Hello, Toyko

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As you know, V and I have been very busy these past weeks. We have left our post in China and moved to other points west, finally settling down in familiar Columbus, Ohio. And as I am sure you have assumed, dear readers, I’ve taken some time to put together a few videos from our time in Southeast Asia. I’m still solidifying the projects, but each of them provides a brief window into our experiences. We saw some crazy, amazing, beautiful things, and I’m really excited to share all of it with you.

However, we’re going to try this a little bit different. Instead of doing the video sequences in the order of our travels, I won’t. These ones are a little more poetic and a bit more varied than the previous ones. As a result, I’ll just release them as they’re done. Maybe they’re short, or long, or about a brick in the wall of a monastery, or an entire city in macrocosm.

I’m also working out a documentary. I’m not entirely sure if it will come to fruition, but I’m scripting it a little bit now. It’s going to focus exclusively on our China experience. Stay tuned.

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2 Weeks Notice

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So, here’s the part when I tell you all that we only have a month left of living in China! Now, don’t worry. For all you loyal readers we have an epic tour of Southeast Asia starting mid-July, and we plan on documenting our travels right here on the blog. K also has a series of video projects in the works, and we both want to do a retrospective about all the things we’ve learned during our time as expats.

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China 101: City Speak

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Chinese. Living here, we’re steeped in it daily. We’ve delved into some of the differences in previous posts, and even tried to teach you some words. But now, I’m going to drop some linguistics on you.

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Nearly 80% of the world’s population speaks 1% of existent languages (see National Geographic’s project here). That’s a huge disparity. China, though it seems to be one massive Eastern hegemon sometimes, is actually made up of an incalculable number of subgroups that are riffs on the same theme. What is known globally as the Chinese language–Mandarin (普通话, Pǔtōnghuà)–is one distinct coloration of what it means to be a Chinese speaker.

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China 101: Street Food

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In China, there are quite a few options if you like street food. Vendors will lineup anywhere and everywhere selling wares like fresh fruit, quail eggs, red bean cakes, roasted meat on skewers, seafood soup, corn on the cob, sticky pork buns, bamboo dumplings, and our local specialty in Jian’ou- Guǎng bīng (广兵)- little rounds of unleavened bread that taste a bit like Saltine crackers. Some street food is more intimidating like live eel or connective duck tissue for barbecuing, and seem a little barbaric to our Western sensibilities about hygiene. However, trying these delicacies is usually the best way to sample the authentic local flavor.

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Clear and Bright Weekend

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Location: Jiuqu River, Wuyi Mountain, Fujian Province, China

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You may not know this about me, dear reader, but I consider myself to be a woman of inherent paradoxes. One of these paradoxes, thankfully, K and I share. Despite my intense love for adventure and the way in which I passionately seek encounters with new places, people and ideas; I absolutely hate surprises. Now I admit, a little spontaneity can be good for the soul. I’m not saying a weekend getaway or an unexpected gift can’t be pleasant every now and again. However, I am a person who largely wants to have some semblance of knowledge about how she will be spending her days. Will I be climbing mountains, visiting ancient temples, trekking through forests, or sitting in front of my T.V. binge watching episodes of Game of Thrones? Do I need to buy popcorn or pack an overnight bag with hiking gear and galoshes? I simply want to be prepared.

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China 101: Taking the Train

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http://youtu.be/bvo-4BRp0p8

Taking the train in China is serious business. Especially during the holidays, they are often jam packed with weary travelers. However, they can also be one of the most fascinating ways to transport you on your voyage. You can see a great deal of China’s incredibly vast landscape through the massive train windows. While on our latest adventure, we took many different types of trains (soft sleepers, hard sleepers, sitting, standing, etc.), as well as the high-speed train from Xi’an to Shanghai. We took these trains through many different types of climates, from frigid Harbin to sub-tropical Fuzhou. K made this video to give you a quick sneak peak into our experiences!

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