K is for KIDS

  is for KIDS

I like kids.  Which is good, because I am around them all the time!  I tell stories to kids, I listen to stories told by kids, I was in China to perform for kids.  Everyone I met had something to do with education and teaching and kids.

And I do like them!  They usually like me too.

So, hey...that's that!

J is for JET LAG

is for JETLAG

 is for JET LAG

Jetlag is the condition that says you are fine... If only you could get some sleep. If only you were not so dizzy or spacey. If only you were hungry or not so tired. If only you could stop eating even though you are not hungry. If only you could focus.

I have been told all sorts of ways to combat jet lag.  

1. take melatonin
2. do not sleep until the 9 or 10 PM at your destination
3. take naps
4. do not take naps
5. no coffee
6. lots of caffeine
7. it takes one day for each time zone you have crossed for your body to become normalized.

The time difference between China and NYC is 13 hours.  Did it take 13 days?  Well, let me just say that I was not quite "myself" for a while, but every night I slept soundly, except when I did not - and that the trip was worth it!

I is for Internet

  is for Internet

Like most 21st Century humans, I rely on my computer and internet access to make my day run more smoothly, do research, fix problems, resolve issues, and communicate with others I cannot talk to directly - i.e. my husband at work, my friend in Philadelphia or my brother in Berlin.  etc.

I also read the news (NY Times, Ha'aretz, the Guardian, Slate, Salon, etc.) and watch streaming shows. My life is tied up with my internet access and without it I feel a bit lost.

Which is why I brought not my iPad but my Macbook Pro with me. The computer is so much easier to use, and I knew I was going to use it a lot. I used a VPN (virtual private network) to protect my work from spying eyes and to be able to access websites that were not permitted. Everything was working fine until....

We were in Shenzhen and the internet went down.There was a blackout of Western sites and google/gmail and my AOL and iCloud  accounts were significantly slower than usual. Nothing I did - changing settings, turning the VPN on and off and on again, talking to Sonia and the manager of the hotel - nothing worked. 

Sonia and others we talked with were having the same experience, but no one seemed to know what was going on. That is, until Sonia and I tried to take a walk to and through Tiananmen Square. There was a roadblock set up at the entrance to the Square, and people were having their IDs checked before being let in, a few at a time. We saw strings of soldiers marching in straight lines, followed by a person in a suit. As we walked down the street, there were more soldiers, and big busses parked in tidy rows on the the lawns of the buildings. I do not know who told us but we learned that the big annual meeting of the THAT's why the internet was "down."

Access  was cut off to most of the outside world. Instead of Amazon.com, I could go to Alibaba. Instead of the the NY Times, I could read People Online, and Slate (sometimes) and some other such "news". I never had thought of the freedom of the internet, or what it would be like to be without that freedom. Without being able to make my own choices. Without being to make choices of where to get news, how to communicate with others, who I could communicate with.

It was sobering. 

H is for Herbal Candy

  is for Herbal Candy

I was warned about the dangers of air pollution before I went to China and simultaneously promised that "China has the BEST throat drops!"  They were right about the air quality, and the scratchy feelings in my throat and the stuffy nose. So I was excited to try those herbal drops.  Nothing like a good throat drop to loosen the throat. 

I was disappointed. They were highly mentholated and I did not like them much. Menthol is not good for agitated throats and the drops (like many American cough and throat lozenges) was definitely mentholated. 

But they did come in cool tins, which I collected for my husband Tom.  

G is for GREAT WALL OF CHINA

  is for GREAT WALL OF CHINA

Getting to the  Great Wall of China  was a schlep from Beijing, which was almost enough to make me decide not to go. But, Sonia and I met some young storytellers at The Hutong who were willing to organize a car and driver and take me to the Wall. Thank goodness! It would have been a mistake to have missed such a remarkable experience.

Sven and Cas were wonderful guides, and the section of the wall they took me to was up in the mountains and away from the touristy and rebuilt sections. They called it the "wild wall" and indeed it was wild.  We had to clamber up over some rocks and Sven pulled me (as Cass pushed me) up onto the Wall. 

And there we were, part of a long history on the long and magical wall.

A view of the mountains

First view, in the car

On the Great Wall

Cas and Sven

Looking down on the valley from the Wall

Some contradictions in signage!

Don't  forget to check out Sonia's blog on the Great Wall at Writtenselfie.blogspot.com.

F is for FRIENDS!

  is for FRIENDS

We all need friends - to get through life, to enjoy the journey. Whether a partner or a buddy, friends make our life easier, more fun, and more understandable. 

This trip to China was all about FRIENDS. 

Firstly I heard about Sonia, Pana Wakke and the China trip through my friend Regi Carpenter. My friend Megan Hicks had just returned from the same journey. Sonia was an instant friend, from the moment we met via Skype - lots of nice big intelligent energy. 

Once in China, the tour was people to Sonia's many friends and colleagues, which she had made during her ten plus years working and traveling in China. Wonderful people, who did not blink when meeting yet another of her storytellers from the US.

And there were the friends we made together:

My first morning, I was waiting in line to get a cuppa at the Costa coffee place across from our hotel. The young man next in line to me leaned in and complimented me on how nice my hair smelled! Well, one thing led to another and there we were sitting drinking our coffee when Sonia arrived.  Nice guy - he had grown up in Shanghai and knew everything about the city.  He was interested in storytelling and maybe he will work for Sonia one day instead of for the big corporation where he brings in the big bucks!

Here he is with Sonia.  (What was his name?)

In Beijing, we took a cooking class at The Hutong (as I already wrote about in B is for Beijing.) Sophia was our teacher, and she was also the person who organized and/or set up the family storytelling class I taught the next day at The Hutong. I particularly enjoyed talking with her, and we have corresponded a little since I have been home.  I hope we stay in touch. She is one of those people who effortlessly make the world a little lighter.

Sophia (on the right, standing)

At that self-same storytelling class, I also met two wonderful storytellers who wanted to learn more about storytelling and storytellers. (They are also in the picture with Sophia.)  Here's  a picture of them on the way to the Great Wall of China.  More about Sven and Cas tomorrow.

Sven and Cass in front of a weird and wild hotel in the middle of nowhere.

Be sure to read my dear friend Sonia's take on friendship too, at writtenselfie.blogspot.com.

E is for EAST MEETS WEST

   is for EAST MEETS WEST

What did I expect when I went to China? 

A little bit - I imagined Red Guards on the streets, and Maoist sayings on the walls - a time capsule set to the Cultural Revolution and after.  What I did not predict was what is there -  modern cities with the most enormous glass walled malls with every world brand advertised in shops and on billboards.  

And the mix of the old with the new. Small buildings next to cranes building huge ones.  Scooters racing down small lanes and large streets. Cleanliness and order amongst the chaos.  

An ancient civilization in modern clothes. And I, a traveller, am there to experience it.

East meets West.

The West comes to the East and is warmly welcomed.

Sign in a bilingual school.

.