Steve's sandbox

Tag: Beijing

  • Imogen Page-Jarrett – Harbin Snow & Ice Festival, 2015

    哈尔滨冰雪节

    二月底我和莫宁同学去参观中国最北方黑龙江的哈尔滨冰雪节。一年一度的哈尔滨冰雪节持续一个月，大型冰雕、滑冰、冰上赛艇、狗拉雪橇、街边冰质酒吧以及冰灯等等比比皆是。冰雕里有彩灯，形成各种各样的模型。因为今年是羊年，一进冰雪大世界就能看到巨大雪做的羊雕。还有一个300米大冰滑梯，英国广播公司网站首页发布的。滑下来非常可怕，不能控制速度，到最后滑得越来越快！

    冰雪大世界置于穿过哈尔滨市大河的对面。除了冰雪大世界意外，冰冻的大河上也举办很多冰雪相关的活动。越野车啊、滑雪场啊、冰屋啊，甚至还有白狐狸啊都有。还可以做缆车，在天上穿过下面河上所有的活动。所有年龄的人搜在参加，都在冰上摔倒！

    哈尔滨城市发展较晚。1900年前主要还是一个小渔村。哈尔滨的发展归因于俄罗斯与欧洲大量的犹太人。犹太人因家乡的种族及宗教歧视而逃跑到靠近俄罗斯边缘的哈尔滨。现代哈尔滨的建筑大量是被犹太社会盖得。我和莫宁推荐去哈尔滨的游客去参观哈尔滨的教会堂，还得去中央街，两边都是俄罗斯式的建筑。我们在犹太教堂里参加了一场笑音乐会，演员都是哈尔滨本地音乐学校的学生，演的非常漂亮，环境很有历史感。我们还特别喜欢圣索菲亚大教堂，是拜占庭式建筑的典型代表。

    哈尔滨的好吃有西式俄罗斯的，还有东北的，韩国的。逛街时，总能看到人在吃著名的马迭尔冰棍儿，是哈尔滨中央大街特色冷饮，有奶油色，特好吃。很让我吃惊的是，在哈尔滨人喝热可口可乐！不可思议会好喝的！

    哈尔滨人因高身材、浪漫的性格而有名。据俗话，跟那边的男人交往非常有刺激，可是因为不靠谱，太浪漫的性质，而不应该嫁给那边的男人。

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION:

    Harbin Snow and Ice Festival 20th March 2015

    At the end of February I went with my classmate Nina to the Snow and Ice Festival in Harbin, Heilongjiang.  Once a year the Harbin Snow and Ice Festival is held for one month. You can find large-scale sculptures, ice-skating, ice “rowing”, husky sleds, ice bars on the side of the streets and ice lanterns all about the place. Inside the ice sculptures are coloured lights, and the sculptures take on all kinds of forms. This year is the year of the goat, and thus as soon as you walk in the Ice and Snow World you can see a giant sculpture of a goat sitting there. There is also a 300 metre long ice slide, which made the front page of the BBC’s website. It was terrifying to ride, as you couldn’t control the speed and you just got faster and faster the further you went!

    The Ice and Snow World is situated on the other side of the large river running through Harbin. Aside from the Ice and Snow World, there are also lots of snow and ice related activities on the frozen river. There are snow buggies, ice skating rinks, igloos and even snow foxes. You can also take a cable car up into the sky to see the bustle down below. There are people of all ages participating and falling all over the place.

    Harbin’s development came comparatively late. Up until 1900 it was still a small fishing village. The reason for its development are the large number of Jews who came over from Europe and Russia. Facing discrimination at home, the Jewish people fled to Harbin, near the Russian border. A lot of modern Harbin’s architecture was built by the Jewish community. Me and Nina would recommend going to see the synagogues, and also to Zhongyang (Central) Street, which has Russian-style buildings on all sides. We also went to see a concert inside the main old synagogue. The performers were all studying at Harbin’s college of music, they performed quite beautifully, and the setting had a very historic feel to it. We also really enjoyed Saint Sofia Cathedral, which is a beacon for Byzantine architecture in the region.

    Harbin cuisine is comprised of Russian style, Dongbei Chinese and Korean style, principally. When walking along the street, you can always see someone eating the famous “Modern” ice-lolly, which is local to Zhongyang Street itself. It’s very creamy and delicious. What made me most surprised was that in Harbin they sell hot Coca Cola. I can’t believe that that would taste nice!

    The people of Harbin are well known for their tall stature and romantic natures. The saying goes that it’s very exciting to date a man from Harbin, but because they are unreliable and “too” romantic, one should not go so far as to settle down with one!

     

  • Emily Martin, Beijing. China – March 2015

    最近， 我有难得的好机会在小花寄养院做自愿工作。小花寄养院养父母买不起孩子的意愿费的有厉害病症小孩子。小花寄养院跟医院合伙以治疗疾病然后让小孩子回家，在社会融合。

    每个星期我帮助喂食在小花寄养院的婴儿以及跟比较大的孩子玩儿。虽然大部分的孩子有厉害损伤 – 最多的是心血管疾病 – 小花寄养院尽量合作让他们的生活快乐。小花寄养院非常干警，非常欢迎性，为了创造好像家庭的气氛，有几个一对夫妇住在小花寄养院充当父母。

    做自愿工作显然很好玩儿，也让我感觉我做一件好事，在寄养院也透露中国医疗保健的制度怎么样。可能表示中国社会的许多矛盾，中国医疗保健完全不跟我设想的相同。虽然百分之九十五的中国人有医保，大部分的医院设在私营，以前支付的模式。

    虽然近几年1990年代改革以后医疗保健水平逐年提高，面对医疗保健制度最厉害的问题还是农村和城市的差距。有的医院成为开拓性研究，以及许多在城市医院使用现代的技巧和设备。不过在贫穷的农村，医院厉害地落后发达国家的水平。并且，许多住在农村人买不起基本保健。

    这是小花寄养院正在试着缓解的问题。由于住在农村的孩子可不到或父母买不起即使基本保健手续，他们的前途茫茫的。虽然最近的改革帮助减少城市农村的医疗保健差距，解决问题的方法只是通过减少更大的城市农村的生活水平差距。

    不巧由于保护孩子的原因，我不能上传莫壮孩子的照片，但是在http://chunmiaolittleflower.org/ 发现更多信息和照片。

     

    The toddler play area at Chunmiao home

     

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION:-

    Volunteering at Chunmiao Little Flower home

    Over the last few weeks, I’ve been lucky enough to have the chance to do some volunteering at Chunmiao little flower baby and children’s home. The home takes in severely disabled babies and children from all over China, whose parents can’t afford the healthcare costs of looking after them. Paired with a local hospital, the home gets them medical treatment and with the long term aim of sending them back home into the community.

    I spend time each week helping to feed and look after the resident babies, and play with the older children. While most of the children are very severely disabled, most commonly with cardiovascular problems, Chunmiao home tries to make their lives as good as possible. The home itself is incredibly clean and welcoming, and there are live-in couples who act as adopted parents to the children to create a family atmosphere.

    While volunteering is obviously very enjoyable and rewarding, it also reveals a lot about the healthcare system in China. Perhaps representative of the many contradictions of Chinese society, healthcare provision is not at all what I expected for such a nominally socialist country. While 95% of the Chinese population have health insurance, most hospitals and clinics are run on a private, upfront-payment model.

    While standards have improved drastically in recent years since reforms in the 1990s, the main problem facing the system is the rural-urban disparity. Some hospitals in Beijing have become pioneering research centres, and many urban hospitals use modern techniques and equipment. On the other hand, hospitals in poor rural areas lag far behind the standard set by the developed world, and many people in the countryside cannot afford even basic healthcare provision.

    This is the problem that Chunmiao home is attempting to alleviate. Many rural children with long term health problems have bleak futures as even the most basic lifesaving medical procedures that they need aren’t available where they live or are prohibitively expensive for their parents. While recent reforms are attempting to bridge the rural-urban healthcare disparity, the problem will only be solved once the wider rural-urban wealth divide is narrowed.

    Unfortunately I can’t upload photos of the children themselves for child protection reasons, but visit the home’s website at http://chunmiaolittleflower.org/ for more information and photos.

     

  • 2015年二月：Harbin & Spring Festival – Struan Rutherford, February 2015

     

    一月二十七日，我从北京去哈尔滨，中国北方黑龙江省的省城。由于黑龙 江从俄罗斯很近, 哈尔滨还有很独特混合两国家的文化。我去看 聖索菲亞教堂，亚洲最大东正教教堂。教堂的架构非常漂亮。 虽然聖索菲亞教堂现在不是在服务的教堂，但是里面有摄影馆。摄影馆给我很有意思关于城市历史的一瞥。还有，我去哈尔滨国际冰雪节。我以前看到很多照片可是我还没明白真的规模。

                                     

    整个村庄被修建了冰，包括酒吧，饭馆，教堂和邮局。我最终决定加入很长的排队。我不知道为什么我们都排队但是这个地方明显很流行。过了一会独自在寒冷站，我跟我的中国排队邻居开始谈话，我问他们为什么我们排队。答案是三百米的冰滑。这个冰滑听起来有点吓人但是我全神贯注于谈话所以我不担心太多。排队是非常好为了有效地花时间练习汉语的机会。滑冰实际上很痛苦因为滑冰结束的时候，人民被扔到雪墙上。

    虽然大部分我的同学们回国，我跟有些朋友住在北京来过春节。二月十八日以前，我觉得春节庆典大概跟西方除夕庆典有相似。最大的区别是城市成为非常安静。北京成为鬼城因为大家回家来跟家人过春节。焰火的使用也比较有声有色。从晚上八点到早晨三点，北京不断有焰火。从我窗户的风景很漂亮，城市非常丰富多彩。十九日，我们去看地坛的庙会。庙会的气氛很激动：大量人群，很吵音乐和很多食品。而且，我们观看了舞狮表演。我们那天经历很多中国文化！我们的假期很快结束但是我盼望不久再上课。

     

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION

    On the 27th January, I set out from Beijing for Harbin, the capital of Heilongjiang Province in Northern China.　Due to its proximity to Russia, Harbin retains a distinct character that blends two different countries’ cultures. I visited St Sophia’s Cathedral, the largest Orthodox church in Asia. The church’s architecture was fantastic. Although St Sofia’s is no longer an active church, it houses a photography museum which provided an interesting insight into the city’s history.　I also went to the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival. I had seen a number of photos but I did not truly appreciate the scale of it until I entered.

     

    An entire village including bars, restaurants, a mock church and even a post office had been constructed entirely out of ice. I eventually chose to join a queue for an attraction that was evidently extremely popular although I did not know exactly what it was. After a while standing alone in the cold, I decided to strike up conversation with my Chinese neighbours about what we were queueing for. The answer was a 300m long ice slide which sounded quite worrying but I was too engrossed in conversation with my Chinese neighbours to think too much about it. The queue was a great opportunity to make productive use of my time by practising my Mandarin. The ice slide in the end ended up being rather painful, especially as the slide came to a rapid end in the form of a wall of snow that riders were flung into.

    Although most of my classmates had returned home, I stayed in Beijing with a few friends to celebrate Spring Festival. Before February 18th, I thought that Spring Festival celebrations would be similar to Western New Year celebrations. The biggest difference was how quiet the city became:　Beijing became a ghost town as people returned home to celebrate Spring Festival with their families. The use of fireworks was also more impressive. From about 8pm until 3am, there were constant fireworks. The view from my window was wonderful; the city was extremely colourful. The next day, we went to the Temple of Earth to explore the temple fair. The temple atmosphere was very exciting: large crowds, loud music and lots of food. We also saw a lion dancing performance.We experienced a lot of Chinese culture that day! Holidays are now coming to an end but I look forward to starting class again before long.

  • Samuel Franklin, Beijing, China – January 2015

    我终于找到了，它比我想象的要好吃。我讲的就是那个非常著名的中国菜—biangbiang面。我的电脑甚至写不出来biang这个字。bb面是山西省的一种面，但它不是因其味道而著名。正相反，是因为它的字—biang是中文最复杂的一个字，一共有58笔画。我已经几次记住并忘却了怎么写这个字。一般说这个字的形象反映面的形象，但我觉得这一汉子与bb面没有那么密切的关系。而且我其实认为不能辩解为一个面而创造如此复杂麻烦的汉子。话虽如此，我还喜欢它的味道。

    biang biang noodles – Samuel Franklin, January 2015

     

    过去一个月，在一个方面，我的生活比较安静认真。三个星期前我考了期末考试。不幸的是，考试的那一周我感冒了，第一天我上不了课，所以要在两天之内考所有大约10个小时的试。说实话，在一定的程度上，这些考试的成绩并不那么重要，因为它不会影响我最后学位的成绩，但在另一方面中国考试的内容和问题的类型颇有意思。比如，服从那个文化模式，在我的文学考试我需要背诵木兰诗和6首诗并重写原文以便考好试。不过，在别的科目有幸的是我不用勤奋努力背诵很多事。例如，在我的口语考试中，我和教授花了10分钟讨论是否建筑师要多重视建筑的作用或者外面。

    现在我在一所律师事务所实习两个星期工作。我每天从早到晚我尽力避免麻烦我的同事。在工作时，我要处理很多不一样的事，但对我中文能力最有影响力的就是从英文道中文的法律翻译，因为律师经常使用比较复杂的句子机构，而且很多案件概述包括许多生词。这几天我可能翻译了30多个小时。如果读者觉得我最近的经历太激烈，希望他们马上就会告诉我。

    一月的北京有点儿闷，最近的空气污染特别严重，同时每天多么冷。但是还有一些愉快的事情。我曾享受在北大的未名湖上滑冰。这周我还在准备旅游到日本和云南。

    Samuel Franklin – January 2015

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION

    I finally found it! And it tastes better than I had imagined too! I am of course referring to that well known Chinese dish – biang biang noodles. My computer won’t actually let me type out the character for it. Biang biang is a type of noodle from Shanxi province, but it is not famous for its flavour. Rather it is due to its Chinese character – biang is the single most complicated character in Chinese, with a total of 58 strokes. I have already learnt and forgotten the character several times. It is often said that the form of the character reflects the shape of the noodles, but personally I don’t perceive a particularly close relationship. Moreover, I actually think it is not really justifiable creating such a complex character just for the sake of a noodle. That said, I still enjoy the dish.

    The last month, in some respect, has been quite a quiet and serious one for me. About three weeks ago, I had my end of term exams. Unfortunately, I was ill that week and wasn’t able to get to class on the first day, so had to take all 10 hours or so of exams in two days. Truthfully, the result of these papers does not matter too much, as the grades don’t affect my final degree class. On the other hand it was quite interesting experiencing Chinese-style exams. For example, following that cultural stereotype, in my literature exam I had to memorise the whole of Mulan and six love poems, then rewrite them to pass. Fortunately in other subjects, I did not have to memorise so diligently. In my oral exam, the professor and I discussed whether architects should prioritise form or function in buildings for ten minutes.

    Samuel Franklin – January 2015

    Presently, I am in the middle of two weeks of work experience in a law firm. Every day from early until late, I do my best to avoid overly bothering my colleagues. At work I have been given various assignments, but the ones most useful for my Chinese have been the legal translations from English to Chinese. Lawyers often use complex sentence structures and the deal summaries contain plenty of new vocabulary. In the last few days, I’ve probably translated over 30 hours of texts. Should the reader feel that my experiences here of late are excessively exciting, I hope that he or she will alert me immediately.

    January in Beijing has been somewhat oppressive; the pollution has been particularly severe, whilst every day it is bitingly cold. However, there are some happy things. I have enjoyed ice skating on Peking University’s Weiming Lake and I am currently preparing to start my travels to Japan and then Yunnan next week.

  • 2014年一月:Christmas, New Year & Japan

    Struan Rutherford 2015

     

    正如我在上一篇博客上眼，我在北京过圣诞节。寻找传统圣诞午餐的麻烦以后，我们都去西式酒店吃饭 。很多我给打电话的饭馆说他们有传统圣诞午餐可是他们的圣诞午餐跟英国的有很多区别。这并不是抱怨：我认为中国接受，改编圣诞节的办法是非常有意思。我们在酒店享受优秀宴席，包括火鸡，寿司和香槟。由于别致圣诞节的场景，我们想有别致吃饭后的活动所以我们决定去打保龄球。还有，我们在北京过新年。不幸，北京没有焰火。我认为原因是城市的污染，最近的更厉害。当地政府以前说焰火应该被禁止来缩小污染。

    一月十二号，我去日本旅游。我有在东京和京都学习的朋友所以我还想去看他们，我不是单独！除了东京和京都，我去广岛，宫鸟，奈良和日光。日本是非常漂亮培养的国家。虽然日本文化有很多中式地方，日本文化还是独特的。我现在在东京，已经花了差不多一个星期。我去看各种各样名胜古迹，包括东京国家博物馆和常常引起争论的供奉战死者寺庙：靖国神社。回来北京的时候，我盼望在中国庆祝春节。我知道春节大概是我在中国时间的一大亮点！

     

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION

    As I touched upon in my last monthly report, I spent Christmas in Beijing. After some of stress in trying to find a traditional Christmas lunch, we all went to eat in a Western style Beijing hotel. Many other restaurants that I had called said they had a traditional Christmas lunch but this differed greatly from the Christmas lunches I know in Britain. This is certainly not a complaint, rather I found it interesting to once again see how the Chinese have accepted Christmas and adapted it to create their own version of Christmas. At the Western style hotel, we enjoyed a fantastic feast including turkey, sushi and champagne. As it was an usual Christmas setting, we wanted to have an unusual after lunch activity so we decided to go bowling. We also celebrated New Years in Beijing however there were no fireworks in the city. I suspected this was to do with the pollution which has not been too good recently. The local government has said before that fireworks should be limited in order to lower pollution.

    On the 12th January, I went to Japan for two weeks of travelling. I have friends studying in both Tokyo and Kyoto so I also planned to visit them, I am not completely alone! Besides Tokyo and Kyoto, I went to Hiroshima, Miyajima, Nara and Nikko. Japan is a beautiful country with great culture. Although the culture has many Chinese traits and similarities, it remains as a distinct one. I am currently in Tokyo and have spent almost a week here now. I have had the chance to visit all sorts of tourist sites, from the National Museum of Tokyo to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine which honours Japan’s war dead. Upon my return, I look forward to celebrating Spring Festival in China. I know it will be a highlight of my time in China!

     

    Struan Rutherford 2015

  • Imogen Page Jarrett, Beijing, China – January 2015

    Imogen Jan 2015

    在北京过圣诞节

    当中国朋友对我提出“你要怎么过春节？”这个问题，我回答他们说：在中国做个没有家可归的外国人，过一个注重家庭的节日其实很难。不过，我已经体验过这种困难，那就是去年12月25日的时候。

    圣诞节快要到了，好多同学已经正在坐回国的飞机上呢。留在中国的同学呢，有其他计划。对我们其中大部分同学来说，这一次是第一次在外地过圣诞节。随着圣诞节的来临，中国肯定缺乏英国的疯狂。在大量的公共场所、商店、酒吧、都安装了圣诞节的装饰，可是节日气氛还不如在国内的。给我带来最真正的家庭般感觉是去听我室友在胡同里唱圣诞颂歌。

    毫无疑问，在北京过一个传统的圣诞节是绝对不肯能的，所以我们就决定趁这个放纵自我的机会。因此，我们在北京瑞吉的圣诞节自助餐预订桌子。附近的一家超市突然开始卖圣诞树，所以我们好容易才把一棵拿回家，让彩色小灯光照着客厅，还装饰了金属丝。说实话，都看起来挺滑稽可笑的。但是，圣诞节那天亮了，我们认真的送礼物和遥远的家人给我们寄来的东西。

    参加大自助餐是一种果粉。服务员总是呼之即来，手里拿着凉香槟酒。在大堂里摆着一场盛宴。摆着传统的圣诞节烤火鸡、日本的寿司、大姜饼屋、各种奶酪、水果、面包类的、蛋糕、冰淇淋、沙拉、烤烧、甚至还有北京烤鸭。这场盛宴是对精神和肚子的双重挑战。我们慢慢地吃到喝到麻木了。

    不送礼物就不能算是圣诞节，我们送的小惊喜没让人失望，惊喜包括一件豹纹连体衣和两个生洋葱。后来，我们突然决定玩保龄球去，在外国过圣诞节，什么比保龄球好主意？保龄球馆的服务员却不太欢迎我们协调性较差的一群人。

    窝在床上跟准备圣诞节大餐的家人Skype那天就结束了。家里的距离感很强，可是看到亲戚在我眼前（即使是通过电脑）办哪些很熟的顺序，却让家里好像没有那么远似的。

     

    Imogen – Jan15

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION

     

    When my Chinese friends ask me how I will celebrate New Year, I tell them that it is difficult to celebrate a family-orientated festival when you are a foreigner without any family to return to in China. However, I found myself in not too dissimilar a predicament when it came to the 25th of December last year.

    Christmas was almost upon us, and many classmates were already on flights destined for home. The few of us remaining in China, however, had to make other plans. For most of us, it was the first time ever to spend this time away from family. The run up to Christmas here was a far cry from what can almost be described as madness back in the UK. In most public places, shops and bars sprung up festive decorations and installations- but the festive spirit and present-buying-fervour was still left to be desired. The closest I felt to home was listening to my room-mate sing carols in the hutongs.

    Seeing as a traditional Christmas was seeming well out of the question, we decided the occasion best warranted a spell of self indulgence. Hence we booked a table at one of Beijing’s best Christmas day buffets at the St Regis hotel. The local supermarket suddenly appeared to be selling Christmas trees, so we trekked one home and set the apartment a-twinkling with fairy lights and tinsel. It all seemed rather comic and brash. Still, when the day itself dawned we earnestly swapped stockings, gifts, and parcels sent by family from afar.

    The buffet itself was an exercise in excess. Waiters and waitresses waited on our beck and call with bottles of chilled champagne; in the main hall was an impressive array of everything from traditional Christmas roast, including a whole turkey, to more fusion areas of sushi. A giant gingerbread house took place of honour over looking subsidiary spreads of cheese, fruits, breads, cakes, ice cream, salads, grilled delights and even Peking duck. It was not only a challenge for the stomach, but a metal test too, as we gradually fell deeper and deeper into a food stupor.

    It wouldn’t be a Christmas meal without an exchange of silly gifts of some sort- and seeing as we lacked crackers we fell back on secret santa, which did not fail to disappoint with people unwrapping such surprises as a leopard print leotard and two whole raw onions (don’t ask why). Afterwards, what better activity to do on Christmas day in a foreign city than go bowling? It’s safe to say the bowling staff did not seem to be amused by a rather raucous group of “old whiteys” (laowai) turning up with seemingly no coordination or aim left in them whatsoever.

    The day came to a close tucked up in bed on Skype to my family preparing Christmas dinner. Home felt a world away, and yet seeing the all too familiar processes, even over web-cam, bought it a little closer.

  • Imogen Page-Jarrett, Beijing, China – December 2014

     

    Imogen Page Jarrett – Dec 2014

    诚挚邀请您参加…

    当我们转过拐角，一块松软的红地毯映入我们的眼帘。名流荟萃，星光闪耀，他们队伍的人站在我左边，准备迎接到访者。穿着丝绸、戴着珠宝的嘉宾与我们互相表示敬意和欢迎。

    向五队排最后的人深深鞠躬之后，我向宽敞的大厅里走进了一步。高达拱形天花板在水晶吊灯重压下摇摇欲坠。一片愉快的嘈杂声向清脆的水晶飘上去。大厅的边缘站着北京市最优秀泰国饭店的小吃摊。大厅中间的大舞台等着嘉宾的光临。我们的名字在泰国国王87岁圣诞节派对的客人名单上之列。那天的活动还庆祝泰国国庆节日。

    正当我们小心翼翼地走到酒吧拿起一杯冰香槟酒，有人咳了一声好引起大家的注意。

    “我将以骄傲的姿态欢迎女士们先生们参加今天晚上的活动…”。我们排在西服、民族服装、军服的旁边，举起杯来，为了泰国国王普密蓬·阿杜德的健康喝了一杯。

    在世界各地的驻华大使、军官、大公司代表之间来来往往，我禁不住感到自己的渺小和微不足道。我们跟罗马尼亚大使边喝泰国香味的椰子汤，边听他个人当大使个人经历，而且他下次派驻亚洲哪个国家，哪个国家会带来最多的机会。我们决定泰国和韩国都是明智的选择。大使的生活好像是永不安分的生活，因为每四年他们都必须搬到新的一个国家，在陌生的环境并文化找到自己立足之地。对我来说，大使的夫人和孩子生活的故事更有意思。大使的亲人应该做出很大的牺牲。我突然想起几周前英国驻华大使所言的话：他夫人觉得在国外找到亲密的朋友圈子和爱好特别难。而且孩子得转学，交新朋友，学新语言。并且，他似乎对我们在北京留学的原因很感兴趣，问我们北京学生的生活过得如何，还问我们为什么选择中文这个专业。

    我们回答在中国前途是一片光明。那天的活动非常有助于职业的机会。我感觉自己很幸运在中国上学，我在这里的第外远远超过我在英国曾经体验过的。因为我是西方人，我在中国经常体验过特别的招待，并对我母语的需求很多。我在家乡肯定不会感受这种招待。回家路上口袋里揣着一名企业集团的首席执行官的名片，我再次想起在中国关系的超然能力。

     

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION

    We Request the Pleasure of Your Company…

    As we turned the corner, a soft red carpet unveiled itself before our eyes. To our right, a procession of glittering individuals stood ready to welcome us. Attired in silks and jewels, we paid obeisance to one another in welcome and thanks. Bowing deeply for the final time, I took a step into the broad room. The high vaulted ceiling bowed under the weight of chandeliers. Up towards the tinkling crystals, the hubbub of voices drifted. Around the edge of the space stood food stands from Beijing’s most exceptional Thai eateries. In the centre, a large stage awaited the presence of honoured guests. We were on the guest-list for the King of Thailand’s 87th Birthday Party, coinciding with the National Day of Thailand.

    We cautiously stepped up to the bar to take a flute of ice cooled champagne from the bar, just as a cough brought everyone to attention.

    “I am proud to welcome you, ladies and gentlemen, to this evening’s event…”. Among the rows of suits, national dress and military attire we stood and raised a class to the health of  King Bhumibol Adulyadej himself.

    Moving between the world’s ambassadors to China, military officers, company representatives, I could not help but feel rather small in comparison. We spoke to the ambassador of Romania over a bowl of fragrant Thai coconut soup. We spoke of his personal history as an ambassador, and where to be posted next in Asia; which nation would bring about the most opportunities. We decided both South Korea and Thailand would be strong choices. The ambassador lifestyle seems an uprooting one; having to up sticks every four years and begin afresh in a completely new environment and culture. Personally, I feel the spouses and children of ambassadors reveal a much more telling tale. The immediate family must make great sacrifices. I recalled the words of the British ambassador at the British embassy a few weeks before, that his wife found it difficult to find a circle of friends and interests in a foreign country. Children are forced to change schools, swap friends, learn new languages. In contrast he seemed inquisitive as to our reasons for studying in Beijing, what the student experience was here, why we had chosen Chinese.

    Our answers of course included the invaluable career opportunities here. The event was a key place to make contacts for such purposes. I felt extremely lucky that as a student in China, my status greatly surpassed any I had ever stood in the UK. As a Westerner, I have often experienced special treatment and great demand for my mother tongue. It is certain I would never find myself at such an evening as this at home. Walking home with the business card of a conglomerate CEO, I realised anew the almighty power of “guanxi” (personal relations) in China.

     

  • Samuel Franklin, China – December 2014

    Samuel, Beijing, China – December 2014

     

    首先，我想简单地介绍一下我的在北京骑自行车的经验。由于一系列不幸事件的发生，我已经买到了三辆自行车。我最初到北京时，没有打算骑车。我认为因为北京的公共交通四通八达，而且我的房子离大学不会那么远，所以不用花钱买自行车。此外，在伦敦，作为一个驾驶者，我培养了 一个对烦人骑车人的反感。不过，第一学期一开始，我很快就意识到更好骑车。每天早上打的是金钱的浪费，而且8点之前我不愿意走30多分钟的路。所以我第一次买到自行车时，我很不情愿地花了一百块（他送了一把锁）。当然，骑多么便宜的车很快出了问题。去学校的半路上，它突然破坏了。下次我投入了更多钱（两百块钱），得到了很合适的自行车。我失去它以后 ，就买到了我最新的一辆自行车。希望这辆是更耐用的。

    在中文的方面，我参加了一场演讲比赛。每个留学生的班要提名一个人参加。毫不吃惊，没有人志愿参加，所以我很友好的同学决定我参加将会是最好的。然后，老师告诉我我需要在数百多人面前，做五分钟的演讲，不可以用笔记。他也说他们会拍每个人的表演。比赛的话题就是“我有一个梦想”，我讲的是“我们为什么在不做梦？这个趋势好不好？”在高级比赛中，来自各种国家的留学生都说得很流利，而且各色各样的话题反应了很多不同年情人的乐趣。最终，不知何故，我排在第三。这里有比赛的网址（我在第四页上

    上个月，我也继续让自己熟悉中国西洋棋的景色。比如我参加了一场当地比赛并获得了第一名。虽然，参加那场比赛的棋手并不那么强，但是经过每一个比赛和我见到的对手，我体验了中国西洋棋的一些情况。例如，在中国没有很多的比赛，但很多人常会在咖啡馆里集合下棋。我也加入了北大的象棋队，为北大下了几次比赛。迄今，我们还保持不败赛季，可是于清华的大赛还没发生。最后，我参观了中国的棋院，那是中国西洋棋队训练的地方，也是中国国际象棋协会的办公室。我参观时，他们举办中俄14岁以下的国际比赛。

    最终，在北京你能注意到越来越激烈圣诞气氛。很多的销售商业趁着圣诞节送礼的习俗来推广各种特价商品。有些大使馆也举行了圣诞活动。例如，我去了一场德国圣诞市场，享受了热葡萄酒和椒盐脆饼。昨晚，我们在一个圣诞酒吧竞猜排了第四名；我们缺乏足够关于圣诞电影的知识。

    Beijing Station, December 2014 – Samuel Franklin

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION

    Firstly, a quick word on my experiences of bicycles in Beijing. An unfortunate series of events has meant that I have already bought three bicycles. When I first arrived in Beijing, I had no intension of cycling. I knew that there would be an extensive public transport system and expected that my apartment would be close enough to the university, so that I would not need to expend on bikes. Moreover, as a driver in London, I have cultivated a dislike of annoying cyclists on the road. However, as term started, it quickly became apparent that I wouldn’t manage without one.  Catching a taxi every morning is a waste of money, whilst I am not willing to walk over half an hour to school before 8am. And so when I bought my first bike, I reluctantly dished out 100rmb (£10; they also threw in a lock). Of course, using such a cheap piece of equipment quickly led to problems and one day, about half way on my way to class, it broke. Next time, I invested more (200rmb) and obtained a quite suitable bike. After I lost it, I bought my third one. Hopefully this one will last me more than a month.

    As for language, I participated in a speech competition. Every foreign student’s class has to nominate one person to participate. Not surprisingly, there was nobody in my class willing to volunteer, so my classmates kindly decided it would be best if I just did it. Afterwards, my teacher told me that I would be presenting in front of a few hundred people, giving a five minute speech, no notes allowed. He also told me each speaker’s performance would be filmed. The theme of the competition was ‘I have a dream’, and I chose to speak on ‘Why do we no longer dream? Is this trend good or bad?’ In the top level competition there were exchange students from all over the world, who all spoke very fluently, and their topics reflected a great many interests and concerns of young people my age. Ultimately and inexplicably, I took third place.

    This month, I have also continued to familiarise myself further with the chess scene in Beijing. For example, I entered a local tournament and came first. Although the field was not particularly strong, through each game and meeting with a new opponent, I came to understand aspects of the Chinese chess scene. For instance, whilst there are not so many tournaments in Beijing, many people frequently meet in cafés to play games. I also joined the Peking University team and have now played a few matches for them. We remain undefeated, but the big match against Tsinghua is yet to take place. Finally, I visited the Chinese chess institute, which is where the national team train and the national federation is based. When I went, they were hosting an under 14 China-Russia match.

    Finally, there is an increasingly pronounced Christmas spirit here in Beijing. Many retailers take advantage of the gift giving custom to promote special deals. Some of the embassies have hosted events too. For example, I went to the German embassy’s Christmas market, where I enjoyed mulled wine and pretzels. Fifth place in last night’s Christmas themed pub quiz is also something to build on.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Nadia – Beijing, China – December 2014

     

    这个月北京的天气冷了（到目前为止，最低的温度是零下8摄氏度！）。这个就意味着我的户外活动很有限！虽然我最近忙于学习，但是我还有时间享受北京的生活。一些星期前我接受免费的芭蕾舞剧票。舞剧是北京跳舞学院的天鹅湖。以前，我肯定不是芭蕾粉丝（我十岁的时候，我妈妈带了我去看芭蕾，一开始我就睡着），但是这一次，我很享受这个芭蕾舞剧。

     

    最近我去了上海呆三天。我立刻爱上了这个城市。上海的布局跟欧洲城市有一样的气氛，我觉得上海是这样因为黄浦江。上海跟北京的布局不同；北京的布局有纵横交错的环城路网。我享受在上海法租界、外滩、浦东逛逛。外滩的夜景是我最喜欢的夜景。可是，我最喜欢的地方是上海宣传画艺术中心。到了博物馆的地址的时候，我意识到我在一个公寓小区，就很犯浑。原来，博物馆是在公寓的地下室。那里的宣传画包括从1949年以前到1990年代中期的宣传画 （但是，大部分的宣传画部分包括从1949年到1980年代早期的宣传画）。在未来，我肯定会考虑在上海工作。

     

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION

    Over the last month the weather in Beijing has become extremely cold (as low as -8 degrees)! This has meant that outdoor activities have certainly been limited. Although I’ve been quite busy with classwork I’ve still had time to be able to enjoy Beijing. A few weeks ago I received a free ticket to see Swan Lake at the Beijing Dance Academy. I have never been a fan of ballet (my mother took me once when I was 10 and I fell asleep) but this time I really enjoyed the performance.

    One weekend I took a trip down to Shanghai and I fell in love with the city. Shanghai’s layout felt like a European city probably because of the Huangpu River. Overall it was very different to Beijing’s sprawling network of ring roads. I loved visiting the different areas such as the French Concession, the Bund area, and Pudong. The night cityscape at the Bund is my favourite nightscape. A highlight for me was the Shanghai Propaganda Poster Art Centre. I arrived at the museum address to find myself in an apartment complex and I was extremely confused. As it turned out, the museum was hidden in the basement of one of the blocks. The poster collection spans pre-1949 right up till the mid 1990s, although the main ‘propaganda’ section includes posters from 1949 till the early 80s. Shanghai is definitely another city I would consider working in in the future.

     

  • Samuel Franklin, Beijing, China – October 2014

    Beach at Taiwan, Kenting

     

    我已经在北京两个月了，越来越多地习惯了在这儿的生活。上个月，我和十一位同学开学了。我们每周从周一到周四，上十六个小时的课，包括语言，文学，报刊阅读和古代汉语的课。功课比较多，但因为每星期有三天的周末，学习的压力大体上不那么严重.

    对于学中文最好的方法，很多人都有自己的看法。比如说，有些人觉得与其花时间预习课本上的课文，不如尽力找中国朋友，练习说话。对我看来，首先需要决定你有什么语言目标。如果你只想说得很流利，你就会多花时间和中国人一起聊天。不过，如果你也想变得有学问，我觉得值得上课和复习生词。

    至今，我最享受上文学课。这不仅是因为我们有一位非常热烈的老师，还是因为我们有很多机会学习中国最有名最重要的原文。我们已经讨论了鲁迅<狂人日记>的意义，也学习了司马迁的一些历史故事。将来我们会读一些中国历史上的经典名著，包括<红楼梦>，<三国演义>和<西游记>。报刊阅读的课也很有用—我们每周要写一篇新闻文章的摘要，所以有机会看当地的报纸。

    课余除了加入一个足球队以外，我还加入了北大国际象棋协会。我是比较认真的棋手，代表英国二十一岁以下的象棋队，有时去国外参加国际比赛。今年到中国之前，我担心我可能没有机会保持我对西洋棋的热情。不过，北大的协会有二十多个会员，他们都很热烈。而且我发现到中国最厉害的两位棋手都是北大的学生—在中国排名第一棋手的丁立人和女子世界冠军侯逸凡！所幸的是，我上周遇见了丁，和他谈天了中国的棋手。

    最后，我十一的时候去了台湾。我呆了七天，参观了很多地方。除了台北以外，我还去了华联，高雄，野柳和垦丁。我过得十分愉快，那里的天气和海鲜都总是非常好。我享受逛夜市，和当地人练习说话（在那儿他们说得更慢），参观国家公园和经验台北的夜生活。我强烈地推荐任何人去台湾旅游！哦，我还看到了一些猴子。

     

     

    ENGLISH TRANSLATION:

    I’ve already been in Beijing for two months now and feel increasingly at ease with life here. Last month, my eleven classmates and I started lectures. Every week we have classes Monday through Thursday, with lessons in language, literature, newspaper reading and classical Chinese amongst others. Whilst we are set a lot of work, the three day weekends mean work pressure is never overly severe.

    As for views on the best way to study Chinese, many people will say different things. For example, some consider making friends and speaking as much as possible to be the more effective than spending time staring at texts. I think it’s most important to first clarify what one’s language goals are. If you only want to speak fluently, then it may be effective to chat with as many Chinese as possible. However, if you also aim to become literate, then I think it is worth keeping attendance at lectures and putting in the hours at home.

    So far, I’ve most enjoyed my literature classes. Not only because we have a very passionate lecturer, but also as we have had chances to study China’s most famous and important texts in their original form. We’ve read and discussed the significance of Lu Xun’s ‘Diary of a Madman’, as well as some of Sima Qian’s historical stories. In future, we’ll also be reading some of China’s historical classics, including ‘The Dream of the Red Chamber’, ‘Romance of the Three Kingdoms’ and ‘Journey to the West.’ Our newspaper lessons have also been very beneficial – every week we write a short essay on an article of choice from a Chinese periodical, so we also have the opportunity to engage with the local press.

    Outside of class, apart from joining a football team, I have also become a member of Peking University’s chess club. I’m a relatively serious chess player; I represent England at under 21 level and have gone abroad on occasion to play in international tournaments. Before starting my year abroad, I was worried that I probably wouldn’t have the chance to keep up my chess in China. However, the University club has over 20 members, all of whom are passionate about chess. Moreover, I recently discovered that two of China’s strongest players are both students at Peking University – China’s number one Ding Liren and Women’s World Champion Hou Yifan! Last week, I was very fortunate to have the chance to meet Ding and talk to him about China’s chess talents.

    Monkeys in Taiwan

    Finally, I also went to Taiwan for the National Holiday. I spent a week there and travelled to various places. Other than Taipei, I also went to Hualien, Gaoxiong, Yeliu and Kenting. I had a wonderful time there, and the weather and seafood were two constant highlights. I enjoyed strolling through the night markets, practicing my Chinese with locals (they speak a lot slower there), visiting the national parks and experiencing Taipei’s nightlife. I wholeheartedly recommend anyone to go to Taiwan for holiday! Oh, I also saw some monkeys.