SPRING WEATHER AND DINING OUT ON THE TOWN

I hear that the early flowers in Illinois are blooming and that predictions of severe blizzards were thwarted by other nature. I do miss the heady joy that sweeps through me at the heralding of spring when I live in a climatological zone that has four distinct seasons. Having the opportunity to live in the tropics for almost a year fills me with wonder too. I’d like to describe it for you.
The weather is so much more mild here. Hong Kongers cancel engagements because of a little rain or increased windiness. I want to tell them about wading through snowstorms, shuffling along upon sheets of ice, and dawning layers upon layers of clothing to guard against artic winds. So, when they complain about a little misty rain, I just smile and thank God that I can escape cold weather for a year!
As March draws to an end, the tropical flowers planted beside the stairs going to the Graduate House, where I live, and on the way to the Main Library, are even more fragrant than before. The birds are almost constantly singing here! There is one particular bird that has a two-toned call. I recall hearing this bird when I came to Hong Kong with my father. I feel so happy and peaceful when I hear that bird calling now. Often in the mornings when I wake even before dawn, I sit at my desk and write up fieldnotes for my participant observations or transcribe audio files. I hear the bird calling, and I pause and thank God and the U.S. Government for allowing me to come here!
The rain in Hong Kong warrants one paragraph at least! It probably rains two to three times per week, recently. But, the rain is often so light that I don’t even bother with an umbrella, much to the consternation of locals. I’ve only been caught in two heavy rains since having arrived in January. I’ve never heard thunder here, although we were supposed to have a thunderstorm last Saturday. “Squally thunderstorm conditions” were predicted by the Hong Kong Observatory. The wind picked up, and the rain was heavier than usual. But, there was no thunder that I heard. I do miss thunderstorms. I guess I should be grateful in one sense. Whenever I encounter a thunderstorm in the States, I long for a steady partner to hold me while we listen to the rain. Since I haven’t had that for many years while pursuing this doctorate, I guess it’s good that I don’t encounter thunderstorms here.

Update on My Research

For those folks interested in the progress of my research and my career as I’ve been here, I’ll give a little update. I have five research participants in my study. They are Hong Kong U students with disabilities, ranging from hearing loss, to limb amputation, to low or no vision. There are four males and one female. The oldest student is in his late twenties, and the rest are around 21-years-old. I interview each of the students at least four times. I interview two of their course instructors. I observe each student a total of ten times in their classes. And, I interview staff at Hong Kong U who provide services to students with disabilities. Each interview must be transcribed. So, I listen to the interview and write down every word the student says, including all of the “um”’s. It is very laborious, but I do enjoy transcribing. As this is the fifth study I’ve transcribed for since starting my doctorate, it is a familiar task for me. And, each time I observe a student in class, I take notes on my BrailleNote. Then, I come back to my dormitory room and use the notes as a guide to construct fieldnotes on my laptop. So, basically, I am spending this spring furiously collecting data. During the summer, between my trips to China and other locales, I will finish transcribing the audio files and begin the next step of my research - coding the data I’ve collected. It’s a rather involved undertaking. I comfort myself by knowing that the work I do here may result in better services for university students with disabilities in Asia.
I am applying for a two-month extension of my Fulbright grant. I may or may not receive approval for the extension. If I am lucky enough to be granted an extension, I will remain here until early December of 2006. In the spring semester of 2007 I would finish up data analysis for my dissertation, God willing. My Department at the University of Illinois might offer me funding for one more semester as I finish up. Or, I might have to look for a job right away. There are a lot of unknowns coming up in my life. I trust God to take care of my needs and to lead me in the right path.

Food!

Now, back to Hong Kong. I wanted to describe some of the restaurants I’ve visited in the past few weeks. In the middle of March Hong Kong U had reading week. Although likely familiar to those from a British educational background, I am still coming to an understanding of what reading week is. Apparently, it’s kind of like spring break inn the States. Students are supposed to use that one-weak break in the semester to study even harder. But, as one might guess, many of them plan trips abroad instead.
During reading week I was invited out by three groups of people! On Tuesday night the staff of CASE (The Centre for Advancement in Special Education), where I am appointed as a Research Associate, went out for a celebration! Drs. Lian and Tse of CASE had invited me to several dinners and had generously paid. Myself, being someone who is obsessed with not being a burden on others, felt obligated to buy dinner for them in return. I had been hearing them rave about Ruby Tuesdays in Hong Kong. There are three locations for the chain. It seems to be rather popular here. The menu is quite pricy, as all meat is flown in from the U.S. I was more than willing to pay the steep price to eat a piece of meat that I knew would be of consistently high quality!
In many ways, the ambiance was like the U.S. Most notably, there was, if not ample, than at least sufficient room to pull out my chair and be seated in it. Those of you who haven’t left the States might not understand just what a big deal this is. I can’t begin to explain how very crowded Hong Kong is. Going out in public inevitably means, despite my best efforts, that I will bump into others as I walk around in stores and restaurants. So, having room to pull my own chair out and sit down without inconveniencing a bevy of polite Hong Kongers was a treat, indeed!
When we ordered, the similarity to the U.S. was interrupted. Because traditional Chinese eating involves a group of people eating from several shared dishes, Ruby Tuesdays offers such options here. So, we decided to order a group meal. My hopes of being certain that what I was eating was mine and that I wasn’t eating too much compared to the others were gone. My colleagues are so very thoughtful; they all pitched in to serve me portions of food on my small plate. As they were commenting on the largeness of the portions, I was guarding myself against feeling disappointed that I couldn’t just eat my own food and not worry about portion size.
All of that said, the food suited my Western pallet tremendously well! We began with a chicken Caesar salad that was delicious! I rarely have lettuce here; so, I relished that particularly. I had a bowl of broccoli cheese soup. I was really looking forward to that, but I found it to be too salty. I’m not sure if that was because I’m used to eating less salt now or because the kitchen prepared it with too much salt. We then had tostadas, BBQ ribs, seafood pasta, and chocolate cake; all of which were comfortingly familiar to me. I also had a chocolate milk shake and a large glass of water. Altogether a lovely night’s feast!
Alison, of whom I’ve written in the most glowing terms previously, had a digital camera. The server kindly offered to take pictures of us. I’m not sure if it is visible in the pictures Alison sent me or not, but the meat served at Ruby Tuesdays has a small American flag inserted into it. I guess it’s their gimmick to remind their customers of the quality of the meat.
On Thursday night of reading week I went out with Dr. Lian and some of the students from one of is special education courses. We went to a Western style grill place in a mall on Hong Kong Island. I was able to have the hamburger I had craved at Ruby Tuesdays. The patty was thick, and the melted cheese was so welcome to my cheese-deprived taste buds. The fries were hot and salty. Again, a lovely time with very enjoyable people.
On Friday night I went out to my favorite Indian restaurant with the other Fulbrighters in Hong Kong. So, Brian Willis and his wife Melanie from Colorado were there. They are newly wed Fulbrighters. How vividly I remember being in Melanie’s shoes when I went with my former husband to Germany on his Fulbright. Melanie and Brian are absolutely charming people. They are devoted to their God, but they don’t judge others. How I admire their marriage and witness to God. Melanie was blessed to be able to find a job while in Hong Kong with Brian. I can’t help wondering why God didn’t give me something useful to do while I was in Germany supporting my former husband. Maybe things would have turned out differently, had I not been stuck at home almost all day every day.
Being on this Fulbright has caused me to reflect a lot on my marriage. In a little less than two months, it will have been ten years since I was married. I still think I made the right decision getting divorced. But, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to trust another man like I trusted then. I still grieve about that realization. I guess the only person I can really trust in this world is God. That is of some comfort to me, but I still wish I could believe in a mate like I used to with my former husband. Wholeheartedly giving one’s physical and emotional selves to someone else is not healthy, I know. But, I do wish I could.
Anyway, surfacing after that painful subject is probably welcome by most of you. Another person at the dinner with Melanie and Brian was Oliver Williams. I think I wrote about him in a previous posting. He’s on his third Fulbright experience. He teaches at North Carolina State University in political science. He is 70 years old and still going strong! Suffice it to say, we all had a lovely evening eating delicious food and talking so candidly. What a pleasure it is to be with other Americans while here. I can’t describe how important that is when living in a foreign culture.
OK, enough for today. My continued thanks to those of you who read my words.

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