First truck arrived!

On Monday the 19th at approximately 20:30 hours, we received a phone call. A Chinese lorry had arrived to Becky's compound on the east side of town.  Qinghai-Tibet Rescue & Aid had already loaded it with all of the supplies they had purchased earlier that day.  The problem was that the truck was three times the size they had originally expected.  This was only about 19 hours after sending the original donation email to friends and partners through out the US and Europe.  By this time Maria and I had only raised about $1,000 but we went ahead and told Becky that we would try our best to fill the truck the following morning.

So with the money from several generous donations, Maria and I co-ordinated five different vehicles and shoppers (made up of expats and local volunteers) to scour the wholesale markets of supplies to send to the survivors of the Yushu quake.  The truck was already stocked with food (flour, dry noodles, rice, canned meat, crackers, and biscuits) and water, so we committed the rest of the space to other necessities. The night before our friend Dokboh sent word that blankets, warm clothes, tents, toilet paper and sanitary napkins were still high on the needed supplies list.  So thats what we acquired.

Navigating across rivers of surface run-off, I arrived early to the Hai Hu Lu (In-Land Sea Rd) Wholesale Market. The sellers, probably surprised by sudden the precipitation were sleepily opening for business, many were still pulling their wagons and driving their 3-wheel motor-bike carts (loaded to the brim with goods) through the slush puddles of potato dust, wheat chaff. and the earth that shakes off freshly harvested vegetables.  After meeting up with a translator Lisa Luo, Jesse (my local expat friend), and Dian giegie (a Chinese volunteer), we hustled to the back of the market where they sell clothes, shoes, and household items.

Those who survived the quake in Yushu, woke up to the sound of their houses falling apart. When they got out of bed, they had no time to grab even a coat or a hat, if they wanted to escape. We received word that the government had already sent blankets and coats, but many were without proper coats, hats, and gloves. And the temperatures were still below freezing on Monday (it actually snowed again this past Wednesday).

Dian giegie and Lisa immediately went in search of their friends who are clothing distributors. Within 20 minutes we had scoured the market for the best deal.  Many of the vendors and distributors had already packed away the warm clothes in anticipation of the spring, so it was good to have two local Chinese with us. It turned out the first vendor we went tried to sell us 200 hats which he had not yet ordered from the supplier in a city 3 hours away.  At this point Dian giegie unleashed her consumer protection weapons and in a very stern voice explained to the greedy vendor that we had no time for his business tactics.  At this time, we also discovered it was her husband who would be driving the supply truck and he wanted to leave at noon.  At this time it was already 10:00 AM and we had purchased nothing.  Jesse and I immediately realized we needed to ask for divine intervention.  Within the next 30 minutes we found another vendor and we walked away with 260 balaclavas, 180 (sturdy fleece gloves), and 12 packs of toilet paper (over 900 rolls), all for less than USD $340.00.

At this point I still needed to buy the long underwear and pants (the other teams were taking care of other purchases) on my shopping list.  I had called a friend Yang Da ge, moments earlier to see if he would lend me his pickup. It was about 11:00AM and I explained we needed to get all these things across town and still stop at the Commercial Sales market by the train station. He arrived moments later with his Mazda 6 and a pick up truck.  Yang sent the pick up truck to the drop off location, while myself and the two Chinese sped off at the hurling rate of 150 km/hour to the next market.  With Yang behind the wheel of his Mazda 6, taking side streets and driving against traffic on a one-way street for several blocks, we arrived to the other side of town in less than 10 minutes.  Within less than an hour we had purchased over 600 pairs of long underwear in an assortment of sizes.  We also purchased about 80 pairs of thick winter pants.  The remainder of the donations were spent on these clothes. 

Thanks to being on China time and not western time, the truck was still there when we arrived with the last of the items at 12:45 PM. 

We've received word that the truck loaded with these things, tents, blankets, food, coats, and water arrived not too long ago.  The journey, which usually takes less than 15-hours, is taking much longer. This is due to the mountainous route being backed up with survivors' families, volunteer vehicles and the occasional supply truck. Maria and I would like to send another truck on this coming Tuesday. 

Please help us reach this goal and keep an eye out for pictures, coming soon!

Donations can be received at her facebook account: www.facebook.com/mariadoulos or at my paypal account clarkiv(at)gmail.com 

To those who donate we can provide receipts and cost analysis break-down.

In His service,

Clark

Clark's News on Qinghai Earthquake, call for Help

Dear Friends,

Thank you for taking your time to read this message. If you think you can help in the relief effort, please read on.

I'm sure you have seen it in the news. In the remote county of Yushu in the Qinghai province of China, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck at 7:49 CST (23:49 GMT) Wednesday, April 14th.  When I woke up to text messages reporting the news that same morning, I knew these next months would not be the usual mundane routine of "Clark the ESL teacher." 

On my way to class that same day, I saw a 2 km long convoy of police, military, and ambulances speed down the main highway toward Yushu. I knew immediately this catastrophe would be massive. For a couple reasons, I have waited till today to write you with the news.  

The first reason is that I needed to wait for more word from the ground in Yushu. It is so easy to tell people the rumors that we hear going around in the capital. Finally today I received word from my expat friends who are at epicenter zone of quake.  They work with the only expat NGO that is officially permitted by all three levels of government to participate. This NGO operates locally under the name of Plateau Perspectives.  By tomorrow morning they will have sent five waves of medical teams into the quake area.  This is in addition to the thousands of Chinese doctors also on the ground--a joint effort by the national government, Qinghai Provincial Hospital, and Chinese Red Cross has established more than four medical sites including a fully functioning military hospital to temporarily replace the two local hospitals that have completely collapsed.  Blankets, medical supplies, and clothing are currently being distributed as critically injured victims are medi-vacced here to Xining. People huddle in tents (standing room only) through the night, where the temperatures are below freezing and it continues to snow. Almost every house has crumbled to dust and rubble.

The second reason is that I wanted to know the best way to respond. I would like to help you, who are able and eager to respond with compassion to the victims of this massive tragedy.  Thank you all of you who have already found a way to help the victims, there are many organizations accepting donations especially ear-marked for this relief effort.  There are several developments on the horizon which will make this clear:

Now it is a race against time to control the spread of disease which is rapidly becoming the main issue.  The fires are burning through the night to get rid of bodies and prevent epidemics of pneumonia, tuberculosis, and other infections.  The death toll is up to 1400 people in this remote prefecture of Yushu (population approx 100,000).  They live at a very high altitude on the plateau just between here and the Himalaya mountains.  The town of Gyegu, 3700m (12,000 ft) above sea-level, is the hardest hit, and more than 12,000 people there are badly injured.  With so many people struggling to get rest, deal with the psycho-trauma, and prevent hypothermia the basic necessities of life are in constant demand.  

Even with the government sending supplies in through the day and night, there are still thousands people thirsty, cold, and hungry. These supplies are critical to maintain health and to ward off the potential outbreak. Even before the earthquake water had to be boiled to be pure and drinkable.  Now, most of the victims and the volunteers are dependent on bottled water shipped to by the supply chain. Today a local friend called us to say that they are still digging through the rubble and finding bodies. During the same call he urged that we send a truck load of food and water as soon as possible, because there are people thirsty and starving.

The journey is 14 hours away over land, because you must cross over two high mountain ranges.  The national government is controlling the airport and until they sort out the logistical nightmare we ourselves will not be able nor are we invited to send anything via plane.  Two EDGE outreach water specialists are on their way with two New Life Purifiers.  Dave Brothers (stationed in Shillong, India) and his colleague (an Indian national) are currently making arrangements to arrive early this week.

Now Maria (my expat friend) and I are working to meet our friend's request. We will start in the next 12 hours to organize a truck-full (flatbed/Chinese lorry) of food, warm clothes and other supplies.  Contacts on the ground in Yushu are getting us the proper permits to send these supplies along with the purifier-team to the disaster zone. By Thursday (the 22nd) we should have all the red-tape sorted out--with enough funds in the truck will be outfitted and ready to go.

A total of 20,000 Chinese Yuan (aprox: $3,000) will be needed to get this truck on the road.  This will cover the supplies, food, and fuel costs (we need to take enough fuel on the truck to get it back, as all fuel is depleted within Yushu itself). The water purifiers are already paid for, and EDGE outreach is providing for the transportation to get them here to Xining.  Please consider helping me to get these supplies and the water purifiers all the way to Yushu.  

There are four ways to donate at this time.

1. The official charity webpage of The Plateau Perspectives donation website: http://yushuearthquakerelief.com/

Note: this donation site is a general fund for all the disaster relief for Yushu, it will not be specifically earmarked for the water purifiers and the truck load that I and Maria are personally organizing.

for your reference their tax deductible numbers: Canadian charity no. 88353 511 RR0001 and Scottish charity no. SC036202

2. Maria's Facebook page has a donation link, the fastest way to get funds to us! She runs an NGO and a training center for girls from the plateau called T-Fusion, she will be able to issue you receipts.

3. My paypal: also fast and reliable, from your www.paypal.com account, send donations to clarkiv(at)gmail.com, I will withdraw the funds directly from my ATM and give the funds to Maria, we will then send you a receipt in the mail.

4. EDGE is a 501-3c their donations are accepted at www.edgeoutreach.com you can also email Mr. Bob Browning at bob(at)edgeoutreach.com to discuss donations.

Thank you for your time and partnership in this effort,

Your friend,

Clark Rubino

Mobile:  Country code +86     13109783530

Dressing warmly for Class

Arrived to Hanoi

Hey Friends,

 

Ive arrived to Hanoi safely. I will be on facebook again momentarily. For now I have to take care of my accomodations. Peace and Love

 

Pingliang to Xi'an to Xining Summed Up

On Saturday morning August 1st, my teaching team piled in a coach bus and headed toward Xi'an. When we arrived in Xi'an, the team spent several days debriefing and visiting this ancient and beautiful city. We spent the previous week (July 25-July 31st) giving our students their final lessons, finishing projects, and preparing for an open house for all of their parents and families. The students in my class (middle school age), were excited to bring their families and other relatives. Class presentations, photos with students and family members, and a chorus concert highlighted the evening. Many of my students were excited to share their "Dream Mobiles," which described in pictures and symbols their future hopes--during the program they learned how to share about their futures in English. Many of the boys of course, hope to play basketball for China professional team. Lots of the girls hope to be pilots or tour guides. Some desire to be businessmen/women and doctors. Others hope to travel to many places.

This brings me to what I have noticed in this trip to China, domestic tourism had increased dramatically. I can tell that Xining's tourist count has increased by more than 100%. This is due to the development related to the Lhasa Express which has daily stops in Xining.

It was a joy this past week to see many old faces (Chinese and Xpats) in my old home of Xining. I am excited to report that job prospects seem very positive there. I've received two offers. I will head to Vietnam later this week to try to update my visa. My next post will include more about Xining and my journey to Vietnam.

Shalom


(Photos: Traditional Chinese Kungfu sword dance, Pingliang OTC students and me, and on top of the Xi'an City Wall)

Greetings from Pingliang, where I am volunteering for the summer to help teach conversational English to middle school, high school, and college age students for the course of three weeks.

The team of 16 teachers is approaching week three. Each day is divided into three periods. Morning lessons (based on age group or level), afternoon electives (music, technology, puppetry, advanced studies, etc), and evening semi-organized activities. In the mornings I teach middle school students a 45 minute lesson and then assist my teaching partners for the rest of the 3 hour class. In the evenings I co-direct the evening activities. Which usually involve party/icebreaker games, conversation topic groups, and English corner activities.

English Corner is the buzz word for "Facilitated English Practice" in areas where learning English as a second language is in high demand (like China). Usually the facilitators simulate English situations, which require the students (sometimes with the help of other native speakers) to speak and respond with as much English as they can muster. Sometimes it just means stimulating conversation over a specific topic.

The OTC usually functions as a Vocational English College, where students spend two years in language immersion to prepare for English speaking fields. It exists in a small city en route to Xi'an, just a little ways off the ancient Silk Road. The yearlong students are usually from the area, and a non profit subsidizes their tuition; many of them are the first in their families to graduate from grade school. Most of them come from rural areas and their families work subsistence farms. It is an arid region, but enough yearly water fall allows for steady irrigation from the mountains and rivers.

Pingliang rests in valley near the juncture of the Loess Plateau, Inner Mongolia Plateau and the Qinghai Tibet Plateau, and between the Gobi to the north and the Qilian Mountain range to the south. Because of this unique situation and its proximity with the Yellow River, it appears to be an Oasis in the middle of vast badlands. It often gets light sand storms, but also receives its fair share of light showers all day long. Crumbling sandy-clay mountains surround the town, but the soil has just enough nutrients from the loess organic content, that there are hundreds of farms within walking distance.  Traditionally the locals build cave homes into the slopes and cliffs of these eroding mountains, and every stretch of them is slightly terraced. Just the other day, I was walking up in the hills behind our campus, and happened on some hot houses, that the locals make out of adobe, limbs, aluminum bars, and 2mm thick clear plastic. They use these to grow crops that cant handle the cool temperatures of the evening--e.g. tomatoes, Chinese cabbage, spinach, grapes, radishes, etc.

Pingliang is truly a spectacular location for an English Training Program and a Summer English Camp.

Photos: Me on Taoist Temple grounds of Kong Tong Mountain, my middle school student class, and my Ultimate Frisbee group.
--
S. Clark Rubino
Skype: s.clark.r

Harbin Ice Sculptures 

Harbin Ice Sculptures 

Giant Ice Slide Harbin, China. Admission 10 RMB