The China Diaries (2009)

Sixth grade was hitting a lull with President’s Day weekend around the corner. I was in our library room helping my mom move some boxes, the perfect time to corner me into a conversation and drop an unexpected question. “What do you think about going to China for a summer camp in July?”

“No, period, and another period just to be sure,” was my reply, but four months later, I found myself packing a month’s worth of clothes, snacks, a cat’s cradle string, and a deck of cards.

Ten years ago today, my parents, brother, and I met up with my aunt, uncle, and cousins, Camillia and Julian (whom we affectionately call Cam/Cami/Camie and Jules) at Newark Liberty International Airport. The swine flu epidemic had reached peak publicity and bloody riots in Urumqi were erupting, but the camp directors (Pang Lao Shi, Tian Lao Shi, Ge Lao Shi, and Lai Lao Shi – whom I nicknamed “Mr. Lies-a-lot”) assured our parents that we’d be taken care of, regardless of the itinerary changes. We, on the other hand, had little to care about – with twelve hours of movies, games, and no parent supervision to look forward to, nothing could stir up anxiousness. Oh, did I mention we all got individual cartons of Häagen Dazs on the plane? Best flight I’d taken at eleven years old.

When we landed, Chinese health workers walked up and down the aisles, pointing a thermometer to each of our heads as we looked up from filling out health forms for ourselves and our younger, carefree siblings (I described these “thermometers” as “guns” in my journal). I gripe today about the pomp and circumstance required to re-enter the States as a citizen today, but the Chinese precautions taken in July of 2009 felt even stricter. Jules had a tickle in his throat and coughed to clear it (as any eleven-year-old would), which caused the health worker to request that he promptly wear a mask and undergo additional health screening at the airport. Thank God for Jules’ good sense of humor - I developed nervous butterflies for the both of us.

When our feet were finally freed to hit foreign soil, we spent the next two weeks in Beijing at UIBE’s campus (University of International Business and Economics), living in an apartment-style dorm during our week in before moving our belongings to a traditional dorm building quarantine (imagine being “quarantined” without a clue about what it meant or how it’s spelled).

Each morning, we strained our stiff muscles at the public park by attempting to stretch during a 7 am “Wushu” class amidst surprisingly flexible elderly citizens practicing Tai-Chi. Beijing’s thick humidity left us wet and sticky, in need of a quick change before going to the cafeteria for a Chinese breakfast of congee and a fried dough stick, youtiao (油条), or baozi (包子), little meat-filled buns, among hot soymilk and other choices. After our morning ritual of grieving for our colorful American cereals and toaster pastries, we were shuttled to an empty building to “learn” Chinese.

On the first day of class, our language capabilities were indiscriminately judged by some absent-minded figure who sent Jules to the most advanced level while Cam, Will, and I were assigned to the intermediate class. Out of our lot, however, it was better that it was Jules who was singled out and left to make new friends. Have I mentioned how funny my cousin is?! If you were to be stuck on an island with someone, pick Julian.

It didn’t matter for long that he was in a class without the comfort of his family because the beauty of this trip lies in the relationships that emerged. If you live in a foreign country on a college campus, you’re going to need buddies to commiserate, discover the musical greatness of the recently-deceased Michael Jackson, play Chinese poker, and scheme pranks with (…so many pranks).

Though many parents, including ours, flew in to join us during the last two weeks of July as we road-tripped to Chengde, Inner Mongolia, and Xi’an, deep friendships had long replaced most homesickness for Mommy and Daddy. Through our friends, we planted wanderlust seeds, learned to take care of ourselves (do laundry, budget our ice cream and souvenir money), dealt with interpersonal conflicts (getting sick of each other is inevitable), and developed a liberating (albeit immature) confidence in our independence as travelers of the world.

To commemorate this travel adventure of a lifetime, I’m sharing a few photos, stories, and journal entries. I have distinct memories of making my teachers smile and capturing their photos on disposable cameras when I was younger, but this was the first time that I was privileged with a digital camera to be responsible for. And yes, I also have my mom to thank for instilling this lifelong habit of journaling at the age of 5! Looking back at these journal entries reincarnated my eleven-year-old voice and revived memories that I pushed aside to free up mental real estate for more “important” things, like memorizing the Preamble to the Constitution (which I eagerly forgot as soon as seventh grade was over). Here’s to July 2009 and the experiences in life worth remembering. 

“First Step in Beijing”

We had to hand in health forms and get our suitcases after the ride. As we left to go on the bus, my suitcase lagged heavily behind me. it was burning outside. The sun shone brightly. My duffel kept slipping from my suitcase. I was annoyed and exhausted. The bus wasn’t much better. Wilson fell asleep. I took some pictures… I went to bed at 9:00-is pm. I woke up at 12:30 am and at 3:30 am. My roommates, Jenna, Sharon, and Camie woke up, too. We all couldn’t go back to sleep. (July 2, 2009)

One of the first photos I took in Beijing.

“First Real Day at Camp””: 

I fell asleep for about an hour. (Until dinner.) I was so tired. I did not like my dinner. SO far, dinner is not my favorite meal. Cam and I thought that we would be able to take a short nap, however, we fell asleep and did not wake up until 3:30 am! (July 3, 2009)

“First Disappointments”: 

We tried to look in a bookstore, but the people who worked there asked us questions about where we were from. We tried not to give too much information, but they really creeped us out. (July 4, 2009)

“An Even Stranger Day”: 

Aly, Cam, and I went shopping afterwards. Cam got an ice cream, and on our way back, about 10 people got out of a car and asked us about the camp we went to*. We didn’t want to answer them, so Cam + I mumbled a few things and walked away. Aly ran after us, and we ran away.

…After dinner, we went to our culture class to watch Transformers 2. Sadly, it was in Russian. (July 5, 2009)

 *(Addendum: in retrospect, they didn’t just get out of a car and ask questions. 10 people got out of a 5-person, black sedan and cornered us against a wall. They were also very tall and intimidating. Never doubt a child’s instincts.)

“Tragedy”: 

Class was endless. I was called for hard questions, but I got them correct. Wilson did not pay attention and got embarrassed… The lady at the little deli asked us where we were from. Cam said, “from that university.” She said, “Which country?” I panicked and said, “Huh?” “Are you from Hong Kong?” She asked. “Yea, yea!” I answered enthusiastically. Cam said the same. “Oh, I could tel since your mandarin isn’t very fluent,” she said. We smiled and left…

...I learned to record with sound on the camera!! (July 7, 2009)

“A Happy Day”: 

Today, I woke up at 5:30 am. Cam was still asleep, and I heard a knock on the door. Everyone was asleep, and I was scared to open it. I got up at 6:00 am along with Cam, and we headed to the tennis court with Alison, Jasmine, and Rebecca. There was a light drizzle, but we didn’t mind…

In class, Wilson got lots of question wrong, and I had to answer them all for him…

Later, our group, and W+J’s* buddies came (and Lawrence) to go to the field to play hide + seek tag + manhunt. We came back, and the boys left with Tommy, Wesley, and Sterling to play soccer. Alison, Cam, Rebecca, and I watched music videos of Michael Jackson and wrote in our journals. We tried copying his dance moves. It was haaard! Later on, Rebecca, Alison, + Jasmine decided to sleepover. Sharon + Jenn moved to Emily’s room. Everyone was happy. We were all giggling and talking. We eventually fell asleep… (July 8, 2009)

Bargaining for cheap souvenir key chains at Tian An Men Square.

The ride was 1 hour long, and I got a headache. We first went to Tian An Men Square. There wasn’t much to see. Some people tried to sell us stuff. The teacher was trying to tell them to leave. They didn’t. I also saw 2 little kids looking in the garbage. I felt really bad. many elderly people take plastic bottles out of trash cans, too.* (July 10, 2009)

*(Addendum: this is still something that chokes me up today. I saw an elderly man at 6 am in Ithaca do the same.) 

Aly, Sean, and Jules at dinner. We loved the Hui Yuan Dining Room initially until we got sick of the same foods served over and over again every day. 

The campus convenience store we regularly frequented to buy Magnum ice cream bars. 

We bargained for EVERYTHING! At our first stop, a watch stand, the lady asked us where we were from. “Um…America.” “Oh,” she said, “How come you have a Chinese face? You look like a Chinese person!” “That’s because we are Chinese.” I said blankly. That was the “blondest” question I’ve ever heard. We drove hard bargains. Emily got a round panda for 30 RMB. Wesley went to the store and tried to bargain. The lady refused, so we all walked away. About 6 feet from the door, she calls us to come back. It was funny how easily they gave in. Some kid went from $150 to $20!! Shopping was not only fun + tiring, but also creepy+scary… This lady even took Wilson’s hat and asked him where he was from. She wouldn’t let go of his hat until he bought something. She was selling purses. Aly + I walked over and grabbed him + his hat, and left. (July 11, 2009)

We first went to the Olympic Stadium. It was so cool! (July 12, 2009)

Cam + I also bought matching shirts. The lady was selling each for 230, but for us, 190 RMB. We said 2 for 80-90 RMB, she said “no,” so we left. The lady pulled on her left arm. I grabbed her other arm, and pulled. The lady said, “Okay, okay, fine, please come back.” 90 RMB for 2 shirts. (July 13, 2009)

We are going to the Great Wall of China!!!!

On our way to the stairs, we saw a camel…. Boy, those steps were some steps. “The Great steps of China.” The first flight got everyone tired. There were at least 40 flights of stairs… We were dripping with sweat. It looked like we just took a shower. We ran back down those steps. People looked at us like we’re a bunch of crazy kids. (July 14, 2009)

In culture class, we made candy. It tasted like caramel and coffee. We had to make our zodiac animal. It was fun because we had to blow into the candy. I made a very skinny ox. I couldn’t blow into it well. Wilson made a fat rabbit. (July 15, 2009)

Mom, Dad, and Cam’s dad came to pick us up. We rode in a taxi to the mall. Cam + I walked around and saw really cool cakes and cookies. The mal was sooo high-class. We even saw a celebrity!!! She was not followed by paparazzi or anything. She was just staring at me, wearing “Expensive’ baggy clothing, and she walked into a restaurant. 

Obstacle course day: a group of Chinese schoolgirls wanted photos with Sterling, Kajol, and Aakbar, our non-American Chinese friends. (July 18, 2009)

Packed for trip, took test, TP-ed Alfred’s room. (July 19, 2009)

When we exited the palace, we saw 2 male deer! People were feeding them and stuff. One almost jumped on Sean, Cam and me. SCARY!! (July 20, 2009)

In addition to ding-dong ditch: We woke up to a wake-up call and Cam’s cell phone at 7:30 am. We banged on the wall to wake them up. They knocked back. (July 21, 2009)

China isn't exactly the most safety-conscious country I've visited...

Me, Julian, and Wesley helped Tian Lao Shi get up. She was scared. (July 21, 2009). (Addendum: but she did it! And we were so proud.)

We saw lots of birds in cages, but one was free. The owner grabbed it by the neck and threw it into a cardboard box. He was making it scared, and it bit him. He started slapping the bird! (July 21, 2009)

4 hour drive from Chengde to Inner Mongolia: I saw the SOLAR ECLIPSE!! AHH!! SOO COOL!! 

We went into the hotel…It smelled like smoke, our window – broken. We can’t take a shower either. No hot water in FREEZING (chilly) Inner Mongolia. (July 22, 2009)

Ladies and gents, our beloved cousin Julian. 

The horses were SOOO cute!! I ran up and chose one. It was brown with a golden mane. The ride was so relaxing and fun. Akbar started yelling at the trainer to stop slapping the horse… Wesley’s “leader” person asked him, “Where are you from?” He said, “Uh…Hannah?” I said, “What?” The guy asked again. I said, “Umm… Hong Kong?”

Some of the leaders started grabbing the kids’/campers’ arms. I knew why. It was cause everybody went for over an hour, but we didn’t want to, and needed to pay an extra 50 RMB for 2 hours. The guy grabbed Aly + Weiling’s arm. I grabbed Aly’s and tried to pull it. It would budge. All the teachers were yelling and everyone was freaking out. Weiling started yelling at the guy in fluent Chinese… I ran to tell the teacher, but she was already yelling at the trainers. Mine was nice. She told me to go quickly… All the adults were yelling. (July 22, 2009) 

The rolling hills of Inner Mongolia.

Late night Mongolian barbecue and dancing around a bonfire.

I remember being so proud of this photo...

1 photo for 5 RMB. I took 10 free (illegal) ones. The guy didn’t notice. (July 23, 2009)

Overnight train adventures.

Brendan, Aly, and Camie working on my jumbo word search. Things we brought prior to the explosion of iPhones and social media - cat's cradle string, deck of cards, game boy, Nintendo DS, Sudoku, word puzzles, MP3 players.

The one rare photo you'll get of me, chronicling our day's adventures in my journal.

5 am in the morning, post overnight train, at a hotel for breakfast.

Pure gold.

You haven't seen a traffic jam until you've been to China.

Terra cotta warriors in Xi'an.

While my parents, Wesley’s mom, and Brandon/Tristan’s grandpa (whom we all affectionately called “Grandpa”) climbed a mountain, we biked 8 miles around an old city fortress wall. (July 27, 2009)

How photogenic is Grandpa?!

One day, he and I sat next to each other on the bus. I was exhausted but tried my best to keep conversation; it was one of the best conversations I've had in my life - Grandpa and I talked about our lives, his choice to not have a radio or TV in his home and how it was difficult to connect with people since all they talked about was their favorite TV program. When the tour guide started speaking over the microphone, we dropped our conversation and I quickly knocked out until it was time to get off the bus!

We then went to a very pretty 5-star hotel/bathroom. (July 27, 2009)

Celebrating our last day of camp at a waterpark in Beijing.

We packed up for the last time… We hugged Jenn, Kathleen, Jasmine, and Rebecca. We hugged them SOOO many times!! I miss them soo much!! (July 29, 2009)

...

When I came home, everything felt so much smaller. Turns out, I grew 6 inches taller.
A lot can happen during a month away!