The First Week of Classes

I'm happy to report that, as of today, I officially know 200+ more characters than I did a week ago! Success, you taste so sweet. My core class,  聚焦当代 (Talk of the Times), meets twice a day - one is a one-on-one lesson in which we focus primarily on the new vocabulary and the other is a three-on-one lesson in which we practice the new grammatical structures. I skimmed through the table of contents, and the topics all seem very interest and relevant especially to China's current situation. The chapters range from foreign immigration to sexual education to reconstructing historic areas of Beijing. My other individual class, the one geared towards helping me improve my reading and writing abilities, consists of me reading elementary school textbooks (in Chinese, of course) and practicing the characters that I'm not familiar with. Today, we read a very insightful story about a little rabbit running home to his mom to tell her that it is going to rain. This texts that I read are adorable (and slightly humiliating). My last class is Business Chinese for Success, which is a two-on-one class. This class dissects real cases of international businesses investing in China (and vice versa), which I find to be really interesting to read. So far, I'm very happy with all of my classes! 

As summer students at Tsinghua, we don't get student IDs, which means we don't have access to the libraries on campus. So what about homework?! Where can it get done?! you ask? 

Because a lifesize wooden giraffe is a much more interesting picture than one of my coffee and pens

Behold. The wonder that is Zoo Coffee, a zoo-themed cafe located conveniently down the street from my apartment. My classmates and I have had a great time cafe-hopping in the name of education. Aside from your usual cafes, there are various other hangouts that seamlessly transition from daytime study to nighttime bar. One such place is Windows, located even more conveniently down the stairs and to the right of my apartment. Probably the best place to go after class and do some homework while munching on a burger. 

And admire some Maoist artwork, of course.

This weekend, I will be going off to Tianjin to visit family. It will be really nice to see everyone again! 

BEIJING HAS MOUNTAINS?!?

Today was the first clear-by-American-standards day we've had so far. It was incredible! I could see blue! I could see clouds! I couldn't see the air, which, in China, is really saying something!

Behold! Blue skies! 

Since getting to Beijing, I've gotten into the habit of checking the AQI (the air quality index) every morning before I leave for class. Often, you can get a pretty good idea of what it's going to be just by looking out the window, but it's nice to be able to put some numbers in your head and also to have a way to help you distinguish between smog-fog and fog-fog. 

Today, during one of my 10-minute between-class breaks, I walked outside onto the sixth floor patio and looked around me. Are those... mountains?!

Behold! Mountains! In Beijing! 

Yes, those are mountains, and no, I don't know how to use photoshop. 

Let's hope we get plenty of these low-pollution days, because it would be really cool to make some other similar discoveries! 

The (Not So?) Eventful First Week

The first week of our program is mostly to get acquainted with our environment. We had placement exams and orientation on Monday, and the rest of the week is pretty much free. During orientation, we were given some general guidelines to adhere to and then taken around the Tsinghua campus for a small tour. The campus itself is huge! It has very much a western feel to it (apparently, parts of the campus were modeled after MIT and UVA - fun fact!); the buildings are separated by green lawns with adorable "baby grass is sleeping, please do not step on it" signs and the streets are filled with students riding around on bicycles. 

Today, we received our class assignments. IUP, the program at Tsinghua through which I am studying Chinese, has a very unique classroom structure. All of the classes either have the student-to-teacher ratio of 1-on-1, 2-on-1, or 3-on-1. There are two sets of core classes, both of which are separated into several levels; the classes that you end up taking for your core classes end up matching your skill level. The two sets of core classes are the text core class and the listening core class. For my text core class, I will be studying a text whose title roughly translates into "Talk of the Times". I was not placed into a listening class because, as a native speaker, it is an area in which I was already found adequate. instead, I will be taking a class that caters specifically to my weaknesses: reading and writing. In addition to these two classes, I have also elected to take "Business Chinese for Success" mostly because a) it would be nice to add some more professional words to my limited vocabulary, and b) I'm in China to learn, so why not seize the opportunity to learn even more Chinese. 

I'm really pumped to start classes, but this week of rest has been really helpful in terms of adjusting to the time difference. It was also really good because it gave a lot of us (the people in my program) the chance to meet up and get to know each other. My roommates and I have also been doing some exploring of the area, which is been really fun! We discovered that Tsinghua is literally right across the street from Yuan Ming Yuan, the old summer palace, and many other historic landmarks are just a few subway stops away. 

Da roomies take Yuanmingyuan!

Da roomies take Sanlitun!

But exploring isn't just about geography and sights! China has so much food. Everywhere. Everywhere you look, you can see the awnings of little local restaurants, carts selling various breakfast foods, and, as I've come to love, stands selling "lamb" and other mystery skewers. Can you say foot heaven (and gastroenterological hell)? I've recently discovered a shop on the way home from Tsinghua that makes the most delicious beef noodles (evidence below). Will definitely be making this place a regular location to visit! 

...No explanation required.

This week so far has been phenomenal; I'm really excited to see what else Beijing has to offer! Bring it ON. 

MLE -> PEK

Started the third leg of my summer journey yesterday, when my flight from the Maldives landed in Beijing. I will be studying Chinese at Tsinghua University for the next two months, thanks to the generosity of the Light Fellowship. My aunt and uncle picked me up from the airport just hours ago. First impression of Beijing: man, this place is hot! Nothing like getting punched in the face by the heat to shake you out of your jet lag and make you realize Toto, we are not in Kansas anymore. 

After landing at the airport. Mmm humidity, I love you.

Although this is not my first time in China, I still can't help but feel the same familiar excitement I get whenever I land in an unfamiliar environment. The last time I visited was around 6 years ago, and I can't wait to develop a better understanding of and appreciation for Beijing, this time as a college student and an adult.