Fascinate, Inspire, Grow

July 13, 2013

My last day in China was a full day.  The morning was relaxing, after a late night run to the airport to pick up Laurel.  Then it was time for some “wine and dine” by the school.  Nick – the director of our program, Apple – an international coordinator, Sophia – vice director of the school, Tammy - assistant, Jacqueline - assistant, (all Yali staff) and a former student, Pat all met us (Laurel, myself, Leigh, Tina and Willy) at a hotel restaurant for a very nice lunch.  All sitting around a rotating table center, the food was so bountiful and so delicious – lending to a full stomach as seems a pattern here in China.  We had fish, soup with freshly steamed vegetables (they provide the large soup pot and additional fresh vegetables to add to the pot), eggplant, various other vegetable dishes, and much more food that I don’t remember. There was literally so many dishes that I lose track.  We drank some tea, beer and wine to go with all of that. 

Nick, the director of the program, and the other staff thanked us for all of our efforts, and assured us that they and the students appreciated having us there.  They gave us a gift of a book with beautifully colored Chinese zodiac birth year animals.  After the meal we learned how to play Mahjong, a type of rummy game with tiles.  The Yali staff enjoyed teaching us the game and helping us play.  My teammate Tammy and I won a game! 
 
 

Our group at Yuela Academy

Very large Buddha + Andrea

The next stop on our trek was Yuelu Mountain.  We didn’t actually get to climb up the mountain but we toured through the old Yuelu Academy, one of the four ancient Chinese academies and a very well-known site in Changsha. We also saw there a large statue of Buddah. 

 

Our group with a show host

 

Getting into the car for our next stop:  the TV station – which apparently is very hard for foreigners to get into.  Apparently we had some pretty good connections.  We even got our photo taken with some famous Chinese TV host – none of us knew who he was of course, but it was a pretty big deal for the locals we were with.

Dance performance at dinner

West Lake Restaurant

Last stop of the day was dinner at one of the largest restaurants in the world.  West Lake Restaurant, deemed the largest Asian restaurant in the Guinness Book of World Records, has 5,000 seats and a performance hall where we saw a live show while enjoying our dinner.  At this meal we enjoyed chrysanthemum tea, stinky tofu (fermented tofu with a strong odor), soup with vegetables (they eat mostly all steamed vegetables here in order to kill most of the bacteria), a type of baked tofu, various other vegetable and a few meat dishes, and again I can’t recall everything that was on the table, as it kept on coming.  The show was enjoyable – a mixture of singing and dancing in colorful and interesting costumes.  After dinner we walked around the garden/pond area outside of the restaurant.  It was as if the restaurant was its own little oasis – as if we were in a maze meandering through the pond on various pathways.  I then said my goodbyes to the Yali staff and to Laurel, Tina, and Willy – to be on my way back to Leigh’s place to pack and get some good rest before my early a.m. flight.

Once I made it to Seattle, I breathed a sigh of relief to have the familiarity of home.  A comforting feeling to be back in the U.S. where I understand what is going on and how most things work.  Everyone seems so easy here now.  People don’t budge in front of me or simply stare at me and watch me as I go by.  Instead of pushing their way in first they will move out of the way, apologize, or offer to help.  Gestures I will no longer take for granted – as they are what helped me navigate and explore my way through China. 

I do miss China, as I knew I would once I returned – that is why I did my best to soak it all in while I was there.  I am thankful for the opportunity I had to take part in this experience – challenging as it was –well worth it.  When asked how my trip was, in a few simple words I describe it as challenging, fascinating, inspiring, interesting, with a great deal of personal growth resulting in a stronger person than who I was before.  I made some wonderful relationships, and beautiful memories.

A few facts about the city.  Changsha is the capitol of Hunan province, a very historical and cultural city.  Located in south central China, population is more than 6.5 million. Changsha consists of 5 districts and 3 counties and 1 county-level city with 83 towns and 31 villages and 53 streets.  A few words I learned along the way: nǐ hǎo = hello; xiè xie = thank you; dǎ bāo = “doggie bag” at a restaurant; bù kè qi = you’re welcome.