Happy New Year!
Brad and I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year from China! Our first week of 2008 has been one of saying goodbye to the old, and welcoming in the new.
On Sunday, we had the privilege of being invited to spend the afternoon preparing meat and vegetable dumplings (jaozi) with the students. We were joined by Peter (visiting from Beijing), and Ryan (visiting from Korea). We helped to prepare, roll, and flatten the dough, slice cabbage and squeeze the water from it in cheesecloth, prepare the meat, and then fill and twist the little dumplings for cooking. It was a lot of fun to make traditional food with an entire class!
On New Year’s Eve, we celebrated by taking Newt out to dinner at one of our favorite places, Ming Tien Coffee Language. It’s a two-story coffee shop with couches, and live piano music from 7-9pm. We ate some American favorites, and snapped photos before heading home. We had already shared our resolutions on Sunday, so we celebrated with a glass of homemade eggnog, a glass of wine, and some Chinese snacks. We watched the movie “Amazing Grace” together, and called our families at home to wish them a Happy New Year, 13 hours early! At Midnight, we dropped a soccer ball, and thought of the year past and the year ahead.
Wednesday was a difficult day, as we said goodbye to our boss, leader, and good friend. Newt left amidst a crowd of well-wishing students and faculty, to return to the U.S.A, his wife, and his obligations there. He will be sorely missed! Newt also takes home our Chinese friends Tony and Lily for a month-long visit in the U.S.A. We certainly wish we could go along as they visit family, friends, and even Disney World! I’m sure their trip will be very exciting, but you can keep them in your thoughts as they travel. Since Newt’s absence Peter has been moving his belongings from Beijing into what was Newt’s apartment, in preparation for joining us permanently at the end of January. Although we are very sad about Newt’s departure, we are also very excited that Peter is joining us!
The rest of the week has been spent quietly cleaning and enjoying the calm after the holidays. The Christmas decorations are now put away, and the apartment is clean. The computer and toilet seat have been repaired, and letters have been written to family and friends. Books have been read, final grades averaged, laps on the track run, and laundry hung. We had dinner with kids, Ladies Lunch (Shannon and me), and Date Night (Brad and me). We are trying to set up times to meet with kids as they study for and take their finals. We are also making arrangements to do some traveling during our break (Dec.29-Feb.17). Brad and I are thinking of visiting the Great Wall and other sites in Beijing, his Great-Grandfather’s grave, and maybe southern China. We are also looking forward to celebrating my birthday (Feb.5) and the Chinese New Year (Feb.7) here in China! You can be thinking of us as we try to catch kids during Finals and the break, and as we make plans to fill our free time.
Thank you again for all of your support!
Love, Jess and Brad
Brad and I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year from China! Our first week of 2008 has been one of saying goodbye to the old, and welcoming in the new.
On Sunday, we had the privilege of being invited to spend the afternoon preparing meat and vegetable dumplings (jaozi) with the students. We were joined by Peter (visiting from Beijing), and Ryan (visiting from Korea). We helped to prepare, roll, and flatten the dough, slice cabbage and squeeze the water from it in cheesecloth, prepare the meat, and then fill and twist the little dumplings for cooking. It was a lot of fun to make traditional food with an entire class!
On New Year’s Eve, we celebrated by taking Newt out to dinner at one of our favorite places, Ming Tien Coffee Language. It’s a two-story coffee shop with couches, and live piano music from 7-9pm. We ate some American favorites, and snapped photos before heading home. We had already shared our resolutions on Sunday, so we celebrated with a glass of homemade eggnog, a glass of wine, and some Chinese snacks. We watched the movie “Amazing Grace” together, and called our families at home to wish them a Happy New Year, 13 hours early! At Midnight, we dropped a soccer ball, and thought of the year past and the year ahead.
Wednesday was a difficult day, as we said goodbye to our boss, leader, and good friend. Newt left amidst a crowd of well-wishing students and faculty, to return to the U.S.A, his wife, and his obligations there. He will be sorely missed! Newt also takes home our Chinese friends Tony and Lily for a month-long visit in the U.S.A. We certainly wish we could go along as they visit family, friends, and even Disney World! I’m sure their trip will be very exciting, but you can keep them in your thoughts as they travel. Since Newt’s absence Peter has been moving his belongings from Beijing into what was Newt’s apartment, in preparation for joining us permanently at the end of January. Although we are very sad about Newt’s departure, we are also very excited that Peter is joining us!
The rest of the week has been spent quietly cleaning and enjoying the calm after the holidays. The Christmas decorations are now put away, and the apartment is clean. The computer and toilet seat have been repaired, and letters have been written to family and friends. Books have been read, final grades averaged, laps on the track run, and laundry hung. We had dinner with kids, Ladies Lunch (Shannon and me), and Date Night (Brad and me). We are trying to set up times to meet with kids as they study for and take their finals. We are also making arrangements to do some traveling during our break (Dec.29-Feb.17). Brad and I are thinking of visiting the Great Wall and other sites in Beijing, his Great-Grandfather’s grave, and maybe southern China. We are also looking forward to celebrating my birthday (Feb.5) and the Chinese New Year (Feb.7) here in China! You can be thinking of us as we try to catch kids during Finals and the break, and as we make plans to fill our free time.
Thank you again for all of your support!
Love, Jess and Brad
