Hangzhou Happenings

(Ola)

Now that we've been in Hangzhou for a few days, we are starting to get our bearings. In the mornings, I bike to school with my host sister. Although the roads are slightly calmer than those in Beijing or Xi'an, it's not by a lot. On our first day of biking, I faced what I thought was an immediate death at least 8 times during a 25 minute ride. I've come to realize that a public bus will never actually hit you, it will just pass you by a few centimeters. As for walking, the best method is to stick with the locals. What I usually do is I wait till I see a group of young adults and I just fall in step with them. There have been times when opposed to covertly following a couple across the street, I consider just linking arms with them or hopping on someone's back and being carried across.

Since moving in with our host families, our home sickness has definitely increased. There's a weird feeling that comes with being in a home that's not your own. It's an ever pervasive loneliness even though there are people around whose home you've invaded. However, I'm sure that it will get better with time.

The kids at the school are great but definitely not the students that I was expecting. We're always told that Chinese students sit quietly, always keeping their eyes trained on the teacher, and obediently doing whatever they're told. It's all a lie. After sitting in the back row ten minutes, I came to the conclusion that these were the rowdiest students I had ever laid eyes upon. Turning their backs to the teacher, they converse freely, make no effort to conceal passing notes, and at times (if lucky), one might even see them running around and tackling each other. These 16 year olds are a teacher's greatest delight! Their behavior was surprising but judging by their coursework, they are extremely smart. I sat in AP Calculus, a class taught in English, and could not comprehend anything. In my defense, I've never taken calculus.

It's been interesting to hear about the stereotypes that the Chinese have about Americans. My host sister asked me if people eat rice in the US. When I replied "yes," she stated that it probably tastes different from Chinese rice. In return, I felt the need to spit some truth so I shared my knowledge by letting her know that "rice is rice." Also, everyone I meet thinks I'm some kind of vagabond who doesn't attend school and spends her time moseying down alleyways. When I inform people that like them, I too stay up late doing homework, they usually look like they're about to faint from shock.