Out & About in Hangzhou

     From Les  and Valmai

We arrived here in Hangzou late Sunday and were taken to Wayne and Chris`s flat. Since then we have walked or taken the local bus to bamboo gardens,silk and clothes markets,West Lake that included flower gardens,pagodas,walk trails,lots of bridges and back later to the lake area for a light and sound show that has a cast of hundreds. Looks like they were walking & dancing on water. Really spectacular。Watched Chris at dancing lesson this morning.  It's been hotter and more humid than we expected. We went to the fresh fruit and meat market and had bananas for the first time in ages We generally have lunch in the Uni canteen mess . 4 of us for $5.

Chris

We have had a  busy week  with Les and Valmai and 9 more days to go. Today we are catching the fast train to Shanghi staying there for 2 days then busing it (we think) to Yuyao (waynes factory town) for  2 days. We then are driven back to Hangzhou airport to catch a plane.
We then fly out of Hangzhou to Xian to see the teracotta warriors. On th 4th Oct we are going to Wudangshan (Yin Yang festival once a year).On the  6th Oct we are taking a train to Wuchang then Les and Valmai fly out of Chengdu and sleep all the way to Austalia.Wayne has spent many hours organising this trip so hopefully it will flow, if not we go with it. Wayne and I also fly back to Hangzhou and sleep. Looking forward to what is ahead we are going into unknown teritory in china which is always exciting. Google Wudangshan Mountain and check it out. Blogs might be few and far between for the next 2 weeks but we will be taking many photos so eventually we will share them our fellow bloggers. Miss you all. Chris, Wayne, Les and Valmai.

Waiting in line for train tickets for one hour, only to be told "meiyuo"  dont have.  Change of plans-  bought train tickets to another city and then a plane tickets to our desired destination.

 Right size ( xxxxxxxl) AND right colour.  Les and Valmai  shopping for clothes.

  Travelling on the buses  is convenient and cheap.

Lingyin Temple

Lingyin ,located in the northwest of the West Lake, is known as

"Buddhist Kingdom in the Southwest" with pretty hills, clear springs and streams as well as beautiful green trees, many historical relics and caves. In this natural scenic area nestles the oldest temple in Hangzhou-Lingyin Temple. It was first built in 326AD by the indian eminent monk Hui Li.With its imposing and magnificent architetctural structures, the temple has remained one of the ten largest Zen Buddhist temples in China. At the centre of the hall, the statue of Sakyamumi, 24.8 metres in height , is  China's largest sitting statue of Buddah at present. Well preserved stone carvings are dotted around the grounds. There are many pavillions and caves scattered among the tall ancient trees. Paths from here lead you to many more temples and scenic spots.

Wayne and I went to this Temple on Saturday and witnessed thousands of locals purchasing and lighting incence, bowing and praying to the four points of the compass. It was fascinating to see so many locals engaging in cultural aspects with their families.

Pop Culture meets Chinese Culture 

Young woman wearing Astro Boy Tshirt  praying at Lingyin Temple

A young family with twins  take time to enjoy Lingyin Temple , parents and grandparents show the twin boys  how to light incence and pray ..enculturation at work

many hundreds of locals praying at Lingyin temple

vast quantities of incence are purchsed and then burnt

the temple(s)  cover a huge area with many beautiful scenic spots .

                                               christine enjoying a break

        In all the hustle and bustle,  a monk finds time to meditate .

       Most people came to "see"   perhaps some came to be "seen"

THE STORY OF TAI CHI

Some of the most interesting and overlooked aspects of Chinese culture, however, are the unique forms of physical exercise practiced by Chinese of all ages.Perhaps the best-known type of traditional Chinese exercise is (taijiquan), often known in the west as "Tai Chi" tai chi is practiced all over the world , if you have ever been to a public park in China you've seen how widespread it is.

Tai chi has a number of translations it is usually referred to as :
-Supreme ultimate fist
-Great and extreme boxing
-Endless fist
-The ultimate
It is closely related to the concept of (taiji) an aspect of Taoism
Taoism believe the taiji is " that from which existence flows".

Tai chi is a martial art in the truest sense. A soft martial art, meaning that the intent to combat is " redirect energy, channeling and diverting momentum to unbalance an opponent, or to move them into striking range rather than to attack and harm the opponent.
It is all about slow, precise movement and repetition, in contrast to other famous Chinese martial art forms like Gong Fu . Known to the English as Kung Fu.
Tai Chi is focused much more on personal improvement than combat.

There are a host of medical benefits to regular practice. Stress,mental health,and even muscle tears have been known to improve.
All in all it is a soothing and altogether form of exercise , which makes it an important part of Chinese culture and history.

The people you meet.

Whats Wayne up to?

Wayne started at the XiXi campus this week. An 8 week course only taught in Chinese.It is a course in anthropology it is also to acquire points for UWA instead of being saturated with the Chinese language which he has more than enough points for. Anyway, arriving at the campus early and wondering how on earth things are going to pan out. He literally bumps into an international classmate from UWA which he knew well last year when she was an exchanged student at UWA, now back home in Hangzhou. May as she likes to be called was walking out of her religious class and to her surprise saw Wayne and felt sorry for him and kindly ask if he would like her to sit with him and take notes in the lecture. (in Chinese haha can't make it too easy). What's the chances of that, there are 20,000 students at this campus, he could not have organized it better if he tried.Any way May has also convinced Wayne to join her in this other religious class because it has a Chinese -American teacher who teachers in English as well as Chinese. So now with all these classes in China he will accumulate enough points to complete his degree this semester Allowing for next year to do  honours. Ohhhhhhhh another big plus NO exams he only has to hand in essays. (written in chinese of course ). WHAT ARE THE CHANCES OF THAT ?????????????? The downside,  he has 14 classes a week !!!

Whats happening with Chris?
The English teaching job I got when I first moved here is no longer. The company was new and
employed the staff before they had a registration day, well registration day did not go to well at all. So no position was available. Quite an odd way of doing things, but never mind.
I have a meeting with a chinese family through an agency for a one on one teaching position on Sunday at a students home. Once a week. Today I met with a uni student that needs help with her speaking, after putting a poster on the girls dorm notice board. Yvonne wants to go for a walk and see the sights whilst having English conversations.That suits me fine, and I get paid for it.Perfect, she learns to speak English with me and I get to see the sights.
Today I also joined a group that teachers tradition chinese dance early in the morning so I am trying to keep fit. Tomorrow morning I hope to drag Wayne along to basic ballroom dancing classes. Actually he has always wanted to learn to dance so I won't have to drag him at all,just get him out of bed for classes at 7 am. Wish Me luck.

The Week

Wayne was having trouble registering into the anthropology classes. They are held at XiXi campus which is just a bike ride away. In the first week we were here he got the run around. Emailing and annoying UWA and of course the contact person was unable to be contacted. He managed  to acquire what he needed to prove he was able to enroll. So after visiting many offices at the international school. We finally were given a name and number of a very helpful lady. After emailing and phoning we decided to go and see her face to face with the info we were given ( meanwhile Wayne was very anxious because classes had already started and we had been Persuing this for a few weeks. Anyway we got a taxi to a 3rd campus and OMG when we ago outof the taxi this campus was huge. We were given help by a random English speaking Chinese who rang the number we had on a piece of paper with the address on and this helpful lady pointed us in the right direction. Easy to fid the tallest skyscraper on the campus. ( lucky for us easy to spot) and Qiao Lijing was more that helpful and Wayne was book into XiXi campus within the hour.

For all Lijing`s efforts we then invited her and her boyfriend to dinner with us on Friday evening. She was very humble and told us it was a pleasure to help and it was her job.
Friday morning was class time and then a Korean lunch was had with class mates sitting on the floor style. Quite uncomfortable at our age but we managed to position ourselves on the back wall for support. Friday evening went across the road to the park and watched the locals ballroom dancing for exercise. Such a lovely site they all dance beautifully.They meet every night at 7pm. that is on our todo list.

On Saturday for some reason Wayne and I suffered Bali belly (Chinese style) all day. NOT FUNNY
Maybe after over indulging international food on Friday.We managed to go to our local cafe (down stairs) at 7pm with a few class mates for a study group and to do homework. I helped a Korean student with her English while Wayne was home working by getting her to read Snow White on my iPad in English. She loved it and so did I.
Managed to skype home on Saturday morning to witness Sharlot birthday cake and present opening it was like we were there with them it was wonderful not to miss out on her special day and watch her play on her new slide and share with Brad,Dellyn,Amanda,Bailee and Sharlot.
Sunday morning we managed to take drugs and go to English corner again on the West Lake. This time we took 4 Americans with us that had not heard of English corner. Caught the bus and were there within half-hour. We were inundated with questions about our culture,family,driving,climate change, politics,koalas,kangaroos,legal issues. For the next 2/3hours. Great fun BUT exhausting.

We then went and had lunch and hit the movies (English speaking Chinese subtitles). To rest up with a huge bucket of popcorn. Actually Chinese popcorn is delicious. They even have chocolate popcorn. Not sure about that after asking for a sample.On the way to the bus home we spotted a childrens fun park like the royal show really that is opened every Sunday. Talk about packed, it was full of very spoilt and happy Chinese children all demanding rides and junk food. On our return home we showered and dived into bed early and watch a DVD called Sparkle which we both very much enjoyed. Oh by the way we managed to go to our favorite black-market DVD store today 80c each always good copies. I am writing this Monday morning while Wayne has had one class and is just about to ride to xixi campus for his first class over that way. Now I am going for a walk. See you all Hope you are enjoying our stories.

Birthday Party

I was very happy that Christne organised a birthday party last night. We met at Teresa`s cafe for pizza and cake. Jingli and friend , friends we have met over the past few weeks and two classmates. Teresa went to great efforts to make a chocolate birthday cake- it tasted like it was made from Dove chocolate .( am suffering a little this morning. Teresa`s artist boyfriend painted a birthday sign for me !!!

                                           Rebecca ,Trish and Ali

                             Christine ,Lee Su and friend , Jingli and Yen Laoshi

                                                    Teresa with her "masterpiece"

月饼 moon cakes

Mid-Autum festival ...........15th day of the eighth lunar month.

This day is when people think of their homes and want to re connect, even if it is only a phone call or video chat.Modernization has left impact on families, but this is a day when we need to stop and remind ourselves of family and home.. The Mid-Autumn festival wakes up our love and the sense of responsibility for the family . The Festival is second only to the Spring Festival in importance in the Chinese Lunar calendar and both festivals have great significance to family reunion celebrations--- especially when the full moon shines. ( as it did last evening). the moon during this time is said to be brightest during the year. When people see the moon they start thinking of family. Traditions have faded in neon-lit cities but many customs are still alive in the northern parts. In the country, people would place a table in their courtyard and load it with moon cakes and other offerings, family members would bow and make a wish, praying for blessings from the moon.It is said that people who walk under the moonlight can get rid of pains and ills.
In some places , they light little lanterns to cast light in the night. The Chinese has always paid homage to the moon, believing it's waxing and waning represents the eternal life cycle. The tradition of the gift of eating moon cakes began in the Song dynasty ( 960-1279). The cake was originally created as a sacrificial offering to the moon but evolved as a gift exchange in a festival that stresses reunion and good will. There seems to be many people climbing mountains over this festival week end I can only think they are getting closer to the moon.
Wayne and I enjoyed the festival very much and felt very privileged to be asked to be involved with our local friends. Even if climbing up one side and down the other side of a mountain was a mammoth effort in the heat of the evening. Today I rest.

 A group of more than 35 climbed the mountain,  resting at the top everyone had a turn in introducing themselves to the group  ( in chinese of course)  we received a a big cheer and they laughed at our joke!! We then had the 500 steps down the other side of the mountain.

Jingli, Christine and Tina  lighting candles at West Lake.

Christine and Tina supervising the lighting of their lanterns.

Jingli and friend dancing to Jane Zhang`s "Impressions on West Lake".

touristie day.

chris here
just before i start this blog just had to have vegemite on toast must be craving aus cause i had it quite thick and enjoyed it. Wayne is at uni this morning listening to the rules and regulations for uni students.

Thursday 8th
 After riding (manipulating the dangerous hazards along the roads and footpaths ) the new electric bike to the tourist centre and missing the open topped tourist bus because it took off early we waited for the next one.Locking both wheels on our new bike and hoping it will be there when we get back (it was). We caught the hop on hop off bus to a temple (Leifang) and decided it was too hot to pay the gate fee and enjoy it so decided to walk around the outside gardens stumbling on a lovely restaurant where we had aircon and a posh meal for about $15 all up. We will visit the temple again with our Australian visitors in a few weeks.We then decide to catch the taxi back and stay put for the arvo at home. Our new American friend Rebecca came over and told us she had got the job that i gave her an email address for the day before (soooooo quickly). She walked to the interview that morning and the job was hers. It is a teaching english position that i declined because i took another position first because it was close to the uni. On reflection i think this job Rebecca has is also close to Uni. They seem to put all the after school teaching classes very close to the "real schools" and the road i work on has many schools and many english teaching franchise classes.  We than went and had dinner at uni canteen with Rebecca because we blew the budget at lunch and decided on an early night after watching a movie that we exchanged with Rebecca. I wasnt called into work so very hot and cruisy day. This morning ( Fri) discovered a track over the road that leads to a mountain ( bit like bibulum) we can see it  from our apartment. Met 3 local guys who climb it every day for exercise and they took our phone number and invited us to join them tomorrow  at 6am. OMGoodness. Glad it was waynes phone number, keep you posted if i am still alive.

Getting instructions on how to use the bike.

Unlocking the bike , about to ride to Hangzhou tourist centre. First day we rode it we were at taffic lights, accelerated away from lights only to be overtaken by a bicycle.   so used to our yamaha 1100 !!!  maybe we need to lose a little weight first .

The Y9  Hangzhou tourist bus  ..only ￥5  for the trip.

We stopped at this restaurant for lunch an a respite from the high humidty.

recycling sundays

 It seems that Sundays are recycling days.This is a photo of our neighbour as she checks out the recycle bin for any cardboard etc. She has often caught us exiting the lift on our way to throwing out the rubbish, going through our rubbish to find anything that can be recycled. Now we are more carefull to sort it first- no-one wants people going through their rubbish!!! The recycle man arrived with his portable scales and everyone brings their collection of cardboard waste to be weighed and paid.

There is so much packaging on EVERYTHING here , making for  more and more recycling.

There are 2 or 3 recycling centres within 100 metres of our apartment. hard to believe that people can make enough money collecting this.

Going to work

Chris here.
Been to work bout six times now still no classses, promotionals and demo's  are still the go, until they build up there clientel  and convince parents that their english teaching school offers more than the ten down the road, basically.  Hopefully it will be in the next week. Things are done in China time here can be quite frustrating for someone like me  who can make quick decisions. We are just sitting around at the moment waiting for people to walk in, then meet and greet and  try to convince them to part with money. 3600 yuan ($500) for 2 lessons a week for 5 months. My roll I have worked out is to be seen as a foreign teacher which the chinses parent expect at these types of schools. The chinese parents i have discovered do not want english speaking locals, teaching their children.  . They want foreigners. Wayne has been coming with me each evening and sitting in the play area talking to the mums and kids  improving HIS chinese. The 3yr olds help alot with their chitter, chatter. He is very welcomed by the staff because once again another foreigner is seen at their centre. Tea has been provided each evening Funny enough( Chinese Take Out).
I am getting paid a lower rate when not teaching so Wayne says" they are gettin 2 for the price of None".
My teaching rate is more than i get in Australia. We catch the bus to work takes 15min But home is a different story have not found a bus that suits yet, finishing after 8 presents another problem.  Hopped on a few buses then realised they have gone the wrong way so jumped out an caught a  taxi and eliminated that number bus. WE WILL FIND ONE.
 These photos are of our walk to work down the back alley to the bus around 4pm. My hours are 5-8pm weekday (3 nites max) and the centre is open on the weekend 10-8.30pm. I have told them No weekends only in emergencies. We are here to see China not to work.

English(Italian) cooking lesson

Sunday my friend Jingli wanted to learn how to cook spagetti bol

After struggling to find real spagetti in china and how to get meat, minced and buy a tomato base. We managed to find a huge shopping centre which had a gourmet section that sold food from all over the world. I bought weetbix! Jingli came over and we started a slow process of a cooking class .
 Oh we also bought ingredients for a salad from the market across the road from our apartment. NOW salads are really foreign to the chinese they only COOK.,. their vegetables. Ii have heard Chinese call a salad, Sushi vegetables (uncooked vegies). The cooking class began after chopping up onions, mushroom and adding to the mince with the tomato base.. Every english word for every ingredient was put into the iphone or googled..............., soooooo funny.
Lettuce was the most hilarious along with capsicum and bean shoots.Jingli was good fun. Wayne was even more surprised it tasted like the  spag bol i cook at home, Did'nt occur to him of course it would, SAME INGREDIENTS.  AnywayJingli was very happy, said it taste like the spagetti she has bought at restaurants in china (Thank goodness) and the salad was also a winner with salad dressing which she said was sauce. A great time was had by all and next week she wants to learn how to cook Hambugers or Wayne wants Steak burger. I will need to buy jingli an australian childrens cookbook. PS step by step.

杭州 西湖 West Lake

We decided another morning at West Lake was in order, but first we thought we could check out which bus was the best to take.  As the bus stops are written in Chinese this presented a small problem,  I could read some but as i didnt know the location it wasnt much help.  Easy fixed!  Just hop on the first bus and see where it goes !!!   bus 89  was our first choice - was going in the right direction   but after an 10  minutes or so we ended up back where we started. Ok  so scratch 89 off the list . Next bus along was 73 .. So much better!  can catch it  just a few minutes walk from apartment and  get off about 5 minutes walk from West Lake .

As usual on a Sunday ( well almost any day ) West Lake is crowded with people taking photos.
 heres a few we saw >

An elderly genteman  "writing" Chinese characters on the pavement . He has been doing this for at least 4-5 years that i know of.

After a few hours of photo taking and people watching we decide to go home  only to be "kidnapped" by a well spoken chinese gentleman that asks us to join him and many locals   at "english corner" .  A corner of West Lake known as 六 公园  where many locals converse in english with each other and any english speaking people they can "kidnap" . We spent the next 90 minutes there talking ( i was practising my Chinese ) and having fun .  May even go every sunday ! overwhelmed with many, many enthusiastic chinese people wanting to practise their english on us.