The final day arrived: Yesterday I left my “Welcome-Family” to move to my permanent host-family. At about 10 am my new family picked me up to take me to their home. On the evening before I had a great time with my “Welcome-Family”. I really felt like I would be a real family member and not just a stranger staying at their home. They even offered me to stay at their home whenever I need a place to crash or when I am visiting China. As they said this it was not like the usual politeness of Chinese people but honest sympathy for me as their “host-SON”. I got to admit that I missing them a little.
But finally I am now in my new home. First of all excluding me there are four other people living here. The mother Angela, the father (I don’t really know how to call him), the younger Sister Fisher and an “Ayi” who is a mixture of a real aunt and some kind of a cleaning lady. Fisher and Angela are both very good in English, the father can speak too but our Ayi does even not speak Mandarin. She uses a mixture of Shanghai-accent and Mandarin which I CAN´T understand at all. But she is very nice and she cooks pretty well.
As I arrived there were even three more members of the family at our home. Angela’s mother, her sister and her nephew Ding ding who is a funny 6 years old who can speak a little English. He has that funny mixture of childish craziness and hilarity. Talking to him was very funny. Together with them we had lunch and afterwards I unpacked my bag and “inspected” my room. I have a big bed, a big wardrobe, a small couch, a desk for study and even a TV in my room. SO actually it is kind of a nice room I gotta admitJ. But in some strange way I don’t feel really connected to them on the first sight. I think this kinda feeling will disappear within time. In the evening we had the traditional “Mid Autumn Festival” dinner. The food was good and the people were nice. I was very happy that I didn’t have to eat too much moon-cakes (traditional bakery stuff which is veeery sweet and filled with smashed beans), but instead I ate pig-ears! Strange taste but ok, wouldn’t like to eat every day…
The “Mid Autumn Festival” is like the Chinese “Thanksgiving”. They are celebrating the beginning of the harvest. It is the second most important festival in China after the Chinese New-Year. Usually the whole family comes together and re-unites and spends the whole day with each other.
So I had quite a good evening and everything. And today we got better and better along the whole time. They even gave me a water boiler, my own tea, and two cups ;-)
Tomorrow another huuuuuuuge highlight will be in my “schedule”: Jane Goodall, the mother of all chimpanzees, will give a speech at a “Jane Goodall Institute – Roots&Shoots” event (they are the guys who are providing everything to me work, hostfamily etc.). I heard that she has a breathtaking way to talk people and even just her aura is inspiring to other people! I am really looking forward for her speech and maybe I am going to get a chance to talk to her in person or just shake her hand:-D
So be “tensed” how Jane Goodall was like!
Take care
L.
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