#11. Moon Festival

Today kicks off a week-long national holiday in China - The Moon Festival. It is as traditional to China as Christmas and Thanksgiving are to Americans. Joseph and I walked out to the lakefront in our housing compound tonight when we heard the launch of fireworks to kick off the festival (see picture).

The moon festival commemorates the 3000 year old legend of Chang Er - a princess who flew to the moon after drinking the elixir of life and discovering the ability to float. She traveled to the moon where she dances during this festival.

The festival is timed with the full moon and is an occasion for vacations and family reunions. When the moon rises, families gather, eat moon cakes (pictured), and sing moon poems. Our boss at Cat gave us a gift of moon cakes and big yellow is giving us a gift of a week-long vacation in Indonesia.

After working and being in China for arduous month, we are eligible for a rest and relaxation (R&R) trip. Bali is an eight hour flight from Shanghai and we are staying at a resort called The Laguna Resort & Spa in Nusa Dua on the beach. What a deal !

#10. Juliana's 1st Blog

Greetings from China ! We miss you all so much.

I really like my new school. It is so different. I have Chinese every day at school. I also have an art class. I have English, geography, history, and a lot more.

I take the bus to school every day. The buses are different too. Instead of all of the buses being yellow, each school has a bus with the name of the school on it. Our buses are red and say “Dulwich College” on the side.

Did you know that when it's daytime in Peoria, it is night in China ?

I miss you so much.
Love,
Juliana

#9. Adventures in Clothes Washing

I though that the Chinese were laundry experts (remember Calgon's ancient Chinese secret ?). You would expect that the local Chinese would have this laundry thing all figured out centuries ago. Unfortunately, the laundry washing facilities in these Chinese houses leave everything to be desired. An ongoing project in our household has been the effort to get adequate laundry facilities installed. We made some progress this week.

Our house came with a ridiculously small Siemens appliance that washes and dries clothes in the same machine. Kathleen used it for a day and concluded that it would have to run it 24-7 to keep up with the family of six.

We worked out a deal with the landlord whereby we split the cost to purchase a new western-sized washer and dryer. Kathleen selected the appliances last week and they were delivered on Saturday. There was also a maintenance crew here all day on Saturday running a hot water pipe to the laundry room to supply the washer. Strange that the builders included a laundry room but didn't supply it with hot water.

One of the remaining unsolved mysteries is how to vent the dryer exhaust to the outside of the house. The laundry room is built a sunroom with all exterior walls made of glass. The management has not figured out yet how to run a four inch dryer exhaust pipe through a pane of glass.

Second unsolved laundry mystery - on the inaugural run of the new washer on Sunday (a load of reds), we ended up with a flood of pink water on the floor of the laundry room. Apparently the house drain is blocked or inadequate for the amount of water being expelled. To be continued ...

#8. The Works

Today, the boys and I got a shampoo, massage, and haircuts at the Red Point Salon in SIP. Marco reported to Mom that "they washed my hair, rubbed my head, and even rubbed my body !" Pictures show Marco at the shampoo station and Joseph enjoying the massage. It was a great experience that was capped off afterward by an exciting Chinese taxi ride home.

Three people shampooed, massaged, and hair cut - total cost 100 RMB ($13 US). Taxi ride home - 20 RMB ($3 US). Phots of the boys enjoying "The Works" - priceless.

#7. Tony's First Birthday in China

Monday was my 39th birthday and my first in China. Attached is a photo of a 39 candle conflagration atop a rather inadequate Chinese chocolate cake. The family deserves an "A" for effort on the birthday celebration, but it is hard to find a decent cake or a decent birthday gift at the stage we are at in China.

Nonetheless, we did go out to a nice dinner at the Daytona Sports Bar (see post #6) which provided lots of diversions for the kids so that Kathleen and I could enjoy dinner and a few drinks. It is great to drink and not worry about driving !

In addition to my birthday, there were two other significant events on Monday - our air shipment from Peoria arrived and it was the first day for the new housekeeper or "Ayi" as they are called in China.

We were excited to receive the air shipment as it contained all of the kitchen things as well as bedding, toys, additional clothes, and especially the home computer. Computer-wise, we have been managing well by using my new and old work laptop computers, but have still be eager to get the desktop house computer. More in a later post on the inaugural launch of the computer.

The Ayi is a big deal for Kathleen. We have been eager to find an Ayi so that Kathleen can turn over the housekeeping, but also have some help with child care. Our Ayi's name is Tsong. She seems very competent and is extremely affordable - $170 / month for full time (40 hrs / week) which is about what we paid for two days per month of housecleaning in Peoria. By the way, lest you think we are running a sweatshop here, the $1/hr is quite a decent wage in China. It will allow Tsong to afford a decent apartment and to buy a motor scooter to get to work. Such low labor costs, of course, are one of the reasons so much manufacturing is done today in China.

#6. Weekend Walks

The kids and I took a couple of walks today outside our gated neighborhood. First we went to see a boat that is being built and launched on Jinji lake nearby our house. This boat has been a topic of ongoing conversation with my co-workers and neighbors. At first we thought it was a building that merely looked like a boat, but as they proceeded, it became clear that it was truly a boat. Two days ago on a morning run I noticed they had installed a rudder and that clinched it - the boat is made to sail.

Two days later we witnessed the start of a slow launch. As of Sunday night, the boat's stern is in the water and the rest still on dry land and we heard a story that the boat will shuttle passengers back and forth between Rainbow Plaza on the west side of the lake and Modern Plaza on the east. The Chinese are certainly not afraid to take on new and ambitious projects like shipbuilding on a 10 foot deep reservoir.

Later in the day, Joseph and I took a long walk to the aforementioned Modern Plaza. It was quite a long walk, probably two miles, but we had many diversions along the way. We saw people fishing and strolled through lakefront parks with lots of feng-shui inspired paths and landscaping. We could check the progres on the new Jinji Lake cruise ship across the water. And we discovered a construction site where a small amusement park will be built, including a 300 foot tall ferris wheel ! This project has is only just begun - there was an excavator making a few holes on the site - but they had posters up showing the the design of the park.

We ended up at a place called the "Daytona Sports Bar" which friends had advised us was a good place to take the kids because it offers air hockey and playstation. Joesph and I played some games, ordered some drinks at the bar, and had a man to man talk about his recent misbehaving.

Finally, we were too tired to walk all the way back home and instead hailed the motorcycle cab you see in the second picture. This battery powered motorcycle carried us home comfortably in the bicycle lane at a speed not much faster than a brisk jog. Cost for the ride was 15 RMB ($2) and was well worth it.

#5. Bicycle and Big Pants

As you might imagine, tasks that are easily done at home in the U.S. become challenging in China – at least at first. I ventured out at lunchtime on Friday for a trip to the dry cleaners and the barbershop.

I borrowed a bicycle from my co-worker, stuffed my dirty work closes in the basket, and rode a few blocks north to the cleaners. I was greeted there by two women who seemed amused to see a westerner arriving on a bicycle. As the woman behind the counter sorted my clothes, she held each pair of pants up high in the air and remarked on the size of the pants. The two women continue to express amazement as each pair was hoisted in the air and admired for their vast girth. Of course neither of them spoke a syllable of English, but the nature of their conversation was crystal clear. At least the price was good at 102 RMB ($13 U.S.) for five pants and eight shirts – though they probably charged me double for the huge pants.

Next stop was the Red Point salon. This was a more enjoyable experience. Unlike the dry cleaners, this shop caters to westerners with a list of services printed in English. I chose the shampoo, head massage, and haircut for a total of 48 RMB ($6).

The shampoo & head massage came from an attractive young Chinese girl. She fitted me with an Asian bathrobe (probably 8XL) and set me in the barber chair. I was surprised when the girl filled her palm with shampoo and began rubbing it on my head with no sink in sight. She proceeded to squirt a little water on my head and work the shampoo to a lather. Once fully lathered, she massaged my head and neck for over 30 minutes. It was one great head massage ! Afterward, they walked me to another room where they had the standard chair and sink combination that I expected to see for the shampoo. The haircut came out fine and the visit was a success.

All together, it was a gratifying excursion – though it did take two hours in the middle of the workday. Bicycling around Suzhou is quite enjoyable with dedicated bike and scooter lanes away from the car traffic. I will definitely go back to Red Point and I will learn next week how the dry cleaners does with my work clothes. God willing they do not ruin anything because I will never find clothing to fit me in China.

#4. Dinner in Xuzhou

I travelled to a city called Xuzhou this week where Caterpillar's produces Motor Graders for the Asia market. Xuzhou (pictured) is a city of one million people which is 500 miles northwest of Suzhou. Confusing ? You bet. Suzhou, the city where we live, is pronounced like the English words “Sue-Joe”. Xuzhou on the other hand is pronounced “Shoe-Joe”. I have been on several teleconferences in this new job where we are talking about Suzhou and Xuzhou and it starts to sound like a Chinese version Abbott and Costello's “Who's on first” routine.

Tonight when I checked into my hotel in Xuzhou, I was offered the choice of dinner in the “Western” restaurant or the “Chinese” restaurant. Feeling adventuresome and reminding myself that I like Chinese food I chose the Chinese restaurant.

Thankfully, the menu offered English translations and some pictures of the food. I could not believe some of the food items on the menu. Under the section labeled “Well-Chosen Fried Dishes” were items such as “Goose Liver with Mushrooms in the French Style”, “Fried Silver Carp's Head”, and “Quick-Fried Goats Testicles with Coriander”. The carp's head was one of the items for which they chose to provide a photo. If the name was not enough to discourage you from ordering, the picture certainly was.

I ended up being happy with my choices of pine corn kernels, green cabbage with mushrooms, and Shanghai-style dumplings. Ordering a Diet Coke was a project that involved three waitresses and the hostess. Finally, I sipped the clear tea that they brought me but concluded that it was hot water meant for washing of the hands.

I am imagining that my Chinese waitress went home tonight and wrote an amusing blog about the idiot westerner who studied the menu for half an hour and drank the finger bowl water.

#3. Shackleton's Footsteps

After a week in China, Juliana and Joseph started at their new international school called Dulwich College Suzhou or DCSZ. The original Dulwich College (note the "w" is silent) is a British boarding school in South London whose most famous alumnus is Ernest Shackleton of Antarctica fame. If you have never heard of Shackleton, I highly recommend the book Endurance which is the incredible story of his attempt to cross the antarctic continent.

Juliana is entering 3rd grade or as the British call it - "Year 4". Juliana's teacher, Mr. Pegg, is originally from South Africa, was educated in England and taught elementary school in the UK and Indonesia. Joseph's "Year 2" teacher, Miss Stark, is a German who moved to Suzhou from Tasmania. She speaks fluent Swahili. All of the children take mandarin, cooking class, music, art, and phys-ed every week. There is also a lab called "Design Technology" which sounds a lot like shop. All in all, the school sounds amazing.

Juliana and Joseph are shown in their Dulwich uniforms. The girls wear neckties (which Dad has helps her tie each morning). The younger boys like Joseph get away with only polo shirts, but are required to wear their Dulwich ball caps wherever they are outside in their uniform.

Tony

#2. Catholic Church

Today was our second weekend in China and we attended mass this week at "Our Lady of Seven Sorrows" in an area east of downtown Suzhou called the "New District." This church has a 10:30 English language mass. As Kathleen observed today, it is very comforting to be halfway around the world and attend a familiar ritual like the Catholic mass.

Attached is a photo of the church. The place could use a bit of maintenance and the a/c is provided by a fan in each row. But the building has a lot of character and charm. The priest is pretty difficult to understand, but many of our international priests in the U.S. were equally hard to understand.

The courtyard outside the church has gardens, a walking bridge, koi pond, and a slightly creepy rendition of Jesus Christ with the sacred heart, accompanied here cheerfully by Marco.

Tony

#1. Cazzatos Move to China

On August 20th, 2007, the Cazzatos moved from Peoria, IL to Suzhou, China as part of an international assignment with Caterpillar. Tony has a new job as the "New Product Introduction (NPI) Manager" for Motor Graders in Asia and will part of a Caterpillar team building a new factory in this city west of Shanghai.

We are starting this blog as a family to share experiences, updates, and photos from our new life in China. In just our first week and a half we have had lots of interesting things to talk about. As you can imagine, China is a very different and foreign place.

The photo shows our new house in Suzhou. We live in an expatriate compound called Golden Lough. Several other Caterpillar families also live here as well as foreigners from all over the world.

The house is quite modern compared to our historic home in Peoria and is well equipped with flat screen TVs, a video front-door intercom, satelliteTV, and wireless internet. It does lack some basic western amenities like a decent washer and dryer and toilets that accept toilet paper. More on those challenges later.

Tony