Merry Christmas....Whomp

Apparently the Christmas tradition in this country is to whomp a bunch of people upside the head. I'm telling you, it's like rioting. You see, just before Christmas, all the street vendors start selling these big blow-up baseball bats and clubs and on the nights of Christmas Eve and Christmas people fill the square and the streets (and I mean FILL) and they pick out people in the crowd to beat up with their bats. It's one thing to be hit by one, no harm done, but when thirty-plus people start attacking one person who innocently walks by, it becomes a massacre. It's insane, there's literally no way to describe it and I couldn't even take pictures for fear of being silly string-ed or beaten. Some tradition, huh!? All that aside, we had a really great week. My family and friends hooked me up nicely with some really great gifts, which I have been enjoying, but more importantly, it was really fun to pick out gifts for people back in the States. We had a great time here being lazy, watching the Christmas episodes of the Wonder Years and Everybody Loves Raymond on DVD. Christmas dinner was eating out at a French restaurant, which was good, but definitely NOT Christmas dinner. Anyways, made for an interesting holiday, though I miss being with all those I love!

THIEVES!

I had my phone stolen yesterday, but then I stole it back. I know, you're wondering, What?! Well I was walking with a friend to lunch and I never noticed that a guy walked up close to me, because here it's always pretty crowded. Anyways, we're talking and I see her look back over her shoulder, at which point I also turned around, only to find a guy standing behind us holding my phone right there in front of him. To be honest, I thought I'd dropped it at first, but my friend told me she saw him steal it, so while he stood there looking a little bit embarrassed and not quite knowing what to do, I took the phone back out of his hand and told him "thanks!" I think it was the first time I'd stolen anything, but then again, it was rightfully mine, so it probably doesn't qualify as larceny. I guess I was being looked out for yesterday and you can be sure I'm keeping my pockets zipped closed now! Xiaoxin means be careful!

Brrr Beijing!

My mom and friend, Amanda, came to visit me this past week and we sure did have a great time (at least I hope they had as much fun as I did!) What a busy week. I brought them to class with me, we had a big Christmas party together, I took them to a nearby wharftown, etc, etc. And then on Thursday we all travelled to Beijing together. Oh it was cold up there. We went to the Great Wall, aka Chang Cheng and the wind was blowing so hard you had to hang onto the wall to climb down! We also got to go to the Forbidden City and Tian'anmen Square, and although interesting, I wouldn't care if I never went back to those places again. It wasn't that they were bad, it was just one of things where it's great to see it once. Amanda and my mom also brought cards and stuff from friends and family, so a big thanks to those that either mailed them here, or sent here through them! This month has gone by in a big ole whirl. I didn't even write a post about the Dawgs winning the SEC Championship!!! Bad Dawg I am...bad Dawg. I do have my championship shirt here though, so just know the Dawgs are being represented well here across the world. We even flew the big G on the Great Wall! Shopping was also great in the Jing...Mom says I made out like a bandit, and I can't argue, but on that note, bargaining for stuff is a great big long argument that I just can't stand. Those of you that know me well also know that I'm a sucker. I can admit that. Amanda helped me though to hold strong on the prices we were willing to pay for all the oodles of things you can imagine we were buying, NorthFaces, Polos, scarves, vests, pearls, all kinds of Christmas gifts. We got to eat at TGIFridays and Outback in that city too, which was amazing to have GOOD American food. And guess what!? They have 7-11's in East Asia! I took a picture because I thought it was funny, I mean, we don't even have many of those anymore. The last night we all went to an acrobatics show and they did all kinds of amazing things, like 12 women balancing on one bicycle and spinning plates while doing jumps and somersaults and stuff, it was awesome! Anyways, it was a great week that I wish the rest of you could have been to experience as well, especially Dad, Kevin, Ken and Debbie. One week didn't really seem to be enough time to show them all that we do here in the midst of classes and all, but it must suffice, and so must this post to describe our adventures together.

My First Proposal....From An Arab

Yep, you read the title right. Here's the story: I was in class this morning and during the ten minute break, the guy in my class from Palestine asked me to come into the hallway to "show me something." I'm thinking, crud, he's gonna lecture me about getting so frustrated with my teacher for not understanding my question earlier. (The question being whether or not the Chinese word for telephone (the noun) is also the same as the word for making a call (verb)...) Anyways, pointless detail. So, I reluctantly get up, realizing I shouldn't have gotten so frustrated with my teacher and ready to take the brunt of whatever scolding Al-Buz was about to throw at me...so I thought. Anyways, he starts telling me about his family, shows me a picture of his 16-year-old son and a letter from the president of Colorado State where he went to grad school about the school's condolences for the loss of King Hussein, etc. etc. Then all of a sudden he says that he really likes the city we live in, that he wishes to stay, but if so, he will need to find a wife (keep in mind here that he already has one back in Palestine), and then proceeded to ask if I am single and interested...WHAT!? And all along I thought the guy hated me because I had told him one day in class that Palestine isn't really a country, that it's a part of Israel. That was when he yelled at me for my ignorance and said that I had no respect for his people. Ok, maybe I was a little culturally insensitive to him then, but that's beside the point. The man practically asked me if I was interested in marrying him!! And the worst of it is he's over twice my age, wears so much aftershave that you can smell him from outside the class building, and he has a really awful Saddam-stache. EWW! Anyways, I figured it was worth noting on this since it is about my many adventures, afterall. Makes class with him just a tad more awkward now though, wouldn't you say!?

Holiday Decorating Asia Style

The other night Bethy and I decided to pull out our Christmas tree and set it up and decorate. Unfortunately our decorations here are limited, so what we've got is really a sad attempt, but an attempt nonetheless! Basically our Christmas decorations consist of a fake tree, some ribbons tied around our kitchen chairs, and a vase filled with the left over ornaments. So it took all of 20 minutes to put it all together, which some of you (Mom) might be thinking is probably more of a blessing than I realize, haha. After we decorated we made some watered down apple cider (Sorry Beth, it really WAS good!) and just sat on our couches and stared at the tree for a couple hours. We listened to some Christmas music and shared some memories from past Christmases, it was all quite sentimental and warm and fuzzy and whatnot. Anyways, it was the best night of the week, hands down. And that's right, I'm wearing my moose pants! One week until my mom and Amanda get here! YAY! Can't wait, it's gonna be a good time.