I have no idea what it means, but the national holiday is next week, so maybe, ‘long live China’?

My PK1 class learned words about the face, so we played a game where they chose different facial features and stuck them on a blank face

Dumplings are my go to when I’m hungry, so of course I had some while at the Great Wall

I also get a lot of flak from Chinese people when I tell them that I like to eat them with soy sauce. They eat them with vinegar, which for me is a terrible combination.

The last picture is of the steps leading up to the wall, which took about 15 minutes to climb. 

The Great wall is huge

A lot bigger than I had expected. But I suppose it’s gotta be to protect against those Mongolians. 

Had the day off so I thought, why not hit up the Great Wall?

Traveled to Mutianyu and it was super cool. The best part were the Chinese people dressed up in traditional military outfits saying in broken English, “Good morning, buy a beer!! It’s the Great Wall!!" 

Had the most delicious dinner since being in China last night

And yes, the grilled chicken foot is awkward to eat, but scrumptious. First foto is baby pig belly that we had to order a day in advance. Worth every penny.

Wait, What?

It’s certainly been interesting to realize how different Chinese culture & customs are compared to those of America. I’m not speaking on behalf of China, but here are some things I’ve noticed since being in Beijing. 

• People tell me that I shouldn’t chew my gum for more than 20 minutes or I’ll get cancer
• The girls I work with don’t understand why I don’t want to be friends with some of the other Americans. They have a difficult time understanding why I can be nice to them and acknowledge them as good teachers, but don’t like their personalities and choose not to spend time with them outside of work
• A girl I know drives an automatic and when she comes to a stop, she’ll put the car in neutral and pop the e-brake
• I’ve had multiple people tell me that Chinese women shouldn’t shower for a month after having a baby
• When I ask Chinese girls how to pronounce a swear word, they laugh, then cover their mouth and shake their head no. I still haven’t heard a Chinese girl swear
• Although bike lanes exist, they are the most hazardous areas on the road. Last night a women opened the taxi door, which protruded into the bike lane and I biked straight into it. Upon picking myself up and cursing at the woman, she just kept yelling and pointing at the taxi. Be accountable lady. Pedestrians also step into the bike line without regard, mini taxis (like those you see in Thailand) make passing impossible, and there are hundreds of scooters traveling at varying speeds to make Chinese bike lanes unnavigable and avoidable at all costs
• Elevator common sense does not exist. Before anyone can get out of an elevator, people are already trying to push their way in, creating unnecessary congestion. I often look at them, shake my head and say, “What are you doing?” This is a daily occurrence 
• All the Chinese girls I know love Asian cartoons. Although the cartoons vary from person to person, their fan-hood is unwavering. Phones backgrounds, computer desktops, t-shirts, coffee mugs, stickers, you name it, all covered by scenes or characters from the show
• The hipster culture is alive and well in Beijing. I’ve never seen so many people wear sunglasses with no frames
• I don’t even know how to describe this. At night, in a plaza type looking area, there will be upwards of 50 old Chinese people moving in a circle, dancing to old Chinese music (it looks more like old people shuffling in a circle and occasionally moving their arms). People tell me they do it for exercise. It’s one of the weirdest things I’ve seen. 

U.S. beats Mexico 2-0, clinches World Cup berth

YEP

Erlian is known to have discovered lots of dinosaurs so of course they put giant dinosaur sculptures everywhere

Both are terrible pictures but to my defense, I was flying by at 80 Km/H. 

China-Mongolia Border

28 hour Visa Run

The adventure began at 4 pm on a Monday afternoon when I saw the bus I would be taking. Sleeper Busses are built for 5ft. Chinese people and it was one of the most uncomfortable 12 hours of my life. Minus sleeping in the middle of a desert in a parked bus with 30 other strangers until sunrise. On the way back I thought I would be clever and take an 8 hour taxi. Chinese guys are skinny right? The 2 FATTEST Chinese dudes I have ever seen in my life pile in the back of this taxi and we are on our way. My trip ended at 8pm on Tuesday when my taxi dropped me off and with a sigh of relief I let out an audible, “fuck that”. Next time I need to renew a Visa I’m flying. 

On the way to Mongolia, around 2 hours from Beijing, guess who saw the Great Wall of China? It’s a terrible foto, but still, what have you done lately?

Erlian is not cool and anyone who says otherwise is a liar

Everything is written in Chinese, Mongolian, and Inner Mongolian. (The russian looking writing is Mongolian) They have such a false economy, there are tons of buildings and lots of construction, but with a population of 20,000, they are all vacant. It’s really quite creepy. Huge hotels and streets of modern buildings, all empty. It looks like a life-size version of a ‘model-city’ in the middle of a desert. There is nothing around Erlian except the Mongolian border, which isn’t anything to write home about. It’s trips like these that remind me of the phrase, “This is the first and the last time…" 

These Soviet-era jeeps are also the only cars that can transport people across the border, which of course comes with a fee. I was in Mongolia for close to 5 minutes. At which point I decided to buy Mongolian liquor with a dead snake in it. Mexican tequila with a worm has got nothing on this stuff. 

Normal...

Buddy: What are you doing today?
Me: Headed to Mongolia
Buddy: Cool man, have fun

These are the World Cup games I applied for

The dates are between June 20th and the 30th. I might not win the lottery, so I’ve gotta wait until November to buy a plane ticket. It’s a slow process, but the wheels are in motion.

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

It’s been 3 and a half months and here is how I view Beijing, China. 

PROS

• Street food is AWESOME
• People are understanding that my Chinese is bad and constantly tell me the names of things when I ask them
• Public transportation, for me, is more of a pro than con. Yes, traffic and the subway can be congested, but for millions of people, Beijing is doing alright
• Chuar
• Amount of people who speak English. I know it’s not Hong Kong, but there are still a lot of random people who speak good English. Like the lady selling tickets at the movie theater or the guy selling ipod cases on the bridge. 
• Street vendors sell anything from socks and shoes to ipads and fresh fish. As someone who likes to barter, I’m a big fan of these guys. 
• Like any big city, Beijing has variety. From food, shopping, clubs, tourist attractions, bars, and job opportunities. There’s something for everyone. 
• The Subway

CONS

• Cars tend to double or triple park on the street leaving absolutely NO room to maneuver 
• Chinese dudes roll their shirts up past their belly and walk around / eat / sit on the street like this to ‘cool off’
• People take smoke breaks in the adjacent corridor at the gym
• There are no sense of 'lines’. People just shove in wherever they want. The subway, restaurants, bike lanes, lines at the store. 
• Anyone who decides to move to China is a bit weird in their own right, but I’ve met a lot of socially awkward Americans who play WOW, wear socks & sandals and never go out. It seems to be a common theme for many foreigners in China, but hey, live your life
• Parents let babies poop on the street. If you think I’m kidding, ask anyone who has lived in Beijing. This is probably due to the fact that most parents don’t put diapers on babies. They just free-ball it in an oversized tee. 
• The Subway
• People stare, A LOT. I understand that I’m the foreigner, but just because I don’t weigh 60 Kilos like most Chinese guys doesn’t give you the right to eye fuck me everywhere I go. I used to turn to people and say, “ Can I fucking help you?”, but it happens so often that I’ve just come to accept it. 

Shuangjing, Beijing China

Jaywalking is not a problem due to the giant white fences in the middle of the street and along the sidewalk. 

Chinese girls have a goofy sense of style

My favorite part of the day in Beijing

Calories on packaged food in China are written as KJ, which are roughly around ¼ of a calorie. So my buddy hasn’t been eating anything except meat and vegetables because as he put it, “I don’t know what’s in that fucking top ramen, but it’s close to god damn 2000 calories! And don’t even get me started about bread!" Calm down clown, just divide by 4. 

The view from one of my classrooms overlooking the Shuangjing Bridge