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AngieMarieG
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Name: Ange
Interests: change according to the seasons....love experiencing Japan & Asia - the food, culture, people, lifestyle, art, tea, environment and traditions...
Expertise: travel, spontaneous adventures & projects, keeping active, asian food, oriental arts, health & wellness...
Message: message me
Member Since:
6/16/2005
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| ...China's heart center where, ancient tradition radiates into everyday life and strong foundation grounds rapid development for the 08 Olympics.
Beyond stalls of unique fruits, veges and teas, there is so much life to taste in Beijing...
From my home window...
I hear birds chirping from cages, I see women gracefully dancing with red fans in the park below, I smell a mix of fruit, burning incense and garlic. I feel warm from the autumn temperature and oolong tea I am sipping while seated on a large floor cushion in the tea room of the comfy apartment I share with a tea specialist from Mexico, acupuncturist from Sydney, a bird and guests from Prague.
BE ij IN g
City chaos or life flow?
Bikes, carts, buses and cars merge together to flow several ways, there seems to be no line between a red and green light. On the curb side, old men relieve themselves of heat allowing their bare, beer bellies, to protrude from below their tight t-shirts. In the evening, the old enjoy cards, couples enjoy walking their dogs (in pyjamas). In the old Hutong (alley) area and parks is public gym
equipment (was out this morning at 7am to be part of the activity, its amazing how this culture embraces the park areas and pre-work time of day). The "hawking," is as delightful as the smell coming from the community toilets. People really "live" on their streets, all is very raw, real and their is calmness in all the chaos.
Food is life...
Fish for your fish in the market tanks. Pet shop or food shop? Beer is cheaper than water! My first phrase in mandarin, "vegetarian, no MSG, please." Oil - i understand its good for you in dry climates. Oil, garlic, onion, ginger - what a contrast to Japanese food. "Vegetable soak" is sold for a good reason (vegetable soap). Carrot dumplings are amazing! Can eat and cook really well a day on a few US dollars. Cooking with a wok, great exercise. Chinese eat, a lot.
Life in Beijing...
An "aye" (house helper) services our apartment twice a week. Before sun, I wake with my housemates and the city to breath the early morning air ad be part of the city activity - its entertaining and energising to see how active people are at 6am (people dancing, bird training, working out on the gym equipment) in the park. Have landed into a very fun and supportive foreign community (crossed paths with many ex. japanies) and Cherie (close friend from high school) lives just 10 mins bike away.
After Tokyo, New York and Beijing have been easy to map; lack of system (extremely evident after time in Japan!) has had me slip into life with ease. Buying a bike, cell phone, easy, no questions or regisration form needed (parts of the bike sold sperately though, so must next get a bell!). My new, but old "nokia" phone has me connected (my cell from planet japan is yet to be networked elsewhere).
In the rain, taxis are a cheep luxury. Seems to be few movie theatres, DVDs are a dollar at the supermarket. There is store "Wumart" - copy (or inspiration from another source!). Many young Chinese seem to take an "English" name - I have meet a girl named "Nemo" and a young guy named "Smile." To find familiar ground with Chinese youth, mention "prison break, desperate housewives and 24" (free downloading = free US culture education) and your common culture.
My work...
Yoga Yard, Wellness Studio (www.yogayard.com) is where i go each day. Am sharing yoga with private clients, children, pre/post natal and mixed adult classes. Am loving each day and learning so much; is really challenging me to work with such diversity (especially teachign creative movement to the kids), am learning so much about much. The studio is international and central, 15 mins bike from me, on the Second Ring road (Forbidden city is on the first).
Interesting...
is life and surrundings in another country and culture. Here especially for me after much time in other parts of Asia, China's tradition and culture has so much depth, everyday and encounter is something new.
They say..." In the near future, there will be more Chinese studying English than there are English speakers outside of China" (!). Around the city is much development for the Olympics, the positive being environmental awarness - the pollution here is, clearning up! Public toilets, no walls - every action is a social interaction. Much evidence of government influence; firewalls on many outside urls (accessed xanga through www.dontfilterus.com) but the country is open and welcoming to all.
For now, that is a slice of my world.....
Life is amazing, ordinary and everything in between!
Look forward to hearing your stories....
Much love,
Ange.
www.yogayard.com
http://www.the-hutong.com/
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| a month in vancover has passed with the Miuras visit (my dear Japanese family who came to visit the visitor, visiting vancouver for 5 days as they do from Japan), a weekend hanging with nami and nicole (also on way to Japan), a week with the chiba gang reunited from all over the globe after 3 years to attend heathers wedding and this past week in pt roberts (the states) with horses, kayacks, the coast, the woods, night fire and stars far away from the city - quite the contrast to ny and tokyo. travel time is good, great, fantastic. | | |
| am back in brooklyn after a friday midtown adventure on the road, which began with an early morning cycle over the brooklyn bridge in perfect sunshine and summer heat, day time cycle about manhattan, then just when when the night seemed to be settling to wine and tapas, seizing invite to take part in the first of the month midnight, moonlight cycle through central park seemed the next fun thing to do. this late evening adventure was intermitted with an unexpected thunderstorm which had us all take shelter in a tunnel in the parks center. in this wild time, bumped into a travel friend i had lost touch with from time in cambodia - the spontaneity of todays events inline with this great city of excitement.
ny time is almost complete and in a generous time playing about this great metropolis, i found people so approachable, helpful and enthusiastic for their fun and friendly city. i found the manhattan avenues and streets easy to navigate (especially after tokyo!). i loved the cultural diversity, the art (especially MoMA), the buildings, the cuisine (great greek food!). i enjoyed eating a 25 cent banana from a street vendor while people watching among the artists, stalls, coffee drinkers in union square and, in the evening, near the same spot, sipping red wine under the night sky haloed by fine architecture. i enjoyed navigating manhattan by bike (though a few more hills than tokyo!), the park in brooklyn on the weekend, surfing long island (found the beach surprisingly clean and residential - maybe due to the 10$ beach entry fee), i attended nyc yoga studios, completed a teach yoga to children's course, i ate ny cheesecake (almost as good as mums), vogue vegetarian, backstreet mediterranean and greek, a strudel from a street vendor, a ny "slice" (seriously good), a bagel and carrot cake lounging on a brooklyn rooftop in the sun and a rooftop bbq and wine under the stars at night, read the ny times on the subway, sat in bryant park, ordered japanese "take out" in a white box before a broadway show, sipped a cosmopolitan late evening in west village and a turkish tea for brunch, danced capoiera and sunbathed in battery park, shopped at whole foods, at the co-op, in soho and bought fruit and foccocia at the farmers markets. i have just loved my new york experience! one word to describe this city - alive! to toronto by greyhound next then on to vancouver for more summer....ciao! | | |
| its a bright sunny day in brooklyn, new york - great for the beach and that is where this afternoon i will be!
from now, am about to subway to central park, walk around the avenues and streets that make up downtown manhattan. am finding ny tame after tokyo - the streets and subway easy to navigate, the neon lights on broadway low key after shibuya, bananas and apples on the 14th street roadside for 25cents cheap, the architecture creative and hight of buildings not so invasive. its a great city, people are really friendly, busy but have time to chat.
this afternoon look forward to surfing off long island, have been staying with chelsea (here for the summer for her grad. programme) after busing down with nat on friday from toronto for a reunion with some of the chiba crew last weekend.
am having and amazing time in an amazing place..... | | |
| a week has past since i handed in my visa and gaigen card at narita. am typing from toronto, staying in the annex (downtown university diverse area of this very diverse city) where i have been catching up with nat, lindsay and judy (adventured japan and over the japan sea together over the past 4 years) and enjoying the internationalism this city exhibits - vietnamese food, greek food, mexican food markets, vegetarian food, korea town, little italy, colorful structured buildings remind me of miami and neat CBD layout remind me of sydney, french influenced art spaces, student cafes and funky old, many storied book stores. after time in japan, am really enjoying reading street signs, hearing a mix of languages walking down the street and bread after a long time on japanese rice. have realized not to stand too close behind people in the atm line, have reclaimed my liking for space, pulled out yen at the checkout and thanked the shop assistant in japanese - readjusting to culture and language. visited niagara falls the past weekend. the falls are an amazing place to stand and mark the boarder. though, we overheard a young girl innocently question her parents, 'was that really the falls?' which shows the blurred line between nature and man made creation - the american them park backdrop (fastfood stores, giant icecream stands, ferris wheels) that lined the one way street walk to the magnificent sight t had me feel a little like i was in a fake movie set and homesick for the raw natural beauty that is NZ. drive there took us through vast green canadian countryside, cornfields and many roadside fruit fields which invited us to stop for necessary cherry picking and vineyard time. this large provence, ontario, really feeds and welcomes everyone. excited for NY tomorrow....
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