Transcript No Slide Title

Dear Journal,
August 10, 2008
I am arriving in Beijing,
China right now. The opening
ceremony for the Olympics starts
in a few days. Until then I am
going site seeing. I have never
been to China before and I am
eager to learn about the lifestyle
and culture here. I grab my bags
and stagger down the aisle so I
can depart form the Asiana
(plane). When I step out I am
amazed. It is so crowed here and
loud too. I looked up and saw a
sign written in mandarin (their
native language), The writing
looked so complicated and
intricate. It would be difficult to
write like that all the time. Below
the mandarin handwriting, the
words were written in English. It
said, NO SMOKING, PLEASE.
I have a friend who lives here
in Beijing, who I am going to stay with
for a few days. She and her family will
be my tour guides. I go over to sit on a
vacant bench. My friend will be picking
me up here. I waited for a while
amazed at how everybody seemed to be
in a big hurry.
When Vicky came, she
warmly greeted me and
motioned toward the door. I
got up and walked over to the
door, glad to be leaving for a
much quieter place.
When we reached the
outside, I realized how warm it
is here. I looked for a taxi but
there wasn’t one. I fact, there
weren’t very many cars around
at all. Instead there were
bikes. All around bikes lined up
against the walls. Vicky waved
her hand toward a set of
bikes. I swung my leg over the
bike, feeling a little strange.
Once we got on the road, I
thought about how tiring it
would be to ride a bike
everywhere and how
convenient cars are.
In the middle of and
intersection was a police officer,
waving his arms and trying to direct
traffic, which only added to the
commotion. It would be so much easier
with cares and traffic lights. But then
again, some people don’t want to spend
their money on cars.
When we arrived at her hutong- I
discovered that is what their houses are
called- I noticed how small they were.
There were four cabin-like hutongs in a
rectangle. In the middle was a small yard,
we went inside one of them. The hutong
was so simple. She took her shoes off and
motioned for me to do the same. I took my
shoes off and we walked into another room
to meet her family.
There was an elderly woman
sitting on her knees next to a table that
was close to the floor. Vicky introduced us;
this woman was her grandmother. Many
generations often lived in the same tiny
hutong. After I had met everyone in the
family, Vicky and I went to the market, it
is a daily chore. At the market it was also
crowded.
We approached a fish stand;
Vicky picked up a large fish, then
handed it to the merchant. “1,000
yaun,” he said. She reached into her
pocket and pulled out a few bills and
gave it to the man. The merchant put
succulent looking fish in to a paper bag
and gave it to Vicky. We bought all of
the other groceries we needed to buy,
then hopped on our bikes and headed
back home.
On the way home, Vicky and I
passed a schoolyard. It was recess
time and the playground was filled
with children playing hopscotch, jump
rope, and marbles. Vicky explained the
school schedule to me. The school day
starts at 8:00 am and ends at 5 or 6
at night. In the middle of the day was
a two-hour break where the children
would play.
When we arrived home
again, I unpacked my things. She
showed me to my room, it was
small and very simple. There was a
small bed that was close to the
floor. Against one of the walls was
a tiny, wooden dresser. In the
middle of the room was a table,
also very close to the floor. I had
to stuff my things in the drawers
to make them fit. After I was all
situated, it was time for dinner.
The table was covered with food. Many generations lived in this hutong,
but it looked like they were expecting the whole neighborhood. When a plate was
empty it means that the person is not yet full, so a host will serve huge portions of
food. After a meal, there are often plenty of leftovers.
Everybody sat on a small pillow on the floor. Not all the food looked too
appetizing, but tried a little of everything. It was delicious! There was rice, stir fry,
fish, and beef. For a beverage there was plain tea. They have plain tea at every,
meal.
I complimented Vicky’s mother on the food, but she shrugged it off.
Chinese are often very modest. After dinner it was time for bed, it was an exciting
and fun first day in Beijing.
Dear Journal,
August 11,2008
This morning I was woken up at 7 am. I groaned and groggily asked why Vicky
was up this early on a Saturday. Sometimes I wish that I were more of a morning
person. I was informed that in China weekends don’t exist and Saturday is no
special day. Children go to school 6 days a week, people work on Saturdays, too.
So I got up, a little grouchy, and took a shower. The water was freezing! Homes
are often so simple; they don’t have some luxuries such as warm water.
Today we went to the Museum of Chinese History, it was very
interesting. China has the earliest history in the world. There is evidence of
civilization that dates back to pre-21st century BC. It has had it’s ups and down
along the way. There were many dynasties throughout China’s history, some good
and some not so good. The Han dynasty was one of the most important. Chinese
people still consider themselves “The Men of Han.” Trade flourished and China
opened to other cultures. One dynasty that wasn’t so good was he Qing dynasty.
The Qing dynasty was well run for the first 150 years, this changed because of
power struggles and corrupt court officials. While walking through, Vicky and I
observed many of China’s great masterpieces. One painting that especially
caught my eye, was a beautiful picture of a woman. She wore a red dress, with
golden, intricate designs. Her hair was in a bun on the top of her head. I could
tell that whoever painted this masterpiece spent many hours of delicate work to
make this elegant portrait. I learned a lot and had a great time at the Museum
of Chinese History.
After leaving the
museum we headed back to
Vicky’s house for lunch.
Again, there was rice and
tea in the meal. After
having lunch we rode our
bikes over t o the zoo.
The first things we
saw at the zoo were the
panda bears. They are
native to China, but are
almost extinct. Because of
China’s quickly growing
population, the panda bears’
habitat is getting wiped out.
There was a family of bears
in this zoo.
They played around and enjoyed all the
attention. They played around on the
rocks and ate bamboo, which is also
native to China. We wandered through
the rest of the zoo looking at the rest
of the animals.
The first things we saw at the zoo were the panda
bears. They are native to China, but are almost extinct.
Because of China’s quickly growing population, the panda bears’
habitat is getting wiped out. There was a family of bears in this
zoo. They played around and enjoyed all the attention. They
played around on the rocks and ate bamboo, which is also native
to China. We wandered through the rest of the zoo looking at
the rest of the animals.
By the time we were done, it was almost 5:00 p.m. so
we rode to the market to get what we needed for tonight’s
meal, then back home. On the way home, I noticed many people
ballroom dancing on the sidewalks. Vicky said that it was
popular to ballroom dance whenever there was music playing. It
looked pretty strange; people dressed in everyday street
clothes, ballroom dancing on a street corner. We would have
stopped to dance, but we knew we had to get the groceries
home.
Dear Journal,
August 12, 2008
Today the same daily routine followed, except today is Sunday so we
went to a Buddhist temple. The most common religions in China are Buddhism and
Taoism. People meditate and pray to Buddha. Some people meditate for many
hours for many hours a day. Buddha is a statue made of gold. He sits in his chair
and folds his hands on his potbelly. After going to the temple, we had a very large
lunch, which resulted with a stuffed stomach.
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When we got there we observed a sign. Next to the wall, it
said that the wall was 20 feet high and 4,160 miles long. In some areas
it is falling apart because of old age. It’s construction started during
the period of 770-476 BC It was built because China was constantly in
war with other countries at the time. After looking at the wall for a
while we headed back through the country.
Dear Journal,
August 14, 2008 4:00pm
Today is my last day staying with Vicky’s family. This has been
such a fun and exciting trip, and I’m kind of sad to be leaving, but also
anxious to go back home where I can have warm showers in the morning.
Earlier today Vicky and I took a tour of the capital building. Vicky
told me don’t usually to talk about the government.
China is a communist state. They only get a tiny say in what
happens to their government. The government controls means of
production, so you don’t even get to have the career that you want. So if
you are a farmer and you grow wheat, the wheat belongs to the
government. The government spreads the food out evenly. This is supposed
to keep everyone from starving but because of the big population boom, it
isn’t really working to well. It is advised in China to only have one child.
This is a pretty hard time for China, and I am so glad to be American.
China has a president and a vice president but the people don’t get to vote
on whom they want, the congress does. The congress has the most power.
It amends the constitution and makes laws. The people who work for the
state council are like police. They enforce the laws that the congress
makes. I learned a lot about China’s government.
In about an hour I am going to an opera with Vicky and her family.
I have never really been a fan of opera, but hey! This is China, I’m
supposed to have new experiences.
Dear Journal,
August 13, 2008 9:00pm
The Opera was great!
The actors wore beautiful
outfits and silver crowns. They
wore red and white face paint.
Red was a very important color
in China. During one section of
the opera, acrobats came out
to do amazing tricks. It was
amazing. I found myself
worrying that the acrobats
might fall, for their tricks
looked so risky and life
threatening. But of course they
never did. The opera is so
fascinating, now I understand
why it is so popular here in
China.
Dear Journal,
August 24, 2008 3:00pm
I am writing this before my last race in this Olympic games. I
have already won 5 gold medals here in Beijing. I have to admit,
I am really, really nervous. This is my best event and I hope I do
well. I am so close to getting a world record in the 400 meter
freestyle. I am anxious to just get it over with; it has been a
long couple of weeks. My family came right before the opening
ceremonies and they just as excited to be here as I am.
Dear Journal,
August 24, 2008 5:00pm
I won the gold! I am so excited! I started out at a pretty good
pace, and I just kept going. I beat the old world record by 10
seconds! And everyone else was 15 seconds behind. I am glad
that it’s over though, the anxiety was killing me. Wow, 6 gold
medals! This was definitely the best experience of my life.
Barbie makes a perfect princess
from China. Her elegant gown
and royal crown celebrate the
magic of China.
It’s a great time to be a girl!