Hello all!
Just a quick post from Hoi An, a beautiful city with lots of pretty ancient houses and a wonderful japanese style quarter. We are still unable to post photographs so far but they will come pretty soon since we should be home, back in Wuhan around monday or tuesday of next week.
In the meantime, you can see some pictures of our group on the blog of our Quebec friend Jean-Francois, one of the icemenz met in Irkutsk last year and now married to a charming vietnamese lady called Hong: http://jeecong.blogspot.com/
We came to see them in Haiphong and enjoyed lots of good food and drinks in their company.
I also went to visit and test the medical system by visiting both a dentist and a doctor.
Diagnosis: Sinusitis and "dents de sagesse", I spent lots on medicine but i am apparently better now.
Ok, i gotta go now, lots of thoughts to all of you, hope you're doing fine!
ORElena
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Now in Vietnam!!
Hi all!
So sorry we've been out for so long but as you know, we were wandering through the Yunnan Province and then heading to Vietnam, which we reached today after a loooong and exhausting trip.
So, there is so much we wanna say that it's not going to be very easy, especially on a quick post like this.
We'll try to tell you all that happened when we have more time (probably after our return-in March), but at least to keep you waiting, here are the key points:
1- Yunnan is a really beautiful Province and Kunming is "charming" as Lena puts it. I could add that it's simply exquisite for all the cool food you can find there! ; )
2-Xishuanbanna is very hot, and really topically exotic. We really enjoyed LOTS of fresh fruits that we would spend a fortune for if we were in Europe.
3-We went on a 2 day Biking trip alongside the GORGEOUS Mekong river (Lan Cang river) and surprisingly came back alive.
4-I lost half of all my vertebras in the sleeper Bus from Jinghong to Mengzi.
5-I lost the other half of my vertebras in a terrible Car (Marshutka like) trip and thought we would never reach our destination, being completely lost in the middle of the mountains.
6-We were stopped half an hour at the chinese side of the border (with Vietnam) because the 7 very busy guys at the customs (average age:19 max) had to chat and question Lena about all her past visas and travels and her cultural and ethnical background.
7-I nearly lost my life, while attacked vilely and by surprise by a ripe coconut jumping from a tree and aiming at my head. But Lena gave it a bad look and it avoided me at the last second.
And now, the exciting facts you are all really waiting for: what new did we EAT!!!!!!
Highlights:
-Banana FLOWERS- Cool and pretty tasty.
-"Across the Bridge" Noodles (a great Kunming specialty)
-Pineapple filled with rice---No, i know what you think, you've seen that before...But I promise it wasn't like THAT one! Delicious.
-A burmese TEA dish. Yes you read well, we actually ATE Tea. Pretty good and refreshing.
-We finally ate SNAKE too, but that was in Wuhan just before leaving. Not bad but we've got to try it cooked differently.
-Fresh Tamarind fruits- Much better than the sweet candies you find in chinese groceries in France.
-Green Papaya slices with a really HOT spicy powder. We both lost our tongue for a week, kind of. ; )
And drunk...
-Burmese whisky "Mekong Whisky". Well, that's just Bourbon actually...
-Great Rice wine done by Local Dai people (an ethnic minority)
-Delicious Fresh Mango Juice
Ok, well, that's all that pops in our minds right now, so that's all foks!
See you,
ORELEna
PS: Treat to come: Your tasting crew worldwide just bought a bottle of alcohol made with ants, so we'll tell you how it tastes when we get the chance.
See ya'''
So sorry we've been out for so long but as you know, we were wandering through the Yunnan Province and then heading to Vietnam, which we reached today after a loooong and exhausting trip.
So, there is so much we wanna say that it's not going to be very easy, especially on a quick post like this.
We'll try to tell you all that happened when we have more time (probably after our return-in March), but at least to keep you waiting, here are the key points:
1- Yunnan is a really beautiful Province and Kunming is "charming" as Lena puts it. I could add that it's simply exquisite for all the cool food you can find there! ; )
2-Xishuanbanna is very hot, and really topically exotic. We really enjoyed LOTS of fresh fruits that we would spend a fortune for if we were in Europe.
3-We went on a 2 day Biking trip alongside the GORGEOUS Mekong river (Lan Cang river) and surprisingly came back alive.
4-I lost half of all my vertebras in the sleeper Bus from Jinghong to Mengzi.
5-I lost the other half of my vertebras in a terrible Car (Marshutka like) trip and thought we would never reach our destination, being completely lost in the middle of the mountains.
6-We were stopped half an hour at the chinese side of the border (with Vietnam) because the 7 very busy guys at the customs (average age:19 max) had to chat and question Lena about all her past visas and travels and her cultural and ethnical background.
7-I nearly lost my life, while attacked vilely and by surprise by a ripe coconut jumping from a tree and aiming at my head. But Lena gave it a bad look and it avoided me at the last second.
And now, the exciting facts you are all really waiting for: what new did we EAT!!!!!!
Highlights:
-Banana FLOWERS- Cool and pretty tasty.
-"Across the Bridge" Noodles (a great Kunming specialty)
-Pineapple filled with rice---No, i know what you think, you've seen that before...But I promise it wasn't like THAT one! Delicious.
-A burmese TEA dish. Yes you read well, we actually ATE Tea. Pretty good and refreshing.
-We finally ate SNAKE too, but that was in Wuhan just before leaving. Not bad but we've got to try it cooked differently.
-Fresh Tamarind fruits- Much better than the sweet candies you find in chinese groceries in France.
-Green Papaya slices with a really HOT spicy powder. We both lost our tongue for a week, kind of. ; )
And drunk...
-Burmese whisky "Mekong Whisky". Well, that's just Bourbon actually...
-Great Rice wine done by Local Dai people (an ethnic minority)
-Delicious Fresh Mango Juice
Ok, well, that's all that pops in our minds right now, so that's all foks!
See you,
ORELEna
PS: Treat to come: Your tasting crew worldwide just bought a bottle of alcohol made with ants, so we'll tell you how it tastes when we get the chance.
See ya'''
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Bon Anniversaire!
Well, I said I would talk a bit about my birthday so here is a small text i had written in french and i am now too tired to translate it:
Vendredi, la veille de mon anniversaire, mes élèves ont été vraiment super.
Ils avaient un grand test de 2 heures l'après-midi alors c'était pas trop facile pour eux mais ils ont quand même été adorables.
Le matin, 5 minutes avant la fin du cours, à 11h25, un des meilleurs étudiants dit qu'il veut aller aux toilettes.
Je lui demande d'attendre 5 minutes mais il dit que c'est pressé. Je me moque un peu de lui et le laisse finalement sortir à cause de son insistance.
Dès qu'il est sorti, je fais un sermon à la classee en disant qu'ils sont vraiment comme des bébés qui ne peuvent pas se retenir 5 minutes...Puis l'étudiant revient...avec un énorme bouquet de fleurs et un énorme gâteau!!
Je me retrouve tout confus de m'être moqué comme ça.
Puis il y'a une carte signée par tous les élèves: "Pour le professeur, nous vous aimons". : )
Nous décidons donc de manger le gâteau avant le grand test, à 13h. Des élèves m'invitent à manger à la cantine de la fac.Enfin, deux anciennes élèves qui avaient quitté la classe sont venues spécialement pour me souhaiter un bon anniversaire.
J'ai acheté du jus d'orange et on a tous mangé le gâteau.
Ils avaient même demandé au patissier d'écrire "Joyeux Anniversaire" en Français dessus (imaginez le chinois en train de copier le papier tendu par mes élèves...)!
Une étudiante, future maman, m'a même offert une petite bouteille de Ice Wine, un vin canadien dont l'ami Tony nous avait parlé,
un vin assez réputé je crois. J'étais vraiment touché.
Voilà des petites photos souvenirs:
Vendredi, la veille de mon anniversaire, mes élèves ont été vraiment super.
Ils avaient un grand test de 2 heures l'après-midi alors c'était pas trop facile pour eux mais ils ont quand même été adorables.
Le matin, 5 minutes avant la fin du cours, à 11h25, un des meilleurs étudiants dit qu'il veut aller aux toilettes.
Je lui demande d'attendre 5 minutes mais il dit que c'est pressé. Je me moque un peu de lui et le laisse finalement sortir à cause de son insistance.
Dès qu'il est sorti, je fais un sermon à la classee en disant qu'ils sont vraiment comme des bébés qui ne peuvent pas se retenir 5 minutes...Puis l'étudiant revient...avec un énorme bouquet de fleurs et un énorme gâteau!!
Je me retrouve tout confus de m'être moqué comme ça.
Puis il y'a une carte signée par tous les élèves: "Pour le professeur, nous vous aimons". : )
Nous décidons donc de manger le gâteau avant le grand test, à 13h. Des élèves m'invitent à manger à la cantine de la fac.Enfin, deux anciennes élèves qui avaient quitté la classe sont venues spécialement pour me souhaiter un bon anniversaire.
J'ai acheté du jus d'orange et on a tous mangé le gâteau.
Ils avaient même demandé au patissier d'écrire "Joyeux Anniversaire" en Français dessus (imaginez le chinois en train de copier le papier tendu par mes élèves...)!
Une étudiante, future maman, m'a même offert une petite bouteille de Ice Wine, un vin canadien dont l'ami Tony nous avait parlé,
un vin assez réputé je crois. J'étais vraiment touché.
Voilà des petites photos souvenirs:
Friday, February 02, 2007
Our apartment!
Ok, i just got out of my bubble of lazyness and I finally post some pics from our new apartment, for those who are interested.
By the way, the 27th of January happened to be my 28th birthday, so I'll also post something about that some day soon. I hope.
Ok, so here's our new flat:
This is our living room, with artificial light.
This is our living-room, with the evening light peering through the window.
This is our kitchen...with too little light. :)
And this is our bedroom with the newly acquired bed!!
We also have two other rooms, a bedroom for guests and of course, a bathroom...
Ok, so this is what you can get in Wuhan, 104m2 for about 100 euros a month.
Now I really wonder why some people want to get back to France... ; )
All comments are welcome!!
ORElena
By the way, the 27th of January happened to be my 28th birthday, so I'll also post something about that some day soon. I hope.
Ok, so here's our new flat:
This is our living room, with artificial light.
This is our living-room, with the evening light peering through the window.
This is our kitchen...with too little light. :)
And this is our bedroom with the newly acquired bed!!
We also have two other rooms, a bedroom for guests and of course, a bathroom...
Ok, so this is what you can get in Wuhan, 104m2 for about 100 euros a month.
Now I really wonder why some people want to get back to France... ; )
All comments are welcome!!
ORElena
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
