Tuesday, June 7, 2011

1st Full Day in China- Checking into Suzhou

What a 24 hours it has been!  I never found my temple yesterday on my walk- the map was a bit distorted and my 2 block stroll turned into a 2 hour stride. I didn’t care if I found anything. Just walking through the city was amazing until, of course, the torrential downpour. Showing up at the hotel drenched seemed to be quite entertaining to the hotel staff. I grabbed my luggage and was in a cab to the next milestone of my trip- meeting up with the group. I was very happy to see them and I think we all had this sense of accomplishment that we each met at 2pm in Shanghai China as requested.
We boarded the bus for our 2+ hour ride to Suzhou. Those ‘people I hardly know’ that I referenced earlier, yeah…I know them now. This is such a fun group. We have 1 undergrad with his Mom’s credit card (no, we didn’t hassle him about that one at all), an educator in using baseball teams during Chinese massage, one won’t likely put whole crustaceans on my plate again without asking, an IT guy, another Mom with two girls, a guy expecting his first…and second child soon, an ex-kitchen manager, one contemplating San Diego or Brooklyn when she graduates and…..I know I will learn more.
Traveling with Professors is a different experience all together. Just by their nature, they always want us to be learning. So they point out things like architecture, things people say and why, neighborhood developments, etc. They are both fascinated with the Asian culture so, between the two of them, they add a dynamic we would not otherwise experience.
Checked into Suzhou and this is an interesting experience.  We were actually pleasantly surprised in the dorm rooms. They had new laminate floors, we had our own bathrooms, air conditioning, a door to the patio (AKA clothes line), closets, outlets that worked with our things…who could ask for more.  So far, exceeding our expectations. We met our dorm mother outside and the language barrier entertainment began. Melissa grabbed her Chinese book and we laughed with her as we all tried to communicate. We made progress, had fun and definitely broke the ice.
First stop was the local market to pick up things for our temporary homes. Many working at the market are, as expected, students and they seemed excited to practice their English on some real English speaking people. I was surprised that more of them did not speak more English. In fact, some seem to not speak any at all other than a few words. Most of the packaging did not have English on it or maybe just enough to know what is inside. This was all good-adds to the adventure and is a bit of the reality of life in China outside of the American hotel.
Dinner was across the street at the hotel. There are 14 of us so they put us in a private room with the giant Lazy Susan. The servers did not seem to understand much of what Professor Cooley was saying so ordering was particularly challenging. He figured there must be some sort of accent or dialect change.  We ate amazing food and, with most of us hitting the point of complete exhaustion, headed to Auchan to pick up air mattresses, towels and a few things.
……off to bed. Boys in one building, Girls in another, doors locked and lights out.
2012- Tip of the day
Don’t bother packing stuff you can buy here. It is cheap. Our lists included instant coffee, coffee cup, spoon, towel, hand towels, toilet paper, shampoo, soap, laundry soap, hangers, water, beverages and maybe some snacks. Auchan is very close and is like a mega huge Walmart. If you forgot it-it is likely there.

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