12 April 2015

Gentlefolk,

Visit to Qufu, 4 to 6 April 2015

We decided to visit Qufu, the home town of Confucius during the Tomb Sweeping Day long-weekend.  A student friend, Liu Fang Qiang (Oliver) accompanied us.

Qufu is about 300 km inland from Qingdao, and spring was more in evidence here - blossoms in full bloom and green tinges on the trees.

Our bus went from Huangdao down the coast to Rizhao, and then almost due West to Qufu.  Excellent highways. The trip took 4.5 hours.

The old part of Qufu is about one square kilometre and is encircled by a wall.  It is obviously a tourist town, with lots of trishaws (battery-powered these days!) and horse drawn carriages.  Many of the facades of buildings have been done in ancient style.  It all makes for quite an attractive town.

This shows the outline of the wall enclosing Qufu Old City. the green patches inside the wall are the Confucius Temple and mansion.  The Confucius Forest / Cemetery is about 1 km north of the Old City.  

 

Confucius

Confucius (Kong Zi in Chinese, 551 – 479 BC) was an official of the Qi Kingdom. At the age of 63, instead of graceful retirement he turned to teaching.  He believed that everyone, not just the nobility, had the right to knowledge and is revered in China for being the first teacher to take on a large number of students from various walks of life. 

Confucius believed that social harmony would be achieved if each individual in 5 basic relationships carried out their proper roles: father/son; ruler/subject; husband/wife; elder brother/younger brother; friend/friend (eg a subject served his ruler respectfully, while a ruler provided for his subject).

His students/disciples compiled 497 of his teachings into a book called The Analects.  Examples of his teachings are:

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do.

Forget injuries, never forget kindnesses.

Be not ashamed of mistakes and thus make them crimes.

Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.

Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it.

Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and star.

It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.

Respect yourself and others will respect you.

Study the past if you would define the future.

His most famous teaching was ‘Treat others as you want them to treat you’.  He was the first known exponent, 2,500 years ago, of what became known in the West as the 'Golden Rule'.

The fame of his teachings spread.  Two hundred years after his death the Han Emperor made Confucianism the state ideology, and it has underpinned Chinese society ever since.  He finally achieved the recognition that had eluded him during his lifetime!  The status of the Kong family, his descendants, was elevated and they became very well off.

He is often referred to in the West as ‘the sage Confucius’. 

Why is this descriptor used specifically for Confucius? Why isn't it also commonly used to describe other ‘wise men’ who had their own blueprints for better societies such as Jesus, or Gautama, or Muhammad, or Marx?

There are three main Confucius sites in Qufu: the Confucius Temple (where he taught), the Confucius Mansions (where he lived), and the Confucius Forest (where he is buried).  

The Temple of Confucius (Chinese: 孔庙; pinyin: Kǒng Miào) and the Mansions are big -  they occupy about 20% of the Old City - while the Forest/Cemetery is a is huge (about 200 hectares) and has over 40,000 graves, all Kongs.

A ticket to visit all three sites is Y150 ($24) – a 20% discount over individual tickets.   Students and seniors get a 50% discount.

Vera & me outside the main gate of the massive Confucius Temple.

The center-piece of the Confucius Temple is Dacheng Hall (54mx34mx32m).

A closer look at the front of Dacheng Hall.  Intricately carved stone pillars.

The Confucius Temple was crowded when we were there.  Here is a girl making an offering to The Master, and no doubt wishing for good grades.

The Apricot Pavilion, where Confucius is said to have taught.

There are many stone stele (plural: stelae) stone tablets mounted on bixi, a tortoise-like mythical animal, many with cute faces. The biggest one weighs 6 tonnes!

Crowds around Confucius' grave in the Kong Forest / Cemetery.

Kong Xiang Hu ('Auspicious tiger' Kong), 76th generation of Confucius ancestors, writing a poem for us at the Confucius Temple.  It now hangs in pride-of-place in our living room.

We travelled around the Old City by trishaw - they are battery-powered these days, the pedals are for emergencies only.

Another common way to get around Qufu is by horse-drawn carriage.

Our student friend Oliver stayed at the Youth Hostel, where we stayed 5 years ago (but this time all the private rooms were booked, so we stayed in a hotel nearby).  Last time we befriended the manager, Lu Hui, but he was away.  This time we met his lovely wife Han Fang.

Our hotel had a big display in the foyer with a statue of Confucius and some of his quotes as a back-drop.

Oliver looking at the moat which protects the wall surrounding the Old City.

One of the main gates of the wall around the Old City.  Five years ago we were told of plans to let visitors walk along the top of the wall, but unfortunately that hasn't happened yet.

Vera and Oliver buying a wrap for lunch.  Delicious.

Well folks, I'd better finish this post while the going is good.  Our internet has been very unstable for the last week - driving me crazy -  I planned to do this post much earlier, but just couldn't get into my blog.

We had a problem on the return journey.  We expected to be let off at the Huangdao Long Distance Bus Station near our campus, but instead the bus dropped us off on the outskirts of Huangdao, about 30 km from the city. Its final destination was Qingdao City, another 70 km away, and it was just skirting the district of Huangdao but they didn't explain that when we bought the tickets in Qufu! 

We had to walk 1.5 km and finally found a local bus which took us into Huangdao City, and then another bus to the campus.  Luckily Oliver was with us, and could explain what was going on! 

Anyway, all's well that ends well; we made it back in one piece.  The weekend in Qufu was a good break from our normal routine on campus.

Best wishes, and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah
English Teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
www.upc.edu.cn
Sunday, 12 April 2015

3 April 2015

Gentlefolk

As you know, I do a monthly summary of interesting news events, with a focus on news in/on China.  

There is so much competition within Western media outlets that usually only the unusual, sensational, or bizarre in any country gets a mention. Hopefully this summary gives you a better idea of some of the things happening in China. The events/items included are not necessarily the headlines, but rather things which caught my eye.

These news items were sourced from The China Daily newspaper in March 2015.  Actual events usually occurred a day or two before they appeared in the newspaper.  Currency is US$, and the exchange rate used this month is US$1 = Yuan 6.2.

Remember that the China Daily is a government newspaper whose main purpose in life is to make the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese Government look good. 

But if you strip away the propaganda, there is still quite a lot of interesting stuff in the paper.  I can’t read Chinese and can’t access the local media, so The China Daily is my ‘window’ into trying to understand this fascinating country.

Events which made the news in China in March 2015

(a) Domestic (in China) events and news

1 Mar	Football (soccer) has a huge following in China; but they are usually beaten by countries such as Japan and Korea and even Thailand.  The government has now released a long-term ‘blueprint’ to improve the standard of football in China from the ground up.  Within 3 years they want football to be part of the curriculum of 20,000 primary and middle schools. Every year 6,000 PE teachers specialised in football will graduate, and be assigned to schools.
	To curb dust emissions, Beijing Municipal Govt has introduced fees for large construction sites, ranging from $0.20 – 1.0 per kg.
2 Mar	A documentary about air pollution in China “Under the Dome” by journalist Chai Jing got 100 million views in the first 24 hours.  Only in China!
	Prince William arrived in China, the first official British Royal visit since the Queen in 1986.
	The Govt said that it will probably take 2 years to establish a national database of residential property owners.
4 Mar	China’s GDP grew by 7.4% in 2014.  Agriculture contributed 9.2%, industry 42.6%, and services 48.2%.
5 Mar	From 3 to 15 March, annual meetings in Beijing of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (2,227 delegates) and the National People’s Congress (2,964 delegates).
7 Mar	The Govt announced a 10% increase in the defence budget to about $143b.
	In 2014 Beijing’s population totalled 21.5m. Due to severe water shortages and other environmental problems, the Municipal Govt said it would restrict growth to limit the population to a maximum of 23m in 2020.
11 Mar	The Govt has warned a tightening jobs market faces the 7.5 million college students expected to graduate in mid-2015.
	The number of workplace deaths in China has fallen from 240,000 in 2002 to about 66,000 in 2014.
	In 2014 sixty 5-star hotels in Beijing lost money, blamed mainly on the govt’s frugality drive.  Average vacancy rate end 2014 was 40%.
12 Mar	China’s rail network totals 112,000 km, including 16,000 km of high speed tracks.
	All foreign TV series shown on Chinese online video sites will have to get prior approval from the Govt.
13 Mar	Beijing announced a ban on all smoking in public places (offices, bars, public transport) from 1 July 2015.  On-the-spot fine of $33.  Will it be enforced?
16 Mar	CCTV’s annual program to mark World Consumers Day focused on auto dealers overcharging on repairs, and the growing number of complaints related to online shopping.
18 Mar	China has an estimated 120 million people with Hepatitis B.
	Shanghai announced a 3 year plan to reduce PM2.5 by 20% on 2013 levels.  Coal-fired power stations will be converted and/or upgraded; old vehicles taken off the roads; improved sewage disposal; dust suppression; and tree planting.
20 Mar	According to the Ministry of Education, 377,054 foreign students were studying in China in 2014, including 6,272 from Oceania.
	Yahoo announced the closure of its R&D centre in Beijing, effectively exiting China.
21 Mar	‘Chunfen’ – the official start of Spring in China.
23 Mar	The Shanghai subway system celebrated its 25th anniversary; Shanghai now has 548 km of subways (planned 800 km by 2020). Twenty five cities in China now have subways, expected to increase to 45 by 2020. Qingdao’s subway (initially 58 km) will open in 2016.
	About 889,000 new cases of tuberculosis (TB) were diagnosed in 2014; 2,240 deaths.
	ChemChina announced that it will acquire 65% of Pirelli, world’s 5th largest tire company.
24 Mar	The largest Chinese oil company, PetroChina, announced a profit of $17.3 b (down 17% on 2013, due to falling oil prices). Another State-owned oil company, Sinopec, announced a profit of $7.6 billion in 2014 (down 29% on previous year).
	As part of its anti-pollution drive, Beijing closed two more coal-fired power plants.
	When China joined the world Trade Organisation (WTO) in 2001 its two-way trade totalled about $500 billion.  In 2014 its two-way trade was $4.3 trillion.
26 Mar	Govt unveiled the “Made in China 2025” Plan.  Ten sectors have been identified which are expected to drive economic development over the next decade, such as aerospace, biotechnology, internet. They will get special support and funding.
	The All China Environmental Federation, an NGO, has sued Zhenhua Company in Dezhou, Shandong for excessive pollution.  The company had ignored efforts by the local government to enforce regulations.
	Hainan Airlines, Chinese 4th largest airline company, placed an order for 30 Boeing 787-9 (seats 280 passengers).
31 Mar	The Govt announced easing of financing for real estate.  Minimum down-payments for second homes reduced from 70% to 40%; capital gains tax will only apply to homes held for less than 2 years.  The Shanghai Composite Index rose to 3,786.
	In 2011 the construction of new golf courses was prohibited mainly to preserve farming land and conserve water resources.  Now 66 golf courses which did not obtain proper permits will be closed. There are 639 ‘accredited golf courses’ in China.

(b) International events

1 Mar	The famous Shaolin Temple in Henan Province has bought a 1,248 hectare property near Nowra on the NSW South Coast.  It will establish a Buddhist temple, hotel, Kung Fu academy and other facilities.
	Thousands attended the funeral of former opposition leader Boris Nemstov in Moscow.
4 Mar	The Forbes ‘Rich List’ had Bill Gates #1 (personal worth $79 b), Carlos Slim Helu #2 ($77b), and Warren Buffett #3 ($73b). On their Chinese ‘Rich List’, Wang Jian Lin of Wanda Group ($24b) was top, followed by Jack Ma of Alibaba Group ($23b).
6 Mar	Australian PM Tony Abbott hinted at the possible scaling back of the search for MH370 which disappeared on 8 March 2014 with 239 on board. No trace found.
12 Mar	Apple shares increased by 65% in value in the last 12 months, giving the company a market valuation of $700 billion.  It is expected to replace AT& T on the Dow. It sold about 200 million iPhones.  Apple smart watch will be launched next month.
17 Mar	The New Zealand Govt issued an apology to the Ngai Tuhoe Maori tribe for past injustices; they were awarded $125 m and management of the National Park on their traditional land.
18 Mar	Cyclone Pam devastated Vanuatu; 24 dead, thousands homeless.
19 Mar	Results of an “Image of China” survey in 8 countries: Australia 5.7 positive; Brazil 6.9; India 6.7; Japan 3.4; Russia 7.6; South Africa 5.8; UK 5.5; USA 5.4.
	Mr Netanyahu won re-election in Israel with promises of continued building of settlements and no Palestinian State.
20 Mar	According to the Chicago-based Council of Tall Buildings 130 skyscrapers (over 200 metres in height) are expected to be completed in the world in 2015, 82% of which are in China.
24 Mar	Lee Kwan Yew, founding Prime Minister of Singapore, died aged 91.  A State funeral was held on 30 March, attended by many world leaders.
	Senator Ted Cruz (Republican, Texas) was the first to announce his candidacy for the 2016 presidential election.
25 Mar	150 people died when Germanwings flight 9525 crashed in France.  Apparent suicide/homicide by the co-pilot Andreas Lubitz.
	Colliers International estimated that Asians spent $46 billion on buying overseas property in 2014, of which Chinese represented $14.3 billion.
	Indonesian President Joko Widodo made his first official visit to China.  Eight agreements were signed, including one for the construction of a high-speed railway between Jakarta and Bandung (180 km).
	An IOC evaluation team visited Beijing and Zhangjiakou in regard to the Chinese bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympics.
27 Mar	Geely announced investment of $300 million to upgrade production of the iconic London cabs (Geely bought the company in 2013).
31 Mar	The China Daily reported an official visit to China by “Peter Cosgrove, the representative of the Australian monarch, Queen Elizabeth 2”.
	46 countries applied to be ‘founding members’ of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).  Australia finally decided to join, despite objections from the USA (NZ was much quicker off the mark).

That's it for this post, folks.

Today is Good Friday, not that you would know it here because it is not celebrated in China.  But this year Easter coincides with Qing Ming Festival (aka Tomb Sweeping Festival), so Saturday, Sunday and Monday are designated public holidays.  

Vera & I will take the opportunity to visit Qufu, the home town of the great sage, Confucius.  Hope to do a post on that visit next week.

In the meantime, "happy Easter everyone!".

Keep well, and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah

English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao

www.upc.edu.cn

Friday, 3 April 2015

28 March 2015

Gentlefolk,

Another week, another dollar.

Teachers at this university get a base pay of about $320 per month, plus $8 for every teaching hour.  This semester I have 5 classes a week or 10 hours = 40 hours per month x$8 = $320.  So I'm earning $640 per month. Plus free accommodation and utilities. (All dollars are US$).

Doesn't sound like much, and one wouldn't do this for the money.  But it's fun, and we get enough for Vera & me to live on.  Public transport is cheap, and food is also inexpensive, especially on campus.  An average meal in one of the student canteens is less than $2.  We eat out two or three times a week, and that costs more, up to $10 each depending on where we go, so still quite reasonable.

But when we travel, either inside or outside China, we have to dip into savings.

Gym

I mentioned that we joined the California Gym, a couple of km from the campus. Only $90 a year, but half the equipment is broken, and the place is a mess ....  you get what you pay for.  Anyway, it's convenient, and we try to go early to avoid the crowds.

Attitudes change quickly in China.  Three years ago a gym near here closed for lack of patronage.  Few students had heard of a gym then, let alone joined one ("What, pay to exercise - that's crazy!").  Now, this place is packed and I recognise many faces from our campus.

News class

This semester I have a new course 'English News'.  I was perplexed how to teach this subject.  The first couple of weeks I took in a number of articles from the China Daily and we discussed them.  But there was a subdued atmosphere so last week I asked 3 students to select articles and lead the discussion.  It seemed to work well.

The students selected the following articles:

"Nurses must be more patient" China Daily 20 March 2015.  The article describes a study undertaken by the Department of Health which found a high level of dissatisfaction amongst patients about the attitude of nurses (and doctors); and suggested some remedies.

"Twin sisters adopted from China reunited years later" (16 October 2014). In 2003 two couples, one from California, the other from Norway, adopted baby girls from an orphanage.  Although the babies looked alike, the orphanage said they were not sisters.  Later the parents did DNA tests which found that they are twins. The families met up in 2009, the twins got on well and now keep in regular touch through social media.

"Chinese farmer builds Lamborghini Reventon from scrap metal" (22 August 2012).  A young farmer/mechanic built a Lamborghini by using a small model car as his reference.  Took him 12 months, and cost $9,500. He couldn't afford to paint it, and in any case the police won't allow the car to be registered, so he just drives it around the village.

I took along the following articles:

"Crest fined $960,000 for false advertising" (CD 10 March 2015).  The government slapped Procter and Gamble with a huge fine for a TV advertisement which suggested that Crest toothpaste could whiten teeth quickly.

"Selfie sticks on way to being banned" (CD 19 March 2015).  Several museums have forbidden the use of "selfie sticks" as they could damage exhibits and also injure sightseers.  Some commentators suggest that they should still be allowed in outdoor areas.

"Tiny Times sweeps Golden Broom awards" (CD 17 March 2015). Hollywood has the "Golden Raspberry Awards" for worst films, and China has the "Golden Broom Awards".  A film called Tiny Times 3 scooped the field this year with "worst awards" for film, director, script, and actress.

Getting the students more involved made this a much livelier class.  I think I'll continue along that path.  It's interesting for me too, to see what articles the students choose.

Cricket World Cup

Tomorrow Australia meets New Zealand in the final of the 2015 Cricket World Cup.  The Kiwis regularly beat us in rugby - let's hope for a different result tomorrow.  Whatever happens, both teams deserve to be there and it should be a great game.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi oi oi!

In honour of that game I thought I would include the following little story.  Andrew & Caroline live on Wong Nai Chung Road in Hong Kong (on the border of Happy Valley and Causeway Bay), and their living-room windows look across to the Craigengower Cricket Club (CCC).  This is the background to the CCC.

Craigengower Cricket Club

The CCC was founded in Hong Kong in 1894, when Mr. W.D. Braidwood, the Headmaster of the Victoria English School, established a cricket field in Bonham Road near Breezy Point.  The name came from the building which housed his school - Craigengower. 

But the original site did not prove suitable so they moved to an area in the north-east corner of Happy Valley. At that time Happy Valley was a large area of open ground which was used for a variety of sporting activities, including horse racing. In fact, until the proper Jockey Club track was established, cricket games were often interrupted by horses galloping through the oval!

On 22 October 1903 Mr. Braidwood, then President of CCC, convened a meeting which led to the formation of the Hong Kong Cricket League.  A new local newspaper, the South China Morning Post, donated a shield and a League competition consisting of 8 teams Commenced. 

        

The first league game was played at Happy Valley on Saturday, October 24, 1903. CCC played the Civil Service Cricket Club (later known as the Centaurs).  The match was drawn, with the Civil Service scoring 100 (off 37 overs) and CCC 4 for 71 (off 13 overs) in reply. 

The CCC was closed in 1941 during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong and finally re-opened in 1947. 

In 1976 a major redevelopment took place, which saw the end of the cricket oval – land is such a premium in Hong Kong that more intensive use had to be found.  The Club had some practice nets, but they too have now gone the way of the oval.

Nowadays the CCC has a large modern clubhouse with lots facilities such as parking, dining, tennis, lawn bowls, badminton, gym, swimming pool, billiards, etc - but no cricket ground or nets.  The CCC cricket team leads a nomadic existence, playing on any public or private fields they can find.

I haven't been able to find out the cost of membership, but if the HK Football Club (just up the road) is anything to go by, membership of the CCC is probably well over $100,000 (with a long waiting list)!

Craigengower

I was intrigued by the name Craigengower (rolls off the tongue, doesn't it) and tried to find its origins.

It sounded Scottish, and I expected that it was some famous place in Scotland, but a google search came up with only one minor reference – a hill in South Ayrshire.  I thought I must have missed something, so asked Paul Milton to check it out but he came up with the same result.

Apparently Craigengower means “Hill of goats” in Gaelic.  It is a relatively small hill overlooking the town of Straiton which is about an hours drive south-west of Glasgow, along the M77. 

As this is the only reference we could find to this name, I have to assume that the name originated from this nondescript little hill near Straiton.

Oh, another bit of trivia: the Scottish Hill Running Club organises the Craigengower Hill Race every August.  The course is 3 km with a 200 m climb; the current record holder is P. Prasad who recorded a time of 16 min 11sec in 2008.

So, now you know all about the origins of the Craigengower Cricket Club, a cricket club with no cricket facilities!

...

That's it for this post folks.

Until the next time, keep well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah

English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao

www.upc.edu.cn

Saturday 28 March 2015.

21 March 2015

Gentlefolk,

We are now at the end of Week 2 of this semester ... what happened to my plan to do weekly posts?

Well, it's complicated.  I guess I could blame Bob Morrison for giving us copies of the British TV series SILK - which have kept us up till all hours - but what a pleasure watching such high-quality TV with marvellous acting and scripting.  The recent release of the new series of "House of Cards" (13 episode in one hit) hasn't helped either.

Or I could blame Little Eddie in Hong Kong - the poor little bugger was sick when we looked after him - and subsequently we both came down with bad flu when we arrived on campus.

Or I could blame WORK - yes, that four letter word which has been my preoccupation for the last 2 weeks.

This semester I have 5 classes a week (10 teaching hours), so not too onerous: three classes of Western Culture, one class of English News, and one class of Oral English. But two subjects are new for me, which has meant having to extract the digit and do some real work for a change.

My Western Culture course has always focussed on the USA and over the last 4 years I have compiled a comprehensive set of lectures on that country.  But one of the classes I had last semester is with me again this semester, so I've had to change tack.

My first thought was to swap that class with another teacher, so that I would have all new classes and could teach my usual American Culture course.  I found a teacher who was willing to swap one of his culture classes with my class (no skin off his nose), but there was a problem: the timing of his class clashed with one of my other classes.

Surely it couldn't be too difficult to change a class time?  Wrong.  The university would not countenance a change: the semester's timetable was final, and no amount of pleading could get them to budge - talk about bureaucratic!

I finally had to admit defeat. The only solution was to teach something else.  So this semester my three Culture classes will study the UK & Australia.  I've been wrenched out of my comfort zone.

Last week I described some famous British historical figures - they particularly liked hearing about King Henry 8th and his six wives: 2 divorced; 2 beheaded; one died in childbirth; and the 6th out-lived him.  What a rogue!

Did you know that three of Henry's wives were named Catherine, two Anne, and one Jane?  Co-incidence that Prince William's wife is also a Catherine (known as Kate)?

The other new subject is News in English.  I like news, and try to keep up with local and international developments, but how does one teach News?  And, later, how does one test the students' knowledge of this subject?

For the first two classes I took along copies of articles from the China Daily.  The students had 10 minutes to read each article, and then we discussed it.  But isn't that really just a Reading class?

Maybe I'm taking this too seriously.  To better understand their motivation, in the first lecture I asked ten students (62 in the class) why they had chosen this subject. Nine said they wanted to have a class with a foreign teacher, and an opportunity to practice their English; only one of the ten even mentioned news.  And here I was thinking that all these students were interested in current affairs.  

So where does that leave us?  With a Reading class (by another name), and some oral English thrown in to keep them interested.

For next week's class I've asked 4 students to select an item of news each (article, video, whatever) and to lead the discussion on their item.  Hopefully the atmosphere will be more stimulating than I have been able to achieve so far ... but that still leaves the question of how to test this subject?

Weather

When we arrived back in Qingdao 2 weeks ago the weather was cool.  In fact we had a few cold days when the maximum didn't go over 5C.

But on 18 March it suddenly changed, and we have had maximums of around 14C and 15C.  Fairly polluted, but definitely warming up.  Buds are starting to appear on trees ... spring is around the corner.  But I suspect we might have  a few more cold spells before we farewell Old Man Winter and welcome warmer weather.

Our China sojourn

We thought with the enforcement of the Five Year Rule we would have to finish teaching in July 2015, at the end of this semester.  We had one year in Dongying (2009-10), then a year back in Australia looking after Mum, and we are now in our 4th year here on the Qingdao campus.

The university checked with the Foreign Experts Office in Beijing and were told that because we had the break in Australia, our period of continuous service started in 2011.  So they offered us another year, which we have accepted.  Suckers for punishment.  What the hell, we're healthy and still enjoying campus life - golf and beach can wait a bit longer.  But poor you, having to suffer through another year of blog posts!

That means RTA (return to Australia) in mid-2016.  I'll turn 70 in 2016, so next year will be a good time to hang up the spurs.

Talking of birthdays, Vera has a significant birthday today.   An amazing lady; not one to sit still, she is always doing something: learning Chinese, or cooking, or cleaning, or tutoring, or exercising.  She has a wonderful way with people.  A dozen friends will join us for dinner tomorrow night.   What a gal!

Gym

Another big development: this week we started at the California Gym, a couple of km from the campus.  The facilities are basic and half the equipment doesn't work (the Southern Cross Health Club it ain't) but it's just great to get back to some vigorous exercise.

Brumbies

The Brumbies have had a very good start to this Super 15 season.  Did you see last Saturday's game against the Reds? (I caught it at Knuckles Bar down the road).  A remarkable five tries to zip romp, in Brisbane no less. Tomorrow the Waratahs in Sydney - always tough - let's hope they can keep it up.

...

A friend, Fu Xiao, took this photo and added the caption: "Love is the one thing that transcends time and space". Amen.

Well folks, that's it until my next post.

Best wishes, keep healthy and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah
English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
www.upc.edu.cn
Saturday 21 March 2015

4 March 2015

Gentlefolk,

I have woken from blog-hibernation.

We've had a lovely break, in Hong Kong and Australia.  Caught up with lots of family and friends. The Aussie lifestyle is great.  Actually made us question why we are going back to China - but while we still enjoy teaching and living there we'll continue, at least for the time being.

We are now back in Hongkers for a few days; fly to Qingdao on Friday for the start of the new semester (teaching will start next Monday, 9 March 2015).

My intention is to do regular (weekly?) posts during this semester, but I've heard that the Chinese government is still disrupting Google ( & gmail, Blogger, etc) so will have to see how it goes.  I don't really have a 'plan B', so this might be the last post for a while ...

Here are some photos taken during the last few weeks in Hong Kong and Australia.


Hong Kong

Visiting Andrew's office in Hong Kong.  This city is crazy, but good.

They moved into their apartment in Happy Valley - Caz hard at work in her new 'office'.

With Little Eddie, we had lunch at the Google office in Hong Kong ... and yes, the food is as good as rumoured!  Five weeks later, when we were in HK again, we witnessed Eddie taking his first steps.  A momentous moment!

With Mai and Art Kobler at their stunning home in Clearwater Bay.

The Bruce Lee statue on the Avenue of the Stars at Tsim Sha Tsui is very popular. He is a legend!

If you are not living on the edge, you are taking up too much room ....

Canberra

Played a round at Federal Golf Club in Canberra.  Beautiful course, great day, pity about the golf ...

Dinner at the Austrian Club with Neil & Helen and Bruce & Linda has become a tradition.  The "Bauernschmaus" is delicious!

Caught up with old friends Chris Creswell, Paul Flint and David Evans. Lao pengyou!

Congratulating Maria Taylor at her book launch at the ANU on 11 February.

Aniko & Peter Carey, and Richard & Liz.  They always make us feel so welcome in Canberra.

Friday 13 February was a lucky day for the Brumbies; they beat the Queensland Reds 47 - 3; afterwards players signed autographs for fans on the oval.

With mates at the Brumbies game.  Great team, great win, great night.

Sydney

Exploring Cremorne Point with Howard Eakins. Gorgeous part of Sydney harbour.

At Niniek & Paul Milton's place, with Kath, Dave & little Miles.

Tweed Heads

Lover boy Dennis Smith always cuddling girls!

Brisbane

Finally arrived in Brisbane, just ahead of Cyclone Marcia.  Here with grandkids Kurt (9), Nate (7) and Sid (5).

Never a dull moment with Nate and Sid.

With Jennifer at the boys' weekly swim class.

Tom training for My Kitchen Rules. He and Jen are both awesome cooks.

Kurt in ribs-heaven.

Vera playing soccer with the Sid and neighbour Kai in the back yard.

Miscellaneous

Ian Loiterton sent me this photo of the 50th anniversary dinner of the ANU's Burton & Garran Hall.

Angie going out on a limb for Rotary!

Papa Andy giving Hinamoana some tips at Timberland.  Never too early to start ...

...

The latest Cost of Living survey compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit was published today. This survey is based on the prices of 160 products and services (but not housing costs - not sure I believe this, as HK is actually quite reasonable apart from housing) in 140 countries.   The ten most expensive cities in the world are: Singapore; Paris; Oslo; Zurich; Sydney; Melbourne; Geneva; Copenhagen; Hong Kong; and Seoul.  New York is #22; Shanghai #28 is the most expensive city in mainland China.

It puzzles me why two Australian cities are in the top six - we used to be relatively inexpensive, but not any more.  Why are Sydney and Melbourne more expensive than great metropolises such as Tokyo, London, Berlin or New York?

...

Well folks, that's it for this post.

Hopefully we'll be in touch soon.

Keep well, and keep smiling.

Best wishes,  alex & vera olah
English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
Currently visiting Hong Kong,
Wednesday, 4 March 2015