I ♥ WU

Wudaokou, affectionately known as "Wu," is the neighborhood just outside the gates of Tsinghua University. Whenever I get that little longing in my heart that makes me almost consider hopping back on a 737 straight to Beijing, it's because I'm missing Wudaokou.

It's the Chinese equivalent of a college town, with more bars, restaurants, and shops than we knew what to do with. Wudaokou is just a five minute bus ride from campus, so it was a much more feasible trip on weeknights when we didn't feel like trekking all the way to Salitun or Hou Hai for a taste of night life.

In the beginning, we checked out many of the shops and restaurants, and by the half-way point we liked to consider ourselves regulars at a handful of the local establishments. There was Lush, where you'd find the gang every Wednesday for the Pub Quiz (no matter how embarrassing our score was the week before). The casual atmosphere at Lush made me feel instantly at home. I liked the continuity; the crowd that turned out for the Pub Quiz was always full of familiar faces. Just the down the block was Pyro Pizza, where Lindsey and Kelsey proved their beer pong chops and kicked some frat boy ass. If we were in a social mood, but still had work to do, Bridge Cafe was the place to be. If we needed a sweets fix, Tous Les Jours, a korean bakery franchise had exquisite pastries at ridiculously low prices--not too mention the constant streaming of k-pop (korean pop) music videos.

Even walking around Wudaokou proved to be an adventure--a feast for the senses if you will. Every night, as soon as the sun begins to set, a sort of clandestine, nighttime street market appears, as if out of nowhere. The vendors set up their goods on any available pavement, which makes simply walking on the sidewalk quite a challenging task.

Everywhere you turn there are racks of clothing, bags and shoes blanketing the ground, and rickshaw carts blocking every corner. Amidst all the merchandise for sale are carts selling street food. Often, we had the misfortune of catching a whiff of what is known as "stinky tofu." Whenever we got off the bus and thought "Wow, what died?," we knew the street vendors we cooking the popular, albeit foul-smelling delicacy.

Restaurants and bars aside, I found no greater joy than in wandering about the streets of Wudaokou and happening upon a basket full of puppies for sale. Each time, my heart melted, and, suddenly, I transformed from 20-year-old college student to a five-year-old, begging mom to let me stop inside the pet store. Of course, I always stopped. I'm never one to pass up an opportunity to play with cute animals. It took everything I had in me not to walk away with a new puppy in my arms. I had to keep reminding myself that customs would probably not look kindly on a living thing in my carry-on luggage.

Wudaokou is truly a microcosm of life in Beijing. I found comfort in our weekly routine and the familiarity of my surroundings. We never even extended our boundaries more than a few blocks in any one direction, but for eight weeks, Wu really became my home away from home.

Fear Factor: Beijing Edition

If strawberry Cheetos and Kiwi Lay's aren't to your taste, you might consider a trip to Wangfujing.

Wangfujing is home to the famed "Snack Street," where natives are provided endless entertainment by tourists brave enough to stomach deep-fried skewers of starfish, beetles, and scorpions. In the mix with all the scary (and sometimes still squirming) snacks, are safer items like meat skewers, sugar-coated fruit, and deep-fried dough.

The streets are narrow and crowded with people meandering from stand to stand. Walking along the street, with each stand you pass you are greeted with a new and inviting smell.

The snack market certainly lived up to my expectations. Needless to say I did not sample any of the scorpions or beetles and instead opted for the deep-fried banana (very tasty). I draw the line at half-dead insects on a skewer.

if you're craving something a little exotic..

After frequent trips to several Chinese grocery stores and a Super Walmart in Beijing, we were excited to see many of the same familiar brands of snack foods: Lay's, Cheetos, Pringles, etc. Upon closer inspection, we realized that these snacks were not quite the same as in the U.S.

Here's just a few of the crazy flavors we sampled during our feast of snacks:

Kiwi Lay's Stax

Blueberry Lay's

Orange Chips Ahoy!

Lemon Tea Flavored Lay's

Strawberry Cheetos

The crowd favorite was hands-down the Lemon Tea Lay's. They were, as the packaging promised, "cool and refreshing," literally like you were crunching on iced tea. Though bizarre, most of the wacky flavors were surprisingly tasty. Who would have thought?

798 Art District

In Beijing, a rich and vibrant art scene has developed in a former communist military factory complex. The area was vacated right around the time when Beijing's contemporary artists were looking for a new home. And so began the artistic rebirth of this factory district.

'798' denotes the government identification number of one of the factories for which this area became known. Now, artists set up their galleries in renovated factory space.

The 798 Art District is one of those trips we'd been planning on doing since the first week in Beijing. We finally made the journey there on our last Sunday, emphasis on the word 'journey'.

As usual, we took the bus into Wudaokou and hopped on the subway. After the subway, we walked for what felt like miles to the bus stop, waited, and then rode the bus hoping to figure out where we were getting off. Eventually, we did, and, after still more wandering, we managed to find it! Success!

We walked in and out of the galleries, each of them a cool reprieve from the hot, sticky air outside. Most the art was avante-garde and very striking, but sadly most galleries didn't allow photos. The artist (pictured right) had a fondness for inflatable pool toys. The galleries were interspersed with block after block of gift shops and trendy bars and restaurants.

The 798 District was definitely the place to be seen for the Chinese well-to-do who could afford to shell out 20,000 ¥ on a floor-to-ceiling portrait of Mao Zedong. There were hordes of men and women proudly displaying their designer labels (which I'm going to go ahead and guess were not fake).

We had appreciated the art, we'd purchased our souvenirs, and now we were ready to eat. We made our choice of restaurant based solely on the fact that one named Helen's had a shady outdoor patio with an industrial-sized fan blowing a cool mist over diners and passers-by. Dinner was a giant hamburger slathered in mayonnaise and desert was a refreshing lemon crepe.

Our meal was quite long, partly because we were still recovering from our early morning in Tiananmen and partly because our waitress kept disappearing for 30 minutes at a time.

After the check finally arrived we began the long journey back to Tsinghua pleased with having experienced two very different aspects of Chinese culture in one day.

wake me up before you go-go to Tiananmen Square

Realizing we had just over a week to cram in everything we'd yet to do in Beijing, we decided to take advantage of our last Sunday and wake up in the wee hours of the morning and journey to Tiananmen Square to see the flag raising ceremony.

The night went a little something like this:
12:00 AM: bed
4:00 AM: first alarm
4:15 AM: snooze alarm
4:30 AM: miraculously hailing a taxi
5:00 AM: arrive at Tiananmen

After we arrived, we waited around the square for the ceremony to begin. The flag raising is much like the changing of the guards in London; Chinese military honor guards march to raise the national flag at sunrise every morning. The crowd was dense, allowing for minimal visibility. There were thousands of people, but we were among the only foreigners in attendance. The great sense of nationalism was almost tangible in the early-morning sun as the flag ascended the pole with the national anthem trumpeting in the background. The ceremony was short, and after it ended, we made no delay in heading home.

Opting for the inexpensive route home, we trekked to the subway and practically sleep-walked through our transfers and back on the bus to campus. Needless to say after only four hours of shuteye, we spent the morning catching up on sleep.

It was a truly authentic Chinese cultural experience, a must-do if you're ever in Beijing, but not one I'd recommend repeating.

the Summer Palace

The last excursion of the trip was the Summer Palace. The grounds were once a summer resort for the Empress Cixi, who commandeered 30 million taels (this unit is equal to about 40 g) of silver for its construction. This sum was intended to be used by the Chinese navy--many attribute their subsequent defeat to this misappropriation of funds.

Three-quarters of the palace grounds is comprised of man made Kunming Lake; the earth that was excavated for the lake was used to build Longevity Hill, which dominates the landscape of the Summer Palace.

Like many of the gardens and resorts in Beijing, the Summer Palace serves as a recreational park. When we approached a pavilion overlooking the lake, we noticed a large crowd had gathered. Inside the pavilion was a older couple doing a traditional Chinese song and dance. The music provided by accompanying musicians was upbeat and the dancing was charming. And the elderly gentleman (pictured left) had a mustache that was truly out-of-this-world.

We walked around the entire perimeter of the grounds, and opted to take a "pleasure boat" back across to where we would be picked up. The grounds were beautiful, but the day we visited it was humid and overcast, so it wasn't the most ideal day to visit such a scenic spot.

In summary: lots of walking around, crowded, hot, and humid. Just a typical day of summer sight-seeing in Beijing.

Jingju

In our second-to-last week we had an optional excursion to the Beijing Opera that Gu Laoshi subsidized for anyone that wanted to go. At a cost of 10 kuai, I thought to myself, "why not!?"

The performance was in the National Centre for the Performing Arts in the center of Beijing. The building (pictured left) is nicknamed "the egg" and is one of the most beautiful buildings I've ever seen, especially on the inside. Unfortunately, I had to check my camera and couldn't take any pictures inside. The structure, which was designed by French architect, has a dome made of titanium and glass and is surrounded by an artificial lake.

Beijing Opera is a traditional Chinese art form that combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance, and acrobatics. It has a history that dates back to the late 18th century, and is widely viewed as one of China's cultural treasure--this is what they tell you in the textbooks. But we were advised by our teachers that Beijing Opera is something of an acquired taste. Oh, how right they were.

The show is done completely in Chinese and it is so archaic that they must provide Chinese subtitles to native speakers, so those of us who did not speak Chinese were left completely in the dark. Of course, the travel guide books don't really tell you that. They also don't tell you that Beijing Opera is really nothing more than dramatic costumes, high-pitched screeching, and loud, percussive clanging. It was unbearable. We stuck it out for the first act, took an extended intermission, and spent the second act ad-libbing our own English translations to the dialogue. What can I say? We tried.

我是 清华大学 的 学生

There's a little more of the Chinese I've learned. The title is pronounced wo shi Tsinghua Daxue de xuesheng and translates to "I am a Tsinghua University student."
That's one of the first phrases we learned and one that I use frequently when trying to explain to Chinese people I meet what 50 American students are doing in Beijing. First they are surprised that I can speak Chinese, and second they are very impressed. Hen hao daxue ("very good university"), they say. Usually ranked in top 1 or 2 universities domestically, Tsinghua is recognized for its academic strength internationally as well.

It's a great school with a beautiful campus and I feel very lucky to be here. The campus itself is like a small city, entirely enclosed a by gate that separates Tsinghua from the surrounding area. We only experience a very small part of the campus on a day-to-day basis, so in honor of the beautiful weather we've been having, myself and a couple friends decided to take a bike ride around campus.
The campus is beautiful, lots of pretty buildings both large and small, and a surprising amount of wildlife. It is brimming with hidden treasures; gardens, bridges, pagodas, and lagoons. We'll often hear about different places on campus--a store or a park, for example. Generally you will only ever find these places if you are lucky enough to stumble upon them. A hopeful attempt to find a campus restaurant often begins to feel like a wild-goose chase after a half hour of fruitless wandering.
Our bike ride did, nonetheless, have a specific destination in mind. We had heard that there was an SPR Coffee (rumored to have great food and low prices), and we were determined to find it. With Kelsey and Lindsey's direction, we managed to locate the coffee shop with relative ease.
It had great atmosphere, a large outdoor patio, and, as promised, tasty, inexpensive food. I got an iced coffee drink and set up studying for a few hours; it was very reminiscent of my frequent study sessions at Norbucks during the school year.

Some other photos from our campus tour:a street market on campus

a tiny pagoda near a small lagoon

Tsinghua has an arch too!

going for the gold

Last Sunday, after a thoroughly exhausting Saturday full of sightseeing, we took advantage of our "rest day," for once, and slept in. Having planned our traveling via the subway, it was a quick and easy trip to the Olympic Green.

I was with Sara and Caitlin and we were all quite excited. During the summer of the Beijing Olympics, I'd just graduated high school and nearly every night that summer a group of us could be found sitting in someone's family room, glued to the television. I'm sure for Caitlin, who is a Northwestern swimmer, this felt a little like your first time to Disneyworld.

It seemed as though the heat wave in Beijing had finally cleared. It was a beautiful, sunny day. The skies were blue and the air was free of the stifling humidity that usually hangs in the air. It was a perfect day to walk around outside; despite the vast concrete of the Olympic Green, it was a comfortably warm, breezy day.

It seemed that three American girls could not have been more in demand while we were there. For whatever reason, we were incredibly popular with the Chinese tourists that day. We couldn't go five minutes without someone asking us to take a photo with them; we easily posed for upwards of 20 pictures.

After admiring the buildings from the outside, we decided to get a closer look. Entrance to the Olympic Green was free, but we opted to pay extra to go inside the water cube because it was such an iconic building, and, in my mind, inextricable linked with the Beijing Olympics. I probably watched every Michael Phelps race that summer--you better believe we wanted to see the pool! There we are in the stands, cheering on team U.S.A., of course.

The pool was one of most enticing things I have ever seen. Over the past seven weeks, frequently trudging around in the sweltering heat, I have fantasized about jumping in a pool and here I was just feet away from one of Olympic proportion. The clear, pristine water was taunting me. Sadly, there I was little I could do, for I was sure that if I acted on this impulse I would be in a great deal of trouble with security.

Alas, there are plenty of fish, or shall I say pools, in the sea, but it was just utterly unsatisfying to only be able to admire this one from afar. Oh the sting of unrequited love..

shop 'til you drop

The agenda for our most recent excursion day was the following: Antiques Market, Temple of Heaven, Pearl Market, and an acrobatic show.

Beijing was still in the throes of an unbearable heat wave, and Saturday was no exception.

Our first stop was the Antiques Market, one of the best known markets in Beijing. Shop owners will claim everything from the porcelain and jade to books and records is "antique," but most of it is just a bunch of old crap. The salespeople will start out with exorbitant prices, and, if you're persistent, you may be able to get them down to a reasonable price. My only purchase: a set of beautiful, matted black and white photos. I am quite smitten with them. They'll be a nice reminder of the beauty of everyday life here.
The antique market was supposed to be a three-hour excursion, but the heat was utterly oppressive that day. We didn't last more than 45 minutes before we headed to the nearest McDonald's--only to find the rest of our program there as well. We spent a good two hours playing cards, hanging out, and trying various items on the menu.

After the excursion to McDonald's, we set off for the Temple of Heaven. The grounds are comprised of a series of temples where emperors would perform ceremonies, praying to the heavens for a good harvest. The Imperial Vault of Heaven is pictured left.

The Temple of Heaven grounds were rife with tourists, especially a large group of young kids. Like us, they were doing a summer program at Tsinghua University, but they didn't care that we were their classmates so much as that we were American. They had a blast posing for pictures with us and practicing their English.

The Temple of Heaven is full of symbolism; there are lots of earth and heaven motifs used in the architecture of the structures and the grounds themselves. The north end of the grounds is surrounded by a semi-circular wall, representing heaven and the south end by a rectangular wall, representing earth.

The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (pictured right), which is built on three levels of marble stone, is where the emperor would pray for a good harvest. The structure atop the three tiers of marble is made completely of wood and was constructed without any nails.

A quick break in the shade and then it was off to our third destination of the day: the Pearl Market. As Gu Laoshi told us, it's essentially the same as the Silk Market except the pearls are real and the silk is fake. You can get t-shirts, purses, or electronics, but I chose to focus my attention solely on pearls. I couldn't believe how reasonably priced real pearls were. I fell in love these aqua colored potato pearls and was able to have a necklace made for less than $20 US.

Our last stop of the day was a show by the National Acrobats of China. It was one of the most incredible things I have ever seen. There were no elaborate sets or props, just the occasional hoop or pole. I was shocked by how young all the performers were and was all the more nervous watching children getting tossed around like little rag dolls. It was a stunning performance and a true testament to the discipline of these young girls and boys.

Another exhausting but nonetheless important day of sightseeing. Just one more Saturday trip left! Home in eight days!

a little bit of kuai = a lot of luxury

One of the dishes Beijing is renowned for is Peking Duck (北京烤鸭), pronounced Beijing kaoya. Yes, I actually can read (and write) that!

We asked Gu laoshi if he had any recommendations for where to get good Peking Duck, and he told us he would make us a reservation and order for us. The group thought it'd be nice to invite him since he was going to all the trouble of setting the event up for us, and we were very pleased to have him and another NU professor staying in Beijing join us for dinner.

Gu Laoshi made us a reservation at the same restaurant in Houhai that he took President Schapiro--so you know it's going to be good. We were all shocked when the hostess led us to a private room overlooking the stage. During dinner we were entertained by a variety show complete with musicians, puppets, a magician, and uni-cycling juggler. There were some pretty spectacular talents, but also some rather useless ones, like the women who sang while clenching a candle holder in her teeth. It was honestly just plain uncomfortable to watch.

The meal, however, was delicious. There were an assortment of vegetables, fish, spicy beef, and even french fries as appetizers, which we ate while the duck was cooking. Peking Duck is a dish that dates back to the imperial era and is now considered to be a national food of China. When the main course finally arrived, the server brought the duck out whole and carved it in front of us. The skin of the duck is the most prized part--often restaurants will serve more of the thin, crispy skin than the meat itself.

The server sliced a large piece of skin off onto a separate dish and cut it into smaller pieces. The custom is for diners to each eat a slice before beginning the meal, and the host always eats last. Traditionally, the duck is wrapped and eaten in a very thin pancake along with cucumbers, scallions, and hoisin sauce. I didn't take to the crisp, oily duck as much as the rest of my group, but I quite enjoyed the entire experience anyway. Unlike everyone else who filled up on duck, I had plenty of room for the hao-chi ("delicious", Shui laoshi would be so proud that I'm using vocab!) red-bean desserts.

It was even more of a treat when Professor Xia announced that he would generously pay for the entire meal. We begged him to let us contribute, but he insisted. And hey, I know a good (free) thing when I see it. The entire meal was easily $300 US, so we settled for just thanking him profusely. We walked around the nearby Houhai area, and then Professor Xia suggested to Gu Laoshi that they try a foot massage place nearby. They invited us along and since it was still relatively early, we figured a foot massage would be a great way to cap off the evening.

We split up into two cabs and the other cab was the first to arrive at the spa. As we entered, I could tell immediately that this wasn't the little hole-in-the-wall foot massage places that I'd seen in Wudaokou. It was a full-fledged spa, complete with marble tiles and fountain in the lobby. We are definitely not in Kansas anymore. It was probably the nicest anything we'd seen since the St. Regis Hotel. The hostess was expecting us and lead us down a few winding hallways when, finally, we arrived at a door. When she opened it, what I saw utterly astounded me.

Professor Xia and the rest of the group had already gotten comfortable in the private room we were given. It was quite the sight. I actually laughed out when I walked in. Each of them already had been given wicker recliners and were being worked on by two masseuses.

We signed up for a "foot massage," but what we got was two hours of foot, leg, back, neck, and scalp massages. For the majority of the time we had one person massaging our feet and one massaging our head/neck. The entire experience was completely ridiculous and a bargain at 150 kuai (just over $20 US). It's too bad I'm too tense and ticklish to really relax. The women working on me had a hard time not laughing every time I spazzed out. It is clear to me now that I am not cut out for massages.

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No big deal, just the private room we got at a spa. We signed up for a "foot massage"; what we got was two hours of foot, leg, back, neck, and scalp massages. For the majority of the time we had one person massaging our feet and one massaging our head/neck. The entire experience was completely ridiculous and a bargain at 150 kuai (just over $20 US) it's too bad I'm too tense and ticklish to really relax. The women working on me had a hard time not laughing everytime I spazzed out. It is clear to me now that I am not cut out for massages.

I tolerated most of what was thrown at me during the two-hour massage, but I was not happy when I saw the masseuse pull out the fire cups. Though I was assured that it would not be painful, about 30 seconds in I was in a great deal of pain and begging the girl to take them off my feet. She smiles, laughs, and then leaves the room. About five minutes later, she returns and takes them off my feet. I breathe a huge sigh of relief and let go of Kelsey, whose hand I had been clutching.

I went home with some minor bruising on my feet certain that I would never try cupping again.

a day in the life.

I know I make my time here in China seem really glamorous, but the truth is, a typical day here really isn't all that different from something you would experience in the States.

I get up everyday around 7:30 AM, shower (if the hot water is cooperating), and usually set up for a skype date with my parents around 8:00 AM. I probably talk to them more here than I do while at Northwestern despite being so close to home. The fact that I can't pick up a phone and call them whenever I want only makes me want to call them more.

While skyping, I simultaneously get ready, eat breakfast, and finish my homework. I'm out the door at 8:45 and then it's a 3 minute bike ride between me and the 8:55 school bell. In the mornings we have three consecutive periods of Chinese class. That's my teacher, Shui Laoshi, on the left. She's always smiling and laughing and is a fantastic teacher--I'm going to miss her when we leave.

In between classes, we have two short breaks. Typically on the first break everyone migrates down to the market in the basement of c-lou (literally "C Building" in Chinese). As you could have guessed this building is shaped like a giant "C" and houses anything you could possibly need. We take classes on the 2nd floor, and on the first and basement levels there is a bank, a post office, a phone store, an apple store, a bookstore, and our favorite, the convenient store. You can get everything from snacks and fruit to laundry detergent to a bathrobe there. Usually we just stock up on fruit or our favorite Chinese snacks and then head back upstairs and hang out in the hallway until the bell rings. It really brings me back to high school, minus all the insecurity and stress.

After class is done, our teachers join us for lunch at one of the many restaurants on campus. Gu Laoshi makes the reservations, pre-orders for us, and we all share the many dishes family-style. Lunchtime is another way for us to practice our Chinese outside of the classroom. We ask them about the dishes we're being served-- Zhe shi shenme?--as well as ask their advice on sites to visit, where to eat, and places with the best shopping.

In the afternoons, for the first four weeks I had my class on Traditional Chinese Medicine; we'd commute to Capital Medical University to hear lectures from professors or travel to TCM pharmacies and hospitals. Weeks 5 and 6 of the second session we had a very abbreviated class on Public Health in China. We had five trips to nearby hospitals and paid a visit to the Beijing CDC--and then we were done. Easiest credit earned at Northwestern. Now, in the last two weeks of the trip, I only have my morning class. So I spend my afternoons reading, blogging, napping or watching movies.

We've gotten into a routine of eating in the dining halls during the week. The government subsidizes the cost of the food, and thus it is much cheaper than eating in restaurants in Wudaokou. Typically my dinner consists of rice or noodles and watermelon, which ends up being about 5 kuai--less than $1 US.

After dinner, if we have a ton of work to do we'll either set up camp at a cafe and work or do work in the dorms. Typically on weeknights if we go out it's someplace nearby like Lush, Pyro, La Bamba, Propaganda, etc. Every Wednesday you'll find us at Lush, getting slaughtered at the Pub Quiz. It's basically a trivia contest with five rounds each with a different theme, but nearly every other team has a good 5-10 years on us. We pride ourselves on the fact that we've never finished dead last.

And that's what a typical weekday is like here. Saturdays we have excursions during the day and are have an opportunity to experience the night life in places farther from campus. Sunday is our "rest day," so we get to sleep in and plan our own outings.

I like the routine I've fallen into for the past six weeks. It makes Beijing feel a little more like home. And the best part is we're so busy that this summer is absolutely flying by!