Week 1

It’s been a little over a week since I arrived in Beijing and so much has happened I haven’t had time to update my blog until now! My first week here was really intense… No other way to put it. I finally got to BeiYu last Saturday night and had about half a day to speak English before our language pledge began, (the pledge essentially bans any language but Chinese for the next nine weeks.) For me, the pledge is probably the most difficult aspect of the program just because I’m not nearly fluent enough to express my thoughts in Chinese, thus prohibiting me from talking to my friends without several hand gestures and games of charades. At first it was a little isolating, but everybody seems to be doing their best and I already see improvements in my speaking. I kind of feel like a little kid learning to read again in that every day I recognize more and more characters on the surrounding signs/buildings/etc.

The first week of class was also pretty overwhelming. Every day we have five hours of class and on top of that I’d say we have about four hours of homework a night, consisting of completing a homework sheet, reading a text, and memorizing about 100 new characters in preparation for the quiz the following morning. We also have a written test and oral presentation every Friday. This obviously leaves little free time during the week. In fact, I didn’t really leave campus until Friday with the exception of going to a few nearby restaurants. My jet lag definitely added to my stress last week, but I’m finally adjusting to the time difference and the work load is becoming more manageable.

This weekend was a lot of fun and a reassuring break from the academic rigor of the previous five days. On Saturday, JinA and I went to an art district called “798”, which is kind of like an old-Soho with tons of old factories which have been turned into galleries. We somehow ended up participating in an auction where JinA almost bought a piece of art! “798” was really interesting because it serves as a rare case of freedom of expression among the up and coming artistic generation. I really got the sense that “798” was its own secluded community within the larger city and felt a certain tension between the two sides. “798” really welcomes open critiques of Chinese government and society through its art while a lot of the rest of Beijing remains very traditional in its mindset. In fact, I feel like Beijing is full of contrasts like this juxtaposition of the art district and the surrounding Chaoyang district.

For instance, I have especially felt a disparity in Beijing’s environmental issues and health in general. The smog here is unbelievable – more than half of the time it’s sunny out you can’t even see the sun. It constantly looks like a foggy day out because of all the pollution. Many of my friends even told me they can’t run outside because it hurts their lungs so much. At the same time however, I’ve noticed significantly healthier habits among Chinese people compared to those of Americans. An obvious example is in food. In addition to the food being prepared in healthier ways, it is also never wasted. This moderation seems to be applied in many more aspects of Chinese life than in American life. A trivial and somewhat stupid example is the fact that I only get two rolls of toilet paper a week from the 服务员in my dorm and everywhere you go you have to bring your own toilet paper because squat toilets don’t have it. This moderation creates a much simpler lifestyle and reinforces the feeling that we have everything in excessive and unnecessary amounts in the US. So, while on one hand China’s rapid modernization and industrialization have created many environmental problems, the country still maintains other habits which are significantly healthier and environmentally friendly than those in the US.

One last tension I have felt in Beijing is that between the Chinese and the ex-pat community. While the hotels/restaurants/nightlife in Beijing are really fun and high-class despite their inexpensive nature, I can’t help but feel weird about being in these places when the rest of Beijing is just so different. An extreme example of this occurred Saturday night when I found myself at a party thrown by a reporter for Time Magazine who lived in a very poor neighborhood in Beijing, (apparently he was the only person in the area with his own bathroom.) We had to walk down many allies and through several courtyards to get to his home and the entire time his Chinese neighbors kept pointing us in the right direction because they immediately knew we must be going to the only foreigner’s home in the area. It seemed very unnatural to me that at that moment I was in the middle of this neighborhood and that later that night I would be at these really nice clubs that were like a world apart. All of these contrasts have so far created a love-hate relationship with Beijing for me. I’m sure my feelings will change and develop in different ways over the rest of the summer, but as of now so many aspects of the culture seem to contradict one another.

Ok that’s it for now. Check out the pictures below!

My dorm - 会议中心

The track on campus right next to my dorm. At night, there are legit about 75-100 people walking around the track or practicing taichi.

Confucius! 孔子

Classroom building

The auction at "798"

At a photography exhibit of Olympic athletes - They had a ton of pole vaulting photos! This one is of Yelena Isinbayevam at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka.

JinA at another gallery