Special Days Posts
China Charities for Christmas
It’s already mid-December and although we live in China, Christmas decorations have gone up around town and the local Carrefour and RT-Mart are playing Christmas music. Christmas is a time when many people like to give gifts to friends and family, but for expats in China it can be difficult to send gifts to whatever country (or countries!) our friends and families are living in. If you haven’t sent those gifts months ago, you can always shop online and hope the rush shipping will make it there on time…
There is another option for gift giving or even end of the year tax breaks though, and that’s giving to a charity. You can always donate in the name of your gift recipient, and while they might have enjoyed a physical present more, perhaps they’ll be just as grateful not to have to try to figure out how to regift that panda poop tea.
How I ended up standing on a mass grave on the tenth anniversary of 9/11
We had a three day weekend and an invitation from a friend to visit his hometown of 黄流 in 乐东 County. By the time I’d finished teaching at five, hastily thrown a few things in a bag, forgotten my cell phone (loaded with books, podcasts, and games) on the table, and caught a cab in the rain to the bus station though; all the buses to Ledong County had left. No problem, we decided, and proceeded to play bus roulette. Have you played it? It goes like this: You show up at the bus station and take the next available bus to anywhere it happens to be going. We cheated a little by taking the next available bus that was going at least in the general direction of Ledong. Try it sometime, the results are always entertaining.
Tickets to 八所 (a town I’d never heard of) in hand, we decided to buy a map of 海南 and see where we were going. It was on the coast! Excellent. There seemed to be some tourist attractions nearby as well. A hot springs, which I nixed as I had an ear infection, was forbidden to swim, and had not brought a bathing suit. There was also this place called 万人坑. Ten-thousand person…check dictionary…hole? with no idea what that meant, it was close to the ocean and we’d see if we could find it!
Video: 2011 Year of the Rabbit
So, it’s a little late and most of us have begrudgingly returned to work, but 新年快乐 fellow laowai.
I captured my own thoughts, photos and videos of my 6th Chinese New Year’s Eve on my blog, and so won’t waste space with a reiteration here.
However, I wanted to share this great short video by Jonah M. Kessel, Paul Morris and Kit Gillet:
Six and a Half Events at the Guangzhou Asian Games – Part II
After the blast that was sepatakraw and field hockey, I knew that I needed more. The games were only around for two weeks, and when else would I get the chance? I mean, I don’t exactly have plans to move to London for 2012, or Rio for 2016. So I set out for more tickets, unavailability be damned!
November 20 – Football (aka Soccer)
After trips all over the metropolis, I decided to settle close to home. I knew that there was a football match at the Tianhe Sports Centre, a short walk away from my house. I had heard that most soccer tickets were pretty easy to get, unless China was playing of course. Just to prepare myself for the game, and to decide on a team to cheer for, I checked out who was playing.
It was the Women’s Semi-final. Korea vs. Korea.
Six and a Half Events at the Guangzhou Asian Games – Part I
Asian Games: Coming to a Super Nova Near You!
The 16th Asiad is winding down here in Guangzhou. I’ll be honest, first I was excited about the event, then angry at all the construction, then angrier that I couldn’t get tickets, then excited again, then confused, then hungry, and finally back to excited. Now I find myself sad that they will be ending soon, and plotting my trip to Korea for the 2014 version of the event! I was lucky enough to take in six and a half events over the past two weeks.
For all the issues they had planning, and running this event. I can say from my own experiences as a spectator, it was fantastic, and the city and country should be pretty darned proud.
What experiences you ask? Well just read on to find out!
Fact or Fiction XI: Let the Games Begin!!!
Welcome back one and all to the October edition of Fact or Fiction. Those of you who read any or all of the last ten will know, every edition I will have a guest and we will discuss a few of the big issues in China of the day. Every answer will have a “Fact” or a “Fiction” and some justification to go along with it.
My guest today, Sara is a fellow inhabitant of the great city of the Five Ram City. Sara Jaaksola always had a dream about visiting China. But only February 2010 she found the way to make it true and is now enjoyning her life in Guangzhou. In her blog Living A Dream In China, www.sarajaaksola.com, she writes about her life, experiences and studies in this amazing country.
In less than 2 weeks Guangzhou plays host to the Asian Games. Given we both have front row seats to the construction and hype, it seems like a pretty logical talking point. So, join us today for Fact or Fiction XI: Let the Games Begin!!!
Giving Thanks To China: Part II
Today is one of the days of the year that I’m most filled with homesickness. It’s a day that my whole family gathers with one solitary purpose: gluttony. Today is Thanksgiving in the Northern Section of North America. The holiday today of course tends to be about eating, but it is deeply rooted in being thankful for the good fortune you have. A year ago, I wrote a post giving thanks to China for all that it has given me, today I intend to add to it.
So thank you China for…
Expo Scoop: Miss World 2005 @ Iceland Pavilion
Miss World @ Shanghai Expo Iceland Pavilion
If you’re heading to the Shanghai Expo and don’t feel like spending your day under the sun in line for one of the biggie pavilions; head over to the (surely cool) Iceland Pavilion, where you can rub elbows with Miss World 2005 Unnur Birna Vilhjálmsdóttir. According to the Iceland Expo site, Unnur is heading up the role of Deputy Director of Pavilion and Director for PR & Events (I figure that between her name and her title, she must need two business cards).
Huge hat tip and thanks to Lost Laowai reader Giulia for snapping the photo and sending in the tip. In talking to Unnur at the pavilion she mentioned she was only going to be at the pavilion for the next couple weeks, so if you’d like to meet a real-life Miss World, head on over soon.
Fact or Fiction VIII: Hey Ho! Expo!
Welcome back one and all to the July edition of Fact or Fiction. Those of you who read any or all of the last seven will know, every edition I will have a guest and we will discuss a few of the big issues in China of the day. Every answer will have a “Fact” or a “Fiction” and some justification to go along with it.
My guest today is Katherine, better known around here as Baoru. You can read her work on CNReviews where she posts a great deal about life in the Middle Kingdom. Quite recently her informative posts on the Shanghai Expo have received a great deal of web traffic, and for obvious reasons. She also writes a blog in Expotia, the Official Hotel Reservation Service Provider of Expo 2010. If that wasn’t enough, depending on your perspective, she is either lucky or brave enough to be a volunteer at the World Expo in Shanghai.
Looking at my guests resume, the topic seems rather obvious to me. We will be talking about the biggest event to currently be underway in China, the Shanghai Expo. We will be tackling issues like lines, toilets, and our favourite pavilions, so join us for Fact or Fiction 8: Hey Ho, Expo!
The photo’s Flickr page says it was taken mid-October.
