For me, it’s back on the bike and another trip to the table tennis club. I play with an entirely new group today. While I’m playing, I notice one of the players from the park near UHN has walked in. I had played against her a few times, and she could speak just enough English to allow some very rudimentary conversation. Using a Chinese/English phone dictionary, we had spent some time conversing at the park in May and June.

I guess she plays at this club occasionally. At the end of the morning, we renew our “rough” conversation. She has questions about the US, and when another player sits down, we talk about her daughter who’s a student at Duke. The more I come over here to play, the more familiar my face will be to the regulars, and the more accepting they’ll become. Ultimately, I just want my table tennis game to improve. Just like anything, to get better, you need to be exposed to players at a higher level.

Headed back home later, I stop at a Subway for lunch. After lunch, I pick up some milk at a local grocery. Riding back to the apartment, I stop to get the low front tire on the bike filled up with air. There are several guys scattered around street corners in the neighborhood with portable shops, set-up to work on bikes. They open up their trailer with parts and tools, and wait for business to cruise by.

Judy calls around 6:00 to let me know she’s headed to Homeplate BBQ in Sanlitun with a group. Dom and I meet, and end up taking the train. The traffic is so backed up on our street, a taxi would have taken forever just to get to the 3^rd Ring Road. As we finally walk up to the restaurant in Sanlitun, I get an “oops” text from Judy. The group is at the other Homeplate BBQ, nearer our apartment. Dom and I eventually get to the new location, and we enjoy a great evening of good food (burgers, cheese fries, etc.), and interesting conversation.

WEDNESDAY, 8/13/14

It’s Judy’s first day with students. This is her 39^th “first day”. There’s always some excitement and anticipation on day 1. But with 38 “first days” behind her, she’s more focused on events and activities that are happening weeks from now. She stays after school, not getting home until after 7pm, putting together lesson plans.

My day is spent searching for some travel ideas. I did get out to the local “wet market”, and then ate at the local noodle restaurant. I’m killing time until my school begins to have activities next week. We do have some new “Major Crimes” episodes that will entertain us in the evening for a few days.

THURSDAY, 8/14/14

Judy’s beginning to get her morning schedule established to including the walking and exercise.  She’s usually out 30 and 40 minutes on the walk.  She’s been leaving for school a little later than last year, but hasn’t had a taxi problem yet (not getting one). Some of the “old hands” at school told her it will get tougher when the Chinese schools start up on Sept. 1.

I’ve decided I’m going to ride my bike over to the table tennis club. It’s a long ride, but without problems. When I walk in, a few people recognize me from back in June, so it’s not long before I’m playing. I’m improving, but they’re still working me over pretty well.

On my way home, I have a “close encounter” with a rose bush. I was riding down a narrow side road, and a car came along. As I moved over, to get out of the way, I brushed up against some lovely shrubs. Unfortunately, the shrubs were roses. My arm got pretty chewed up, and my shirt was torn. When I got to the apartment, I cleaned up the scratches, and even pulled out a few thorns. I had to throw away the shirt.

I’m spending quite a bit of time these days planning our travel for the next year. We have a calendar established, but can’t settle on what we really want to do. The two main holidays (October and February) are national Chinese holidays, so it’s best to be out of the country on those weeks to avoid the crowds. We learned that during our Yangtze River Cruise last year. We’re looking at Taiwan, Bali, the Phillipines, Harbin (ice festival), Shanghai, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

Today, I meet the rep from our local travel agent. We’ve booked our travel back to the US for the Xmas holidays. She comes by the apartment to swap the fapaio (receipt) for the cash. We need the fapaio for Judy’s reimbursement from her school. A portion of the tax deducted from Judy’s monthly paycheck is available to her for travel, if it’s receipted correctly.

I get all the vegetables prepped I’ve been buying lately for another afternoon with the wok. One of the recipes I looked at used brown sugar. I tried it, and it was pretty good. I might have overdone it today. I managed to burn the brown sugar. It wasn’t so bad I couldn’t eat it, but it would have been better with a either little less brown sugar, or a little less cooking. I’ll continue experimenting as my stomach and patience allows.

I think we’re back to our normal sleep cycles. No more jet lag excuses will be allowed. Judy gets off to school and the fun times at faculty meetings. My first job of the day is to do a little shopping at the local wet market. After the really big market closed last fall, I never really found a good place for local fresh fruits and vegetables. I had seen all the tents a few times as I walked across the bridge on my way to Taiyanggong Station, but didn’t know what they were. Someone had mentioned they were the new “wet market”. It’s on the canal behind UHN. There were lots of fresh items, including some meats. I purchased a few things for my next wok adventure.

I dropped the stuff off at the apartment, and then headed to Metro to finish off my grocery list. I had lunch at Subway before heading back. I get everything put away and then head out to the bike rack for a trip to the barber. Today’s trip will be my longest bike ride yet, and I have to cross a very busy bridge. I’ve watched bikes and scooters cross it for a year now from taxis. If they can do it, so can I. The biggest trick is to be aware what’s coming at you from ALL directions. I survived the round trip. My haircut is another pleasing experience. I arrived early so they did a head massage while shampooing. I didn’t want to leave.

For whatever reason, probably the bike ride, I couldn’t stay awake when I got home. I fought it for awhile, but finally gave in. Judy wasn’t even home yet. She couldn’t wake me when she came in. That’s how knocked out I was.

We decided to go to Houhai Lake today. There’s so much in Beijing we haven’t seen. We had some time today, and we weren’t overburdened with schoolwork, yet. I’d read some about the area, but hadn’t visited, and since Judy visited Friday and was excited about seeing more of, today seemed like the perfect time to check it out.

The Drum Tower can be seen in the distance, over the top of Judy’s head.

One of the things I read was that there was lots of ice-skating in the winter on the lake. No ice skaters today, but there were swimmers, and boats. There are lots of shaded walk areas, but like much of Beijing, not enough benches to sit and enjoy the sites. We rode the train over and the station is 1 block from the lake, so it’s an easy walk. After we walked around half of the lake, we cut up into a neighborhood and wandered through the narrow streets, stopping at some interesting shops. As lunch time approached, the crowds began to show up.

We found a Starbucks and got rejuvenated with a mocha frappucino before heading home. Back at the apartment, Judy went to work on her computer, prepping for classes that begin Wednesday. When the Starbucks drinks wore off, we ordered a pizza delivered from Kro’s Nest. It’s huge, so it should feed us till Tuesday.

After a slow start to the morning, we taxi over to BISS. Judy needs help taking apart 10 sets of really heavy bongos (no elementary kid could use them). After the bongos, we hung large photos of BISS musicals in the hallway. They had to be taken down in May so the hallway could be painted during the summer break. She took pictures before they came down, so we’re replicating how they were hanging. She needed me for my height and my willingness to climb up on a shaky chair to staple border on the bulletin boards and hang the framed photos.

The rest of our day was spent at the apartment fiddling around with chores, and watching Season 3 of “Major Crimes”. This is a nice way to kill an afternoon and evening.

As we start into a new school year, and having completed 300 blogs, it seemed like a good time to review our travel adventures this past year. One of our goals when we came to Beijing was to take advantage of some travel opportunities.   Here a list of how we did:

Sept. – Seoul, Korea and the DMZ, 4 days

Oct. – Yangtze River Cruise, Chongching and Yicheng, 4 days

Oct. – Shanghai (Judy), 2 days

Dec. – Sanya, Hainan, China (“Chinese Hawaii”), 5 days

Dec. – US, Xmas Holidays, 14 days

Feb. – Phuket, Thailand, 9 days

April – Hong Kong, 5 days

April – US Trip (Gordon), 8 days

June – Courtney, Brad, and Glenda arrive and we tour Beijing, 5 days

June – Xi’an for Terra Cotta Warriors, 2 days (Courtney also)

June – Tokyo and Kyoto, 6 days

July – Amsterdam (via Warsaw), 4 days

July – Scandanavian Cruise, 12 days, departs & returns to Amsterdam

Berlin, Germany; Tallinn, Estonia; St. Petersburg, Russia;

Moscow, Russia; Stockholm, Sweden; Helsinki, Finland;

Copenhagen, Denmark

July – DFW & Baton Rouge, family visit, 10 days

As best I can figure it, we spent 85 days out of Beijing, flew in or out of 19 different airports, and rode on 22 tour buses or cars with guides. I think we got our money’s worth this first year. Now I’m beginning to plan for year #2. We’re looking forward to the new sights, sounds, and smells we’ll be experiencing.

We’re still not quite right with our sleep cycles, but it’s getting better. Judy has faculty meetings till lunch, then everyone rides the train over to Houhai Lake for some faculty bonding. They split into teams and go on a treasure hunt through the many unique stores and shops in the area. Along the lake are lots of restaurants with rooftop seating. After lunch, Judy’s group does a little searching through the shops, followed by more relaxing on the rooftops. Late in the afternoon, Shannon and Judy head over to Lily Nails for some pampering. They take Lori, the wife of the new HS principal with them, trying to give her a proper Beijing introduction.

I decided to head out to the neighborhood park to meet up with the local table tennis group. I had a good time. My knees are better, and the lowered pain level allowed me to play better. They welcomed me back in. In a few days I’ll go to the table tennis club where I’ll, no doubt, get pounded.

Judy, Shannon, and Lori meet Dom (Shannon’s husband), and I at QMex, near Sanlitun, to sample some Beijing Tex Mex. It’s not bad. Lori and her husband are American, but have been in Estonia for the last 12 years.  After our visit to Tallin, Estonia on the cruise this summer, it was fun hearing more about the country and the people.

Another day, and we have another really early morning. Judy has begun to take advantage of the early mornings, and is resuming her morning walks. She was walking almost every morning the last two years in Arlington, but hadn’t felt like it since we arrived in Beijing. If she can get her daily walking regimen in, and I can get my swimming done, and add some healthier eating habits, we might actually improve our health. Who would’ve thought it? We’ll see how it goes.

Judy calls later in the day and lets me know she’s going to need a foot massage after work. She’s wants to try the neighborhood spa, which is slightly “less upscale and full of character”, but close to the apartment. I’ve been several times, and it’s really cheap. We walked in, had our feet massaged for an hour (including a 15 minute shoulder/neck massage) and walked out after paying 136rmb or $22. We stopped at a local noodle shop on the way home for dinner. Back at the apartment later, we’re feeling re-integrated to Beijing.

We had another early wakeup today (2:00 am). I keep thinking we’ll get over the jet lag quicker, but this is my fourth trip to Beijing from DFW and it takes me about 10 days to get back to normal. I should just quit fighting it.

Today is Judy’s first official day back at BISS. They have 3 days this week, and two days next week before they begin with students. They spend it in meetings, and getting to know the new faculty and administrators.

We’ve been trying to figure out a way to eat better in the evenings. We don’t have an oven, and I’ve had to resort to frying foods for dinner. Besides the health downside of frying foods, the grease ends up all over the kitchen. I’ve decided to try stir-frying, so I’ve purchased a wok.

Step one on the wok is to “season” it. I went to the neighborhood “wet” market and purchased some vegetables, chicken breasts, and peanut oil (it can be used at higher cooking temps). Next step, I reviewed some Youtube clips on seasoning a wok, then “seasoned” it. Basically it means to burn in the oil by superheating the wok. The Youtube clips warned about smoke, so I had the windows open, and a big fan blowing into the kitchen. Next, I stir-fryed the chicken, followed by some green beans. I actually did a pretty good job on it all, and timed it so everything was ready when Judy got home. “I’m baaaad!”

MONDAY, 8/4/14

The first few days back we were just sleepy, but now we’re both feeling the effects of moving to the other side of the world. We have that washed out feeling, similar to the feeling I had when I stayed up all night cramming for a test in college. We’re both waking up in the middle of the night and struggling to get back to sleep.

Judy heads back over to BISS to work on her room. I go to Metro for groceries. Back at the apartment, Lilly is cleaning. The internet guys show up right on time and we get hooked up after 45 minutes. The cost for the year is 1160rmb (around $190). I kept telling them I needed the fastest and most stable internet possible, and they tell me I’ve got it. It doesn’t seem much stronger than what I had before, but here’s hoping.

Lisa sends a text telling me the cable guy is rescheduled for tomorrow. We still have television, but it could stop at any time. We are both worn out by 7:00 pm and ready for bed. The sun isn’t even down yet.

TUESDAY, 8/5/14

Judy goes back to school, and I’m headed to the police station to register our temporary residence. We have to do this every time we leave the country and return. I take the passports for both of us, and our lease agreement. It’s always a little bit of a daunting task, because no one speaks English, at all. I’ve done this enough that I’m less worried than I used to be, but there can always be surprises.

The new part of today’s experience is that I rode my bike to the police station. Deb and Graham had given us their bikes when they left for Cambodia, but today is the first chance to use them. Riding a bike is not a new thing for me, but I really can’t remember the last time I was on one? I’m a little shaky at first, but it comes back to me pretty quickly. The ride is without incident, and the bike made the trip so much easier. I’m going to enjoy having some “wheels”.

The cable guy shows up, get his money (360 rmb, $59 for a year), and leaves. When Judy gets home we order food from the Blue Frog in Sanlitun for delivery. They serve western foods. It’s a nice change of pace. We’re still ready to sleep way too early. We fight it as long as we can, hoping to sleep through the night, but no such luck.