Okay, people!
Here are the updates (there are 5 including this one, which has been modified since I first wrote it). I seem to be missing the Qufu ones, but you’re going to have to wait until I get back to Dalian to see if I still have them (I generally wait 2 weeks and then delete them, so I’m not so sure).
Aside from that, I hope these bring you up to date. I am SO enjoying visiting everyone this year! I feel so loved, which is something hugely missing when one lives so far away!
Don’t forget to check out Flickr!
Susan 
Shei Dou Ni Hao!!!
Well, it’s all settled! I will be arriving stateside on December 28, and going back to Dalian on February 14. I can’t wait to see everyone!!! I will be landing in Philly and taking the train to Mom in Lancaster from there. I plan to spend about a week there and move around to New England, NY and Virginia.
I feel very lucky that my university will pay for the round-trip tickets so that I don’t have to dip into my savings (which I could do. I have a ton of RMB in the bank because I’m a stinge). I have a really great contract!
I’m going back two weeks early because I will be teaching some writing courses that are connected to the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) exam. This is created by the British Council and is the acceptable standard pretty much worldwide (except in America) for testing English competency. I’m excited about this because it could be seen as a lateral promotion. I get to deal with people much higher up in the university heirarchy, and they will actually know who I am (I spoke to my “boss” at the Thanksgiving dinner, and he was much surprised to discover that this was not my first semester). Will let you all know what happens with that when I can!
It’s going to be very weird getting behind the wheel of a car again. Since the Olympics, they’ve made it easier for foreigners to obtain a driver’s license here, but all I have to do is walk out any gate of the university to remind myself why this would be a hideous idea. I’ll walk or take the gonggongqiche (public bus), thank you.
Wedding bells are ringing throughout the building! Robyn and Simon will marry when she’s finished with her PhD. West and his girlfriend are also engaged to be married. Steven and his girlfriend (both now in Ningbo) are engaged as well. Jens and Joanna tied the knot this past summer, and Dave and Li did the same last week. Amazing.
Now it’s the fight to the death for visas for the Chinese nationals to visit their new families overseas. They make it SO tough! In order to be allowed to go, you have to own property In China and have a certain amount of money in a Chinese bank. This prevents them from going over on a tourist visa and disappearing forever (a huge problem for Canada). In addition, you have to prove that you aren’t marrying a foreigner just so you can emigrate. Apparently, a Canadian or American can make obscene amounts of money by marrying a Chinese, planting that person overseas and then immediately divorcing them and setting them free to start a new life in a new land.
Dave, Li, Li’s daughter Ni and I went out last night for dinner at a local campus restaurant and then had dessert, drinks and dancing at the Kempinsky Hotel to celebrate Dave and Li’s marriage. We let Li choose the restaurant and I paid for the dinner. Dave and I decided that we would not eat there again. I haven’t seen gnawed-on chicken parts and fish bones strewn all over the floor since I lived in Dan Dong. In addition, the food, unlike the rest of the restaurants I’ve eaten at on campus, was particularly “ma-ma hu-hu” (“so-so”. The direct translation is “horse-horse tiger-tiger”. My personal interpretation is: “It is what it is”). Robyn wasn’t there for dinner but joined us later at the K. Many places around town have nice, professional live music. Most of the bands are not Chinese but Phillipino. When Robyn arrived, I asked the lead singer to play a song for Dave and Li (Spend my Lifetime Loving You), and we all toasted. It brought tears to my eyes to see Dave and Li dancing together and to see how happy they were. I hope someday I can have that for myself. We all danced until quite late, and I had a dificult time getting to sleep when we got back to the building. It’s always great fun ringing the bell and waking up the door family to let us in (everything gets locked up at 10:30). I had to put “80s Dance Party” on the radio until 2:30 when I finally collapsed. Needless to say, my Sunday morning activities were attended to in a slight fog. Luckily, I’m still able to pull it off without a problem and somehow build up a huge amount of energy for the afternoon.
The funny part of the evening was this group of Chinese men who kept staring at Dave with angry faces because he was sitting with three women and the five of them had none. One of the men, who looked like a bulldog, looked like he would have liked to have a fight over the situation. I suggested to Dave that we all start kissing each other just to see what would happen, and he burst out laughing. Then, The Sexy Blonde Robyn showed up and sat with us. Now we were four to one, and the men got thoroughly disgusted and left. It was hysterical! A good time had by all!
