A Friend from Afar is Now Near(er)

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When I was in Bangkok last summer, I became friends with a sweet woman from Mozambique. She was in my CELTA course, so we spent a lot of time together not only in class, but also on the weekends trying to think about anything other than class.

As luck would have it, she's now accepted a job in China starting this spring. She won't be teaching in Guangzhou, but she stopped to visit me for 5 days before moving on to her job training and actual position. Since she's never been to China before, I spent a lot of time answering her questions and also preparing some fun getting-to-know-China activities for her and me to do together.

Before starting her orientation training, she decided to visit me for a few days. My first visitor since my parents came in 2009!

Her flight arrived a bit early and she easily found her way to the bus. (Sure, my step-by-step directions and photos helped, but she's a pro!) The bus didn't drop her off at the hotel like it was supposed to, but rather down the street. I panicked when it drove by and didn't stop. I needn't have worried--next thing I knew she and a handsome man were pushing her luggage up the hill to where I was standing! He seemed friendly and gave his phone number to me... since he speaks almost no English. Somehow, I don't think we'll be calling him.

Her first full day here--Thursday--we biked to Chini, the village nearest the university. In China, visitors must be registered with the local police station within 24 hours of arrival. Hotels and hostels usually do this for you, but since she stayed with me, we had to do it ourselves. Some might ask why we didn't just skip this step, since most likely no one would ever know the difference. I know some of my friends have skipped this in the past. But since she's going to be applying for a residence permit soon, I didn't want there to be any glitches or problems simply because I was too lazy to help her with this.

After registering her at the police station, Godfrey and his girlfriend (our translators) said they wanted to get some fruit. (All the stores near the school are still closed for the holiday.) We all biked to the market in the middle of town. My friend loves taking photos of Asian markets and was in high heaven. We biked along the river, too, just taking in the scenery and nice weather. Then, back to the university and to town for a few afternoon errands.

Friday we took the early bus into Guangzhou. We dropped our things of at a nice hostel and had Japanese food for lunch. Since we don't know where she'll be placed, but it most likely will not be a big city with a variety of food options, I did my best to make sure she got lots of food that wasn't Chinese. We walked around Haizhu Square and strolled along the Pearl River before wandering through the endless streets in the wholesale market area. Again, her camera was happy.

After dinner we decided to check out all the lights and music we were noticing as we walked back to the metro. The area around the Canton Tower was still decorated for CNY and people were out having fun with family and friends. There was orchestral music blaring, but we sadly realized it was coming through speakers and wasn't live. There were still plenty of flower displays and lights to take photos with, though. The Canton Tower is lit up, as well, and changes colors, dazzling us with all the colors of the rainbow. This was the first time I'd seen the Canton Tower lit up at night and now have a much better idea why my students are so proud of it. Then we finally took the metro to another part of town for some drinks and girly chatting time.

Saturday we slept late, had a leisurely coffee and muffin breakfast, and then went to the Tomb of the Nanyue King. I've been to this museum three times now, and I still find it interesting. The tomb is about 2000 years old and you can climb down into it. Workers discovered it in the mid 1980's when they were digging for a construction project. I'm always amazed by how small the rooms were (height and width), especially since it's supposed to be a tribute for royalty.

Sunday was a good lazy day. After hoofing it all over the town and city for the past 3 days, we were tired. The vegetable lady was finally open for business and we stocked up. (It's amazing how having convenient access to fresh produce makes me happy.) We took a nice short walk around the university campus, enjoying the scenic peacefulness of it all. I'm so happy the weather cooperated for her visit.

Monday she left. We were fortunate enough to get a van right when we needed it and that the driver was willing to drive to town right then and there (rather than wait for more passengers). Within minutes of our being dropped off the airport bus arrived, making our good-bye rather hasty. But that's life in China and you just need to go with the flow.

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Photos

Proof We're in China!
Note the flag on the boat.

Along the riverbanks
Time for chess or mahjong.

Ta-da! She's on a bike!
In the Chini Market

Haizhu Square area
Tea on a sidewalk