My travel buddies and I, Sarah and Elizabeth along with Erik our new addition, all had flights out of Hong Kong so planned to spend our last few days in Asia here. Flights from Beijing to Hong Kong were horrendously expensive (upwards of $300) so we figured we'd train it for $60. We could not find out where to buy the tickets online from a website in English that did not double the price in service fees so we enlisted our friend Heshuang who is from China to help us in acquiring tickets. This is somewhere China differs. She told us there is no centralized ticket outlet and they're not available online. Tickets for most destinations do not go on sale until 10 days before departure at which time they are often immediately sold out. Fair enough, so she took us to a travel agent close to campus where we waited in line for half an hour on day 10 prior to departure. Once at the counter, we were told they do not sell tickets to Hong Kong at this location, nor any travel agent in fact and we must go to the main Beijing train station. In other words, we need to take an hour subway ride to wait in a line that is the only place in the city tickets can be purchased (this sounds incredibly painful) to find out that they are probably sold out already. Heshuang tried making some phone calls for us to avoid wasting time but the lines were busy. We paced and pondered on the sidewalk until Heshuang suggested we go to Shenzen rather than Hong Kong. It is in mainland China but only a subway ride away from Hong Kong. We got back in line for the travel agent and they did indeed sell tickets to Shenzen, although the only option left was the top bunk of the 'hard sleeper.' This is the lower class sleeping berth which has 3 high bunks/6 per room, except the room has no doors. We had hoped to get a 'soft sleeper' which has four bunks and is an enclosed room so we could have the place to ourselves. No such luck but at least we were able to get the top four bunks of two adjacent rooms. We were relieved just to have tickets purchased and the whole issue settled.
The train ride lasted 24 hours and had a few exciting moments. The top bunk is very high. One must be in decent shape to 1) lift the heavy bags to the rack up there and 2) climb the fold-up steps while lifting body weight with arms since there is no actual ladder. The top bunk does not allow for sitting unless the neck bends 90 degrees to the side and the window only extends as far as the middle bunk so it is dark, cave-like, and somewhat isolated. These are the least sought-after spots on the train. After the morning however, the tree-house nest isolation turned out to be not so bad. There were many in our car of an older age range who woke up at the crack of dawn. This would have been fine except for the loud man. He sat alone and tried to engage all in the vicinity in conversation. He looked out the window and commented to himself/everyone about the scenery (we guessed). The decibels of his vocal outbursts were far higher than necessary. Three quarters of the train car was still sleeping but his voice was like having a rooster in the car with us. When some other would respond to him on occasion, the noise level would elevate to an unbearable level and at one point the woman on the bunk below me chewed them out. Their voices were library level for a minute or two until excitement over the beautiful rice paddies elevated them to cosmic proportions.
At about 6 am , I left my bunk for a fold-down seat by the window in order to enjoy the scenery since sleeping was over and done with. There are two fold down seats per 6-person room and they are the size of a camping stool. There is a small table in between which is convenient for eating or playing cards. Only two people on the bottom bunk can sit up straight so there are four people at all times vying for the two window seats. This is the case for the whole car so wherever one can see a seat in view, it is fair game. I spied and connived that morning until someone got up and I musical-chaired the open seat. I felt tired again around 7:45 and went back to rest in my bunk. Not so fast… at 8, the music turned on. Loud, communal music for the entire train to enjoy. The music had been playing the night before but I hadn't expected it to play as a wake-up call and last the entire day, which it did. No headphones, no options, just blaring. The individual does not exist thus personal choice is a non-concept.
As a side note, it is common for people to listen to their iphone/mp3 player in public without headphones. People in the park blast that awful sound of hand-held-device speakers and our suitemate did it for a while and competed with the communal train music. Really awful.
The ride throughout the day was pleasant. We played poker, hearts, crazy eights, read, chatted, joked, and ate peanut butter (food is for sale in roving carts, but it is relatively expensive and didn't look that good). The train did not arrive until 8 o'clock at night but it really didn't seem all that long. The last hour held the most exciting moment. On a stop not long before our endpoint, a family with a baby boarded and sat in the car with Sarah. Babies in China wear pants that are split down the middle so they can micturate and defecate in public without the worry of changing diapers or making a mess. These convenient crotchless pants are standard for ages 1-4 more or less. I have seen these on babies on the street all over the place in China, but was surprised that an indoor experience would involve this same fashion. An hour before our stop, the terminus of the, the baby urinated on the floor. It ran down and puddled up around Sarah's backpack which was stowed under the bunk. This event caused no reaction whatever from the parents or anyone else - an absolutely normal event that didn't turn a head. Sarah was first speechless, then enraged. It wouldn't even have time to dry before she had to wear that pack. This is telling of sanitation and hygiene in China. The country may be developing rapidly in a material way but the aforementioned issues do not seem to move forward like the rest. A sleek facade will often have a bathroom of horrors and no one blinks an eye.
I better say a word about bathrooms. Hot water is unheard of in sinks. Toilet paper is almost unheard of as provided by the bathroom. Strangely enough, 90% of toilet stalls have a toilet paper holder but you would be overcome with wonderment if it actually had a roll of paper in it. You are to supply it yourself except in special situations like at the university. Here, there are empty toilet paper holders in each stall but one near the sink outside that usually has toilet paper. Since there is only one roll for the bathroom, when it is out - outta luck. You can try a bathroom on a different floor but sometimes, it's just a strike-out all around. There is also rarely soap except in special situations, like in a high-end shopping mall. A hand-blower might be present but it will rarely work and paper towels absolutely do not exist anywhere in any shape or form. Perhaps all these measures serve to induce environmentally-conscious behavior which is good. The squatter toilets I can understand as being preferred by those who are used to them. I cannot use them well without missing though. The one thing that cannot be justified is the lack of toilet vents (seemingly) judging by the smell of all bathrooms. Neither do squatter toilets have a pool of water that blocks sewer gases so most bathrooms are permeated by the smell of an open sewer even if they look clean. I was trying to figure out: if you are accustomed to bathrooms always smelling nauseating, if you enter one that smells like nothing, does it make an olfactory/psychological impression? Or does a non-smell where a bad smell should be make no impact because it is an anomaly of the sort that is not memorable?
Back to the subject at hand: pee on the backpack, puddles on the floor and we were ready to leave that train! Shenzen is quite convenient to Hong Kong as it is the closest mainland city to the island. When we got off the train, we followed a confusing and circuitous path to customs where we said goodbye to our summer in China. We knew Hong Kong would be different and were ready for a change. We exchanged some currency and figured out the subway route to our much-anticipated hostel in Kowloon.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Studio Final Review + Bikes, Cafes, Food
Our last day of studio consisted of a 3 hour presentation in which all five groups presented their designs in a powerpoint presentation as well as posted boards for display in the lobby of the architecture hall. We were joined by several new professors from Tsinghua in addition to our usual MIT and Tsinghua professors. The ambient noise from the lobby made it difficult to hear the presenters and I cut out to grab an iced coffee from the cafe Paradiso across the yard I had trouble staying awake. Most of us had been staying up 'til the wee hours the past few nights trying to complete everything and make it look good.
Our group had been struggling with our presentations in that we didn't practice so they were often disjointed did not flow well. This time we had practiced, though not all together, so that the microphone would be passed smoothly and the story would flow. I introduced the project, gave some background on our concept and felt generally good about how that went. But towards the middle, things started to drag and one professor fell asleep. I knew it was getting a little agonizing and it didn't help that we were the second to last group to present and the audience had been attentive for two hours by then. We summed it up concisely and I think it ended on a good note. Over the course of the project we had been giving presentations on a weekly basis so though many good ideas came out of it, we had heard many of them previously. The final presentations were still somewhat interesting and each group displayed many new and captivating graphics. Once our group sat down, I escaped to get a bit of sunshine and move my legs and pondered another espresso since they are less than $ .50 USD. Instead we opted for a bubble tea after the presentations were over.
This Cafe Paradiso across the way we only found out about the last week and a half or so of studio. We were flabbergasted to realize this place had been here the whole time and we hadn't known about it. I had tried to let the craving for good coffee since such luxuries are hard to find. There is a Starbuck's outside the gate of campus, but not close enough for a quick sip during a break. I tried an espresso there and thought the shot tasted overdone; at least it is consistent worldwide. There is another coffee shop on campus that we were ecstatic to find but it is still too far from the studio - better as a stop on the way home. That coffee shop makes good shots, but does other strange things. For example an iced latte is made by a shot of espresso with steamed milk, poured over ice. Hmm... the foam melts immediately as does the ice and the latte degrades to a lukewarm watery liquid with remnants of foam around the edges. They do have wifi and a nice atmosphere, and the campus food card can be used for purchases which more than redeem the place, just don't order an iced drink. This place was completely trumped by Cafe Paradiso with prices about half and distance to studio not even comparable. The only problem with Paradiso is that the prices seem to vary based on nothing comprehensible, but since they are cheap anyway it's not so much a problem.
Our dorm is about a 10 minute bike ride from the studio and we all have rental bikes from the campus bike outfitter. They are really worn bikes but do the job. The seats are extremely hard they make sure at least one of the brakes work. We have a lot of fun with them since they are already junky - jumping up curbs, down stairs, crashing into each other, circus tricks, and weaving among the umbrella-toting Sunday riders that crowd the campus. By now both of my wheels revolve with a solid 2 inch deviation from center of axle. Makes for a wobbly ride!
The other place we've been enjoying lately is the bakery which serves bubble tea. If you go at night, they may welcome you into the shop and then say the drink counter is closed. They might not say it is closed but say "finish" at every menu item you try to select. Best bet is in they daytime when all drinks are available. We go up to the drink counter and someone calls over the barista and translator. The translator is a girl who asks if you want hot or ice after you speak your selection, she then proceeds to watch the barista make the drinks and watch us as we wait. The barista takes his job quite seriously. He wears a white apron and uses beakers to measure the ingredients of the drinks down to the milliliter. He uses a shaker like a bartender and you can see him counting seconds in his head as he shakes it near his ear to hear the size of the ice cubes breaking down into the correct fractions to give the drink the most accurate temperature when served. Taro may be the best flavor but almond is a tough competitor.
The best find of all in Beijing must be the night market near the Wudoakou station. There is a market every night that lines the streets around the elevated station but one day we looked a little further back and found this amazing place tucked away behind a building on the main road. Three of us Americans found this gem on the 4th of July and celebrated our country's independence together uninhibited with joyous and songs of freedom. We elicited some strange looks and even drew some curious neighbors to our table. We rode home on our bikes that night continuing the chorus through the boulevards of Tsinghua accenting the music with our bike horns.
We have been back numerous times to this place and shared it with all our classmates. It is a large courtyard lined with food stalls selling sushi, skewers, soups, and 5 yuan beers (large bottles). My favorite food stalls are the skewer place where you can select such things as eggplant, squid, chicken cutlet, or mushrooms and watch the man douse them in oil and grill them to perfection. The other fave is the soup place: skewers of greens, fish balls, tofu, eggs, noodles and 30 other ingredients sit on a shelf from which you take them and hand them to the woman on the adjacent stool. She takes them to the back where the go into a pot of boiling water and spices. Ten minutes later, out comes a delectable soup with a sauce so interesting and good I can't even describe it. Each skewer like at the other place is 1 or 2 yuan so you can estimate your hunger and add as many ingredients as you wish. Needless to say, a fantastic dinner with beer and topped off with Beijing special local yogurt in a ceramic jar for dessert costs around $2 US. The atmosphere is great as well as it is a simple courtyard of benches and tables, filled with locals and internationals alike. They even have umbrellas for when it rains so you can't lose. The only drawback is that the umbrellas do not cover the edges of the benches and they are bowed such that in heavy rain, the drips collect from the ends, forming puddles which run down and sneak up on you while you're enjoying your dry microclimate in the middle of the bench. Nonetheless this place gets 5 stars.
Our group had been struggling with our presentations in that we didn't practice so they were often disjointed did not flow well. This time we had practiced, though not all together, so that the microphone would be passed smoothly and the story would flow. I introduced the project, gave some background on our concept and felt generally good about how that went. But towards the middle, things started to drag and one professor fell asleep. I knew it was getting a little agonizing and it didn't help that we were the second to last group to present and the audience had been attentive for two hours by then. We summed it up concisely and I think it ended on a good note. Over the course of the project we had been giving presentations on a weekly basis so though many good ideas came out of it, we had heard many of them previously. The final presentations were still somewhat interesting and each group displayed many new and captivating graphics. Once our group sat down, I escaped to get a bit of sunshine and move my legs and pondered another espresso since they are less than $ .50 USD. Instead we opted for a bubble tea after the presentations were over.
This Cafe Paradiso across the way we only found out about the last week and a half or so of studio. We were flabbergasted to realize this place had been here the whole time and we hadn't known about it. I had tried to let the craving for good coffee since such luxuries are hard to find. There is a Starbuck's outside the gate of campus, but not close enough for a quick sip during a break. I tried an espresso there and thought the shot tasted overdone; at least it is consistent worldwide. There is another coffee shop on campus that we were ecstatic to find but it is still too far from the studio - better as a stop on the way home. That coffee shop makes good shots, but does other strange things. For example an iced latte is made by a shot of espresso with steamed milk, poured over ice. Hmm... the foam melts immediately as does the ice and the latte degrades to a lukewarm watery liquid with remnants of foam around the edges. They do have wifi and a nice atmosphere, and the campus food card can be used for purchases which more than redeem the place, just don't order an iced drink. This place was completely trumped by Cafe Paradiso with prices about half and distance to studio not even comparable. The only problem with Paradiso is that the prices seem to vary based on nothing comprehensible, but since they are cheap anyway it's not so much a problem.
Our dorm is about a 10 minute bike ride from the studio and we all have rental bikes from the campus bike outfitter. They are really worn bikes but do the job. The seats are extremely hard they make sure at least one of the brakes work. We have a lot of fun with them since they are already junky - jumping up curbs, down stairs, crashing into each other, circus tricks, and weaving among the umbrella-toting Sunday riders that crowd the campus. By now both of my wheels revolve with a solid 2 inch deviation from center of axle. Makes for a wobbly ride!
The other place we've been enjoying lately is the bakery which serves bubble tea. If you go at night, they may welcome you into the shop and then say the drink counter is closed. They might not say it is closed but say "finish" at every menu item you try to select. Best bet is in they daytime when all drinks are available. We go up to the drink counter and someone calls over the barista and translator. The translator is a girl who asks if you want hot or ice after you speak your selection, she then proceeds to watch the barista make the drinks and watch us as we wait. The barista takes his job quite seriously. He wears a white apron and uses beakers to measure the ingredients of the drinks down to the milliliter. He uses a shaker like a bartender and you can see him counting seconds in his head as he shakes it near his ear to hear the size of the ice cubes breaking down into the correct fractions to give the drink the most accurate temperature when served. Taro may be the best flavor but almond is a tough competitor.
The best find of all in Beijing must be the night market near the Wudoakou station. There is a market every night that lines the streets around the elevated station but one day we looked a little further back and found this amazing place tucked away behind a building on the main road. Three of us Americans found this gem on the 4th of July and celebrated our country's independence together uninhibited with joyous and songs of freedom. We elicited some strange looks and even drew some curious neighbors to our table. We rode home on our bikes that night continuing the chorus through the boulevards of Tsinghua accenting the music with our bike horns.
We have been back numerous times to this place and shared it with all our classmates. It is a large courtyard lined with food stalls selling sushi, skewers, soups, and 5 yuan beers (large bottles). My favorite food stalls are the skewer place where you can select such things as eggplant, squid, chicken cutlet, or mushrooms and watch the man douse them in oil and grill them to perfection. The other fave is the soup place: skewers of greens, fish balls, tofu, eggs, noodles and 30 other ingredients sit on a shelf from which you take them and hand them to the woman on the adjacent stool. She takes them to the back where the go into a pot of boiling water and spices. Ten minutes later, out comes a delectable soup with a sauce so interesting and good I can't even describe it. Each skewer like at the other place is 1 or 2 yuan so you can estimate your hunger and add as many ingredients as you wish. Needless to say, a fantastic dinner with beer and topped off with Beijing special local yogurt in a ceramic jar for dessert costs around $2 US. The atmosphere is great as well as it is a simple courtyard of benches and tables, filled with locals and internationals alike. They even have umbrellas for when it rains so you can't lose. The only drawback is that the umbrellas do not cover the edges of the benches and they are bowed such that in heavy rain, the drips collect from the ends, forming puddles which run down and sneak up on you while you're enjoying your dry microclimate in the middle of the bench. Nonetheless this place gets 5 stars.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Beijing
Tsinghua University
The campus is known as one of the most beautiful in China and it is certainly a quiet and green oasis amidst the hustle and bustle of Beijing. We are staying in the international student dorm and I somehow ended up with the only room with a balcony in the whole building! Unfortunately the mosquitos usually force me back into my room though. After working in the studio all day, I like to take a twilight bike ride to explore the huge campus, then I often have more work to do.
Forbidden City
One of the must-see sights in the world and I was still a little sick but couldn't miss the field trip. Like our class trips usually are, it was hurried and we were shuffled through without much time to explore. It was really an amazing place but with my low energy level I couldn't enjoy it as much as I normally would. We then proceeded to the Temple of Heaven and climbed up the hill from which there is a great view of Beijing. After our class trip we proceeded to the much celebrated Pearl Market. It was not how I envisioned it - as a chaotic dark place full of new nice things, knock-offs, used items, rare and antiques, anything and everything. Instead it is a well-organized place with each floor separated by their type of ware - watches and jewelry on one, clothing on the next, etc. Many items are of the quality you could expect for the price. I bought a Snoopy watch, a fake swiss army knife, stylish sunglasses, a flask, and an army medal. Lots of fun but they type of haggle-shopping that wears you out really quick.
Summer Palace
Hands down favorite place in Beijing so far. Likely can be attributed to the fact that I went there with a couple friends rather than on a class trip. We were able to explore all the hidden areas where not many people venture and though some spots were really crowded and unpleasant, the majority of our time there was amazingly serene. It is close to where we stay so we were able to ride bikes there which allowed us to see more of the city than we usually do in taking the subway around.
Architecture + Travel
Another day of exploration took us to see some modern architecture icons. The 'linked hybrids' Steven Holl project, the CCTV building, then wrapped that up with the antique market which was closing up as we wandered through. This was both good and bad as half the vendors were gone, but so were the crowds so it was easy to efficiently pass through viewing the goods. I may have mentioned this when I wrote about the expo in Shanghai, but the crowds in China are something to write home about. Everywhere you go, whether it be a market, a tourist attraction, a subway station - pushing and shoving is unavoidable. There are just too many people in this city. For example: in most cities of the world, a subway transfer involves going up or down some stairs, perhaps going through a hallway to find the next platform. When transferring from line 13 to line 2 on the Beijing subway, it is a maze of hallways, outside then inside, up stairs then down, up an escalator, around the corner, up some stairs, through a passage, etc. and several rows of crowd control barriers help to keep everyone moving at a slow shuffle. At the wrong time of day it can take 30+ minutes just to reach the other platform and you are sardined within a sweaty crowd the entire time. Really not something to look forward to. On the other hand and to redeem it, Beijing has an extensive subway system that is state-of-the art. It was all built pretty recently and is vital to the smooth functioning of the city. It only costs 2y (less than 30 cents) and is not distance-based so the fare is the same wherever you go. Sometimes it is difficult to make your way inside before the doors start to close. If you are traveling with friends, it sometimes happens that some will make it in and some will get the door closed in their face so we always make sure everyone knows the name of the final destination. Some of the newer lines are enclosed such that you are not able to illegally cross the tracks or fall into the pit and potentially be zapped by the third rail.
Fragrance Hill Park
We had been looking forward to this oasis for some time and finally got a chance to go on the afternoon following our final studio review. We had in mind a stroll through a lush green park dotted with temples and then a hill providing a view of the city. Upon paying the fee and entering the park, we immediately followed the path to the peak (the American in us always finds a way to shine through) not realizing it was basically a concrete staircase for an hour with few landings. This always seems to happen so we shouldn't have been surprised and it was a nice climb as the path was well-shaded. We were indeed rewarded with panoramic views at the top except they were mainly of mountains, not the city. This was a pleasant surprise to find that we were an hour out of the city (well, the edge of the city) and could be surrounded by green peaks.
Soon we'll be off to Hong Kong!
The campus is known as one of the most beautiful in China and it is certainly a quiet and green oasis amidst the hustle and bustle of Beijing. We are staying in the international student dorm and I somehow ended up with the only room with a balcony in the whole building! Unfortunately the mosquitos usually force me back into my room though. After working in the studio all day, I like to take a twilight bike ride to explore the huge campus, then I often have more work to do.
Forbidden City
One of the must-see sights in the world and I was still a little sick but couldn't miss the field trip. Like our class trips usually are, it was hurried and we were shuffled through without much time to explore. It was really an amazing place but with my low energy level I couldn't enjoy it as much as I normally would. We then proceeded to the Temple of Heaven and climbed up the hill from which there is a great view of Beijing. After our class trip we proceeded to the much celebrated Pearl Market. It was not how I envisioned it - as a chaotic dark place full of new nice things, knock-offs, used items, rare and antiques, anything and everything. Instead it is a well-organized place with each floor separated by their type of ware - watches and jewelry on one, clothing on the next, etc. Many items are of the quality you could expect for the price. I bought a Snoopy watch, a fake swiss army knife, stylish sunglasses, a flask, and an army medal. Lots of fun but they type of haggle-shopping that wears you out really quick.
Summer Palace
Hands down favorite place in Beijing so far. Likely can be attributed to the fact that I went there with a couple friends rather than on a class trip. We were able to explore all the hidden areas where not many people venture and though some spots were really crowded and unpleasant, the majority of our time there was amazingly serene. It is close to where we stay so we were able to ride bikes there which allowed us to see more of the city than we usually do in taking the subway around.
Architecture + Travel
Another day of exploration took us to see some modern architecture icons. The 'linked hybrids' Steven Holl project, the CCTV building, then wrapped that up with the antique market which was closing up as we wandered through. This was both good and bad as half the vendors were gone, but so were the crowds so it was easy to efficiently pass through viewing the goods. I may have mentioned this when I wrote about the expo in Shanghai, but the crowds in China are something to write home about. Everywhere you go, whether it be a market, a tourist attraction, a subway station - pushing and shoving is unavoidable. There are just too many people in this city. For example: in most cities of the world, a subway transfer involves going up or down some stairs, perhaps going through a hallway to find the next platform. When transferring from line 13 to line 2 on the Beijing subway, it is a maze of hallways, outside then inside, up stairs then down, up an escalator, around the corner, up some stairs, through a passage, etc. and several rows of crowd control barriers help to keep everyone moving at a slow shuffle. At the wrong time of day it can take 30+ minutes just to reach the other platform and you are sardined within a sweaty crowd the entire time. Really not something to look forward to. On the other hand and to redeem it, Beijing has an extensive subway system that is state-of-the art. It was all built pretty recently and is vital to the smooth functioning of the city. It only costs 2y (less than 30 cents) and is not distance-based so the fare is the same wherever you go. Sometimes it is difficult to make your way inside before the doors start to close. If you are traveling with friends, it sometimes happens that some will make it in and some will get the door closed in their face so we always make sure everyone knows the name of the final destination. Some of the newer lines are enclosed such that you are not able to illegally cross the tracks or fall into the pit and potentially be zapped by the third rail.
Fragrance Hill Park
We had been looking forward to this oasis for some time and finally got a chance to go on the afternoon following our final studio review. We had in mind a stroll through a lush green park dotted with temples and then a hill providing a view of the city. Upon paying the fee and entering the park, we immediately followed the path to the peak (the American in us always finds a way to shine through) not realizing it was basically a concrete staircase for an hour with few landings. This always seems to happen so we shouldn't have been surprised and it was a nice climb as the path was well-shaded. We were indeed rewarded with panoramic views at the top except they were mainly of mountains, not the city. This was a pleasant surprise to find that we were an hour out of the city (well, the edge of the city) and could be surrounded by green peaks.
Soon we'll be off to Hong Kong!
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