The List

We received an email from Shanghai (our new school there) a few days ago and it listed everything to bring (because you can't get it over there). Marcelle and I looked at each other and nearly said in unison: "We'll need a shipping container!" Shoes (large sizes), toiletries, clothing in general (large sizes), sun screen, some office supplies... It was endless. And we are not using a shipping container! In fact, we're bringing one duffel bag apiece.

So if we look a little ratty in photographs -- and we're barefoot....
(Ridley)

Here we go

We were never quite sure we would get here, yet we always knew we would. Despite the seemingly insurmountable obstacles that kept appearing at every turn, the solutions to those never imagined challenges kept leading us closer to Shanghai, in the end giving us more contacts, more information, more possibilities, more encouragement than we began with. This "preparation" time has indeed done that. Laid a foundation for understanding, in part, what this next year may bring. Nothing is as we would expect it to be, even the simplest of details. It is a great opportunity to let go of preconceived notions, any sense of control or inflexibility, any sense of personally turning the east into the ease of the west, and just immerse ourselves in another culture. Another sense of time, another sense of business dealings, of social interactions, of eating - of living! This is our great opportunity. To really learn about and learn from this culture of many millennia.

How do we start this adventure? It has been near impossible to try and learn any Mandarin on our own, so I am hoping that total immersion in Shanghai will have some effect. Reading everything I can find on China, fiction and non-fiction, has been, and continues to be, a great treat. We have made US and Chinese contacts already in Shanghai which brings a certain sense of security and confidence.

The next great challenge is to pack for a year in one roller board and one duffel each. I have bought things I have heard are not as easy to find there: toothpaste (not Chinese made!), deodorant, tights for the girls, etc. I have heard that any shoe size for women over a size 9 will be difficult to find. Do I bring 5 pairs of shoes or 10? These are the big questions looming in front of us now - now that we actually have visas in hand. Amazing. We are where we thought we would be, but could never dream would actually happen.

The Arrival

The tease came complete with Fex Ex ringing the door bell and presenting a package for the wrong address -- this on the day we were told we could expect our China visas. Presto: ten minutes later, a second Fed Ex truck, and this was the one. I waited a few minutes to open the package, and when I did my heart was pounding. Thankfully, all the documents we'd sent were returned to us, including our four passports all with six month visas. So the family is definitely moving to Shanghai. We started the visa process in October. On June 13th, a Friday, just over a month from our scheduled departure date we received the proper visas.

I am to lecture at Fudan University for the year. I will meet in person with department heads the first week of August.

There is an electricity passing around the house. I've heard both the girls whisper, "We're going to China," as this is the first time we've been able to know it's now humanly possible. Internally, I'm churning. All the preparation has been mitigated by the knowledge the visa process could prevent us from going. But now... Where is that pair of socks?

The Hardest Things

I think that the hardest thing of leaving for China will be leaving behind all of my friends, family, and pets. Like I already said, my friends have helped me with friendship a lot and and they have taught me so much. I am going to have to go to China and leave behind my friends, my family, and my puppy and dog. Just thinking about having to leave behind my teachers, and my best friends makes me really sad. Last night I had a nightmare about leaving my friends. The hard thing is to know that when you come back, your friends will still be there. When I go to China, I am sure I will have lots of fun, but right now it's hard to think about. My puppy and dog are really hard to leave because I love them so much. Even after having my puppy for a little over a year, he is just warming up to the family and starting to understand that we are always trying to help him. I have had my dog for about six years and she is a very loyal dog that is very obedient and always sad when we leave if even only for a week. My family is all mostly in America and I will have to leave them all for a year. 

My friends are all left back in Idaho or St. Louis and I am really sad to leave them all for a year. These are basically the hardest things about leaving America, but I think the hardest of them all is to leave America which I truly love. I have traveled to many different countries and really loved them all, but I can say that what I found (and this may just apply to me) is that there is no place like America to live. I have never been to China, so I may find this change, but what I find the hardest part of moving is leaving. Leaving America, my friends, my family, and my pets.

The Move

I will miss all of my friends, but that is something everyone will have to get over at some point. The reassuring thought is that I will see them in a year. I want to thank all of my friends for being my friends and hope that they will still want to be my friends when I come back. The twins that go to my school teach me a very important thing on friendship or sisterly love. The friends that I have known have all taught me a lesson on friendship so thank you all.

~Paige

One of those things

I realize I'm getting this out of order, but actually that seems kind of appropriate, because there is nothing linear about working on moving to China. It is a society that works in ever constricting circles, something I find intriguing and even interesting, but something that takes getting used to and I'm not there yet.

But today the "setback" was entirely all-American. We received an auto-generated notice that our paperwork for our visa applications had not been received. Now, by paperwork, it left out that it was all four passports and our daughter's original (irreplaceable) Chinese passport. I emailed. I called.

Nothing.

Only that pit in my stomach that the documents were lost.

I called Adele who handles all our UPS shipping and she informed me it had indeed been delivered, but NOT signed-for. There was confusion about the delivery being to an office or not. So, no signature.

A deeper pit in my stomach. No way to track the final whereabouts of all our passports and application forms, invitation letter... EVERYTHING we need to keep the visa situation moving.

And I waited.

Out of patience, I tried to call again, six hours later. The call was answered, and a very nice man assured me the documents had indeed arrived, etc. etc. etc. I didn't hear much of the rest, I was celebrating internally that our passports still existed in the known physical universe.

He had forgotten to check his voice mail -- so hadn't returned my earlier call of panic.

I'm back to work now, breathing easier.
But I'm reminded, nothing about this will be easy: not even mailing some passports.