Morning in Harbin

China lives all in one time zone: Beijing time. It is handy for traveling and calling long distance across China, to be sure, but it does have quite an effect on the rising and the setting of the sun on those living east and west of Beijing. In Harbin the sun peeps it head over the horizon around 5am or so. I do not actually know the exact time because I prefer to have my eyes and curtains shut at this time of the morning. The afternoon is when the difference is more noticeable as the setting sun begins to draw long shadows in the dust and concrete by 3:30pm or so and by 6pm it is pretty much dark with a few stars. This makes it entirely convenient, then, to do everything early. Indeed, we eat lunch at 11 or 11:30 with dinner beginning at 4 or so (because it can last a long time I am told). Yoko and I joke about eating lunch by mid morning or else we won't be ready in time to have dinner!

Ah, but the current joy of my morning is the jog I have been going on in the morning with the whole of Harbin. There is a football (soccer and such) stadium right next to the dormitory building, which opens for public use from 5:30am to 7:30am (Or as Guodong has said, half-ah-past-ah 5 to half-ah-past-ah 7). So I have been quite the early bird and will get myself out there to jog a few laps with a great number of everyone. Its great! Mostly men go to jog but there are some women, children and older folks mingled about, stretching, walking, jogging at a nice slow 'Mya' sort of pace.

So, yes I had been enjoying this very energizing routine of about 6 or 7 laps before rushing home to run up the stairs, shower and run out the door for class at 8. THEN one morning a student asked me if would want to try running around the nearby park/zoo. It was delicious! There are people everywhere at that time of the morning, aerobics classes on the lawn, women practicing fan and/or sword dancing, people doing some kind of martial arts, choirs practicing, bands trumpeting…etc! What a treat! It is like the day of a big happy marathon, but every day. I get excited just thinking about it….can't wait till tomorrow…