Gail's Letters Home

What can I say? We're all giddy over a recent viewing of Julie & Julia so it's back to the blogosphere. I'll be posting a series of Gail's letters back home to the US to get us caught up to speed. So be careful as you exit the time machine, there's some sharp edges on the magic door back to China a few year ago:

September 2007

10 Days

Hey Everyone!

Wow--I can't believe we have been here for ten days already!! We are settling in quite nicely. China is an amazing country. I am not sure how I am going to relay all this to you in a plain ole' e-mail, but here goes!!

Today is the first day of school. I am on campus right now in Rocco's office. We have a computer at home, but it won't be hooked up until later this week. YES, I have missed the Internet. The campus is gorgeous--there are actually 5 different universities here in this area. When we first arrived, there were maybe 12 people total on campus, now there are students everywhere and so much going on. We lived on campus for just a few days, then moved into our apartment. It is a cute little place about 20 minutes away. We have a second floor flat with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. There is a little balcony too. We have a washer, but everyone here hangs their clothes out to dry as it is so warm. That took a bit to get used too--my undies hanging outside--hahahaha--I do miss the soft towel feeling right out of the dryer, but other then that, it is quite alright. The kitchen is small--just about the size of my old place--if you have seen that--we have a fridge and a freezer, no oven--that is a rarity in China--but we do have a two burner stove top. It is actually very cute. The apartment came furnished, so we have 3 beds, living room furniture and dining furniture.

The Characters:
Rocco is working with the funniest, nicest bunch of characters. We have 1 Canadian, 2 Britts, 2 from Australia and 3 others from the US--Texas, North Carolina and a guy from Portland, OR!! Lots of different accents and personalities. Our biggest stroke of luck has been one of the Aussies (Kate) --she and her husband (Matthew) live in the same area as us--he is native Chinese and she has spoken Chinese for years, so we have really gotten to know the system, the shopping, the restaurants, buses, taxis, etc. by hanging out with them. She loves to cook too. Last night we went to the outdoor market by our house--kinda like going to the Farmer's market, but every day--and they helped us pick out veggies and get used to the kilo system. Our lives have been made so incredibly easy by having them around.

The Food:
Wow--we have had some really awesome stuff. Thanks to Matthew and Kate we have eaten like kings and queens, and haven't' had to worry about looking at a menu and not having a FREAKING CLUE what is going on. Most of the restaurants we have eaten at have only a menu written in Chinese. Some have pictures, but most not. Rocco as you can imagine is a little more adventurous then me and has eaten a scorpion, (he thinks that is what it was!) a fish eyeball and chicken feet. He says China reminds him a LOT of Mexico--some of the poverty and wild food. The Chinese dishes are delicious--and everything tastes so fresh and good. I have tried most of the meat dishes and then have been good. Some of the fish is a bit fishy, but still delicious. The flavors are just so different from US Chinese food. We did have one meal at a yummy Thai restaurant and I would have to say it was the best Thai food I have ever had. They do have McDonald's and KFC just about everywhere we have been, but I doubt I will be eating there...

The Shopping:
We haven't done much of that famous shopping you all hear about, but I am sure we will get to that. Most of what we have done has been at Wall-Mart--we have a Wall-Mart bus that picks us up right outside of our apartment place at :28 past the hour--Can you believe it??!! Most of the same type stuff you would see at our Wall-Marts in the states, but of course the food is so different. We can get cheese, but just a limited kind, some milk, some bread--very limited mind you. This is about the only place that you can get these types of items. There is another store here called CarreFour, it is the French version of Wall-Mart. Other then that, there are little mom and pop stores that sell the basic stuff.

The people:
The people are wonderful. I KNEW that I would be the "center of attention", but wow--it is pretty funny how people stare. I don't mind, because I know they are just curious--except for the few whites on campus, the only other people I have seen in our city was another white couple at Wall-mart--other then that, that is it. We definitely stand out. We had some young boys taking pictures of us at CarreFour the other day--they were giggling. Of course they stare at Rocco too because he is so huge compared to them. Roc, Kate and I went out yesterday and I am sure they thought that was something to see these two Blondie girls with a big man following us around...I am sure they think we might be "someone".....The kids are great and will run up to us and say "Hello" over and over again...then they just laugh when we say hello back to them. Most everyone says "hello" and "bye-bye". When people stare we just smile and say hello in Chinese (it sounds like "knee-how") and it just blows their minds. They are so polite and kind and once you smile at them, it seems like it just makes their day. I have not met one rude person, they seem to think it is awesome that we are here.

The Weather:
It has been warm--some days a little muggy, but I am really enjoying it. We have had a bit of rain--last night and the night before some LOUD thunder and lightning. When it does rain, it usually doesn't last too long.

Well, I could go on and on...I have so been wanting to sit and write, but just haven't had the opportunity to get to a computer. We should have Internet up and running at our place in a few days and I will be better about keeping in touch. We have been pretty busy with setting up house, getting used to our surroundings, and the school has been GREAT about taking such good care of us. We all went to Guangzhou on Friday (that is the BIG city closest to us) and got to see some more of China and visit Ikea. The main campus is there, and it is like a little city in and of itself. There was a chance that we would have lived there, but I am so glad we are in Nanhai--it is still a busy place, but so much more relaxed and laid back.

Hope this finds you all doing well. It is Monday at 9:00 here now. I think most of you are still in Sunday. Oh--if you want to send snail mail, feel free to send it to my parents:

Gail and Rocco
Vancouver, WA 98685

Rocco's big 4-0 is on the 15th in case anyone wanted to send along a b-day card. My mom will be sending a little package our way. Probably by the next time I write I will have an address just in case any of you want to be brave and send mail directly to us in China. Thank God for the Internet, eh??!!

Lotsa Love!
G
Hello All~
Greetings from China--here it is Tuesday morning the 18th of September. So much has happened since my last message...stuff every day. We are still doing splendidly and feel so blessed and privileged to be here and to be doing so well.

Gail is Teaching!!
Well, I am sure it was inevitable--I accepted a position at the University where Roc is. Right now I am only teaching 1 day a week. It is conversational English--basically I just have to get up in front of the class and talk--(you all know I can do that, right?) and get the students to talk and participate. I am enjoying it. In a couple of weeks I will have more students and have more classes. They will be freshmen--and now they are all in military training. The students in Rocco's group are the only students on campus that do not have to go through the training, so that is why he is a bit more busy with students at the moment. He is digs the 3 day work week though! Can you believe it??!! He is enjoying the work and the students and the other teachers we work with are so much fun.

Butterflies and Dragonflies
This place is loaded with them...I love it. Sometimes the butterflies try to land on you...it is really cool. Mostly monarch type butterflies and all kinds of dragonflies. We did find a gecko in our apartment, but other then that, not too many other bugs or critters, which is nice!!

Olympics
Well, you would have to be in the dark ages to NOT know the Olympics will be taking place in Beijing in August 2008--actually 8-8-08, and the Asians LOVE the number 8 and think it is very lucky. Even though Beijing is very far from us--I think about a 2 day train ride--it is in the far north of the country and we are in the far south--we still get a lot of information about the plans and what is happening. The Chinese are VERY excited and anxious to be the host and hardly a day goes by that I don't read something in the paper or see something on TV. There have been a LOT of televised events--pre-Olympic competitions--our first week we saw a LOT of track and field, volleyball and basketball. The week after was gymnastics and last weekend was diving. Obviously we can't understand what the commentators are saying, but we are enjoying watching all the events. We have seen some incredible soccer games as well--countries that you would NEVER see play on our USA channels--one game was North Korea vs. Iran!!! The Americans are looking pretty good now in the track and field events--mostly running, but of course we have plenty of time to see much more. The Chinese I think are going to be huge contenders in the upcoming Olympics--amazing diving and gymnastics....we shall see. One of the things we have heard about and seen quite a bit of are everyday people competing for a chance to carry the torch. There have been a few talent shows we have seen on TV--all sorts of things---one lady spent 5 years embroidering a quilt of some sort--it was exquisite--and then other talents like singing--but the one that took our breath away and put the whole audience in tears was an incredible dance/ballet/acrobatic routine between a guy that was missing a leg and a woman that was missing an arm. At first, you couldn't even tell either had what some people would think of ass a disability of any kind, they were so amazing--and at the end, the lady had a torch of some kind that she ran around the stage with. I am pretty sure she will be one of the torch carriers. Again, it just reminds me how amazing the human spirit is--and the Chinese just seem to have a very special and magical way about it. It seems hardly a day goes by and I am not just amazed with the Chinese people or their culture or just some kind of experience.

Mexican food in China--Rocco's 40th b-day party
In my last e-mail I talked about Kate and Matt--Kate is one of the foreign teachers (from Australia, but has lived here for 3 years) and she is married to Matt who is native Chinese. Our lives have been so super enhanced by their help and friendship. I can see why foreigners struggle when they come to China--the language barrier is so intense--even though we are learning, it is SO HARD to communicate the language and try to READ the signs. Kate has helped me so much with shopping, getting on the right bus, teaching me about the culture, etc. And she loves to cook!! So we decided to throw Rocco a Mexican Fiesta. We made chicken fajitas, guacamole, homemade salsa, Spanish rice, Albondigas soup (Mexican meatball soup) and served it with all the trimmings including margaritas. It took us a couple of days to shop and cook and what a splendid feast it was. All the foreign teachers LOVED it--(when I say foreign that is us--we are the foreigners!!)--we had Jerry and John, both from the US, Geoff from UK, who spent several years in Mexico--these guys are single and mostly eat out, so a HOME COOKED Western style meal was a delight to them!-then we also invited several of the Chinese teachers. I think they enjoyed the food, but the spices are just different...and tortillas, cheese and avocados are not a super common thing in their diet. Kate and I were able to buy most things--we ended up making home made tortillas--we did find them, but because they are an imported item they were quite expensive. They turned out great and an empty beer bottle turned out to be a great rolling pin! We had to travel to Guangzhou (the BIG city about 45 min. by bus) in order to get sour cream and a few of the spices, but most of the things we got in our fresh market in our neighborhood--all the makings for salsa, the meat for the meatballs in the soup, and our favorite store had cheese and avocados and we bought a big bag of chicken breasts. Then Kate made Rocco a chocolate mocha cake from scratch--and she has an oven--I might have mentioned that in my last e-mail...it is about the size of a microwave, but boy, can she bake. I think I see an oven in my future!!!! We all had a great time and I think Rocco enjoyed being the King of the party. I know Roc and I feel so blessed to have such a fun group of people that are our colleagues and friends.

Working out China style
I have so missed my normal working out routines and bicycle riding--but Kate and I joined a gym. We went all over Nanhai trying to find a place that had good classes and that was affordable. We finally found the place...and it isn't very far from home. About maybe 10 min. by bus, and then a short walk. It is in a cute little area, and when you walk in, it feels like you are at the neighborhood gym--like the place that Rocky would have worked out in!! Gold's Gym it is not, but it is very homey. The people are wonderful, and they always have trainers on hand that will help coach and mentor you--part of our membership fee. Yesterday we had the owner following us around and working with us. He is a hoot--and was super helpful--and for him, he wants to learn some English, and of course you can imagine that us Western White Chicks are the talk of the gym/neighborhood!! He put us through the ringer--we had some aerobic time on the bike and then had to jump rope for 10 min., and then we did some work on the weights. We are both interested mostly in the classes, and I have taken 2 yoga classes so far and really like them. Thank goodness I am familiar with yoga and what is going on--again, a language barrier, but I watch the teacher and the other students and keep up just fine. Tonight Kate and I are going to try the belly dancing class--I am not sure what that will be like, but I know we will laugh and giggle!!

What's coming up
Well, that is it for now. I am headed off to campus for another presentation this afternoon. Geoff from the UK wants me to come into his class and talk about the Polar Bear Swim--I told one class and it just blew the student's minds!! This weekend we are going to what Rocco calls a "pony show"--it is a dinner exclusively for us foreigners--where the University gets to show off the "ponies"--that is us American ponies, the English ponies, the Australian ponies and the Canadian ponies...I hear we are having "hot pot" and us ponies are supposed to dress up real nice. Should be fun!! Also this week is a very big celebration--the Moon Festival--just an excuse for Chinese families to get together for eating and family time and to enjoy the moon..here is some info here if you want to see: http://chinesefood.about.com/od/mooncake/a/moonfestival.htm
And then in another couple of weeks we will celebrate "National Holiday" where we all get to have a week off--we are talking about taking a trip to Vietnam--I will keep you posted on that too. We are getting closer to have our pictures ready to share too.

Thanks for all the nice e-mails and love from home.
Big Hugs from the Gail and Rocco Show!!
g

November 1st~

Hello Everyone!!
I know it has been a while since our last letter. We have been so busy, and it seems like so much is happening all the time, it is hard to know WHAT to write about. We are still doing very well and enjoying every day. Always something new, something different, but yet all still the same.

Our Address:
First of all, I wanted to pass along an address for us. Rocco just got a package yesterday from a friend of his in Eugene that had a letter and a CD. It took about 3 weeks and cost about $1.90--not too bad. We would love to have mail if you are so inclined to send it.

Gail Galloway / Rocco Galloway
Foreign Affairs Office
Nanhai College of South China Normal University
Nanhai Information and Technology Park
Nanhai ShiShan Foshan City
Guangdong Province China
528225

Chinese Cooking:
Well, most of you that know me well, know I LOVE to cook. I have adapted very well to using a wok, and we are so spoiled to have the most wonderful outdoor market with a huge variety of fresh vegetables and meat. It is just part of our daily routine to walk
a few blocks to pick what we want for dinner. There are MANY different greens here that I have never seen, but also the same types of things too....carrots, cucumbers, celery, tomatoes, melons, apples. We can also get a variety of fresh meat. The only thing I have not found here that is fresh is lamb. We can get it in the store, but it is usually frozen and comes from New Zeland. In our outdoor market they have fish still swimming in tanks--you just point to what you want and they will get it ready for you. Same thing with the meat--it is all there, you just point to the cut you want and they will even slice and dice for you. Makes it super easy just to come home and throw it in the wok. We have a lot of nice restaurants in our area as well. About a mile away and a 20 minute walk is Nanhai Plaza--a big shopping mall, with several good restaurants and even a KFC and McDonald's, even though we really don't eat that kind of stuff.
Speaking of food, Kate and I have started a "Food Club". We prepare a meal on Monday evening and bring it to school for all of us foreign teachers to share. We normally charge about 10 rmb, and it is pretty much all you can eat. Our first meal was a make over of Rocco's birthday meal--homemade tortillas, beans, guacamole, salsa, rice and sour cream. The following week was lasagna--Chinese lasagna mind you, and a nice big green salad with a tasty ginger dressing I have been making. We are not able to get some of the nice cheeses here in Nanhai, so it was a mixture of mozzarella and Cheddar for the lasagna, but the sauce had some delicious fresh ground pork, and we added some good veggies to the sauce. Kate asked our local dumpling restaurant to make us some pasta sheets--they make the pasta for their dumplings (like pot stickers) and also fresh noodles for their soups--and it actually turned out great! I have become so accustomed to improvising everything--sometimes we just can not find what we need here, but Kate says there are some nice foreign markets in GZ (Guangzhou about half hour by bus or metro), the big city, so you know I am headed there VERY SOON!! Last week we made 2 different curries--one pork and one chicken, with rice and papa-dons...like an Indian crisp bread--and then menu next week is roast meat--I think I will do a nice pork roast, mashed potatoes, a green vegetable, and Kate wants to make apple pie for desert. Kate and I are the only female foreign teachers on campus, so all the rest of the guys we work with are just INSANE about having a good home cooked meal that is NOT Chinese. Here on campus that is about all we can get, so we eat that every day if we are on campus during lunch hour. There are a couple of places that have Chinese Western food--remember, WE are the foreigners and they call us Westerners--but the food is not the same. Sure, they have pizza, but don't get your taste buds set for what WE call pizza--when the Chinese cook Western food it definitely has a Chinese
twant to it!! You should see Kate and me getting on our bus in the morning with crock pots and bags of food...it is quite a site!! It also makes a nice time that us foreigners can hang out and have a meal together. There are 11 of us all together.

68 degrees this morning
COLD here for Chinese standards, but still not too bad. We had our first day of rain yesterday. Not like those bursts we had with thunder and lightning and pouring and then nothing--when we first arrived in China...this was a pretty much an all day rain. Sort of unusual for this time of year, but boy did it feel like home. Except that it was much warmer, and you could see the water dripping off the palm trees!! Today the high is supposed to be about 75, and the prediction is a bit more rain, but I looked outside and it looks quite dry so far. The rest of the week should be sunny and back up to high 70's. The students are so cute as they start wearing coats and asking me if I am cold while I am wearing just pants and a short sleeved shirt!! It is so nice to leave the house and not worry if I packed a sweater!!

The Gym and Chinese Belly dancing
I think I might have mentioned that Kate and I found a great gym. Rocco even showed some interest in joining. The aerobics are fine, not a thing at all like Jazzercise, and I really enjoy the yoga classes. Kate and I have started to attend a belly dancing class. It is quite a hoot. The teacher is of course, a beautiful Chinese woman, and she makes it look so easy.....but when I do it, it is quite frightening. Like anything, it just takes practice. Again, Kate and I are the only foreigners in class, and the so far the only foreigners at the gym. I keep saying how NICE the Chinese people are--and it is so true--I realize of course that we are such a novelty and they enjoy having us around, but it is just nice to be here and feel so welcomed!!

Chinese Lessons
The school has provided a tutor to help us learn Chinese. We have classes once a week. She teaches a class on campus one night a week for the teachers that stay here--mostly the single guys--and the other night she comes to our house and at this point it is just Rocco, me and David from the UK. We are quite spoiled to have our own teacher just come to us. It is helping--trust me, EVERY bit we get helps. It is just like belly dancing--PRACTICE. My students keep an eye on me and want to hear what I have learned in the previous classes. The HARDEST part about the language is the TONES--there are 4 tones in Mandarin, so I am constantly mispronouncing the words--I think I am saying fish and I am really saying aunt--OIY!! The students just HOWL--they think it is quite funny when we say the words incorrectly. But they are the first ones to help you try to learn it RIGHT. The good part is, even if you get pretty close, they usually know WHAT you are trying to say.

The Students
And yes, most importantly the students. I am having a really good time teaching. Rocco is loving it as well. We teach in different programs--his is for the very elite here on campus. The students will learn (hopefully!) their English and then go to Australia for a year and study business. They HAVE to pass the English part or they CAN NOT go to Australia. My students are in the English major program and will either go on to business or interpreting. Their desire is of course to learn English and improve their English, but their diploma doesn't hinge on how well they do with their language acquisition. I have 2 sophomore classes, so their English is pretty good at this point, and all the rest of the classes are freshmen. Some do VERY well with their language and some struggle. They are SO EAGER to learn and sometimes they don't want to take a break--they are never late, they always come to class, and let me tell you, it is such a pleasure to have that kind of audience. They came to school and they all (and every freshman on campus, except for Rocco's program) went through 18 days of military training. We watched them each day in their fatigues--march, stand, sit--yadda yadda--in the hot sun--it was grueling at times for them--but by the time I got them, they were so thankful to be in ordinary clothes and to be in a classroom. They also work so well together as a team and if one student struggles, they all try to help--and it is the ONLY time that I allow them to speak Chinese in class. I got the easiest teaching assignment I think--they just practice conversation only--and you all know that is pretty easy for me. I usually pick a topic and they discuss it with each other and then we do some class activities. Last week we talked about Halloween. They are so curious about foreign cultures. They really don't celebrate Halloween here--not like we do in the USA, so it was fun to bring pictures and have activities revolving around that. Rocco works only Monday-Wednesday, but he has 3 full days. I work every day, but I am home by noon each day except for Tuesday--I have one class in the afternoon. I have a total of 9 classes and work18 hours a week--I know--are you all just rolling your eyeballs at my cush job???????? It really is fun--even though it is SO new to me, Rocco keeps telling me that I am an EXPERT at it because I SPEAK ENGLISH--so no matter what I do, as long as the kids are speaking and learning it is all good.

Our first visitors
I am so happy to tell you that we have had our first visitors from home--well, almost home....my dear friend Andrew from Los Angeles was here last week. Andrew came with another childhood friend, Karen, and they were here attending the Canton Fair. It is a HUGE trade show in GZ. There are so many people that come from all over the world to see what kinds of things they can buy in China, and take back to sell in their countries. Karen already has her own business selling girl things--purses, wallets, jewelry, and Andrew is thinking about starting his own import business. We had a BLAST, and saw a LOT more of GZ--some incredible shopping areas, restaurants....let me tell you, I am getting pretty good at getting around
and would love the chance to have you come visit and let me be your guide!! The city is amazing and the places you can go and the things you can buy would truly blow your mind!! Rocco and I traveled to GZ several days in a row while Karen and Andrew were here, and then one day they came to Nanhai to see where we live and our neighborhood. It was so much fun having friends come visit--seriously, our door is open and we have 2 extra beds!!!!
I am attaching Rocco's latest pictures--and you can see some of the places we went shopping.

I hope this finds all of you well. We do miss you all like crazy!! But we sure are loving being here. We just got a headset and we are getting hooked up with skype. Check it out--free phone calls over the Internet--all you need is a headset.
www.skype.com
Also, Rocco and I each have an account with msn, yahoo messenger and aim. Just let me know if you would like to connect with us!! We feel so fortunate to be able to keep in touch with family and friends over the Internet!!

Big Big Loves from China!!
The Gail and Rocco show

Rocco's latest:
Hello, all. Has it really been two months since we left the good ol' USA? It's hard to believe, as each day in China is its own adventure. School is great and my students are dong really well. We had our first visitors this past week. Andrew M. and Karen U. from California stop by for a few days and spent hours shopping. We had a blast as they both got a crash course in INSTANT culture shock. Attached are the links to the new photos:

Shangxiajiu Lu
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2000536&l=aa4fd&id=167000186

Our first visitors
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2000537&l=aaf79&id=167000186

A big Happy Birthday to "Genetic Disorder" Gill and "Spider" Matt Li.

Thank you so much for the support and encouragement. Peace, love, and chicken feet!

Rocco