New School Year Cometh

Tomorrow is the beginning of my second year teaching academic writing to graduate students here in Shenzhen. For the next two weeks, I get to have an introductory class (because my classes only meet once every other week). This means everyday for two weeks I get to walk into my classroom and say, "Hello, my name is Matt. I am here to teach you English writing." Or something similar. It's basically the same speech I've had to give at all my other classes over the years (including numerous demo lessons at the training center).

Of course, this year my extended speech will include quite a few classroom rules and hints in the hopes that I can correct the mistakes from the previous year (i.e. plagiarism, ringing cell phones, and other annoyances).

I have been preparing since the end of July for this school year. I know how I'm going to change my teaching methods and tweek my lesson plans in an effort to better educate my students and cut down on my own boredom. I will not, however, take up the recommendation from the previous 600 MSc students that wanted to play more games in class. It's graduate school, there are no classroom games. With any luck, this year will go much smoother than the last.

Betting on Portugal

Before we left for Malaysia, Jia and I spent a day in Macau--still one of my favorite places to visit, even though I don't gamble.
This is the Casino Lisboa, the oldest casino in Macau. Because of recent competition from major Las Vegas companies, such as Wynn and Sands, the Lisboa built one of the largest casinos in the world right across the street from the original. I still think this one has more class than the new one.

Political Stupidity

And I'm not talking about the Democratic National Convention.

Why would a political party nominate an indicted politician to run for Senate? It seems the Alaskan Republican party is willing to do it. Ted Stevens has won the primary. This shows that the party and the voters are idiots. I don't care that he hasn't been convicted yet, because he almost certainly will. He is corrupt and should not serve his country any longer. If he had any decency, he'd resign.

How is it possible that the Republican party couldn't find a single conservative Alaskan to run in Ted Stevens' place? There must be dozens of eligible candidates. Fortunately, Stevens will probably lose the November general election. Of course, had the Republicans found another candidate that didn't disgust the general public, they might actually retain the Senate seat. But, again, this is politics, and politicians aren't known for intelligence or logical thinking.

I do wonder if democracy really is better than the Chinese political system. Is it better to choose between two brain-dead schmucks that will lead a powerful nation or having no choice but the same result? At least if I didn't have to choose I wouldn't endure a year of mind-numbing political ads and pointless opinion columns.

And for those wondering, I do plan to vote with my absentee ballot in November. I don't like McCain, but I also don't think Obama is as good as everyone makes him out to be. And Hillary wouldn't have been any better. It doesn't matter who you vote for, you get screwed in the end.

It's Really Over

The 2008 Beijing Olympics have finally ended. They ended last night in grand fashion that wasn't quite as grand as the opening (then again, why should it be?). The show was interesting, but quite confusing. The beginning looked like something out of Dr. Seuss. And why were the drummers wearing bicycle helmets? All jokes aside, the acrobat bit, acting like the Olympic flame was quite impressive.

Then there was the hand-off of the Olympic flag to London. They had a nice musical dance number that really confused most people. They perpetuated the notion in China that everyone in England carries an umbrella everyday. And thanks to Jimmy Page playing the Led Zeppelin classic "Whole Lotta Love," the 2012 Olympics will forever be associated with sexuality...or maybe just aging legends. It would've been more amusing if they got The Rolling Stones to do "Sympathy for the Devil."

We just have to wonder what CCTV9 will fill the newscasts with now that the Olympics are finished.

Don't Stink Up the Joint

All over Malaysia, there are signs notifying people to not bring durian into their establishments. For those who don't know, durian is a fruit with a spiky shell that was probably used as an ancient weapon. The fruit also stinks.
My wife was very disappointed by the signs because she loves durian and it's about half the price in Malaysia than in Shenzhen. We still allowed her to eat some, as long as it wasn't in the hotel or up wind from us.

Again with the Typhoons

Typhoon Nuri is headed my way today. When I checked yesterday afternoon the course was set for the eye of the storm to pass right over Hong Kong with winds at about 130 km/hr (I don't know my metric conversions). There are a lot of dark clouds over Hong Kong as I can see from my window, and the wind is picking up a bit, but no rain yet.

Just glad I don't have work yet. I'm supposed to go into the office Monday and then classes start the next week (I think).

Tale of a Swatch

Swatch came out with a line of Beijing Olympic watches a while back. I didn't realize it until about a month ago when I passed by the shop in Coastal City. I picked up a nice one with a Beijing opera mask design for my mom.

While in Hong Kong, I was talking with my parents and uncle about them. We found that every Swatch store in Hong Kong was sold out. Upon my return to Shenzhen, I headed over to Coastal City again to buy a couple more. Unfortunately, I didn't realize that they don't take credit cards, only Chinese bank cards. I walked home in the heat and got my bank card. Again, I had problems. I forgot that prior to my vacation I emptied most of my account to deposit my pay in our savings account, leaving me with only enough money to purchase one watch. Fortunately, I went back the following day with cash to buy a second one. I think it was worth the hassle.

Now I have one Olympic souvenir that isn't a fake.

Artistic Malaysia

One of the first stops on our tour through Malaysia was the Islamic Arts Museum, which was much further from the metro station than it appeared from the map. Along the way we passed the National Mosque, a modern structure that doesn't conform to the Western expectations of what a mosque looks like. It's a beautiful building, but, unfortunately, it's difficult to get a good view of it from a distance.

The Islamic Arts Museum claims to house the largest collection of art and culture from the Muslim world. It is certainly a large museum that one can spend hours wandering through. There was a large display of art from China, though they didn't mention the region or ethnic group to which each piece belonged. Suspiciously absent from the displays are works from Africa--there was nothing from the continent (unless you count a few items from Egypt and Morocco in the gift shop).

We also took a trip to Compleks Budaya Kraf, the traditional Malaysia crafts complex, which is another great work of architecture in a more traditional style. The shops inside the complex weren't that interesting, but the artist village outside was worth a walk in the heat. We came across some very nice original artwork. One of my favorites was the work of Mohammed Zaki Zakaria, who paints a lot of colorful sea scenes. I was only able to afford a print of one of his oil paintings.

Even as we went through Malacca and Penang, we found great galleries filled with some inspiring work. I had expected more repetition like I've seen in most of the art galleries throughout China, but I was relieved to find a wide variety original work. My only regret is that I didn't bring enough money to buy a few paintings.

Fast Food Luxury

This must be the classiest KFC anywhere. In Penang, we came across this interesting site on our way to an outdoor food market. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to make it back to view the inside. It seems that KFC acquired one of the old colonial mansions of Georgetown and fixed it up--much like many other places nearby (a university and hotel each have the mansions as part of the larger buildings). It was very nice to see that some people are making an effort to preserve these beautiful structures around Penang--many others are dilapidated and probably beyond repair.

Waiguoren Returns to China

I arrived back at the Shekou port early this afternoon from my nice vacation away from China and the Olympics--I really don't find summer Olympic sports all that exciting.

We began our trip with an interesting encounter at customs, while departing from China. Apparently, the customs officers had a problem with the fact that my wife is from Xinjiang, though not a minority. They held her up for a few minutes and asked her some pointless questions: Are you Han? Where do you live? Where do you work? Why are you leaving China? And then her passport was passed around to another three officers before they allowed her to pass.

Everything improved as we waited for my parents to arrive in Macau. We found a great new restaurant near Senado Square--Dragon Mama Cuisine. It was inexpensive and quite tasty.

Malaysia was beautiful and we found that Kuala Lumpur is nothing compared to Malacca and Penang. We made a mistake by not planning more time in Malacca--the people and culture were amazing. Jia was upset that she saw more Chinese culture in Malaysia than she's seen in China. I have to agree that the Malaysians presented the Chinese culture in their country better than most places in China.

The most amazing part of the vacation was the fact that Air Asia was on time for all five of our flights. For an airline with such a bad reputation, this was a pleasant surprise.

I'll post more stories about the trip over the next week or so.

Kuala Lumpur

We've been in Kuala Lumpur for about three days now and it is quite hot, but still better than Shenzhen. First impressions of this city are that it's very confusing--I blame the British for making the roads; why couldn't they make their roads straight? It also seems that the logical location for an entrance to any attraction is not where it should be--we've spent plenty of time wandering for a way to get in. Other than that, the people have been very friendly and the shopping areas are much more relaxed than in China (no one has yelled at me or grabbed me in an attempt to sell cheap tourist junk).

Tomorrow we head to Malacca for the day and then we're off to Penang.

I'll try to post more updates if I get to another Internet cafe.

Seeking Adventure

Later today Jia and I are heading to Macau to meet my parents. From there we'll travel through Malaysia and Thailand. I'll try to find time to get to an Internet cafe for some updates, but I won't be back in Shenzhen for two weeks. This will be a nice break from China and all the Olympic hype--and it's a chance for me to get lost in another language (or a few as the case may be in Malaysia).

I'll leave you with a sight from Bangkok that I probably won't visit this time around because it's just too hot. Wat Arun is a beautiful Khmer-style temple across the river from the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Keao.

Surprised?

I'm amazed at the reactions I've read about Internet access as it relates to journalists during the Olympics. Everyone is shocked that China will not provide complete, unfiltered access. Of course the government doesn't want reporters doing research for politically sensitive topics during August. And I'm sure that all the volunteers in the Olympic Media Village will be monitoring every computer for poxy servers and other undesirable material (careful, don't surf for porn on Chinese government computers).

The bigger story is that the harmonized access to the Internet will be expensive. According to Andrew Lih and Slashdot, Beijing is charging US$1131.20 for Internet access in the Olympic Media Village. That fee is for one month of Internet access. To put this in perspective, I pay about 700 RMB for six months of harmonized access to the Web. At this time the exchange rate is approximately 6.8 RMB to $1; you do the math.

And then there is US Senator Sam Brownback, who is berating China over its alleged attempts at spying on foreign guests in hotels. Does Sen. Brownback think that tourists are carrying state secrets to China during the Olympics? How does the Senator feel about my own government listening in on my weekly phone calls with my parents? I bet Homeland Security is bored every time they listen in.

Sen. Brownback, have you met Mr. Kettle?

Fake Fuwa

Over the past couple years I've been collecting fake Olympic merchandise. The only authentic Beijing Olympic merchandise I own is a pen that was given as a gift. I've also purchased a few genuine articles for others.
This set of rather ugly Fuwa toys for 30 kuai comes from Children World--a huge market near Haiya Baihuo that's logo has a knock-off of Woody Woodpecker. This set looks like a rather good fake--there are no hugely obvious mistakes. In the top right corner, however, it says "Chinese Olymepic Cmmittee."

It's not as amusing as the Beijinag 2008 pen I bought a while back.

Obama's China Connection

Why are two British newspapers printing stories about Barack Obama's brothers while US media is ignoring them? Better yet, why does anyone care?

The Sun ran a story about one of the Democratic presidential hopeful's younger brothers who happens to live in England. The Times ran another one about an older brother.

The second story was of more interest to me because the Obama brother happens to live in the same district of Shenzhen as I do. There's very little information in the story other than a few details pertaining to his business. It is a rather long article consisting of almost nothing substantial.

What interested me more than anything was the way in which the reporter described Shenzhen. "[T]he most cosmopolitan city in China." Has this reporter ever been to Shenzhen or any other city in China? Did he forget about Shanghai? Cosmopolitan would imply that this city has culture. Go ahead and ask any Chinese person if Shenzhen has culture and they will all respond in the negative. Maybe The Times should consider hiring a writer who knows what goes on in this city.

Of Paperwork and Foreign Food

Jia and I returned to Shenzhen yesterday from our short trip to Guangzhou and the US Consulate. I have no idea if everything we submitted was in order--and we probably won't know anything for about six months or so.

I also had to register to vote via absentee ballot for November's Presidential election--a more difficult process than I anticipated. Chinese addresses tend to be much longer than US addresses, and don't fit too well on the lines provided on the form. The form also has US postage paid, which doesn't do me much good since I still have to pay full Chinese postage. Why can't the consulate submit these forms for expats?

As for better news, we spent some extra time in Guangzhou to eat. After the consulate visit, we went out with some new friends to 1001 Nights next to China Hotel (special thanks to my former co-worker for recommending it). For 58 Yuan, they have a great lunch buffett with plenty of hummus, pita, and Middle Eastern barbecue. Unfortunately, while the food is a decent deal, the drinks are not--an extra 15 Yuan for a can of Coke.

No trip to Guangzhou would be complete without another stop to Danny's Bagel--still my favorite restaurant in the city. We had a meatball parm and Greek pita (smoked chicken, cherry tomatoes, and other vegetables), which were great. Danny mentioned that he sold the bagel business because it wasn't profitable, but assured me that he was looking into making smaller batches of bagels for the future to keep customers happy.

New Business Plan

Or maybe it's just another ploy to avoid talking to some people.

My wife had a custom shirt made for me as a one-year anniversary gift. The idea of this evolved out of many conversations with J. Some of my co-workers thought it was funny and suggested that I have more made so I can wear it every day. Who knows, maybe it'll be profitable.

The front says: Say hello to me 5 yuan, shake hands with me 10 yuan, take my picture 25 yuan, and have a conversation with me for a lot of Tsingtao.
I especially like the back--it has some poor grammar. Jia claims she wrote it properly and blames the whoever made the shirt for the error. It would be better if it was also in Chinese.

Olympic Fighting Words

From the official Olympic Security English handbook comes a lesson on "Frighting." That is not a typo, they actually have two lessons for frighting. Oddly enough, the scenario appears to involve a fight and not a fright. In lesson 13 (pages 143-48), the scene is set up as an interrogation into the cause of a bar fight (there is no lesson on breaking up a fight or calming a situation that could lead to one). This is the lesson of "Frighting (1)" which I had to teach to the class of police. I had to alter it significantly so it would be useful for future reference.

Police: You've hit and injured another person, you know.
Foreigner: He's also hit and injured me.
Police: He's been injured very seriously and taken to the hospital.
Foreigner: It's unfair! Why are you only questioning me?
Police: We'll question him when he comes to.... How did you come to fight with him?
Foreigner: I couldn't bear his insult!
...
Police: Why did you fight with him this time?
Foreigner: Because he took too many liberties with my girl friend.
Police: Did you try to keep away from him?
Foreigner: Yes. At first, we kept away from him, but not very far.
Police: Why didn't you leave the bar?
Foreigner: Who could tell that he was so impudent? Not long afterwards, he came close to my girl friend and held her in his arms!
Police: Did your girl friend resist him?
Foreigner: Of course she did. She tried hard to push him away. But he was very rude to her. He even kissed her by force. What a rascal!
Police: Did you try to stop him?
Foreigner: Yes, I did. I tried to push him aside.
Police: Did you succeed?
Foreigner: No. On the contrary, he hit me in the face with his fist.
Police: Why didn't you call the police at once?
Foreigner: I was very angry. How could I stand such an insult? I hit him on the head with a bottle.
Police: As a result, you wounded his head.

The conversation continues with some boring details after this point. What I'd like to know is, who actually speaks like this? I told the class that no one would ever use the word rascal, but if they did find someone who said this they were to contact me immediately so I could meet this person.

Read part 1 and part 2 of this series.

Really Overreacting?

Over the past few weeks, everyone has commented on the seemingly paranoid response by the Chinese government to ensuring a safe Olympics. The Financial Times published an article titled "Threat of 'no-fun' Olympics" with former Olympic marketer Michael Payne stressing that China needs to have a festival atmosphere and "smile" more.

There is ample evidence of over-planning in Beijing. The enforcement of old and new rules for obtain visas, as well as the difficulty for some to even stay in the country for the summer, has certainly cut down on some of the fun around the country. This goes with Beijing's decision to close entertainment venues by 2 am (and I thought the bars never closed), and putting restrictions on outdoor seating for restaurants, bars, and barbecues. Some of the biggest stories of paranoia deal with the threat of terrorism during the games. Beijing has sent out the comically-equipped Segway paramilitary and deployed anti-aircraft missiles outside the Bird's Nest.

Is this really just paranoia on the part of Beijing? I'd say, in some ways it is--the government is afraid of losing face in the event that anything doesn't go as planned. However, much of the preparation is more a sign of the times. As disturbing as it sounds, there are quite a few people in the world who don't care about the Olympic tradition of peace and ceasefire. Unfortunately, this is how some people act.

The Olympics is the world's greatest stage. One can make a huge political statement, even if the outcome isn't entirely successful. Personally, I have no problem with people using this time to make a peaceful political statement on the world stage. But, there is a line that too many are willing to cross for their message. The hope is that Beijing will be able to tell the difference between these groups and act accordingly.

Friday's Alphabet

A new candy store opened a few weeks ago near Haiya Baihuo here in Nanshan. It seems they took it upon themselves to change the alphabet. When I first saw this sign, I thought it said "SWTET," but a friend pointed out that it looks like the letter is a cross between a T and an E (and possibly an F).
Recently, I've come across a few articles that discuss the changes of English language due to the rise of foreign learners. Most of the mangling of English (as if it were truly possible to mangle a bastardized language) comes from China, Singapore, Japan, and Korea. It seems some believe that English will continue to evolve into some language that we native speakers won't recognize or, possibly, comprehend.

As I've read such articles about language, and witnessed the Chinglish translations, I've started thinking about a former teacher's book. Back in grad school, I had class with Bobbie Louise Hawkins, author of "My Own Alphabet." While not a mangling of language, it is an amusing read that makes a lot more sense than "You and I altogether do afforest the bodyguard."