Week in Review

Hello, America!  I am halfway done with my stay here in Shanghai.  I can’t believe I have only been gone for 21 days; it seems like so much longer.  It is equally as crazy that I only have 21 days left!  778 Xinnan Road has really begun to feel like home to me.

This week I spent a lot of time shopping.  I went to the mall five days in a row!  On Tuesday, Agatha and I went to Xinzhuang mall afterschool.  Then on Wednesday, we went again with Ivy to help her find a dress.  On Thursday, Ivy took me downtown afterschool to meet two of her friends.  We went to Metro City mall and ate some great noodles and dumplings at a place called “RamenPlay”.  Afterwards they took me shoe shopping because I am not allowed to wear flip-flops to class and my Toms are getting a hole in them.  Thursday was also fun because in the afternoon instead of class we got to go to the Shanghai Museum and look around.

On Friday in the afternoon we went to the local market and were given 10 yuan and had to bargain (in Chinese of course!) for at least three items while staying in our price range.   I was with Tafari and Richard, and when our Chinese bargaining vocab failed us, we just said “wo ai zhong guo!” over and over again, which means “I love China!”.  That always made the shopkeepers laugh and I got a free onion and a free potato! Then on Friday night, Agatha, Richard, Tafari, Kevin (Richard’s host bro), and I went downtown again and ate dinner at the Super Brand Mall, which is this gigantic mall right next to the Oriental Pearl TV Tower.  We ate at a Pizza Hut (which sounds bad, I know), but here in China, Pizza Hut is a fancy sit-down restaurant.  Then we went exploring in the city! 

Literally everywhere you look there is just skyscraper after skyscraper.  We took the ferry across the river to the side that is actually called the Bund.  I felt like I was in a postcard.  All the buildings were lit up and, of course, the famous Oriental Pearl TV Tower completed the skyline and really made me realize that I am here in Shanghai.  As we were walking along, these people came over to me and handed me their grandson and started taking pictures!  The little boy was adorable and random passerby stated taking pictures of the Westerner holding the Chinese baby.  By this point in my stay I am pretty used to having strangers take my picture and I like to imagine just how many random people’s photo albums I am going to end up in.  When I got home that night, I had an awesome surprise.  In my room waiting for me was a box from Caitlyn and Kyle with some treats!  I have the best friends; thank you guys!

On Saturday, I ended up at Xinzhuang mall (again) with Agatha and Richard.  We hung out, browsed, and got some coffee and then Agatha and I took the bus back to my house.  Then we left with my host family for Suzhou!  Suzhou is a city in Jiangsu province and it is about an hour and half drive away from Shanghai.  My friend from Virginia, Maeve, is also on a NSLI-Y scholarship here in China, and she just happens to be in Suzhou so my host family booked a hotel room and offered to take me and Agatha to see her!  The hotel was “ancient Chinese style” and was absolutely gorgeous, and for dinner we went to this great restaurant and then walked around the downtown area.  After coming from Shanghai, the downtown of Suzhou seemed so… little!  Nevertheless it was great to see another city!  On Sunday, we met up with Maeve and went to Lion Forest Garden, which is one of the gardens that Suzhou is so famous for.  It was beautiful but the humidity was overpowering and we decided not to go to any more gardens.  After lunch we headed home because Ivy and I had tickets to a piano/cello concert back in Shanghai.  We were both so exhausted though that we only stayed for an hour and then took the bus home.  Ivy and I both had a pile of homework to do and then we went out with the host parents to dinner at a Thai restaurant.

Below are some pictures from the highlights of the week!

xoxo
sar

Agatha and I outside the Shanghai Museum. 

Downtown Shanghai! 

Exploring the Bund at night!

Me, Agatha, and Ivy walking around Suzhou. 

Ivy and I at the Lion Forest Garden in Suzhou. 

Meeting up with Maeve in Suzhou!

Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

As you may have noticed, this past week I have been having a lot of difficulty with my blog and have been unable to update it.  Finally, however, it worked today!! 

This morning, I went to the Shanghai Wild Animal Zoo!  I went with Ivy, her dad, Agatha, Grace, Aiden, Aiden’s host brother, Richard, and Kevin (Richard’s host brother).   First we went to a sea lion show.  It was cool but not exactly spectacular.  Then we went into the “Beast Zone” (no joke, that is what the sign said).  Basically, we got on a bus and the driver drove us through these huge enclosures where there are wild animals.  I was about five feet away from a lion at one point (obviously I was inside the bus though!).  It was pretty wild!  We saw zebras, tigers, black bears, cheetahs, and lions just roaming around freely.  Then we walked around to the rest of the zoo, and it was such an amazing experience.  Agatha and I fed giraffes!  It gets better though; we also rode an elephant and held a baby tiger cub!!  It was the absolute cutest thing ever (see the picture below!) and was such an awesome experience.  We also saw some pandas, monkeys, and other animals. 

Considering I haven’t been able to update my blog for the past week, here are a few highlights from the week for you!

Richard, Agatha, and I had a crazy little adventure at the post office on Monday.  We went during our lunch break to buy stamps so we could send some postcards.  Unfortunately, we were without host siblings to translate for us and no one in the post office spoke a word of English!  After about 30 minutes of miming and gesturing, we finally got some stamps, so check your mailbox!

School has been going pretty well.  This week was fairly easy but next week apparently it is going to pick up and we will start getting more homework (ugh, aren’t I on summer vacation?).  I am excited to get a better grip on the language though, so then when I go out I am not completely dependent on Ivy or another host sibling.  At the end of every week we have a test.  Friday’s test went well, however I completely blanked on how to say, “Do you have a job?” in Chinese.   Woops.

In the morning I have class, but in the afternoon we always have some sort of cultural activity at school.  This week we did some paper cutting, seal carving, and we even sang some Chinese songs.  We also had a seminar one day with some of the students about differences between American and Chinese education and home life.  On Wednesday we were taken to a supermarket and we had to interview a stranger in Chinese and film it!  It was pretty difficult and I definitely got a lot of laughs considering my pronunciation is really awful but it was fun to try out what I was learning in class with the locals.

As for my host family, they are awesome.  Neither of the parents or the grandmother speaks English so Ivy has to translate, but they are very sweet.  The house is really comfortable, except for the fact that the showerhead only reaches to about my shoulder height, so I have to wash my hair on my knees (which is surprisingly difficult).  So far I haven’t had any meals that were absolutely amazing, but luckily the Carrefour by my house supplies me with Animal Crackers.  I am able to get to school and home by myself now, and I am comfortable with the metro and bus systems.  I feel like such a local when I take the metro by myself (I just have to ignore all the stares I get from the actual locals when they see a blonde Westerner on the train).   Ivy even made me a QQ last night, which is kind of like the Chinese version of Facebook.  There is a big group chat with all the Americans and their host siblings, so we can all communicate and make plans using QQ.  Speaking of the other Americans, they are all great and I think we have become really close in such a short amount of time (s/o to Agatha’s family and friends reading this blog!)

I am having an amazing time here, but it is exhausting and I am looking forward to coming back to the States in just a little more than four weeks!

xoxo

sar

My host sister, Ivy, and I at the zoo.

Feeding a giraffe! 

Aggie and I holding a tiger cub! 

Me, Aiden, Agatha, and Richard in the panda exhibit. 

Agatha and I riding an elephant!

The entire class with our paper cuts. 

 At the supermarket with my group for the interview project (Tafari, Tim, me, and Richard).

Seal carving with Moshe, Richard, Aiden, me, and Tafari.

The Day of Food

Last night, Ivy told me that she was leaving for a day to go to a Model UN meeting and wouldn't be back until Monday.  She arranged for her friend, Tina, to stay with us to act as a translator between me and the parents.  This morning, I got up and I was given KFC and corn on the cob for breakfast.  I guess this is what they think Americans like for breakfast!

After breakfast, Tina and I met up with Agatha and Grace (Agatha's host sister) and we went to Grace's dad's friend's house.  It was really nice; complete with a home cinema, mini waterfall... and six bathrooms!  After a tour of the house, all of us kids went swimming in the local indoor pool.  Agatha and I befriended a six year old Chinese girl named Lily.  She was adorable and she could only say "What's your name?", "My name is", and "I love you" in English.  We played with her in the pool and afterwards we went out to lunch with everyone.

Lunch was an experience!  Agatha and I went crazy trying the most bizarre things on the menu.  Among many other things, we tried eel, pig kidney, fried pig skin, an entire crab, and jelly squares.

This is the bin of live eels. I ate one of those guys! 

We weren't brave enough to try one of these squirming frogs... 

 Here is the table full of exotic seafood!

This is the pig kidney that I ate. 

People say to try every type of food once, so Agatha and I have made it our mission to do just that!  It was not the most delicious meal, but luckily I brought plenty of American snacks that we were able to eat when we got home.

After lunch, Agatha came over to my house and we watched some Chinese TV.  Then we had dinner with mama, baba, Tina, and Polo (Ivy's 12 year old cousin).  After dinner, the family took me and Agatha out of our townhouse complex across the street to a mall and shopping center.  We went to a big Carrefour (which is like a Harris Teeter, CVS, and department store all in one) and I was able to get some Honey Nut Cheerios (no more KFC for breakfast!), Goldfish, gum, and coffee.  Then we went over to the 5-star hotel and they gave me a pamphlet of things to do in Shanghai!  Agatha and I decided that we are going to do everything on the list!  On our way home, baba bought us a Ruby Lemon Ade (it was like a pink lemonade) and a chocolate croissant from a little shop called "Paris Baguette". 

Tomorrow it is back to school!

xoxo

sar

Meeting the Fam

I had a little trouble with the internet connection last night, so the previous post is actually from yesterday (Friday) night.  Right now it is Saturday night, and I just got home from the mall with some of my american friends (Richard, Agatha, Tim, and Tafari) and all of our host siblings.  We saw the new Superman movie!

This morning Ivy and I practiced my Chinese, and I registered at the police station.  Then, we went over to Ivy's uncle's house, where we had a big family lunch.  Shushu (uncle) taught me how to make dumplings and then I watched Life of Pi with Ivy, her cousin Zoe, and their younger cousin Polo.  Afterwards, ayi (aunt) prepared pork, beef, shrimp, fish, noodles, rice, and soup for a big dinner.  I couldn't eat a lot because I had just eaten so many dumplings a few hours earlier!  The food was delicious though, and the entire family (2 uncles, 3 aunts, 2 cousins, mom, dad, and Ivy) all commented on how quickly I learned to use chopsticks!

This is me and Ivy making dumplings! 

 At dinner with mama and Ivy.

 Me, Polo, and ayi

Nihao, wo jiao Zhou Ling

Here I am one day in Shanghai, and I already have a Chinese name!  Zhou is my host family's surname and Ling is the name my host sister, Ivy, picked for me.  In China, when introducing yourself, the surname always come before your first name.  Ling means "cool and refreshing", which I figured is appropriate because it so a million degrees here and so humid!  Much worse than the humidity in Arlington!

Yesterday when our bus pulled into Shanghai Minhang High School, all of the host siblings were standing outside with signs that had our names on them.  It was a really sweet greeting, although perhaps a little awkward at first.  After a brief orientation, baba (which means father) and Ivy took me to dinner at a mall near our house.  Baba does not speak any English, but he is really sweet and kind.  They did laugh at me quite a bit though when I completely failed at my attempt to use chopsticks.  

Then we drove home and I got to see my home for the next six weeks.  The condo that I am living in is very nice!  It is five floors, and I have my own little room with air conditioning, a full size bed, a TV, and a wardrobe.  My bed has a mattress and a blanket but one top there is a bamboo mat to sleep on.  I found it a little uncomfortable so I just stuck with the blanket.  

This morning Ivy and I went to school.  Normally, we will take the subway to school, but today her dad drove us.  It is about a 35 minute care ride.  My first Chinese class went pretty well, and after school my new friends Agatha and Richard and I took the subway to downtown Shanghai with our host siblings.  It was amazing!  It looks and feels exactly like New York City, except everything is written in characters.  I even got a Starbucks drink to go along with my authentic Chinese street food!  

Tomorrow Ivy is going to help me with my Chinese homework, and then we are going to meet up with Agatha, Richard, and their host siblings and go to a water park!

Here are some pictures of my first day in Shanghai:

This is all fourteen of us students studying at Shanghai Minhang High School.

Here is me, Richard, and Agatha in downtown Shanghai.

This is what we got for dinner tonight!

Today in Beijing

I made it to Beijing!  We got in about 12 AM last night, and by the time we checked into the hotel and my new roomie and I got settled, it was about 1:30, so I only got 6 hours of sleep last night!  The hotel is really nice though, so it felt like a lot more.  This morning we had some more orientation lectures and a little chinese lesson.  After lunch, we went to the Great Wall of China!  It was absolutely amazing and the views were breathtaking.  It was, however, a HUGE workout!  I am definitely going to be sore tomorrow.  Here are some pictures from today:

Tomorrow morning I leave for Shanghai!  I will finally get to meet my host family and settle in to a normal routine.  I am so excited but also really nervous.  Wish me luck!

xoxo
sar

Greetings from Asia!

8,200 miles and a 14 hour flight later and here I am in the Tokyo airport!  I wasn't able to access wifi during my orientation in New York, and this is the first time I'm able to use my computer, so there is so much to update you guys on!
Orientation was exhausting.  There are 44 of us beginner Chinese speakers going to China, but there are three different cities: Shanghai, Chengdu, and Deyang.  We all listened to a lot of lectures and did bonding activities which was great because we were able to meet everyone, but by the end of the day I was so happy to get back to my dorm.  My roommate's name is Nina, and she is also going to Shanghai.  So far, my closest friend is Dominique (she's in the picture above with me in the Tokyo airport!).  She is from Indiana but she will be in Chengdu, which kind of stinks.  Luckily, we'll have two days in Beijing together and then again at the end of the trip we will have a few days in Beijing again.  Everyone going to Shanghai with me is super nice so I am really pumped to get to know them once we break up into our cities.
The flight from NY to Tokyo was absolutely exhausting.  Fourteen hours and I only got 30 minutes of sleep (I was able to catch up on a lot of movies though!), and we still have another four hour flight to Beijing tonight.  New York/D.C. time is 4:45 in the morning, but here it is 5:45 in the evening!  My time schedule is completely off, but I am running on adrenaline and a lot of coffee (hence the picture above) so I feel okay right now!  Next time I write, I'll be in CHINA!

Missing home and everyone there,
xoxo
sar