Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Phoenix Park

So it has been a while since our last post. We've just been very busy. Weekend classes just began so we now work Saturday mornings. We have also started teaching Kindergarten. This week I started to help coach the soccer team, and Jen will be starting to coach a volleyball team soon. Last Thursday a new foreign teacher arrived to teach grades 1 and 2. Her name is Destiny and she is from BC. She is really nice, and it has been good to have another foreign teacher to hang out with.
Last Saturday we went to Phoenix Park, which is here in Liyang. The park was very small, but nice. This city has a lot of history. Here are some of the pictures we took.
This is Destiny, Ray and Jen. Ray is a Chinese English teacher who works at our school who we have made friends with.

The statue in the water is the Gauze-Washing Virgin. We've included the story about her below.

"Over 2500 years ago, Wu Zixu fled from his country, unclear of a false charge. When he arrived in Liyang, he was starving. The Gauze-Washing Virgin gave him some starch to save his life. She then carried a stone and jumped into a river to keep his secret. After ten years, he defeated his enemy in revenge and returned in triumph. When he passed through Liyang, he threw gold seeds into the Lai River in memory of her. She was late named Shi Virgin in recognition of her willingness to sacrifice her life to save others for her chastity."

Here we are just outside Phoenix hall. We got the following information off a plaque in the courtyard.

"In 992, the emperor of the Song Dynasty decreed that the calligraphy works of past dynasties within the palace should be carved on the date-wood plate so that he could grant them to his subjects. The completed works were historically called Chunhua Calligraphy Copybook, and recognized as the first edition of the model calligraphy in China. Currently only one and a half of the calligraphy copybooks exist, with a complete one in Xi'an and a half in Liyang. After the Phoenix Hall was built in this park in 1991, they were modeled and inlaid here."

You can see portions of the copybook in the frames on the wall behind us.


Me, Ray and Destiny.

Another shot of the Gauze-Washing Virgin.

2 Comments:

At 2:50 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dear J and J,
It was good to hear from you. We assumed that you had been busy. Things are good here. The weather is very "Fallish" and leaves are starting to change colour.
Love to you both.
Grandma

 
At 10:47 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello Ha
Very happy to have more goodies coming from you guys. I really enjoy your blogs. This is all smiles for me. Love to see you both mixing it up over there, working hard, learning a lot, meeting new friends and having fun at the same time. The Phoenix Park seem very lovely lots of lush, greenery and also very historical. Every one seem so cute you too Josh(jokes) Everything is fine back home, weather a bit chilly but good I do enjoy this type of weather (hint hint)Okay.
You both take care of you self and as always be happy.
Love You,
Mom

 

Post a Comment

<< Home