Monday, September 16, 2013

The Last Entry is The Hardest

 
One of my favorite places.  It was amazingly serene. 
My friends, I am sorry that I have not posted to the blog recently.  I have been very busy of course as I have mentioned in earlier blogs with school and golf, but that really isn't the reason that I am behind.  The biggest reason is I couldn't really bring myself to write my last post.  This has been such an amazing experience for me.  The year in China was almost indescribable, but sharing with my friends and family was a physical and mental pleasure that I will miss immensely.  I want to take a moment to thank all of you that kept up regularly.  I never really had any idea how many people would read my writing, so I have been pleasantly surprised to discover nearly 10,000 people from all over the world have read my blog.  So, thank you again for your patience with my growth as a writer.
  This final blog is going to focus on what we learned while we were in Southeast Asia.  I am going to describe in words a few topics and then I have created a video to go along with those topics.  I will warn you that trying to squeeze a retrospective of a year living in Southeast Asia into a video is a daunting task.  I got it down to less than 20 minutes, but I think it will be worth your time.  The link will be included at the end of the blog.  With that said, I am going to dive into this final blog head first!!!!

 
THE PEOPLE:  If I have said it once, I will say it as long as I live, "The Greatest Asset to Southeast Asia are The People".  Everywhere we went we were treated with great respect and courtesy.  The people went out of their way to make us feel welcome and were genuinely happy to get to know us.  By immersing ourselves in the culture of China, we experienced things that other expats have not.  By becoming friends and trying to learn as much of the language and culture, we were treated to meals in homes, personal guides to festivals, and friendships that will last a lifetime.  Spending Chinese New Year's Eve with my close friend Michael and his mother, brother and immediate family is something that we will not soon forget.  My friend David taught me about the corporate and local government world.  Finally, my friend Ken gave me a lesson in capitalism and getting to know the US Consulate Office.  These were experiences that I never would have dreamt of at all.  Who would have thought that I had to go to China to party with Obama's brother or have martini's with the Under Secretary of Commerce.  Wonders will never cease to exist.  The people of Thailand and the Philippines were not any different.  No offense to government officials, but I think that if everyday people without egos ran governments, the world would be a happier place.  I'm just saying!!!


Magnificent!!!
THE COUNTRY:  The country is amazing.  There are so many wonders to see that it would take years to experience it all.  We did see quite a bit, but if I had the opportunity I would want to visit upper Mongolia and the Tibet Region.  What we did see awed and amazed us.  The history is so deep and varied that it is hard to imagine the people knowing all of it.  We only have to remember roughly 237 years of history, they have to know thousands of years.  Yet, with thousands of years of history, they haven't forgotten and actually appreciate the failures and successes.  They have a pride in their history that I  can only hope we continue to develop in our society.  I could have spent a few weeks walking through Xi'an.  They say that all of Chinese history began in Xi'an.  The middle of the city is dedicated to the history of the country of China.  There is so much to absorb there that it is mind boggling.

 
Many types of Sea Cucumbers
THE FOOD:  What can I say about the food, but incredible!!!!  The amazing thing we learned was that you really know fresh food when you have it regularly.  Every restaurant we ate at would buy the ingredients that morning from the open air market.  It really made a difference.  Along with Chinese food, we really learned to love Thai, Vietnamese and Indian food.  If you are wondering if we ate any exotic things while we were away, King Cobra and Bull's Penis are at the top of the list.  Our favorite dishes were spicy green beans and Japanese Eggplant stuffed with pork.  Ooh,   Yum!!!!  Finally, we learned that Chinese food varies widely with the province in which a person visits.  In our area, fish and vegetables were the norm, while in the north toward Beijing and Xi'an it was comfort food that was primary to the palates of many.  They ate a lot of soup and bread.  By the way, the Donkey at China Burger was very good as well.  On the other hand, I did write to Starbucks one day to thank them for their consistent products.  A Venti No Foam Latte is the same in Hong Kong, Xi'an, Thailand and all the large cities in China as it is in our little town of Oakhurst.  Now that is what I call comfort food.

 
Heavenly Pagoda
THE CULTURE AND TRADITIONS:  There is a lot of faith and hope in China.  Learning and understanding about Buddhism was interesting.  The Christian Churches are thriving and helping those that are thirsty for the Word.  This was the biggest surprise to us.  We found a church that we loved and didn't have to hide in a basement to worship.
  Chinese New Year lived up to all that we had heard about.  It is an experience that none of us will forget.  My friends were excited to share with us about the traditions associated with this holiday.
  Finally, it was fun to learn about the other holidays that we had not heard about, like the October and Dragon Boat Festival.  We can honestly say that Moon Cake is probably the worst thing that all of us have eaten in our lives.

  ADVENTURES OUTSIDE THE COUNTRY:  Having traveled to Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand and the Philippines while on our adventure,
Ko Samui
we met many different people and were greeted as warmly as living in China.  The adventures and education about each area was invaluable.  This was  a great surprise that we didn't expect when we chose to partake in this excursion.  In the end, despite all that we saw and learned, it was the people that made us appreciate our experience the most.

  FINAL THOUGHT:  It is difficult to put into words all that we learned.  I can only hope that as the year went along and I shared my thoughts with you that I was expressing newly learned knowledge.  Finally, Cecelia and I agree that we have also learned to say NO to some things and to take time to really be mindful and rest.  Who knew that it would take a trip to China for me to learn this lesson.
  It has been a great pleasure sharing with you and I hope that I have inspired you to share your adventures with others as I have.  Blessings to all of you.

BY THE WAY:  A publisher has asked that we turn the blog into a book and add the journal content from emails that Cecelia was sending weekly and entries from both Claire and Taylor.  Look for the O's Odyssey in a bookstore near you soon.

This is the link to my final video, enjoy!!!  It is a little long, but worth it.  It was difficult squeezing a year long adventure into a few moments.  What We Learned in Pictures

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