16 December 2015

Gentlefolk,

This post is about the gym we frequent, and some photos of recent events.

Winter is well and truly here.  We don't get much snow in Qingdao - only one decent fall so far (about 5 cm).  Very cold wind today.  It is supposed to reach +2C, but feels colder with the wind-chill factor.

Now sunrise is at 7am and sunset at 5pm.  In another week it will be the shortest day (winter solstice).  By the time we return from our holidays at the end of February the days will be noticeably longer.

Note: the yuan has depreciated slightly, so this month I am using an exchange rate of US$1 = Yuan 6.4.  I prefer to use US dollars because the Australian dollar is too volatile (the expression is "up and down like a yoyo").

Gym

Back in March 2015 we joined the California Gym, but it went broke two months later (it was badly managed).

In September we decided to have another go, and joined the Gold Coast Body Building Club.  It is located on the 4th floor of a building adjacent to the Bank of China, about 2 km from the campus.

When we joined, there was only one option.  Last month Gold Coast opened a second gym, on the 3rd floor of the same building.  Everything is new, and flash - it even has a sauna!

Membership of the 4th floor gym costs $125 a year, while membership of the 3rd floor costs $200 pa.

Isn't it interesting how a market can be segmented.

Five years ago, when I raised the subject of gyms, most students reacted with "why would I pay to do exercise, when I can just run around the campus for free?"  I remember one of the first gyms not far from here closed down after a few months - just  not enough interest.

Attitudes change in China very fast.  Since then there has been an upsurge of interest in body building (especially among boys), and general fitness (among girls). Now gyms are the "in thing" and popular.

I guess it also reflects rising living standards, with more people able (and willing) to pay for amenities such as gyms.  Most of the clientèle  is young (20 to 30) but there are also a few older people like us.

The facilities seem pretty good.  You can hire a 'personal trainer' and there are group classes (aerobics, zumba, spinning, etc) mainly in the evenings.

Some of the main differences between here and Australia:

The gym is much cheaper here;

Gyms in Australia open by 6am, for the 'before-office' crowd (actually, many now have 24 hour access), while our gym opens at 9am;

Our gym in Canberra had many group programs aimed at "Over 50s", but no evidence of that here, yet;

The showers are all in a big open room, no cubicles.

Chinese love to take long showers; almost all Chinese men are uncircumcised ('snipping' is only normal in the Chinese-Moslem community);

There is an attendant who looks after the change rooms & showers, who also provides massages and "cupping" (extra cost).  Vera says both the woman having a massage and the masseur are naked in the Women change room (in the Men they wear shorts)!

In other public showers I have been to, people always use plastic sandals while showering - presumably to avoid tinea - but in this gym everyone goes bare-footed. So far, so good.

Our gym here gets crowded in the afternoons and evenings, so Vera and I prefer to go in the morning.  Some of my male students have recommended I go at night "when there are lots of pretty girls in tights", but I have resisted the temptation so far.

An advantage coming early is that the shower room is less "steamy" - poor exhaust system.

We are usually among the first in the door when they open at 9am. We try to go three times a week, and exercise for a little over an hour.  Usually spend 30 - 35 minutes on a treadmill (do about 5 km - gets the heart pumping), then do some light weights and stretching, and have a shower.

I strained a hamstring last week, so am taking it easy at the moment.

We normally take the bus there, and often walk home.  We leave our place at 8.45am and are back around 11am.

The gym has been great.  We certainly feel healthier, which I think also makes for better teaching.



Here are some photos of the Gold Coast Gym (4th floor).

The main entrance to the gym.  Since the swish 3rd floor gym opened we now have an elevator to the 4th floor.

Exercise equipment.  We are usually among the first to arrive at 9am.  It gets busier later.

 The treadmills get popular later in the day.   

Vera, above and below, on resistance machine and treadmill.

A view of the weights area. These three women are regulars - we see them almost every time we are there. We have spoken to the nearest one (English name: Vivian) but haven't met the other two yet.

...

In September we met a couple, Daniel (from Stuttgart, Germany) and Hayley Zhou Hai Jie (from Harbin).

Last month they had a baby boy, Oliver, and we visited their apartment to see the new baby.

Hayley recovering after the birth of Oliver.  The baby was big - 4.4 kg - so a tough natural birth. But Hayley is strong and fit and will bounce back quickly.  In the background is the temporary nurse they have hired.  It is common here for couples to hire a baby-nurse for the first month to help the new mother. 

With Daniel, admiring little Oliver. Daniel studied Chinese in Germany, got a job at Bin Hai College teaching German and now works for a company which administers the China-Germany Industrial Estate in Huangdao.  Hayley is a part time artist, hence the many paintings behind the sofa.

About once a month Vera makes a curry dinner and we invite teachers and friends.  Always an enjoyable night. Guests this time were: Steve (US); Rai (India); Graham (Australia); Thomas (Germany) and a visiting friend Dong; Gautier (France) and his wife Hao Yu & baby Luna; and Sun Yu from the Admin Office.

Gautier and Hao Yu's daughter Luna turned one, so we celebrated her birthday with a cake.  She is a lovely baby. In China there are usually celebrations when a baby is 100 days old, and then one year old.  If they make those milestones, their future looks promising.

...

That's it for this post.

Best wishes, keep well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah
English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
www.upc.edu.cn
Wednesday 16 December 2015.

Qingdao TV produced a program featuring two foreign teachers, Dr Laxmisha Rai and me.  To view click HERE.  It goes for about 25 minutes and alternates between Rai and myself.  Mainly in Chinese but with enough English to get the gist.