好久不见。。。(long time no see...or blog)

To begin, a few photos...My life over the past three weeks...new words and Chinese textbooks. Lots of them. If you every hear me grumble about 生词 (shengci), this is what I'm talking about. Last week, like the two weeks before it, have been spent in coffeehouses desperately trying to memorize hundreds of new words. They say it gets easier, though...we'll see about that.

Last weekend, out group arranged a trip to a factory complex (798) that has recently become a hotspot for contemporary art in Beijing. The art was good (although some of it fairly commercialized, as is some art everywhere, I suppose), but it was certainly enhanced by the venue.
On one of the factory ceilings, part of a phrase that, paraphrased, means "Long live Mao."
Graffiti.

So anyway, my apologies for not updating more frequently. To be honest, I've found that my Chinese classes not only take up exorbitant amounts of time, but they're largely unfulfilling. I need to learn how to balance my time more successfully, as I want to see and enjoy Beijing while I'm here. I've got a lot on my list to see that just hasn't been completed as yet: Houhai lake (which is supposed to be lined with chic cafes and bars), an acrobatic show or Peking opera (we'll see how that one goes), the Lama temple (a large Buddhist temple not too far from campus, even just some of the government museums.

In any case, I'm feeling the need to do new things and experience new areas of Beijing.

Perhaps that's where our Spring Festival break comes in. The Year of the Pig begins 18 February. As the largest Chinese holiday (and one of the few during which most people have time off of work), the Spring Festival is already a big deal, akin to Christmas in the states. We have over a week off for the festivities. I'm pretty excited to see all of it, take good pictures, and hopefully get to participate a little bit.

I'll be sure to keep you posted.

－君宁