Hey All!
It's been a bit of a stretch since I last blogged, chalk it up to the fact that the group realized that we had less than 78 hours of freedom with no classes/homework and we ran with the idea. This weekend was awesome and jam-packed. I started the weekend off Friday afternoon with a CIEE sponsored "Amazing Race-Shanghai." Unfortunately we didn't come in first, but we seriously used our Chinese, which we keep telling ourselves deep down past all of the competition is the true exercise. Post Amazing Race we headed back to campus from
XinTianDi (the cosmopolitan pit spot of the race). We were in serious need of a nap after all the running we'd done, but after about an hour we were up and ready for the night to start.
出去玩 (Going out) Section
Thus far our trip has been defined by the quirkiness and spontaneity of China (both traits are part of the reason I selected Chinese as my major), Friday night's adventure was no different. From starting at a place called "The Spot," to sitting on a stoop drinking beer, a contingent of us managed to run around to about 6 different places from 10pm to 4:30am that night. With a mix of G'towners and new found friends, we hit up two different dance clubs, two different bars, and a variety of random pit stops (like the 24/7 KFC and McDonalds for those who couldn't resist the call of freedom). So basically...we had an Amazing Race-Shanghai Part II: Nightlife edition. Result? Awesomeness. Although we did have a couple of close calls when playing our own personal game of
Frogger as we crossed large streets. End result, Friday was a night of exploration.
Saturday, on the other hand, was supposed to be pretty chill...but I should know from past experience "pretty chill" usually turns into some sort of craziness in Shanghai. After taking a trip to the fake market and bargaining with the locals, Meagan, Alex, and I went to
Nanjing Road for dinner. Instead of taking the normal foreigner's path and eating at typically restaurant, the three of us went down a couple of alleys, through hoards of people crowded around buying produce off of carts, fish out of buckets, and live squid, and found ourselves a nice
牛肉拉面餐馆(Beef Noodle Soup Restaurant). Now, these aren't just ordinary noodles, these are noodles that the sketchy little shop owner "throws." Meaning that each bowl of noodles is handmade on the spot as dough is whipped through the air and smashed down to a marble slab to stretch! One of the best bowls of noodles a person can find in China.
As previously stated, when deciding to just have a quieter night of drinking and socializing in Shanghai, one should be aware that you must actively attempt to do that. If you don't focus on not staying out till all hours of the night, then it WILL happen, and you WILL end up looking at your phone at some random point between dancing around a crowded club and speaking Chinese with a random local and realize that your quiet night of 1am turned into a raging 4am! Obviously, I'm not speaking from experience or anything, ha. The usual suspects were present, Meagan, Alex, and I, plus we were accompanied by some of the CIEE boys that are in a homestay. The night started at
Windows Too (cheap drinks, lots of foreigners, good music), and ended at
Club No. 88 (88 because double eights are lucky in China). This club was recommended by the Sweds, and SmartShanghai referenced it as the
Moulin Rouge of Shanghai...I thought they were exaggerating, but I should have known better. From tasseled lamps, plush sofas, and antique bars, to crazy loud music, mobs of people, and random nooks where people could disappear, No. 88 was probably one of the coolest things we'd seen since setting foot in Shanghai. So anyway, the dancing and socializing was pretty epic and I think we should start a club No. 88 in Georgetown/DC...or at least they should give us our Healey Pub....on to food!
食物 （food）Section
In edition to the nightlife explored this weekend, I had some awesome
meals with friends. The first visit I made was to my old homestay
sister. In true Chinese fashion, I asked them to dinner and they
demanded that we do no less than "go to the countryside to eat fresh
food to celebrate my arrival to Shanghai." Due to their generosity, I
ended up with my 中国家庭(China Family) about 40mins outside of the city at
what could only be described as the equivalent of a Chinese vineyard to eat 农家菜(Country-People Food).
The entire experience was unbelievable. From walking around rice
paddies, to seeing pomegranates growing on trees, this country spot
played host to an amazing dining experience. We started off with fresh
rice wine, pumpkin juice, and soy milk, and followed it up with a
selection of cold appetizers of meats and pickled veggies. Following the starters, homemade noodles arrived with fresh scrambled eggs (yes, that's dinner here, just like in college!), soups, fresh fish, fatty beef, etc so forth, on and on until I could no longer breathe I was so stuffed.
Ah yes, finally, classes....the reason I'm here. Well, they're good. Each morning I wake up crazy early to go to 4hour long Chinese language classes and then Mon/Wed I have a Business in China class. Overall, I'm excited about improving Chinese, not so much about the 60-100 words I have the pleasure of memorizing each night. I guess I need to just be a bit more 厉害 and 认真 (fierce & serious). Anyway, hope all is well with people. I know this was a crazy long post and you'll probably read only a fraction of it, but at least you'll get something out of it!
-e
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. 
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.
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 :)
