The Trail Left Behind

Hangzhou, China

A famous Chinese proverb says, "Reading ten thousand books is not as useful as traveling ten thousand miles."  In other words, one learns more by traveling than by sticking one's nose in a book. After teaching in Shanghai, China, for about six months now, I find this proverb to be true; however, it is only true if one actively takes the time to become immersed in the Chinese culture. It is easy for me, or any of my colleagues from America to go to work, teach, and come home to a nice apartment and fill our time with TV shows on Hulu or Netflix, Skyping with friends from home, or grocery shopping in the imported section. If I were to do these things all the time I wouldn't learn much more about China than if I had read a guidebook. To meekly observe isn't enough; one must live it. 

The Great Wall

Macau

That is not to say that in my time here I have not given in to pointing at things on menus or in stores instead of using my limited Chinese words, preferred the company of my English-speaking friends to new Chinese ones, or that I did not  feverishly eat all the Pop-tarts my boyfriend brought me when he visited. Still, I try to experience as many new things as I can. I can now add bullfrog, seaweed, chicken and sheep hearts, egg tarts, a full fish (including head and with a ton of bones), fried dumplings, Beijing duck (which is different from normal duck), eel, jujubes, red bean paste, moon cake, and probably some other things that I didn't even know I was eating, to my repertoire. Unlike any fictional character, I have actually hiked The Great Wall (yes, hiked), been to Hong Kong Disneyland, played mahjong, performed in front of Chinese teachers, interned at the largest English magazine in China, have gotten lost on so many occasions, and took pictures with tourists who have never seen a blonde-haired girl in real life. What's even better is that there are more adventures to come. Now that I have been to Bejing, Hangzhou, Hong Kong, and Macau, I have booked my flight to Tokyo, and will soon book my flight to Bangkok. 

My students in costumes at Halloween

Big Buddha, Hong Kong

Before coming to China, I was apprehensive about teaching. I thought I would be placed in front of a packed classroom of children without knowing what to say. Instead, I found that teaching came easy and that I had more than enough to impart to my students. I am now teaching an AP English Language and Composition class along with my second grade classes. My students are some of the sweetest, excited children I have ever seen. I was overjoyed when one of my second graders gave me a stocking with candy as a Christmas present, and then told me I was her favorite teacher she has. Sometimes you have to go to the places where you are needed the most.      

I have spent a lot of time reading, being an English major, but I would never substitute my adventures for the comfort of a book, regardless of my love of literature.   

Through these experiences, I would like to create my own proverb (if the masters would be so kind): "It is not the traveling that you do, but the trail left behind."  

Shanghai

Hong Kong and Macau

Ever wonder what "Asia's World City" is like? Ever wonder if people have British accents there? Ever wonder if Hong Kong is a part of China or actually its own country?

Here is some trivia:

All the signs jutting out

• According to the UN and WHO, Hong Kong had the longest life expectancy of any region in the world. 
• Hong Kong is one of the Alpha+ cities (a city that greatly enhances the global economy).
• 90% of the population uses public transit--the highest in the world (and let me tell you-those metros were SUPER clean and roomy).
• Hong Kong became a colony of Britain after the First Opium War (1839-42).
• Britain controlled Hong Kong until 1997, when China regained control, although Hong Kong follows its own political system (It is considered a Special Administrative Region in the People's Republic of China. I had to pass through immigration coming and leaving Hong Kong).
• People mostly speak Cantonese.
• It is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. World's most "Vertical City."
• "Hong Kong" means "fragrant harbor."
• Nicknames include: "Pearl of the Orient," "Golden Egg," "The Orient Manhattan," "The paradise of shopping," "Food Paradise," and "City of Life." 

Hong Kong was definitely one of the cities I wanted to see in Asia. I had been told that it felt like New York, but with an Asian flair, something I had to see. I also was told that it had a mixture of British and Asian traditions. I like seeing the clash of different cultures, and thought it would be proper to travel there for Spring Festival (Chinese New Year). I went with my friend Tahnesia. Together, we decided to go for four days, visiting Hong Kong Disneyland for one, and Macau for another.

The harbor from Ritz Carlton's Ozone Bar

I know that Hong Kong is one of the most densest cities in the world, but I was still shocked when I arrived and Tahnesia and I were first walking through a street of fruit vendors. You couldn't cross the street from one vendor to the next because there was a steady flow of people. You had to walk with them like robots that are all programmed the same. There seemed to be much more people than in Shanghai. On the other hand, the air quality seemed better and the temperature was definitely warmer…although I still wore my coat. I can't wait for spring time in Shanghai….something that I won't get until March because February is cold! In fact, it snowed today! It was the first time I saw falling snow! Perfect timing too because my roommate and I saw Disney's Frozen today!

Signs light up the night 

Anyway, back to Hong Kong. What's more than the massive amount of people, were the massive signs that jutted out into the street….talk about the spirit of capitalism. Hong Kong's motto could be "The Bigger, the Better," because nobody could miss these signs. Even a blind person would run into them. The hostel we got seemed nice on Hostelworld.com, but it turned out quite pathetically small and dirty, located in the center of downtown Kowloon. Even though we paid for a separate bathroom and $25 US dollars a night, we had a bathroom where the shower hung over the toilet so the toilet so get all wet, and we found about four roaches in the time we were there. This was probably the worst hostel I've stayed at (and I've stayed at quite a few by now). It was Tahnesia's first time staying at a hostel and now I'm afraid she's turned off by them. Don't ever stay at Dragon Hostel!

On top of Victoria's Peak looking at the skyline

The first full day we were there, we decided to check out Victoria's Peak, which overlooks all of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. We took this cable car all the way up the mountain and looked out at the spectacular view. Hong Kong is made up of little islands that are surrounded by the Pearl River Delta and the South China Sea. Hong Kong can sure be a beautiful city with a skyline like that! While we were at the top of the peak, we ate at Bubba Gump, where I had pasta with scampi (there's good seafood in Hong Kong).


Next, Tahnesia suggested we go to the Ritz Carlton for some drinks at the Ozone Bar, Hong Kong's highest bar at floor 87 (I think). The drinks there were really good, but really expensive. The bar itself was fancy and offered a stellar view of the harbor. We stayed up there for a few hours, waiting for it to get dark so we could see the nightly light show (that didn't turn out to be that grand). We did get to see the sunset and the regular lights of the city to pop up. Afterwards, we wandered around the Ladies Market by our hostel where I bought my traditional spoon and magnet for my collections.      

The next morning we got up super early to take the metro to Hong Kong Disneyland! Yes, you can take the metro there! Can you imagine how fun that would have been as kids, if you didn't need your folks to drive you there? So, Disneyland always reminds me of home because I live so close to it in California. Still, I had not been in about three years (a record for me). I am a Disney fan, as well as my brother who studies animation, so to say the least, I was excited. 

It was cool to notice all the differences. Unlike the California Disneyland Resort or Walt Disney World in Florida, Hong Kong Disneyland is pretty small…you can definitely do everything in a day. We went on all the rides except for two and saw the parade and the Lion King show, which was epic. Also unlike the others, HK Dland has a Toys Story Land, Mystic Point Land, and Grizzly Gulch land. My favorite new ride was the Mystic Point Mansion (I think it should come to America). Even though I didn't get a picture with Mickey and Minnie, I caught them in their Asian garb. We stayed all day and even caught some of the fireworks. It was a great day!  

Wynn Hotel and Casino

The Ruins of St. Paul's

For our third day, Tahnesia brought up Macau. I had never even heard of the place before this trip. It turns out that alike Hong Kong, it is a Special Region of China as well. It is also the location of the largest casino in the world (located at the Venetian). Basically, it will be as big as Vegas someday soon. In Macau, people speak Mandarin and Portuguese, since there is a large influence there. It's crazy how different it is than Hong Kong which is just an hour's boat ride away. Tahnesia and I took TurboJet over to the island which we also had to pass through immigration for. We spent a little time at the casinos, but mostly we walked around Macau. Strangely enough, Macau felt more like an European city than an Asian one. And like all cities in Asia, the new is blended right in with the old. The Ruins of St.Paul's Cathedral is a famous and religious site and from the top of the mountain it stands on, one can see the popular casinos rising up in the distance. Senado Square was decorated with a bunch of lanterns for the Chinese New Year and they looked so colorful against the yellow buildings. Macau was beautiful! A strange mix of cultures and a strange mix of eras. I loved it! 

Senado Square

 Other highlights of Macau was the tower that kind of resembled the Seattle Space Needle, the mermaid  swimming around in the fish tank at the MGM Grand Resort, and the same canal rides in the Venetian like the hotel in Vegas.

 That brings me to our last day in Hong Kong. We saved the Big Buddha for the last day, the day of Chinese New Year. We got up early and had a big American breakfast at this place called The Flying Pan. It turned out that the owner, who came to our table making small talk with us, was from Huntington Beach! What a small world…she had first came to Aisa to teach English as well…12 years later and she was still there. Crazy how that happens. The breakfast tasted so good because it's hard to find an American-style breakfast place in Shanghai (although there is one called Mr.Pancake!).

Once we were full, we took another "cable car"to see the Big Buddha, whose official name has left my head. We had to wait in a long line to finally get to the cable car, but when we got there, it was worth it. The cable car took us high above the sea and we could see the Big Buddha from a distance. There was also a temple we checked out on the "Big Buddha" island. It was cool to see people lining up to worship the statue and people burning huge sticks of incense at the temple in honor of their Gods. The incense sticks looked like huge pencils that were being sharpened and there was so much smoke everywhere! It was kind of hard to breathe because of all of it. Thousands upon thousands of people visit this Buddha every week and especially on the week of Spring Festival, when everyone is praying for good luck for the upcoming year.



On top of the Buddha Mountain…what an experience!

Overall, Hong Kong and Macau was a cool trip that I will never forget. I honestly like Hong Kong better than Beijing and maybe even Shanghai even though I have spent more time there. Tahnesia and I took Spring Airlines back to Shanghai and made it there at 2 AM, so we had to wait for the metro to open at 6 AM…thankfully there is a 24 hour Burger King at the airport. I miss the Hong Kong dollar where it is: $1=$7 HK dollars. It's good to be back besides that…it was even warm in Shanghai for a few days after our trip. Now onto teaching AP English courses….and planning for my next trip to….Tokyo!  

People celebrating the Chinese New Year…along with their dragon!