that will live in infamy. As a result of a diabolical curse placed at birth(its a long story), I’m can’t sleep sitting up. Hence, I had the privilege of witnessing every moment of our 13+ hour time-traveling-flight-into-the-FUTURE! In conjunction with the inability to vertically doze, I’m also cursed with a paralyzing fear of flying. This manifests in fun flight games like “Overreact to Small Noises,” “Guess the Terrorist,” and “Develop Superstitions that will keep you Alive.” Miraculously, we landed. No one ever joins me in applauding this feat, so I clapped alone per usual. This is when the real fun began. Because of Hurricane Irene, our flight had been delayed two hours. This was the fated domino which initiated the chain of PAIN propelling Kev and I, like newborn lambs, into the jaws of a wolf known as CHINA! I don’t really want to dwell on this, so here’s the bare bones of day 1: 4pm: Alone at the Beijing airport, cause since our flight was delayed no one is there to pick us up - buy a phone card & figure out Chinese pay phones (difficulty level 5,000) - get told to go to the hotel – commandeer 2 taxis – watch the other taxi the whole time to make sure he doesn’t drive off with Kev’s stuff – get ripped off by taxi drivers – 9pm: get dropped off at a corner – lug stuff into hotel – get rejected – call someone who talks to the hotel for us – get a room key – arrive in windowless bunker that resemble the bastard child of a prison and a mental asylum – cry like a baby – call mom and boyfriend begging to come home – mourn the eclipse of my childhood and collegiate years – 11pm: pass out 3am: wake up from jetlag and repeat the last 3 steps In the days that followed, Kevin and I, soon joined by Chris, starred in countless episodes of “True Life: I got Owned in China.” Among my favorites were Ep. 7: Trying to open a Bank Account and get a Cell Phone, Ep. 17:  Finding an Apartment and then Having Someone Else Make the Deposit Before Us, Ep. 36: Finding an Apartment But Having to Wait 5 Days until the Current Tenants were Kicked Out, Ep. 51: Running Out of Time at the Hotel and Having to Squat at Friends’ Apartment, Ep. 118: Getting Food Poisoning. We made it through though, and this stretch of time has actually given me a lot to think about. For the first two weeks, it was often a little (lot) scary. A lot of the people we encountered (especially the apartment agents) were hostile, deceptive, and took advantage of us. As we floated around, we didn’t know when we would have a safe place to live, what our job would be like, if the food we were eating was safe, and, when the food poisoning hit, I wasn’t sure what kind of medical care would be available. Furthermore, I can read or speak much Chinese, so I was navigating as an illiterate mime. China’s international prestige is shooting through the roof, but it's still very much a developing nation, with many living in poverty. Seeing beggars around the streets or in the subway is common, as well as people doing very dangerous jobs for inhumane hours and no money (painters working near really strong fumes with no protection, and construction workers with no helmets, glasses, gloves). In Guatemala, the hardest thing we did was mix cement, I could barely mix for more than 15 minutes at a time, and that was with the help of a large group. The other night I saw a man mixing cement by himself at 11pm, and when we walked back an hour later he was still there mixing.  Basically, the temporary anxieties we experienced in regards to shelter and food were nothing in comparison to the obstacles many people here encounter on a daily basis, especially the large population of migrant workers working at construction sites, restaurants, and shopping centers. Things here can be really frightening when you don’t have a steady occupation or place to live, and I have a new awareness for the (unfair) advantages that allowed us to overcome that period of uncertainty so easily, and transition into such cushy and well-paid jobs; education, and support from home. It’s even a little pathetic that I was frightened at all, as I was never in any real danger here, but I’ve just been thinking about that a lot lately. Despite our bumpy landing, things seemed to get better day by day, bringing us up to the present… ******************************************* PART TWO: Not Getting Owned As Much! My old roommate Kayla and I used to watch a reality show about addiction called Intervention where you see people at their lowest and then at the end there’s an epilogue where you see how they’re doing after treatment. This part to me was the crux of the show, just cause it was so unpredictable and you always hoped for the best while preparing for the worst. Well, after being seemingly addicted to getting owned by China, Kev, Chris, and I are happily not getting owned as much! Sorry, that was an odd segue, but I’m still a little nostalgic for Saint Joe’s and will take any opportunity I can to relive the past. But the point IS, we’ve had a lot of successes! We finally moved into an affordable duplex, 3 minutes from a subway that takes us all to work. The street outside is packed with nice restaurants, hole-in-the-wall twar stands, a bike shop!, and vendors selling just about everything (watches, DVDs, puppies, kittens, bunnies, clothes, lamps, you name it). Bumpin. It’s so nice to have a place to unpack, sleep in a bed, and shower. We set up wireless, have been cleaning things up, and went out today to get a cord needed so that Kev and Chris can slay zombies to their hearts’ content, which they’re doing right now. And Meredith Sides is arriving tonight WOOOOOO! The teaching job is also a good set-up, despite all the administrative hurdles we had to jump to get settled in. Kev and Chris are teaching at a center in Anli, and I’m off at a sweet mall in Sanlitun SOHO that has a piano keyboard for stairs. So far I’m teaching a Mommy-and-Me class on Sundays, and filling up slots for my weekday class. I was a 4 year old camp teacher all summer, so it's not too new, but still really entertaining. The kids are ADORABLE, like aggressively cute, its almost painful. I just want to lead their little peanut-headed-shrimp-bodies in fun games all day, but the goal is to teach, and their parents are intense. We try and find ways to make it fun though. I’m sure there’ll be lots of fun stories to relate all year, but so far my favorite has just been learning the kids chosen English names. There are little 5 year olds running around with names like Lion, Superman, Tricycle, and Watermelon. What beasts! I also team teach with a Chinese teacher named Kitty, about my age, who has been really nice to me and can also lay down the LAW with the kids, so it’s been really fun working with her. Basically, its been a roller coaster here, sometimes scary, sometimes exhilarating, often both. But things seem to be looking up, and the past week has been a lot of fun. And looking back, it’s makes me proud of the three of us for doing all this and staying with it. A lot of the stuff is scary just cause its standard post-grad stuff  that is challenging all my friends; letting go of college, being more independent, deciding what to do in life. It’s a little bittersweet and a bit daunting, even in a place as exciting and vibrant as China. But we’re doing it, and now that we’ve got our feet under us, starting to get into our work routines, and looking into fun stuff (pick-up Frisbee tomorrow, seeing a Jesuit priest do an open mic jazz night, and joining the Beijing dodgeball league, among others) I’m really optimistic to be here and very glad I came. Phew. *************************************** CONCLUSION: Thank You! Just to wrap us this small novel, I really wanted to thank all you guys back home, family and friends alike. One of the bright spots about a rough transition is that you’re reminded how many people are there to support you. Like I said, I was never in any danger here, in truth most of the “obstacles” were just the product of being tired, disoriented, and homesick. Still, I can’t thank everyone enough for all the emails and words of encouragement. Reading those, or being in your presence through memories, songs, etc, has brought a lot of happiness and peace of mind. Not to be overdramatic, but it means a lot, and now that we’re getting our stride, I hope to pay you back with lots of fun stories. Okay, I love you guys a lot, and wish everyone the best. And there’s always a spot for you here if you want to come teach English for a year!