September 29, 2006 – Carol
Time is flying and so much seems to be happening (I suppose you call it life!) but I wanted to share a few of the things that have been going on here lately.

One, the weather is glorious, it SEEMS to have broken early and has been in the 70s and low 80s at most, which is apparently quite unusual for this time of year. It is usually October before it begins to cool down. There has been a lot of typhoon activity lately, perhaps you have heard about the big one that hit last weekend in the Phillipines. I still really miss the DC autumn, though, crisp and colors and smells. Haven’t seen a single pumpkin-like veggie so will probably have to substitute some other squash for carving. Oh well, Martha Stewart made a fortune doing stuff like that! It is coming up to the Mid-Autumn Harvest and Moon Festival time here. Apparently it is celebrated by barbecuing outside and admiring the moon, sensibly. The treat for the season is a pastry called a “moon cake”, which comes in endless varieties, put out by every bakery, hotel pastry kitchen, Haagen-Daaz, Starbuck’s, 7-11, but not home! There are even savory varieties, but all must have a center like an egg yolk so that when you cut it open a moon-shape is revealed. They are then coated with all kinds of things like sweet red bean paste, sesame, you-name-it and then covered with a final pastry or coconut or chocolate, or….you get the idea. The gift boxes of them which are sent even to teachers, thank you, are beautiful, silk and knot-wrapped, and just gorgeous. We have received a couple of boxes since the holiday this year coincides, coincidentally, with the Confucius Day celebrations. At this time all teachers are honored by their students. We were feted with a breakfast at school, accompanied by string trio of middleschoolers, flowers and gifts of mousepads with the faculty group printed on them. The PTA provided a 6 foot floral arrangement and easels of homage to the teaching profession in the school lobby yesterday. Now THAT is culture shock! I was subbing for the dance department so I even got to participate! I really do enjoy the subbing and the little bit I am helping on the production of Romeo and Juliet. It’s just nice to be around kids, and there is a possibility that I might teach a regular ballet class for the IB kids. I would enjoy that, too, as they are really enthusiastic and there are a ton (10-12!) guys who really can dance and would benefit from the classes. They are really into break dancing and can do the acrobatics!

Speaking of acrobatics, I am having a good time at the classes at the gym. I’m pretty sure I won’t be frequenting the “Disco” class. The dynamo little instructor named TinTin just about put me in the ER. I can’t remember when I last went anaerobic! However, the Latino jam, spinning, and now a great Tai Chi class, will do very nicely. I have to keep up with Bill and his trainer, Daniel. The other acrobatics are strictly mental as I TRY to wrap my head around Mandarin. It takes a ton of study outside class, but the teacher is a veteran of dealing with overwhelmed aspirants and we actually have managed a few jokes in Chinese in class, not all inadvertently!

Camp Taiwan in Kenting, the very southernmost part of the island, was a real trip – in lots of ways! Two hundred 6th graders, 25 teachers and nurses and a replica of an ancient Chinese compound for a week! I loved it all! The weather cooperated for the most part, which was really good, as most of the activities, including art were outside. They and we, hiked, beached, biked, went to the fabulous National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium, flew kites, played water games, did art, played an ecological tag game called “Web of Life” and had marshmallow roasts (we had to teach the kids how to do it!) “Goosebumps” walk and scary stories, cocoa and Oreos, and all those good camp things. We each had a table of 9 kids to preside over, which was really fun. They politely set the table, collected our rice from the communal pots, poured water, distributed chopsticks, etc. and waited until everyone was seated to begin serving and eating. The tables had big lazy susans in the center with all the dishes, and each child just helped themselves to the contents onto their rice. It is the way most Chinese meals are consumed. There is one dish approximately for every diner at a table, chicken, vegetarian, fish, beef or pork, vegetables, fruit, and a large bowl of soup which you eat after you have finished the rest of your meal. The Japanese children think most Western foods are too sweet, prefer fish, and the Chinese and Korean children like pork and chicken. All of them, except Western-raised children, will often pass up beef, as in a Big Mac, when offered, for a chicken or fish sandwich. The faculty kept the dry cereal in our rooms and parceled it out to make it last for the week, but my group didn’t even finish their allotment, so we did some horse-trading for scrambled eggs, etc. The snacks they like are fish-flavored puffs and seaweed-flavored chips (Lay’s actually has a whole line of International Flavored chips here, with some VERY exotic flavors! One really has to hit Costco for sour cream and onion or barbecue!) I was in charge of art activities and after seeing the place and the situation have a few ideas I’d like to implement for next year if I get to go again! Everywhere you look the architecture and surroundings are just loaded with symbolism and the kids were actually unaware of most of them, since they live in highly sophisticated international surroundings most of the time. Besides, they’re just normal 6th graders and video games, TV, and school takes up all their time.

Well, enough for one day. Keep in touch, it’s a long way over here, and we do love to hear about the life we left behind. Apparently the boys have settled in so well at my sister Patti’s that they race for her the minute she comes home and Miche prevented her from answering the phone the other day by using his entire substantial person on her hands! Our porch kitties here are fine, complaining when the food isn’t out quickly enough and sneaking into the house, while hissing at us the whole time! They are cats without a doubt!