19 | March | 2013 | Following Augustine

I think I’ve discovered the fountain of youth! Everyday as I walk across the university campus to school and back, I’m surrounded by literally thousands of students moving from class to class. They exude such energy that I am invigorated by simply being in their presence.

The 12 to 15 minute walk is a fitness program in and of itself and should also help us retain our youthfulness. We begin by descending 67 stairs from our fifth storey apartment to the ground level (there’s no elevator) then walk across the north campus to busy Huanghe Road. Crossing the pedestrian overpass to the south campus involves 35 steps up and another 35 down the other side followed by 6 more stairs down to the south gate. After walking across the south campus to our building, we climb another 48 stairs to the third floor where our office and some of our classrooms are located. Four times a week, I continue on up to the sixth floor where I teach my university classes. That involves climbing 72 more stairs! We often make this trip to school and back twice in the same day. I’m definitely thankful for the time I spent on the treadmill before we came to China and expect to be even more fit by the time we leave!

As a young person, I always thought my teachers looked old but the students here invariably guess that we’re much younger than we really are. Until they hear that we have several grandchildren, they always think that I must be in my 40s or perhaps my early 50s. How can I not love these kids?

I’m no better at guessing the ages of people here but I do know that people our age in China grew up in the aftermath of war and under the repressive regime of Chairman Mao. Life has not been easy for them and apparently it shows on their faces. Perhaps those who appear to be elderly are only my age.

According to the most recent estimates that I could find online (2012), life expectancy in China is approximately 6.5 years less than in Canada and until fairly recently the discrepancy was much greater. At present, a Canadian man can expect to live almost 79 years while a Chinese man’s life expectancy is a little less than 73. Women in Canada have a life expectancy of slightly over 84 years while a Chinese woman can expect to live until shortly after her 77th birthday. Perhaps the fountain of youth is really the country in which we live. How fortunate we are to be Canadian!

In spite of the facts and figures, however, I still like to think that my present feelings of youthfulness are the result of soaking up energy from the students who surround me. They are my fountain of youth!

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China is traditionally a country of tea drinkers. According to the English language newspaper, China Daily, annual coffee consumption in this country is 3 to 4 cups per person compared to 240 cups worldwide. The majority of older adults don’t drink it at all and it isn’t available in most restaurants. Western-style coffee shops are quickly catching on with the younger crowd, however, who enjoy the aroma and the ambiance of places like Starbucks.

The recent surge in coffee consumption has pushed up the demand for coffee beans and led to a rapidly increasing number of coffee plantations in the southern China province of Yunnan. Fields that once grew corn now produce coffee, a much more lucrative crop. In addition to providing for local consumption, coffee is also becoming an important export.

Tasty is a chain of bakeries that also serve as coffee shops. Like their counterparts, they serve mochas, lattes, caramel machiattos and a variety of other hot and cold drinks. It didn’t take us long to find the Tasty that’s within easy walking distance of here. With it’s comfy couches and laid back atmosphere, it’s a great place for us to meet with students to relax and visit and it doesn’t take much to convince my poor coffee addicted husband to stop in for a treat on our way to the supermarket across the street! Since coffee makers and filters are hard to come by, he’s making do with instant coffee at home.

On Sunday, we were invited by two of our students to a coffee shop much further from home. It’s located in a quaint seaside area of Dalian called Fisherman’s Wharf. Most of our students are from fairly well-to-do families but Sissi’s is obviously wealthier than most. She has her own car which made getting there easy.

It was a cool, misty afternoon. When we arrived, the coffee shop was full so we walked around and enjoyed the sights for a bit before going back and finding a table. Time flew by as we sat and chatted. By the time we left, the lighthouse, unlike any I’d ever seen before, was lit up and it’s warning light flashing.

In addition to providing a great place to visit and serving delicious beverages, western-style coffee shops in China have something else going for them; western-style bathrooms! If you read my earlier post about bathrooms, you know that most public washrooms in China have squat toilets. It’s always a delight to find one that has a western-style one. When I went to the bathroom on Sunday afternoon, I was thankful that I’ve been carrying my camera in my purse wherever I go. Otherwise, I couldn’t have shared the hilarious sign in the bathroom with you! I can’t read Chinese but the message is unmistakable!