"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/