The school year ended for us in a mass of final meetings with students, exams, and of course goodbyes. We didn't realize it at the time, but after we finished our last two-three weeks of school we were exhausted. Pazi was able to develop end of the semester exams that challenged her students and made inputting final grades long and tedious. Adan's classes were even trickier for he required all his journalism students to take a 5 page exam including a short essay. This made grading so much fun when he had roughly 175 papers to read and grade!
With all of the long hours we made it through. Once we finished all of our contractual obligations with our university it was time for fun. And boy did we have fun. To keep things simple we have broken up the rest of this entry into three parts. Each section will describe the top three things we did to wrap up our first stint in China.
1. Cena para los estudiantes
Early in the semester Adan thought it would be a great idea to develop some sort of reward for the top performing students. He didn't want any ol' reward but something special. Well, a better word to describe the reward would be something authentic. That's where the idea of cooking an authentic Mexican dinner for our top students evolved. But the reality was if we were going to reward the "top performing" students, our invite list would have been some eighty odd students! No, Chinese students don't believe in the pursuit of simply excellence, but perfection. So what were we to do? Well, eventually the dinner idea changed from a reward for those top performing students to a reward dinner for top performing students that went out of their way to make us feel welcome during our stay in Beijing. This really became a "Thank You Party."
With this new criteria, we narrowed our list to roughly twenty students. Twenty incredible students that either helped us in the school canteen, buy airline tickets, or even took us to places like the Great Wall. Because they were so willing to go the extra mile for us, we wanted to reciprocate the effort back. And we couldn't think of a better idea for sharing with them a unique cuisine and culture that quite frankly many of them might never be exposed to otherwise. So you're probably thinking how in the world did these two make a Mexican dinner in China? That's a really good question for it did not come without some help. Even though Beijing is quite an international city, it still lacked many of the necessary ingredients we needed to make this meal possible. Lucky of us, a friend of ours, Jamie Tucker, from back home was going to be in X'ian and was able to work out a train trip to see us for a few days in Beijing. Being a good friend, Jamie offered to bring us anything (within reason) from the States that we might need. At first we really gave it no thought for her to bring us anything. We had adjusted to the Chinese lifestyle and figured we could do without most things. However, the light bulb went off when we realized we could have her bring the necessary spices and tortillas from back home. Oh how it was so nice to see Casa Valdez corn tortillas!
She happily agreed and when she visited us everything was in place for us to have an amazing feast for our students...or so we thought.
The day of the party we had confirmed that nearly every student was going to be able to attend our reward dinner. Pazi began cooking frijoles and making mango salsa at around three or four o'clock. The students would not be arriving until six. Adan and Barry (one our our great students)went to get Adan a haircut and buy ground beef for the tacos we were going to make. Little did Barry and Adan know the adventure they were about to go on. Adan got his haircut at a small shop near the school. It cost 20 yuan (less than $3 dollars) and they washed his hair twice! It took about an hour for the cut, but that is common in China with the service they give you.Next, they went to get the meat. They tried a smaller grocery store very close to the school but found out quickly that their meat selection was quite limited and decided to hop on the bus to go down to a larger supermarket. Once at the new location, they searched and searched but found no ground beef. As it turns out, China does not have any ground beef! Barry having never really cooked found this out with Adan. So the two decided to purchase a few kilos of ground pork to use as a substitute. By this time it was after five o'clock the students would be arriving in less than one hour.
The two rushed home to find that Pazi was in total control of the kitchen. The frijoles looked great, the salsa was mouth-watering, and the rice was slowly simmering. That left just the topping for the tacos and of course the meat. Adan ran to get ready for the guest that would soon begin arriving. After he finished both he and Pazi finished up the last bits of the meal. We asked Barry to bring up the guests to our room and he politely agreed. It was not long before guests began coming. After all the guests arrived, we talked about our accomplishments, we toasted with traditional Chinese champagne, and celebrated in each others company. It was a beautiful evening that Pazi and Adan will never forget. We hope the same is true for our students... by the way, if you were wondering if they loved the food, yes they did. They devoured it and we had absolutely no leftovers!
2. Fishing with Beth
One of our top students and good friend, Beth, was not able to attend our dinner party. She felt so bad about the situation that she decided that she wanted to take us on a fishing trip near her hometown located about an hour outside Beijing. The area is called Zhoukoudian. She also mentioned that her parents were very happy with the education she was receiving from us and wanted to go along and treat us during this day trip.
We happily agreed, but really did not know what to expect. We ended up meeting Beth at the last bus station on the outskirts of the Beijing city center. Since it was near one of the last subway lines it worked out perfect for us getting there. The bus ride was not the most comfortable. Beth's route has very old buses and the seats are very small. Nevertheless we made it to our destination okay. She informed us on our way that we would be going to her uncle's house and from there we would meet her family and go fishing from there.
Upon arriving at the uncle's house we were greeted by Beth's cousin. Immediately we met her uncle and then mother and father. Everyone was extremely nice but knew absolutely no English. It was a great opportunity for us to practice our limited Chinese. Beth's mother being a very fun-loving person immediately became attached to Pazi even though their was limited communication. From there we set out to go fishing in the mountains. We learned it would take about thirty minutes to hike up to the area they recommended. Being observant, Adan mentioned to Pazi that no one was carry a fish pole or had any fishing equipment for that matter. Pazi said that she had no clue about the situation but gave the possibility that maybe they stored their things closer to the fishing hole.
After hiking across lush beautiful green terrain, our group reached what appeared to be a fish hatchery. As it turns out, our fish trip ended up being a little different than what we first anticipated. This area was a business that groups hired for entertainment and meals. We rented poles, they put the bait on the hooks, and took the fish our the lines when someone got a bite. It was a rather interesting experience. And one that Pazi had good fortune in, while Adan did not. The setup was designed for anyone to catch fish. Well, that wasn't the case for the males in the group. Between Pazi and Beth, six fish were caught. As for the males, only two fish were snagged. Adan and Beth's father had no luck and didn't catch anything.
After we were done fishing, the kitchen prepared each fish in a different style. One was deep fried and tasted similar to a chicharron, others were basted in spicy and sweet sauces, and of course one was simmered in a soup. Everything was delicious. It sure was an eventful day and the Ren family was beyond generous in their desire to share with us a Chinese tradition.3. Traveling to Xi'an
China is an fascinating country with so many tourist destinations available it is hard to choose just one. However, as our residence permits were nearing expiration we had to pick just one place to visit before heading home. It became apparent that Xi'an was our best option. Xi'an is a city deep with history and is home to the world famous Terracotta Warriors. It is consider one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China and was the capital city during five Chinese dynasties.
We were very blessed to make this trip possible with the help of Amber, one of our students that was from Xi'an and was willing to host us for our three day trip. She came up to Adan one day and said, "I remember you saying that you and your wife would like to go to Xi'an. I would be honored to help make this trip a reality for you."
It was always suggested to Pazi and Adan that they take at least one train trip while in China, so two train tickets for around 225 yuan each (a little over $30 dollars) were purchased. The only catch was the trip would take over twelve hours. We bought soft sleeper beds so that we could rest if we wanted to. They came in handy during our overnight trip. The trains are rather cramped but they do the trick.We arrived in Xi'an three hours behind schedule, but Amber was incredible in waiting for us no matter the situation. She was right there as we exited the madness at the train station. She booked us a hotel room at a decent hotel that her aunt is the manager of about three blocks from the station at a very economical rate of 100 yuan a night (under $15 bucks!). She took us to the hotel so that we could drop off our things and then get to sightseeing.
Our first visit was to the Forest of Stelae Museum. Here we saw over 1,000 stone pillars carved for various record keeping purposes. These tablets had information about history and religion, including some pieces dedicated to Christianity dating back to 635 A.D. The amount of information here was really mindboggling.From here we exited right next to the famous Xi'an City Walls. These walls built by Hongwu, the first Ming emperor, have stood since 1370. The city has basically chosen to built around and from the walls versus tearing them down. The cost to climb the wall was incredibly high (about 80 yuan or over $11 dollars) so we decided to pass. Instead we went shopping right near by on a city block with literally hundreds of street vendors comprising a market. Anything from carved chopsticks to hand painted scrolls could be found. We took our time and bought quite a few gifts here.
After this we decided to get a quick bite to eat at a local place famous for noodles. Then it was off to our hotels to rest up for our big trip to visit the Terracotta Warriors at the Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huangdi. We meet Amber outside of the hotel the next morning bright and early. We walked down to the railway station and took a city bus out to see a couple famous landmarks. Amber said that many foreigners get tricked into taking tours out to these same locations we were going to and pay several hundred RMB. We paid roughly 12 yuan for our travel. What a savings!
Our first stop was to Hua Qing Chi . This palace was made most famous by Emperor Xuanzong who spent dizzying amounts of money to enhance this palace and its many hot springs. In total there is about 3,000 years worth of history here! Beautiful scenery includes a dragon marble boat, several pavilions, a lake tower, Flying Rainbow Bridge, and many others. And the history of arguably the most famous concubine in Yang Guifei is also quite fascinating. Overall, our experience here was a pleasant one.Next it was off to see the Terracotta Warriors. The first thing that struck us as interesting was the fact that the entrance fee was rather spendy and similarly priced to the City Walls. However, this fee did not disappoint us. Quickly after walking at least half a mile to an exhibiton hall we saw where our money went. In all, five well-constructed buildings made up the site of this phenomenal tomb for the emperor who unified China.
Slowly we walked from pit to pit witnessing some of the most impressive historical figures we have ever seen. We are talking about over 7,000 soldiers, each one uniquely carved to appear as real as humanly possible. The project was said to have required enlisting some 700,000 people and last over 36 years. Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi was a man obsessed with his death and the legacy he wanted to leave behind so the complex he created for his tomb and army was extravagant and sophisticated, thus withstanding the test of time for roughly 2,000 years! We finished our day by heading back and viewing the famous Big Wild Goose Pagoda and fountain. This area is a neat combination of mixing a historical site with a cutting edge urban hub with restaurants, shops, and supposedly Asia's largest synchronized water fountain show. It was a spectacle to see about 100,000 Chinese cram inside the public square to see a 9:00pm showing of the fountains. It was exhausting!
For our last day in Xi'an we visited the Shaanxi History Muesum. This province is very historical and because of this the modern museum has some 370,000 relics on display for tourists. We saw several exhibitions of ceramics, bronzes, jades, gold and other precious metals, coins, sculptures, and various other artifacts. It took us several hours to view the three exhibition halls open to the public. Since we were in Xi'an during a promotion, we were able to have our entrance fee waived.
Finally, we ended up at the Drum and Bell Towers right in the heart of Xi'an's city center. The Bell Tower was struck at dawn and the Drum Tower was struck to signal dusk. Inside are pleasant views of the city, small exhibitions, and of course souvenir shops. It did not take us long to see these sites so Amber suggested we go to Muslim Street. In this incredible district there are several shops, restaurants, and vendors, selling incredible goods made by Muslims. The food we tried was interesting. The meat did not appear too tasty so we passed, but we did have fried rice that was unique. It had some sort of vinegar-based sauce that made the dish tangy. Adan did not mind it but Pazi was not that impressed.From here it was time to head back home. We thanked Amber for being such an incredible host and took another night train for twelve hours back to Beijing. It was a trip to remember and once we arrived back at school it was not even four days and we were back home in the States fresh from our trip to Xi'an.
Stay tuned for our new blogs at this same site sharing adventures of our second stint in China.
