I was doing my laundry today, and on the wall in the laundromat I ran across this random piece of graffiti. If you try to define the descriptive words in the statement you might find yourself at a loss as to what he wants to accomplish in writing on the wall. He could have at least left the guy's phone number. Oh well.

Picture: The only cool graffiti is that with random capitalization and mis-spelled words.

Chris

I visited Ottawa yesterday with Dad; we went to see my sister and her boyfriend. Over dinner (Chinese Buffet, restaurant named Ruby King) we talked about life and life goals, as well as the weather and what foods we liked from the buffet. It's funny what gets mixed together over dinner with family.

After dinner we went to a Middle Eastern supermarket to look around. There I bought a malt beverage imported from Lebanon marked clearly 0.00% alcohol and a small can of Arabian tea. I've begun a collection of tea cans, incidentally.

I think I need to visit the Middle East one day, since not only their culture fascinates me but also their food (think humus and pitas). I've actually been to Turkey and Greece, which was amazing, but not remotely long enough to really get a true feeling for the places. Those Arabic newspapers look enticing too, simply because I can't read them and I want to be able to understand.

I've been working most of the week, but have the weekend off. I am looking to visit some nearby forts sometime soon, and Sunday might be a day for that. If so, I shall have pictures!

Picture: Looking across to New York State.

Chris

Preparations for my short trip to China are going well. All I need now is some more money! Anyone want to help out? :D

The last several days, I have been collecting information as part of Z's immigration application process (pictures, e-mails, plane tickets etc.,). It is an amazingly complicated procedure, but we're both obviously super-motivated, so we'll push through all the paper work!

In my time outside of work, I've been variously studying, researching future paths for myself, and catching up on some English reading via audio books (audible.com rocks!). Since I'm currently staying with my dad, I've had a chance to catch up with what he's been up to, and he has also shown me around the area. There are some absolutely wonderful old homes and other buildings around the area, and they only get nicer in the evenings.

I guess in a word, I still feel as though I'm in a transitional mode and not quite where I'd like to be. All there's to do is push onward --- I am in the forest, and there is sure to be a meadow ahead someplace. And anyways, this quiet period of waiting and working is going to pass quickly, and before I know it I will be harping on how much I miss it!

No matter what, I still have about a kilogram of tea left from the stockpile I brought from China in the summer --- I will resupply myself in January. 碧螺春绿茶is the best invention humanity ever came up with.

Pictures: A church downtown; A cat that has adopted us (he started coming in through the window for meals a month ago, and now lives here too).

Chris

I was in Ottawa today to apply for a Chinese travel visa -- I'll be picking it up next week at some point. The trip was a nice one, and taken in a van I bought right after arriving back in Canada. I listened to an audio book called "Modern Times" on the way, which made the time fly by -- before I knew it I was passing the embassy and realizing there was nowhere to park.

After driving past the embassy three times, I finally confirmed to myself they really didn't provide parking spots to visitors, so I drove over to a nearby neighborhood and used that side street as my parking location, walking the half kilometer to the visa application area of the embassy.

The application process went smoothly -- I had to call Z to confirm her home address, but other than that I was in-and-out in about 20 minutes. Once back in the car, I called Z and we talked for a bit before she went to bed, then I started up the van and I went to see the parliament buildings before heading back home. I'm trying to save most of the exploring for when Z arrives, but sometimes I just can't bottle up the curiosity, so that's what I did today, I explored a bit of Ottawa. Sadly, Z stole my camera for her own use, so for now I'm stuck with a Blackberry camera with limited abilities.

Picture: Ottawa

Chris

It’s been a while, certainly. I’ve been VERY busy at work, working hard to save as much cash as possible (who the hell doesn’t do that?). I will be flying back to China in early January, at which time Z and I will be getting married! That’s what all this hard work has been towards for the last little while – making cold hard cash, working towards career goals, and dreaming about the future. It’s sort of like the first several months of my Chinese studies – not thinking of much else :)

Z should be here by late summer, at which time I am hoping to have achieved some significant in-roads with work, but in the meantime there is hard work to do, and I am up to the task. I have hired a lawyer to handle the immigration process for her, just to make sure everything goes smoothly with her application; I don’t want to forget something silly and have the entire process derailed. I am going to the Chinese embassy this week to apply for a visa for my January trip. After 6 months apart, it will be a very exciting trip. We are both really looking forward to it.

I’ve been using and practicing my Chinese daily, both at work and at home. I thought it would be a struggle to maintain my level of ability once I left China, but it has actually seemed to be the opposite and in fact improved further (maybe it’s the hours on the phone with Z, maybe that I’m reading Sun Tzu’s Art of War…?). Anyways, the Internet is wonderful, since with it I can listen to Chinese radio, watch any television or film I might have in China, and read as much Chinese as I can handle.

There have been times, especially after a hard day at work, however, that I have wondered if it would have been better to remain an English teacher in China for the rest of my days rather than take the risk of jumping into something bigger. It definitely would have been easier, but when have I ever chosen the easier road, and when has the harder route ever disappointed me? I have held on thus far, and I have the spirit to continue, with of course fun along the way.

I have been adverse to writing on this blog for the last several months because it has felt like it was created for events in and surrounding China. I decided to write in here today because I finally realized that me leaving China wasn’t even close to the end of the story. In fact nothing could be further from the truth. The experiences and events I found in China have launched me into a life I never really thought would be mine before. There is even a chance I could be returning to China one day through work, who knows what fate has in store. All we can do is evaluate choices, work for what we love, have fun, and smile at then learn from what happens.

I hope you’re all doing well. I’ll be in touch soon.

Pictures: Z in Luoyang; Me next to the St. Lawrence River.

Chris

I am finally back in Canada, settled, and working toward new goals! (Goals including: Buy land).

My final few weeks in China were filled with emotions and small issues to resolve, and loose ends to either cut or tie. I was happy and sad, unsure of what I was feeling as the place I had called home for so many years was suddenly beginning to feel foreign to me again.

I picked up my degree on July 4th, Independence Day incidentally, officially completing my longest-term goal I had ever set for myself. I made it through 4 years of studying Chinese, teaching English, and travelling, and boy did I have fun doing it. I am a better person today because of what I learned and realized in my time there and it continues to influence me as I look back.

During my final several days in Zhengzhou, I went on a number of walks to Erqi Tower to consider my experiences, thinking back to my first trip to China in 2004, following the various days I had occasion to pass by or visit the tower, each time a little wiser (just a few of the memorable ones in my mind’s timeline):

1. Walking around on my own during my second or third day in China in 2005 and running into my first fellow foreigner in Zhengzhou (a man named Gary);
2. Buying wooden masks in the shops just adjacent to Erqi Square (I collect masks; I almost broke the bank on my pitiful salary when I first got to Zhengzhou – the masks were awesome);
3. Meeting ZT at Erqi Tower and later hanging out many a night and afternoon;
4. Showing Mom around;
5. Showing Grandma around;
6. Showing other foreigners around;
7. Night time walks to the tower and back, either deep in thought or worrying about my studies or memorizing Chinese words, or sometimes on walks with Richard.
8. One afternoon when waiting for ZT there a woman had been threatening to jump from the top of the tower, with police below and next to her coaxing her down.
9. My final evening, leaning on a railing on the walking bridge next to the tower, wondering where the Beijing Olympics had gone, or the seemingly endless summers, or the book-filled winters, or the trips to Hainan, Hong Kong, or Beijing...I didn’t have any huge epiphany, the time had simply passed --- it was time to leave, I had gotten what I had come for: an overseas experience that would change my life.

ZT and I spent the final few days together in Zhengzhou. We went bowling several times, went to Karaoke, visited the new Eastern district one last time, bought a cake using our saved bakery points card, and went to Pizza Hut together on the last night. Both of us knew it was what had to be done, and we considered marriage many, many times, but we aren’t ready for that, and so we had to take the risk of parting without any firm promises or commitments except that we would follow our hearts. If we feel it is right, I will fly back to sign marriage papers when that time comes and we can begin the immigration procedure, but for now we will wait.

I said goodbye to her in Zhengzhou’s airport.

I am working in Canada now, saving to make an investment that will likely be agricultural in nature. With my current income I think I will be able to make the jump into the investment in mid-Spring next year, at which time ZT and I will have decided how we feel too; with a firm plan it will be easier to decide what we want from our lives.

The future is once again wide open to me, and I need to choose a road. But as the past 4 years have shown me, plans have a way of changing. For now, I am going to enjoy my swims in the St. Lawrence River, make some cold hard cash, and probably visit New Hampshire in the spring for the Liberty Forum and Porc Fest!

It wasn’t an easy decision in the end to leave China, but it was a case of needing to break out of the egg I had developed in--- it was getting so cramped inside that the pain of leaving was less of a hardship than staying. I am sure you, reader, could feel the tension building; at least I could. I knew it was time to move on. I am ready to grow, and Canada is the next place I want to be to do that.

I hope you are all doing great, and I will be in touch soon!

Pictures: Near home in Canada, swimming on the St.Lawrence, Dad in Downtown Brockville, St.Lawrence, Brockville, On an island off of Hong Kong, ZT in Hong Kong, Graduation, packing up our apartment in Zhengzhou, cake.

Chris

Sorry for the lack of updates, China has been blocking access to my blog for quite some time now. I'm currently travelling in Hong Kong and will be back in Canada in several weeks, at which time I'll post some more updates!

Hope you're all doing well :)

Chris