It hasn't been below 90 degrees since I've been here!

One might think that, after a week of living in a foreign country, things would begin to settle down and I would begin to feel comfortable, but that certainly isn't the case. I feel like a child who is learning to ride a bike. At the beginning of our trip, I had training wheels. There was always someone with me who knew how things worked or how to speak Chinese. I was feeling pretty good about making my way through this busy city. Then, I moved into the hotel and had my training wheels removed. I couldn't help but notice how much I was falling on my face!
The first night I had to order dinner without a Chinese-speaking person, I took a total nose-dive. Julie and I went downstairs to the restaurant in our hotel. Knowing full well that we are waigouren (foreigners), they gave us a menu that was all pictures, which would have worked, but then they came over and took that away and replaced that with one that had English translation. This would have been just as good, except there weren't as many things we liked! When it was time to order, we just pointed, thinking that was the expected mehtod of communciation, but they shook their heads "no"! We pointed at another dish, but again, we were shot down. They tried to suggest a couple of things, but we weren't interested in those, so we tried again. Finally they agreed, but we weren't entirely sure that we got what we had pointed to. Nonetheless, we had a great meal (some kind of pork soup and some leafy veggie), but it was so disorienting. Then, after all of that trouble, I had forgotten that it is not okay to put my purse on the floor... it's such a habit for me to just set it down next to my chair, but to the Chinese, the floor is very dirty, so things should not touch it if at all possible. I felt like a scolded three-year-iold when the hostess came over, pulled a chair from another table, put it next to me, and put my tiny little purse on it like it were another dinner guest. I was so embarrassed!
Not only is it taking me awhile to adjust to the culture, but also to my new job as a teacher. It is really hard work to try to fight through a language barrier for seven hours a day and then not be able to rest from it (though from the other side) when I leave. It is also interesting to me that so many people want to speak English with me when we are alone-- and they talk about wanting to practice-- but completely ignore me when other Chinese-speaking people are around. Even Lois, from our group (whom I love) will fall into that mold with what limited Chinese she has. It is just an interesting observation. I told the kids in one of my classes that if they make the others laugh by saying something in Chinese, they have to explain it to me in English so that I can laugh, too!
Besides the language barrier, there is the appearance barrier, which is something that may discomfort me a bit while I'm in Hangzhou. Even when i am just walking to work in the morning, I feel like I am on display. It's funny, because at home, I really like attention, but this is so completely absurd! People stop what they're doing to stare at me... it's so weird. And random people (who obviously don't speak any other English) will just say "hello" to get me to speak. And because this city has six million people, I have a lot of eyes on me. It's especially bad in a restaurant when I have to use chopsticks and everyone gets a good laugh...
The upside of sticking out like a sore thumb is that other foreigners do, too (though there aren't many)! It's an interesting little connection we all have-- kind of like we're all old buddies. I ran into a guy who used to teach at the school I'm at when I was walking down the street. I had no idea the connection would be that coincidental, but because he was black and said "hi," I knew he was in "the network" as I have taken to calling it. It's just so cool that between "the network" and my co-workers, I am meeting so many interesting people from all over the world!
Unfortunately, that also means that I notice the "ugly American" syndrome on occasion. I do not count myself out of this equation, but of course it's more noticeable when observing others. Hopefully, by the time I leave, I will be as well-adjusted and as un-arrogant as possible. If nothing else, this experience will surely be one of the most humbling of my life.
One last thing: I'm keeping a list of the things I miss most from home, and will add to it as necessary:

1. My daddy.
2. My dog.
3. Cheese.
4. My roomies and friends.
5. Being able to put my toothbrush under running water.

Also, things I will miss from China when I get back home:

1. Chinese prices (a tee-shirt is about $1!!!)
2. Yang mei (the most amazing fruit ever!)
3. The table manners (they're so relaxed!)

Okay. Enough of my novel for now. Wish me luck doing karaoke tonight and travelling to Shanghai this weekend!!!!!