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6/2/2005

We visited Dalian Zoo and newly built safari. Everyone seemed to have a good time. But it took longer than originally planned. We got to a well-known hot pot restaurant around 2:00pm. I thought the food was one of the best. I was sure my hunger had something to do with it. Also, for the first time, some of us had dog meat but I won’t name names here.

I called Maggie when coming back from the trip. I would like to know more about what had been done in preparation for the visit of two American teachers. Due to an email I sent her this morning informing her I would have a free afternoon, she had been waiting for my call since noon. Over the phone, Mr. Song briefed me about what he had in mind. I thought they had done a good job. I would like to get DUFE involved as well but needed to find a right contact. Maggie told me that after we left yesterday two female severs approached her to ask more about tango. They must have learnt this from our conversation while bring in the food. This was a good indication regarding the market potential for tango.

Finally I got to swim. Vivian found this place called Empire of the Sea multipurpose entertainment center. Six of us Cristina, Jessie, Luke, Sharon, Vivian and I went. When we walked in, I was drawn to an Olympic size pool instantly. From two floors above, the pool looked really big and inviting. But before we were able to swim, there were other things to take care. It was not just a swimming place. It provided full scale of services including shower, jacuzzi, sauna, steam room, resting room equipped with sofa chairs with individual TV sets, and massage. We were ushered into the separate locker rooms (M/F) and instructed to take clothes off. I could feel Luke’s uncomfortable-ness so we put on our swimming trunks. Cristina later commented that she had never been surrounded by so many naked people. This was a sharp unconventional contrast between these two cultures. On the surface eastern culture seems more closed and conservative than its western counterpart. What we observed and experienced was just the opposite. Chinese people feel rather comfortable with their bodies while Americans felt uneasy. Of course, perceptions of privacy also have something to do with it.

We were required to wear caps before going to the pool. We did not bring any so we had to wait in the washing area while a waiter went out to buy for us. Luke and I tried stream room, sauna and jacuzzi while waiting. Finally we walked out toward to the pool. The girls were already in the pool waiting for us. We jumped in and to my surprise the water was salty. It was sea water. Soon we started to swim. The pool was self regulated and swimmers needed to find free lanes to swim. It was very much like the land traffic in China. It seems like a disorder but not too many accidents actually occurred. The best term to use to describe is “chaos” – order in disorder.

Cristina was a good swimmer and swam fast. Luke and Vivian knew how to swim but were out of practice. Sharon was struggling while Jessie did not know how at all. I felt comfortable in the water and kept swimming. I did 2000 meters before cramps on both of my calves stopped me from going any further.

There was a “hero rescues beauty” story worth mentioning. In the beginning of swimming Sharon said that she did not know much about swimming. While resting at one end of the pool after a few laps, I saw her swim toward the center of the pool. I did not feel comfortable that she swam by herself and I swam behind her just in case. Just when she was near the center of the pool she started to call out “I’m so tired, I’m so tired.” I tried to support her by pulling her back upward while turning around facing the shallow area. After a few meters she started to sink. I had to put my right hand around her waist trying to make her float while using my remaining hand and legs to swim to the shore. At certain moment the struggle became intense and I doubted if we could reach the end. But by the end we survive.

I showed this to Sharon and she agreed me to publish this story as long as I would mentioned that she swam a few laps on her own after this exciting episode.

posted by Unknown @ 9:02 PM