We Have Arrived!

On June 17, 2023June 17, 2023 By Dani Francuz RoseLeave a comment

We did it! We finally made it to Canada! We first applied for our residencies and came up to look for jobs/apartments way back in 2019, so to finally be here with any degree of longevity/stability feels so surreal! But how did we get here? What have we been doing these first few weeks? And what are we thinking for the future?

Getting to Canada:

Where do I even begin with our journey to Canada?! I feel like I’ve relayed bits and pieces of our incredibly long and complicated paperwork journey in several posts throughout the last five years, so this time I’ll stick to describing our physical trip up to the Great White North.

For this particular move, we opted to split it into two rounds: one by air and one by car. I documented a few things about our initial fly-up on Facebook, but as a quick recap: back in early May, Tucker and I flew up to Ottawa with several suitcases in order to 1) get our apartment keys and 2) clean/set up a few things before the big drive up/move in. In theory, it was supposed to be a somewhat relaxed way of getting our feet wet in Canada, giving us more time to focus on apartment things, and also freeing up a little more space in the car for what was going to be a very long drive. Turns out, we didn’t get near enough done in that short amount of time, little issues kept turning into bigger issues, and in the end, the car was fuller this time than when we originally drove down to Mexico. Lots of lessons learned though, so at least there’s that.

The actual driving part of round two went beautifully! Guadalajara to Laredo, Laredo to Little Rock, Little Rock to Tucker’s Dad’s place in Kentucky, Tucker’s Dad’s place to Watertown, and Watertown to Ottawa. 48 hours in total, but pretty smooth, all things considered. The issues we encountered actually occurred at either end of the trip, with the first problem cropping up a few days before we even left GDL. We already knew that we were going to have to export and import our car when we crossed into Canada, and we had everything we needed to complete that process. However, at some point, we read that the export office is only open Monday through Friday 9 to 4, and we were planning on arriving around 6pm on a Saturday. Oops. And that’s why our drive ended up taking a few extra days, and we got an unexpected stop in Watertown, NY. Fun times!

The next problem (that we absolutely should have foreseen, but totally didn’t) was the fact that all of our stuff no longer fit in the car. We were so optimistic in thinking that by bringing 4 suitcases up to Canada pre-drive, we would free up plenty of space in the car…but no, over the years, we have acquired quite a few additional household things like a Roomba, an Instant pot, a laundry basket, small trash cans, a paper towel holder, a cooler, and other items that we’d never think of buying and/or keeping had we been flying to our new home. Alas, we fell into the trap of thinking, “oh, we’ll just toss that in the car at the end”. Well, I did my best Tetris-ing work, trying to fit everything into what I now realize is quite a small car, but in the end, there were still a few things we could have used in Canada that my friends are now enjoying in Mexico! More lessons learned…

Setting up shop:

So, aside from having a pile of immigration tasks to accomplish upon rolling up to our new home, we also had quite a few things we needed to buy for the apartment. But before we could get to all that fun, we first had to shelter in place. The week we were making our way to Ottawa, which lies on the border of Quebec and Ontario, an unusual number of forest fires broke out in both of these provinces. Extreme fires, it turns out, the smoke of which blew its way down to us and then into several NE states as well. This was an unexpected wrench in our first few days, but not too detrimental to our plans because I actually had a lot of work to catch up on, and staying home wasn’t a tough ask after a week on the road. Not to mention, we were categorically prepared with a plethora of masks and DIY air purifier skills!

After the smoke had cleared, we were able to successfully apply for and request all the documents we’ll be needing (and/or make appointments for them). In the next few weeks, we should be receiving our PR cards, ON driver’s licenses, Social Insurance Numbers, vehicle registration, and OHIP cards. Fingers crossed! We were also able to get the vast majority of our apartment set up (unfortunately, still waiting on a few things to make their way to us, but photos to come soon, I promise!). In the midst of all this running around, we also hosted our very first guest (who thankfully brought her own bed in the form of an air mattress), which means we’re now prepared for any/all future guests! Of course, we’ve also begun to dip our toes into what our new neighborhood has to offer by sampling a few of the many, many restaurants and pubs that surround us.

Looking ahead:

So, what’s next? Well, the usual, I suppose: trying all the delicious restaurants, walking the entirety of our neighborhood, getting familiar with our new grocery stores, and everything else that comes with finding our place in a new city. I’m super excited to report that we’ve already got library cards, a reservation for weekly trivia, and a growing list of observations to share about the differences we’re already experiencing between the US vs. Canada and Quebec vs. Ontario. As always, there’s so much to learn and explore, and for now, that’s exactly what we plan to do. At some point, we might even break out into something other than the five-block radius between us and the supermarket. Look out, Ottawa, we’re coming!

You might also be wondering just how long we have to explore here (aka how long we plan to stay this time). Good question, but I really never know. Our Canadian residency doesn’t have to be renewed until 2027, and if we stay in Canada for a total of 3 years, we can actually apply for citizenship and never worry about immigration paperwork here again, but honestly, we have no idea if we’ll stay that long. We do know that our current lease here in Ottawa is good until June 2024, so we’ll definitely be in this exact location for at least a year (and, honestly, after all this apartment set-up, we’re already leaning towards two lol). Ottawa is such a beautiful city with so many activities for us to enjoy; plus, Montreal is only an hour away, so I think we’ll definitely need at least two years to do the National Capital Region justice!

As for the more distant future, who knows? Two years in Ottawa could be followed by two in Quebec City (if we do end up loving the winters) or maybe we’ll head back to Guadalajara to thaw out? Or maybe onto Argentina, the Mediterranean, back to Poland or Asia, literally all of these options and more have been discussed, so place your bets! Either which way though, our time in Canada is likely going to fly by, so be sure to come up and visit us while you have the chance! We can definitely host you in Ottawa, or we can meet up somewhere else in this vast and beautiful country. I’m once again aiming to see as many provinces as we can, so you can bet there are already trips planned from coast to coast to coast! Hello, bonjour, Canada! We have arrived!

Living in China: Daily Differences

On November 15, 2017January 17, 2018 By Dani Francuz RoseLeave a comment

23130648_10214977335335155_6425516221530541009_n (1) — Temples in our backyard!

We’re almost three months into our move to China, and something that we’re asked pretty regularly is: what are the differences we notice in our daily lives. Most people are aware of the obvious differences like the language and the food, and, although most daily activities are pretty universal (shower, eat, work, play on your phone, etc.), there are definitely some things that we didn’t really have a need to think about before moving to China. In reality, these are rather small differences, but their regularity and new-found importance have kept them in our minds daily as we shift into a new way of living – the China way!

21751831_10214553838387996_1478804182428819340_n (1) — “Noodles 22” – my favorite!

First is our struggle for food. Of course, as I mentioned, the food itself is obviously quite different. For example, most things are cooked in oil here rather than in butter, and almost everything (from drinking water to what some refer to as a “salad”) is served piping hot. However, something we didn’t think about is how difficult it would be to obtain our food, let alone the foods we actually prefer. Whether at a restaurant or a grocery store we have to put a lot of effort into translating food items. Even then, we’re often not sure what we’ve actually purchased. In the last week alone we’ve gotten translations like “sealed duck palm”, “saliva chicken”, and “fried enema” – I’m sorry, what?!

21686126_10214628783901587_1078398650307237772_n (1) — “Fruit Parkway”

At the grocery store, things are not only hard for us to read, but they’re often packaged differently or organized in a way we would have never thought of; for example, milk is not refrigerated, but pasta is! On top of these difficulties, there is also a sense of lingering mistrust. We’ve all heard stories about China and the shortcuts they may have taken, so when we see something unfamiliar or “weird”, we’re conditioned to think it’s not healthy or good. The depth of these feelings really surprised me because, although I saw similar things in Poland, I never questioned the hygiene or motives there. This is something we’re really working on by constantly asking “why” and delving a little deeper into these differences. Our Chinese friends have been incredibly illuminating, and honestly, we’ve learned to look at our own way of doing things a little differently as well.

22814129_10214916132805130_4342214456280253414_n (1) — If this doesn’t scream “weird”, I don’t know what does…

Another daily difference for us is the general environment that we’re living in. Typically when I wake up, the first thing I do is check the weather. However, in China, I must also check the AQI (air quality index). We live in a city of 8 million people; a city that still uses coal to heat some of its building and has farms just outside the city limits that burn their fields twice a year before replanting. These conditions mean that the air quality in Hefei can have an effect on my day. If the AQI is above 200, I need to wear a mask to ensure that I don’t get a sore throat the next day. Checking the AQI and occasionally wearing masks have become part of our routine. In our (almost) 90 days here, we’ve only had a handful of “bad days”, which we recently found out are about the equivalent of smoking a few cigarettes (and we all know that is not great for long term health).

21557452_10214502718510031_1066655538901985017_n — An exciting acquisition!

Another environmental issue I was not at all looking forward to was the inability to drink the tap water. I remember last time we were in China, I had a really hard time making sure I had enough water bottles. Something about steaming hot water served in restaurants (even in summer) really just didn’t agree with me. Turns out, although this is a difference, it really isn’t a difficult one to handle. Now that we’re residents of China, it’s pretty easy to get water. We have a water cooler and a weekly delivery that ensures we have plenty of drinking water (hot OR cold)! Another environmental difference, for Tucker, would have to be the height of everything. Doorways, sinks, counters, they’re all much lower than we’re used to, and he (just about 6 feet tall) struggles with hitting his head and constantly bending over at an uncomfortable angle. I (at 5’3”) don’t really have this problem!

21462860_10214530461363585_3988519170618761027_n (1) — Tucker’s Taobao fail

Finally, the way we use technology has also changed greatly. It seems that in some ways we’re using technology more efficiently, and in others it’s substantially slowed down or non-existent. For one thing, in China you are not allowed to have two people sharing one bank account. Therefore, Tucker and I “share” my card by handing it over whenever one of us needs it, which just feels so strange! Online banking is also not very popular here, and it’s only possible with a monthly fee. Needless to say, Tucker and I have become much more familiar with the “balance inquiry” function at the ATM. While those banking aspects feel less than modern to us, we’re also being ushered into the future by instead paying for everything with our phones and buying most of what we need from an online service that delivers to our door. The saying “there is an app for that” feels so true in China, as we now utilize our phones for everything! Even street vendors use QR codes for payment!

However, possible is not the same as familiar. As westerners new to China, our most valued service is a VPN (virtual private network). As many people know, China is very particular about what shows up on their search engines (or even which search engines are available), and for this reason, we need to use a VPN to access YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and several other favorites. Of course, for nationals and people who have been here long enough, those services are no longer as important as YouKu, WeChat, and QQ (Chinese versions of the same services), but for now, we’re bogged down remembering to connect to the VPN for some things and at times, not having enough bandwidth to do so.

There are plenty of other differences in our daily lives, and some, as we’re beginning to see, are less China-specific and more like everywhere-but-in-the-US kind of things. We find ourselves walking so much more here, watching less TV, meeting with very different groups of people, and taking advantages of opportunities that we would’ve never had at home. There are so many reasons I enjoy my life abroad, but I think none are as great as these small differences that teach us so much!

My step counter is impressed

Umbrellas, rain or shine

We’re in China! Now What Are We Doing?

On September 16, 2017December 29, 2021 By Dani Francuz RoseLeave a comment

21192820_10214416652758441_6018365701849780956_n — Fresh off the Plane!

We’ve been in China for almost three weeks now, and it’s been a little hectic to say the least! In fact, my thoughts are still catching up to everything we’ve seen and done so far, and I’m a little worried this post might seem scattered because of it! Most likely, my best bet for clarity is going to be by starting from the beginning: On August 29th we flew out of Orlando into Houston and then onto Beijing. We started our day around 4am and got to our hotel room in Beijing around 5pm the next day, which means that even with the 12 hour time difference between EST and China, we had been traveling for over 24 hours! Luckily, we were kept pretty busy in Beijing, which helped fight off the jet lag. For four days we participated in an orientation held at the US Embassy in the Chaoyang district of Beijing, meeting our contacts, receiving various briefings, and generally discussing what the next year could look like. Tucker and I loved hanging out with the other China Fellows and all our new acquaintances; we ate at a trendy hot pot restaurant, attended a reception at the ambassador’s house, watched a traditional acrobatics show, and so much more, packed into just a few days! And although we were having a great time in Beijing, Tucker and I had been without our own space for over a year and were itching to get into our new home and finally unpack our suitcases in the city of Hefei.

Introducing Ourselves to the Crowd

Dinner!

After a short 2 hour flight, we arrived in Hefei (pronounced huh-fay), the capital city of Anhui (ahn-hway) province. Hefei is a small (by Chinese standards) city of about 8 million and lies between the Yellow and Yangtze rivers in eastern China. We actually live on Anhui University’s new campus, in a building exclusively for foreign teachers. Our apartment is extremely nice and very large. We have 3 bedrooms, a small kitchen, a bathroom/laundry room, a living room, a fairly spacious entryway, and astonishingly 4 balconies! We believe our “suite” used to be a shared dorm, but now it’s all ours!

21369494_10214502717590008_737343301517287419_n — Our Apartment Building

Upon our arrival, we immediately started settling in. It seemed no one had been living in the apartment for a while, so there was a lot of cleaning to do there. We also had to register ourselves as residents, begin the paperwork for our ID cards, set up a bank account, find out where everything is, buy cellphone plans, bus cards, groceries, etc. As you can imagine, it was a busy week, especially since we arrived on a Sunday and the first class I taught was on Tuesday. Yikes! Good thing we work quickly, and, of course, we also had some of the best help possible in the form of the director of the English department (Alex), my foreign affairs officer (Sunny), and some incredibly helpful graduate students (Arthur, Stream, and Born)! I think we can officially say we’re now totally moved in and are proudly and confidently ordering the rest of the things we need/want from Taobao (like Amazon) and E Le Me (a food delivery service). We’re practically natives. Okay, maybe not.

AHU

A Glimpse Into Our Living Room

21751351_10214553838227992_2662963515697328570_n — Anhui University

Anhui University is not only where we live, it’s also where I work. I’m part of the English Language Fellow Program, which is an exchange program for language teaching professionals run by the US State Department. This semester I’ll be teaching 3 courses and about 90 students at AHU, and so far it’s been going really well! The students are so much fun and thankfully very helpful with my technology struggles in the classroom (I have trouble with computers in English, so obviously it wasn’t going to get better without my being able to read anything!). The new campus is incredibly beautiful, and quite expansive. I’m generally out of breath anytime we have to walk somewhere! For example, from our apartment to the building my classrooms are in is a little over a 1 mile walk, not to mention the 9 stories’ worth of stairs I have to traverse as well. I know, I know. I’m a lazy, complaining American, but it’s just so humid outside right now! In addition to my teaching at the university, this year I will also be responsible for several teacher-training events in the form of workshops, both at AHU and in the China-Mongolia region. Plans are already in motion for a trip to Ulaanbaatar next month, and I’m working on sharing my talents with the nearest Consulate as well. I think this is going to be a busy, but incredibly rewarding year for both me and Tucker.

21740168_10214553838868008_1979579030680882452_n — Tucker and His Kiwi Tool

Speaking of Tucker, what is he doing while we’re in China? Well, presently he’s right here with me, elbows deep in the settling in process. I recently told him if anyone asks what his job is, he should just say “living in China” as it’s a full-time job of its own! And that’s exactly what it feels like in this early stage of our move. Everything is new and different for us; thus, it takes much longer to get even the simplest tasks completed. Sending two letters took us half a day between locating envelopes in the store, figuring out how to address them, finding a post office that ships internationally, buying the correct postage, and placing the finished product in the correct bin (which we’re honestly still hoping was the correct one). I really don’t know if I could do this without Tucker! He’s really carrying the team as far as technology goes, which is turning out to be pretty important in China. Almost everything is done on our phones; from WeChat to Ctrip to Alipay, we can essentially communicate, order, and purchase everything without the use of money or a card. I also know I wouldn’t have half as much fun if I couldn’t share the confusion, the frustration, and especially the small successes of everyday life in a foreign country with him! In the near future though, he’ll begin studying to get his Medical Technologist certificate, which will allow him to work in labs internationally, and who knows, maybe that’ll be in Hefei.

21731073_10214574336740442_1459222041185921424_n — Exploring and Eating

Well, I think that’s about all I have for this update. I’m planning to share some of the growing list of first (or really second) impressions of China soon and, of course, some of our hilarious failings as well (I just need the embarrassment to die down a bit before I begin writing!). Until next time, you can see plenty of other photos on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and please don’t hesitate to ask any questions! Xiè xiè!

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