Xi'an--World Famous Site of the Clay Warrior Army Four of us traveled to Xi'an for a week at the end of January. My sister, Sally, sent an email summary home to her family, so with a few edits I'll make that the Xi'an description. I have been reading about the terracotta army for many years and this trip was one of the few I put at the top of my China agenda. The museums, the digs, the warriors and the chariots lived up to my expectations. It's truly awe-inspiring. Here is Sally's description of our trip. We returned from Xian last night. It was about 11:00 pm by the time we hit the apartment, both with bad colds, Susie's about a day ahead of mine. So today I've stayed pretty close to my bed and am ... read more

I went to Pudong to get Sally, my sister, on Jan. 20 and we went back for her to leave on Feb. 2nd. Three of the four trips were by train and one by bus. Shanghai is a huge city and is incredible. I'll show you some shots of the buildings. I have more relatives coming in the spring and I'm planning a weekend in Shanghai then. So, your detailed description will come later. The city is actually sinking because of the weight of the buildings. (I got that factoid from Sally, the historian.) Pudong was marshland across the river from Shanghai, and is now a city of several million. The international airport is in Pudong. As I waited for Sally's plane from Chicago, about 10 other international flights were announced from all over the world. ... read more

SO FAR AWAY Oh, I feel so far away from all the people I love. Christmas brings all those memories and emotions. Many people have asked me if I’m going home for Christmas. I wonder if I should have planned to go home. But I’m here for only one school year. But you, dear family and friends, are bso far away. Since I’m missing my family, international visitors in the U.S. are probably just as lonely. If you know any international visitors staying near you, please reach out to them. They are probably feeling very lonely. Consider inviting someone to dinner, if not at your house, at a restaurant. Take them to church with you; to the movies; to a museum or cultural event. I’ve made resolutions to work with more international visitors when I get ... read more

Winter pictures and I’m well The big dose of penicillin seems to have cured my throat. I feel great. I think the bamboo jars were cupping. I didn’t smell anything unusual like mugwort used in moxibustion. Wang, my masseur, didn’t use the glass jars, but the principle was the same. Here are two web sites with some info, http://www.geocities.com/altmedd/cupping.htm, http://www.itmonline.org/arts/cupping.htm After reading about this, maybe the cupping helped cure my sore throat. He did put on an even number of cups, first one on the left, then one on the right in a parallel place. Probably a ying and yang balance. It was 6 or 8 altogether. It was all done really fast. I was lying on a table face down with a face hole in the table. Since he speaks Chinese and a few words ... read more

A Greener China I’ve spent this last week battling or coddling a cold. Finally, I stopped by the University Foreign Affairs office and coughed my way through the request, “I (hack, hack) need a (hack, hack) doctor.” They responded immediately and I was at the university clinic at my requested time with a translator. I have amoxicillin and three Chinese meds that seem to be a generic cold pill to dry me out, a cough depressant pill that tastes like licorice, and several miniature bottles of teeny-tiny pills, like seeds, that numb my mouth and throat. I’m a lot better today. Yesterday was Thanksgiving. Today, 11/24/06 we will have a potluck meal at Gimling College with the American and Chinese teachers, maybe other westerners too. Now that I’m feeling better I have a lot to ... read more