24 May 2007

photographs and lessons in the flow

you can click here to view miss melissa's photos of the trip so far.
i'm still trying to figure a way to share my photos that doesn't involve uploading each individual picture because that takes too long.

and today i'm regaining my going with the flow, as all the train tickets for chengdu have long since been booked and it looks like i can either pay out the arse for a plane ticket, take a 2 day bus ride, or walk. options or no options, of course i will take the 2 day bus ride. sigh. one year ago this would have been nothing. in fact it happened to me. several times. and it was nothing. but a year in america can soften a person up a bit. i going to take this as a sign that i had better book my ticket to lhasa as soon as i pry myself from the sweaty, stinky bus-fest that will be this coming weekend.

one more day in nanchang, complete with a ride on the world's largest ferris wheel.
bet you didn't know that was here, eh.

23 May 2007

babies and babies and babies

we're really busy here during the day and just exhausted when we get back to the hotel, so i don't have time to post pictures yet. we'll be leaving on saturday and i'll write a whole lot more and put up some pictures before i go to chengdu.

the orphanage is amazing though. amazing, and so sad. we've been able to fit a few hearing aids (yay!) and tested a lot of babies, but the OAE machine has been on the fritz, so it's taking us a long time. the nursery can just break your heart, but the women who work there are amazing. the only thing is that the orphanage is so hot and they put the babies in five layers of clothes and wrap them in warm blankets! i asked about it and they said it's important to keep babies warm, but then i'm all "for real?" and they're all "word erin, warm babies are best" so then i'm like "whatevs." that's how it is here i guess. can't argue with that. and then they laugh at me for wearing a hat in the warm weather. take note: only babies can be super warm in nanchang.

last night we went to "english corner" at one of the universities with one of our translators from the orphanage. so cool! it was so much fun! we ate at the "cool beverage" diner. michi and molly split a plate of four chicken nuggets. i've got a great photo of that, believe you me. the diner had swings for seats. then we were bombarded by 8 bajillion chinese students asking us questions like:

could you tell me how you keep such beautiful skin?

do you want to marry a chinese man?

can you dance while you sing?

why are you wearing a hat when it is so hot?

why have you never worked in the public society?

what is the meaning of life?

and others which i will not put here but which you should ask michi about later because they are fabulous. i was so hot i thought i would keel over. it was my best night here yet.

then i called my mom and she was on a bus tour of broadway in new york city. and that made the day complete.

20 May 2007

fatty mcfat fat fattums fatto pants

more nostalgic moments in asia: fun with shopping.

in two separate stores today, i was told that i was waaay too big for anything in the store and not allowed to try anything on. one woman in a third store was kind enough to bring me a single large ugly black frock to try, though. sigh. memories.

the shoes fit though. oh yes, do they ever. :)

so today we went shopping and toured the town temple and had a fabulous romp in the grocery store. hooray for jackfruit chips and dried papaya!