DAY 1 -欢迎，欢迎，热烈欢迎！
a cold wind swept across our faces. we thought it was going to be hot. we were told it was going to be hot. hot like a wok. hot like Singapore. but it was 18 degrees centigrade that afternoon we arrived. after a grueling 5 hours in transit, we were slapped awake by that frosty wind. not to say we didn't enjoy it - Singaporeans always enjoy a cool breeze - we just didn't expect it.
half-shut eyes. i recall ending a late night farewell call and heading down to Changi Aiport at some unearthly hour. picking up a Jollibean (oh so jolly) and celebrating Alexander (the Great's) birthday. meeting up with familiar faces from those headed for Kunming, an air of warmth in the air - oh yes i recall giving Lua a nice big hug. our A div' had lost both Rugby and Tennis that day, but but, there was still a sense of happiness yes! like there always is!
so a China Eastern flight followed. and this leads us to the lovely bus ride up and down the Chongqing mountainside. yes. Chongqing, the land of mountains and valleys. of mist that shroud the hidden peaks and create an air of unsolved mystery. We slept away the bus ride, of course i frantically tried to cram in a few more card trick maneuvers but my brain wasn't working very well (perhaps it was the cold. it must have been). Our lovely tour guide introduced herself - Jasmine - the English wasn't perfect but we loved your company still!
and i talked to Alex about balloons - yes i heard 5.7's marvelous plans to doodle on balloons - so i suggested getting some balloons from China. somehow.
and there they were. as we entered. ironically. clapping with a balloon in each hand. we climbed up those steps lined with multicolored balloons, psychedelic, and the air was filled with the incessant chanting of "欢迎，欢迎，热烈欢迎!"...
a part of my heart sank. i wondered. who was being served. us or them?
and why. why had they put so much effort in for us?
there was a short introduction. Class chairman Daniel gave a (not bad for ACSian) introduction in Mandarin. yes and on that point. i shall speak a little on the language in that area
they spoke Chinese - like all Chinese people. and something struck me. that it was not for no reason that we were Singaporean. and bilingual for that matter. people like Evelyn and Hadi struggled, but most of us, we had attained a certain standard of Chinese over the years - and finally we could put it to use. The trip reminded me of Thailand, of Khon Kaen, except, now, I was able to communicate with every person effectively. and there was a reason behind it. from the first day. there was a reason behind it.
not much left. we returned to Tian Ti hotel. people had a time in the sulfurous hot spring. John Tay and I were faithful room mates. Benlee's guitar was safely tucked in a closet in the room. oh yes. the guitar - the 'A' string broke on the plane, and finally i found some use for the simple reef knot, and by God's grace, the guitar was repaired. yippee!
Devotions that night. it was short. it was small. the girls weren't allowed in by Madam's instruction. but i guess. it was a start. of many things to come.
DAY 2 - First Contact
the China flag was raised as the children stood at attention, eyes fixed on the red and yellow colors that were being propped upon a pole, some donned red scarfs as they placed their hands in a respectful salute. it was quiet. and solemn. but for a moment. soon, announcements were made, and we were off to our respective classes. my group - Mervyn, Alex, John, Benlee, Sankaran and I went off to the Grade 9 class with a stout man named Mr Hu.
a program had been prepared, aimed mostly at cross-cultural interaction. a round of introductions, there were so many Chinese names i couldn't catch. but i tried to introduce myself confidently - and even Sankaran yes. even Sankaran (who was suspected of being African) introduced himself in beautiful Chinese haha.
and the teacher. oh my. Mr Hu was smoking in class. in front of all the students. i felt quite sad. but i guess that's the way the village life is...):
silence ensued. i guess there's always this silence when it comes to interaction. especially among Chinese students - yes a common stereotype but observation tells me that Chinese people are just oh so shy. eventually, we decided upon a strange modification of pass the parcel, complete with the steady drumming of our hands upon the waist high wooden tables. as the rhythm accelerated the balloon was passed around frantically - till it landed in the hands of an unfortunate someone who had to make a presentation.
it began with some riddles, a couple of jokes, and eventually some girls who gave a shockingly great acapella singing performance (yes, including our dear 'Audrey girl' who i remember fondly dressed in a green blouse with yellow polka dots); and then it came to us. and for a moment we were just stumped. but as all clever Singaporeans (and one equally smart Malaysian), we chose to collude and came out with some presentations on the spot:
Benlee's classical guitar rendition of that (ah i can't remember the name) romance piece (that John Tay went mad over); Alex's rousing magic card performance (hmmm mine was yet to come i guess); and we wanted to sing a song, but the balloon never did return to us so that was a fortunate/unfortunate (i can't decide) thing.
later break came. and with break came table tennis. yes the story of table tennis must be told.
and there in the school, were two table tennis tables made of stone, yes made of stone. carved over the millions of years (ok i'm exaggerating here but you get the point). and the children congregate at these tables every break time for a time of fun and fellowship. badminton was equally popular among the kids, and it seemed that every child was occupied - those not engaging in sport looked on from the classroom block (in awe? in excitement?)
either way, they all seemed like pros - more so in the contrast that we so graciously provided. yes, we fumbled, we smashed wide, we missed the simplest returns, and eventually they decided to (in horrid Singlish) 'give chance'. so they 'gave chance' and we started to catch up a little till they decided to revert back to full force. which was sad. haha. oh well. John Tay had quite a run, and Benlee as well. but we were always ousted - eventually.
well i wanted to play as well. but eventually i got 'koped' for photo-taking. gosh. can u imagine 10 Chinese girls on your tail?! seriously, i was flattered (ok maybe not), but well, it was a little freaky, at least Alex was there to share the poster-boy moment and it wasn't that scary.
and i finally wielded my card tricks. and learned card terminology in Chinese. yay me! everyone was quite flabbergasted, though i felt i did the tricks rather...badly? haha.
returning to English class. i was democratically chosen (which means i didn't have a choice) to be the teacher. and i guess that only caused the girls to become stickier later on. we taught them stuff they already knew, and felt quite dumb for underestimating their capabilities, but still, i guess it was a meaningful time of laughing and sharing a few happy moments. i was quite the bubbly teacher i usually am, prancing along the blackboard (yes chalk and all), drawing rather strange illustrations, making silly gestures, but that's me. and i guess they remembered me as the clown. heh.
and we ended with the hokey-pokey. i don't really know what got into us. but we chose the hokey-pokey. ok it was MMS's (that's Maye, Mich and Sarina) idea, but well i think we pulled it off and the loved the part when it came to the butt. yup. shake it all around!
Painting was next. the corridors reeked of everything green and sticky (that's paint by the way). but with all painting - de-rusting preceded. Gosh. De-rusting. you know. Khon Kaen all over again. it was tough and all, we had our masks on to prevent brain damage from excessive rust inhalation (that was a common worry yes :P); and the most touching part was - all the children helped out, whether young or old. and they all came to paint to derust and simply to show moral support. so full of warmth, as we hurried up and down the stairs.
every stroke, a stroke of love.
and Chemistry came to life, i used organic solvent to wash the paint off! ok that was rather, out of point i guess. it wasn't the best paint job ever. but it was the heart that mattered? after everything, there were stains everywhere. stains on the stairs, on our clothes, on our faces, on our hair (ahahaha Maye you kena!). some others did gardening. but because the paint was green, we all ended up with green fingers. haha. haha. get it? green fingers? ok nevermind.
(and at this point. i shall carry on with the story that evening, in order to prevent a continuation of the bout of madness)
that night. we had our first devotion session as a class. the girls were permitted, we held it in Mervyn's room. the invitation was given. and so many came, albeit quite late they came, but still they came, and it was simply awesome. John and I led, sowed the seeds, told them the vision for this WOW, that we might bless the school, and also work on class unity - to mend the broken relationships if there were any. that night, we were surprised. Chen Min, Lucy were there, non-Christians, but they were present. Praise God.
and we taught the 'BB song', please Lord, bind our class together.
"You're my brother You're my sister, now take me by the hand...
...As long as there is love, we will stand"
a beautiful rhyming couplet, that echoed through the night.
(but i got scolded for exceeding lights out haha. but that didn't matter i guess. Day 3 was to come, and God would continue moving. yes!!)
to be continued. i promise i'll try
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