O Holy Night

 MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

The Star Wars theme track is playing next to me as Ryan blasts one of the Star Wars movies he received for Christmas. Our families know us all too well and got us the best gifts. We are so grateful for the yummy food, warm clothes, beautiful bags and everything that was sent, but even better was the technology that allowed us to spend Christmas seeing them! Yesterday, I realized we've been here for 6 weeks and it caught me off guard. While some things like our students and Chinese food feel so familiar already, I still feel as if I've just gotten here 5 days ago. 

There have been lots of warm reminders of home this Christmas; from the juicy turkey and roasted potatoes we ate yesterday to the ornaments, trees, and nativity that Missie and my parents sent me. We also had the pleasure of hanging out with fellow New Mexicans as Megan's parents and sister arrived yesterday! Last night we hung out talking, while today we spent the morning and lunch with them. Megan's mom even brought us a box of homemade biscochitos. 

While this has all been wonderful and we SO appreciate the outpouring of love from everyone, we also take time to remember our favorite gift we have received—the birth of our Savior 2,000+ years ago when God became man in the greatest act of love. 

We hope all of you have had a great Christmas time and are getting to relax these next few days. We love you!

Ryan and I at the EF Christmas party

Food!

Kevin carving the Turkey

Amy's cute PJ's

Gareth's cute PJ's

Christmas Eve at Celtic House Pub (Steve's pub)

Decorations!

More deco & ready for Christmas dessert

Christmas dessert

At lunch with Megan's family. Vinegar Cabbage :-)

Lunch with Megan's family

:-)

Jingle Joys

Christmas is almost here, so Ryan and I are getting in the mood by celebrating advent, drinking hot chocolate and watching Polar Express! We actually found Swiss Miss in the import section of our grocery store, and I just couldn't resist getting a box. I went to turn on my computer (to upload this week's photos) and found out my battery is dead :-( So I'll have to go buy some ASAP. Sorry, no pictures again this week (I'm starting a new trend in picture blogging without the pictures. hahaha).

This week we went to several new places. One is a shopping ally called Shiza ma lu— I'm not sure how to spell it— where there are hundreds of shanties in double rows & everything is really cheap. These little shops are so close to one another that it almost has an indoor feel and kept us from freezing. It got really cold a couple days ago and was probably just above freezing, but the little shops warmed it up to 50 degrees or so. We're doing Secret Santa and White Elephant at our school, so Ryan and I both bought scarves for our people... don't worry, it's still a secret since we're not posting names :-)

There are 3 big industrial districts of our city; Jiaojiang (where we live & the biggest), Luqiao (Starbucks area) and Huangyan. We had never been to Huangyan before, but decided to go on Monday night after work to meet some South Africans and go to an American Pub we heard about. It only took about 30 minutes to get there by taxi and it was so worth it. The Pub is called Steve's Pub and we both got burgers and fries— I felt like I was back in America for a while! I know it's kind of cheating to have American food when we have such amazing Chinese cuisine around us as well as the rare opportunity to try different dishes, but sometimes its comforting to have food that reminds us of home. However, it is a little expensive, so we're thinking of limiting Steve's to once a month (or special occasions... we're planning on going for our Christmas Eve dinner). The three South Africans we met are Kirsten, Tiago (I hope I spelled that right), and Mark. They're really nice and work at a competitor school in Huangyan. It's really good to get together with other foreigners and talk about holiday traditions.

The strangest thing about Christmas here is the freedom we have to celebrate it. I mean, we have freedom to celebrate it in America of course, but there's all the fuss about being "P.C." Here, we tell our fellow teachers "Merry Christmas", and teach it in the classroom, without having to worry about 'offending' anyone. I haven't heard "Happy Holidays" once this Christmas season. Also, our favorite grocery store (Auchan—the big one) was selling a few different cards with nativities and Scriptures on them (Isaiah 9:6... go read it! It's good). And these cards weren't even relegated to the 'religious' section (China doesn't have one). One of our competitor schools is acting out the Biblical Christmas story for all the students and the parents. Its just such a shock to me I guess, to see all this 'freedom' in a land that is viewed as religiously restricting—while I've grown up in a land that restricts my own beliefs for the 'freedom' and comfort of others. I don't want to start a political debate on our blog, but I do think it's important to think deeply about the issues in life and not just pass them by or brush them off. I find great joy in being able to celebrate my beliefs openly while I'm here! I get to rejoice in the birth of my Savior, and God's incredible gift of love, without hearing negativity from those who don't accept my faith yet want me to embrace theirs.

Our apartment is finally all decorated—I'll post pictures as soon as I can—complete with hung stockings, an advent calendar, ornaments, a mini tree, some little presents we've wrapped for each other and our first overseas package courtesy of Aunt Lona and Uncle Dean! This morning we went shopping at Auchan and I found all the ingredients for Stollen (a yummy Christmas bread my mom makes every year). I am so excited to try to make it on my own. I'm not sure if I can, but I'm going to give it a go this Sunday while I'm at work... the school has an oven!

This Christmas season is upon us and I get more and more excited by the day. However, there is a bit of sad news. After arranging our entire Christmas dinner with the other foreign teachers, buying food online, and planning out who would cook what, Ryan and I had a huge disappointment that will probably keep us from participating in work-sponsored holiday events. Some of our dear friends here (that we all hang out with on a regular basis) found out we were having a huge dinner and wanted to join in on the festivities. One of these friends is a guy who owns the bar which our co-workers frequent every week and the other two are sweet, fun people. Of course, Ryan and I were so excited to have them join in, so they didn't have to spend Christmas alone, and so another foreign teacher from EF Luqiao invited them. However, after he invited them, some people in our office took a vote and decided not to let them come. Kevin, the guy who invited them, had to tell them they were not welcome to our dinner because it was "an EF thing". It must've been so hard for him to do that, but even harder for them to hear that. Honestly, I'm ashamed of my co-workers who voted to exclude others. They first claimed it was because of management, but after management gave the go-ahead, they still excluded the others because they thought it would be 'best' for us. We apologized to one of the girls today, but I think there might be a rift between foreigners in our city now. Ryan and I are trying to find a way to patch things up by about inviting them to a Christmas night party at our apt with hot chocolate and cookies.... i LOVE hot chocolate and cookies. If you have any other suggestions, let me know! Christmas should be a time of celebration and unity, not exclusivity. I'm so joyful that God offered His gift of love to everyone and not just a select group of people. My wish and hope for you this season is that you extend love to those who might be hurting and lonely. Christmas is a hard time to be alone and I pray that everyone will find comfort, even if it's in a stranger's smile.

Anyways, this blog is getting super long. I hope you have a warm, snuggly night and frosty, fresh days!   Thanks for always reading our blogs. We love you and cherish your constant support of our adventure. Merry Christmas, see you soon!

Picture Blog!

Since I just finished a blog earlier today (read it below if you haven't), I decided to post pictures instead of writing a bunch :-) Here they are!

Walking to our friend's apartment

The Pagoda (sp?) on our walk

A co-worker's (Vinnie's) nephew! He's only 2 weeks old. How cute!

At Vinnie's brother's bakery...our favorite place to eat. It's called Sweetie!

A waterfall near the school. At night, they light it up.

My desk is on the left, Ryan's is on the right. The deer own the middle. (Ryan 'borrowed' them from the  Christmas decoration pile and decided to make our desks look festive. hahahaha)

Ryan and Josh. Gareth is in the background!

The office!

Caryn

This is the hall of our school—its all decorated for Christmas!

This is our demo room when parents come look at the school. We also have teaching competitions (and sometimes class) in here!

A regular classroom

Another demo room with a "Hite Board" (interactive board)

The kitchen

Another typical classroom

The Hite board we were playing around with

Here are the deer again!

This is molly. The sweet, floppy, naughty puppy! (As we speak she is tearing up a pillow. I just yelled at her so she just walked over to the cement and started eating that instead. I don't know why she likes crunching on it—she broke a tooth yesterday—but she does!)

Molly and Ryan again

Walkin Molly in a beautiful city park called Shi Ming Square :-)

Molly time

This week we inherited a dog. She's initially a cute, fluffy, floppy puppy that melts the heart, but after about 2 seconds of that she turns into a urine machine. When she goes, she goes A LOT. Luckily, we're giving her back on Friday — this was only a short-term dog-sitting gig.

Her name is Molly and she belongs to a co-teacher and the D.O.S (who are dating). Because she's only two months old, her fur still has that fuzzy baby-soft texture. Oh, and she has perfect begging eyes, which makes it extremely hard to say no to her or kick her off our bed. However, within the first 5 hours of watching her (I kid you not), she had peed through both our duvet covers, our quilt, our sheets, and six times on our floor. Finally, I sent Ryan out to walk her while I did 4 loads of laundry (our washing machine is very small), mopped the entire apartment, and barricaded our bed with chairs. When she came back an hour later, she was so excited she beelined it for the bed, hit a chair on her floppy ascent, crashed onto our mattress, got scared and peed. We almost cried. Thankfully, things have gotten better since that first sleepless night, and we managed to get six hours last night before she woke us up wanting to play. For anyone who might be wondering... no, Ryan will NOT be getting a dog for Christmas (I briefly considered surprising him, but now I think we both know it's not a good decision).

Molly is so cute though, and I'll have to post some pictures of her. Unfortunately, my computer is not connecting to the internet (I'm using Ryan's) and all the pictures are on mine, so this post won't have pictures. I'll try again tomorrow though.

Tuesday, we went on a long walk with Molly and a girl we met at another English school here. It turns out she's from New Mexico too! Her home in Rio Rancho is probably only 30 minutes away from my parent's home and only about 45-60 minutes away from the Bell's ranch. I've been humming 'It's a small world' all week long and craving carmel corn from Disneyland. Anyways, her name is Megan and she is super sweet. Her dad is a pastor at a Church in Rio Rancho, so yesterday we had our first Church service of three! It was so fantastic... Ryan and I have someone else in our immediate vicinity that will fellowship with us on a daily/weekly basis. While we aren't saying we can't function without a group of friends whose morality aligns with ours, it is always comforting and encouraging to find those kindred spirits in life who share/understand your worldview. Plus, Megan has a puppy who is also trying to work the wiggles out of cute Molly.

I took lots of pictures of our school last week, so I'll have to upload those in our next blog. The administration team spent hours decorating for Christmas, so now the school looks festive and Christmasy :-) It reminds us a little of home & I've practically memorized the entire Michael Buble Christmas CD. Speaking of Christmas... leave a comment and let us know your favorite Christmas song! Mine is probably Oh Holy Night, Silent Night, and Carol of the Bells. Ryan's favorite is Little Drummer Boy.

We are enjoying life, exploring, and seeing the city sites. Our only immediate needs are prayer for my health and that Ryan's immune system stays strong. I caught a cold about 3 weeks ago (right after we got here) and it developed into something more serious when I lost my voice and now have bronchitis. I've used up the day-time cold medicine I brought and got some Chinese cough medicine last week. Now I'm out of both and still have a deep cough that hurts. I'm bundling up really warm, and hopefully this thing is getting better, but if you can keep me in your thoughts/prayers that would be great! Other than that, everything is going really well. We miss all of you of course, but we know that we have FABULOUS family and friends, and you are living/loving to the fullest. We wish we could give you all a hug... just pretend we did :-) Love you lots!

China!

 We've been in China for a little over a few weeks now, so things have settled down and I thought it was past time for a blog! (not that I write blogs often anyways, but hey, I'm going to try to update this at least once a week.)

Anyways, Ryan and I are starting to get into the teaching routine. The great thing about teaching here is that there aren't many restrictions on us as teachers. Although that can sometimes be hard on the kids (we're allowed to kick them out of class if they're being naughty) it can also be good for them. I have a little 3-year old in my Small Star Blue class who is really cute—on Friday I scooped her up in my arms and gave her adorable chubby cheeks some kisses! We're also encouraged to tickle, hug, high-five and chase our students, as showing affection will actually encourage them to learn in our class and endear us to both the students and parents :-)

At first, I was a little surprised about our small apartment. I thought it would be 2 bedrooms, but it's technically a studio (it might be a little closer to a small 1-bedroom). However, now I'm really starting to like it! It's cute and so snuggly! It also makes it easier to decorate for Christmas. Ryan and I went to one of the big grocery stores (Auchan) and bought a mini-Christmas tree, some stockings and a dozen little ornaments we'll hang from the ceiling once we get some fishing wire. We work the weekends, so on Tuesday and Wednesday (our days off), I have Ryan play Christmas music while I practice cooking on our temperamental hot plate. So far in the battle of the hot plate, I think I'm winning... although it has burnt one of my pans beyond use. Ryan is really great with it and hasn't burned a dinner yet! 

One of the first cravings I've had since being here is.......popcorn! (and you thought I would say chocolate, didn't you?) Actually, I'm really surprised that I'm not craving chocolate or sweets—I guess cutting sugar cold turkey wasn't as hard as I first supposed. I don't even know what the deal with popcorn is, I didn't eat much of it in the States even. Weird. Luckily, that craving is starting to subside. They do have mini bags of popcorn in the foreign section of the stores, but each bag is about $2-$3 USD! Crazy expensive (whereas Chinese food is cheap!). Since leaving home, Ryan has craved his Dad's Sunday Spaghetti, mac & cheese, and coffee. Next time we're home, we're definitely filling our suitcases with some coffee to take back!

In all, we are having a blast so far. We usually spend one day of our 'weekend' traveling to a nearby district called Luqiao, where we get to have Starbucks! This weekend, we also went to the street market  and had some dumplings at a little hole-in-the wall place (which is kinda funny, because most restaurants here are literally hole-in-the-wall rooms with a couple of tables and a stray dog waiting for your leftovers).

Anyways, I'll post some pictures so everyone can see our apartment! It's on the 12th floor and we love having a view of the city from our bed :-) Even though I'm typically a big fan of the beige, brown, and tans—I'm kinda boring in my color admiration—our bright blue walls are cheery and I actually really enjoy them. I hope you do to! 

Our front door, pantry, and bathroom door

Our Kitchen

Sink & Electric Kettle

Our Microwave, hotplate and big vent!

Dining room- fridge and table (kitchen is to the right)

Ryan sitting on the bed

Our closet

This is where we usually eat- I love the little table and decorated it for Christmas!

Our TV, which we've actually only watched once

I really like our shower! I feel like I'm in a space capsule

This is for my sweet mom—we have a toilet!

We have a washer (and laundry room!)

Our view

To the right

To the left (the blue lit-up building is an international hotel, where we turn right when walking to school)

  

Philly May 4th

May 4, 2012

            Ok…today was a day! Jess and I woke up bright and early and headed toward the Rittenhouse District. This area of town is located just south east of City Hall. While on the walk there we were stopped by a film crew, and police. They were filming a movie with Colin Ferrell and we were told it was about New York Mobsters. I realized it was a ritzy neighborhood for three reasons. The first was because of the movie. The second is because of all the high priced shops, and name brand stores that were located there, and thirdly because of the hotel we were going to. The hotel is rated #52 in the World, and their restaurant inside is rated in the Top Ten of the country. Jess looked up some of the meals…and the prices, so we decided breakfast was more of our style.

            Breakfast was spectacular. We had a great walk through a park up to the hotel, and a stellar view from our seats in the restaurant. Jess had a Belgian Waffle with homemade batter and fresh berries. I had eggs benedict with some amazing pan seared potatoes and finely chopped red bell pepper. My English muffin was the softest richest one I think I have ever had. The ham was salty and had the perfection of prosciutto, and the hollandaise sauce had the best consistency, richness, and tang than anyone could ask for. The meal was delightful.

            After the breakfast of the decade Jess and I walked up a few blocks to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. There we ran up the steps like Rocky, and stood in line for quite awhile. There was an exhibit for 42 works of art by Vincent Van Gogh. However, the tickets to view that exhibit were much more expensive, and we would have had to wait in line for the next available tour, which was an 11 hour wait. So instead we looked at all the other art. I learned a lot about ancient weapons, and Jess really enjoyed the museum’s classic European art from the sixteenth century to the mid-nineteenth century.

            After the museum we did something that I thought was quite funny. Going from the breakfast we had the next bite in our mouths were from venders on the street. A professor from school told me, “eat hotdogs, and a lot of pretzels from the guys on the corner they are awesome”. So we did just that. I had a hotdog, and Jess had a pretzel. It was actually really good, even Jess liked my hotdog. The snack was a good one and held us over until we got to Reading Terminal Market. This place was huge, and crazy! The market was set up like part grocery store, and part food vender stands. Each row was labeled like an avenue. There were at least 50 venders or more, and each one selling food, jewelry, or a specialty. Jess and I ate there for lunch. We had bake ziti, and a slice of pizza. Then the real eating began. We went around trying different things, but the highlight for Jess was when we got to the Flying Monkey. Flying Monkey is a bakery that specializes in cupcakes. They do not ship, and they only have one locate, Reading Terminal Market, and Jess is in love. Jess said, “it is like a frozen meringue frosting. The mint wasn’t sugary it tasted like a light peppermint leaf accent.” She was all about her peppermint chocolate cupcake.

            After Reading Terminal Market we went to Penn’s Landing. We went there earlier in the week, but never really got a good view of it all. So Jess and I walked there. After a few minutes of soaking up the scenery we decided to walk all the way back to our hotel, for fun. While on the way there we spotted several interesting things. Possible one of the coolest English Bulldogs, some several mouthwatering restaurants, and some people Jess and I will never forget. We met and started talking to some people named Brent, Susan, and Pierre. Brent and Susan were clearly soul mates, and Pierre was their friend visiting from France. We walked up and down the streets with them and they were kind enough to invite us over for a while. Well…we did it! Jess and I had wanted to see what the inside of a house in Philly looked like, and these people were more than welcoming. We spent a few hours with the fine couple learning about them and their travels. I have to say I wouldn’t be surprised if Pierre comes and visits us one day. After a few hours with Susan, Brent, Pierre, Daina, and Paul (Brent’s neighbors) we decided it was getting late and started walking.

            After a few minutes we found our way at the Chapterhouse where Jess and I shared a pot of peppermint tea. It was great, and I think it is our favorite coffee shop we have ever been to. The music was soothing while we drank tea and played scrabble.

            Shortly after Chapterhouse Jess and I thought we could kick our hunger pains and started to walk down to Pat’s. We got caught in the rain but that didn’t stop us at all. It truly was the icing on the cake to a great day.

Jess with New Jersey in the background, walking back to the Hotel..right before we met Susan and Brent

Philly May 5th

May 5^, 2012

            Today was our last day in Philadelphia. It is hard to believe that it has only been four days so far. I feel like I have seen so much, but the more I explore the more I realize that I am barely scratching the surface. Every coffee shop, every bakery, every nook that the Old City or South East Side have to offer is still waiting for me to either return, or find. I can easily say there are over hundred places on South Street in just ten blocks that I want to go to.

            Today Jess and I woke up early and packed, and thankfully the hotel held onto our luggage allowing us to move a bit easier in the city. We started off at Chapterhouse. It is such great coffee that it is hard to resist. Afterward we walked down 9^th street, I think this is our favorite part of town, and if we were to move to Philly I think this would be the neighborhood. All the streets are lined with beautiful houses like I have never seen. Built with brick, skinny, and three stories tall with a basement.

            We reached the Italian market and by this time it was noon, thanks to Jess and all her slow packing…and me sleeping in, but we had made it. We stopped at Sarcone’s and shared a slice of pizza that rivals any I have ever had. Once we were done we continued our final trek through the market. We stopped and had some amazing cheese and sausage at Claudio’s. We also had some Gelato while walking through the market. I mention the Gelato because a little girl scooped it for us, and it reminded me how much this town is about family, history, and loyalty.

            After some “purchases” Jess and I went over to Jim’s. Most locals told us that they prefer Jim’s cheese steak rather than Pat’s or Geno’s. We were able to see that when we got there and saw the line out door and around the corner. After an hour wait we got our cheese steak with wizz, mushrooms, and sweet peppers. Jess loved it and made me know for a fact that Jim’s was her favorite. But, just like the city’s loyalty, I am staying loyal to Pat’s. Shortly after Jim’s we hit the subway and back to the hotel.

            Now I sit on an airplane; thinking about my trip and realize how much more I really loved Philly than I thought. I know this sounds a bit radical, but I felt like I always was supposed to go there, and I feel like Jess and I really just blend well in the city. Perhaps, in the future, I will write about Philadelphia not as a tourist, but as a resident.