7am "Post-Abroad Traumatic Stress Syndrome" Too Soon!

Hello All,

Hangzhou

I've been a terrible blogger...sporadic, gone for 3 weeks. Very irresponsible. This post is completely out of order, but considering the fact that some weird feeling woke me up on a Friday morning at 6:45am (a day that I have no reason to be up at a time to have coffee with the sunrise), I thought I'd blog. I'll probably end up falling back asleep, but for now all I can think about is a weird achy feeling I woke up with this morning. At first, I couldn't really place it. A mixture of confusion, unsettled thoughts, and pins and needles in my arm from sleeping on it strangely. I soon realized that this weird feeling was one of reminiscing/nostalgia about China... so I think so myself, "how can I miss being in China? I'm still here." Then it dawned on me, this is the one month marker point. One month from now, instead of lounging in my hard, by comfy, dorm bed, planning what to do with my class-free Fridays, I will be preparing to embark on my journey (back) to the West.

I'll spare everyone a sob-story of "all the little things I'll miss" and how that day will probably look/feel, but know that it probably won't be too pretty. My friends here will probably kill me if they read this post, we have a "no talking about that day we have to leave" policy. This definitely breaks that rule. But I can't help but wondering, how does 4 months pass so quickly?! Like where in the world did that time go? For us, it's a mixture of Chinese classes, random travel excursions, late nights dancing, dinners at the Houmen, bargaining with the locals, and listening to people whisper "Laowai (Old Foreigner)" as we pass by to only astonish them further by speaking to them in their mother tongue. From looking at this list, people who aren't in China are probably just nodding their heads waiting for a clarification story for each event mentioned. That, right there, is probably one of the hardest parts about returning home from study abroad, but also one of the greatest. The fact that you return home and a part of you has changed, no one can quite place it, but something's different. It's like you gain a new part of yourself from wherever you studied abroad. It's great, because it's an experience you'll never forget. It's hard, because it's an experience that's nuances and quirkiness you can try to describe to your friends, family, and classmates, but will only every entirely make sense to those who experienced it with you.

But, enough of this melodramatic 7am blogging rant. We still have a month left, and there's no reason to be thinking about it yet haha.

Bund Night @ The Roosevelt

While I know I'll be excited to go home and then back to Georgetown, it's hard not to think about the things I feel like I'll be leaving behind in China. We've all talked about how much more relaxed we feel here, how being in Shanghai is almost like being in Wonderland. I'm sure many people feel similarly about their study abroad experiences, which is why they try to prepare us for the "post-abroad culture shock," which I'm now thinking of retitling as "Post-Abroad Traumatic Stress Syndrome." Anyway, like I said, the day will come, I'll be sad to go, but excited to come home to friends and family! Besides, I'm positive that I'll be "falling down the rabbit hole" and be coming back to Shanghai soon. So while it may not be the same, it'll definitely be a quirky, exciting, new unexplored experience, which is really what we're looking for when we decide to travel, right?

tis life,

e

Happy Hallows from the East Side of Life

Hello Everybody!

Long time no blog, but I'm finally back from the adventure on the Silk Road in western China and super excited to tell you all about it in the next few posts (trust me, it'll take a few with all of the craziness that went on in Xinjiang (aka Uyghur [pronounced Wee-Ghur]Wonderland) and Gansu (home of pulled beef noodles) Provinces.  Before I begin my thoughtful ranting post on my weeklong trip, I'd like to take this brief post to wish you all a wonderful Halloween weekend and start to the holiday season.

Shanghai, as I've mentioned much too frequently, is an epic place for nightlife. Luckily Halloween is no different. Although we arrived home from our respective cultural trips yesterday afternoon, we still managed to pull together costumes for partying that night. From searching around the trusty backgate shops to perusing sketchy street vendors' wears, we managed to scrounge up some light up devil horns. Those, with the addition of red sequin body dots, black dresses, and some liquid courage, resulted in our cute group of "little devils" that took Shanghai's streets by storm...well maybe not the streets, but at least a couple of clubs.

We made our way to Barbarossa, in People's Square, first. Great ambiance and free "bloody shots" all around. The bar had a nice rooftop terrace and enough people in costumes to almost feel like I was in a bar in Georgetown rather than halfway around the world. After Barbarossa, we made our way to the real fun and dance floor at M1NT. M1NT is one of those places that ever expat/Shanghai dweller must visit at least once. With glass tanks filled with sharks lining the walls, two amazing dance floors, and a guest list/table list system that would made any person trying to ascend to M1NT's top floor club location cringe, this club was the place to be for Hallow's Eve Debauchery.


Long story short, the group of us had an awesome night parading around the city in our lightup horns and dancing the night away. Although, my feet are paying dearly for 5+ hours of 4inch+ heels....eeek! what a fright.

Sending lots of "Boos" from Shanghai!

Enjoy your Halloween Weekends,

e

The Whimsy of Haerbin and Upcoming Wanderings

Once more I am failing at consistent blog posting...I guess it's a good sign cause it means I'm too busy living life to document it...or it means that I'm a bit lazy. Either way I'm back with another update on my wanderings in the East. Alex and I survived our Beijing layover and managed to make a few friends on our way. Of course, standing in line to scan our ticket, we had a few "omg it's a real foreigner!"stares. Usually these stares from people result in, A. more staring, or B. a conversation. Therefore, when a middle-aged Chinese man struck up a conversation with us, we weren't surprised. Something tells me he really wanted to practice his English though, and did so a bit creepily due to the fact that he relentlessly followed us chattering away until we made it to the safety of our seats. Sitting down quickly, I figured I should use the plane ride to sleep...no such luck. Immediately after my sigh of relief from being able to plug into my iPod and relax, the gentleman next to me struck up a conversation. He was incredibly friendly, and very excited to speak with a "老外lao wai (foreigner)" who could speak Chinese.  

火锅！

We managed to fly in at 10pm, go out to SanLiTun (one of the larger nightlife areas in Beijing), and after dancing until 4am on a rooftop patio, we pulled ourselves together and headed back to the airport to catch our flight to Haerbin (哈尔滨）! If that isn't a whirlwind trip, then I don't know what is.

China's Little Europe

After arriving to Haerbin, we soon realized we were in for an amazing weekend. Haerbin is known for being a mix of Chinese-Russian culture due to its proximity to the Russian boarder. Visiting this far north city made the group of us feel as though we were in our own little Chinese version of Europe. Haerbin is probably one of the only cities in China where the influence of religion seeps into the surrounding culture. From St. Sofia's Church, to our hostel, which was an old synagogue transformed into one of the coolest international youth hostels I've seen. The Haerbin people were also amazing! They were incredibly friendly, curious, and often would strike up conversations about our travels, Chinese studies, and America. While visiting Haerbin, we had the chance to visit many of Haerbin's well-known attractions. Even though Haerbin is known for their Ice Festival, which occurs in late-January, we got to visit some of Haerbin's churches, walk around the old Russian quarter, and visit a Tiger preserve (老虎公园，Tiger Park)!



Finally, the Haerbin food was some of the best in China. Our first lunch we had 火锅（hot pot, sort of like a Chinese version of Fondue where boiling broth is placed in a giant bowl in the middle of a table and a variety of meats and veggies are placed around it for individuals to cook in the hot, hot soup!). Then that evening we walked around our hotel's neighborhood, which happened to be in one of the best locations possible for a group of traveling college students. With cobblestone roads, ice cream shops, and pop-up dinner areas, we had a lot of options for exploration. Our favorite was probably an outdoor dining area that boasted street food stands with anything from sausages on sticks, to squid, to egg pancakes, to purple rice, etc so forth. Obviously foodie's paradise. We we also had some great Russian food that kept us super warm in Haerbin's chilly night air.


Overall, my break was a great experience. I feel as if my Chinese ability quickly improved because I had to use it so much in both Shenzhen and Haerbin. Traveling from the southern most point of China up to the northern, really put how vast and diverse China is into perspective. From the people, to the food, to the terrain, there's always something new to see and experience. And to think, I'll be shoving off for my program trip this Friday!

Each program here has their own trip that they participate in as a part of our cultural practicum. The Advance Chinese Studies group (my group!), is traveling to XinJiang!! If you know nothing about XinJiang, the basics are: it's the start of the Silk Road, it's in the middle of the desert (very far west!), it's home to one of China's minority groups, the Uyghurs (notorious for their conflicts with the Han majority ethnic group, but according to the Chinese government those types of problems don't "exist"), and XinJiang is apparently home to some of the best honeydew melon (who knew!). There are 11 of us going on this trip, which makes it especially fun because we'll be able to cover more ground. Our itinerary has me practically dancing in circles with excitement. We'll be starting in Urumqi and head along the Silk Road toward Gansu Province. Along the way we'll have the opportunity to ride camels, see the Thousand Buddha Caves (UNESCO World Heritage Site), visit 天山(Heaven Mountain), have dinner with a Uyghur family, and shop in a Bazaar. I believe this trip will be another collide of cultures, much like Haerbin! Can't wait :)

I'll try to get better at this blogging thing. *sigh* 

Shenzhen in Review-Fake Market Madness, Strolls Along Rivers, and MUN

Hellllllo again my reader friends,

For those of you who have been keeping up, you know that I'm currently on National Holiday Break, meaning I'm getting the chance to travel a bit. As I mentioned, Alex and I have been in Shenzhen (southern China) for the past 5 days teaching Chinese students about Model UN, International Affairs, and various workshops. We've had a bit of cabin fever cause of being in a hotel most of the time, but last night and today we broke out a bit.

We finally went into downtown/bar area of Shenzhen, which turned out to be gorgeous! With a square/"garden" of outdoor bars and clubs, a group of us "teachers"sauntered our way over to one of quieter locations for a round of drinks. Each of the bars was really nice and sort of bled into each other. With fairylights strung from each overhang, sleek chairs, and a sea of people holding pina coladas, daiquiris, and margaritas, it was hard to tell whether we were in the Caribbean or China. I guess that's what happens when you hit southern China; everything becomes more tropical!





Today was a really nice break from teaching lessons too. We finished up classes with our kids at about 11am and headed back to Luohu, which is a massive MASSIVE shopping center. With less than 3 hours to browse, bargain, walk away multiple times, and finally pay, we knew we'd have to be strategic about our shopping trip. Thank goodness we only brought a portion of our salary, otherwise we probably would have spent it all in one go. If you've never been to a fake market, let's just put it this way, it's like a maze of twisting stalls filled with shoes! purses! jeans! coats! dresses! watches! makeup! jewelry! so on forever and ever until the end of time....plus, you have dozens of Chinese shopkeepers swarming you and dragging your arm toward their store. All in all....it's EPIC!

Anyway, we head to Beijing tonight to meet up with some other friends from our program

Hello Shenzhen!

Flying into Shenzhen

Nimen hao!

After spending the night celebrating the start of our break at the Apartment, we managed to survive making our 8:45am flight to Shenzhen on Friday morning. Alex and I flew Air China out of Hongqiao International Airport, which surprisingly wasn't a mob scene! As many of you either know or are able to guess, crowds in China are about as common random people on the street trying to sell you a "Rolex" watch. The ticket counter line moved fast, security was a breeze, and we made it to our gate in time to take a 30minute nap and grab breakfast, which was a egg mcmuffin...yes, I know, why support the global domination of mickey d's? I'll tell you why, 1. it was either that or KFC, 2. real cheese! (none of that random sweet stuff they produce here)...also, there may have been a cup of coffee and hashbrown involved.

Shenzhen

Our flight was pretty normal, except for a random 20minute layover in a city called Jingdezhen. We had no idea that this layover existed, so as the plane descended almost 2 hours ahead of schedule, we were a bit confused. Luckily we finally got the message that we were supposed to disembark for our odd 20 minute layover and then quickly return.

Shenzhen is gorgeous! It's apparently like a smaller version of Singapore; with palm trees, tropical flowers, and temperatures that are currently around 86/90 (which is going to make going to Harbin where it's 30deg a be a traumatizing experience). We're only here for 5 days, but the hotel is really nice and the food is pretty great; so even though we're technically working for GMUNC, it's like a mini vacation.

Shenzhen

Yesterday, after a team meeting, a group of us went to Luohu Shopping center. Now, if you didn't already know, China's like the bargaining/fake capital of the world; and since we're so close to Hong Kong, the quality, variety, and overall craziness of shopping in a knock off market is pretty much incomparable to anything else. We went with the intent of spending 2-3hours, and somehow managed to stay from about 3:30pm-11pm! Let me say though, it was epic. From shoes, to bags, to trench coats, to iphones, to 3hrs massages for 100rmb, and 10rmb pedicures, it's madness!! 

We also grabbed dinner at said knock off superstore. A Chinese man who had been stalking us screaming "missies! gucci! prada! shoes! purses!" for the past five minutes showed us to a restaurant and then proceeded to drag us to his boss's shop while we waiting for a table. The shop was pretty nice. It's amazing how much detail/organization goes into the fake market operation. There are the people to lure you in, the sales people who try to sell you everything, the runners who go to the warehouses to get the best fake stuff (because, yes, there are different levels/qualities of fake everything), and then the owners who you struggle to negotiate with! But anyway, the dinner was pretty amazing too! We had cauliflaouer with corn and this clay pot rice dish with meat and veggies :)

Claypot Rice

Hope everyone's enjoying the start of fall! I'm sort of sad I'm missing the start of Pumpkin Spice season haha.
 <3 from china,

Peking Duck in Shenzhen

e

。。。I'm getting bad at this blogging thing

Hello everyone...

Long time no blog? I think yes...does that mean I've been eaten alive by Chinese words and captivated by the intensity of Shanghai's culture and nightlife: most definitely. Anyway, these past two weeks have been pretty epic (and random as usual). With classes picking up and Chinese words fogging our brains, we're managing to assimilate to the crazy culture of learning Chinese. They've sort of indoctrinated us into speaking Chinese nonstop. Like, we had to sign language pledges, so in certain places we MUST speak in Chinese (there are signs up everywhere that say "language cop on duty"), I know...super scary. But,  with all of this forced language usage, the group of us are starting to really embrace the nuances of "Chinglish." An example, if you will: "You're so mafan!" Or, on one particular night when we got locked out of the back gate because it was passed 12am, a scream of "I've got the HouMen floor on me!"

In addition to the quirkiness of Chinglish, we've taken to using our nights for walking around the area near the Houmen (back gate). There are storefronts ranging from dumpling houses, to stuffed animal bazaars, to random racks of sweaters, dresses, and pantyhose. Chinese fashion is one of those things you just can't quite put a finger on. On one hand, some of the cutesy frills and bright colors can actually enhance a person's appearance. On another, giant bows and lacy puff sleeves a
Therefore, as we were walking into the 6th shop to look at clothes, we determined that "Chinese stores are strange, you see the clothing and you think 'oh! that looks like a good shop, let's go in' and then next thing you know they've ruined the clothes by putting sequins in the armpit or something!" As of now, Alex and I have dubbed stores that boast traditional Chinese styles as "Sequins under the armpit" stores.

Tomorrow is the start of our October break (National Holiday), which means we get a week off of classes to travel. Alex and I are first heading to Shenzhen (south China) to work/relax at GMUNC (similar to WEMUN for all of you MUN people out there). After that we're meeting up with Meagan, Amay, and Nate in Beijing and then heading up to Harbin. Per usual, spontinaity is the theme of our vacation considering the original plan was for GMUNC to be held in Beijing, but then to "political tension" it was moved 1000+miles south to a more "western environment." Go China! Either way, we'll get to see some pretty awesome areas. Although, I think our Chinese teachers think we're "silly Americans" who don't know geography since Alex and I are literally hitting up about as far south as we can go to then fly up to almost Russian territory.

I'll try to be more renzhen (serious) about posting!



-e

Ni Hao AH from Wonderland (aka Shanghai)

好久不见！ （long time no see)

The Bund-River Cruise

So, these massive gaps in blog posts must mean that I'm completely devoted to studying my 50+characters a night, writing essays, and being an overall 认真 （serious) student, right? ...half-truth. Yes, I'm doing my work, yes I'm learning my words, and yes, I'm doing my best to keep up with the language pledge meaning that I'm practicing my Shanghai accent enough that my English is starting to suffer. BUT, I'm also having a spectacular, crazy, spontaneous, and random time in Shanghai.

This weekend was much needed after our whirlwind week of classes. From deciding that the proper way to be flirty in Shanghai is to put and "ah" sound on the end of sentences (thank you, Nate), to almost getting hit by buses, we do our best to make our school week lives a bit more interesting. But with all of the quirky randomness of being in this great place home to the Little Red Book, we also get a good dose of studying. Not only do we have the chance to explore the fantastic culture of China, but we also get to experience the nuances classwork in China, which can be summed up in one Chinese sentence "“放松"的意思是什么？" (What is the meaning of relaxation?). From people who had 10+hours of classes in one day, to others who had 4 hours of Chinese in the morning followed by 2 hours of tutoring and homework, the group of us were completely ready to go out and relax this weekend. And by relax, I mean drink and dance until roughly 4:45am...I know, this lifestyle cannot be sustained.

This weekend we explored some new places to dance and let loose and get a good dose of Shanghai's black lung (I don't think we'll ever get used to have a puff of smoke being blown into our faces). Friday night we started out at Windows Too, I think at this point I can say it's one of our "places." With cheap drinks and good music, this is a pretty good place to start off your night; it just so happens its like attached to a temple... yes, once again, thank you, China. After spending some time there, the seven of us hopped a cab to G+ (the club names never cease to amaze), which was awesome. Let me tell you, when you go clubbing in Shanghai, be prepared for anything and everything. This place had a huge dance floor, dozens of tables, and enough wacky lighting to make you feel like through fell headfirst down the "rabbit hole." That night ended with a great rendition of "Sweet Caroline" and shouts of "XinTianDi" (a popular club/restaurant area) outside of the club.

@ Windows Too

On Saturday, we once again tried to have an "early night." HA! I'm learning there's no such thing as an early night if you decide to go out...might as well just admit to yourself that if you say you'll be home by 2am it means you'll consider being out of wherever you are by 3 or 4am...With our typical stops at the neighborhood "Family Mart" (the equivalent of a 7/11 that sells basics [cheap beer and ice cream being the most important]!) Saturday was spent at a place called Da Da...a random club/lounge is that can be found only by sauntering down the proper alleyway... but once in, you're greeted with flashing lights, cozy couches, and a Foosball table...hmm, I wonder which item seems out of place?

Being in Shanghai is like being in Wonderland, except instead of Mad Hatters/tea parties and the Queen of Hearts/gardens, we have crazy people trying to sell us flowers outside of spastic clubs and Mao with a forbidden city filled with little red books! Study abroad is definitely a mad mad world, and we're all just little pawns waiting to see what crazy experience they throw at us next, which is an awesome existence.





Anyway, enough about nightlife. I'll be posting about the cultural wonderfulness of Shanghai in my next post. So stay tuned for more foodie blogging/some info on our weekend trip to SuZhou.

Off to do homework...and excuse any typos, I'm too lazy to reread this and all my studying of Chinese has probably ruined my English anyhow.

Till next time :)