Bicycle Tour of Yulong River Scenic Area

Jess and I woke up a little late after our late night of shenanigans, but after a restorative breakfast (featuring a large American style spread plus glorious coffee) we were ready to try to find the swimming hole the Americans reccommended to us the day before. We rented bikes from our hostel (10 yuan) and got a local area map. We had been shown where the place was on a different map so I figured out where we needed to go and off we went. We headed southwest out of town about 5km and turned north on a one lane paved road that followed the Yulong River. The river winds through rice parties and villages, with mini Yijiang style dramatic scenery. We saw rice patties, peasants farming, water buffalo and the like. It was gorgeous. The bike ride took us about an hour and a half and we were getting pretty sweaty. The map was ok but not exact and we got mildly lost at one point when we discovered the paved road takes you most of the way but actually leads to a bamboo rafting launch point that had a lot of touts.

Retrekking to a dirt road led us to another paved road that was the right one and also went back to Yangshou! We decided to try that one on our return.

The directions told us to turn left at the sign for the Outside Inn and head through the rice patties to the river. We passed several cute little Western-owned guesthouses that looked really pleasant. The directions were good and we found the sign, turned left and bikes through the fields past a farmer leading her water buffalo. The swimming hole was idyllic, with a nice, clear river, a ruined archway and a small outcropping of rock on the other side.

There was one other person there, an American who owned some stone factories in China and was touring around. He chatted with us and gave us some great tips for what to do in Chengdu. The water was perfect, cool and refreshing! We could see many kinds of fish in the river, kinds I have never seen before. The bottom was a bit mucky with some plants, but there were large, flat rocks to stand on. We could see farmers working the fields beside us and a man across the river letting his buffalo graze. It was ridiculously scenic and we took many pictures.

The bike back was much quicker, only 45 minutes. We took the other road back and it was more direct. We've just finished eating a snack and will catch the bus back to Guilin and then to the airport. We're very sad to leave, this place is pretty magical.

I'm Now Fully Invested in Arsenal

Yesterday's class transitioned from talking about China to discussing Japan and Korea. Goddard emphasized the isolationist nature of Japan, which was pretty much old hat to me, being an East Asian Studies major and all. For lunch we tried "Franklin's House of Dumplings" as Panos calls it, which is basically the dumpling-themed cafeteria. In typical confusing style, they have a lovely menu on the wall with many delicious sounding jiaozi listed, but only serve a fraction of the available dumplings every day. Tragically they did not have the "pork and pumpkin" flavored ones I wanted to try, so I made do with pork and cabbage (which were still good, and at 4 Yuan for a large plate, a steal!).

After class Ben Malki and I went to the electronics superstore to buy him a new charger for his computer. I was blathering on in Chinese about how "this object does not work and he would like to buy a new one" and then the salesman busted out with perfect English, saying "Yes, your charger is not functioning and you would like to purchase a new one!" Oh well! We chatted with him for a while and it turns out he is from Urumqi, which is in far western China, Xinjiang Province. Ben and I also swung by the Off Price Mart (doesn't it just sound full of bargains?) which appears to be a sort of super ghetto department store, which is full of racks of clothes, shoes, appliances, etc., all on sale. Some group members had purchased some fly football [soccer] jackets at Off Price and we wanted to scope out the selection. The authentic Adidas section was somewhat paltry, only having one Bahamas jacket, which Panos already owned, and a Rio de Janeiro one that Ben rejected on account of it having a silkscreen of Jesus. Ben being a Jew but one inherently suspicious of all religions (including his own), he did not feel comfortable wearing Jesus around. Apparently he is not a Jew for Jesus.

We decided to try the fake Adidas section, and found two options that intrigued us, a bright orange jacket with the name Robben on the back and a mysterious man's face on the front. We called Panos and learned that Robben is a Dutch player who is currently on Real Madrid. I rejected it on the basis of Robben's Dutch-ness and checked out the other option, a white and red number mimicking a retro jacket from the Egyptian soccer team Zamalek. Ben rejected it on account of funny construction ("Your shoulder pads look like Star Trek" was his reasoning). I finally found a jacket I liked in the Arsenal section (English premier league fans will be intrigued to know that there was no Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool or Tottenham Hotspur, just Arsenal) and got it for 180 Yuan. I have no idea if it's real or fake, but it's sharp looking and appears well constructed. Finally I have bought something in China!!! (yay) Ben was joking that now I'm fully invested as a (long suffering) Arsenal fan and I'd better get cracking on their statistics. Looks like their next match is today (Saturday) vs. Newcastle United, but due to the magic of China being ahead of Europe, it will take place at like 1am Beijing time.



After shopping we met up for a dinner/lecture at the hotel restaurant so that Goddard could give us a breakdown of how to behave at a fancy Chinese banquet. It was an interesting and informative lecture, some of the more useful tips were to just push things around on your plate if you don't like it, no one will notice, and to claim you are on medication if you don't want to drink. There is much importance given to the retention and potential loss of face, and how the guest must ensure that the host does not lose face in front of his/her peers. We have a fair number of Mormons at Thunderbird, most of which are cool, but some insist on rubbing in EVERY TIME that they can't drink and it gets very tiresome. Hopefully Goddard's little lecture will make some impact on them. The food was pretty good, too, not too oily and fresh vegetables. I found this surprising, especially given the fact that this was a hotel restaurant.

Today was the last class of RBE: Asia, hallelujah! The focus shifted to India, which was interesting as I know a lot less about the country than I probably should. Some of our Indian students (who not surprisingly are all from the top echelons of Indian society both caste-wise and income wise; we have all Brahmins except one Sikh) got quite argumentative about some topics, such as the issues with poverty in India. One student tried to claim that the poor people are happy in their situation, which sounded rather fishy. I kept thinking of my friend Christy's work rescuing prostitutes in Calcutta, where they had some girls whose villages were so poor that the life of a prostitute was preferable than living in the village--the girls had 3 full meals a day, new clothes, their own room and didn't have to work. If there are people in your country who would rather sell themselves than live in their hometowns, there is a serious problem with poverty! Compared to China, India has a much lower GDP per capital and a higher percentage of people living below the poverty line. Additionally, even though very high quality education is available to those who can pay for it, the literacy rate is not that high (60% compared to China's 90%). India still has a lot of growth potential in the world economy. The government's protectionist policies and perceived corruption have been retarding the countries growth, so Goddard emphasized those factors as a reason why India has not grown as quickly as China.

We finished up class FINALLY and broke for the weekend (what's left of it). Tonight I plan to hit up the Wudaokou area with Mike Logan and maybe some karaoke later. Tomorrow we have an arranged tour of the Forbidden City and Tian'anmen Square. I figure since they are providing transportation and I paid for it, I will be going. More updates to come later!

Here are some photos to tide you over:



The crepe master outside my hotel.



Beijing biker gang! Nikhil and I show off our student bikes. Dig my pink Chuck Taylors!

Adventures Via Bike and at Student Canteen #5

We had our first full day of classes today, Regional Business Environment: Asia with Professor Goddard (whom I had last trimester for Global Political Economy). Class actually went decently fast, Goddard was generous with breaks and we discussed the Susan Shirk book in the afternoon. We broke down into smaller groups to present certain chapters from the book and my group had the Japan chapter. It was pretty interesting and our summary provoked a long discussion. The gist of our thesis was that while Japan has not been helpful in refusing to properly acknowledge and take responsibility for their atrocities, China has not been helpful in their petty squabbles directed at China, which I chose to represent in doodle form as China blowing a big international raspberry at Japan.

At lunch Franklin took us to the student meals office to get our meal cards set up. For 10 yuan plus whatever you want added you get a special card that is usable in any of the student canteens on campus. The food is subsidized by the government so it's incredibly cheap. Franklin also said he'd take us to the cafeteria afterwards, but in what was not a shocker, there was only one lady at the meals office who could process the cards, so I made sure to get in line first and then jet once I was done. I went to Student Canteen #5, which Franklin had recommended yesterday. The setup is total madhouse by Western standards, pretty normal for Chinese standards. You walk in and join the milling mass of students waiting by the kitchen. There are handwritten signs on the glass displaying the dishes available, none of which seem to designate what kinds of meat are being used. I found it best to just point and wave at what I wanted. One must wriggle to the front of the line somehow and then order dishes as desired. The attendant then punches in the price to a little reader and you swipe your card. Or, should I say, you insert you card, wait a few seconds for it to register and then you're good to go. I had some kind of spicy chicken, a green peppers and pork dish and rice. It was very tasty and at only 5 yuan, a total bargain. As it turned out, I'm glad I bounced because everyone else went to a slightly more sedate and less chaotic place to eat, which did not sound as authentic and fun.

After lunch I broke down and bought a bike from the student bike shop. Total plus basket and longer seat post (yeah, it was too short for me) was 270 yuan, about $40. It cuts down on the commute like something crazy. I still get some funny looks but not as many as just walking. I commuted home on the bike, which was nice because I go through campus to avoid the nasty traffic and it took about half the time of walking. I did some kind of funky maneuvers however which were a little bit heart attack inducing (I will save the descriptions so as not to freak out my parents) but I made it back safely. I parked it in the bike parking lot by the corner of my hotel. For 3 mao (like 30 cents) a guy is supposed to keep an eye on my bike. One thing about Beijing that is very odd--everyone only locks the wheel of their bikes but not the frame to anything solid. No wonder bike theft is such an issue! I only hope that this bike doesn't get stolen. Otherwise I am taking a cab to the nearest Carrefour and will buy a fold-up that I keep in my room.

I grabbed a quick ramen to go from the Japanese restaurant next to the hotel, I managed to communicate that I wanted to get my meal "to go", which was fun. The ramen was OK, kind of oily (like everything here). I wanted a rice dish but they were out of rice (WHAT?? I know, ridiculous) so I had to make do. I watched a great soap about Qing dynasty China that is kind of like Kung Fu Panda but with people instead of pandas, and now am watching some Chinese opera. I don't care about what Cross Cultural Communications says about embracing other cultures, but this stuff sounds totally terrible. I wish Jessica were here! She comes in a week. :/

Power Walking & Critical Mass

Today was a very busy day; Franklin from the Beida Exchange Program Office met us at the FX hotel in the morning to walk us to the campus. I was comfortably ensconced in the lobby, consuming my exciting breakfast of giant scallion egg crepe pancake and warm soy milk purchased from the breakfast cart across the way. For just 3 Yuan I had a yummy and fulfilling breakfast--way better than the cold, crusty buns the rest of the kids picked up at a local bakery. The ordering process is really fun, you have to push to the front of the line, avoiding being cut, and then quickly order what you want or else they get impatient. I will have to take a photo tomorrow of the crepe maker--he has a round stone and little wood pusher, just like les crepiers francais!

The walk to campus took over 30 minutes. We walked in a group (of course, ugh, I'm so over groups) and had to cross several streets. With the Chinese easy-come-easy-go method of road rules (both vehicular and pedestrian), crossing the road can either be very convenient (as one does not have to wait for a crossing or even a light) or a complete nightmare (as it's completely laissez-faire). Busses, cars, taxis, mopeds, scooters, electric bikes and delivery tractors all compete for space on the road, and don't appear to necessarily observe all traffic signals or rules. Meanwhile, groups of pedestrians congregate at crossing points and eventually reach a critical mass such that they can forge out into the street without fear of being run over. I'm not really sure who decides when the appropriate time for crossing is reached, but the herd mentality takes over and everyone steps out into the void together. Franklin told us that if we always cross the street with a group of Chinese people, we will not get hit. I am 95% convinced this is true.

Our classroom is way over by the eastern gate of campus, whereas our hotel is near the Southwest gate. We did not have our Peking University IDs in the morning, so we had to go the long way around, which took forever. I did at least get to see the Olympic Ping Pong venue (oh, joy). There is also construction for the last bit of the walk, so you have to walk in the bike lane which is used as a two way street for non-vehicular traffic as well as pedestrian. Everyone stared at me, which is par for the course in China, although you can always tell who is a country bumpkin vs. sophisticated city dweller; the bumpkins stare openly and blatantly, whereas the Beijingers make covert little glances. At least no one has run up to me and tried to shout "HELLO! HELLO!" like they did the last time I was in Beijing.

Orientation was pretty standard stuff, the usual about cultural sensitivity and survival. We did at least get our Beijing Daxue student IDs, which are super key--we can use them to access facilities on campus such as the gym or library (although we have to pay an extra 10 yuan in order to get a reading card), and because Beida is so prestigious (the Harvard of China) we can also use them as ID outside of campus, such as for our credit cards or if we get pulled over and questioned by the police. [Just to clarify, there are many names for this school, all of which I use interchangeably: Peking University, Beijing Daxue and Beida.] The T-bird students were surprisingly quiet during the orientation and stupid questions were kept to a minimum--I think it was the jet lag. Lunch was provided, in the form of Subway (the horror!).

I wolfed down my sandwich and went outside into the lovely early spring day (high 60's) to purchase a SIM card for my mobile telephone. The cards are purchased at tobacco/magazine kiosks, inevitably staffed by a somewhat lackadaisical albiet friendly young lady. One asks for a "SIM ka" or "dian hua ka" and is presented with a list of available telephone numbers. The more 8's in the number, the more expensive. The more 4's, the cheaper (the word for four, si, has a phoenitic but not tonal match to the word for death, whereas eight, or ba, is the same as fortune). I shelled out for a number with TWO 8's (the luxury!) plus a 50 yuan credit for the phone. For a total of US$15 I am now a proud China Mobile customer. After returning to the lunch room, I turned around and went back out again with Ben Malki, and bought a second card for him. I felt accomplished in that I was able to speak Chinese well enough to make myself understood.

The afternoon was taken up by "Survival Chinese Class", which was advertised as being for those with zero Chinese skills. I took the opportunity to jet out of there, and went on a quest to find a bike. Beida has a bike shop on campus, which was run by some surly and rather unfriendly young gentlemen who refused to bargain even a little bit on a dusty bike, the only one I could see that would fit my ridiculously long legs (both by US and metric measurements). They wanted 210 Yuan, which I found out later was a decent price, but I don't really want a shiny new bike--I want to hit up the used bike market at Wulikou bridge (or something like that, I will have to check tomorrow) so I can find my beloved used Flying Pigeon brand bike (the Communist state-owned bike). I'd also like to find something with front basket already attached. I've noticed that outside our hotel there is a bike parking lot where you pay 1 yuan or so and then you can park your bike supervised. The other option is to get a foldable bike and bring that up to the room. I think it's more of the Beijing experience to get the clunker and park it outside, however.

I went back to the hotel and checked email, and then walked back to the classroom. All I can say is that it is FAR! I clocked myself, walking pretty darn fast, and it took me exactly 20 minutes to get to the beginning of the construction section, where I ran into the group heading for the group picture. We all stood in line for a while, got the photo and then went into the Shaoyuan building for a yummy welcome banquet. Many delicious northern Chinese foods were offered, including some new melon varieties I hadn't yet tried. Mike Logan and I had fun introducing the foreign students to various wacky vegetables and meats. Nikhil just got in from Mexico, so he was very excited to see Peking Duck, which he called a "Chinese taco."

After the dinner Mike Logan and I hit up the electronics superstore to get him a cell phone (250 yuan) and me a flash drive (160 yuan, not the best price but whatever I needed one). Then I had to sit down and write my stupid critique for Goddard's class tomorrow on Susan Shirk's book China: Fragile Superpower. Pretty much everyone left it 'till the last minute, so we're all ensconced in our hotel rooms cranking away. I finished up around 11pm, so I'm off to the old sensory deprivation chamber for bed. Tomorrow classes start for real... or at least our first class.