So as I brag about my adventures, show my friends the videos, and talk about my trip, I try to convince myself that I was actually in China. I frequently look at pictures and think back, did I really do that? I have to say this has been the opportunity of a lifetime and I will never forget this incredible journey. The people, places, and culture of this incredible country will stay in my heart forever. I have learned so much and have made friends that I long to keep in touch with. I can't thank discovery student adventures enough for this breath taking experience. ---
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As I am having breakfeast on the last day of this breath taking trip, I try to take in everything that I have absorbed in this experience. The people, culture, knowledge and aura of this wonderful country. I am blessed to have been able to embark on this journey and have seen things I never could have dreamed of. It is a shame that it is all coming to an end, but at the same time I can't believe I've seen this new part of the world. I really suggest to travel in life because it really opens your eyes and makes you even more greatful for the things you have. You learn so much more of the foreign places you only hear about. ---
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Hello again from the town where everybody's chi flows like a river throughout their soul (Shaolin). Today was another rise and shine morning. We woke up at five but not for the same reason. We unfortunately did not get to pray with the monks again but we did practice kung fu. We met a warrior monk of Shaolin and we practiced his version of kung fu. This was actually a lot different than the martial arts at little dragon down the road. As I explained in earlier blogs, the two different schools believe in different vaqlues. The monks at Shaolin have a whole spiritual outlook on life that is absent in the dragon kung fu. They learn about their religion and combine the two forces of physical and mental together. The little dragon school is solely physical martial arts and ignores the concept of purity and religion. I respect the monks of Shaolin much more because without the spiritual side of martial arts, there is no point. It loses morals and ethics. The monks live a whole different life style. Although I respect the monks more, I still like the little dragon school. I praise them for their hard work every dayof the week. I also understand why some people would rather not be monks. It is a lot to dedicate yourself and I completely understand the two different views. Its just that the warrior monks are respected more in society. Anyways, back to the kung fu lesson. We got there in our uniforms and we started off with some chi exercises. He made motions with his hands like he was pushing air from the top of his body to the bottom. I must say, this was my favorite part of the lesson. The warrior monk explained that there is an energy or chi that runs through everyone. If one practices the motion of controlling it every day, he or she will become much stronger. I felt really empowered after this chi movement. I want to continue doing this when I get home. Only if I could rememberthe moves! As the lesson went on, we did various kicks and positions. We did a particular stance that required a lot of leg strength. It was called a horse stance. We all stood with our legs shoulder width apart and bent down with a straight back. We had to stand in this position for two minutes. I have to say that it was a real work out on the legs. This explains why all the monks have beastly, ferocious legs.
When the kung fu was over, we walked throught the pagoda forest of Shaolin temple. This forest was beautiful and right in the heart of nature. This is because the pagoda forest is where the monks are buried when they pass on. They want to be submerssed in the natural beauty of the world and reach that harmony. The pagodas were very interesting. They came in different sizes based on the rank of the monk. The highest rank being seven and the lowest being one. The more respected the monk was, the higher the pagoda would stand. It only came in odd numbers. One, three, five and seven. The reason being that monks live single lives without wives. They must remain alone their whole life. I respect the monks immensely for this incredible task but I don't think I could ever do this. Life is meant to share what you have with someone else. I just don't think I could handle it. Being an only child is lonely enought but to add the lonesome for the rest of your life? I don't think so, at least not for me. This doesn't mean I don't respect and praise them for what they are doing. I just couldn't handle it. Once the pagoda lesson was over, we went back to the hotel for some "breakfurst". It was again really great. We had eggs, bacon, ham, sausage and cheerios! First cereal in two weeks! Since today was full of activities, we had more rest time than usual. After a quick break we went to lunch at the hotel.
Following the grub, it was our time to show that we could do kung fu. We walked back to Shaolin temple and were greeted by two master student warrior monks. We all lined up in pairs and did our routine for them. They would either pass us or fail us (it was apparent that we would all succeed when we saw the premade certificates). We all indeed show our stuff and got the certificates signed by the head monk of Shaolin temple. It said that we graduated from the school in kung fu practice. It was actually really cool and I'm going to frame it for my room.
Another set of down time was set aside for us after our little graduation ceremony. I took a shower and read an article from a magazine that I am actually going to talk about. It was the national geographic magazine issue dedicated to China. I took it on the trip last minute when my mom found it laying around the house (this is a great magazine for people who want to learn more about China. Strongly suggest buying if my blogs are appealing). The article was about a man that was in the peace corps and was sent to China to teach english. The year was 1996 when he first went and he really enjoyed teaching there. It explains how he got the student's perspective of their government in the past. For example, when he asked the students to write about the word hate, he got very many distinct responses. Some explkained how the students hated anyone who tried to bring down what they and their parents have been fighting for. "I hate all the countries in the world that abstruct our country developing" (43). I found this very interesting from the teachers point of view. He also got perspecctives of hate through the history of Chinas past. Although this sounds a bit harsh, the next paragraph was quite startling. It explained how it was common for the students to ask questions about the outsideworld like America. They asked about customs, laws, products, economy and culture. Then the author talked about his present day students that grew up. It explained how "nowadays our students have their own viewpoints and ideas, and they speak about democracy and freedom, independence and rights. I think we fear them more than they fear us." (47). It seems like as the generation from old to new comes forth, new modern ideas are being brainstormed. Who knows, maybe China will model an American based democracy one day. Anyways, it was just interesting to get a viewpoint on the stance of government and how its evolvong in China over the years.
At six sharp, we left the hotel for dinner. This dinner was one of the most memorable dinners of my life. The warrior monks that taught us earlier in the day joined us as well as the kung fu school martial arts masters. I sat next to a monk named Andy as his American name. I have to say, he was one of the nicest guys I have met. He was much friendlier than the teachers at the little dragon school. We talked the whole dinner. I asked how he got into buddhism and why he wanted to go to Shaolin temple. He told me he wanted to be a kung fu master when he was little and joined at age fourteen. He also said that he wanted to be in movies as a kung fu master. I told him he could come stay with me in LA. I asked him a lot of questions about his perspective on the whole monk idea. He said he loves being a monk but he is getting tired of being lonely. Ten years in the temple is a very long time and it seemed like he wanted to graduate pretty soon. He wanted to get on with his life and do something new. He was tired of the same things for so long. He told me about his travels, performances, vacations and much more. I really enjoyed my experience with Andy and the best part was, HE HAD A FACEBOOK! I am now friends with a Shaolin monk on the world wide web of connections-facebook. I couldn't believe it. It was kind of ironic but pleasing at the same time. Kind of like the monk on the motorcycle. I am going to keep in touch with Andy and see what he's up to in a couple of years.
After our last dinner in Shaolin, we went back to the temple and got to participate in one of the greatest shows I have ever seen. Students from both Shaolin temple and the little dragon school all came into one room to put together the show of a lifetime. It was also very nice to see the warrior monks together with the little dragon kung fu students. It was like we were all together in harmony regardless of what our beliefs were. It started off kind of like a talent show with kids singing different songs. We got up there and we sang our shaolin song. Riley went up and sang a song from our group as well. I got up on stage and did a backflip and then left. They seemed to like every performance that we gave them. As the show continued, the warrior monks showed off their years of practice. Everything from swords to sticks, backflips to frontflips. The moves were amazing. Then there was one group of monks that imitated animals of the Chinese zodiac signs. It was like an animal style of kung fu. Although some animals were left out, it was really easy to distinguish the different animals. One of the rules of monks is that they can't kill any animals. They respect nature as it is and let them be. The acrobatics were absolutely baffling. One monk did some back handsprings into a backflip 360. It was the craziest flip I have seen. They would also jump really high and flip andf just land straight on their back. I don't know how they did it. The show was a great finale to the wonderful stay at Shaolin temple. I learned so much about the culture and now I can really appreciate hearing things about monks. A whole new window of the world has been opened with this opportunity. That is the great thing about traveling. Its like getting a new pair of eyes that are a totally different color. You see shades that you thought never existed. This will stay in my head for the rest of my life. I really dread leaving this awesome trip. Tomorrow is another travel day as we depart to Beijing. Looking forward to the duck dinner.
Goodbye from the last time in the magical Shaolin temple. Any questions my email is runnerboy444@aol.com ---
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I guess you could say today's hours were used to the fullest. We woke up at four thirty in the morning to pray with the shaolin monks. It was very hard on the legs to stan for a long period of time, but once we were finished, it was like no other feeling in the world. The monks sang and prayed in an ancient language called sanskrit. No one understood what they were saying, but the music that they made was very peaceful. The singer had a unique voice that I have never heard before. What amazed me about these monk rituals is that they do this every day of their lives. What astounded me even more was that there were boys in the temple reading and trying to learn this ancient language. They had the drive to do this every day and maintain this urge to be peaceful on this earth. I look up to these boys for their determination in their faith. As we closed the ceremony, a great feeling of peace and harmony overwhelmed me. I thought about it and I wonder how these monks feel doing it every single morning. Their bodies must be pure because after one hour of this monk ritual I felt very calm.
The next thing with the monks was breakfeast in the dining hall. This was no ordinary orange chicken amd sprite. Monks can not eat meat so it was a vegetarian breakfeast. The food was surprisingly good and my favorite was the unique drink they gave us. A handful of sugar was poured into a bowl and then they poured soy milk on top of it. It was a sweet warm fulfilling beverage that I really enjoyed. It was much like a warm sweet milkshake. After the breakfeast, we helped sweep the courtyard. We got brooms and cleaned the floor. I thought this was a nice gesture that showed respect on our behalf. It was such an honor to be in that room with the monks and the memory will stay with me forever. The praising of the buddha figure made me think a lot about religion. If you think about it, we are all really connected through our faith. No matter what religion we believe in, there is some sort of god figure we look up to that inspires us to do good in the world. That is of course except for athiests. But it really made me think of the interconnectedness between monks and people half way around the world. Of course there are very big differences, but that is imminent. The important thing is that in some way we have things in common.
Our next event on the agenda was a much appreciated hour of rest at the hotel. It was a perfect time for a nap. Following out brief nap, we were off to kung fu school once again. We practiced our routine that we will be performing in front of hundreds of students tomorrow. With a little more practice, we will be perfect. After practice, we got the deadly weapons out. The instructors brought the swords and sticks. We were broken up into two groups and I ended up in the swords group. The art of kung fu is intricate enough without weapons, but when you add swords into the picture, it gets pretty hectic. At first, I couldn't get the motion of what my instructor was doing but as the lesson went on, I got the hang of it. It amazed me how good the instructors were at all the different weapons.. Our group is really bonding with ther instructors. We were informed that they will join us for dinner our last night in Shaolin. That really pleased us.
Once we were done we went to lunch and rested our quads. The food at lunch was actually better than most meals. We had a lot of meat that was spicy. After lunch, we went back to the hotel again for some rest. I had another enjoyable nap. Its amazibg how much a little power nap can contribute to your energy level. Once the nap was over, we again went back to the little dragon kung fu school. We practiced our routine even more for the upcoming performance.
Can you say best shopportunity ever? After our last practice session of the day, we had one more chance to go shopping. As we saw the students at the kung fu school, I admired their shoes. We all bought the uniforms but we never had a chance to get the shoes. When we got off the bus I saw them in the window and flipped out. I went straight into the store and asked how much they were. They were actually really expensive........NOT. They were four dollars for one pair of shoes! I bought three pairs on the spot! It was the sprinkle on the cake. The cake was far more spiritual than the sprinkles. It was just a nice topping off of the day.
Dinner was another cultural experience that enlightens my knowledge of China. Conversations about schools, tradition, morals, ethics and symbolism are so fascinating. I would really like to keep in touch with the tour guides in case I return to this amazing country. I am so honored to be on this trip and I have learned so much. I'm looking forward to another experience with the monks tomorrow and I will be extremely devastated when I leave.
Sai jain ---
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Kung Fu master Giant buddha at Longmen grottoes Monk and me cleaning after monk ritual kung fu performers at shaolin show
I don't think anyone would classify getting whooped by kung fu master and having sore legs the rest of the day fun, but I personally had the time of my life. We can talk about that later. To start the day off, we woke up at six thirty and headed for breakfeast at seven fifteen. As my roommate drew and I woke up, we found that the toilet and the shower were in the same area. When you took a shower, the toilet was right next to you. The whole floor becomes a swamp of water. I have never seen anything like it. I guess the Chinese wanted their guests to kill two birds with one stone (cory key). Anyways, breakfeast was another American treat. We had cereal, fruit, eggs, and the best of all-sausage. The food situation is very funny when you spend two weeks in China. You get used to the same meals every day and then when you get the opportunity for American food, there is no hesitation. One night our group was informed by Our guide that dinner was to be served at mcdonalds. The best part was that it was all you can eat. I don't usually eat much fast food but this was heaven.
After breakfeast, we headed to the dragon kung fu school. We were introduced to our instructors and we began our lesson. We started off with a warm up run around the courtyard outside. It was about fifteen minutes straight jogging. After the warm up we began our routines. I did martial arts before this experience, and let me tell you that this kung fu style is different than anything I have ever seen before. We started off in positions and we had to follow what our instructor demonstrated. Some positions were strenous on the unstreched appendage. It was very tiring and it was the most I have sweated in a very long time. (Water polo-no sweat in pool). Our instructor seemed like a nice guy on the beginning of the lesson, but jeez don't ever judge a book by its cover. He was probably one of the most intense people I have ever seen in my seventeen years of life. If someone didn't do the position right, he would clap his hands and give you the death stare until you fixed it. He was beyond intimidating. As the lesson went on, the true colors of this master came into play. He laughed with us and smiled occasionally. The intense face just shows how serious the people take their sport. He shows no emotion when he bends his body like no other. This experience really had a huge impact on me. As stated before, I live for the physical things in life. Martial arts is a hobby of mine that I wish I could do more of, but unfortunately there is only so muchj time in one day. As others wanted it to stop, I begged for more. It was absolutely breath taking.
After the battering of the quadriceps for two hours, we explored where the students live. It was said that the living arrangements range from two to twelve people in one room. It is based how much the student pays. These students lived a very simple life. They practiced kung fu and went to school every day. This dynamic duo of physical and mental progress really mends these children into a bath of discipline. The school teaches them morals and standards to live by. They are excellent at what they do and the love ot do it. That is something I want in life. To love what I do in society and be the best I can be at whatever that may be. I respect all these students and look up to them. Next, we went into a classroom and observed their learnin. We actually intruded and talked with the students. Then we exchanged songs. Ours was twinkle twinkle little star. They seemed to really enjoy it. We then taught them some english and they said I love you do you love me? It was very cute I must say. Once we saw the institution as a whole, we went back to the inn for a well deserved rest. We had five hours to relax and shower.
Dinner was actually really good today. We had some sort of spicy beef with salad and and other plates of food. We once again sat with our chinese staff as opposed to the other girls. Learning about their past is like looking through a time warp of China. I get so much information about the communist country just by listening to their pasts. I asked ping (wonderful tour guide) about how the society feels about being communist right now and whether it will change in the future. She explained that the older generation living right now would find it devastating to change it because when they were living, they faught for a new kind of government. It was a revolution against the old repressive government. The people don't want to change because it was what they fought for when they were younger. She explained that kaybe in future generations, change might come. I found it interesting to see how the communism has changed over the years. It has become much less strict than in the past. What also was very interesting was that she said communism is just a label but in truth, China is becoming more and more like the western world. We also talked about health care and how it has gotten better, but still needs a lot of work. These conversations with the insight of the Chinese really interest me. You learn so much just by talkibg with the locals.
Our next destination was a kung fu show at a mountain side near Shaolin. There were monks meditating on rocks, lights, action scenes and many more. Overall, I enjoyed the show a lot but what I am going to write about is not so much the show itself but its philosophical side. During the show, there was a rock with a projector on it. It displayed different messages from monks and the buddhist religion. One message said that the universe is populated with nothing but mere visuality. At first, I thought this seemed like more of a transcendentalist remark, but then I realized that the monks are very fluid. They stay calm when they live and they live deliberately. They focus on the element of water and how its very important that they use it to keep calm. Thois remark on the wall just makes you think that everything is a visuality its just how different someone perceives it. Two people can see the same thing but it can mean totally different things in opposing eyes. There were several quotes that the monks live by that were bizarre, but once I thought about them, they made sense. The other day when we met the master monk, he was very serious. He rarely laughed or smiled. I asked at dinner why? Ping answered that they do this to keep calm. We Americans on this trip are so full of emotion that sometimes we let it take over us. The monks try to repel this emotion and live very simply. It is a copmmon goal of all of them. I am going to end with onr last idea I got from the show. One monk sat on the rock the entire show. It was ridiculous how long he just sat there while the backround was full of action. Towards the end of the show, he pulled out some beads and just kept on soinning them in his hand. He continued this motion even after we left. I thought this symbolized the eternal after life the monks strive for and why they live such an intricate and both simple life here on earth. The never ending beads in his hand illuminated the reason why they live such a simple and good deed life. They strive to reach nirvana and eventually the heaven that is in everyones heart. I really enjoyed the show and can't wait for some more kung fu tomorrow. Zhi ten
Riley. The iniverse is populated with nothing but mere visuality circl beads ---
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Hola once again from the land of the chop sticks. Today was another surreal day that I will never forget. As we woke up from the overnight train, we brushed our teeth and got ready for the journey ahead. When we got off the train, we were in Luoyang. This city is home to the Shaolin temple where we will be staying the next four days. Our next stop after the train was a hotel in the city which gave us a chance to freshen up and eat some breakfeast. We had to take turns using the showers and eating. I went to go eat first and I had the chance to meet a special person at breakfeast. He was the coordinator of tourism for the city of Luoyang. He took off work just to meet us. He gave us all gifts that gave us information about the city. One was a picture of a beautiful flower called piani. This flower is decorated all over the city and represents longevity and happiness. It was a very nice gesture and we all appreciated it very much. One thing I noticed as we were leaving the hotel was that a lot of people rode bikes and mopeds. The funny thing was that absolutely none of them wore helmets. There was no law to enforce it. I can imagine how many accidents there are every day where people don't have their helmets on. That's a big difference in culture. In California, you can get a ticket for not wearing a helmet on a scooter to the store! Talk about harsh. I guess its because our nation wants there to be less accidents. In China, it looks like your on your own on that one.
The next event planned for the day was the longmen grottoes. This is a mountain where thousands of buddhas were carved over hundreds of years. It was amazing to see so many buddhas in one sitting. An interesting thing about some buddhas was that some of their heads were cut off. The guide explained that when different emperors would take control, they would either believe in Taoism or Buddhism. These were two conflicting religions, so when one emperor would take over and let's say he was buddhist, he would order to cut off all the heads of the taoists. This was the same for the opposite. I think its funny how the people perceive religion as bein either one or nothing. Its like you are either part of this faith or you don't exist. That is one thing I like about being open minded. No matter what religion you are, you can peacefully coexist in the same world. I guess back then, it was a little harder to accept this theory of polytheism. As we explored the different walls of the mountain, the guide took us to the biggest buddha of the grodo. It was ginormous! The buddha was seventeen meters high. Just the ears were as tall as me, and I am six feet tall. That is some pretty good hearing. Anyways, the story behind the big buddha is that he is the one that started zen buddhism. Another interesting point the guide made was that when he died. His wife came to power as the empress of China. This was the first and only empress in the entire history of China. The face was feminine to honor her short lived glory.
After the buddha festival in the wall, we went to get some grubb at a restaurant. I really enjoy the food here. Its not "Americanized" chinese food, but its the real deal. Although it seems like we have similar dishes everywhere we go, I find it as an opportunity to try new food. I make it an obligation to try everything on the table (regardless of its rancid look). One of the dishes today looked like a refried brain-drew. Another tasted like spiced paper. Besides all the weird tastes and looks, we had a good time and exchanged laughs about the food.
The next activity was yet another bus ride away. It was about forty five minutes away from the restaurant. It was the Shaolin temple. When we arrived, we had another banner that said welcome discovery student adventures. We have a warm welcoming like this everywhere we go by the way. The place we are staying at is not for regular tourists. It is an inn in the Shaolin village. When we were walking to our rooms, we saw a moped coming up the street with a monk on the back. I thought that was quite comical. It was a great kodak moment.
Once we got situated in our inn that we will be staying in, we had a chance to meet some monks. We went to the top of the temple and met with supervisor of the monk martial arts school. We sat in a classroom and listened to him speak for an hour. It reminded me of one of those engaging conversations in school where its so interesting that you just want to listen. I found the speech very interesting. At first he talked about the history of his city and a little debrief about Buddhism. It started in India and was brought to China an eternity ago. Once he finished with his history lesson, he switched to theology 101 and spoke about his religion. His talk was very moving and I got some great points out of it. He explained how the Buddhists live in the present and don't think about anything else. He said that if they do good deeds on the present and build up their heart here on earth, they will go to nirvana where there are no troublesam. He explained how christians believe in heaven and so do Buddhists. One thing that he said that really stuck was no matter what religion you are, there is a heaven in everyone's heart. He was extremely passionate about what he does and I really liked that. I reflected on the living in the present and enjoyed when he said thjat because that really relates to me. I try to live by that standard all the time and not worry about the future. Just see where the wind takes me. We also learned about the martial arts that the buddhists practice. They are very focused on the mental aspect of martial arts. if one only builds up the physical strength and not his or her mental strength, then he or she cannot prosper on this earth. This idea of duality really caught my attention. I love sports and also try to focus on the mental game as well as the physical game.
Speaking of physical and not mental, our next destination was a totally conflicting ideology with the buddhisnm. We went down the road to a kung fu school that only focused on the physical part. I think martial arts around the world should bridge the gap between these two ideals. It would creat morals and edicate within the fighting world. As we explored the martial arts camp, there were different floors with different exercises. First off there were tons of kids roaming around doing routines that involved punching, kicking and yelling. When we went inside there were kids doing flips and throwing sticks around. Ot was interesting to see the organization of these kids. It went by skill level and not age. There would be some seven year olds practicing with seventeen year olds in order for the kids to get better. Also because the little kids had immense skill. When we went upstairs, there was kick boxing and people sprawling all over the floor. Punching bags were being hit all the time. There was a mat on the floor, so I asked john (tour guide son/friend) if I could go up there and do a backflip. He said of course and held my stuff for me. I did two backflips whic felt pretty good because I have never done it on to a matt before. The first one was kind of wobbly but the second I landed perfectly. I just wanted to try it on a mat.
After the physical experience at the kung fu school, we went to dinner. The boys sat with the Chinese staff and we had a great time. They are all so nice and we all love them. Everyone in China is so welcoming and I really love their culture. Anyways great day today and I can't wait to write about actual kung fu classes tomorrow! Goodnight from Shaolin.
---
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Ni hao once again from China! Today was one of those mellow days where not much was planned. We had one activity in the morning and the rest was set aside for travel. We had an early wake up call at seven so that we could bring out our checking luggage. We had to lock our checking bag because we are going on an overnight train tonight. We are going to Shaolin temple in the outskirts of the country. It is a temple where we will do martial arts and learn the spiritual side of the fine skill. Enough about the future, let's talk about today.
Our first and only activity today was the potala palace. This palace was used for the dale lama to come and stay there. There were four hundred steps that led to the top of the palace. At the top level of the building, there was another smaller building in the center of the structure. The top roof of the building was plated in real gold. I found it really hard to believe until the guide told us that it was real. What was interesting was that the lower part of the roof was much darker and more faded than the top. The reason was because when it was buillt, people climbed up to the ceiling and scraped off the gold for money. The top was clean gold because no one could reach it. I thought that was a cool little fact. After we came back to the bus, the weirdest thing happened. There was a camel roaming around in the parking lot! Two days in a row with out of the ordinary animal ordeals. When we were done with the palace, we went back to the hotel to freshen up before the long bus ride back to Beijing. The five hour bus ride was a great opportunity to relax, listen to some music, chat with firends, and just accept the fact that we are in this amazing country. It still seems surreal to be climbing the great wall, exploring ancient cultures, and learning new things every day. I must say this is one of the best trips I have ever been on and I have to thank discovery student adventures for making it possible. Anyways, back to my bus ride. One thing that really amazed me in this country is the absurd driving. People pass each other like shopers in front of macys on christmas eve. Its absolutely ridiculous. I'm pretty sure I almost saw five accidents today. Our bus driver was very safe and used his horn with ease. When we got to Beijing we had another "shopportunity" at the mall as well as a grubbortunity at mc donalds. It was a nice change from all the Chinese food. After some time at the mall we got on a train to Shaolin which I am actually on right now. We are headed to the martial arts school and will arrive in the morning. This is one of those activities that I have been looking forward to the most. The train is actually pretty nice. All the boys are rooming together and its a grand old time. Can't wait for tomorrow to see what it will bring.
---
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Hello everyone from Chengde China! Today was yet another eventful day full of activities (kind of like every day in this country.). We started off at the summer mountain resort in Chengde. (Four hours outside of Beijing). It was built outside of Beijing for the emperors to handle political issues. The scenery at this magical place was really amazing. A river flowed through the resort and the atmosphere was welcoming. When we got there we enjoyed a band play for us. They had ancient instruments that were extremely unique. I had never seen them before. After the four season songs, we had a chance to view the instruments. There was one that really caught my eye. It was like a mixture of a piano and drum set. there was a board with strings all along it and there were two light sticks. When you hit the strings, it would make a beautiful sound that was like a guitar but much lighter. I got to play it and I had a blast. Its similar to the drums except there are more variations of sounds to make. The overall performance was really great and I liked it a lot. We learned that the performers came in every weekend as volunteers and played for the tourists. I like this sense of comraderie between the chinese and the foreigners.
As the performance finished, we walked through the summer mountain resort. We had many "shopportunities" (term coined by our loveable tour guide riley) as we walked through the resort. The amazing thing about the resort was the amount of deer freely roaming around. I think today was the most deer I have ever seen in a four hour period. There were tons of them and the weird thing was that they weren't afraid of animals. We even tried to feed them. Bambi had a lot of kids that migrated to China. The main event of the mountain resort was hiking the mini great wall. It was not quite as beautiful or rigorous as the real thing, but it still had some awesome views. There were a lot of steep parts of the wall where my buddy drew and I decided to sprint up them. It was quite an exercise that I enjoyed a lot. Anson (tommy burger boy) also joined us on this demanding exercise.
Following the demanding hike, we had a nice cozy picnic in the fields of the garden. Our lunches were already prepared and came in little red boxes. There were a lot of ants in the grass. I noticed that they were abnormally larger than in California.
The next activity brought up the aspect of hard work and practice once again. We went to a paper museum and learned that this invention was brought to the world by the Chinese before the europeans. This was also a shopportunity where we could purchase these intricate designs of paper. The paper was so carefully cut into all kinds of designs. What really surprised me was how long it takes to be a master cutter. The owner explained that it took her thirty years to be at the level she is right now. She did a demonstration and made a butterfly which took her three minutes. It was mind boggling how fast and great it came out.
After some shopping at the museum, we had a nice break at the hotel. It gave us some time to freshen up for one of the most entertaining dinners to come. When we got to the restaurant we ate and had a grand old time. There was a performance for us that involved some dancing. The best part was that we got to go up on the stage and dance with them. It was really fun and we took a lot of pictures. The night was a great finale to the day. This trip gets better and better every day. Thanks for checking out the blog and be sure to look at the pictures I put up. Zia jian!
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Olympic pool in Beijing 
The bird's nest
The Great Wall
Tiannamen Square. Mao and me.
If I were to describe today in a nutshell, it would definately be called sweaty. The first activity of the day was to leave our wonderful hotel in Beijing and embark on a journey to a remote lake. It was about forty five minutes outside of Beijing. Our group split up into two smaller teams and raced on dragon boats. I was unfortunately on the losing boat but it was a great race. We only lost by about a boat's length. I was surprised to find out that there was an art to this kind of racing. It takes practice to get a group of people and row at the same time. One person had to take charge and yell to the rest of the group when to go forward and back. That person happen to be me and let me tell you, its very hard. I ran out of breath half way into the race and just stuck to short words. Technique is really important if one wishes to win a race in dragon boating. After the festivities in the lake, we headed to the rec center and played ping pong, badminton and basketball. It was really fun to play ping pong after the master lesson. I practiced the hard shot technique and it sure payed off in several games against adam. After all of the racing, serving and playing, we were pretty sweaty. The cold beverages at lunch were quite refreshing. We sat at a table above the lake and the scenery was beautiful. I didn't really notice the nature when we were racing on the lake but when we had lunch it was incredible. The lush green surrounding really caught my attention.
Following the lunch, we arrived in a small village two hours away called gubeikou. Upon arrival, our group was greeted by chinese dancers and a large celebration. It was interesting to see how welcoming all the people were. The atmoshere for foreigners in China is so welcoming and warm. I was really surprised to see how nice everyone was. When we got to the village we hiked a path to see parts of the great wall. We learned about the emperors that witnessed its construction. After the tour of the village, we went to a room that surprisingly had tvs and lights. The villagers planned for us to karaoke! The boys picked out YMCA and we sang and danced our hearts out. The last thing I expected to do in China was karaoke in a remote village! Our next activity was dinner with the villagers. We had a special treat during dinner. A man and woman came out and sang a song for every person at dinner. They would complement that song with a cup of water. When the man came to me he told katie and I to take three cups of water to symbolize what the emperor would do. The buildings in the village had unusually high thresholds. Our guide Rileyy told me that it is a spiritual barrier that keeps the devil away. The devil doesn't have knees so he can't get in. Another interesting thing about the dinner doorway was that it was extremely short. The reason behind this is to bow to the emperor's picture on the other side of the room. I thought both of these ideas were awesome. There is so much symbology in the Chinese culture. After the great dinner we were off to camp beneath the great wall. This is why I couldn't blog because there was no service. We had to set up tents and sleep under the stars. Despite the massive amounts of bugs, I really enjoyed being in nature. We had to wake up at five in the morning to hike the great wall which was the adventure of today!
Day 5 As explained above, yesterday was really eventful and full of surprises. Today, however, was one of the best experiences I have ever had in my life. We hiked and scaled one of the greatest creations of all time: the great wall of China. It was about a ten mile hike through lush jungle and rugged terrain. I wasn't expecting to hike off the wall but we spent about half the time in plant life. We even got lost in a corn field! There were parts in the hike where if you fell, you wouldn't turn out too good. I was astonished at the wall. I even took a piece of it to take with me home. Its amazing to see such an old structure in real life. In America, we really don't have anything that ancient. Seeing a civilization build such a wonder was incredible. I never thought I would see what I saw today. After the tedious hike, we got on the bus. I am in fact on the bus right now heading to chengde. We are on the way to a hotel for the night. I will never forget this day and I wonder what's on the agenda for the near future. I'm looking forward to find out! ---
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I don't really have an interesting word for today other than incredible. (As opposed to yesterday-longevity). We started the day off going to a local market to shop for some food however, it was not for us to take back to the hotel. The food was for us to take to a restaurant and get mentored by a master chef. We had the opportunity to cook kung pao chicken and make dumplings. The delicate art of cooking at a master level was very interesting. The chef told us that it takes about five years to properly perform the art of cleaning a fish. This just shows how much practice is needed for the seemingly simple task. At the market, there were different fruit than in the states. One particular large fruit was the winter melon. This unique melon was about half my size! It was gigantic! This was the first time I have seen such a large fruit. The restaurant experience was magical and the best part was eating our own food that we just made. (Of course with the help of the master). The best part was the fact that we got to keep our aprons and get them signed by the chef himself.
The next event of the day was the most memorable. The birds nest and water cube was one of my favorite things because I am a very physical guy and love sports. The water cube was especially amazing because I am on the swim and water polo team. I felt a strong connection to the pool. I felt proud to stand where world records were broken. At the birds nest I ran a lap around the track to see what it actually felt like to compete. It was a great idea and I'm glad I did it. Two other of my friends took part in a race on the track. As we were leaving we decided to pretend that Mr. Harvey was Lance Armstrong and we all screamed "Lance Armstrong! Can I get a picture? Sign my autograph!" As we all screamed these phrases, many people took pictures and actually thought it was him. This was quite comical because my teacher actually has a resemblance to him.
After the great time at the olypic center, we went to a more mellow part of the city. This was the art district. It had a lot of interesting pieces of art. Although the art was unique, one thing stood out more. As I embarked on a journey to the bathroom, the mirror had lcd advertisements that popped randomly. This got my attention because in the states, we have fifty foot billboards, but not advertisements in your reflection! This just shows the difference in technology and marketing between the two super powers. Now a days, everything seems to be made in China. Maybe its because the economy flourishes with all the advertisements in the bathrooms.
One last shop that I really iked was this panda store. Although it sold a lot of pandas, the table in the middle of the store caught my eye. It had books full of people's messages that I couldn't read. Despite the unreadable language, I decided to ask a young man sitting across from me. He told me tha they were books where you could write a message and the store would keep the books for 10 years and mail you back the message. It wqas sort of like a time capsule. I thought that was really interesting. I have never seen anything like that back in the states. I had a long conversation with the local and he gave me his email. He said he would come to california and I told him he could stay with me. We both laughed and exchanged goodbyes.
The last event I woukd like to share is in fact about modeling. As we had free time to frollic in the art town, we came across a female model taking pictures. Being my crazy self, I decided ti ask to go and take some with her. Sure enough, the photographer said yes and I went to take pictures with this chinese model! She was so astounded after that she wanted my email adress so I could send them to her! (Two emails in one day!) All in all today was an amazing feat and can't wait for tomorrow.
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Longevity is definately the word of the day. (Both physically and spiritually). The physical aspect just illuminates the long hours of the day and the spiritual reflects the ancient calligraphy we wrote with a master. He taught us about the ink and technique chinese calligraphers use. He explained that the production of the ink is very important if one wants to get good quality ink. The slower the grinding of the stone, the better the quality of the ink. It was really interesting to see a master make a chinese character. I got to make the chinese word longevity and it was quite challenging might I add. The intricate form of calligraphy was only one of the adventures today. Another fascinating place we went to was the urban planning center of Beijing. It was a museum of modern Chinese architecture. The craziest feat was the model of the city on the floor. On the second floor there was a scaled map of the city that was in amazing detail. It had every building and house in the city of Beijing. That was a memorable museum. I must say one of my favorite activities is to bargain with the venders. They spot out the Americans like sore thumbs and shove their products in our faces. Its very easy to bargain, you simply say your price and if they say no, walk away. If you play a little hard to get, they chase after you and immediately lower the price. Today I got a pair of ray bans for about ten dollars when the original proce was thirty. Another aspect of china that amazes me is the cleanliness. It is simply much dirtier than in the states. Today I saw a little girl go to the bathroom in the middle of the street and it was simply ok by the mother. No one did anything to stop them. I wonder how that would go in LA. The silk museum was absolutely amazing. I learned about the silk road and how the chinese came to learn about how to make the wonderful product. I got to test the durability of it and it is very strong when put together. The lady asked me to punch iit and it wouldn't break. I must say that it has finally hit me that I'm in China. I am so glad that I can share this experience with such a great organization and such wonderful people. Can't wait for tomorrow.
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Playing some ping pong with olympic prodigies and getting owned by five year olds ---
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Today I had the time of my life learning tai chi,exploring the forbidden city,and playing ping pong with future chinese olympians. I started the day off trying to push over a tai chi master. No matter how hard I pushed he would absorb my blows like it was nothing. It was fascinating to see an expert control his inner chi. The most memorable event of the day was being mentored by the olympic ping pong coach. I learned so much and it was such an amazing experience that I will never forget. I'm really looking forward to tomorrow. ---
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So this trip is about 10 days away and I havent packed at all. I'm really looking forward to this trip but not so much the plane flight. I have been on flights this long and its not that appealing. Some ways I will keep myself busy is reading. Plane flights are always fun because I can catch up on my reading. I will have to do some major packing in the next couple of days to prepare for this great adventure.
I'm a very physical guy and I love sports. The event that I am looking forward to most on this exciting trip to china is the kung fu school. I cant wait to learn the ancient moves of the Chinese. I am really excited to learn both the spiritual and physical art of kung fu. I'm cant wait to embrace the inner chi that encompases everyone and learn how to control it!
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Essential Programs Details
| Duration |
15 days |
| When |
August 4th - 18th, 2009 |
| Focus |
History/Culture
Martial Arts
Modern/Ancient Architecture |
|
