A sea cucumber birthday delight with Tim Tams in Tai Po!

       I received birthday blessings for two solid days because of my new roots on this side of the International Date Line. My incredible gal pal roommates, Joey and Sing Sing (Jennifer) spent two evenings preparing some delicious food: one dish consisted of boiled lettuce/cabbage (called san choy here, not bok choy) with beef, another was loaded with variety of sliced peppers over savory, thin rice noodles, and the third similar in consistency to haupia (coconut gelatin), but made with eggs and sea cucumbers (hint: the latter is NOT a plant, Google it. It's one of my favorite things to snorkel for in Hawaii!) THE LESSON: If you are not willing to try something new, you very likely will pass up something you may really LOVE!

    They also made a chocolate cheesecake that really meant a lot because cheese of any kind (cream cheese in this case) is super expensive here.

I also taught them all how to do a Tim Tam Slam! (invented by the missionaries). Essentially, you bite off two opposing, diagonal corners of a tim tam to pretend like you are making a straw, then you dunk one opened corner into some hot chocolate and suck the other open corner really fast...the result is absolutely worth a video shot. Hahaha!

Of course I had to go to work, but the 16th meant a school wide jump roping contest that I got to compete in! With my hair in Anne of Green Gables braids, I felt really nervous to be handed the microphone and teach the kids some English cheers. Many parents were there to watch their kids and were watching me as I tried in vain to get them to pay attention to cheer "You can do it!" and "Let's go!". Instead, the majority of them continually yelled "Guy yao!" (Add oil! -- meaning to add fuel, get pumped, go go go!).

I felt kind of let down that I could not rally them together to chorus in English like the children in movies who yearn to learn English and pay explicit attention to the foreigner come to help them. Ha.  Ha.   Ha. These kids are way too independent for that.  For example, one of my first grade students is quite the charmer; when I speak to him in English, he gives me a look like "you've got to be kidding, you expect me to try to understand you?" and he leans his head toward one of the several cute little girls at his table who immediately translate for him.


Ai ya....


(the above is a Chinese groan of exasperation).