Shanghai Rain and another week in Wuhan

Well another week has gone by in Wuhan and it’s already Sunday.  I don’t understand how these weeks fly by so fast.  I can’t believe that in a month we get to go on vacation again for a week, and then after that it’s the homestretch until I come home.  The fact that Brad is having a baby is really starting to hit me as well.  I’ve been picking up some cute things for her while I’m over here, trying to make up for the fact that I will not be there when she is born.  Life is just going to be different when I get home in so many ways and I think I’m having troubles grasping my head around that. 

Anyways, last weekend we took a little getaway to Shanghai with 9 girls on staff.  It was a good mix of girls, including the principal’s wife, which made it a little like we had a mom watching over us which was kind of cute.  I am also very thankful that my best friend works for Fairmont and was able to hook us up.  I really can’t describe how gorgeous these rooms were.  The Fairmont in Beijing was nice, but this was amazing.  We felt like queens staying there.  We didn’t really do a lot of sightseeing as it was raining all weekend.  There were also two girls with us that were wanting to do some wedding dress shopping and needed some support so we tagged along for the adventure.  We also got some market/barter shopping in, which can always be an interesting experience.  I must say that we are getting a lot better at it with experience.  

Since we didn’t get to see that much of Shanghai I think we’re going to make another trip back right before we come home sometime in June.  We were right across the street from the Bund and never managed to make it there :S  I know, awful, hence why we need to go back.  We kind of knew this before hand that it would end up being a girls shopping weekend, and the rain really didn’t help our cause to venture away from the shopping. 

Anyways, these weeks are just flying by now.  I like that I get to have a little more time to myself and can keep the house clean.  I have much more time now to cook some nicer meals (not that we were eating bad before) and take on different areas of the house to clean.  It’s nice having the space that we do, but it does take a little bit of maintenance.  Teaching PE is helping my sanity from piles and piles of marking.  It does take being organized, but not nearly as time consuming.  We just finished off our first week of Hockey which has been super fun.  It’s the first sport that I really have a lot of knowledge about skills/drills/game play and so on.  I mean, Badminton and Frisbee were fun, but I just like hockey so much more.  I believe I’m doing a short unit of soccer, which will be fun because I know all of the students really like playing soccer.  It’s hard to keep their interest for two weeks sometimes when they aren’t feeling the sport.  Our soccer unit is cut short though because of Mid-terms :S  Which is shocking!  I can’t believe we’re only just over two weeks from half way through the term.  I guess it just goes to show that I chose the right profession.  If I didn’t enjoy what I was doing this time would crawl by. 

So that is all for now J  Hope everyone at home is doing well

-Taryn

Back into the grind

I am sorry I have been so neglectful of my blog in the last little while.  It was kind of like the beginning of the year again where there was just a lot on the go and everyone was really excited to back at school. 

As I’ve mentioned before my course load is a lot different this semester.  I’m teaching two PE 10, Drama 10 and English 10.  Having two less English courses has been a blessing and given me a lot more time to do other things.  I’ve really enjoyed cooking again, not that I didn’t before but I got my mom to send me some recipes from home and I’ve really loved it.  Robyn as well J  I forgot about all of the e other things besides the random things I put together, so it was a nice change.  On Sundays I try to make something that we can put in the freezer for those nights when I’m lazy or don’t have time to make dinner.  So right now we are stocked up on chili, chicken cacciatore and red curry. 

I have been in such a good mood lately at school.  Teaching PE is just so much different.  It’s nice to get out of the classroom and have some fun with the kids.  I already experience this with drama a little bit, but with sports it’s just different for me as I’m a little bit more comfortable teaching pe than drama.  I do get razzed by my English 11 students all the time and I know that they miss me which is kind of a nice feeling as a teacher. 

A bunch of us girls are heading to Shanghai this weekend, so I’m pretty excited about it.  There has been a lot of stuff going on and I think it will be nice just to get away.  I will update more when I have my Shanghai trip to talk about J

-Taryn

My Vacation Journal - I wrote a journal during the break and just finished typing it all out

Vacation Journal

January 25

                I just bought this little note book in the airport in Japan on one of my layovers.  I thought since I wasn’t blogging this experience, I would keep track of it somehow. 

                The long flight is over now, still have two more until I meet Caitlin in Bangkok.  This break is really one of the main reasons I decided to work with Maple Leaf in the first place.  Where else would you get an opportunity to travel the world and work at a job that you absolutely love? 

                I left Hawaii this morning and I couldn’t have asked for a better trip or a better person to spend my week with.  I’ll briefly go through the trip.  I spent the first day suffering a little bit as I left China at 9:30am and arrived in Hawaii at the exact same time.  My body wasn’t really happy with me.  So we were late getting out to eat and then just had a nice little evening walk on the beach. 

                Tuesday was a little cloudy and I was still a little late getting my day started.  We got up, had a late breakfast and decided it would be a good day to go to the zoo.  So, we did that, got some ice-cream, sat on the beach and this was Riley’s first experience with my slow eating habits.  We went back to the hotel, got ready and then headed out for dinner. 

                The next day was bright and sunny so it was time to hit up the beach.  It was so nice to just soak all the sun in and goof around in the ocean. 

                The following day we called up Robyn to see if she wanted to join us in some surfing lessons.  We got some breakfast and them met her at her hotel.  This was probably one of the best things we did during the trip.  It was like when I water-ski, just had a big smile on my face the whole time.  After that we hit up the beach and then back to the hotel.  I was able to Skype home for a bit with the family back home, which was nice. 

                I believe the next day was yet another beach relaxing day.  May as well sock up as much sun as we can.  We did meet up with Robyn and her family later for dinner to Senor Frogs as kind of a birthday dinner for her.  It was quite the entertaining night with Robyn line dancing, balloon hates and Robyn’s dad singing on Karaoke.  We followed dinner with a nice beach walk.  We also spend Friday night finding a grocery store to get cereal (Something I have been missing soooooo much in China).  It was too funny, I kept whining about it so he finally decided tonight was the night we must search out a grocery store for me.  Once I got the cereal I couldn’t have been happier.  I also treated myself to some yogurt and some granola bars.  Funny how you can miss simple things like that. 

                The next day we rented a car.  It was a little frustrating at first but in the end we were able to get the car.  So, we called Robyn and her family to join us at the water slides.  We had a great afternoon riding all the slides together and left when the clouds and wind started to set in.

                The next day we still had the car so we did something we hadn’t done all trip….get up early!  Hehe, we went to ‘hike’ Diamond head.  I wouldn’t have called it a hike, maybe a steep walk with some stairs at the end.  It was gorgeous up at the top though.  You could see all around the island.  After that we took a long drive to the North shore where all the big waves are.  It was pretty amazing to see.  It was just like how you picture waves in movies.  The wind was pretty bad, but we still stayed awhile watching the waves on the beach.  Then we had lunch at a little place on that side of the island and headed to the mall.  I know, ridiculous.  I just needed to pick up some staple things I was lacking that I haven’t really been able to find in China, like jeans and simple tank tops.  Although Riley loathes the mall he was a good sport about everything.  We had one last sunset beach swim since it was his last night.  That night he took me for a fancy dinner, so we got all dressed up and headed out.  It was such a great day. 

                The next day we were late risers.  In the morning we dropped my stuff up at Robyn’s hotel.  We went for a big lunch where I filled up on Western food – sandwich, Caesar salad, yam fries and cheese cake….probably the most full I had been all trip.  After that we met up at Robyn’s pool for a bit.  As they got ready we walked down to the beach to watch the sunset.  It was probably the best way to end a great trip. 

                We joined up with Robyn’s family for one last meal in Hawaii.  It was a little short and I wasn’t able to eat much, but it was still a good time.  Then it was on to the sad part.  We headed back to the hotel where Riley was getting picked up to go to the airport.  It was pretty hard to say good-bye and I had a rough walk back to Robyn’s hotel by myself. 

                That night Robyn’s family was kind enough to let me stay in their room as my flight was at 8:50am and it seemed a little silly to get a room for that short sleep. 

                So now, here I am in a plane taking off in Tokyo headed to Taipei, which I will then take another plane to Bangkok to meet Caitlin and start my new adventure.  Yes, this is a long day of travelling but for the week I just had, it was totally worth it. 

                I am sad to say good-bye to Hawaii, but now I have to get excited for a new country and I get to see my best friend I haven’t seen since August.  As much as I love my little Maple Leaf family I am so excited that my holiday is being spent with people from home.  It’s also getting me excited for the rest of the trips we have in the year and then before you know it, I’ll be home.  July 1^st will be here and I will be on a plane back to Canada.  So, that is all for now, I will try to keep up with this journal over the next few weeks.

                -Taryn

Jan. 28

   Today is our last day in Bangkok until we return again for our flight ‘home.’  Yesterday we just explored the area around our hotel and did some shopping at the hotel and did some shopping at the local vendors.  We pampered ourselves a little bit with some pedicures and enjoyed a nice breakfast and some pad thai for lunch.  We came back to the hotel to hang out at our roof top pool and the plan waws to chill for a bit before dinner.  I ended up falling asleep at 6:30 and didn’t wake up until this morning.  I really hadn’t slept much in the last few days, so I guess I really needed that. 

                Today we’re going ot venture into the city a little more before we take an overnight train up to Chiang Mai.  This is the start to our journey around Thailand which is very exciting.  That’s all for now

-Taryn

Jan. 29

                Today was our first day in Chiang Mai.  We took a 10hr overnight bus to get here.  We arrived at 6am this morning and weren’t able to check into our room until 8am or so.  We had some breakfast in the little place at the hotel. 

                Today we walked around the old city.  It took us a little while to find were we wanted to go, but in the end we were successful.  We were able to visit several different temples and explore the city a little bit. 

                We got back to the hotel and just chilled by the pool.  Tomorrow morning we go on a 2-day, 1 night trek.  This is what Chiang Mai is known for, so I’m pretty excited.  We’ll get to go on an adventure and meet some new people from all over the world.  Hopefully we’ll have a great time.

-Taryn

Jan. 31

                Today we got back to Chiang Mai from our 2 day trek in the jungle.  It was a pretty awesome experience. 

                The first day we got up early and headed up to the mountain.  We trekked for pretty much the entire day to get to the village we would be staying at for the night.  The trekking wasn’t too bad until the last little bit it got pretty steep. 

                The village we stayed in was surreal.  They are self sufficient and jus t live to survive.  Our guide, who was really fun and hilarious had never been into the city until he was 16 years old.  He knew nothing else than living in the jungle.  They is crazy to me!  We had a delicious dinner prepared by the villages and spent the night getting to know everyone by the campfire.  It was a good night.

                Today we were up early, had breakfast and trekked up to a gorgeous waterfall.  We did hop in the water even though it wasn’t sunny out just to say we swam in the waterfall.  After that there was a little more trekking until lunch.  After lunch was the part I had been waiting for, Elephant riding!  It was so cool.  We were right on them, they are huge and awesome animals.  Dawn will be so jealous of me.  After that we had a slow bamboo boat tour through the river. 

                We got to meet some neat people:  Aussies’s, Scots and English girls.  Our whole group was pretty fun, which makes for a positive experience.  Tomorrow we are off to Laos for a 3 day boat trip, should be good.

                -Taryn

Feb. 3

                Today is our second day in Laos.  Yesterday was a bit of a gong show arriving into the country to get our Visa’s and what not.  We stayed the night before in Chiang grai just across the river.  In the morning they took us across the river to do our Visas.  There were so many travelers there, it was insane.  After that we met at the company where we booked the boat tour.  Well, pretty much it was a scam trying to convince us not to take the boat, saying that most of the boats don’t make it and all of our stuff is going to get stolen once we get off the boat.  He did a pretty good job and managed to convince 10/24 people in our group to take a bus instead, thus making him more money.  We met another Canadian girl, Haley, 3 young Canadian guys and 2 chill guys that we all travelled with.  We all thought it couldn’t be all that bad if we were together. 

                The boat was pretty much full by the time we got on so we ended up sitting in the back by the engine, it was pretty chill, but so loud.  There were two guys from Holland back there, but once they got a little too drunk we decided it was best to change locations.  The boys had a nice set up at the front of the boat so we joined them for some drinks and made the best of the long ride. 

                Once we got to the town children were petering us for food as soon as we got off the boat.  All the guest houses had come down as well to try and get us to stay with them.  Being a large group turned out to be an advantage because it meant more customers.  So, 6 boys ended up sharing a room with mattresses on the floor and the 3 girls shared a room.  The town was tiny, so we just went for dinner and had some drinks.

                The currency in Laos is ridiculous.  They only use bill, and $1 Cdn is equal to about 8000 kip.  So noodles cost 15 000 kip when really, that’s not even $2, whish is so confusing.  You can’t help but think you are spending way more money than you are actually spending. 

                Today we got shafted on the boat again.  9hrs on the floor…it’s quite the interesting set up.  We’ll probably only spend a couple days in Laos, then head down to Cambodia.  After that is the beach part that I’ve been looking forward to, so I’m excited.  Still need to work on my tan before the holiday is over. 

                I am a little anxious to get back to teaching.  It would be nice to spread out the breaks, or make our other ones longer.  I think I’m just really excited to teach something I’m knowledgeable and passionate about.  Anyways, that is all for now, until another day

-Taryn

Feb 5

                Today is our second full day in Luang Prabang.  It was not our initial intention to stay this long but it’s a very cute town with a lot of stuff to explore.  Currently I’m sitting in the most beautiful restaurant on a bamboo patio overlooking the Mekong River.  It is so peaceful and we’re all just chilling, reading our book and enjoying the moment.  We were here last night when it was a bar, and it’s probably the most interesting set up I’ve ever experienced, equipped with rock gardens and a beach volleyball court. 

                The first day we arrived in Luang Prabang was pretty hectic.  2 full boats arrived and we were all trying to find accommodations.  Our group kind of split up because there was no way we would have found a place to accommodate all of us. 

                After walking around for what seemed like forever we finally found a place.  It’s a cute little guesthouse and I’m pretty sure we’re staying in the upstairs off someone’s house.  It’s a little more ‘pricey’ as in $9 per night but it’s worth it.  That night we just had dinner and kind of headed to bed since we were so exhausted from the long boat trip that day. 

                The next day we went for breakfast and just happened to spot Christian and Thomas the two Chilli guys that we had been with the last couple of days.  They were headed to the waterfall so we tagged along so it would make the tut-tut cheaper.  I think that has been another highlight of this trip.  Jumping off of the waterfall into the cool blue water was absolutely amazing.  We saw this big waterfall at the end of the little trek which was also gorgeous. 

                That is the kind of stuff I was looking forward to on this trip.  After that we had some street food, where I bonded with some more Chinese tourists.  It’s so funny now the Chinese tourists are fascinated when I tell them that I live in China.  After that we ventured around the night market, and was a little selfish, pretty much only buying things for myself.  I think I’ll go back tonight to buy some more presents for home though.  I think we’ll try to leave for Cambodia tomorrow.  We need to sort it out with a travel agent at some point today.  I’m kind of dine with moving around at this point and would love to start my beach vacation.

-Taryn

Feb.10

                Tonight is our third night on Koh Pha Ngan.  The island is so beautiful.  It did however take us forever to get here.  We had to take a 10hr bust from Luang Prabang to Vientienne, and let me just say that this was not one of the ‘luxury’ buses that we have been taking.  It was pretty much all locals and we stopped at every little village along the way.  People were crammed all over that bus.  It wasn’t nice highway driving either, very windy and nauseating roads.  Once we got into vientienne, we checked into a hotel and then took a plane the next morning into Bangkok.  The day in Bangkok was nice.  WE pretty much spent the day at the spa getting facials, manicures, pedicures and my hair dyed. 

                Once all that was done we got on an overnight bus to Sairatanni…I did no sleep at all.  It was so awul.  My knees were cramped and in so much pain.  We got to our stop at 5:15am and then waited until 8am to take another bus for 2hrs to get on a boat.  After the 2hr boat we were finally here. 

                We had no idea were to stay and at this point I don’t know if we even cared.  We ended up staying on the north part of the island where the beach is nice.

                This is the part of the trip that I had been looking forward to.  Laying on the beach and soaking up the sun.  I think that this trip has made me realize that I may not be the back packing type.  I think I’m more of a resort/hotel girl.  I really could have stayed the full 2 weeks, like Robyn in Hawaii with Riley.  I have enjoyed this trip…but I think it’s something that I only need to do once. 

                I like my little trips we take in Wuhan for the weekend where we just explore one place.  I know this is a dream for other people but I think I will be happy when I get back and don’t have to live out of my backpack.  Anyways, Robyn and her sister Erin met us yesterday and it was really good to see her.  We’re both going through many of the same emotions in our life, so it’s good to reconnect again.  I will write more in a bit, the sun is wearing me out, tough life, I know.

-Taryn

Feb. 14

                Valentine’s Day in Thailand…I wrote a bunch of stuff about how I was feeling this day….but I will just talk about the travelling part.  Robyn and Erin left us today which only means that this vacation is almost over.  We leave on the 17^th to spend the night in Bangkok, then on the 19^th I’m back on a plane to Wuhan.  We’ve spent a lot of time relaxing by the pool and just taking in the sun.  I have officially crossed from being tan to being brown which I rather enjoy. 

                I have had my spells of sickness over the past few days which has been less than enjoyable.  The night of the half moon party I think I had an allergic reaction to alcohol (something I’ve been noticing lately) and couldn’t’ make it out.  Yesterday I spent the day in bed watching movies with food poisoning.  Thank goodness we were staying in a nice room.  The crappy thing with that was we had a whole day planned and I couldn’t make it out.  The only positive was that the hotel did not charge me for skipping out on the tour.  We’ve become close with the lady at the front and I think she just felt really bad for me.  I got a DVD player sent up to the room so that I had some form of entertainment, so the day was not fully lost.  I watched Madagascar, The Blind Side, and Harry Potter.  All I could stomach was 2 pieces of toast though…so not so fun.  We’re going to try and explore the island either tomorrow or the next before we leave.  I like this winding down time, but I think my mind is wandering just to the point where I need to go back to work.  Anywho, time for sleep.

-Taryn

Feb. 15

                My stomach is on the fritz again, I have no idea what’s going on.  I think I just have a balanced diet at home (veggies, fruit, milk, etc.) that my stomach doesn’t really know what’s going on.  I think I was fine in Hawaii because I was eating a lot of salads but maybe here it’s just not having a great reaction.  Tomorrow is our last full day here until we have our full day of travelling…my favourite part.   It will be neat to take the sleeper train, I’m kind of sick of these buses we’ve been taking all the time.  I just can’t sleep on them.  Mind you, I didn’t have the best sleep last night.  We moved into a room without A/C and I don’t think I did well with that.  I think the whole Valentine’s day thing got to me too. 

Feb. 17

Today we left our little paradise in Koh Pha  Ngan, it was sad to go.  The resort we stayed at was so cute.  When we left the owner waved good-bye until he could no longer see us.  It was too cute. 

                Yesterday we took a cooking class at the resort.  Our ‘chef’ or teacher was white which was a little weird.  He was originally from Canada and has been living in Thailand for the last 6 years.  It was neat, but a lot of the ‘techniques’ are very similar to how I already cook at home. 

                I never really noticed before I moved to China how Chinese I actually was.  I know that sounds extremely strange but a lot of things that are ‘normal’ or I have seen them as part of my up bringing where as many of the other Canadian teachers have not.  It’s kind of funny when I really think about it. 

                I miss home.  That is the little trick about this vacation though.  Part of the nice thing about going on vacation is going home to your own bed….I still have a few months before I get to experience that feeling.  Wuhan does feel like my home away from home at this point though.  It wil be nice to come home and relax with Robyn and talk to the boys across the hall about their trip. 

                Today was spent on a boat, bus, and now we have a LONG wait until we take a train to Bangkok.  The boat was the best part, it reminded me of Shuswap in a sense.  I just love being in a boat and hearing the sound of the water splashing against the boat.  I could have taken a boat the whole way back to Bangkok if it was at all possible.  This is the part of travelling I hate the most.  The last wait I’ll have to endure is in Guangzhou, but at least this time my layover is at a decent time and I’m not fighting jet lag like I did returning from Hawaii.  I’ll have lunch, curl up with my Ipod, book and I’ll be set.  Then, it’s home, sweet Wuhan home ;)

-Taryn