in memory of...

Today was Mr. W's funeral, I told L. that I'd help teach her Friday classes so that she could attend. Mom went with L. to help translate - I felt it was important that she go.

Classes went well. After we did the "inventions," we used the remaining time to have a Q&A session with the students. This was most interesting. Many had good questions, but a few asked us if we were Christians and went to church, to which we said yes. The spirited discussion then turned towards science and the existence of God with a few of the students. They spoke pretty good English and had keen interest in these matters. They felt that people created God in their minds, that the mind can make the fake become real. We suggested that the mind can also make the real become fake, and that scientists can have as much of an anti-God bias cloud their research as those who have a God bias cloud theirs. We talked about intelligent design and "design inference" that point to the evidence for God or some kind of cosmic intelligence or deity. (L. and Mom returned toward the end of the second class)

We talked about the funeral while we had our lunch. Mom had never been to a secular, much less "Party" funeral. About 200-300 people went and packed themselves standing up in a small room in a rather lavish funeral home. A few people gave some words of tribute. Most everyone bowed before the closed, with the glass top, casket, but Mom and L. didn't.

One of L's former students came up to talk with her privately. She was at the funeral, so it was thought that she might want to talk about it. We spent some time talking and thinking about her before she came up. It turned out that she was burdened by a relationship she had with a former XM English teacher, a colleague of L.'s from last year. He'd taken advantage of her, apparently, leading her to believe that he was interested in maintaining a relationship. L. counseled against it, since he was known to have a "relationship" with several other coeds and possibly was one of the reasons he was not asked back to teach this year. In any case, L. was able to spend some time encouraging her and praying with her. Hopefully, this will open up opportunites for more discussion in the future.

make sure you have the right batteries

S. and I woke up at 5 am to find a taxi to the airport for J. and D. We had to walk to the big intersection (about 20 minutes) and bargained with one driver for 90 bucks, although, he still got way more than he should have. The streets were deserted for the most part and it was still quite dark. We were able to get the driver to drive directly to our doorstep, where we were hoping to meet J. and D. But when S. ran up to get them, he learned that they had already left. He ran back down and started looking for them. I didn't know what to do with the taxi, so I hopped in and asked him to drive in the direction S. Except, when we turned the corner, we couldn't seen him anywhere, so I just directed the taxi to the main gate, where we found J. and D., but no sign of S. anywhere. We (Dad was waiting with them) put them in the taxi and sent them off, and then walked back, only to meet S. still running around looking for J. and D. He sure got his exercise that morning. If only the walkie-talkies we had worked, we would've avoided missing each other.

Later that day, we noticed that an apartment two floors below us had its door opened. Many people were coming in and out and occasionally we'd hear someone wailing. A woman burned incense at a small desk in the living room. Some were burning paper "money" using a pot in the fire extinguisher container. It appeared that someone in that room may have died, but we didn't know who.

For lunch, Mom and S. went to E. old café (the one we were hoping to help out with). It's now a restaurant with about 6-7 men and women working together. Gone were the couches and short tables; in their place, eating tables, chairs, and new decorations. It was kind of sad to see the place changed so fast and S. knew I would feel likewise.

We went to the middle school for the first lesson. We tried the "name game", but it was apparent rather quickly that pronunciation was not their forte. We had them write their names on their cards, typed them on the screen, and had them recite them. We also gave them simple questions (e.g. how old are you, what's your favorite xyz, etc.) for them to write answers to in order to know where their English listening proficiency was. They seemed quite well-behaved, almost shy, although I still think that their "middle-school-ness" will surface pretty soon. Maybe because their teachers were there watching them? Also, the teachers don't teach speaking and listening, as they don't do it that well themselves. That may be where S. and I can contribute the most.

On the way back to the flat, we met another teacher, who upon asking, told me that last year's dean of the college had passed away yesterday of a heart attack. He was 63 and lived two floors below us. He was truly loved by not only staff, but students as well. I was very shocked by the news. There will be a funeral service tomorrow.

famous 5-kuai haircut

The whole family went to L's classes today. L. had them break into groups and "build" inventions made of random household items. Later, they presented them a la a sales pitch for their invention. We had a question/answer period in the time remaining. They were particularly interested in where we were from and our impressions of China. We did this for the first two classes. Even tho' these classes were L.'s most challenging ones, they received us well.

We had dinner at the main campus of the university, after which my bro-in-law and I decided to get a "famous" Chinese 5-kuai (60 US cents) haircut. It was a different one than I had been to. A woman cut my hair and a young man cut my bro-in-law's. While we were getting our hair cut, Dad stayed outside and talked with one of the employees. We learned later that Dad prayed with him and that this man asked for a Bible.

Back in Guangzhou

We left Fuzhou today. The Fuzhou "International" Airport wasn't very busy. It seemed we'd breeze through. However, we encountered a delay with the airlines, because we had adult tickets for the kids, but they NEEDED children's tickets. They wouldn't take the adult tickets, even tho' they'd get more money for them. We would get a refund for the adult tickets, but we had to get them from the agency we bought them from. The plane held up for us for a few minutes. Silly rules that we'd never heard of from any other airlines. Sheesh.

We landed in Guangzhou 75 minutes later. A few taxi drivers tried to bargain a fare to take us home, but L. would hear none of it and we ended up taking the Airport Express (bus), to the nearest stop which was still a bit away from us. J., R., and I piled all the luggage into a taxi while the rest took the local bus. Unfortunately, our taxi driver missed a turn towards XM. We got hopelessly lost. The driver annoyingly started guessing where I wanted him to take us, taking us to different schools. I did not hide my disgust with him, which I'm sure made him nervous. We finally happened upon XM by chance. I paid him rmb 30, even though the meter read "47", which he sheepishly took (it was probably more than what we should've paid, but my irritation had subsided and he did wait for us with the luggage to be loaded).

When we all got home, L. found out that the family could stay at the empty flat next to us, so we decided to do that. It was much easier to have everyone at the same location, although there was a good bit of cleaning to do next door.

In the evening, we took them to our favorite Brazilian restaurant....it was loads of fun with a live band and a couple dancing latina style. It's nice to be home, for us, finally unpack, do some laundry etc., but what a week this has been...

Agape Center

After breakfast, we boarded a van, provided by the Fuzhou Agape Medical Center, and were taken on a tour of the city. We visited a couple of churches at the start of our trip and were well-received by everyone we came in contact with. We also stopped by a park with a large statue of a bull, to take some pics and relax. Next door was a Sam's Club. There is a big Walmart Supercenter here in Fuzhou, which got L. very excited.

One memorable visit was to a 3-self church on the banks of the river. A big red cross on top of it could be seen for miles. Another red cross on another church sat not too far away. The old pastor of the church had lived through the Cultural Revolution and had been imprisoned during that time. When asked if they are allowed to preach on the Resurrection, he replied emphatically, "Of course! Anything in the Bible is allowed to be preached." That answered some questions held by some of us about this issue. It was an honor to meet a man who'd endured so much for his faith. The same was true for the other elderly Christians who were with us.

We stopped off at the Agape Medical Center. They'd moved since my previous visit in 2001. We met the friendly medical staff, all retired nurses, mostly women, all volunteer. We toured the facility, which was located by a busier highway than before.

We visited another church that was started by a group of peasant, illiterate women. The woman who catalyzed the building of the church said about 10 years ago, her son was cured of an illness after she'd abandoned hope of him being well, but decided to take him to a church to be prayed for. She felt strongly after that God wanted her to have a church built in this area of Fuzhou that didn't have a church nearby. They invited us in to look around and to have lunch. The lunch was generous and sumptuous. Again, it was neat to meet these people whose faith journeys were certainly different from our own.

However, with all the running around in that heat, the kids were getting tired and some were wondering when we'd be heading home. But, we plowed on to visit the orphanage. It was well-worth it for everyone, it turns out. It's actually a foster home for 62 boys and girls ages 8-20 whose parents are incarcerated. The kids would be returned back to their family once their parents were released. A woman named P. (whom I met in the 2001 trip) showed us around. They added a few more buildings since our last visit. A couple of boys, both mentally challenged, came to greet and hug us. Our stay was rather short, but not before we took many pictures with the children. One 7- or 8-year-old little girl looked a lot like our niece, P. with the cute smile. The kids warmed up quickly and took a liking to the nieces. Most of them waved as the van pulled away taking us home.

After dinner, Goo-goo, Goo-fu, and our cousins came by our hotel room. We spent time relating our memories of Gong-gong, who passed away a year ago today. Everyone in the family shared. Mom translated. Dad and Mom encouraged all of us to consider Christ in light of Gong-gong's faith.

After they left, we surprised mom with a cake and celebrated her b'day...although the added sugar that late at night definitely showed on the kids. It's off to Guangzhou tomorrow...

(PS: Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad (L's))

Dad was a teen?

We all went to a three-self church, which was completely in Chinese. They even have their own website! The last time I came to this church was in October 2001, when it was in a temporary location. It's apparently moved back to their newly-renovated location, which still appears to be an old structure with many extra renovated rooms and buildings. The main sanctuary was located towards the back. Other larger rooms, including the one housed in the old structure, accommodated overflow watching via closed circuit.

The service went much like what I remember back in CBC in Portland, with the singing of the "Gloria Patri" and reading responsively from the Bible. They quoted the Apostles' Creed. Group prayer was led by a woman. Every sentence was passionately prayed and followed by a resounding "amen!" by the congregation in unison. One of the women moderators sprinkled a bit of English in her talks. Philippians 1:1-11 was read aloud, after which a Chinese speaker from the U.S. gave the sermon, with Fuzhou-nese translation. The sermon meandered a bit, but some points were worth noting...

• The church is not just 1, 2, or 3 people. It’s ALL people in the body of Christ.


• He calls some church-goers "mosquito" or "housefly" Christians....annoying the church with their "buzzing", but contributing nothing, yet not going away.


• The church should not be like a ship where one or two are rowing and the passengers are standing around on board wondering why the ship is moving so slow.

After singing the hymn "Heavenly Sunshine", the service closed in prayer. Communion was then conducted after the general service. People who didn't want to or couldn't participate (if they hadn't been baptized) were invited to leave. Although a lot of people left, the church still appeared full. As it was last year, this church was packed to the max, perhaps numbering around 2000, maybe more. And this was only one of three Sunday services.

Communion consisted of wafers and a spoonful of wine taken from a communal cup. Each person took a small metal spoon from a tray that was passed through the worshippers, along with the wine cup. The cup and spoon was not that big, but you got enough to get the taste of the wine. It was an intriguing, simple, and enjoyable way to partake. While the elements were passed around, congregational hymn singing and Scripture reading took place.

After lunch, we stopped by Dad's old stomping grounds as a teen. All that's left was just the river he used to hang out at. Everywhere around it are stores and pavement that weren't there when he was growing up. Concrete-ville, it was. We did walk by some old trees and an archway that were still left amidst all the build-up.

We visited the old Christian Lane Church, the church Dad first attended as a youth, but found it was being prepared for demolition. Whether the church body was to be relocated or just discontinued, we didn't know. We didn't go inside. The sign was still there. Another part of Dad's history being replaced by economic progress.

We also stopped by Dad's old school grounds nearby. Students were all outside preparing for that day's big exams (on Sunday, of all days). The school guard allowed us in to take pictures and look around. Nothing of the school when Dad was there was left -- it was all new building. Still, it was good to be there and reminisce with him.

We ate dinner at Goo-goo and Goo-fu's home that evening. They don't live far from the hotel - within walking distance. Goo-goo prepared lots of food along with some of Dad's dumplings - we were stuffed. On our way back, we noticed as a large crowd was watching a makeshift outdoor theatre - out of a big white sheet.

Fuzhou

We woke around 5:30 am to head to the airport. Our first airplane flight together as a family! When we arrived at Fuzhou, I was familiar with many of the sights from our trip in October 2001 --- we checked into the same hotel as we did then, the Fu You. After lunch, we drove to the cemetery where Gong-gong (Grandpa -- Dad's dad) is buried. On the way, we passed by the village where Dad was raised, except now it’s a collection of modern high-rise apartments.

My cousin dropped off A. J. L. Dad, my uncle and myself at the trailhead to the cemetery. The path wove its way through fields, farmland, trees, cracked brick walls, small shops, and unfinished apartments. Graves and monuments were scattered randomly along the way. Apparently, this trail is also a popular hiking spot, for we passed several students and hikers on their way back down. We walked for about 15-20 minutes before resting at a large, smooth rock formation. After waiting for several minutes, Goo-foo, Dad, and I resumed walking, while L. J. and A. waited for the rest of our troupe - to help with the kids, not knowing yet how far we had to go. After finding Gong-gong's grave, Dad and I walked further up to look for the graves of my great-great-grandparents, my great-grand-parents, and my great-grand uncle and aunt. We found it about another 100 meters up from Gong-gong's grave, under a tree where two red plastic bags were hanging. Dad had put them there last year to help find the grave easier. The scattered graves in the cemetery are situated on a steep mountainside, amidst lots of brush and trees. There are no clearly marked trails. They come in all shapes, sizes, and conditions. We took some pictures before heading back down. Certain parts were slippery, steep, and cluttered with weeds, but we managed to make it down okay. Everyone else managed to make it up as soon as we got back to Gong-gong's grave. Two other close friends of Gong came up as well. We took many pictures together. Decorations from last year's funeral, as well as a celebration of the dead that was held last month still littered the gravesite. We cleared some of the area of the leaves that had fallen on the site. Nearly every gravesite was coved with faded, tattered fake money pinned down by rocks. After about an hour, we headed back down, and drove to some apartments nearby. We went up a couple stories in one building to Dad's apartment that replaced what was torn down. A shrine to Gong-gong, grandma, and great-grandma occupied one room, adorned with their photos and a makeshift altar to put incense and goods on. The other rooms were sparely furnished. Outside the apartment was a courtyard where Gong-gong's memorial service and funeral in Fuzhou took place. We went back to the hotel. It started to rain that night. It's a good thing we went to the cemetery when we did....it would've been miserable and downright impossible to make it through there in wet conditions.

Tian Ma

We took a bus to Temple City, a major shopping area in Shanghai. There wasn't much L. and I were interested in looking for (since we could get it in GZ), so we bought some Starbucks and stayed at the food court. We went home for a short rest before heading out to Uncle G's country club. The club is quite a swanky, high-class facility, rivaling anything you'd find in the States, even better than most, probably (not that we've been to many). But it's amazing to have a relative who is privy to all this. Some of us went swimming, others played tennis, or went on walks, L. and I, with a few others went to the driving range and hit some golf balls. It was a bit breezy and cold, so we headed back to the clubhouse pretty soon. I dressed to go swimming later, but everyone was gone, so I soaked myself in the hot tub for a few minutes. After activities, we joined Uncle G. for dinner, where we were entertained with stories about his sons and his life in general.

Shanghai

We got up at 6:00 am and got ready to go to the airport. Only until we were downstairs waiting for the shuttle, we thought to check for the tickets....and didn't have them. But since we had agreed to meet our ride at the main campus, we took the shuttle anyway, and asked if we could drive back to our flat to get our tickets. Not too long after beginning our search, we found them, and raced to the airport. The expressway ended at the airport, about 20 km from us, but our ride made good time, getting us there in about 10 minutes.

We raced through the checkout (had to go to "M" counter to pick up the tickets, then go to the "D" counter to check our bags in). L. stood at the "D" counter line, while I went to the "M" counter to get our tickets, which was a good way to do it, even tho' we didn't plan it that way. We were at the security checkpoint in less than 10 minutes....by 8:14 am. They wouldn't have checked us in if we came in after 8:15 am. Whew!

The new Guangzhou airport was completed just last August. It is a huge airport, with the highest and widest ceilings I'd ever seen. It is one of the more spectacular airports I've been in, rivaling Denver and HK. The plane we rode was cramped and they still used the old, 2-prong headphones. The seats reclined more than the usual seats. Things seemed a little old, even tho' it was a 777.

Mom came to pick us up at the airport. (Shanghai's airport is kind of small, almost like Hyderabad’s airport. However, it’s domestic-only....I'm sure their international airport is a lot more impressive.) It was a very short taxi ride to Uncle G's apartment. We met the whole family (Dad, A. J. J. and D. and the kids, Uncle N. and Auntie E. and Uncle L. and Auntie C.) We then went upstairs to the penthouse (13th floor) to enjoy a light lunch, watch TV (hey, HBO, Cinemax, and CNN! Satellite TV?), take a snooze, and catch up with each other. It was lovely seeing the family again.

After lunch, we took the bus to Mom, Aunt C. and Uncle N's old home where they were born and spent a bit of their childhood. It was pretty much the same on the outside as it was when Mom and her sibs were born. Their cousin and her husband currently live there. It's on the second level, shared with other rooms of the same size occupied by other family members. Each room served as its own bedroom/living room. The bathroom and kitchen were in other rooms by the hallway. We took several pictures and had tea. Much of the one room they were occupying had been renovated. The narrow stairways outside the room seemed older, perhaps original. It was a special time to share a piece of our family history with our family, never before seen by me or the sibs.

Mom, Dad, Uncle and Auntie L. and C. and Uncle and Auntie N. and E. stayed at the penthouse apartment. The rest of us stayed at a nice, multi-bedroom house about 1 km away. Both places had servants to fix meals, make up the rooms, and clean up. Shanghai's first impressions were quite posh ones.

drama...

My two piano students had good lessons today. The older was fine, tho' it seemed he needed to practice more. Later, I learned from their mom that he practices harder than his younger bro. He needs more structure and may have been a bit traumatized by a previous teacher who didn't have patience with him, making him gun-shy and uncertain about himself. She said both of them really look forward to the piano time, which was good to hear.

We did more of our laundry and left some in the dryer before heading back to XM. We picked up some fruit and crackers before heading home. L. went to class (make up classes for the ones she'll miss during our trip to Shanghai), while I went home to drop off and rearrange laundry and pick up my computer adaptor. I stopped by to pick up some onion pancakes (chung you bing) and talked with the waitresses there. I asked one of them if they'd ever thought about going to college. She said she thinks about it all the time. She so wants to go, but right now, her life at home isn't going so well. She almost started to cry when talking about it.

On my way back, "G" the Japanese teacher on our campus was the bus as well. She was at the international office in a meeting with other Japanese teachers. There's been an increase in ill-feelings towards Japanese lately, because of the refusal of the Japanese gov't to admit in their curriculum and society to atrocities against China during the WW2 years (e.g. Nanjing massacre). China holds a vote to allow Japan into the UN security council and this is a roadblock towards approving them, it seems. So it's been getting attention in the news. GW is asking Japanese teachers to be wary of the current conditions that might make it difficult for them to live here. So far, "G" says there hasn't been any backlash on our campus or the main campus. I asked her about her hometown, and their sentiments towards us, Americans. She feels there isn't any bad feelings at all among the Japanese towards Americans. Her grandparents survived the atomic bombing because they were in another city at the time, but their home was damaged.

ATV (Hong Kong) advertised a Pope John Paul II special at 10:05 pm tonight. However, some nature special on crocodiles aired instead. Outside of Catholics, there seems to be few admirers of the pope here.