Kim's Time Travel Journey to the Past...and Back!!

Ok, so I didn't really do any time traveling, but I feels like it. The office of the Red Cross (where I intern...if I haven't mentioned already), is in one of Beijing's historic hutongs. The hutong sits in the middle of an extremely developed area of Beijing. During my break the other day, I decided to walk around some of the area around the hutong. I was amazed to find that for that past two months I had been working just the corner from a Aston Martin, Lamborghini, and Mazarati dealership.

As I continued to walk down the street, I found designer clothing store after another. I had to laugh as I realized I had been eating in a hole in the walk Chinese food place for about 8 kuai (a little more than a dollar) basically one street over from restaurants that would cost more than I spend in a week.

In a way this is a good example of the difference in many Beijingers lives. On one end you people for whom an 8 kuai lunch would be a splurge, and on the other would have bought an Aston Martin without thinking twice. People in the rural areas are barred from moving to the cities (many still do so illegally) and have little access to the job and education opportunities available to even the poorest Chinese citizen living in the city.

China is far from perfect. I often find myself wondering how anyone can live here. You don't always feel the presence of "big brother," but he is always around. You don't feel the Chinese government's presence as you walk down the street. I have seen maybe ten police cars since I have been in Beijing. However, you do feel its presence while doing research on the internet as certain websites simply will not open (which becomes REALLY frustrating). Somethings just get annoying. Like ho people are constantly spitting, or how parents cut holes in the back of their children's pants so they can go to the bathroom where ever they please.

However, other times you wonder if you can ever leave. The people make you love China. If the people who go out of their way to make sure you find the building you are looking for. It's the little kids who run up to you and want to try out any English word they might know. And it's the people who tell you how absolutely fabulous your Chinese is even though you both know its terrible.

With less than a month before I return home, I have found myself reflecting on my time in China now more than ever. I will be happy to return to the states. I cannot wait to have Mexican food...and a good salad. I am going to appreciate the air quality back at home and not having coughing attacks after I go on a run because of the poor air quality. But, I am really going to miss Beijing. I am going to miss the REALLY REALLY good Chinese food. Honestly, the stuff back in the states cannot begin to compare. I am going to miss all my Chinese friends and the fun we have had learning about each other's culture. Most of all I am going to miss miss the people as a whole. The people here treat foreigners with far more respect than we ever treat foreigners back in America (which makes me quite sad). For all the faults you might find with the Chinese government or even with the Chinese people, the longer you stay here the more you realize the Chinese citizens are some of the most amazing people you will ever meet.

The Journey of Kim to the Palace

China Fun Fact: President Hu Jintao is said to be a fantastic dancer. While he studied at Tsinghua University, he was part of a dance troupe that traveled the country.

I must admit I am terrible of keeping you up to date on the places I have gone during my time in China. 对不起。 （I am sorry.) Anyways, a few weeks ago my study abroad group ventured to the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City sits adjacent to Tianamen Square, and I was ecstatic to visit it. Thick walls and a large mote separated us from the city. As we walked across the bridge our entire group started to get very excited and when we went through the gate we saw a huge courtyard with ornate buildings, several statues....and oddly a mini basketball court which we were later informed was set up for when Yao Ming was on “display” a few weeks ago. Anyways, the courtyard was huge. You could have probably fit tens of thousands of people in it and still have plenty of room.

We kept walking through the courtyard and soon found... another courtyard with a palace in the middle. My friends and I were thoroughly enjoying ourselves and took a LOT of pictures...of anything and everything. When we reached the end of that courtyard we found... yet another courtyard. Now, I know we should have excited just be by in the Forbidden City, but the truth is that as we walked through courtyard after courtyard (that looked quite like the courtyard we just left) the thrill began to wear off. We began to realize how cold were were and that we were no where near the end of the Forbidden City. We started to take everything around us for granted.

By the time we reached the end, we had trekked through several gardens and countless courtyards. As we neared the exit, some people from the program wanted to walk through the park across from the Forbidden City and climb the mountain (ok..it was more like a big hill but I was tired and it looked daunting at the time so we are going to call it a mountain) that looked over all of Beijing. So a few of my friends and I decided to brave the “mountain” to check out the view.

This may have been my favorite part of the day. As you might be able to tell from the picture I posted a few weeks ago, the view was incredible. It was only then that we saw how huge the Forbidden City was. We probably only saw a tenth of it.

It was only then that I took a step back and truly appreciated this man-made marvel. I felt like that is the trap you can get sucked into while you are studying abroad. You begin to go through the motions and forget how incredible it is to be living in a city like Beijing, and you begin to take everything for granted. Its hard not to, and I think that everyone -regardless if they are living abroad or at home - goes through this. Sometimes, I have to take a step back and think amazing it is to be living in Beijing, studying at Peking University, and just having this experience.

Water Calligraphy

I have always been fascinated by calligraphy. So when I saw a man doing water calligraphy by the lake at Peking University I was really excited. He introduced himself as one of the professors at Beida (short version of the Chinese name for Peking University) and then he apologized for how messy the calligraphy he was writing with his left hand was (I couldn't notice any difference).The calligraphy was beautiful, and although he wrote each character very quickly, each one was as perfect as the one before.
I love moments like these in Beijing. People in China have been so welcoming. He simply talked with my roommates and I for several minutes about water caligraphy. He then asked us if we wanted anything written and showed us a few different characters.

Kim Speaks Chinese

Today in the caf, I spoke to someone...in CHINESE!!! AND SHE UNDERSTOOD ME! It's a wonderful day.

The Journey of Kim to the Countryside

In all fairness, I warned you this day would come. The day...I actually wrote a serious blog post. I know...it’s crazy.

But anyways....the city of Beijing is extremely modern. For the most part, I can find anything I would eat or buy in America in Beijing (except for Mexican food...I am still working on that one). However, Beijing and many of the cities Westerners would usually visit are not typical of how many Chinese live. One of my professors told me if I wanted to see how a typical Chinese person still lived, I needed to go to the countryside. Granted I probably wasn’t in the true Chinese countryside, but the atmosphere greatly changed just by going eight hours outside of Beijing.

For many, the prospect of modernization and increased globalization has not greatly changed their lives. Yes, to an extent modern conveniences have reached them. A Chinese person living in an urban area will make 3.5 times the amount of money an individual living in the countryside will. China’s economic growth has occurred mainly on the east coast where it is easy to export goods.

As we drove to Pingyao, I looked at the homes closely hugging the hillside. It reminded me of driving through some of the poverty stricken areas of Mexico. The houses were very simple. Many were made of brick with a concrete or wooden roof. In the middle of the Chinese New Year, the homes were covered with colorful red lanterns and signs, but it couldn’t hid the grim and dirty conditions. Trash was strewn about everywhere.

The conditions have improved for the better over the past several decades as rural income has consistently improved over the past several years; however the income inequality continues to grow.

On the way back from the trip, I saw something that seemed to characterize China’s rise over the past several decades. A single crumbling building lay in ruins at the edge of a town, but on the top of the building waved a single, clean Chinese flag. China has many areas where it desperately needs to improve, but it has a very patriotic population who are continuously pushing the country forward. The rural population has been neglected, but they are still extremely proud to be Chinese, and they are some of the most welcoming people you will ever meet.

Happy Chinese New Year

Ni hao! Happy New Year!! Well happy Chinese New Year anyways!! It’s been a crazy last week or so as the China has started the year of the tiger with a bang!! Literally...fireworks have been going off for the last week at all hours of the day.

We spent the New Year’s night in Taiyuan and got to celebrate the holiday Chinese style. In China fireworks shows are not provided by the city government, rather you provide it for yourselves. At first, I thought this would mean some sparklers and maybe some bottle rockets...but it turned out I was wrong. It was almost like 20 mini Disneyland shows all going off at once. When the clock struck midnight (and even before it stuck midnight really), it seemed as if everyone in the city of Taiyuan was celebrating together.

Everyone was incredibly nice, and seemed extremely happy to have foreigners celebrating their biggest holiday with them. The hotel staff (who set off part of the ridiculous firework display you are going to see) brought us a huge box of firecrackers and told us to “play with them.”

Now, I tried to figure out how to describe how deafening the sound was as you stood in the streets of Taiuyuan, or how amazing it was to see firecracker after firecracker light up the sky, but I think I will just have to show you.

Enjoy! And Happy Chinese New Year!!

Huoguo

So, I was going to write about how my friends I and met a man doing water calligraphy on campus the other day, or how I have finally gained some knowledge of how the Beijing buses work. But, that is going to have to wait because the other day I ate....hotpot. Or as the Chinese call it huoguo.

Now for those of you who don’t know what it is hotpot is kinda like going to a restaurant and making your own fondu. They have electric grills that keep boiling pots of water warm and you put your meat or vegetables in it to cook. You basically decide for yourself when it is done. It is bu hao. (Chinese for not good)

Now I know what you are thinking, “Kim this sounds amazing why didn’t you enjoy it?” I will tell you why. It is because Chinese hotpot is much much different than the meats you would probably eat in the U.S.. You have your typical meats such as beef, lamb, fish...but you also get the pleasure of having...squid, tofu, cow’s stomach, etc. Its..interesting. Now I am I picky eater...I readily admit that, and some people really like hotpot. I am just not one of them. Anyways...I was getting on pretty well. I stuck to the meats I knew such as the beef and lamb, and stayed away from everything else. Until something happened. My boss (FYI I went with the people who work at the Red Cross where I intern) started to put food on my plate. In China, you do not refuse the food you are given from your elders. Well....you could but it would be very very bad manners. So, I said thank you and started eating; and it was going ok. I ate fish - not my favorite thing in the world, but it could be worse - until i realized it had small bones in it. In China, the small bones don’t really matter. People will just eat them. So I slowly ate it...and made it through..thankful she hadn’t put anything else on my plate. Until about two minutes later when she put a piece of tofu, more fish, squid, and what I think was cow’s stomach. It took everything I had not to refuse it. So I slowly... ever so slowly...ate the tofu -which tasted like wet cardboard...and then looked at the rest of my food. I couldn’t do it...I was not ready to eat cow stomach. So i ate part of the fish and tried not to grimace as I heard the crunch of the small bones.

Fun Fact #2: NO ONE uses soy sauce in China. Its a Japanese thing. If you ask for soy sauce, they look at you like you are crazy. They do however have vinegar which many people use very large quantities of on their food.

Kim’s Helpful Tip #1: If you think the stuff on your table is soy sauce, check before you put it on your food, or else you could end up with really vinegary bowl of rice. Not that I have done that or anything.....

Kim rides the subway.....and gets lost

China Fun Fact #1: There is no bill higher than a 100 RMB bill (about $15) in China, and all of the paper currency 1 RMB and above has Mao’s face on it.


The few days were filled with activities designed to get us used to living in Beijing and one of those activities was.....(big dramatic music please) riding on the subway. Now I LOVE the Beijing public transportation system. Well, at least the subways, I have not ventured onto any of the buses yet. Anyways, I love the subways for a few reasons.

1. It is one of the few places where you are not allowed to spit (yes I said spit) or smoke in Beijing. It is quite acceptable in China that when you need to spit you can just spit on the ground (outdoors at least). It is one of the few things that I do not like about Beijing. I find it a little.....unpleasant...to hear (and see) people spitting all the time. Everyone seems to want to haka lugi. (Wannahakalugi.....Finding Nemo reference.....anyone? anyone?)
2. It’s really really cheap and one of the easiest ways to get around the city. It is 2 RMB for a one way ticket (about $.30). So much cheaper than a taxi, and much more efficient. A subway arrives at the station roughly every two minutes.
3. All the maps are in both Chinese and English.
4. Most of the people on the subway are incredibly nice and welcoming. My friend and I once missed our transfer station on the way to our internship, but a Chinese couple walked us to our next transfer line to make sure we made it to our next stop. People also love practicing their English on you and will take any excuse to do it. One guy timidly asked me if I read Charles Dickens. When I told him yes, he proceeded to tell me Dickens was a very good author....and then just smiled and didn’t say anything else.


The subway is definitely my choice for getting around Beijing and I love it....but there are a few things you should know before attempt brave the Beijing subway.

1. (This is the important one) Do not get on the subway for the first time between 6-9am. This is the busiest time to ride the subway, and people are literally shoving themselves into the tiniest available space in order to get on the subway. There is no such thing as personal space. I didn’t know it was possible to fit so many people in such a small space before I came to Beijing.
2. Make sure you are getting in the right subway. It’s kinda important. Not that I have ever gotten in the wrong subway before.....
3. Figure out how you are getting to your destination before you get on the subway. There are eight different subway lines and 50+ stops. Here is a little guide I have been using http://www.explorebj.com/subway/#s10017. It’s an interactive subway map guide that will plot the easiest way for you to reach your destination. (Your Welcome in advance...well unless you never go to Beijing which in that case....never mind)

The Forbidden City

Today, Kim walked to the top of the mountain to get a wonderful view of the Forbidden City with some of her friends. The guy next to her on the left is J.P. He works at the Red Cross with her. The guy on the righ is Chris.
Thats all for now. ~Melissa (The little sister)

So much catching up to do.....

Debunking Myths About China and its Culture:

#1. Confucius say......

Actually "Confucius" didn't say anything because no man named Confucius actually existed. The name Confuscias was latinized by a group of Jesuit missionaries. Confucius was actually named Kongzi (or that is one of the names he went by), but it seems today's Chinese have accepted the name Confucius as well since a movie titled Confucius is coming out very soon in China. It looks to be quite the box office hit in China (it is Confucius after all).


We last left off as I got off the plane in Beijing. I landed in Peking International Airport's Terminal Three. It's a redicously large - and quite beautiful - terminal built that was built specifically to handle the millions of the people who came for the Olympics. After picking up my bags, I was greeted by a very helpful girl on the staff of the China Studies Institute. As we got in the taxi, I was EXTREMELY glad to have a native Chinese speaker as she quickly told the taxi driver where twe were going and the quickest way to get there. This was the first time I realized the inadequacy of my Chinese language skills(I am now reminded of it hourly).

Just in case you didn't know, Beijing is huge. The ride to Peking University took about an hour, and that was just to go from the airport to the Third Ring. Beijing is filled with fantastic skyscrapers and sports facilities built specifically for the Olympics. The Bird's Nest and the Water Cube definitely stand out. The Chinese people are extremely proud of them, and look to them as symbols of their nations rising power. FYI, Bird's Nest is currently hosting a "Chocolate Wonderland" complete with detailed chocolate Terracotta Soildiers. It starts today, so if you hurry to you can own - and eat - your own chocolate Terracotta Soldier!



After arriving at my dorm room, (which has all the charm of a Motel 6) I unpacked and met several of the students from the program.

While I am not living in a five star hotel, I really can't complain about the dorms. They are cleaned everyday, and we are given water for tea every morning. Unlike may of the dorms on campus, each shaoyuan (international student dorms) provides central heat. A luxury not enjoyed in the other dorms. The international students are all housed in separate dorms from the normal Peking University students. This - as I was informed by one of my professors - was devised by the university many years ago to keep the Chinese students from being too influenced by the foreigners. So while most do not still hold the belief that international students are detrimental to the education of Peking's students, the tradition still continues.

The next few days consisted of all the students from the program getting aquainted with the university campus...or at least part of it. The campus itself is VERY big. Much of it is housed within the stone walls that surround the campus, however some of the newer buildings could not fit and had to be built on streets just outside the campus walls.



A few quick facts on Peking University.

1. Much of the campus used to be home to Yeching University which was a combination of three Christian colleges in Beijing in 1919. This changed after the Cultural Revolution when Yeching University's was taken over by the state. Its time as a Christian university ended, and the school's arts and science facilities were merged with Peking University. Many of the old buildings still stand and are a tribute to the fact that Yeching was built by foreigners. While Stuart built the campus on the royal gardens of the Qing dynasty and attempted to create buildings that reflected the country's culture, the buildings all have sloping roof, an honor only reserved for royalty.

2. Peking is arguably the top university in China. If you are majoring in arts, humanities, or science, you want to be a Peking University. The colleges in China are held in a hierarchical scale with Peking University at the top. So its kinda like Harvard on steroids. So its 15,000 undergrad and 4,000 grad students are the best of the best in China. Its surreal to look around campus and realize you are going to school with 15,000 of the smartest students in country of 1.4 billion.

3. The entrance near the West gate is "guarded" by two stone lions. These lions - as I was told by another one of my professors - once "lived" at the old Summer Palace before it was burned down. They have now found their way to Peking University.

Until Next Time..Zai Jian!

Kim Finally Writes

Hello! I know. I haven’t been blogging, but I have a good excuse (and its not the dog ate my homework). China has blocked Google blogger. Now I know some of you are probably wondering why I didn’t just pull some really techy move and break through the Great Firewall of China. And the answer is...I have absolutely no clue how to be that cool. So, I was left with the choice of finding a new blogsite, but that seemed like a lot of work and frankly I wouldn’t know where to start (again not a technologically savvy person).

SO, I thought really outside the box and...enlisted the help of my 17 year old sister Melissa to post stuff on my blog for me. I am basically sending back stuff to post (like this) and pictures for my sister/little minion to post. She is far better at this computer stuff than I am, and frankly my blog will probably look better if she maintains it. So Melissa...thanks, and your check is in the mail (or it would be if I had money or knew how to mail stuff from China).

Well, I now have about two weeks worth of stuff to catch you up on so I going to have to work fast! I will probably bring you (all two of my readers) up to date in a series of posts rather than in one big post. It just seems easier...and one big post would take too long. I am far to lazy to do that.

I am going to start with a few ground rules for this blog.

1. This blog is not going to stick to grammar rules. Professor Pate is probably going to kill me for this but..hey I am in China, my grade for freshman composition is pretty much set, and again I’m too lazy to check for all that stuff.

2. I’m not going to tell the fairy tale version of study abroad. I will be honest about what irks me about the culture, how I am feeling about being abroad,how I think we in America need to change our views, and most importantly...what food I really miss. If someone can figure out how to mail me some really good Mexican food I would be eternally grateful. ;)

3. I am not going to post everyday. I had this great idea that I would post everyday and keep everyone up to date with the newest and coolest thing that happened to me in Beijing, but then I realized I am not that exciting and posting everyday is impossible. So expect a few posts a week. Hopefully they will be worth your time. If not, there are four other study aboard bloggers. Perhaps they are having more fun.

4. I am going to try to start out with a quotation of some sort either from a Chinese philosopher or even something I found interesting in one of the required readings for the classes. Hopefully, it will show the difference between the American culture and the Chinese culture. Perhaps we will have more in common that you thought. At the very least, it will prove to my parents that I am actually paying attention in class while I am in Beijing. And this is something I am going to try out so I might drop it halfway through the semester...or even next week.

So now that we have that done let’s start at the beginning! Well...of this trip at least. I left the good ole U S of A on January 14th at 12:30am. It didn’t really hit me that I would be studying in China for four months until I stood at the security line and said goodbye to my parents. Then, I wanted a refund on my ticket. I gave them huge hugs, shed some tears (it’s a rarity for me to cry in public...if I have cried in front of you remember that occasion...it might not happen again) I probably waved goodbye about fifty times as the line crept closer and closer to the bag x-ray machine and I couldn’t see my parents anymore.

The plane ride was not that thrilling. But traveling on Asiana Airlines made me realize a few things.

1. I can never be an Asiana stewardess. They can each speak at least two languages and they smile all the time. (And its a thirteen hour flight)

2. I love Asiana. They actually had (dare I say it) decent airplane food. They delivered hot tea at least 4 times during the flight. I began to realize how much I would be drinking tea while I was in China.

Perhaps the highlight of my journey to Beijing came on the flight from South Korea to Beijing. Looking out the window at the vast ocean, I was struck by how small I am. I am one individual on a planet of billions of people. I am not trying to downplay the impact one person can have on the world, but it was an amazing feeling. I am just one. As the plane came closer to Peking International Airport, I looked out at scenery I did not recognize. To be honest, it was unimpressive and a little disappointing. I was finally in China (or at least flying over it) and I was being greet by dead fields, factories blowing grey smoke into the air, and numerous roads that cut across the land in a seemingly aimless manner. Here was China. My new home for the next four months.

Three Days to Go!!!

In just three days, I will be trading in the 75 degree weather of southern California for the frigid 29 degree weather of Beijing, China. Since I have never lived in a place where it snows before this should be quite...interesting. My plan: pack every single piece of clothing that seems like it might be good in cold weather in my suitcase. With just 48 hours left until I leave for China, I am trying to make sure I remember absolutely everything; and I am definitely buying one of these hats.

http://www.sportsauthority.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3552529&CAWELAID=443828075