Invitation as Scholar to China (Part 3) - Typhoon Ragasa, Guangzhou, and Home Again

It was interesting to observe the calm acceptance of Super Typhoon Ragasa’s approach and the preparations in action. There did not seem to be much panic or anxiety, even though the severity of the storm was already quite apparent - it was the largest storm on the planet this year and one of the largest in recorded history. And there had already been fatalities and much damage in both Taiwan and the Philippines. In my conversations with Grace, Amy, and others it seemed the measures being taken by the government and previous experience with big storms allowed people to go with the flow, so to speak. This area of the Asian Pacific is no stranger to typhoons and big storms. I imagine that there is a faith placed in government that the necessary directions and precautions will lead to good outcomes and, from what I could see, the infrastructure was designed to cope with extreme weather.

On the Wednesday morning, Ragasa’s effects had not yet reached us in Guangzhou. The skies were grey and there was a bit more rain, but nothing too dramatic yet. The one impact that was visible from my hotel window was the height of the Pearl River due to the tidal surge being pushed inland. There was concern that the tidal surge combined with the natural tides would lead to extensive flooding. The ferry traffic and shipping had already been halted in anticipation of high water levels and strong currents, and I could see that the arm of the river closest to me was already flowing backwards with the push of the tidal surge. With ferry and train lines at a standstill there was just a trickle of traffic on the streets. Otherwise, everything was being battened down in anticipation of the main event. Thus, with my presentations redirected to online due to campus, it was time to set up for my first gig.

Shifting online was not really a big issue for me given the experience gained with remote classes and meetings during the Covid pandemic. The main issue for me was using Chinese technology, a different platform, and no idea how to navigate support if I needed to. So Amy and another colleague from the school joined me at the hotel to help support the presentation. Although there would be a language barrier for many, even with a command of English learning research terminology can be quite complex itself with all the jargon and nuances. However, I provided a copy of my slides in PDF for students and faculty to translate and I adjusted my presentation speed to a pace that would help with comprehension. I also encouraged attendees to help translate to their peers. I was overwhelmed by the response - by going online, we ended up with having over 250 people in attendance, a mix of graduate students and faculty. This was simply amazing to me! And then, after about 2 hours (with a break), there were some great questions that came in and many very positive comments. To me, the greatest reward in sharing my work is not the accolades but the appreciation of the learning. Amy and some of the faculty that were online, including Grace, sent messages to me about the positive reception of the materials and how the information I shared was accessible. More to the point, the appreciation of specifically learning more about qualitative research was highlighted since, historically, the emphasis in China was more quantitative rather than qualitative methodology.

After Amy and her colleague departed from the hotel, I was left to my own devices - pretty much restricted to the hotel as highways and roads were now being closed. Ragasa’s outer reach had started to infiltrate the area bringing bands of rain and wind gusts. Since many of the deciduous trees were still in full foliage they were starting to catch the gusts coming through and the fronds of the palm trees were beginning to flail about. Xs in tape crossed the windows in the lobby of the hotel and sandbags were at the ready around the entrance. And there were very few people left in the building; just a few guests and staff. So I took the time to attend to the finishing touches on my next sessions, an in-person (weather willing) presentation on mixed-methods research and a practical workshop on research and writing. I was able to do this work with a full view from the picture windows of my hotel room as the skies began to darken and Ragasa began to rage. One of the most dramatic sights was when a car cover was picked up and started to float through the air like a giant amoeba - it was quite a hilarious vision drifting at the seventh floor level of my room and still gaining height. And so it began!

As it turned out, typhoon Ragasa’s trajectory changed when it finished crossing Taiwan and the northern Philippines and began bumping up against the micro-climates of the Pearl River delta and coast. Hong Kong, which had been in the direct path, only took a glancing blow as Ragasa pivoted on a more southwest course. Macau and Zhuhai, where I had been, took a bit of a hit and there was some damage and flooding but no casualties. Much of the damage was due to flying debris that also took out some of the power grids. But for the most part, aside from a bit of flooding and downed trees, Guangzhou had been spared significant damage. First thing Thursday morning, before heading for breakfast, I stepped outside for a bit of fresh air but met a very stagnant wall of heat and humidity. Given the river delta and close proximity to sea level, the air was pretty saturated with standing water in spite of the blue post-storm skies. And already things were starting to hop back to normal - people were coming and going from the hotel and traffic had picked up on the main road. Although not a direct hit, I still figured I could nominally say I had experienced a typhoon and add that to my list along with Hurricane Dorian in 2019.

After breakfast, Amy came to pick me up to take me to where the nursing graduate program was located. Although I was physically near the main Guangdong Pharmaceutical University campus, the nursing school was situated about 30 minutes away in the city. We got to the nursing campus and I was warmly welcomed by student attendants who were ushering people in and some of the faculty members already at the presentation hall. I was impressed to see the turn out - about 100 people in the room and another 75 or so online. After a warm welcome by the head of the program, Dr. Lan Yutao, I got right into the presentation on mixed-methods research. Again, the information I presented was received with much overt appreciation and then the best part was when faculty and students started asking questions. I tend not to be the stuffy lecturer stuck behind a lectern reading off slides. No, I am one of those who prefers to engage the audience and get them to participate…and I think this was a refreshing surprise to everyone in the room. So when question time came, student attendees moved around with microphones and I would meet the attendees with whomever had a question - sort of like the 1990s talk shows where the host works the audience. Questions were asked of me in English, I would clarify the question, and then (with some translation help) gave an answer. There was much fun in this activity and some periods of hilarity when either a translation went sideways or when a humorous moment landed nicely in context. And after it was all done, I was presented with a thank you certificate and traditional Chinese medicine kit. But then the most warming experience occurred when I was “mobbed” like a celebrity with requests to have my picture taken with groups of students who clearly appreciated my presentation and, I suspect, the novelty of my time with them.

Then it was off to a more traditional lunch with Lan, Grace, Amy, and a few other faculty members. I think Grace and Amy had conveyed my food preferences (or preferred nots…) ahead of time but there was still an incredible amount of different plates I had not yet experienced. So long as the food was not looking at me or were either organs or feet, I did my best to try everything. And I think I passed not only the chopstick test again (a couple people were willing to get me cutlery but I declined) but also a food test, of sorts. It was such a lovely meal because, in addition to time well-spent together, the level of comraderie amongst the group was something I had never seen. A Dean and leadership alongside members of the main instructor corps at a very basic personal level having fun, even teasing each other, in a way I definitely had not experienced in stuffy places like UM and other Canadian universities. If there was a hierarchy it was not overt and I do not think it was simple pleasantry with me there as a guest because they were interacting in Chinese with only the occasional notice of me.

The afternoon workshop session was meant to be a practical exercise and I was not entirely sure how to make learning come across in an engaged and authentic way when crossing linguistic barriers. But I worked with Grace in advance to coordinate the execution of the exercises based on what their needs were - there were three different things that they wanted and it came down to the amount of time we have. A rule of thumb I learned as a visiting scholar to Brazil was that when instructing in English one must allow double time for execution and translation in the classroom setting. In any case, I set out planning for three exercises and we successfully completed two in the timeframe but left the third one for the instructors to carry out later on. With students working in groups and faculty spread through the class, much of the work was done in Chinese to facilitate engagement and learning, and then summarization and sharing done in both Chinese and English. It went surprisingly well, although I confess I had prepped to the nth degree, and the time went by in a blink of an eye. I think that, in addition to my primary purpose of developing capacity in qualitative and mixed-methods research for students and faculty, a collateral impact I had was sharing alternative methods of instruction. One of the areas I had been developing in my own teaching technique was more of an experiential learning and flipped classroom approach rather than the old staid didactic lecture format. From feedback I received, the engagement and presentation style I used resonated with the faculty group but also seemed to resonate  with students as evidenced by their interaction in the sessions.

That Thursday night I was exhausted, but still had time for a final supper with Grace and Amy where I was introduced to still more traditional dishes that included a lotus root creation. As well, I was able to see some of the area and evening life of Guangzhou. It was a wonderful way to cap off my time in Guangzhou and to be able to thank these two individuals who worked hard to make this whole experience happen. In spite of Ragasa, things went as reasonably smooth as could be expected and, more to the point, all aspects of the mission were accomplished. I could never have imagined the possibility of such an incredible experience and ended up with an opportunity of a lifetime in being able to go to Asia. Having had this experience I would not hesitate to come back again, whether to work or just for vacation.

Friday was the official end of my trip and the start of my journey back to Canada. But it was not quite the end of the adventure, since my mode of departure was ferry from Guangzhou to Hong Kong to catch my flight. With the disruption of air traffic courtesy of typhoon Ragasa and my upgrade to premium economy in Air Canada from Cathay Pacific, it still remained to be seen whether there would be delays. The first leg of the journey on the ferry was pretty amazing - I was able to pre-clear my luggage at the ferry terminal for transfer right through to Air Canada at the Hong Kong airport and then enjoy a lighter load for the duration of the trip. Cruising down the Pearl River delta was quite a treat - there was a continuous seam of ports and cities along the coastlines, and ships and tugboats everywhere. The ferry docked right at the Hong Kong airport and, after securing my boarding pass at the Air Canada counter, I then headed through Hong Kong’s customs and immigration. It really was a slick and efficient process. And then the fun came in finding the correct train to the terminal as the place is massive and there are a series of different shuttles to different gates. Hong King’s airport is truly a monstrosity and fairly new with even more construction being done in various areas. It is also the main hub of Cathay Pacific and, being essentially an island city state, the airport is purely an international air hub. One of the things that amazed me, similar to the airport in Shanghai, is how the size of the terminal disperses people in a way that there never seemed to be crowding except immediately at the departure gates. 

And there was no shortage of duty-free outlets here - literally there are levels of them at each end of the terminal and more spread throughout. I had arrived in plenty of time to browse the shops but, quite seriously, there really are no deals to be had with duty-free products. For instance, Kiehl’s men’s products are priced higher than what I buy them for in Canada (calculating for the USD and now tariffs), including taxes. As someone said to me, duty-free is now for those people who waited last minute to get gifts for the people at home 🤭 In exploring the main terminal and grabbing a quick bite to eat, I certainly got my steps in before heading to the gate for my Air Canada flight. Consistent with usual performance, Air Canada was late departing by about two hours but I gave them the benefit of the doubt given the impact of Ragasa - apparently, there were over 600 cancelled and delayed flights out of the airport when the storm went through. Onto the plane and back to Canada I headed as I was about to experience yet another travel milestone - the longest Friday ever! Crossing back over the international date line kept my day going for an extra 16 hours or so with a 3:30 p.m. landing Friday afternoon in Vancouver. The safe end to an extraordinary experience.