A Weekend Around

The past few days have been a whole lot of fun. Saturday we decided to go out to lunch after our meeting. Of course we think it is a great idea to take the subway to a random stop, get off and find a restaurant. Well that may sound like a great idea, we should have remembered the some stops are in business areas and some are in shopping districts. Well, naturally, we choose one of the stations that is in the middle of an industrial park. We get out of the subway to look aroudn and see nothing. A small landfill dump and a nearby factory were pretty much the only things besides some office buildings. I asked a girl if she knew of any good places to eat nearby and she was able to point us to a street that she said "had a lot of restaurants." When you are hot, sweaty, and hungry, the last thing you want to do is walk aimlessly trying to find a place to eat. Especially a place that doesn't have some weird food. After walking for a while we found a restaurant. They took us to the basement where we had a private room. We sat a huge round table, ordered 5 dishes and feasted. It was one of those delicious authentic Chinese meals. We had bak choi and musrooms in delicious sauce, bak choi and meat stuff w/ another delicious sauce, a peanut-something spicey dish (not my favorite), some sweet red bean squishy things, and some cooked bamboo w/ delicious sauce (again). All that may sound good but the best part was the fish we got. I took pictures of it. I think a few people were apprehensive about being served a whole fish w/ the head and tail and everything, but I assured them. 1. We aren't going to find a place that doesn't serve the head and tail. 2. It will be delicious. And it was. After we were fat and happy for $4 a person we walked back to the subway stop. On the way, Jimmy bought a sweet bike that folds in half for storage. I think it was around $30-40 USD.

Saturday night we went out again to the bar district. I was pretty tired from the whole week so we didn't have too much fun. It was good to just have a low key night. When we woke up on Sunday we had to have a meet at 11 am to go to our assignment. I was paired up with Jim and Bill, two of my roommates, and we thought we were going to the orphanage. Apparently the orphanage doesn't take volunteers on Sunday's so instead we were doing a survey for the International Olympic Committed (IOC). We had to go out to a tourist attraction, (ie Silk Market, T--nanmen Square, etc.) and find English speaking people to see if they knew anything about the IOC. The way it was presented to us was very laid back. If you get hungry, eat, if you want to shop around, shop around. We got the jist and headed over to the Silk Market. Jimmy hadn't been yet. After this trip, I'm pretty sure I'm putting myself on Silk Market intervention. I'm not going to let myself go there because you can't leave without buying stuff. I magically ended up with a button down for Y100 and a wallet for Y40. Total purchase: $20. Also, walking back to the subway I went into a Chinese CD/DVD store. Picked up a few Chinese hip hop CDs. Tracy, a Chinese roommate of mine, said that she doesn't think they are authentic but it doesn't really matter because it comes in a pretty official looking case and everything. Overall, I'm glad I got to go back to the area and get some stuff. This doesn't even count the stuff that I decided I had to purchase before the end of the trip. I'm glad I didn't bring any winter clothes because there are really nice sweaters and coats for really cheap.



Like usual, walking down the isles was intense. People love bargaining and I like practicing my Chinese so I got prices down easily. It is funny to see their reactions when I speak a little Mandarin. Most likely they ask if I'm part Chinese. They must not think American's are cool because if they have to guess a western country they choose Canada or England. I had a lady argue with me that "surely you must have some Chinese!" to which I responded and then she pointed to her eyes, touched her index to her thumb, and pointed at my eyes. ha-ha. I had forgotten the Chinese word for Mexico until now. I always say my dad is "Mo xi ge" which means Mexican and my mom is "Fa guo" or French. I don't even think my mom is French but its one of the only countries I know how to say and I don't want to spend another 10 minutes explaining I don't know my countries.



After coming back from the market, everyone took a much needed nap. Our roommates Kelly and Rachel went to go see gymnastics. The orphans get to attend the games with us, so they had a little girl and boy. Everyone enjoyed it. When we woke up, we got a quick bite to eat and realized it was our roommate's birthday. We decided to go out. Somehow a huge plastic bottle of "bai jiu" ended up in our freezer...which is a Chinese liquor. I don't know what it is, but I'll just say a little goes a long way.

Today, which is Monday, I had volunteer duty again. Jimmy, Giro, Bill, Devon, Andrew, and myself met at 11 am to get our assignment. Since I had survey duty before, I didn't have to do that again. Instead, I got to go to Wang Fu Jing Shopping district to work at an internet cafe for something. Well, when we got to the district we all wanted to go to the official Olympic flagship store. It is the biggest in Beijing. I got some refridgerator magnets and a t-shirt for myself and my dad. The line was so long that the group must have moved on while I was in there and there is no way I could find them. So I decided to give myself the day off and take a look around. I went to the Adidas store and got another shirt (Y180) and I found a local type store that had nice shirts with Chinese writing. I got a really cool one with "xiong" on it. I think it has something to do with gymnastics maybe because there is an upside person kinda drawn on it. Well, it wasn't that exciting. I got bored really fast and went to find a place to eat. I found this back alley with tons of food and got a dish that was called "nu mian" nu is beef and mian is noodle. It was kind of like Vietnamese pho. Hopefully I don't get sick from it, but it kinda looked safe enough. Sorta. I really want to try these Chinese candied fruits. They are dunked in a sugar glaze or something. Once I'm more established I'll have plenty of time.

I just got back to the apartment and no one is home. That's probably why this post is so long and it actually makes sense. I'm waiting to go to a "Traditional Chinese Dinner" tonight with CCI. That will be a story for next time.

Opening Ceremony

Yesterday was the opening ceremony for the Olympics. I am pretty sure that everyone was either at work or sleeping during the ceremony. It lasted about 4 and a half hours. We left in the around 5:00 to head to the park. China had many parks set up throughout the city for viewing on large screen TVs. When we arrived, there were hundreds of people. It was an awesome experience except for the fact that no one ate beforehand. After an hour in the heat, I was done watching the ceremony and just wanted to go home. It was at least 85 degrees outside and humid. Not to mention, I was tired from last night, hungry, and uncomfortable. Sitting on the ground eventually led to falling asleep on my back. I didn't sleep the whole entire time, just the last 2 hours...and I know most people would have killed to watch the opening ceremony at a park a few miles from the actual Olympic village, but really. Heat, humidity, tiredness and hunger, don't really mix too well for me. Actually, everyone fell asleep but one girl, Rachel. Needless to say, it was amazing to watch the people all around me. There had to have been people from over 12 countries. Brazilians, Australians, Europeans and Chinese were all around me.

Random facts: Devon today got her subway card stuck in the machine while we were going home from lunch. That was a fiasco. The subway workers actually thought that she broke the machine. That was funny. They laughed when I told them that we didn't want the card and we would just take 100 kuai, which is about 15 bucks. Also, during the opening ceremony, you would be surprised who the people cheered for. The biggest cheers came for: Cuba, Pakistan, Palestine, Iran, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and a big boo for Bush. Ha. Funny thing is I've had three bloody noses so far. I can't figure out why I'm getting them considering the air is as humid as a steaming sauna. And my feet have attracted a swarm of mosquitoes and they itch whenever they get hot. I think I got bit by something else too because it was swollen and red for a day. I'll keep a watch on it but I'm sure it's fine. If I dont write about it anymore, it's fine. I almost got sick last night too. My stomach was pretty upset so Devon and I took a cab home early. So, now I have to keep an eye out on what I eat. I didn't get sick, but it was upsetting to say the least.

I love watching the people here. They are amazing. Everyone is so nice and willing to meet you half way. My Chinese is improving rapidly. Today, we finally got our official tickets. I also scheduled my trip to the Forbidden City, Great Wall, Lama Temple, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace and a few special dinners that include Beijing Duck dinner, Hot Pot (fondu) dinner, Dumpling dinner, and a Traditional Chinese dinner (we'll see). I can't wait for everything that is coming up in the following weeks. We got our assignments today and I'm pretty sure I'll be working with an Chinese orphanage. My schedule is very loose and basically if I am not up for working that day, I don't have to work. Even though I'm volunteering for 20 days, with all of our trips and excursions I will probably only be working 7 days. Which I'm not really complaining. I have also found the link to my appearance on CBS. Here it is: CBS News Appearance . I look dumb and touristy but thats because I just got off of a 12 hour flight. Also, here are some pictures. Enjoy.

Olympic Beginnings

Zai Beijing

I'm here. The flight to Vancouver was good. It was really hard to stay up the whole time because all I wanted to do was sleep. Then, I had 3 hours to do nothing at Vancouver International. I'm glad that the airport had free internet, or I would have died. Here's a story that will make people laugh. Right before I get on my 12 hour flight to PEK, I decided to buy some snacks. The nice little Canadian Asian asked me where I was going and I told her Beijing. Then she asked if I was going home...and I laughed. Not exactly lady. First, I'm American, not Chinese. Second, I can't believe she asked me that. When I boarded my flight, I sat next to a Chinese lady who had just immigrated to Vancouver. She started speaking Chinese to me. She called me a "green something" that meant I was new to China. Then she gave me her phone number and told me to call her and she'll take me and Devon and Jimmy out to "pub." Dancing and fun. After talking for a bit and practicing my Chinese, I passed out. I woke up, surprisingly, with 4 hours left of the flight. I watched a movie, read, and that was pretty much it. It wasn't bad at all. I got to the airport, which was clean, spacious, and brand new. I looked out the window...SMOG. It's really as bad as the pictures portray. I got my bags and met up with CC Interntional. Devon had arrived right before me and she was there too. I hadn't been out of customs for more than 5 minutes when I get approached from a CBS person to do an interview about the VISA process. So if you saw me on the evening news tonight...haha, what can I say?

We left the airport by subway, which puts NYC Subway system to shame. Here the subways are clean, electronic, quiet, and fast. Everything is brand new. We got to our apartment. I have pictures. It's really cool. I'm on the 24th floor. Most of my roommates haven't arrived yet. I ate last night a quick meal. It was really delicious. Had eggroll things and dumplings. Not bad.

Today, I plan on getting a Chinese cell phone, walking around and exploring the neighboorhood. Jimmy comes in today too, so we'll help get him settled in. Tonight, we're going out.

Links to Log

If anyone was interested, here are a few links that can give you more information about my volunteer program, my study abroad program, and the Olympic Games.

• CC International: China Program


• The Beijing Center of Chinese Studies


• Olympic Games Schedule

Olympic Games

I've been getting e-mail updates this entire week about things I need to do to prepare myself for China. My volunteer program, CC International, has given us the list of Olympic events that we can choose from. They really hooked everyone up because everyone will get to see 4 Olympic events. They have tickets for nearly every event including Taekwondo, Canoe/Rowing, Track & Field, Gymnastics, Baseball, Basketball, etc. I'm thinking my events are going to go along the lines of Beach Volleyball, Mens/Womens Track & Field, Tennis and Water Polo. But, of course, that is all subject to change once I talk to Devon and Jimmy.

Devon, for those of you who don't know her, is my friend at Fordham who introduced me to CC International. She lived above me in Alumni Court North and we've been good friends ever since. She'll probably try and keep me from eating seahorses on a stick, fried scorpions, bugs, and small animals. I'll probably try one of those anyway though!

Also, I got an e-mail from my school saying that they rearranged the class schedule. I'm usually pessimistic about changes because sometimes my luck doesn't work out and I get the short end of the stick, but in this case, it worked out just fine. Actually, my new schedule is much better! Here it is:

Monday: Chinese 9:50-12:20PM
Tuesday: Chinese 9:50-12:20PM, Arts of China 1:30-4:15PM, Business Finance 4:30-7:15PM
Wednesday: Intro to Buddhism 7:30-10:15PM
Thursday: Chinese 9:50-12:20PM, Fundamentals of Marketing 4:30-7:15PM
Friday: Chinese 9:50-12:20PM

Yes, you read that correctly, Wednesday I have a class until 10PM. It's actually not that bad and I guess no matter what country I'm in I'll always have a night class on Wednesdays. At Fordham, I haven't gone a semester without taking Chinese class for 3 hours on Wednesday nights. This past year, I didn't return to my dorm until nearly 11PM. I'm used to it by now, so in China it won't be much different.

That is all for now. I'll let you know on Monday which Olympic games I'm going to see.