I came to China, started teaching, climbed a mountain, and saw some hot chicks.
This post is long, long overdue. So, I decided to sit my ass down and do one. It ended up being pretty long, so I'm going to put most of it in a cut, but there's a lot to talk about.
I'm really doing just fine here. After a shaky second week due to food illnesses, I've really enjoyed living in China, but to start from the beginning would make this post too long.
This week got a little slumpy at the end for no particular reason, I don't think, except perhaps because of a lack of sleep. After getting back from my hectic vacation last week, what I needed was some rest, which I got for a couple days, but then it was back in the routine. (I almost said "same old routine" but that doesn't make any sense at all considering I've only been in the routine for maybe a month, if that. In fact, yesterday I was thinking about just how far off the routine I am here. Not a day goes by without observing something surprising, shocking, or weird (to me) just on the street or at a restaurant.
Take, for instance, something I witnessed outside a restaurant while in Tai'an last week. I was waiting outside for my friend to use the bathroom before we started climbing Taishan when two guys walk up, about my age or a year or two younger, each holding a chick (as in a baby chicken, not a girl) and sit next to me on the step. One of the chicks was dyed hot pink and the other neon green, and the back nails on their feet (spurs, maybe) had been snipped so when they were put down on the step, they had trouble keeping their balance. They chirped and tried to walk around, pecking at the ground. The funny thing is that I was sitting outside a KFC.
Somebody has since told me that they've seen dyed chicks in the US too, but I've never seen it. I have a feeling it wouldn't fly (I made this pun unintentionally) in the US because I, and I'd imagine other Americans, would think it shockingly cruel. Maybe I'm wrong and I'm probably generalizing again, as I'm sure not everyone here would be all right with it, but sometimes it seems like there's a lot of animal cruelty here. Animals seem to be treated like toys or a cute novelty. I've also seen dogs with their ears died and another time I saw a couple throwing their pet dog into a lake by the legs. Since I'm living in a new and different place, I'm looking around and observing things much more actively than I did back at home. Maybe if I was aware of my surroundings in the US like I am here, I would've noticed something like it there too. But then again, maybe not.
Despite being shocked like that though, the main feeling I get from all the different things going on around me is excitement. I said this has gotten to be a slumpy week, but on the whole I've been feeling alive and happy since I got here. I get to explore everyday. Even a trip to the store is an adventure. This why I'm so addicted to traveling.)
Anyway, this post got long enough, and I have to get going so I'll just shut up. I'll post some pictures of where I live and my vacation soon.
I hope things are either going well for you or that they improve, respective to your own unique situation. Now that things are starting to normalize here, I’ll try to keep in touch more.
Love you,
MJM
I'm really doing just fine here. After a shaky second week due to food illnesses, I've really enjoyed living in China, but to start from the beginning would make this post too long.
This week got a little slumpy at the end for no particular reason, I don't think, except perhaps because of a lack of sleep. After getting back from my hectic vacation last week, what I needed was some rest, which I got for a couple days, but then it was back in the routine. (I almost said "same old routine" but that doesn't make any sense at all considering I've only been in the routine for maybe a month, if that. In fact, yesterday I was thinking about just how far off the routine I am here. Not a day goes by without observing something surprising, shocking, or weird (to me) just on the street or at a restaurant.
Take, for instance, something I witnessed outside a restaurant while in Tai'an last week. I was waiting outside for my friend to use the bathroom before we started climbing Taishan when two guys walk up, about my age or a year or two younger, each holding a chick (as in a baby chicken, not a girl) and sit next to me on the step. One of the chicks was dyed hot pink and the other neon green, and the back nails on their feet (spurs, maybe) had been snipped so when they were put down on the step, they had trouble keeping their balance. They chirped and tried to walk around, pecking at the ground. The funny thing is that I was sitting outside a KFC.
Somebody has since told me that they've seen dyed chicks in the US too, but I've never seen it. I have a feeling it wouldn't fly (I made this pun unintentionally) in the US because I, and I'd imagine other Americans, would think it shockingly cruel. Maybe I'm wrong and I'm probably generalizing again, as I'm sure not everyone here would be all right with it, but sometimes it seems like there's a lot of animal cruelty here. Animals seem to be treated like toys or a cute novelty. I've also seen dogs with their ears died and another time I saw a couple throwing their pet dog into a lake by the legs. Since I'm living in a new and different place, I'm looking around and observing things much more actively than I did back at home. Maybe if I was aware of my surroundings in the US like I am here, I would've noticed something like it there too. But then again, maybe not.
Despite being shocked like that though, the main feeling I get from all the different things going on around me is excitement. I said this has gotten to be a slumpy week, but on the whole I've been feeling alive and happy since I got here. I get to explore everyday. Even a trip to the store is an adventure. This why I'm so addicted to traveling.)
Anyway, this post got long enough, and I have to get going so I'll just shut up. I'll post some pictures of where I live and my vacation soon.
I hope things are either going well for you or that they improve, respective to your own unique situation. Now that things are starting to normalize here, I’ll try to keep in touch more.
Love you,
MJM