Chunjie!

We have one week of school left before Chunjie (Spring Festival) which is the two weeks surrounding Chinese New Year. Chinese New Year is to the Chinese what Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, Halloween, and Independence Day are to Americans. It is the biggest holiday of the year and it is common for people to have the entire two weeks off of work during this time allowing them to travel back to their home villages to celebrate with family. This means that Kunming, our city of over 6 million people, will essentially shut down for a while. This year the date for Chinese New Year falls on Feb. 10 so on Feb. 9th we have been told that we will experience a fireworks show like none other. At midnight the entire city lights off fireworks and they don’t stop until morning!

We are currently in the year of the dragon and are moving into the year of the snake. I am not sure what this all entails, but we will see! We went out and purchased a few traditional New Year’s decorations and put them up on our door. While our decorations are pretty modest, some homes in our xiao qu have gone all out with huge red lanterns, large red eternity knots, and banners.



Our front door. I have no idea what it says.



One of the traditions at Chinese New Year is for people to give each of their relatives a hong bao (literally “red envelope”) containing money. While this seems like a wonderfully generous tradition, in reality many Chinese simply cannot afford to hand cash to each and every family member. Out of desperation some turn to theft to raise funds for their envelopes- this is preferred to the alternative which is to deal with the shame of not giving out hong bao. The two weeks leading up to Chunjie are the worst for bike/scooter thefts and purse snatchings in China. While Eric and I have not personally had anything stolen recently and have felt perfectly secure wherever we’ve been, we know three people who have had their scooters stolen in the past week!

On a lighter note: my parents are coming Friday (6 more days!) and we are SO excited to see them and show them around the city and countryside. They will be here for 11 days before heading to Thailand. We have all sorts of activities planned and I hope they will be able to get a good idea of what life in Kunming is like despite the fact that the city will be comparatively empty.

Model United Nations Trip to Shanghai

Last week Eric and I, along with four of our high school students traveled to Shanghai to attend the 4^th annual Concordia International School Shanghai Model United Nations Conference. The conference was two and a half days long and was attended by over 450 students from around Asia and beyond. We left school at the bright and early hour of 5am in order to get to the airport on time. We flew three hours directly to Shanghai and took a van to the conference site. Upon arrival at the conference we attended an opening ceremony where all of the 24 schools were individually welcomed and asked to stand. We were publicly acknowledged to be the smallest delegation, but delegates were warned not to take us lightly. This was followed by a speech by Concordia’s MUN director, on the “Peace Imperative,” the theme of the conference. He stressed to the students that their generation played a vital role in furthering peace in our world.

After the opening ceremony the real work began. The students broke into their individual committees and prepared to give their opening speeches. There were three General Assembly Committees represented at CISSMUN, and three specialized Councils- Economic and Social Council, International Court of Justice, and Security Council. Each of the three General Assemblies specialized in specific topics. One student represented Philippines on the GA 1^st Committee and her issues all had to deal with Disarmament and International Security. Two students represented Philippines and Czech Republic on the GA 3^rd Committee dealing with Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural issues. The final student represented Cuba on the GA 4^th Committee and worked on Special Political and Decolonization issues. Each delegate gave an opening speech following a general format and briefly outlining their country’s stance on an issue important to them. All of our students did a fabulous job.

After opening speeches the Lobbying and Merging portion began. Each of our students prepared two written resolutions from their country’s perspective and it was their task to find other countries that agreed with these stances. They then either merged resolutions or agreed on one and all signed on to it. The agreed upon resolution then had to be submitted to one of the committee Chairpersons and approved. Upon approval the resolution then moved to a Director Approval Board. If approved there, the resolution was ready to be presented on Friday. This process lasted until 6pm on Thursday. At 6pm the committees broke and we had dinner together in the CISS cafeteria. 

That night we braved the bitter cold (really, it was freezing!)and took our four students to the Bund on Shanghai’s riverfront. The Bund is a walkway on the waterfront that was originally a towpath for dragging barges of rice and eventually was transformed into a Wall St. type area. The other side of the river features the ultra-modern buildings and skyscrapers of Pudong (a newer area of the city) while the walking side is lined with huge colonial era buildings in the neoclassical style. It is a beautiful walk at night watching the ferries go up and down the river against a backdrop of city lights. When we could no longer handle the cold on the riverfront we headed away from the water up Nanjing Lu- a walking street with shopping and restaurants. Ironically, we ended up having dessert at Haagen Dazs ice cream. 

 



Pudong

 

Colonial era side

 Friday morning began with a little more time for countries to get their resolutions approved and then the presentation of resolutions began. Resolutions were presented by the main contributing countries and then the floor was open to debate and questions. There is a very specific process that must be followed for this to work properly and our students did a good job of knowing when and how to speak. This process took the entire day. We broke in the late afternoon and that night we took our students to the French Concession area of Shanghai. The French Concession was formerly a neighborhood made up of prostitutes, old time gangsters, and revolutionaries, but now is an area of narrow brick alleyways filled with cafes and shops. We had a great time walking through the lantern lit pathways and looking in on different shops. We had dinner at a tiny Thai restaurant that I think had more vertical square footage than horizontal. We passed by miniscule dining spaces on each floor as we climbed the narrow staircase up to the top floor. Each floor we passed had room for about two tables.  



The French Concession



 

On Saturday morning all of the committees continued with their resolutions. In the early afternoon the committees broke and everyone attended a closing ceremony. We were treated to a traditional dragon dance and all of the delegates were given time to walk around with their country placards and have their new friends sign them and say goodbye. We had dinner in the neighborhood at a real Mexican restaurant (this is RARE) before leaving for the airport that night. We made it back to school at about 2:30am pretty much exhausted.



In front of CISS's living wall

 Going into the trip I had some reservations about how the students would interact with each other and wondered if we would spend three days in silence. But, despite the fact that we were a very random group of six (one Chinese, one Korean, one Russian, one Taiwanese, and two Americans) Eric and I felt like the group meshed well and we spent much of our free time laughing and getting to know each other in a more personal way than one usually does in a school setting. The students had a good time and told us as much which made me feel like the trip was a success. 

Sichuan Eggplant Recipe

·         Prep time: 10 minutes

     ·         Cook time: 10 minutes

This recipe calls for asian eggplants, or Japanese eggplants. They are long and thin compared to a European or globe eggplant, and much more tender and delicate. If you can't find them you can substitute globe eggplant.

Ingredients

·         1 1/2 lbs. asian (long and skinny) eggplant

·         2 tablespoons peanut oil

·         1/4 cup chicken stock

·         2 teaspoons sugar

·         1/2 teaspoon soy sauce

·         1/2 - 1 1/2 tablespoons chili bean paste*

·         2 teaspoon crushed sichuan peppercorns** (optional- I leave these out)

·         3 teaspoons freshly grated ginger

·         5 garlic cloves, minced

·         1 teaspoon corn starch

·         2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

·         4 scallions, roughly chopped

·         Cilantro for garnish (optional)

*A lot of grocery stores have Asian ingredient aisles now. You should be able to find chili-bean paste, a mixture of preserved chilies mixed with mashed soybeans, there or at any Asian market. (Do not confuse with black bean paste or chili-garlic paste.)

**Sichuan peppercorns are available at some stores and online for quite cheap. They aren't spicy like other peppers but rather have a citrusy flavor and induce a tingly, numbing sensation like a carbonated drink.

Method

1 Begin your mise en place. Quarter the eggplant lengthwise and chop into large batons and set aside. In a small bowl, mix together the chicken stock, sugar, and soy sauce and set it aside. In a second bowl, mix together the chili bean paste, garlic, ginger, and sichuan peppercorns and set it aside. In a third bowl, mix together the cornstarch with a tablespoon of water and set it aside. Lastly, in a fourth bowl, mix together the scallions and vinegar and set it aside.

2 Place the oil in a wok or large sauté pan over medium-high heat until the oil is almost smoking. Add the eggplant and sauté, allowing it to sit for a few seconds each time you move it to allow it to brown and blister. If the eggplant absorbs all the oil and some pieces don't get any then add a little more oil.

3 Add the chili bean paste, garlic, ginger, and sichuan peppercorns and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the chicken stock mixture, turn the heat to medium-low and simmer for 90 seconds. Add the cornstarch mixture and stir together until the sauce thickens a bit. Add the scallions and vinegar and cook for 15 seconds to diffuse their harsh flavors a bit. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Yield: Makes 2-4 servings.

Christmas Break

We have entered the real world once again. Our two week Christmas break is over and we are back at school for the start of 2^nd semester. Over Christmas we traveled to Hong Kong and came home to spend New Year’s in Kunming.

Hong Kong is where East meets West, and depending on where you are coming from it will seem more like one than the other. Since we were coming from mainland China, Hong Kong felt very Western to us, but I can easily understand why those coming straight from the U.S. would think it is so Asian. So many of the things I appreciated about the city would have been lost on me if we didn’t live in Kunming. I was first struck with how clean (no spitting allowed!) and orderly the city was and how cars followed traffic laws and moved to the side for police sirens. Although it is a huge city, it was easy to travel around thanks to the MTR, buses, trams, trolleys, and taxis. We could read most signs and effectively communicate with people because everything was in English, as well as Cantonese. We almost forget sometimes that at home we are basically illiterate. We can’t read 99% of the signs around us and unless we are talking about a very specific subject (like fruit at the market) we aren’t able to talk to people either!

We traveled to Hong Kong via Guangzhou on the 22^nd and were there for 6 days. On the 23^rd we met up with a local Kunming friend, Liz, who was in Hong Kong visiting the Logos Hope ship she used to live on. I don’t know if you are familiar with Logos Hope or its precursor, Doulos, but LH is a large ship staffed by over 100 M’s that docks in harbors around the world and holds book fairs, hosts conferences, facilitates service projects, etc. It is an amazing organization and we were lucky enough to tour the ship with Liz and get a first-hand look at how the staff lives on board and what they do. We spent the rest of the day walking around Kowloon and Hong Kong Island, visiting Man Mo Temple, and enjoying the café scene. That night we huddled along the Kowloon waterfront to watch the “Symphony of Lights”, a light show on Hong Kong Island set to music.

Monday, the 24^th, we ventured to the far reaches of the MTR system with a visit to Lantau Island and its most famous resident, Big Buddha. Big Buddha is technically called the Tian Tan Buddha statue. He is 26 meters tall and has a spectacular viewing platform. We traveled from the last stop on the metro to Po Lin Monastery via bus over the islands hills and down by the beaches and finally up to the peak. We walked through the touristy village and then started the climb to the base of the statue. The views from the top were amazing; we could see all over the island. We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening enjoying the Christmas lights and festivities in Kowloon.

Christmas Day was celebrated at Disneyland. We arrived before the park opened and stayed until the last fireworks went off. We have never spent a Christmas away from family so it seemed like more of a random vacation than actual Christmas, but I suppose that makes sense since we have never been on our own before. We enjoyed the rides and the decorations on Main Street and were pleasantly surprised at all of the traditional Christmas Carols they played throughout the park (Silent Night, Hark, The Herald Angels Sing, etc.)

We celebrated Boxing Day by hanging out with fellow KIA staff member and friend, Hana, a Hong Kong native. She took us on the Peak Tram to Victoria’s Peak, the highest point in Hong Kong, out to Stanley to enjoy the market and awesome beach views, and to Ikea. Sadly, Ikea may have been the highlight of my day. Don’t misunderstand me, I loved the trip to the peak and I thought Stanley was beautiful, but I was thrilled to be able to buy a few much needed items that cannot be purchased at home (fitted sheets and baking dishes!)

On Thursday we visited a market, walked through Signal Gardens, and basically just wandered through the city looking in little shops and stores to see what they had. Friday morning we traveled back to Kunming.

Our second week of break was mostly spent at home and around Hu Pan. A cold snap hit Kunming for a few days and our lack of central heating became evident as we layered on the clothes and sat under blankets. We are thankful that winter is short lived here and that most days the sun shines into our large living room windows and warms the entire house.

We hosted friends for New Year’s Eve and as we rang in 2013 I had to laugh at how far we’ve come in a year. G has led us to this amazing new country and into a new community where we feel like we’ve found our place. We have jobs where we can contribute and are building relationships where we feel like we can make a difference. We are blessed beyond measure.