Chinese Takeout: China 649 Tianjin, China- twice!

I am the New Teacher Mentor for the 'newbies' to the BNDS International Department. Making the move to China is a HUGE paradigm shift on so many levels, and I convinced the headmistress that our folks need some guidance (and sometimes the Western voice of reason) before the craziness of this mega city swallows them whole. In addition to helping them get settled in to their new homes, I plan social activities in and around Beijing, assist them with travel planning, and sometimes simply escort them on errands- like finding the much coveted CHEESE in Beijing!

We had several 'gatherings' in the early weeks of their arrival, and through the start of this school year. Our first big outing, and a newbie lesson on traveling by high speed train, was planned for the Mid-Autumn Festival, September 15-17, 2016. And then, the worst happened.

My momma died unexpectedly on September 14th....but that is another blog entirely. I am still reeling in grief.

Well, a core group of newbies were ready to stretch their travel legs, beyond the boundaries of Beijing. This Momma K was so proud of them for continuing on with the travel plans to Tianjin, China, without me. While they boarded the train for their first really big China adventure, I boarded a plane back for the United States for a funeral.

Here are a few pics they shared with me from Tianjin. Though I was half a world away, their smiling faces truly buoyed me when I was at my lowest.

They found my favorite pizza place, Pizza Bianca :)

They did the city up right at night! I am going to Cambodia
with Elena (in the middle) at Christmas, and taking a hike
with Ellen (far right) this weekend.

And at just the perfect moment, these sweet people
sent me some "L-O-V-E"....

...and a bouquet of flowers with a hug.

Since I was not on the Tianjin trip that weekend with the newbies, and because I am terribly behind with blogging, I dug this gem out of the can that had never been completed and posted. Two other teachers and myself took a large group of BNDS kids to Tianjin last June. If you'd like to visit many of the sights the newbies toured about three weeks ago, then continue on...

Mr. Eric Carlson, an AP Human Geography teacher and IB Theory of Knowledge teacher, Ms. Lin Yan, a Chinese Geography teacher, and myself are the co-sponsor's of the Beijing Explorer's Club. It was Eric's brain child, and Lin Yan and I jumped on board. You KNOW I am always up for an adventure, and I love to plan travel adventures, so this opportunity seemed like a perfect fit :)

Many of our kids are from far-reaching provinces in China, but even for those that live in and around Beijing, they surprisingly do not get out much to explore all that the 'jing has to offer. Seriously, they are too busy studying- even taking extra classes on the weekends and holidays. It's a shame really, as the city is rich with history and culture, just begging to be explored. I have to remind myself, though, that while Beijing is a capital city similar to Washington, DC., there are many American citizens who never get to the White House, either.

Unless, of course, you have five kids that attended to Shenandoah Middle School, in which case, you made that God-awful bus trip FOUR TIMES during their 8th grade year, lol. And if you're thinkin' I figured my math all wrong, my eldest step daughter was in high school when her dad and I were married- so I was spared chaperoning her class trip! But I digress...

The purpose of Beijing Explorer's Club is to move learning outside of the classroom, and to plan day trips which supplement topics in Geography, TOK, or Psychology. If you've followed the blog for long, we have taken many trips with these kids. Our membership is over 55 students and growing! We've taken them geocaching, (a lesson in cartography and GPS) to explore ethnic neighborhoods (social diversity) a Muslim church, an organic farm, and more. The last trip of the year took some serious planning and convincing on our part, but we really wanted to end the school year on a high note- with a bullet train trip to Tianjin- my favorite China city! I was in charge of the planning for this trip. We had a full day in store, which augmented their lessons on urban planning and design, sprinkled with a bit of ethnic diversity and social psychology on top. It was scheduled the day after graduation, as we had many seniors that wanted to join us on this trip. It was a great day for "one last time" with these kids in a more informal setting...in shorts, Tshirts, and tennis shoes, exploring the city of Tianjin. Eric and his wife Ale, Len and I, and Sharon, one of the Chinese grade level assistants, were the adults in charge of the day.

The principal (and his wife) from Wasatch Academy, who was visiting from Utah for yesterday's graduation ceremony, decided to join us at the last minute on my invitation. I figured it was a good opportunity to do some networking, and for him to see our students (and some faculty) in a different light. We all had an incredible day together....

All 32 of us! I told you it took some planning :)

Surprisingly, some of our kids had not been on a
bullet train (they prefer to fly) and the majority had
never been to Tianjin. It was going to be a great day!

It's always a thrill to see the train hit over 300km/hr!

These are some of my A2 Psychology students,
posing at the coolest clock in the roundabout
as you exit the main railway station.

Selfie time!

Our first stop was to spend the morning at the
Tianjin Planning Exhibition Hall. Admission
was FREE and the models and detailed plans
for the city's expansion was incredible.

The models of the city were HUGE- and soooo detailed.

Old meets new. They have preserved the European
architecture of the concessions from the turn
of the century, to building towering business and
residential high rises in the background.

Tianjin is a port city and there are plans for
expansion here as well. In fact, it was been
proposed that Beijing and Tianjin merge to form
a mega city, JingJinJi- projected population?
130 million!! Can you even imagine???

I do like the plans for an expanded harbor and marina ;)

When a large screen video started playing,
the whole (model) city was lit up- it was cool!

Thankfully the rain had stopped while we
were in the museum. We had a short walk across
the plaza for lunch at a German restaurant.

We let the kids do all the menu planning
and reservations. They were so excited to
have taken on task, and they handled it
all very responsibly.

The majority of them had never eaten German
food, so they were eager to try it.

Ginger put away 11 sausages- and she is a tiny thing!

The pretzels where a big hit, too :)

Oh, 'cause you know, Ms. McDaniel doesn't
mind looking ridiculous trying to imitate a statue!

After we all feasted on German food (and I mean we FEASTED!)
it was good we spent the remainder of the day walking it off.

I love all the different bridges that you
can cross all along the canal walk. This
marble bridge and gilded gold statues is
across from the Italian district. So beautiful.

Here is a great illustration of how old again
meets new- right along the canal. You have a
fisherman in his wooden flat working boat tending
to his nets as they have done for hundreds of years.
Yet, behind him, is modern architecture and commerce.

I must also admit another reason I love Tianjin
is because it doesn't feel like China!

Next stop was the bizarre Porcelain House.

Here we met up with our tour guide, who gave the unique
history of the Porcelain House. While the home was originally
a 100 year old French villa-style house, it has since been
entirely covered with over 700 million of pieces of porcelain
China. The home is a 'living' museum into the history of
chinaware- with porcelain pieces dating from the Jin, Tang,
Song, Ming, and Qing Dynasties (265-1911)

Len didn't get to hear any of her stories, as he
was busy being accosted by the Chinese to pose
for photos. Who is that man in the strange hat?!

Her stories kept us entertained :)

Such an unusual home; gaudy, yet captivating.

Next we made a brief stop at Old Xikai Church,
also known as St. Joseph's Cathedral.

It's always a curious and interesting lesson when the
Chinese kids are given a talk about a Christian church's history.

The students were very interested in the
paintings, sculptures, and artifacts of
the Catholic Church.

They readily recognized the story depicted in
this stained glass, as Chinese students are very
cultured in world art. They were familiar with
da Vinci's painting of The Last Supper.

Next stop was a walk about the Five Avenues area,
which is again, a passage in time and a look at many
styles of European architecture.

Other tourists opted for the carriage tour through Five Avenues.

The centerpiece of this historic and eclectic neighborhood
is a Romanesque coliseum...so China.

One of my students sent me this photo-
I didn't know she had taken it. Awww..... <3

The last area we visited were some buildings that were
constructed by our 31st president, Herbert Hoover. Who knew
President Hoover was in Tianjin, China?!