Playing Catch Up....

Okay, lots of things have happened since I last posted, so I'm not sure I'll be able to remember everything. Let's see...

A couple Thursdays ago my classmates and I went out for duck and to see the Beijing Opera. We thought maybe we would be able to find a place that had both a place to eat and watch, but we were definitely mistaken. We ended up on the super touristy 'old style' street which was showing opera on a rooftop to watch from the street. The speakers were pretty busted so the sound was not good. After about 5 minutes we decided to bail and find a duck restaurant. We ended up at Quanjude. We had headed out from Wudaokou with about 16 people but as the night wore on and we finally arrived at the duck restaurant we were down to 12. I ended up ordering for us, 3 ducks, rice, dumplings, and a vegetable dish. Of course all the food except the ducks had MSG and the idiot waitress wouldn't or didn't tell them to prepare it without (which makes me think the food is probably pre-made). The bill ended up being a whopping 1,276rmb. Luckily split between the 12 of us it wasn't too bad. We did a few ganbei's, enjoyed our duck and headed back out to the touristy street.
A few more people decided to head home leaving Thai Patrick, Patrick, Anna, Sylvio, and I. We went to the area of the tourist street where you can buy live scorpions to eat and one of the cooks let Thai Patrick play with one, we have some good pictures of him pretending to eat it. We decided to leave around 11pm but couldn't find a cab who was willing to take all 5 of us without charging an exorbitant (80rmb!) amount, so we took the subway to Xizhimen before it closed down and grabbed a cab from there. It was a fun night and I really got to know my classmates which was cool.

Nathan is back from his trip to the states which is great. We had a lot of fun going to the zoo last Saturday and seeing all the animals. They could really do with Hayley's help there as some of the enclosures where a bit horrible. The people could also do with a bit of educating as to how to treat the animals, we had to tell one girl who was our age to stop banging on the monkeys glass windows and pissing them off.

Nathan and I found a huge underground market in Xizhimen which I absolutely love. They are very few foreigners there and they don't try to rip you off. The first price they give you is usually very low so you don't spend forever bargaining. It's good stuff. I went back on Friday and nabbed a pair of jeans and a few other things.

Today Nathan and I went for brunch at Steak and Eggs, explored the Alien Street Market in little Russia, and went to The Place mall. It was all very good stuff, but probably more shopping than Nathan liked. Haha.

Classes continue to go well, I'm really glad I'm in the class I'm in and I've learned a lot of new vocabulary. Hopefully I'll be able to keep up the studying when I get back to Jiujiang.

Tomorrow Nathan and I are going to the travel agents to check out Manila tickets. Only two and a half more weeks! I'm looking forward to our nice relaxing vacation and some time with Nate's parents!

Success

Yesterday I decided that I was in need of some shopping therapy seeing as I'm not doing so well with making friends here in Beijing (blah...).

Having never ridden the subway by myself that was my first objective. Luckily Nathan and I had made the trip to Sanlitun via subway before, and I remembered the way. I made it to my goal rather quickly.
Next stop was the underground market where I met some really nice people. I bought another Coach purse, so Aunt Karen can pick from the two. I met a couple of super nice ladies who sell stuff down there, and I actually wouldn't mind going back just to chat with them. Their English was really great and I am betting they would let me practice my Chinese.
After the underground market I headed over to Yashow to grab another pair of shoes (I really wanted rainboots due to the fact that Beijing monsoons in the summer) but couldn't find any I liked. I did find a gorgeous jacket and very nearly had a shouting war with the lady who was selling it, but I was triumphant and left with one new pair of flats and a pink leather jacket.
I walked back to the subway and returned to Wudaokou where I was delighted to find a night market set up on the street. I did some bargain hunting and came away with a 15rmb pair of Crocs (aka the ugliest but most comfortable shoes in existence), a light cardigan, and a new shirt. Excellent.

I won't tell you how much I spent yesterday. It was exorbitant, but totally within my budget.

Does anyone want a pair of Crocs? They're only 15rmb a pair so I would be happy to snag you a pair and deliver in January. Just send me your shoe size.

Today I'm dedicating my afternoon to studying and reviewing. We've learned a lot of words in the past week!

Purchases from yesterday:
Pink Coach bag
Crocs
Le Sportsac Bag with birds on it
Pink leather jacket
Two pairs of shorts
One skirt
Four shirts

Plans for the week:
Beijing zoo...?
Studying
Laundry (for some reason I can't buy a laundry card from the desk until tomorrow?)
Nathan comes back
Make friends...?

I live....

I am quite sure I had a kidney stone but it has passed. Nathan made me an oh so delicious remedy of olive oil an lemon juice. Ew. But whatever, I am cured.

Classes are going great. I am in the perfect level class for my Chinese so I am being challenged but still learning.

Hrm. I have nothing else. Update later.

Bad Luck Streak

I seem to be a on a bad luck streak at the moment.

Last night and today I was so incredibly sick I had to miss the first day of class. It was awful, it still is awful. I'm not sure if I have food poisoning or what, but my stomach is very unhappy.

I managed to make it to class to meet my teacher and tell her (in Chinese) how very ill I was. She seemed to understand and let me leave. I am now with Nathan who is taking care of me. Hopefully I'll start to feel better soon, although I really wish I knew what was wrong.

It seems that our class will be conducted entirely in Chinese which means I have some studying to do this weekend. While I was in class there were three other boys in there and one other girl. I wish I could have stayed to see how everything would go, but man, I felt awful.

Here's hoping Monday works out. Blah.

Hooray for a proxy

Okay, this will have to be quick as I don't know how long I have before this proxy kicks me off or my internet disappears. I am in the hotel on the Beijing Language and Culture University and the internet is not very reliable.

Beijing has been a blast the past few days, I've really enjoyed myself. I wrote up a couple of journal entries which I will be sure to post up on here at some point. Look for them later.

Yesterday was a bit of a nightmare. Nathan and I arrived at BLCU to meet Ella who is the Wentao of Real World Chinese. Only... she wasn't there to meet us. And she doesn't speak English at all. Uhhhh....
Anyways, after a few minutes (half hour) of trying to find her to meet up, an American student also on the program took the phone, figured out where we were, and brought Ella to meet us. This was all fine and well until she gave us a list of things we had to do that day; find the dorms, register with the police, register with the school, etc. Errr. Then she told us she wouldn't be coming with us. What?
She took us to the housing office and got me registered there, then gave me a map and sent us packing. Victor Zhang, the program coordinator (located in Canada) had told me I was going to live in building number 6. So Nathan and I trooped over there (poor Nathan had my very heavy suitcase the entire time) only to find out that I was not in building 6 after all, but in building 4 where we had just been. So we went to building 4 and this is where the real drama began.

We found the front desk and I attempted to check in. Only, I have a resident visa seeing as I live here and all, which the program knew ahead of time however didn't inform the dormitories. The dorms are for students only and apparently to live there you have to have a student visa. Which I dont'. After much back and forth between Nathan and the front desk staff, Ella was called in. She, of course, wasn't informed of my visa situation.
Hohum.
The only solution was for me to move into the hotel. They wanted another $800. Wtf, no. I told them that either they paid for the hotel since it was their mistake or I would like a complete and total refund of all the program fees. They paid the hotel fees and here I am.
In retrospect it doesn't look like we went through much, but trust me, it was an incredibly tense and stressful situation. Thank God Nathan was there or I would have been utterly screwed since Ella does not speak English whatsoever. Thank you, Nathan!

This morning I took my placement exam and was put in the class I wanted. The tester was a bit scary, a man who just yelled (only in China they just call it talking). I held my own reasonably well, but he told me I needed to study chapters 1-10 of a book he didn't give me tonight. Haha. I guess we'll see how that goes. Classes begin tomorrow and I am quite thankful that we'll only have one day before the weekend. I think it's going to be exhausting.

Right, that's all for now. Nathan is meeting me for lunch. Sorry if this one is a bit sporatic and poorly written, that's how it goes when you're a 'busy' student.

Real World Chinese

I'm still waiting to hear back from BLCU, although the program adviser said it would be a couple weeks until I heard from them... so maybe this time next week?

In the meantime, I thought I would post some information about the program.

I will be in class between 4 and 6 hours a day. If I take the intensive class, which I'm planning on, I will be in class 6 hours a day. The extra two hours for the intensive program are one-on-one tutoring, how super is that?

I'm going back to the beginner class since my character writing is not very strong and I think it will be good to review the basics.

Textbooks are included in the $1200 program fee. There are no additional fees (besides my own personal spending and $800 for housing).

In order to ensure your Mandarin skills are developed in the best possible way, the classes have been divided into the five key language developing areas: reading, writing, listening, speaking (oral), and grammar.

Reading: Classes will focus on building vocabulary and strengthening reading comprehension, with a focus on accuracy and speed.

Writing: Classes will introduce and develop the composition of characters and stroke orders of radicals, or bushou.

Listening: Classes will focus on improving listening comprehension of spoken Mandarin at regular speed. At the beginner level the primary focus will be understanding basic facts; at the advanced level the primary focus will be developing implicit comprehension and drawing inferences from complicated passages.

Speaking (Oral): Classes will facilitate the development of proper pronunciation and intonation, and will help students recognize common stress patterns in Mandarin.

Grammar: Classes will introduce and develop proper sentence structure, word order, spelling and colloquial expressions.

After school there is complimentary tutoring and a partnered language exchange.

They also have free electives, whee!

Language: Chinese Character Writing and Chinese Song Classes

Chinese Character Writing: A supplementary class to writing classes. Focus is on further development of characters and the radical system.

Chinese Song Classes: An introduction to both traditional folk and modern (pop) Chinese songs. Lyrics are written in both pinyin (Romanized letters) and hanzi (Chinese characters) in order to further strengthen reading and speaking skills.

Non-Language: Chinese Painting, Calligraphy, Traditional Chinese Massage and Medicine, and Taiji Quan (Tai Chi)

Chinese Painting: An introduction to one of the most popular traditional Chinese painting techniques - water colour painting, taught by a professional artist.

Calligraphy: An introduction to the ancient and sublime art form of Chinese calligraphy. Learn the eight styles, how to hold the brush, and the proper order of strokes. Students will select one style and develop their skills.

Traditional Chinese Massage and Medicine: An introduction to the ancient Chinese view of the human body and the causes of illness. Remedial techniques will include herbal medicine and massage.

Taiji Quan (Tai Chi): An introduction to the softer and more fluid martial arts, with a focus on internal power to improve health and wellness, both physically and mentally.

Aaaaaaand, they even have social activities set up, along with a welcome lunch:

• The Peking Duck Feast
• Bowling nights
• Karaoke nights
• Movie nights
• Friday Bar and Club nights
• Bowling
• Paintball
• Snowboarding trips

Once a month Real World Chinese will also host a dinner and social evening where you will have the opportunity to share your experiences and stuff yourself silly with all the rice, soup and assorted Chinese dishes you can imagine.

Plus: Our Real World Chinese include Emergency Travel and Medical Insurance, which covers emergency medical and dental treatment, pro-rata return of program fee in case of curtailment, personal liability and more.

This summer is going to AH-MAZING!

P.S. I've already saved up all my tuition money and dorm money. Now I'm just saving up for living expenses for the summer. Yay!

Wahoo!

Hi, Jessica,

Thank you for choosing Real World Chinese. This is to confirm that we 
have already received your application for 6-week Chinese Language 
Program at BLCU from July 9th to August 19th, 2009. The application 
fee and program deposit have been received too. You do not need to 
send your application documents anywhere else.

We will send your application to the university in 2 business days. 
Usually it takes 3-4 weeks to get the Admission Notice and JW202 Form. 
(You may not need it since you have been in China.) We will book the 
on-campus accommodation for you too.

Thank you again for choosing RWC. We are looking forward to seeing you 
in Beijing this summer.

Please feel free to contact us at any time if you have more questions.

Best wishes,

--
Victor Zhang
Program Advisor

No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow. ~Lin Yutang

The Journey to the Land of Ice and Snow
... and all the stops in between.




Sit back, relax, put on your reading specs, we're going to here for awhile, folks.




First Stop : Shanghai


January 25th, 2009
Travelers never think that they are the foreigners. ~Mason Cooley

Nathan and I arrived in Shanghai South Train Station around 6:30am after a long, loud night on a hard-sleeper bed. I had hardly slept and was a bit grumpy, but excited to be in Shanghai, a city I had never before visited. We collected our belongings, exited the train, and immediately found our way to the metro which we took to the North Station. Upon arrival we bought tickets to Beijing, expensive due to soft-sleeper (aka first class) being all that was available.
Before departing from Nanchang, Nathan and I had looked up a number of hostels and their various prices and settled on the Y35 hostel. Unfortunately, the cab driver had not one clue where the road the hostel was located on could be, and so, we drove around aimlessly while he called his contacts to see if they had an idea. Eventually we stumbled upon the road quite by accident, but there it was, the Y35.
The hostel was in a nowhere sort of place. Next to the highway on a bit of a back road where there was a small grocery store and that was about it. We checked into the hostel and went up to our room which we quickly discovered was located next to the bathroom. The place reeked of human waste and the noise of drunk Europeans laughing at 10 in the morning. We checked out, took back our deposit, and cabbed back to the North Station.
Well crap. Now what?
We decided to walk around the hotels in the area to see if they had any rooms. No dice. They were all too expensive at any rate. We were going to be in Shanghai for about five days, and staying in a hotel would add up.
We decided we had no choice but to head to the Captain Hostel, located on the Bund. We hopped in a cab and headed out. Luckily the hostel had plenty of room for us, and we checked into our individual dormitories (me in the girls, Nate in the boys). I was beyond cranky at this point, so I took a short nap, then had a nice hot shower in the locker style showers.
We decided to walk along the Bund which was just gorgeous. It was nice weather outside, a little chilly, but sunny. After taking a few pictures and making a purchase (a pink hat with ears, who can resist?) we made our way to Nanjing Lu, the walking/shopping street. We also did a bit of shopping in the underground market, home to all the faux goods you could ever want. I found a beautiful red Louis Vuitton bag, but alas, it was too expensive. Onward!
Stomachs were beginning to rumble at this point, so it was time for a rather late lunch. Signs for Thai food led us into a huge, expensive mall, and a beautiful but empty restaurant. We had missed the lunch time rush and barged in on the staff preparing for dinner. They nicely let us order and we sucked down such delicacies as curry and fried rice.
Both exhausted, we returned to the hostel for a nap so that we could stay up late in order to enjoy Chinese New Years Eve in style.
After napping for a few hours, we went to the roof where the Captain Hostel bar is located. Pizza and drinks were ordered and enjoyed then it was time to venture elsewhere.
We found the Windows Underground and were delighted with their cheap drinks menu. Who can argue with 10rmb a drink? We enjoyed a few (read 3) then headed back to the Captain Hostel bar, which has an amazing view of the Pudong skyline, to watch the fireworks.



January 26, 2009
Half the fun of the travel is the esthetic of lostness. ~Ray Bradbury

Since it had been a late night, Nathan and I both ended up sleeping in. Well, I attempted to sleep in, but my roommates (all 5 of them) decided that rising at 6am sounded like fun! Then they spent the next hour crashing around the room getting ready for the day.
When we finally did rise, we decided that brunch at the City Diner sounded like an A+ plan. We made our way there and were pleasantly surprised with the menu, although perhaps not the service. (To be fair, they were at half staff due to the holiday). I enjoyed my chicken quesadillas, although they made me feel a bit queesy. Perhaps the guacamole.
Our next stop was the foreign book store which was very nice. They had a huge selection of books to choose from, although they were all the same price as books in the states (which equals out to be quite pricy in rmb). Nathan found a couple books he thought looked interesting and purchased them.
The Moller Villa was near the bookstore so we decided to walk to it and poke around. We walked the grounds and peeked into the house. It was gorgeous! Certainly a place I would not mind owning for a second.
After the villa we found Huihai Lu, another shopping street, and walked up and down it. They're building a Barbie store there, but I was quite sad to see that it wasn't yet complete. Perhaps next time I'm in Shanghai...
It was nearing dinner time so we headed to Taco Papa/ Burrito Mama (I think that's the name of it) since they were having a special on beef burritos and margaritas. I ordered a chicken chimichanga and a couple of margaritas, all of which were amazingly delicious. Cheesecake for dessert, while Nathan sucked down two or three more margaritas. While we were eating and lushing, two older gentleman sat down at a table near us. They were very friendly, a German and an American, both businessmen who worked in the area. We ended up chatting with them and after finishing eating decided to go bar hopping together. We ended up at a couple of different bars, one with pole dancers who, since the bar was empty, were mainly chatting and showing each other different pole moves. The second bar was a cab ride away in which the cab driver got lost (it was his first night, poor thing) and the men thusly made jokes the entire ride about how he had only been driving ten minutes or something along those lines.
Eventually we bid our new friends adieu and headed back to the hostel. Nathan spent the entire cab ride home talking about a strange jumble of things mostly having to do with Anglo Saxons and them making horns out of meat which resembled the rolled up magazine he was trying to use as a horn.



January 27th, 2009
The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to see. ~G.K. Chesterton

It was a slow day, this day. I started it with breakfast at the Captain Hostel, complimentary, I might add. I crescent, a hard-boiled egg, and some orange drink (I hesitate to call it juice since it would be soda if there were bubbles).
I had formed huge, disgusting blisters on the bottom of my feet from all the walking we had done in the past two days, so I spent some time nursing them (i.e. popping them nasty little things) while Nathan was getting ready for the day.
Soon enough we headed out, intent on making our way to the other side of the river to have a look around Pudong. We hopped on the metro and headed over.
The other side of the river is mostly a conglomerate of business buildings, although it does boast the worlds tallest building, the Pearl Tower, and the Grand Hyatt. Nathan and I headed to the Grand Hyatt, one of his favorite Shanghai spots. We made our way to the top floor and looked down through the lobby, a truly dizzying sight. As someone who is not so fond of heights, it was a bit much, but I am glad I saw it. We sat down in the cafe and Nathan enjoyed an over-priced tea while we people watched.
We soon tired of the Pudong area since we were not wanting to pay to go up the worlds tallest building, nor were we willing to wait in the two hour long line. We metro-ed back to the Nanjing Lu for lunch... a Subway sandwich!
Two and a half days of walking had worn us both out, so we had a nap back at the hostel before leaving for dinner.
Nathan was craving some all you can eat BBQ so we headed to O'Malleys which was advertised to have it. When we got there we found that not only were they sans-BBQ they were sans-politeness too. We left and headed for an Indian restaurant we had passed on the cab ride to O'Malleys. The Indian food was to die for, delicious with polite and efficient service to boot.
We headed back to the hostel where we hung out in the lobby digesting before heading up to the Captain Hostel bar for a mug of hot chocolate before bed.



January 28th, 2009
We wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment. ~Hilaire Belloc

My roommates, delights that they are, arose at 7:30am this morning. Again, the hour of mucking about while they pack their bags and get ready for the day. It's all part of the experience, it's all part of the experience, it's all part of the experience...
I went down to the dining room area for breakfast again, this time ordering the fruit and yogurt. Yuck. What I recieved was a plate of fruit, mostly a Chinese fruit that's a mix between an apple and pear, with yogurt poured over the top. Not filling in the least. I headed to the convenience store to get something else instead.
Nathan and I spent the morning trying to locate the ever elusive Astor House. No luck, wouldn't you know it. We did manage to find the old British Embassy, still a beautiful building, but slated for demolition.
During our meandering, we managed to find a cute little restaurant named Puzzle. We weren't sure what to make of it with it's Western menu at Chinese food prices. However, once we ordered and had our first few bites we knew we had hit the motherload. This place was gold! This food was just as good as any of those western restaurants we had been hitting up, but it was affordable! We made mental notes to return asap.
More walking, this time we found the Yuyuan tourist shopping area. There were some fantastic paintings in this area, but I didn't want to have to carry a canvas around with me while I was traveling so I passed. It was incredibly crowded and since neither Nathan nor I are fond of crowds, we headed back to that foreign bookstore we had been at a couple days ago. I ordered a delicious apple crumble cheesecake and we soaked up that feeling that you only get in bookstores.
We soon headed back to the hostel and ended up hanging out in the lobby for awhile, reading and vegetating.
Around dinner time we headed to a Muslim noodle restaurant we had seen which was right around the corner. It was delicious, hands down the best noodles I've had so far in China.
Both wiped, it was bed time.



January 29th, 2009
The most important trip you may take in life is meeting people halfway. ~Henry Boye

My roomies woke up around 8:30am on this morning, a much more reasonable hour, but still far too early for someone who values their sleep as much as I do.
I headed down for breakfast, enjoying a feast of a crescent, a banana, and the 'milk' which is really just another name for creamer in this country.
I readied myself for the day, packing up my bags so that I could check into the room that Nathan and I would be sharing with mom. No more dorm-style rooms for us!
We checked into the room and rested until it was lunch time, then headed to Puzzle to grab a quick bite to eat. After our tasty meal it was time to catch the subway to the mag-lev a.k.a. train of awesomeness.
The maglev was super cool minus the fact that going so fast backwards made me feel slightly ill. However, true to it's advertising, it got us to the airport in under ten minutes.
Mom arrived about twenty minutes after we found the terminal, three giant bags in tow. Packing light has never been something we've been good at, but these were some goliath sized bags. We decided that a taxi would be the most efficient way back to a hostel, and so, Mom had her first experience in a Chinese taxi thirty minutes after getting off the plane.
We dropped her bags in our new Captain Hostel room and decided to hit up the Underground Market. Nathan wandered off while Mom and I perused the goods and seemed to have abandoned us when up he popped with that gorgeous red Louis Vuitton bag I had liked so much the first time we were at the market. What a sweetheart!
We hit Nanjing Lu hard, gawking at the throngs of Chinese people who surrounded us as well as the pricey shops that line the street.
We headed to the Indian food restaurant for dinner then hot coco at the Captain Hostel for dessert. It was soon time to pass out, which we did.



January 30th, 2009
To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries. ~Aldous Huxley

We woke early, 8am, and headed downstairs for our complimentary breakfast. This time it was six pieces of toast, all of which I ate.
We decided to check out, but leave the bags at the hostel while we walked around Shanghai/
We walked along the Bund then on to Yuyuan where I bought a new pair of boots having thoroughly worn through the other pair I had brought. As we walked around Yuyuan we started to make our way into the area where the locals actually live, and finally found a food street and a market street.
We cabbed to the French area of Shanghai and had a wander around before retiring to Puzzle for lunch. The it was time to catch the subway to Pudong where we graced the Grand Hyatt with our presence once more. Nathan wanted to see what the World Finance Building view was like (tallest building in the world, apparently) so he headed up to the top floors while Mom and I wandered around the shop area. Satisfied with the view, Nathan returned and we walked on to the Pearl Tower for pictures and to see why there were great crowds lined up outside (still don't know).
We subway-ed back to the Bund side of the river and headed to Nathan and I's favorite bookstore for a rest and some more of that apple crumble cheesecake. We also peeked in at the Moller mansion but the gardens were closed off this time around.
We made our way back to the hostel and had some hot coco before heading to the train station with all the bags.
We enjoyed a nice soft sleeper (aren't we posh?) all the way to Beijing.


Second Stop: Beijing


January 31st, 2009
I have found out that there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them. ~Mark Twain

We arrived in Beijing with me having slept about three hours. Which means I was, once again, cranky. We lugged our bags around, bought our tickets to Harbin, and eventually caught a cab to the Silvermans house, the nice family friends of the Bakers who were allowing us to stay with them.
I was sick, sick, sick in that liquidy guts if I move I'm only going to move towards a bathroom kind of way, so we ended up spending the day resting. It was necessary.
Nate and Mom went to dinner with the Silvermans while I hung out 'shooting the shit' as it were. They were kind enough to pick me up some antibiotics which were fantastic.
Sandwiches for dinner from a store next door.
Then it was time to sleep.


February 1st, 2009
And that's the wonderful thing about family travel: it provides you with experiences that will remain locked forever in the scar tissue of your mind. ~Dave Barry

This was to be a day of exercise, that was for sure. I had finally recovered, thanks to the antibiotics, from the liquid intestines, and was feeling up for the task of climbing the Great Wall. Huzzah.
We caught a cab and negotiated with him to drive us to the Mutianyu section of the wall for 500rmb. It was a fairly long cab ride to the wall, but the scenery on the way was enjoyable, so we just sat back and relaxed. We arrived about 45 minutes later and were immediately barraged by eager hawkers wanting us to buy their goods. "Cheaper for you!"
We took the gondola (ski lift) up to the wall which we then spent the next hour walking up and down and admiring the lovely view. Tourists from all countries were around, but it wasn't too crowded and the weather was not too cold. Soon it was time to head back down, which we did gleefully, as the best way to get down from this section of the wall is via toboggan. Nathan went first so that there would be no one in front of him to slow him down. I went second and was slowly making my way when all of a sudden a guard hopped on and came speeding up behind me. Yikes! I finished at a much quicker pace than when I started. Mom was the last down with her red hair flying behind her.
We did the hawkers a favor and looked through their various stalls, stopping to buy one chocolate pancake, one banana pancake, and a sweatshirt for Mom which said, 'I climbed the Great Wall of China."
Our cabbie was kind enough to drop us at the Olympic Park where Mom and I paid our 50 yuan each to enter the Olympic Stadium while Nathan walked around outside. The birds nest was much smalled on the inside than either of us had expected, but still quite an amazing sight. We walked around the park and were sad to see that no one was allowed inside the Water Cube.
It was getting later and chillier, so we took the subway back to the Silvermans where we hung out for awhile before grabbing a late dinner at a delicious Thai restaurant.
Sleep.



February 2nd, 2009
A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving. ~Lao Tzu

It was the morning of the Superbowl so everyone rose early, very early... except Nathan and I. We slept through the whole thing.
Cereal for breakfast then onward to the Forbidden Palace. As soon as we entered the Palace we were told of an art exhibit going on, "Free for you". We decided to have a look and were told that the paintings were being sold so that the money could go to scholarships for the students. Right. We decided to buy into it, and Mom came away with a beautiful and perhaps over-priced wall scroll of China in the spring.
We walked around the Forbidden Palace, taking in all the restored buildings and fellow tourists. It was a good picture taking opportunity, for sure.
After exciting we walked back around the palace to Tiananmen Square which was packed with people. There were also a ton of security people on guard, ready to throw you in their cop van if you even looked menacing. We made our way from one of the Square to the other, eventually finding the hutong that Nathan had wanted us to see, the narrowest Hutong in China. True enough, it was only big enough for one person to walk through it at a time.
We went on to Beijing's walking street, then further to their food street which had displays of all manners of things on a stick. Scorpions on a stick, starfish on a stick, seahorses on a stick, you name it. We had a bowl of noodles as a late lunch then headed back to the Silvermans for another lazy evening.


February 3rd, 2009
The traveler was active; he went strenuously in search of people, of adventure, of experience. The tourist is passive; he expects interesting things to happen to him. He goes "sight-seeing." ~Daniel J. Boorstin

We slept in.
Today was the day of all days, today was POWER SHOPPING DAY!
Mom and I headed out to Yashow Market which is conveniently near the Silvermans home. We spent many, many hours buying many, many goods. I bought 2 pairs of Abercrombie lounge pants in pink and gray, one Juicy Couture track/lounge suit in blue, two pairs of jeans True Religion and Victoria Beckham, four polo shirts in a variety of colors, one pair of sunglasses, one pair of regular glasses, a backpack/suitcase to carry everything, a dress, a black skirt, an Abercrombie shirt, and probably more that I can't think of at the moment.
We walked home with our purchases and packed then rested.
Soon it was time to get to the train station and catch our train (hard-sleeper) to Harbin.


Third Stop: Harbin

February 4th, 2009
Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind. ~Seneca

We arrived in Harbin around 5am and managed to catch a cab who brought us to walking street where we quickly found a hotel at a reasonable price.
None of us had slept much on the train, so we napped for awhile before showering and getting ready for the day.
Mom, Nathan and I walked down walking street towards the river, enjoying the nice ice sculptures along the way. We decided to stop in a hotel to try to buy train tickets, but alas, they were sold out! Plane tickets were the only answer, which meant poor Nathan having to run back to the hotel for our passports while Mom and I went to find something for breakfast.
Finally we made our way to the river where we found no end of amusements. We decided to try the ice slide where you sit on a sled and slide down a slide made from ice that goes from the river bank to the river (which is frozen solid). It was great fun, although a bit terrifying at the same time as the entire time you're not quite sure how you're going to stop once you make it to the bottom.
We took a pony drawn carriage across the river to Sun Island where the snow festival was being held. It was just a short walk to the snow park from the river and we were soon surrounded by amazing snow sculptures. They were just beautiful and some of them were even interactive! I did enjoy the snow slides quite a bit.
After the snow park we walked back across the river, hailed a cab, and asked him to take us to a good restaurant. The place he dropped us off was decent, but I've certainly had better Chinese food.
Back to the hotel for a bit of a rest and to let night fall before heading to Ice and Snow World. This place is really too amazing for words. It's a GIANT park filled with buildings, statues, and rides all made of ice. It's gorgeous because everything is lit up with neon lights and the place just glows. We stayed for a few hours before, exhausted and cold, we made our way back to walking street, grabbed some McDonalds, and went to the hotel.



February 5th, 2009
It is not down in any map; true places never are. ~Herman Melville

Early morning for us so that we could check out of the hotel, drop our bags at the front desk, and head to the Russian Cafe for a breakfast of tea and toast.
After munching a bit, we caught a cab to the Harbin Tiger Park where we eagerly bought our tickets then stood there in confusion. Where was the entrance? We walked around the buildings for a bit before realizing that the other tourists were getting on buses. Oh, right.
We hopped on a bus and took off into the tiger enclosures where we were able to get up close and personal (with a thick mesh between us) with our furry friends. They were beautiful and it was definitely an experience I would recommend. After seeing the siberian tigers, ligers, and lions, the bus dropped us off at an area where you can feed live animals to the tigers for a fee. Mom and I decided to opt out of that bit, instead going to an observatory deck to see the park better, while Nathan dashed off to watch a man feed a screaming chicken to some hungry tigers.
We took a van back to walking street where we met Nathan's friend Siwen and her friend. They were gracious enough to take us to lunch at a local dumpling restaurant, which was delicious. We then went for ice cream, a local specialty, before heading on to see the St. Sofia church and the underground market. Soon it was time to say bye to Siwen and her friend, and to thank them for being such kind hostesses.
We headed back to the Russian cafe to have another spot of tea and await darkness before heading to Zhaolin Park where the Disney ice festival was being held. Again, it was amazing! Ice sculptures and buildings, all Disney themed, filled the park. Nathan and I enjoyed the ice slides a number of times.
All too soon it was time to head back to the hotel to pick up our bags then take a taxi to the airport. We flew back to Beijing and headed back to the Silvermans for sleep.



February 6th, 2009
What you've done becomes the judge of what you're going to do - especially in other people's minds. When you're traveling, you are what you are right there and then. People don't have your past to hold against you. No yesterdays on the road. ~William Least Heat Moon, Blue Highways

It was another sleep in kind of day. Charlie joined us to hang out so we ordered a couple Papa Johns pizzas and watched such classics as American Idol and things of that nature. Soon enough it was time to bid farewell to fare Beijing and catch the soft sleeper back to Jiujiang.


February 7th, 2009
I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move. ~Robert Louis Stevenson

We arrived in Jiujiang around 6am, bid farewell to Nathan who trained on to Nanchang, and cabbed to my apartment. Mom and I set about unpacking then napped for awhile. We walked downtown and did a bit of shopping before heading to David's restaurant for dinner.
The evening ended with an Entourage marathon before bed.





The End.

Super long entry about Shanghai, Beijing, and Harbin coming soon.