Ch…Ch…Changes
Turn and face the strain. And I have.
In fact, I believe I have embraced this adventure much
more than I
thought I would, but then it’s only been about two weeks. However, I don’t anticipate any change in my
attitude, really. I am one who immediately
knows if I don’t like something (or someone, which doesn’t happen very
often). Anyway, here I am in Xi’an,
residing in the middle of the old Xidian University campus. Kay and Zeph know it well. I cannot overstate how easy it has been, how smooth
a transition, how quickly I have settled into a routine not unlike my routine
in St. Joe. Post-Jet Lag, I have been up
by 6 a.m., out the door for my walk to the ‘bucks for a grande iced decaf
Americano and croissant. Back to the
apartment, check email, work on syllabi, have some fruit for lunch—albeit
dragonfruit, which has stark white flesh with small black seeds, or a peach
(mildly, pleasantly sweet with firm white flesh—my fav so far). Then out and about for the afternoon.
Out and about has been…well, Yikes! There are 8 million people in Xi’an (my hosts
say 10 mil) and it seems like there are as many vehicles. I check my phone’s weather app for the air
quality reading and, on most days, it has been in the moderate-to-unhealthy
range. At this writing, the air quality
is good, with one pic showing a main “ring” (road) around the city center, and
haze in the distance. It is shot from a
pedestrian overpass that I often take to get to the super market (Ren Ren Le)
and the aforementioned coffee shop.
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| Traffic at a calm moment |
There is a hierarchy regarding the
traffic, though, so getting places can be tricky. It seems to me that cars are top dog here,
even out-ranking buses. Cars have the
right of way. No mistaking. Period.
Drivers often don’t look where they’re going and they certainly don’t
give a flying…well, they don’t care if you’re coming at them or not. They take the path, the lane, the turn and
never look back. I took Kay’s bicycle
out for a short trip today (my second such outing) and I rode the brake nearly
the whole time. After cars, and with
buses a close second, the scooters (all-electric, no gasoline powered) are
next. I can’t tell you how many times I
had to stop for some scooter as it came from the side or from behind me. Maybe I’m too courteous a driver, but,
nahhh…these folks are very aggressive.
I’m amazed that there aren’t more accidents. In fact, haven’t seen one yet. After bike riders, pedestrians are at the
bottom of the totem pole. When I walk
down sidewalks, on the street near the curb, at intersections, I find myself
constantly looking over each shoulder.
It’s possible that a car or scooter or bicycle might come up from
behind, honking, telling me to get out of the way. It’s all very fast-paced, not unlike any big
city, though. New York comes to mind.
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| First Selfie in China with Tiantian |
In emails to a few of you, I have
stated many times how nice everyone has been.
Tiantian, Jianhua, and Juan are terrific. Tiantian took me to the Big Wild Goose
Pagoda—Tong Dynasty; 7th to 10th centuries, A.D.—for a
day, which was fascinating, gorgeous. Tiantian
translated some of the history of that dynasty, the players, poets,
calligraphers, and explorers. Jianhua
has turned me onto some of the local restaurants along the back street of
Xidian University. I had lunch at Juan’s
home with Simon and Leo (remember them?).
She’s a great cook and so far it has been my favorite meal—simply down
home, family fare with veggies, rice, tofu, fruit—delicious.
A new friend named Aks (yes, it
sounds like the metathesis of “ask” that we often hear) took me for a ride on
the back of his scooter. We went to
Metro, which is a combination of Costco/Sam’s Club/Target. That ride went beyond Yikes. It was more like, well… Those of you who know
me can finish that sentence. I was able
to buy things like olive oil and Italian pasta, and there are many other
“western” items that I’m sure I’ll get into.
The fall semester doesn’t actually
begin until September 1st. My
schedule is odd, but I do remember writing Yanping that I would teach what they
want me to teach and when. So, all day
Monday from 8:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m.
And then Fridays from 8:30 until about 12:30 (I think. I’m still working on understanding the
schedule of classes, times, length.) Three of the four classes are the same as
what Kay taught—Oral English, Written English, and Newspaper Reading. The fourth is Literature for graduate
students. That one should be fun. Four courses, six class periods. No problem.
It has now been two weeks. I can say that I’m fascinated by the people, the
culture—what I have seen of it, so far—and how children appear to be the same
everywhere. They laugh, they play, and
they seem to be in the moment at all times.
Now, if I can just remember to do that often while I’m here.
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