Monday, April 17, 2006
MY 222ND DAY AND 50TH POST
On Thursday, I went out to dinner with my homestay family to say goodbye. I had an amazing time staying with a Chinese family and it really helped my Chinese. They were very friendly and I was constantly amazed that they would take me into their home. After my semester program they invited me to come live with them again. A really nice offer, but not one I was interested in. After I moved out, they still occaisionally took me out to eat or sightseeing, even to a Chinese wedding. I asked my homestay mom who is an Ob/Gyn about CHinese people eating taipan - placenta. She verified that people do eat placenta and not fetuses. She said she has friends who eat it but she finds it revolting. A placenta costs 10RMB ($1.25)
Friday night I had my going away party. We went to the Speakeasy, but there were too many Chinese hip-hop teenagers (referred to by my friends as "chiggers") so we went to Chapter One instead. After hanging out for a while and saying goodbye to people, I went to bed.
Saturday night I got to Beijing. It was late and I was hungry so I went to a duck restaurant. My plan was to eat at least one whole Peking duck before I went home. Sitting down at the restaurant, I ordered a duck. I was disappointed to find out that "no have duck, but you order more food." I left and went to another duck restaurant. This time there were no problems and I ate a whole duck. Mmm, REAL Peking duck.
Walking around Beijing, one is constantly approached by "art students" who speak perfect English and want to invite you back to their gallery. They're harmless and friendly, but the art isn't great, and I don't want to buy any. When they approach me, I've started playing games with them. They are always shocked when I ask them if they are an art student. Sometimes I'll tell them I am also an art student and will draw them a picture. They'e nice and I'll talk to them for a while and help them with their English, but nobody likes a shill.
Sunday was Easter. I have seen Easter Mass in many different places and languages, from Nelson Mandela's church in South Africa to Italy. I thought I'd go see Mass in Chinese. NOPE. There were masses, but Chinese people could go to Chinese Mass, foreigners to English Mass. To prevent intermingling of peoples, there were soldiers doing passport checks at the door of the church. I saw a Tibetan Catholic Mass in Yunnan without any problem but this is Beijing. The rules are enforced here. I didn't want to see the English Mass, so I wound up not going to Church. Sorry Jesus. I did walk past the 300 year old Church on Wangfujing which is the one Condileeza Rice visited on her trip here. There were no serivces since a wedding was going on. Outside, the church had hung a sign saying "Jesus Christ, Allelujah" in Chinese characters. Now if I ever need to write allelujah in Chinese, I know how.
That afternoon I went to the Panjiayuan Flea Market to buy all the souvineers and gifts I haven't bought over the last 8 months. I bought everything from Tibetan thanka paintings to little red books to Mao propeganda posters. Now I just have to fit them in my suitcases.
Last night I wandered around the night market. The night market consists of about 100 stands with people selling food. Since I'm going home, I made myself a food sampler. In the past, I've tried the odd things - scorpions, starfish, various internal organs - so this time I decided to stick with things I like. I had some dog barbeque, some beef dumplings, a pork sandwich, some eel, and a few other animals. It was quite delicious. I also met a guy from Turkmenistan. I'd never met anyone from there, but now I actually have proof that it exists. Turkmenistan is a real country.
This morning, Reuters is reporting: "BEIJING - A sand storm struck the Chinese capital on Monday, covering homes, streets and cars in brown dust and leaving the skies a murky yellow as it suffers its worst pollution in years ahead of the 2008 Summer Olympics." The air already is terrible here. Breathing it is like smoking 3 packs of cigarettes per day. This sandstorm that has been as "one of the worst in years," left the city coated with less than a milimeter of sand/dust. No big deal. Sorry Reuters, you just lost some credibility.
On Thursday, I went out to dinner with my homestay family to say goodbye. I had an amazing time staying with a Chinese family and it really helped my Chinese. They were very friendly and I was constantly amazed that they would take me into their home. After my semester program they invited me to come live with them again. A really nice offer, but not one I was interested in. After I moved out, they still occaisionally took me out to eat or sightseeing, even to a Chinese wedding. I asked my homestay mom who is an Ob/Gyn about CHinese people eating taipan - placenta. She verified that people do eat placenta and not fetuses. She said she has friends who eat it but she finds it revolting. A placenta costs 10RMB ($1.25)
Friday night I had my going away party. We went to the Speakeasy, but there were too many Chinese hip-hop teenagers (referred to by my friends as "chiggers") so we went to Chapter One instead. After hanging out for a while and saying goodbye to people, I went to bed.
Saturday night I got to Beijing. It was late and I was hungry so I went to a duck restaurant. My plan was to eat at least one whole Peking duck before I went home. Sitting down at the restaurant, I ordered a duck. I was disappointed to find out that "no have duck, but you order more food." I left and went to another duck restaurant. This time there were no problems and I ate a whole duck. Mmm, REAL Peking duck.
Walking around Beijing, one is constantly approached by "art students" who speak perfect English and want to invite you back to their gallery. They're harmless and friendly, but the art isn't great, and I don't want to buy any. When they approach me, I've started playing games with them. They are always shocked when I ask them if they are an art student. Sometimes I'll tell them I am also an art student and will draw them a picture. They'e nice and I'll talk to them for a while and help them with their English, but nobody likes a shill.
Sunday was Easter. I have seen Easter Mass in many different places and languages, from Nelson Mandela's church in South Africa to Italy. I thought I'd go see Mass in Chinese. NOPE. There were masses, but Chinese people could go to Chinese Mass, foreigners to English Mass. To prevent intermingling of peoples, there were soldiers doing passport checks at the door of the church. I saw a Tibetan Catholic Mass in Yunnan without any problem but this is Beijing. The rules are enforced here. I didn't want to see the English Mass, so I wound up not going to Church. Sorry Jesus. I did walk past the 300 year old Church on Wangfujing which is the one Condileeza Rice visited on her trip here. There were no serivces since a wedding was going on. Outside, the church had hung a sign saying "Jesus Christ, Allelujah" in Chinese characters. Now if I ever need to write allelujah in Chinese, I know how.
That afternoon I went to the Panjiayuan Flea Market to buy all the souvineers and gifts I haven't bought over the last 8 months. I bought everything from Tibetan thanka paintings to little red books to Mao propeganda posters. Now I just have to fit them in my suitcases.
Last night I wandered around the night market. The night market consists of about 100 stands with people selling food. Since I'm going home, I made myself a food sampler. In the past, I've tried the odd things - scorpions, starfish, various internal organs - so this time I decided to stick with things I like. I had some dog barbeque, some beef dumplings, a pork sandwich, some eel, and a few other animals. It was quite delicious. I also met a guy from Turkmenistan. I'd never met anyone from there, but now I actually have proof that it exists. Turkmenistan is a real country.
This morning, Reuters is reporting: "BEIJING - A sand storm struck the Chinese capital on Monday, covering homes, streets and cars in brown dust and leaving the skies a murky yellow as it suffers its worst pollution in years ahead of the 2008 Summer Olympics." The air already is terrible here. Breathing it is like smoking 3 packs of cigarettes per day. This sandstorm that has been as "one of the worst in years," left the city coated with less than a milimeter of sand/dust. No big deal. Sorry Reuters, you just lost some credibility.
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
ITS BEEN A WHILE
Thailand was a lot of fun. I went to some protests including one by the media for freedom of the press. The PM won 57% of the vote - enough for a supposed mandate, but when you consider that he ran unopposed, 57% isn't such a great number. A day later he met with the king and stepped aside "for the sake of reconciliation and the good of the country." WOuldn't it be great if that could happen in America? Watching BBC, the only foreigners unhappy with the election result were Americans. They were writing in about how "mob rule has gone too far" and that "we need to respect the results of democratic elections." I found it amusing because it was very clear they didn't know anything about the situation here and yet were screaming to high hell about the results.
Now I'm back in Kunming. I've been tying up all the loose ends, packing, saying goodbye to my friends and reflecting on my time here. I go to Beijing the 15th and fly home on the 18th.
In retrospect, I'm glad I came to China. I think it may be one of the best things I've ever done. I had hoped to be fluent in Chinese when I returned, but I now see that it will take another couple of years. Knowing that now, I am very pleased with what I did learn here. I am still amazed that I could go to another country knowing none of the language and live there. I got to travel and thoroughly explore many different pasts of China and Chinese culture. Looking back on it, I moght have prefered being in a bigger city, somewhere like Beijing. I can do that next time. I am very excited to be going home. Of the many things about America I miss, I miss most my friends, family and American food. I will write another blog before I leave China plus I will continue writing them for a few weeks at home, documenting the differences and things I miss about China.
At the beginning of the blogging experience I posted some questions. Now that my time is coming to a close, let's see the answers.
Will I eat a dog?
Yes, and dog, a red meat is quite delicious.
Become a Maoist?
Nope, Mao did some cool stuff, but he killed too many people.
Can I learn Chinese?
I learned a good deal, not as much as I had hoped, but it was easier than teaching myself in America.
Will I hunt pandas?
No, the government would shoot me.
Will I be the tallest person in the country?
99%th percentile, but some foreigners and some Chinese from way up north beat me.
Thank you to everyone who has been reading my blog. I hope you have enjoyed it and gained a better understanding of the Middle Kingdom.
Thailand was a lot of fun. I went to some protests including one by the media for freedom of the press. The PM won 57% of the vote - enough for a supposed mandate, but when you consider that he ran unopposed, 57% isn't such a great number. A day later he met with the king and stepped aside "for the sake of reconciliation and the good of the country." WOuldn't it be great if that could happen in America? Watching BBC, the only foreigners unhappy with the election result were Americans. They were writing in about how "mob rule has gone too far" and that "we need to respect the results of democratic elections." I found it amusing because it was very clear they didn't know anything about the situation here and yet were screaming to high hell about the results.
Now I'm back in Kunming. I've been tying up all the loose ends, packing, saying goodbye to my friends and reflecting on my time here. I go to Beijing the 15th and fly home on the 18th.
In retrospect, I'm glad I came to China. I think it may be one of the best things I've ever done. I had hoped to be fluent in Chinese when I returned, but I now see that it will take another couple of years. Knowing that now, I am very pleased with what I did learn here. I am still amazed that I could go to another country knowing none of the language and live there. I got to travel and thoroughly explore many different pasts of China and Chinese culture. Looking back on it, I moght have prefered being in a bigger city, somewhere like Beijing. I can do that next time. I am very excited to be going home. Of the many things about America I miss, I miss most my friends, family and American food. I will write another blog before I leave China plus I will continue writing them for a few weeks at home, documenting the differences and things I miss about China.
At the beginning of the blogging experience I posted some questions. Now that my time is coming to a close, let's see the answers.
Will I eat a dog?
Yes, and dog, a red meat is quite delicious.
Become a Maoist?
Nope, Mao did some cool stuff, but he killed too many people.
Can I learn Chinese?
I learned a good deal, not as much as I had hoped, but it was easier than teaching myself in America.
Will I hunt pandas?
No, the government would shoot me.
Will I be the tallest person in the country?
99%th percentile, but some foreigners and some Chinese from way up north beat me.
Thank you to everyone who has been reading my blog. I hope you have enjoyed it and gained a better understanding of the Middle Kingdom.
Saturday, April 01, 2006
SO WHY DO THEY CALL IT BANGKOK?
I arrived in Thailand and got in a taxi. It should have been a 30 minute ride. 3 hours later, I was still sitting in the car as Pro-Thaksin ralliers clogged the streets. Finally, the driver told me I'd be better off getting out and taking a motorcycle taxi. For those who don't know, a motorcycle taxi is Bangkok's most dangerous and terrifying way to travel. They weave in and out of traffic at high speeds, and don't really obey traffic laws. But damn they're fast. Fortunately they gave me a helmit and we only had one minor accident. The accident was caused by the monsoon-like rain.
Arriving at Khaosan Rd. I checked into my hotel and went to get falaffel. At the falaffel stand I met Carmen, an American journalist who works in Taiwan. We spoke in Chinese/Thai/English for a while and agreed to go look at the protests the next day.
The next morning we started walking around and went to the Grand Palace where we had heard there were protests. There was no one there. We then went to Siam Paragon where there had been protests. No one. Sukhumvit. No one. We went back to Khaosan. Later that day we found out that there were many protests in Silom. We went over to look. No one. We subsequently discovered that the opposition had called off the protests until after the elections. Oh well.
Silom is where the notorious Patpong red light district is. We decided to explore and play count the kathoey, the Thai term for transvestite. Thailand is the sex change capital of the world due to their very liberal attitudes towards sex and gender. Within 20 minutes I had reached 30 in my count. People kept asking Carmen if he was my father (note, he's 30, but looks 40.) Eventually we started answering yes, he was my father and my mother is Thai, which is why I could speak some Thai.
We then went to see a show. There were maybe 20 "girls" inside (5 were kathoey,) who were up on stage doing various acts. At the table, girls would come around and sit with the customers. One had a swastika tattooed on her hand. I figured it was probably the Buddhist symbol, instead of the nazi one. I asked. Her reply was, "Nazi...Buddha" then put her hands in a praying position. I didn't know Buddha was a Nazi. The 3 most impressive acts were a lady using chopsticks with her vagina, a lady smoking cigarettes with her vagina, and my personal favorite, shooting darts. I was handed a balloon and told to hold it up, away from my face. From 15 ft. she shot the balloon. That is a scary woman. Later that night I witnessed a lady playing a trumpet. I can't play the trumpet with my mouth, let alone another part of me. Where do these people acquire their skills? How does one think to try it?
I stopped counting kathoey at 150 (3 hours after I started counting.)
Happy April 1st.
I arrived in Thailand and got in a taxi. It should have been a 30 minute ride. 3 hours later, I was still sitting in the car as Pro-Thaksin ralliers clogged the streets. Finally, the driver told me I'd be better off getting out and taking a motorcycle taxi. For those who don't know, a motorcycle taxi is Bangkok's most dangerous and terrifying way to travel. They weave in and out of traffic at high speeds, and don't really obey traffic laws. But damn they're fast. Fortunately they gave me a helmit and we only had one minor accident. The accident was caused by the monsoon-like rain.
Arriving at Khaosan Rd. I checked into my hotel and went to get falaffel. At the falaffel stand I met Carmen, an American journalist who works in Taiwan. We spoke in Chinese/Thai/English for a while and agreed to go look at the protests the next day.
The next morning we started walking around and went to the Grand Palace where we had heard there were protests. There was no one there. We then went to Siam Paragon where there had been protests. No one. Sukhumvit. No one. We went back to Khaosan. Later that day we found out that there were many protests in Silom. We went over to look. No one. We subsequently discovered that the opposition had called off the protests until after the elections. Oh well.
Silom is where the notorious Patpong red light district is. We decided to explore and play count the kathoey, the Thai term for transvestite. Thailand is the sex change capital of the world due to their very liberal attitudes towards sex and gender. Within 20 minutes I had reached 30 in my count. People kept asking Carmen if he was my father (note, he's 30, but looks 40.) Eventually we started answering yes, he was my father and my mother is Thai, which is why I could speak some Thai.
We then went to see a show. There were maybe 20 "girls" inside (5 were kathoey,) who were up on stage doing various acts. At the table, girls would come around and sit with the customers. One had a swastika tattooed on her hand. I figured it was probably the Buddhist symbol, instead of the nazi one. I asked. Her reply was, "Nazi...Buddha" then put her hands in a praying position. I didn't know Buddha was a Nazi. The 3 most impressive acts were a lady using chopsticks with her vagina, a lady smoking cigarettes with her vagina, and my personal favorite, shooting darts. I was handed a balloon and told to hold it up, away from my face. From 15 ft. she shot the balloon. That is a scary woman. Later that night I witnessed a lady playing a trumpet. I can't play the trumpet with my mouth, let alone another part of me. Where do these people acquire their skills? How does one think to try it?
I stopped counting kathoey at 150 (3 hours after I started counting.)
Happy April 1st.
