The Forbidden City is a Really Really Big Place so Wear Comfortable Shoes

This afternoon we went to the Forbidden City or Imperial Palace. This was home to two dynasties of emperors from the Ming and Qing dynasties. The complex is immense consisting of around 9,000 rooms although the legend is that there are 9,999 and 1/2 rooms which is just under the 10,000 in the heavenly palace. Many buildings are being renovated in anticipation of the upcoming 2008 Olympics so there was lots of construction as there is all over Beijing. However, I enjoyed wandering from building to building for four hours and probably only saw 1/3 of the complex. I'm not sure if I'll go back, but I enjoyed what I saw including some wonderful clocks, including a gigantic water clock from the Ming dynasty. Here's a sample of some the sights:

Other things of note today....If you happen to find yourself touring the Forbidden City and looks like rain, rent an umbrella as you enter. Give the nice lady 10 yuan and she'll give you an unmbrella and a ticket to return when you leave. Upon return, you get your 10 yuan back. What a brilliant idea....

Today's class focused on Family Law in China, primarily marriage and divorce. I enjoyed our professory today the most. She was very honest and younger than our other professors. Her presentation allowed for lots of questions and she asked us to comment on current cases dealing with family law in China. I have some questions to email her about her pro bono work with local gay and lesbian groups in China on the issue of gay marriage here. I hope she has some good questions for me as well.

Not sure if I'll get to a post about Xian today. I am really wiped out and ready for dinner. Toting a computer on your back around the Forbidden City may not have been the best idea, but I did it anyway. So off to a comforting dinner of grilled cheese and french fries. All of the Chinese food is starting to taste the same to me so its nice to get something familar. Yesterday I had a veggie sub from Subway which is opening franchises here like crazy. And yes it was the same as at home.

One more week to go.....

I have one week left in Beijing before I head to Indonesia. Mike has promised a good time and a wonderful trip to Lombok, so I'm looking forward to not being able to see the air and some quiet time. Traveling in any group is taxing and a large group of 30 is simply draining. I really enjoy getting away from the masses to see other parts of the city. Yesterday I took the 30 minute walk from Peking University to the nearest subway stop and went to see the Nuijie Mosque in the Anglo person that I saw all morning and it was great. The mosque was quite nice but small compared to the large mosque in Xian that I had seen the day before, but there will be more on that later.

I kept wandering around and eventually came on a flea market in an old temple. It was great to wander around and just look without being hassled every other second by an aggressive salesperson. Only two people even said hello and they seemed content to ignore me which I also enjoyed. I didn't find anything to take home with me but it was fun to just stroll and look at the old Communist books, old coins, and odd things that had been laid out for sale.

After this, I trekked back to the subway and made it back in time for class at 1:30 pm to spend 4 hours on intellectual property law in China. Fairly interesting but not really my major area of interest. Although on my way back, I did see the subway stop for the Wal-Mart Supercenter and had to take a picture. I may try to stop and check it out on my way home one day just for the hell of it.

Later on Monday, we went to another university, Central University of Finance and Economics, to meet with law students and enjoy dinner. The dinner was good although there were not many veggie friendly options. After that we went to another building to talk with students. Actually there was a long series of speeches and introductions by everyone in the room including yours truly. Apparently I talk too fast which should surprise none of you. We had a good time talking with Chuck and Bill, I won't even try to tell you their Chinese names. Both were very nice young men and we had fun answering questions and spelling out words. Then back to PKU and I went off to do laundry which finished up at midnight. And finally to bed.....

What exactly are you doing in China?

Many have asked and even fewer have gotten the full explanation. So here it is:

My law school, University of Missouri-Kansas City offers an opportunity to study Chinese law in Beijing every summer. The program takes place at Peking University, or Bei Da to the locals, which is home to one of the best law schools in China. Each day we have at least one four hour class on some part of Chinese law. For example, yesterday's class was on property law in China. So far we've covered Chinese history and politics, the Chinese Constitution, criminal law and procedure, finance and banking and civil law. We will also cover intellectual property, family law, torts, and a few topics I can't remember. The rest of the time is filled with scheduled sightseeing trips, such as the Great Wall or the Temple of Heaven or we're free to go see whatever else we want. This week we've had more free time which has been nice and a lot more relaxing. At the end of our three weeks, we take a final examination over what we've learned and UMKC students are assessed on a pass/fail basis. We receive 4 hours of academic credit and can write a paper comparing some aspect of US and Chinese law for 0.5 more credits.

As for my own motivation for coming, there are several reasons. It's a great opportunity to study abroad which I never really did previously. I did spend time in many places when I was on Summer Cruise right after high school. But an extended stay in another country is different from the experience of hopping from port to port. Also this program is realitively affordable and the cost of living in Beijing is realatively cheap for us, as opposed to the costs in Ireland, another program offered by UMKC. It's also a great opportunity to learn more about a country that is a rising power in the world economically and politically. And finally, I really wanted to visit China and experience another culture and have the opportunity to travel while I can. I know that it may not seem true, but this will be my last degree for a while and work is soon to follow. Long hours of work that won't allow me to experience something like this for a while. So I guess those are my reasons or at least the most important ones.....

Was that really a trial or a puppet show?

This afternoon we visited a criminal court to watch a trial. Unlike trials in the US, trials here are closed to the public. When our program wanted to view a trial intially, they got a lot of static. The first year that they were granted permission the defendant recanted his confession which shocked everyone in the room and meant that the trial process would be a lot more difficult than anticipated.

About 80% of defendents confess to their crime making the trial more like a sentencing hearing than a trial in the sense that we know from Law and Order. The trial we watched today is a great example. The defendent, a woman, was accused of stealing 1660 yuan. She was arrested on the spot and confessed, but claimed that she had taken a sleeping pill and drank alcohol so she didn't remember the event. She had been in detention for 5 months prior to this date.

One key concept in Chinese criminal law is the guilty line. In the US, you break the law and you commit a crime. Here there is more discretion on what is considered a crime. If you steal something, like a bicyle, then that is below the guilty line. You will likely have to reimburse the owner and pay a fine or some other type of smaller punishment but no jail time. You have violated the law, but have not committed a crime. If the amount stolen is over this amount then you have committed a crime and are subject to more serious punishment in addition to the supplemental or smaller punishments.

In the case today, the line had been crossed and she had committed a crime punishable by up to 3 years imprisonment. The evidence was presented by the prosecutor, the confession, the victim's statement, witnesses, and some photos. All of the evidence was admitted and neither the defendant or her lawyer added more information. Based on the evidence the judge determined that she had stolen the money and was guilty of the crime.

Next they moved to sentencing and punishment. The prosecutor pointed out the strength of the evidence and left her case there. The defendant and her lawyer argued that she had taken a sleeping pill and had been drinking. Because of this she did not remember the events. However, there was no evidence of taking the drug offered to the court which might have helped her case. Instead the judge determined that a sentence of 6 months to one year was appropriate. Since she had served 5 months already, she would be released in one month's time.

As we watched and listened to a translation through headphones, I wondered how much of this was real and how much was staged for us. They obviously knew we were coming and at first I thought that the whole thing was not genuine. However, some students closer to the front said that the defendant was crying during the entire trial but this was not obvious to us because her back was to us for the entire trial. Still it seemed strange.

In the US if you confessed, there would likely not be a trial at all. Probably on a sentencing hearing. However, in China, all cases go to trial apparently unless they are settled out of court and this only applies in cases of civil trials. Definitely some interesting things to think about from the whole experience.

After the bus ride home, we hopped into a taxi and headed to the horrible Silk Street again. I wandered around a bit and might pick up a few things, but it has to be some suburb of hell for me. Now I'm sitting in my favorite little cafe, having a beer and some sweet popcorn which makes me happpy. I love the quiet! Later on to dinner for American food, who would have thought real grilled cheese sandwiches would taste so good.

Tomorrow we leave for Xian to see the terra cotta soldiers. I also found a listing for a gay bar with floor shows so we are going to try to find it on Friday night for some fun. So check back Monday for more pictures and commentary........

Half way there...

Today marks the half way point in our program here in Beijing. Today we had a class on property law which was really interesting.

In China, you can own a building but not the land underneath. So you either buy a land use from the government or lease it from someone else. They currently have no property law which is not too surprising given that they are a socialist state. Even the recent moves towards property law have been marked by letters from Party leaders that the shift to a market economy would be counter to the goals of the revolution and the Communist Party. Either way, there is brisk market in real estate here, but not in the same terms that we understand in the US. There is no such thing as speculation of land because when you purchase a land use right, you must complete your building or project within 2 years or the land is forfeited. While this is what the law says, the reality is often very different. Often projects are delayed and people look the other direction. This gulf between the written law and the reality of law in China has really been the most common and confusing part of this program.

Today I attempted to do something off the beaten path. I wanted to visit the Wanshou Temple which houses the Beijing Art Museum and the Watu Temple, an Indian style temple. I enlisted one brave soul to go along for the ride and we set off in our taxi. Luckily the driver knew where we were going and dropped us off right in front. As we attempted to enter, we were directed to another door to buy tickets and then directed again back to the initial door to enter the temple. Then we had an entire tour of the temple in Chinese which I do not know. We were polite and followed along for a while, reading the placards that were in English. Finally, we came to the end and were shown out while others continued the tour. Not sure what the big secret was but I'm okay with not knowing. We wandered around and looked at modern Chinese paintings and some really lovely fans. While the temple was nice to look at I am not sure that it was worth the 20 yuan entrance fee. After this, we decided to set out the Wuta Temple.

Despite my map, we got royally lost. We couldn't find the road and after about 30 minutes of hiking I was done. So we decided to get a taxi to the subway and go back to the internet cafe. Once again, I need to take a class on map reading. I got us another taxi and off we went to Beijing North Train Station. Our taxi driver seemed confused at the request but most drivers seem confused when I try to tell them our destination or point to my map. So off we went only to realize that I had directed our taxi to the train station NOT the subway station. Fortunately, there was free taxi and we jumped in to head to the Silk Market which is near the lovely internet cafe that I now sit in. So much for the road less traveled, hopefully tomorrow's excursion to see Mao's tomb and other Tiananamen sights will go better.

Relaxing Day and American Food

Sunday was a nice lazy, laidback day. I finished up my laundry and hung up the damp items and then headed out to find a place with free and hopefully fast wireless. My buddy Sara needed to download some music from Itunes for her new Ipod to use on her trip to India. We were looking for a place called Steak and Eggs in the embassy district of Beijing. I had the address in Chinese, but our taxi driver was not familiar with it. Often when drivers don’t know the address, they will just drop you out wherever you’re at.

After several phone calls, he felt like he knew well enough where we were going. However, he didn’t get us very close and we wandered around for about an hour trying to find the right street. Finally we located the street but could not get there because the US embassy had every street blocked from where we were to get to where we wanted to go. After several attempts to walk around, we finally got to the part of the street we wanted and found the restaurant right away.

The menu was made up of standard diner fare with a nice selection of pies and cakes. I ordered a mushroom and cheese omelet with home fries and wheat toast, my usual. The omelet was tasty and cheesy and the potatoes were good, too. Only one strange moment happened with the toast. After putting jelly on my toast, I noticed that the butter was actually garlic butter, but that was a small thing. Everything else was tasty.

After dinner, we tried to get online with no success at Steak and Eggs. So we walked a short way down the street to a little coffee bar on the corner called Nut Hut. We were the only people there and the wifi worked well. Also the guy working, who may have been the owner, was really nice and but not pushy, a rare find here. His name is Yossarian, like from Catch-22.

We ordered drinks and settled in to surf the web and get Sara some music. We ended up staying here for six hours. I also bought a great picture that the guy working there had taken. He does the type of photography in the shop as hobby and works as a photographer for magazines in town. I got his card, but I think I will ask if he can sign it if we go back to eat at Steak and Eggs again. I was really happy to be able to communicate to him that I wanted to buy the photo especially given my almost complete lack of Chinese skills. His English was way better than my very limited Chinese.

To Sit or Squat: The Bathroom Question

For those not familiar with the bathroom situation in China, they do not believe in Western style sit-down toilets. Most bathrooms here consist of a slit or basin in the floor. To use this bathroom, you must first squat with one foot on either side of the basin and then get your pants or skirt out of the way. This can be a challenge when your legs are tired or for those with no sense of balance. I would argue that this builds strong leg muscles that may give the Chinese a significant edge in some sporting events, such as gymnastics but not basketball. Or it could be all of the bicycle riding…

Not matter the result, it is a challenge. Many people have argued that this type of bathroom is cleaner than Western sit toilets because you don’t touch the seat. However, this may be true for men, but for women it just seems to be a mess. If you’re doing more than peeing, you’d better have good aim. And always bring some tissue or TP because there will likely not be any. This is illustration is a very clean facility with automatic flush and the smell was minimal unlike many public toilets that simply reek.

The hills are steep and the steps small and other things I learned at the Great Wall....

Yesterday was taken up by a trip to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. There are lots of sites near Beijing to witness the Great Wall. This section was chosen for several reasons. First, it is a little less touristy than the other sections meaning that it has less vendors and the terrain is a little rougher. Secondly, it has a cable car tram to the top of the wall for those who don't want to do the strenuous climb up to the wall and then walk up and down the wall. Thirdly, it has a wicked toboggan ride consisting of a plastic sled and a metal chute like track. But more on that later....

First to the hike up the wall....I'm outta shape and all those steps kicked my butt. My walking partner Lindsay and I took lots of breaks on our way up, but were pretty tired by the time we got to the actual wall. We probably should have taken the cable car tram so next time, that's what I'll do. But once up the view was spectacular. We didn't get to much of the section which required some very steep steps and lots of scrambling up and down. I elected to check out one of the many watch towers and then made my way to the toboggan run.

The toboggan was thrill itself. Whoever thought up the idea was not Chinese. When Chinese folks went down the track they went very very slowly almost coming to a complete stop. We were ready to get up as much speed as possible so we waited to give some space much to the anger of several folks behind us. However it was worth the wait. I took some footage from that trip and I'll try to post it when I get it on the computer. It was enough of a thrill that several of us took the sky lift back up for a second run which was much faster and even better. We really need one of those in KC.

Here's more pictures from the Great Wall to put the scope of the whole thing in perspective:

More Catching Up on Sunday....

It's Sunday in Beijing and now that we've been here a full week, I'm starting to get a feel for the layout of the city. The street names are familar and so are many of the large obnoxius billboards lining the streets, mostly in Chinese with wacky English translations. Most are for expensive homes and new developments in line with the booming market in upscale housing.

Today has been spent on mundane housekeeping things. But in China, even the mundane seems to operate on a completely different pace taking longer than anyone would expect.

I spent the morning doing laundry which was a major undertaking. We have one small washer on our floor but no dryer. To use the washer, we must buy a card at the front desk for 50 yuan, $4.50, which includes 10 washes in the little washing machine. Then we can get 15 yuan back when we turn the card in. Very elaborate. So another student and I split the cost of the card and I started doing laundry at 7:30 am this morning because I couldn't sleep. It takes about an hour for the washer to wash. Then I had to find a dryer. The rumor was that there were dryers in another building so I put two more loads in to wash, one on floor 2 and one on floor 4, and headed to building 6 to find the elusive dryers. After a stilted conversation with the woman at the building desk, I purchased two small tokens for 10 yuan and was directed to floor 4. At the far end of the hall I found a set of two washers and dryers almost straight out of a laundromat. I put my two tokens in, picked the temperature and pressed start. Now we were on the right track. The next two hours consisted of me walking between the two buildings and the different floors to check on the laundry. Finally I got all three loads done and even though much of it was still quite damp, but its clean!

This afternoon Sara and I took a cab across town to find a wireless internet hookup. We tried a place called Steak and Eggs which is run by a diner cook from Florida and has some super tasty diner food that actually tastes like American food. The Chinese interpretation of American food is interesting and the hamburgers tend to be deep fried like a pork tenderloin. But Steak and Eggs has great pies and cakes and I think we're gonna try to order a lemon meringue or key lime before we leave. It's certainly not cheap food but it really is a nice break from the food we've been eating.

I wanted to try to catch up on all the sightseeing that happened last week and put some pictures up as well.

On Wednesday, we went to the Summer Palace which is near our school. The Summer Palace was the summer residence used by Chinese royalty to escape the summer heat of the Forbidden City in Beijing. The site is especially relevant because it symbolizes the impact of the West on China. In 1860, British troops badly damaged the Palace during the Opium Wars and later again after the Boxer Rebellion when Chinese workers killed a number of Westerners. Despite it's beauty, many Chinese find it to be a sad reminder of the long history of Western intervention and force in China. Much of the grounds and buildngs have been overhauled although renovations continue in preparation for the upcoming 2008 Olympics.

My experience began with being annoyed at the sheer masses of humanity that were everywhere when we entered. Group tours usually come in the afternoon and it seemed to be a particularly popular sit on that day. As we started to enter the Long Corridor, I only saw masses of people and we decided to take a quick side exit into a small courtyard. I actually accidentally hit the audio on the camera and also got my reaction to this sight which was something like, "Oh, my god! Do I have to really go through this crowd!"

Luckily, we didn't. The small corridor led to a courtyard and many other paths that led to the other parts of the garden. From here a few of us scattered up the small paths and found really wonderful views of the gardens and Beijing. Here's a small sample of those pics:

The next afternoon, we went to Cultural Street which is recreation of an old Beijing street although I think it's just another opportunity to sell stuff to tourists. It was interesting to walk through but with many tourist sites in Beijing, it's hard to enjoy anything when 15 people are trying to get you to come in and buy something. This was not as bad as in Silk Street which is a five story building packed with little booths selling everything from knockoff Gucci bags to electronics to "Rolexes" along with curios, tea, and souveniers. It was the most exhausting experience I've ever had. Imagine an aisle as wide and long as a grocery store aisle with booths on either side and women almost yelling "Hello ladie. Come inside and look" or some variation on that on both sides for the entire length of the aisle. Now mutiply times 10 rows times 5 floors and you've got an idea of what I'm talking about. I need to go buy a belt this afternoon and I'm already dreading it.....

That night we went to dinner to have Peking Duck. I haven't eaten any kind of fowl in a long time but I decided that I came all this way I should try the duck. So they bring a whole roasted duck that has been specially prepared and then slice it in to around 100 pieces. The skin on the duck is super crispy and its a little fatty, but really good. To eat it, you get small pancakes that look more like mini-tortillas or won ton wrappers. Then you take the pancake and put some cucumber, which I skipped, and some bamboo shoots and then duck on top of that. Lastly a little sauce and then roll it up and eat it up. I think I'm gonna try to go the really famous Peking duck restaurant, Quanjude, later this week. I'll try to take some pictures to put up from that experience.

After dinner, we went to see a Chinese acrobatic performance which was amazing. I am always impressed by the amount of skill, training and concentration that goes into these performances. It feels a bit odd acting like a tourist, but I had already paid for the show and didn't want to miss it. I have a few pics and hope to get more later but here's a small sample:

I still have the Great Wall to talk about but I think that I will put that in a new post.....

China Update...

One week in China and it seems like forever. Our days are planned to the hilt. Since I last posted here we've been Temple of Heave, Tiananmen Square, Silk Street market, Summer Palace, Cultural Street, Chinese Acrobats, and the Great Wall. All of this with class every morning and a field trip to a Chinese law firm. The food has been really good for the most part, but the air quality here is horrible! I have had a sore throat for the last 3 days and the sky is so hazy that sun is barely visible.

First, we went to the Temple of Heaven which was really crowded. As our first experience with sightseeing, we experienced the agressive street vendors that would become a constant presence. The Temple was interesting but not really impressive. The sheer scope of the site and the intricacy of the layout is really impressive. But with so many people it was really overwhelming because I'm not a fan of tourist sites. Anyway here's a few pictures to enjoy:

The next day we headed to Tiananmen Square for a very few minutes. It was hot and sunny, but otherwise interesting. I plan to head back this week to go the Great Hall of the People and possible Mao's tomb, so there may be more later. But for now here's a small sample of sights:

I'll have to get caught up on everything else tomorrow. It's time to head home to bed so check back soon.....

More on the internet here...

Ｉ　ｇｕｅｓｓ　ｔｈａｔ　Ｉcan access the blog site to post and publish but cannot actually view my own blog. The web is so strange here. Sorry if things look weird or strange but I'll keep trying.....

Finally a Bar with Wireless Access....

Hello all!

We've finally found a place with wireless. So we're sitting here listening to the Mambo Kings and trying to order food and drinks. I have lots of pictures from the last few days and will post those as soon as I get the batteries in the camera charged up.

So much has happened in the last few days and so much happens in one day. Up at 7 am for a 10 yuan breakfast of eggs, buns with brown bean paste, pineapple and tomatoes. This costs about $1.12 and is good but getting old after 4 straight days. After that its off to class for four hours, yes, four hours. Most of it is pretty interesting but its a long time to sit still in a hot room for 4 hours. Then we go to lunch somewhere on campus (More about the food later....) Then at 1:30 its time to get on the bus and go to a cultural site for a few hours. Then dinner and maybe some drinks and snacks. Usually I'm wiped out from the day and head back to the room, wash my feet and go to bed. Then do it all over again......

Our rooms are nice by Beijing standards -- air conditioning, color tv, and a mini-fridge. But its certainly no 4 star hotel. Although there's hot water for tea and the beds are ok. Hopefully there will be a few pictures to share later....

Also next weekend I will be heading to Xian to see the Terra Cotta warriors. This weekend we head to the Great Wall. So much happens in one day its hard to keep up with it all.

I guess that's all for now. I plan to write more regularly since I have a nice place to go now and get online. Hope everyone is well and I miss everyone!

Internet Access In Beijing

I have very limited access here and will only be posting intermittently until I get it worked out. Hopefully some pictures from Temple of Heaven and some other outings and comments on my classes in Chinese law and history. Hope everyone is doing well and I will add more later but for now its back to class....

Long Layover in Hong Kong

After a 13 hour flight from LA to Hong Kong, I decided not to sit in the airport for a 12 hour layover. So I picked up a tour guide brochure and tried to find something to do. At 5:30 am there are very few people in the airport and it was easy to move through immigration and customs. Next to drop off the luggage and the Left Baggage site. Then I had to find out how to get to the Giant Buddha which I decided would be my choice. After exchanging some money for Hong Kong dollars, I wandered around a bit before asking directions, which no one should be surprised about.

But I eventually found the S1 bus and eventually the 23 to Po Lin Monastery. I thought we had narrow roads in Arkansas, but the road to the monastery made the Pig Trail look wide. After a 40 minute bus ride, I arrived at the monastery and the Great Buddha, Tian Tan Buddha.

Of course, it was 7:45 am and nothing opened until 9:00.
So I went off to find something interesting to look at. I had read in the little brochure guide that there was something called the Wisdom Path so I set out to find it. After hiking along for about 10 minutes, I found what I was looking for and some spectacular scenery to go along with it. The series of 38 tremendous wooden posts stand in the shadow of Lantau peak and are inscribed with the Heart Sutra. They are placed in a figure 8 to symbolize infinity and the highest post is blank to represent "sunyata" or the Buddhist principle of emptiness. The posts make a striking image and I was glad I made the short hike to see it.

I returned down the path to the Po Lin Monastery which opened at 9:00 am. Although in need of repairs, the monastery is gorgeous. There are plants and flowers everywhere. I later had a wonderful vegetarian lunch in the restaurant. As a Buddhist monastery, no meat was allowed on the grounds. The lunch was great although I'm not sure what the name of the dishes were. The thin fried tofu with lemon curd sauce was so good. As was the tofu and vegetables and the mushrooms and baby bok choi. All prepared on site at the monastery. Really lovely.

But before lunch I went to see the Giant Buddha. As you can see in the picture, it was quite a climb. I was ready to pass out by the time I got to the top. Between the elevation, the humidity and the heat as well as my general lack of stamina with stairs, it was a challenge. The view was worth it though. I took pictures, people watched and read about the life of the Buddha. It was really beautiful to watch the clouds roll in across the statute. I would highly recommend it to anyone with a layover in Hong Kong.

Next on to Beijing and the reason for the trip. We begin classes on Monday to learn about the Chinese legal system. I am interested and excited about the challenge