How much can you take?

My Mom once said that her 20's were the hardest (albeit most fun) years of her life. As I rapidly approach my  late 20's, I actually reflect a lot on her statement. We're in our 20's but who of us has actually stopped and thought "how much can I take?" My 20's so far have been full of everything from my car catching on fire, to me traveling the world to exotic places to losing jobs and making new friends. Some of the stuff happened intermittently and other stuff happened all at the same time, sometimes within hours. How much can I take? Well, I've apparently learned that I can take a lot. Granted sometimes there were tears, but here I am still standing, probably stronger than I was yesterday. I've dealt with career chaos, fear, emotional changes, heartbreak, envy, and uncertainty and my 20's aren't even close to being over! I think life gets a kick out of making you struggle, but I'm ready to see how much more it throws my way. Besides, I never told you the second half of what my Mom said... She said her 30's were her most calm and secure years. I guess there is something to look forward too at the end of this emotional 20's gauntlet.

People talk really fast

It’s only been just over  a month since I’ve been home yet so many things have changed already. I am very thankful that I managed to find a decent and reasonably priced apartment as well as a very nice and hopefully stable and fun job. It was pretty stressful, but I am happy it all worked out for me. First off, I want to back track and touch upon how my first week went. I was picked up at the airport by two of my closest friends and immediately driven to go enjoy some sushi.

This is me being ultra lame (hem... awesome!) and running towards Andi. :)

One of the things I remember thinking during that first day back, was omg, everyone around me talks so fast! At that moment, I knew that the transition into normal life was going to take a while. And let me just confirm that it did in fact that a while. It took pretty much until I started my job. Why is that you ask, well it’s because for me to feel normal, I had to get back to not only the same state that I was at before I left for China (i.e. working at CME) but I also had to get on the same schedule as my friends. Now that that is all aligned, I feel not only happier but also more normal. It’s funny how the Chinese don’t value their jobs and don’t use it to define themselves, while here I am being back home using my job as a reference point of how to feel normal again. It doesn’t define me, but it is definitely a big part of my life.

I'm finally normal and I'm ready to start exploring and relearning to love Chicago. This past Sunday was a great start.

Go Cubs Go!

Hat Store

Its amazing how many times in life you start over. After highschool you are given the opportunity to recreate yourself in college. After college you try out the adult hat. At some point you realize that hats fits very nicely. Then eventually, we all in our own ways all of a sudden get sick of the adult hat and throw it away. I did that when I decided to move to China. I'm back now and I realize that I miss that hat I threw away. Unfortunately, that hat is long gone. It's been tossed aside and stomped all over and only one person knows where it is. You can call him God, Buddha, or whatever. So here I am again, starting over not by natural life paths such as college or highschool but essentially because of my own choosing. I stand here at the hat store looking for something similar to what I had, but I don't know if the shop will have it, or if I'll even want the same one. Standing here looking at all these choices before me I get excited yet scared at the same time. All metaphors aside, I have questions and fears running through my head. Will I find a job? Where to live? Am unmoving forward in life or have I taken a step back? Will society accept my atypical decisions or will they shun me and make my life difficult? How can I make this starting over point as least stressful and scary as possible? And most importantly will everything be alright in the end?

Only time will tell at this point since the big Buddha hasn't opted to share my future fate with me. I pick my hat carefully but still unsure of its outcome. Here we go... I pick that one!

The diving culture

I'm alive and well but can't write much due to lack of computers (I'm sooo totally not typing on my iphone!) and lack of solid internet. However, it is 7:45pm and the town we are in has nothing to do AND has actual computers that we can use. So here I sit, sipping on my 1% alcohol content beverage (something called Anglia that is beer and lemonade mixed together, writing a little something something mostly to let you all know that I am alive.

Brandon and I have spent the last two days on the island of Mabul taking part in the diving culture. We found people that were there diving for 3 to 5 days. After our two days we were all worn out so I have no idea how people do so many days of diving! We dove and stayed with a company called Billabong scuba and they definitely left us wanting a bit more from our experience. Let's just say that on our first day of diving, between the two of us, Brandon and I had a problem with every piece of equipment possible. Nothing life threatening, just annoying. Brandon's BCD clip was broken so he couldn't properly fasten is around his waist and his wet suit was jacked. My first tank had a small leak, my depth gauge was broken and on my second dive someone took my fins so I had to use crappy broken ones. All small problems but ultra frustrating. Further, the organization was just nonexistent. We were going on dives but we didn't know what time or where or with who. It was just a huge mess but we figured it out. On the second day we were used to it so we didn't get as frustrated and just went with the flow. Made things a bit more enjoyable just to chill out. The second day we dove at a very popular sight that people from all over the world come to see. We were surrounded by sharks the whole time and got to see giant turtles and barracudas. I actually got attacked by a trigger fish, so that was an enjoyable/funny experience. Overall it was wonderful but I don't think I will ever dive more than two days in a row ever.

Tomorrow we are off to Kuala Lumpur for a long layover and then off to Phuket, Thailand. Can't wait to be lazy on the beach for about 4 days. Then Changmai and Bangkok. We're about halfway done with our trip and are looking forward to the second half. I'll write again next time I see a computer. Miss you all!

End of Cube Ditching in China

Yesterday we finally left China for the last time. Oddly, there were no tears, no sad moments, and no regrets. I came to China and accomplished all that I had wanted to. Unfortunately, as most of you know, it wasn't the best experience all the time, but I still look back on it positively. I think I've grown and changed. Don't ask me how or in what ways, since I don't really know, but I can feel it. I'm sure my changes will become apparent to me once I'm back in Chicago.

Right now I'm about to start on another type of adventure: three week journey around Southeast Asia. I am excited for this little trip to help me reflect on my experiences in China and to prepare for coming home. I am looking forward to visiting new countries, but I am also really looking to coming home and catching up with my family and friends. I really  missed you guys! I think being away for such an extended time with a huge time difference that made it hard to communicate, really made me value and miss my friendships. I miss you all terribly and CANNOT wait to see all of you. :) PS Ladies, there will be a wine and cheese party at my new apt (which is yet tbd) on April 14th 7pmish! Put it in your planner.

I might have a few more follow up China posts to write when I get home, but for now, expect a bunch of posts on Southeast Asia. I'll try to update as much as I can. So off I go! See you all soon and thanks for reading the China chapter of my life!

Last photo in China. All packed up and ready to go. Brandon, drinking milk from a coke zero bottle. That's how we do it there.

xoxo

Didn't believe me...?

I'm sure I've mentioned to a few of you that every time we have to get on bus in China, people act as if it's the last bus out of China on Armageddon day. It's crazy how they push and shove just to get on the bus. It literally cannot be explained in words. But maybe a picture will help...

Image taken from China Smack

This really did happen in Beijing earlier in the week! Now hopefully you have a very vivid image of what we have to deal with everyday. Oooooo China!

My students love me

So I had this girl in class yesterday who, when I passed out a practice SAT test, decided she didn't want to take it and wanted to read instead. She sat there reading her huge book until I approached her and asked if she was finished with her practice exam. She looked at me, said no and that she wasn't interested and went back to reading her book! I didn't say anything to her, but when I got home, I sent an email to the office saying that she was rude and disrespectful in class. Today, she walked into my classroom before the bell rings, handed me a note and walked out. I was like... OOOK?

It's not everyday your students tell you you're a cute girl. HAHAH. Ooo China!

Photoshop much?

The other day Brandon and I got stuck waiting 20 minutes for the bus that didn't want to arrive. (The bus finally arrived packed to the brim... so needless to say we didn't get on it. 30 seconds later another bus pulls up totally empty and we score a seat! That's what I like to call winning! I have to admit that we actually laughed at the other bus as we pulled up to it!) To entertain ourselves, we got to discussing this one billboard.

From first glance, nothing really appears out of the ordinary, however, at second glance you start noticing things. First off, where is the guy's right hand?! It seems to have magically disappeared! Then you look a little closer, and you realize that his right foot is missing too! I wonder if anyone got fired over this botched advertisement.... my Magic-8 ball says "outlook not so good". 

Oooo China! You sure do love your Photoshopping a bit too much!

Also, here's a random toy featured in the window of some store. Do people really buy these or is it in the window just to make more room on the good shelves for stuff people actually buy?

And last but not least... I'm a baller! 

Consecutively numbers bills! Booo yah!

New Semester

The last day of teaching is slowly approaching yet time is starting to go a bit slower. My schedule for the semester is a lot fuller than last semester so even though I have only nine more days of actual teaching, filling the classes with content is getting hard. I am teaching SAT test prep this semester and the students bore easily. I try my best to keep them entertained, but with my exit date quickly approaching my motivation level is low. Furthermore, the grade I am teaching  (juniors) has a bad rep for being inattentive, rude, nonparticipant, and just overall “the bad class”. No one participates; they come and go as they please, they are on their phones/ipods all the time, and much much more. It’s a hard situation.

To add to it, the school has gotten ultra annoying. They have this new rule where you have to be in the classroom five minutes before class starts. Now that is not a problem by itself but them lurking in the hall way with clipboards practically looking at stopwatches is really demeaning. None of the current teachers have ever had a problem with being late (the one who did, just disappeared one night :o) so it’s just so awkward the immense importance they put on this. I really think that I am at the end of my patience and understanding with the school and the Chinese culture in general that a lot more than normal annoys me immensely. I think it’s best I leave China… and thank goodness that day is so near!

If anyone is curious as to what my part of town looks like, here is a little glimpse. It's dull here, truly!

Guess who's back!

Annnd I’m back. Sorry, I’ve been MIA for a while. Part of it was due to being away and eating and drinking way too much. The other part of it was because once you don’t write for a while, each subsequent day you don’t write, makes it harder and harder to jump back on the blogwagon. But, regardless of my absence, I am back!

So reason one for being away: eating and drinking too much! I was in Moscow with my mom and was actually on top of my blogging. But then I went to Hong Kong and things changed! My time was consumed with 5:30pm happy hours, scrumptious wines, and the deliciousness that is non-chinese food! All I can say about Hong Kong is that I came, I saw, I ate! J Well and we did some sight seeing too. O and I did some kicking ass in Pinochle even though it was my first time playing! Overall I had a great time with Brandon and his parents, Barry and Rhody. :) (Thanks for a wonderful time in Hong Kong!)

Hong Kong is a unique mix of rich and poor. You have fancy shiny skyscrapers, mixed with dull and dreary falling down apartment buildings. You have alley dwellers, and Ritz dwellers. You have 5 star Michelin food, and street food. In other words, you a little bit of everything. I enjoyed my time in Hong Kong and am looking forward to going back there. O except the passport control part. Apparently, my brand new fancy biometric passport is broken. Yup. I have a chip in my passport and Hong Kong officials told me (twice!) that it doesn’t work. My information has to be entered manually and I have to go to the little room with the official and overall it’s just a pain. Look forward to doing it again two more times. :/

Run down old buildings. They stick out sometimes.

Alley dwellers.

The rich skyline (and famous too)

Hong Kong's very own Walk of Stars. It's Jackie Chan!

Junks are adorable.

The old village of Tai O where the houses are on stilts! 

So freaking cool! But I wouldn't want to live here, ever!

Pana of Tai O

Pana of HK at night

Streets of HK

Dog cutely guarding the stall as the owner sets up.

Ladies' market setting up. Boy did we find some great steals here!

The boathouse restaurant right on the water at Stanley's Market. Yummy seafood!

Big Bus Tour around HK Island

Tram on Victoria's Peak!

Construction is everywhere in HK

Literally everywhere!

O and I forgot to mention! We met a wonderful lady, Xana, who lived in Macau for four years and offered us a personal tour around the old Macau. Obviously, we took her up on her offer and had a great experience roaming around Macau and buying Portuguese port/wine! (Macau used to be a Portuguese colony).

Cutest crab I ever ate!

Cute European looking street in Macau

Holiday time = soooo many freaking people!

MGM Casino Macau

Small Rant

Here I am fully enjoying myself in Moscow. Being here means I had to miss finals week back in Zhengzhou. Before leaving I asked the school if it was ok if I missed proctoring the exams on Jan 11th. I was told it was ok and that Caddie, our assistant, would proctor it herself. Problem solved, bags packed, off to Moscow I go!

 Here I am on Jan 10th, day before my finals that I've been excused from proctoring, I get this email:

 Hi Goda,

Sorry to interrupt you. During this morning's final exam, it seems that students have questions about the papers in each test and they have to ask the teachers who wrote the papers ( the others know nothing about the papers). In Order to make the test go smoothly, we would appreciate it if you could show up during the test (you don't need to monitor the whole test, just show up and solve the students' questions about the test).

Thank you for your cooperation.
Caddie

First, just note the grammatical errors. They are fun! Anyways, so less than 24hrs before my exams that I've been excused from, they decide to ask me to come in anyways. They don't really know I'm in Moscow (none of their business really), but regardless I've been excused from the proctoring due to personal reasons that cannot be changed. I replied telling them that due to the short notice of less than 24 hours and previous commitments I can't come in to proctor the exam. Sorry.

 Here is what I get back:

 Hi Brandon and Goda, Sorry to interrupt you. Could you please come to the AP office on the second floor tomorrow ( Wednesday the 11th) at 10:00 am? Anna would like to discuss with you two about the teaching plan for next semester and provide you with some teaching materials, which will be helpful for your next year's teaching. We would appreciate it if you could arrive punctually.

Thank you for your cooperation. Have a nice day.
Caddie

Did they not read my previous email!? If I can't proctor my exams, why do they think that I can magically appear for a meeting at 10am? This is not the first time this has happened nor it is the last. I am just besides myself trying to figure out how they think this is ok or that I can magically change time and show up at this meeting. I will never get it. And mind you, these women are full grown adults. Mind blowing!!! End Rant.

He's confused, I'm confused, we're all confused.

Odds and ends

As always, when traveling you come across oddities and some very cool stuff.

First off there is the Moscow Metro. It was the first underground railway system in the Soviet Union and it is currently the second most heavily used rapid transit system (after Tokyo). It is also famous for its decorated and very beautiful metro stops (unlike Chicago). I haven't taken many pictures, but I promise to take more from now on and I will add a few more pictures in a few days.

One stop with chandeliers 

Awesome carvings.

One with stained glass (and me!)

It's a loooooong way down/up. Sometimes as deep as 84 meters which makes Moscow the home of the second deepest station in the world. Also, it is the home of the longest escalators in Europe taking about 3 minutes ascend to the top.

Furthermore, there is an underground network connecting stations and different exits so you don't have to walk outside in the cold and you can do your shopping on the way. Kinda nice but kind of bad for impulse shopping. ;D

In the airport and around town, I came across these beauties.

Fresh squeezed OJ in the airport. Interesting....

Buy your own contacts... no prescription needed

And then there is Yeliseev's Grocery Store off of Tverskaya shopping street. It amazing upscale gourmet grocery shopping. It was originally the home of Russian Princess Zinaida Volkonskayause. It was renovated by Grigority Yeliseev in 1889 and is in amazing shape with its crystal chandeliers, stain glass windows, and ornately carved and decorated pillars. Pictures don't do it justice. It's one of those places that has to be seen. I stumbled on it by accident and when I walked in I was just in awe. First you see the beautiful decorations and only then do you realize that there is food. Coming from China, literally everything looked delicious, but looking closer I found caviar and delicious meats and fine chocolates. Definitely upscale. Below is my attempt at capturing this awesomeness.    

Fruits in the corner

Ceiling

Beers from all over the world.

Moskowing!

Busy busy busy! That's what I've been lately! So let's see, yesterday we headed off to the Kremlin and the Armory Museum. The museum had tons of cool stuff from massive carriages to dresses from the 18th century. No photos were allowed inside but this website did a good job of covering the highlights. It was a lot to take in and a lot to listen too (our tour guide was what I like to call a talker). It was a prettier day so I was able to take lots of pictures. Here are a few of them.

Inside the Kremlin. This is the Palace and the Cathedral of the Annunciation in Cathedral Square

Close up of the Palace

Cathedral of the Annunciation in Cathedral Square and its nine golden domes

Beautiful door

Broke bell. The broken part weighs 11 tons! Ouch!

Inside the Kremlin

Candy Land Castle!

I mean.... St Basil Cathedral

Red Square - Christmas version