The year 2021 is over, the new one a month old.
How long did your resolutions last? Did you have any resolutions at all for the new year? Good resolutions for the new year are often the result of expectations, wishes and resolutions from last year that were not fulfilled, not heeded and not kept. So, what did you resolve to do last year, what did you bring out of the woodwork for this year, and what did you perhaps already discard?
My resolution: to put the phone aside for half a day once a week!
And so far, well it's been four weeks already, it's worked out well ;)
Why do I put away the only means of communication that connects me to home? Because this constant mobile phone game, the permanent "being on call" gets on my nerves. And because I observe other people. I want to talk to the other person in the restaurant, not check the latest news on my phone. I want to cross the street safely and not run in front of a lamppost. Yes, both have been observed, seen and experienced many times. Especially here, the mobile phone is not just for making calls. It's a wallet, a TV, a games console, a fitness tracker, a taxi fare collector, a lifestyle facilitator.
And my half-day of abstinence does me good.
Last weekend Denny and I went to South Lake. Since the lakes here are frozen at least 50 cm thick, you can not only snowkite or skate on the lakes, but also drive on them. There is a race track on the southern side of South Lake. Racing cars with spikes race here at the weekend. On the ice. And despite the spikes, they slide quite a bit. But what impressed me the most, the cars were tracked by super fast camera drones. And also about only 1 metre behind or to the side of the car. One flying mistake and the drone is gone....
I now know myself how difficult it is to fly our drone. Until now, I was always too afraid to fly it against a tree or to sink it in the sea, so I have never flown with our little crab.
But there really is a lot of space on the frozen lakes and if you choose a lake where there are no car races, no one else will get in your way. So I did my first flying lessons without crashing.
But it is not only on South Lake that a race course is marked. There are also open "roads" on other lakes. So also on Airport Lake (actually called Kalun Lake Reservoir) and Denny and I went up with our golf. Very exciting and really fun. Much better than ADAC driving training because you slide much further.
The end of January, beginning of February is the Chinese Spring Festival or Chinese New Year. The whole city is decorated and illuminated with lights. They also decorate their houses with fairy lights and red lanterns. Ubiquitous and popular here in China, at home a red lamp rather marks an establishment that, let's say, satisfies special needs ;)
I have already told you that there is no Christmas here. But for the Chinese, this time of year is like Christmas, New Year's Eve, Easter and a birthday all together. Just as it's busy in the supermarkets in the run-up to Christmas, it's the same here. People are rushing from one shop to the next, buying presents, stressed out and trying to get as many things done as they can, and in the restaurants there is one "Christmas party" after another. So just like at home. I didn't notice this last year, because we had to arrive first. Last year I was still wondering which Chinese zodiac sign would determine 2021 (it was the buffalo), but this year I can already see it beforehand. 2022 is the year of the tiger. Everywhere you can buy cuddly toys in the shape of a tiger, in red of course, tigers hang in pictures on the walls, tigers are painted or sold as decorative figures.
And for about a week now, the Chinese have been warming up with firecrackers... Next week, the firecrackers will reach their peak 24/7, and around the last third of February, the firecrackers will come to an end.
Almost half-time and a short review
By the way, March is already half-time! Then we almost have to think again about what we will pack into the departure container.
How quickly the time has passed now. If I had the feeling on the individual days last year that there was no end to the day, I feel differently today. The year went by so quickly that I no longer dread the next few months. You know that my start here was a bit bumpy, but in the meantime I would say that I have arrived. It has taken me a year to feel a slight sense of satisfaction. Not that I've got used to the food, the traffic, the hygienic manners, or the rubbish. No, not that.
It's more that I avoid Chinese food as much as possible, prefer to leave a little earlier so that I can get through the traffic calmly and defensively, give scathing looks to people who snot at my feet and throw the rubbish in the bin outside our door.
In the meantime, I have also found a few girls who do sport with me. I'm very happy about that.
The last year has also brought some challenges for Denny and me in terms of our relationship: Denny works a lot and is committed, and I wait for him to come home.
I still haven't settled into this housewife role and I certainly won't, but you can certainly imagine that this distribution leads to discussions.
Not only once did I get my suitcase out of the basement, wanting to pack things and fly home. As little time as we spend together here, however, the partner is the only real point of reference. The partner is the base here, the home, the anchor. That's precisely why it's all the more important not to make this focal point your enemy. And that is not so easy. Mutual expectations clash at the end of the day, are not or only insufficiently formulated, one assumes understanding and yet feels misunderstood. So what to do when talking only leads to more frustration? Not talk to each other at all, sit in the corner and sulk, pack your bags? Yup, we tried that. Didn't help. That didn't make it any better.
So we sat down and analysed the HOW. HOW do we deal with each other? HOW do we talk to each other? HOW would the other person like to be treated? And: HOW important is our time together?
But it didn't happen all by itself, so we looked for a little support in the form of a book. We now read a chapter together every week. For more mindfulness in our interactions together.
The cold temperatures here also have advantages:
Changchun Ice & Snow World. Temples, castles, figures, slides and aircraft carriers built of ice. When it gets dark, the lights are switched on and everything is very colourful.
How long has it been since I've eaten a candyfloss...?
And there are also candied fruits here. But the temperature meant that the strawberries (which I had chosen) were frozen under the sugar... For me, frozen strawberries make my stomach hurt. So I tried them, found them good, but not again.
At the end of January, we saw Denny's boss off to Germany. It was a very nice farewell get-together.
Greetings
Anja & Denny