2007年7月11日星期三
2007年7月9日星期一
weekend in Zigong
First, though- http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/07/06/largest.loo.ap/index.html
Nice!
This weekend was so different than how I thought it would be. As I mentioned before, we didn't really know what we were doing when we left. I thought we were going to some type of seminar or business meeting where we would be able to observe but not really know what was going on, and that we were just kind of tagging along. This was definitely not the case. Dean Ma picked us up at 2:30 with his son, Leon, and wife. His son goes to college at the U. of Missouri, so his English was really good and he served as our translator for the weekend. It was a drive of a little over 3 hours to Zigong, and when we got there we pulled up to this amazing hotel. There were about 5 men there to meet us, and then we were shown to our (very nice) room. We had about 15 minutes to rest and then we went to dinner in a banquet room in the hotel.
At dinner, there were about 12-15 people there, total, and Janell, Dean Ma's wife, and I were the only females, which was kind of interesting. I think we learned a LOT about Chinese culture at this dinner. Apparently, alcohol plays a big role in their celebrations, but not exactly in the way it does in the US. Before dinner started, we were all given these little shot glasses filled with some kind of (strong) Chinese liquor. The custom seems to be that when you're spending time with friends, you toast each other VERY often. So, one of the men would come up to Janell and I and say, "Ganbei!", which meant pretty much means "bottoms up". And they do this a quite often, I'd say about every 3-5 minutes during the first part of dinner. Janell and I had to quickly switch to beer as the liquor was really strong and difficult to drink without making an awful face. Somewhere in the middle, she had the good, sneaky idea to partly fill up our glasses with water right before the beer was poured! This was important because as we found out later, they thought we were really respectful guests because we never refused their "ganbei!", but we also wanted to/were expected to not be very affected by the alcohol. This tradition was done at every meal the whole weekend except for breakfast.
On Sunday, we went to the local CDC for a lecture on their current HIV/AIDS situation. This is when we realized that we were the guests of honor for this event! The powerpoint was in English and Chinese, and the director who spoke looked at us the entire time and waited for Leon to translate for us. This was definitely not what I expected. It seemed that they are doing really good things in Zizong for HIV/AIDS, especially since the current prevalence is pretty low. They did offer a list of next steps and challenges that was helpful. After that, they took us to a community clinic in the city and to a methodone clinic- very cool. After lunch, we went to the tourist sites. At the salt well, we saw how they produce salt in the city by collecting salt water through underground pipes then boiling it through the natural gas that also comes through the pipes. It was pretty amazing as they have been doing this for at least a thousand years. Then we went to the dinosaur museum. A large amount of dinosaur fossils were found in Zigong in the late 70s/early 80s (I think) and we were able to actually see the ground where the fossils were found.
After dinner was perhaps the best/strangest experiences I've had here. They asked if we wanted to go to karaoke. Dean Ma and his family were going to visit their extended family so it was just a group of older men who spoke almost no English and us. We were expecting just a karaoke bar, but were very surprised. We were ushered into a private room with a huge screen, couches, tables with food, lighting, etc. There were 3 waiters/waitresses just for us! And guess who was expected to go first- of course, us. We did an awesome version of "We will rock you", if I do say so myself. ;) It was really funny because after that they wanted us to sing every English song that came on, but Janell and I a) had never heard of the majority of these random songs, and b) are NOT good singers. We pretty much were chanting the lyrics we saw on the screen! There was also a lot of dancing and they did karaoke as well, which they took VERY seriously. It was surreal that we were singing karaoke in a room with the major health leaders of Zigong and they were so serious about it. Absolutely hilarious and great! That night, they presented all of us with gifts. Janell, Dean Ma's wife and I all received this beautiful tie-dyed silk scarfs (picture on the next post). Basically, we were treated like royalty the entire weekend! We didn't pay for anything, and there was even a photographer who followed us around all Sunday morning taking pictures. I think we still don't really understand why this happened, but it was very, very nice. Dean Ma told Leon that it was because he had done a lot of things for them in the past and so they wanted to treat his students very well. The Zigong people may have been the most hospitable people I have ever met. Everything was coordinated perfectly- transportation, everything. Oh, and I forgot to say that we went out to the countryside and met some farmers! So amazing. We were a little uncomfortable to be the center of attention at first, but they were so nice that we ended up enjoying it, haha.
So anyway, it was an incredible weekend as we had a translator the entire time and we were able to learn about HIV/AIDS AND Chinese culture. The clinic we visited in the rural area was really impressive because they had all these prevention programs and services going on while there were only 3 known infected people in the community. The Chinese people in generally are incredibly hospitable, and they were especially so in Zigong. I wish everyone could have this experience!!!
2007年7月6日星期五
weekend trip to somewhere...
So, the cutest thing EVER happened...the grad students and some of the professors threw us a surprise Fourth of July party! They had Chinese and American flags on the table and they tried to get us food they knew we liked (i.e. corn, green beans, potato chips, cake)...the most "American" food they could find, I think. They asked us to sing our national anthem for them and then they sang theirs for us, which was beautiful but I have no idea what it was about. ;) One professor told me how when she was a child they were taught to be scared of America but now she is so glad that our countries are friends. I am, too, and hope they stay that way!
During the day on 4th of July, we went to a workshop for bar waitresses (who we thought were sex workers but we were wrong). Professor Zhang included us in a lot of things with the group and translated to the group for us, which was really helpful. There was also one girl that majored in English at university, and she helped, too. Not this coming week but the next, he wants me to teach them about how to communicate effectively (because of my counseling degree). This will be for about an hour and a half and I am super nervous about it because I have no idea what I will say and I don't like public speaking. It will be good experience, though, and he wants me to make it very interactive. I will just be really nervous because I hope he will think that I did a good job.
The night of the 4th we went to the Shamrock Pub, where there was supposed to be a 4th of July party but the only really festive thing they had was red, white and blue shots; I thought they were actually pretty cute! We made friends with this group of students from University of Washington (undergrads) and hung out with them until a little after 11...the party was probably just getting started but we do so much during the day here that we're usually exhausted at night.
On Thursday, we went to Renmin ("people's") Park. It was beautiful there and we spent a few hours reading in the teahouse. What we were not expecting to see was random groups of people doing karaoke and dancing...I have some videos that I can hopefully share later. The Chinese people were so happy to see foreigners (I guess!) there that they pushed us and 2 other girls to the front so we could have a good view. I was pretty scared at first because I didn't know what was going on and I was afraid they were pushing us in the middle of this huge group of people to sing or dance or something!!!
Crystal is leaving today because she was accepted to a German (English-speaking) summer school program in Shanghai. We are very sad to see her leave because she has definitely been the most helpful person to us. Yesterday we took her and one of her friends to her favorite hotpot restaurant. She was giving us a lot of advice at lunch, which basically boiled down to this: if we want to be more involved in projects, etc., we should casually bring up the topic and then wait to see if we are invited to join in. Because they are our superiors, we should basically follow their lead and be respectful. Good advice, I think, because we already got the sense that if we pushed for something or tried to re-direct a conversation, the professors were a little annoyed. It was also very timely advice as we are leaving in 45 minutes to go away with Dean Ma to Zingong (a city famous for salt?) for the weekend. We have no idea what we are doing there or how long we are staying (as usual, haha). We never know what we're doing really until we get there, just that it's "all been arranged"...another student/teacher cultural thing I think. Crystal also took us to another traditional Chinese road. We had met one of the store owners last weekend at the bar we went to with Professor Zhang and he gave us 50% off everything in the store, so that was really nice!!!
I have to go pack for who-knows-what...I hope everyone has a nice weekend!!!
During the day on 4th of July, we went to a workshop for bar waitresses (who we thought were sex workers but we were wrong). Professor Zhang included us in a lot of things with the group and translated to the group for us, which was really helpful. There was also one girl that majored in English at university, and she helped, too. Not this coming week but the next, he wants me to teach them about how to communicate effectively (because of my counseling degree). This will be for about an hour and a half and I am super nervous about it because I have no idea what I will say and I don't like public speaking. It will be good experience, though, and he wants me to make it very interactive. I will just be really nervous because I hope he will think that I did a good job.
The night of the 4th we went to the Shamrock Pub, where there was supposed to be a 4th of July party but the only really festive thing they had was red, white and blue shots; I thought they were actually pretty cute! We made friends with this group of students from University of Washington (undergrads) and hung out with them until a little after 11...the party was probably just getting started but we do so much during the day here that we're usually exhausted at night.
On Thursday, we went to Renmin ("people's") Park. It was beautiful there and we spent a few hours reading in the teahouse. What we were not expecting to see was random groups of people doing karaoke and dancing...I have some videos that I can hopefully share later. The Chinese people were so happy to see foreigners (I guess!) there that they pushed us and 2 other girls to the front so we could have a good view. I was pretty scared at first because I didn't know what was going on and I was afraid they were pushing us in the middle of this huge group of people to sing or dance or something!!!
Crystal is leaving today because she was accepted to a German (English-speaking) summer school program in Shanghai. We are very sad to see her leave because she has definitely been the most helpful person to us. Yesterday we took her and one of her friends to her favorite hotpot restaurant. She was giving us a lot of advice at lunch, which basically boiled down to this: if we want to be more involved in projects, etc., we should casually bring up the topic and then wait to see if we are invited to join in. Because they are our superiors, we should basically follow their lead and be respectful. Good advice, I think, because we already got the sense that if we pushed for something or tried to re-direct a conversation, the professors were a little annoyed. It was also very timely advice as we are leaving in 45 minutes to go away with Dean Ma to Zingong (a city famous for salt?) for the weekend. We have no idea what we are doing there or how long we are staying (as usual, haha). We never know what we're doing really until we get there, just that it's "all been arranged"...another student/teacher cultural thing I think. Crystal also took us to another traditional Chinese road. We had met one of the store owners last weekend at the bar we went to with Professor Zhang and he gave us 50% off everything in the store, so that was really nice!!!
I have to go pack for who-knows-what...I hope everyone has a nice weekend!!!
2007年7月3日星期二
Blood Diamond and July 4th
Warning: If you just want to hear about my experiences in China and not about my opinions on global issues ;) you may want to skip this.
I am in the middle of the movie "Blood Diamond" and it really breaks my heart, especially to see the young children who are trained to be killers. It's times like this when I realize just how privileged I am, despite any problems that I think are SO important. It's so random to think about...I (and everyone) could have been born absolutely anywhere. I was so lucky to be born in the United States, even though I did absolutely nothing to "deserve" it. It's times like this when I want to do international work, when I realize that the people suffering could very well be me or someone I love who did nothing to bring this suffering to them- they just happened to be born in a different area than me. Even being here, I look at all the privilege that we have and it just shocks me. Why me? Why did I happen to be born with this advantage? How can people not see that we're all the same, we're all people- some of us were just born in different circumstances than others? You may say that we, as Americans, worked hard for what we have. In a sense, that is definitely true. We do work hard and we get paid for it. However, I could be working just as hard in Africa (or wherever), or even working harder, and I'd never be at the place I am now. It's so overwhelming because there's so much suffering in the world and where do you even start? I don't think that's a reason not to try, though, at all. Imagine if one person was able to save your life or your family's life, and how much that would mean...if I only help one person, than that will be incredible.
I just have a hard time understanding how we have these man-made lines that we call "countries" and we fight with one another over...what? How is that any different than a board game children might play? I'm not talking just about the US here, although we do it, too- I'm talking about all governments. Why do we make everything so difficult for one another? It's like picking teams in PE. Do we never grow up?
OK, that's definitely enough idealism for today and I'm sure more than most people want to hear. ;) Really, I just wanted to say how blessed I am to have been born in the US and to say Happy 4th of July! I don't want to feel bad about what I've been given, I just feel very lucky for it and hope that I can use my advantages to help someone else. I hope everyone enjoys it and has a wonderful time, and also remembers how lucky they are, too.
I am in the middle of the movie "Blood Diamond" and it really breaks my heart, especially to see the young children who are trained to be killers. It's times like this when I realize just how privileged I am, despite any problems that I think are SO important. It's so random to think about...I (and everyone) could have been born absolutely anywhere. I was so lucky to be born in the United States, even though I did absolutely nothing to "deserve" it. It's times like this when I want to do international work, when I realize that the people suffering could very well be me or someone I love who did nothing to bring this suffering to them- they just happened to be born in a different area than me. Even being here, I look at all the privilege that we have and it just shocks me. Why me? Why did I happen to be born with this advantage? How can people not see that we're all the same, we're all people- some of us were just born in different circumstances than others? You may say that we, as Americans, worked hard for what we have. In a sense, that is definitely true. We do work hard and we get paid for it. However, I could be working just as hard in Africa (or wherever), or even working harder, and I'd never be at the place I am now. It's so overwhelming because there's so much suffering in the world and where do you even start? I don't think that's a reason not to try, though, at all. Imagine if one person was able to save your life or your family's life, and how much that would mean...if I only help one person, than that will be incredible.
I just have a hard time understanding how we have these man-made lines that we call "countries" and we fight with one another over...what? How is that any different than a board game children might play? I'm not talking just about the US here, although we do it, too- I'm talking about all governments. Why do we make everything so difficult for one another? It's like picking teams in PE. Do we never grow up?
OK, that's definitely enough idealism for today and I'm sure more than most people want to hear. ;) Really, I just wanted to say how blessed I am to have been born in the US and to say Happy 4th of July! I don't want to feel bad about what I've been given, I just feel very lucky for it and hope that I can use my advantages to help someone else. I hope everyone enjoys it and has a wonderful time, and also remembers how lucky they are, too.
copied/pasted from Janell's blog
So this wonderful Monday morning we set out to find me a bag/purse/anything that will carry my wallet and a book. I was shocked at the sight of the market place. People were everywhere. It was like the routine Saturday morning shopping crowd. So we squeezed through the people, safely crossed the street using the "buffer" method, which has become very popular with us lately, and into the first market. This market is a little hard to explain. There are about 7 floors of shops all squeezed in like sardines. The first floor is just bags, the second is shoes, the third is a combination of jewelry and shirts, the fifth one is dresses and I don't think we made it up any more floors. The shop keepers will stand at the front of the shop and clap. This is quite annoying but apparently quite effective since they all do it still or maybe they just haven't gotten enough rotten stares or letters of complaint. I just want to poke them but I've refrained. The colors are magnificent. The styles are bold and very unique. There are sparkles everywhere but mostly on the shoes. We weaved our way in and out of the shops with little success in bags but too much success with earrings, which was not the goal of the trip but oh so tempting. So we marched onto another huge market.
She wrote a good description, so I thought it would be easier to share this with everyone than to write it myself. There are also huge "supermarkets" (usually foreign, i.e. Japanese) that are REALLY nice and have multiple floors of shoes and clothing, home goods, grocery store, etc. Obviously, these places have set prices and you cannot bargain there, and things tend to be more expensive. Much better quality, though.
One thing that I can't even BEGIN to express just how many stores there are in Chengdu. I guess when you have this many people, you have to, but I think you could spend a year just shopping in Chengdu and not go to the same store twice. On every single road, there are multiple stores right next to each other. It amazes me how they all stay in business. It's interesting, too, because sometimes they're grouped together, i.e. "Computer City", which is a HUGE place of several big markets selling all electronic goods. These places are extremely hectic and crowded, but you can get really good deals and bargain. This is where we get our DVDs, which is pretty easy because whenever sellers on the 3-4 floor there see us, they all start shouting "DVD! DVD!". There are also roads where mostly fruit is sold, or flowers, etc. Shoe stores and clothing stores are everywhere. There are little hideaways in side streets that are just filled with people selling jewelry, bags, etc. It really is impossible for me to convey!
She wrote a good description, so I thought it would be easier to share this with everyone than to write it myself. There are also huge "supermarkets" (usually foreign, i.e. Japanese) that are REALLY nice and have multiple floors of shoes and clothing, home goods, grocery store, etc. Obviously, these places have set prices and you cannot bargain there, and things tend to be more expensive. Much better quality, though.
One thing that I can't even BEGIN to express just how many stores there are in Chengdu. I guess when you have this many people, you have to, but I think you could spend a year just shopping in Chengdu and not go to the same store twice. On every single road, there are multiple stores right next to each other. It amazes me how they all stay in business. It's interesting, too, because sometimes they're grouped together, i.e. "Computer City", which is a HUGE place of several big markets selling all electronic goods. These places are extremely hectic and crowded, but you can get really good deals and bargain. This is where we get our DVDs, which is pretty easy because whenever sellers on the 3-4 floor there see us, they all start shouting "DVD! DVD!". There are also roads where mostly fruit is sold, or flowers, etc. Shoe stores and clothing stores are everywhere. There are little hideaways in side streets that are just filled with people selling jewelry, bags, etc. It really is impossible for me to convey!
Pictures
Found the Buddhist temple ones! We had to be careful because you're not supposed to take pictures of Buddha or of the monks. They didn't turn out as well as I'd liked- it really was a lot of different buildings and each one was outstanding. The people that are lighting candles and incense are lighting them to get Buddha's attention so he will bless them.
There will also be some other random pictures below if I have time to upload them. I have done something crazy with my picture folders and they must be fixed pronto.
Thanks to everyone who's emailed me. :) I love getting them! I'm sorry I haven't or don't respond quickly...the internet is SO slow that it takes me forever just to do this. They are much appreciated, though!
Some other random thoughts while I wait for the pictures: 1) China has almost 1 billion more people than we do in the US. 2) We have been mistaken for Russian and German, but not American yet 3) People get a biiiiiiiiig kick out of saying "hello!" (in English) to us. Boys usually do it and then all their friends laugh at them. Good times.
2007年7月2日星期一
4 weeks
I have now been in China for 4 weeks exactly. On Thursday, it will be a full month. It has gone by so quickly that I can't believe it. I'm actually really enjoying being here now that I've had time to get used to it and I think I'll be sad to see this end (although happy to get home at the same time).
I'm feeling like I have a lot to write, so I'm going to be lazy and copy/paste the email I sent to Tom (Carolina Asia Center) about this weekend- Tom, hope you don't mind!
Hi Tom!
Things are good here- thanks for checking in! We have been really busy the last couple of days. On Thursday we visited the Department of Epidemiology, then went to a performance that night that was part of the China-Africa AIDS seminar(or something like that). I'm sure there is a better, more public health-y way to say this but I don't know it- so I'll just say that there was a drag show there. It was so incredible! There were also performers from the Sichuan Opera and an acrobat, and afterwards all the Africans (they were from all over the continent) were dancing. There were so many cultures there- it was amazing. However, Professor Zhang seemed quite upset that we were there and we didn't know why (there was some miscommunication between the grad students,etc.). The next day he told us that he was concerned that we wouldn't be accepting of the gay population and he is very protective of them, so he was worried. Once he knew that we WERE accepting, though, he seemed very interested in including us.
On Friday Crystal, Janelle, Prof. Zhang and I went to a different county to attend a training for teachers about HIV/AIDS that was led by Professor Zhang. Crystal translated for us and I think we learned a lot- too much to type here right now. ;) Janell was busy that evening but Crystal, Professor Zhang and I went to a party thrown by a gay organization at Sichuan University that was celebrating their 3 year anniversary. It was at a gay bar and was packed and it was another really exciting experience. THEN, yesterday we went with a group of Chinese students (and one other meiguoren;)) to something called the English Salon at a coffeehouse, and that night we went to dinner with Crystal's work office. So- it's been a busy and exciting few days! This coming weekend we are planning on to (I am going to butcher the name) Jozhaigo??
Anyway, it's interesting because we don't know what's going to happen from day to day so we try not to plan too much. It's always at the last minute that we find out about these things! We were a little discouraged at the beginning of last week but I think we've realized that if we're patient, things do happen...and I think we have learned a lot. I wish I could tell some of it now but Crystal is coming over to talk to Janell and I about her thesis that has to be written in English, so I have very little time!
I don't know yet if we're going to be able to be involved in the peer education program...we really probably won't know until it happens or doesn't happen. ;) If we can, I think your idea about continuing it throughout the school year is a great one. The meeting at the CDC was kind of interesting, but it was (of course) all in Chinese and we didn't really have anyone to interpret for us. It was cool to see though. We have field site visits listed down for certain weeks, but I don't know if they're officially scheduled yet. We're just trying to be patient and ok with having no real "schedule"...it seems to be working out right now so I think we're just hoping it continues!
Thanks again for checking it...it really is very much appreciated, and I'm very happy to know that you've been reading our blogs. :) I hope all is well in Chapel Hill!
Amy
Things do seem to happen very quickly here and with little notice. We found out today that we are going with Jackie and (I think) Professor Zhang tomorrow to the CDC for a training for the "bar girls" (sex workers). I don't know if we'll be able to understand what's going on; hopefully we will have someone who can do some interpreting for us while we're there. Crystal spoke to Dean Ma last night and I guess she mentioned that we don't have much to do when we're not at scheduled events, so we're meeting with him and Professor Zhang tomorrow at 5:30 to discuss field projects we may be able to do. Dean Ma also wants to hear what we've learned so far. We were planning on going to Jiuzhaigou (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiuzhaigou_Valley) this weekend and leaving on Friday, but apparently Crystal has been in touch with someone at the CDC about this field project possibility so now we may have something to do on Friday.
When we went to the workshop last Friday, we learned that much of AIDS right now in China is concentrated in the IV drug user population. I'll try to explain this...their model is to try and cut off HIV transmission before it transfers from IDUs (IV drug users) to CSWs (commercial sex workers). By contrast, the Thailand model is to try and prevent transmission at the CSW-client level. Professor Zhang says that if the China model does not prove successful, they may start on the Thailand model. This is actually only the first phase of prevention, etc. Janell had a really interesting conversation with a girl named Enid about whether or not the government should limit information about AIDS to the general public. Enid's argument was that they should, because if people knew there were AIDS in Chengdu, they would all move out of fear of being attacked. This reminds me SO much of the US in the early-mid 80s, at least as I remember it (being very young at the time). Enid is a public health student, and she was saying that! I think much more would be gained out of educating the public about the epidemic and how to prevent the spread, as well as how it's NOT transmitted. If the public is not aware of the problem, how can they know to protect themselves? AIDS in Asia is interesting, in general, and I'd love to do some work here (while still being based primarily in the US, haha. I need more diet coke and sandwiches!) after graduation. We'll see.
When we were at the coffee bar on Saturday, this guy named Tony (his English name) told me that his friend Jeff (American, also at the coffee bar) thought a comment was really funny and he couldn't understand why. They were hanging out with a group of friends and one guy was talking about a girl he wanted to be friends with, who I guess is a bit overweight. The guy said, "I like to be friends with fat people" and Jeff just died laughing, which I also did when I heard it. That's a big cultural difference right there...I had to explain to her that in America we don't call people "fat"- in fact, we usually don't comment about their weight, at least to them. She was shocked! It's something they talk about a lot. I don't know.
The air quality is not so great...I've been having a sore throat recently and I'm pretty sure it's because of the smog. But what is most noticeable about the air is the humidity. The air feels so thick and my skin is damp within 10 minutes of walking out the door.
Yesterday we went shopping with Egg at some of the markets where you do a lot of bargaining. It's definitely helpful to have her with us because then SHE can tell them how they're over-charging, but we've been doing ok on our own- especially Janell. She always bargains and usually wins! And last night we discovered that there is a microwave and a refrigerator in our dorm...so good to know!
We are still debating whether or not to go to Tibet and may visit a few travel agencies tomorrow morning before we go to the CDC. Tomorrow night we are going to the Shamrock Pub for a 4th of July celebration! We haven't been there yet but apparently a lot of foreigners hang out there. I'm really looking forward to it, even though David C. laughed that we're spending our 4th of July in an Irish pub in an Asian country, haha.
Anyway, all is well here...we got our nails painted last Thursday- my nails are actually kind of long right now! I got a rose design on my toes. ;) If I lived here I would be seriously girly- all the shoes have so many embellishments on them, there's so much jewelry, etc. I definitely love it.
I just had about 10 million thoughts of things I wanted to write about, but they're all gone. Random thoughts: I miss Riley, but there are soooooooo many little dogs here and I love that. The Buddhist temple was AWESOME especially because Crystal is kind of Buddhist and she was our tour guide. I can't find the pictures, though! :( I'll be so sad if they're lost. Green tea is good. I got a necklace of a lotus flower that means "beauty and health". That is all. :)
Goodnight!
I'm feeling like I have a lot to write, so I'm going to be lazy and copy/paste the email I sent to Tom (Carolina Asia Center) about this weekend- Tom, hope you don't mind!
Hi Tom!
Things are good here- thanks for checking in! We have been really busy the last couple of days. On Thursday we visited the Department of Epidemiology, then went to a performance that night that was part of the China-Africa AIDS seminar(or something like that). I'm sure there is a better, more public health-y way to say this but I don't know it- so I'll just say that there was a drag show there. It was so incredible! There were also performers from the Sichuan Opera and an acrobat, and afterwards all the Africans (they were from all over the continent) were dancing. There were so many cultures there- it was amazing. However, Professor Zhang seemed quite upset that we were there and we didn't know why (there was some miscommunication between the grad students,etc.). The next day he told us that he was concerned that we wouldn't be accepting of the gay population and he is very protective of them, so he was worried. Once he knew that we WERE accepting, though, he seemed very interested in including us.
On Friday Crystal, Janelle, Prof. Zhang and I went to a different county to attend a training for teachers about HIV/AIDS that was led by Professor Zhang. Crystal translated for us and I think we learned a lot- too much to type here right now. ;) Janell was busy that evening but Crystal, Professor Zhang and I went to a party thrown by a gay organization at Sichuan University that was celebrating their 3 year anniversary. It was at a gay bar and was packed and it was another really exciting experience. THEN, yesterday we went with a group of Chinese students (and one other meiguoren;)) to something called the English Salon at a coffeehouse, and that night we went to dinner with Crystal's work office. So- it's been a busy and exciting few days! This coming weekend we are planning on to (I am going to butcher the name) Jozhaigo??
Anyway, it's interesting because we don't know what's going to happen from day to day so we try not to plan too much. It's always at the last minute that we find out about these things! We were a little discouraged at the beginning of last week but I think we've realized that if we're patient, things do happen...and I think we have learned a lot. I wish I could tell some of it now but Crystal is coming over to talk to Janell and I about her thesis that has to be written in English, so I have very little time!
I don't know yet if we're going to be able to be involved in the peer education program...we really probably won't know until it happens or doesn't happen. ;) If we can, I think your idea about continuing it throughout the school year is a great one. The meeting at the CDC was kind of interesting, but it was (of course) all in Chinese and we didn't really have anyone to interpret for us. It was cool to see though. We have field site visits listed down for certain weeks, but I don't know if they're officially scheduled yet. We're just trying to be patient and ok with having no real "schedule"...it seems to be working out right now so I think we're just hoping it continues!
Thanks again for checking it...it really is very much appreciated, and I'm very happy to know that you've been reading our blogs. :) I hope all is well in Chapel Hill!
Amy
Things do seem to happen very quickly here and with little notice. We found out today that we are going with Jackie and (I think) Professor Zhang tomorrow to the CDC for a training for the "bar girls" (sex workers). I don't know if we'll be able to understand what's going on; hopefully we will have someone who can do some interpreting for us while we're there. Crystal spoke to Dean Ma last night and I guess she mentioned that we don't have much to do when we're not at scheduled events, so we're meeting with him and Professor Zhang tomorrow at 5:30 to discuss field projects we may be able to do. Dean Ma also wants to hear what we've learned so far. We were planning on going to Jiuzhaigou (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiuzhaigou_Valley) this weekend and leaving on Friday, but apparently Crystal has been in touch with someone at the CDC about this field project possibility so now we may have something to do on Friday.
When we went to the workshop last Friday, we learned that much of AIDS right now in China is concentrated in the IV drug user population. I'll try to explain this...their model is to try and cut off HIV transmission before it transfers from IDUs (IV drug users) to CSWs (commercial sex workers). By contrast, the Thailand model is to try and prevent transmission at the CSW-client level. Professor Zhang says that if the China model does not prove successful, they may start on the Thailand model. This is actually only the first phase of prevention, etc. Janell had a really interesting conversation with a girl named Enid about whether or not the government should limit information about AIDS to the general public. Enid's argument was that they should, because if people knew there were AIDS in Chengdu, they would all move out of fear of being attacked. This reminds me SO much of the US in the early-mid 80s, at least as I remember it (being very young at the time). Enid is a public health student, and she was saying that! I think much more would be gained out of educating the public about the epidemic and how to prevent the spread, as well as how it's NOT transmitted. If the public is not aware of the problem, how can they know to protect themselves? AIDS in Asia is interesting, in general, and I'd love to do some work here (while still being based primarily in the US, haha. I need more diet coke and sandwiches!) after graduation. We'll see.
When we were at the coffee bar on Saturday, this guy named Tony (his English name) told me that his friend Jeff (American, also at the coffee bar) thought a comment was really funny and he couldn't understand why. They were hanging out with a group of friends and one guy was talking about a girl he wanted to be friends with, who I guess is a bit overweight. The guy said, "I like to be friends with fat people" and Jeff just died laughing, which I also did when I heard it. That's a big cultural difference right there...I had to explain to her that in America we don't call people "fat"- in fact, we usually don't comment about their weight, at least to them. She was shocked! It's something they talk about a lot. I don't know.
The air quality is not so great...I've been having a sore throat recently and I'm pretty sure it's because of the smog. But what is most noticeable about the air is the humidity. The air feels so thick and my skin is damp within 10 minutes of walking out the door.
Yesterday we went shopping with Egg at some of the markets where you do a lot of bargaining. It's definitely helpful to have her with us because then SHE can tell them how they're over-charging, but we've been doing ok on our own- especially Janell. She always bargains and usually wins! And last night we discovered that there is a microwave and a refrigerator in our dorm...so good to know!
We are still debating whether or not to go to Tibet and may visit a few travel agencies tomorrow morning before we go to the CDC. Tomorrow night we are going to the Shamrock Pub for a 4th of July celebration! We haven't been there yet but apparently a lot of foreigners hang out there. I'm really looking forward to it, even though David C. laughed that we're spending our 4th of July in an Irish pub in an Asian country, haha.
Anyway, all is well here...we got our nails painted last Thursday- my nails are actually kind of long right now! I got a rose design on my toes. ;) If I lived here I would be seriously girly- all the shoes have so many embellishments on them, there's so much jewelry, etc. I definitely love it.
I just had about 10 million thoughts of things I wanted to write about, but they're all gone. Random thoughts: I miss Riley, but there are soooooooo many little dogs here and I love that. The Buddhist temple was AWESOME especially because Crystal is kind of Buddhist and she was our tour guide. I can't find the pictures, though! :( I'll be so sad if they're lost. Green tea is good. I got a necklace of a lotus flower that means "beauty and health". That is all. :)
Goodnight!
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