away for the holidays

For the first winter holiday in a long time I am not at home with family (or traveling with family). It seems fitting as I approach my thirtieth year that I slowly start to create a life that doesn’t revolve around the immediate family and meant that I started my own holiday traditions.

To begin with our family doesn’t celebrate Christmas so being away for the holidays from an objective standpoint shouldn’t be so hard. Unfortunately that’s not the case really. I still have the same pangs as someone who misses the familiarity of their mother’s cooking, the TV blasting in the family room while we all set the table, sitting down around one table each sibling with new stories of the year that is coming to a close.

Instead I find myself in China. A few days after a week long vacation in Thailand with my boyfriend I find myself sitting in the small (by Chinese standards) city of Taicang. A suburb of the more glamorous Shanghai I have found the days waiting for the boy to come home are spent at times in lonely rambling.

Yesterday I managed to get myself a Chinese SIM card (my old one from the summer adventures in China had expired). This might not be considered an all day task but when you have limited Chinese and everyone around you seems to have no english, it can be an interesting exchange of hand gestures and stretching the meaning of the only few words I know.

After that I managed to find one small shop where I got my nails done. This too was an experience. A pedicure in a place where no one heats their shops, restaurants and bars is a funny thing to ask for. The women looked at me in bewilderment as I took off my socks and kept on my wool coat. Everyone else seemed to be wearing multiple layers. I can’t say it was the most enjoyable pedicure I have had. Not quite what I was looking for when I wanted to kill a few hours before dinner plans but my toes look alright. 

It’s a strange thing to go from working/learning/being that independent woman to a housewife, even it is just for a week. I find myself thinking of the right time to call him at work for a break in my day. Though I have ample studying to do, my medical textbooks stare at me with dismay as my fingers often trail to an old Joy Fielding thriller instead. It is after all my vacation.

I might as well be a little creative while I can. There is  a lot to see and explore, but because I’ve been here before and maybe because it is the holidays I feel more inclined to stay inside. Did I mention it’s cold here too? So instead I stay indoors tidying, rearranging furniture and pretending I am a rich diplomat's wife. As that fantasy wears off I decide I’m off to find a Chinese Art Store. It is time to start making my own holiday traditions.