As my time here in Beijing winds down, I've been going to a lot of the different markets to get gifts and souvenirs for everyone at home. It's been fun to go back to the Pearl Market, which was the market I visited during the beginning of my time here. My perception of it has changed quite a bit; it seemed a lot less intimidating and aggressive than last time I was there. Going back to places that I visited much earlier in my time here has also shown me how much my Chinese has improved. I'm so much more willing to interact with the sellers, and rather than just naming a price, I might launch into a longer explanation of why my price is so low. (I'm just a poor student, I have to eat, too!" )
An important thing to note is that you have to bargain at the markets here - if you don't, you'll probably spend 500% more money than you would otherwise. I bought a pair of boots for 100rmb (roughly 15usd), but the seller had started at 680rmb. While most of the stuff I've bought is Christmas presents (and as such, the items and their prices must remain confidential until after December 25th!), I also bought a "Tiffany" bracelet for 45rmb, down from 250. Oh, I also bought a pair of "pearl" earrings for 20rmb and a "cashmere" scarf for 20, too (roughly 3 USD each). Bargaining can be a ton of fun, but also a bit exhausting. Look for my guide to bargaining later in the week, in case your planning a trip to China anytime soon. I also try to write a post on my shady Louis Vuitton experience. :)
As far as the markets themselves go, there's three that I think are the main ones in Beijing: the Pearl, Silk, and Zoo markets. The Pearl and Silk markets are both very similar in that they tend to be oriented towards foreigners (although I've seen Chinese shoppers there, too) and have a lot more kitschy items (ie, Mao's little read book of sayings) and designer knock offs ("Hello Lady, you want to buy a Prada bag? How about Louis Vuitton, okay?). However, I like the Pearl Market better, because the price they start bargaining at tends to be a bit lower, and they just seemed more friendly. The Silk Market is a bit bigger, so has something of a better selection. The Zoo market isn't really a tourist market, and when I went, I didn't see any other foreigners. The Zoo markets sell mainly clothes and daily necessities, so it's usually packed. Not many designer knock offs (except for Uggs), but dirt cheap prices, but so insanely packed, it isn't much fun. Overall, I think the Pearl Market is my favorite, but the Zoo market is great for getting clothes and shoes.
Showing posts with label observations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label observations. Show all posts
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
No Such Thing as Ancient
Also last Friday, after our morning visit to the Urban Planning Museum, we also went to Qianmen, the area just south of Tiananmen Square. Qianmen street is on the north and south axis of the city, which runs through Tiananmen, the Forbidden City, and now the Olympic Green as well. The street was remodeled as a pedestrian street for the Olympics, and looks insanely cool. We had a guided tour of the area with a Chinese scholar who studies the area, which was really informative.
Right near the entrance to the street is a little Starbucks in a building that looks very traditional - one of the coolest Starbucks I've been in. The whole street looks the way you imagined it looking back in the early 1900s when it was a primary street of the city, with lots of shops and the very first Beijing duck restaurant! It was insanely beautiful and exactly what you would imagine Beijing to look like.
Which is exactly the point.
Prior to the Beijing Olympics, the government decided to make the street a major pedestrian thoroughfare, something of a tourist spot. This plan included widening the street, which isn't exactly easy. You can't just pick buildings up and move them back two feet. Most of the buildings were demolished, and along the entire way, there were two of the 40 or so that were the originals. Everything else had been demolished to make way for a 'cleaner' representation of the past.
But in many ways the street is just a front - behind it, the hutongs (courtyard houses) and older buildings still wind their way in a weird maze, a complete contrast to what's on Qianmen street proper. There's a lot of history behind some of the houses, and people still live in the area, though so much of it has been demolished to make space for newer buildings.
It's something I've thought about recently - so much of the 'history' of Beijing isn't as historical as it would seem. So much of it has either been wrecked in wars (it happens..heck, it happened to the White House!), or demolished, or just fallen into general state of disrepair, and then is rebuilt. The Forbidden City isn't even as old as it would seem - most if it has been restored/rebuilt since the mid 20th century. It's kind of a weird concept to adjust to, that what I'm seeing isn't completely what it was historically. In the case of Qianmen, it's changed dramatically. But maybe if it contains the general idea of the place - the essence, if you will - it's okay? I don't know, it's just something I've been thinking about.
Right near the entrance to the street is a little Starbucks in a building that looks very traditional - one of the coolest Starbucks I've been in. The whole street looks the way you imagined it looking back in the early 1900s when it was a primary street of the city, with lots of shops and the very first Beijing duck restaurant! It was insanely beautiful and exactly what you would imagine Beijing to look like.
Which is exactly the point.
Prior to the Beijing Olympics, the government decided to make the street a major pedestrian thoroughfare, something of a tourist spot. This plan included widening the street, which isn't exactly easy. You can't just pick buildings up and move them back two feet. Most of the buildings were demolished, and along the entire way, there were two of the 40 or so that were the originals. Everything else had been demolished to make way for a 'cleaner' representation of the past.
But in many ways the street is just a front - behind it, the hutongs (courtyard houses) and older buildings still wind their way in a weird maze, a complete contrast to what's on Qianmen street proper. There's a lot of history behind some of the houses, and people still live in the area, though so much of it has been demolished to make space for newer buildings.
It's something I've thought about recently - so much of the 'history' of Beijing isn't as historical as it would seem. So much of it has either been wrecked in wars (it happens..heck, it happened to the White House!), or demolished, or just fallen into general state of disrepair, and then is rebuilt. The Forbidden City isn't even as old as it would seem - most if it has been restored/rebuilt since the mid 20th century. It's kind of a weird concept to adjust to, that what I'm seeing isn't completely what it was historically. In the case of Qianmen, it's changed dramatically. But maybe if it contains the general idea of the place - the essence, if you will - it's okay? I don't know, it's just something I've been thinking about.
How to Feel Like a Rockstar
On Friday, we went on a field trip to the Beijing Urban Planning Museum. While normally pretty empty, it was exceptionally crowded that day, as roughly 500 elementary school children were also on a field trip to the museum. As we got ready to leave, they were all lining up by the door, and I quickly realized what a rockstar must feel like: as we walked out, I could feel lots of little eyes staring at the Americans (which was compounded by the fact that I was right next to Alex, the palest 6'4 person you'll ever see). Finally one worked up the courage to say "Hello!" and I said, "Nihao!". It was like a dam broke loose, and all of a sudden there were tons of children yelling Hello at us and waving madly. It was like being an Asian pop star who is marketed to the 8 to 12 year old group. (insert sarcastic reference to Justin Beiber here)
The museum itself was interesting, there was definitely a strong emphasis on the future of Beijing, which will apparently save tons of energy and have hovercraft cars. We thought the future had already arrived when we went to a short screening of a "4-D" film, though it was actually just a 2-D film on 3 panels, so it was like a panorama, and then your seat shifts and bumps as you "ride" in the hovercraft. One of the slogans I liked was the "Shifting from 'made in China' to 'invented in China'", though another was "The World's Crisis - China's Promise", which included massive green energy overhauls by 2020. They also had a huge miniature city of Beijing, which was really cool; you actually got to see the size of the city (the only other time you could see it like that is from the air, but then you have the "crazy bad" levels of pollution). Overall, it was very awe-inspiring, if everything they're advertising actually comes into practice (which it very likely won't, of course). It definitely seems like there's a large scale plan for the city going forward, which I don't know that we have as much of in the US- do we have urban planning museums? It seems like we just get focused on putting band-aids on all of the problems with our cities, as opposed to looking more long term. Maybe that's the problem with a democracy - you're never entirely certain you're going to be there long term. :) Maybe it gets bogged down in city planning committees, or maybe I just haven't noticed because I live in Montana or in an academic bubble most of the time. :)
The museum itself was interesting, there was definitely a strong emphasis on the future of Beijing, which will apparently save tons of energy and have hovercraft cars. We thought the future had already arrived when we went to a short screening of a "4-D" film, though it was actually just a 2-D film on 3 panels, so it was like a panorama, and then your seat shifts and bumps as you "ride" in the hovercraft. One of the slogans I liked was the "Shifting from 'made in China' to 'invented in China'", though another was "The World's Crisis - China's Promise", which included massive green energy overhauls by 2020. They also had a huge miniature city of Beijing, which was really cool; you actually got to see the size of the city (the only other time you could see it like that is from the air, but then you have the "crazy bad" levels of pollution). Overall, it was very awe-inspiring, if everything they're advertising actually comes into practice (which it very likely won't, of course). It definitely seems like there's a large scale plan for the city going forward, which I don't know that we have as much of in the US- do we have urban planning museums? It seems like we just get focused on putting band-aids on all of the problems with our cities, as opposed to looking more long term. Maybe that's the problem with a democracy - you're never entirely certain you're going to be there long term. :) Maybe it gets bogged down in city planning committees, or maybe I just haven't noticed because I live in Montana or in an academic bubble most of the time. :)
Monday, November 15, 2010
A Day That Will Live in Infamy
Not for me, but for the vast majority of people on campus and (possibly) Beijing. Why, you ask? Because today was the day when the rest of the dorms on campus finally got their heat turned on. The dining hall, too, based on the temperature when I walked in to get dinner this evening. Someone said that everyone in Beijing got their heat turned on today, which I guess means it's under government control? That was just what another student said, so don't quote me on it. Either way, this demonstrates one of the benefits of being an international student here - I always have heat, which I can set however high I want. :)
Friday, October 29, 2010
The Skating Regulars
A cold rink, with garish lighting from the children's play area above. A 30 minute music CD on repeat, with the 24 minute mark belonging to Shania Twain's "I'm Gonna Getcha Good!". A sheet of ice, scratched with the tracings of hundreds of blades, with pictures of coaches past and present staring down on it. A slight chill in the air, almost unnoticeable with the movement of skaters, circling endless around the too small surface. In this setting, skaters come and other skaters go, but a core group of determined souls skate on forever, circling the rink and then leaving, only to return again, observed by huddled parents and the rink staff. And so I present to you, The Skating Regulars:
Twizzles:
One of the coaches at the rink, with Bieber-like hair that he frequently flicks back from his eyes ever so genteely. So named because, in the course of instructing people how not to fall over, he frequently becomes bored and launches into advanced footwork sequences, generally consisting of a series of super fast turns called "Twizzles". And thus a nickname was born. Not much personality evident from a distance, unless admiring one's posture in the rink glass could be considered a personality.
Crazy Dancing Guy:
Skates to the beat of his own drum. Listens to his MP3 player and "dances to it". His moves are not what would fall under the category of conventional skating movements, but he makes it work. He is a skater's worst nightmare, in that he is simultaneously not terribly in control (too much crazy dancing, I'm afraid) and completely unpredictable, swerving as the music moves him. Combined with his frequent haphazard stops in the middle of the rink to change the song, and you have recipe for potential disaster. No camel spins when he's around!
Figckey Guy
Crazy Dancing Guy's figurative cousin (I've seen his hip wiggling and quasi-Irish jigging to "Don't You Wish Your Girlfriend was Hot Like Me"). So named because he attempts to complete figure skating moves whilst wearing hockey skates, which both hockey skaters and figure skaters will tell you is impossible. Still, he attempts to spin and jump, and has a fairly decent spiral.
Little Boy Blue
Wears a blue silk shirt to practice every day. Also wears black pants and black padded shorts, which combined with his stick skinny legs makes for an interesting silhouette. A good little skater with nice stretch, but unfortunately it seems his father wants him to be a figure skater more than Little Boy Blue himself does. This leads to long discussions at the board as the father tells him what to do, dilly dallying tying the skates, and a wrinkly forehead and teary eyes after missing a couple lutz jumps in a row.
The Erudite
A completely unremarkable skater, one of the many older people who comes to the rink to skate around, practice two foot spins and waltz jumps, and get their daily exercise in. However, her knowledge of the Chinese skating is spectacular, and she is more than happy to discuss the benefits and disadvantages of having a national training program, why a former World Bronze Medalist coaches in a private rink, and to tell you where the national team practices are held and that they are open to the public. A very valuable resource who speaks English.
Twizzles:
One of the coaches at the rink, with Bieber-like hair that he frequently flicks back from his eyes ever so genteely. So named because, in the course of instructing people how not to fall over, he frequently becomes bored and launches into advanced footwork sequences, generally consisting of a series of super fast turns called "Twizzles". And thus a nickname was born. Not much personality evident from a distance, unless admiring one's posture in the rink glass could be considered a personality.
Crazy Dancing Guy:
Skates to the beat of his own drum. Listens to his MP3 player and "dances to it". His moves are not what would fall under the category of conventional skating movements, but he makes it work. He is a skater's worst nightmare, in that he is simultaneously not terribly in control (too much crazy dancing, I'm afraid) and completely unpredictable, swerving as the music moves him. Combined with his frequent haphazard stops in the middle of the rink to change the song, and you have recipe for potential disaster. No camel spins when he's around!
Figckey Guy
Crazy Dancing Guy's figurative cousin (I've seen his hip wiggling and quasi-Irish jigging to "Don't You Wish Your Girlfriend was Hot Like Me"). So named because he attempts to complete figure skating moves whilst wearing hockey skates, which both hockey skaters and figure skaters will tell you is impossible. Still, he attempts to spin and jump, and has a fairly decent spiral.
Little Boy Blue
Wears a blue silk shirt to practice every day. Also wears black pants and black padded shorts, which combined with his stick skinny legs makes for an interesting silhouette. A good little skater with nice stretch, but unfortunately it seems his father wants him to be a figure skater more than Little Boy Blue himself does. This leads to long discussions at the board as the father tells him what to do, dilly dallying tying the skates, and a wrinkly forehead and teary eyes after missing a couple lutz jumps in a row.
The Erudite
A completely unremarkable skater, one of the many older people who comes to the rink to skate around, practice two foot spins and waltz jumps, and get their daily exercise in. However, her knowledge of the Chinese skating is spectacular, and she is more than happy to discuss the benefits and disadvantages of having a national training program, why a former World Bronze Medalist coaches in a private rink, and to tell you where the national team practices are held and that they are open to the public. A very valuable resource who speaks English.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
A Few of My Favorite Things
- Watching Winnie the Pooh in Chinese
- Being able to read an entire sign without having to ask someone what a certain character means.
- Field trips to archeological museums
- The pop music that plays over the campus loudspeakers at the end of the day
- Dumplings :)
- The happy-glowy feeling of success when I say something in Mandarin and people actually understand me. (Related: the euphoria of realizing I'm able to survive in a foreign country by myself)
- Being able to read an entire sign without having to ask someone what a certain character means.
- Field trips to archeological museums
- The pop music that plays over the campus loudspeakers at the end of the day
- Dumplings :)
- The happy-glowy feeling of success when I say something in Mandarin and people actually understand me. (Related: the euphoria of realizing I'm able to survive in a foreign country by myself)
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Crescat Scientia...
...vita excolatur. Let knowledge grow from more to more, and so be human life enriched. As most of you know, it's the motto of the University of Chicago, and I figured that as I move into the second session of my study abroad classes, it was worth reflecting on it, especially in light of studying abroad.
Truth be told, I had never really contemplated the motto deeply, or even shallowly for that matter. But during this past class session, I drifted off a little bit, after my professor mentioned in passing the ancient Greeks, leading me to think about how cool it would be to really study them for awhile - not like skimming history studying, but an in depth study of them. I then started contemplating how short a time four years actually is - not nearly enough to even come close to studying everything I want to. This contemplation was followed by the realization that a lifetime is a very short amount of time to study everything I want to, which in turn made me slightly depressed and wishing I was immortal.
In my class notes, I frequently make sidebar notations of things the professor mentions in passing or that pique my interest. These little notes range from book titles (The Monk and the Monkey) to subjects (Art History) to people (Alexander the Great). All are things I want to either read or study more, and I'm beginning to compile a list for when I have some elusive free time. Now, I've done this in all my classes (not so much in Chinese) throughout college, meaning that with roughly 4 notations a week in each class, 3 classes meeting twice a week, 10 weeks in a quarter, 4 quarters I've been in school = 960 subjects I want to study in more depth. Grant it, some of those things might overlap, but most of them won't, meaning I've got a lifetime of studying cut out for me. Suddenly, four years seems like an even shorter amount of time. Sure, I can still 'study' them once I graduate and have a job, but it won't be the same as having world class professors share their knowledge with you while you study full-time.
The growth of knowledge seems very tied to connections; my studying ancient Chinese civilization and how it interacted with ancient Rome made me want to learn more about Alexander the Great and read The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, for instance. Even a small connection like that between the two can lead to the exponential growth of knowledge. And in the same way, living in Beijing provides me with a set of observations and experiences that I can connect with the readings and lectures in class - for example, the most recent reading for tomorrow mentioned the cosmos vs. the microcosm, which made me think about how much of Chinese culture is in relation to the microcosm, from the hutongs in Old Beijing to the iPod Shuffle sized ancient pots we saw in the museum. That's one of the benefits of studying abroad to me: being in the culture enhances and solidifies learning; it allows you to make more "connections". Being here just makes everything more relevant - having been to the Forbidden City and discussing ancient court life lets me imagine it in more detail, or at least historical accuracy. (Though that's actually debatable, though that's a different topic - see, another connection!) Being here just offers my imagination a million different paths to considering a topic, and that's one of the things I've enjoyed about being here.
Crescat Scientia, vita excolatur. Let knowledge grow from more to more....exponentially through sidebar notes made during class....through connections made from living in a completely opposite culture....by encountering different perspectives on the same topic.... and even from thirteen weeks straight of Chinese food. And so be human live be enriched. :)
Truth be told, I had never really contemplated the motto deeply, or even shallowly for that matter. But during this past class session, I drifted off a little bit, after my professor mentioned in passing the ancient Greeks, leading me to think about how cool it would be to really study them for awhile - not like skimming history studying, but an in depth study of them. I then started contemplating how short a time four years actually is - not nearly enough to even come close to studying everything I want to. This contemplation was followed by the realization that a lifetime is a very short amount of time to study everything I want to, which in turn made me slightly depressed and wishing I was immortal.
In my class notes, I frequently make sidebar notations of things the professor mentions in passing or that pique my interest. These little notes range from book titles (The Monk and the Monkey) to subjects (Art History) to people (Alexander the Great). All are things I want to either read or study more, and I'm beginning to compile a list for when I have some elusive free time. Now, I've done this in all my classes (not so much in Chinese) throughout college, meaning that with roughly 4 notations a week in each class, 3 classes meeting twice a week, 10 weeks in a quarter, 4 quarters I've been in school = 960 subjects I want to study in more depth. Grant it, some of those things might overlap, but most of them won't, meaning I've got a lifetime of studying cut out for me. Suddenly, four years seems like an even shorter amount of time. Sure, I can still 'study' them once I graduate and have a job, but it won't be the same as having world class professors share their knowledge with you while you study full-time.
The growth of knowledge seems very tied to connections; my studying ancient Chinese civilization and how it interacted with ancient Rome made me want to learn more about Alexander the Great and read The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, for instance. Even a small connection like that between the two can lead to the exponential growth of knowledge. And in the same way, living in Beijing provides me with a set of observations and experiences that I can connect with the readings and lectures in class - for example, the most recent reading for tomorrow mentioned the cosmos vs. the microcosm, which made me think about how much of Chinese culture is in relation to the microcosm, from the hutongs in Old Beijing to the iPod Shuffle sized ancient pots we saw in the museum. That's one of the benefits of studying abroad to me: being in the culture enhances and solidifies learning; it allows you to make more "connections". Being here just makes everything more relevant - having been to the Forbidden City and discussing ancient court life lets me imagine it in more detail, or at least historical accuracy. (Though that's actually debatable, though that's a different topic - see, another connection!) Being here just offers my imagination a million different paths to considering a topic, and that's one of the things I've enjoyed about being here.
Crescat Scientia, vita excolatur. Let knowledge grow from more to more....exponentially through sidebar notes made during class....through connections made from living in a completely opposite culture....by encountering different perspectives on the same topic.... and even from thirteen weeks straight of Chinese food. And so be human live be enriched. :)
Friday, October 22, 2010
Life in a Police State
Perhaps the most well known manifestation of the Chinese government's control over daily life is the "Great Firewall of China", which I talked a little bit about in another post. It took me a little bit by surprise my first time getting online that the when you try to access a blocked page, it just says "The connection was reset while the page was loading", the same mundane message I occasionally get at home. I suppose I was expecting something more like "The Chinese Government Bureau of Security has blocked this webpage", or some official message like that. Twitter, Blogspot, and Facebook are all blocked, although US news outlets aren't. Some random websites that I wouldn't anticipate being blocked are as well, although an example slips my mind. Getting around the firewall isn't exceptionally hard, especially for foreigners. I use my UChicago VPN, which causes the internet to recognize my computer as being back on campus in Hyde Park (I think that's how it works, anyway). From what I've heard, it's somewhat expected that foreigners here will bypass the firewall,so I'm in no danger of being arrested. :)
More surprising to me, however, was the sheer amount of security they have here. There are security guards at virtually every business and entry to campus, which made me skittish my first few days here - I was scared they were going to ask to see my passport/visa and I wouldn't be able to understand them. They are especially present in the subway system, and whenever you enter a station your bags have to go through an x-ray machine. I've thought in the past that implementing such a system in the US would be wise, since our public transit is generally unguarded, but after experiencing it here, it feels a bit oppressive. I grew up around the military, and I live in Montana - as far as guns go, I'm about as comfortable around them as you can get. But even then, having SWAT teams with automatic rifles on the subway platforms or outside the station makes me nervous. Maybe it's just because I'm a foreigner that these things stand out to me- I guess I'm likely to assume that the guards are there as the face of the Chinese government, not of just public safety.
There are also security cameras everywhere, too - I counted eight on a light pole on Tiananmen Square. I didn't realize just how used to them I had become until I was in the UChicago Center one day, and noticed a camera in the large lecture room. I instantly assumed it was a security camera - it took my brain a minute to remind me that it was the cameras used to record/broadcast presentations to other parts of the center, like we used during the opening, when there were too many people to fit in that one room.
When foreigners enter the country, they're obviously required to have a visa, but the stewardesses on the plane also handed out arrival/departure cards. The arrival portion, which included flight info, planned place of residence, and reason for visit, was handed in to customs when I arrived. The departure half I keep with me, and will be turned in when I leave. Customs also apparently assigns everyone a "police number", although if it's actually used and what for, I have no idea. The airport also has a health check station, although it was closed by the time I got in around midnight (maybe they assume people getting in late can't be sick?).
While I don't doubt that I have an immense amount more freedom than the first students who studied abroad in China, there are still slight differences in the way we're treated that give me the sense they are trying to make sure we have a good opinion of China. For instance, our dorm is all single rooms; most students share a room with 5 other students. Our dorms also have unlimited electricity; in the other dorms, it gets shut off from 11:30PM to 6:00AM. There have been times when I've been waiting to order food at the cafeteria, and I've been helped before other students- whether that's an official school policy or just the noodle guy's affinity for foreign girls, I'm not sure. I've also gotten that sense from individual people - several times, someone has told me that m family should come visit to "see the real China".When my friend Charis was visiting, her friend from Beijing University came along to visit, and mentioned that foreign students always get the nice dorms. He also noted, flipping through one of my textbooks on Beijing/Tiananmen Square, that it was a really good book- it had some of the pictures which are still blocked in China.
Of course, these are all my individual impressions, and some processes may be similar to those in the US - I have no clue what kind of visas a foreigner visitor needs to get into the US, and we of course have security and police officers and cameras everywhere, too. Maybe it's just my perception of the Chinese government that causes these things to stand out, and maybe if this were the US I wouldn't think twice about most of the stuff above. And I do hope that this post doesn't portray China in a negative light; I've loved my time here, and the Chinese are some of the most generous and hospitable people I've ever met. (Although the Singaporeans still take the cake, refer to my posts on the Center Opening). A friend here told me that the Chinese people don't care about their freedom as much as Americans do, and I would guess that to be true - can you imagine the uproar if the US government tried to block a website, no matter how mundane?
Perhaps I should note, too, that in a country with as many people as China, I'm not sure how effective the security measures are - there are huge holes in the firewall, and I don't know anyone who's ever had their bag searched at the subway station.
More surprising to me, however, was the sheer amount of security they have here. There are security guards at virtually every business and entry to campus, which made me skittish my first few days here - I was scared they were going to ask to see my passport/visa and I wouldn't be able to understand them. They are especially present in the subway system, and whenever you enter a station your bags have to go through an x-ray machine. I've thought in the past that implementing such a system in the US would be wise, since our public transit is generally unguarded, but after experiencing it here, it feels a bit oppressive. I grew up around the military, and I live in Montana - as far as guns go, I'm about as comfortable around them as you can get. But even then, having SWAT teams with automatic rifles on the subway platforms or outside the station makes me nervous. Maybe it's just because I'm a foreigner that these things stand out to me- I guess I'm likely to assume that the guards are there as the face of the Chinese government, not of just public safety.
There are also security cameras everywhere, too - I counted eight on a light pole on Tiananmen Square. I didn't realize just how used to them I had become until I was in the UChicago Center one day, and noticed a camera in the large lecture room. I instantly assumed it was a security camera - it took my brain a minute to remind me that it was the cameras used to record/broadcast presentations to other parts of the center, like we used during the opening, when there were too many people to fit in that one room.
When foreigners enter the country, they're obviously required to have a visa, but the stewardesses on the plane also handed out arrival/departure cards. The arrival portion, which included flight info, planned place of residence, and reason for visit, was handed in to customs when I arrived. The departure half I keep with me, and will be turned in when I leave. Customs also apparently assigns everyone a "police number", although if it's actually used and what for, I have no idea. The airport also has a health check station, although it was closed by the time I got in around midnight (maybe they assume people getting in late can't be sick?).
While I don't doubt that I have an immense amount more freedom than the first students who studied abroad in China, there are still slight differences in the way we're treated that give me the sense they are trying to make sure we have a good opinion of China. For instance, our dorm is all single rooms; most students share a room with 5 other students. Our dorms also have unlimited electricity; in the other dorms, it gets shut off from 11:30PM to 6:00AM. There have been times when I've been waiting to order food at the cafeteria, and I've been helped before other students- whether that's an official school policy or just the noodle guy's affinity for foreign girls, I'm not sure. I've also gotten that sense from individual people - several times, someone has told me that m family should come visit to "see the real China".When my friend Charis was visiting, her friend from Beijing University came along to visit, and mentioned that foreign students always get the nice dorms. He also noted, flipping through one of my textbooks on Beijing/Tiananmen Square, that it was a really good book- it had some of the pictures which are still blocked in China.
Of course, these are all my individual impressions, and some processes may be similar to those in the US - I have no clue what kind of visas a foreigner visitor needs to get into the US, and we of course have security and police officers and cameras everywhere, too. Maybe it's just my perception of the Chinese government that causes these things to stand out, and maybe if this were the US I wouldn't think twice about most of the stuff above. And I do hope that this post doesn't portray China in a negative light; I've loved my time here, and the Chinese are some of the most generous and hospitable people I've ever met. (Although the Singaporeans still take the cake, refer to my posts on the Center Opening). A friend here told me that the Chinese people don't care about their freedom as much as Americans do, and I would guess that to be true - can you imagine the uproar if the US government tried to block a website, no matter how mundane?
Perhaps I should note, too, that in a country with as many people as China, I'm not sure how effective the security measures are - there are huge holes in the firewall, and I don't know anyone who's ever had their bag searched at the subway station.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Halfway Point!
Today marks the halfway point between my arrival in China and my departure, which is simultaneously exciting and sad. It's hard to believe how far I've come since the first few days when I was so homesick I made this countdown, how many experiences I've had and unexpected encounters, and how fast it's gone!
One one hand, I'm really, really excited to go home. I'm loving China, but I miss the quiet of Montana and Chicago, the lack of people, and especially the food. I'm looking forward to being back in a place where I don't have to carefully consider my interactions with people; living in a foreign country can be tiring, because you have to think and be aware so much more than at home. On the other hand, I'm really going to be sad to leave China. I've loved getting to see a culture so completely different than my own, and I've had a ton of experiences I never could have had in the States. I've gotten to meet so many people, even some other UChicago students that I might not have met otherwise. I've loved getting to try authentic Chinese food, and I love that Chinese is beginning to roll off my tongue a little bit easier.
I think it's safe to say my departure will be bittersweet- I'm so looking forward to being home, both Montana and Chicago. But leaving will mean saying goodbye to Beijing Roast Duck and Hot Pot, too, and will mean my study abroad experience is over. Though at this point, I'm still only halfway, and talking about saying goodbye might be putting the cart in front of the horse. I've had a lot of great experiences, but a lot more still to come. What's that poem about miles to go before I sleep? :)
One one hand, I'm really, really excited to go home. I'm loving China, but I miss the quiet of Montana and Chicago, the lack of people, and especially the food. I'm looking forward to being back in a place where I don't have to carefully consider my interactions with people; living in a foreign country can be tiring, because you have to think and be aware so much more than at home. On the other hand, I'm really going to be sad to leave China. I've loved getting to see a culture so completely different than my own, and I've had a ton of experiences I never could have had in the States. I've gotten to meet so many people, even some other UChicago students that I might not have met otherwise. I've loved getting to try authentic Chinese food, and I love that Chinese is beginning to roll off my tongue a little bit easier.
I think it's safe to say my departure will be bittersweet- I'm so looking forward to being home, both Montana and Chicago. But leaving will mean saying goodbye to Beijing Roast Duck and Hot Pot, too, and will mean my study abroad experience is over. Though at this point, I'm still only halfway, and talking about saying goodbye might be putting the cart in front of the horse. I've had a lot of great experiences, but a lot more still to come. What's that poem about miles to go before I sleep? :)
Friday, October 15, 2010
In Xi'an!
Last night we left Beijing for Xi'an, where we'll be staying until Sunday night. If you recall from my previous post, this was met with much excitement on my part, as most things usually are. :) We took an overnight train from Beijing to Xi'an, and this was my first experience with an overnight "sleeper" train, which was immensely exciting.
We got to the train station about twenty minutes before the train started boarding, so most of us students wandered around for a bit. There was both a KFC and a Mcdonald's in the station, and I was tempted to cave in and buy some, despite the fact that Western food is way more expensive than Chinese food here. (A value meal will set you back 20 RMB, roughly 3.5 USD, as opposed to a big bowl of noodles, egg, and tomato for 4 RMB). I ended up not buying anything, although I had a few of Asta's french fries; they were good, but still a little bit different.
The sleeper train was, as previously mentioned, exceptionally exciting. We were in what are called hard sleepers, which means it's a little room with bunk beds 3 high on each side, and leads directly to the main hallway (no door or private bathroom). I was on the tippy top, so I had a nice view of the ceiling, though you couldn't see anything outside of the window, anyway. Overall, it was about a 13 hour train ride, so being able to sleep was great, and travelling with so many other people from UChicago is lots of fun (we watched a bit of Star Wars on the train).
We got to Xi'an about 9 am, and went to our hotel and checked in. Unlike the dorms, we're sharing rooms here, which is absolutely fine, since I don't hate anyone (yet, anyway!). The hotel and the rooms are really nice - it's apparently a 4 star hotel, although I think the standards are perhaps a bit lower here. At first glance, it was impressively swanky: free slippers/combs in the rooms, free internet, a pool and gym, and a restaurant on second floor. After returning from sightseeing, however, I discovered the slightly more ghetto side of it: the television doesn't work, the lighting isn't fantastic, and only one electric socket works (which means I can't have my laptop and the lamp plugged in at the same time). I don't mean to complain, though - breakfast is included, and it's a good hotel. Goodness knows I've stayed in worse. (coughcough, Mount Tai, coughcough).
After getting lunch (nothing too exciting, but delicious baozi, which are like bread dumplings), we went to see the Terracotta soldiers, one of the things China is most known for. Similar to the ancient Egyptian's beliefs, the soldiers were constructed to aid Emperor Qin in the afterlife. They were discovered in 1974 by a farmer digging for a well; had he dug four feet to the left, they would never have been discovered! There are three 'pits' that have been - and are still being- excavated. The first is the largest, containing an estimated 6,000 soldiers, though only 1/3 of those have been unearthed. The other two are smaller, though still containing an impressively large number of the life sized figures.
That place was insane! The soldiers are all about 6 feet tall, and there were just so many of them; it's crazy to imagine all the work that must have gone into getting them into the underground tombs. I think what I found most interesting is that they're still in the process of excavating; it isn't just some old soldiers people found awhile ago and put on display. While we spectated, there were archeologists dusting off pieces and trying to piece soldiers together again; or, as I put it, "putting together part of the world's largest puzzle". It was just so crazy to think about how much work there is still to be done - there's still at least 4000 life size soldiers waiting to be put together, plus horses and chariots. It's also hard to believe that the construction of the tombs and soldiers took roughly four decades. Basically, no sooner had Emperor Qin united China then he said, "Ok, time to get started on my tombs, I guess...".
Sorry for such a long post, but just a few more notes: We had discussed in class the concept of invisibility surrounding the emperor. The Forbidden City is so huge in part so that no one ever knew for sure where the Emperor was, something that is also seen in the tombs - to this day, no one knows exactly where in the massive tomb structure he's buried. Just an interesting fact for you. :)
On our way back we got stuck in a traffic jam, apparently caused by an accident. It was interesting that after about three minutes, all the drivers shut off their engines and jumped out to talk to each other. The groups of drivers just standing around chatting reminded me of the news story a few months back about a nine day traffic jam outside of Beijing - they're so used to it that it doesn't bother them, it's just a chance for socialization. Thankfully our traffic jam was much shorter, only about thirty minutes.
Sorry that my posts are more like epistles than just updates, we're headed to museums tomorrow, landmarks and tombs on Sunday!
We got to the train station about twenty minutes before the train started boarding, so most of us students wandered around for a bit. There was both a KFC and a Mcdonald's in the station, and I was tempted to cave in and buy some, despite the fact that Western food is way more expensive than Chinese food here. (A value meal will set you back 20 RMB, roughly 3.5 USD, as opposed to a big bowl of noodles, egg, and tomato for 4 RMB). I ended up not buying anything, although I had a few of Asta's french fries; they were good, but still a little bit different.
The sleeper train was, as previously mentioned, exceptionally exciting. We were in what are called hard sleepers, which means it's a little room with bunk beds 3 high on each side, and leads directly to the main hallway (no door or private bathroom). I was on the tippy top, so I had a nice view of the ceiling, though you couldn't see anything outside of the window, anyway. Overall, it was about a 13 hour train ride, so being able to sleep was great, and travelling with so many other people from UChicago is lots of fun (we watched a bit of Star Wars on the train).
We got to Xi'an about 9 am, and went to our hotel and checked in. Unlike the dorms, we're sharing rooms here, which is absolutely fine, since I don't hate anyone (yet, anyway!). The hotel and the rooms are really nice - it's apparently a 4 star hotel, although I think the standards are perhaps a bit lower here. At first glance, it was impressively swanky: free slippers/combs in the rooms, free internet, a pool and gym, and a restaurant on second floor. After returning from sightseeing, however, I discovered the slightly more ghetto side of it: the television doesn't work, the lighting isn't fantastic, and only one electric socket works (which means I can't have my laptop and the lamp plugged in at the same time). I don't mean to complain, though - breakfast is included, and it's a good hotel. Goodness knows I've stayed in worse. (coughcough, Mount Tai, coughcough).
After getting lunch (nothing too exciting, but delicious baozi, which are like bread dumplings), we went to see the Terracotta soldiers, one of the things China is most known for. Similar to the ancient Egyptian's beliefs, the soldiers were constructed to aid Emperor Qin in the afterlife. They were discovered in 1974 by a farmer digging for a well; had he dug four feet to the left, they would never have been discovered! There are three 'pits' that have been - and are still being- excavated. The first is the largest, containing an estimated 6,000 soldiers, though only 1/3 of those have been unearthed. The other two are smaller, though still containing an impressively large number of the life sized figures.
That place was insane! The soldiers are all about 6 feet tall, and there were just so many of them; it's crazy to imagine all the work that must have gone into getting them into the underground tombs. I think what I found most interesting is that they're still in the process of excavating; it isn't just some old soldiers people found awhile ago and put on display. While we spectated, there were archeologists dusting off pieces and trying to piece soldiers together again; or, as I put it, "putting together part of the world's largest puzzle". It was just so crazy to think about how much work there is still to be done - there's still at least 4000 life size soldiers waiting to be put together, plus horses and chariots. It's also hard to believe that the construction of the tombs and soldiers took roughly four decades. Basically, no sooner had Emperor Qin united China then he said, "Ok, time to get started on my tombs, I guess...".
Sorry for such a long post, but just a few more notes: We had discussed in class the concept of invisibility surrounding the emperor. The Forbidden City is so huge in part so that no one ever knew for sure where the Emperor was, something that is also seen in the tombs - to this day, no one knows exactly where in the massive tomb structure he's buried. Just an interesting fact for you. :)
On our way back we got stuck in a traffic jam, apparently caused by an accident. It was interesting that after about three minutes, all the drivers shut off their engines and jumped out to talk to each other. The groups of drivers just standing around chatting reminded me of the news story a few months back about a nine day traffic jam outside of Beijing - they're so used to it that it doesn't bother them, it's just a chance for socialization. Thankfully our traffic jam was much shorter, only about thirty minutes.
Sorry that my posts are more like epistles than just updates, we're headed to museums tomorrow, landmarks and tombs on Sunday!
Friday, October 1, 2010
National Day and Other Observations
Today is National Day, celebrating the 61st anniversary of the country and the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. It's odd to me that they don't consider the 1500+ years of China's history prior to the founding of the PRC - while I consider 1949 to just be a government/regime change, they consider it to be a brand new country's founding. Unfortunately, the 61st anniversary did not include major military parades or fireworks, and the Chinese most definitely do not follow the American custom of grilling hamburgers and barbecuing, which made me quite sad as I ate noodles and tomatoes for dinner.
However, in commemoration of the special day, China schools are given the entire next week of off school, and most workers had today off, as well. Slightly defeating the purpose, there are extra classes the week after next to make up for missed classes. Us Chicago students were given the day off, but not next week, though we won't have Chinese class, since our teachers have off (Language teachers are Renmin University faculty). Let loose in a metropolis of 23 million, me and three classmates did what seemed the most logical idea: took ourselves to the Beijing Zoo, called dong wu gong yuan in Chinese, which literally translates to Animal Park. :)
Since it was National Day, the zoo was fairly crowded, although in a city the size of Beijing anything is crowded. I've heard it said about NYC that if you decide to do something, you can be sure at least 100 other people have the same idea; here, I think it's something like 10,000 people have the same idea. The subway line on our way back was absolutely insane, we probably waited in line for 10 minutes just to get into the subway station. Thankfully we were heading out of the city rather than into it, so the train itself wasn't too packed. There was also a stronger police force out because of the day - though why you need four police officers by the lemurs and marmosets, I have no idea. (I guess to avoid any monkey business!)
I've also read that a characteristic of China is a pervasive belief that the rules were meant for other people, something that seemed to be verified today. Like most (all?) zoos, there were signs on every exhibit telling visitors not to feed the animals or throw anything in their cages, but people here did a lot of it. Especially at the monkey exhibit, there were several people throwing peanuts and other food over the divider into the cage - the elder monkey would chase all the younger ones away, and then eat all the nuts himself. At the gorilla habitat, several of the gorillas were handling and seemingly drinking from water bottles. I thought, since three of the gorillas had bottles, that maybe the zookeepers gave the bottles to them to play with. I realized I was mistaken when the person right next to me chucked his iced tea bottle in, too, though a police officer did come over and talk to him. And at the otter exhibit, the otter was putting his paws up on the glass, looking up at us, and then scurrying away and coming back. In order to get his attention, someone poured yogurt on the poor little guy. :( It made me think about how it's kind of funny that we follow the rules in the US without being forced to - a kind of self regulating society (?), where not bothering animals is normal enough that you get yelled/glared at if you do it.
Overall, the zoo was excellent, especially seeing the zebras, gnus, wildebeests, ostriches, and giraffes - I think God had fun when he made Africa! :) I'll likely update later this weekend, too, with some info on classes, maybe the food? Let me know if there's anything you want me to cover, or if you have stylistic suggestions to improve my writing. [criticism is welcome, too!] :)
~Karissa
However, in commemoration of the special day, China schools are given the entire next week of off school, and most workers had today off, as well. Slightly defeating the purpose, there are extra classes the week after next to make up for missed classes. Us Chicago students were given the day off, but not next week, though we won't have Chinese class, since our teachers have off (Language teachers are Renmin University faculty). Let loose in a metropolis of 23 million, me and three classmates did what seemed the most logical idea: took ourselves to the Beijing Zoo, called dong wu gong yuan in Chinese, which literally translates to Animal Park. :)
Since it was National Day, the zoo was fairly crowded, although in a city the size of Beijing anything is crowded. I've heard it said about NYC that if you decide to do something, you can be sure at least 100 other people have the same idea; here, I think it's something like 10,000 people have the same idea. The subway line on our way back was absolutely insane, we probably waited in line for 10 minutes just to get into the subway station. Thankfully we were heading out of the city rather than into it, so the train itself wasn't too packed. There was also a stronger police force out because of the day - though why you need four police officers by the lemurs and marmosets, I have no idea. (I guess to avoid any monkey business!)
I've also read that a characteristic of China is a pervasive belief that the rules were meant for other people, something that seemed to be verified today. Like most (all?) zoos, there were signs on every exhibit telling visitors not to feed the animals or throw anything in their cages, but people here did a lot of it. Especially at the monkey exhibit, there were several people throwing peanuts and other food over the divider into the cage - the elder monkey would chase all the younger ones away, and then eat all the nuts himself. At the gorilla habitat, several of the gorillas were handling and seemingly drinking from water bottles. I thought, since three of the gorillas had bottles, that maybe the zookeepers gave the bottles to them to play with. I realized I was mistaken when the person right next to me chucked his iced tea bottle in, too, though a police officer did come over and talk to him. And at the otter exhibit, the otter was putting his paws up on the glass, looking up at us, and then scurrying away and coming back. In order to get his attention, someone poured yogurt on the poor little guy. :( It made me think about how it's kind of funny that we follow the rules in the US without being forced to - a kind of self regulating society (?), where not bothering animals is normal enough that you get yelled/glared at if you do it.
Overall, the zoo was excellent, especially seeing the zebras, gnus, wildebeests, ostriches, and giraffes - I think God had fun when he made Africa! :) I'll likely update later this weekend, too, with some info on classes, maybe the food? Let me know if there's anything you want me to cover, or if you have stylistic suggestions to improve my writing. [criticism is welcome, too!] :)
~Karissa
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