I Should Be Studying/Old Men and Their Birds

So it's 22:21 on Thursday right now. They go by military time here in China... I'm pretty sure it has something to do with it being a communist state. Oh well, I like using military time anyway. They also only have one time zone... once again, I'm gonna go out on a limb and attribute it to the fact that it's a red country. I should be studying for my Chinese kaoshi (test) that's tomorrow morning, but I can't seem to find my work ethic. Come to think of it, I don't think I've seen it since last semester. I must have lost it sometime between Halloween and Thanksgiving. If anyone finds it, please let me know. For now, I am happy to procrastinate. If procrastination were a class, I'd get an A.

I went to a local park yesterday morning for a field trip. Our mission: to observe old people practicing tai chi, ballroom dancing (some of them are actually pretty good), and whatever other activities old Chinese people like to do. I really wanted to see a laoren (old man) walking his caged bird. Not walking his dog, but his caged bird. This phenomenon is so commonplace, the Chinese actually have a name for it: liu niao, "to take a stroll with one's caged bird." Even cooler, these birds talk. They're a type of mynah bird, which is known for its ability to mimic human speech. I recognized them from when I lived in Hawaii - a bunch of them would perch in the tree outside my window every morning... I never needed an alarm clock to wake up. These guys say stuff like, "Ni hao" and "Ni chi le ma?" ("Have you eaten?") It's the last thing you expect to hear from a bird that looks like a crow.

Well, it would seem that I've caught a second wind. Back to studying. For your viewing pleasure, here is a link to a video I took of a talking mynah a few weekends ago at Bei Hai Park, as well as a picture of said mynah.

Going Solo

I love weekends (who doesn't?), especially when it brings nice, sunny weather. Today was the first time I'd seen the sun in a week, so I was really itching to get outside and enjoy the day. My goal was to get to Bei Da - aka Peking University - specifically the Arthur M. Sackler Museum of Art and Archaeology. I was supposed to go with my friend Liz, but she called at the last minute saying she couldn't make it. Since I was already at Bei Da when she called, I decided to go by myself.

The museum is tucked up in the northwest corner of Bei Da, so I had a pleasant walk across campus. Like Beijing itself, Bei Da is a mix of old and new, and you can really see it in the architecture. Traditional Chinese buildings with rounded roof tiles and colorful designs are nestled right next to massive structures of concrete and steel. The museum is of the former variety, located next to a very pretty pond with a pavilion and stone bridge. The whole place felt very tranquil after spending 45 minutes dodging cars and enduring two crowded buses to get there.

The museum itself was likewise a carthartic experience - quiet, peaceful, and devoid of people. I really appreciated the English captions that went along with each item. It was the best and most comprehensive guide I've seen in a Chinese museum so far. Thank you, Mr. Sackler. Most of the items on exhibit were excavated from burial tombs, so the majority of what I saw consisted of three-legged ritual urns, pots, and ceramic figures (guardians of the dead). They also had a small section on Tibetan Buddhist ceremonial items, which were really cool, but I had to use my imagination as to their purpose and function because there weren't any English translations. There were a couple of early hominid skeletons too.

After seeing all there was to see, I headed for Bei Da Lake. Like me, there were quite a few people taking advantage of the nice weather. People sat on the many rocks surrounding the lake, taking pictures, eating, and chatting. I walked towards the large pagoda that sat at the east end of the lake. I passed the grave of Edgar Snow, "American Friend To The Chinese People" and author of "Red Star Over China," as well as many cherry blossom trees in full bloom.

This was one of first times that I've ventured outside of my usual home-to-Bei Wai route by myself, and I have to say that I rather enjoy going solo around Beijing. It's very rewarding when I manage to get somewhere on my own - it's a great feeling to be able to ask someone for directions, for them to actually understand what I'm saying, for them to tell me, for me to understand them (even if I have to ask them to repeat it 3 times), and finally, to correctly find the place. It's a great confidence boost.

My 21st Birthday/Beijing Opera

I turned 21 this past Sunday. As my birthday is the day after St. Patrick's Day - which happened to fall on a Saturday this year - my 21st birthday was an experience of "some magnificence" (to quote JRR Tolkien). Some of my friends took me out to eat at this wonderful restaurant called Grandma's Kitchen, where our eyes feasted upon a menu full of savory words like "meatloaf," "New York strip steak," (real) "red wine," "salad," and my personal favorite: "milkshake." I gorged myself on the aforementioned steak, while we all split a bottle of Argentinian Malbec. For dessert, I ordered a chocolate-mint-baileys milkshake. Gastronomic euphoria. Afterwards, we headed to Wudaoku for 10 kuai (about $1.20) Guinnesses... and my first Irish car bomb. I didn't get drunk - thankfully - but I definitely had a good time.

Last night, my host family took me to see a Beijing Opera. Most Americans who have seen it will tell you to bring earplugs, because Beijing Opera involves a lot of high-pitched "wailing," but the opera (I should say operas) I saw was very enjoyable - or as they say in Chinese: haoting ("Good to hear"). My favorite part of the whole thing is definitely the costumes - especially the makeup.

There are many different forms of Chinese Opera. Beijng Opera is by far the most popular and well-known, but there are something like 370 other styles; forms and styles vary from province to province and are often sung in local dialects. Beijing Opera is rather spartan in its use of props and scenery, so the actors use body movements and facial expressions to convey action. The orchestra uses percussion and string instruments to provide a rhythmic accompaniment to the actions onstage. With a repetoire of some 1000 works, there's a lot of culture to be experienced by going to see a performance. That said, these things tend to be rather long - some performances last anywhere from 4 to 5 hours. The performance I saw was actually comprised of excerpts from two longer works: "Journey to the West" and... I forget the other one. And it was short - only an hour and a half. I'd like to see an entire production sometime. Hopefully I won't fall asleep.

And now for your viewing pleasure, here are some examples of the costumes of the Beijing Opera.


(Photo courtesy of jfchenier)


(Photo courtesy of hugoyu)

(Info about Chinese Opera shamelessly taken from this Wikipedia article.)

The Move

After much debating (mostly with myself), I have decided to start a new blog here on blogger.com. Up until now, I've been posting to travelpod.com, and earlier than that, on livejournal.com. I really don't like travelpod's interface - I find it hard to navigate. Blogger looks and feels much more "cleaner" to me. I can also sync up with my gmail account through blogger.com. That said, I will miss travelpod's cool map, which shows where in the world you're posting from. Oh well. If I'm anyplace cool, I'll say so. Speaking of which... I am currently in Beijing, China pursuing a rigorous schedule of Chinese language classes at Beijing Foreign Studies University. Recent travels include Kunming, Lijiang, Lugu Lake, and Zhongdian, all located in Yunnan Province.

That's about it for now. If you'd like to check out my as-of-now "retired" blogs, just click their respective links on the right.