Heading Back

I'll be back in Lanzhou on Wednesday. I'm excited for the semester, and planning has been much more low-key since I know more of what to expect this time around.

I already know how different this coming semester is going to be compared with the Spring 2008 semester I spent in Lanzhou. First of all, I know exactly what to pack (and what not to pack!). The first item on my packing list this summer was instant coffee! The Chinese are, not surprisingly, big tea drinkers. They have instant coffee, but it's already sweetened and has whitener in it. I plan on drinking my fair share of tea, but some mornings I'm sure I'll just want my coffee! I'm also taking some boxes of macaroni, a jar of nutella, and a box of CoCo Wheats. The macaroni and nutella are more so I can share them with other international students, not because I will miss them. The CoCo Wheats are because it's an easy breakfast that I enjoy, especially on cold mornings!

I also think I better planned out the clothing I'm taking. Layering is so important, so I packed colors that go together and items I can wear on top of one another. For anyone planning on traveling, I can't stress the importance of layering!

Another difference I am expecting is in the international students I will be studying with. Sometimes I have an irrational fear that my classmates won't be as cool as last time. What if they're all jerks and we don't get along? On one hand, I know that I can never make friendships exactly like the ones I formed with Dustin, Ellen, Tracy, Travis, and all the other good friends I made last time. But that's the nature of friendship. This semester, I know I will make strong, lasting friendships with new people. Of course it won't be the same, but it will be just as great. By the way, my roommate from before, Aidana, will be in Lanzhou at the same time as me. She's studying at a different university, but she's only a bus ride away! And, my Chinese friends Lili and Ming will be in Lanzhou with me, too. These two were exchange students to Muskingum this past year.

I also know I won't travel quite as much as I did last semester in China. One reason is that I have to be back at Muskingum in January for the spring semester, so I don't have the luxury of traveling for a month after my classes. Since I will be limited to weekends and short breaks, I will have to take trips to nearby cities.

Lastly, because I'm fairly familiar with the city of Lanzhou, I will be spending less time learning the city and walking around taking it all in. Instead, when I go out, I will enjoy visiting the places I remember and trying to find new things to do.

I am really looking forward to my semester in Lanzhou. The city feels a lot like home to me.

Europe

Europe had never before intrigued me. While I was certainly excited to go to Germany and Italy, if I could choose anywhere in the world to visit, Europe would be at the end of the list (followed only by Antarctica).

In spite of this skeptical attitude, I have come to appreciate Europe a little more. I love Germany in particular.

I like the character of German people. They can seem harsh and cold, but they are just getting down to business. I also like the language. It's made fun of for the gutteral sounds, but I found that it is often spoken sweetly and tenderly.

The German landscape is beautiful. The blue skies, blue lakes (and even white ones!), green mountains, yellow fields... Germany feels very open and fresh.

As for Italy, though, I was unimpressed by the general atmosphere. Italy is dirty and covered in graffiti. It seems not well taken care of. The Italian countryside is certainly different, with the vineyards, quaint houses of all colors, and beautiful mountains. But the cities are not places I wish to be.

As for German cities, I laughed when I heard that Munich is called "cozy." How could the capital city of Bavaria - large, important, and formal - be so often described this way? I didn't feel that Munich was cozy until after visiting Venice and Rome. After contrasting the impersonal, busy, and dirty qualities of the Italian cities, I would definitely describe Munich as gemutlich!

"Surprisingly, it's just like you thought it would be."

That's how my guidebook introduced the city of Venice. Not very encouraging! It became a huge joke between Wade and me as we traveled together.

Venice conjures up images of gondolas, with handsome, singing drivers in striped shirts. The waterways are busy. Little footbridges jut out above the watery streets. The sights, the sounds, and the colors are, in fact, just as I expected and hoped they would be.

I found, however, that Venice is way more touristy than I imagined. Wade and I were badgered about taking a gondola ride, and we simply wanted to explore on foot. When we were on main streets near some of the sights, the amount of people was unbearable. Tourist shops were everywhere, and prices were high. Call me naive, but it's not what I expected.



I was also not prepared for the amount of dry land on the islands that make up Venice. We found some wide streets, courtyards, and piazzas. It was good to get away from the swarms of people at Piazza San Marco and the Rialto, but the quiet areas had few waterways.

Instead of spending a relaxing afternoon at the square, the church, or a waterside cafe as I had expected, Wade and I walked and explored. We got completely lost one time, which was an adventure on the rambling islands.

Venice was beautiful, and although there were some surprises, I guess the biggest one was that the guidebook was mostly right.

Munich

During my three days in Munich, I walked all over the city while eating pretzels- the best in the world. I saw some churches, went to some museums, and learned a lot about the city's history. I visited the Dachau memorial - one of the first concentration camps, and one used to test methods for use elsewhere. I also went to some infamous sites in the old part of Munich dealing with the rise of Hitler and the creation of the Nazi party. Beer hall putsch, anyone?




Some other travelers mentioned how in Berlin, memorials are everywhere, and they can't be missed. In Munich, however, memorials for the atrocities against the innocent during World War II are hidden, cryptic, or even unmarked.

For example, a sign on a busy street corner reads something to this effect: "Until 1935, a department store stood here." What? Oh, yeah... the department store was Jewish-owned. That's an important detail left out. A brick side street with upscale shops has some gold bricks in it. There's no sign, but it's a memorial for those who took this alternate route to avoid having to salute to the Nazis one street over at Odeonsplatz. The side street is nicknamed Dodger's Alley.

People I talked to think of Munich negatively because of how hidden and uninformative the memorials are. I agreed with them at first.

But now, I think the memorials mean more since they are not so in-your-face. I like the Muchener approach to Nazi history. The history of a place cannot be easily separated from the place itself, especially the dark history that Munich has. So why force it? Obvious and numerous memorials will not make people care more. I could make them numb.

On My Way to Munich

Today I’m flying to Munich. I will be there for about three days by myself. I’m excited to just walk around, look at architecture, see some history, and eat pretzels. I’m sure I’ll take more than enough pictures, and I also plan on spending my evenings writing. When I was in China, that’s what I did when I didn’t want to be out alone at night. And writing is very rewarding.

Also on my agenda:

1. See Neuschwanstein, a castle near Munich that the Disney castle was modeled after. The Bavarian king Ludwig II built it because he was cracked out.
2. Go to a soccer match at the Allianz Arena with some German friends. Go Munich!
3. Meet some international students at FH-Deggendorf.
4. Venice.
5. Rome.

I don’t think those last two need any explanation.

Hello... Germany?

Yes, I’m going to be going to Germany in May. Once again traveling alone. For the most part, anyway. I’m flying into Munich and spending a few days there, then meeting up with my friend Wade, who is also a Muskie.

Don’t worry; I’m not running away again. Not yet, at least. I won’t officially run away until I leave for China this fall.

Don’t be confused. Here’s the break-down: I finish the current spring semester at Muskingum. I go to Germany for two weeks. I return to Ohio for the summer. I leave for Lanzhou, China in late August. I spend the fall semester studying once again in Lanzhou. I will return in January of 2010, in time to finish up my journalism degree at Muskingum. Whew!

The Berlitz Method

Berlitz is a German guy who came up with a method for teaching languages. I picked up a copy of The Berlitz Self-Teacher: German at a used book store over Christmas break. Just a random buy. I figure if this German guy came up with a method for teaching languages, learning his native language from him would be right-on.

I’m still actively studying Chinese, but my goal with Berlitz was for a basic knowledge of German. I plan on moving on to French and Italian, brushing up on that high-school Spanish, and then working my way through whatever languages catch my eye as I go about living my life.

So, over Christmas break, I eagerly worked my way through about half of Berlitz. Just for fun, you know. I’d like to add that the copy I purchased was published in 1950. Handkerchiefs and pocket watches play large roles in early chapters.



...Little did I know at the time of the purchase that I would be making a trip to Germany five months later...

This is Not the End

The longer I am home, the more I will have processed my trip: Stay tuned for blogs summing up different aspects of my semester, telling about getting re-adjusted, and discussing issues that I didn't feel comfortable bringing up while under the watch of the government!

I'm home, but it's not the end.

The Flight Home

I flew from Beijing at 4 p.m. on Sunday, August 10th. Because of the time difference, I arrived in Chicago at 4 p.m. on Sunday, August 10th. Pretty cool.

In fact, it was not just "pretty cool," it was very cold. For some reason, the flight attendants wanted the plane to be under 65 degrees. They give passengers those blankets, but many- myself included- were curled up in the fetal position to keep warm. It was that cold. I couldn't feel my toes.

Because of the frigid temperature, I didn't sleep at all.

I flew from Chicago to Columbus and arrived at nine in the evening. When I got home my family and I talked and looked through some of the gifts I brought home. By the time I went to bed, I had been awake for 32 hours straight.

This turned out to be a good situation because I went to bed around midnight, woke up at eight, and had a normal first-day home without any jet lag whatsoever.

Beijing

The only word that I can think of to describe Beijing during the Olympics is: facade.

Honestly, my least favorite part of my entire trip to China was Beijing the past few days. I remember what it was like when I flew in in February, and almost everything was unrecognizable.

Small shops and street vendors had been closed down, and I wonder what those people do now for a living. Everyone was attempting to speak English and it was awkward. It was too crowded to see anything in the city. The city looked pristine and fake.



Also, the air was bad. I know they say they cleaned it up, and I believe they did. But I lived in Lanzhou, "one of the most polluted cities in China" for five months with no problems. In Beijing I had difficulty breathing and I coughed often. I still have my cough.



It was neat to be in Beijing during the Olympics. It was an exciting atmosphere. I got to see the cycling street race which was a great opportunity.

But I didn't get to talk to any locals, except friends that I already knew who live in Beijing, and I didn't get to experience what Beijing is actually like.

I prefer small Chinese cities to large ones.

Why So Many Posts at Once? Here's Why...

I'm not allowed online at public internet cafes anymore because I'm not Chinese.

True story.

While traveling alone, I never get bored because I can always write. I have been writing a lot, mostly in my journal. And I have written all the blogs I just recently posted.

I was able to post them because I happened to meet a nice couple here in the city if Dandong, and they invited me into their home. They do not care that I am not Chinese, in fact, it is one reason they like me, so they have graciously permitted me to use their computer.

I am beginning to realize how free America truly is.

Trains

I spend an excessive amount of time on trains. It’s getting ridiculous. I’ve tried to break up my traveling, going from nearby city to nearby city so that I’m not on a train for more than 24 hours at a time.

When I have a long distance to cover overnight, I try to get a sleeper car, but sometimes there aren’t any. Surprisingly, spending the night on a hard seat surrounded by the 134 other people in the car isn’t quite as bad as expected. Maybe I’m just an optimist.

Ok, it’s pretty bad, but not unbearable. For some unknown reason (er… check out one of my previous posts called “Coal”) Chinese people won’t open the windows on the trains. So not only does it get a little toasty, the smell is overwhelming. And the bathroom on the train doesn’t make things smell any better, either.

The worst part about trains, other than grime and foul odors, is getting bored. I try to alternate between reading, listening to music, writing, talking to children, and avoiding talking to creepy old men. Chinese children are great to talk to. And they’re so cute. The creepy old men are just creepy and old and have never seen a foreigner before so they ask me strange questions. Real examples:

“What language is spoken in America?” I just thought everyone knew.
“Are there fields in America?” How do you think the population gets fed?
“At what age do girls get married in America?” Everyone gets married at exactly the same age… not.

But trains are part of what I love so much about China. The Chinese rail system really brings out the true nature and character of the people.

On the train, strangers talk and laugh together. They share their food and trade seats so families can sit together.

But trains definitely bring out the bad side as well. Many Chinese people don’t understand the concept of waiting in line. I always get pushed and shoved and stepped on. I’ve been knocked over on several occasions. And no one apologizes. This is all just waiting for the train to arrive. Actually getting on the train can be worse.

On my way from Hohhot to Baotou, the aisles were filled with people who didn’t have seats. At every stop, more people would get on than would get off. Upon arriving at Baotou, I grabbed my bag and tried to get off the train. But twenty or more people were trying to get on. And it was like a mosh pit.

I just started pushing people and asking them to let me off. Then the train attendants tried to help me get off by pushing other people and then by pulling me. Nothing worked. Finally, I just started yelling, “Let me get off the train! You’re all crazy!” I’m not sure if the people getting on were alarmed simply by a foreign girl calling them insane, or if they were shocked that I was speaking Chinese. There was a lot of exclaiming going on.

And they thought I was Russian. Do Russians yell a lot?

The Magic Slope

Just outside of the city of Shenyang is a “magic slope” which, as you could probably guess, is not magic. But of course, I had to go check it out.

Everyone I talked to about it in Shenyang described it as an anti-gravity hill in which you effortlessly go up, but going down you must work as if you were going up. I was picturing a road on a grassy hill, but was bracing myself for another Chinese-ified tourist attraction.

As I neared the entrance gate to the magic slope, I was pleased to note that I was in a hilly, grassy region that smelled like summer in Ohio. But actually at the magic slope I found a flat track only about 20 meters long. They had bicycles to use, but the first time through the track I walked.

I didn’t notice anything.

On the bike, half of the way I had to pedal, the last half it felt like I was rolling down a hill. Not only did I not have to pedal, I was gaining speed.

So I guess it was pretty cool, but it was not a slope whatsoever. And I never for a second imagined it to be magic.

Mongolia

This week, for the first time, I successfully made a joke in Chinese.

With my Chinese friends, if I ever say something I think is funny, I have to explain in English why I said it. And by then, it’s definitely not funny anymore.

So, what I said definitely isn’t funny in English, but I can’t say “I told a joke” and not tell it. I’m not expecting you to laugh.

I was in a taxi and my driver was pretty cool. We talked about why I’m in China and what I like about it here. I told him that I really liked traveling in Inner Mongolia.

I asked him to clarify the Chinese names of Inner Mongolia, a province in China, and the actual country of Mongolia. The name for Inner Mongolia is like “Mongolia inside of China” and Mongolia is “Mongolia outside of China.”

When he said this, I smiled and he asked why.

Of course Mongolia is outside of China! Why not “USA outside of China” “England outside of China” “Saudi Arabia outside of China?” (Much more concise in Chinese.)

I think the driver laughed for a good minute or so.

I’m still laughing because China thinks it owns everything, including Mongolia, Genghis Khan, Mount Everest, Kazakhstan, the color red, and North Korea.

My Chinese Dress

I’ve been meaning to buy a qi pao or Chinese dress for a while now. I’ve been looking around at different silks, and until today I hadn’t found exactly what I was looking for.

I found a black silk with subtle red dragons on it. The effect is maroon.

The dressmaker fitted me for the dress. She was taking measurements and I was standing in my underwear in front of a mirror with several Chinese women watching. And then an anorexic Chinese girl came in to get fitted too.

Beside her, I felt fat but good about it.

The Dreaded Phrase

A few months ago, I learned a Chinese phrase that I really liked. It’s jia you and it’s used kind of like how we use “let’s go” or “go, fight, win.”

I like the phrase because of what it actually means. Jia means to add. You means oil. And the idea is “add oil to the fire.” Like… keep on going, keep on burning. Get it?

And, interestingly, the word for gas station is jia you zhan with zhan meaning a stop or a stand.

But because of the Olympics, I never stop hearing jia you. It’s getting exceptionally annoying. No one says anything else. In English, we have several phrases to convey this same idea. In Chinese, they only use one. And they use it often.

I don’t want to hear it again… so much so that I’m not proofreading this post because I can’t bear to even see the words again.

Jeans

Do you have something that you can’t let go of and you don’t quite know why?

That sounds like a deep, philosophical question, but I’m just referring to my jeans.

I’m trying to travel as light as I can. I keep throwing things away. Last week I left behind my sweat shirt. It’s summer, even though it gets a little chilly up north. I’m doing fine with just three shirts to wear. Tomorrow it will be two. Socks and underwear? They’re washable, so why need so many?

I don’t need my jeans. It’s really hot, so I’m wearing shorts. But I can’t throw out my jeans.

They even have holes in them. One big hole in the crotch and two small holes by the butt pockets. The legs are frayed and gross.

But they have traveled with me around China for six months and I love them. They are coming back to America with me, no matter how much room they take up in my bag (a lot).

It’s kind of like how I’m possessive of my train tickets. When I got here, I thought it would be cool to keep all of my train tickets. I was thinking, “All four of them.” But now that I have almost 20, what’s the point? One time I was getting off the train and the attendant took my ticket. It upset me. I have so many, but I can’t throw them away. I just can’t. They took me all the places that I’ve been to with my jeans.

Hotels

I arrived in Tongliao by train at 4:30 a.m. on July 31st. I found a run-of-the-mill, cheap hotel near the train station and immediately took a nap in my room. I woke up, did some laundry in the sink of the community bathroom, checked to see if there was a shower (none), hung up my clothes to dry in my room, and went out to discover what Tongliao was all about.

I came back to my room in the afternoon to grab a few things. I checked my drying clothes, and that’s when I noticed the cockroaches coming out from the door frame.

Alarming? Not to me anymore. I’m used to this. It’s just a normal Chinese budget hotel.

I came back to my room at night. As I was brushing my teeth, several people were trying to wash large planks of some sort in the sink next to mine. They stared at me because I’m a foreigner, but they were the ones washing two-by-fours in a little sink, not me.

Luckily, it was hot in my room so I didn’t have to use the unwashed comforter provided for me. In fact, I even wanted the fan blowing on me (there was a fan!!!). After I got in bed, I realized there was no light switch in the room.

It was in the hallway.

I woke up in the middle of the night. Half a minute later, I heard several loud Chinese men yelling in the hall. And I noticed my fan was not working. The power had gone out.

In the morning, I used the light of my cell phone to make my way to my door. Out in the hallway, I hit the light switch. I had forgotten about there being no electricity.

So, I used my cell phone to get ready and to pack up my bag. I took a train to Shenyang and arrived that afternoon. I splurged and spent Y40 on a hotel with a shower. A community shower. But it was worth it.

Inner Mongolia

I took a train to Hohhot from Datong. Online I happened to find a youth hostel in Hohhot. It looked really nice and there were reviews posted from just the day before.

I like to stay in youth hostels because not only can I meet other travelers, youth hostels have great services that Chinese hotels don't have like, oh, I don't know, clean bedding and bathrooms! I can also do laundry and get online at youth hostels.

Anyway, I had the address of this youth hostel as well as some rough directions from the website. When I left the train station in Hohhot, I got a taxi and told the driver the address. We started driving, and it was a good sign that he was going along with the directions I had from the website.

But that address didn't exist.

The driver was really nice and asked some shopkeepers nearby about the hostel and the address, but it really wasn't there. I don't know where it actually is.

I was disappointed and ended up staying in an expensive hotel (ok, it was cheap but not compared to a youth hostel!).

Maybe it was this incident with the hostel, or maybe I truly didn't like Hohhot, but my stay there was pretty lame. I walked around and talked to some Mongolians about their culture and language and I visited the Inner Mongolia Museum. Both of these were fascinating, but I really just wanted to leave. I felt ready to stop traveling and go home to my family and friends.

When I went to the train station to buy a ticket out of Inner Mongolia, I remembered on my way in that I had seen a ton of trains coming from a city called Baotou, also in Inner Mongolia. On a whim I bought a ticket to Baotou.

It was raining when I left Hohhot and when I arrived in Baotou, the air was fresh and clean. The streets of Baotou are wide, and so are the sidewalks. I have never before seen streets like this in China. And, the population of Baotou is low, so it's not so crowded. Buildings aren't so close together, I didn't get shoved around on the buses, and people were more friendly and personal.

And the sky was blue. It would be a lie to say that the skies in China aren't blue, but it brought tears to my eyes because I had forgotten that blue skies could really be that blue.



While in Baotou I went to a Lamasery about 60 kilometers outside the city. It was gorgeous and colorful, and the landscape reminded me of home. (And, it was a Tibetan site; aren't those off-limits to foreigners? I had no problem getting there. What are you going to do about that, China?)



Anyway, tomorrow I'm leaving Baotou for another city in Inner Mongolia, Tongliao. It's small, and I can't find any travel information on it online. I like places like this because I can truly learn about the people who live there; they want to talk because they don't often see foreigners. (In fact, I haven't seen a foreigner since I was in Datong!)

I'm really glad I didn't leave Inner Mongolia after Hohhot. I think I was getting burnt-out, but the reminders of home in Baotou have brightened things up for me, and I'm ready to face these last two weeks in China and get everything out of them that I can.

Coal

On my way from Taiyuan to Datong, my seat on the train was by the window. It's hot on trains and there are so many people, so I opened the window wide and stuck my head out the whole five hours. The scenery was great, and it felt like the other 134 people in my car weren't even there.

When the train was close to Datong, I went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. My entire face was black from coal. You can imagine how dirty my clothes were. I tried to wash my face in the little sink on the train, but I think I just spread the coal around some more. There was really nothing I could do.

I talked to my mom on the phone later that night and I told her what happened. I said, "But I took a shower and washed my clothes, so it's ok."

And she said, "But what about your lungs, which you can't wash?"

Oh snap. Thank you, China.