Bikes, Pandas, and New Friends,,,

So much has happened since I last blogged, so I think it's time I play a little bit of catch up. I have undergone some new developments-some unexpected- but its hasn't been all bad (for a change)...

I bought a new bike! Its green! Both mine and Crystal's bikes got "misplaced" at the same time so now we have new and improved ones. We also discovered that we can barter in Chinese better than we thought. I am open to names for my new bike...just let me know!

I was surprised by a trip to the Chengdu Panda Reserve! Oh my goodness, they are the cutest animals EVER! Here are just a few pics:


There were about 250 pandas at the reserve and about 1600 left in the wild. The reason being, pandas can only mate once a year and the females have only a 3 day window to breed. If the same were true for humans I'm sure we'd be endangered too ;-) No pressure though, men.

Another new development is my host family!!! They are really nice. The father is the director for this sport's arena. They have a 14-year-old daughter who is only one day older than Austin, my little brother. She's a bit taller though ;-) They know a little English, but aren't fluent, so this will be an opportunity for both of us to get plenty of practice speaking a new language. I don't have any pictures yet, but I will post them as soon as I take some.

I am also making quite a few Chinese friends. Yesterday two of them texted me randomly at the same time and asked if I wanted to go out with them. So, I turned it into a group outing. We went shopping and I returned home having only spent 100 yuen (about $15) on 3 new outfits, and some much-needed new undergarments ;-) It was amazing. The only downside was that because the store was so cheap, I was not allowed to try on any of the clothes before I bought them. I got to try them on after I paid, and if I didn't like them I could only exchange and not get my money back...but I was lucky so everything turned out ok.

My new classes are going great. I am really enjoying my language class. I think it is right at the level I need to be at. Our teacher is pretty young and hip. I would guess that she just graduated. We're going to all hang out one weekend (counting that there are only 3 people in my class). My Chinese Politics professor is a genius. He knows literally everything about Chinese history, culture, and government AND America's. It pretty crazy. He also teaches the American culture class at Sichuan University. It is one of the most popular courses amongst the Chinese students. I was wondering: what is it about Americans that is so interesting? So I am going to sit in on his class this next week. I'm pumped. My Culture & Society prof is really funny. He likes to teach us more than what we are supposed to be learning in class. He tried teaching us calligraphy and Taichi. We go off on some sweet tangents and he says that he's going to put all the other professors out of a job :) But speaking of Taichi, it is WAY harder than you'd think. Its like a mix of dance, yoga, and kung-fu. Very difficult. But our master is the cutest old man ever. He seems a bit frail, but I think he could kick even the biggest guy in our group's butt. Here's a picture:


So anyways, that's about all I have for now. Next week we are going to Tibet, so I'm sure I will have some fascinating things to write about when I get back! But until then...Zai Jian!!!

Bible Verse of the Day:

Hebrews 10:23 "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful."


Chinese Word of the Day:

Huan Ying 欢迎 "Welcome"

Somethings are just Unexpected...

Because this is my 5th year studying Chinese, I came here thinking that I may not know it all, but I had a pretty good idea what to expect. I told myself that I was above culture shock. Well...here are some things I didn't quite predict:


CHINESE DRIVERS!!!! Now take what the stereotype is in America and throw that out the window. Asians in America are awesome drivers compared to Chengdu (and everywhere else in China I assume)! There are no speed limit signs to be found! Do you think pedestrians have the right of way? Ok maybe you knew they didn't...but what about in the crosswalk when the sign says "walk"? Apparently not then either. It is dangerous business traversing the streets in China! It is expected that you push your way through traffic and cut people off...in fact, if you didn't you would never get to where you want to go! So I just hail a taxi, get in, and close my eyes and hope that the taxi driver's been driving long enough to know what he's doing. To my dear friend Cassi: I will never criticize your driving again! ;-)

FOOD! Um...I know why Asian people are so thin. I ate nothing but rice and noodles for 4 days straight. And although chopsticks are becoming easier, I have not yet mastered the art of "nazhe kuaizi" <--holding chopsticks. Also, I do not know how so many people could eat so much spicy food all the time! Sichuan is known for it spicy food. I think I'm just a wimp. I can understand getting used to the taste of spicy food, but when the spiciness *uh hmmm "leaves you"* that is just as bad as eating it. And I don't know how anyone could get used to that! Enough said.

CHINESE COLLEGE STUDENTS vs American college students. During the day they are aways in a hurry! They eat in about 1 min flat and it is not uncommon to see some of them running to class. <:-) But one of the cool things about them is how they act at night. At least in Chengdu, people are up all night just walking and talking and sitting outside their homes. It was after 11:00 and there were still couples taking late night strolls all over the place. It is also cool how many of them will go out of their way to talk to you because they want to practice their English, or want to help you with your Chinese. That is something you don't see in America- people going out of their way to help strangers. People just say, "This is America, learn to speak ENGLISH!!!" But that is definitely not the case in China. Another thing that I think is neat is how attuned Chinese college students are to the U.S. and Western music, style, and culture. They listen and watch all the music and movies we do. Can we say the same thing about their culture? Here are some random pictures that I never got around to posting from my travels that I think you might find interesting. Me and Crystal outside the van/bus/cart thing we drove around in when we toured the countryside before our cruise to Chongching. And below left is a far off Buddhist temple I though looked neat. Below right just looked like a funny sign. It was posted by a high railing...I think we get the point?

Want to know how they build bridges in China (probably other places too, but this was the first time I'd seen this)?

Papa Youtz- our prof who helped us get to Chengdu where Sichuan University is located. And then here is Lexi in traditional Chinese river garb...or something.

That's all for now. I'll post more later.

Bible Verse of the Day

John 14:16-17 "And I will ask the Father and he will give me...the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept Him because it neither sees Him or knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you."

Chinese Word of the Day

Mai dongxi 买东西 "shopping"

Lost and Found

These last few days have been a bit stressful...

So Crystal goes shopping and has her purse stolen. Inside are the following items:
-1200 yuen (approx. $175 U.S. dollars)
-passport
-credit cards
-social security card
-driver's license
-PLU student id card
-translator
-cell phone
-meal card
-room key
-basically everything important

Awesome. :-/ So now she is freaked out and I'm calling all of her credit/debit card companies to put a stop on them since she has no phone. And I'm trying to get ahold of our parents while figuring out Skype for the first time...then realizing that the microphone on my headset doesn't work, so I can't really call anyone.

But that's not all...

Both of our computers decide to come down with some random viruses, RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF ALL THIS CHAOS!!! Oh well, I guess God is just testing my patience...or Satan is trying to get on my nerves.

Moral of the story: Don't bring big, flashy purses into Chinese department stores and set it down to try on shoes...expect the unexpected.


But I did manage to find a few things along the way:

Chinese-speaking friends! These will come in handy when I need translators/homework help. Plus they will help immensely with my language! For some reason they thought Crystal and I were SoOoOo cool and pretty and all this other stuff... :) I never knew I was so interesting, but hey, I'll take it. I will post some pictures of them for you when I get more time.

I also am finding my way around campus. Now, I am a VERY directionally challenged person so this is a spectacular accomplishment for me.

There are these little corner stores that are awesome when you get late-night cravings because you are studying so hard ;)

I also bought 10 DVDs for the equivalent of $12 U.S. dollars-- TOTAL! Not bad if I do say so myself...only one of them didn't work

So that was my experience of the last few days. Obviously my computer is up and running again. I went with Crystal to the U.S. Consulate to help her get a new passport. I am registered at the Consulate so if there is another earthquake and I die, they know where to send my body :-/ (let's hope not) And I requested my absentee ballot so that I can do my civil duty and vote this November! :) (McCain all the way...Obama is a naieve babbling idiot who only has words to stand on, but no experience or actual concrete ideas to run with...Oh and the fact that he has no clue what he even believes spiritually!!! But that is another blog, another time)

Bible Verse of the Day

Psalm 73:26 "My flesh and heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

Chinese Word of the Day

PengYou
朋友

"Friend"

A 5-star Cruise and Sub-standard Living: Part 2

OK wow so now I can finally catch up and tell you guys what I've been doing since I got to Sichuan University in Chengdu. My roomie is Lexi. She was in one of my writing classes freshman year, so we knew each other before. She's pretty cool, so I think this semester will be fun. Crystal is rooming with Tiara. She is very creative and spunky so I'm sure they will have a blast.

I'm not sure if you have heard about my dorm room so now its time for more good news, bad news:

Bad News: When we first arrived our toilet leaked. Good News: I realized that I can be an adequate impromptu plumber! :)
Bad News: ANT INFESTATION! Good News: When they didn't find food, they left us alone (for the most part)
Bad News: Too much furniture, and not enough of the right kind. We have one dresser between the two of us and like weird footrest-cabinet things. Oh and its like REALLY ugly. I'm sorry but since when does red upholstery look good in any room? Definitely NOT feng-shui! Good News: I have friends who didn't have any furniture so we are just going to give it to them, and my rearranging skills made the room much more open and livable.
Bad News: Itchy 1000 year old beds, sheets, and curtains. Good News: TRUST-MART!!! Its the equivalent of Walmart in the States and you can buy anything you need. I bought new bedding, drawers, toiletries, etc. Everything I would want or need to make my room more comfy :)
Bad News: No dryers so we have to hang all our laundry in our room- no secret panties here! Good News: I don't need any quarters to do my laundry, 'cuz its free!!!

So now I am pretty much settled into my room. As you can see I have internet. I think I just may survive here in China. I also bought a bike (that's me outside my dorm), a cell phone (about $0.12 per minute for me if you would like to call but I don't know how much it would be for you), and some new shoes (they have my size!!!). We are slowing discovering the best places to shop and eat (non-spicy hotpot is fabulous!). I haven't really felt too much culture shock yet. Is there something wrong? Maybe its just because I'm expecting the unexpected... :)

Bible Verse of the Day

Luke 4:18-19 "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor"

Chinese Word of the Day

Su she 宿舍 "dormitory"

Expecting the Unexpected: A 5-Star Cruise and Sub-standard Living

So off the train we go and onto explore our first Buddhist temple. Because China has one of the oldest cultures, it also has one of the most elaborate. The 5-story temple contained very finely carved statues and landscapes, people, and events tediously painted on walls and vaulted ceilings-it was magnificent! There was a bell just outside the temple that you could only ring if you paid $10,000 yuen! It was supposed to be a bell of joy and prosperity...but it seemed like maybe it should have been for wealth and power! After that we went to a museum. Kinda boring. Lots of rocks.

Then we boarded a boat which was set to sail to Chongching on the Yangtze River. Now I thought that this was going to be similar to the train...Not a whole lot to do, a somewhat cramped, and used mostly for transportation. Now sometimes I enjoy expecting the unexpected- especially when it turns out that you get to go on a 5-star cruise ship! We were able to take day trips into smaller gorges and dam towns. Super cool. We had dance parties every night! We got a kick out of the British people on board. We expected them to be all prim and proper, but they were even raunchier than our small group of college students! On the 2nd to last night there was a cabaret show and Crystal and I sang a Chinese love song called "Tien Mi Mi" It was a hit and we recieved some flowers from some old Chinese guys. It was pretty funny and I was quite flattered :) Throughout this whole trip I got a massage and several "non-sinful" drinks for under $50 US dollars. Very fun! We arrived in Chongqing and hopped on a bus for a five hour trip to our final destination to Sichuan University in Chengdu!

Bible Verse of the Day:

Matthew 25:40 The king will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of these brothers, you did for me."

Chinese Word of the Day:

Zao shang hao 早上好 "Good morning!"

From Guilin to Chengdu...

Wow! Oh my goodness! I am sorry to all of you who have been checking this like everyday! I need to get better at this whole blogging on a semi-consistent basis thing! :) But SO much has happened! I'm not sure if I can tell you guys about every little thing like I could've done had I been a good blogger, but I'll give it my best shot! Let me walk you through starting from when we left Hong Kong... (this may take more than one blog) :D

Day 1
We took a short flight to Guilin. It was still a torrential downpour, I think from a mixture of it being Monsoon season and also from the typhoon still blowing over. But anywho... it was at this point in time when I realized that mopeds are the preferred mode of transportation!

So after breakfast we hop onto a boat tour of the Li River! All I have to say is AMAZING!!! I saw the stuff I thought I'd only see in National Geographic! Chinese artists and poets have used these sights as inspiration for their work for thousands of years! I'm posting a picture, but you should definitely checkout my Facebook if you want to see more---------------------------------------->

We met a few Chinese girls while on the river tour and struck up a conversation. We found out how old each other was and what kind of food they liked and such, but the cool thing was actually being able to communicate with them. It was super cool to actually see the fruits of your labor- and in this case it felt like all my years of studying Chinese paid off just because I was able to converse with one person from across the world. It is kinda a surreal feeling that you don't really comprehend until it happens to you for the first time.

When we got off the boat we found ourselves in a small rural town where many people tried to sell me any and everything!!! I did manage to buy a pretty cool calligraphy set. Oh and I guess that a Chinese version of a mocha is 2 straight shots in a cup with a scoop of ovaltine powder! I asked for a little milk, but it was another good "cultural experience." We ended up riding these golf-cart-type vehicles into the scenic farmland. However, its beauty was a bit deceiving. There were so many poor people! I even saw women using their children for money! They would dress them up and make them look all cute, put them in a hanging basket and when unsuspecting-camera-wielding tourists took a picture, they would demand money! Total exploitation! I was very upset by it!

But after our excursion into the middle-of-nowhere, China we enjoyed a wonderful dinner of chicken feet and the GI tract of a pig! :p The chicken feet really wasn't as good as the Chinese people make it out to be...and the pig intestine tasted strangely like calamari! Following that night's dinner (which was an adventure within itself) we headed to the train station where I had my first experience in a sleeper car. Us girls got the most expensive and "luxurious" soft sleepers and the boys got the hard sleeper. The only difference really was that we had doors between the different compartments, and the boys didn't and had a bunk of 3 beds. All in all it wasn't that interesting and we made it to our next destination safe and sound!

Bible Verse of the Day:

1 Corinthians 2:9-10 No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him--but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.

Chinese Word of the Day:

Da Xuesheng 大学生 "College Student"