First of all, I just want to talk about school (I mean it is in fact the reason I am here in China). I have 3 different classes that I actually attend in a building here on Campus. I am also taking an online class that adds onto those classes. The morning class starts at 8:30 in the morning and goes to 11:45, then the evening class goes from 1:00 till 4:15. I honestly did not know that I was going to be in class for this long every single day which actually takes alot out of the class. Although the classes are not that difficult (minus the online class), being in a small classroom for that long is a little boring ha.
Just thought I would add this, so that you guys know that I am actually going to school here =] and not just having fun.
Along with that, the first week of classes, although long, went pretty well I thought. I learned quite a few words/phrases in Chinese that will be useful while out of the classroom, and also learned a lot about Chinese culture. I already have a new respect toward this kind of culture and realize why some act the way they do at Purdue. For Example: The reason their driving is often times criticized is that here traffic is not as orderly and poor driving is often times the result of this. Learning of these things keeps me awake and actually attentive during class. It will definitely be helpful when working with internationals in the future.
Okay, besides the school thing...I really want to get into what I did this weekend but mostly on Saturday.
Friday night was pretty relaxing night, all schoolwork was done, so I didn't have to worry about that. Carlin, Elliot, and I went out exploring and eventually found another bar. (Earlier on Tuesday, we went out for Burger Tuesday at a bar pretty close to campus, pretty good burger. It wasn't American by any means, but still good =]). Afterwards we found a little DVD shop that sold very new released movies for about a dollar. This was definitely something we couldn't pass up, us being movie lovers. We went to bed pretty early because on Saturday, we had some big plans to go out to some Ancient Gardens here in Shanghai.
This was the main reason for going. It was so serene and amazing. This area has been preserved for over 400 years and seriously was an amazing sight to see. If anyone ever decides to visit China, Shanghai specifically, you need to stop by this garden.
While on this trip, we also did much shopping and also tried a lot of new and interesting foods. It has been a goal of mine to try a bit of everything if it is offered to me. I have yet to throw up because of disgusting tasting foods, but I almost did from a some rice vodka stuff which I will explain about later. I have not turned down food YET, haha but I am sure I will eventually.
For lunch we stopped by this buffet style restaurant. The amount and variety of food at this place was quite a sight to see. Dishes from turtle, to dove, to prawn, to just an average bowl of rice, this place had it. Below is a picture of what I ended up getting.
The top left is just fried chicken which is becoming a favorite of mine. Top right is a shrimp boiled roll thing haha, it was pretty dang good. Bottom right is a fried roll with a bean paste in the middle. It was pretty sweet tasting, but I was pretty surprised finding out it was bean in the middle. The dish at the bottom left is just a plate of rice with some egg thrown in. I will have to say, I am enjoying using chop sticks more and more every day, and I would say I am getting pretty good at them =]. This meal all together cost quite a bit more because we were in a tourist area but was about $8.50. It easily filled me up and was pretty good tasting altogether.
After eating lunch, we made it to a temple. The temple was pretty old, and Chinese people still use it to this day to say their prayers, burn incense, and worship their gods. It was pretty interesting because it is also a tourist attraction so you have many different nationalities here while people are using it for worship.
Here is a big alter that is used to drop incense in after they are done being used. Altogether, I think there were about 8-10 gods that had statues and could be prayed to here. I was a little hesitant to take pictures just because I felt it was a little wrong to do while people were actually using it for their practical purposes. Others in my group did, so I might post them here later. I did however, take some pictures of important statues that were there that weren't classified as gods. The one below was by far the oddest one. I wasn't able to quite get the meaning of this one, but you guys can make up something if you want.
After seeing this temple, the gardens, and eating lunch, we decided to get in touch with the Chinese culture by diving into some tea lore. If you didn't know, tea is considered one of the most important drinks here in China. It is used to help treat almost any illness, and in some cases have mystical powers. To do this, we were shown by a local man a tea shop that is part of the oldest building in this part of Shanghai. It still has its original framework, shingles, and pretty much everything. The tea house was located on the 4th floor and also had an amazing view of downtown Shanghai. below is a picture taken off the balcony of this building.
As you can see, many of the roof tops show the older Chinese architecture while off to the distance you can see the modern touch the western world has had on this country. On a side note, the big building in the middle is still under construction, when it is completed, it will be the tallest building in the world! I thought that was pretty interesting.
Alright let's get back to the tea. If you didn't know, I really cannot stand the taste of tea, but because I wanted to learn about the tea culture here in China, I toughed it out and drank 8 different teas =] A group of us all sat around this square table with many herbs and spices while a lady told us all about what each of them meant. She made us tea after tea and had us drink them. After drinking about 5 or 6 different common teas, she then introduced us to the medicinal teas. (I had no clue that teas were said to be this helpful and sometimes powerful in this culture). We were allowed to choose 2 of 6 different kind of medicinal teas. I ended up liking one of these teas the most.
We finally called it quits after some more exploring and shopping around 7 and got back on the metro to go home. I was just fine calling it quits for the night, but Elliot and Carlin being the best friends they are, got me to head out to the Kuala Bar for a couple drinks before the night ended. We drank some (Well I drank some, can't say the same about some other select few people I was with *wink *wink =]), and more of our class came to the bar. It was a really good time, and I was happy they drag me to go out even though, I was the one who had to drag them home.
I couldn't be more happy to be here in China with not only Elliot and Carlin, but really with everyone else who decided to go on this adventure. I am amazed by how easily it is to talk with everyone and how well we mesh here. I still barely know most of them, but already enjoy hanging out with them. I am so thankful for being able to be here, and can't wait to be home to share it.
If you want to skype or call, send me an email or facebook me a time that works for you. It is a lot easier for me to schedule my time around a time that works best for you. Morning and Afternoons should work, just let me know! =]
Also want to say a congratulations to one of my best friends from back home. Madison, congratulations! I wish I could be there with you to celebrate with you and Adam!
Love you parents!
Corbin Blair
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