Monday, August 9, 2010
Soon be home
I will soon be home, and not a moment too soon! How I long for my bass! At Yale I had a guitar at least.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Light Question
Hello all.
The weekly Light questions rarely grab me. This week, however, the "experienced" track question, which seems equally applicable to us Light newbies, struck me.
Q7.The Light Fellowship pre-departure used an often-cited “inter-cultural sensitivity” chart that showed the general trend from “ethnocentric” to “ethnorelative” modes of thinking that tend to occur as a result of study/living abroad. Do you think that you are now somehow more “relative” in your thinking over all? How so? What was it about studying/living abroad that produced this change? If you feel no change, do you still think this experience was useful to you? Why or why not?
First, when considering this question, I need to define that "ethno-" bit. What is an ethnicity? The San Francisco Center for Chinese Culture, in a definition closely matching the others I found, offers four parameters for a distinct ethnic group:
1. Distinct language
2. Indigenous homeland
3. Distinctive customs
4. A strong sense of identity
So, an ethnic group is cultural-linguistic group, and has nothing to do with race or anything else. Our question, then, is basically a cultural one. To put it in personal terms, I am asked whether living in China (for seven weeks at this point) has fostered cultural relativism.
The short answer, simply, is "no". In fact, quite contrary to my rather liberal preconceptions about other cultures, living in China, has, without making broader generalizations, convinced me that modern American culture is actually superior, in terms of "values", to modern Chinese culture.
To give a few examples:
1. Materialism
Americans like to self-deprecate and say "oh, we're so materialistic, Americans just care about money, we're so selfish, bah bah bah bah". Of course, modern American culture /is/ materialistic. I am too materialistic. Most people, to some extent or other, probably are. On the whole, though, I find base materialism significantly more rampant and acceptable here in China than in America. The Chinese really like to talk about /things/. Without leveling any individual criticisms, from my textbook to my teachers to my "Chinese family" to Chinese television news, the Chinese are obsessed with money and goods. Is it name brand? How much money do you make? And so on. This material obsession is reflected in the Chinese political outlook. China's international position and international goals are defined only in terms of economics. China's wealth is a major bragging point.
2. Politeness
Chinese manners, often lauded by the Chinese themselves, are, in general, nothing more than rules. They are meaningless rituals (see below) which, in general, reflect no genuine concern for the needs of others. In America, it's polite for younger men (or women) to offer older folks seats on public transports, and for men to offer women and children seats. This is, of course, because older and younger folks are weaker. In China, on the other hand, you must fight for a seat on a subway. Middle-aged men will be doing battle for seats while the weaker are forced to stand by and watch. Old ladies will fight to be first into elevators, giving you dirty looks for even presuming to ride the same elevator that she ordered by pressing the "up" button. Being sick or sad in public is an embarrassment, so people ignore those who look uncomfortable (so that the other doesn't "lose face") . In America, if someone has a terrible coughing fit, someone says "Bless you!" or "Are you alright?" or "Would like some water?". In China, people ignore that sick person.
Though Chinese selfishness, exemplified in points 1 and 2, is often denied in such ideological code-phrases as "benefiting society" (as a rich man who makes much money must be "benefiting society"--not something I'm necessarily denying, by the way), really these are, under the "Marxism with Chinese characteristics" practiced today, just excuses to continue to seek one's own self-interest.
3. Traditionalism
The Chinese, as a history teacher of mine once observed, are, in many ways, stuck in the past. After century after century of non-progress, despite massive material and human resources, China, today, seems to only be moving forward by the winds of Western and Japanese innovation. Modernity, in China, is simply copying America, Europe, or Japan. On the other hand, old Chinese traditions and ignorant notions persist, and on a massive scale. From fervent belief in Chinese traditional medicine (which no doubt has some valid points, even if it's largely nonsense which encourages the slaying of rare animals) to the fervent belief that Chinese is only one language, China is chock-full of silly old ideas which people cling to without even a pretense of critical examination (don't even get me started on the taboos and superstitions--the number four, green hats, an obsession with pairs). This traditionalism is propagated by a strong sense of national arrogance (I know some people accuse America of the same), an arrogance which totally lacks self-critical thinking (can't accuse America of this). I'm not talking about the criticizing the government or anything, which clearly isn't very possible. Rather, I'm saying that the Chinese are totally unwilling to criticize Chinese history and culture. On the other hand, they're only too happy (as are my fellow students) to constantly criticize and insult America.
Of course, many might argue that, for example, Christianity, still quite strong in America, is also an ignorant notion and old tradition. However, without going in further, I would merely say that, insofar as Chinese beliefs are connected with traditional religious practice, I would omit them from the above criticism. Not that they aren't worthy of criticism (Confucian sexism and elitism? Daoist sexism and elitism?), but that would lead me down another path entirely.
To consider the rest of the Light question, I also found this last bit interesting: "If you feel no change, do you still think this experience was useful to you? Why or why not?"
I think it's interesting that the questions assumes that part of the value of the Light experience is becoming more ethnorelative. I would argue that the value, for me, has been just the opposite. Being in China has actually taught me to value American culture, and, for that, I am grateful.
I would like to say, last of all, that some would no doubt take what I've expressed as an example of a major American cultural flaw ("We need to respect other cultures! Bah bah bah!"). However, I would like to observe that, as I've said, China is also full of pride, and has been more "ethnocentric" tendencies than America insofar as it's a much more distinct and uniform "ethnos". Moreover, as I said, one's America's cultural features is being self-critical, and it's a feature I particularly value. Chinese culture wholly lacks this introspection.
Monday, July 26, 2010
Shanghai, part 1
Yes, this post is very late, but, honestly, upon my return, I did not feel like writing a lick about Shanghai. It was a crazy, busy, and really fun week, and I needed another week to recover before I could even contemplate trying to recall the highlights and put them to page.
First off, I'd better state my business in Shanghai. After missing out on the Inner Mongolia trip, I still wanted to go some place where some tongue other than Mandarin was spoken, and Shanghai fit the bill. Moreover, with the Expo and all that excitement this year in particular, I was surprised spots for the Shanghai trip were still available, and took one while I still could.
Before setting out, I already knew I was going to study Shanghai hua, a dialect of the Wu Chinese language, and totally unintelligible to a Mandarin speaker. Moreover, I also had a mystery on my hands. I had read that, in Shanghai, the word for "I" is "ngo" (or "ngu") (cognate with Mandarin "wo3" and Tibetan "nga"). However, one teachers, a Zhejianger (Zhejiang is the province just south of Shanghai), told me that they say "ala'" (according to my written sources, "ala'" meant "we"). My other teachers, anecdotally, agreed with this opinion. Therefore, "ala'" vs. "ngo/ngu" became the main point of my linguistic investigation in Shanghai.
So, business stated. Now time for some general observations:
1. Shanghai's weather, at least this time of year, seems preferable to Beijing's (it has more cool days and, moreover, it rains all the time).
2. Shanghai, right on the mouth of the Long River, aka the Yangtze, and is a coastal town (hence, you know, its name: "on the sea"). This is also preferable to Beijing's (relatively) drab inland location (admittedly, Shanxi province is just a little ways west of Beijing, and thinking about the Buddha caves and all the jinyu being spoken gets me pretty pumped--however, no matter how near it is, Beijing isn't Shanxi).
3. Shanghai's culture (once again, compared to Beijing's) is a lot more like what one imagines modern Chinese culture to be--bustling, competitive, innovative, and very consumeristic. It's the economic capital of China, and it's what we imagine when we imagine Chinese prosperity. On our first day, we went to a huge shopping mall (5 stories plus a "basement"), and I thought that it was crazily big and busy. Then, on one of our last days, we went to a shopping mall that was 10 stories tall!
4. Shanghai hua is great! Its grammar is much more conservative than that of Mandarin Chinese (so is its phonology), and it struck me as being much more apparently similar to Tibetan than its northerly cousin. I have only have a word-list of probably 150 words, many of which are synonyms (because speech communities are so small (Shanghai hua isn't used for business or mass communications--it's only spoken at home, with friends, and with neighbors) there are lots of small variants--one speaker says the word for "daddy" is "ya", another says "yaya", a third says "aya", a fourth says "ba", and a fifth says "aba").
Some interesting comparisons (note, my notes, while doubtless flawed, are much more phonetically and phonologically precise than the Shanghai hua transcription used below):
English: fire, Mandarin: huo3, Shanghai hua: fu
English: mother, Mandarin: ma1ma, mu3qin1, Shanghai hua: (a)niang (=Mandarin niang2 'girl')
English: uncle (father's older brother), Mandarin: bo2bo (da4bo2 using Shanghai topolect), Shanghai hua: laobaba, dubaba (= Mandarin da4 'big' + ba4ba 'daddy')
And so on...
5. I realized, while using Mandarin to interview our driver, who had a thick "Southern accent" (in Chinese terms), about an entirely different language, that my Chinese skills have increased quite a bit since I was last at Yale. Which was a weird realization--after all, I'd only been here a nudge over 4 weeks at the time.
Well, that's enough for now. Until part 2, which may be around as early as a few hours from now.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Pinyin
Today I came to the same conclusion to which every objective observer eventually comes: China should ditch the characters and adopt pinyin as its official writing system, with supplementary (and standardized) Latin systems for the major fang1yan2 (ie, Yue, Wu, Min, Hakka, and maybe two or three more). The cause of this revelation? I realized the lone word 'ku4' "cool" is written the character for 'ku4', "cruelty, cruel, strong (of alcohol)". That's really ridiculous, given that, instead of borrowing a rather rare zi4, you could just write the pinyin. Afterwards, I spent a couple of hours reading about all the problems han4zi4 cause for Sinitic, Japanese, and Korean speakers and readers.
Not that I'm not still fond of the devilish things.
Not that I'm not still fond of the devilish things.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Mind the curve!
At both of our Light orientation meetings, it was guaranteed that, about midway through the program, we would reach rock bottom. We would become disillusioned, bored, and homesick. I thought it wouldn't happen to me. After all, I thought, homesickness was a major feature of the first few days. Having gotten past that, I thought I wouldn't need to "mind the curve", as our little Light-given notepads remind us. Oh, ho, how foolish I was! By this Monday, how sick I was of China! The problem began last week, came to a head last weekend with my boorish Chinese baba, and finally, Monday, tumbled downhill to reap the fields of despair!
Needless to say, I feel a lot better now (that's the whole "curve" idea--up, down, up). In fact, I found myself, a few minutes ago, casually scanning the Light website for year-long opportunities in Harbin...
But back to the present. A load of clothes is drying downstairs on the fourth floor. The new washing machines here at the conference center are really kicking. I've recently worked out a homework system which both maximizes efficacy (my score) and minimizes time. Instead of doing my homework in the evening, I use the breaks in between sections of class (about an hour, all tolled) to read tomorrow's chapter and do today's work. I finish most of the remaining problems during my lunch break (a generous hour and a half). This method has been facilitated by my ever-faster learning of each day's "recitation from memory" passage, which used to consume most of my break time. Now it typically takes an easy fifteen or twenty minutes after lunch.
I'm going to look at buying a book or two for the ten-hour trip to Shanghai. The campus bookstore is nice, and has some tasty titles in English dealing with Taoism and Chinese medicine, as well as excellent dictionaries, but I'm going to ask around and see if there's another bookstore, either large or near (better yet, both), that I might browse for a little Friday evening adventure.
Have I earlier mentioned that China is very verdant? There are plants /everywhere/. The gardens are well-kept, and the plentiful trees are tall and spindly. I re-notice this almost every day as I'm out and about campus.
A couple of other notes:
What will the living situation be like in Shanghai? Will there be internet access? No clue. Internet access is, in China, a pain.
One thing I can't get used to in China: awful service at restaurants. I sat at my table in Cafeteria No. 2's second-floor restaurant for five or more minutes waiting on a menu, as lazy and rude waitress after lazy and rude waitress passed, milling uselessly. I left and went to the Muslim restaurant, where I have some cred with the wait staff and manager-man. They get me my food in a flash, and extremely politely.
P.S. I know it's a cultural thing, the cruddy service in China. However, even if it's culturally conditioned bad service, it's still bad service.
P.P.S. My post-Shanghai goal: with my Chinese conversational skills competent and subway knowledge passable, I want to get out and do more exploring! If I can find someone interested to explore with me, that is... most would-be explorers are mainly interested in exploring China's alcohol culture on Friday nights, it seems.
P.P.P.S. Shanghai: my number one mission is the search for the elusive /ngu/ "I", apparently largely replaced by /ala/ ("I, we" (orig. "we")). Wish me well!
Needless to say, I feel a lot better now (that's the whole "curve" idea--up, down, up). In fact, I found myself, a few minutes ago, casually scanning the Light website for year-long opportunities in Harbin...
But back to the present. A load of clothes is drying downstairs on the fourth floor. The new washing machines here at the conference center are really kicking. I've recently worked out a homework system which both maximizes efficacy (my score) and minimizes time. Instead of doing my homework in the evening, I use the breaks in between sections of class (about an hour, all tolled) to read tomorrow's chapter and do today's work. I finish most of the remaining problems during my lunch break (a generous hour and a half). This method has been facilitated by my ever-faster learning of each day's "recitation from memory" passage, which used to consume most of my break time. Now it typically takes an easy fifteen or twenty minutes after lunch.
I'm going to look at buying a book or two for the ten-hour trip to Shanghai. The campus bookstore is nice, and has some tasty titles in English dealing with Taoism and Chinese medicine, as well as excellent dictionaries, but I'm going to ask around and see if there's another bookstore, either large or near (better yet, both), that I might browse for a little Friday evening adventure.
Have I earlier mentioned that China is very verdant? There are plants /everywhere/. The gardens are well-kept, and the plentiful trees are tall and spindly. I re-notice this almost every day as I'm out and about campus.
A couple of other notes:
What will the living situation be like in Shanghai? Will there be internet access? No clue. Internet access is, in China, a pain.
One thing I can't get used to in China: awful service at restaurants. I sat at my table in Cafeteria No. 2's second-floor restaurant for five or more minutes waiting on a menu, as lazy and rude waitress after lazy and rude waitress passed, milling uselessly. I left and went to the Muslim restaurant, where I have some cred with the wait staff and manager-man. They get me my food in a flash, and extremely politely.
P.S. I know it's a cultural thing, the cruddy service in China. However, even if it's culturally conditioned bad service, it's still bad service.
P.P.S. My post-Shanghai goal: with my Chinese conversational skills competent and subway knowledge passable, I want to get out and do more exploring! If I can find someone interested to explore with me, that is... most would-be explorers are mainly interested in exploring China's alcohol culture on Friday nights, it seems.
P.P.P.S. Shanghai: my number one mission is the search for the elusive /ngu/ "I", apparently largely replaced by /ala/ ("I, we" (orig. "we")). Wish me well!
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Happy 4th of July!
So, after getting caught up with my Chinese family and a sick Beiyu student, I missed the outing to the Peking opera. However, having spent Saturday morning exploring the hutongr ("alleyways"--not a good translation, but a standard one) of old Beijing across from Tian'anmen, and the afternoon at a very akward, even outrageous, meal with my Chinese family (the subject of an earlier, now deleted, post), I'd had about enough China for the day anyhow. I went to McDonald's for dinner, anticipating the 4th, and enjoyed my McChicken. I had planned to at least watch Germany vs. Argentina, but I fell asleep early in the game. I then slept long.
I must say, being in China makes the 4th of July all the more special. Today, for many reasons, I am really happy I am an American.
Academics: next Friday is cumulative midterm. So many characters to review! This week's oral went super (I outdid myself again), and the written test went okay.
All those rambling notes past, happy 4th of July to everyone! May God bless America!
I must say, being in China makes the 4th of July all the more special. Today, for many reasons, I am really happy I am an American.
Academics: next Friday is cumulative midterm. So many characters to review! This week's oral went super (I outdid myself again), and the written test went okay.
All those rambling notes past, happy 4th of July to everyone! May God bless America!
Monday, June 28, 2010
Pictures! of the Forbidden City
Sadly, out of the more than 100 pictures I snapped at the Forbidden City, these are the only decent ones. My photography skills are poor.
What is this bronze object?
A long walk (one of many)
One of the many massive courts at the Forbidden City
I wish I remembered my Manchu!
Some sort of artificial mountains in the imperial gardens
Pictures! of the Great Wall
A view of the wall from the wall.
It's I!
Yale hat at the Great Wall.
Pretty Chinese donkey.
My internet has been a pain lately (I had no internet Saturday or Sunday night), so these are up a bit later than expected.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
News! and reflections on the past week or so
I'm going to Shanghai in two weeks! Nei Menggu (ie Inner Mongolia) was filled up and I didn't make it in the lottery, but instead I'm headed to Shanghai to write a little report on Shanghai hua (Shanghai dialect). I'm pretty pleased with that, I must say. In any case, it will give my a chance to repeat Chairman Mao's famous Shanghai joke: "I know this is Shang4hai3, but where's Xia4hai3?" ('shang4' and 'xia4' are opposites in Chinese--"up/down, top/bottom, on/off").
Anyhow, academics have been going well this week, as has food. I've decided the Muslim Restaurant is the ultimate in cheap dining: I can get two nang (Xinjiang sesame flatbread-ish stuff, sort of like a pizza crust, with a crackery middle and soft surrounding ring of dough, with red onions on top), which is pretty hearty eating (in fact, it's more than I can eating in a sitting) for a paltry 6 RMB--about a dollar. I had an upset stomach this morning, but some anti-diarrheal put a swift end to that. It must have not been anything too serious, unlike my weekend illness (more on that ahead).
On another note, I am really surprised at the human brain's capacities. At Yale, we learned about 30 characters a week. Here, we're learning more like 50 or 60 a day, and yet, not only do we manage to memorize it all for the next morning's dictation, but also to retain it for Friday's tests. I only need to review around 50 or 60 characters for tomorrow--probably less than a quarter of this week's new vocab. The rest I all knew right off the bat this afternoon.
CONCERNING THE GREAT WALL
It was okay. Truth be told, I wasn't blown away. The extensive renovation, which makes the ancient wall look like it was built a few years ago (which, in some sense, it was), certainly didn't get me excited, and neither did the long and grueling climb uphill to get to the wall. Even once I was on the wall, it was up-and-down, up-and-down, steep as could be. Since I was sick, and hadn't eaten for about twenty-four hours (my aforementioned more severe stomach problems, which, nonetheless, three days' worth of Cipro handily dispatched), this was all the worse.
The highlights of the trip:
1. Tobogganing downhill (better than walking)
2. The beautiful scenery (though just a few miles out of Beijing proper, and still part of the Beijing administrative area, this region's greenery and mountains were stunning. The mountains were of the stereotypical Chinese sort, those which you see in the brush paintings, covered in little evergreens and other gnarled mountain trees, short but very steep, with rocky protrusions)
3. The hawkers: "Many hat! I have many hat!" "Ice cold water! Ice cold beer! Ice cold water! Ice cold beer!" etc.
4. Discussing ancient Chinese military planning with my teachers (I wondered why they built the Great Wall on a string of mountains, which seemed already a natural wall)
5. The donkeys (very pretty, not at all like European donkeys--short black undercoat with long light brown hair), and asking the teachers "In Chinese, what do you call the child of a donkey and a horse?"
6. Taking a break from class!
The lowlights:
1. Being sick
2. The climb up
3. The Great Wall itself
REFLECTIONS ON HBA SO FAR
First off, I love the teachers here. These are some really enthusiastic and talented educators. I've even come to really like the (very, very few) teachers who initially left a bad taste in my mouth.
Second off, my initial enthusiasm aside, the textbook stinks. I love it's pace and the sequence in which it introduces characters (related characters often appear on a serial basis over the course of two or three chapters), but it's "grammar" sections are useless. Not only are they brief to the point of being incomprehensible, but they don't cover all the grammar in the chapter. We'll often go over 20 sentence in patterns in class when the book only covers five or six. Moreover, the exercises sometimes only tangentially relate to the new sentence structures, and, oftentimes, the exercises will ask questions over structures introduced several chapters later.
More later...
I'll be posting photos either tomorrow or Friday! I must get back to the books!
Anyhow, academics have been going well this week, as has food. I've decided the Muslim Restaurant is the ultimate in cheap dining: I can get two nang (Xinjiang sesame flatbread-ish stuff, sort of like a pizza crust, with a crackery middle and soft surrounding ring of dough, with red onions on top), which is pretty hearty eating (in fact, it's more than I can eating in a sitting) for a paltry 6 RMB--about a dollar. I had an upset stomach this morning, but some anti-diarrheal put a swift end to that. It must have not been anything too serious, unlike my weekend illness (more on that ahead).
On another note, I am really surprised at the human brain's capacities. At Yale, we learned about 30 characters a week. Here, we're learning more like 50 or 60 a day, and yet, not only do we manage to memorize it all for the next morning's dictation, but also to retain it for Friday's tests. I only need to review around 50 or 60 characters for tomorrow--probably less than a quarter of this week's new vocab. The rest I all knew right off the bat this afternoon.
CONCERNING THE GREAT WALL
It was okay. Truth be told, I wasn't blown away. The extensive renovation, which makes the ancient wall look like it was built a few years ago (which, in some sense, it was), certainly didn't get me excited, and neither did the long and grueling climb uphill to get to the wall. Even once I was on the wall, it was up-and-down, up-and-down, steep as could be. Since I was sick, and hadn't eaten for about twenty-four hours (my aforementioned more severe stomach problems, which, nonetheless, three days' worth of Cipro handily dispatched), this was all the worse.
The highlights of the trip:
1. Tobogganing downhill (better than walking)
2. The beautiful scenery (though just a few miles out of Beijing proper, and still part of the Beijing administrative area, this region's greenery and mountains were stunning. The mountains were of the stereotypical Chinese sort, those which you see in the brush paintings, covered in little evergreens and other gnarled mountain trees, short but very steep, with rocky protrusions)
3. The hawkers: "Many hat! I have many hat!" "Ice cold water! Ice cold beer! Ice cold water! Ice cold beer!" etc.
4. Discussing ancient Chinese military planning with my teachers (I wondered why they built the Great Wall on a string of mountains, which seemed already a natural wall)
5. The donkeys (very pretty, not at all like European donkeys--short black undercoat with long light brown hair), and asking the teachers "In Chinese, what do you call the child of a donkey and a horse?"
6. Taking a break from class!
The lowlights:
1. Being sick
2. The climb up
3. The Great Wall itself
REFLECTIONS ON HBA SO FAR
First off, I love the teachers here. These are some really enthusiastic and talented educators. I've even come to really like the (very, very few) teachers who initially left a bad taste in my mouth.
Second off, my initial enthusiasm aside, the textbook stinks. I love it's pace and the sequence in which it introduces characters (related characters often appear on a serial basis over the course of two or three chapters), but it's "grammar" sections are useless. Not only are they brief to the point of being incomprehensible, but they don't cover all the grammar in the chapter. We'll often go over 20 sentence in patterns in class when the book only covers five or six. Moreover, the exercises sometimes only tangentially relate to the new sentence structures, and, oftentimes, the exercises will ask questions over structures introduced several chapters later.
More later...
I'll be posting photos either tomorrow or Friday! I must get back to the books!
Friday, June 18, 2010
Many apologies etc
Many apologies for not writing for a few days; I knew my furious blogging pace would sooner or later decrease a bit or more. It decreased sooner and more.
In any case, the last few days of been pretty okay. I took my first test today, and it was surprisingly easy. My oral presentation also went decently. I know at least that, during the rehearsal, the teacher watching me practice said my tones were excellent and my pronunciation perfect and very Chinese-like.
Yesterday I ate at the Muslim Restaurant (which is it's name in Chinese) for the first time. The propietors and waiters are all, indeed, actually Uighurs. I ate some delicious roast mutton there, but today I've been having a few stomach issues and am inclined to blame the sheep (or, more accurately, those cooking the sheep).
Today I met my Chinese family, a mama and a didi (little brother), which I share which a classmate from Berkeley. My Zhongguo mama is a professor of international business. They and the Berkleyite spoke at length about basketball, about which I know next to nothing in English, much less Chinese. Oh well. The list of languages I study always impresses and is a fine conversation topic; Chinese people always are surprised that I've studied Tibetan (so are my classmates, generally), and my mama and didi were no different.
Now I'm going to watch soccer, a sport for which I am slowly gaining an appreciation, for the athleticism it requires if nothing else.
In any case, the last few days of been pretty okay. I took my first test today, and it was surprisingly easy. My oral presentation also went decently. I know at least that, during the rehearsal, the teacher watching me practice said my tones were excellent and my pronunciation perfect and very Chinese-like.
Yesterday I ate at the Muslim Restaurant (which is it's name in Chinese) for the first time. The propietors and waiters are all, indeed, actually Uighurs. I ate some delicious roast mutton there, but today I've been having a few stomach issues and am inclined to blame the sheep (or, more accurately, those cooking the sheep).
Today I met my Chinese family, a mama and a didi (little brother), which I share which a classmate from Berkeley. My Zhongguo mama is a professor of international business. They and the Berkleyite spoke at length about basketball, about which I know next to nothing in English, much less Chinese. Oh well. The list of languages I study always impresses and is a fine conversation topic; Chinese people always are surprised that I've studied Tibetan (so are my classmates, generally), and my mama and didi were no different.
Now I'm going to watch soccer, a sport for which I am slowly gaining an appreciation, for the athleticism it requires if nothing else.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Another thunderstorm!
Is it just me or do thunderstorms tend to happen at night? If they indeed do, has this something to do with temperature or temperature change (day to night)?
Jintian de xinwen (today's news)
Food: Lunch was free, since it was Zhongwen zhuozi (Chinese language table, ie eating with our teachers in little groups), and very mediocre. I tried fish-flavored pork for dinner at my usual fan4guanr3, since I just learned the characters, and it was okay. It was like American Chinese food in the sense that it was smothered in a thick, sticky sauce, except this sauce had (surprise!) a fishy flavor. My favorite bit of the dinner was the green onions.
Academics: Another 95% for dictation--I knew all the characters today, but I accidentally skipped "zai4" (at). Oops! Homework wasn't as good, but the grading seems rather arbitrary. Oh well.
Academics: Another 95% for dictation--I knew all the characters today, but I accidentally skipped "zai4" (at). Oops! Homework wasn't as good, but the grading seems rather arbitrary. Oh well.
some exciting observations (Or, The Titular Post)
China: there's what I've heard, and then there's what I've experienced. More often than not, the two are remarkably similar, and the observations which follow are a testament to the accuracy of previous travelogues.
1. THE PEOPLE...
are just as friendly as they are reputed to be.
2. THE EXCEPTION...
is "business" situations, by which I mean situations in which I am the customer. Service, from restaurants to photo shops, is bu tai hao (not so good). The customer does not come first unless he knows somebody. This is an illustration of the Chinese concept of guanxi ("connections"), which are necessary, not only for good service, but also, e.g., for getting a job. I recall my plane-friend, Xiao3xue3 (Serena was her English name) telling me that it was hard for her to get a job in Beijing because of her own lack of connections. Whereas money or experience might "talk" in America, in the Middle Country it's all about whom you know.
2.5. THE EXCEPTION TO THE EXCEPTION...
is the man at the convenience desk on the first floor. He is always friendly to me.
3. THE ECCENTRICITY...
is real. The "cool" of China is way too cool for me. Just saw a man on TV with a huge blue flower in his vest and sporting large black earrings. Whoa. A lot of folks have shirts with English writing (reminds me of the Chinese and Japanese characters which many Americans sport). Saw one guy with a pink shirt that said: "VIRGINS WANTED. No experience necessary." I wonder whether he knew what it said. Either way, it was creepy.
English translations are everywhere--on signs, etc.--and are often semi-nonsensical. In the parking lot of our classroom building is a sign prohibiting "boardskating", and at the airport, the people-movers were termed "escalators" on the signs.
4. THE SMOG...
is also real, but not as bad as some have said. I can see patches of blue sky even as I write.
1. THE PEOPLE...
are just as friendly as they are reputed to be.
2. THE EXCEPTION...
is "business" situations, by which I mean situations in which I am the customer. Service, from restaurants to photo shops, is bu tai hao (not so good). The customer does not come first unless he knows somebody. This is an illustration of the Chinese concept of guanxi ("connections"), which are necessary, not only for good service, but also, e.g., for getting a job. I recall my plane-friend, Xiao3xue3 (Serena was her English name) telling me that it was hard for her to get a job in Beijing because of her own lack of connections. Whereas money or experience might "talk" in America, in the Middle Country it's all about whom you know.
2.5. THE EXCEPTION TO THE EXCEPTION...
is the man at the convenience desk on the first floor. He is always friendly to me.
3. THE ECCENTRICITY...
is real. The "cool" of China is way too cool for me. Just saw a man on TV with a huge blue flower in his vest and sporting large black earrings. Whoa. A lot of folks have shirts with English writing (reminds me of the Chinese and Japanese characters which many Americans sport). Saw one guy with a pink shirt that said: "VIRGINS WANTED. No experience necessary." I wonder whether he knew what it said. Either way, it was creepy.
English translations are everywhere--on signs, etc.--and are often semi-nonsensical. In the parking lot of our classroom building is a sign prohibiting "boardskating", and at the airport, the people-movers were termed "escalators" on the signs.
4. THE SMOG...
is also real, but not as bad as some have said. I can see patches of blue sky even as I write.
Monday, June 14, 2010
First day of class and thunderstorm aftermath
The first day of class went well! My tones (of all things--I would have never imagined seven months ago!) impressed some of the lao3shi1men2 (professors/teachers). My first dictation assignment was a success--95%. The only characters I missed were those in Hafo (Harvard), and who cares about that place? The academics seem tough enough but within reason. Speaking of Harvard vs. Yale, my danbanke (individual session) laoshi for the day indicated that we Yalies (and I particularly) have very good "Chinese-sounding" accents and tones. Apparently the Hafo xuesheng leave something to be desired in this area.
Had the mushroom and chicken dish with lots of red pepper again for dinner. I'll have the duck, I think, tomorrow. Food and drink for today came to 42 kuai. I can't eat in the super-cheap cafeteria-type cafeteria on the first floor of Di Er Canting yet, but I'm not sure I want to do so once I can. The program coordinator warned us against it twice--apparently it's not kind on the stomach. I think I'll stay relatively cheap by sticking to Zhongguo fan (as opposed the very expensive foreign food and Western brand snack food) and end up fine in any case. If I spend an average 45/day for food (which is higher, I think, than my average so far), that's only 315 kuai/week, or 1260 kuai/month, or 2835 yuan for the program. And that, after all, is only 473 dollars. Since I have around $1400 in Light money left, I believe, that seems a reasonable investment in food, leaving me more than enough travel money (for Nei4 Meng3gu3, ie Inner Mongolia, week 5) and incidental money (buying another month of internet, eg). Enough about the budget, though.
Lunch, by the way, was pocky.
Thunderstorm aftermath: it smelled wonderful outside this morning, and the air seems still a bit clearer for the rain. Or maybe I'm just getting used to the pollution.
Now back to studying.
Had the mushroom and chicken dish with lots of red pepper again for dinner. I'll have the duck, I think, tomorrow. Food and drink for today came to 42 kuai. I can't eat in the super-cheap cafeteria-type cafeteria on the first floor of Di Er Canting yet, but I'm not sure I want to do so once I can. The program coordinator warned us against it twice--apparently it's not kind on the stomach. I think I'll stay relatively cheap by sticking to Zhongguo fan (as opposed the very expensive foreign food and Western brand snack food) and end up fine in any case. If I spend an average 45/day for food (which is higher, I think, than my average so far), that's only 315 kuai/week, or 1260 kuai/month, or 2835 yuan for the program. And that, after all, is only 473 dollars. Since I have around $1400 in Light money left, I believe, that seems a reasonable investment in food, leaving me more than enough travel money (for Nei4 Meng3gu3, ie Inner Mongolia, week 5) and incidental money (buying another month of internet, eg). Enough about the budget, though.
Lunch, by the way, was pocky.
Thunderstorm aftermath: it smelled wonderful outside this morning, and the air seems still a bit clearer for the rain. Or maybe I'm just getting used to the pollution.
Now back to studying.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Thunderstorm comes
First, off my food report: I didn't do too well today... "breakfast" was 11.5 kuai, lunch (at an extremely mediocre Japanese place which the coordinator recommended--I had wudong (which is to say udon) noodles with awful beef) was 25 kuai, and dinner (another delicious bowel of niuroumian at the Chinese place on the second floor of Cafeteria No. 2) was 14. 50.5 kuai is cutting pretty close to the approx. 60 kuai budget. First and last time at the Japanese place. The Chinese place 10 feet away is 10 times better.
Second: a thunderstorm comes! It drives away the smog and smoggy smell, and it smells like rain now. The wind's blowing like crazy--it blasted some particles into my eyes and throat on the way back from dinner. A few flashes of thunder have lit the campus, and a few droplets of rain have fallen. I've got my window open to smell the air and hear the storm coming.
Third: Opening convocation went well. I was one of the only fellows dressed up anywhat, and I didn't even bother with a tie... I sensed beforehand that it would be, for most, a shorts and t-shirt affair. Signed the language pledge. Had a few quasi-conversations with a couple of Yalies from my 2nd semester section in Chinese afterward.
Fourth: Great textbook! The vocab looks intense (around 50-60 items a day, including a large helping of new characters), but it doesn't seem as bad now that I'm digging in. I also have to memorize a passage for tomorrow.
I can hear more thunder... I love thunderstorms.
Second: a thunderstorm comes! It drives away the smog and smoggy smell, and it smells like rain now. The wind's blowing like crazy--it blasted some particles into my eyes and throat on the way back from dinner. A few flashes of thunder have lit the campus, and a few droplets of rain have fallen. I've got my window open to smell the air and hear the storm coming.
Third: Opening convocation went well. I was one of the only fellows dressed up anywhat, and I didn't even bother with a tie... I sensed beforehand that it would be, for most, a shorts and t-shirt affair. Signed the language pledge. Had a few quasi-conversations with a couple of Yalies from my 2nd semester section in Chinese afterward.
Fourth: Great textbook! The vocab looks intense (around 50-60 items a day, including a large helping of new characters), but it doesn't seem as bad now that I'm digging in. I also have to memorize a passage for tomorrow.
I can hear more thunder... I love thunderstorms.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Academic stuff, cont.
I made it through my oral exam more than okay. Very stress free. Went downstairs & bought "breakfast" (yi ge da xuebi (large Sprite--1.25L) and yi ge baiqi (pocky--just because I can read the characters)). I've only drunk a little Sprite--it should last a while at this rate.
Academic stuff...
It starts today. Just finished the written portion of the placement exam. 2nd years need only answer the first three questions on the exam, and those were the only three I could read, so it was just as well. The written bit was easy. I now await the oral and am exceedingly nervous about it. I don't know why, since I can't go any lower than 2nd year.
Mornings
When I first wake up and all's dark, I really want to be home again. But this morning I discovered Skype.
Dinner for one
I went to dinner alone, if only to prove to myself that I could navigate a restaurant, in Chinese, all by myself. I was successful, largely, even if it took me a bit to realize that the waitress was asking whether I wanted rice (I actually didn't realize what she'd asked until she'd gone, but I had, fortunately, indicated 'no' anyhow). I was more temerarious in ordering than I was at lunch, and simply said "zhei ge" and pointed at some chicken dish. It was very la4 (spicy), but also delicious. The other major elements, besides fried chicken and red peppers, were two sorts of mushroom, little golden ones and larger white ones. It, plus Sprite, came to 29 yuan, or about $4.50. The Light allocates approx. 60 kuai (ie $10) per diem for food, so I, at 46 (lunch, dinner, and an afternoon Sprite) did okay.
Now for studying, Chinese TV, and sleeping.
Oh, and N.B. kuai = yuan = RMB. It's all the same thing.
Now for studying, Chinese TV, and sleeping.
Oh, and N.B. kuai = yuan = RMB. It's all the same thing.
Chopsticks...
...are easy to use when you're hungry. I've only eaten with chopsticks three or four times before, but, having not eaten for around 18 hours, I was using them like a pro at lunch.
Friday, June 11, 2010
First Impressions
What is Beijing like? It's not so foreign as I expected, and yet it's much more foreign. The fact that signs are all written in Chinese, and that the language of the street is Mandarin, is not very strange. The airport could have been any airport, just much bigger and much slicker. The highways and overpasses are highways and overpasses. And the people are just people.
On the other hand, on the way from the airport to BLCU, I saw three cars driving in the emergency vehicle lane, and going out for the campus tour this morning, we were greeted by a car driving down the sidewalk. The Korean community here is very fond of silly-looking motor scooters on which they speed about. And the TV is much different than in America. It's much more wholesome, for one thing--I haven't seen a terribly lowbrow program yet (even Chinese MTV seems corny rather than disgusting). It has many more soap operas, all of which are soaked in melodrama (the music, the acting, etc., are all way over the top). This morning I saw a fascinating game show which revolved around guessing, with a blindfold on, the value of various yuan notes waved near one's ear (different value notes are different sizes--1 yuan notes are tiny, 100 yuan notes are larger than American bills). There was also a part about counting money as fast as possible. A novel TV show concept, I suppose.
Also, the sky is always smoggy, everywhere smells funny (it doesn't "stink"--it's just a weird smell), and all the locals ride (invariably dirty) bicycles.
All for all, though, I like it. I'm over a few humps--I have the internet, for one thing, which makes me feel a lot safer (in that I'm back in touch with the world), and I've showered once, bought one meal, etc.--and am settling in pretty well.
On the other hand, on the way from the airport to BLCU, I saw three cars driving in the emergency vehicle lane, and going out for the campus tour this morning, we were greeted by a car driving down the sidewalk. The Korean community here is very fond of silly-looking motor scooters on which they speed about. And the TV is much different than in America. It's much more wholesome, for one thing--I haven't seen a terribly lowbrow program yet (even Chinese MTV seems corny rather than disgusting). It has many more soap operas, all of which are soaked in melodrama (the music, the acting, etc., are all way over the top). This morning I saw a fascinating game show which revolved around guessing, with a blindfold on, the value of various yuan notes waved near one's ear (different value notes are different sizes--1 yuan notes are tiny, 100 yuan notes are larger than American bills). There was also a part about counting money as fast as possible. A novel TV show concept, I suppose.
Also, the sky is always smoggy, everywhere smells funny (it doesn't "stink"--it's just a weird smell), and all the locals ride (invariably dirty) bicycles.
All for all, though, I like it. I'm over a few humps--I have the internet, for one thing, which makes me feel a lot safer (in that I'm back in touch with the world), and I've showered once, bought one meal, etc.--and am settling in pretty well.
Food and Water
We have been warned, time and time again, about drinking the tap water in China. So, it is little wonder that, when I woke up bright and early at 6:00 this morning, I was extremely trepidatious about showering. I was worried to death about keeping my mouth shut the whole time. Having chatted with a few other first-time-in-China students over lunch, I think we are all paranoid.
I ordered my first lunch in China today, in Chinese, in the Chinese restaurant in Cafeteria no. 2 (everything in China is (building type) no.(#)). I had niu2rou4mian4 (beef noodles), since I could actually read those characters and was quite sure what I was ordering. I was expecting something mediocre, but it was actually pretty delicious. I had a bottle of xue3bi4 (Sprite) with the meal. It was 14 kuai, or about 2 dollars.
Then it was off to the internet store... long wait, and expensive in Chinese terms (250 yuan--nearly 50 dollars
--for ethernet cable, one-time fee, and fee for this month). The internet is very slow here, but since we have the Yale VPN and therefore Yale bandwidth, it's just like being at home for us Yalies (Harvard has a VPN, too, of course). I can Google and Facebook without fear.
I ordered my first lunch in China today, in Chinese, in the Chinese restaurant in Cafeteria no. 2 (everything in China is (building type) no.(#)). I had niu2rou4mian4 (beef noodles), since I could actually read those characters and was quite sure what I was ordering. I was expecting something mediocre, but it was actually pretty delicious. I had a bottle of xue3bi4 (Sprite) with the meal. It was 14 kuai, or about 2 dollars.
Then it was off to the internet store... long wait, and expensive in Chinese terms (250 yuan--nearly 50 dollars
--for ethernet cable, one-time fee, and fee for this month). The internet is very slow here, but since we have the Yale VPN and therefore Yale bandwidth, it's just like being at home for us Yalies (Harvard has a VPN, too, of course). I can Google and Facebook without fear.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
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