myChineselife

Having some fun with the NUIST inline skating club

A warm Welcome from the inline skating club at Nanjing University of Science and Technology

 

 

The Undertones - Teenage Kicks

 

If there is one thing I found that NUIST was good for - it was activities; Fresher's fair - 2009, I was walking round the countless stalls; there were singing groups, dance groups, English clubs and all kinds of activities!

 

 The one activity I thought I'd like to have a go at was Roller-blading. Having bought myself a new set of Rolllerblades in 2007 while working at nearby city called Changzhou, it seemed tailor made for me. I put my name down, and before long was being called very keenly by a group leader called Trevor.

 

                         From Zero....

 

Here we have a none too clever skater performing that most trickiest of moves for the beginer. Experts in the know call it - going forwards! 

"I had no goals; aside from not breaking anything that is.... I was also pretty dubious that my body could actually bend in those seemingly impossible directions!"

 

Actually I am kidding you - it is surprising how quickly you can pick up new skills in skating when there is somebody to show you how something is done.

To hero!!!!                              

Download 04 Times Like These
                        
 

There we have it - after one lesson! Performing tricks with a small child....

I guess whatever you do - there are always worse out there than you are....

"Looking like a prize idiot, I moved my overweight carcass over to where all the fun was happening. I had my elbow pads, knee pads and wrist guards (on the wrong way) and my super skates - YEAH! LETS ROLL!!

http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMjEyMTYyMjc2.html  

 My goal after skating around aimlessly not particularly achieving anything was to learn how to do basic tricks and go backwards. My "trick" was chosen for me, by what could only be called my instructor.

 

"For the first few sessions I breezed up and down gaining speed falling over every now and again, jumping onto a platform and going along on one leg with the other stretched out infront or behind - much to the amusement of some of the students."

 

The trick described basically was to move between the cones with my feet together. The task involves  changing directions using both of your feet at the same time. After a few goes I found myself perfectly able to go up and down the cones at a steadily increasing speed. The two things you learn about these tricks is that it is possible to pick them up very quickly, and at the end of the cones when not used to it, your muscles tire - so you do need to practice and concentrate if you are to get to the ends of the cones.

 

The next task I found for myself is the art of going backwards. Since 1982, I had always wondered how it was that some people could go backwards whereas I could only go along forwards and quickly switch to going backwards - momentum taking me a short way. I found this much easier on the "in-lines" as opposed to the "quad-wheeled skates."

 

"When I was learning to skate as a child we used to hire skates at the local sports centre - if we were really lucky we went to Rollerbury, the roller-disco at Bury St Edmunds (a 45 min car journey away). Anyone who had their own Roller-Boots was just king (or queen) of cool!"

 

When my problem was described to me, everything changed in one session. The problem was weight disribution. In actual fact, if you lean forward and bend the knees is surprising how suddenly you can go backwards! There is a special way of doing it, by the position of your arms ine in front and one behind and aiming your head over your shoulder. I was even told which shoulder it should be! 

 

"After spending some time with the group I was happy for the fresh air, that I learnt something new, and I wasn't spending time with people who couldn't be pleased. This was valuable me time, a chance to express myself, meet people and learn a new skill. After all - I wasn't hurting anyone and never hurt or broke anything of mine either"

 

Mid Autumn Festival Celebrations in Nanjing

Sadly this year I wont be going to the Mid Autumn festival - but I'd like to talk about Mid Autumn festivals past. 

Nanjingers on a Mid Autumn Fesitval san-bu (stroll)

The Mid-Autumn Festival is held on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese calendar, which this year - 2010 is the 21st of September.

In Nanjing there is no more pleasant way to spend a cool breezy autumn night than going along to Confucius temple, and seeing the decorations and eating delicious snacks, such as "moon-cake."

"One of my favourite snacks is given and received at this time by almost all people in Nanjing. I would describe the middle as having a fudge like consistency. Some of them are flavoured with many kinds of fruit or have a fudge flavour. During my stay in China each of my employers kindly gave all of us foreign teachers a pack of assorted moon-cakes."

For many years the story of the "Moon-Cake" has been an integral part of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Legend has it, that is was during the oppressive foreign occupation by the Mongols  (Yuan dynasty 1280- 1368 AD)  peasant revolts became more and more sporadic. As hundreds of thousands Han Chinese struggled to throw off the chains of subjugation from their Mongolian rulers.  It is believed that a man known as Liu Fu Tong devised a way of getting the mighty combined forces of the Chinese together by using the cover of a social gathering.

Having the permission to celebrate the Mid-Autumn festival by the governing authority. Lui Fu Tong started distributing his cakes to the wider community. Unbeknown to the authorities however, was that within these cakes laid the exact details of when and where they were to execute a  well co-ordinated attack on their oppressors.

Today there are many many kinds of Moon Cakes. Traditionally the cakes are made with egg yolk, however instead of being large cakes (such as to contain detailed plans) they are small bite sized cakes, usually given in packs containing several different flavoured cakes.

"Anyone trying to tell a Chinese student that the basis of the Mid - Autumn festival is basically shared by all cultures across the world; it marks the end of the farmer's work and signifies a time of bounty and food a plenty at harvest time, will most usually come against fierce denial."

The Legend of Chang'e (Pronounced Chung-gur) is a colloquial story told to all Chinese children, about the origins of their Mid-Autumn Festival. There are couple of variations of the story, but characteristic in Chinese traditional legend; there are the tragic lovers (Hou-yi and Chang'e, his hearts desire) involvement of heavenly powers and mystical intruige.

My favourite version combines the supernatural, with the physical. The goddess Chang'e was married to Hou-yi. Hou-yi was one day offered the pill of immortality by the emperor for his services as an archer. 

He prepared for eating the pill, however as duty called him away - Chang'e found it, spotting a beam of light under the floorboards - she took it and swallowed it. 

When Hou-yi returned home, he realized what had happened and blamed Chang'e. Finding that she now had the power to fly, Chang'e flew to the moon. Pursuing her Hou-yi could only fly half way to the moon.

There was a hare who lived on on the moon, and Chang'e demanded of the hare to make her another pill. If he could do this, she would be able to return to earth and be reunited with her husband.

In the meantime her husband managed to take residence in a palace in the sun. Every year on the fifteenth of the Month of the full moon. The Moon unites with the sun by displaying its brilliant harvest moon colour.

It is during this time that the two lovers every year reunite, and the whole of China enjoy an evening of unity and happiness.

The story continues as the hare on the moon strives to mix the perfect ingredients to give to Chang'e....... In order that she may be able to fly to her husband who is patiently waiting for her.

Day trip to Xitang (Mission Impossible III) ancient watery village

"Over the years I must have driven (or been driven) vast distances throughout the Fens and seen almost every large river there is to see in East Anglia. However looking out of the window of the bus as you drive through Zhejiang nothing can prepare the British visitor as to what a watery place this really is."

Just for show these days - Xitang's river and ancient surroundings

 

Water is underutilized as a method of transport or haulage method - in the UK. In Zhejiang, China humongous amounts of goods travel by water, mostly raw materials (like coal, gravel, bricks) on their way to all kinds of construction developments. To us, water transportation was superseded very quickly by rail. In China these super slow - but mega capacity and absolutely countless canals and rivers take a huge strain.

"When I saw the birth place of Zhou Enlai - Huai 'an Jiangsu . I felt it could be directly compared with Earith, near Huntingdon - Cambridgeshire, with its man-made canals all interlinking with eachother. However; this place was something else."

       Welcome to the set of Mission Impossible II

 Famous for not being in any way part of modern developments in China (except for the huge flow of visiting tourists). Xitang - said to date from the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC-476  BC) is an alcove of pure history.

Here we see access to the water, for washing clothes. Its hard for me to imagine that clothes come out any cleaner than before they are washed this way. Washing machines in the city are usual, however don't expect hot water on most of them! Still plenty of scope for some elbow grease!

"You can read on the internet, in newspapers, see on TV, hear on the radio about the construction of China. However, every route we seemed to take in the three trips colided with a new express railway line being constructed. Amazing when we look at a country like the UK, where High Speed one was the first new line constructed for 100 years."

Day trip to Ma An Shan, Anhui province; with Big Foot tours

The first I heard about the Ma An Shan tour was via QQ - early April, with the message;

"Tour the schedule: the morning to "small Jiuhuashan" and then go to "Phoenix Lake" Resort, and lunch at the resort. Resort has a bamboo forest, which will go to a museum visit."

The bus left off at about 7.50am from the Gulou one way system (by the small bus station there) and  arrived at Ma An Shan (horse saddle mountain) just in time to climb the Guangji temple mountain  after making the necessary toilet stops along the way. 

Ma An Shan although in Anhui is actually not much further away than Gao Chun. To my surprise one of my keenest students comes from Ma An Shan.

Major industry in Ma An Shan is steel, and surprisingly the production of  Hualing cement mixers and dump trucks that find their way to Nanjing for construction work. Chinese trucks never seem to last very long - I think if they get five years out of them they are doing well!

A Ma An Shan made cement mixer - a very common sight in Nanjing and surrounding area

Apart from seeing lots of all kinds of trucks our first task was to climb the Guanji Temple Mountain. It looked really steep from the bottom, most of the travelers made it to the top - except my friends friend who I called nei nei - Grandma. 

View from ground zero - looks like a very steep hill 

Maanshan's name, which means "horse saddle mountain" in Chinese, comes from a Chinese legend. Legend has it that Xiang Yu, a prominent general in Chinese history, committed suicide in the region of present Maanshan after he was defeated by Liu Bang. Xiang Yu's beloved horse leapt into the river when it saw Xiang Yu die. The people buried the horse saddle in a hill, and the hill became known as Maanshan.

The Guangji Temple, one of the earliest Buddhist sites in China, was first built in the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD25-220). Putang Landscape Zone, lying in the eastern part of Maanshan,

After lunch, the schedule included taking in a newly built museum. Surprisingly for such a little place the museum had three levels - one for anthropology, one for relics and a gallery. Nothing was in English, but nei nei was on hand to explain some of the details I had missed. 

"To my surprise my attention was turned to the picture of a man who lived in the same area as me and my friend (Pukou) many hundreds of years ago. The man, held in high esteem throughout the area for his poetry and good character on closer inspection seemed to bear close resemblance to my good friend Chen Ya Qin, I was left thinking - how ironic, some distant ancestor perhaps...." 

The day at Ma An Shan finished with a stop at the Putang Landscape Zone (bamboo forest park) where we had a small picnic, enjoyed the sun and relaxed until the bus took us back to Najing.

Me at the huge Putang landscape zone (bamboo forest park)

 

Day trip to Gaochun, Jiangsu - with the Big Foot tour company

 In the Christmas of 2009, I was invited to a Christmas party. This is where I met my good friends Steve Madden and Chen Ya Qin. It turned out that Chen Ya Qin lived close by and to our delight we became best of friends.

Download 02 Fantastic Day

Steve and me enjoying a motorbike rally at Gaochun

I really can't thank Chen Ya Qin enough for her company throughout 2010, the loan of her bicycle, the food she has cooked for me and for taking care of my things. Not least for inviting me and Steve along with the Big Foot tour company to visit towns within two to three hours of Nanjing.

On our first visit to Gaochun - for the Oil  Seed Rape Festival, Steve and me enjoyed a photo session on some Chinese made Russian motorcycles - and yes Steve did actually ride it around the car park!

I was a bit dubious when she said; "we will go to Gaochun - see rape." but we had a nice time and not a violated woman in sight!

A small child playing a big part of the show - to the enjoyment of onlookers

 

Luckily for us our trip happened to fall on one of the first warm days of the year. After the display we moved on to the town itself. The modern part looked very much the same as an English town - the shops and the street layout. However Gaochun has a very special secret - known as lao jie (Old street). I couldn't be sure of how old it was but it was exactly the kind of street I imagined from my book about a missionary named Gladys Ayleward.

"The old lady was found in the courtyard in the morning, having got up in the middle of the night, walked across the ancient floorboards and plumeted streight to the ground sustaining injuries that became the  death of her."

Gaochun - Lao Jie (Old Street) a street frozen in time

After the second half of our day, we explored a temple and a canal and we were ready to come home. Not without taking a few last pictures of eachother before we went. It was here where I told my favourite picture of Chen Ya Chin.

My dear friend Chen Ya Qin in Gaochun, Jiangsu Province

  

Experiences with the cheapest of racing cycles

Back in 2007 I set about buying a bicycle in China. I've always had racers; lightweight, dropped handlebars, slim wheels etc. So when I saw this bike hanging there on the wall - a Shanghai Sansi racer at a bargain price - it seemed too good to be true. So when I decided that was the one for me - the fun began.

The challenge - To buy the bike I wanted as cheaply as possible and to be able to ride away.

My opponent - Chinese - local Nanjing man - sneaky - unwilling to take responsibility - about 42 years.

Me - Stranger to China - strong exchange rate - diligent and perceptive - English teacher - 33 years.

We bargained with eachother for a little while, and I finally got the bike for £25 - about a third of a day's pay from my previous job - and you thought it was just him who was sneaky!

The Shanghai Sansi as I bought it - 2007

I wasn't going to be fobbed off by a bike that wasn't properly put together either! So I cycled up and down the street checking every nut and bolt was properly secure before parting with my cash.

The one thing I was not anticipating was the pedals splitting apart on its first journey into Nanjing. The (Chinese) sneaky man not able to deny the unsuitability of the part, kindly replaced the pedals with a pair of black plastic ones (pictured above).

The next problem (completely foreseeable from the sneaky man's perspective) was that the receipt he gave me was not a formal one capable of being submitted to the bicycle licensing authority. Not wishing to deal with the man in particular I sent my friend after him - big mistake! He conned her out of more money just for the correct paperwork. Round one to the little sneaky man!

In Nanjing for the price of a chocolate bar back in the UK you can proclaim yourself legal and above board with a nice little green book and a plastic attachment to you bicycle with your bicycle's identity number. An insert completing the number is to be held on your person or at home in case of theft - not a bad idea.

When buying a bike in a large industrial city, tools are never a problem - so I procured some allen keys and spanners and got myself a pump. A keen biker in the UK the tall sneaky man (me) collected some reflectors, lights, decent pedals with toe clips, some more handlebar tape and the bike was complete.

One thing that needs to be addressed with a cheap bike is the need for tightening and adjusting at least twice a week. The metal is soft, and the lack of brazed fixtures to the frame exacerbates the problem.  A big man of about 90kg, having done many years training for running, climbing a very steep hill the rear cassette split in half. I believe that with a lighter rider this most probably wouldn't have occurred. The other thing you need to watch out for is rust. Being well aware of this, my bike was always kept inside and cleaned and dried off regularly. With some decent rags, a sponge, some oil and a tin of Brasso - I felt more than equipped to keep rust at bay.

Two years later - still looking good! Notice the licence, quality pedals, reflectors and new seat

Conclusion

Providing the bike is well looked after, lightly riden and kept indoors - I can't say the Shanghai Sansi has been a bad bike. Rust never stood a chance to form, and it was perfectly safe providing you have a tool kit at home and monitor the tightness of all the nuts and bolts as a matter of routine.

The frame was pretty solid and lightweight, but don't expect the rigidity of the soft steel components to be up to the standards of a Nottingham made Raleigh for example.

If asked would I recommend a bike like this to any of my readers....

Any buyer of a poor quality bike such as this one I would recommend you get yourself some cheap tools, a rag and don't be afraid to use them. If you are scared of bike maintenence and you want to keep your bike outside, this one will fall foul of those conditions very quickly - falling apart and rusting like crazy. You will almost certainly do better to spend at least £60 on a Giant or a Japanese JC bike.

You want a bike you can use and abuse and just discard......

Shame on you! Protect the environment by making what you have last by looking after it!

Will I get another one.....?

Now I know what the costs are, I'll certainly look around and consider myself better informed as to what I'm buying. Next time I will most likely choose a bike with more braze ons, stainless steel and alloy parts.

Hot Chocolate - Everyone's A Winner

Experiencing world band radio in Nanjing - Is there hope left for the humble radio?

Download 04 open your mind

If you asked most people if you could get English language broadcasts over the airwaves in foreign countries like China most people would be probably be slightly skeptical.

While in china I armed with my Tecsun 9700 DX, and set about scanning the airwaves for broadcasts. Having listened to a huge array of broadcasts on my first radio, a diminutive lightweight pocket radio (also made by Tecsun) this radio marked a greater investment (about £15) as a more serious attempt to receive broadcasts.  However, not all people who learned of my new found hobby was convinced.

"I can't see the point in sitting around listening to static"

"I don't listen to the radio, its what old people do"

"Why don't you just listen to the radio via the internet?"

Undeterred by the lack of faith from my compatriots, and the fact that reception in my apartment for Short Wave was non-existent.  I set aside some time to take a walk every now and again in the University grounds to randomly search for stations and tune in to what was being transmitted over the airwaves - after all it is of much benefit to people such as myself that these transmissions are being aired in the first place. Surely it would be a shame to let these transmissions to go undetected.

A lovely spot for tuning into English radio broadcasts

 

"radio broadens your mind"

Of the many broadcasts I listened to at my little secluded reception point, before leaving China, the last major broadcast I can remember was from the BBC on World Service.  Breaking news at the time just prior to me leaving China was the Israeli's boarding of the aid ship in the Gaza strip.

World Party Is it Like Today

Impartial as ever, the BBC waited and waited for accurate information to come in from trusted sources. On the third day, eye witness accounts came in from the Israeli soldiers. Suddenly the soldier's aggression towards innocent aid-workers was put into perspective, and their side was told.  Without my world band radio - none of this would have been known to me, so for that I felt informed and valued as a listener.

"Not always unbiased"

Anyone searching the airwaves regularly in the Far-East will undoubtedly have come across "Voice of Korea" - DPRK radio.

Never more apparent, when you listen to broadcasts from the countries in the news themselves, is the plight of the people. Through the language that is used, the subjects repeated and emphasized, it becomes clear what the government or broadcaster believes or wants you to believe.

"Using words such as "thieves" when the Russians described the Ukranian position in the oil standoff, leave the listener under no illusion as to the position of the Russian government."

No big deal you might think, but the Voice of Russia is unobtainable via the internet in China, and the Korean station is most likely unobtainable also.  Skeptical as to the motives of all - especially the Korean and Russian stations,  for me, learning about their culture through their words and understanding their values is food for the imagination.

FM too mind you

Queen - Radio Gaga

At the end of the day, the radio is equally at home with FM broadcasts. Late at night, as I plug in the radio to my desktop speaker system (via the headphone socket) I listen to  Nanjing's "Its my radio" to help me relax and unwind.  The little Tecsun 9700 DX combined with the speakers provide a wonderful quality of sound.

"With quality easily better than any flat and compressed sounding internet radio station. My digital response is a predicable one. Executed with the middle finger! "

The making of a Mazida - A Three Wheeled Motorized Taxi

Anyone who ventures out into the suburbs on the outskirts of Nanjing will be aware of the ever increasing presence of the Maz-ida; the three wheel motorized Rickshaw.  

These three wheeled trikes are converted by a number of companies around the city who take a basic vehicle and build them up according to customer's specification.

Basic vehicle awaiting conversion to mazida 

According to one of the workers;

“It takes roughly six hours to complete one vehicle from start to finish, three hours for the welding and painting. Then once the paint is dry, the final stage is completed in about the same time.”

Steppenwolf - Born To Be Wild

"As well has having three engine sizes, 125.150 and 155cc they can be specified with a fold down rack at the back for carrying awkward items like bicycles or carrying a spare wheel. Some customers prefer the front light to turn with the vehicle, whereas these days most prefer the front light re-affixed to the front panel.”

Once the frame is affixed to the chassis and is dry, the process of cutting and fitting the panels, converting the brakes, re-affixing the front light, inserting the seats and the windows is complete.

The lady behind is responsible for cutting most of the panels inside, fitting them as well as fitting the seats and the windows.

The man in the foreground bends and shapes some of the front panels and fits them, he then converts the brakes and reworks the front  front lights of the vehicle.

The Final Vehicle

 

Download 03 Bomber

And what kind of life span can the proud owner of such a vehicle expect? According to the converters, the mazida taxis usually last about five years.

So next time it is raining, you are tired, or have some luggage you don’t want to carry and you scuttle into the comfort and safety of a three wheel motorized taxi. You can now say you know a bit about how it is made. You can also sit back happy in the knowledge that they are made locally, and offer good benefits to the local economy.

A year in the Nanjing University of Information and Technology

The spirit of The Nanjing School of Information and Technology I believe can only be summed up by the atmosphere and strong emotions experienced by those of us leaving the University.

Feelings of deep sadness for leaving our wonderfully close friends and colleagues balanced with the feeling of relief as the students (and I) were about to return home. I'm not sure I have ever witnessed such a mixture of emotions and such a dense atmosphere. 

Saying goodbye to my Student Juicy (Left hand side) and her friend Pansy (Right)

When I Kissed The Teacher

Life is fragile - when I arrived at the University I knew it was at least 45 minutes from the town. But due to a falling out with my two best friends in the world; I had to start from scratch. Let me tell you, shock is something that seems to hit gradually harder as we get older. It was the last thing I was expecting.

  Change is essential to every living thing, adapting and moving on. It is these changes that help us learn about the world and ourselves. Changes that seem to break us, but also give us new perspectives in life. A life that forces us to choose compromises, but also choose things that remain the same - that we can identify with.

Below I will do my best to introduce to you as many of the wonderful people I met at NUIST as I am able.

Head of English Corner - Serena                

English corner was one of the many many activities that I enjoyed at NUIST.

Other activites included keep fit, open air swimming, ping pong, weightlifting and rollerblading.  

Serena was one of the wonderful people I met while at English corner. Happiest when busy, Serena's willpower to overcome any obstacles impressed me so much. A typical Chinese girl (on the outside) Serena is made of metal - and that metal is gold.

My co-teacher Robert became one of my good friends and confidants, with whom I enjoyed many a game of golf, DVD and even shared rent on an outside room - which we rented to get round many of the intrusive rules enforced by the University.

Pictured left is my neat little hiding hole. The themed colour of my place was most definitely orange. I would like to thank Robert for his contribution to the place, and Zhu Dandan (Kathleen) for helping me buy the fridge, TV and mattress, and Yan Lin for taking me to the perfect place to buy the sofa and cupboard!

Yolanda and Robert enjoying Yolanda's birthday

 

Robert and Yolanda met at English corner. At Yolanda's birthday party, Robert so lovingly bought her flowers and a wonderful cake. We had a small party at mine - one of many parties I was priveledged to invite my friends to. 

Kathleen, Juicy, Robert, Pan Zhou (Pansy) Serena Yolanda, Vilho and Janet; thank you for making my parties so enjoyable and so much fun. 

2009 Christmas decorations at my apartment at NUIST

Christmas Songs -Wham - Last Chrismas

The Christmas party was accompanied by some decorations I bought locally, all my music and my Nintendo Wii - which we played bowling on during the party. Yolanda just kept beating all of us!