From Canada to Mexico to Bejing

As a little girl I never imagined that my life would turn out as it has. I suppose no one does. I did, however, always think I was a little different from most of my friends. Now I find myself living in Beijing with my Mexican husband and our 7-month old daughter. I am an English Specialist at an International School where I teach children ages 1-3 years old. Even a few months ago that would have seemed strange to me. I believe that I am not alone in this world when I ask myself "How did I get here?"

Many adventures start with a little idea that won't go away. This is the way our adventure began...

My husband Pancho is a performer and since we met he has been striving to improve his skills. We spent the good part of my pregnancy traveling back and forth from Cuba where he was studying acrobatics at the Cuban National Circus School. After Denya, our daughter, was born we decided that we would find a new home where Pancho could study and I could put my TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) training into action. After hours spent on the web and plenty of encouragement from good friends we left our home in Playa del Carmen, Mexico and headed for Beijing, China!

I was warned time and time again about culture shock and told that China is a place where culture shock is very prominent among foreigners. I ignored the warnings. Since living abroad was not a new concept for me I believed myself immune. After a month in Beijing the only real trouble I'm having is language. I was surprised, and comforted, to find many things in China similar to Mexico. Here are some examples of cultural differences that aren't affecting me, but seem to be affecting some of my foreign colleagues:

Crowding: Once you've been in Mexico City Beijing almost seems small!
Meat Markets (without refrigeration): Local cafeterias in Mexico are situated in the middle of the local market. Fresh meat basically hangs on all sides of you while you enjoy your lunch.
Traffic: See number one
Food Product availability: One of the best parts of moving to a new home is trying all the new foods (although we do still have some costly favorites here: Nutella).
Smog: Here it is commonly referred to as, and believed to be fog.
Too much rice: Too few beans!
Power Outages: In Cuba the government turns off power and water for hours each day, but there is no schedule as to when they will be shut off! In Beijing, if the power goes out, it's usually your own fault (see below).

So, as you see, the differences are not all that different. I did, however, experience a strange event about a week ago that I do not believe could have happened to me anywhere other than Beijing. To explain I must first tell you a little about some of my apartment features. To begin, cooking gas, electricity and telephone are paid at the bank by charging small credit cards, which you then plug into the appropriate device. Very modern! Secondly, we have noise-activated lights in all hallways and stairwells that stay on for about thirty seconds at a time. One evening Pancho, Denya and I were enjoying dinner when suddenly the lights went out. We assumed it was a power outage until we saw that all the other lights in the complex were still on. Then it hit me...the electricity card! I went out into the hallway and checked the power box to find our electricity had run out. As it was nighttime, the banks were not open. The apartment was completely black and Denya began crying wanting more food. I was laughing at the image of my daughter and I sitting in the hallway that night. I fed her out there and every thirty seconds I had to clap in order to see the food and my baby! Needless to say, the next day I went and recharged the electricity card and filled our meter. The day after that I went and recharged the card again so as not to be caught in the dark!

Here in Beijing adventure lies around every corner. I am never bored and always kept on my toes, waiting for the next surprise. I'll be sure to tell you about the next adventure! Cheers, Jill