Summer schedule.

It’s been over a week since the last blog post. Public school classes have come to an end. We went out to the park the day after public school classes were over. The weather that had been 38̊C had cooled off to 29̊C. The next evening we took one of the teacher assistants out to eat at Flolon’s Pizza. She never had pizza before. We had three pasta dishes, a small supreme pizza and two orders of onion rings. The total order with drinks was just over $15US. We took our parmesan cheese that our friends sent us from Beijing because we had not seen any here. The owner thought we were trying to take his parmesan cheese when we started to leave. He gets the same Craft brand and size from the province capital, Harbin. It was a great time for all of us. The temperature had dropped to 15̊C for the July 4th weekend. Over the weekend I was assigned two new baby classes. On Saturday I had six in the first class and seven in the second. Because the first day is free the attendance for the classes had changed by the next day. The first class only had two and the second had five including one that was not there for Saturday. It is very exhausting to spend an hour teaching two children age five the letter ‘A’, the words ‘apple, ant, alligator and album’ and the phrases ‘Hello, how are you? Fine, thank you.’ I also received my summer schedule teaching spoken classes at Ivy. I lucked out with having only one class three evenings a week. The kids are around 15 to 16 and all speak pretty good English. It was a nice change from the baby classes. Other than finishing up her history, Suzanne has nine A’s, two B’s and a C for 7th grade. Tomorrow she is going with one of the TA’s, Yen, to visit a local orphanage. Destiny has a tooth on the top coming in to go with the two on the bottom. Deb has started trying her on 3rd foods and she really loves most of them, especially the family favorite, spaghetti.

Weekend.

Deb and I had talked about trying to get a night where just the two of us went out without the kids. We had planned on saturday night but at lunchtime on saturday the school informed me I had some extra classes just for this weekend. Most of the teachers had been given extra work also. A recent high school graduate was leaving on monday to go for an entrance interview at Hong Kong Baptist Universiy and wanted to brush up on her English before she left. Her "sister"; really her cousin, also attended these sessions also. The girl's name is Ci Ci and her cousin on the right is Ivy. Ci Ci wants to study, live and work in Hong Kong doing broadcast journalism. She says she passed the English proficiency test to enter the school which is taught in English. I wish her the best of luck in the pursuit of her dream. After she had eight hours of sessions on saturday until 8pm she decided to cancel her last two on sunday. This meant that Deb and I could go out to dinner sunday evening. We had wanted to go to a barbecue place near our apartment but they told us they did not have any openings for the two of us when we arrived. They might be reservation only. We will have to try to eat there some other time. We walked on down by the river until we found another place we wanted to try. We saw this was a hot-pot after we walked in and sat down. One of the girls greeting people spoke some English and showed us to our seat and then helped us order. They placed a big, two compartment dish on the cooker in the middle of the table. One side was spicy and the other was not. We had ordered potatoes, beef and salad. The potatoes were like thick cut 'Ruffles'. The beef was cut very thin like deli sliced cold cut sandwich meat. Both were raw and we cooked them ourself at the table. The salad was just a few different types of lettuce and other plants without any dressing. Some of it was bitter and some of it bland. We won't order that again. The beef and potatoes were good. We also ordered some peta like things with beef and onion that were already cooked. I enjoyed them. The best part of the meal was the watermelon at the end. The bill was less than $20US. We joined about 15 to 20 thousand Chinese down by the river to enjoy the cool evening air. On weekends at different spots along the river there are marching and dance troops performing. These troops vary in number from just a few to several hundred. People will always join in when there disc jockey starts playing the music. The songs are very long and each song has different steps. They will do this for hours. We watched one troop dancing. It was much like line dancing. Altogether we had a good few hours without the kids. Susan does a great job taking care of her sister.

Statistics.

Here are a few statistics I came across. Mostly from the CIA, so they may not be entirely accurate.




22% of the world’s population is in China.

There are over 1.3 billion people in China.

Despite a one child policy, China is still growing at a rate of nearly 13 million each year.

43% of China’s population lives in urban areas.

There are over 160 cities in China that have a population over one million.

China has a total land area of nearly 9.6 million square kilometers.

Average residential space per person in urban areas is 24.9 square meters.

88.8% of urban areas in China have running water.

There are 37 million more men in China than women.

8.6 % of China’s population is over 65 years old.

Men live for an average of 72 years in China, while women live for an average of 76 years.

3.6% of China’s population is University Graduates.

There are over 350,000 foreign students studying in China.

There are over 2,000 newspapers and 9,000 magazines published in China.

China has 3,240 local television stations.

There over 700 million mobile phone users in China with nearly 16 million of those with 3G coverage.

There are over 298 million internet users in China with 97 million having broadband.

China comes in second in roadways in the world and third, just behind Russia in railways.

China spends 4.3% GDP on military. (23rd in the world)



The USA has the third largest population in the world at 4.5% following China and India.

The US has just less than 9.1 million square kilometers land area.

There are only 9 cities in the US with populations over 1 million.

The US had 270 million mobile phone users in 2008.

There are over 2,200 television stations in the US.

There are around 231 million internet users in the US.

81% of the US population lives in urban areas.

12.6% of the US population is at least 65 years old.

The US is growing at a rate of nearly 3 million per year.

US men live for an average of 75 years and US women for an average of 80 years.

There are 5% more males born in the US the females.

The US average residential space per person in urban areas is 30 square meters.

The US leads the world in airports, roads and railways.

The US spends 4.06%GDP on military. (25th in the world)

Israel spends 7.3%GDP, Iraq 8.6%GDP, Saudi Arabia 10%GDP and Oman 11.4%GDP on military.

There are 40 countries in the world that spend less than 1%GDP on military including Iceland which spends 0%.

Statistics.

Here are a few statistics I came across. Mostly from the CIA, so they may not be entirely accurate.




22% of the world’s population is in China.

There are over 1.3 billion people in China.

Despite a one child policy, China is still growing at a rate of nearly 13 million each year.

43% of China’s population lives in urban areas.

There are over 160 cities in China that have a population over one million.

China has a total land area of nearly 9.6 million square kilometers.

Average residential space per person in urban areas is 24.9 square meters.

88.8% of urban areas in China have running water.

There are 37 million more men in China than women.

8.6 % of China’s population is over 65 years old.

Men live for an average of 72 years in China, while women live for an average of 76 years.

3.6% of China’s population is University Graduates.

There are over 350,000 foreign students studying in China.

There are over 2,000 newspapers and 9,000 magazines published in China.

China has 3,240 local television stations.

There over 700 million mobile phone users in China with nearly 16 million of those with 3G coverage.

There are over 298 million internet users in China with 97 million having broadband.

China comes in second in roadways in the world and third, just behind Russia in railways.

China spends 4.3% GDP on military. (23rd in the world)



The USA has the third largest population in the world at 4.5% following China and India.

The US has just less than 9.1 million square kilometers land area.

There are only 9 cities in the US with populations over 1 million.

The US had 270 million mobile phone users in 2008.

There are over 2,200 television stations in the US.

There are around 231 million internet users in the US.

81% of the US population lives in urban areas.

12.6% of the US population is at least 65 years old.

The US is growing at a rate of nearly 3 million per year.

US men live for an average of 75 years and US women for an average of 80 years.

There are 5% more males born in the US the females.

The US average residential space per person in urban areas is 30 square meters.

The US leads the world in airports, roads and railways.

The US spends 4.06%GDP on military. (25th in the world)

Israel spends 7.3%GDP, Iraq 8.6%GDP, Saudi Arabia 10%GDP and Oman 11.4%GDP on military.

There are 40 countries in the world that spend less than 1%GDP on military including Iceland which spends 0%.

Meet Taylor.

This is Taylor. Suzanne was wanting to get another pet and we agreed that if she received above 85% on her finals we would talk about it. She did, we did and here it is. Everyone gets along for now. This never has been a peaceful house. No matter which country. There's always been a mouth screaming to be fed.

Not yours.

Prices.

These are some prices of the mostly everyday things.


                                                  RMB                                          US       
Teeth cleaning                              30                                            4.50

18Liters drinking water delivered   6                                               .90

Bottled water                                1                                               .15

Lunch                                           5                                               .75

Soda                                            3                                               .45

Electric bill                                100                                            15.00

Boxed baby cereal                     26                                               3.90

Jared baby food                        10                                               1.50

Diapers                                   185                                             28.00

Wipes                                       12                                               1.80

Shoes                                       30                                               4.50

Formula                                    30                                               4.50

Toilet Paper (10 rolls 3 ply)       11                                               1.65

Sleeping.

It's really starting to get hot around here. We don't have air conditioning in our apartment but we do have three fans now. Our bedrooms are facing South so we get sunshine all day. They don't believe in soft beds. Hard to them means quality. They also don't believe in sheets. We have two thick pads on our bed to make it a little softer to sleep on. The padding does a great job in the Winter reflecting our bodyheat but it is too much in the Summer. They use either straw or bamboo mats to keep the beds cooler during the Summer. We spent the extra for the bamboo. It cost $22.50US. It is not the most comfortable bed to sleep in but it works. We packed this small pillow with us that DJ just loves to sleep with.

Night out.

Yesterday started a three day holiday for most people but I have to work the first two. Deb and I got out early and went to breakfast at KFC. It was about 7am and the streets seemed empty with only a few hundred people moving about compared to the usual tens of thousands. I guess they were sleeping in because as the day progress there was more people getting out. We went to explore more of the city after I got off work. One part of the city we wanted to see was the night market. As we were walking to the night market I stepped on a nail that went an inch into my foot. Not long after this painful experience we walked a little further and looked up to find a real pizza place. We stopped for dinner. The pizzas didn’t have sauce on them and the flavor of the cheese was a little off. But it was still pizza. After we left the pizza place we went to the night market. It is a street about two tenths of a mile long that has nothing but food, clothes and every other kind of vender you could think of. There were so many people that we could barely walk. It must have been half the city. After we got to the end of the night market we walked down to the river. There was lots of people there also, some launching paper hot-air balloons with messages to their dead relatives. Except for the bugs it was nice down by the river. It was getting close to bed time for DJ so we took a taxi home.

Best birthday ever.

The school director, Mei Han, likes to make a big thing out of the teacher’s birthdays. I told her I didn’t want a big deal over my birthday so she was just going to have a cake we would share at lunch time since we would all be working at the school on Saturday. It turns out that the Wednesday after my birthday is Dragon Boat Festival. Everyone likes to have three days off for the festival so the public schools had classes over the weekend and Ivy changed their schedule to have weekend classes on the following Monday and Tuesday. All this meant that we would not be at Ivy on my birthday. Mei saw this as a chance to take the teachers to diner for my birthday. My T.A., Meg had already given me a present of a Buddha necklace. She said there are two kinds of Buddha necklace; one the guys wear to bring fortune and the one she gave me that the gals where to bring happiness. Since I look like the second, it is considered good luck. We met the other teachers at Ivy where the other Chinese staff gave me gifts. I received a toy wooden car, a boat that is also a music box, a fold out fan with four famous beautiful Chinese ladies on it, a straw pillow, another straw pillow that rolls out into a seat cushion and a drink bottle I can carry with me to classes. As we were arriving at Ivy it started to rain very hard, so we had a hard time getting a taxi to take us to the restaurant when we were leaving. The restaurant was very nice. Every time we go out to eat with Mei, she takes us to a different restaurant and the food keeps getting better. This place was just around the corner from where we live. Mei paid $10US per person for the diner. George gave me a small statue of an emperor riding a horse and I was made honorary emperor of Ivy. I was given the traditional noodle of longevity that is one wide, very long noodle. We all had a great time. Thank you to all my new friends and family at Ivy.

Swimming and other fun.

The other day we had our friend George over for dinner and a movie. It was nice to have someone else to visit with besides each other. The following day I took Suzanne to the local dentist to get her teeth cleaned. When we got to the dentist we were the only ones there so they got her in right away. It only took about 20 minutes and cost a grand total of $4.50US. That afternoon we went swimming at the cities university indoor swimming pool. When you first arrive and go up the steps into the building, you are greeted by ladies in long flowing dresses and the lobby looks like a five star hotel lobby. After getting locker keys and exchanging your shoes for slippers, you can head through the respective ladies or gentlemens locker and shower area to the pool. The water was very cold so DJ did not swim but did like splashing and watching everyone else. Suzanne had a good time as did we all since it was a good thing to do on a hot day. A one time visit to the pool for all day cost $2.70US per person. DJ is starting to hold herself up when sitting now. Suzanne is turning out to be a really great big sister. We went down to the arcade at the mall and had an evening of fun last night. Yes, Suzanne is in the dog crate, just playing around. The picture with the two ladies sleeping on the desk is a couple of Ivy's T.A.'s taking a hot afternoon nap after working very hard. They really do work long hours for the school.

Love is strawberries.

A teacher at Ivy has one of those big balls kids sit on and bounce. DJ had fun with that yesterday. Today she tried strawberries for the first time and loves them. Tomorrow Suzanne is getting her teeth cleaned and then going swimming in the afternoon.

DJ walking and shopping.

The girl holding DJ is my friend, Meg. She is the teacher assistant from Ivy that goes with me to the public school to help out when I need it. The other day DJ was practicing in her walker just a little past her nap time. After her nap she was sitting-up in her crib playing with her toys and ready to go again. Today she went shopping and had all heads turning. Even the taxi driver on the way home was taking videos and pictures while he was driving. So naturally I took a picture of him driving and taking a picture of her. It isn't the craziest thing we have seen here. Another wild experience is when we take the bus that has 20 seats and 80 people. You really get to know a person on a bus. Suzanne is planning on visiting my public school this next week for one day. I think that will be an experience for everyone.

Another good day at the park.

It is raining as I am writing this. We went to the park yesterday and had another good day. The temperatures are reaching into the 80'sF now so it is plenty warm without being too hot.

Teething.

I have a tooth showing on the bottom. I think I have another coming through on top. Can I use your phone to help get this tooth out sis? This MP3 player taste good too sis.

Another beautifual day in NE China.

Yesterday I stayed at home with the baby and took a much needed nap while Deb and Suzanne got out. Today we all went to the park that is just one block South of Ivy. There were several people enjoying the park. The crowd you see are people watching a game of Chinese chess. There is a fountain in the middle that Suzanne and Spot played in. Spot also played ball and learned how to play with the disc. He never had played with that before and at first wasn't very interested but he caught on quickly and it is his new favorite game. It was a very relaxing afternoon for us all. DJ had a great time, especially when her big sister let her wear her hat. We went by the farmers market on the way home so Suzanne could pick up some red apples.

Wednesday afternoon.

Suzanne and Deb went for a walk while Spot, DJ and myself took a nap.

An afternoon at the island.

The weather is starting to get a little warm here now so Sunday Deb and DJ came up to Ivy to meet me after my last class so we could go to the market to buy a fan. We walked as far as we could in the underground to avoid the traffic, crowds and heat. You can see in one of these pics how the streets are lined with people selling everything under the sun. The market was starting to close as we arrived and the first stall didn't want to haggle the price very much so we went to the next one and came away with a nice fan with remote for $24US. Today after we had lunch we went down to the river and crossed to the island. There are lots of carnival type games along with bumper cars, go carts, dune buggies and horses. It cost$0.60US each for a round trip on the ferry. It cost $1.50US for two laps on the dune buggy and $3US per person per lap to ride the horse. Suzanne had fun doing both. It was a little breezy and cooler today than yesterday. In one of the pictures you can see the rail bridge that crosses the river and if you zoom in, you can just make out the outline of the mountains to the West of the city. Another picture shows the tall apartment buildings that are between our apartment and the river. The girl holding DJ is one of the teachers at Ivy.

Beautiful ladies.

Open air market and river walk.

Suzanne wanted to show off her new room with the extra posters sent from home and her new cool blue hair. Spot was waiting by the computer for grandma to call on Skype. Yesterday Suzanne and Deb went down to an open air market and walked around. Today they showed it to me and we got them some badminton rackets and birdies. We also walked through the fish market. The entire walk there and the entire area is nothing but one store, stall or vendor after another. It was very crowded with about 15 to 20 thousand people out, and this was problably a slow day. After we left the market we made our way to the river, which only had probably just over 5 thousand people, and had ice cream at TCBY. We had our first walk along the river since it thawed out. The weather has been around 70F lately and when it isn't raining it is very nice. What grass there is has turned green and the trees have leaves on them. There are buds on the bushes and soon there will be flowers blooming. Normally this time of the year there would have already been flowers for the last three weeks but the winter was extra cold and long. While we were walking along the river we saw many people, around 200, in the same clothes performing organized marching to music. Before we went home we tried a new restaurant we found near the apartment but the food was not as good as it looked. We like to try something new each week. At least this wasn't very expensive. It was only around $7US. We paid $10US at TCBY. TCBY is a once a month treat. Destiny is playing with her new rattle we got her Sunday on the way home. It cost $0.45US for two. She loves it. While in the two story open air market, there was a stall that was selling hologram pictures and two of them showed Jesus. I forgot the camera today so I only could take a picture with my phone.