Navigating the pirated seas... a place I just won't go!

CDs & DVDs and all that other stuff, yes, in China pirating is a widespread and terrible problem. All those intellectual property laws and cases and stories I learned in grad school have no meaning here. Case in point: I've got Slumdog Millionaire on DVD and our friend has Benjamin Button. We've got movies here seemingly before the release date sometimes, and in the middle of them, it'll say in the bottom of the screen, "Property of Universal Studios."

But as pirating is a disease in China, it is safe to say that it's a epidemic in Vietnam. How reckless is it, you ask? Josh bought a whole bunch of Belle and Sebastian CDs for less than a dollar each. The covers are normal, and they're in plastic sleeves vs. CD cases, but when I looked at the actual disc itself, it's nothing but a Memorex CD that must have been burned on a computer.

Seriously ghetto!

This is where I draw the line, though: As if that wasn't enough, there are a load of bookstores. I was so happy because in China, English books are fairly expensive and relatively limited in selection. So probably the 2nd bookstore in Hanoi we went to, I finally noticed and realized that, What the heck? They books are NOT REAL! They're only photocopies of the actual thing!

Some of them can look convincingly real, though. Josh can't spot some of them, whereas I can as soon as I touch 'em. Be it one look at the cover, poorly cut edges, faded words. But even I don't catch them all, I think.

I refuse to buy books in this country (Vietnam) now, for this very reason. Every city we've been to, the fake books are everywhere. I swear like, there's a secret vault in this country where only 1 copy of each book hides. And the rest that are on the shelves are all fakes!

So SAD!

Cooked Alive!

Have you ever been in a sauna? Yesterday was my first time in the sauna, and let me tell you, it was like... torture. I was so hot, and I couldn't tell if it was condensation, persperation, or whatever. I couldn't take it!!!

The steam's so hot, I can't breathe. Also, it's so hot, I can't think. I seriously felt like I was being cooked. What would one subject himself/herself to being cooked?

Josh loves the sauna. And if memory serves me correctly, most of the Xiongs like saunas. How you all do it?

And so, here is Josh's list of the people that would be the most amusing to share a sauna with:

1. Dlaab Adam
2. Dlaab Peter
3. Geu
4. Pheng
5. Meng

Conflux'd

i cant wait for Conflux to come out! mai kao has given me the go ahead to purchase 2 boxes for myself. the power level of these cards are just so insane right now. i think with Scarland Thrinax + sprouting Thrinax (nasty combo), Aggro Jund is going to make a super strong push...maybe even tier one with all the blue hate going on right now. think about it...

t1- forest birds
t2- swamp, scarland thrinax
t3-land, sprouting thrinax, attack sacking all 4 creatures to Scarland thrinax making him a 6/6

okay thats not super strong, but it does sound fun doesnt it? anyway, i'd like to see how these cards actually play.

also, i feel that with noble hierach, birds and all the new cheap beasties, the REalm Razer deck is going to be crazy.

josh out.

p.s. i'm vacationed out. cant wait to get home.

In Nha Trang

If you caught a glimpse of the Miss Universe contest last year, we're in the city that hosted it. That'll give you an idea of where we are. This city is located in the middle of the country, on the east coast, the Charleston, SC of Vietnam.

It was kind of cool to ring in the New Year with these people. To sum it up: there were lots of people, lots of motorcycles, and fireworks. Everyone has their Buddhist alters on the door steps. Buddhist missionaries did their job well, because they came out of India, and converted whole countries to Buddhism. The alters are everywhere, and loaded with things ranging from fruit to Choco Pies and candy. How I miss Jesus.

No Cobra Village...BUT...

So we didnt get a chance to go to Cobra Village, but i did manage to buy a bottle of Cobra Wine. its a hard rice wine with a real cobra all coiled up inside of the bottle! too cool. i promise i wont crack it open until this summer when we all can share in the spoils!

Vietnam is awesome and crazy! the traffic is like no other i've ever seen. non stop noise in Hanoi and awesome Bun. its official, when you have Bun the way its supposed to be, it blows Pho way out of the water.

we dont have the capabilities to post pictures right now but as soon as we can we will show you all the amazing places we have visited...so far right now, HALONG Bay. absolutely the most beautiful place i have ever been or seen in my short life on this earth. if you cant wait for the pictures look up Halong Bay Vietnam online and see it for your self. in person its even more amazing. as we passed by those beautiful karst (rock islands) i thanked the Lord for His wonderful creation and letting us take part in this great story.

much more to come later, we gotta catch the night train to Nha Trang and relax on the beach for a few days.

love, Josh and Mai Kao

josh out.

'NAM

tomorrow afternoon Mai Kao and I will be embarking on our first ever Southeast Asian vacation. we are going into it with few expectations, just relax and enjoy life as a "rich" westerner for a few weeks in Vietnam. though we are going in with few expectations we do have a rough itenirary. Here they are as follows:

1. take the train from Hanoi (north) all the way to Ho Chi Minh city (Saigon-south).
2. eat at this part of town in Hanoi they call the Snake village. the restaurants here specialize in Cobra foodstuff. I wish Geu, Pheng and Dlaab Peter were here for this.
3. I want to try dog meat, another winter delicacy in Vietnam.
4. Eat all the pho in the world.
5. to chill on the beach in Halong Bay and Nha Trang.
6. Hopefully go to Sapa and see the Hmong people there and be assaulted for cash by all the poor innocent children.

If you have any suggestions that you think we should do please feel free to leave a comment. we hope to post in vietnam somewhere, if not, then you will have to wait 3 weeks until you hear from us again.

josh out.

Letters

Dear Mai Kao and Josh,

What have you seen lately?

Dear World,

We have seen the following scary, funny, good, and strange:

- LoTR: Two Towers Extended version.
- Full set of Chinese MTG Firespouts.
- A skinnier version of Laug Vern
- Josh singing & leading worship in church (not prayer! the congregation, yeah!)
- Our first traffic accident in China: bus hits motorbiker.
- My mom and dad and Pang, live and talking!

Dear Mai Kao and Josh,

What do you long to see?

Dear World,

We long to see, in no particular order:

- A delicious, piping hot bowl of qhob poob, topped with cilantro and cabbage
- Following 2 movies with English subtitles: Ip Man and Red Cliff 2
- 2 Reflecting Pools in the next two MTG packs Josh gets (talk about a terrible run of luck for the last year)
- Jesus lifted high!
- A genuinely, reasonably priced, in-tune guitar in China (will be elaborated in a future post)


Peace, love, and all that jazz.

Testimony

We wouldn't believe you if you ever told us otherwise: People can change.

• One of Josh's favorite stores in all of China? IKEA.
• Drink of choice in the winter time: We swear by hot Tang. This stuff is tasty, and it will be offered/served to you for the indefinite future if you visit us in the winter.
• Mai Kao is nearly addicted to looking at and buying shoes.
• If he feels like it, Josh can hold his bowel movements. 10am and we're out shopping? He'll wait till 4pm when we get home... or even the next day. This is an untapped power that lies within all Xiongs.
• Mai Kao has only gone running twice in almost 5 months.

• Josh logs in miles and miles every week in walking, but he has not gotten 'crazy foot' once.

Those are just a few examples. But we'll leave you with this one thing that will never change:

We love Chicago style hotdogs. In China, there are none to be found, and you're only left with the memory to sustain you.

Long Post: Feelings of attraction...

Prologue to the post: As you know, we spent New Year's Eve worshipping with other people from the church. Earlier that evening, Josh and I were debating whether we should even go or not. When it's dark here, we don't really like to go out much. It's cold, and you have to take the bus, then the subway, then a cab or walk... (Josh's most hated thing about China: Taking at least 3 modes of transportation to get where you want to be.)

Back to the story. We're now part of the Shanghai House of Prayer (SHOP), which is the best equivalent of IHOP in Shanghai. (No, not the pancake restaurant. Click here.) They were expecting us since SHOP was leading this New Year's gathering for the church, so we decided to go.

Post: God always pulls through when you doubt Him the most. Thank you Jesus for this reason: we were with 200 people who love to worship the Lord. It was really... it felt like home without being home. Home as in Chris Tomlin's "Come Home Running."

Which brings me to my realization from that night: I desire to be around people who really love the Lord. Do you ever feel the same way? It has nothing to do with looks, coolness, skill or ability, popularity, personality, or all that other stuff that we generally find attractive. It has everything to do with the fact that in the heart of the other person there is a genuine love between him/her and God. And that... that I find myself wanting to gravitate towards. Their Source. I don't know how to explain except that I'm attracted to them!

At the end of the night, I wanted to meet lots of people. I wanted to introduce myself and ask them if they would be my friend. If we could sit together and just talk and think about Jesus and share about life in Shanghai.

*sigh* But, you know me. I'm too chicken. And a little socially... stunted?

Epilogue: This makes me think about Paul and how he writes in his letters that he remembers and is thankful towards church.

this Question needs to be asked

there has been a question that has been bugging me all night and i have to come out and say it. in a duel for the ages, a battle to the death, who would win this struggle of opposites?

The Toxic Avenger vs. Captain Planet?

One uses toxic waste to defeat his foes while the other aims to defeat his opponent by means of greenpeace.

honestly, in my opinion i think that as cheesy as Captain Planet is and all he would totally destroy Toxie. why? well, you tell me what can stop the forces of nature? thats right, nothing. except my boy JC, and He doesnt figure into this battle. Yes, Captain Planet's weakness is waste, but it's nothing a little wind, water, fire, earth and "heart" can't take care of. (i tell ya, it pays to have a little Indian with a monkey on his shoulder hanging around.) no matter how polluted Earth...ahem...CHINA....may get Mother Nature has a way of making a comeback.

let me know what you guys think?

josh out.

Serious Math: A Difference Between American and Chinese Education

The Chinese New Year holiday is upon us. It's awesome because we get a 3 week paid vacation!

But I feel sorry for my students. I learned that we're required to give them homework in each of their major subjects for the break. So my question was, What's an appropriate amount of homework for a 3rd grader during a 3-week holiday?

Well, my Chinese co-teacher will be assigning the following for math class:

700 calculations!!!

No, that is not a typo. 700 math problems to make sure the kids' brain don't turn to mush. And that my friends, is what leads us to the title of this post: a difference between the American and Chinese education system!