From the Hospital to a Children’s Party: Despair to Chaos

Today, Shenzhen celebrates it’s 40th birthday. It’s odd living in a city that is so young while also living in a country that is so old. It reminds me that culture is often hyperlocal and despite the backing of thousands of years of history, Shenzhen often feels devoid of culture, devoid of community.

Today is also the 4th anniversary of Martin and I leaving our home in Minneapolis and driving toward the unknown. In some ways, our life in Minneapolis feels like a lifetime ago. In other ways it feels like we just left. I suppose this is true for anyone who looks back after a major life event.

Choosing a life that is full of unexpected and new adventures is exciting and exhausting. I remember arriving in China after traveling for two years feeling so thankful that I didn’t have to look for a different place to live in a few weeks. We are staying in China for another year for many reasons, but one of the main reasons is that it keeps surprising us.

For example – Saturday was quite the day.

It started at the hospital and ended in a car with 3 random people – Martin’s student, co-worker, and student’s mother.

Martin has been fighting an infection for a few weeks now. As a result, we’ve been to the emergency room three times. Each time we’ve asked for antibiotics. The first time, they gave him one dose. The second time they gave him three days worth. The third time they gave him four days worth, despite us asking for 10-14 days worth. For this fourth visit to the doctor, we were able to make an appointment. Again, the doctor only gave him antibiotics for three days. But this time, the doctor told him to come back the next morning to review the blood test results and to check to see how Martin was feeling.

Therefore, we found ourselves getting up early on a Saturday morning and taking the train for an hour to the Hong Kong University Hospital, supposedly the best hospital in Shenzhen. Fortunately, the doctor realized Martin needed more antibiotics, and we left the hospital with 10 full days of medicine! We were elated. Plus, this doctor wants to see Martin again after the medicine is finished to do the tests again to ensure the infection is gone. Success!

After our success at the hospital, we headed for Hong Kong.

One of the best parts of living in Shenzhen is the proximity to Hong Kong. When I first moved here I thought that statement was terrifying. Why would anyone live in a city just to be able to visit a nearby city? Why not just live in Hong Kong?

Good point.

Shenzhen has many benefits but it also has many drawbacks. As a foreigner living in a Chinese city (even a modern metropolis), I yearn for diversity and simple western comforts. Hong Kong gives me those things. Leaving China every month or so keeps me sane amongst the chaos.

We had been impatiently waiting for our new work visas to be finished processing. Finally, on Friday we both had our passports with multiple entry Chinese visas. Naturally, we escaped to Hong Kong on Saturday.

This time we decided to stay in the northern territories of Hong Kong instead of going all the way to Kowloon or Central. This saved us quite a bit of time on the train. We went to Sha Tin to do some shopping at the mall and walk around the nearby parks.

We arrived just in time for lunch. We waited 30 minutes for a table at one restaurant only to discover it had a set brunch menu that was not appetizing to me. So, we wandered around looking for a delicious non-Chinese restaurant and found Pizza Express. After another 30 minute wait, we finally ordered a delicious kale salad and pepperoni pizza. This may not seem like a big deal to some people, but to us, we were delighted. I haven’t seen kale since we visited the States in February. Martin never gets to eat cheese any more.

We blissfully wandered around the mall for a few hours exploring every outdoor store we could find. We are planning a 2-week hiking trip in the Isle of Skye this summer so it was fun to dream about that while shopping. Eventually, we got tired and I became quite cold due to the excessive use of air conditioning in Hong Kong. 

So, we wandered out of the mall to find an amateur talent show starting. We watched a few rock bands and groups of dancers display their passion for music, if not a talent for it.

Behind the mall was a river with a pedestrian path along it. We marveled at the ingenious urban planners who made a bike path separate from the pedestrian path. (The multipurpose sidewalks in Shenzhen are a constant bone of contention for me. I hate having to dodge trees, people, e-bikes, bicycles, and even cars while on the sidewalk.) We enjoyed a leisurely stroll along the river and didn’t get honked at or bumped into once.

We also discovered there was to be a drone show that evening from 6-8 p.m. We thought about hanging around for a couple of hours to see the show, but ultimately decided to head back to Shenzhen. We also marveled at being able to read the signs that advertised events and to not have to guess why there was a big platform in the middle of the river.

Our last stop in Hong Kong was the grocery store. The diversity in Hong Kong means that the grocery stores have a diversity of food. I found cream of tartar! And non-dairy chocolate chips. After a bit of debate we decided against buying anything frozen – we did have about 2.5 hours on a train before returning home.

After we crossed the border at 6:30 p.m., we turned our phones back on and discovered to Martin’s horror that we had forgotten about a farewell party.

One of Martin’s classes of kids won’t have class together next year. So, the head teacher arranged an epic farewell party at a fancy hotel. Martin was supposed to be there from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.!

We felt terrible!

Fortunately, they were just starting to eat and the party would last another hour or so. Unfortunately, we were about an hour and 20 minutes away. Three trains and a frustrating taxi ride later we arrived at 8:00 p.m. to a chaotic party.

These 4-5 year olds had been playing in this banquet room for 4 hours. They had been drinking sugary drinks and now they were all equipped with balloon swords. We walked in and they all ran to Martin screaming “Teacher Martin!” and hitting him on the head with their balloons. One kid asked me “Martin’s mama?” I said no. Another mother laughed.

They had saved some food for us, so we quickly ate, and then they tried to herd the kids into one spot for a picture and a song. Everyone hung out for another hour or so, letting the kids run around and scream until they got so tired their laughter turned to tears.

Someone asked us where we lived. And the next thing we knew, a student’s mother was giving us and another teacher a ride home. We were very appreciative since by car it only took 30 minutes to get home; whereas by train it would have taken more than an hour.

We collapsed into bed amazed at the events of the day.

Not all of our days in China are so eventful. However, China does offer us surprises – big and small – every day. An unpredictable life is the lifestyle I choose. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.