I went to China on August 25 2008. It was a business trip. I had just had surgery on my rotator cuff thus you can see the sling on my arm. I had a great time in China and met some wonderful people. One of them wanted me to stay and teach english, I would have except for my youngest daughter is still living at home with me. The drivers in China are terrible they just go with no regard for pedestrians or other vehicles. I had to learn how to dodge cars very quickly they do not want to stop for you at all and will threaten to run you down if you get to cocky. I found quite a difference there in the evenings there are people everywhere, here I drove in the city of edmonton tonight and there were very few people out on the streets seems so desolate here after the sun goes down. Wonder why that is? Is it because we don't feel safe enough out on the streets? Is it because we don't want or need the fellowship of other people? Just a strange obesrvation of mine. 
I really felt safe in China, there weren't any drunks there weren't any drug addicts out on the streets. Am I naive enough to think there are none, no. Where were they, maybe they are the ones locked behind closed doors so no one can see them. Seems to me we've got it all wrong we should feel safe to leave our homes at night. Another observation of mine was that the old people don't have senior citizen homes or any type of care facility for that matter. So I asked and was told there is a crisis beginning there because they were only to have one child. Then that one child will growup and get married. The new couple now have a dilema who will they care for the husbands parents or the brides parents. It appears it doesn't really matter one set of parents is left to fend for themselves most of the time...unless of course you are one of the upper class with money. Someone should be thinking of building seniors homes there...I would but my shoulder is in no shape just yet.
Look at the traffic circle it was beautifully
landscaped as were almost all the streets the sidewalks were made with tiles and placed in certain designs. Clean wow talk about clean there was people cleaning the streets every block or so they had their area and they kept it clean all day long. At night they would disappear and bright and early the next morning they were at it again.
Don't look at the date on the pics they really weren't taken in 2004. Someone just doesn't know how to change it........
Oh yes one other memorable part of my trip (and there were many) was the flight home...from Shanghai, I sat with a young Chinese girl she was very quiet, but began to ask questions about my arm and where I was from. I said Edmonton, she gave a squeek of surprise. She was also going to Edmonton to work for two years, would she know anyone there? No she was going to be alone. I gave her my business card and told her to call me when she got settled. If she needed anything anytime to call me and if there was anyway possible I would find or give her the help. She finally called me when she purchased a cell phone. We met tonight I was very happy to see her as was she, I invited her to thanksgiving.....I don't even know where I'm having it yet. She said that thanksgiving was for family, I said consider me your family then. So Amanda (TianJing chinese name) we are family!!
