Feeling Accomplished!

Back on the Blogosphere and I have lots of catching up to do. First I should share that I am now an official 1/2 marathon runner!!! 
If someone had told me 3 years ago that I could and would successfully complete a ½ marathon with relative ease I would have not believed it. But, here I am, 100 pounds lighter and a successful finisher of the Shenzhen ½ Marathon. I couldn’t be happier or more proud. I also feel very fortunate to have been able to train with and cross the finish line with Mariya, my wonderful China Mom and dear friend. The run went very well and I’m really looking forward to running another soon; I’m hoping to get at least one more in before heading home in June. 

Sleep Deprived but Happy!

This past weekend was yet another one for the books; my soul is very happy but my body is telling me that it needs a break (it could be said that this is because it's been go, go, go). Thursday night a few of us got dressed up and attended the Stella Artois Food and Drink Awards Gala. It was a great evening filled with entertainment, free food and drinks and laughter. I even won a beautiful docking station for my iPhone for smiling and cheering! 

Friday night was ‘date night’ for a large group of us who ordered in Bombay and then went to see Catching Fire at the theatre in Coastal City. It was my first time going to the movies here in China and it was such a treat! I really enjoyed the movie, dare I say it was better than the first. Although I was so glad to have gone out, I was a little worried that I wasn’t going to make it on the walk home due to exhaustion from the week. Luckily, I made it through my door and the next thing I knew, I was waking up on Saturday morning. 

I took Saturday to myself and had a nice putter day. It began with being Skyped into Thom Swift's house party in Sussex, NB with my parents and some family friends...a Great start to my day:) After the show, I went for coffee, puttered around McDonald’s Market and then made a yummy lunch that I ate on the roof. It was a beautifully sunny day and after eating I decided it was the perfect time for a siesta...so I laid out my towel and had a dozed off for a bit. It’s hard to believe that there is snow dusting the ground back home while I’m here in +27 degree weather (although it is starting to cool off around here). Jennie, Kathryn and I were ready and raring to go at around 4:30 to head to HK for our Big Night with Boyce Avenue (a spontaneous purchase on Friday afternoon). 

After picking up some road pops we were able to get across the border quite smoothly and made it to The AsiaWorld Expo with time to grab a drink and prepare ourselves for an hour and a half of dancing and singing. Boyce Avenue was Absolutely Spectacular live!! It was as though they were playing in our living room! Despite the large venue there weren’t a great deal seats, which was perfect as it allowed us to get up close and personal, as they say. We were front and center leaving about 2 meters between the talent and us: What a Treat!! 

When it was all said and done we lingered in hopes of meeting our future husbands (Michael and Josh included) but alas, no ring (we did meet Fabian, one of Alejandro’s brothers though…dreamy). We decided it was too early and we were all too excited to simply go home so Michael, Josh, Kathryn, Jennie and I decided to head to Lang Kwai Fun for a night out. It was my first time back to the crazy bar street and I had really missed it! We had a wonderful time barhopping and dancing before grabbing a quick bite and taking the 24hour bus home. I hit the pillow at 5:30am after setting my alarm for 8:30am (insert dread here).

Worlds worst human hashtag

 Sunday morning came much too quickly but I strapped on my sneakers and Mariya and I hit the pavement for our 18k. We were a little worried halfway through when our WaterBoy, the one-and-only Ross Henderson, was MIA but he turned up, we finished our run and enjoyed a delicious Boathouse Breaky! By the time Mariya and I made it home I had just enough energy to do some laundry and clean up my room. I was in bed around 4, watched a few episodes of Revenge and was asleep before my sheets were dry around 8o’clock.

Beijing Getaway

After months of great anticipation, Mariya and I finally made it to Beijing for a weekend reunion with the girls (Jill, Jess O and Chelsea) and what a spectacular treat it was! To be perfectly honest, as far as weekends go, I find it hard to believe that it could get any better. Mariya and I were ready and waiting for the 3 o’clock bell on Friday and were out of the school gates quicker than a blink in an attempt to beat the traffic. We got the ferry and were in HK with plenty of time to get some food and relax before boarding our 3hour flight to the big city (smooth isn’t often a word we use here in China, but it all went rather smoothly). After waiting in a rather lengthy cab line Mariya and I made it to CISB where Chelsea was waiting in the cold to let us through the gates. We were welcomed with a lovely wine and cheese spread and was up into the wee hours of the morning catching up J

Saturday we got up bright and early and hit the pavement. It all began with a delicious breakfast at The Rug, a place that I would be frequenting if I lived in the city. It was Wonderful, so neat and it screamed Pinterest to me. From breaky we headed to The Pearl Market where we got some killer deals on Michael Kors watches, sunglasses and scarves (we really had to bundle up, Beijing is really cold!). When we were satisfied with our purchases and done playing with things that we had no intentions of buying we headed to our Top Secret Lulu supplier’s new office (Betty). We were lead to the office by a little boy no more than 7 years old and were all in heaven upon walking through the doors. 

I must say I showed great restraint and only bought myself a few items (sadly). Poor Betty was left with a bit of a mess but a happy wallet. Of course in the excitement I left without my bag of purchases from the market, thank goodness Betty is so lovely and dropped it off at the school for me later in the evening! After all of the Lulu excitement we only had enough energy to visit one more market where Mariya was able to purchase her beautiful red Canada Goose jacket! I certainly plan on buying one when I have a little more money in the bank. That is a jacket that I will need when I return to Canada (or, if the girls have their way, Beijing). After relaxing at home with a glass of wine we all went for a delectable sushi meal at a great spot near the school. The girls picked brilliant kinds of sushi and we certainly laughed a lot. Following the meal we went to Mohiki for some fancy drinks and then after some more at Jill’s her and I went to Sparks for a few hours of dancing to end our wonderful day of shopping.

 Sunday was spent on The Great Wall of China…needless to say Sunday Funday has a whole new meaning to me. It took us a couple of hours to get there (nap time) and when we arrived we were all buzzing with excitement. 

Lee, our guide, took us to a much less populated part of the wall and it turned out that we had the whole thing to ourselves (a rarity and true treat). We were freezing (I wore a long sleeve lulu running top, a lulu jacket, my Banana Rep jacket, a knit scarf, hat and mitts) and the wind was wild but the day couldn’t’ have been more beautiful. It was a clear day with some lovely white clouds, a perfect combo to see the stunning views surrounding The Wall. It was such a treat to spend such a wonderful day on The Wall with such beautiful friends – we took a million and one photos and laughed the whole time. WHAT A DAY!

       LIFE IS AWFULLY GOOD :)

Halloween2013/The Color Run

Well, this Halloween again exceeded my expectations!

Halloween in Ms Hoopah’s Grade 2 class:

We celebrated Halloween on Thursday (the 31^st), which was wonderful but made for a difficult Friday! Haha A large part of me strongly believes that Halloween at school is more enjoyed by the teachers than the students (too fun to dress up...yes, I was Michael Jackson), although the kids did show up in some pretty adorable costumes! I’m pretty sure Harry Potter attended my class (his costume was that good). The highlight of the day was by far my kids’ performance in the Assembly. 

This past summer my youngest sister Za taught me how to play ‘The Cups Song’ and after playing it during an evening of Acoustic Corner I had been asked to teach some friends. I still haven’t gotten around to teaching the song to friends but did accept the challenge of teaching it to my Grade 2 students! We kept it a secret, as best we could, and practiced for weeks. By the time the assembly came they were relatively ready and very excited! The performance couldn’t have been cuter – some rocked it while others failed miserably (which upped the cute factor haha).

Halloween celebrated by staff:

The staff celebrated Halloween on Friday, which was the best decision for everyone! Haha It was quite a blowout that no one seems to truly remember and it seems that many were in need of some serious recovery time. After school we had some food and Kathryn and I got ready for the party; she went as a Crazy Cat Lady while I went as a Flapper girl from The Great Gatsby. We danced, had a drink, laughed a ridiculous amount and joined the event on the 3^rd floor around 7:30. 

The costumes were wonderful and the drinking games set-up in the kitchen on the huge island were quite something! The music list was fabulous (thanks to our 3 hour dance/list creating party the girls and I had on Thursday night) and most of my time was spent dancing…surprise, surprise. I had a great time at the party but didn’t stay out too late on account of my 6:55am bus departure time to Guangzhou with The Color Run crew!

Guangzhou: 

As mentioned previously, our bus left at 6:55am from the bus station not far from home (this may have been hellish at the time but looking back, planning this week-end was one of The Best Decisions that I’ve made in a while). Needless to say, a couple of hours sleep didn’t suffice which resulted in my sleeping the entire way to Guangzhou. It took us a couple of hours to arrive and after a few metro stops we found ourselves at The Olympic Stadium where the run was taking place. We signed in, got our packages, dropped our bags, changed in the square and were ready to join the last wave of runners at 11. 

The Color Run is promoted as THE HAPPIEST 5K ON THE PLANET and I 100% agree; taking part in this 5k run was a phenomenal experience and is one I will not soon forget. We found ourselves on a number of occasions throughout the run ‘smiling very loudly’ (Chinese doctor’s expression) and saying ‘I’m So Happy’! hahaha It was at every kilometer that the music was blaring and the paint was flying – on kilometer 3 Kathryn and I found ourselves rolling on the ground in clouds of red paint (why not, really!?). We may have begun the run in fresh white attire but we certainly didn’t finish that way! 

We were all covered in a number of different colors. The paint fight that the 12 of us had at the finish line also ensured that every inch of us, from hair to toes, was covered!

After enjoying a bit of the after party we made our way to The Victory Hotel on Shaiman Island, dropped our things and headed to Lucy’s for some food (our first meal of the day, we were famished). With full bellies we all headed back to our rooms for much needed showers and a nap. I showered first and then thought I would lay on our bed (the comfiest thing I have rested on in a very long time…a cloud in heaven really) and enjoy my coffee and a piece of chocolate. Kathryn may have come out of the bathroom Maybe 10 minutes later only to find me asleep on the bed in my robe, hair still in a towel, chocolate on my stomach and my coffee still in my hands – in my defense, I simply lost to exhaustion. 

We woke up around 8:30 and headed out to celebrate Gina’s birthday at what turned out to be a lovely place on the water that served not the most delicious food (poor Jasen had to leave on account of the mussels). After our meal we all headed back to our rooms for a much needed sleep (with no alarms set, what a treat).

Saturday morning we packed up and headed to Dim Sum to celebrate Caroline’s 30^th birthday (a week-end of 30). What an experience!! To get a table Caroline actually became a real-life squatter and simply sat at a table of women who were done but didn’t look like they were going anywhere. As seats opened up we simply took over. Slowly but surely, everyone left and we had the table to ourselves (Only in China!). We had copious amounts of delicious food and from there Mariya, Ross, Kathryn and I grabbed the fast train to Luoho to grab a few things before heading home.

 

This past weekend is certainly one for the books, it was Marvelous and I’m so thankful to have had the opportunity to do it with such a lovely group of friends. I will certainly be signing up to take part in another Color Run if ever there is one nearby and I encourage any and all to do the same J

Chinadian Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving has to be one of my favorite holidays, for so many valid reasons (at least I feel they’re valid). To name only a few of these reasons:

-It’s a time for family and friends to gather (at my house that means to come together with food, drink and a dance or two in the kitchen).

-October is a wonderful month. It’s a month of fresh air, fall colors, blushed cheeks, boots and scarfs and the sound of leaves crunching underfoot.

-It’s not a holiday about presents; rather, it’s about good company, interesting conversations and laughter. 

Although I couldn’t be home to celebrate this wonderful Holiday with my family and friends I am very thankful to have been able to celebrate it with my China Family in our own way.

I would like to first begin by explaining (in not too much detail) that my Thanksgiving had a rough start this year on account of a bout of food poisoning. I suppose my body was trying to get Everything out of its system before the feast on Sunday…either way, it made for a difficult Thursday night and Friday. Nevertheless, Jennie, Kathryn and I were able to make it over to HK for the day on Saturday where we bought Kathryn’s new iPhone and my new iPod (mine was stolen at the gym), exciting stuff! We puttered around the great city, had a deliciously light lunch at Life Restaurant & Bar (first 'meal' since Thursday) and then headed home on the bus. I do love living in a city where I can pop over to HK for an afternoon, for the price of a cab into downtown Fredericton, NB…

I woke up feeling much better on Thanksgiving Sunday and was ready to try to adapt some of my beloved Hooper Family Traditions of The Day of Thanks. All the while being well aware that this could be difficult as the weather is very different here and my kitchen is the size of my dish washer back home. But! I did my best with what I had.

The day began with a lovely walk around the park with Kathryn (in shorts and a tank), a stop at the veggie/fruit stand and a fresh mango smoothie. {At home I would have gone for a walk with family but the sights, sounds, smells and clothing choices would have been very different.} After cleaning my house while dancing around to The Blues Brothers (frequently played in the Hooper family kitchen) Kathryn and I successfully created a healthy gluten and wheat free version of apple crisp in my little oven and enjoyed taste testing with some coffee and sharing with friends J 

Our delicious Thanksgiving creation in my mini-oven!

At 6pm the ISNS China family gathered on the 3^rd floor lounge for our Thanksgiving Potluck and My Goodness the amount of food was incredible, it all smelled so delicious! I suppose this is as good a time as any to quickly thank food poisoning recovery/being gluten and wheat free for making me have what turned out to be probably the most healthy, balanced, non-indulgent Thanksgiving yet…

Although I was not able to spend Thanksgiving at home in my lovely little town with my family, I do feel extremely lucky to have been able to spend it here in Shenzhen with my China family; the next best thing! I am very thankful not only to be surrounded by so many wonderful people here but that I have so many special people to miss around the world.

Feeling Thankful. 

Peace & Love Everyone