Lately, I've been...

First:  Making strawberry jam.

It's strawberry season here (not actually here in Tianjin, but somewhere in China),

and the berries are big and sweet--even though they don't look quite ripe. 

When I first bought some, I was surprised that they smelled right; that's always my first

clue as to whether the berries or peaches or pineapple are ripe.

And they've been delicious.

The girls had particularly missed all the freezer jam we'd had to leave behind,

so now there are several jars full in our freezer here. 

And it tastes great!

 Second:  Shopping at a brand-new IKEA store here in Tianjin.  

There was one in Beijing, but now we don't have to make the 2-hour drive

to get this or that.  

And one thing is for sure!  You don't eat at the IKEA restaurant for the view.

 Third:  Taking part in a walking tour of downtown Tianjin.

My friend Diane had visitors coming from the States and hired an American guide (who has lived here many years) to take them around, giving some of the history and interesting tidbits, and she invited me

to tag along.  Since I love history, and we will soon have visitors 

from the States, I wanted to see this!

We met at a Starbucks on the coldest morning of the past few weeks.  

We had bright, clear skies, but an ornery north wind that just cut through any coat. 

What a day to be out walking! 

And the first street we came to had all kinds of beautiful flowers and looked all

European--and the flowers were artificial.   

 We were in the "Concession" areas--those segments of town that were

populated by different foreign nations after China was forced to open up to trade in the  mid-1800's (and that was a nasty piece of business--forcing China to buy opium so that Britain wouldn't have a 

trade imbalance with China).  There was a British area of town (and they policed themselves--Chinese 

weren't allowed.)  There were also French, Belgium, German, Austrian, Japanese, and Italian areas.

Each area has it's own architecture and flavor.

We went into the Astor Hotel--oldest one in China.

 It's kind of fun to see where the rich and famous have been.

Herbert Hoover lived in Tianjin before he ran for president and made his  fortune

here.  The Rockefellers came and set up a bank.

 In fact, there were many foreign banks and they were beautiful old buildings.

The local government has named them historic buildings and is preserving them.

 The tour took us by very few old buildings--most have been torn down, many new buildings

made to look old, and then some very new ones.  The tall glass building

is a just-opened financial center.

A few things learned:

Eric Liddle, the Olympic runner portrayed in "Chariots of Fire" was born in Tianjin 

and returned here after the 1924 Olympics.  He taught at a mission school, married,

had daughters, and in 1937 when Japan invaded, Eric sent his family to Canada.  After Pearl Harbor,

the Japanese rounded up all foreigners and shipped them to a concentration camp.

Eric died there of a brain tumor.  

In 1976, the city of Tang Shan (about an hour north of here) was destroyed in an 8.9 earthquake.

300,000 people died there.  Here in Tianjin, many of the older buildings were damaged and

20,000 people died.  I hadn't know we were in an area with such

a recent quake!

And you thought America was polluted?

The first thing I noticed about China was the dirt. Or maybe it was the smell.

They were both there, right from the beginning.  At least during the summer it rained and

cleaned things off every week or so.  During this winter we've not had much moisture and

the grime is growing.  The air smells sooty.  Dusty.  Tinged with something that doesn't smell healthy.  

On the bad days, pregnant women, children and old people are warned to stay indoors.  The rest of us are warned to not exercise heavily.

 The landscape seems monochromatic--everything is some shade of brownish-gray

as the murk from the air coats everything.

 Even when the skies are blue and fairly clear, there is the low-lying murk.  

These two smokestacks are silhouetted by the setting sun as I was watching from my 

apartment.  And that's not just steam.  

Coal-burning power plants dot the land.  I've counted about a dozen on the drive

in to where we go to church.  Some of them are in less-populated areas,

 but others are right in the middle of apartment buildings.  I don't know if the

idea of zoning laws has taken hold here.

 People say that it is SO much better than it was 15 years ago.  It was 

impossible to see the sky back then.  Still, as I'm breathing this murk,

I wonder what it's doing to my lungs.

 Yes, China exports a lot to the US and other nations, but they are paying

the price for all this industry in the polluting of their land and people, 

and any of the rest of us who happen to be here!

One of my blessings...

Someone recently reminded me of the power of remembering, 

at the end of each day, five blessings.  As I've done this, some days it has been hard to keep it to five--and that's good!  Other days, it is hard to find five, and that's when I know I need to be more grateful.  

(It's probably been a day that, locally, is referred to as a "China Day"--when all the differences seem more overwhelming 

than usual.)

But one blessing that keeps coming up on my list is...

my daily swim.  I love to swim, and finally I am living in a place where it is convenient to swim whenever I want to! 

And only a 5 minute walk away.  Of course, I do have to cross 8 lanes of traffic, but that just boosts the adrenaline and adds to the work-out effect.

In Cedar Falls, I could swim during the summer at the outdoor pool, weather-permitting.  Or I could swim at 5 a.m. or 9 pm at the junior high (two days a week).  I'm not a morning person and would probably drown at 5 a.m. (and certainly couldn't roust myself out of bed on a consistent basis), and I'm in my home-cocoon at 9 p.m.  Who wants to go get wet at that hour? 

My favorite time to swim?  

Mid-afternoon, about 2:30--after I've tamed my to-do list but before the kids get home from school.

This pool is so inviting!  

The pool is heated--and when it's cold outside, little tendrils of fog waft upwards.  The water is very clear (none of that greenish tinge

the city pool would get and which made me 

wonder just how many chemicals they had to put in to

counteract the "left-behind" from lots of little kids). 

Often, I get to swim alone, and I love disturbing the mirror surface, watching the gentle ripples fan out as I begin my swim.

The pool's length is the same as the width of a

competition pool, so it's fine for doing laps.

 As I leave the dressing room (all granite and marble) and go up to the pool there is a foot bath to step into.  Rarely, the water has just been changed and is warm.  It's a pleasant surprise when it isn't icy cold.  But after the cold water, it's easy to look forward to

getting into the warm pool.

As I am swimming, I almost have to pinch myself.

Is this really me?  Idaho farm girl Rosemary,

swimming at a beautiful hotel in China?

Yup!  And I'm a happy camper.

Making dumplings

Dumplings are a big part of the Chinese experience. 

 There are dumpling restaurants.

You can get dumplings just about anywhere.

At our Bible study group, Zhong Ling offered

to teach us how to make jiaozi (dumplings).

She grew up in Beijing but has lived in Austen, Texas,

for the past 17 years and just returned to China

for her husband's job .  She has been able to tell us 

fascinating stories about growing up in Mao's China.

(She is an American citizen and is legal in coming to Bible Study.

If she were a Chinese citizen, she could not.)

We met at her apartment (which reminded me of a Barbie dollhouse--lots of orange or pink cabinets doors on white cabinets), and she helped us roll out the flour-&-water dough into small circles.

Then we put a tablespoon of the filling in the center of the circle.  She had two for us to try:  1) hamburger/carrot/ginger root/onion mixture and 2) ground pork/chopped leek/ginger root.  Both were delicious, but I have found that real ginger root doesn't agree with me.  There was also soy sauce, sesame oil, and sesame seeds in each mixture.

Then came boiling the jiaozi, for 6 or 7 minutes, and as soon as the dough was completely done, they were ready to eat. 

 A great vinegar (similar to a balsamic vinegar) is poured on the plate for dipping, and then we got to enjoy!

 My only problem?  I can do chop sticks for most foods, but

jiaozi are a little slippery for me.

I had to give up and use a fork.

Ellie's Foot Adventure

Since Christmas, I have written at least 20 blog entries--in my head.

I wish there was a way to just transfer those

thoughts, without the tedium of keyboards and slow internet

connections, etc.  

I hereby resolve to actually write down my entries more often!

***

And what motivates me at this time?

Ellie's left foot.

This past Saturday, Ellie's team had their last basketball

tournament, held in Beijing. They were in 2nd place

in their conference (against other international schools), 

but had a whole month off for Christmas and Spring Festival (Chinese New Year), so the other schools were in better physical condition.  And they had become more aggressive.

The refs weren't calling many fouls, so there was a lot of

contact on the floor.  One of Ellie's teammates suffered a 

concussion from hitting her head hard during a fall (no foul

called).  She can't remember the game at all.  Ellie's woes began with a fast breakaway to go set up a play.  Her feet tangled with her defender's (or just maybe she was tripped), and she felt a snap

in her foot as she fell on it.  She tried to get up, felt another snap

and stayed down.  They iced her foot, had her sit out to wait and see if it was just a strain, but in doing the "toe-flicking" test,

pains were shooting up Ellie's legs, so the coach sent her

to get an x-ray--she was pretty sure it was broken.

I have to add here that we weren't at the game.

We were home in TEDA, texting back and forth with her.

 The assistant coach got a taxi and took Ellie to the

SOS International Clinic.  They confirmed in the x-rays that

indeed it was broken (bottom outside bone), but was in-line

and just needed to be stabilized to heal.

 And so she has a cast, toes-to-knee.

And crutches.

 However, she's been getting lots of piggy-back rides.

First, to the taxi.  Then, getting a taxi back to the tournament.

The taxi let them out at the elementary school side 

of the complex, so it was about a 2-block walk to the high

school side--with new crutches and a new cast!  

 I wish we had been there with our driver!

 And now, her classes at school are on the 3rd and 4th floors--and the elevator is not yet in service (it is a new school).  

The principal told Ellie's classmates that extra PE credit would

be given to anyone who gives her a ride up the stairs.

She also made brownies to hand out to helpers yesterday.

So the adventure continues--

a little differently than she had planned.  

Soccer season started yesterday (Alice got on the team) 

and Ellie was supposed to play.  

You see, there is this crazy PE requirement for graduation at this school.  They think you should take PE every year of high school.  In Cedar Falls, you only had to take one semester as a freshman, and then if your schedule was full, you were excused the other years.  So Ellie has to make up 3 years' worth of PE.  She took it 1st semester (for her sophomore year), and has it this semester (for her junior year), and had to be in two sports to make up the last credit.

Not only can't she do soccer, but she's not going to be doing much in PE for the next 6 weeks.  

Actually, she's sad about not doing soccer.   

Unlike basketball, she'd played it before. 

And the P.E. here has been something the girls look forward to--

I know, that seems so weird.  But the teacher keeps it fun, 

with Ultimate Frisbee, or other games, 

and the level of fitness has been good.  

Until  getting into the new school, they didn't have a gym--

PE was either outside on the astro turf (no matter the weather, unless it was a high pollution day) 

or in the large lobby.  

Maybe the key to liking it is because they 

don't change into squirrelly gym outfits.