From the Great Wall to WWII Aircraft Carriers

This week has blown by, and it seems that I barely have time anymore to even reflect on the past weeks as my time here becomes more numbered. With only 2.5 weeks left, I feel stressed to experience everything I have made a point of doing and seeing.

Since I left off last time, I have already traveled to Beijing, China, climbed the Great Wall, explored the Forbidden City/ Tiananmen Square, the Bird's Nest/Water Cube, and of course the Summer Palace. Of course, since we were traveling on an all around holiday weekend- Canadian Day, HK Independence from Britain Day, and of course USA INDEPENDENCE DAY- we naturally had to celebrate these occasions by going to a concert 2 hours outside of Beijing on an old World War II aircraft carrier. It was by far the most international experience I have ever had in my life- there was legitimately every single country represented there, flags in hand and all (though we could not find an American flag anywhere...).

I was able to share my viewpoint about certain current events as well as listen to a French viewpoint on the bus from a student my age,  here on an abroad program from France. This was a really cool experience for me as I am always curious how other countries view the same things America does and to my surprise, the student not only rejected my claim that many Americans have the feeling foreigners think we are ignorant, but went on to saying that the younger French generation gives a lot of credit to America right now and really supports our current government. Besides expanding my knowledge of worldviews, I was able to nap on the clouds, after hiking up a steep (REALLY STEEP) incline of stairs on the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall.

Casual Donkey Ride on
Great Wall

The Great Wall was by far the most rewarding experience for me as it should be anytime one conquers one of the world's seven wonders. After hiking all the stairs, I then realized that we had not even reached the unrestored section of the wall, which was nothing like I had imagined- all overgrown and easy to fall off of; you could barely even tell that it had once been a wall. While waiting for the girls to take a multitude of photos of each one of them jumping in the air on the great wall, which was not particularly what I felt like doing after climbing all the stairs, I chatted with one of the water/ souvenirs vendors stationed at one of the most remote posts in the Mutianyu section. To my surprise, she spoke very good English, and continued to explain that she scales the mountain in the morning around 4am, with at least 50 lbs of goods on her back, to reach the great wall section where she has seen the most success for the sale of her items. The trip in total takes her 6 hours roundtrip. The persistence of this woman, despite the extreme uncertainty of any revenue on a specific day astounded me. Never again will I complain about walking 15 minutes to class at USC...

Emperor's Throne

So Appetizing

After a great day at the Wall, we all were famished, and indulged that evening in some great quality Peking Duck! I can safely say that Beijing beats out Hong Kong when it comes to the culinary arts. I finally found my Kung Pao Chicken and Sweet and Sour Pork I had been craving since I have been residing in Hong Kong. Peking Duck reminded me a bit of a mushu pork pancake style, but instead of minced meat and other veggies, the duck was whole pieces, and you neatly divided the delectable plum sauce, cucumber and mushroom onto the thin pancake for a wonderful combination of flavors!
We explored the bar scene later on in a district called Stanlington, but headed off to bed early to explore the other wonders of Beijing.

Tian'anmen Gate

Tiananmen Square was quite a bit larger than I had imagined, and in all honesty, was probably the first visible signs I have seen that even suggested a communist presence in China. With the huge portrait of Mao Zedong in the center of the Tian'anmen gate, and the commemorative "90th Anniversary" on a huge hammer and sickle monument in the middle of the square, the communism here only appeared symbolic to me as an outsider, though I know otherwise. The next day we relaxed at the beautiful Summer Palace and saw the site of the 2008 Olympics, home of the Watercube and the Birds Nest, into which to my dismay we could not enter.

Happy 90th!

 All of the major tourist destinations we visited seemed almost deceivingly extravagant placed against a backdrop of a much more apparent wealth gap. Whereas in Hong Kong, the divide between rich and poor was almost non-existent from appearance, and everything is ten times smaller than America, Beijing appeared to offer everything ten times larger than America, and it was not uncommon to see the homeless wandering around almost everywhere.

Forbidden City

Yep, about the time we almost got
runover

Egg Pancake Beijing!

Though the places we visited in Beijing were out of this world, and beyond words in my vocabulary to even begin to describe, I was very happy to return back to my now home in Hong Kong. Beijing was more of a vacation spot if you are interested in seeing the tourist attractions, but it is a very difficult place to live in. From the intense yellow smog, from which one cannot avoid getting a sore throat, to the confusing subway system and lack of streetlights and English, I think I would have had a much more difficult time trying to acclimate myself to Beijing life. Not to mention the dangerous aspect of Beijing- the cars literally do not register there is a person in front of them, and taking a rickshaw back from the Forbidden City was one of the most terrifying experiences of my whole life. Hong Kong, on the other hand, is the most livable city I have to this date lived in. It is not a tourist destination in the sense that there are so many places and monuments to see, but more of a destination because there are so many exciting things to do that would fit in someone's normal life. I believe that people come here to live life to the fullest, and to the utmost excitement. I can definitely see myself coming back here in the future. It is odd for me to say this, but I realize that I living here is much easier for me than living in Los Angeles.

The Peak

Not to mention the fact that it seems like everywhere I turn I meet someone with a connection to me or USC. We ran into at least 10 USC students at the concert in Beijing, and While at the Peak the other night in Hong Kong, enjoying the most incredible views of the Hong Kong skyline, we ended up sitting next to a group of USC boys we had never met before. We only knew they were from USC when one recognized me since he had been in a class with my twin sister. Such a small world in such a vast country. It continues to amaze me.
It is always a bit strange but really unique to see people you know from home in a foreign country, especially friends from High School. Yesterday I was able to see my friend Tim for the first time in about a year. He was only in Hong Kong for 2 days, before he would be leaving for China to teach English in a rural village. It was great to finally catch up, and to show off my chopstick skills to someone who is native taiwanese!

Fresh Mango Mochi

4th of July Chili Cheese Fries

Because wur Amurican

Fresh Mango Pancake with Cream

Last night we experienced our first and the last horse races of the season at Happy Valley Racecourse in Causeway Bay. We paid admission to the beer garden (where everyone goes who doesn't want to pay for a seat), and not only watched some great horse racing, but found ourselves doing some thoroughly entertaining people watching as well.

Horse Races

My favorite new discovery has been the Quarry Bay trail, 2 minutes down the road from our apartments. The other morning, since my gym membership has expired, I became inspired to stop being lazy and try to explore this trail. What I experienced amazed me, and I am angry I had not discovered it earlier on in my journey. after running up the long expanse of stairs along the jungle-like trail for about 10 minutes, I came to see the most incredible views of Quarry Bay- with the sun rising over the hills, and the serene elder Hong Kong trailblazers practicing their morning tai chi in the designated tai chi gardens along the trail, I couldn't help but feel serene as well. Though the trail was a bit challenging to run, it was fun to be on in the morning, with all the active residents I passed by saying Jo San (meaning good morning) and smiles on each and every one of their faces. Never once have I received a smile from anyone I passed running in LA... Such a lovely experience overall and I plan to utilize this trail, along with the track I found at a park near the local elementary school instead of a gym pass for my remaining days here.

Never Ending MEOWS

BOBO

This week is packed with adventures planned- Friday dinner with my boss and Global Fellows in Sai Kung, famous for its seafood; Saturday junk boat rental for the day with 30 friends, checking out beerfest Hong Kong style later that evening in LKF; Sunday Ocean Park with Co-workers and friends, will finally get to see a Panda!!