我最近搬家到了加拿大哈利法克斯，在圣玛丽大学学习商业。在加拿大换大学换得不难，但是不太容易。比如我以前在温哥华是电脑老师。圣大商业学生都学习程电脑课，内容是Access, Word, Excel,等等。我觉得太容易的课。老师说：我必须参加程电脑课，所以没办法。

我星期一，星期二晚上有上课，不可以吃中秋节的特别的菜。我真想在天津我和朋友们2004年一起包饺子，吃饭，喝白酒。这次晚上有数学课。我以后安排教哥哥的小孩儿怎么包。觉得他们太小，但是可以好玩儿。在加拿大可不可以买中国的白酒？我不知道。我从中国只拿一瓶山西的白酒。如果在哈利法克斯要真的中国食品，可以买。我已经买了饺子皮儿，花椒，等等。两次我自己做葱油饼，但是做得不好啊！我不熟练。做炒面比葱油饼更容易，所以常常做。

你中秋节在你家乡吃什么菜？

Happy Mid Autumn Festival everyone!

Saint Mary’s University (圣玛丽大学)

Canada Post stamp: Year of the pig

CBC reports that Canada Post (加拿大的邮局) has released it’s latest stamp celebrating the year of the Pig.

I think most Chinese people I’ve met (and foreigners too) are quite surprised when I say how Chinese traditions are woven into Canadian life. A symbol of a Chinese festival being specially acknowledged in this way does not seem like a very politically motivated action in the vein of one-off stamps to honour certain famous figures.

Looming lion (Chinese new year in Vancouver, 2004)

Canada Post, as far as I remember, has been making special Chinese New Year stamps honouring the Chinese zodiac for many years now. This new stamp is simply the latest edition for the coming Chinese new year on February 18^th, 2007. The greatest symbolism for the relationship between China and Canada might be seen in how un-extraordinary things like this are. My experience is certainly biased from my life in Vancouver, but I can remember living in the beautiful small town of Squamish, BC and celebrating the Chinese new year in my primary school. Doesn’t everyone celebrate Chinese new year?

My friend in Dawson Creek, BC recently told me about temperatures of -37°C (with windchill) and a good 5 feet (1.5 meters) of snow. Even the mild rainy city of Vancouver dropped to 20-below for about a week as the city experienced some extreme weather. So it seems funny that Nanchang weather feels so cold to me now as the current temperature reaches lows of 5°C, and highs of 15°C. Five-degrees may not be cold to a Vancouverite, but context is important.

Nanchang buildings have no heating. None. Buildings don’t even have rudimentary insulation. Every inch of every building here is made from all-concrete construction. Windows and doors aren’t sealed in any building I’ve seen in Nanchang. Every place—from classrooms to restaurants—is freezing just as much as if you were outside sitting under the shade of a tall oak tree. Today’s high-temperature of 9°C would be fine to wear a t-shirt inside a Vancouver classroom, but you would never wear just a t-shirt in Nanchang; instead, I’ve been protecting my torso with the following:

1. t-shirt
2. long-underwear shirt
3. sweater
4. fleece jacket
5. windbreaker

I could have never imagined wearing 5-layers of clothing to class under such conditions, but everyone in my class, including the teachers, are wearing several layers of clothes and still complaining.

My house is about the same. The bathroom and kitchen have unsealed vents that lead directly outside. If I close all the doors and stand in the living room, I still feel a slight draft of cold air on my face. My hands get numb studying in my house and my feet are still cold despite wearing 2-pairs of thick socks. I tried to resist, but I finally bought a heater.

My only source of heat in the city of Nanchang

Finally I could sleep easy. The radiator cost me RMB$330 which is 3-times more expensive than other heaters. Cheap heaters have a reputation for making fires, so I chose the more expensive model for safety reasons. With a blanket stuffed into the crack under the door, I keep myself barricaded in the bedroom to eat, study, read, and sleep. The cold was far from eliminated, but at least it was tolerable. Victory was mine! …or so I thought.

The burn mark

After discovering the giant burn mark under the heater, I pushed the damn machine out of my sight and acknowledged that I could die of fire a lot easier than frostbite. The next few days I slept with my sweater and a toque under 2 blankets and considered wearing gloves too. I knew I needed something for warmth or I wouldn’t be able to study, but I couldn’t use the radiator… or could I? I finally remembered I could set the heater on ‘medium’. Now it doesn’t provide much heat, but it’s better than nothing and I can study. The last time I did my laundry I set the radiator on the tile floor of my living room and let it dry 2 pairs of underwear at a time while I bundled myself in blankets, drank something hot, and watched a movie.

Don’t get me wrong here. I’m thankful for everything I have. I’m just surprised by the reality. Before coming to Nanchang I had heard the average low temperature for winter was 0°C. Compared to Vancouver or Tianjin, Nanchang sounds hot, but the reality is so different when you put it in context.

Almost a million people in the Vancouver area remain under a boil-water advisory for a fifth day, although coffee giant Starbucks is once again serving residents.
—CTV.ca News

Starbucks, computers, and the Vancouver skyline
(Photo credit: Mezzoblue)