biking in Beijing

In the spirit of all good breaks, we end our week-long work hiatus refreshed, exhausted and ready to greet the next wave of students.

Graced with mild weather, we spent a good deal of our free time enjoying the outdoors and mingling with the millions of Chinese who took to the streets and parks in celebration of the National Day Holiday. Everywhere we went we were met with crowds of people and streets crammed with vehicles.

We kicked off the week with a serious hike through the far reaches of nearby Yuan Ming Yuan Park and several hours biking to and around the city’s Western Hills area. As the hoped-for fall colors have not yet arrived here, we opted to hold off on the strenuous climbs to the tops of Fragrant Hills and North Mountain until colder temperatures bring a change to the leaves.

On a sadder note we also said goodbye to two long-time Chinese staff members, Joe and Naomi, who moved to Yunnan Province to get established in anticipation of their marriage sometime next year. Preston had spent a lot of time with Joe playing guitar and helping to train him to be the program’s first Chinese national to work as a facilitator. They both will be sorely missed.

Midweek we spent the day with a former student and her husband at their new home on the far eastside of the city. Having won a lottery for the opportunity to purchase a new home, the couple recently finished “fitting up” their new digs and moving out of the in-law’s house in an outlying village.

After a gigantic hot pot lunch with many of the couple’s younger relatives (brothers, sisters and their wives and significant others) we visited over bottomless cups of tea, handfuls of sunflower seeds and almonds. We got a lot of great tips on places to visit in Beijing from our student’s husband, who is learning to be a train engineer and is a life-long explorer of the city’s nooks and crannies.

Following one of the many tips, we set out the next day for Eight Sites Park, more than two hours away on bicycle. Riding past orchards, cemeteries and sprawling government compounds we were reminded how much there is to see on the outskirts of the urban area. We spent a couple of hours at the park squeezing our way through crowds and clouds of burning incense to visit the temples. We claimed a park bench and ate fried noodles and watched the people as we gathered the strength to head home.

Today (Saturday) it was meetings, planning and organizing as we prepare for the arrival of some 300 students on Monday. We will again be working in support of our new colleagues and taking on special projects as they arise. We continue to be blessed daily in our relationships, opportunities and joy in the work that lies ahead.