Commencing countdown, engines on, check ignition and may God's love be with you.
Sometimes it feels like I'm on a different planet. I feel so disconnected from everyone and there's nothing I can do. There's a portion in Space Oddity by David Bowie where he sings, "ground control to Major Tom your circuits dead, there's something wrong, Can you hear me Major Tom?" I feel like my circuits dead, it's partially due to distance and partially due to the lack of functional internet combined with the lack of ability to get onto social networks that once allowed me to connect to friends no matter how far away we were from one another.I guess what it all comes down to is I miss you guys!!
This week was rather lack luster. I spend most of my days in class then with my language partner (this "language partnership" has not actually helped me or my Chinese). At night I go down to the cafe called College Perk on the first floor of my dorm and do my homework (and check emails, post a blog if the internet is working). Around 11, 11:30 I make my way up to the 13th floor where I fall fast asleep. Rinse and repeat 5 times. I look forward to the weekends for adventure. Unfortunately, the weekends come and go so quickly it barely seems like a break.
The start of the weekend, Friday, we took two of our Chinese teachers to Hohai and treated them to a rooftop supper, complete with 4 different kinds of huge fish dishes (in China you share everything) and two crates of 30oz beers. Costing us a grand total of 50 RMB each, about $8. We went to Mixs, a dance club, spent the same amount to get into it. Decided 30minutes later it was too crowded and left.
Yesterday (Saturday), we went to the silk market and did some bargaining. I found a nice hand made tea kettle for my Memaw and Pappap and a hand painted scroll for my parents. The scroll may have been my best bargaining deal of the day. The scroll started off at 880 RMB, I told him I had seen a nice hand painted one at Wangfujing for 80yuan. Long story short threatening to go to Wangfujing and trying to leave several times resulted in the reduced price of 110 yuan. I also got myself a pair of chucks for 65yuan ($9). I think this is my favorite part of China. The bargaining and the cheap food. I fear that bargaining can become highly addictive as I found it to be quite a rush. I plan on returning to the Silk Market and finding more souvenirs and well made knock off handbags. Side note about the knock of purses/ wallets: most of knock offs are so convincing because they are actually made by the people who work in the factories, this makes them flawless.
I have my midterm this week so I need to crack down and study now.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Ground Control to Major Tom
Commencing countdown, engines on, check ignition and may God's love be with you.
Sometimes it feels like I'm on a different planet. I feel so disconnected from everyone and there's nothing I can do. There's a portion in Space Oddity by David Bowie where he sings, "ground control to Major Tom your circuits dead, there's something wrong, Can you hear me Major Tom?" I feel like my circuits dead, it's partially due to distance and partially due to the lack of functional internet combined with the lack of ability to get onto social networks that once allowed me to connect to friends no matter how far away we were from one another.I guess what it all comes down to is I miss you guys!!
This week was rather lack luster. I spend most of my days in class then with my language partner (this "language partnership" has not actually helped me or my Chinese). At night I go down to the cafe called College Perk on the first floor of my dorm and do my homework (and check emails, post a blog if the internet is working). Around 11, 11:30 I make my way up to the 13th floor where I fall fast asleep. Rinse and repeat 5 times. I look forward to the weekends for adventure. Unfortunately, the weekends come and go so quickly it barely seems like a break.
The start of the weekend, Friday, we took two of our Chinese teachers to Hohai and treated them to a rooftop supper, complete with 4 different kinds of huge fish dishes (in China you share everything) and two crates of 30oz beers. Costing us a grand total of 50 RMB each, about $8. We went to Mixs, a dance club, spent the same amount to get into it. Decided 30minutes later it was too crowded and left.
Yesterday (Saturday), we went to the silk market and did some bargaining. I found a nice hand made tea kettle for my Memaw and Pappap and a hand painted scroll for my parents. The scroll may have been my best bargaining deal of the day. The scroll started off at 880 RMB, I told him I had seen a nice hand painted one at Wangfujing for 80yuan. Long story short threatening to go to Wangfujing and trying to leave several times resulted in the reduced price of 110 yuan. I also got myself a pair of chucks for 65yuan ($9). I think this is my favorite part of China. The bargaining and the cheap food. I fear that bargaining can become highly addictive as I found it to be quite a rush. I plan on returning to the Silk Market and finding more souvenirs and well made knock off handbags. Side note about the knock of purses/ wallets: most of knock offs are so convincing because they are actually made by the people who work in the factories, this makes them flawless.
I have my midterm this week so I need to crack down and study now.
Sometimes it feels like I'm on a different planet. I feel so disconnected from everyone and there's nothing I can do. There's a portion in Space Oddity by David Bowie where he sings, "ground control to Major Tom your circuits dead, there's something wrong, Can you hear me Major Tom?" I feel like my circuits dead, it's partially due to distance and partially due to the lack of functional internet combined with the lack of ability to get onto social networks that once allowed me to connect to friends no matter how far away we were from one another.I guess what it all comes down to is I miss you guys!!
This week was rather lack luster. I spend most of my days in class then with my language partner (this "language partnership" has not actually helped me or my Chinese). At night I go down to the cafe called College Perk on the first floor of my dorm and do my homework (and check emails, post a blog if the internet is working). Around 11, 11:30 I make my way up to the 13th floor where I fall fast asleep. Rinse and repeat 5 times. I look forward to the weekends for adventure. Unfortunately, the weekends come and go so quickly it barely seems like a break.
The start of the weekend, Friday, we took two of our Chinese teachers to Hohai and treated them to a rooftop supper, complete with 4 different kinds of huge fish dishes (in China you share everything) and two crates of 30oz beers. Costing us a grand total of 50 RMB each, about $8. We went to Mixs, a dance club, spent the same amount to get into it. Decided 30minutes later it was too crowded and left.
Yesterday (Saturday), we went to the silk market and did some bargaining. I found a nice hand made tea kettle for my Memaw and Pappap and a hand painted scroll for my parents. The scroll may have been my best bargaining deal of the day. The scroll started off at 880 RMB, I told him I had seen a nice hand painted one at Wangfujing for 80yuan. Long story short threatening to go to Wangfujing and trying to leave several times resulted in the reduced price of 110 yuan. I also got myself a pair of chucks for 65yuan ($9). I think this is my favorite part of China. The bargaining and the cheap food. I fear that bargaining can become highly addictive as I found it to be quite a rush. I plan on returning to the Silk Market and finding more souvenirs and well made knock off handbags. Side note about the knock of purses/ wallets: most of knock offs are so convincing because they are actually made by the people who work in the factories, this makes them flawless.
I have my midterm this week so I need to crack down and study now.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
It's been a little while.
Sorry it's been awhile.Getting on the internet here is a hassle.
I can't remember what I posted about last so I'll just run through a couple of things that have happened since Sunday. Sunday we went to Wangfujin, which is a shopping district (mostly consisting of high end stores like Chanel, Cartier, ect.)We had what is called hot pot which is when a kettle with boiling water is put in the middle of the table and you place various items to be cooked in. Items like fish, chicken, and veggies. It was really good, as well as a lot of work.
I didn't spend much time in Wangfujin, but stopped at Tienanmen Square on the way back to campus. A lot of people didn't understand the significance of the square and I blame it on ignorance. Across the square was the entrance to the Forbidden City. We walked around the outskirts but didn't go in (as it is a scheduled group trip). I had a really good Szechuan supper at a really nice restaraunt that night too.
Monday I didn't feel well and I think it was due to accidentally getting a piece of undercooked chicken. Other than that I went to the Old Summer Palace, the one that has been destroyed twice by the British. It was really pretty with all the weeping willows and the lotus flowers. The ruins reminded me a lot of the ruins of that of Greece and Rome.
Tuesday came and left with nothing too interesting to report. Yesterday(Wednesday) I went to Xidan and did some awesome bargaining. I got a really cute dress for 60 RMB (a/b $9) and a really nice traditional Chinese dress called a Qipao for 120RMB ($18). I want to go back there sometime and try to find more deals.
Other than that not much new, class is less frustrating but still slightly confusing.
More to post later!
I can't remember what I posted about last so I'll just run through a couple of things that have happened since Sunday. Sunday we went to Wangfujin, which is a shopping district (mostly consisting of high end stores like Chanel, Cartier, ect.)We had what is called hot pot which is when a kettle with boiling water is put in the middle of the table and you place various items to be cooked in. Items like fish, chicken, and veggies. It was really good, as well as a lot of work.
I didn't spend much time in Wangfujin, but stopped at Tienanmen Square on the way back to campus. A lot of people didn't understand the significance of the square and I blame it on ignorance. Across the square was the entrance to the Forbidden City. We walked around the outskirts but didn't go in (as it is a scheduled group trip). I had a really good Szechuan supper at a really nice restaraunt that night too.
Monday I didn't feel well and I think it was due to accidentally getting a piece of undercooked chicken. Other than that I went to the Old Summer Palace, the one that has been destroyed twice by the British. It was really pretty with all the weeping willows and the lotus flowers. The ruins reminded me a lot of the ruins of that of Greece and Rome.
Tuesday came and left with nothing too interesting to report. Yesterday(Wednesday) I went to Xidan and did some awesome bargaining. I got a really cute dress for 60 RMB (a/b $9) and a really nice traditional Chinese dress called a Qipao for 120RMB ($18). I want to go back there sometime and try to find more deals.
Other than that not much new, class is less frustrating but still slightly confusing.
More to post later!
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Karaoke, Clubs, and Class
Day three.
First off I posted a blog two days ago, however it posted it as being old than the Day one post....
Yesterday was frustrating like the previous day (see post after Day One). Class was slightly confusing, like usual. I was called on to do a dialogue where I had to switch words out in the dialogue where it was underlined, or so I thought. Where this was partially the exercise, parts that weren't underlined where also supposed to be changed. I didn't realize this and ended up looking/sounding like a complete idiot. On top of that someone in the class constantly tries to correct me and the more I was "corrected" the more frustrated I got and the more I messed up. On the plus side we learned about mailing packages and at the end had conversation with the person sitting next to us about mailing a package. Me and my partner ended up going to the front of the class on doing ours, which was ridiculously hilarious. She wanted to mail her tea to her friend in the U.S. and I was confused as to why. She said it was because her friend was very thirsty and her friend would get very mad if he didn't get a drink. Any way, it was ridiculous and stupid and it was heightened by my slap happy, ADD state (magnified by the fact that I had been sitting in a classroom for 4 hours.
I went to the Summer Palace with my language partners which was really pretty. Two of the other American girls I was with got stopped several times to take pictures.It was hilarious! I took lots of pictures which I swear will someday by posted probably after tomorrow (we're taking a trip to the Wang Fu Jin otherwise known as the Shopping District).
Last night we decided to go to a Karaoke place. It was a lot of fun and the room was really nice and fancy looking. We sang for about 3 hours and my voice was definitely gone. Afterward, we went to a bar/ club a little over a block away. It was a little disappointing because all the drinks they listed were ones I can get at a bar in the U.S. and the music was exactly what I was listening to the last time I went to a bar. However, I actually danced for once and it actually ended up being fun, up until a creepy Chinese guy came up put his arms around my waste and basically tried to force me to dance. His hands would wonder up and I would try to push them down and push him away simultaneously. My classmates were finally able to tear me away from him and run upstairs. Moral of the story, no matter what country I go to I will still attract the creepiest guy in the room.
Tonight hold potential as we are planning on experiencing more of the Chinese nightlife. Hopefully, we'll end up some place a little less international.Hopefully tomorrow will be promising and maybe I'll find some really good deals on things like clothes, shoes, souvenirs, and so on. But, that's all for now!
再见！
-M
First off I posted a blog two days ago, however it posted it as being old than the Day one post....
Yesterday was frustrating like the previous day (see post after Day One). Class was slightly confusing, like usual. I was called on to do a dialogue where I had to switch words out in the dialogue where it was underlined, or so I thought. Where this was partially the exercise, parts that weren't underlined where also supposed to be changed. I didn't realize this and ended up looking/sounding like a complete idiot. On top of that someone in the class constantly tries to correct me and the more I was "corrected" the more frustrated I got and the more I messed up. On the plus side we learned about mailing packages and at the end had conversation with the person sitting next to us about mailing a package. Me and my partner ended up going to the front of the class on doing ours, which was ridiculously hilarious. She wanted to mail her tea to her friend in the U.S. and I was confused as to why. She said it was because her friend was very thirsty and her friend would get very mad if he didn't get a drink. Any way, it was ridiculous and stupid and it was heightened by my slap happy, ADD state (magnified by the fact that I had been sitting in a classroom for 4 hours.
I went to the Summer Palace with my language partners which was really pretty. Two of the other American girls I was with got stopped several times to take pictures.It was hilarious! I took lots of pictures which I swear will someday by posted probably after tomorrow (we're taking a trip to the Wang Fu Jin otherwise known as the Shopping District).
Last night we decided to go to a Karaoke place. It was a lot of fun and the room was really nice and fancy looking. We sang for about 3 hours and my voice was definitely gone. Afterward, we went to a bar/ club a little over a block away. It was a little disappointing because all the drinks they listed were ones I can get at a bar in the U.S. and the music was exactly what I was listening to the last time I went to a bar. However, I actually danced for once and it actually ended up being fun, up until a creepy Chinese guy came up put his arms around my waste and basically tried to force me to dance. His hands would wonder up and I would try to push them down and push him away simultaneously. My classmates were finally able to tear me away from him and run upstairs. Moral of the story, no matter what country I go to I will still attract the creepiest guy in the room.
Tonight hold potential as we are planning on experiencing more of the Chinese nightlife. Hopefully, we'll end up some place a little less international.Hopefully tomorrow will be promising and maybe I'll find some really good deals on things like clothes, shoes, souvenirs, and so on. But, that's all for now!
再见！
-M
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