Last Thursday I got a call from David Akast. He pointed out an article on the Seattle Times about a guy who just appeared in Discovery Park with amnesia, saying something along the lines of, “I think this is Ed Lighthart.” I saw the picture, and indeed it was good old Eddie. I first met him in a Managers Meeting working for Aston. He had a couple nicknames. Rip Torn, Kaiser Wilhelm.. mostly related to that stache of his.
Oh yes, it’s true. I will CHANGE a lightbulb today. 3 of them actually. Do you know why? Because I CAN!
(10 minute dramatical pause during the lightbulb changing ceremony…)
Damnit! Well, 2 out of 3 ain’t bad. At least I have the knowledge that the third isn’t the lightbulb, but an electrical problem (which I’ll tackle at a later date).
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As I stated before, I would get around to posting these things eventually. Dongying is up, and now it’s time for Xingping. After my two week stint in Dongying was finished, I shot over to Xingping, about an hour away from Xi’an. Well, it just so happens that much like Dongying, Xingping’s city is ALSO built up around a company… this one a Chemical factory. What chemicals, I don’t know. The name, beats me, but I’ll find out when I get back to Xingping after Christmas.
Xingping is a rather small, dusty city that has about as much to offer as a whackshack does to a Eunich. Regardless, if one wanted to make his or her mark in a certain English school there, that would be the place to do it. No competition & it’s bound to grow. What IS appealing is that the food is fantastic and (I know everyone says the following only to suck up…) the people are generally friendly. Unless you work at the computer shop around the corner from Aston.
Xingping is also right near Xianyang, about 20 minutes by bus, and Xi’an, about 50 minutes & 9 RMB by bus. Between Xingping & Xianyang are the Chinese Pyramids I’ve always been interested in, and that I’ll be scoping out up close in about 2 weeks! Most likely tombs of ancient Generals, no one has really ever excavated them, nor explored them. They’re pretty much overgrown now, and some of them are even bases for farming. I hope to find out for myself by heading to that part of the countryside for some close-up pics & such. Below is one from http://earthquest.co.uk. Enjoy!
About 4 weeks ago, I spent about 2 weeks in Dongying. This city is primarily built up around the Sheng Li Oil company, named after the oil fields of the same name. There, you’ll find a rather industrial city, complete with large steam pipes up & down the roads. The Aston school there is on Jinan Lu, next to the Sheng Li Park. And incidentally, just about everything in this city is called Sheng Li something. This company runs the whole town.
Dongying’s people are generally rich due to the oil company. You wouldn’t know it by the looks of the city though. They generally come from places like Xi’an, Beijing, and other cities to come make their mark in Dongying through Sheng Li. Others tend to be born into the work. While most seem pretty content to stay, judging by the reaction of some of the kids there, they want out.
The big expat place there is a small bar called JJ’s Bar. You’ll find it on Hooker Street with an all-English sign saying, “Lets Get Shitfaced!” Seriously, there’s more hookers on that street than there are in the entire city! Every place other than JJ’s is a cheezy KTV with the red light on & girls sitting around waiting for a mark. During one evening, one of the girls decided to venture out to find her own mark, and met me. Grabbing my arm & shouting at me, she tried to pull me into one of those places. I’m still not sure if I got the stench off me yet. Pretty bad!
Regardless, the foreign crowd there is pretty happy with JJ’s, as they sport cheap beer, a foosball table, and a playstation 2 complete with Dance Dance Revolution-style dance controllers. Afterwards, it’s off to 0549 (or sth like that), a run of the mill dance club complete with silly little auctions & DJ’s that talk way too much.
Overall, I’m looking to go back, as the foreign manager of Aston there is a big Linux freak, and I’d be interested in comparing notes!
Shenyang is about 3 hours west of Dandong. It’s the capitol of Liaoning Province & probably the most polluted city I’ve been in. Last November, I spent 2 weeks here. The winter time is much worse. Clouds of black dust rise from the coal factories used to heat the apartment & office buildings throughout the city. Most of the pollution however comes from the industrial areas surrounding the city.
Shenyang is home to tons of manufacturing areas, as well as some international businesses. It’s big enough to warrant an American Consulate office, much like the one in Shanghai. Unfortunately for this city, the international business also attracts international sized hassles from the local foreign affairs offices. To get a visa here requires lots of bribes & patting on the back of the local officials. That’s not completely uncommon in China as a whole, but it’s rather bleak here.
Thankfully I’m leaving this place in a few days, finally heading back to Shanghai & my wife, whom I haven’t seen since about 3 days after our wedding, back on June 20th. We both know that’s part of my job.
This is actually today’s post, while the last one was supposed to have gone up 4 days ago. So I’m a little behind.. eh.
I’m still in Dandong & last night was one of China’s Ghost festivals. All across the city, people were burning small yellow pieces of paper with chinese characters on it. Perhaps a local could enlighten us laowais about what’s on the paper and a bit more about the tradition. Others were burning fake money. By about 11pm, the streets were filled with piles of burnt ash all around it.
Sabrina, one of the Chinese Teachers at Aston English here, went with me to the river bank. She was trying out a brand new camera, so again… I’m still hoping to get some of those pics to post here. North Korea was on the other side. Looking backward, Dandong was completely lit up. There was music playing at the park next to the river, with fountains throwing synchronized water everywhere. Old men & women were dancing with their flags, maybe about 50 or so as a crowd gathered to watch. Many people were playing badminton or playing with those feathery things that look like hackey-sack.
On the North Korean side… nothing. No music, no park, no dancing, nothing. Only one large light and about 4 smaller lights eminated from the city on the other side of the river. The bridge that extends across has the border between North Korea & China clearly marked. The Chinese part of the bridge is all lit up with multi-colored flashing lights. The North Korean end of the bridge is dark. It was a very surreal scene.
Sabrina mentioned to me about crossing the bridge. The guards on the other side can get right nasty. They don’t see the Chinese as Chinese. They see any foreigners crossing as animals. When one has to cross over to North Korea, the guards try to humiliate them as best they can, trying to get them to act like animals before they can get their passport back. You’re much safer crossing over at night though, as if you do have to act like an animal, no one can see anyways, because the city across the river shuts down all power at 8pm. The only light left comes from candlelights where younger North Koreans study Chinese, Russian or English, secretly & late at night.
