Sunday - China to Charlotte

What a LONG day!!! Nothing like traveling half way around the world for over 24 hours to wear a person out!   We left our hotel at 5am China time (4pm Sat. afternoon in NC).  We managed to get some shopping in both the Xiamen and Beijing airports!  

On the way to the airport we saw some fireworks - China's way of saying Zai Jian to us.  

It was snowing in Beijing ... another great send off since I love snow! (and it was snowing when we left NYC)  We did enjoy shopping at the airport.  I got several Christmas presents.  The flight was crowded and noisy, but that didn't stop me from sleeping for 6 hours.  Thankfully I was able to lean on the window. My poor ankles are so swollen!!  

We made it through customs and immigrations without problems and said our goodbyes to each other.  We met as strangers a week ago at JFK and go our separate ways as friends.  We are all connected by the little ones we saw and held and loved on for the past week and the teachers we helped train. 

I am looking forward to returning one day!

Saturday in China

This morning we were up and ready to go ... but Yvonne and Susie were dragging a bit!  We loaded up in the van and headed off on an adventure to Susie's hometown (Chengde?).  We visited a very small orphanage with about 29 kids in it. To get there we took a very narrow street that did not fit two cars at a time. It was an experience seeing how people live so close. 

There were several kids there who had their palates repaired during the October trip and the surgeons did a beautiful job!  Some of the kids were scared by us and some came to us with open arms to be picked up.  The assistant director was wonderful and even served us tea. 

We ate lunch at a 'Western' restaurant and then went to a local museum that explained the relationship between Taiwan and Fujian Province. There is a very long history here. We did some shopping here as well. Yvonne and I cooled off in the water out front. The assistant director was our tour guide in the museum and elicited a lot of laughs despite the language barrier. 

We visited a tea shop and had more tea. Your cup is never empty! After making some purchases at the tea shop, a couple of us wandered down the sidewalk. I love the brooms in China and found a store selling them. I was able to purchase three for 4rmb (less than 20 cents each.)  

For dinner we had dumplings. YUM!! We are all tired and plan on sleeping on the plane tomorrow. 

 

Friday in China

Friday???? Already???? But there is still so much to learn!!!  

This morning we broke into our 4 groups and taught various lessons. I taught about non-verbal communication. The teachers were amazed at how easy it is to make picture cards to use to communicate. Earlier in the week I went around and took photos of various objects in the rooms and had them printed. One of the teachers helped make labels for them and then we laminated them with some self stick sheets I had with me. I showed them how to use velcro to make it easy to attach and remove the photos. Something so easy that they can all do in their schools. 

After lunch I taught the entire group about articulation skills, sound development and how to help the students make some sounds they are having trouble with. There was lots of laughter as they were saying /bbbbb/ and /kkkkk/.  Afterwards, most of the teachers went outside with Lisa and AJ to play with the kids and use the parachute and sidewalk chalk while Michele and I stayed in with the Jinjiang teachers to talk about individual students and answer questions they had. 

Play time was a blast! The kids loved the gliders Lisa had and the parachute. There were drawings all over the sidewalks. We even got in a circle and sang 'Ring Around the Rosie' and other songs. Despite the language barrier, most of the kids did the Hokey Pokey and discovered that that is what it's all about!

After dinner we had a party. The kids were treated to KFC and Coke. Oh the smiles!  Every group of teachers did a skit or song - even us! We sang 'The Itsy Bitsy Spider' and 'I'm a Little Teapot' for them. The director gave a speech and then I gave a short speech. We presented a plaque to the school. All of the teachers received certificates and bracelets from LWB. There were smiles, tears and tons of photos!!!

Finally we presented the school managers with two large bags of donations each. One was filled with teaching supplies and the other was stuffed full of donations for the various orphanages. 

I think we learned as much from the teachers this week as they did from us. From a Speech Therapist perspective, this is a drop in the bucket, but the ripple effects with touch many, many kids. I truly hope they use their new skills and are not overwhelmed with all the information they received.  I am so grateful to have the chance to help them learn how to be more effective teachers to their students. 

Thursday in China

Time flies when you are busy. Today, Michele and I were talking. We're tired and it isn't the jet-lag kinda tired. It's the 'I'm just plain exhausted' kinda tired. Thankfully I got a short nap in during lunch and that helped tremendously! 

This morning Michele and I team taught and the other two team taught. We showed the teachers how to make home made play dough and magic snow to use for sensory activities.  We also discussed using these for enhancing language and incorporating into themes.  The teachers all had fun and really showed their creative sides by making flowers, dumplings, steamed buns, various animals and other objects with the play dough. There was a lot of laughter as well. We also have to admit that it was a first for us to make it in a wok. 

After lunch, I discussed oral motor exercises and using straws and whistles to help strengthen lips and tongues.  One little guy who is about 4 stayed in for all the rotations and helped me demonstrate the exercises. He would do anything for a few pieces of Kix cereal. He even shared his sugar cane with me! That was stringy, but yummy.  

We visited the babies again and even met a couple of little ones that were brought in last night. They were still in shock, but the other kids were so sweet. One refused to take the treat we offered, but one of the kids put it in her mouth and she started gobbling them up. Sometimes kids will get lost and the police take them to the orphanage until their parents find them.  She looks well cared for and healthy. When she talked about her mama and baba her little eyes filled with tears. Please pray they find her soon.  

After dinner we took all the teachers out for karaoke. It was a lot of fun! When you go karaoke in China, you get your own room so there is a bit of privacy. Many of the girls sang (including us!), some played games and we all laughed - a lot. It was a great time to relax and for the teachers to get to know each other a little bit better.  

Tomorrow is our final day of training. I can't believe how fast the time has gone. There is still so much more we can teach them and they are so willing and eager to learn. 

Wednesday

I can't believe it is already Wednesday!!! Where is the time going? Although, none of us were sure exactly what day of the week it was, much less the date. Does it really matter? Lisa, one of the teachers on the team, reminds us that Amy, the founder of LWB, often says, "We can sleep when we get home!"  So we have been going full steam ahead constantly. 

We started the day with having the kids come in with the teachers and showing them how to use some of the skills we taught yesterday. Three 30 minute lesson with 3 different age groups while answering questions and trying to communicate in another language. It was definitely a challenge!  However, I managed to learn the Chinese for red, blue, green, yellow and circle. 

Lunch is always fun trying to determine what we are eating, trying to talk with language barriers, trying to eat with chopsticks. However, before lunch, we had a meeting with the Director of Civil Affairs for Jinjiang City (like the Mayor). He is a very nice man and super supportive of the orphanage and the work they are doing. We were able to talk to him about our different roles and what we are teaching. The director even told him about a couple of children that we saw and talked to her about that she is going to begin the process for their files to go to CCAA. He was pleased with that as well. The director is an amazing woman! There is no doubt that she loves the kids! 

We started the afternoon with a Q&A session with the teachers to see if they are understanding what we are teaching, if they have other questions and to talk about particular students. It started a little slowly, but picked up as more started talking. Then we broke out into our groups for more training without the kids. They are so eager to learn and help their students!  

After the sessions, we went to the rooms to check on a few kids and so I could take a peek inside some ears and mouths. Most of the ear drums were hard to see due to wax, but the ones I did see looked pretty good. A few had some fluid behind them, but these kids also had colds so it is expected.  Their mouths looked good - no unexpected clefts, no red throats, only one had large tonsils.  The ones with unrepaired clefts looked good as well. They were a bit reluctant to let me look - afraid I would do more than just look I think. 

Dinner was good. I did pass on the pig tongue. So far we've had pig feet, tongue, and skin/rind.  We feel like we are always eating and definitely are not hungry!  

After dinner we returned to the baby rooms. There I got to hold a little one with Albinism. He is a chunky monkey and has the BEST laugh!!! He smiled and laughed his deep belly laugh over and over. He can pull himself up and liked looking at the pictures on the back of the camera. Reminds me of my Tom when he was little. So full of personality!

This evening, we went to explore some shops and walk around some. We found an Apple store and a candy shop. (I stocked up on Kinder Eggs.  Although they are different from the ones I've had before. Still fun! Since Chinese New Year just ended, there are still decorations everywhere ... red lanterns, signs on the door posts, rabbits. We saw goats on carts, babies on motorcycles and every imaginable food sold by street vendors.  Sadly, my camera battery died and I didn't bring my charger. Thankfully Lisa brought 2 cameras and is letting me borrow one, but I can't upload the photos. And even better news ... Lisa's bag arrived today. All of our luggage is finally here!!!  

God is so evident here!!! 

Tuesday in China

The morning started with being locked out of our safe ... and trying to communicate with the guy what we needed. I was also playing with an echo mic and we all cracked up. Laughter is a universal language!!!  

We did training with the teachers in the morning and that went really well. They are not used to actively participating in the training and some had to be coaxed a bit more than others to open up, but they did. I taught them how to play 'go fish' to help with reinforcement of concepts and skills to make learning more fun and how to adapt an activity for different levels.  One little boy hung around our rooms in the morning and helped all of us with our lessons. He has such personality!!

Lunch was another interesting affair. The easily identifiable animal this time was pigs feet - not pickled - just cooked. No. Wasn't brave enough to try that. The beef was yummy though! After lunch we went for a walk outside because it was such a beautiful day. There are cows in the field next to the orphanage. They 'moo' in the same language. We watched a farmer tilling her garden and marveled at the startling contrasts between the fields and the high rises. It was here that we decided to change our afternoon plans. 

We relaxed in the sunshine a bit more (my cheeks are pink) and talked with the director to get approval for our idea. She loved it! 

We took all the kids and teachers out to the field to see the cows up close, feel the grass, taste the grass for some and just get a new experience. There was so much laughter. Some let us take off their shoes so they could feel the grass on their toes - a first for many! Some timidly reached out to touch it and then were pulling it with wild abandon a few minutes later. One guy initially refused to walk on it, but then he was in the knee high stuff like he owned the place.  The cows were cooperative and ate the grass that was thrown to them and moo'd for the kids. We talked about incorporating new experiences into lessons and creating opportunities. We ended the outside time with circle time and songs like 'Old MacDonald,' 'If You're Happy and You Know It,' and others. 

After we walked back, we took the kids to their amazing playground where they jumped on the trampoline, played on the swings, ran around and had a blast doing what they do best - being kids. A couple carried tufts of grass around for the next 2 hours. We were able to show the teachers that you can incorporate learning into play time as well.  

Just before dinner, we went to the baby room. One baby had a cleft lip repair done in October and it look GREAT!! Most of the babies were about 3 months old and so healthy and clean. 

After dinner, we went for foot massages. For less than $10US we had a 60 minute massage that included a back massage, arm massage, leg massage and foot massage. They put the tv on an English speaking channel and we all relaxed. It was heavenly. (and at times a bit painful - those girls are tiny, but strong!)  

Please pray for emotional and physical strength. I am tired and drained. I hope to get some great sleep and a bit of time alone to recharge. There is constant chatter and people, but the lessons are going well and I hope the teachers are learning new techniques to use. They are a great bunch of gals!

Monday

Little sleep made for a slow start. Breakfast was the standard China variety ... fried rice, chinese cabbage (yum!!!), eggs, strawberry guava juice, chocolate cake, dim sum, bacon. Normal breakfast foods! :-)  

We made it to the orphanage and were greeted with a sign that (we were told) said Jinjiang SWI welcomes American Teachers. We walked into the meeting room to be greeted by a room full of young beautiful Chinese teachers all ready to learn. We made introductions and went off to visit a classroom. The first room was for 3-4 year olds and they were adorable!!!  They fully understand cameras and that they can see themselves on the back side. After listening to some songs and being licked by one little girl (she was so precocious!!!) we went to the next class where we were greeted by choruses of "Ni Hao" and watched them learn about sight, smell and taste. Then up to the under 3 room where we were able to play blocks with the kids. 

Lunch was at the orphanage and served family style. In China, this means that you grab your bite out of the common bowls and eat it with your rice. They serve a lot of soup in this province as well. Two of the dishes had faces. One was fish that was good and the other was duck that had the head on top of the platter. Despite watching us eat it, it was tasty. One of the ladies graciously removed the head! I have a feeling I will be eating a LOT of rice this week. 

In the afternoon we did some training with the teachers and got to visit the infants for a little bit. Pictures to follow eventually. After supper we went to WalMart to get some supplies. Take 4 extremely tired Americans and send them to WalMart ... we had an audience everywhere we went. We also managed to purchase items not on our list. And almost fall asleep standing up!

When we finally made it back to the hotel, my luggage arrived shortly afterward and the angels sang!!!! It's the little things in life ... jammies, your own toothbrush, clean underware ... 

God is good and present in this little ones lives. 

China - Travel day 2/19-20/11

Wow! I left Charlotte at 7am. The moon setting during the sunrise was beautiful - the ball of white on a pastel background. We flew over the Charlotte Motorspeedway and it is as big from the air as it is from the ground.  The flight offered us peanuts - something most airlines don't anymore and I chuckled to read that the bag warned that it was packaged in a plant that processes peanuts and other nuts. 

Once at JFK I had to walk outside to change terminals. That was different. I arrived 30 min. early so I was able to go to my friend's apt on the Upper West Side earlier than planned. Andy and I had an AMAZING visit. We chatted. We prayed. We walked through Central Park in the snow and she treated me to a yummy Indian lunch. We've known each other for 17 years!! 

I met up with the rest of the team back at JFK and we hopped on our flight to Beijing. After a 13 hour flight where I managed to sleep 6 solid hours and a few more scattered here and there we arrived in Beijing.  Immigration was a breeze. Checking into our next flight was easy also. One gal was missing one of her suitcases. Hope it shows up soon. 

Then we flew to our final destination and  marveled at all the New Year decorations in the airport.  We chatted and grabbed luggage as it went around and around and around. I was so busy talking that I didn't notice that my bags were not there ... until an agent came up to us and told us all the luggage had arrived. Both of my bags decided to take the scenic route from Beijing. I know they are in China ... somewhere!!!!  We completed paperwork. Our translator helped and was amazing. One of the gals is letting me borrow a shirt so I have something clean to wear.  

The hotel is absolutely beautiful!!  The beds are hard as a rock - typical of Chinese hotel beds. The sun is shining this morning as we get ready for our first day after 4 hours of sleep in a bed. 

God is good and is taking care of everything. Please pray that all of our bags arrive intact today and that we are able to have an excellent first day at the orphanage. 

Going to China

I am going to JinJinag, Fuzhou, China on Sat., Feb 19 to help train teachers who work with special needs students in orphanages.  Please pray for the 4 of us traveling and for the teachers and students that we will be working with. I will post updates as I am able.