By Joann
Grace has been asking for a year to buy a guitar so she can teach herself to play. We were told that we could get more for our money if we waited and bought one in China. We have found that to be true! Jim brought Grace out to look at several stores and she had a pretty good idea of what she wanted.
Today, she and I decided we would take on the challenge of buying one--without Dad's language skills or our driver. Unfortunately, we woke up to gale force winds and rain, so walking the 20 minutes or more to the guitar store would be a challenge. Hmmmmmm, what to do? Jim left the address for the store before he left for work and I decided she and I could communicate well enough with a taxi driver and a map. With the help of the hotel doormen (they all got very interested in helping us on our mission!), we got in the taxi and were on our way--hopefully to the right place.
We made it to the store--yay! One employee (and one customer) spoke alittle English and Grace made her choice. They wrapped the guitar up so it wouldn't get wet and we headed out the door to go find another taxi and try to "gesture" our way back to the hotel--I had a map with the hotel's address in Chinese characters, which helped. Off we went again and when we got close to the hotel, the taxi driver said something, presumably that our destination was up ahead. I grunted back in agreement, hoping we were on the same track!
Relief. He drove us up to the hotel entrance and the doormen nodded and smiled, seeing that we had accomplished our mission. One small victory in cultural adaptation.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Stuffed Bears at the Hotel
By Rachel.
Every night, the maids come in and turn down the beds. That means that they pull the sheets down and give us a mini bear, a piece of Dove chocolate, slippers, and a bookmark with sleeping tips. Jesse and I have collected them all and now have 24 of each of those things (with still more coming)! We set them up on a shelf as if they are in a restaurant, with the slippers underneath like they are cars in a parking lot.
Every night, the maids come in and turn down the beds. That means that they pull the sheets down and give us a mini bear, a piece of Dove chocolate, slippers, and a bookmark with sleeping tips. Jesse and I have collected them all and now have 24 of each of those things (with still more coming)! We set them up on a shelf as if they are in a restaurant, with the slippers underneath like they are cars in a parking lot.
Monday, July 28, 2008
We are in Nanjing!
By Joann
We've arrived! After over a year of planning and preparing and living in 2 countries (Jim moved to China in Nov., 2007), the Chinarnebergs are all in one place! (If you want to jump ahead to the photos, scroll down to the end of the text.)
It has been quite a journey. I (Joann) finished my RN degree in May, took my boards in June (and passed!), and the family shipped out on July 18. The kids finished their respective grades: Grace completed 9th grade at Concordia Academy, Levi completed 7th grade at Parkview in Roseville, Rachel 4th grade, and Jesse 2nd grade--both at Parkview. The kids have been on-board with moving, although understandably they have all had moments of very mixed emotions, which seems very normal considering the circumstances. We have all been blessed by their friends and families that really supported them and sent them off with hugs and good wishes.
The Journey
Let's see...the actual journey: we were given the opportunity to fly Business Class to Hong Kong, which was very welcome on the 16 or so hour journey. That long a flight is almost enjoyable when one can stretch out the legs and watch endless movies while eating gourmet meals! Poor Rachel succumbed to airsickness somewhere over the Pacific and earned the nickname "Mt. Rachel" as she erupted like a volcano. Eeeeeeeeeewwwww! Thankfully Grace had packed an extra shirt and we cleaned her up and made it to Hong Kong.
We had a quick transfer in Tokyo--too short to really take in the culture unfortunately. Jim bumped into an Emerson employee from Mexico in the bathroom--he is an engineer heading to Nanjing to help with the factory set-up! What are the chances of that? We had dinner with him a few nights later in Nanjing and marveled at the coincidence.
We spent 2 nights in Hong Kong. It is a lovely city--very busy and crowded but in a beautiful tropical setting with mountains and water and foilage and amazing architecture. We took a ferry across to Hong Kong Island and then ascended "the peak" for lunch and site-seeing. Jim learned not to let me pick the restaurants on jet lag, calculating the exchange rate with a quick glance at the menu. I saw "dim sum" on the menu and thought a few appetizers would be inexpensive and fun to try as our first meal in China. WRONG. The food was fun, and the wait staff convinced us we needed an ample supply since we are 6 people. WRONG. The kids weren't really hungry (we were still on MN time and it was the middle of the night). We did our best--Jim impressed us all by eating prawn eyes, and the bill came to $140...they are right when they say Hong Kong is expensive.
Nanjing--Home?
Our arrival to Nanjing was perfect. No hassles with customs, all our luggage arrived, and 2 drivers waiting with vans. Li Min, our personal driver, came running through the airport with a bouquet of beautiful lillies for me.
We are now "living" at the Crowne Plaza hotel in downtown Nanjing. We were worried about the size of the hotel rooms, given that we are 6 people and we knew we would be here for a week or so. The hotel staff took us up to the executive lounge to check-in and then escorted us to our "room." Turns out our "room" is a 3 bedroom, 3 bath apartment on the top floor (53rd) of the hotel. Jim paced it off and it is BIGGER than our house in Roseville! The kids are enjoying the internet connection and 4 (!) big screen tvs--although the English-speaking channels are limited. Yesteday the kids decided to swim in the hotel pool. They had declined before because they require swim caps! I guess they decided it wouldn't be such a bad thing to wear a cap, esp. if they all did it, so they took the plunge. Levi still tries to take his off when no one is looking--swim caps aren't cool, I guess.
School
We have taken care of details of life during our first week. We visited the school, Nanjing International School, and the kids got a tour of the building. It is a new building with all the bells and whistles. Grace and Levi, esp, were warned about the need to plan for 2 hours of homework a night. We will attend an open house on Aug 8 and will get a better overview of classes and activities.
Medical Care
We have had 2 visits to SOS, an international clinic where we will get medical care. We decided to review immunizatioins with the dr. there and turns out we all needed numerous vaccines. The kids, esp., need quite a few--they were not happy with me! Even with our travel to Africa, we needed to update some and get a few new ones specific to China. They have western-trained drs. on staff and they are well connected to resources in Nanjing and beyond if we should need emergency care.
Shopping
We have explored the grocery stores--Walmart, Carrefour, and Metro, a Sam's Club type store. Finding fresh food is easy. Reading the labels on packaged food is not easy! The writing is usually in Chinese characters and I am clueless as to what is inside. I will need a Chinese-speaker to come shopping with me a few times while I figure out what we like and need.
Rachel was eager to get to China to get some pampering. She has always wanted a pedicure, but I told her to wait until China because I knew we could do it inexpensively here. I took her to a local place near the hotel and she got both a pedicure and manicure. She chose blue polish, even over the advice of the staff who kept saying to me in broken English, "little girl pink."
After her appointment, Grace, Levi, Jesse, and I went down a few doors for foot massages! I was just planning on Grace and Levi and I doing it, but Jesse asked if he could, too. I'm not sure they give many 8-yr olds massages! He was so short, his feet hardly made it to the soaking bucket when he sat in the chair. They had four chairs in row and 4 people came in and took care of us. They soaked our feet, then massaged our necks and shoulders, then massaged our feet based on reflexology. Wonderful is all I can say. I would do it daily if I could. The price was about $6 a person!
Cell phones
Grace and Levi have gotten their long-awaited cell phones! I think they are more of a necessity here. We have used them considerably to stay in touch and avert confusion. Being out and walking downtown is relatively safe; we feel comfortable letting Grace and Levi go off exploring on their own. It is nice to know we can talk at any moment and give directions or advice. And because we have a driver, we text him or he contacts us to let us know where he is parked. I am even learning how to text...old dogs can learn new tricks!;-) Now if I could just tune into my ring tone and get my calls!
FOOD!
Everyone seems to want to know what we are eating. We've had some wonderful Chinese meals and some so-so western-type meals. We had Thai, Japanese, Italian, and wonderful ribs! We have had mixed reviews on some foods, like squid and tree fungi. Every morning we have a HUGE breakfast buffet at the hotel--the usual American-type foods, plus sushi, salads, fried noodles and rice, dumplings, meat, etc. Rachel has started ordering a custom omelette every morning: ham, cheese, onion and PIG'S EAR! She thought it was bacon first, then found out it was pig's ear, but she keeps ordering it!
We eat out most nights. We are all getting proficient using chopsticks, and, even more challenging some days, being watched by a group of wait staff as we do it! Being a family of 6, we are watched closely all the time. The kids are like celebrities. Jesse, esp., gets lots of attention. I'm not sure if it is because he is the smallest or what. Today at breakfast, 2 women came up to me and said, "You have the 4 children. The young boy is so cute. Like an angel." I have gotten used to older women looking at me and raising 4 fingers and giving me the thumbs up sign. In a country with a 1-child policy, I guess I am amazing!
Purple Mountain
We hope to move to our house later this week. Jim is arranging our air freight to arrive at the house. I think we will be ready to get really settled. Hotel-living is nice, but being 53 floors in the air makes quick trips outside a challenge. Our house is part of the Dong Jiao State Guesthouse compound on Purple Mountain. Purple Mountain is a beautiful refuge from the city. Jim's dream has been to live in a place with hills, trees, and curvy roads, and he found it on Purple Mtn! The word is the air is cleaner and cooler on the mountain, plus it is peaceful and spacious. On the compound, we will be in one of 10 houses in a circle, then there is a hotel, townhouses, and apartments. We will have access to a huge pool, gym, bowling alley, tennis courts, and spa services! Plus there is a swimming lake and numerous tourist spots on the mountain. I hope we have time to take advantage of it all! Grace has had a funny response as she sees all the amenities; she is worried she will get spoiled and won't want to leave. It is almost like she is afraid to be disloyal to America and her friends and family there.
ICF
One other interesting experience we have had (so far) is attending the International Christian Fellowship. It meets in a hotel and is for foreign passport holders only, so no Chinese are there. Because it is prime vacation time now for ex-pat families to return to their home countries, attendance was down. BUT there were many Africans there! We felt like we were in Nairobi again. Weird, but very familiar and comfortable. I think it will be a good place for connecting with like-minded people. They have a youth group for Grace and Levi that is very active.
I could write so much more, but I guess that is the reason for a blog! I am hoping this is a good avenue for sharing some of our adventures and insights. I really want the kids to share their observations, too. Hopefully by using the blog format, you can read what you want and skip over the rest.
It has been quite a journey. I (Joann) finished my RN degree in May, took my boards in June (and passed!), and the family shipped out on July 18. The kids finished their respective grades: Grace completed 9th grade at Concordia Academy, Levi completed 7th grade at Parkview in Roseville, Rachel 4th grade, and Jesse 2nd grade--both at Parkview. The kids have been on-board with moving, although understandably they have all had moments of very mixed emotions, which seems very normal considering the circumstances. We have all been blessed by their friends and families that really supported them and sent them off with hugs and good wishes.
The Journey
Let's see...the actual journey: we were given the opportunity to fly Business Class to Hong Kong, which was very welcome on the 16 or so hour journey. That long a flight is almost enjoyable when one can stretch out the legs and watch endless movies while eating gourmet meals! Poor Rachel succumbed to airsickness somewhere over the Pacific and earned the nickname "Mt. Rachel" as she erupted like a volcano. Eeeeeeeeeewwwww! Thankfully Grace had packed an extra shirt and we cleaned her up and made it to Hong Kong.
We had a quick transfer in Tokyo--too short to really take in the culture unfortunately. Jim bumped into an Emerson employee from Mexico in the bathroom--he is an engineer heading to Nanjing to help with the factory set-up! What are the chances of that? We had dinner with him a few nights later in Nanjing and marveled at the coincidence.
We spent 2 nights in Hong Kong. It is a lovely city--very busy and crowded but in a beautiful tropical setting with mountains and water and foilage and amazing architecture. We took a ferry across to Hong Kong Island and then ascended "the peak" for lunch and site-seeing. Jim learned not to let me pick the restaurants on jet lag, calculating the exchange rate with a quick glance at the menu. I saw "dim sum" on the menu and thought a few appetizers would be inexpensive and fun to try as our first meal in China. WRONG. The food was fun, and the wait staff convinced us we needed an ample supply since we are 6 people. WRONG. The kids weren't really hungry (we were still on MN time and it was the middle of the night). We did our best--Jim impressed us all by eating prawn eyes, and the bill came to $140...they are right when they say Hong Kong is expensive.
Nanjing--Home?
Our arrival to Nanjing was perfect. No hassles with customs, all our luggage arrived, and 2 drivers waiting with vans. Li Min, our personal driver, came running through the airport with a bouquet of beautiful lillies for me.
We are now "living" at the Crowne Plaza hotel in downtown Nanjing. We were worried about the size of the hotel rooms, given that we are 6 people and we knew we would be here for a week or so. The hotel staff took us up to the executive lounge to check-in and then escorted us to our "room." Turns out our "room" is a 3 bedroom, 3 bath apartment on the top floor (53rd) of the hotel. Jim paced it off and it is BIGGER than our house in Roseville! The kids are enjoying the internet connection and 4 (!) big screen tvs--although the English-speaking channels are limited. Yesteday the kids decided to swim in the hotel pool. They had declined before because they require swim caps! I guess they decided it wouldn't be such a bad thing to wear a cap, esp. if they all did it, so they took the plunge. Levi still tries to take his off when no one is looking--swim caps aren't cool, I guess.
School
We have taken care of details of life during our first week. We visited the school, Nanjing International School, and the kids got a tour of the building. It is a new building with all the bells and whistles. Grace and Levi, esp, were warned about the need to plan for 2 hours of homework a night. We will attend an open house on Aug 8 and will get a better overview of classes and activities.
Medical Care
We have had 2 visits to SOS, an international clinic where we will get medical care. We decided to review immunizatioins with the dr. there and turns out we all needed numerous vaccines. The kids, esp., need quite a few--they were not happy with me! Even with our travel to Africa, we needed to update some and get a few new ones specific to China. They have western-trained drs. on staff and they are well connected to resources in Nanjing and beyond if we should need emergency care.
Shopping
We have explored the grocery stores--Walmart, Carrefour, and Metro, a Sam's Club type store. Finding fresh food is easy. Reading the labels on packaged food is not easy! The writing is usually in Chinese characters and I am clueless as to what is inside. I will need a Chinese-speaker to come shopping with me a few times while I figure out what we like and need.
Rachel was eager to get to China to get some pampering. She has always wanted a pedicure, but I told her to wait until China because I knew we could do it inexpensively here. I took her to a local place near the hotel and she got both a pedicure and manicure. She chose blue polish, even over the advice of the staff who kept saying to me in broken English, "little girl pink."
After her appointment, Grace, Levi, Jesse, and I went down a few doors for foot massages! I was just planning on Grace and Levi and I doing it, but Jesse asked if he could, too. I'm not sure they give many 8-yr olds massages! He was so short, his feet hardly made it to the soaking bucket when he sat in the chair. They had four chairs in row and 4 people came in and took care of us. They soaked our feet, then massaged our necks and shoulders, then massaged our feet based on reflexology. Wonderful is all I can say. I would do it daily if I could. The price was about $6 a person!
Cell phones
Grace and Levi have gotten their long-awaited cell phones! I think they are more of a necessity here. We have used them considerably to stay in touch and avert confusion. Being out and walking downtown is relatively safe; we feel comfortable letting Grace and Levi go off exploring on their own. It is nice to know we can talk at any moment and give directions or advice. And because we have a driver, we text him or he contacts us to let us know where he is parked. I am even learning how to text...old dogs can learn new tricks!;-) Now if I could just tune into my ring tone and get my calls!
FOOD!
Everyone seems to want to know what we are eating. We've had some wonderful Chinese meals and some so-so western-type meals. We had Thai, Japanese, Italian, and wonderful ribs! We have had mixed reviews on some foods, like squid and tree fungi. Every morning we have a HUGE breakfast buffet at the hotel--the usual American-type foods, plus sushi, salads, fried noodles and rice, dumplings, meat, etc. Rachel has started ordering a custom omelette every morning: ham, cheese, onion and PIG'S EAR! She thought it was bacon first, then found out it was pig's ear, but she keeps ordering it!
We eat out most nights. We are all getting proficient using chopsticks, and, even more challenging some days, being watched by a group of wait staff as we do it! Being a family of 6, we are watched closely all the time. The kids are like celebrities. Jesse, esp., gets lots of attention. I'm not sure if it is because he is the smallest or what. Today at breakfast, 2 women came up to me and said, "You have the 4 children. The young boy is so cute. Like an angel." I have gotten used to older women looking at me and raising 4 fingers and giving me the thumbs up sign. In a country with a 1-child policy, I guess I am amazing!
Purple Mountain
We hope to move to our house later this week. Jim is arranging our air freight to arrive at the house. I think we will be ready to get really settled. Hotel-living is nice, but being 53 floors in the air makes quick trips outside a challenge. Our house is part of the Dong Jiao State Guesthouse compound on Purple Mountain. Purple Mountain is a beautiful refuge from the city. Jim's dream has been to live in a place with hills, trees, and curvy roads, and he found it on Purple Mtn! The word is the air is cleaner and cooler on the mountain, plus it is peaceful and spacious. On the compound, we will be in one of 10 houses in a circle, then there is a hotel, townhouses, and apartments. We will have access to a huge pool, gym, bowling alley, tennis courts, and spa services! Plus there is a swimming lake and numerous tourist spots on the mountain. I hope we have time to take advantage of it all! Grace has had a funny response as she sees all the amenities; she is worried she will get spoiled and won't want to leave. It is almost like she is afraid to be disloyal to America and her friends and family there.
ICF
One other interesting experience we have had (so far) is attending the International Christian Fellowship. It meets in a hotel and is for foreign passport holders only, so no Chinese are there. Because it is prime vacation time now for ex-pat families to return to their home countries, attendance was down. BUT there were many Africans there! We felt like we were in Nairobi again. Weird, but very familiar and comfortable. I think it will be a good place for connecting with like-minded people. They have a youth group for Grace and Levi that is very active.
I could write so much more, but I guess that is the reason for a blog! I am hoping this is a good avenue for sharing some of our adventures and insights. I really want the kids to share their observations, too. Hopefully by using the blog format, you can read what you want and skip over the rest.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
