Now, FOUR Years in China

The second restaurant we visited after we arrived was Nuage which is a Vietnamese restaurant at Houhai Lake. The food was traditional vietamese with items such as a fried whole fish, spring rolls, and a vareiety of items I can’t even name. However, the atomosphere and location makes Nuage a very special place to visit…especially if you go up to the roof deck which overlooks Houhai to the south and the beautiful belltowers to the northeast.

After our visit, we walked around Houhai and soaked in the playful Beijing culture along the bar district known as “Lotus Lane”.

Nuage Review in Frommers

Driving down a one lane tunnel of Apple trees in the Shunyi district (the northeast suburbs and farm country), you would never think that the road was going to end at one of the nicest restaurants in the Beijing area. Owned by a westerner and her Chinese husband, they have created a cozy sancuary which not only serves some of the best food, but also showcases and sells art and hand made clothing from local artisans. The food is a combination of western mixed with some eclectic varieties and maybe one of the few places where you can get New Zealand organic beef as a New York Strip (does that make sense?).

We visited the Orchard our first night in Beijing and could barely remember it due to being awake for 45 hours. However, it left a very favorable impression. As we have lived here now for few weeks, it’s appeal only increases.

See the review in City Weekend

Along with having a really tough week trying to do simple things like order new water bottles and a failed attempt to arrange an Dr. appointment for immunizations, a bird pooped on her head and to top off the week, yesterday, her wallet was snatched out of her purse at IKEA. However, as a testiment to the culture here and generally good nature of the people, we recovered with everything in it except her cash…2RMB which equals about $0.25 US. I wish I could have seen the look on the face of the theif when he opened the wallet.

But the amazing side of the story is how we got it back. The theif obviously dropped the wallet in the store (my guess is that he threw it in disbelief over the small payoff). Someone returned it to a security guard who took it to the office at IKEA. The dug through the wallet, found a card issued by Western Academy which has Chinese instructions for if we are in an accident. They called the emergency contact at WAB called us while we were at lunch at the Noodle Loft. Our driver took us back to IKEA where Lisa retrieved her wallet.

The increase in our faith in humanity offset the week of bad luck. The people here a fundamentally good.

My lack of posting this week was due to the volume of work I had at Western Academy of Beijing. I have the best intentions of documenting our trip to the Great Wall last weekend and a variety of activities throughout the week.

We are also trying to document a “day in the life” of Madeline with photos that depict her life here in China. She is tentatively adapting to the new school, new house, new lifestyle and a new way of seeing the world.

First week of school, Great wall, The Courtyard & Haka - August 24

Madeline’s first week of school was a great success! She has made a couple of friends and even has had a play date with another girl in her class. I knew it would be just a matter of time before she would settle in. They have art, music, PE and Chinese language as well as the usual curriculum. I am trying to encourage Madeline to journal her thoughts and experiences, but the truth is that she would rather play in the park that is just outside of our building.

I am glad to report that today I ordered and received water without complication. I’ve been to the grocery store and found the items on my list and have even traveled with a driver by myself. Today the Blacks win! My next adventure will be to take the shuttle by myself to the butcher. I’ll let you know how that goes.

We had so much fun last weekend with the the folks from Apple! Friday night David went with them to a locally famous (or infamous) Irish pub called Durty Nellie’s. It was an “end of the first week of school celebration” with the WAB (Western Academy of Beijing) Board members, staff and teachers. “Free drinks all around!” was the chant. They then went to a Thai restaurant called Red Basil. David said the food was great. I can’t wait to go and try it for myself. Madeline and I were invited over to meet a British family (mom, dad and son who is in Madeline’s class) and go to dinner at a restaurant within walking distance to where we live. This restaurant has an eclectic offering of Italian, Mexican, Thai and Chinese food. The food was good and they have a respectable wine list, so I think this place will become regular hangout. Madeline and I had a great time.

Saturday morning we woke up to meet our driver at 6:30 AM to go to the Great Wall of China. Our group of 9 toured the Badaling section. It is one thing to see pictures of the wall, but you really have to be there to appreciate its majesty. Madeline and David were the source of much interest to the other tourists at the wall. Apparently most of these people come from the outlying provinces and don’t see many Westerners. Kids would crowd around Madeline for pictures. She didn’t really like that very much, but would oblige if I could hold her. David captivated children and adults alike. The look on their faces was, “Ooh! Look at that white man! He so tall and big!” In the United States, we think that China is so exotic and unknown. It is hard to believe that on the other side of the world there are people who think that of us.

Saturday evening was David’s and my first outing without Madeline. We had a highly recommended babysitter who is a kindergarten teacher’s assistant at WAB. They watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on DVD, had popcorn and did each other’s hair. I’m pretty sure that Jenny (the sitter) met Kit, Samantha, Nellie and Abbey and indulged Madeline in some playtime with the dolls. Madeline loved Jenny and I think she was grateful for an evening in.

David and I, along with people from Apple, Powerschool & WAB went for cocktails at the Beijing Grand Hyatt and then to dinner at The Courtyard restaurant. After hearing so much about The Courtyard, I was prepared for it not to meet my expectations, but the atmosphere was enough to let me know we were in for a treat. The humble grey brick exterior gives way to a sleek glass and white interior. Truly something from a magazine. David had pork stuffed with bleu cheese that was melt-in-your-mouth divine. I had tuna & salmon tartare for my appetizer and an entree of coconut jumbo prawns. Both were amazing. For dessert, everyone had a chocolate mousse cake that was out of this world. Our host chose white, and red wine to have with appetizers and dinner respectively and then champagne with dessert. After all that we could have gone home happy, however there was more fun to be had.

After dinner we were treated by some of David’s coworkers to a traditional New Zealand “Haka” dance. “Ha” means breath, “ka” means firey words. This is a dance done before going to war to intimidate one’s opponent. The song and dance together were interesting to see. I’m not sure if it was appropriate to do this on the grounds just outside of the Forbidden City, but no one was arrested although there was some interest from the locals. I’m glad they didn’t take it as New Zealand declaring war on China.

I wish I could send a video tape of all we have seen and heard. Words cannot describe the vibrancy of the “Lantern Festival” that is just beginning to get underway. The way the bell and drum towers look through the evening haze is indescribably beautiful, as you know. I am amazed and fascinated by the rich traditions of this culture.

Sorry for another lengthly e-mail. There is just so much to tell you! Please say hello to everyone and give Margot & Ben kisses for me!

Love, Lisa

So my big plan has been to use a Vonage account to keep a US phone number that rings our place here in Beijing. I had the whole topology worked out. Little did I realize that the power brick for the Linksys adapter is NOT dual voltage. But I think “no problem, I’ll just get a 220->12V converter and surprisingly, I was able to find one within a day but unfortunately, it wasn’t beefy enough…plan thwarted. So my next thought was to purchase a 220- >110 converter and use the adapter that came with the Linksys. After an excursion to a neighborhood computer store, I came home with one, plugged everything in, it lit up and I was feeling pretty optimistic until I picked up the telephone handset…no dial tone…just a loud buzz from dirty 220v electrical lines. So now I need to find some sort of isolation filter and/or an industrial size 220v-110v converter. As we’ve learned to say in situations like these….China wins again.

I submitted a trouble ticket to my internet service provider regarding the issue with my site missing and they corrected it promptly. I’m going to be trying to catch up on posting to cover the last few days.

First weeks in Beijing - August 19

Wow! China is not at all what I expected. Some parts of the city
are beautiful, others - not so much. I have a newfound gratitude for
the things that we take for granted in the US. Driving through the
city, you see streets filled with trash, muddy & unpaved “parking
lots”, goats and sheep walking in herds down the street. You then
turn the corner and everything is well manicured and spotless. One
of the most heartbreaking things we have seen was one evening while
we were out for dinner. We has just finished a plentiful meal where
we were waited on by a staff of 6 or so (there were perhaps 10 in our
party). We had to walk along a crowded street to get to our driver
and there was a girl close to Madeline’s age begging for money or
food. Her mother made her follow us down the street to try and get
close to Madeline. I know the mother was trying to get to David and
me by sending her child to beg. One of our friends who speaks
Mandarin stepped in to control the situation. The juxtaposition of
lives from that girl to Madeline’s was difficult to see. Madeline
lives every day treated like a princess compared to that child.

Yesterday enjoyed the first sunny day since our arrival. Good news
because I was getting a little depressed. The language barrier is
very frustrating. I had a total meltdown yesterday after trying to
order a bottle of water for the flat. (Yes, I did say flat. After
referring to our apartment umpteen times and each time hearing “Oh,
your flat.” I give up. OK, fine its a “flat”.) The grocery store -
don’t even get me started. I know that each day things will get easier.

Madeline started school on Monday, the same as Fulton County. Her
teacher is Canadian and seems very excited about teaching. Madeline
has the “I have no friends blues”, but yesterday she was talking
about a British girl who she played with at recess. I guess that is
progress. My heart aches for her when she says that she misses
home, but I know how she feels. Last night we had ice cream with a
family from New Zealand. A family just like ours; mom, dad &
daughter. It was good for both Madeline and me to have some social
interaction. I find that people (at least the adults) are polite,
but not necessarily friendly or inclusive. I’ll try to reserve final
judgement until we’ve been here for a while.

I am working on finding a driver and a housekeeper. Apparently that
will be the key to my learning Mandarin as well as to my sanity. Not
that I need someone to look after the house and drive us around, but
rather they can save one from humiliating experiences like the one I
had yesterday with the bottle of water. After so many years of being
self sufficient it is hard to rely on others. (I have other issues
accepting “servitude” from another, but that is another rant all
together.) As soon as we find a bigger place, I’ll be on board.

This weekend some folks from Apple arrive. We will do some touristy
stuff - Great Wall, Tiananmen Square - and then to The Courtyard for
dinner. The Courtyard is supposed to be one of the best restaurants
in the city. We’ll see. Thus far the food has been rather “exotic”.

How are things at home? I hope “Pretty” (the car) is treating you well.

The telephone situation is still unresolved. The best way to
communicate is via e-mail. Please keep in touch with the “local
news”! You can check out our blog at www.db3.net/blog to see photos
and more. There are technical difficulties at the moment, but it
should be back up soon! There is a saying among Westerners when
things don’t go as planned: “China wins again!”. In this case, it
proves true.

Stay well. We miss you very much!
Lisa