Leaving Nan Vegas

Hey here I am for the rare double dose to supply you with all of your blogging needs!!!!

As I mentioned in my first post of the day, I am now done teaching in China. This means that I must say goodbye to my wonderful home away from home away from home away from home away from home away from home (those homes represent: Trenton, Middle Stewiacke, Wolfville, Dumfries and North Bay respectively). Since I spent 5 years in Wolfville, which has been dubbed Wolf Vegas, and a considerable amount of time near Belleville, which has copied the copier to say Belle Vegas, have decided to call Nanning, Nan Vegas (I know that I called North Bay, North Vegas a couple of times, although I never used the term Dum Vegas...).

So I must say goodbye like a Sherryl Crow song. I'm a wee bit sad about that since Nanning is such an amazing city with so many wonderful people here. I wish that I could have spent more time with my students and seen more of the town, but alas I must move on.

Tomorrow we are going to be leaving very early in the morning for Vietnam, where we will spend time in Halong Bay and Hanoi. To say that I'm pumped will be an understatement. I hope that you are all ready for me to talk about Charlie and say "Back in 'Nam..." for the rest of my natural life.

On Tuesday, we return to Nanning for one night, and then my adventure really begins. My friend Steve and I are going to be aimlessly traveling the country. Our plan is to make our way to Hong Kong where we will be hopefully meeting Carrie (sidenote: Carrie, E-mail me back, ahhhhh!!!!) and rocking out accordingly before flying back with her to Shanghai to spend a couple of days there. After that, we're really not sure. I want to go to Xi'an, and I was told that a Yangzi River Cruise is the trip of a lifetime (and with the Three Gorges Dam due to be completed in 2 years I may never get a chance to see it the way it is now) so that may happen for sure.

After that, our flight leaves Beijing on May 25, and then a three day lay over in Vancouver to see a variety of old friends and then I shall be home on May 28th.

I won't really have a ton of time unfortunately to post on here but I will do my best. If you want a status report then check me out on Facebook where I will be posting pictures as frequently I can. Judge that I am having a good time by how obnoxious my smile is and how many peace signs I'm busting out in each album.

But until then, I must be off on yet another adventure. I look forward to getting the opportunity to tell many of you about it in person.

Until next time, (whenever the heck that may be!!!)

G

All Grown Up

Two months ago I made a post about the perils of growing up. Even as I typed about having only 8 weeks left in my program, it seemed like a far off time.

Well the time is now.

I just finished giving my last lesson as a Student Teacher and boy do I ever feel strange now. Already I can feel the terror of adulthood coming my way. I have to start looking for jobs, I have to start thinking about my pension, I have to start thinking about my life in more than one year increments.

But I really don't want to!!!!!

I know that all of my NipFriends back in Canada still have another week to put off this surreal moment but not us over in China. We got to finish a week early which sounds great, but right now I really would love to have another week to hide my head in the sand for just a little bit longer.

My dad has always said that he will die of Eternal Peter Pan Syndrome, he says that he "may get old but will never grow up". I guess the older I grow the more I realize that I am like both of my parents (how is that for a scary thought!!!!), and in this case the apple has fallen directly below the tree.

In the last post I said that I should stop counting down the Days until Spiderman 3, I should get rid of my Superhero pillow case and I should stop making Black Eyed Peas references when I'm teaching.

You know what, to hell with all of that!!!! Just because I'm out looking for jobs and pensions and everything else does not mean that I need to stop having fun. I have the rest of my life to grow up, why should I start now? Why should I start ever for that matter.

So it's decided, I'm putting my adulthood off for an indefinite amount of time. Perhaps the job and pension thing will have to be a little different though....

Until next time,

G

Glen and Troy Playoff Predictacular Round 2

First off, I'm sorry to get this off a little late, being 12 time zones away makes things complicated. Ohh and Troy is a stupid slackass who takes forever.

For those of you who read the last entry will notice, that I am far superior to Troy (which of course you all know). I decided that we would keep score, and we would get 1 point for each right series and another 1 point for predicting the right amount of games a series goes.

The Score after the first round was:

Glen: 8 (I correctly predicted that Buffalo, New Jersey, Atlanta, Anaheim, Vancouver and San Jose would move on. Plus I get two more points for calling the correct amount of games in took Buffalo and Anaheim to win)

Troy: 6 (He correctly predicted that Buffalo, New Jersey, Anaheim, Vancouver and San Jose would win. Plus he called Vancouver needed 7 games to defeat Dallas.)

Moral of this story, Glen > Troy.

Onto this round...

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Glen Says:

The first round in this conference was quite a surprise that's for sure!!! I thought that the Thrashers would at least show up against the Rangers, same with the Islanders against the Sabers. Also, Ottawa, come through in the playoffs? What kind of a world do we live in!!!

Troy Says:

Ok...so I said Atlanta would beat The Rangers and I was right. But in a more accurate way, I was wrong. Very wrong. It wasn't even a series, it was a disaster. But to add a little perspective, this was Atlanta's first trip to the playoffs so good on them for that. Unfortunately though that isn't going to lessen the sting of being slaughtered by the Rangers. Anyway, on to round number deux.

Buffalo vs. New York Rangers

Glen Says:

Who called a Rangers upset? Yeah I'm pretty awesome like that. Man ohh man are some heads ever going to roll in Atlanta!!! Both of these teams will be really well rested in this series since they both made really short work of their first round opponent's. I know that the Rangers are getting that whole Ducks '03 vibe going with them right now but I just don't feel it. I know that Shanny will get them realy going, but I just don't see them dethroning the Sabres. They may just put the fear of God into them though. Sabres in 7.

Troy Says:

This should be a pretty good series but this is another New York team I don't see Buffalo having much trouble with. I think Shanny will lead the way for the Blue Shirts but unfortunately Drury and Briere will lead the way for Buffalo. Buffalo in 6

New Jersey vs. Ottawa

Glen Says:

Well who saw that Senator win? I know that I sure didn't!!!! The Sens looked really, really good last round but now they come up against the best playoff team of the last 12 years. I'm sorry but I don't like their odds. I think that the Devils are just going to manhandle my beloved Senators. New Jersey in 5.

Troy Says:

Well my arch nemesis thinks NJ will take this one easily so perhaps for no better reason than spite I will take Ottawa. I will use the famous Ottawa cliche and say that this year the Senators will do well in the playoffs. They played very well against Pittsburgh, better than they have maybe ever played in the playoffs and I think they can take NJ. Although if NJ wins in the first round, they tend to win the cup so I may be losing this prediction. But alas I am stubborn. Ottawa in 7.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Glen Says:

Well the first round sure had a lot of drama from Nashville's utter humiliation, to Calgary not being able to recapture the Alberta magic of the last two playoffs, to Vancouver almost collapsing. It was a pretty interesting first round and I expect the second one to be pretty similar!!!

Troy Says:

I'm a big fat jerk face who has a big butt and I like to kiss my own butt (EDITOR'S NOTE: That may not have actually happened)

Detroit vs. San Jose

Glen Says:

The Red Wings are so incredibly lucky that the Calgary Flames are A) Incapable of winning on the road and B) Terribly coached. Seriously at the beginning of the season Calgary was being discussed as a top contender for the Cup and it was hard to argue against them, plus they were playing against the most over rated team in the NHL, President's Trophy or not. Sorry, I needed to get that off my chest, onto this series. As you can probably guess from that opening rant I don't have much faith in the Red Wings and if you have been reading my blog form the beginning (which you damn well should be!!!) you will know that I have been picking the Sharks to be in the Finals all season, making this an easy decision. San Jose in 6.

Troy Says:

I hate Detroit. It sucks that they beat Calgary but with the way Calgary played on the road they did not deserve to win that series. However Detroit will have their hands full with San Jose and I think Detroit will fold against this team. Detroit (as my veggy buddy quite correctly pointed out) is terribly overrated. I'm going to go one better than Glen. San Jose in 5.

Anaheim vs. Vancouver

Glen Says:

Did the Canucks ever dodge a bullet in Game Seven or what? Man I thought that they had this series after the first four games but two solid performances from Turco (who normally CHOKES in the Playoffs) made me worry. As expected, Anaheim made a joke out of the Wild and probably let them win one game in order to give them more time to practice together and one more home game. I've been saying that the Western Final will be Anaheim vs. San Jose all year and you know how I feel about changing my mind, this should be a good series though. Anaheim in 7.

Troy Says:

I've been picking Anaheim to be in the final all year long and as much as I want to, I can't change my mind now. Vancouver will not be easy though but I just think Anaheim has too many offensive weapons and we all know Vancouver isn't exactly the Oilers of the mid-eighties when it comes to scoring. Not to mention Anaheim has two of the best D-men ever in the game in Pronger and Niedermayer. I want so badly to choose Vancouver for two reasons, A) They're Canadian, B) Glen picked Anaheim. Unfortunately though I don't see Vancouver pulling this one out. They will make it interesting though. Anaheim in 6.

****************************************

Anywho, that raps this one up. I'm going to be a bit of a wandering hobo for the next couple of weeks so I'm not sure if I will get to post a prediction for Round 3, I shall do my absolute best though!!!

Enjoy the Second Round!!!

Until next time,

G

Fall Behind, Left Behind

For the entire length of my time in China I have been uttering one phrase over and over again. Whenever we are travelling in a group and someone stops to shop/take pictures and holds up the group I have been saying "Fall behind, left behind". Well on Saturday, I understood the meaning of that phrase.

Saturday night in Yangzhou we went out to this spectacular show. I don't really know how to describe it other than by saying that it was on a water stage and it included some of the most spectacular sights I have ever seen. There was a call and answer love song between people waving massive torches, a row of 15 or so plastic tarps that people did an elaborate boat dance, a stage built on the water for people to walk on while wearing glowing suits (it seriously looked like a deranged techno video), a woman dancing on what looked like the moon, and a stripping scene. Ohhh and it was directed by the same guy who will direct the opening ceremony at the Beijing Olympics.

After the show I was still trying to process all of the stimulus and I ended up losing out on my group. I did the logical thing and went back the way that we came to look for the bus and the rest of my group. Silly me, thinking that logic will apply in this country.

I get to the front gates and see nobody. I wonder around for a bit and still see nobody that I know. I realize that they probably went out the side gate so I attempt to run back through the park but somebody tells me that all of the buses have left. I shrug and go back to the front gate and plan on walking back to the hotel, remembering that it wasn't that far of a trip.

After a day of walking I realize that maybe I should seek alternative transportation. Lucky for me I notice a motorized rickshaw and decide that maybe that would be a better bet. I ask the driver how much and he tells me 10 Yuan. I look and say that I would sooner walk (a wonderful bargaining technique in this country is to appear completely disinterested) and then he yells out six. I decide to take him up on the offer and get in the back. He says something in Chinese to his friends and they all have a good laugh.

After driving off for a bit he pulls over, looks back at me and says "Massag-ie, Massag-ie" and my heart drops a bit. I look at him confused and just say "West Street", which is close enough to the hotel I was staying at. He takes his left hand and puts his index finger to his thumb making a circle, and then takes his two fingers on his right hand and begins ramming them through the circle and makes some grunting noise and then says "10 Yuan". I realize two important things at this point. First off, some expressions are universal, and secondly he didn't say six, oh no, he said sex. No wonder he was laughing with his friends.

Lucky for me, I happen to know how to say no in Chinese which I say repeatedly and keep saying West Street. He starts to drive again but slows down as we pass a few run down buildings, which I assume to be brothels, where he makes the gesture again and says "Massag-ie, Massag-ie" some more.

After what seemed like forever we get to our hotel, I tell him to stop right here. I give him a 10 Yuan note and run hearing him yell "Massag-ie, Massag-ie" in the background.

I thankfully arrive back at my hotel to find our group leader and my profs who had just gone back to look for me. They say that they were not too worried about me, and said that if there was anyone who it would be ok to loose it would be me. I'm not sure if that was a compliment or not.

Olive, the professor with us, looks at me and says "Fall behind, left behind".

Until next time,

G

An Absolute Dream Land

Hey all!!!

I just got back from an unreal weekend here in the PRC. We took a bus up to Guilin and then a river cruise to Yangzhou. If you didn't know, those are postcard China. In fact, it looks something like this...

Pretty unreal eh?

I spent so much time asking myself if what I was seeing was real. The limestone karsts (those weird looking hills) looked so fantastic that I felt that there should be faeries and dragons running around.

The highlight came on Saturday when we took a very relaxing bamboo raft ride down the river. On the way down the river there were people set up with booths or rafts of their own trying to sell tourists a variety of food and drinks. So I got to spent 5 Yuan (about 85 cents in Canada) for a 600mL bottle of beer. I fucking love China.

Don't get me wrong, there were some ugly sides as well. Yangzhou in particular is an absolute tourist trap. It always bums me out to see beautiful places get ruined by mass tourism. It reminded me so much of Niagara Falls, so much beauty amid so much cheese.

Worst of all though was the bike ride to the bamboo raft. While it was absolutely amazing to get out into the country and ride by some rice fields, it made me really sad. I saw an incredible amount of poverty along the way. It made me so very sad to see people covered in dirt with no shoes on begging for money. The houses were so run down I wondered what purpose they even served. It always makes me sad when people are so poor around such beautiful areas, like Cape Breton or the Scottish Highlands but magnified immensely.

What made me even sadder was to think about how much worse other people have things. As far as developing countries, China is probably the richest one there is. I could only imagine how much my heart would be breaking in a less fortunate country.

Anyway, I don't want to end on a downer so here are a couple more pictures of the unreal Li River Scenery. If any of you are planning on going to Asia, you need to make this a priority, you will not be disappointed!!!

Until next time,

G

Thoughts, Prayers and Condolences

Even on the far side of the world, the news still came. Even on the far side of the world, it still shocked me.

I am of course talking about the Virginia Tech. Shootings of earlier this week. I honestly don't know what to say about this but I feel that I should say something.

First off, I need to say I'm sorry. If any of you out there in Cyber Space know anyone who was at all affected by these tragedy my heart goes out to you. I am sorry that there is not more that I can do right now other than give these hollow condolences.

The news filled me with a mixture of shock, anger, sadness, frustration, terror, and most of all confusion. How can things like this keep happening? Especially in the richest country in the world.

I was in Grade 11 back in 1998 when the Columbine Shootings happened and I was scared. Here there was violence in a High School just like mine. Now here I am at the tail end of my University career and here we have a shooting at a Post Secondary Institution. It scares me to think that this type of thing seems to be following me wherever I go. But what scares me the most is that it could have just as easily happened to me.

Sure you may say that I live in Canada and not America so these things don't happen to us. Well the people of Taber, Alberta or Montreal, Quebec would beg to differ.

I just don't get it. We North Americans have some of the highest quality of life in the world and we are so quick to throw it all away. Sure this guy was from South Korea, but the vast majority of earlier school shootings were done by people born and bred in our very own backyard.

Why does this always seem to happen?

Why are always so quick to provide grief but so quick to move on and forget?

Why can we never accept some of the blame ourselves?

What's that last part? Well all of these school shootings from the Montreal Massacres to Columbine to the tragedy at the Amish School back in October to this week all of something in common. They all happened in North America. These things do not happen to often elsewhere in the world, sure there is the occasional Dunblane Tragedy but those are few and far between. The one commonality here is North American culture, which we are all a part of. There is something about us, which I really don't know, that makes this happen. Some blame the parents, some blame the media, some blame video games, it doesn't matter what the cause is, we all buy and sell it all the time.

So you say that the killer may be from South Korea, but I say that every one of us somehow has blood on our hands. How can we wash it off? I really don't know, but there has to be some way. If you find out please let me know.

Until next time,

G

Juvenile Joys

Yesterday something strange happened over here in Nanning. It was a beautiful sunny day (as usual) when suddenly, and without warning, wind started to pick up, the sky turned black, and then the heavens opened up a torrential downpour upon us.

The locals were all running for cover, but as usual, I got a perverse enjoyment out of this nice warm rain. Funny thing though, we had to walk some 20 minutes across campus to get to a ceremony at this time. So I put my rain coat on, refuse to hover under an umbrella and walk over to the building.

When we arrive for the ceremony (where we Canadians are going to give them some money that we raised before we left) we find out that due to the sudden storm, it is going to be postponed. All of the Chinese students, and some of the Canadian ones were huddling in the shelter and waiting for cabs to take a cab back to the residence.

I thought that this was a terrible idea, I was already wearing my flip-flops, and decided, along with my friends Karen and Sarah to walk back to residence in the rain. Best part, no hoods or umbrellas allowed. Just us and the rain.

Let me tell you, this was an amazing experience. I jumped in just about every puddle that I could see, and routinely kicked water at my friends. The locals were completely amazed at this, as I'm sure many Canadians would have been to.

None the less we continued, with every puddle I jumped into, I felt a year of maturity splash away from me. I absolutely loved it.

There is something amazing and wonderful about acting so immature sometimes. I figure that I have my whole life to be a grown up, why should I start now? Sure I'm not getting any younger, but why should I be forced to get older?

My father always says that he will die of Terminal Peter Pan Syndrome, he says "I may get old, but I will never grow up". Sometimes, the apple falls directly below the tree.

I felt so refreshed yesterday. It was so wonderful to feel the rain on my skin and innocence in my heart. I have spent most of this year thinking and worrying about growing up, it was wonderful to put all of those thoughts away for one childish walk.

So this is a special shout out to my NipFriends who are no doubt as worried about applying for jobs, interviews, OCT, and pensions as I am. Take a moment and let yourself be a kid, it will give you some much needed clarity.

Until next time,

G

P.S. Just in case some of you may be worried that I have caught a cold or something, afterwards the three of us (plus plenty more) gathered to have a tea party to warm us all up. We even had biscuits, and I made sure to drink with my pinky finger extended. Unfortunetly our stuffies were unable to attend the event.