All Things Random

I have been cast as an extra (with lines!?!) in a made-for-TV Chinese mini-series. Thus far, this EASILY qualifies as the MOST RANDOM thing I ever could've imagined happening to me while I was in China. The director of my program at Bei Wai is well-connected in China and casting directors in Beijing have come to rely on our program as a reliable source of "lao wai" (foreigners) aka "white people". Yesterday, the casting directors arrived and chose those of us who fit the parts they needed. Several kids in my program were chosen. I'm slated to be one-half of a "loving couple". Anyways, if I commit I will spend a whole day on the set in early March filming and the production company will pay me for my time. Is it weird that I may appear on Chinese TV?

Last Saturday, I went with several kids in my program to see the famous Yonghe Lama Temple (Buddhist) in Beijing. It was absolutely gorgeous! The temple was overflowing with people praying because of the upcoming holidays. The smell of the incense they burned was a relief from the typical city smells of Beijing.

The highlight of the temple was the Maitreya Buddha. It is a statue carved in 1748 out of single trunk of white sandal wood. It is 85 feet tall! It took them over a decade to move the Buddha to Beijing from Tibet. It is in the Guinness Book of World Records. Technically, you are not supposed to take photos of the statue but being the lao wai that I am I did take one photo:


On Sunday, I went with 3 of my friends to see the Forbidden City, the former home of the Chinese emperors, that is now known as the Palace Museum. The complex is huge! We spent over 2 hours walking around and we easily could have spent more. I was most amused to find out that the complex now houses a Xingbuke (Starbucks). It is hidden within one of the souvenir shops but every lao wai we saw had a Starbucks cup. I'm sad to report that I was no different. I bought a mocha. I left the City with the firm conviction to one day have my own forbidden city. HA!


We've had two birthdays within the past couple of days. On Sunday, my RA turned 24 and to celebrate we went bowling. Needless to say, I did not win.

On Monday, Stephanie turned the big 21! The whole crew went out to eat at a fantastic Japanese restuarant where we all chowed down on sushi. The ritzy restuarant (by American standards) cost us a whopping $13 a piece. Miso anyone?


Other big news: Classes have begun! This week we have 3 1/2 hours of language every morning. My class has 2 other people in it. I don't think I've ever gotten so much personal attention. It's a little rough getting back into the groove of studying after almost 2 months off. Here is Stephanie and I being the best Chinese students we can be on our first day of class:

I am honestly, really happy to have started classes. It feels like I'm finally transitioning from the tourist mentality. I'm living here for the next 15 weeks!