Since I’ve actually been here for about 3 weeks, my apartment alone isn’t the only place that I have gone. So instead of making this one massively long post, I am going to blitz you all this week with some of the adventure and experiences I have thus far. All right…ready…go!
The first week here was kind of hectic and a little bit overwhelming. On the first day that we got here, we went to Carrefour, basically a smaller French equivalent to Wal-Mart. And that’s when I got the sense that I wasn’t in Kansas anymore, Toto. Holy crap. I have never felt as bombarded by being foreign as I did that day. I can barely read the Hanzi (Chinese characters) and people are coming at me like I am a national. And all I can do is just shrug helplessly and look pitiful, and I think they get the fact that I can’t really understand what they are saying. I was done with that place in about 10 minutes. But after a couple more trips (less hectic since we kind of then knew our way around), our apartment is finally almost completely set up.
Yes.
School started, now we are barreling our way through some Chinese grammar and vocabulary. Dictations every day. Homework every night. So much reading for my other classes. Procrastination still lives in these veins. lol But it seems like it is getting a little bit better. A few of you might be glad to know that my timeliness has improved. I will be going home, knowing how to be at a place on time. lol Most of the time. But the Chinese mentality here is that whatever doesn’t get done today, can be done tomorrow. So timeliness actually isn’t a ginormous deal here. (And I just wrote ginormous in Microsoft Word, and it did not tell me that it was incorrect. This day just keeps on getting better and better.) Chinese time - kind of like Spanish time. A lot of places even take long breaks in the middle of the day. Like a siesta but just a little bit shorter.
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| This guy was sound asleep on a busy street. Too cool. |
Some of the first things I noticed when we were riding around Chengdu was:
1. They drive crazier here than in Beijing.
2. There are less people than in Beijing.
3. It is a little more relaxed than Beijing.
4. Things stay open way later than Reno. Restaurants, convenience stores, shops. (This one I noticed when we went out the other night.)
With the exception of #1. I definitely prefer Chengdu. Guess I chose a city just right for me. =)
Hi, I am from Mrs Wakefeilds class in Reno and I was wondering what the time difference is over there and here?
ReplyDeleteHey there! The time difference is 15 hours ahead of Reno. I am now living in the future. =D. Interesting fact, almost all of China is under one time zone, when it has about the same land mass as the US. Pretty neat right?
ReplyDeleteScavenger hunt request....I would like to see the inside of a grocery store and some of the products that might be similar to those in the US?!?!? Can you post some pics? :-)
ReplyDeleteCan do! Expect it by this Friday. I will definitely accommodate most scavenger hunt requests. They will give me purpose. =D
ReplyDeleteHey there! I'm from Ms. Wakefield's class.. Just wondering what is the climate like over there? Also, I would imagine that they have products over there that they have here in the U.S.? for example maybe Coca-Cola, or Milky Way Bars?? Anyways, I'm thinking it would be cool to see how they look. ( The wrappers and such that is)Perhaps you could take some pictures of basic and popular food products. Thanks, and good luck on the journey!
ReplyDeleteHey! Sorry for the late response! Climate here? We live in the eastern part of Sichuan (the province) and Chengdu lies in a basin. We experience a subtropical monsoonal climate. In short. We live in a humidifier that just sits in this valley. We are never completely dry here. Long, hot, sticky, wet summers which we experienced in the beginning of our semesters. Now we are in the rainy, cooler part of fall. And winters here are supposed to be mild, but we'll see. So far humidity intensifies everything so I'll keep you updated!
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