Our neighborhood

The weather has turned cooler and it makes for days that are ideal for walking! Blue and I have been on several walks together, touring the sights and smells of our neighborhood. I love our neighborhood. It's really quite beautiful and serene. The streets are wide, cobblestones line each individual lane, there are small outdoor playgrounds scattered throughout the division, waterways travel through it at a leisurely pace, it surrounds one of the largest and well known International Schools, BISS, there are no overhead cables or wires to obscure your vision, there are several large grassy areas to have a picnic or practice calisthenics, and it's always so quiet.

On the days I'm out walking with Blue, the peace and serenity help to recharge my batteries. There ARE days, of course, I have a desire to be around more expats. Our neighborhood is what's considered a "mixed" community...primarily Chinese, sprinkled with several expats. Considering how large this development is, we only occasionally see other expats out and about.



Almost every housing community I have visited which have trails or walkways throughout them, also have several "stations", usually located at the junction of a couple different paths. These stations are usually brightly colored and the kids often mistake them for playground equipment. However, these are areas with different kinds of exercise equipment for adults. I have seen a rope pulley system to move your arms up and down, a glider that can be compared to a simple (non-mechanical) elliptical machine, several large wheels on a post to help move your arms around and around, several different kinds of bars for stretching, etc. None of this equipment offers any sort of resistance...it's just there to help move your muscles and stretch. At dusk, you will see a TON of Chinese families come out to enjoy the early evening...the late evening as well. Lots of Chinese people live in MUCH more cramped apartments than what our own neighborhood offers. I think this is a habit developed to get out and stretch...and because it is a cultural habit, developments like ours (catering to the Chinese community) put these stations up as a "benefit" of the neighborhood. I think it's a marvelous idea! Young and old alike, get out in the evening and move around. In fact, you will see entire calisthenics classes as well as tai chi classes being performed on sidewalks or open areas of parks throughout the city.

The days I crave a bit of serenity in my life, I truly appreciate living in this community. The days I crave companionship or socialization...well, our neighborhood is not as ideal. We have almost everything an expat community offers, ie, community pool, gym, clubhouse with restaurant, etc...but it's all Chinese. In fact, just the other day we received a notice that something was going on at the clubhouse for all the residents between 1-4 pm on a Saturday, but we have no idea what the event was about since the notice was written in Chinese. Bummer, right? haha



Another thing I love about our neighborhood is that when it was planned, they planned for each individual lane to be lined and planted with different kinds of trees. Our lane, for example, is lined with fruit trees. Another lane close to us has formed an arch from the tall trees lining it. Right now, as we walk, I smell the most fragrant of trees?, bushes? flowers? (not sure) throughout the entire community. It smells incredible! Also, evidence of each season is prevalent down each lane. In the summer, the gardens of the grounds as well as each lane was bursting with summer color and life! Now, you can see the fall colors throughout the streets.

This neighborhood is very safe. It is a gated community, externally. And it is not the Chinese culture to purposefully cause harm to others. I'm not saying it doesn't happen...it just isn't in their culture to do so. So, the feeling of peace extends even further because you feel safe while out walking.

I also love to see how the Chinese residents have adorned and decorated their yards. Each house and yard varies drastically from it's neighbor, but all of them [generally] add to the curb appeal of the overall community. It's interesting to view the differences between cultures in the yards they keep and present to any who will look.


I do wish, however, that I could believe this manhole cover says something like, "No littering, water drains to the ocean." While out walking in this kind of peaceful environment, I can almost believe that people won't throw their garbage into the streets or pour acid into the sewers or dispose of other equally toxic substances somewhere down the river. I can almost pretend that the serenity that surrounds me extends to a stream of consciousness from the people around me about such things. I can almost believe that while out walking for the greater good of my body, I CAN take in a deep breath of air...and almost pretend that by the time I return home with Blue, my hair WON'T be standing up on end because of the filth and pollutants in the air.

But...I cannot. Reality always lurks just around the corner, in every situation over here. However, I can enjoy what IS offered. The tranquil beauty...the natural perfumes of the seasons...the peace and quiet. What mother doesn't love that?? ;)