It's about 9am Beijing time, and I unfortunately am awake and hoping I don't crash later. My plane ride was entertaining and unproductive. Thanks to all of you who wrote me plane letters. They entertained me for about the first hour after we took off (I read some of them twice), and I might have to give Sam and Paige the awards for most ridiculous content...Sam's was about how life is a game, and Paige's included a piece on how to ride an Ostrich.
I sat next to a 13-year-old native Chinese on the plane who moved to Montgomery County when she was 8. She goes by like 4 names including Maria, April, and Maebo (I think). She is exactly the opposite of everything I was when I was 13, and I definitely upon initial interaction guessed her to be about my age, or at least 16-ish. This isn't really what you all want to hear about, so here's a brief summary: She is OBSESSED with makeup and lip gloss (I saw all of it) and really really wants a boyfriend but doesn't know how to talk to boys (maybe cause 13-year-old boys are immature, which was what I told her), and she's positive that she never ever wants to see a gynecologist, have sex, or get married (don't ask how this all came up...) She also was incredibly impressed I go to Brown and asked about my SAT scores, how I got in, etc... I know I said brief, but two more things: She's confident that if a relationship with someone lasts two months, you may as well get married (cause that's a really long time!) and she's also really really nervous about going to high school next year and asked for advice about it (she's going to some magnet school in DC). So I spent the plane ride mostly talking to this girl; she made it almost impossible for me to get any reading done cause she was so curious about everything, not that I'm one to talk. We spent about two hours playing cards and some of the time speaking in Chinese (she said my pronunciation is really good!) And then she asked for my e-mail and phone number in China and said she's going to "e-mail me EVERY day." So far, I haven't heard from her...
At the end of the plane ride, I started getting really nervous about my trip and my stomach was quite unhappy, but once we landed, I was much better. The airport was really cool to step into (not temperature wise...it was actually like 85 degrees) and I actually recognized some characters on signs. Customs wasn't an issue, and I got my bags right away, though the wheel on one of my suitcases is broken now. I came out of the second customs with my bags by myself to a crowd of at least a hundred people all holding different signs in various languages, and all staring at me. Not thinking, I walked quickly to the exit, and then realized I'd forgotten to look for the "Abroad China" sign of the people who were picking me up. I stood there nervously at the end of this crowd for about 5 minutes wondering what to do and then spent awhile looking around for the sign with no success. I ended up trying to talk to the woman at the information desk who didn't really speak English, but basically told me to go buy a phone card and call the people to pick me up, but I didn't really understand her directions. I went over to the phones and attempted to use my debit card to call, but it wouldn't work. Some really nice Chinese man, who also didn't really speak English, came over and lent me his phone card and dialed the number for me. Claudia, the woman in charge, seemed surprised I was there already, but said they were on their way and to wait by the information booth. A good 45 minutes after exiting customs, my guides arrived and took my suitcases for me, and we were off...
I was given a backpack full of snacks, information, a shirt, and my cell phone in the car. I immediately called Andi to let her know I was here and tell her I'd meet her for dinner. When we got to the hotel, I was taken to my room, which consists of two rock-solid beds (like I think you would even think these are a bit stiff dad), some furniture, a tv, a water cooler, and a bathroom with a tub/shower without a curtain. The toilet had one of those push flush things on top, but it was permanently pushed in. AJ, one of the other students on the trip who has been here a week already came downstairs to explain to me how to operate the lights, shower, and the deal with laundry (basically do it yourself or pay 1 kuai for shirts and 2 kuai for pants, which they'll pick up on Wednesdays...they don't wash socks or underwear). We told the hotel managers my toilet was broken, and their response was to show me a bunch of different rooms and let me pick which I wanted. So I am now next door to that room, but the view out my window is of old Chinese buildings, and it's really cool to look at every two seconds. Probably the best thing yet about my room is that it has really good AC with a remote control, but I can't seem to get the window to close. The TV also doesn't work as far as I'm aware, but maybe I can get it fixed.
I was given about two seconds to send out the "I'm alive" e-mail to most of you before I was taken for a tour of the area. The entire area I'm living in is basically covered in bars and restaurants. The roads are paved with stones and about the width of one car and two people. These cars just kinda drive and expect you to not be in the way, which is a rather difficult task. My guides walked me to the subway station I'll be going to in a couple of hours to get to an ultimate tournament (it's about a twenty minute walk), and then Andi was going to meet me there. For those of you who don't know, Andi (short for Andria) is a close friend of mine from Brown who's doing PIB (Princeton in Beijing), which is well-known as the most intense immersion program. She doesn't start until Friday, after which I probably won't see her ever and after which she can't speak English (or even type something like this) or she gets sent home. I assured my guides I knew how to get back (though I wasn't actually so sure), and they left me there. I sat down to read my book on the steps outside the subway, and I couldn't even tell you how many awkward stares I got over the next half hour waiting. I guess I shouldn't be surprised...American red-head sitting on steps outside a subway reading a book called "Chinese Business Etiquette". Seeing Andi was really exciting because I know her AND she speaks English! We decided to go to a hot-pot restaurant where they basically put this pot of oil and such in this hole with a flame in your table and you order things to cook in it. Andi did all the talking because I was nervous and didn't really know what to say, but most of it was "Wo yao zhe ge..." (I want this...) and pointing at things. We got some beef, mushrooms, and bamboo shoots and then water, which you have to ask for as "cold boiled water" since you can't drink tap here, and Tsing Tao beer, which comes in 20oz bottles. These, by the way, cost about 3 kuai (43 cents) at the stores nearby. The hot-pot was ridiculously spicy, and that's an understatement. Andi and I took breaks and had to stop talking a bunch of times to let our mouths cool down. We got some ice cream on the street afterwards and then went back to my hotel (which I found!) and discussed bars to go to with AJ and some other kids on the program. They had apparently gotten wasted the night before when some random Chinese guy gave AJ a full bottle of whiskey for free (and his phone number). Mind you, AJ speaks almost zero Chinese, and this guy apparently didn't speak English at all. They talked about a bunch of places, and eventually Andi and I decided to go to "Reef Bar" where we had 5 or 6 drinks, most of which we had no idea what were made of because only the titles were in English, though both the "Around the World" and the "Kiss" tasted pretty good. After this, we went to a public bathroom, i.e. holes in the ground without toilet paper, and then Andi took a taxi back to our friend Susannah's house she's staying in. I found the hotel once again and passed out until now...
My next adventure: finding something to eat for breakfast and going to by toothpaste (I guess I forgot that mom...), hangers, and a shower curtain. Wish me luck!
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