FOOD
Christmas day was a big cooking session for me and Is (16 people!), so here's some photos of all the yummy foods and things we did before the big day. Luckily we got a lot of help and other people also brought yummy things. Lets just say we love food
Gingerbread cookies
Chocolate balls!
(Yes haha it's a big potato)
Roast potatoes!
EWWWWW healthy vegetables
Seating, before food was added
(Minus evidence of food babies)
We love you! Merry Christmas!
More to come soon xx
下雪- Snow
It doesn't look like the snow will last long, so quickly went out and snapped a couple pics before the moment was lost forever.
Jess x
IT'S SNOWING!
So just after receiving an email from my Mum asking if it ever snows in Shanghai, the answer is YES! Finally, I feel all christmassy. It turned very cold last night and after class today it started and it is now a full blown snow storm! Me and Issy both have to teach tonight so am not looking forward to the walk to the metro station to get there. It really is freeeezing...
Have spent the last 2 hours doing work for Leeds, a 'diary' entry in Chinese. I have some sentences so far: 迄今我的上海经验很丰富，上海的生活八字还没有一撇！This says: So far my experience of Shanghai is good, my life in Shanghai has just started! (Lit: My experience of Shanghai is very plentiful, the left stroke of the 'ba' [number 8 in Chinese- 八] character hasn't been written yet.) Sometimes I love how poetic Chinese is, but it can make it very difficult to find a translation.
Ah SNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWW!!!!!!!!!
Not enough to make a snowman yet (雪人 'xue ren' in Chinese- lit: snow man）
xxxxxxxxxx
Have spent the last 2 hours doing work for Leeds, a 'diary' entry in Chinese. I have some sentences so far: 迄今我的上海经验很丰富，上海的生活八字还没有一撇！This says: So far my experience of Shanghai is good, my life in Shanghai has just started! (Lit: My experience of Shanghai is very plentiful, the left stroke of the 'ba' [number 8 in Chinese- 八] character hasn't been written yet.) Sometimes I love how poetic Chinese is, but it can make it very difficult to find a translation.
Ah SNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWW!!!!!!!!!
Not enough to make a snowman yet (雪人 'xue ren' in Chinese- lit: snow man）
xxxxxxxxxx
Slice of life.
By Belle
I haven´t written in a long time. And I understand that family and friends wonder how our daily life here is like. Life here is... just going as usual I´d like to say. But something is always going on and I am always on the go. So here´s a typical week for me (although there´s no such thing as a typical week because no matter how much I try to plan my week to get a free day something aways comes up and changes things, which is nice in a way because I guess it makes me appreciate those 20-40 minutes naps so much more then..
Weekdays: After university I teach english to this man in his 40s. Wether I should be able to teach English or not might be debatable (and this blog is written 1:30 on saturday night so that speaks for itself as well) but this man is nevertheless a bit mental. He doesn´t believe anything he has not seen with his own eyes, so he doesn´t read the newspaper, watch the news of tv etc. He believes that no job is hard work and any work could be finished within 3-4 hours, even though most jobs are more like 8h/day (this is just because a person cannot conventrate for 3 h straight, so one needs a whole day etc)... these are some of the things we talk about during our 6h/week we meet and sometimes I feel like jumping out of the window when I hear him talk.
Twice a week I also meet a language exchange partner to practice my Chinese and her English. The rest of my free time during the weekdays I spend (trying) to do homework, study/speak chinese, but mostly I end up doing something fun during this time like going out for a nice meal with friends, going for drinks, celebrate something (we celebrate: people visiting friends in shanghai, birthdays, that christmas is almost here, that we simplyl live in Shanghai, etc. we like to celebrate things).
Friday evenings we usually go for a nice meal, then for drinks, sometimes to houseparties, or to a bar.
Saturday mornigs and day I teach 2 girls English, and after that I might go home and tidy the apartment a bit, rest, or go for coffee with friends, or just go to a new street and stroll around (see pictures below).
Today I woke up around 8, went for a 2 h lesson with the girl, came home 12. at 12:20 me and Emma went to meet some other girls to go work at an event. We didn´t know anything beforehand more than what we would get paid and what we would wear. We ended up spending ca. 5 h in a bus, 2 h waiting around in a room or getting our hair and make-up done, and finally 1 hour of catering where we (8 of us) were dressed in white pretty dresses and heels, and walked around with trays of desserts and snacks at an inaguration party for the opening of a very nice hotel (we think, still not quite sure what sort of event it was). Got home about 2 hours ago and feeling knackered now. (will put op a picture later)
Sunday is the day of rest. However, last sunday our day of rest looked something like this:
Woke up around 12, had pizza and watched lost, went to the german market, then to the Chalet to meet some friends, then back home to do homework and prepare for the coming week, also cleaned and did laundry.
This sunday (tomorrow) I will meet a new potential student (her mom came up to me in Starbucks and asked me to teach her daughter) so will have a 1 h lesson.
And finally some pictures below,
Good Night,
xx
Isabelle
Weekdays: After university I teach english to this man in his 40s. Wether I should be able to teach English or not might be debatable (and this blog is written 1:30 on saturday night so that speaks for itself as well) but this man is nevertheless a bit mental. He doesn´t believe anything he has not seen with his own eyes, so he doesn´t read the newspaper, watch the news of tv etc. He believes that no job is hard work and any work could be finished within 3-4 hours, even though most jobs are more like 8h/day (this is just because a person cannot conventrate for 3 h straight, so one needs a whole day etc)... these are some of the things we talk about during our 6h/week we meet and sometimes I feel like jumping out of the window when I hear him talk.
Twice a week I also meet a language exchange partner to practice my Chinese and her English. The rest of my free time during the weekdays I spend (trying) to do homework, study/speak chinese, but mostly I end up doing something fun during this time like going out for a nice meal with friends, going for drinks, celebrate something (we celebrate: people visiting friends in shanghai, birthdays, that christmas is almost here, that we simplyl live in Shanghai, etc. we like to celebrate things).
Friday evenings we usually go for a nice meal, then for drinks, sometimes to houseparties, or to a bar.
Saturday mornigs and day I teach 2 girls English, and after that I might go home and tidy the apartment a bit, rest, or go for coffee with friends, or just go to a new street and stroll around (see pictures below).
Today I woke up around 8, went for a 2 h lesson with the girl, came home 12. at 12:20 me and Emma went to meet some other girls to go work at an event. We didn´t know anything beforehand more than what we would get paid and what we would wear. We ended up spending ca. 5 h in a bus, 2 h waiting around in a room or getting our hair and make-up done, and finally 1 hour of catering where we (8 of us) were dressed in white pretty dresses and heels, and walked around with trays of desserts and snacks at an inaguration party for the opening of a very nice hotel (we think, still not quite sure what sort of event it was). Got home about 2 hours ago and feeling knackered now. (will put op a picture later)
Sunday is the day of rest. However, last sunday our day of rest looked something like this:
Woke up around 12, had pizza and watched lost, went to the german market, then to the Chalet to meet some friends, then back home to do homework and prepare for the coming week, also cleaned and did laundry.
This sunday (tomorrow) I will meet a new potential student (her mom came up to me in Starbucks and asked me to teach her daughter) so will have a 1 h lesson.
And finally some pictures below,
Good Night,
xx
Isabelle
Tai kang rd.
Tai kang rd.
Saturday afternoon, on my way to teaching.
Dec. 4, 2010
Hotpot with friends.
spicy vs. non-spicy
(you order different food wich you then put down in the boiling water to cook.
This way you eat as much as you like in whichever order you like)
The German Market.
Christmas time! Mistletoe and wine!
Much to my dismay, whilst playing Christmas songs the other day, I discovered Isabelle rather liked Cliff Richards Mistletoe and Wine song. We are currently looking for mistletoe, but we have got the wine thing down. Or rather Mulled Wine. So we went to IKEA on Tuesday night and ended up eating meatballs (as usual..) and buying a Christmas tree! We found one in the reduced section (with some tinsel on) for 30% off and ended up taking that around the shop with us.. pretty sure people thought we'd just stolen a display copy. Isabelle thoroughly browsed the food section and we ended up with many bottles of mulled wine and Isabelle bought some other Swedish goodies like biscuits.
Isabelle is very excited about Lucia, a festive day which falls on the 13th December and I shall educate some non swedes about this day now! Lucia is translated as 'Saint Lucy's day', and goes back to legend of a Silician girl, whod died for her Christian beliefs. The vikings were apparently so 'impressed' by this, they brought the story back to the homeland, ie. Swedee! But now, this Saints day is more popular in Scandinavian countries like Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Iceland etc etc. (According to Wikipedia!-) schools, businesses and homes choose a "Lucia", who is dressed in white robes and red ribbons and wears a crown of candles/lingonberries on her head. And also, according to folklore, unmarried girls believed that Saint Lucia would tell them who their future husband would be, on her saint day. I feel a little more educated now, but think Isabelle would be better telling you all about it! And she wants to drink mucho mulled wine on this day and I'm up for that.
I ended up staying up very late last night, which I am not pleased about since the flat above us (with the barking dog who barks through the night) has been drilling and hammering all morning! Yay! But the reason I was up so late was because I ended up skyping my friend Jess, and then my whole family, who were gathered for my Big Bro's graduation! Miss them all a lot really. My nan couldn't make it due to the crazy snow in the UK. Oh how I miss the cold and snow! Here's some pics of stuff:
Our Christmas tree! (And stolen tinsel)
Yummy Swedish and Irish alcohol (although the baileys is empty)
My mum, brother Tom and Dad at Tom's Graduation!
Funny family skype (even the cats there!)
xxxx
Isabelle is very excited about Lucia, a festive day which falls on the 13th December and I shall educate some non swedes about this day now! Lucia is translated as 'Saint Lucy's day', and goes back to legend of a Silician girl, whod died for her Christian beliefs. The vikings were apparently so 'impressed' by this, they brought the story back to the homeland, ie. Swedee! But now, this Saints day is more popular in Scandinavian countries like Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Iceland etc etc. (According to Wikipedia!-) schools, businesses and homes choose a "Lucia", who is dressed in white robes and red ribbons and wears a crown of candles/lingonberries on her head. And also, according to folklore, unmarried girls believed that Saint Lucia would tell them who their future husband would be, on her saint day. I feel a little more educated now, but think Isabelle would be better telling you all about it! And she wants to drink mucho mulled wine on this day and I'm up for that.
I ended up staying up very late last night, which I am not pleased about since the flat above us (with the barking dog who barks through the night) has been drilling and hammering all morning! Yay! But the reason I was up so late was because I ended up skyping my friend Jess, and then my whole family, who were gathered for my Big Bro's graduation! Miss them all a lot really. My nan couldn't make it due to the crazy snow in the UK. Oh how I miss the cold and snow! Here's some pics of stuff:
Our Christmas tree! (And stolen tinsel)
Yummy Swedish and Irish alcohol (although the baileys is empty)
My mum, brother Tom and Dad at Tom's Graduation!
Funny family skype (even the cats there!)
xxxx
