The Year of Covid

It’s safe to say that no one saw this one coming. This post was originally planned as “The Summer of Covid” but now that we are wrapping up 2020, I figured it may as well be the year in review. Covid-19 hit every country and each one reacted differently. Since Asia was hit first, we were the first to scramble and try to figure out how to move forward with daily life which included school. Our school was already on break for Chinese New Year at the very end of January when the news of Covid’s impact hit China. Our holiday was then extended for a week so the government could come up with a plan. Once the decision was made to start online teaching indefinitely, many teachers left for North America and Thailand thinking other countries were safer. When the casinos in Macau shut down, we went to Taiwan for nine days to buy some time and to explore our options. Eventually we realized that things were stable and just safer in Macau.

Our online teaching format evolved to include live online lessons. Each time we became comfortable with the format, things would change and the number of live lessons increased. We were all on Zoom well before this fully hit the U.S. and Canada. Spring break trips were cancelled, students’ experience week in various countries were cancelled, and we soon discovered that we were not allowed to leave Macau; well, if we did, we couldn’t return. If you were a permanent resident of Macau and you could manage the quarantines on either end of your trip, then you could travel. We were stuck in Macau for the hottest and most humid months of the year.

My weekly calls to my parents became Zoom calls. While everyone here is upset they can’t travel, it’s the inability to see family that is the most devastating.

Most flights were cancelled.

Most flights were cancelled.

Popular tourist spots were empty.

Popular tourist spots were empty.

During the year we explored more of Macau, celebrated Maeve’s high school graduation, went on hikes, enjoyed the views, celebrated birthdays and anniversaries, went to festivals, ate at great restaurants and swilled drinks at lovely bars, went to the horse races, visited an art exhibit, weathered a storm and enjoyed a couple of ‘staycations’ in some lavish hotels. We are well aware that we were able to do more than many others, and we were grateful while we made the most of it. We are proud of the accomplishments achieved as we finished 2020. Maeve completed her first term of university online with amazing success. Michael finished a passion project as he edited and published his father’s memoirs. Liam and I successfully completed another term at the international school and we are happy that we can still safely attend in person.

These are the highlights of 2020. There was certainly a lot of down time and l didn’t include pictures of teaching in pajamas online…mainly because there are none.

Here’s hoping 2021 brings health and the reunions of family and friends. Cheers.

20201224_204308.jpg

Guilin, China (Part 2....Yangshuo)

Yangshuo is about 45 miles from Guilin and takes approximately 90 minutes by car depending on traffic. We arranged for a driver from Guilin to take us to Yangshuo. Some people take a scenic boat ride which travels down the Li River from Guilin and takes about three and a half hours. We decided to try a shorter boat ride on the river from Yangshuo once when we were there.

This provides an idea of the distance we traveled by train (not by car, but the map wouldn’t show train) from Zhuhai which is just across the border from Macau.

This provides an idea of the distance we traveled by train (not by car, but the map wouldn’t show train) from Zhuhai which is just across the border from Macau.

Our hotel, The Tea Cozy Hotel, was lovely and quaint. We had a family room and the kids had their own balcony. The views were gorgeous from the fifth floor (no elevator). We were pleased with our family room which provided separate bedrooms, but we had to share a bathroom with the kids which is generally problematic.

The woman who ran the hotel was very friendly and accommodating. She provided additional information about the area while we enjoyed a lovely cup of ginger tea by the fireplace. We went for a stroll along the pedestrian path that follows the Yulong River which you could see from our balcony. This is a small river that eventually meets up with the Li River. We captured some stunning photos. We even had some company along the way.

The next day we got a ride to Xingping, an ancient town where we could access small boats that tour the Li River. When I say small, I mean small. They are more like small floating pontoon boats (or rafts) with two small benches with seating for only four adults. The driver stands in the back and guides the boat. Tours started at 11:00 after the larger river tour boats have passed through. The tour lasts about an hour….30 minutes down the river and then we turned around to return. This particular area is quite scenic and is also famous because the image from the 20 yuan note is from this location.

Screenshot 2020-08-18 at 11.17.21 AM.png
This is the scene from the 20 yuan note above.

This is the scene from the 20 yuan note above.

After our boat tour, we explored the ancient town of Xingping and had some lunch.

The weather was beautiful the next day. We really lucked out for this time of year. Maeve and I went for a long bike ride along the Yulong River in the opposite direction of our walk the prior day. We saw even smaller ‘boat’ rides for the more adventurous folks. I think we were fine on the bikes. We stopped a few times along the way to snap some pictures.

In the evening we went to a show called Impression Sanjie Liu. I haven’t seen anything like it. It took five years to develop the show. The performance was outside and involved hundreds of performers near and on the water (the Li River). The show was broken into seven chapters with different themes like legends of the scenery, folk songs and fishing. Seating was interesting. You paid more to sit higher up and further back. That made some sense in the covered areas if you were cold, but you were much further away. Also, there seemed to be extreme cultural differences on how to behave during a performance. I was not surprised at all of the cameras and selfies, but the amount of talking was crazy. Parents said nothing to small children talking loudly. I gave a few looks, but to no avail. That said, it was a great experience and I really enjoyed the unique performance within the stunning backdrop of the mountains. The choreography was fascinating. I do not think my video does it any justice, but it gives an idea.

In this last video, the performers were covered in lights. Again, the video does not do justice to the visual spectacle. The entire show was incredibly unique. The venue, performers and choreography were superb.

When we returned, the other guests at the hotel were getting ready for their New Year’s Eve party. The hotel was hosting a BBQ and we were invited. We joined and were welcomed with warm wine…even Liam got some. They had started earlier and were dancing. We felt a little awkward, but we ate a bit before returning to our room. At midnight we watched local fireworks from our balcony. We had a lovely time and even played cards together. It was nice to welcome in 2020 as a family.

Michael and I went for a walk on our last full day there. It was another gorgeous day. We saw a couple singing with a speaker beside the river. Unexpected and beautiful.

This was a lovely hotel and a lovely trip with the kids. I wish we were able to travel more from here. We are hopeful to be able to go somewhere new before the year ends.

Guilin, China (Part 1)

We were first really able to travel from Macau during our December break. Popular holiday destinations in Southeast Asia book quickly and without knowing too much about how or when we could travel due the processing time of my work visa, we were unable to book a trip any earlier. We decided to avoid the holiday travel crowds and head to mainland China. We could take a train and avoid crowded airports.

One of the many great things about working at an international school is that most of the staff are well-traveled and have great recommendations. Several people recommended Guilin because of the scenery and the activities. It was about a three hour train ride away, so it seemed like a good choice. The weather would be questionable as it is often cooler (around low 50s F) and rainy. We took our chances and it paid off.

Michael and I did a trial run at the border a few days before we left. We did not want any surprises traveling with two teenagers at an early hour. We easily got to the border crossing on the far end of Macau. The Chinese city on the other side is Zhuhai which is where we needed to pick up our train tickets. We could have picked them up on the day of travel, but again we didn’t want any surprises or delays. This was right around the time of the 20 year celebration of Macau being handed back to China. We did not account for the excess of people crossing the border that day so the border crossing took quite a while.

Thanks to our pre-travel preparation, getting to Guilin went smoothly. We arrived on time and had made arrangements to be picked up at the train station. A friend had found a highly rated boutique hotel with great rates, so the kids got their own room.

After settling in, the hotel manager invited us to come downstairs and learn how to make dumplings. We couldn’t get the kids to join us, so Michael and I went on our own.

It was Christmas Eve and we had to prepare for Santa’s visit to China. We’ve had some interesting Christmases and I am glad the kids are flexible in celebrating wherever we are in the world. In the morning we had a lovely little celebration together The kids seemed to like their gifts. Michael and I treated ourselves to massages in our room. The women giving the massages did not speak English, but it was obvious they were displeased with the knots in my shoulders. They were very strong and I had a few bruises the next day. It was still a nice treat.

Later in the afternoon, we went for a walk to check out the area. (Make sure you click to see all of the photos in the carousel.)

The next day we took a tour of the local caves with the kids. We were able to walk there from our hotel.

The boutique hotel had a restaurant. We were not in a location that was near the main town, so dining options were limited. The following day we planned a trip to Yaoshan Mountain. I got an earlier start and went for a walk near our hotel on my own. Due to my curiousity and the intrigue of the colorful path, I ended up hiking up the largest hill there to take in the views.

A nice panoramic view from the top of the hill.

A nice panoramic view from the top of the hill.

I got back to our place just in time to meet our taxi driver. He drove us to a very traditional Chinese diner for lunch first. He made sure we were able to order food, then he waited for us outside. We did invite him to join us, but he declined. The waitress dropped off a large bowl of hot water. We had no idea what this was for so I looked around to see what other diners were doing. We concluded that it was used to rinse your plates and spoons. This was our first time seeing this, but I have seen it many times since then. The plates are clean already so it seems to be more of a ritual.

Our driver was also a great guide. He even helped us at the pharmacy after lunch. Maeve and Liam had travel tummies and we had no idea how to get some proper medicine. Finally we were off to Yaoshan Mountain. It was a lovely day and we were hoping for some great views. We bought tickets and our driver joined us on the ski lift to the top. It was gorgeous below, but more hazy at the top, so our views were limited and not as great as I had hoped.

IMG_6257.JPG

On our last night in Guilin proper, we spent some time downtown. The kids didn’t want to join us, so Michael and I went for a walk to see the pagodas at Riyue Shuangta Cultural Park. It was a lovely evening and there was a nice path around this small lake. Afterwards, we had dinner within the pedestrian walkway. There were many street vendors and shops.

Guilin was a nice city to spend a few days. The temperatures were mild and we managed to avoid most of the rain. Next we were off to spend several days in Yangshuo to see more of the unique Chinese countryside.