Little China Girl

So I know you have all been waiting with clenched fists for the latest instalment of this travel blog- fresh from Tianjin, China. Unfortunately, China hasn’t been waiting for it - and if anything probably wants it to never appear. It is for this reason that my blog cannot be accessed in china, and therefore I cannot post anything. But alas loyal readers (a special welcome to those other than my doting father) I will still post when I can and however I can manage it. And I shall do all of this whilst also fighting my Facebook withdrawals. Itchy skin, itchy skin!!

Before I begin I feel I should explain who the players are in this adventure besides myself (as I will refer to them often). Matt, Shelley and Sam all study with me at uni- and we all have no Chinese skills. Adam is the team president, studying international studies at RMIT. With six years of living in china under his belt, his Chinese is understandably quite good. Scrap that, it is very good- hell it’s just about perfect. Together, we make up a group of Australian students of varying ages with varied skills and downfalls. Like a sitcom, chaos and adventure are bound to ensue. 

Arriving in Tianjin has been a culture shock of epic proportions- and I think it can be likened to arriving after an apocalyptic storm has hit. Rubble sits piled on footpaths, buildings barely standing and everything covered in a thick coating of mud. Or perhaps it’s oil? Or perhaps I don’t want to know what it is.

The first morning in Tianjin, we hopped aboard a bus to the University. Doing this, I quickly realised that we actually aren’t living on campus, and are living in what once was a hotel. Classes are held on the top floor of the building for the international students. Not exactly what I expected from the uni experience.  We proceeded to sit through three hours of speeches- not understanding a single word. Essential information was told to us, about enrolling and times for classes. Adam translated what was important, and we sat confused at the rest of it. Each student was presented with a Tianjin University t-shirt and DVD- no idea what it is about as all the writing was in mandarin.

  

All buying bikes, we quickly found that getting around was a lot easier and more enjoyable. But perhaps not initially. We spent the first night with our new bikes riding around the whole of the city, attempting to find a dong bei restaurant at Adams insistence that the food was incredible. After being turned down by a bunch of closing restaurants, we walked into a restaurant at 10pm and our hungry, weary bodies were welcomed with open arms. After eating a huge, incredible meal and learning more restaurant relevant Chinese, we decided to bike home. Riding through the back streets in the balmy night air, we heard the sounds of falling metal. Shelley had lost a pedal off of her bike, and Sam soon followed losing a pedal. It would seem that you get what you pay for. We rode home, Sam one pedal short and Adam towing Shelley all the way home.

Despite the culture shock, the first few days have been fairly extraordinary. Walking through the markets, eating freshly cooked noodles off a locals hot plate and giant bubble cups promise an interesting few months ahead.

(P.S, Due to technical difficulties, my wonderful brother Nathan will be taking care of posting and updating of the blog)

If anyone needs to contact me, my email address is  danielle.basser@hotmail.com