TUESDAY, 3/11/14

I spent the morning working on school ideas, trying to make sure I know the material well enough to not get bum-fuzzled in front of the class.  CCTV is running a dialogue between several commentators discussing democracy, comparing the US, Europe, China, and developing countries.  It’s interesting listening to the various opinions on the failing US version.

Judy found out today she’s going to get the chance to take a group of her 5^th graders, travel to a Chinese elementary school, and teach a music lesson to her students and the Chinese students.  She’s not sure why she’s getting the chance, but the school needed someone to do it.  It’s some kid of exchange program.  Judy’s friend Shannon volunteered her for it.   It’s supposed to happen on Friday, March 21.

WEDNESDAY, 3/12/14

Nothing new and exciting happens at BISS today.  As I’m about to leave for my new Wednesday class, I get a call from the school.  They’re calling me to let know that next week, my schedule will change again.  They still need me to teach the new 10th grade music class, but next week it’s moved to Thursday.  This is good news, because Wednesday will be a free day again, and I’m still going to make a little extra money.  My Thursday schedule is really full now, with Guitar Club at 12:00, 10^th and 11^th grade music classes from 12:30 to 4:00, and Orchestra Club from 4:15 to 5:45.  It almost seems like a job.

We begin another week, counting down the days until Judy’s BISS Spring Break.  It’s three weeks until we travel to Hong Kong.  I need to make plans for our tours and exactly what we’re going to see and do.  I’m waiting on our new credit cards to arrive before I do much planning.  I hope we don’t have a “China” experience getting them delivered to Judy’s school.  We have three weeks to solve any delivery issues.

Monday is now Judy’s busiest day at school.  She has a full day of classes, with no break.  When she gets home, she’s tired, but the day went well.  Knowing what she was facing, she was prepared, and never looked up until it was over.  She crashed on the couch when she got home.

My non-school days have settled into a schedule of watching the Beijing CCTV news, writing blog entries, organizing and developing ideas for my classes, and swim sessions.  There is one CCTV channel that is in English, and right now there is a lot of discussion about the big meetings taking place in town, and what is being accomplished.  Corruption in government is a huge issue, and how it is being attacked.  They seem to be serious about solving it, but I’m not sure how it’s going to get done without a truly “free” press, in this one-party system. 

Occasionally I get a chance to watch an NBA game on the CCTV sports channel.  It’s in Chinese, so it’s fun trying to figure out what they’re saying with all the dunks, assists, etc.  The most common sports they broadcast are table tennis, badminton, volleyball, and the Chinese pro basketball teams. 

The weather is mild today.  It’s obvious the minute we step outside, not only because of the temperature, but also because of the sound of small kids filling the air.  They are everywhere, running, toddling, riding, and being followed closely by an army of parents and grandparents.  Everyone is taking advantage of the weather and enjoying clear skies and warmer temps.

The warmer weather has reminded Judy of how miserable she was last fall at school without a fan.  We head over to BISS to remedy the situation.  Gome, a large appliance store, similar to a Best Buy, is close to Judy’s school, so we walk in searching for a fan.  It’s not “fan season” yet in Beijing, so the displays are full of heaters of every size and design.  We manage to find a large floor fan on display, but it’s the only one in the store.  10 minutes later, it’s ours, and we’re out the door over to BISS.  At BISS, we get it in place, ready for the heat of the spring and summer.  Judy finishes up some printing, and odds and ends.

As we leave BISS, we’re overtaken with hunger.  Judy had talked several times about a local restaurant near BISS that had the best Chinese food she had tasted since we’ve been in Beijing.  We decide it’s time to try it again.  We walk down a narrow road, arriving at a building with no markings to indicate it’s a restaurant.  I would have walked right by it.  We test the doors, and it’s open.  Walking in, there are several small rooms, and a few families are scattered around. 

We get a table, and start the ordering process, using the menu with pictures.  We know what we want, but it’s not so easy to find it in the menu.  Judy places the order.  We did have to call Lynn, a Chinese teacher Judy works with at BISS.  We couldn’t find where to order dumplings or “steamed buns.”  Lynn talks in Chinese to the waiter over the phone.  He tells her they come 5 to an order.  We say we want 5, so of course we end up with 5 orders, or 25 total. Maybe we didn’t quite get it right.

As is the custom, the food arrives, one dish at a time.  Judy’s right!  It’s really good.  This is a small family-run establishment, and they really like their peppers.  We have a green bean dish, a chicken dish, shredded potatoes, and steamed buns.  We end up taking half of it home.  It cost us 81rmb, about $14, and we’re going to get one or two more meals out of it.

Back to the apartment, where I drop Judy off and head to the Marriott for my swim.  I’m trying not to miss a day, but it’s tough when I’m basically a lazy bum.  I don’t seem to be losing any weight, but I’m physically feeling a little more “fit.”   Certainly, my back, which was an issue when we first came to Beijing is much better.

The entrance/exit for the Sanyuanjiao train station. I use this station to cut under the Airport Express Highway, when I’m walking to the Marriott.

These are the shuttles from the station to the nearest main road, which happens to be near the Marriott. The shuttles cost 2rmb for a one-mile trip.

A shuttle in traffic at the intersection near the Marriott.

At the apartment, after the swim, we spend the evening watching a few episodes of “Lost.”  We’re just getting started on the series.  It’s weird to have started this just as the news is breaking on the missing Malaysian airliner, most likely in the South China Sea or Bay of Thailand.  Since the flight was headed to Beijing, and there were 150+ Chinese passengers, it’s big news here.

We’re looking forward to a relaxing weekend, but first, I have to deal with a financial issue.  I noticed a strange charge on my credit card in January, “Interneteducationd” for $9.95.  I tried to think if there was anything I had ordered.  I spend a lot of time looking at things on the internet, searching for teaching ideas.  Maybe I inadvertently placed an order?  Judy went through the same checklist, but couldn’t figure out what it might be.

The same charge just came up on our February statement, so I started trying to figure out what it is.  There was a phone number listed with the transaction on our online bank account.  Since I don’t have international calling on our phones, Courtney makes the call for us.  She gets the run-around and when someone finally picks up the phone, they wouldn’t say who they were, and only said they were an online money-making company.  Yeah, no kidding!  I sent a note to our Chase credit card company explaining the situation.  I quickly got a note, stating that the money had been refunded into our acct.  Last night I got an email stating that our credit card acct had been suspended until the issue could be resolved.  There was a phone number to the fraud dept., so today we fix it.

I contact my parents on Facetime.  My sister answers.  She’s visiting them in Fort Worth, so she agrees to serve as a middleman (or middlewoman).  She makes the call to the fraud department, explains the situation, and introduces me.  I begin talking, through Facetime, to the phone as she holds it up to the iPad.  This may seem like a lot of trouble, but when our account was suspended in August, phone charges totaled $170.  For more info on that situation, check the July/August blog entries.

After a verbal explanation from me, the bank people tell me that indeed the charge I had cancelled was attempted again, so the bank is sure someone has my acct. number.  I’m going to need a new card.  They’re going to move all activity to another card number, and send us new cards.  The real fun starts when I begin trying to explain I’m in China, and they need to send the cards to Judy’s school.   Trying to verbally give the address over the phone is interesting with the unusual Chinese spellings, and an iffy connection.  My sister has to intervene a few times to resolve questions, but we finally get it done.  Now, we’ll see if the cards actually arrive.

Later in the afternoon, Judy and I go the Marriott.  I’m going to swim, and she’s going to sit on the deck, use the hotel wifi, and do schoolwork.  It’s a relaxing afternoon.  Afterwards, we decide we’re going to use our Marriott discount card and eat at the Indian restaurant on the property.  They have a sampler item on the menu, and we end up having twelve different Indian delicacies.  We waddle out two hours later, and head home to attempt a recovery.

Judy has a meeting with the two principals today.  She gets the chance to discuss next year’s schedule and class load.  The way her classes are scheduled from now until the end of the year, she has no planning period at all during the day.  She wanted to let the principals know she wouldn’t have time to prepare any programs, with any grade level.  Naturally this is not good news.  They’ve become accustomed to having some entertaining programs with contributions from Judy almost weekly.  Her schedule this year can’t be helped, but now that they know what they created with her schedule, they’ll figure out a way to reduce it for next year.

I teach my morning classes at BHSFIC, and then head to lunch.  There are some new faces in the room, and one of them is discussing Dallas vs. Ft. Worth dining options.  What????  It’s a faculty member from Trinity Valley HS in Ft. Worth, scouting out a trip for students from Ft. Worth to Beijing.  She’ll be here for a week.  Maybe I’ll get more time to visit with her next week.

Back home, I take a nap and kill time till Judy gets home.  She calls to let me know she’s worn out, and ready for a relaxing evening at home.  No wild times in Beijing tonight!    We finished up 7 seasons of “West Wing” earlier this week.  I’ve loaded up “Lost” so we’ll have several months of working through that series.  Thanks again Courtney! 

Today is the last day for scheduled auditions for “BISS Idol” for Judy.  She hears several more accomplished pianists.  There are only a few of the students not prepared to perform.  The program is going to be really entertaining.

I have a full afternoon scheduled with guitar club, my two 11^th grade classes, and then orchestra club after school.  With the commute, it makes for a long day.  I choose not to swim today.  I get to school with no problems or security issues. 

Since I’m part-time, I’ve never really had a “music” classroom.  They were going to have one for me the 2^nd week of school, but it never materialized.  I’ve had a room with everything I needed (video & sound), but it was always considered temporary.  Since I’ve been back for the new semester, my usual room is full of large tables that are going to be part of a technology lab.  The music class has been moved into the auditorium.  They installed a new sound system with wireless technology and a huge video projector during the “Spring Festival”.  It works great after I figured out how to turn it on and adjust it.  It’s more than a regular class needs, but it gets the job done, for sure.  Today they tell me next week’s classes will be on the 4^th floor in the finished music classroom.  I’m anxious to see what that brings.

The school added an art teacher for the spring semester.  He’s been teaching the last 8 years in Dallas ISD, in the Oakcliff area.  Apparently, he’ll be teaching some 10^th grade classes, and also will pick up 11^th grade students from my music classes.  One of my classes goes from 31 students down to 14.  The other class reduces from 32 students to 23.  It makes an immediate difference in the class management scheme.  The reduced student numbers are so much easier to control.  I had to be pretty aggressive to keep control some days.  The students were never malicious, just talkative.

After school, the orchestra club students begin to come in.  Several don’t have their instruments, so today will be discussion.  Rehearsals will begin next week.  I try to quiz them about their performance while I was in the US during Christmas.  Not much in the way of answers.  Some indicate it was 

Judy’s BISS Idol auditions continue.  Today she heard more pianists.  They were well prepared.  She also saw a group of four 4^th grade boys (2 Chinese, 1 Japanese, and 1 Korean) with a dance performance.  They did a great job, and had obviously been preparing.  It wasn’t improvised like you sometimes get with younger students.  Judy asked how they had prepared.  They told her they had been going to a dance academy for several months to prepare for this audition.  BISS Idol may be a more serious activity than Judy had anticipated.

I’m supposed to begin my “extra” music elective class for 10^th graders today.  Classes are scheduled for 2:15, but I’m going to go over in time for lunch at 11:30 (it’s free).  I have time to swim before I go, so I pack my school stuff and swimming stuff and head out.  Since I’m dressed for school, I planned on taking a taxi.  I’m not interested in a long walk in these “school” shoes.  When I get to the street, I realize that traffic is really backed up on our street.  I can also see that the 3^rd Ring Road traffic is moving slow.  Also, no empty taxis are coming by.  I walk across the street, planning to catch a taxi going the other way (no traffic issue), and get a ride over to the train station.  From the train station, I can cut under the highway, and then catch a small shuttle bus that travels from the train station to the intersection near the Marriott.

What a great plan!  However, when I get a taxi, and tell him where to take me, he begins arguing with me and then pulls over to let me out.  I think he misunderstood where I wanted to go.  I tell him the street where the Marriott is.  He indicates we’re going to take a different route, and off we go.  It’s a circuitous route, but gets me to the street I need pretty quickly.  Traffic is really bad here also, so I spend some time sitting in traffic.  When I get close to the Marriott, the driver lets me out, and I finish with a short walk.

Another one of those crazy bike/trash guys. I don’t know where they take all this stuff, and how they make money on it. Someone must be paying something somewhere for recycling materials. These guys are everywhere, and I haven’t seen any vehicles that look like a garbage truck, anywhere.

After the swim, I walk out of the Marriott, and across the street, where I can catch a small shuttle.  Each of the vehicles carries 8-10 passengers.  I’ve never tried this before, and I don’t know how much it costs.  I climb in, like I’m a regular rider.  When we get to subway station, everyone gets out, and we’re met by someone collecting money.  It costs me 2rmb, about 36 cents.  This is so cheap!  I’ll probably use it more often now that I know the cost.  Prior to this, my only contact with the shuttles was dodging them on the narrow road as I walked to the Marriott.  They’re electric and run silent.  The only warning you get is a short honk, and then they buzz by. 

Looking for something to liven up my life, I take a different train route to school.  I’ve decided to travel on Line #1, the train line that goes underneath Tian’anmen Square.  I’m curious how heightened the security is for all the government meetings.  It turns out to be an uneventful trip.  Nothing is out of the ordinary, except for the added military guards at the train stations.

At BHSFIC, I meet my new music elective class of 10^th graders.  There are 6 students attending today.  The 10^th graders just spent 4 ½ weeks in the US.  These kids were in Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Chicago, Monterrey, and Texas.  It’s fun to talk to them about their experiences.  They lived in private homes, and attended classes in private U.S. schools.  The girl who was in Texas attended Trinity Valley HS in Fort Worth, and lived on a ranch.  She even got to attend the rodeo in Ft. Worth.  It’s fun to hear her impression about “home.”

Judy had her first auditions today for BISS Idol.  She had three kindergarten students perform piano pieces.  All three students came in, very well prepared, and performed confidently.  She was impressed with their talent, and level of preparation.  Auditions should be interesting as the week moves on, and she hears some of the older students.

My day is spent with school work and a swim session.  The weather here is a contrast to what I’m hearing about in Texas.  North Texas is having a period of high temps, followed by abrupt drops to extremely low temps and ice.  In Beijing, we’ve had several weeks of below freezing nights, followed by daytime temps slightly above freezing.  For a month previous to that, we had slightly colder weather, where the temp seldom got above freezing.  The wind doesn’t blow much so walking outdoors is manageable.  Now we’re seeing temps at night right around freezing, and highs in the middle 40’s.  Next week, the temps are supposed to rise to the 50’s.  We haven’t had any of the extreme temperature rise and fall we’re used to experiencing in DFW.  I’m almost afraid to say it, but I think the severe cold part of the winter may be over. 

I was prepared for much colder weather.  The people at BISS that kept telling us how bad it was going to be are a little disappointed that we haven’t suffered more.  It’s fun to tell them how much worse it is in Texas.

A new work-week begins, after a successful “Annie” presentation.  BISS is beginning auditions for BISS Idol, the school talent show.  Judy has auditions scheduled for the elementary students Tuesday thru Thursday.  She’s curious what she’s going to see and hear.

I’m putting together materials for my classes this week, and several weeks to come.  We’ve been doing some talking about “The Beatles”, and there are great videos available on YouTube.  Internet access and speed varies widely, so I have to download and save anything I want to use.  I have a program that lets me save a YouTube video for later use, but depending on the internet speed, it could take 2 minutes, or an hour.  On a day when we’ve got good internet, I have to work like crazy.  On the slow internet days, it’s a real beating.

I’m not sure what kind of information you might be getting in the U.S., but for the next two weeks, the CPCC (Central Party of the Chinese Communist party), and the NPC (National Party Congress) are meeting in Beijing.  The meetings are held at the Great Hall of the People, near Tian’anmen Square, just down the street from my school.  We received an email reminding us of the meetings, and the possibility for traffic issues.  I travel by train so I don’t anticipate any problems when I go at the end of the week. 

There is definitely a heavier security network in place, due to the government meetings, but also due to the attack at the Kunming Train Station (not in Beijing).  As I went through the usual subway security this morning, all bags are scanned.  Today, however, there was someone with a wand, randomly scanning people walking through.  They stopped me and pointed at my water bottle.  I thought they were telling me to throw it away, like at the airport.  Actually, they only wanted me to drink a little bit of it, I guess to prove it wasn’t explosive.  It’ll be an interesting two weeks.

Judy is ready for a change of pace after all the work on “Annie”.  We decide to visit a Beijing landmark, the Lama Temple.  We head out to the train, stopping at McDonalds for breakfast.  I had been going through the Lama Temple train station all year on my way to BHSFIC, but hadn’t come above ground.  The street to the temple was narrow, crowded, and lined with shops selling incense.

Lots of incense in the air

This is just one of about 15 buildings, where similar prayers and incense burning were taking place.

The Lama Temple is the largest “lamasery” in China. One of the monks wandering by.

The temple grounds are really big, with numerous large buildings filled with statues.  It is one of the largest Tibetan Buddhist Temples in the world, and the center of worship in Beijing. There are areas in front of each building to kneel and pray to whichever religious icon is inside.  There are people everywhere carrying large packets of incense sticks, and the smell of incense is everywhere.  We worked our way through the complex and were rewarded with a view of “The Big Buddha”.  It’s a huge statue, at least 60 feet tall.

Some of the Lama Temple sights. Pictures inside the buildings was discouraged.

We head home after our visit to relax.  We watch a few West Wing episodes, and when we get hungry, head over to our newest favorite place, Fatburger.  This is a habit we’re probably going to have to break, but later is better than sooner.