A little English at the Great Wall.

Sadly we were not among the favoured people and didn't get the favoured ticket price. 20 RMB difference.

I like it!  Now let's see some enforcement.

"Your safety is the priority of a happy tour"  In English, Chinese and Russian with a picture to make it clear. 

Climbing over the Great Wall is unsafe...but climbing on the Great Wall is good.

Yes. we almost took the "cablechairs" up.  We felt that we could obey the rules in #2- no swinging or jumping up and down on the way.  We also felt that we were not in any of the catagories of number five- not advanced age, mental patients, pregnant or drunkards.  I wasn't sure about #6 as I thought I actually would panic if the cablechair "aren't in motion" but if Paul held my hand, I thought I could do it.  # 7- No smoking?  Well, as we walked up, a guy gave Paul a lighter as a gift but still....no temptation there.

Sadly, the cablechairs weren't open that day and we had to walk - which was actually rather wonderful.

Yes, we need all of them.  Every single grass.

"Flowers are smiling and grass is sleeping.  please don't disturb them."

Kind of a lovely sentiment.

These are a few of my favorite things....

Paul and I just got back from a few days at Shan Hai Guan.  Shan Hai Guan is where the Great Wall goes into the sea.  The old city has a huge wall that is actually part of the Great Wall  and you can also take a taxi out of town to climb part of the Great Wall.
Even though Shan Hai Guan is  a historically significant place, it's a a place that few foreigners come to. Most go to a resort beach town a few kilometers down the coast.  So it's affordable and it was really fun and interesting.  The people were super friendly.  As we were walking through the city looking for a bank, we asked an older man on a motor scooter where the bank was.  He took us all the way to the bank and then introduced us to the security guard as his "American friends" and told us to ask the security guard if we needed anything.  The security guard then stood with us to make sure we got the money we needed from the ATM.  Really nice!
Before I post the Great Wall pictures and old city pictures, I though I'd post a few of the interesting things that we saw.  China continues to captivate us in so many ways.  Sometimes it feels like one big picture opportunity.
So...the fun stuff- random pictures of some of the things we saw.

Guard dog on a roof in the hutong.

Paddle boats on a lake- a whale, a spaceshop and something else.  That is part of the old city gate in the background and the Great wall goes up the ridge of that mountain.  If you look closely, you can see it.

As we were walking along in the hutong, we heard beautiful music.  We looked in the window and the people gestured for us to come in.  If you look closely, you can see that they are all playing traditional Chinese music-it was a moment of pure magic for me!  Just lovely folk music.

Cute kids outside an ice cream shop.

View out of our hotel room in the morning.

If you going to shout out "Hello, hello" to us...you are going to get your picture taken.  The red scarves mean they are part of the Young Pioneers-the youth program for the Communist Party.

As we got off the train in Shenyang, we saw this older Buddhist monk and several younger monks.  They smiled and were friendly.  As we exited the train station, I heard the older monk say "Wai guo ren" (foreigner).  It's pretty common to hear people say this as we pass but it cracked me up to hear it from a monk.

 

Sneak Preview

We went away this week to Shan Hai Guan (Mountain Sea Pass).  While we were there, we saw this beautiful entrance near the Great Wall by the sea.  See the little gold plate on the door?

It shows you how to get a wheel chair through the entrance!  That would be some tipping back to get through that door!

I considered a new boyfriend. But he had a heart of stone.

We made a different friend together.

More later on the Great Wall, the city wall, the fantastic hutong and more.

No more dependent visa.

Yes, it's true.  Elisabeth turned 18 today (on the same day my mother turned.....Happy Birthday, Mom!) So she has her own student visa as she is officially an adult. All though in China, there is nothing she could do today that she couldn't do yesterday!

When we moved from California to Missouri in 1996, Elisabeth was almost three.  I found out that the age cut off for Kindergarten was July 30 and that she wouldn't be starting Kindergarten until she was almost six.  At first I was really upset but now I am so greatful.  We have had an extra year with our special daughter and we are so glad.

This is the year of college visits, AP tests, SAT's and college applications.  It's sad and wonderful at the same time.

On this website http://shelovesmagazine.com/2011/1-corinthians-13-a-parents-paraphrase/  I read this lovely paraphrase of I Corinthians 13 today.  As I get ready to release my baby, the words resonated with me really strongly.

Though I have all the right words, but have not love, I might as well be talking to the back of your head.
Though I have all the answers to your every question and have read every parenting book and have all the resources to pave the way for your perfect future but don’t have love, I have nothing.
Though I give you everything I have and sacrifice every ounce of my energy to keep your ever-growing body in clothes that fit and feed you square meals and ensure your teeth are brushed and your emotions are vented and your friendships maintained and oh, maybe even eventually send you off to college – but have not love, it’s useless.
Love is patient as it paces back and forth across the living room late into the night, rocking you to sleep. It endures as you talk my ear off in the car after school. It smiles as you ask for another bedtime story. It drives you to karate and to birthday parties and to the mall to hang with your friends. It sits at the table and encourages you as you try to solve math equations I can’t understand. It is full of grace as you accidently knock the Rice Krispies out of the pantry and across the kitchen floor. Again.
Love isn’t jealous when you would rather trade your homemade sandwich for a friend’s twinkie at recess. Love doesn’t need to prove that I know more .than you do, that I’m the boss of you, that I have it all figured out.
Love doesn’t rub your nose in your mistakes but extends its arms with grace. It doesn’t keep a mental list of how many times you’ve messed up. It doesn’t whine about how much it has to do and how little thanks it gets. Love doesn’t lose its cool over silly things that will be forgotten tomorrow.
Love is crazy for Truth, and celebrates when you discover it.
Love can deal with the tantrums and the mood swings. It trusts God in every season, and it carries on and on into grandparenthood. It’s the screaming cheerleader at your game, the beaming face in the crowd at your recital, and the basketcase on the night before your wedding. It’s the voice on the phone checking in… the porch light on, waiting, at the end of the day.
Love won’t quit. 
Colourful toys and baby blankets will eventually be packed up and put away. Field trips, sports days and school dances will come and go.
One day, in the light of eternity, we’ll better understand the depth and complexity of this heartbreaking, beautiful life we share…
But for now we have three tasks to keep us on track: Put all our faith in God, hope wholeheartedly, and love lavishly. And the very best thing we can do is love.

So, Happy Birthday to  my darling girl.  We will celebrate with you as you discover Truth and walk in it.  We are crazy about you.

Giving a workshop and going to a conference.

On Friday, we dressed this little guy up for the cooler fall weather and sent him off to his beloved ayi's for the week.  I then went off to school to teach my classes and then teach a workshop in the afternoon.  Our school is an international school with foreign and Chinese teachers.  There are many projects going on doing some training of local and fairly local like minded Chinese teachers.  I was honored to teach a workshop to about 20 Chinese teachers on "Innovative Vocabulary Acquistion."  It was fun talking to the teachers and learning about their lives and teaching situation.  One family was even homeschooling their kids, highly unusual in China.

Early Saturday morning, I got up to get on the bus to get on the train with the other international school teachers to the countrywide conference that they have every year.

The conference was just excellent- great teaching, good workshops and quality people.  The plenary sessions focused on this idea of the fullness of Christ.  The text came from 2 Corinthians and that was read and reread at each main session.  There was wonderful worship. For those of us who live in fairly isolated areas, that part was especially poignant.  We don't often get to sing with praise bands or even a guitar.  I think it refreshed many a weary soul- it did mine.

Paul and Elisabeth came late on Saturday as she had SAT's on Saturday morning. On Sunday afternoon they went into Beijing and I joined them when the conference was over for the day.  I had to take an shuttle from the hotel to the Beijing airport.  Then I had to take the airport express subway into the city and then get off and get on the regular subway- two switches.  This is the first time I've ever done the Beijing subway by myself as usually Paul just tells me where to get on and off!  So I was pretty proud of myself. 

We did some shopping and had fun.  Paul is a great bargainer because he loves to laugh and tease.  He got some prices on winter boots and gloves down pretty low.

The workshops that I went to were really varied.The presenters came from all over the world.  I went to several on children's literature. One was on the post-modern influence in children's picture books and how to look at the that.  I went to a fantastic workshop on presenting poetry to children and another on honoring God in the visual arts.

On Tuesday, Elisabeth got on the train to Tianjin to spend the day with a friend.  Paul headed into Beijing to go to more historical sites and then they met up again to have dinner and then head back to the hotel. I stayed at the conference for more workshops and then that night, we had a formal dinner and dinner theatre.  Our dinner theatre was a one man show, done by Dr.  Kevin Radaker of Anderson University. He specializes in the writing of CS Lewis, Thoreou, Annie Dillard and Wendell Berry.  He has a one man drama that he wrote about CS Lewis.   So CS Lewis showed up on the stage and did a one hour monologue about his conversion and life.  It was unbelievable.  It was amazing.  Just totally fascinating and inspiring and impressive.  We were privileged to see him

On Tuesday, I went to Dr. Radaker's workshop "Teaching the Skill of Argument Through the Non-Fiction of CS Lewis."  It was also very, very good but a little above my level of understanding.  Still, it's good to be challenged.  The whole workshop was challenging to me as a teacher and Christian.  I am thankful I was able to go.

When the conference was over, Paul, Elisabeth and headed headed back into Beijing to Jenny Lou's.  Jenny Lou's is a grocery store in Beijing where you can buy Western goods.  So now we have a Magic Eraser sponge, two boxes of onion soup, a few boxes of corn muffin mix, Cinnamon Toast crunch and cake mix for Elisabeth's birthday tomorrow.

We got back on the train for Shenyang (now five hours instead of four because fast trains are now required to slow down because of an accident that happened a while ago).  We hung out on the train with friends and now are finally home.

It's coming...

It's time to check the internet for the weather report...

because the signs are here.....

that winter is coming.

The footie pajamas are out.  Are footie pj's close to the cutest kid clothes ever?

The gourds are...gourding.  Quite a few of the elderly people in our complex plant gardens.

This one was huge!

The leaves are turning.

The winter bedding and jackets are being aired out and washed.

Look at the lining on that coat!  Yes, it's really necessary. 

October is in a few days.  Our mattress heaters are on the beds, the flannel night gown is ready and the hunting socks have been found.  Winter, bring it on!

Among the things we never thought we do in China,

included watching ice hockey.
Our friend Mike flew up from Shanghai to play in an ice hockey tournament.  He is a super nice young guy and it was fun to have him for dinner and then to go to one of the games on Saturday.  We also have a friend who plays on the Shenyang team, so we went to the Shanghai/Shenyang championship game.  Here are a few pictures.

The rink.  I don't know how to say "Zamboni" in Chinese.

The game begins.  Shenyang loses 5 to 3 with one Shanghai goal made by the Shenyang goalie.  Whoops.

I think this is our friend but I am not entirely sure.  The next morning he showed up with a purple eye, courtesy of a team that drank on the bus on the way to the tournanment.

Paul went down to the rink to hang out with the Shenyang team and get a better view.

It was cold but not too bad,

The Mongolian team...these guys were huge but Mike said they were really nice.

Outside the stadium, the first fake snow of the season.  It was warm enough for shorts, though.