After seeing one of the most amazing temples in Beijing on a rare blue Sunday afternoon, I have decided that I haven't seen enough temples up to this point. And time is running out fast. My individual session class ends around 1:30 or 2:30 p.m. on weekdays, transit usually takes an hour, and most temples usually close by 5. Nonetheless, I have about 7-8 temples in mind I still want to hit up, which is definitely doable.
A temple a day. Let's go.
(This blog is a motivational blurb for the author, but alas, may be pointless to the reader - promise to post up a "guide to temples" entry after all is done.)
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Sunday, July 31, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Getting my act together!
Ugh, okay, I really have no excuse this time. Once we got back from our social study project (which I will post about very soon, I promise!), I had a lot of – wait for it – goals in mind (yes finally!) to get the most out of the second half of HBA. Sadly, I’m only just posting them now, but hey, better late then never (?). I thought I learned a lot from doing a language program in Japan last year, and while I did learn cramming characters in a room all day was not the way to go, I feel like I still missed a lot of opportunities up to this point. Here goes:
1. Keep getting to know local Chinese people!
I think I’ve made the most progress on this one. It doesn’t have to be all awkward either - meeting people through mutual friends, Yale’s newly launched buddy program with PKU students this year, talking to HBA’s Chinese helpers in the afternoons (well, now, we’re kind of forced to because we have small “tasks” we have to do everyday to interact with locals – 太麻烦了！) Although I do find that it’s possible to walk up to random tables in Beiyu’s 餐厅 and ask to eat lunch together. I also met another college student just by way of asking directions and regularly working out at the gym (ha, so going through the dreadful treadmill run has benefits after all). While I realize that a summer is all too short to meet up more than a few times, I’ll hopefully spend my last two weeks getting to know the people whom I've just started getting to know.
2. Get my act in class together.
While I definitely prioritize exploring Beijing and meeting the people here, I still underprioritize one very important aspect of my life – SLEEP. You just can’t concentrate as well in a class if you’ve only had four or five hours of sleep. (You’d think I would’ve learned this from Yale already). As such, it’s taken a huge toll on my level in class – I feel like I’m just not digesting the grammar and vocabulary as well as I used to. And while I constantly stress that study, study, study isn’t why I came to Beijing, I also feel like crap when I go to class and give my 老师 the homework I’ve managed to scribble down a little more than an hour ago – also, my handwriting’s also already gained its infamous “chicken scratch” status, and I keep getting points off for illegibility (some things never change).
3. Places still to visit in Beijing!! (this list is more for myself as a reminder)
- Xiangshan Park (and Wofosi and Biyunsi – photos of these two temples look amazing!)
- Drum/Bell Towers nearby hutongs)
- Jingshan Park (supposedly there’s an awesome view of the Forbidden City from the top!)
- Yuanmingyuan
- Tiananmen Square – I didn’t end up going when I went to the Forbidden City for some reason. Even if it’s just a stroll, definitely need to go here before I leave Beijing!
4. Start studying for my Japanese placement test.
Oh dear joy. I feel like I lost a year’s worth of Japanese through just two months of Chinese immersion.
5. Last, but not least, catch up on blog posts.
It feels like I’m cheating the system by blogging about stuff three weeks after they’ve happened, but as I’ve already said, better late than never.
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1. Keep getting to know local Chinese people!
I think I’ve made the most progress on this one. It doesn’t have to be all awkward either - meeting people through mutual friends, Yale’s newly launched buddy program with PKU students this year, talking to HBA’s Chinese helpers in the afternoons (well, now, we’re kind of forced to because we have small “tasks” we have to do everyday to interact with locals – 太麻烦了！) Although I do find that it’s possible to walk up to random tables in Beiyu’s 餐厅 and ask to eat lunch together. I also met another college student just by way of asking directions and regularly working out at the gym (ha, so going through the dreadful treadmill run has benefits after all). While I realize that a summer is all too short to meet up more than a few times, I’ll hopefully spend my last two weeks getting to know the people whom I've just started getting to know.
2. Get my act in class together.
While I definitely prioritize exploring Beijing and meeting the people here, I still underprioritize one very important aspect of my life – SLEEP. You just can’t concentrate as well in a class if you’ve only had four or five hours of sleep. (You’d think I would’ve learned this from Yale already). As such, it’s taken a huge toll on my level in class – I feel like I’m just not digesting the grammar and vocabulary as well as I used to. And while I constantly stress that study, study, study isn’t why I came to Beijing, I also feel like crap when I go to class and give my 老师 the homework I’ve managed to scribble down a little more than an hour ago – also, my handwriting’s also already gained its infamous “chicken scratch” status, and I keep getting points off for illegibility (some things never change).
3. Places still to visit in Beijing!! (this list is more for myself as a reminder)
- Xiangshan Park (and Wofosi and Biyunsi – photos of these two temples look amazing!)
- Drum/Bell Towers nearby hutongs)
- Jingshan Park (supposedly there’s an awesome view of the Forbidden City from the top!)
- Yuanmingyuan
- Tiananmen Square – I didn’t end up going when I went to the Forbidden City for some reason. Even if it’s just a stroll, definitely need to go here before I leave Beijing!
- There are plenty others, but those are the must-see for now!
4. Start studying for my Japanese placement test.
Oh dear joy. I feel like I lost a year’s worth of Japanese through just two months of Chinese immersion.
5. Last, but not least, catch up on blog posts.
It feels like I’m cheating the system by blogging about stuff three weeks after they’ve happened, but as I’ve already said, better late than never.
As a sign that things can always get better, a pic of the clearest sky of Beijing I've ever seen - I almost thought I was dreaming when I looked out my window
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Monday, July 18, 2011
直率 says who?
[Written like ... two weeks ago? Hey, I have a legit excuse! (See previous post)]
Apologies for not writing in forever. My excuse isn’t that I’m hardcore studying everyday (work ethic is SLIPPING), but that I’ve been thoroughly exhausted from sightseeing, planning for traveling after HBA, and probably most stressful of all – finding somewhere to live in Japan (although my Japanese apartment lexicon now includes all the random landlord fees – do I really not get even half of my deposit back??).
Nonetheless, I’ve made it through the first “semester” of HBA. And Beijing is definitely growing on me – the cement-like air, the wafting smell of garbage, and the oily food certainly hasn’t gone away, but at the same time, I feel like I don’t have as many restrictions as I do in "developed" American society. What I mean is (warning: this might sound really crude), the fact that people don’t give a second look to what might be considered "low class" behavior – if guys can go around half-naked drinking with friends in front of the 小摊儿 at 4 in the morning – then you don’t have to care as much about the way you carry yourself outside (although I admit tank tops and running shorts are still pretty rare among females here). Our specially made HBA textbook has a chapter on how the Chinese people, with their “refuse twice before accepting” rule, consider Americans too 直率 (straightforward), but I tend to think otherwise. At 秀水街(Silk Street Market), one of my friends got sucked into bargaining for a purse she didn’t want and got it down to a ridiculously cheap price. Alas, my friend didn’t want it (what she’d been telling the shopkeeper from the start), so as we were walking away, my friend took a pretty fair hit from the shopkeeper’s calculator. Not to say that the Chinese 直率 -ness is all rudeness – I find it a lot easier to strike up conversations with complete strangers, some who are just as curious as you are. On the sleeper train to Zhengzhou a couple days ago, one guy noticed the gaggle of foreigners we were and joined the conversation, playing around with one of our Iphones at one point. Simply put, I don’t feel as judged here, even as a foreigner.
Maybe, though, this is just because there are tons and TONS of people, and it’s easy to get lost in the crowd. Despite the arrows and lines marked on the subway boarding area, it’s really just one big mob jostling for some breathing space, let alone a seat. Even the sidewalks and bike lanes (rather a hybrid of both as they seem to go either way) are a constant mass of people. Having an “Asian face” makes you blend in even more (I’m still pretty grateful about this, after seeing my blonde-haired friend Keren get asked for a picture every time we venture out of foreigner central 五道口). Either way, I feel more comfortable here in more ways than one.
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Apologies for not writing in forever. My excuse isn’t that I’m hardcore studying everyday (work ethic is SLIPPING), but that I’ve been thoroughly exhausted from sightseeing, planning for traveling after HBA, and probably most stressful of all – finding somewhere to live in Japan (although my Japanese apartment lexicon now includes all the random landlord fees – do I really not get even half of my deposit back??).
Guess where this is? 北大！Now if only Yale had a massive park and a few lakes for its backyard.
Kimbap from a street vendor! Except I forgot the cooked vegetables only rule ... slight stomach upset followed.
Maybe, though, this is just because there are tons and TONS of people, and it’s easy to get lost in the crowd. Despite the arrows and lines marked on the subway boarding area, it’s really just one big mob jostling for some breathing space, let alone a seat. Even the sidewalks and bike lanes (rather a hybrid of both as they seem to go either way) are a constant mass of people. Having an “Asian face” makes you blend in even more (I’m still pretty grateful about this, after seeing my blonde-haired friend Keren get asked for a picture every time we venture out of foreigner central 五道口). Either way, I feel more comfortable here in more ways than one.
Pics of 北海 - pollution sucked that day, but it was still amazingly beautiful.
Ah, something to add to my checklist of experiences overbroad – slept in a KFC overnight. The place we’re staying at in 北语 (our university) wouldn’t let one of my friends visiting Beijing crash for the night, so instead of letting her wander the streets at 3 in the morning, we decided to stick together at the all-too convenient 24-hour KFC. We were far from being the only overnighters there – at least 10-15 other college students were also crashing. The staff had no complaints - these definitely weren’t homeless people, but I still wonder if this is a common trend in Beijing. I’m pretty sure most American restaurants would kick you out after a while, especially if you didn’t buy anything (like we did after we realized the milk tea had run out – darn). Perhaps another example of the do-whatever-you-want lifestyle … or rather I-don’t-really-care-because-there-are-just-way-too-many-people.
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Friday, July 15, 2011
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