Aotearoa - Last Leg

Feb. 8-10, 2007: Hong Kong - Wuhan - Tai'an

Hong Kong

In the morning I had to make sure I was all packed, and then we went out to the delicious Dim Sum restaurant. Stephanie went into town for some computer stuff, but we didn't have enough time to burn a CD for me of all the pictures they took. The Poons were gracious enough to let me have copies of all their pictures. I really am ever so grateful that we were all able to go together! Since Stephanie was going into town (with her family) to get something straightened out with her computer, I was able to go along and catch the lightrail to the train station that would take me into Shenzhen for my long train to Wuhan. At the Shenzhen train station, I actually had to go through customs! It seems a little strange that one would have to go through customs if you're going into the same country....but that's China for you! :) I guess Hong Kong isn't really a part of the main land....hmmm..... but I had no trouble going through customs, except for the fact that I tried at first to get into the wrong line! Once through customs, I just had to get to the train station, which wasn't too far, fortunately. After that, I simply had to wait around a while before getting on the train to Wuhan. At this point, I was just ready to be home....

Wuhan

I have a very dear friend named Samantha in Wuhan. She was one of my students from my first year (semester) here, so I was excited that I would be able to see her, even if it was only for a few hours. :) She also introduced me to one of her best friends when I visited her last summer (Lynn), so I was able to see them both. It was kind of a madhouse trying to meet up with them, though. They were able to get a ticket for me to Tai'an, which is another reason that I really needed to see them! That was a blessing, though, because I wasn't sure whether or not I would be able to get one if I had to do it myself once I got there. Samantha also wanted to introduce me to another friend of hers, and we spent some time waiting around for her. Finally we met up with her, then went back to town to her house. For lunch, we met up with Lynn and Lynn's family (her uncle). It was great!! Chinese people are ever the hosts/hostesses, and they know how to make their guests feel welcome. They were SO nice and sweet! After lunch, Lynn and Samantha were supposed to have an interview for a part-time, short-term job, but the boss was a no-show. That's something you don't see every day in the west. That is a key difference - in America, it would be incomprehensible that a boss wouldn't show up to an interview, but in China, in a way it was simply reinforcing who was in charge, as if the boss were saying "I'm much more important than an interview". After that little escapade, though, it was getting close to time for me to catch my train, and we had to RUN like mad to make it to the station on time! We were really cutting it too close for (my) comfort, and we ended up having to stop the taxi before they actually got to the station because the traffic was bad. We all ran with my luggage at least a full Chinese block to the station!! Fortunately (God is good!) I did make it onto the train in time, but I had to walk through several cars of hard seaters (yikes!). Along the way, there was just way too much "hello" for me to deal with. I was smelly, sweaty, and tired, and still ready to be back home.


Tai'an

Ahhhhhh, home sweet apartment!

Every time I take the train back into Tai'an, I'm always amazed by coming up into the city. It always takes me by surprise to see how it either looks the same or different, depending on the time of day, the direction you're coming from, the side of the train you're on, and just how you're feeling at the time. Most of the time I'm coming back from the North, and this time I was coming in from the South. The view - of the city, of the mountain - really was stunning! It was really beautiful - I almost didn't recognize it. I always think that's so neat, when you see the familiar in a different light that makes it seem so fresh and new. A good life lesson. :)

Aotearoa 20 – "Come back to me! Come back to me, and say my land is best"

Feb. 7, 2007: Auckland/airport

Today was spent mainly getting ready to leave and leaving New Zealand.....

In the morning we were mostly packing and getting ready to leave, making sure we had everything ready and cleared out of our Top 10. It was a strange feeling. I suppose it shouldn't be a strange feeling to anyone who travels often, but there you have it. It's hard leaving a place that you get attached to, even after only a few weeks.

We stopped by a Christian bookstore (haven't seen one of those in a long time!) on our way to the airport. It was a 7th Day Adventist Christian bookstore. It was kind of fun to poke around and see what they had there. It reminded me of the States a bit. :) The one thing there that I really wanted to get - I thought this was soooo cool! :) - was a Bible in the Maori language. That would be a pretty sweet purchase! Alas, I did not get it. I got the ISBN though, so maybe a potential birthday/Christmas present? (hint, hint) ;)

After that short side trip, there was nothing left but to go to the airport. I think I always have a hard time leaving the places I travel to, and this was no exception. I had some awesome, amazing experiences here, and I didn't really want to leave. At all. I didn't really want to go back to China at this point. I didn't want to leave the green....the mountains....the people....the language....the ocean....the memories..... and so I already wax nostalgic. At the airport, as we were checking in we learned that there is a $25 airport tax. Let that be a lesson to the lot of ye - when traveling to New Zealand, be prepared to pay an airport tax as you leave the country! We were not informed of this when we arrived (yes, we should have been. That would have been the right thing to do. But what can you do?). Fortunately, I did have enough money to left to pay my portion.

My one fun memory from the airport before leaving was that the worker who stamped my passport told me that I should come back to New Zealand as a teacher - they have a shortage, they need more teachers, I'm a teacher in China, it works out! :) Sigh. Wishful thinking. It is a thought though! :)

The flight was very uneventful. No one was sitting next to me, so I was able to take up two seats!! Not too shabby! :)

We arrived back in Hong Kong, where we were again greeted by Stephanie's family. Praise the Lord, Stephanie's aunt was able to get me a train ticket from Shenzhen to Wuhan!! I was really kind of worried about that, but thank You Father, You always provide!!

Sigh.

Already I wish I were back in New Zealand....

So.

If I were to live in New Zealand, and if I had to choose one place of all the places we visited to live, I would probably choose....Wanaka. Definitely Wanaka. I had lots of fun there! I may be biased because that's where we went skydiving and it had Puzzling World, but it was just plain fun! And had a pretty lake. :) But Wanaka or not, I would definitely choose the South Island over the North Island to live. What can I say? I'm a simple, small-town girl. :)

Aotearoa 19 - It's times like these you learn to live again

Feb. 6, 2007: Rotorua to Whakatane (beach) to Auckland

To Legolas she sent this word:
Legolas Greenleaf long under tree,
In joy thou hast lived. Beware of the Sea!
If thou hearest the cry of the gull on the shore,
Thy heart shall then rest in the forest no more.

Today was....an amazing day. An interesting piece of history for all you history buffs: this is the anniversary (or at least the important national holiday) of the signing of a treaty between England and the Maori people. "Waitangi Day," as I learned from watching the news this morning, is a public holiday on Feb. 6th commemorating the signing of the "Treaty of Waitangi". It looked like there were probably some really interesting things going on around the city and the country (think of July 4th - or maybe Memorial Day - in the U.S.).

In the morning (after the news) we drove the rest of the way to Whakatane, a small community on the north-central edge of the North Island (just to the east of the main north-pointing "finger" on which Auckland is located). That was the point of departure for the next big adventure. The Poon's were taking a helicopter ride to "White Island" - actually an active volcano, not too far off the coast. There used to be a factory on the (now) island, but sadly the volcano erupted (several years ago - don't know exact number) and buried the factory along with all of the workers. (you can see the site where the factory used to be in the second photo at the bottom of the island - it's the really flat part)

How awesome to go up in a helicopter!! Those of you who know me know how much I love flying and would love to be able to fly on my own (and if you didn't know that about me, the whole skydiving thing is a good example of this force in action). I would love to just go for a helicopter ride, hot air balloon ride, go hang gliding, go skydiving on my own, be superman, etc. So, needless to say, I would've liked to go on this little adventure with them. Sadly, though, I lacked the funds. Sigh.

BUT......in the end, I was very glad that I stayed behind, and I'll elaborate on that after I talk about the rest of the day....

So, the morning was spent driving to Whakatane, where the Poon's took the helicopter ride/tour to White Island, while I stayed behind. I know, I know I should know better, and my Mom wouldn't like to know this, but I got another sun burn (#3? I think), and this was a pretty bad one. Why don't I like to wear sun screen? Me, a prime candidate for skin cancer with my translucent, reflective, pasty white skin. Yikes....

The evening was spent pretty much driving to Auckland, since we would be leaving the following day ....don't remind me...... The Auckland highway was kind of like the highways around Wellington: much more like American highways than what I'm used to back in China. Except, of course, for the fact that everyone is driving on the opposite side of the road. Whose idea was that? ;) For dinner, the Poons went to a nice (probably expensive) buffet down the road from our last "Top 10". I, however, opted for more conventional (and less available) fare: WENDY'S!!! What can I say, I'm a woman of simple tastes. :) It was pretty good, too - I haven't had Wendy's in how long?

Last fun thing I don't want to forget, before I talk about the really cool part of my day. So, while watching the T.V. I saw one commercial a few times that really just cracked me up. It's advertising deodorant of all things. Basically, it's just this guy who has these fire hose streams of sweat pouring out whenever he raises his arms. Why do I find that so funny? Well, you have to know me *reallllllly* well to know that. ;)

*****

The really amazing part of my day happened while I was waiting for the Poons to come back from their helicopter ride/volcano tour. I stayed behind on a local beach.....it was deserted.

Let that sink in. This beach was deserted. There was no one else around. I don't think I have ever, ever been on a deserted beach before. There was no one there. Eventually there were a few stragglers - probably locals - who came by, but they were few and far between.

So, being on a deserted beach, looking out over the sea, I became awfully reflective. At first I didn't really know what to do with myself. Actually, it was kind of fun at first. I found a bunch of shells (I mean, these shells were all over the place!) that, to me, look like they could only be manufactured and not occur naturally. Of course, they're that much prettier when found in nature. :) But once I got past the fun of finding these pretty shells and started staring at the vast expanse of sea, I became rather pensive. It kind of began with me asking myself the question, "What have I learned from New Zealand?"

At this point, I was standing with just my feet in the water. To my untrained eye, the waves that were meeting the shore were pretty tall, and it was kind of windy. I have no idea how tall the waves really were, but the point was that, to me, they looked tall, and I had this intense urge to go out and ride on those waves....



When I was much younger, attending a Christian school, I remember being told (more than once) the analogy that God is like the sea. The sea is vast and incomprehensible. It is a source of life and sustenance for many things, including us. We can't see the end of it from where we are. We can enjoy the beauty of it, we can play in the water and swim in it, we can ride on it, we can even do things like surf and parasail, etc. on/in it. The sea is fun and enjoyable. At the same time, we have to realize: the sea can kill you. You have to respect the sea. While you are enjoying it, you have to have a certain sense of awe about it.

God is like the sea. He is the source of life and sustenance for all things. We can't see Him clearly from where we are. We can enjoy Him, we can laugh with Him, we can experience Him in many exciting ways, but at the same time we have to respect Him. We have to have that sense of awe in His presence.

While I was thinking all of this I was also thinking about how much I want to experience His love more and more, how much I want to be a part of His plan, and how much I want to know what that plan is and how I fit into it.

As I was thinking all of this, it hit me right out of the blue: I wanted to experience God's love in unimaginable ways, but without really trusting Him and giving Him myself fully, just like I wanted to go out and experience the thrill of riding those ways while I was standing on the seashore....

WOW.

I wanted to stay safe, to not have to really exercise my faith. As a result, I could only experience so much of His love. God's "tame love" - the love of a Father for a child, of a teacher for a student, of a friend for a friend - is definitely exciting, enjoyable, and intimate, but His wild love - the overwhelming, passionate, thrilling love of a Lover pursuing the Beloved - the love of the Creator for His Creation, and especially for the crown of His Creation, the kind of love that drives us into holy adventures - simply leaves you breathless. And that's the kind of love that I want/ed to experience from God.

This is the kind of love that you can't experience while staying within your comfort zone, I think. You have to go out on a limb. You have to step out in complete faith and trust that He will catch you. You can't stay on the shore and expect to ride the waves....

Eventually, after being alone with my thoughts for a while, I did change into my swimsuit and play a little in the breakers. It was tons o' fun! A father and child showed up after a bit and were also swimming close to the shore. It was a great experience, although partly somewhat scary realizing that if I got too far away from shore I wouldn't be able to get back - another theological connection (we, in our present state, can't get too close to His face and live, just like we can't get too close to the big waves and live). :) It was a *really* special time, because I hadn't had an experience like that in a while. I felt like I had been getting kind of complacent about some things in China. I wanted to live in China as a Christian without really going out on a limb in relaying my faith.

"To be a Christian is to live dangerously, honestly, freely - to step in the name of love as if you may land on nothing, yet to keep stepping because the something that sustains you no empire can give you and no empire can take away."--Cornel West

When asked the question: 'do you prefer the mountains or the beach?' my answer, hands down, is "mountains." No question. But after this experience, I definitely have a soft spot for the sea.

And God never ceases to amaze me.....

Ancient Silk Road - Xi'an

So, this year for our "spring break" (a.k.a. "May Holiday") I decided to visit a friend of mine (and a few students) in one of the must-see places in China, the ancient city of Xi'an. Most people will probably recognize the Terra Cotta Warriors....
















....but there are other things to do/see in the city as well. For example:


Bell Tower & Drum Tower





(in ancient times, the warning system that heralded imminent peril - today we like to call them "tornado sirens")

;)


City Wall



(by day or by night, a neat place to see)


Muslim District/Market



(one of the largest - basically, in this case, a huge tourist trap with tons of shops, etc.; excellent dried fruit, as is true of most Western China; lots of "bargains" and gift ideas for the folks back home)


Big Wild Goose Pagoda & square
Small Wild Goose Pagoda

(alas, time did not permit my seeing either of these places, although my understanding is that they're really neat - just like most other pagodas I've seen.....)


Banpo Village

(an interesting place on the way to the Terra Cotta Warriors - an ancient village that is still being excavated; a neat look into history - unfortunately no pictures right now)


History Museum

Including some interesting artifacts:







(the cool thing about the horses has something to do with the glaze and how they got their color - I don't remember specifics, though)







(I think we found the missing 8th dwarf....)


Forest of Steles Museum



(a nice garden surrounded a veritable treasure trove of these ancient "libraries", called "steles"; the museum included whole rooms filled, wall-to-wall and all between, with these large slabs of stone covered in Chinese characters; some more commonly known steles include writings of Confucius and ancient Chinese dictionaries)





The favorite stele for myself and most Christians is the one pictured above. If you look very closely at the top of the black space you can barely discern a cross etched into the stone. An early sect of "Nestorian Christians" settled in China, as evidenced by this particular stele.



(Kudos if you can read this sign! It explains a bit about the previous stele)


Xi'an itself is quite a modern, westernized city.



It seems that, no matter where you go in the world, you will always be able to find a little piece of home....




Other things to do:

enjoy the local flora/fauna....



go out for a night on the town....





sample the local cuisine....



and just be generally silly....



Pretty cunning, don't you think? :)


And it was, of course, great to see my friends and students. :)

Accomplishment

Well, since I've been going to the gym, I recently accomplished a long time goal of mine: I touched my knees with my head without bending my legs. Even when I was dancing almost every day I don't think I ever was able to do that!

Granted, it was so far only a one time thing, but it still felt great that I was able to do it. That also gives more motivation to keep going to the gym. :) Maybe one day I'll actually be able to do the splits!! Woo-hoo!! Ha ha! :)

It's the little things.....

Motivation

I've been going to the gym again recently with a friend of mine. It always feels good, even though sometimes I'm not so motivated to go.

There are 2 gyms in town, an older one and a newer one. The newer one is bigger and more expensive, so we go to the older one. But when I first went to the newer one to see what times it was open, I ran into one of my friends from the old gym. I hadn't seen her in several months, mind, but one of the first things she said to me when she saw me was, "I think you've gotten a little fatter!" ..... grrrrrr .........

First, I do *not* think that I am fat, but hearing someone say that just shoots your self-esteem to the ground. But on the other hand, it also provided more motivation for me to go back to the gym and work out more. And that's what I do in my 'free time' now. ;) Ahhh, such a wonderful life I lead.....

Computer Whiz

I, um, had to take apart my computer last night.

So, Monday night I went to turn on my computer. While it was booting up, I got up to turn on the light. Now, please don't say 'I told you so', because I really do know better, but I had left my computer on this stool where I often put it when I am sitting on my couch. Anyway, after I turned on the light I turned around and tripped on the cords, knocking my wonderful computer onto the floor. I should've taken better care of it....sniff.....

Anyway, now it won't turn on. At all. I'm so peeved at myself for leaving it in a place where it could so easily fall off!! Hopefully it just knocked a wire loose or something (rather than actually damaging the motherboard and whatnot). I called my Dad, and he talked me through taking it apart to look at the innards to see if anything was noticeably amiss (I said I felt like a surgeon who'd never been to med school). To my untrained eye everything looked okay, but then you can only see so much anyway. Well, we'll have to see what happened. My klutziness could've just cost me a brand-spankin-new computer.

Grr. Argh.

Finally, an interesting story to write about....

This past Friday night a friend and I decided to climb the mountain at night to watch the sunrise. It was her first trip up the mountain, my ... um ... sixth maybe? third at night time for sure...

Anyway, it was tons o' fun. She was a real trooper, kept on going strong to the end. Put me to shame!! We did a good job, though - made it up in 3 hours!! (Usually it takes 4) Climbing up at night is pretty popular because then you can watch the sunrise in the morning. It's much cooler than in the daytime, and there are fewer people. You sweat like mad though, and it's a good idea to bring layers. You still end up sitting on the top of the mountain for a bit before the sun comes up, and although it may be warm down in the city, the wind up there makes for a cooler clime.

So, we made it up to the top, and we camped out on a few comfortable rocks for a while. We moved around to a few different ones, trying to find the spot with the fewest people. Along the way we ran into a few of my students who also made it to the top at night, so that was fun.

After waiting a bit for the sun to come up, we were greatly rewarded. I have watched the sunrise on top of this mountain three times now, and this past time was by far the best that I have seen. It was incredible!!! In the early morning, the mist was covering the mountains - even the Chinese call it the "cloud sea", which is exactly what it looked like. It was hauntingly beautiful. The clouds on the edge of the horizon were pink and slowly turning into lavender, more pink, and gold - perfect colors for a perfect sunrise. The clouds above the horizon were stunning, and when the sun finally did come up, it was simply gorgeous.

In any case, it was the most gorgeous sunrise I've seen from the mountain. And now, here are some pictures to whet your appetites....