Hot & Spicy Girls 重庆麻辣女人

I'm taking advantage of the MacBook Pro I use for work and putting together some movies of my pictures and videos from China. Between that and the book, it's one reason I haven't been around here much.

I keep finding treasures in the crevices of my picture files, like this picture of a 'ma la' skirt. In Mandarin, 'ma' 麻 means 'numbing' and 'la' 辣 means 'spicy', and 'ma la' is a phrase commonly used as slang to describe Chongqing girls; the weather and the food are numbingly hot and spicy, and so therefore are the women. This is an adult woman's skirt. As you can see, it's about half my size. I can't imagine getting even my butt in this thing, let alone my legs.

Chongqing style is very ma la: short, tiny, tight, bright, covered in sequins and embellishments. Chongqing is sort of the Rio of China, I guess. I had a girl once tell me, while dressed in tiny panty shorts and a see-through shirt: "I am a traditional girl. But it is very hot here." Indeed.

We still use 'ma la' to describe things, i.e. "That is a very ma la outfit/dress/girl" etc. (One thing I loved about being with my China friends in Boston and NYC was using Chongqing slang with each other. 'Ma la' made several appearances.) Here is another ma la girl:

We are Chongqing girls now. We are ma la. We embrace it. At least, that's the excuse I tell myself for having purchased these shoes (although I am sure it has more to do with my Spanish blood than anything else):

I can't help it. I love them.

Junk Food, Plus My Fantasy Makeover

I started packing to go back home, and here’s what it looks like so far:



I left most of my clothes in China, so I don’t have a lot to take back. So hey, why not candy, pretzels, bacon bits and pudding? Underneath all the candy etc. there are jars of salsa, jalapenos and hot sauce wrapped in bubble wrap tucked inside Ziploc bags.

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So, completely changing gears, here are the deep thoughts of my late night mind: you know that moment at the end of the movie when the slightly awkward girl gets a makeover and wows everyone away?  And then sometimes, she turns around and walks away, leaving That Boy who didn’t like her enough for who she is in her high-heeled dust?

I love that moment.

(Watch from about 7:45 in this video for a great example.)

It’s not politically correct to love that moment, but deep down, I still have my own little fantasy makeover moment, where That Guy I just wasn’t girlfriend material enough for realizes how girlfriend-material I really am, as externalized by my new awesome haircut, jewelry, tight pants and sexy shoes*, and will for the rest of his life remember me as the one who got away.

It’s immature, narcissistic, and petty. I know. I blame my repeat viewings of this part of Grease as a child.  Just call me PopCulture Victim Rebecca.

*ACDC’s Shook Me All Night Long will be the song that starts playing spontaneously in the background.

Time Goes By

My birthday weekend in Vegas was awesome! Thanks for all the birthday wishes. I forgot my camera (again!) but I have been to Vegas several times. Here are some of my favorite pictures from past trips:

A view of Las Vegas Blvd:

Me and a friend I met there:

A bride waiting at a bus stop at 2:00 AM:

Kids playing a joke on David:

Vegas, there really is no place like it in the world. I had a great time at Sephora, Rebecca bought some super strong pigment silver eye shadow (Urban Decay in Vapor) and nail polish (Sephora OPI in Queen of Everything) for my birthday. I'm really into strong metals these days. My little brother got me this awesome Michael Kors costume jewelry perfume ring from Sephora. I love it!

My friend and I had a good time, and I ate many delicious foods. (That is Chinglish, btw; they aways say 'delicious foods' to describe all foods.) I'd say more, but you know the rule! Haha.

I have a few more days left here, I'm trying to get everything done. Time has flown by. It's weird, I was so freaked out by America that first week or so, but now I've gotten used to it again. And now it's time to go back. *sigh* I feel like I'm caught between two cultures.

I Adore....

I've had a week and a half now to adjust to being home again (albeit temporarily-- a week and a half of leave to go!). I adore so many things about being home. Here is a short list:

1. My family. I got to spend time over the last week with my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. My cousins and I were raised to be close, and I love them so much. The hardest part is seeing how downhill my grandmother's health has gone. Dementia is terribly sad. It's tragic we can become so lost in our own mind. I know many of you have also gone through this with someone you love, and you know how sad it is.

2. Bathtubs. I love hot baths, and I have been indulging myself frequently!

3. Indoor heat and instantaneous hot water. What a treat!

4. Clothing in my size; I forgot I'd ever fit into clothes sold on the rack again. I've been enjoying trying on summer dresses and finding cute, simple things to take back with me for my last summer in the furnace of Chongqing.

5. Hummus and greek yogurt, and other assorted foods from this part of the world. Salsa and corn tortillas and cheese (together or separately). So delicious.

6. I like this song, and I can hear it on VH1 all morning long.

7. Sunshine! I'll never take it for granted again.

8. No Great Firewall to block the internet. And that's all I'm going to say about this.

Mixed blessings:

1. Quiet time. Boy, it sure is quiet here. It's quiet in my house, it's quiet in my car, it's quiet in the store and in the restaurant, and there's nobody on the street at all. It's nice, but...it's also a little disconcerting how easy it is to avoid other human beings here. Chaos can be a nice reminder you're alive and a part of humanity.

2. American junk food is delicious. I'm trying to indulge in tiny bites and small doses. It's possible to lose your taste for fake fat and sugar, but it's also possible to get it back! Lime tortilla chips, you are my weakness.

3. Elevators. Buildings in China don't have elevators unless they are over 8 stories. All those stairs keeps your legs and butt in good shape. I already feel like I'm going soft. I take the stairs as often as possible, but there are only three stairs to my front door. I miss the four flights I have to walk up to my apartment several times a day.

4. I don't really care for driving. It's convenient, but gosh, you really have to pay attention! I like being able to get on a bus and zone out for an hour.

Things that I the opposite of adore...

1. I miss my students. I can't wait to see them again. I know I have said this before, but I am going to spend the rest of my life thinking about them and hoping they are okay. They have sent me little messages by email, and they are so cute.

2. I miss my Chongqing boys. And R. This is a small taste of what will happen in July when I leave for good, and it makes me sad. And the guy I adore in China? I still adore him. At least now I know it wasn't the choggles!

3. I kinda miss my hard China bed. I got used to it, and now this softer bed is giving me backaches.

4. I miss my electric tea kettle. I'm definitely going to have to invest in one of those when I return for good.

Perhaps the biggest lesson I have learned in China is just how adaptable we are. It's a blessing to be adaptable, but it means leaving things behind when you move on. I'm still learning how to do that.

If I Get Hit By A Bus, Can't Say They Didn't See It Coming

Two times in the last two days, two men I know have done the 'soccer mom stop' to me as we are standing on a curb preparing to cross the street. You know, that gesture where you throw your arm across the person's body to prevent them going any further? And both times I thought to myself, am I really being unsafe? Or are you being paranoid? The thing is, I no longer fear oncoming buses and taxis. Chinese traffic is so chaotic and void of laws, people just dart back and forth across streets at will. And I've become one of them. I'll stand on the center yellow line with buses going past on both sides of me, waiting for an empty spot to open up. I'll stare down a driver as I cross in front of him, daring him not to slow down. (In daylight only!) And so far, I've been successful.

(Please don't tell my mom about this entry.)

Wanting someone to be safe while crossing the street means you are a kind, thoughtful person. I appreciate where they're coming from, even if I really don't need help crossing the street. (And I've been here a year longer than either of them, I'm sure that has something to do with their still-instinctive reactions; they're still scared of buses.) Next time either of them throw their arm up, though, I'm going to grab their hand instead and hold tight while I cross the street my way.

(Okay, I know in that picture I got killed by a Halo guy, not a bus, but the body layout would be about the same! Taken in Vegas a few months before I came to China.)

The Best (Weirdest?) Christmas Pageant Ever

Hope you all had a nice Christmas; I ate lots of foods I am not used to anymore (read: dairy and processed meats and sugary treats sent by our various fams) and got a tummy ache, which made it seem like kid Christmas all over again, so that was kind of awesome. I got together with friends and bought myself some lavender/silvery eye shadow, so it was a great Christmas! And yes, I now get excited about eye shadow, it's a luxury purchase for me here. China: helping you find joy in the little things all over again.

Andrew and I hosted the Christmas pageant on Wednesday night. Here is my report:

-I didn't get to wear the dress! And the reason is very Chinese: they told me the shop had made a mistake and didn't reserve the dress after all, and someone else had rented it out. But I was not asked to go pick out another one instead. So I think they went over budget and no longer had the money to pay for it, but they couldn't admit that to me, it would be 'losing face', so they made it the shopkeeper's fault. I'm 100% certain if I went to the shop that day, my dress would have been hanging on the rack. I wouldn't have minded paying for it myself, but then it would have shown them up as liars and really caused 'face' problems, so I had to let it go. (This is a pretty standard Chinese way of taking care of problems.) Andrew suggested I could rent it and just wear it around the house for a day. Haha, he has no idea how close I am to doing this. But if they did run out of money, it was more important for the kids to have their nice clothes/costumes. So I didn't mind not having the dress.

-The pageant was sponsored by Pepsi and included an outdoor stage with a Pepsi background (shilled here by Chinese popstars), professional lighting etc. The opening number was a dance to a High School Musical* song. So, I'm in China, celebrating Christmas with a pageant sponsored by Pepsi, watching kids dance to High School Musical. Welcome to modern China.

-They assigned one of my male students to be my 'handler'; that is, to help me walk offstage, down the stairs, hold my coat while I was onstage then help me put it back on when I was done presenting, etc. I felt like a boxer coming out of the ring all night long. But it's a good thing he was there, those stage lights were blinding and I couldn't see anything for a few seconds after walking offstage. I'm pretty sure those stairs would have been the death of me. It also confirmed my suspicious that what I really want for Christmas is a cabana boy. (And a cabana.)

-Chinese students also think it's hilarious for men to dress in drag for skits. A few of their sketches had men in drag, and the final performance was an all male ballet, with the guys dressed in female ballerina outfits. I could have been watching any skit at an American high school assembly. It's always funny for me to find these cultural touchstones we share. Drag: popular even in China! Who'da thunk it?

*I've never seen High School Musical, they told me this is where it was from.

A few cultural notes on Chinese Christmas:

-It isn't celebrated here by the parents and grandparents, only by the current youth generation. And it's just a day to exchange small gifts with friends. The traditional gift is an apple in a cellophane bag tied with ribbon. So on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, there were tables of wrapped apples in the street markets. I compare Christmas in China to Cinco de Mayo in America: a holiday you don't really know (or care to know) the history or significance of, you just celebrate the fun parts. The dean of our department gave a speech at the pageant, in English, about how Christmas is now a worldwide holiday of peace and love. A very interesting speech.

-I tried to explain to my students that not every American celebrates Christmas, and they couldn't wrap their minds around this concept. Because Chinese is such a homogeneous culture, the idea that not everyone celebrates a major holiday is unfathomable.

-My students think Christmas is like New Year's; at midnight on Christmas Eve, I got a flurry of text messages wishing me Merry Christmas. And I found out the current mayor is trying to discourage the tradition they have here of beating people with inflatable bats in the public squares on Christmas Eve. I wrote about this phenomenn last year. He cleared out the square downtown, but on the side streets it was still going strong.

The Sunshine Of My Life, And Of My Apartment

(Click pics to enlarge)

I've mentioned before, due to the number of factories in the area, there is very little natural sunlight in Chongqing. I can count on two hands the sunny days in a year. So I made my own sunshine out of paper for my living room wall. Lack of sunshine is a tough thing about living in this city, but the locals say it makes Chongqing girls the most beautiful of all Chinese girls because their skin stays very white. However, I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to detox my skin of pollutants when I leave this place.

Here are the other rays of sunshine in my life: all the thoughtful, funny and wonderful cards people send to me. I put every single one of them up on my wall to remind me I am not alone over here. Some of you reading this are on my wall; I was serious about how much it meant to me that you took the time and energy to send me packages and cards. Thank you. I thought you might also like to see where I sit everyday to talk to you and write these posts. My desk is home base in my apartment. I'm messy, I know.

Btw, that blue lamp is a sunlight simulator lamp. The Peace Corps gives them to volunteers in my city.

Chinese Pageant Dress, Plus KTV Lights Up My Life

That Christmas Pageant Andrew and I are hosting? Turns out it's a much bigger production than I anticipated. We'll be doing the introduction and closing, as well as making commentary between each act. Watch out, Dick Clark??

Pageant hosting in China is a really big deal, so yesterday my school took me to a dress rental shop to find a ballgown length pageant dress to wear. We found a beautiful cranberry gown that actually fit me (I am a giant here), I was shocked. And happy. I love wearing beautiful dresses! It's being held outdoors and I can't wear a coat while I'm onstage, brrr, but even so, I'm pretty excited to get to wear the dress. (And because my gown is floor-length, I'm totally going to be rocking some legwarmers. Shhh...) Definitely a new experience in my Rebecca Life Handbook.

Btw, a cultural note: variety shows are extremely popular here, and the girls who host the shows on tv are known for being charming and beautiful. If you are a variety show hostess on tv, you have probably the same cachet as a flight attendant in the 1960's in America. It's a very interesting subculture of Chinese culture, and I'm still trying to understand why they are so popular. At any given time on local tv, you can find a pageant or variety show.

So anyway, I'm sure you want to know more about my dress, right? It's a heavy, thick, satin-type material in deep cranberry with silver embroidery details. Here's the hemline (the red is the lining, it won't show when I'm wearing it):

Here's a shot of the bodice detail:

We'll take some proper pictures that night, I'm sure. I have to wear four inch heels to keep the hem from dragging too much, good thing I've been doing my foot yoga high heel practice. And as I told Andrew, I'll so be wearing hand warmers in my underwear, ha. (Note: I have since learned this is a bad idea, it burns. Nixing this.)

Two of my students will be on stage to translate for the audience, a girl and a guy, and they get to dress up too. Here is her dress. How cute is she?

We had a lot of fun picking out the dresses. If my life were a movie, it would have been a great montage scene.

Last night we had a birthday party for one of the T.'s, and I shot a short video while we were performing to Prince's "Cream" at karaoke, known locally as KTV. I watched it today, and my first thought was, "Why did we think it was a good idea to leave the strobe lights on in our room all night? Hello, epilepsy!" On the other hand, it kept us awake. I love that you can do all night karaoke here. Hope you've all had a good weekend!

The Power Of Food (And Bathrooms)

Chongqing is trying to kill me, one infection at a time. After my last post, I caught a bad cold. At least it wasn't the flu again? I have a tradition of catching Thanksgiving colds, so if this cold thought it was going to stop me from gorging myself at the hotel, oh no it did not. I pilled-up, and gorge I did. Three servings of mashed potatoes, a half a wheel of brie and three desserts later, I was the fullest I've been since I came to China. (It was also my first time having sushi on Thanksgiving.) Our group stayed for about 4 hours, and it was such a delight to feel like my old self again, for at least a few hours. It's pretty incredible the power that foods have on our psyche.

Friday night I went out of town with a couple of friends to visit another friend for the weekend. I was still popping down cold medicine pills every few hours, and I almost didn't go, but our trip was a lot of fun! Here is a picture of us having lunch at a very typical roadside restaurant, eating steamed dumplings. Please notice the seats and the background kitchen tools etc. These are my favorite places to eat because they are very inexpensive and serve freshly prepared, piping hot food made from local ingredients. You order fried potatoes, and someone in the back starts cutting up fresh potatoes; no 'frozen thrown from a bag into a deep fryer' potatoes here. It's a luxury to be able to eat the way we do in North America, but it is definitely not better.

(I was purposefully not looking at the camera.) Our long distance bus stopped at a rest stop, and it had the biggest squat toilet bathroom I've ever seen here. So of course I had to take a picture. At this point, I'm pretty much a connoisseur of Chinese bathrooms:

My goal for December is to stay healthy! I have a lot of things to say about luxury, Chinese culture, and perceptions of Chinese culture in American pop culture, so if you are interested in that, stay tuned. Plus I'll probably have some silly things to say, as well.

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

Two Chinese Products I Don't Want To Live Without

Packaged dry beauty face masks (Hello Kitty, of course!):

I also bought green tea powder, which I mix with about a 1/4 cup of hot water. The mask expands and soaks up green tea solution, and I wear it for about 1/2 an hour. Green tea is great, it makes my skin look very clear and even. It costs about $2.00 for 12 masks and a box of green tea powder, super cheap! *sniff* I will miss you dry masks when I leave China. I also make masks with really cheap red wine (heated), which has high levels of acid. Also great for the skin, like a little mini acid facial at a spa.

My electric hand/body warmer:

It comes pre-filled with some kind of fluid, plugs into an outlet, heats up in five minutes, and stays warm for two hours. Did you know I don't have heat? I live below the 'heat line' the Chinese government drew across China; people above the line get indoor heat, people below it don't. It doesn't freeze here, which is why we don't get heat, but it does get down to 35F/1C, which is pretty darn cold. We wear coats at all times. And girls carry these electric hand warmers. I also have an electric heating pad under my sheets and heat lamps in my bathroom. I have a heater fan that doesn't keep the room warm, but does at least take the edge off the cold. I basically live with this electric warmer all winter, and I'll invest in a transformer to use it back in the U.S.  (I can't find anything like it on Amazon, which means it doesn't exist in America.) I love it.

My suitcase is going to be full of little dry masks!

The Tragedy of the Video iPod: In One Act

So you know the Mac sad face? It really is... just so sad. My 80gb video iPod bit the dust a few weeks ago. It's only two years old, but in Apple's defense, I drop it all the time. Should I not be doing that? Anyway, I found out there's an authorized/certified/official Apple repair shop in Chongqing. HOORAY. A video iPod is not a necessity by a long shot, but so easy to love.

Now the bad news: the repair guy at the shop informs me video iPods are not legally sold in China; only Touches, Nanos and the little baby ones can legally be sold here, so those are the only products they have replacement parts for. (The word of the day is 'legally.') Oh wait: first he tries telling me 80gb is too big, I should get an 8gb Touch, 8gb is much better than 80gb. Um, what, crazy man? No. 80gb is just fine. After we have this argument and I refuse his 90% sell down, he tells me, "Well, I can get a black market 80 gb video hard drive and just install it for you myself. But it won't have the warranty." Just to clarify: the OFFICIAL APPLE REPAIR SHOP is offering to sell and install black market goods?

Man, I love China.

UPDATE: iPhones were announced last month for the Mainland, but haven't been sold yet. No video iPods, though. Sad face.

UPDATE 2: Today I saw a 160gb video iPod at the Apple store. I'm going back to the repair shop to ask about it.

Truths

1. I thought I liked playing video games, but it turns out I just like thinking about playing video games.

2. Now when I see pictures of tan people on the internet, I think "Oh, what is she doing to her skin?!"

3. These days, if I had to choose between making out with a really hot guy and eating a big juicy hamburger, I'd probably eat the hamburger. Or at least, eat it first.*

4. I've stopped giving unsolicited advice. I'm an oldest child, it's hard to stop. But it's liberating, too. I'm not responsible that everything works out for you? Okay!

5. I keep asking people to send me Velveeta cheese, and I think they think I'm joking because no one sends me any**, but seriously: I want Velveeta cheese. I know it's gross. Don't judge.

6. I had a dream Alec Baldwin was hitting on me. Actually, I don't know if it was Alex Baldwin or Jack Donaghey, but still: brain, what's up with that? That's the best you could do?

7. I like Diet Coke because it hurts my mouth a little; way too fizzy, but oh so good. I guess I'm into S&M: Soda Masochism.

8. I love that my neighbor Andrew calls me on the phone when he wants to tell me something. It's so old school and friendly. Human voices are nice.

9. Yesterday at lunch Tristan explained to me about fertilized vs. unfertilized chicken eggs. I thought chickens laid fertilized eggs, we just ate them before they grew into chickens. I don't mind when people are smarter than I am. It happens a lot.

*There are no juicy burgers, so no hot mens' egos will be harmed by the fact they'd come second.

**Yesterday FloJo mailed me Velveeta cheese! This blog is like saying "Bloody Mary" in the mirror 3x.

The Bra Strap Triangulation

As soon as I discovered my bra had removable straps, I knew the next step would be losing one of 'em. Sure enough, a strap went MIA only the second time I took them off. Bra straps are my new bobby pins! Luckily it's fashionable right now in China to have fancy, exposed bra straps, so I went across the street to the accessories store and bought these as replacements (along with a clear set):

(Perhaps these are also now fashionable in the U.S.? I'm not keeping up on the home trends very well.)

It's one of the dichotomies of life in China: a very conservative culture in which it's completely acceptable for your bra and panties to show through your clothes. And by panties, I mean the 1/2-inch inseam denim shorts in size -3 that are so popular here. They're pretty much denim underwear. (And Chinese girls have no cellulite, so they look great in them!) In my city, a popular summer outfit for girls is denim panties, fancy-strap bra, long sheer shirt, and high heeled shoes. I cannot pull this look off.

They also sell bra straps with big rhinestone bows, butterflies and flowers attached, but they were close to $3.00 USD, which was too much for me to buy even as a joke. (The ones above were about $.60 and $.20 respectively.) But you must have at least one set of Hello Kitty. It's just a rule.

I'm Pretty Sure His Eau du Testosterone Works

So, did you know Mad Men Season 3 is premiering soon? Spoiler alert: nothing much happens in this show, it's a lot of talking, but the talking is really interesting and the 1960's clothes are fabulous. Also, Don Draper is hot in that 'you're-sort-of-a-scumbag-but-you-wear-the-hell-out-of-that-suit-and-I-love-your-late-night-shagging-stubble' kind of way. I recommend it. I bought it on the street for $1.00, but I think it's free in America on cable.

And in preparation for the 3rd season premiere, you can make your own Mad Men persona. Here I am getting hit on by Don Draper:

So realistic, you guys. I can't go to NYC without getting hit on by ad men. It's the hat and gloves, I think. (And I do actually own a hat like that, and elbow gloves. Definitely taking them to NYC.)

And you just know this guy smells like Indiana Jones in a suit: all man. Jon Hamm, I salute you. (And yes, I miss big, strong American men, why do you ask?)

Little Miss Jail Bait

I'm way past being jail bait (which, by the way, was what my older cousin David called me when I was 13 and I didn't know what it meant, but I knew I should be annoyed by it), but I saw this shirt on the street last night and couldn't resist adding it to my collection. (Although, Chinese screen printing is apparently only for A cups.) This isn't Chinglish in the strictest sense, the grammar and spelling are correct, but contextually? It's got Chinglish soul. It would go well with the 'I Just Scored' t-shirt I saw this week on a young teenage boy (!).

I wonder if our Chinese tattoos are the cultural equivalent of Chinglish shirts? Surely we've made a mess of those, too. I'm sooo going to tell people if their Chinese tattoo is wrong. "'Love'? No, that says 'rash'." What can I say? I'm helpful like that.

The Boy Scout of Lip Gloss

Please know, I have a Chilean mother, and in Chilean culture, appearance is extremely important. I have been conditioned to never leave the house without wearing make-up, especially lip gloss. That Peace Corps stereotype of the granola girl who doesn't wear makeup? Yeah, so not me. I looked at my make-up supply the other day, and here's what I packed for my two year stay in China:

4 eyeshadow quads
4 eyeshadow singles
2 blushes (1 cream, 1 powder)
6 liquid eyeliners (purple and brown)
14 tubes of lip gloss
5 tubes of lipstick
7 lip liners
6 pencil eyeliner/brow pencils
4 eyelash curlers
19 jars of Bare Minerals (foundation, concealer, mineral veil)

I'm NEVER going to use all this make-up while I'm here. What was I thinking? (Panic, that's what I was thinking.) Definitely overprepared.* Anyone need any lip gloss?

*Better over than under, though, because makeup here is 4x as expensive as the U.S. Not sure why.

Hot and Cold Foods

I've enjoyed learning how the Chinese believe food affects your health. Every food is categorized as hot or cold, and they believe you need to eat a balance of these foods in order to be healthy. (Not hot or cold by temperature, but by the effect the food has on your body.) When the seasons change, you should adjust what you eat so your body stays in balance. Hot and cold foods should be eaten in a certain order to take advantage of the the temperature effect on your body. For example, at Chinese banquets, someone knowledgeable about hot and cold dishes orders for everyone, and the dishes are served in a precise order. There is an art to how food is eaten here. I think it's pretty neat, so different from our "make it cheap and filling" food mentality in the West. (I also wonder if this is one reason people here are so thin? Perhaps they eat in a way that makes maximum use of their metabolism by keeping everything in balance. I have no idea, just a thought.)

They also believe humidity in the air can build up in your body and can cause poor health, so there are certain fruits you should eat to get rid of excess humidity. If you have skin rashes, it means you have too much heat and need cooling foods. Most meats are considered hot foods, which I think is very interesting because I always thought meat made my eczema worse. If this Chinese way of eating can be believed, I wasn't making it up when I thought being a vegetarian was more healthy for me personally, due to my propensity for eczema and skin rashes. Who knows? But it is interesting to learn about this part of the culture.

And for those that have never attended a Chinese banquet, here is a camera phone pic of our table after a banquet. Dishes get stacked on top of dishes.

I'm Wearing This Outfit On The Plane Home

When I first got here, one of the girls who had already been here a year told me I would know I had assimilated when I started thinking the local fashion was cute, not crazy. Yup. I was walking behind this girl on campus. She pulls this outfit off quite well, don't you think?

Also, notice her boyfriend is carrying her purse and umbrella? It's a sign of love here for a guy to carry all your crap. My students asked me if in America, the boys carry their girlfriend's purses. I tried to say, 'Hells to the no!" as tactfully possible. The dating culture is firmly stuck in the 1950's here. A student recently turned in an essay that said guys here will ask a girl out by sending her a note that says, "I would be the water that grows the flower. Will you be the flower?" I am not making this up.

My New Friend

I was grading papers today in the school's courtyard and this very cute little girl wandered over to stare at me. I was eating these little cracker thingies so I gave her one, and then we were BFF.  How cute is she? I see about a hundred cute little girls every day. They are just adorable here.

(And can you see what's in the background? SUNSHINE. It was a Chonx miracle!)








She's trying to peer into my cell phone camera lens. After I took her picture, she wanted to see it on my phone. She was a very self-aware pre-schooler. And btw, whatever I could smear on my face to make my skin look like hers, I'd do it. No questions asked.

Thongs For Your Feet, A New Interpretation

I don't know the Chinese name for these, but I call them toe thongs. Your toes go in the fabric sling, and the thong-y part goes around your heel. They're meant to be worn with slingbacks/pumps. They cracked me up so much when I saw them, I had to try them out. The thong part cut into my heel uncomfortably, but this is probably because my shoe size is 4 sizes bigger than the average Chinese woman's.

Here's what Andrew and I had for lunch today, Big Plate Chicken, a Chinese Muslim dish. (The Muslim foods here are some of my favorites.) After we ate the veggies and chicken, we added freshly made noodles to finish off the broth. On the far right side, there's a chicken foot. Andrew taunted me with it, he picked it up and made it 'talk' to me. They seem to be all bone and skin and gristle, ick. However, the last time we ordered this dish there was a chicken's head, beak and all. I guess feet are not so bad in comparison. I think of both of them like basil leaves in spaghetti sauce, just there for flavor.