I think over the past few weeks, getting adjusted here, more and more opportunities and just things to do have come my way, and it's been a little overwhelming to try to keep track of them all and do them all and just keep a balanced life (with enough sleep! I've gotten only 5-6 hours recently. Shh don't tell my grandparents).
I'll explain this photo later^
Too much to do...
Here are a bunch of things I will have to try to fit it all in the weeks I'm here (and at the same time, I still need to try for A's, though only 20% of Tsinghua students are allowed A-'s or A's... :o):
Eat at famous restaurants in Beijing and explore more areas of BJ (I did this a little.. will detail in a moment)
Go on weekend trips to cities/places 30 min-1.5 hours away via high-speed train
Go on a trip to rural area with a service organization
Play in a band (yes, after going to the opening event for the guitar club, two people have asked me to be in a band since I just learned the bass guitar!)
Possibly do a spring internship (this is quite unclear..)
Decide on a far destination for QingMing Festival (April 5-7 holiday). Currently thinking of going to Inner Mongolia (where I can ride horses and camels and sleep in a yurt).
Plan something fun for my birthday with friends
Fully plan the long holiday (April 27 to May 6)
Become friends with local students here and exchange students I haven't met yet (this is sort of hard because most people have formed their own groups already)
Skate or exercise as often as possible...
Go to a different country, since I finally got multiple-entry permission into China on my student visa (it was quite expensive... lol US-China relations..)
Go to school club events as often as I can (example: calligraphy club in photo on the right)
Become closer friends with people I've met but haven't gotten the chance to know better..
And of course, update my journal and blog in timely matter!!
As you can see it's a lot and I'm still trying to prioritize and plan things... like should getting to know Beijing really well (going to more things in BJ) supersede going on weekend trips elsewhere close by? I can't decide... what about just getting ingrained into Tsinghua student culture and staying on campus more? I'm not sure. I realize all that I want to do might be too much for a semester (my local buddies always say I must know more about the fun places in BJ than they do), but I want to make the most out of my abroad experience.
Connecting with people home
Not going to lie, it's been a little challenging to stay in the loop with people at home and just what's happening back at Penn/the USA. I only check Facebook or Gmail once or twice a day, when I'm back in my dorm. I don't spend lots of time on it, since it loads slowly. I've also stopped using Snapchat and Instagram mostly since it's quite slow too. I feel like my online presence in the USA is disappearing... I'm sort of OK with that but I still want to let others know what's happening and hear about their lives too. It just takes a lot to be proactive, since, at least for me, not many people will remember to ask how my abroad experience has been. Even if they do, I respond late and at the total opposite time of the day, given the time difference. So, the asynchronous communication is a bit inconvenient. I have been able to chat and video call some friends and family, so I haven't disappeared completely! But on the other hand, it's sort of nice to step away from your previous social life and completely embrace a new one in a new environment...
Beijing Exploring!
My grandparents came to visit me during the weekend! We visited the Lama Temple a.k.a. YongHe Gong with one of my close friends. While subwaying there, my grandpa told me how he used to fish when on business trips to Guangdong (where my friend's extended family resides), and he'd get fish to bite his line with just Chinese buns!
The Temple used to be the home of Prince Yong, and was then converted into a lamasery for Tibetan Buddhism! Right when we entered, there was a place to get free incense sticks. I tried to light mine, but failed... it was so smoky from all the incense burning. Adding to the pollution levels that day, the air quality was really bad. I smelled like smoke for the rest of the day.
The buildings were cool, and everywhere there were Buddhas. Often, there were 3. I saw one where it's the Buddha of the Past, Present, and Future. Reminded me of Scrooge's ghosts of past, present, and future haha. I also saw signs of each building in Chinese and in the languages of Tibet and Mongolia :o Later, we saw where the monks would pray/practice. My grandma explained a lot to us about history and Buddhism and things. It was nice to learn; she knew a lot!
Everyone around me was praying to the Buddhas - you're supposed to bow 3 times so that your torso is almost parallel to the ground, with your hands together near your head. My grandma just said to bow everywhere, since all the Buddhas stand for something, and you'll want to wish for fortunate things (there was a Buddha for good health, etc.). So I did :) Overall, it was an enjoyable visit! The weather had also gotten super warm (mid-70s in Fahrenheit), so that added to the weirdly experience.
After, we went to a small, delicious, hole-in-the-wall restaurant that had all the famous Beijing foods. We had Beijing tofu, sweet almond tofu, and noodles that were typical of BJ. We found the restaurant to be highly rated on Dianping (food app that I think is better than Yelp because it lets people vote on the top dishes to get at restaurants). To get there, we walked through the little streets of Beijing called hutong 胡同. Wait, I just realize the first word "hu" is the same as my last name.. anyway, yes, hutongs are just the small streets between small gray-brick homes that have been around for a long time. It was nice to explore and experience authentic Beijing food and atmosphere :)
Later, my grandparents, friend, and I walked to a typical Chinese exercise park (photo above). In a different park near a pond, we found some Maitreyas (happy/laughing Buddhas) on which other people were sitting, and decided to take some funny pictures too. Hence, the photo to the left and the first photo of the post! The day ended with a nice matcha drink at a cafe (can you spot the cafe dog in the photo below on the left?).
I was grateful to spend time with my grandparents again and my friend :) I should definitely explore Philadelphia more when I get back... maybe I should make weekend trips a thing. @readers, go explore even if you have homework! I sort of neglected homework during the weekend, but it's ok, I'll squeeze it in I guess.. (sort of worried but it'll all be OK).
Let's end the post on a positive note, a.k.a. with food (food from the restaurant 局气 is below - such tasty Beijing food!). Gotta eat well before anything :)
