Xiuxi Time

Only a few more days of Mandarin classes; my last one's on Friday. Twelve weeks later and I feel pretty confident in my survival skills. Am I ready to discuss the state of the global economy in Chinese? Probably not. But I can ask a waitress where the bathroom is and find it on my own (which is probably more useful in the long run). 

I had originally signed up for four weeks, but because my fellow classmates were so lovely, I went on for eight more. From left to right: Ye Laoshi (laoshi means teacher), Ayla (German with Turkish origins), Robin (American by way of Ireland), me (American with Egyptian and Armenian origins), Anna (Russian, now also German by marriage), Nannapat (Thai by way of the UK), and Florian (Indonesian by way of Hong Kong; a college student here for the summer; I hope we didn't scare him). We span the globe -- pretty cool, huh? 

P.S. #1 I'm wearing a shirtdress I had made at the fabric market. Cute, no? 

P.S. #2 "Xiuxi," pronounced "shee-oo-shii," means rest or break.  

We're not just taitais

There were some annoyances last week with the new apartment, which is often the case when you first move in to a place. It was silly stuff like, the toilet seat hadn't been properly installed and the dryer stopped every five minutes for no apparent reason. Yes, these were somewhat insignificant, but try dealing with them in Chinese. I thank my lucky stars every night for Mike (and his ability to speak the language).   

My frustrations were contrasted with a lovely lunch I had with the ladies in my Mandarin course -- Robin, the American who has lived in Ireland most recently; Ayla, the Turkish-born German; Nannapat, the Thai married to a Brit; and Anna, the Russian engaged to a German. One day after class, we took the opportunity to get to know each other a bit better and grab lunch together. We chatted about our families, our homes, our professions; about the difficult decision to move to China; about the sacrifice we (happily) made for our partners. I looked around the table and saw four smart women, ambitious and adventurous, excited and eager to immerse themselves in their new culture. Even though I had just met them, I felt as if I had more in common with them than my fellow countrywomen, many of whom relish their lives here as "taitais" (=wife in Mandarin, but with the negative connotation of a wealthy housewife). By the end of lunch, they had convinced me to join them for an additional month of Mandarin classes. Although the session will end right as I leave to go back home (for our wedding!), I'm looking forward to spending more time with these seemingly fabulous women.  

A Little June Gloom

I've been feeling a little blue lately. Maybe it's the time of year (Father's Day makes me a little sad; this year is the third without my dad); maybe it's the frustrations of wedding planning; maybe it's the fact that we have yet to find our community of friends here in Shanghai. 

But today, I laughed and I laughed hard and I felt better. I started Mandarin classes this week with five other women: a Russian married to a German, a Thai married to a Brit, a German born in Turkey, an American who has lived in Ireland the last 10 or so years, and an Asian American from Diamond Bar. At one point today, we were trying to put sentences together that we could use when ordering a meal. It took us so long to actually formulate a question that finally, we all burst out laughing, knowing full well that even the most patient of servers wouldn't wait to hear our order in Mandarin and would simply ask what we wanted in English -- our solid efforts wasted. It was a fleeting moment, maybe insignificant to the other women, but for me, it felt so nice to let go and laugh and commiserate with fellow females also far away from home.

Back-to-School Time (and more)

We got a lot accomplished today. In the morning, I became a student (and language nerd) again after enrolling in beginner Mandarin classes, which start next week. Mike and I then took a look at our new apartment. It's this great space on the top floor (penthouse!) of this fancy building in the French Concession. The apartment itself is maybe about twice the size of our old San Francisco pad, with three bedrooms and two bathrooms and an incredible view of the city. By the way, my goal here is not to brag but to entice visitors! 

View from the living room; five points for naming the site in the background (no peeking)

We also took the next step in securing our permanent residence permit (which means we passed our medical -- woohoo!). We had to go across the river to Pudong to get to the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Public Security (sounds serious, huh?). Mike described it as a DMV from hell with three floors of waiting areas and government workers. We signed a piece of paper, they took our picture, and we were done and out of there in less than 10 minutes. Okay, not exactly the DMV.  

And perhaps most importantly, we booked our honeymoon. We'll be off to Bali at the end of September, spending three days in the jungle and three days by the beach at fantastic resorts. I can't wait!