Test, China, Test, Judo, Essay, China, Test

If I went home from China tomorrow. I'd have to say I'd be happy with my time in Asia. I'm still learning new things everyday, but I believe I now have a feel for Chinese culture, and If I come back in the future I will not feel like a total stranger.

I spent all of last week in Guilin with my roommate, Zhao. Zhao, or Ryan, as he chooses to introduce himself to Westerners, is great. He is a finance student from Tingdao (where the only good brand of Chinse beer is brewed) and is extremely friendly and helpful whenever I inevitably miss something in my Chinese homework. Though at first I thought it would suck having a roommate again, having someone around who actually understands Chinese has turned out to be exceedingly useful. We decided two weeks ago, that since I couldn't go to southeast Asia with all the other exchange students and as it has been too long since his last vacation, we would travel together to Guilin, famed as the most beautiful province in China. Guilin is known for those steep thin hills covered in grass, often seen on the cover of Chinese guidebooks.

We both had a Logic exam on Tuesday morning, and headed off as soon as it was over. It was hard, but hopefully I'll do well. What worries me is the forced curve I keep getting warnings about. No more than 20% can get As and 20% will get Ds. Sure, I only need a C- and it is pass-fail, with grades covered, but when the middle line is a C, there isn't much room for error, and I don't know quite know the system. Zhao's father, a senior general in the Chinese Army, toured in the area when he was younger, and he had a few recommendations and contacts for us. We took the MTR to Shenzhen, and from there flew to Guilin.

...

I'm on a plane now, about to take off to Shanghai for Shabbat. We're heading down the runway and the lights and engine just cut out. I'm gonna ignore it, and hope to God I make it to a computer to send this out...

Anyway, we actually only spent one night in Guilin, but this was enough time to get a feel for the city. China has developed greatly in the last few years, and has many many cities packed with people, but except for Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong, they all basically look the same.

The next morning we woke at 7:30 and took a bus to Yangshou. Buses here take forever, because operators who don't want to drive a half empty bus will drive around local streets with one passenger screaming out the window for anyone who wants to jump on board. When we finally had a full bus we headed out for an hour, then got off and waited for a local bus. By now we were in a very rural region, and the view was truly amazing. The Guanzi region is considered by many to be the most beautiful region in the country. When the Clintons first came to China, they made a stop here as well. It is also the scene on the back of the 20 RMB bill...

Lights are back on. Smiles of relief all around. Still praying I land safely in Shanghai...

Unbeknownst to me, we weren't heading directly to Yangshou. First, Zhao had a surprise stop his father coordinated for us. We were heading into increasingly rural neighborhoods in a small 10 person bus, if you could call it that. More of a van really, and tickets were 20 cents per person.

One person came on with a live chicken in one hand and her baby in the other. After about twenty five minutes passing rice paddies and free-ranging ox(en?), we arrived at what seemed to be the central market of the region -- ten or so stalls selling various wheres from home-sewed clothing to fruits, vegetables and all sorts of animals I didn't know could be eaten, plus your usual assortment of chicken, beef, seafoods and rice noodles. I didn't notice any refrigeration or flowing water, but I guess that's just not how it's done here. We didn't stop to eat. As we passed, a woman spotted us (I kind of stand out in rural China, so we weren't hard to spot) and jumped on the bus. Approaching us, the smiling older woman told us she was there to take us the rest of the way to Yangshou. Her husband was sick, so she would be our guide. Zhao spoke with her a bit, and once comfortable that she was who she said she was, we got off the bus and walked down to the shore of the nearby Li river.

She pointed to her boat and indicated for us to get on. This boat was actually a 3 person raft made of bamboo, with a bench in the middle for two people, and a bamboo oar on the back. There was also a small engine on the back for going upstream.

Preferring the peace and quiet of the open water, as well as the pristine beauty of our surroundings, we didn't use the engine, and flowed down river for about four hours. We stopped two or three times along the way, once so our guide could run home and drop off the groceries she had picked up when she met us. She let us come up with her, and she show

ed off her small orange and pomelo grove as well as her rice patty and mini ox she recently purchased to plow it. She let us pick a few oranges ourselves, and they were excellent.

We knew they were organic and pesticide free, as there is no way she could have afforded pesticides, though she did seem to be pretty well off as far as the town went. Somehow the tiny village had a population of five hundred. We stopped another time to take pictures from the same angle of the scene on the back of the 20 RMB, and one last time to see if we could

find all nine horses on the Nine Horses mountain.

Apparently only one person has ever seen all nine, but as he was a respected Chairman of China, people understood this to mean that only the most elite of society could spot all nine horses. Any less, and you just weren't meant to be prosperous. I managed to see seven with very flexible creative license, and supposedly this means I should be pretty successful at life. No Chairmanship of the People's Party for me though.

After we said goodbye to our guide we headed off by foot on a mud path to find a path to a small old town where we would be able to find another small bus to get to Yangshou...

Battery is about to die. I'll continue to write next chance I get, again, assuming we make it in one piece...

...We made it, as you probably inferred from the fact that you are reading this. Just spent four days in Shanghai, and now back on the same plane as last time. Hopefully no flickering lights this time, though we are already 40 minutes delayed and just sitting on the runway. You get what you pay four with Chinese airlines I guess, but it is hard to argue with $40 for a two hour flight...

The town was truly beautiful and exactly the kind of traditional China I had yet to experience. Just about the only English in the town was on a small sign on a stone bridge claiming

the bridge was constructed over 800 years ago. Hard to find that kind of history in the US. Of course, we passed one other couple of backpackers, and we hear them arguing about something. If you've been reading my posts to date, you can probably guess what is about to follow. Zhao asked if I recognized the language, and sure enough, as I moved closer, I could hear that it was two Israelis arguing in Hebrew about whether or not they could wash their cloths in the river. They shouldn't, I told them.

By the end of the trip Zhao was convinced there were as many Israelis as Chinese in the world, as we met more Israeli backpackers than anyone else. He also couldn't understand how we always knew each other. We just know, I unsatisfactorily explained to him. It was funny at times -- he'd ask someone for directions, I'd take on look at the person, and repeat the question in Hebrew. It never failed.

Yangshuo is a little town with a prosperous tourist community. One main boulevard, called Xi Jie (West street), is lined with hostels and little shops meant to lure backpackers. We spent one night in Yangshou, and enjoyed the internet cafes and meeting locals and other tourists in the area. Zhao explained that Yangshou is famous throughout China as a spot for students if they want to practice their English and see more of China.

Thursday night we headed back to Guilin (this time by direct bus) to catch the 12 hour train back to Shenzhen, our entry point to the Mainland from Hong Kong.

The train was great. 6 beds per cabin, head hitting one wall, feet flat on the

other, no English is sight. I spent about 5 hours memorizing the 100 or so Chinese words and 90 Characters that I now know. Only 2410 more Characters to go till I will be able to read the paper. In the morning I practiced all the words I knew with my Chinese bunkmates. Besides myself and Zhao were four women who from a small town outside of Guilin heading to Macau for a weekend of gambling.

I got back just in time for my first Judo Competition Sunday. Though I knew next to nothing about judo, practicing only for one month, it seems that my old wrestling skills came in handy.
Between my opponents expecting me to be terrible due to my white belt and the wrestling past, I managed to sneak in a few wins for a 3rd place trophy. Though I can't read a word on the trophy, I'm proud of it, and I know it'll make a nice souvenir.Also, last week I played in the the Hong Kong division 4 Rugby semi-finals, Hong Kong University vs. Hong Kong Police Force. Division 4 is actually pretty tough, and is the best of 3 university teams. Though the game was a really fun and a cool experience, we lost a tough fight, playing a man down, as one of us got red carded pretty early on (not me).

Monday was Taanit Esther and then Purim. For the Megillah I went to Chabad with Danielle and a few friends from HKUST. We continued to a "Young Professionals Purim Party," which was fun as well. Basically all the Israeli finance and manufacturing 25 to 35 year olds in costume, with a few Americans, Australians, Brits and South Africans thrown in the bunch. Good, but no match to the Brandeis Greek/Chabad Purim party. The next day as I while delivering my Shalach Manot (Purim gift baskets) I walked past a man dressed as a Chasid.

Recognizing me from a meal we were both at, he invited me over for the Purim meal. Of course I agreed, and enjoyed a great, huge meal at four in the afternoon. Unfortunately I couldn't be out too late, as I had both an essay and test on Wednesday. Purim isn't as good an excuse here as it is in Brandeis. Lucky I had planned ahead and studied on the train, as the essay took me forever to write. It was fine though; I put skype on in the background at 4 and 5 AM, and joined the family for their Purim party as well.

Both the test and the essay went well, and Wednesday night I collapsed in bed from exhaustion. Thursday I got up, picked up my dry cleaning and repacked my backpack for Shanghai to join Michael Kann who was in on business. Friday, while he worked I toured Shanghai for myself. Shabbat we went to Chabad and sat with a bunch of Jews from Uruguay. Shabbat morning at lunch we met a bunch of Israelis who work at El Al, who invited us to belated Purim Party in the Shanghai Art Museum Saturday night. Without much time to prepare costumes we just showed up, at the door we were given fancy masks. I wore my rugby jersey and with Michael's running outfit, we fit in fine. The party was a lot of fun. Since we were exhausted from walking about 10 miles touring Shangai Shabbat afternoon and as we had to be up at 6:45 AM to meet the tour guide for a trip out of Shanghai, we didn't stay up too late.

The next morning we left at 8 AM with a business associate of Michael's to Zhou Zhuang, famed as the Venice of China, with canals instead of most streets. Though it was fun and interesting, there were plenty of streets, an

d the canals were thinner than I imagine the canals of Venice are. We watched as one restauranteur washed her lettuce in the dirty river as boats full of tourists passed by. As traditional as this may be, we decided not to stay for lunch. We also passed by the Buddhist Temple which was midway through a service. That was really cool to see.

There was a huge leaning Buddha right by the entrance, and people were bowing at praying at its feet. It still hits me very strongly whenever I see someone praying to those huge idols. It reminds me just how far away from home I really am. We continued to Suzhou and explored beautiful rockery (which it turns out is a real word) and an 8 story pagoda that was over 700 years old. That was actually pretty cool, and we got a great view of the city once we climbed to the top. We realized that though the city is basically just a suburb of Shanghai, it is still one of numerous cities of 'just' 6 million people. Michael then took us on a tour of his factory which was interesting. Pat, the manager of the operation, aside from giving us a thorough tour of the plant also gave me some advice on Italian cooking, which I will have to try at some point.

All in all Shanghai was fun and it was great seeing Michael. It was also important that I visit Shanghai at some point, and without this excuse, there is a good chance I would have missed out on this city of an estimate 20 million people.

Next up, class for a while. I may try and sneak off to Tawain for a few days if I can swing it, we'll see. Happy Purim everyone, and please email me about your lives and get back in touch if I've fallen behind in my contact.

Yoni

Chinese New Year Break -- Thailand for a week

I'm in the airport now, awaiting my flight to Bangkok from Phuket. This past week has flown by, but it definitely served its purpose. I feel refreshed, rested and ready for Hong Kong again. My first two days in Phuket I spent exploring. There were numerous local temples and markets, and gorgeous beaches everywhere. On Tuesday I began my scuba diving course. I am now a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver. The course consists of five dives over two days in various conditions, as well as class time. During the course I dove 30 m (~100 ft),

at night, navigating by my own compass. On Thursday we took a boat out to Koh Racha Yai, a small island off the coast of Phuket, and checked out the reefs there. The reefs in Phuket are some of the more beautiful diving sites in the world, and its reputation is certainly well deserved. I saw lion-fish, manta rays, clownfish, starfish and an octopus. I recognized at least four or five different fish from our old aquarium, and that yellow and black eel with the weird nose who kept getting bitten by the leopard sharks. Those of you who have seen it will know what I'm talking about.

 It was an incredible experience I won't soon forget. 

The course lasted until Thursday night, at which point I left my hotel in Karon Beach and moved to nearby Patong, where the Chabad House is located. 

I spent Shabbat with 200 Israeli backpackers, a few South Africans and a pair of Americans from Teane

ck, one of whom also graduated Frisch. Shabbat was a lot of fun, and it was good to speak Hebrew

 again. Also, just by chance, Eran, was in town as well, so we met and caught up. 

After Shabbat I went out with the South Africans and a couple of the Israelis.

The South Africans currently live in Sydney, and I now have a place to visit when I'm ready for Australia. Everyone keeps telling me better to go now than later, as their summer is almost over, but I don't think I can get off anymore school for a while. Ok...Last boarding call to Bangkok from Phuket...don't yet have a plan for when I get there, but I'm sure it'll be fine...

Just arrived in Hong Kong. Had an interesting night. I arrived in Bangkok at 9:30PM, but my flight for Hong Kong didn't leave until 8:30 the following morning. At the airport I hired a driver for four hours, and arranged for a hotel near the airport. All told, a personal driver for three hours and a hotel room cost me $58. Thailand is great.

Once I sent my stuff up to the hotel room, I told the driver, Chai was his name, to show me around Bangkok. At the hotel I checked the address for Chabad, just in case. The driver was nice enough, but as we headed into town, he said "I show you everything in Bangkok. You like lady? You like drink?"
After I explained to him that I was not interested in any lady or drink, given I had to be awake at 5 AM, not to mention all the more obvious reasons, I thought it might be nice to grab dinner at the kosher restaurant, as I hadn't eaten all day. "No problem," he said, 

"But first, I show you International Minigolf and Massage Parlor." I assumed I had misheard the last part, as I couldn't understand how the two would go together. But sure enough, we pulled up to a very nice hotel, and just past the entrance was a huge minigolf course and a selection of women standing around, with numerous 50 year old+ Westerners walking by one by one, pointing to one of the women a

nd heading upstairs with her. At this point I realized that I'm not somewhere I want to be, and told the driver I needed to meet "my friend" at the restaurant in ten minutes. We left, and he spent the next five minutes explaining to me how he comes by once in a while, and his girlfriend has no idea. That's nice, I thought. As we were leaving, I realized that the reason he brought me was that if I did bring someone upstairs, he would get a bonus. Needless to say, he didn't make a penny off me. 

Soon we were in another sketchy part of town, and I was convinced that the driver was taking me again to one of his hangouts. He parked, and we started to walk around, and as we passed one bar after another, I really became suspicious. But then, out of nowhere, was the large sign of "Beit Chabad."

The Chabad House in Bangkok was very nice, and even though it was nearly midnight, there were at least twenty people hanging out. As the guard, Kobi, welcomed me, he asked if I'd eaten dinner. I hadn't, but I knew the restaurant was already closed. Kobi brought me downstairs anyway, and found me some food in the kitchen. When I left the Chabad house twenty five minutes later, I found Chai outside, sipping a mineral water Kobi gave him at no charge when he realized that the man was my driver.  When he saw the treatment I received from "my friend" with such a large restaurant near all the bars, Chai assumed I must be involved in the Mafia, and began to treat me with more respect. I didn't bother to correct him. After that, he only took me to places I asked. We went to some of the larger temples in Bangkok, though they were all closed, so I could only see them from a distance. We went to the Royal Palace, adorned as the rest of Bangkok is with pictures of the king, and then to a night market. 

At the night market I saw baby elephants walking in the street.

We went to a place to a stadium to watch a Thai Boxing match, but it had just ended. That was fine, as looking at the time, I realized

the Super Bowl was about to begin. I watched for as long as I could, until it was time to head back to the hotel, to shower, rest for a bit and head to the airport. All in all, it was an interesting night. 

I'm back in Hong Kong now, and everything is great. I was driven to school today in a Bentley. One of the guys I met at Chabad last week apparently lives pretty close to me, and he passed by as I was waiting for the bus to go to class. For all Hong Kong is a big city, non-locals tend to congregate in a few specific parts of town, and I already find myself running in to people I know on a regular basis. 

-Yoni

PS I heard Shell is having a tough year, but this is ridiculous: 

Hong Kong I

Hey, 

It's taken me a while to put out this post. I've now been in Hong Kong for nearly three weeks. Hong Kong is crazy. It gives new definition the the phrase "a city that never sleeps." I've got many things to tell, so here goes: 

When I first arrived, everything went as smoothly as could be hoped for. I met my assigned buddy at Hong Kong Station, as we arranged. She was very nice, and brought along her high school-aged boyfriend to say hello. Unfortunately, she was not feeling that well, and so she headed home after we got into a taxi for the dormitories, and that was the last time I saw her. Its okay, I've gotten along fine without her.

First a little about my living and academic situation:

I live in RC Lee hall, which is located in a beautiful part of western Hong Kong Island, about a seven minute bus from the main campus, with a great view of the Harbor and Victoria Peak. About 375 students live in the dorm, split up into 16 floors. My room is on the ninth floor, with an ocean-side view that I can definitely get used to. The room is pretty small and the mattress is thinner than any I've seen, but the room is functional, with a fan and air-conditioning (which I pay for by the minute), and an internet access point -- all I really need. Unfortunately, I couldn't access the internet until I registered my computer with the University, which I couldn't do since I didn't yet have my student visa. The visa took about a week--and many hours in the HK Immigration Office--to get, during which time I could not register for any classes or get internet access. This cost me, as I ended up getting locked out of one class I really wanted to take. 

In the end, I have a pretty good schedule. I have one class on Monday and Thursday, and none on Friday, which is great for travel purposes. I am taking Mandarin and written Chinese, as well as History of Chinese Dynasties, Chinese Philosophy: Ethics (which for some reason keeps getting snickers when I mentioned it), Movieland: American Culture Through Film, Elementary Logic and Special Topics in Psychology: Numerical Cogntion. All told, I have a very liberal arts-esque schedule. 

We had two weeks of classes during which I couldn't really go to class, as I didn't yet know what I was taking. Now that my schedule is finalized, we are on break for one week for Chinese New Year. I'm using that break to visit Phuket, Thailand, supposedly one of the nicest beaches in the world. There I'll be taking a PADI Advanced Open Water Diving course. I'll be sure to update with pictures. I hear its about 80˚ on a cold day, and some of the best scuba diving in the world, so I'm pretty excited.

Now a few little stories from Hong Kong:

On my first night I met an exchange student named Stephen living next door to me who was born in Hong Kong but now lives in the states. He warned me that local students will be very shy, and that I will have some trouble getting to know them. He was right. Students here are not as welcoming to new comers as we are Brandeis. Its not that they are unfriendly or simply quiet people (au contraire, the most popular floor game is "let's kick the ball as hard and far as possible down the hall at 4 AM"). I believe they are just uncomfortable using English out of class, and aren't sure how to approach me because of it. Also, students on the same floor tend to become a very tight-knit group, as they will be together for all three years of their undergraduate careers. 

In attempt to ease me in to the group Stephen invited me out to hike the peak with a few other students. Of course I agreed. How many other exchange students would be able to say they hiked to Victoria Peak their first night in Hong Kong. What I didn't realize is that the group wasn't intending on leaving until about One in the morning. We reached the peak by 2:30, and then hiked back down. I was in bed by 4:30 AM, what would become a reoccurring theme over the next few weeks.

Last week we had our hall's High Table Dinner, the culmination of the weak long RCfest that has been going on in my dorm. During RCfest, halls compete in dance and karaoke contests as well as sports competitions. There is also a hall-wide vote on who is the best couple in the hall, or officially, the RC Grass and Flower. The High Table Dinner was actually very nice, if not somewhat reminiscent of what communist party dinners must have been like. We all dressed up in suits and headed to a nice hotel by coach. We began the event with a hall cheer and hall song, which sounds like a national anthem and is very well worded. My favorite stanza is:

 

"To be RC Lee's guys, we are so High. 

Cause to be RC Lee's guys, We never feel Tired...

To be RC Lee's guys, we are free to fly, 

Cause to be RC Lee's guys we have our goals in mind."

We then listed to a number of lengthy speeches about the benefits of hall culture and being committed members of the hall. The event took about four hours all told, and after we finished, all the exchange students gathered, and we headed off to hear Obama's Inaugural Address. 

The HKU exchange students hang out a lot, exploring Hong Kong at all hours of the night. Overall they are a pretty cool group, and I've made some good friends. Still, I've definitely had a few interesting experiences out here. One Dutch boy, upon hearing the Yoni was a jewish name, enthusiastically informed me that his father was a Nazi. He later tried to apologize, in case I was insulted, clarifying that he doesn't feel the same way, and he likes of "all of you." I actually don't think he meant it maliciously, but was just excited that he has some connection with another exchange student. All I could think to say back was, "Well...we're still here," and laugh it off. As the Chabad Rabbi remarked when I told him the story, "Why should you be insulted? It's more an insult to his family than it is to you."

I had another interesting meeting following the Obama Inauguration. Since Hong Kong is 13 hours ahead of the East Coast, the Democrats Abroad put on a party for anyone interested in hearing the speech. The room was filled with hundreds of people from all over the world, and it was amazing to hear what everyone had to say about our elections. Honestly, foreigners followed it as much as we did, and many seem more excited than the Americans that Obama was elected. There were definitely tears in the audience. Anyway, as I was leaving I met a Saudi Arabian named Fahhad. When he asked me where I was from, I couldn't help myself, and replied, "Israel." After a few seconds where it was clear he didn't quite know how to react, he goes, "I guess we can be friends here, right?"  

On this topic (i.e. Israel), The HKU Student Union hosted a protest of the War in Gaza. I received an email that reminded me that I'm in new territory here. The email was officially approved by the Student Union, and gave such a one sided version of the story that I couldn't believe it. To quote, " We have seen it on television and online. The Israeli Zionist government is hell-bent in annihilating Gaza." And that's not even the worst of it. I'm still not sure if how to respond, or if its even worth it. 

I've been going to Chabad for the last few Shabbatot, and this past week I visited Ohel Leah, the historic shul connected to the JCC. The building is over one hundred years old, and as a national landmark its been preserved very well. I think its the first one story building I've seen in Hong Kong. The walk to either is about an hour from my dorm, but everyone has been very welcoming, and I now have a list of people who have offered to host me, so I won't have to walk so far, not to mention  I can have a home cooked meal for Shabbat. 

On my first morning at Chabad I was speaking with a man after shul. Shalom mentioned that his wife gave birth to a baby boy earlier in the morning, and he just returned from the hospital. He lives next door, and is about to head home to see his five year son. He offered Danielle and I to join him for lunch, as his wife prepared a lot of food, but wasn't there to enjoy it. We took him up on the offer, and enjoyed an incredible lunch that would serve as a great introduction to the community. The following Shabbat we were able to thank his wife for the lunch as we joined the family at the Brit Milah of their newborn. 

Overall, Hong Kong is great. My Chinese hasn't really been improving, because everyone speaks English here, but hopefully that will change once classes get serious. I'm still getting a feel for the city and its culture, and will comment more on that once I can say more about it. I've hiked the peak a few times now, and really enjoy it. Also, I joined the Rugby team, and played for just about the entire time in my first tournament last Sunday. I'm off to Thailand now, and will hopefully have time to write from there. 

Real Gucci, Fake Gucci and the Chabad of Beijing

It's taken me a while to get out this second post; my only attempt at an excuse is that I've allowed myself to become distracted by Beijing's 16 million people who speak a completely foreign language, too many extraordinarily massive and intriguing buildings too count, inescapably polluted air (yes, you can actually see it, and I'm convinced feel it), wonderfully exotic food (Ever try a mangosteen? Because I have.), welcoming Chabad house with great roommates (including the infamous Ari Jadwin for all you Brandeisian readers) and interesting guests (including the Israeli Ambassador to China), and to top it all off, I have to eat everything with chop sticks.

With that run-on quasi-apology out of the way, let's begin.

First off, this year I began what I hope will become a new tradition for me: to welcome in the new year with a foot massage. In the interest of this not sounding totally ridiculous, we should probably back up a bit and provide a little more information about my travel arrangements.

Thus far I've been exploring with friend and fellow soon-to-be HKU student, Danielle Shmuely. Forward thinker that she is, Danielle managed to befriend a few Beijingers (???) at Brandeis prior to our arrival. Thank you to Jiyun Lee (and her overly generous mother) and Sarah Ye for watching out for us as we made our first forays into this very very foreign culture. Jiyun introduced us to her high school friends, and we welcomed in the new year in the beautiful apartment of her Singaporea

n friend, Gid. Gid is a soldier in the Singaporean army, and has spent his military career instructing new soldiers in the "Body Attack" workout method. If you don't know what that is, look it up. It's worth it.

The next morning Jiyun's mother treated us to our (well, my) first foot massage. As I had been on an airplane for 13 hours, and not stop on my feet since then, the message was a welcome treat. I noticed halfway through that it was about five to One. Thanks to the 13 hour time difference, this meant that all our friends back in the States were about to watch the ball drop. With a quick exchange of text messages, my friends and I were all assured that we were still in each other's thoughts from across the world. A quick disclaimer: if you didn't get a text message, or I didn't respond to yours, please don't be insulted; I have some problem with my phone that only about half the messages I send get to the recipient, and I have no way to know which ones go through. Anyway, as I walked out of the massage parlor incredibly relaxed, I promised myself that from now on I will begin the new year with a rejuvenating message. Unfortunately, I know that this is the kind of New Year's resolution I will be unlikely to keep.

Speaking of New Year's resolutions, this year I am resolved to be take every opportunity to explore and grow, and to ask more questions than I give answers. I hope to actually make good on my resolutions, and I think coming to China was a good start (both for its unlimited opportunities for learning and exploration, and because there are only so many answers I can give when I know so little about my surroundings or the language of the people asking those questions).

After the message and a very nice lunch, we separated from Jiyun, and went with Sarah to to check out some of Beijing's finer shopping. In the last ten years, especially since the Olympics, Beijing has developed and grown significantly. The olympics brought a lot of money into Beijing, and it has been put to good use. Gucci, Prada, Bentley and Ferrari, its all here, and hosted in beautiful malls.

After lunch we went to the Hongqiao Pearl Market. The Hongqiao Pearl Market is known as the best place in the world to get fakes and nock-offs. As with everything else in Beijing, the market is gigantic. The five story mall is filled with fake Lacoste, Burberry and Marc Jacobs, not to mention knockoff iPods, cellphones, watches and anything else you can imagine having a brand name. We had a lot of fun, especially as we learned that bargaining is basically mandatory in China. After being ripped off once or twice, I quickly learned to never let them set the first price and to always aim for way way less than you think you should. Also, always be willing to walk away. I decided to just always start with a 5 yuan offer. Doesn't matter if the saleswoman's price was 50 yuan or 400 yuan. My first price was 5. She would invariably laugh and ask me what my top offer was. I would repeat 5. How could I pay 200 yuan for a belt? I would need to buy pants to go with it as well... We usually settled on a price about 20-25% of the original offering. I was told that this is a fair deal for both parties.Next, Sarah had a surprise for us. A place only "the locals" know about. She took us to a small alley way off to the side outside the market, up a shrouded staircase, behind a set of curtains up a second staircase, and down the hall. We entered a small room filled to the brim with watches. Beautiful watches. Rolexes, Breitlings and much much more. All exact copies. There were three grade qualities here: Chinese, Japanese, and Swiss. All were guaranteed for three years. Here there was no bargaining. Prices were $50 for the cheap Chinese models and $160 for the swiss models. All looked and felt basically perfect. Some were so perfect I'm convinced they fell off the back of the truck. If I give any of you guys a Rolex for your birthday, I'm not actually being quite as generous as I'm pretending to be.
By this time it was night and we took the subway to Sarah's house for some blueberry pancakes and great view and Beijing, and then back to the hotel. Riding the Beijing Metro was a great experience. It was totally packed, yet the well ventilated and spotlessly clean cars kept the Metro feeling spacious and comfortable. New York has some things to learn about underground transportation.

The next day we went to Chabad. The Chabad of Beijing is in a gated compound next the the Israeli and American Embassies. I was placed in a small room downstairs with a bunk-bed and a pullout mattress. In the lower bunk was an Australian names Ross. He was heading back to Melbourne from Israel, and decided to stop in China for two weeks since he had to stop over on the way home anyway. In the pull out mattress was Ari Jadwin, a friend from Brandeis who I had no idea would be here. He will be in Beijing for 8 months, in an intensive Mandarin program. He signs a contract later this week forbidding him

 from speaking anything but Chinese while a student in the program.
Shabbat at the Chabad of Beijing is very interesting. Friday Night dinner is held at Dini's, the only kosher restaurant in Beijing. The dinner is very nice, with a good mix of company, including the Amos Nadai, Ambassador to China from Israel, a number of embassy workers, a few local businessmen and students, and a small crowd of recent college graduates currently living and worki

ng in Beijing. Rabbi Shimon Fruendlich is certainly a Chabad rabbi. He has that charisma and joy of life that so many Chabad rabbis seem to have. He is also very funny, and the fastest cantor you will ever hear in your entire life. With a booming voice so powerful I'm surprised I never heard it back in NY, he leads us through a 1 hour and 25 minute entire morning service. As Rabbi Shimon put it, "Why drag it on?." We still finished at 12:30, because Shacharit began only at 11. Incredible, I know.

Lunch was at the Chabad house, and included a full buffet provided by the restaurant. I learned that the restaurant is named in honor of Rabbi Shimon's wife, Dini, as her brother is one of the owners. At Chabad I also met up with an old friend from Brandeis who graduated two years ago. She was working in Beijing in public healthcare. Once Shabbat was over, she took all of us (Danielle, Ari, Ross and myself) out on the town, to discover some of Beijing's nightlife.

After we split up, we headed to the new hotel where we would meet up with the AsiaLearn group for our Orientation program beginning the next day. I'm with them now, and so far everything is going great. Next up Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. Afterwards, the Great Wall.

A few quick points about Beijing:

Whoever wrote about those lights on Broadway clearly never witnessed North Beijing. It is incredible. Buildings are huge. The architecture is extremely modern, but in the best sense of the world. And it is not just the size or shape of each building, also remarkable is the sheer quantity of buildings. I guess when you have 16 million people to house you need to find somewhere to put them all, but I still never expected Beijing to be as big as it is.

It is really cold here. Cold, and dry. Dry like no place I've ever been before. And the pollution is terrible, there is a constant smell in the air, and whenever the temperature rises above zero you can actually see the smog in the air.

 It is really unnerving to see so many people walking with HEPA masks on the avoid the air you a

re breathing unfiltered. I

t seems so far I would not like to live in Beijing. Not so much because of the culture, but because I could not bear to live in a place with such a tough environment. And I hear I am visiting during the good travel months. If I came in March I wouldn't be able to see due to the sand storms that hit the city.

That's it for now. Sorry the post was so long. I promise to write shorter, more frequent posts in the future. Once I get a chance (probably in a week or two) I will put together my observations of Beijing culture. There are definitely many interesting aspects to Chinese society that is very different than American culture. Still, people are people, and I've found I can connect with and relate to everyone I meet, and that was refreshing and reassuring to learn.

Yoni

PS Good to know modern news is the same everywhere -- I'm listening to BBC talk about the successful career of the current Australian Prime Minister. To bring their report to a cheery end, the conclude, "Thus far there are few indications that this Prime Minister's career will come to a short and abrupt end." Why can't you just say he is doing a good job?