Well it's Christmas again!

Christmas is such a special time for me, and surprisingly enough, living in China has not done anything to diminish that special feeling that I get as we get nearer and nearer to Christmas.

Christmas time is that time of year when I just want to lock myself in my room and hide away from the rest of the world.  Sometimes I just want to go to sleep and wake up and find Christmas is over.

When I came to China I thought that Christmas would be a thing of the past.  Not So!  The Chinese love it.

Merry Christmas to One and All

When my parents were alive, I liked to spend Christmas day with them, and later after they had passed, I enjoyed gathering with my relatives at my sister's home.

I like that people celebrate Christmas as a religious festival. I even like being invited to their special celebrations.  But as a secular holiday, and given the general politically correct 'anti-Christian' attitudes that prevail these days, I don't like Christmas.

Recently a teacher in England was fired for telling children that Santa Claus did not exist.  One can only wonder what punishment would have been in store if the teacher had said that Jesus was the Saviour of the World.

President's Dinner - Hanyuan Hotel inside the University

They say that Christmas is a time of 'good will to all men'.  Well!  We 'men' could certainly do with a bit of societal 'good will toward us'.  But when you think of it, if the world can only have good will to everyone on one day of the year, then what does that say about the world?

Some old Drunk singing Waltzing Matilda

In Australia, and I am sure it applies to America as well, Christmas is school holiday time.  Not so in China! 

Christmas falls just before the end of the school year.

That means, at least for the foreign teachers, that we are trying to get all our exams done so that we can sit down and try to figure out exactly what are all these Chinese forms that we have to fill out.

My co-ordinator recently said to me:

'You can get one of the students to translate the Chinese for you!' 

I replied: "Not necessary! I will just fill them out in French!"

"Huh?" she said: "But we won't know what you have written!"

'You can just get the French teacher to translate it for you!' I retorted.

Mr. Kim. A Korean who speaks perfect Chinese - Dancing with a Chinese teacher

Mark (Nigerian) and Ellenora his Italian Wife. He is singing his love to her.

I have no classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, which is just as well, because I am trying to mark 600 written exams. 

I don't just teach Conversational English to my students.

I also teach two writing lessons each week to each of my classes. 

That means written papers to correct.

What a job that is!  Christmas is certainly interfering with that process.  And not just Christmas.

I was asked the other week if I would consent to doing an interview with the local TV station.  I readily agreed. 

I have done this before and it does not take up much time.  They send out a reporter and a cameraman, and the whole thing is over in 30 minutes. Oh if I had only known what was in store; I would not have done it!

First, I had to spend an afternoon at the Studio talking with the producer so that she could get a picture of what could be used in the Program.  'Program?'  "Oh! Didn't they tell you?  We are going to do a program about foreigners and their lives in China! You will come back on Friday night and we will tape the Program."

Mr. Kim singing.

Came Friday night and there we were (Three foreigners - Russian, Korean and Australian),  in a TV studio being interviewed by an anchorwoman.

We were not just faced with the bright studio lights, but an audience of students; most of whom understood English Very Well.

So that was two afternoons in which I lost time marking exams. 

To add insult to glorification, I spent two hours cleaning up my apartment on Sunday morning so that a cameraman could come to my home for just 15 minutes.

 He filmed me sitting at my computer, washing dishes, taking food from my fridge, making a cup of coffee, taking out the trash, and marking exams.

After spending the day Tuesday marking exams, I got a call to say that I was being given a holiday on Wednesday December 23rd. 

When I went to sleep Tuesday night, my body decided that it was now time to actually rest, and I slept for 11 hours.  Oh how I needed that.  When I got up Wednesday morning, I decided that I would 'take the day off' and spend time working on my website.  Exam papers could wait till Christmas day.

Not Drunk! Just using the wine bottle as a microphone. Mr. Kim is a great singer and a lovely man.

Well that was the plan.  Two things happened that really ate into my time.

Firstly I received close to 100 telephone text messages.  As fast as I kept emptying the messages, the phone would fill up again.

I really don't know how many there were. I just know that the final time that I emptied the phone, I had 35 messages sitting there.

I replied to all messages with a polite: Thank you! Same to You!  Happy Channukah!

The other thing to eat into my time was that last night I had to attend the College President's dinner, and as is Chinese custom, one has to drink copious amounts of liquor. 

I am as close to a teetotaler as one can get, but I did drink 3 glasses of red wine throughout the evening.

Then at the end came the manipulation to have me drink Chinese spirits.  Baijiu or Maitai was the order of the day. 

Not only do I consider that it smells like methylated spirits, but the taste is surely as bad.

I argued and argued and argued before finally agreeing to just one glass.  That little half full glass just knocked me off my feet.  When I finally got home, I basically just collapsed on the bed - fully clothed - and passed out.

Mr. Kim Dancing and singing.

But at least I had another wonderful nights sleep. 

Getting up at 11am today, and with another function to go to at 5:30pm today, I decided: 'to hell with exam papers!' They can wait just a bit longer.

I decided instead to catch up on world news and to write this little and latest adventure of my life in China.

I have no idea what function it is that I am going to tonight, I only know that it is something to which I am invited (instructed to attend.)

Tomorrow when I am finished with my 6 teaching classes, I will attend another function.  It is something to which I happily agreed a month ago, when I was given the invitation.

I am off to a 'foreigners party' being held up town.

This gathering will involve foreigners from many places.  It will include teachers from my own school, as well as some from other schools.

There will undoubtedly be people that I do not know, and will also probably include foreigners who are not teachers here in Yancheng, but are involved working in local or foreign companies. 

We have been instructed to buy a 'same gender gift' to the value of 25 rmb so that each person can receive a Christmas present.  I hope the the recipient of the socks I have bought truly appreciates them.

With three parties spread over three nights, and with 300 papers still left to mark, I am hoping that on Saturday and Sunday I will be up to the task.

Well!  That is my Christmas!

May you and yours have an equally enjoyable time - but without the pressure!

Merry Christmas.

P.S.  I apologize for the quality of some of the photographs. They were lifted form videos.  In time I will provide photos from all three functions that I attend this week.

Foreigners in China

Well!  It about 10:50am Christmas Day in Maine USA and 11:50 pm Christmas day in China.  I have just arrived home from a wonderful night out, and when I get to it, I will write about it.  This following photo is from tonight's adventure. But you are going to have to wait for that story!

This picture alone is worth a 1000 words and what a story behind it.

R.P.BenDedek

Email: rpbendedek@kingscalendar.com