Located on a sprawling UNESCO World Heritage Site in Sichuan Province of China, this impressive 230 foot high Dafo, or Great Buddha, has been carved into the red sandstone hill called Lingyun Hill, where 3 treacherous rivers confluence, the Min, the Dadu, and the Qingyi Rivers in the city of Le Shan, some 3 hrs from Chengdu's Panda Bears. To safeguard the passing boats, the monk Haitong in 713 AD, (at a time before Charlemagne the Great created the Holy Roman Empire), decided to carve a protective icon into the sandstone cliffs as a public works project. No doubt, he wisely [View Full Entry]

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Please, permit me to dedicate this journal entry to my genteel, thoughtful, kindhearted, and courteous Chinese students of English, who have, each in their own way, contributed to making my stay here at Taizhou Teachers College a most rewarding experience. ::::::::::::: Few vocations in life are more edifying as that of a teacher, no matter the country. Though monetary and material benefits may be limited in the teaching profession, the joy and love which each day brings cannot be bought, even with gold and diamonds. This was true as a teacher in Revere/Boston, Mass. and Miami/Co [View Full Entry]

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My first college semester at Taizhou Teachers College is coming to an end, and its 7,000 students once again confront more sets of examinations, testing their study-skills and learning habits. These consist mostly of never-ending memorization, encouraged by almost all of their teachers, the amount of which has left me amazed and astonished. The volumes of printed materials in each of their courses, which are comitted to memory by every one of my Chinese students, who are also English majors, is something few Western educators, parents, or my former students at Coral Gables Sr. High Sc [View Full Entry]

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There hasn't been much time to think about being away from home this Christmas, and every day of this holiday weekend 2006 in Taizhou, China and at Taizhou Teachers College has been filled with surprising and spontanious activities. A kalaidescope of photos taken over the past few days is the better way to share all of the fun of my first Christmas in China. Thoughtful and touching efforts were made every day by the College, including Christmas-Monday off, to provide us a wonderful holiday away from home. "Thank you"!! EVERYONE at Taizhou Teachers College, especially Mr. Xu, Arthur, Ms. [View Full Entry]

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THE 2006 CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS HAVE ARRIVED QUICKLY, AND I OFTEN PONDER THE 7 MONTHS OF GALLOPING ADVENTURES IN CHINA. THESE DAYS SEEM THE MORE DIFFICULT, AWAY FROM THE FAMILIARITY OF TRADITIONAL FESTIVITIES WITH OUR LOVED ONES. IT IS WITH GREAT AFFECTION THAT I EXPRESS THESE SENTIMENTS: "TO MY SUPPORTIVE AND LOVING FAMILY, TO MY KIND AND GENTLE FRIENDS FROM SO MANY COUNTRIES, AND TO ALL MY WONDERFUL COLLEGUES AND STUDENTS, PAST AND PRESENT, ALL WHO HAVE BROUGHT SO MUCH JOY, HAPPINESS, AND EXCITEMENT INTO MY BLESSED LIFE: I MISS YOU EVERY DAY, AND SEND YOU GREETINGS FROM TAIZHOU, CHINA [View Full Entry]

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The colder weather is making the nights at Taizhou Teachers College certainly more challenging. In Miami Beach, I had forgotten what "chills" are all about, and here it has now become a daily reminder. Many years have passed since I have had to be-deck myself with so much clothing. What I have been able to loose in body-weight, has now been replaced by many additional-pounds of layered clothing. There is no more doubt, that winter is just around the next corner. The foreign teachers' office and my apartment are cozy warm, but none of the classrooms have the luxury of heat. [View Full Entry]

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Few sight in the world are more awe-inspiring than seeing over 7,ooo warriors standing in battle positions, pretending to defend their emperor in his "world-beyond". Perhaps he anticipated, that in his next life, he would forever be haunted by the millions of souls, whom he once offered and ferried to the underworld with his brutality. Though Qin Shihuang became king at the age of 13, his power was not consolidated until the age of 32, when for the first time China was united into a single country. At his moment of death, at the age of only 50, this cunning and [View Full Entry]

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The October weather in the city of Taizhou, Jiangsu Province of China, has become less hot and humid, and a few brisk chills are in the air. Though there has been some heavy fog in the morning, I have needed little beyond my summer clothing, for now. :-) Some of the days even remind me of our beautiful Miami-Beach weather, and I treasure them. The noise level eight floors below my apartment has remained constant, and only a few hours at night provide minimal abatement from the "symphony" of car-, truck-, bus-, motorcycle-, and moped-horns, whose performance has not improved in [View Full Entry]

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The day's drive toward the West from the beautiful garden city of Guilin in Guangxi Province, turned into the next unforgettable journey, through a part of South-China, where little has changed for a thousand years. Only recently has a better road opened the way for "voyeur-tourists" like me to visit one of Nature's Great Paintings. The Longji Titian (or aptly named Dragon Backbone Terraces of Longsheng) have always been a travel-destination wish, and I was fortunate to visit them just before the rice-harvest, as the sheath of each kernel turns gold. We had rented a car, and were ready [View Full Entry]

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Taizhou Teachers College is back in full session, and some 7,000 college students have re-occupied our small campus. They are more like "High School Teenagers," squeeling to each other, holding on to each other for support. Cell phones and MP3s are attached to both ears, while they scream for the attention of persons right next to them. They giggle out loud as they make their way to some spartan class-rooms, with enough basic-desks and tiny-stools (none have back-rests) for classes, that will seat 45+ students. (When I had opportunities to milk cows or goats as a child in Germany, w [View Full Entry]

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