Sunday 28th October - Zhongyuan University & Zhengzhou City Centre

6.45 am. The smog's gone! No, really. Look:


OK, it's not totally clear, but the grey is quite definitely cloud. Amazing what a drop of rain can do, eh? How long will it last, though, I wonder.

A few minutes later it looked like this:

and turned into really quite a nice day. It's distinctly cooler now though. The general opinion is that summer has now ended. It may get colder. Still, I think I'm prepared for that.

We finished today's topics earlier than expected, so I showed the students my slideshow of Manchester and surroundings. They enjoyed those immensely, and were particularly excited to see our house and the pictures of Caroline, David & Peter. Yes, I'm sorry Pete, I'm afraid they saw you in full "Rank" (or was it "Phile") mode in "Snow White"! They really loved it - and of course the one of me as the drunken butler in my first play with KLT - "A Bed full of Foreigners". I thought that might put them off, but strangely most of them can't wait to get to England now.

One girl, who's name I think is pronounced approximately as "Feur", is very keen to do a Masters in Manchester after she graduates from here. That won't be for another two years . She insisted on us being photographed, so here we are. Her friend took the shots, and I reiprocated:






He did tell me his name, but to my shame I can't recall it now. It really is quite hard remembering all their names. I feel bad because, of course, they all know mine. Still, I expect that's because there's only one of me but lots of them.

Then I went back to the "teachers' room", which seems to accommodate a mixture of teachers and students at various times. This is it on a rare occasion when it had only me in it:



We collapse in there between classes for a breather and a beaker of warm water (which is about as ubiquitous as the smog, but much more welcome).

And that reminds me of something I meant to say before. Although classes start at various times (eg on the half-hour in the mornings and on the hour in the afternoons/evenings), the pattern is always the same: teach for 45 minutes; 10-minute break; teach for 45 minutes; end of class. The start and end of each of these segments is marked by a loud buzzer that sounds throughout the building - possibly the entire campus, for all I know. It's as regular as clockwork (probably because it is clockwork). This appears rather regimental and school-like, and maybe it is to be expected; but I think it has much to recommend it, as it removes any ambiguity as to when to start and when to stop lecturing. There's none of this hanging on until all the stragglers have deigned to roll in. But that isn't the main reason I mentioned it. Some time ago, my friend Chris Race very kindly lent me Pete Hessler's book "River Town", You may know of it, as it was shortlisted for the 2002 Thomas Cook Travel Book Award. To give you a flavour of what it's about and what it's like, here is what Simon Winchester has to say about it on the back cover:

'To come across a Westerner patient enough and tolerant enough to try to understand the immense, exasperating and ultimately lovable entity that is China is always a pleasure. To encounter one who is as literate and sensitive as Peter Hessler is a joy. This tender, intelligent account of two years spent teaching deep in the country's heart is the work of a writer of rare talent: it deserves to become a classic.'

Peter Hessler is an American who, in his mid-twenties, spent two years teaching English in Fuhling. Well, I've only just started to read it since coming to China. Not having too many odd moments, what with sightseeing, blog-writing and uploading photos (oh, and teaching!), I haven't actually got very far into it yet. In fact, I'm still on page 20. Given that there are over 400 pages, I guess I won't finish it, or anything like, by the time I have to leave China again; but it has already struck several very loud chords with me. The resemblance between the situation Peter Hessler found himself in and that of the international teachers here in Zhengzhou (some of whom are American, and who also have two-year contracts) is positively uncanny. And his descriptions of the idiosyncracies of China and the Chinese are spot-on. He even gives special mention to the regularity of the teaching bell that sounds - at precisely the same times as the one here in Zhengzhou. Most notably, though, he clearly had great affection for his students. That is something I'm not sure I was quite prepared for before I came here, but it is something that is impossible not to feel as soon as you meet them. It's sad to think that one day it might all change - when they become westernised! I think, though, that if I had read the book before coming to China, its impact on me would have been far less dramatic than it has been. If you get a chance, do read it. He really does echo my own feelings, thus far. Many thanks indeed, Chris. I promise I will return it eventually!

A slight diversion there I fear, but isn't that what a blog's supposed to be - a stream of consciousness?.

Now where was I? Oh yes, in the teachers' room. Jennifer suggested we go into town for lunch at a popular restaurant. Two of the students would accompany us: Xu Xiao Meng (Marketing); and Gao Xiao Yu (Accountancy). (Interstingly, not from my class). One of Jennifer's colleagues, Yang Le (E-commerce) would meet us there. It seems his father makes a mean dumpling, and would prepare some for us, to be delivered to the restaurant(!). At least, that's what I think was said. And I believe it, as they certainly materialised in a plastic bag right after we'd sat down, but before an order had been placed. (They were indeed excellent, by the way.) Afterwards, Yang Le and the students would take me to the Er Qi (2-7) Pagoda, and show me around the city centre.

But I get ahead of myself. While Gao Xiao Yu went off to find us a taxi, the two ladies and I had a stroll around outside the campus:


Above: one of many hot-food stands in the vicinity of the campus.


Above: Jennifer (left) and Xu Xiao Meng.


Above: the gates of Zhongyuan University's next-door neighbour - a rival, private university. I'm told that Zhengzhou has about five in all. Anyway, this one has "traditional" Chinese roofs on its buildings which are clearly much posher than those of ZUT's:



And so to the restaurant:


Above: before the meal. Left to right: Xu Xiao Meng, Jennifer, Yang Le and Gao Xiao Yu. I took the photo, of course.


So, Xu Xiao Meng took one of me. Behind is written the name of a very famous Chinese poet, shared by one of the restaurant's finest dishes. I can't for the life of me remember what it was!
You can see the poet's personal seal, bottom right.


Above: the first of several dishes arrives. Meals in these restaurants are very informal affairs. The central part of the table is a rotatable glass platform. The dishes are placed around its edge, and you simply dig in as you feel you want to. You just take a piece of food off with your chopsticks and put it on your side plate (or eat it directly, of course.) This is fine, but I can't help wondering about hygiene. After all, you are using the same chopsticks to eat with as you are for selecting your morsels. But this is common practice even in quite high-class joints. Needless to say, I did not voice these concerns; just got stuck in and thought: "what the heck, they seem healthy enough!". Then we took another taxi down to the city centre. There are loads of taxis everywhere, and they are quite handy because places are annoyingly far apart, and although there are plenty of buses, they are usually packed.









Above: Yang Le (left), Xu Xiao Meng and Gao Xiao Yu, with the Er Qi Ta ("2-7 Pagoda") in the background. It is called "Er Qi" because it was built to commemorate a rail-workers' strike that was terminated, with much bloodshed, by the authorities on 7th February, 1923. ("Er" means "2" - hence "February"; "Qi" means "7"; so, 7th thereof). It seems to have been one of those pivotal events that fed the rise of the Communist Party in China. Inside the tower there are rooms on each level with wall-displays detailing the history. There are also authentic (one assumes) writings by such luminaries as Deng Xiao Ping and Chairman Mao.


Above: Er Qi Ta. And inside it:





And some great views looking from the tower:











And then it's time for a drink - in China's equivalent of Pizza Hut. Only because McDonalds was full to the brim!


Photo courtesy of a waiter. It's a bit dark unfortunately, owing to our being so close to the window.

Drinks downed, yet another taxi back out to my hotel. I'd just got in when Shuai rang to invite me for a chicken curry with her and Nigel. Well, yes, naturally. It would be good to sample the Chinese variant of this popular (with us) dish. We went to a place about 15 minutes' walk from here. She told us it's a fast-food place, but their curries are better than you get in many good restaurants. She was certainly right about fast-food: this time it was China's equivalent of KFC! Shuai ordered from the counter, while we were instructed to sit. Because you pay there and then you have to order everything at once really, so she ordered ice creams for her and Nigel, orange juice for me and (N & I assumed) three chicken curries. At this point he and I were, as I said, seated at a table. After a while a waitress arrived with two curries: deep-fried chicken in a curry sauce on rice, red-peppers, carrots and cucumber. In a plastic container. On a plastic tray à la KFC; white plastic teaspoons the only cutlery in evidence. Interesting, but not exactly what we'd been expecting. And where was Shuai? We began eating. After what seemed like an age she re-appeared. We presume she was having a long conversation on her mobile, as this is what she does. Anyway, because she's on a diet she only had icecream. (Icecream - on a diet? Hmm. Oh well). We made a mental note to introduce her to our respective equivalents of The Curry Mile if she ever comes back to the UK! (Did I mention, by the way, that she did her degree in Hull? This is why she knows Nigel.)

Phew - another marathon I'm afraid. It's 11.35pm. Of course, most of you lot are now eight hours behind, so for you it's only half-past three in the afternoon. And as for you guys in Australia and the US - well, who knows what time it is there. My brain can't possibly cope with that sort of thing now.

The weather has definitely turned fresher, though not unpleasant. The view from my window a while ago was quite pretty. The glass does tend to spoil the clarity though.



I've just remembered, I've got to set my students either a test paper or marked assignments from my lectures. There are 60 of them. My suitcase was right on the 20kg mark on the way out, so I'm going to have to mark their papers here rather than carry them back to the UK. (I'm only allowed 20kg hold plus one piece of hand-luggage, which has to be the laptop and a couple of books.) I'm teaching the students again tomorrow (Monday), and I'm leaving here next Sunday morning.

Help!!