of mulberries and mustard seeds: March 2010

SY is an industrial city and these smokestacks are seen throughout the city, making the air quite polluted. According to many locals, though, many smokestacks have been shut down over the recent years in an effort to clear the air, which has improved significantly. The air is still pretty polluted and can be hard on those who are new to the city. Many of my teammates have experienced an increase in their allergy/asthma symptoms and have had to ramp up their use of antihistamines and/or albuterol.

A larger than life-size version of the original form of money used in this country. Dad, this picture is for you!

As you can see, the price of a taxi starts at 8 yuan or kuai. Bus fare is 1 yuan or kuai. Walking is free.

We had a recent run of birthday celebrations...all good times spent with friends and enjoying yummy cakes!

A woman transporting her goods for sale from one location to another. You can find various items on these mobile carts, ranging from gloves/socks to CDs/books to vegetables.

My roommates showing off their new hats. Thanks Mom!

A pock-marked snowman across the street from my apartment.

Here I am sitting on the cart that transported me, a friend, and household appliances for my new apartment. What you can't see behind me is the bike attached to the end of the cart that did the transporting. The appliances in the cart included a water stand with water filter, a microwave, and a toaster oven.

We had an ice storm last month and the entire city looked like it was made of glass. It was so beautiful, but it made for treacherous traveling!

Hello! I apologize for the gap in writing recently. My days have been busy with moving, working, and now, getting over a cold. I thought I would share some pictures I took earlier on and I'll post some more later!

Here is my neighborhood. The red buildings you see here make up the apartment complex I lived in initially until I found my own place. I love this neighborhood because it's a central part of the city and there is so much life going on here! The picture with the blue "box" is a tailor shop, right outside of our apartment complex. You can see my one of my roommates sitting in the tailor shop - she's getting a button sewed on to her jacket.

There are many large supermarkets in the city, including Wal-Mart, Tesco, and Carrefour, to name a few. Essentially, these large supermarkets are like the super Wal-Marts or super Targets we have in the U.S. - they sell food as well as clothing and household items. And all of them have a small section of "foreign goods" where we, foreigners, can find useful things such as pancake syrup, cheese, cake mix, seasonings, etc. And then there are other items, more local items, that are sold in these supermarkets as well, such as the frogs up above. Mind you, these frogs were not in the pet section.

Food from a street vendor! Trying new foods from the street is one my favorite things to do. Thankfully, my stomach hasn't disagreed with anything. This dish is a thin tortilla with egg and veggie fillings of your choice inside. Other common foods to see on the street include roasted sweet potatoes, barbecued meats, candied fruits, and small fried meats.

A few snow pictures taken after a full day of snowfall...days that we are still experiencing even now. The city is beautiful right after the snowfall, clothed in white. The air is cleared up the next few days, which makes walking outside much easier on your nose and lungs!

Clothes hanging out to dry.

Clothes for sale.

My roommate and I out at dinner. There is a large Korean population in the city and there's a small part of the city is known as Korea town. Here, we're at a restaurant in Korea town, although much of our dinner ended up being sushi...don't ask me, I just went along with it and enjoyed the meal.

There are two things I want to share with you from this picture. First, public transportation is the mainstay of getting around the city here. Buses are everywhere and can sometimes even take less time than a taxi during rush hour. Second, I think this is a great picture to show how many people there are in this nation! Because of the physical size of the city and it being winter, I feel like I haven't had the full experience of being amidst such large crowds...until I encounter times like these.

There is a market down the street from where I live about a block or two long that is filled with vendors selling fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, and breads. I went shopping one evening and came back with such treasures, all for under $10. I've been there so much that some of the vendors are starting to recognize me, and it's been a great opportunity to start up some good conversations.

Government square.

CHUN JIE (SPRING FESTIVAL)

The Spring Festival is the equivalent of our New Year but the celebration is intense! Tradition is that everyone is supposed to return home for a week of celebrating with family, and the trek back home starts as early as 1-2 weeks before the actual date of Spring Festival. The actual date for this year fell on February 14. Since everyone goes back to their hometowns (and I mean EVERYONE), shops are closed down during the 1-2 weeks surrounding Spring Festival. My clinic shut down the week of Spring Festival, so I guess I had a mandatory one week vacation. The celebration itself is similar to our Fourth of July with fireworks throughout the cities and neighborhoods. But the fireworks last for about 2 weeks and then taper off. If you have a good view from your apartment, it's possible to enjoy a beautiful firework show every night for about 14-15 days straight! I think I still heard some fireworks this week...

I had the blessing of being able to spend part of my Spring Festival with a close friend and her family in Beijing this year! We enjoyed making and eating lots of dumplings, which is a tradition to have for Spring Festival celebrations. I also got to do some sight-seeing around Beijing and get to know my friend's family better. I'm touched by all of their hospitality and generosity - they truly made me feel like part of the family.

Xiaohong and I with fireworks in the background.

Dumplings galore! We had three different types of dumplings - pork, lamb, and veggie. I tried to help with the process, and Xiaohong's family was very patient - I think for every dumpling I wrapped, 6 dumplings would be wrapped by the person next to me. Well, at least I kept up with them when it came to eating the dumplings!