A First Time for Everything

My First Chinese Paparazzi Photo

Beijing University (where I'm studying and teaching) is essentially considered the Harvard of China. People on the subway have been very impressed when I happen to forget to take off my lanyard that sports the Chinese characters for "Beijing University." People come from across China to tour the campus (which is absolutely gorgeous), which means there are many people milling about who have never seen a person who is white...or a person who is black, or has red hair, or is over six feet tall. Many of my fellow teachers had already been photographed with tourists, or - better yet - photographed on the sly (not so slyly). Two days ago, I was finally given my chance to be the subject of a Chinese paparazzi photo. On my way into Chinese class, I passed by a young girl who asked me directions to a particular building. After I did not know, she promptly asked me for a photo. I'm lucky that she caught me early in the day, while I still looked fresh (read: before I was drenched in buckets of sweat). She told me it was beautiful. It was a good start to the day.

My First Chinese Squat Toilet

After I had walked into a restroom on my first day and quickly remembered the monster that I was dealing with (I was hit in the face with an odor that would peel paint), I vowed to put off using a Chinese squat toilet for as long as possible. This was not something I was able to stick to for long, given the 1.5L of water I'm drinking per day. I finally succumbed a few days ago, and though the stench was heinous, I survived. However, my worst fear is still losing my balance and catching my fall on my hands on the floor of a squat toilet.

My First Teasing at the Hands of a Chinese Kid

I have a student whose name is Jerry. I don't know why I like him. He never does his work, he's loud, and two days ago, he made fun of me for saying "Peking duck" rather than "Beijing roast duck." Literally mocked me to my face. Sadly, I'm sure this is the first of many such instances that will be occurring over the course of the next year. My pride is going to suffer.

My First Ventures Off-Campus

As I've mentioned, our training schedule has been ridiculously busy. However, after getting over my jet lag (for the most part), I've finally had the energy to do something more than come home, shower, and collapse into bed every night, nursing my blistered feet. A few days ago, a small group of teachers decided to walk to the metro and go to Tiananmen Square. There is no better way to understand how incredibly massive Beijing is. From our hotel by Beijing University to Tiananmen Square was an hour by metro, with one transfer. The metro itself is quite new. The trains are clean and modern (lightyears ahead of NYC, DC, or Chicago). Each car has multiple TV screens that show news and advertisements. When you pass through long stretches of track, advertisements appear outside the window of the car as you speed by. Riding on this metro is like something out of a Ray Bradbury book.

Tiananmen Square was quite a sight. Besides being huge, it was very crowded. The focal point was a large picture of Mao - we were not able to see his enormous mausoleum, which was on the other side of the square. Even if I didn't feel like this was much to see, it was still great to get out of the hotel.

The next night, a small group was planning to go to the Silk Market. This small group turned into about 20 people very quickly. Dave and I got separated from the group at the metro station, so we went up to Silk Street to try to find the market and reconnect with everyone. We were unsuccessful. However, Dave went into a hotel to ask for a map and to find something nice in the area for us to see. The hotel clerk directed us to a location called "The Place," which was a huge outdoor mall. The really impressive part of "The Place" was the enormous TV screen above our heads. It was flat and stretched out at least as long as a football field - insane. I found it to be completely needless, but definitely gave an impression of abundant wealth (which I imagine was its purpose).

Tonight a few friends and I went to the Temple of Heaven and the Pearl Market. Lesson learned: do not go to the Pearl Market if you do not plan to walk out with pearls or jade or something else beautiful that you suddenly will find very hard to live without. I was very pleased to have the opportunity to practice my bargaining skills, and I got what I considered to be a great deal on a string of black pearls (Mom, be jealous, they're incredible. Hopefully they're real). The lady tried to rope me into buying some jade, too, but I know I'll be able to find it in Shenzhen. Loved the Pearl Market. Upon arrival to the Temple of Heaven, we found that we could not buy tickets to see the Temple itself - just the grounds. This was by no means a total loss. The temple is so huge that you can see it from almost any point on the grounds. In fact, the gardens and architecture alone were worth seeing.

Friday is the long awaited trip to the Great Wall, and I could not be more excited!