Addictions

It started out simple enough, I guess that is really how all addictions begin. You eye it over, you hear the stories of how wonderful it is, then you finally allow curiosity to get the better of you and you give in. Time goes by though and you find yourself dreaming about just "one more hit", what will it hurt after all? Next thing you know, that one hit becomes many and soon the whole damn bag of honey cakes are gone.

Hi, My name is ROBIN and I have a Honey Cake addiction!

It's a terrible state that I find myself in. I am in my favorite place, exploring, enjoying, learning...and BAM! Smack damn in the middle of it all I discover tasty little delicacies I have never before tasted. Maybe it is the fact I have never had the "time" in all of my other visits to China where I could simply linger. In these quiet moments of solitude I have made new discoveries of ancient foods. I am finding that the browsing and meandering through the streets and small shops has given me a greater satisfaction than in times past, but with that satisfaction comes new cravings and desires.

I have learned there really is a vast difference in teas. I savor their aroma, the taste that covers every taste bud as I slowly sip each tempting cup. I have learned that the reason the tea cups are small and without handles is because if it is too hot to touch, it is definitely too hot for the mouth. I have also learned the unfortunate truth that the more expensive the tea, the better it really does taste. And then there is the Honey Cake. The tempting little rock hard cake of honey infused with air. It is whipped up into a foamy mass of pure heavenly goodness, a treat I cannot describe. I thank God they only sell it in 4x4x2" cakes that they break into many pieces, and I am thankful that I belive it is only a seasonal festival treat. If I could find them everywhere I would not be able to resist the temptation they beckon me with.

Today was the first day of class. I told my instructor that in America we greet the teacher on the first day of class with an apple, I gave him a mangosteen and some honey cakes. We were informed early on that this course is basically designed to kill us so I pray I make it home alive. They do abide by a pass or fail policy...funny, I guess that never ever crossed my mind. Good thing for me that failure is never an option I choose to explore.

The students come from a variety of places. 2 Hail from the USA, 2 from Russia, 2 from South Africa, 1 from India, 1 from Sweden, 1 from Switzerland, 1 from China and 1 from Canada. It is an awesome mix and we all got along so well. They are mostly young people who have acquired a University degree only to realize they are not in a profession they do not like. We begin individual teaching assignments on Friday.

Tonight I am enjoying a 40 cent beer and eating a bread I picked up at the pastry shop beneath our school. Yeah, bummer for me...pastry shop beneath the school - Cantonese restaurant across the sidewalk! Could be worse I suppose.

One sensation I cannot seem to shake is the fact that I am freezing. It is positively frigid here! The difference between here and home is, although it is cold in New Mexico I do not have to walk everywhere I go. Here you bundle up and walk in the blowing snow. I know it won't kill me but I have reached a new level of cold I have not stumbled across at home. I am hoping the weather pattern changes soon! Oh, happy news from home! We had two baby goats born today, a little male and a female. Jim sent pictures and they are SO cute.

Pray for me....The honey cakes are gone, my sleep pattern is still all messed up and I hope to never suffer one of those ambien sleepwalking nightmares in a hotel in a foreign country....
Also, I believe the smell that seeps out from the manhole in the streets that I described earlier has somehow found it's way into the lobby of my hotel. Either that, or the neighbors are secretly stashing durians in their rooms!