Blogs from Shaoxing, Zhejiang, China, Asia

I took a trip with the seventh grade students and teachers of my school, to Shaoxing, a town in the northeast part of Zhejiang province. The trip was in commemoration of the May Fourth Movement, which kicked off an important phase in the modernization of China. At the time, the Qing government was weak and corrupt, and China was being bled by western imperialist powers. There were many intellectuals in China who blamed traditional Chinese culture, and wanted to replace it with a westernized culture and education. This "New Culture Movement" was actually made up of many different groups throughout Chinese society. An example of this was in the Chinese scholarship of the time, which was defined by being critical of traditional sources and accounts of history. They would take a look at something they thought ... read more

CHAPTER 20- ANCHANG- WATER TOWN - DRYING CLOTHES AND FOOD Anchang is a water town about an hour outside Shaoxing. It has present old wooden buildings along one long canal basically and is being modernized into a new tourist area. It still has enough old areas to make a worthwhile visit. It is also ‘sausage making time’ in Anchang (and other places too, but it seems to be more noticeable here.) Sausages seem to be hanging and drying everywhere. Also the occasional pieces of meat, chicken, and duck are inter-mixed. It must be salted as it is very cold and damp during this time. It hangs everywhere from cloths lines, buildings, across footpaths and does not seem to be attacked by insects, flies or birds. However, dogs and even cats are tethered during this time. Clothes ... read more

By now, you know the routine. Woke up at 7, went downstairs for a buffet breakfast. This one was exceptionally exciting as they had CEREAL! We both opted for Coco Krispies, not a cereal we'd ever really eat in the states, but this was a special occasion...we haven't had any cereal since leaving the states! As we headed out to get on the bus, we noticed it was drizzling and looked pretty chilly. YES! We'd been just waiting for some cooler weather and a chance to wear our new coats. Walking outside we were greeted with temperatures in the low 60s and rain and we both couldn't stop smiling. We rode on the bus once again for awhile and then got out at an area where a famous Chinese calligraphers works were on display. It was ... read more

Halloween definitely did not feel at all like a holiday being in China this year. We taught our students about it for the two weeks leading up to it and they seemed to have some fun, but it is a pretty weird holiday to explain to foreign people- "Oh yeah, we dress up in creepy costumes and encourage children to demand candy from strangers!" Hmm. I can see why my students looked at me in confusion. As it was just another day on the trip for us, we woke up yet again at 7am and went downstairs for the standard hotel buffet breakfast. It was fancy, delicious and we definitely were full by the end of it. We ended up sitting with another older Chinese couple (not in our group) at breakfast and they immediately tried ... read more

CHAPTER 16- A NEW START IN CHINA After a year back home from teaching in South Korea (including holidays in North Vietnam and Cambodia-See Blog Chapters 3 to 15) I am now teaching again in China. In September of 2009 I returned to China for my forth teaching trip. (See Chapters 1 and 2 of this blog for summary of first 2 trips to China). A TALE OF TWO CITIES- SHANGYU AND SHAOXING I now work at a small university campus in a smallish city/town called Shangyu (about 2 hours south of Shanghai). This town is quiet and pleasant, since it has no particular attraction for tourists to visit. The students and other teachers are all friendly and helpful. Because my apartment on the campus is rather small and old, I have been given the use ... read more

180rmb/night got me a spacious top floor back corner room in a three star hotel overlooking lush green Fushan park. Complete with complimentary teas, a shower cap, a bubble bath and a sauna to keep me entertained while the electrical storm pelted the city centre just outside my ridiculously large aquarium windows. I hadn't planned on Shaoxing but exiting from Huangzhou's bus station, having just arrived from small-city Tunxi and its quaint surrounding villages, I felt put off by the crowds and the thought that any kind of sightseeing in the area was going to be a pre-packaged sorta deal, myself just a cog in an endless chain of tourists filing around Xi Hu, reacting as prescribed to the many wondrous pavilions and temples and nearby tea plantations. Had it been the low season... Shaoxin was ... read more