Archive for February, 2009

Lions and tigers and pandas, oh my!

Published 27 February 2009 Uncategorized 4 Comments
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We began our trip on February 10th, leaving Beijing for a one-day layover in Chengdu, China before heading on to Kathmandu. Chengdu is famous for it’s Panda Breeding Research Center (thanks for reminding us, Elise!), so of course we had to stop there.

Really, I’m not sure what kind of scientific merit this place has, as most of the signs were in Chinese, as was the educational video. So I can’t say there was a whole lot of learning about pandas that occurred. What I can say is this: Pandas are adorable. Seriously, seriously adorable.

Credit Cards and the Wahaha Hotel

Published 27 February 2009 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
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The first of many soul-crushing experiences that surrounded our travels across Nepal and Tibet, of which you will learn more soon, happened before we even left Beijing. The trip was a pretty big purchase, including airfare, train fare, travel permits and accommodations and for some reason the travel agency insisted that we pay in cash, claiming that they “did not accept credit cards”. Strange, we thought. After much haggling the agency agreed to employ some of their local “associates” so that we could indeed pay with plastic. But like all things financial in China, it wasn’t easy.

wahaha
Continue reading ‘Credit Cards and the Wahaha Hotel’

Namaste from Nepal

Published 16 February 2009 Uncategorized 1 Comment

Sorry for the lull in postings as of late. We have safely made it to Kathmandu but limited internet access and only 8 hours of electricity a day have made maintenance of our digital lives a bit more difficult.

But don’t worry. Photos, videos and updates of pandas, fireworks, temples, monkeys, mountains, bike rides, foods, games, trains, planes and motorcycles are all coming very soon.

We’re off!

Published 8 February 2009 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
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Well, we’ve had enough of Beijing.

Just kidding. We like it here, but we have another few weeks before our classes begin (you know, because we came here to learn and everything), so we decided to embark on a little adventure before the learning commences.

We leave tomorrow morning for Chengdu, China, where we are stopping en route to Kathmandu, Nepal. We’ll stay in Nepal for ten days amidst the glorious company of Ms. Rosie Hughes and (as luck would have it) Ms. Liz Yepsen, who is visiting from her new home in Singapore. Then we will be off again to Lhasa, Tibet, where we will be seeing the sights for a few days before departing on a three day train ride across China and back to Beijing.

We can’t wait to see more of this country (and others) and to visit great friends in foreign places. We’re not sure how much internet access we’ll have along the way but we’ll be sure to update whenever we can so stay tuned for stories and photos and more!

Panjiayuan Flea Market

Published 8 February 2009 Uncategorized 1 Comment
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We took a long subway ride to the Panjiayuan Flea Market in the southeast of the city yesterday to look for a Go board and see what other oddities of Chinese pseudo-antiquity we could find. The market is huge with hundreds of vendors all avidly hocking their wares. Jade bracelets, soapstone stamps, paper fans, calligraphy sets, and weaponry of all manner can be found for cheap prices.

The key to haggling is knowing when to walk away. A well-timed turning of your back can quickly cut the asking price in half. When there’s a language barrier the second most important thing is the four function calculator, so you can punch in your counter offer.

We picked up a Go board and a matching Xiangqi (Chinese chess) set. We also got a rice bucket, pictured in my hand at the top. I will take on any challengers in Go or chess. Steph will help anyone that has a rice paddy during harvest.

When we left the market we were accosted by a fleet of pedicabs. With nothing else to do, and our ability to rebuff business offers thoroughly drained from haggling in the market, we gave in and hopped into a velvety chariot. We weren’t really sure where our driver was taking us, but we figured if our kidneys looked to be in danger we could jump from the open carriage. Things only got really hairy when we headed into oncoming traffic at the very end.

More photos after the jump.
Continue reading ‘Panjiayuan Flea Market’

Food, glorious food. Part 1

Published 7 February 2009 food 9 Comments
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Jiān bǐng. The little hut in the background is where we bought them.

Jiān bǐng. The little hut in the background is where we bought them.

This will be the first in a series dedicated to the delicious foodstuffs we find on the streets and in the shops of Beijing. This week, jiān bǐng.

I had seen this curious crepe-like construction on the streets near our subway station and been wanting to try it. Through the glories of Google I searched around and found that my dreamy snack food is called jiān bǐng.

Jiān bǐng is made by pouring a small amount of batter onto a griddle and smoothing it out with a wooden rake. An egg is cracked into the middle of the thin crepe and sprinkled with scallions and cilantro. It is then flipped over, frying the egg, and a thin layer of hoisin sauce is spread on top. A large piece of fried dough is then placed in the center and the crepe is folded into a pocket, placed in a plastic shopping bag (as seems to be the trend with many street food items), and eaten. (See video below for live action shots of this culinary ingenuity).

Yesterday we finally made it over and I had one for lunch. Amazingly flavorful, it had a little crunch from the fried dough and just the right amount of saltiness from the hoisin sauce. The cilantro added the perfect touch (hi Mikey). Seriously, seriously delicious. If anything was to inspire me to stay here forever, it might just be jiān bǐng.

Total cost: ¥3 (44¢)

To market and Square

Published 5 February 2009 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
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standing-guard4

Venturing farther from our home this week, we traversed Beijing’s sprawling subway system to Tiananmen Square to say hi to Mao’s gigantic portrait and explore the bustling nearby Donghuamen Night Market. The Spring Festival celebrating the new year is winding down but the market was still packed.

We haggled with vendors by punching in offers and counter-offers into a four-function calculator. I’m not sure what “a good price” for a panda hat is but I managed to knock a couple of Yuan off the initial asking price.

Snail mail and soy sauce

Published 5 February 2009 Uncategorized 6 Comments
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Well, we have arrived. We are nearly settled in to our apartment now, have met our landlady and gone to the police station to get our official residency permits. We are living in a large apartment complex called Hua Qing Jia Yuan, in the northwest corner of Beijing (the University district). The apartment is nice, if quirky — a one bedroom with a living room that houses our fridge, in addition to some fantastically ugly pink Ikea curtains. Apparently baking is not a big thing in China because our kitchen does not have an oven, just a little two-burner stove, a non-functional water bubbler and the smallest washing machine I have ever encountered. But all those things that seemed very foreign at first are starting to feel increasingly familiar and like home.  

We also have had by now our first shopping excursions to the Lotus Shopping Center which is down the street on the corner of Chengfu Road. Here is a photo of what it was like.

soysauce

Overabundance upon overabundance of soy sauce. It was hard to choose.

Below is our snail-mail address for the six months we will be in Beijing. We are also including the address in character form, because it looks cool (no need to include it on mail, however). 

Hua Qing Jia Yuan
Er Hao Lou , 701 Fangjian
Wu Dao Kou
Haidian Qu
Beijing, China
 
华清嘉园
二号楼 ，701房间
五道口
海淀区
北京
中国

We’d love to hear from you! Feel free to include baked goods.

Vote now!

Published 4 February 2009 Uncategorized 5 Comments

Below, our illustrious visa photos.

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Earth from Above

Published 4 February 2009 Uncategorized 1 Comment
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Maybe not quite as classy as Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s work, but here are a couple shots from the plane as we departed San Francisco for Beijing.

San Francisco from Above

San Francisco from Above

Alaska from Above

Alaska from Above

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