We settle in

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Ellen and I are settled in a bit; we are beginning our second week of classes and something resembling a rhythm is getting established. There were certainly some bumps along the way, as administration here is very desperate to get a social work program going and are willing to do whatever is necessary to get classes filled and teachers in front of those classes.

I have given up my undergraduate class and Ellen has agreed to take it over. She is now doing two undergraduate classes and one graduate, supervising five graduate students who are involved in the Worker’s Bus Project, and spending time with the staff and students from that project, both on site and in seminars. No surprise that she is fully engaged.

I am teaching a graduate course (a hybrid Public health approach, motivational interviewing and mental health diagnosis) and supervising 10 graduate students who are in “clinical” settings, mostly schools and community centers. I will also visit another local college and teach some classes in a medical sociology course, focusing on chronic illnesses.

We spend much time walking around the vast city of between 10-17 million inhabitants, finding many surprising sites, great contrasts in wealth and well-being. This is one of the richest parts of China, the heart of manufacturing and export industry. As a consequence, there are some very wealthy people, willing to spend $100,000 on a Hummer for example. And then around the corner you will find people living in dark, dank, miserable hovels. Whether or not China can survive these disparities without descending into chaos is a great question.

We live in great comfort, a well-lit apartment with all the expected amenities except NO HEAT! Now, this is a near tropical climate but the temperature has exceeded 55 degrees the past days and it is cold. We spend some time huddled under the blankets we purchase or swaddled in the fleece we obtained once arriving here. Soon, perhaps too soon, temperatures will reach the 90’s and we will look back on these days with nostalgia.

Our first guest (Erica) is arriving tomorrow and this will give us some chance to do some touring in the area. We have done little touring on our own, although we did succeed in finding the vegetarian Buddhist restaurant we have been seeking for five years! The food was nothing special but it was great to be able to order anything without fear of finding dog or cat or scorpions or fish heads on our plate.

I have attached a few photos for your perusal, more later in the week.

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Photos

Ikea
Sign of globalization, right next to the US Consulate

Kite Flyers
A great pastime, kites going hundreds of feet into the air

Mass drill at high school
The teachers (in red) side by side with students

Street cooking
8000 restaurants in Guangzhou

Street scene-wealth
Neighborhoods have been razed by the hundreds to produce these wide boulevards and tall apartment blocks