Search

Week 13 in China

Challis Hackley
Feb 26, 2018
3 min read

What I Learned

Seeing movies in China isn’t that different either.

We went to see Justice League on half-price Tuesday. It was awesome, but that's a different note. The movies was all in English, Chinese subtitles. It was cool because some parts must have been western or American humor, because we were literally the only ones in the theater laughing.

Seeing movies in China isn’t that different from seeing them in the U.S.

You buy your ticket, you order concessions, you find your seat. The movies are still in English, they just have subtitles in Chinese. And I guess they didn't let us in until like ten minutes before the the show and there aren't nearly as many commercials and trailers so it basically starts on time. But other than that, not that different.

There are edible bones.

They're not crunchy, just a little squishy, like some tough meat, but they're bones all the same. Not my favorite thing that I've eaten here in China, but not my least favorite either.

New Zealand burgers are really good.

For Thanksgiving, we all went to a Burger joint, run by a family from New Zealand. So. Very. Good.

KTV Karaoke is so much fun.

Seriously one of the funnest things I have done in my life. I loved it. We got a larger group together so it didn't cost as much per person to get a room. And then we went hard for hours. It was goof to let lose.

What I Did

Sunday

Sundays are usually pretty chill in China, but I got my weekly Muslim noodles and egg-waffle ice-cream so it was definitely a good day.

Monday

Another day of teaching but all the volunteers got together that night and had a little Thanksgiving activity. We made a thankful tree, each of writing down a couple of things that we were thankful for on some leaves and gluing them to a tree. And then we played a game of family feud based on Thanksgiving trivia like what was served at the first Thanksgiving and what are the most popular Thanksgiving sides. Lots of fun.

Tuesday

That night we picked-up some McDonald's (Màidāngláo) and took it in to the theater when we went to see Justice League. Apparently, its not against the rules to bring food into the theater here like it is in America. Cool. Good movie, good company, good time.

Wednesday

Nothing super spectacular this day. Ate some leftovers and Skyped with my family. It was cool thought because out school gave winter coats. They had the school logo on it and they're the same coats that some on my kids wear because we got it from the uniform store. But it’s really warm and really comfy and I’ve pretty much worn in every day since I got it.

Thursday

Happy Thanksgiving. And in honor of Thanksgiving we ate some very American food Burgers and McFlurries. It tasted so good, reminding me of home.

Friday

As well as seeing the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, China is also home to more mundane bucket list items for me, like driving a moped and karaoke. Last week I got the chance to ride a tandem bicycle and this week I got another one: KTV Karoke. Another great night with friends in China.

Saturday

Although the burgers were great, we all wanted a real Thanksgivings dinner of our own. Our church put together a traditional Thanksgiving meal and it was so good. It definitely lifted my spirits to get me through the last leg here in China. So good.

After Thanksgiving dinner, a few of us went to the Confucius Temple in Nanjing. We didn’t go inside because it was expensive and it didn’t look like there was a lot to see but there was plenty of shopping and cool sites: River walks, pagodas, neon lights, bazaars. It typified the Chinese experience, and was such a nice contrast to our traditional American Thanksgiving that we had just eaten. I live a life of contradictions.