Travel Plans

This semester, I'm trying to get on top of my travel plans early. As much as I loved last semester, I didn't get to travel as much as I would have liked to, mostly because I couldn't get anything planned in a frugal, timely manner.

As of now, I have three solid travel plans. In about a week, I'm going up north to Harbin, China. For those who are unfamiliar with Harbin, it's a city in the middle of nowhere. Harbin is a frozen tundra that annually carves an elaborate city out of ice. Harbin also houses the largest white tiger sanctuary in the world. I'll only be there for three days, therefore limiting my chances of frostbite and hypothermia. Fun times.

I'll For Spring Break, I'm headed to Thailand: Bangkok and Phuket. A few friends and myself are headed out for a week of temples, curry, and beaches! Then, in March, I'll hopefully be headed to Panang and Kuala Lampur, Malaysia. I want to head to each location for two days. I've never been to Malaysia, and I don't really know much about it. Should be fun?

Finally, I have tentative plans to go out to Tibet in April. After the program ends, a few friends and I are hoping to spend a week in Lhasa, Tibet. Lhasa is the capital of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as the former home of the Dalai Lama. After visiting Tibet once a few years back, I have felt a great spiritual pull to return. Though my plans are not yet finalized, I am set on returning this spring.

In this year, I will have visited China, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Tibet, Tanzania, Zanzibar, and possibly India this winter. Oh, and that place I call home, the USA! It's going to be a busy year!

Shanghai Saturday Mornings

I have little to no interest in being productive before the hour of noon on Saturday mornings. I get up, enjoy a quiet breakfast, and then watch endless hours of my hulu queue list (my morning of Saturday cartoons.) Frankly, it's been quite a week. I haven't even been in Shanghai a full week yet, and already I've picked up where I left off. Going out with friends, being complained at by those same friends for my healthier eating habits, and of course, the feeling of constant movement here in the Jia. If it's not the endless emails, it's the travel planning and dinner plans and gym workouts. Not that i'm complaining at all... I love the stream of events that keep me moving at all hours of wakefulness. There is always something to do, something to see or somewhere to go. Hence, when I get a few moments of simple nothing on a Saturday morning, I savor them for all they are worth.

I can't say i'm currently limited to Saturday mornings. I have (surprisingly) turned into an early riser. I get up at least an hour before anyone else, eat , and enjoy a cup of coffee with my pile of email and the nytimes.com . It's almost like meditating.

I guess what i'm so shocked by is how different things are this time around. This week I had to go pick up some laundry supplies at my ever favorite Tesco supermarket. I remember writing a post very early on about the horrors of Chinese supermarkets. As I went in to get my detergent, I couldn't help but notice how much easier it was. I could communicate (barely) with the clerks, navigate the crowded isles, and even find a few more obscure items. The cultural adjustment is just amazing to me. Only a few months ago, Tesco was my worst nightmare realized in a packed grocery store. Now, it's just another familiar place.

If this is only the beginning of the semester, I can't wait to see what's to come.

I never thought Shanghai would be COLD.

However, after watching actual snow fall from the sky yesterday and freezing my butt off on the way back from an acrobatic performance, the ideas seems vaguely more familiar. Cold here is biting, damp and rigid. There is no soft snow or gentle cool breeze filled with flurry, only piercing wind and some seriously frozen over puddles. Luckily, it's too warm for any snow on the ground, but that certainly doesn't help the cold factor.

So much has happened in three days. I've taken six hours of intensive Chinese review, gone ice skating, seen an acrobatic performance, learned how to play majong, and revisited some favorite habits. I feel like I never left, which in this climate can be the best feeling in the world. No adjustment (minus the cold thing,) no trying to figure out favorite spots and NO trying to decipher taxi cab lingo. Of course we're all jumping back into our favorite bar spots. There is something utterly satisfying about dancing the night away with your best friends, simply enjoying our youth.

It's odd to miss everything all at once. I missed being in Shanghai, and now I miss being home with my family and close friends. I'd like to say i'm a satisfied person, but I always seem to be looking somewhere else. Maybe that makes me lucky, that there is always somewhere in the world I would like to be and people I would like to be with. As much as that may pull away from the present, it also makes me feel connected.

Anyway, I have workout routines to do and chinese to learn. More to come :)

Part II: The Second Semester

First, I must apologize.

I didn't mean to neglect my blog, but unfortunately I did. I got busy, I got caught up, and then I forgot.

However, for those of you who are still reading, I am starting anew.

I plan on (hopefully) posting weekly this semester. My main accomplishment this winter break has been coming up with a series of schedules for myself, including weekly reminders that I have to email my physical trainers (knee injury), keep up with my mandarin vocabulary, and regularly update my blog. New Year; new routine.

SO, here I am again. Sitting at my desk at home, awaiting another early morning of travel and a brand new semester of fun. Last semester was incredible, but I'm planning on doing even more this semester. Along with many inter-Shanghai adventures, I plan on going to Harbin, Cambodia, India, Thailand, MAYBE Tibet and Nepal, and maybe a few in between. Last semester, I got oriented and comfortable. I enjoyed daily life, made a home, and settled in. Now, I'm ready to get out and see what all of Asia has to offer.

If I wern't about to fall asleep, I'd keep writing. For now though, I'll say goodnight, and welcome to part II :)

Hong Kong Macau, pt 2

Day 1: Victoria Peak and W Hotel night

After getting up relatively early on Saturday morning, the group headed over to Starbucks for a lite breakfast and some day planning. We came to the conclusion that we needed to head to Victoria Peak to see the famous view of the city, then if we had time we'd head over to Stanley Market. Being economically efficient students,we chose to take the subway. We figured out how many stops we needed to take and where to change lines to get close to the cable car
that heads to the peak. We ended up in the center of the city, looking up at all the famous buildings of Hong Kong from the ground level. We hiked up a few hills,eventually finding our way to the Victoria Peak visitor's center.
After a subway adventure, we got to the base of the peak and jumped on the cable car heading up.
Upon arrival, we headed straight for the top of the building. October weather in Hong Kong makes the humidity low and the sky clear, making it a perfect day for pictures and sightseeing. The day was clear, warm, and beautiful as we
overlooked the harbor. After MANY pictures, photoshoots, and entourage impressions, we headed down to the peak plaza for a light lunch of french baguette sandwiches and cold drinks. It was fantastic to be up there, especially on such a beautiful day.

After Victoria Peak ,we all headed down to the Ladies Market. Stanley Market turned out to be a very far drive, so we stayed local and bartered for some goods. I bought a brown, styled wig (not for any particular reason...mostly because I thought it was funny) and the boys bought some trinkets. We were all exhausted from traveling and roaming around Hong Kong, so we called it a night and headed back to the W for some swimming, showers, and to figure out the plans for the evening. Clay and I went up to the rooftop of the W to the outdoor hottub, which was fantastic after a long day of walking and sightseeing. The other group of Pepperdine students traveling in Hong Kong showed up at the W, and we decided we would all figure out something to do together that night. One thing and another, we ended up staying in, enjoying the luxuries of the W and just having a great time relaxing. The day was great, the evening was relaxing, and we all decided that Hong Kong is definitely fantastic (that's if you can afford it... but hey, we're living it up while we still can!)

Hong Kong-Macau, pt 1

Wow... it's been awhile since i've posted. These past few weeks have just flown by. I did do some blogging while on the move!

After a few weeks of good hard work, I'm off to Hong Kong. I'm traveling with Morgan, John, Patrick, Clay, and James. Wendy of the lost boys much (with, of course, the exception of Morgan :) ) ?? Because I had an afternoon class today, I left about five hours after everyone else... Alone. Clay did not inform me that he had changed his flight, so I realized this afternoon that I would be fending for myself. Ainsley luckily had a close flight to Beijing, so I had some company on the way to the airport. From there, I proceeded to negotiate, explain, and board my plain in mandarin. I've gotten used to people staring at me all the time, but now I love that I can semi understand when people make comments about me in line. My favorite of the evening: "what is she?" "English? Too skinny to be American."
I passed out for most of the flight. Chinese airlines, regardless of
the time of day, always serve food. The Stewardess brought me a half
decent fruit cup, and I enjoyed the roughly translated English announcements.So after a rather easy flight, I landed in Shenzen. The south china humidity smothered me upon exiting the aircraft into the open expanse of outdoors that is Shezen. Still alone, I found a 90 kuai bus to Hong Kong. Flying into Shenzen and taking a bus or train significantly saves money... All the more for shopping I guess. I navigated this bus, picked the correct stop, and then saw my shining beacon of hope: Starbucks. Being alone, tired, and looking at an hour on the bus, this was the best part of the evening :) the bus came about ten seconds after I picked up my latte, and now I'm on my way to the W. I'm keeping track of this on my iPod, to be published upon arrival. As for now, I'll sit back with my latte, read my new Dan Brown novel, and continue to call my useless friends who have not yet remembered to turn on their phones. Oh well.

Later...

Finally at the W. Turns out the bus was not as simple as first expected. After getting settled in, the bus stopped and I was told to get off. I had to first go through a set of customs, transferring from mainland China to Hong Kong. Then to another bus. Ten minutes later, I had to get off again to go through the health exam. One more bus, then head into the Prince Edward port somewhere in Kowloon. I get off the bus, find a taxi, and eventually make my way to the W. Though exhausted, I'm sitting here in the lobby with everyone, enjoying the white party and hopefully going out for some more fun in a little bit!

Yay for traveling alone. More on Hong Kong to come :)

For the first time of the semester, I worked late into last night. I was trying to understand and put together my presentation on Constructivism Theory in International Relations. Not only was I struggling with the subject matter (Constructivism is highly hypothetical and purely analytical) but also with the concept of once again putting together a full scale powerpoint presentation.
The nice thing about working in Shanghai is that unlike Malibu, things stay open. I can go get a Starbucks (or 24 hour 85 degrees) coffee at 11:00 pm and then head down the all-days convenience store at the end of our street at 1:00 to pick up a soyjoy bar and green tea. Malibu is pretty much shut down by 10:00pm, and the nearest open areas are usually a 20 minute drive through the canyon.

Even better are the mornings. I can wake up at 6:30, light already streaming through my window, and revise my presentation. Go for a run, pick up a coffee, enjoy a bowl of cereal, and keep on going. It's all pretty fluid and easy here... even more so than on the Malibu campus. The amount of work is still very real, but I don't mind it nearly as much here.

8 hour of class in one day... Tuesdays are rough.