Made in China

I know that before I even thought about coming to China I was well aware
of how often I bought things that were made in China. Usually that is an
indication that it is not great quality but I now have a quality
purchase made in china. I recently had a suit tailor made for myself. I
had it made at a local clothing market. I picked out the fabric and
style with the help of some friends who came with me. When I went back
the first time to try on the suit I was really excited but the suit was
a little big and unfinished. Today I went back and tried on the final
product and I am very happy to have a custom made suit! I really dislike
shopping so having a suit made to fit me is awesome! When I was looking
at the suit realized there wasn’t a usual tag it made me think about the
made in China labels. I have been trying to buy things here in China
that are well made Chinese crafts and products rather than the mass
produced products that often make their way to the tourist markets. Even
though I have also indulged in some touristy gifts I am proud that I
have invested some of my money into buying quality items that I will
both treasure and use and remember this amazing adventure in China.

One of the best parts of getting the suit made was talking to the
seamstress in Chinese. When I first picked out the suit I didn’t use
much Chinese since I don’t know any colors or other adjectives I needed
to use, but I tried to throw in any Chinese words I could. I’ve found
that even trying to use a little Chinese can go along way with people. I
really believe that trying to learn the language and showing Chinese
people that you are about their language and culture can really improve
a situation. When I went back to pick up the completed suit I used a lot
more Chinese. I was so proud of myself when I told the woman that the
suit was very good and thanked her. Then she asked me about studying
Chinese and I told her in Chinese that I had a test early that day and
she told me that my pronunciation was getting good. I still find it
incredible that I was able to have even that small conversation with the
Chinese seamstress. It made me feel like all my studying is paying off
and I can at least begin to communicate a little more with Chinese
people. That small conversation was a small light in the midst of the
increasingly grey and gloomy city. It has been a hard couple of weeks
for me since I’ve had a ton of work to do, and since the weather has
been warmer the pollution has greatly increased. Even though I’m often
discouraged when I can’t see the sun there are always moments when some
little thing like talking to the seamstress or the woman at my favorite
milk tea stand can be a small ray of sunlight in my day. 

The Great Difficult Winding Staircase & The Olympic Park

I recently went on a school-sponsored trip to the Great Wall of China,
and think that it lives up to its name. It was great! When we went it was
an absolutely gorgeous day, the sky was even blue (which is rare in
and around Beijing). We drove about an hour and a half from our campus in
Beijing to the Great Wall and then had to hike up more steps than I care
to remember up to the wall. When I was finally standing on the Great Wall
of China the view was incredible. It was like being in a movie. I half
expected an animated Hung from Mulan to jump over the wall and attack me –
it just seemed so unreal that I was there. The wall stretched as far as I
could see in both directions over the mountains. Me and my friends
started to climb our way to the highest guard tower that we thought we
could reach in a reasonable amount of time. After about an hour of
stumbling up uneven, rough, and often steep steps I thought that maybe it
should be called The Great Difficult Winding Staircase.  We finally
reached the tower and then began climbing back to the other end of the
wall. Instead of suffering the hike back down we took a toboggan ride
down the great wall back to the park entrance. We each sat on a sled like
seat and then used a handle to move forward or break. It was extremely
fun but also kind of terrifying as I flew down the slide feeling like a
bobsledder. Even thought climbing the wall was a little tough the view
was amazing and just being on the Great Wall of China made it worth every
step. Although it happens often in China it was another “I can’t
believe I am actually here” moments.

Speaking of places I can’t believe I was actually at… this past weekend I
went to the Olympic Park with two of my friends. As we pulled up to the
park and saw the Bird’s Nest Olympic Stadium I would hear the
Olympic theme in my head, and was transported back to my couch at home
sitting with my family who loves the Olympics. I just kept thinking about
how I had seen all the buildings on TV during the Olympics and yet again
couldn’t believe I was actually there. If you had told me in the summer
of 2008 that I would be standing there myself two and a half years later
I wouldn’t have believed you. Although I could have stood in awe just
looking at the Olympic stadium I had come with a mission. I had heard
from a friend that part of the Water Cube (Olympic Aquatic Center) had
been turned into a water park. My friends and I bought our tickets for
the water park and headed inside. First, we stopped to look at
the Olympic pool used for the Olympic races. It was soooooooo cool to be
inside the place where Michael Phelps had won all his gold medals. Then
we headed to the water park. It was similar to some American water parks
I’ve been to only everyone except me and my two friends were Chinese.
Even though I’m used to being the only white person in Beijing I was
surprised that there weren’t anyother foreigners at the water park. It
was especially noticeable while we were in the wave pool and a giant
screen showed everyone in the pool. Like showing a crowd at a sporting
event the large screen zoomed in on people who were waving and dancing
for the camera, and of course they zoomed in on the three white Americans
dancing just as crazily as all the Chinese people around them. The water
park was a lot of fun, and it was pretty amazing to be swimming
and running around in the Olympic Water Cube. 

A Heartbreaking Trip to Sichuan

Last week I was on a week long trip to the Sichuan Province to China. At
one point the staff member leading the trip used the perfect adjective
to describe the trip: Arduous. Our trip became with an extremely
turbulent plane ride, and then continued with a rainy bus ride and
arrival at our first destination. We visited the famous Buddhist Dazu
Grottos, which are gorgeous Buddhist images carved into a natural rock
formation. I walked along the beautiful rocks surrounded by lush green
bamboo and feeling the rain hit the hood of my jacket. Even though the
conditions weren’t ideal it was easy to see why monks decided to live in
this beautifully peaceful place.

Our trip continued the next day by driving in the pouring rain to our
next destination where we didn’t get to hike up the World’s Largest
Buddha or visit the monastery behind the Buddha. It was the beginning of
what turned out to be an excruciatingly disappointing trip. I had been
looking forward to hiking to see the Buddha and the monastery but
instead our group was forced to take a Maid-of-the-Mist style boat ride
where I barely got to see the Buddha. After the boat ride we got back on
the bus and later arrived in a small town with nothing to do, nowhere to
go, and nothing to see. It was also freezing! Literally, it was snowing
during the night. We stayed the night in a guesthouse with no heating. I
was sharing a room with my friend Katrina and both of us feeling
miserable and tired we climbed into our freezing beds wearing as much
clothing as possible at 7:30 pm. When we realized what time it was we
felt super lame and decided to stay up and play 20 questions. So, after
an hour we called it a night and went to bed in a room that was the
same temperature as outside, which was freezing!

The next day began the arduous trek to the Tibetan cultural region of
the Sichuan province. We drove over, around, and through mountains
through a blizzard. We drove all day and into the night and finally
arrived at in the snowy darkness at what our guide claimed was “the most
beautiful village in all of China”. I was extremely skeptical, as I had
to stumble up a rock path in the dark to get our homemade village
dinner. Once dinner was over we walked outside (where it was snowing!)
to see the villagers perform traditional dances for us. There was fresh
goat meat roasting on a spit over the fire and hot tea for everyone to
enjoy. Even though I was cold and tired it was really a great experience
to see the villagers dance. It was an even greater experience when the
villagers asked us to dance with them, then turned on some village
techno, turned off the lights, put on a strobe light, and turned the
night into a village rave. It was strangely beautiful to see the snow
falling and people dancing with the flashing strobe light. After the
party we went back to the village houses we stayed in and again slept in
all our clothes since there was no heat.

The next morning I woke up and looked out the window and realized why we
had been told it was “the most beautiful village in all of China”. The
view was breathtakingly beautiful. I was looking at the snowcapped
Himalaya Mountains over a roof flying Tibetan prayer flags. My friends
and I decided to take a hike before we had to meet for lunch, and as I
walked past the trees covered in blossoms and snow I couldn’t believe
how beautiful the village was. Every single moment I looked at the
mountains I was hit by the majesty and beauty. There wasn’t a second
when I wasn’t overwhelmed by the breathtaking beauty of the landscape.
We found a goat path and followed it around the side of the mountain to
soak in more of the gorgeous views. Along the way we saw colorful prayer
flags flying against the brilliant white rocks and snow. For a while I
just sat on a rock and stared at the majestic mountains. It was amazing
to be so close to Tibet standing on a mountain The rest of the trip mostly consisted of driving on the bus, stopping to put snow chains on the tires, driving more, stopping to get food, driving more, stopping in a town to sleep for the night and doing it again. There was so much time spent on the bus that we spent more time on the bus than doing anything else. There was one night we were in the
town on the border of Tibet and ate dinner there and then drove away
because of yet another blizzard. It was absolutely heartbreaking for me
to be so close to Tibet and not be able to see anything or stay there
for more than the hour we had to eat. The whole trip left me feeling
worn down, disappointed, and heartbroken. I’m glad that I got to hike in
the most beautiful village in China but I am saddened that this trip has
left a lingering sadness in my heart. It is my hope that one day I can
return to that region of China and experience all the things I wish I
could have done on this trip. At least I can remember the smell of clean
mountain air and in my mind see Tibetan prayer flags fluttering against
the backdrop of the Himalayas.