I may have been a bit premature in labelling Beijing as 'frosty' last time I wrote- a few -6C days later and potential frostbite of my toes every morning on the way to class, I am only now truly coming to grips with winter in the crazy country. However we have still had a lot of sunny, clear days, which has lead to sunburn (!!) on occasion but also awesome photo oppurtunities and a wondeful reason to meander through the bustling main streets and winding alleyways of our new home.
This week was a week of firsts- first class, first taxi ride, first subway excursion, first tourist site visit... an emotional rollercoaster. Class has been hard- taught all in Chinese, its incredibly overwhelming and exhausting- after 4 hours of class and then 2 hours of one on one tutoring my brain doesn't know which language to be thinking in. The 2 or so hours of homework piled on top of that are a real struggle, but worth it when you understand just that little bit more the next day. Our tutors are lovely and eager to both help and laugh at our attempt to explain shopping, exercise, work and our country in very stilted Chinese. Its amazing to hear about their culture in return- much to our shock on Friday we found out that they can't swim, and in fact most people in China can't!
We spent Christmas day exploring the Great Wall; steps, steps, 2 pairs of gloves and every piece of thermal clothing I own, more steps, and lo and behold, more freakin steps. However, once we reached the wall aching thigh muscles and frostbitten limbs were soon forgotten in light of the breathtaking views and the amazing scope of the wall. Winding over sharp peaks to the horizon and beyond, watchtowers dot the stretch of the wall, causing the imagination to run wild with visions of Imperial China, of fires lighting up the sky from tower to tower, and messages being relayed over vast distances. We had an adventure of a time, clambouring onto the top of a watch tower, jogging down stairs to warm up and then de-layering at the top of steep climbs.
No work was to be done on Christmas, so last night we headed out for some night shopping in another district of the city. With Jess's awesome memory and the help of a phone call or two to chinese relatives, we found XiDan shopping centre- a maze of yummy food-type smells, stalls, department stores both western and chinese, christmas decorations and (it seemed like) at least half the population of Beijing. A bit off the beaten tourist track, I attracted an awful lot of attention- I could get used to being an exotic beauty! The guy who made Jess's smoothie was quite taken with me, a lady let me pay cash for my food rather than going through the tedious process of a pre-paid card system- though when people touch my hair it can get a bit much.
The weather may be getting colder and the work harder, but settling into life here is still an adventure every day. Hard days of Chinese pay off when I can understand guys telling Jess what a beatiful friend she has, and immersing ourselves in the culture with streetside food stalls and tourist site visits makes the language come alive. Cultural differences are intriguing- explaining what sports Australia likes in class got a bit tricky when (much to the dismay of a few British guys) much dictionary searching revealed China dooesn't have a word for cricket but uses the same term as for baseball.
Hope to write again soon!!
Love, Lucy.
This week was a week of firsts- first class, first taxi ride, first subway excursion, first tourist site visit... an emotional rollercoaster. Class has been hard- taught all in Chinese, its incredibly overwhelming and exhausting- after 4 hours of class and then 2 hours of one on one tutoring my brain doesn't know which language to be thinking in. The 2 or so hours of homework piled on top of that are a real struggle, but worth it when you understand just that little bit more the next day. Our tutors are lovely and eager to both help and laugh at our attempt to explain shopping, exercise, work and our country in very stilted Chinese. Its amazing to hear about their culture in return- much to our shock on Friday we found out that they can't swim, and in fact most people in China can't!
We spent Christmas day exploring the Great Wall; steps, steps, 2 pairs of gloves and every piece of thermal clothing I own, more steps, and lo and behold, more freakin steps. However, once we reached the wall aching thigh muscles and frostbitten limbs were soon forgotten in light of the breathtaking views and the amazing scope of the wall. Winding over sharp peaks to the horizon and beyond, watchtowers dot the stretch of the wall, causing the imagination to run wild with visions of Imperial China, of fires lighting up the sky from tower to tower, and messages being relayed over vast distances. We had an adventure of a time, clambouring onto the top of a watch tower, jogging down stairs to warm up and then de-layering at the top of steep climbs.
No work was to be done on Christmas, so last night we headed out for some night shopping in another district of the city. With Jess's awesome memory and the help of a phone call or two to chinese relatives, we found XiDan shopping centre- a maze of yummy food-type smells, stalls, department stores both western and chinese, christmas decorations and (it seemed like) at least half the population of Beijing. A bit off the beaten tourist track, I attracted an awful lot of attention- I could get used to being an exotic beauty! The guy who made Jess's smoothie was quite taken with me, a lady let me pay cash for my food rather than going through the tedious process of a pre-paid card system- though when people touch my hair it can get a bit much.
The weather may be getting colder and the work harder, but settling into life here is still an adventure every day. Hard days of Chinese pay off when I can understand guys telling Jess what a beatiful friend she has, and immersing ourselves in the culture with streetside food stalls and tourist site visits makes the language come alive. Cultural differences are intriguing- explaining what sports Australia likes in class got a bit tricky when (much to the dismay of a few British guys) much dictionary searching revealed China dooesn't have a word for cricket but uses the same term as for baseball.
Hope to write again soon!!
Love, Lucy.
