Today we had our language "exam." We literally walked into a room, and they placed a packet in front of us - entirely in Chinese characters - which we couldn't read. We all looked at each other and giggled for a few minutes, and then they asked if we spoke Chinese. When we told them that we spoke very little, they told us to write our names down for the beginner's course, so we wouldn't have to suffer through the exam.
So now that the weight of the exam is off, I am searching for an apartment (ugh) and getting excited for classes to start. It begins to look as if I cannot avoid moving out of the dorm, so I'm trying to find a decent apartment for Tessa and I to live in off campus. Ryan, Jimond, and Kenneth have already found their apartment, which is apparently near where Cao Bin (our old Chinese professor) lives.
Hopefully we will be able to find a nice apartment for a decent price. Especially because if we move off campus, most likely I will have to buy a motor bike/scooter in order to get to class and around town. That expense only adds to the frustration, but I'm sure it will work itself out.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Friday, September 4, 2009
Back Log
I finally have access to BlogSpot again, so here's my journal from the trip here and a couple more days.
August 27th, 2009
Well, I’m in China, but not without drama! The first flight, from Atlanta to LA, was uneventful, and even the flight from LA to Beijing was not too dreadful. But upon arrival in Beijing, I was pulled aside because I had checked off that I had a sore throat on my customs declaration (which was extremely stupid on my part). They took my temperature, and having been wearing my sweatshirt on the plane, my body temperature was a tiny bit high, but insignificantly. The officials would hear none of my pleas that the sweatshirt had caused the rise in temperature, and sent me to the hospital for tests. Thankfully, Kenneth was able to go with me so I wouldn’t be alone.
An escort followed our ambulance out of the airport, and the people driving us were in full infectious disease prevention gear, with smocks and masks. We drove about 40 minutes to a hospital in the heart of Beijing, where I was pronounced perfectly healthy. They still took my blood and did an H1N1 test, but let us go afterwards. So Kenneth and I were left completely alone in the middle of downtown Beijing, where nobody spoke English, and we had no phone or way to contact the others, who had gone on to the scheduled flight to Wuhan while we stayed in Beijing.
We got a taxi and got back to the airport, and in a matter of 30 minutes we got put on a flight to Wuhan, called my mom so that she could call Dr. Shumaker to tell her what was happening, and boarded our flight. Arriving in Wuhan two hours later, it turned out that nobody was expecting us until later that night, so we had nobody to pick us up. A very helpful woman at the airport allowed us to use her phone, where we called Cao Bin (our Chinese teacher from last year). He instructed us to take a shuttle into the district of Wuhan where the university is, and then a taxi to the west gate.
Unfortunately, the taxi dropped us off at the wrong gate, and just when we began to panic, we saw the rest of our group (Grant, Jimond, Ryan, and Tessa) walking towards the gate. We all walked together to meet Cao Bin at the West Gate, and we finally arrived at the international student dorm, where I was assigned a room and finally took a cold shower, as the very hot and humid weather outside had made me drip sweat.
Our luggage isn’t here yet, but Ryan says it should be coming tonight, though mine and Kenneth’s may not be coming until tomorrow. I cannot wait to get it, and take a nice long shower.
August 28th, 2009
I got woken up at about 4 AM this morning by a construction crew at the building next to us – it seems they generally start very early in the morning. That will certainly take some getting used to, with all their banging around and noise.
Our luggage never came last night, and at about noon they tried to drop it off, but wouldn’t give it to us without seeing Ryan’s passport (as he had been the one to request the drop off), and Ryan was out of the building. They did eventually get their luggage, and Kenneth and I were left waiting for ours. At about 3, we all went to see Yasmine (a woman at the Center for International Cultural Exchange), and by 6 our luggage was finally here.
I’ve unpacked and showered now, and my room is finally beginning to look less like a prison cell. The bathroom is rather nice, and the shower has great water pressure. My bedroom is nice, with a desk, TV, TV stand, and bed. The bed is kind of hard, but it’s not too bad with the addition of a mattress pad that was left in the closet. All in all, I am quite happy with the room. Tomorrow we plan to go to the bank and then to get cell phones.
August 29th, 2009
Today was rather uneventful, when compared to the rest of my experiences so far. We went to the bank, and when nobody spoke English well, I decided to wait to get a bank account, and so far my Wachovia debit card is working out very well.
We also went to the supermarket near our dorm. It is very much like a big Wal-Mart, except that they sell even more variety of products, if you can imagine. We had a fun time trying to purchase a cell phone and sim card, but with the help of two salespeople that spoke a little English, I was able to get one that works quite nicely.
Today, Yasmine took us to see an apartment that some teachers are looking to rent out, and we had to decide if we wanted to move into it or stay in our dorms. I think I will be staying here for the whole school year, but the boys are talking of moving into apartments off campus. I like the convenience of the room I’m in now, because the building our classes are in is right across from the building that I am staying in.
September 5, 2009
Other the past few days, we have been getting settled in and feeling our way arond campus and town. The guys have bought motor scooters, which is fun to watch, even if riding on them can be a little frightening! I have become very comfortable in my home away from home, and the past few days have been spent studying for our language exam (tomorrow at 8:30 AM) and in registering with the school.
When we registered, we found out that we do not get a holiday from classes on Christmas day, which really hit it home for me that I am in a completely different culture. It was a little strange when on Sunday mornings we go out, very little is closed, and banks are even still open. But now, when I see on our calandar that we have absolutely no holidays in the month of December, I begin to feel a little strange.
I have also noticed the reverence for English-speaking countries/cultures here, which I assume is mostly directed at Americans. Most signs, when translated at all, are translated into English, and many restaurants have English menus as well as Chinese. Almost every international student housed here at CICE speak English, and it is basically the common language among us all. It is strange to think that some of these students speak Chinese, English, and their home language. They were taught English before they were able to choose to learn another language, and we came here barely able to communicate in Chinese. It is like the whole world is accomodating the English...I'm not really sure if I'm communicating this thought right, but I sometimes feel as if we are being spoiled. It makes me want to work extra hard to learn the language so that I can feel like the world isn't being simplified for me.
August 27th, 2009
Well, I’m in China, but not without drama! The first flight, from Atlanta to LA, was uneventful, and even the flight from LA to Beijing was not too dreadful. But upon arrival in Beijing, I was pulled aside because I had checked off that I had a sore throat on my customs declaration (which was extremely stupid on my part). They took my temperature, and having been wearing my sweatshirt on the plane, my body temperature was a tiny bit high, but insignificantly. The officials would hear none of my pleas that the sweatshirt had caused the rise in temperature, and sent me to the hospital for tests. Thankfully, Kenneth was able to go with me so I wouldn’t be alone.
An escort followed our ambulance out of the airport, and the people driving us were in full infectious disease prevention gear, with smocks and masks. We drove about 40 minutes to a hospital in the heart of Beijing, where I was pronounced perfectly healthy. They still took my blood and did an H1N1 test, but let us go afterwards. So Kenneth and I were left completely alone in the middle of downtown Beijing, where nobody spoke English, and we had no phone or way to contact the others, who had gone on to the scheduled flight to Wuhan while we stayed in Beijing.
We got a taxi and got back to the airport, and in a matter of 30 minutes we got put on a flight to Wuhan, called my mom so that she could call Dr. Shumaker to tell her what was happening, and boarded our flight. Arriving in Wuhan two hours later, it turned out that nobody was expecting us until later that night, so we had nobody to pick us up. A very helpful woman at the airport allowed us to use her phone, where we called Cao Bin (our Chinese teacher from last year). He instructed us to take a shuttle into the district of Wuhan where the university is, and then a taxi to the west gate.
Unfortunately, the taxi dropped us off at the wrong gate, and just when we began to panic, we saw the rest of our group (Grant, Jimond, Ryan, and Tessa) walking towards the gate. We all walked together to meet Cao Bin at the West Gate, and we finally arrived at the international student dorm, where I was assigned a room and finally took a cold shower, as the very hot and humid weather outside had made me drip sweat.
Our luggage isn’t here yet, but Ryan says it should be coming tonight, though mine and Kenneth’s may not be coming until tomorrow. I cannot wait to get it, and take a nice long shower.
August 28th, 2009
I got woken up at about 4 AM this morning by a construction crew at the building next to us – it seems they generally start very early in the morning. That will certainly take some getting used to, with all their banging around and noise.
Our luggage never came last night, and at about noon they tried to drop it off, but wouldn’t give it to us without seeing Ryan’s passport (as he had been the one to request the drop off), and Ryan was out of the building. They did eventually get their luggage, and Kenneth and I were left waiting for ours. At about 3, we all went to see Yasmine (a woman at the Center for International Cultural Exchange), and by 6 our luggage was finally here.
I’ve unpacked and showered now, and my room is finally beginning to look less like a prison cell. The bathroom is rather nice, and the shower has great water pressure. My bedroom is nice, with a desk, TV, TV stand, and bed. The bed is kind of hard, but it’s not too bad with the addition of a mattress pad that was left in the closet. All in all, I am quite happy with the room. Tomorrow we plan to go to the bank and then to get cell phones.
August 29th, 2009
Today was rather uneventful, when compared to the rest of my experiences so far. We went to the bank, and when nobody spoke English well, I decided to wait to get a bank account, and so far my Wachovia debit card is working out very well.
We also went to the supermarket near our dorm. It is very much like a big Wal-Mart, except that they sell even more variety of products, if you can imagine. We had a fun time trying to purchase a cell phone and sim card, but with the help of two salespeople that spoke a little English, I was able to get one that works quite nicely.
Today, Yasmine took us to see an apartment that some teachers are looking to rent out, and we had to decide if we wanted to move into it or stay in our dorms. I think I will be staying here for the whole school year, but the boys are talking of moving into apartments off campus. I like the convenience of the room I’m in now, because the building our classes are in is right across from the building that I am staying in.
September 5, 2009
Other the past few days, we have been getting settled in and feeling our way arond campus and town. The guys have bought motor scooters, which is fun to watch, even if riding on them can be a little frightening! I have become very comfortable in my home away from home, and the past few days have been spent studying for our language exam (tomorrow at 8:30 AM) and in registering with the school.
When we registered, we found out that we do not get a holiday from classes on Christmas day, which really hit it home for me that I am in a completely different culture. It was a little strange when on Sunday mornings we go out, very little is closed, and banks are even still open. But now, when I see on our calandar that we have absolutely no holidays in the month of December, I begin to feel a little strange.
I have also noticed the reverence for English-speaking countries/cultures here, which I assume is mostly directed at Americans. Most signs, when translated at all, are translated into English, and many restaurants have English menus as well as Chinese. Almost every international student housed here at CICE speak English, and it is basically the common language among us all. It is strange to think that some of these students speak Chinese, English, and their home language. They were taught English before they were able to choose to learn another language, and we came here barely able to communicate in Chinese. It is like the whole world is accomodating the English...I'm not really sure if I'm communicating this thought right, but I sometimes feel as if we are being spoiled. It makes me want to work extra hard to learn the language so that I can feel like the world isn't being simplified for me.
Monday, July 20, 2009
36 days and counting...
Since my last post, I have actually accomplished quite a lot in preparing for my trip. In the hopes of helping out those who wish to follow in my footsteps, I will explain the different things that I have been doing.
1) My ticket has officially been purchased and is in my possession! It is a round-trip ticket with layovers, so the longest I should be in a plane at once is 12 to 13 hours in a Boeing 747. Now that my ticket is purchased, I feel a lot less apprehensive, because that was the single most expensive purchase of my trip.
2) I also now have my visa printed into my passport. This was a very quick process, and I was impressed. Now all that is left is for me to go to the office in China local in order to get my student visa processed, so I don't wind up being an illegal alien. :)
3) Another fun trip that I've done recently was one to the travel doctor - thankfully, I only had to get the typhoid shot, because some of the others were upwards of $400 per dose. I also have various prescriptions, including 10 TamiFlu and 1 "Z-Pac" (in case I get an upper-respiratory infection, haha). The travel doctor at Emory was extremely helpful, and I got an entire folder full of information from her. She also told me about this fruit/vegetable disinfectant solution (Pristine) that we can order so that we can buy food at the open air markets if we like.
4) Shopping. This was only fun for like 10 minutes. I have to buy enough of all the things I use to last me a good, long, while, and so the shopping carts have been quite piled. Apparently, any products that I use for my skin or health should be bought here, because they are made quite differently in China. I will have at least one full suitcase of OTC drugs, shampoo, conditioner, soaps, hand sanitizers, etc.
I think this is the gist of what I have been doing lately. I am getting very excited as I get closer and closer to my departure date. Keep checking back for updates!
1) My ticket has officially been purchased and is in my possession! It is a round-trip ticket with layovers, so the longest I should be in a plane at once is 12 to 13 hours in a Boeing 747. Now that my ticket is purchased, I feel a lot less apprehensive, because that was the single most expensive purchase of my trip.
2) I also now have my visa printed into my passport. This was a very quick process, and I was impressed. Now all that is left is for me to go to the office in China local in order to get my student visa processed, so I don't wind up being an illegal alien. :)
3) Another fun trip that I've done recently was one to the travel doctor - thankfully, I only had to get the typhoid shot, because some of the others were upwards of $400 per dose. I also have various prescriptions, including 10 TamiFlu and 1 "Z-Pac" (in case I get an upper-respiratory infection, haha). The travel doctor at Emory was extremely helpful, and I got an entire folder full of information from her. She also told me about this fruit/vegetable disinfectant solution (Pristine) that we can order so that we can buy food at the open air markets if we like.
4) Shopping. This was only fun for like 10 minutes. I have to buy enough of all the things I use to last me a good, long, while, and so the shopping carts have been quite piled. Apparently, any products that I use for my skin or health should be bought here, because they are made quite differently in China. I will have at least one full suitcase of OTC drugs, shampoo, conditioner, soaps, hand sanitizers, etc.
I think this is the gist of what I have been doing lately. I am getting very excited as I get closer and closer to my departure date. Keep checking back for updates!
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Woe is me.
It has been quite a while since I last posted, hasn't it? I've been going crazy trying to get everything together for China. For today's post, I will share my long "to-do" list for the trip.
1) Buy tickets. This is pretty important. Unfortunately, we cannot buy our tickets until after our return date (July 15, 2010) has passed in 2009, because airlines do not book flights more than 351 days in advance or something like that.
2) Apply for visa. Also quite important, also cannot be started until closer to the date of our departure, because they are only good for a year, and we want to make sure they will be good until we come home.
3) Study the language. This is more difficult when I'm not having class 3 days out of the week. Flashcards and audio disks have been utilized to the max so far.
4) Vaccinations. And lots of them. I have an appointment, but if I'm unlucky enough to have to get the Japanese encephalitis shots, there are three of those in a 20 day period...and they cost $220 each. Speaking of which...
5) Money! We are having a difficult time getting any of our scholarships to post before our classes begin, which means that these purchases are having to be made out of pocket. With a $1870 plane ticket, and possibly $1000 worth of shots, this is no mean feat.
6) Shopping. And no, not the fun kind of shopping. I am currently buying bulk of contact solution, hand sanitizers, contacts, and any other products that I don't want to (or cannot) buy in China for various reasons.
7) Packing woes. Along with shopping comes the woes of packing. As I look at the growing list of items to be packed, I begin to sweat a little. At the moment, the plan is to pack my clothes in "Space Bags" so that they take up as little space as possible in my suitcase. And then everything else will be stuffed in any empty space possible. No minute amount of space will go unfilled during my packing adventure.
I can't say that I am not having a good time preparing. It is all very interesting, and I have gotten a lot of good tips from various people. The tip that I have taken to heart the most so far is the tip I received from Dr. Wiegand, which was to pack chocolate. Apparently, the Chinese don't eat sweets like I do, and I can certainly see myself missing chocolate. So that is certainly on my list of things to pack. :)
1) Buy tickets. This is pretty important. Unfortunately, we cannot buy our tickets until after our return date (July 15, 2010) has passed in 2009, because airlines do not book flights more than 351 days in advance or something like that.
2) Apply for visa. Also quite important, also cannot be started until closer to the date of our departure, because they are only good for a year, and we want to make sure they will be good until we come home.
3) Study the language. This is more difficult when I'm not having class 3 days out of the week. Flashcards and audio disks have been utilized to the max so far.
4) Vaccinations. And lots of them. I have an appointment, but if I'm unlucky enough to have to get the Japanese encephalitis shots, there are three of those in a 20 day period...and they cost $220 each. Speaking of which...
5) Money! We are having a difficult time getting any of our scholarships to post before our classes begin, which means that these purchases are having to be made out of pocket. With a $1870 plane ticket, and possibly $1000 worth of shots, this is no mean feat.
6) Shopping. And no, not the fun kind of shopping. I am currently buying bulk of contact solution, hand sanitizers, contacts, and any other products that I don't want to (or cannot) buy in China for various reasons.
7) Packing woes. Along with shopping comes the woes of packing. As I look at the growing list of items to be packed, I begin to sweat a little. At the moment, the plan is to pack my clothes in "Space Bags" so that they take up as little space as possible in my suitcase. And then everything else will be stuffed in any empty space possible. No minute amount of space will go unfilled during my packing adventure.
I can't say that I am not having a good time preparing. It is all very interesting, and I have gotten a lot of good tips from various people. The tip that I have taken to heart the most so far is the tip I received from Dr. Wiegand, which was to pack chocolate. Apparently, the Chinese don't eat sweets like I do, and I can certainly see myself missing chocolate. So that is certainly on my list of things to pack. :)
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Random Ramblings
As the end of the semester draws near, the thought that I will not be returning to Georgia Southern for 15 months looms ahead of me. I have begun to appreciate this campus and its inhabitants more and more, and then less and less as they begin to get irritable as finals come around. But I still love them, and I will certainly miss this campus more than I could ever describe.
We had another meeting with Dr. Shumaker last night to go over some more details for our trip, and I can only say that with every meeting I become more and more excited. As I am in charge of finding our flights, I feel that I am actually a crucial part of this experience, and that has made it all the more enchanting. We are discussing leaving a few weeks - yes, weeks - early in order to get to the school and get settled in and explore a little before our classes - and before the dreaded placement exams. I can't say that I'm not nervous about those exams, but I'm sure I will do fine. Other than that, we have been talking about money, what to bring, normal questions like that, so there is definitely a lot to think about. It is all exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time, but I absolutely love the feeling.
For many months now I have been reading any book I am get my hands on that has anything to do with Chinese politics, history, or culture. As I learn more about the country, I have begun to have a profound respect for its people and its government. The idea that I am going to be immersed into a culture so vastly different from my own is one that honestly scares me, but I believe that as I go, I will learn many things about myself. Already I have begun to realize how independent I actually am, which is something that I've never really thought about before. I've learned that I am doing better with the language than I thought - I begin to recognize characters at a much faster pace these days. That doesn't mean I don't have my off days: for example, the other day I could not recognize a phrase that I know very well. I've learned that lack of sleep deeply inhibits by ability to speak Mandarin Chinese.
So those are the thoughts right now. Also, a note regarding this blog: I would deeply love for anybody to ask any questions they have. About the Chinese language, about my trip, about anything they would like. I would love to have an interactive blog and be able to learn along with you as I travel. So ask questions if you have them!
We had another meeting with Dr. Shumaker last night to go over some more details for our trip, and I can only say that with every meeting I become more and more excited. As I am in charge of finding our flights, I feel that I am actually a crucial part of this experience, and that has made it all the more enchanting. We are discussing leaving a few weeks - yes, weeks - early in order to get to the school and get settled in and explore a little before our classes - and before the dreaded placement exams. I can't say that I'm not nervous about those exams, but I'm sure I will do fine. Other than that, we have been talking about money, what to bring, normal questions like that, so there is definitely a lot to think about. It is all exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time, but I absolutely love the feeling.
For many months now I have been reading any book I am get my hands on that has anything to do with Chinese politics, history, or culture. As I learn more about the country, I have begun to have a profound respect for its people and its government. The idea that I am going to be immersed into a culture so vastly different from my own is one that honestly scares me, but I believe that as I go, I will learn many things about myself. Already I have begun to realize how independent I actually am, which is something that I've never really thought about before. I've learned that I am doing better with the language than I thought - I begin to recognize characters at a much faster pace these days. That doesn't mean I don't have my off days: for example, the other day I could not recognize a phrase that I know very well. I've learned that lack of sleep deeply inhibits by ability to speak Mandarin Chinese.
So those are the thoughts right now. Also, a note regarding this blog: I would deeply love for anybody to ask any questions they have. About the Chinese language, about my trip, about anything they would like. I would love to have an interactive blog and be able to learn along with you as I travel. So ask questions if you have them!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Beginnings
I guess I should start out with the basics. My name is Christine Dalton and I am currently a sophomore at Georgia Southern University (I will be a junior when my trip begins). I am a Political Science major with a minor in Chinese Language, and I hope to someday work within the State Department or in diplomatic work with China.
The International Studies department wants me to start blogging now, I guess in order to record my thoughts and anxieties about my study abroad. I can understand the wish to see those as well as my trip - preparing myself for this hasn't been the easiest job. Three semesters of Chinese language courses and countless books on the history, culture, and politics of the country have led up to this: an entire academic year's study in Wuhan, China. I will be attending 华中师范大学, or Central China Normal University. It is an incredible opportunity that I have been waiting for my entire life, but I can't say that I'm not a little apprehensive. The culture is so vastly different from my own, and that is going to be a major shock when I step off the plane.
Speaking of planes, that's another thing - that plane ride is going to be NO FUN. NO FUN AT ALL. Haha, I can only be thankful that I will be traveling with 5 friends, 4 of which I have spent the last year learning the Chinese language with. Shout outs to Ryan, Grant, Jimond, Tessa, and Kenneth, my China buddies: it's going to be a great year!
The International Studies department wants me to start blogging now, I guess in order to record my thoughts and anxieties about my study abroad. I can understand the wish to see those as well as my trip - preparing myself for this hasn't been the easiest job. Three semesters of Chinese language courses and countless books on the history, culture, and politics of the country have led up to this: an entire academic year's study in Wuhan, China. I will be attending 华中师范大学, or Central China Normal University. It is an incredible opportunity that I have been waiting for my entire life, but I can't say that I'm not a little apprehensive. The culture is so vastly different from my own, and that is going to be a major shock when I step off the plane.
Speaking of planes, that's another thing - that plane ride is going to be NO FUN. NO FUN AT ALL. Haha, I can only be thankful that I will be traveling with 5 friends, 4 of which I have spent the last year learning the Chinese language with. Shout outs to Ryan, Grant, Jimond, Tessa, and Kenneth, my China buddies: it's going to be a great year!
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