Being back in Shanghai is better than ever. Granted my impressions are a little skewed.. I was last there in the summer of 2008. We spent the last days of our Deerfield summer program there. But luckily for me, my older sister, Susy, was in Shanghai for the summer working for Pepsi, and living in the PH of a glorious Western hotel. My favorite Chinese teacher, Feng laoshi, let me hang with Susy, so I forewent the authentic experience with the program and spent my entire time there with her, eating amazing American hotel food and shopping. Hah.
Now my second time around will hopefully be a bit more authentic... and so far it definitely has. Like everything in China, ECNU (East China Normal University) is HUGE. Walking from one end of campus to the other is pretty much twice as far as what it would be in Georgetown. While my dorm is situated conveniently by the 1) cool back gate (后门) which connects the campus to an amazing long street of food and shopping, 2) the "best cafeteria" on campus (best being a relative term naturally), and 3) the track for morning runs, my dorm is also exactly in the opposite location of where my classes will be! Bring on the long morning walks.. eek.
Shanghai is much less polluted than I remember (thank you, World Expo) and when I ran yesterday I could actually breathe. The campus is also very beautiful and green - with trees lining most walkways and a river running through.
Orientation started yesterday, and we have been spending much of our time bonding with our new Chinese friends and roommates. Most bonding in China takes place over meals of course, so we have been doing a lottt of eating. Other than my slight setback of vegetarianism, I love trying all Chinese food and most of it is quite delicious. The only thing that gets me is Chinese breakfast. It is so far from what I am used to, and, breakfast being my favorite meal in the world, means that morning are difficult so far. The most common breakfast dish seems to be Congee (basically little rice pieces in milky-water, sometimes with other veggies or weird toppings like salted duck eggs....). I am going to have to figure something out soon.
Now my second time around will hopefully be a bit more authentic... and so far it definitely has. Like everything in China, ECNU (East China Normal University) is HUGE. Walking from one end of campus to the other is pretty much twice as far as what it would be in Georgetown. While my dorm is situated conveniently by the 1) cool back gate (后门) which connects the campus to an amazing long street of food and shopping, 2) the "best cafeteria" on campus (best being a relative term naturally), and 3) the track for morning runs, my dorm is also exactly in the opposite location of where my classes will be! Bring on the long morning walks.. eek.
Shanghai is much less polluted than I remember (thank you, World Expo) and when I ran yesterday I could actually breathe. The campus is also very beautiful and green - with trees lining most walkways and a river running through.
Orientation started yesterday, and we have been spending much of our time bonding with our new Chinese friends and roommates. Most bonding in China takes place over meals of course, so we have been doing a lottt of eating. Other than my slight setback of vegetarianism, I love trying all Chinese food and most of it is quite delicious. The only thing that gets me is Chinese breakfast. It is so far from what I am used to, and, breakfast being my favorite meal in the world, means that morning are difficult so far. The most common breakfast dish seems to be Congee (basically little rice pieces in milky-water, sometimes with other veggies or weird toppings like salted duck eggs....). I am going to have to figure something out soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment