Monday, April 30, 2007

Weekend Wrap-up

This weekend I explored the Hutongs behind War-Ma. Hutongs are old neighborhoods, made up of adobe-like houses each connected to one another, forming a series of tiny alleyways. In most big cities much of the Hutongs have been torn down to make room for skyscrapers. Though a few have been preserved, it's quite sad. These people live on so little, were probably raised in the same tiny house that their parents grew up in, and the government can come in and post a flyer that says, "Oops, sorry! Go live somewhere else now, we're putting in a Hyatt!" 20,000 were destroyed in Beijing in 2004 alone, and these things are sometimes a few hundred years old! It's a side of the city that's a bit hidden (though touristy in parts of Beijing, natch), and it was cool to explore through there. Of course we got a few stares. One pair of women even stopped us because they thought we were lost! "Nothing's back here," they said. "Wal-Mart's that way." They gave us a funny look when we said we wanted to just look around, but smiled and nodded us past nonetheless. (Picture: Doorway with older areas of the Hutong behind it)

Saturday night my [Chinese!] friend Sean invited me to a salsa party (the dance, not the food (pssh I wish)). When we first met he mentioned that he "partner dances," and I said it was something I enjoyed but didn't do very often. I'm not amazing or anything, but I know the basics and how to follow, so I can usually fake it pretty well. So when Sean called, I happily accepted his offer. At the very least, it would be something out of the ordinary and might allow me to meet some new people.
I was a bit nervous, thinking I'd be out of my league, but it turns out I didn't have much to worry about; I was one of the few who had actually danced before. Most of the evening ended up being lessons taught by Sean (who danced competitively at school in the UK) or the host of the party, a German man who was too busy checking out Sean to let me speak auf deutch with him.
The guests were American, German, French, Irish, Japanese, and Chinese. I love that socializing always involves meeting people from like 30 different places. Pretty Cool. Oh but those kids, lordy loo they could not dance. Bless their hearts, they tried, and were all very nice, but the men might as well have had cinder blocks for feet. So awkward.
Did you know that Chinese people can not dance? With few exceptions (Sean for instance could probably swing his hips at 200 bpm) they can not find the beat at all. It's so bad that apparently the floors of some discos MOVE, FORCING people to "dance" so they don't fall over (that is something I HAVE to see, absolutely must).
While dancing at the end of the evening, I sort of step out of myself for a moment. I picture myself standing here, as far away from home as I could possibly be, practicing my salsa with 15 other people in some queeny German guy's apartment. This is so weird. I look at my dance partner, who's still trying to find "1." He only speaks Chinese. He's smelly and clammy. He's maybe 5'2" and 45 years old. And this is when I burst out laughing, because I've only just now noticed that his belt has a giant SPARKLING Playboy bunny on it. Because that's how he rolls.
The beautiful thing about China is that even when you do something lame and boring, it almost always turns into absurd and ridiculous.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Movies, Mangoes, Meatball, and Alliteration

Since my students begged me for movies earlier in the term, I figured the last Friday night before break would be a good time to let them chill out. I brought in a few movies, from which they chose A Prairie Home Companion but then decided a half hour in that it was boring and could they please watch something else. Everyone said that Chinese students sit quietly and act like they are happy and content even when they're not, but that's clearly not been the case for my students. Apparently they're allowed to treat me differently than their Chinese teachers, but when I ask them to do something that they don't do in a Chinese classroom, they basically won't do it. But who cares, because there's no class next week! We put in Legally Blonde instead, which they loved, and I got to explain what a sorority is, that yes I was in one, but like everything else, it's different in real life.

Sidebar, once at a sorority meeting someone asked what a lobbyist was, and I attempted to explain but didn't do a very good job, as everyone was still clueless. Then one of my roommates stands up and goes, "It's like Elle Woods in Legally Blonde, but the 2nd one...?" Everyone's eyes lit up. "Oooooh," and with that they totally understood. We were the smart sorority! (Just kidding, it was kind of brilliant. Shout out to Lara)
Anyway, after class one of my students lent me her mp3 player so that I could download Chinese music off of it, which I thought was so sweet! She also gave me the best mango ever, which her father had brought from home (Hainan) when he came to visit. Oh, and her nickname in Chinese is meatball, which is so perfect because she's maybe 5 feet tall, curls her hair and is the cutest thing to ever come out of "the Hawaii of China."

Oh also, I heard the Chinese version of this song in a store today, which struck me as kind of weird because I'm pretty sure there are no actual words in the original. Hopefully you now all have it stuck in your head just like me.

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Not exactly cancun.

While most of the US is getting ready for summer, my spring break begins Monday. The CCP gives the entire country the week off for Labor Day(s), and in return we're all happy workers the rest of the year. Because noone has to work, they all go on vacation. At the same time. If I had the power to decide when billions of people would take their vacay, I'd divy it up a little bit. Anyway, all of China is kind of a madhouse next week, and it's recommended that if one wants to travel, they should get the hell out of China.
I toyed around with the idea of going to Mongolia. Before I arrived in China, I basically just knew where Mongolia was (I know some of you don't, so here's today's lesson: stuck in the middle of the Sino-Russian border). As I read more about it, it sounds like a really cool place. Unfortunately, it seems to soon be facing proverbial extinction thanks to global warming climate change and a quickly shrinking nomad population. These factors also hold true for parts of China, but I'd like to see it in action in Mongolia. Although I'm still planning on visiting, this month's holiday totally snuck up on me and I didn't have time to really plan, and I would have had to go by myself, so eh. Anyway, didn't happen, I'm thinking July 2008. Travel buddies inquire within. Then I was thinking about going to Beijing, but when I asked someone if they could help me get tickets, the response was something like, "crowded difficult busy full no tickets holiday," which I think means all the trains were booked. Just as well, since the city would be kind of a headache this week.
This travel talk lately has gotten me thinking about all the places I want to go and things I want to see in the next couple years. That basically includes every inch of Asia, and it turns out Asia's pretty big, so now I'm totally overwhelmed. Fortunately, I should have some time to travel. My breaks at the school are summer, Jan-Feb, a week in May, and a week in October, but I don't get paid vacation from my American university, so I might have to stay here and work during some of the school breaks... that, or I could just keep in touch with my boss via email like I do now while galloping all over the continent (har har, just kidding). Regardless [sidebar: how much do I haaaate "irregardless," like it's a legit word? This is what people must have felt like years ago when someone started using the words flammable and inflammable interchangeably], next week I'll be stuck in Jinan while the rest of the country par-tays. I hope to put the week to good use and see some sites in the city as well as maybe venture out of town a bit and catch up on some serious Chinese studying. I'm way behind. Why can't they just speak English like normal people?

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Greatest thing I have ever seeeeen

Ok so I'm trying to keep up with the trends in America, and I think I'm still pretty with it. Sanjaya out, Mom jeans freakishly in (although it should be said that I totally support high-wasted pants when they're worn correctly), lipgloss for everybody. However, this is clearly the best thing to come out of America since the internet:

OMG thank you. This is all I need to justify not 1 but 2 terms as the leader of our nation.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Month 2


Well, today marks my second month-iversary with China. At times I totally think we're going to break up, but then something happens that makes me fall in love with stupid China all over again. I lived in Vienna for half a year, and it's a little disheartening to think of how far along I was after 2 months there compared to here. While it feels like it's been so long since I left home, everything here is still very foreign to me.
I'm pretty used to being stared at constantly. I asked a Chinese person why everyone stares, and she seemed kind of surprised that I would ask such a question. Because you look so different! I know I look "so different," but where I come from, if I had 3 heads, people would probably look away, not stare. Sometimes it's funny. I've had a few Chinese people ask to take pictures with me, and my favorite was when I had to get passport photos for my new visa. The young woman at the fuji store sat me down and very delicately, as if afraid she would break them, tried to smooth down the fly-aways on top of my head. After she took a few frames, she pointed at the camera and then pointed at herself. "Ok..." I said, a bit confused. She jumped up and down, ran up to my side, and took our picture before I even knew what was happening. Afterwards she spent about 10 minutes touching up my photo so it would be PERFECT for my visa.
It's also really cute when little kids stare, mouths wide open. Sometimes they whisper "Weiguoren" (foreigner) in amazement and point me out to their playmate, sometimes they just freeze. I had a little girl follow me around the grocery store one evening. "Hello!" she yelled. I smiled and said, "Hi! How are you?" She giggled and ran away before returning for an encore performance. "Hello!" "Hello, what is your name?" Giggle, run, repeat for about 20 minutes. That stuff, I certainly don't mind.
Other times I really wish I could blend in, and the grocery store is the worst. First they glance at me, and then they look at my cart. Nearly EVERY SINGLE PERSON stares at my cart the entire time I am walking past them. When I stand in front of a shelf, deciding on which mystery food to purchase, eventually 1-4 people will gather around me, staring at the same shelf, waiting to see which food foreign people like. After I've made my choice, most of the audience usually picks up the same thing, either to read the label or absentmindedly throw it into their cart. I thought maybe I was just being self-centered-- it's a crowded place and all. So I conducted a little experiment, and I'm petty sure I'm not imagining it. Whyyyy? This does not make me feel welcome!
Also, I hate how dirty everything is, and I haaaaaate the bathrooms. I hate that I can't drink the water, and I hate that the cars honk non-stop, and I hate that the food they sell on the street looks delicious but I'm afraid to eat it because I don't want to be one of the people I've seen puking on the sidewalk after they've eaten something bad (oh yeah, I hate that too). And I hate the bad air.
But I don't hate everything.
The heels I trip around China in needed some serious help, so I took them to the shoe repair place/bike repair place/guy that sits on the sidewalk half a block off campus. I told him what was wrong, and he told me to have a seat in one of his folding chairs as he got to work. 10 minutes and 5RMB later, I walked away with an extra bounce in my step: my shoes were good as new, and I had successfully explained what I needed and gotten what I wanted, all by myself. The experience reminded me of getting my shoes fixed at home, where my shoe guy is Korean, and the language barrier has always limited our conversation. Once I took in a pair of NOT cheap boots to be repaired after a slight tumble caused both heels to break off (a feat that to this day amazes me). I dumped 2 shoes and 2 heels onto his counter. He looked up at me. "This very bad," he said. I sighed in agreement.
I noticed a few weeks ago that the repairman's "assistant," who I'm guessing is his son, has downs syndrome. I was happy to see him, as he's the first person with a visible disability I've come across in China, and I'd begun to think anyone who wasn't "perfect" was sent away somewhere. My first instinct is to feel sorry for this coupling, a young man with downs and a one-legged older man sitting on the street corner, but now, honestly, I'm a bit embarrassed by thinking that way. They make a damn good living! There's usually a line of people asking if they can repair one thing or another, and both always smile and wave goodbye to their satisfied customers, albeit with dirty hands. My shoe repair even involved a bit of a Chinese lesson. As I waited, the young man would point at things, say the Chinese word, and then wait for me to repeat. Having pity for them is such a snotty American way of looking at things! That was a moment that I loved China. Much like the first time I had a successful exchange with a cab driver, and I finally felt like I wasn't such an alien here. (My shoe place pictured above. Imagine me where the girl is sitting)
I love how friendly everyone is. I love how the city seems to be a community, and how strangers pull each other out of the street as a car speeds closer. I love how cheap everything is, and I love that my vegetable lady, shoe repair guy, massage girl (15RMB!), and taxi drivers all want to teach me Chinese and show me how to do things. I love that my students all want to be my friend and show me their home town, and I love that the foreigners all have an instant bond, "yes, I'm stuck here, too," and are eager to help you, because they remember what it felt like to first arrive here. I love the old people doing Tai Chi, and I love that my campus becomes a park on the weekends, overrun by the cutest toddlers and young children you will ever see, their parents chasing closely after them.

2 months in, China's ok.

Monday, April 23, 2007

what's your flava' tell me what's your flava'

When it comes to grocery shopping, there's a few different directions you can go here. You can buy your produce, eggs, and tofu from the wagon/portable booth on the street corner. Sure, the eggs still have bits of straw sticking to them and you have to lookout for wormholes on the tomatoes (if they have them that day; availability varies), but it's inexpensive and fresh and I really appreciate it when "my" vegetable woman corrects my Chinese. She does it genuinely, like, "Oh that crazy white girl, she needs all the help she can get!" And I totally picture her talking to her husband like, "The foreign girl came by today. She got half a kilo of green beans, some apples, and a couple carrots. She was real picky about them apples..."
If you decide to get your vegetables from the neighborhood lady, you'll also need to make a stop at one of the giant pharmacies (everything behind glass, workers wearing white lab coats) for toothpaste and vitamins, and a bodega for whatever else you need. Most likely, there's barely room for you and the owner in the bodega, and he will be old and will be smoking, and he will stare at you the entire time you are within eyesight. So will his buddies, who are sitting outside and have turned around to watch you. When I first arrived in China, I stopped in one of these and a lady charged me 50RMB for what I know now was probably like 5. That's the only time I was blatantly overcharged for something, and every experience since has been pretty painless. You buy your crackers and Diet Coke (which is called Diet Coke here but tastes like Coca-Cola Light. Barf.), and you're on your way.
So that's 3 stops and you still haven't even gotten your toilet paper or highlighters.

Which is why I suggest one of the other shopping choices in Jinan. There's three different 4-story shopping centers for you to sink your teeth into. Anything you're looking for, chances are you'll find it hidden along the shelves of one of these Megamonstrosities:

1) RT Mart. Based out of Taiwan, we call this place "Da Run Fa." I don't know enough about Taiwan Chinese to understand where the "RT Mart" part even came from. Every time I go here they ask for some card and every time I pretend like I don't understand, and then they're like, ok nevermind, go ahead.








2) WalMart. Or, in Chinese, "War Ma." In real life I'd cut off my right hand before entering this store, but in China life, it's a whole different ball game. I can find things here I can't find anywhere else, although they aren't always the "every day low prices" they claim to be in the good ol' US. Whole city block.

(ps smoggy day. Notice the difference?)





3) Carrefour. Just like the ones in Europe. Oh beloved Carrefour, this is where the magic happens (please note that it is too big for me to take a picture of its entirety). On my first trip here, I was totally overwhelmed, a shopping list a mile long, really getting sick of the Chinese people blatantly staring at me, my cart, my shopping choices, acting like I was the first foreigner they'd ever seen (I'm still not used to all that, btw). I turn the corner somewhere on floor 3, and what stands before me? A 6'6" blond guy who looks down and says, "Sup?" before continuing with his shopping.
Are you KIDDING? There's more of us? Where do we go? What do we do? Take me with you!

Magic moment #2 at Carrefour:
In the night version you can almost make out the escalator ramps that criss-cross over 4 stories. Redic.
Ok so people don't wait in line here, like it's not in their genes or something (don't even get me started), so when it comes to checkout, its fight or flight. I've gotten pretty good about it, and rarely does someone sneak past me in the pack as we shuffle towards the cash registers. So last week there was this really awful young couple, hellbent on waiting by the side and then trying to casually "merge" into the group. They took a step in front of me, thinking I was some stupid foreigner, but ha! They were wrong. I slowly made my way to the front of my cart and led it through the herd (which looked totally natural, I'm sure), thereby blocking any further move by Team Line Cutters. Even still, my anxiousness did not subside until a few minutes later, when not only I but the lady behind me successfully thwarted the enemy. Wrapped up in the glory of a hard-fought win, it was not until I heard screaming and yelling that I realized they had cut behind the woman behind me... and she was yelling at them! Loudly! For a long period of time! She is yelling at them for cutting in line in China, and she's not letting up any time soon! Hundreds of people (no exaggeration) were staring and/or looking at the floor and trying not to laugh. They've all been on both sides of that battle before, but until now the victims have suffered in silence. Possibly the most amazing thing I've seen since my arrival.

Friday, April 20, 2007

55 days

is how long it takes to become famous in China.
I received a phone call today from a journalist, who said she "heard of my teaching" and wanted to write an article about my methodology and how amazing I am. I was a bit surprised since I'm certainly not the only foreign English teacher here, but for whatever reason she called me, so there we are. I told her I was happy to oblige and that she was welcome to sit in on class this evening. She did, and a woman who came with her took about ten thousand photos. I wish I had known this was the plan, because I basically looked like crap and hadn't looked in a mirror since 12 hours prior. I'm especially looking forward to the photos she took 20 cm away from my face (thankfully the bug bites are mostly gone). Those will be super hott.
Unfortunately the class she witnessed was fairly somber. We were discussing the Virginia Tech murders, so it wasn't exactly a laugh a minute. Various stories related to the killings made front page China Daily news all week, so I had more than enough sources to discuss with the class for 2 hours.
It's difficult to explain the "reality" of America without sounding too negative, as the bad is usually much easier to point out than the good and also leads to much more interesting discussions. Because of this, I made it a point this time to highlight America's reaction and how it is emblematic of the people and the nation as a whole (united, optimistic). I romanticized things a bit to get the point across, so I'll spare you the schmaltzy details.
The actual interview will go down next week, which gives me a few days to figure out what my teaching methodology actually is.

Thursday, April 19, 2007

Attention, designers

I've avoided putting up pictures of my apartment because it's not ready for public viewing yet. However, after trying unsuccessfully to come up with decorating ideas on my own, I'm turning the floor over to you. Being beautiful people who appreciate beautiful things, I'm hoping you may have some advice.
For instance, if your couch was made of this:



and your curtains were made of this:


What color throw rug would you get?
More importantly, how would you make this look less ugly?



living room view 1

living room view 2

Welcome to my conundrum. I have more space than I could ever need, but it's seriously lacking pretty things.

hallway

Actually, it's lacking things in general.


study view 1


study view 2

bedroom view 1


bedroom view 2

and then there's the bathroom...


bathroom view 1

bathroom view 2

and kitchen...


I really need an Ikea.





Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Rockin' in the free(ish) world!

Received this text message today:
Going to a beijing punk rock band show. Should b a unique cultural experience. 9oclock. Interested?

Response:
HELL YES I AM SO IN.

Not being the Chinese-punk-rock type myself, I was stumped as to what one wears to such an event, so I googled it--
what to wear punk rock china. I was pretty sure that searching for this on the internet was very unpunk, but so is wearing a sweater vest and pumps. I figured it wouldn't hurt to do a little research. Shockingly enough, it turns out that I do not own the appropriate attire (steel-toed boots, pants with "lots of pockets," Nirvana t shirt), though my outfit didn't really matter, after all. The idea that I might attempt to blend in anywhere in China is kind of hilarious. Punk music has been pretty underground during the past 20 years in China, but there's a definite following, although not so much in a city like Jinan, which is relatively quite traditional. Consequently, not too many girls with fishnets on their arms... I must say I was a bit disappointed over the lack of punk attire, but what can you do.

We arrived at the
Bandjo Bar a little before 10, and Brain Failure was already performing. They weren't bad! Definitely fun, and though there was moshing and a bit of body surfing, I was more a voyeur than anything else. I tried to capture the moment, but it doesn't translate very well into still life. Those crazy Chinese!


small but very devoted crowd


The highlight of the evening was clearly this photo, when Brad and I got our picture taken with the lead singer. Apparently the band is kind of famous, as far as Chinese punk rock goes...

Me, my first CelebrAsian, Brad
ps We all look normal in real life. Not so much here.
pps Helloooo, Facebook!

ROCK ON!

Monday, April 16, 2007

New West-East Campus!

Now that you've seen where I work in the afternoons, here's a look at where I usually spend the rest of my time. I give you New West-East Campus:


South Gate, the main entrance of campus, where I catch my daily $1.50 cab ride


upon entering the South Gate, this building is straight ahead of you....


this building is to your left...


and this building is on your right.

I'm not sure what any of these actually are, but I found a foreign language library in the 1st one. A nice Chinese woman in the international office offered to get my library card for me. Yay! That was 5 weeks ago and I'm still waiting. The second building is where I get my xeroxes, and I'm pretty sure they think I'm a total idiot. The last building is where you find the international office, where I go when things go tragically wrong or when I need to pick up the many many presents and care packages you have sent and will continue to send me.


From there, follow the breezy little road


make a left at the Marxist Theory Department


pass a few open green areas


until you find yourself at the campus hotel.

I was only told that the hotel was called "University Hotel," so my first day here, that's what I told the taxi driver. I learned something that day! There are multiple Shandong University Hotels in Jinan, and my cabbie and I stopped 4 people on the street until we somehow found someone who made sense of where I was trying to go.


across a small street is this

I think the landscape is a bit over the top, but really it's quite pretty, and I hope they fill the cement pond in soon. The building behind it? that's...


the foreign language school, where I teach and study! Kind of an odd shape, this picture is just a corner of the building. Not too shabby, though.

and just behind the hotel is (trumpets) my apartment building. See the window on the far upper left hand side? That's home sweet home!


When I come back to the states, I'm totally bringing the "pastel bathroom
tiles on the outside of buildings"
trend with me.

Construction running through the heart of campus gives me a severe sensation of déjà vu.



On the north end is the student canteen.
That's where the main cafeteria is, along with a few little shops.



It's important to note that SDU cares about safety. That's why they make sure students, faculty, and visitors alike are all well protected from hidden dangers, like unstable manholes. Observe:



And perhaps the most important part of New West East Campus-- the basketball courts on the north end of campus:


During most of the day, this (and the rest of campus) is pretty packed.
I took most of these pictures pretty early in the morning.

Oh, and one important thing on our tour that I almost forgot!


Mic & Mac. obvs.



ps my blog looks different on my computer at home than my computer at work, so I'm not sure what it looks like to you. If things are too big/too small and it's a pain in the ass, let me know. and Lis I want to talk to you about layout?? we'll chat.

Friday, April 13, 2007

You say potato, I say Yeruhly

I only teach like, 4 hours a week. I had been told that it would be 8 hours, but that's China. Since I'm teaching this class from scratch, and since this is my 1st time teaching, I've had to put a lot of work into it, despite the few paid hours. So I've talked a lot about my class here, though realistically it's not that much of my day-to-day life here. Anyway.

I had a KILLER lesson plan for the topic of racism, but it didn't go over too well. During break, a few students explained that everyone was quiet when I asked questions because they "didn't know how to express themselves." This is pretty interesting and indicative of the Chinese learning system. Basically, Chinese teachers emphasize "what," while Americans emphasize "why." If I ask them what they think of communism, they will no doubt recite a few quotes perfectly. "Chairman Mao says..." or "Confucius says..." but it's very difficult to get an original idea out of them. In much of the same way, when I ask questions with answers that require a bit of thought, students are slow to answer (if they do at all). Even if they have an original idea, it makes them very uncomfortable to throw thoughts out there. Being wrong, especially in front of the class, is super embarrassing, and "I don't know" is a more acceptable response than a wrong answer in a Chinese classroom. They explained to me, "In China, we have a saying. The first bird ahead of the flock is the one to get shot (or something)." I responded, "In the U.S., we have a saying. The early bird gets the worm." I explained that Americans emphasize the process, not so much the final answer, so I didn't care what they said as long as they tried. I think it kind of went over their heads.

So I tossed the racism discussion, and the next class I had a very boring lesson plan, "what to do in a restaurant," and everyone acted out various skits on the subject. SO BORING but they ate it up (no pun intended). To entertain myself, I told them that each skit must include kumquat, usually, guacamole, psychic, monkey, and a few other funny words. I tried to explain that some words just sound funnier than others, and though they nodded their heads in agreement, they couldn't think of a funny Chinese word. Usually is very difficult for them, and even among "fluent" speakers I almost always hear "yer-uh-ly." I broke it down in class and after about 10 minutes, some students looked up at me, smiles on their faces, convinced they'd get it right this time, and still shouted, "yeruhly!"

Also, I had to clarify what guacamole is, which was surprisingly difficult since they didn't know what an avocado was, either (I went with "kind of like peanut butter, kind of like jam, we eat it with Mexican food. Not a dish, a spread..."). Before I could finish explaining, everyone was trying out the first syllable for themselves. "Gwak, gwak, gwak, gwak, gwak." Multiple times I've seen Chinese people trying to pronounce a word that is unfamiliar to them. They say the first syllable a few times, always out loud, and then try their hand at the whole word. Without fail, every time it reminds me of this:


You know, I've been a little annoyed that my Chinese teacher sometimes laughs when we try to pronounce things, but I totally get it now.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Confessions

After being here for almost 2 months (how is that possible?), I suffered through my very first I Hate China Day. Actually, it's basically been this entire week, and it's totally sucked.

Contributing factors as to why I hated China:
-I was sick with a cold so bad that I was nearly unable to leave the house.
-My parents are visiting my sister in NYC this week. They're all excited, as it's their first visit since she moved there in August, and I'm all jealous that I won't be joining in on the fun.
-I kiiiind of miss my friends.
-I am sometimes lacking direction here. I definitely have goals and things that I want to accomplish, but they're "big picture" for the most part (ie, learn Mandarin), and my purpose here is quite vague. Consequently, it's difficult to remain motivated and direction-ful without breaking these things down into something a bit more tangible, something I have yet to do.
-Nothing functions like it's supposed to in China and everything is much more complicated than I could imagine. Little things, incessantly.
-Yes it's very nice to want to learn a new language, but this one's a lot harder to "fake" in the beginning stages compared to languages I've encountered before, and it makes things quite frustrating. It would also be nice if I could look up Chinese characters in my dictionary, but I can't. See, characters are alphabetized based on their pinyin, but seeing as how I do not know the character (which is why I am looking it up), I don't know what the pinyin is, I have no idea how it's spelled, and I can't look it up unless I want to sift through my dictionary for 20 minutes. So I'm limited to English-Chinese and no Chinese-English.
-I'm more isolated here than I thought I would be. It's difficult to meet people, and though those I've met have been extremely kind and welcoming, I haven't met anyone else who's new this semester (most come in the fall) and under the age of 50. Everyone is already in their routine and has had their "transition" period... and I have yet to meet a female teacher my age who's not married (eeeew). Though the community here is quite close-knit, it's not like we're all in the same building at the same time. Everyone's teaching at different schools on different schedules, and I go many days where I don't see anyone who's not Chinese. Of course I hope to make friends with locals as well, but not surprisingly there are a few barriers that make such a friendship seem slightly less than natural.

I expect many of my frustrations to diminish as I spend more time here, and I know much of the problem is my attitude. It's uncharacteristic of me not to push myself in such situations, but these days I've found comfort in the ease of coming home and studying Chinese (ok usually just sitting on Facebook) rather than forcing myself to be out there, in the middle of it all. If I spend the rest of my time in China acting like I have the past week, it'll be a total waste. Of course, no serious thoughts of wanting to pack up and head home. More just "ugh this sucks."

But don't cry for me, Argentina! FORTUNATELY I woke up yesterday with a new perspective. Things that I hated a few days ago are now a "challenge," simply "different" from what I'm familiar with. As I left for class yesterday, I looked up at the sun, already shining through the early morning smog, and I knew that my new-found optimism was going to stick around for a while.

Monday, April 9, 2007

Camp-i

Shandong University has a handful of campuses, most in Jinan but a few are elsewhere. Personally, I think my boss set up shop on the wrong one, seeing as we could have been in Qingdao, a rather large beach town not far from here. Perhaps you know it by the old spelling, Tsingtao? Yes like the beer; years and years ago German colonists (?) set up shop there, and they've certainly left their mark.
So, no beer and no beaches, but campus isn't bad here, either. There are a few locations in the city, each with a really helpful name:
There's East Campus and South Campus, except within East Campus, there's New Campus, which is also called West East Campus, and Old Campus, which is also called East East Campus... and there's New South Campus, aka New New Campus, aka South South Campus. South Campus is also called the Engineering Campus, which is not so clear seeing as how both South Campus and South South Campus are Engineering Campuses. And then there's the Software Technology Campus.
Noone gives you a straight answer in China, so when I first arrived and asked for clarification on all this, perhaps in the form of a campus map, the answer I received multiple times was, "Yes, that's funny, isn't it? Many names!" So the first 2 weeks here I basically never knew where I was, ever.

I have my bearings these days and can tell you that I live, teach, and study Chinese on New Campus, and that I work on South Campus. They're a 20-30 min cab ride apart, which is annoying but gives me an excuse to see different areas of Jinan. I've asked 5 or so cab drivers what the "proper" name for South Campus is, and each time I get a different answer.

Speaking of South Campus... today was take your camera to work day! So I have pictures:


Entrance/main building.
The first time I walked through here, the StarWars theme was playing.
Outdoors, very loud, shit you not.



walking to my building...


walking to my building...


walking to my building...
This is the most annoying sidewalk I have ever encountered. Maybe with tiny Chinese feet it's ok, but I can't NOT step in the dirt.


Here we are! The Geotechnical Engineering Center!


and this is my lovely office


and these are the lovely cabinets you can't see from that 1st picture.
Because THAT'S how big my office is.


Too much furniture, actually, but I'm ok with that. I'm NOT ok with the fact that the office on the other side of 1 of my very thin walls has been turned into some sort of student rec room, and there is a ping-pong table and people play constantly. Ping-pong ping-pong ping-pong, eating away at my soul every single day. I'm thinking about breaking in and stealing the balls. I wonder how many times I'd have to do that before they got the hint.

This concludes our tour.

Sunday, April 8, 2007

Thank you, China

for the 4 bug bites on my face.

and thank you, France, for the champagne that sponsored my Easter celebrations today. No eggs, no jelly beans, but we had mimosas, which is basically the whole point of a brunch-centric holiday.

Saturday, April 7, 2007

Dear Diary,

The most amazing thing has happened! Yesterday evening, I began class by telling my students about the harrowing misadventures I experienced at the super high tech wonderland. My students refuse to use their brains, and when they can't remember something in English, rather than thinking of an alternative word, they'll just look it up in their dictionaries. Their English is good enough that this is just being lazy. The point of my story was that dictionaries are not always helpful, and my students needed to practice strategies other than "I'll just look it up."

During our break, one student came up to me. "WCBF," he said, "You shouldn't have had to go through that. Someone should be there to help you."
"Oh it's alright, I don't mind." I replied, "It's good practice so I can learn Chinese."
"No. Noone is taking care of you. Next time you need to go, I will take you. You can call me." And with that, he slipped a piece of paper into my hand. I blushed. I got butterflies. He had given me his number! *Sigh* He makes me feel so special. I mean really, how many girls do you know who can say that they have Thomas Jefferson's phone number?


I blurred out part of his number, so don't even try to call and harass my boyfriend.

I could hardly concentrate on class the rest of the evening. All these thoughts kept running through my head...
"But Thomas Jefferson, we can't! You're my student!"
"Hi Thomas Jefferson. Just wanted to say that I had an AMAZING time on our date last night. Call me!"
"Mom, Dad, I'd like you to meet Thomas Jefferson"
"Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Jefferson"

Well, Diary, I've got to go now. I'll be sure to let you know how our first date goes (once I get up the nerve to call him... eek)!

Friday, April 6, 2007

high-tech electronica super future technology market


HTESFTM

The other day I needed to make copies for my students, and the guy whose office is next to mine insisted on having the department copy them for me. Very nice of him, but by the sounds coming out of the "copy room" and the quality of the xeroxes themselves, I'm pretty sure the copy machine was built by Gutenberg himself. I decided to nix the whole thing and from now on hook up my computer to the overhead projector in my classroom. The students could read the instructions off the screen, and this way, I save paper. yay.
I have a really lovely MacBook. It's white, it's brilliant, it surprisingly light-weight, we have a lot in common. Unfortunately, my lovely MacBook does not have a vga port, so I couldn't connect it to the overhead without an adapter. Someone was very nice and offered to let me use their laptop instead. Their Chinese laptop. Which is not compatible with the American CD that contained all of my material for class. Totally stupid, I know, but an oversight on my part, so all of my lovely visuals and all the time I spent preparing were a total waste.
Since I rather liked the idea of being able to waltz in with my own computer and hook it up to the projector, I decided I would buy an adapter. Where would I buy such a thing? At the Hi-Tech Electronica Super Future Technology Market! Actually, I don't know what it's called. Every time someone refers to it, it has a new name, but it always sounds like a gift shop at Tomorrow Land. One end of the HTESFTM is located maybe 2 blocks away from campus, and let me be clear by saying that it is not a store. It is not 2 stores. It is blocks and blocks and blocks of stores. And I use the word "store" loosely. Step inside one of these giant warehouses, and you find yourself on 1 of 4 floors of kiosks at the world's largest electronics expo. Everyone who works there is just kind of standing around, in their t-shirts and jeans, amidst boxes and boxes of who knows what.


outside a store at the HTESFTM

Ok so I went to the HTESFM to track down an adapter. I speak like, no Chinese. I can tell you my name and that I'm American, but I do not know how to say, "Hi, excuse me, do you have a negative vga to positive mini-dvi adapter? Or firewire.... or USB.... Do they make those? Or perhaps I would need two adapters: a negative to positive vga, and then a positive vga to mini-dvi, firewire, or usb. What do you think?" I knew this would be a test of my acting skills more than anything else.
My first store was a little upscale, the people there looked like they might actually be helpful. Unfortunately, after quite a crowd of employees had gathered (6), I was told "mingtien." Tomorrow. Damn.
So I went to the next place, or rather, I tried to. The security guard (seriously?) at the front stopped me and said something, with a smile on his face like he was giving me a "hard time." I was like, um, f that I don't have time for your games.
So the 3rd place, basically a flea market. I ended up in this guy's booth, and he had baskets and baskets of different ends (usb, firewire, etc), and I think he made the converter while you wait. Except I'll never know, because apparently vga to mini-dvi adapter is basically the only way to go, and mini-dvi basically does not exist in China. After all that, I surrendered and put in a call to America to have one sent here (even though I'm pretty sure it'll be Made in China).
Incidentally, my hand signals were much more helpful than either of the 2 dictionaries I brought with me. Also, if you are ever in China looking for such an adapter, and you use any of these words (in Chinese), the Chinese people will look at you like, "woah sister, you are in the wrong place":
adapter
converter
cord
cable
wire
line

What you should tell them, and what ultimately worked for me, was "string." I needed to ask for a vga to mini-dvi "string."

Some more HTESFTM pictures:


Nucleus of the HTESFTM


Clearly the hippest statue in China.

All of these things are normal and completely acceptable:


Balancing your computer tower on the back of your bike in afternoon traffic.


Crossing 6 lanes of traffic with a dolly-full of tech equipment


Suspiciously standing in line. These people, for example, are all standing in line to talk to that guy in the blue truck. I see this a lot. I always figure they're buying pirated DVDs, but really I have no idea.

Also, people buy like, 10 computers at a time. I wanted to take a picture of someone shoving a slew of monitors into his car, but it looked kind of black market-ish, and I didn't want to get yelled at.