Master of the Nets Garden

Guo Xi, a well-known landscape painter of the Northern Song Dynasty, describes his sentiment in The Realm of Rest and Springs:  “Always prefer a garden to cultivate the mind and to live in, lofty mountains and waters to inspire the heart, seek the pleasure and comforts of the fisherman and woodcutter, and stay away from the moil of hectic city life that imprison the mind!” Yesterday we visited The Master of Nets Garden, and we had to moil to get there, and did some serious moiling trying to find our way to another location after our exquisitely calming stroll through the splendid gardens.  I can tell you from first-hand observation, cultivating the mind is much preferable to moiling, as the moiling left us both with quite sore feet, clothing clinging to us from sweat, and a pledge to moil less and observe gardens more.

 Shi Zhengzhi chose to retire and build his “Hall of Ten Thousand Volumes” in Suzhou and oringally named this garden “Fisherman’s Retreat.”  [Some later artiste-type had to fancify the name to “Master of the Nets.] Suzhou has traditionally been a fond destination for Chinese literati-recluses.  Indeed, even I could have set up residence in the study next to the Peony Cottage. The names of these pavilions and viewing pagodas reveal their owner’s poetic leanings:  “Hall of Ten Thousand Volumes” and “Cloud Cave” and “Five Peaks Library”  “Hall of Cloud Stairway”  “Hall of Art Viewing”.

I have been to some beautiful gardens in my day, but I was completely blown away yesterday by the jewel-box of a garden we soaked in.  There were vistas at every turn, and beautifully designed windows for additional framing of the vistas, gorgeously appointed rooms for guests and others for reading, yet others for observing nature, and even the stones in the walking paths were mindfully placed.  Incredible, really.  AND… perhaps the most impressive was the complete blurring of lines between the garden and the residence.  All the pavilions and windows were built to reveal views of the central pond in several aspects.  This is one of the smallest of the UNESCO gardens in Suzhou, but it will be hard to beat as far as overall sumptuousness, although I’m not running a contest.  However, we are enjoying the idea of visiting as many gardens as we can, and in as many seasons as we can.  I’ll be returning soon to this one to see the Japanese Maple on fire for fall, and we have resolved to do far less moiling after such a relaxing outing.   You, too, can enjoy our respite from moiling, and yes, I had to look the word up.  Here are some pics:     https://flic.kr/s/aHsk1JDL97

Motorcycle Mania

I was all set to write a newsy upbeat blog about our new electric motorcycle, “Scootie” aka “Wind Song”, aka “The Orange Crush”, but today we had an adventure that may change the tone of the piece.

We were on an outing to the “wet market” (like a farmer’s market, but with meats, and other stuff…. not sure why it’s called wet except they wash down the floor to keep it fresh) and we noticed the charge meter showed we only had half a “tank” left of charge until we needed to plug in.  No problem, we were only going 20 minutes away.  As we neared the grocery store/mega-mart, we noticed the power diminishing, like we were running out of gas, it ran on gas.  I suggested we take the scooter to the side of the mega-mart where we purchased it and have them charge it while we purchased the iron and ironing board we needed so our new house-helper could start ironing tomorrow, but we didn’t do it.  WOOPS.

On the way home, it started to rain lightly, but no worries, we both had on our rain ponchos and I was laden with a backpack full of heavy stuff like an extension cord, and produce from the wet market, like bananas and nectarines, and eggs.  A full load, oh and also I was holding a full-sized ironing board in my free hand.  We got about ¼ of the way home before we knew we were in trouble, and about half way before I had to get off and start walking/running, as S. snailed down the street.  Of course the rain picked up a bit, I was blinded because it fell on my glasses, and I decided that I better pick up the pace because I wanted to make sure I could see S. so I knew where to turn.  Thus I began the new workout that resembles part boot-camp (heavy pack on the back, infantry-style rain poncho, helmet, and ironing board that weighed as much as a rifle, I’m sure) and part lunacy.  I ran for 90 seconds, and then walked for 60, and that kept me in sight of S. and breathing pretty hard.  S. got every volt of electricity out of the battery and it lasted until we hit our apartment’s front gate.  I got every volt out of my lungs as well, but the good news was I didn’t have to do a workout when I got home.  My poncho was as wet on the inside with sweat as it was on the outside, and I felt a bit like those wrestlers who wear those rubber suits to sweat off pounds to make their weight class.  I’m not sure if I made mine, but I’m very sure we won’t be leaving the apartment again without more than 50% charge on our battery, or next time S. is doing the infantry two-step while I buzz along.  The remarkable thing is only 1 egg was cracked.  I think I earned some kind of badge today, but I’m not sure if it’s a good one or not.  Is this what people mean when they talk about the adventures of expat living? 

Chinese Apartment Living

We’ve lived in an apartment for the last 2 years, and it was a bit of a transition from owning a single dwelling home with the attendant autonomy, but there are up-sides to the experience as well.  So far, we are enjoying living in a brand new apartment, having a reasonable landlord who takes us shopping to pick out the stuff yet to be purchased so we can help pick it out (read:  Help figure out how to make shelving in the master walk-in closet he forget to put shelving in), and the highly landscaped verdant areas between the complexes.  Let’s let some pictures illustrate some aspects that are particular to the country that is currently our host.  Take exhibit #1:

Daughter #1 poking out the window to see what the massive fireworks are all about, because she suspects a wedding, or a new business, or anything, really.  It sounded like a war had started in our complex, but it ended after a couple of minutes and only the smoke remained.

Picture #2:  as you look at the main living area of the apartment, focus on the terrace and the drying rack.  We have only a 50% Chinese main terrace now because in order to fully comply we need a high hanging rack for our clothing as well.  It’s on the way, thanks again to our reasonable landlord.

Now take a good look at the counter top for the kitchen and the items featured.  You will notice the obligatory stainless steel container for chopsticks (which I copied for my main utensils), the ripening baskets with the peaches, and the bread with small pork pieces in it.  Yes, it looks deceivingly familiar. Finally, compliments of our Chengdu connection, we have a large bag of tissues which she claims are on every table in China for cleaning of your hands.  We have been playing a game of moving back and forth from the kitchen counter (“What good are they there?”) to the center of the dining table “That looks tacky!”).  I’m not sure I’ll win that one.  

Finally, consider the picture of one of the smaller, more demure light fixtures in the house.  Obviously the light designers spent some time perusing the catalogues that supplied the bordellos of the Wild West, or Liberace’s apartment.  It's certainly not dull, and gives some amusement when we lie down.  All in all, a great apartment with new stuff that hasn't broken yet.  Last night I forgot where I was because I foolishly asked S if he didn't smell someone cooking something like Chinese food....He didn't answer but did give me a look of concern.  We've been traveling a lot lately, what can I say?

You had me at NI HAO! Or E is for Efficiency, or Everybody Ought to have a Mandarin-Speaking Daughter

We’ve been in China for less than a week, but in that short time we’ve smiled immeasurable times at the pleasures large and small that will be our experience in China.  [We’ve also had some less stellar moments, but who wants to hear about those?  I believe I will focus on what makes me SMILE this year in my blog…I hope that doesn’t mean fewer entries as work gets going!]  We’ve seen the cutest babies in the world do even cuter things, doted on by ever attendant happy, relaxed grandparents (that’s the job I want, except when the parents blame any of the child’s transgressions on the grandparents at parent-teacher conferences), exceptional efficiency in many of the daily experiences (government bureaucracy not-withstanding), and all of it has been tempered and enhanced by the arrival and invaluable assistance of Daughter #1 from Chengdu.  She has translated our AC remote controls so we can stay cool, translated the directions on the washer so we can have clean clothes, and made straight our path through conversations with the real estate agent who helped us find our wonderful apartment, the sales people in stores, the coffee vendor downstairs, etc.  We now have best friends in several of the neighborhood haunts because she is a beauty who speaks Mandarin very very well, and they are rightly impressed.  They will be deflated once they hear my ~100-word fluency in Mandarin…

In our “neighborhood” (Daughter #1 calls it the “burbs”) there is a mall directly across the street, and the best thing in the mall is NOT the supermarket, but the AJI CHIBAN, the world-famous Japanese candy store.  Yes, it was written in the stars that I should come to live close to Sugar Mecca….  They have upped the game on Boston Baked Beans (yes, MKG, I’m talkin’ to YOU), found new ways to combine gummi delight and mango flavor, and, new number 1 treat, sunflower seeds dipped in chocolate and sealed with a chocolate M & M style shell.  They are divine, and attractively packaged in a small vial that I believe I will have several dozen of by the end of our stay.  This is like a new-age Glenn’s, the nickel and occasional dime corner Mom & Pop store we grew up a block away from.  I’ve gone full circle.

The new next big thing in appliances has already arrived here, in several areas.  We have new everything since the apartment is brand spanking, so when the clothes washer only took 5 minutes to fill with water this morning, I thought it was malfunctioning, then remembered someone in America telling me new washers are incredible savers of water.  I don’t know how much clothing to put in as a result, though, so if anyone has read about this via Hints from Heloise (is she still clacking on the keyboard?) let me know.  Also, I used our new microwave for the first time this a.m. and thought someone who shall remain nameless had thrown away the glass plate for revolving the food.  WRONG, I think.  I cooked it without the plate, and it came out the same way, so I guess those plates are now obsolete.  Either that, or I just made them so.

I’m sitting in our almost-completely unpacked apartment drinking a huge pot of tea (Rishi’s Hibiscus and Berry, very yummy, available at all Whole Foods stores) and taking a well-deserved break from errands and figuring stuff out.  We had pillow and garbage bags day, hangars and towels day, and then a mega shop twice for a lot of little things that one needs to run a household. Whew! I’m thinking of a new minimalist approach to all things except chocolate.  One should never compromise on the things you hold dearest.

So the adventure is off and running in Suzhou, where it’s so hot and muggy you’d think you were in….Iowa in August.  Thankfully, Iowa weather will NOT be mirrored when it comes winter here,

August Haze in The BURBS?  High rises in every direction...

which is a brief 2-month affair with intermittent rain, or so I was promised.  I started work last Friday, and there is a fun group of international faculty that will be fun to be around.  So far I’ve figured out that the MOST difficult accent to understand is Australian…or at least I THINK that’s what they are, because I can’t understand them about half the time.  There will be cultural learning, too, as there was a big whoop that went out when the principal declared the name of the bar that would show the Great 15, or something like that, apparently a rugby competition of some sort.  We met our new New Zealand neighbors last night on a grocery run and they said they lost by one point, but they were still smiling.  I believe there is a healthy beer culture in that part of the world that they might hold as dear as I do my chocolate.

We have a few challenges in front of us this week, like determining if S. will need to return to the U.S. to get official authentication from the Chinese Consulate in Chicago that we are indeed married (not sure what we’ll do if we find out we’re not), or if we can hire someone at great cost to go to the consulate twice for us and Fed Ex back the Chinese stamp and seal on our marital bliss.  One universal truth is that government bureaucracy is just whacko wherever you go.   Other than that, a week of PD at school and figuring stuff out.  We had some tech PD on Friday that made me want to slap my forehead and roll my eyes, it was so disorganized.  I wanted to beam up Des Moines nephew J. to make some order out of it… It finally fell apart when everyone went to a website that the server wasn’t ready for and it shut us down.  It was divine intervention.  But, you get those moments in any beginning of the year, and move on.  It was rather ironic that the one thing we all wanted to learn was how to apply for reimbursement for our airplane tickets, and that’s when the server said “Enough”.  I’m sure we all have plenty of incentive to figure that out anyway. 

No time for exploring beautiful Suzhou yet, but we hope to do that a little later this week after I get home from work.  We’re off to find a gym today, because Chengdu daughter already found us a yoga studio on the block, but couldn’t deliver on the gym… Other faculty members want to hire her to label THEIR remotes, but we had first dibs a long time ago.