Two nights ago, I met up with PCV Patrick (you remember Patrick - aka "Captain Ahab" - from my Sanya adventure) in Beibei, who returned to Chongqing from his site in Guizhou Province to spend his first Spring Festival with his host family, only to leave 3 days later to start a long stretch of traveling with my sitemate, Kristen. I was raiding Kristen fridge for food that would spoil while she was gone and Patrick said his host family inundated him with gifts, one being homemade Chinese sausage (中国腊肠 Zhōngguó làcháng). He wouldn't be back to his site for several weeks so I said, "What the heck!" and inherited this traditional Spring Festival treat. I wrote about jiao zi (饺子) being the traditional Spring Festival food, but I would consider Chinese sausage, based solely on how many I saw hanging outside apartment windows, the close runner-up. I even captured some of these homemade "delicacies" in this SWU video, where you can see some drying in the chilly Chongqing breeze. I haven't decided how I will prepare these dangeling treats, but I will keep you posted (suggestions?)
It's been a sleepy last few days. I have been planning my upcoming semester - it doesn't start until the first week of March - and gathering materials for my teaching portfolio when I (inevitably) have to find a teaching job in the States. I have been running every night and studying Chinese whenever I can, hopefully improving my reading and spoken grammar skills. I have a long way to go, but any practice is good practice. I hope to meet up with Patrick and Kristen in a week or so for a short trip to Guilin (桂林), one of China's most revered scenic spots. On a high note, the sun is out and the sky is (believe it-or-not) BLUE in Beibei. It will be a great run this evening, hopefully with a few stars to get my eyes and imagination busy.
My apologies to my Peace Corps vegetarian readers for this meaty entry - I feel your pain! (wink!)
I love and miss you all,
Phil
蓝麦飞
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