A Little Culture

I made it through week one! I don't envy Joe having to set up this office over here. It seems like last week he hit roadblocks wherever he went and whatever he did. Kevin flew over with us from Dallas (he's the IT guy here to set up the computer system). Needless to say it has been somewhat of a challenge to him as well.

Aside from that, Joe, Kevin and I spent the evenings trying various restaurants around. I guess the highlight of the week was Rabbit Thursday. We met some others from the company at a little rooftop restaurant for dinner. Apparently these people meet most every Thursday to share food and fun. It was nice to place names with faces. Brian is Australian (works for the company) and has a German wife, Chris. They left Friday for "holiday" for the next three weeks, sailing around Bali, stopping and scuba diving at various places. What an adventure! Next is Michael (works for the company) and Aiqing. Michael is an Elvis impersonator (haven't seen him yet, but Joe says he's quite good). Aiqing is his wife and the most gracious Chinese women you would ever meet. She's been quite helpful in helping us secure our new phones here in China. Also there was Randy, who's been here since March and will be going home in a couple of weeks. As you can guess, the main thing was the barbequed rabbit. It came out on a platter, bones, head and all. Quite an experience. I will say I did try it and of course, it tasted like chicken!! Kevin was a bit more adventurous and tried the head. Not too great, but hey he tried! Also on the table were various dishes of vegetables and fish in a variety of stages of HOT! Afterwards, we went to a place called for Carols Too for drinks. Did I mention that we all (nine of us) piled into Chris's late model Land Rover to make the trip over? I haven't been in a car with that many people since high school. We enjoyed drinks and watching people dancing. There was a lady trying to teach mostly Chinese men some type of line dancing. They say that on Fridays they have pole dancing. We may have to go back for that one!

Kevin and the rabbit head!

Also last week we interviewed drivers. After Joe and I had selected the one we were most comfortable with and felt has the most English, he was to begin his training on Friday. Unfortunately, something happened and he showed up for work three hours late and wouldn't answer his cell phone. There were clearly indications to Avis that this driver would probably not the most reliable person for Joe and I. Today we will again interview to find us a driver. Wish us luck!

On Sunday, we had the privilege of being invited to a Chinese wedding. The man that manages the building where Joe will have his offices extended the invitation to his wedding to Joe and I. It was quite an experience. Aside from one other guy, who happened to sit next to Joe, I think we were the only westerners attending and Joe and I were probably the only ones in the room that did't know what was going on. We were greeted at the entrance to the banquet hall by the groom and his bride and their families. We were then escorted to a table at the very front of the room next to the family table and the stage. Joe said we were being seated in a place of honor. David, from San Francisco, was seated next to Joe. He was able to translate enough of what was going on to Joe to let us know the procedures. The groom met his bride halfway down the isle and then they proceded to the stage. There they faced the crowd and some type of "MC" for lack of better words proceded to go through the ceremony. I think the official wedding may have already taken place and this was symbolic. They exchanged rings, the groom's boss spoke on his behalf, there was a tea ceremony with both sets of parents. All the while the "MC" is talking and music is playing. They cut the cake with a sword, poured champagne into a pyramid of glasses and tossed the brides bouquet all in a course of about ten minutes. At this point the bride changed from her white wedding gown into a traditional red Chinese dress for the banquet celebration. I have never seen so much food set family style on each of the tables. Again traditional Sichuan food (very HOT) and lots of toasts to the bride and groom. There were dancers for entertainment, as well as a guy who played the saxophone and a guy that did Chinese Changing Faces, that apparently is very big entertainment here. Joe and I had a great experience. Words don't begin to describe this experience but I will treasure it always for the privilege of being included.

We've tried a variety of cuisines this past week. We've had Italian, German, Japanese, Mexican, American and Chinese. I'm quite confident that we will always be able to find something interesting to eat while we are here. After all, I don't think we can take that Sichuan food every night!

Hopefully we will find out more about our housing prospects this week. Meanwhile, I'll just rough it here in the Intercontinental. I have gotten on a somewhat regular exercise routine and morning routine that involves talking with my family and catching up on my soaps and other shows back home through Slingbox. I'll survive. Got Skype? Call me!

Love to you all for now. Keep up those prayers!