Let the Games Begin!

Now that the Olympics have arrived, Beijing is substantially different from when we got here in June. The atmosphere is more lively (热闹), there are Westerners galore, and everyone is talking sports. Lots of day-to-day things have changed as well, cab drivers are required to wear ties all of a sudden, security in the subways is as tight as small airports and yes, the weather has magically gotten better. This weekend, for the opening ceremony the weather was not great, and I think the government was not happy about that, but it has been getting better ever since a lightening storm passed through on Sunday (artificially-induced rain, anyone?). For the opening ceremony, we went to Wangfujing Square and watched on the big screen with thousands of people. It was unbelievably of fun, and we got so into it that we started leading chants in Chinese saying "Let's go China, let's go" (中国, 加油!) in front of hundreds of Chinese people... they thought we were hilarious/crazy. This weekend I went to my first Olympic game, a boxing event where Latin America dominated the show and tomorrow I'm going to USA vs. Nigeria in soccer, followed by Argentina vs. Serbia. I'm hecksa excited.

Outside the Boxing event, weather not so good?

The Summer Palace

The Summer Palace, a palace built by the Empress Cixi, is a gorgeous spot in the northwest of Beijing and way bigger than I expected with a huge lake at the center of colorful gardens... too bad British and French burned down the original.

Xi'an and Shanghai

Yesterday I got back to Beijing from a week-long trip exploring around some new places in China. On Friday we had our end-of-semester exam and at 6pm that day I boarded an overnight train with 5 classmates to Xi'an, China's ancient capital city and home to the Terracotta Warriors. Xi'an is a beautiful city, and much more preserved than Beijing in terms of old architecture as shown by its city walls (and the traditional architecture in the photo below). We spent the weekend there and then took a plane to Shanghai, where we spent the rest of the week. Shanghai was a shocker. After spending a month in Beijing, I could not believe how modern and westernized Shanghai is. Beijing and Shanghai are like night and day. I'm even tempted to say that Shanghai is hardly a Chinese city, especially when you consider that it was founded and then governed by foreigners for so long. Essentially, in Shanghai it is easy to forget that you are in China, you can eat at Western restaurants, only have Western friends, live in Western houses, whereas in Beijing the reminder of being in China is there every time you bite into your pork bun for breakfast or breath in the thick suspiciously-foggy air.

The Peking Opera

The Peking Opera is not really an "opera." It's more of a circus, with characters who juggle, kick swords and spears around in the air, jump over each other and do back-flips across the stage. Nonetheless, it's pretty awesome and definitely better than any circus I've ever been to. In addition to all of the tricks, there is an intriguing plot to the performance (albeit a slow-developing one). The style of singing is often considered "ugly" by Western standards, but I didn't think it was bad at all. All in all, I felt that it was a pretty a touristy experience. Definitely worth going to see, but touristy.

T'is a Great Wall

Last weekend we took a hike up the Sima Tai section of the Great Wall. I felt that it was actually hard to appreciate how incredibly long the wall is when you can only see one small section at a time. One thing that surprised me though was how steep the wall is (which you can't tell from the photo below). It's by no means a stroll along a wall, it's more of a hike up a mountain, which I didn't realize and so was wearing flip-flops. Another thing that surprised me was how many people there are on the wall trying to sell things. These women would come up to us to fan us, follow us all the way up the wall for an hour offering hats, postcards and trinkets for outrageous prices. It took me a while to bargain a fan down from 60 to 15 kuai, and at the end I'm sure she still thought that she was ripping me off.

"Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting"

Last weekend we went to see a performance of Chinese Kung Fu, or as the Chinese say "Gong Fu." It was an impressive spectacle. The plot was enthralling, the guys were incredibly jacked, and the special effects were frightening. But there were a few parts of the performance that surprised me (aka 沒想到). First, there was very little actual fighting, most of the performance was dancing. As you can see from the photo, they often used elaborate props like umbrellas, drums or plants as opposed to weapons. Because of the popularized song by Carl Douglas, most people think of Kung Fu as fighting, but it more has to do with getting in touch with the inner "qi force". Second, there was a legit plot to the performance, that followed an ancient Chinese poem. I just didin't realize there was a going to be a plot. Third, the lead of the show was a 10 year old boy. Because you are more flexible when young, I guess this is an advantage. The kid was amazing, but I think a lot of the Americans were thinking child labor. All in all, it was a great performance, so thanks to Liu laoshi for the tickets, and for giving us a better understanding of what Kung Fu actually is.

the SF Beijing exchange

Every once in a while, you come across a photo that just seems to summarize an entire trip. Below my host brother, 34 years old, and I hold very touristy items from Beijing and San Francisco. Despite the triteness of these symbols, this photo to me represents the exchange of ideas and culture between our homelands... gotta love it.

In Beijing after 24 hours in the air

Normally a flight from San Francisco to Beijing is 12 hours. My flight had two stop overs, leaving me with a trip that was well over 24 hours door to door and I slept maybe 30 minutes max because I was sitting in an exit row where the seats didn't recline. My cab driver from the airport was an extremely animated guy who asked me dozens of questions about myself and America. What do you think of Bush? Which countries have you visited? What do you want to be when you are older? How much does oil cost in America? I had a lot of trouble understanding him because of his thick Beijing accent that covers a lot of the ends of words in "r" sounds, but using sign language we could communicate basic ideas. Since I didn't understand the word for oil, he explained by putting his hand to his mouth saying "the thing that cars eat..." It was a very fun warm welcome to China. Classes started yesterday and they are definitely intense, but also a lot of fun.
As you can see above as we squint into the sun, last weekend I went to Tiananmen with some friends, where we bought some "green bean ice cream." It is unbelievably hot here, but to tell the truth it's a nice change from San Fran weather, which is never very hot in the summer. There were two things that surprised me about Tiananmen square. First of all, for some reason I thought Tiananmen was red, but it's not, it's just a huge, wide open, gray, Soviet-style sqaure. The only red part is the wall behind us. Second, even though it's a major tourist spot, it didn't look there were many tourists. I was actually expecting there to be few Chinese people there, just like there are virtually no French people at the Eiffel Tower, or no English people at the Tower of London. Then, the thing that surprised me most about Beijing is how cheap it is. I mean, a 20 minuted cab ride split between 4 people is 1 dollar each. It's unreal. All in all, I'm having an amazing time and will try to post more frequently, it's been hard setting up the internet connection.

"Beijing Welcomes You"

This awesome song is the theme song of the Beijing Olympics. All the most famous Chinese stars sing it (look out for Jackie Chan!). It's about how China's doors are open to foreigners from around the world and all the rich experiences and impressive preparations that await them. I've been watching it a lot over the past few weeks and it gets me pumped every time I hear it. Great song.



My favorite line is Tian da di da dou shi pengyou qing bu yong keqi ("Whether from heaven or from earth, you are our friend so feel at home"). A translation of the lyrics is at http://music.yeucahat.com/

Getting Around the "Great Firewall of China"

Whooops... I recently just sent my blog link to some friends who are already in China and they said that they can't open the url. This means that the Chinese firewall is doing what it's supposed to block Americans from sharing their views in China. In the next few weeks I'm going to have to find a way of getting around the firewall. Maybe I'll start using another website that isn't run by Blogspot, but in any case I'll still use this url until I leave on June 17, and I'll keep you updated if I change any urls. I have friends who have blogged from China before so it's definitely not too difficult, and I've heard that the web restrictions are going to be a little more lax this summer so as not to be too inconvenient to tourists.

Two incredible views of China...

How to teach yourself a language

My opinion about learning foreign languages is that it is most efficient to study the language in a classroom environment for 1-3 years and then take off for a country where they speak the language. Going to a country with no knowledge of the language makes it extremely difficult to learn because no one wants to explain to you all of the very basic vocab over and over, but once you have a little background, people for the most part are willing to speak slowly for you. On the opposite end, taking classes for many years without spending much time with native speakers is also ineffective. Textbooks and artificial speaking environments are crucial at first but they become less and less helpful as you get better at the language.

The bottom line though is that the only way of acquiring a foreign is exposure, exposure, exposure… and since travel is expensive, one of the easiest ways to do this is using media… watching foreign TV, listening to online radio, podcasts, or one of my favorites… listening to foreign pop songs. And thanks to YouTube, this is incredibly easy. One of my favorite Chinese pop songs is called “Tong Hua” (Fairy Tales). It's about a girl who dies from love and a guy who expresses his love for her through music. It's the most popular song in Taiwan right now.


Tong Hua by Guang Liang

Music has been proven by psychologists to be a more effective method of remembering things, which is why we sing the ABCs when we are young to remember the alphabet. Singing is fun and with the internet it’s incredibly easy to find translations for foreign songs. One great site for translations is called “Learn Chinese Through Music” (http://www.learn-chinese-through-music.com/)

Let me know if you have any more suggestions for good Chinese songs or websites.

My cultural preparations

I’ve never been to Asia before so I am expecting this trip to a culture shock. I’ll be staying in a homestay for most of my two months in Beijing and so I especially feel the need to expose myself to Chinese culture before taking off.

Over this past year, I have made a real effort to learn about China. I have been taking Chinese language classes for the past year with Tai Lao Shi (the world’s best Chinese teacher), last semester I took a survey course on Chinese history (from the ancient Shang to Mao Zedong in one semester), I’ve been watching Chinese movies and listening to Chinese songs (most notably Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and Tong Hua by Guang Liang) and I had a “Chinese language exchange partner” for a brief period who was actually just a businessman downtown who wanted help with English in exchange for Chinese help. As my friend Jeremy put it, it seems like I’ve come down with a case of "Yellow Fever".

Here are some of the books and movies that I plan to read/see this summer to help prepare me for my trip, if you have any more suggestions, please add them as comments:

The Geography of Thought by Richard Nisbett
China: Fragile Superpower by Susan L. Shirk
Man's Fate by André Malraux
Seven Years in Tibet
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
A Great Wall

My take on US-China relations

One thing I like to do before traveling to a foreign country is to write down my impressions before going and then looking over them after the trip is over. So here are my free-flowing ideas on the US and China...

Like many others, I see China as a country that is already and will become more and more of a key player in the international stage. It seems inevitable that China will surpass the United States in GDP and in the process of the US’s trade imbalance with East Asia, China is hungry to buy up much of the US’s deficit. This is dangerous. It means that China wields an uncomfortable amount of power over the American economy because theoretically they can ask for their money back whenever they want, causing American interest rates to go up and making America's economy grind to a halt. Realistically, this is unlikely since a hit to America’s economy is a hit to China’s, but the bottom line that should be taken from this increasing political and economic interdependence, is that I think we need more Americans studying Asian languages and cultures, as opposed to European ones. As Susan Shirk (author of China: A Fragile Superpower) argues, wars are caused by misunderstandings and if the US and China are not able to understand each other in the future, there is a definite possibility of an escalation of conflict. In large cities, Chinese who speak English are much easier to find than Americans who speak Chinese, which is unfortunate. After all, there are more native Mandarin-speakers in the world than there are English-speakers; what makes Americans think they don’t need to learn foreign languages? What impact will this have if most interactions between Chinese and Americans are primarily in English? It is also unsurprising but important to note that most Americans who speak Chinese are of Chinese decent. What impact will this have if most interactions between Chinese and Americans in Chinese are between Chinese and Chinese-Americans? The bottom line is that in my opinion we need more Americans studying and becoming interested in Asian languages and cultures, which is a large part of the reason why I've become interested in Asia recently.

Step 1: Getting the visa

Today I waited for an hour and a half in line at the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco to apply for a visa to China. As my friend Andrew pointed out, it’s pretty funny that the Chinese Consulate is actually in San Francisco’s Japantown. I wonder how that happened…

Recently the Chinese government has made visa regulations stricter in preparation for the Olympics, which is understandable for security but risky in terms of making a profit on the event, as the Greece Olympics failed to do in 2004. I learned about some of the recent visa restriction changes from the guy in line in front of me who began to raise his voice at a Chinese official when she asked him to provide proof of his return ticket and hotel reservations. It seemed like he was a frequent traveler to China, but didn't know the the recent policy changes. Realizing that he was going to have to wait in the hour and a half long line again the next day, he cursed loudly in front of everyone and stormed off… welcome to Chinese bureaucracy buddy! I was worried for his sake that he was going to be denied entry for his behavior.

On my return visit to the consulate to pick up the visa, I noticed a sign on the window that said that for non-US citizens the visa costs $90, but for US citizens it costs $130. Then, the sign said that the visa used to cost $100, but because of the Olympics this summer, it's up to $130. A little dismayed, I asked the woman behind the window why the price raise... she answered "Your president want!"

Back in the Blogosphere

After a year long hiatus I have decided that I have separated myself from the blog world for too long. Blogs are a way of keeping in touch with friends, keeping informed about current events and sharing ideas that range from discussion of the Buddha's diet to debating who our next president should be.Last year, while studying at the University of St. Andrews in the UK, I blogged to share my personal experiences with my friends and family back home. Here is my old blog: http://austinsscottishblog.blogspot.com/.

Recently, I just confirmed that I’m going to Beijing, China this summer from June 19 - August 26th and I’d like to use the opportunity to jump back on the blog-train. Since the Olympics will be in Beijing, I’m hoping to use this blog to discuss political issues, explore the bounds of Chinese censorship and share my personal perspective and individual experience in Beijing. In summary, here’s a checklist of what I’m hoping to achieve with this blog.

Four reasons why I’m blogging:
1) Keep in touch …with high school friends, college friends, extended family, professors, people that I meet quickly but never see again.
2) Become an amateur journalist in China. “Blogging journalists” advocate that the combination of many individuals’ perspective of an event is just as justified as the formal media as a whole. Either way free-lance journalists are definitely an important alternative and counter-balance to mass media.
3) Case Study. I want to use this blog to test the efficiency of censorship in China – will this webpage maybe get shut down? Will it be inaccessible in China, but accessible to American viewers? Could be interesting…
4) Enrich my mind. Learn from new perspectives. Read about interesting people. Keep informed.

Upcoming Blog Posts
Riots in London, Paris and San Francisco
“Cleaning up your online image”
Prepping for Beijing
My schedule in the fall