Month: July 2017

Checking In and Checking Out Chinese Cuisine

(7.1.2017)

Naturally, when travelling to a foreign country, trying regional cuisine comes with the territory. While food unites people universally, food also gives personality to different cultures and regions. I recently learned that many Chinese consider dinner to be the most important meal. Families can eat breakfast or lunch casually, but for dinner, families eat together. I respect such strong familial bonds and devotion.

As for my own experiences, some of the major highlights of my trip involve food. Right from day one we were introduced to the Chinese dinner table culture. Once most of the students arrived and settled into their rooms everyone came together for our first taste of authentic Chinese food. The teachers told us they ordered “safe” foods for our first day. Minutes after we sat down dishes quickly filled up the turntable. Instead of having my own individual dish I had a chance to try several dishes, most of which I still do not know the name of. Since then I learned that I need to pace myself when eating with a group. Just as one dish on the turntable is consumed another comes out to take its place.

After that first day, I have made of point of trying as many different dishes as I can. From home-cooked meals to street food I have had more variety in my meals than I have over the span of my life. Rather than describe everything, I have included images below.

As part of our program the teachers treat the students to dinner every Friday. These “language tables” serve as both rewards for the students’ hard work throughout the week and as casual learning opportunities. The past two language tables included Peking duck and Hotpot. Peking duck is one of Beijing’s proud delicacies for a reason. As wonderful as the flavor of the duck meat and the texture of the duck skin were, I found the hotpot to be especially memorable.

Hot pot’s history extends as far as 1,000 years ago. Originating in Mongolia, hotpot first spread to Southern China. Unlike most unique cuisine, hot pot has been popularized around China. Most local cuisines stay in one area and remain a specialty in that province or city. Sometimes referred to as Chinese fondue, different variations of hot pot have emerged. Sichuan was the first to adopt hotpot. Today Sichuan hotpot, or Chongqing hotpot, is known to be spicy. Beijing often has lamp hot pot, Guangdong has seafood hotpot, and Hong Kong specialized in beef hot pot. Hot pot is further categorized into different soup bases and cooking methods. Some hot pots are dry, but most variations involving cooking at the table. Guangdong hot pot for example has a light soup base with an instant boiling method (涮 shuan = the act of placing foods into the hot pot). As soon as ingredients are cooked they are taken out and dipped into dipping sauces of one’s choice. Another variation includes cooked main meat. With this variation a meat flavor such as fish or mutton dominate the scent and flavor of the water. Yet another variation has all ingredients cooked. Instead of instant boiling, the pot is just meant to keep the food hot. A last type has different soup bases. Stock boiling for a while before using the instant boiling method. In this variation, dipping sauces are integral to the experience.

The restaurant our class went to is a well-known chain called 海底捞火锅 (Hai di lao huo guo). This chain is known for its service. According to one of the teachers if someone goes to eat hot pot alone the restaurant will provide a teddy bear for them to eat with. When we went, the service was extremely upbeat and friendly. Waitresses and waiters were prompt to bring dishes, take away dishes, and aid in the cooking process. Some students were even brought up to dance with the staff members. Later we also watched a young boy perform a sort of noodle dance. He spun and whipped around dough into strands of noodles that would be placed in our hot. We partook in the instant boiling process with two different soup stocks: mushroom on one side and tomato on the other. Timing is key for a successful hot pot experience. Thinly sliced meats, seafood, and various vegetables all have different cooking times. The waiters and waitresses tell the customs how long to cook each food. We were also given aprons and plastic bags for our phones and glasses. With the shàun method, the teachers unceasingly placed food on our plates as they prevented the boiling water from ever being empty. As a result, I ate much more than I should have that day, but I’m not really complaining. More so than normal I had a very balanced meal that day. My experience was extremely filling, yet fresh, delicious, and enjoyable. A sense of community accompanies the hot pot tradition. The concept of freshly cooked ingredients, sharing among friends and family, and gathering around a round table are all aspects of hot pot’s appeal. Hot pot is physically warming and heartwarming.

Добро пожаловать в Россию!

Welcome to Russia! I’ve just finished up my first week here in Saint Petersburg, and it already feels like I have been here for a long time! There’s so much to take in, between the sights and sounds of the city itself and the major adjustment of taking classes in a foreign university. Despite any challenges, I have managed to settle in, and I couldn’t be happier to be here.

My program here with the School of Russian and Asian Studies (SRAS) has three lengths: 6, 8, and 10 weeks. As I am in the 6-week program, those doing the longer versions arrived a month before I did, so they’ve been able to help me adjust to the area. Saint Petersburg is an international city: in addition to Russian, of course, and English, I’ve also heard Korean, Chinese, German, Spanish, French, and more! The dining options correspond; within a few blocks of campus there’s everything from traditional Russian to shawarma to new age American cuisine, most all of it tasty.

It has been challenging attempting to adjust to the language difference. The obvious examples, like ordering food and attempting conversation, are indeed difficult and occasionally frustrating, but I find most off-putting the small things. For example, it is disorienting hearing bits of conversation on the street and not recognizing most of the words. I’ve been trying to follow the advice of others in my program: celebrate the small victories. One day at lunch, I successfully ordered food and answered a follow-up question, all without issue, and I felt a sense of accomplishment.

On the whole, the strangest adjustment has been the so-called ‘White Nights’. Saint Petersburg is close to the Arctic Circle, so the sun rises at around 3:30 in the morning and does not set until well past 10, and the sky never gets dark. It’s very easy to look outside, think it’s the late afternoon, and discover it’s already 10:30. Compounded with jet lag, this made the first week of sleep difficult.

Attached here is a picture I took of the Казанский кафедральный собор (Kazanskiy Kafedral’niy sobor, or simply the Kazan Cathedral), a large Orthodox church modeled after St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. It’s the next block down from campus, right in the heart of Saint Petersburg! On the whole, my first week was rewarding and exhilarating, if also intimidating and challenging. I hope that the remainder of my time will be the same!

Le Bon Sens Est La Chose Du Monde La Mieux Partagée

This weekend I visited Descartes, France. Once called La Haye en Touraine, the small town was rechristened “Descartes” in 1967 in honor of the famous French philosopher’s birth in the city in 1596. My eventual dissertation may involve a study of neglected aspects of Descartes’ philosophy, including the understudied influence of his philosophic project on the historical development of Europe.

The fame of Descartes’ “method,” in which he first doubts all things of which he is not certain, and then constructs a new system of knowledge upon the edifice of this doubt, conceals a more supple philosophic mind than most philosophic commentators have appreciated. The Descartes you were taught in “Philo 101,” in short, hardly resembles the real man. This trip was therefore a wonderful opportunity to discover a living memorial to one of the towering geniuses in the history of Europe.

M. René Descartes, Maison Musée René Descartes

The town has turned the family home of Descartes into a museum, which turned out to be far more elaborate than one has a right to expect of a museum in a town this size. After an initial awkward conversation with the woman working the museum, I was outfitted with an audio guide and given as much time as I wanted to tour the birthplace of M. Descartes. Or was it? The first piece of information given me by the audio guide was in fact local gossip. Legend has it that Descartes was not actually born in the home, but in a carriage on the way to the home as his parents rushed to arrive before the baby. But, as the audio guide counseled me, let’s not bother ourselves with such spurious rumors.

Full-paneled reproduction of the original title page of the “Discours de la Méthode”

Inside the museum, I discovered the resolution to a question I have wondered about for some time: could Descartes read Ancient Greek? The answer is “yes.” The museum had on display a replica of Descartes’ schedule and curriculum at the famous Jesuit school of La Flèche, in Northwest France.  He studied both Latin (never in dispute) and Ancient Greek at the school. This information helped resolve, for me, the further question of whether Descartes had read Aristotle in the original Greek or whether he had only read the Latin translations of William of Moerbeke and the scholastic interpreters of Aristole. It is likely, to the point of near certainty, that Descartes had read Aristotle in his own tongue.

Beyond this important historical fact, the museum itself offered one fascinating panorama after another about the life and work of Descartes, including panels on his famous friendships with Fr. Marin Mersenne, S.J., Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia, and Queen Christina of Sweden. I was pleased with how many of the panels I could make sense of without needing to search for English translations in the audio guide. Although I certainly had to work to interpret each display, I could follow the developments in Descartes’s life. I was aided by the fact that I was already familiar with many of these developments, but it was a reassuring moment in my French language studies.

A panel dedicaed to one of Descartes’s closest friends and interlocutors, Fr. Marin Mersenne, S.J.

Before this weekend visit to the town of Descartes ever took place, however, I was witness to the most interesting and contentious dinner conversation I’ve yet experienced in France. My host family invited a family friend over for a wonderful dinner, preceded by the opening of a bottle of Champagne( from Champagne…) and political discussion in the living room. While the French are keen to keep political discussion away from strangers, they are eager to engage in political dispute among family and friends. In truth, I was the precipitating cause of the dispute. I posed a question I thought would be mostly factual: How is it that so many people of Northern African descent ended up settling in Tours? I asked this question in part because immigrants from former French colonies had settled, or so I had thought, for the most part in the South, along the Côte d’Azur, and in Paris.

My question set off a conversation that outlasted the pre-dinner apéritif and dinner itself. The main point of contention was the extent to which the French had a right to demand that immigrants adapt to the French way of life. The particular point of dispute was not whether the French had a right to demand this—all were of accord that this right existed—but rather the degree to which it could be demanded by French society.  Of particular importance was the question of whether the French, an historically Catholic country with a secular constitution and increasingly secular mores, should demand secularization from Muslim immigrants of Northern African descent. The table was certainly not of accord on this point.

Baozi

Most people who are familiar with Chinese cuisine have heard of Baozi. It is a staple of Chinese food, but some people do not realize just how much this food means to the Chinese people.  A Baozi is steamed bun that is filled with a variety of different meats, pastes, or even soups. They typically come in two sizes. Da Bao (大包) are typically around 10 cm across and Xiao Bao (小包) are half that size. The invention of the Baozi is credited to Zhuge Liang (181-234), a military strategist from the Three

Kingdoms period (220-280). It is said that he and his troops were on an expedition to south China when his army caught a plague. Zhuge made a bun shaped like a human head from flour, pork and beef which was offered as a sacrifice to the gods and later given to the soldiers to cure their illness.

Baozi are simple to make, but there are so many different types of Baozi, and they can be eaten with many different spices and sauces. However, besides their wonderful taste, Baozi are popular for their convenience and price. Baozi can be found all over Beijing. Walking along the road, it is very common to see people carrying bags full of them. Also, you can eat Baozi for any meal of the day or as a snack. I often go to a Baozi shop down the road in between classes or on my way home. Additionally, Baozi are a cheap option for how filling they are. One of my favorite things about Baozi is that even if you buy them often, you can always try a new filling or style of Baozi.

Mid-Autumn Festival – 中秋节

The Mid-Autumn Festival （中秋节）is originally a harvesting festival celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar during a full moon – which usually takes place in September or October.

The Chinese National Tourist Office and Hong Kong Tourism Board describes this day as the day of the year in which the moon is roundest and brightest. Traditionally, families pray to the moon, offer sacrifices to the moon and express yearning for the loved ones who live afar.

The Mid-Autumn Festival emphasizes family gathering, thanksgiving, and praying for a prosperous and good life. On this day, Chinese, Vietnamese, Singaporean, Indonesian, Malaysian, Taiwanese families gather and eat special traditional mooncakes called Yue Bing （月饼）filled with egg yolk or lotus seed paste.

“mooncake mid autumn”的图片搜索结果

Legend has it that the celebration when the Moon goddess of immortality, Chang’E, drank overdosed on the elixir of life. The drink was intended for her husband, Houyi, who shot nine out of ten suns out of the sky. Chang’E unwillingly  floats to the moon (not too far from earth), leaves her husband and had to become immortal. Her husband loves her so much and displayed his wife’s favorite foods and fruits as sacrifice to the moon. Another historical legend has it that mooncakes originated in the Yuan Dynasty when revolutionaries passed on messages to organize an uprising against Mongol rule.

The round shape of the mooncakes symbolize reunion and familial unity. Traditionally, the senior family member would cut the mooncake and give a slice to each family member. In recent times, family members gift each other mooncakes. After talking to some locals, they mention giving and receiving too many mooncakes to eat from different family members and family friends. This gesture reminds locals of the importance of family unity.

 

Kung Fu

Kung Fu is a traditional practice in Chinese culture. More literally translated, kung fu refers to any skill that is acquired through practice, so many forms of martial arts are included in this term. It is said that Chinese martial arts originated in the Xia Dynasty, when the emperor introduced fighting systems to China as means for self defense, hunting, and military training. This past week we discovered a Kung Fu class being offered here at Peking University, so we decided to try it out!

Our instructor turned out to be an extremely experienced kung fu artist who even majored in kung fu in college. He took us through some of the basics at our first practice to give us a taste of Chinese martial arts. We began with some “qi,” which is an internal style of martial arts where we really focused on controlling our bodies and blood flow. Then, we moved on to “hand pushing” where were learned 2 basic patterns that actually turned out to be self defense moves (if performed correctly). In the second portion of our class, we did paired up and practiced a self defense move used to escape another person’s grasp.

Overall I found the class to be not only fun and useful, but also extremely interesting as our instructor filled us in on a lot of the history that has come with the practice of kung fu. However, kung fu is an extremely complex practice and has a deep history, so I hope I can continue to learn more throughout the rest of my stay here in China.

 

 

First Week in Amman!

As of this week, I’ve officially been in Amman for a little over a week! Boy, has it felt like I’ve been here WAY longer than that! Trust me, it’s been great and exciting getting to explore such a complex place like this, but there have been quite a few bumps in the road along the way.

Let me tell you about my first few days in Amman! I was so lucky and am very grateful that I could stay with one of the kindest and most welcoming alums, Theresa Rinaldo along her fiancé, Jerome. I’m not gonna lie, they had quite the amazing set up compared to what I was expecting in Jordan because not only was there hot water, but there was also a faucet for clean drinking water. I was so amazed by that! I was also able to go to one of the most popular restaurants in Amman, Hashem! WOWZA! That falafel and hummus was pretty amazing. While we were just… “Roman” around downtown, we spotted a concert that we ended up going to at the Amman Citadel. The Citadel is historically significant because has many buildings and ruins from the Roman, Byzantine, and Umayyad periods so in case you didn’t get the pun, now you know!

 

 

 

 

 

It’s always so crowded, but it’s so yummy! Also sorry for the quality… Lighting isn’t always the best in the city!

 

I also need to add this… I WENT SWIMMING AT THE US EMBASSY! Why this is so amazing to me, I will never know. I felt so important walking in, handing in my ID, receiving a badge, and going through security just to swim in your typical swimming pool. I think the most impressive thing about it was the fact that the bar served Dr. Pepper. NEVER HAVE I EVER SEEN DR. PEPPER OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES!

 

After a super wonderful and comfortable stay with some nice folks, it was time for me to leave and do what I had been anticipating all summer… Meet up with my roommate, Olga, and move into our apartment. On the way to an infamous McDonald’s that kept being referenced, I had my first full out interaction with a taxi driver who could barely speak English. HOLY COW! WOW! I never knew I could even speak with someone for 30 minutes in Arabic! Little did I know that would not be the craziest thing I experienced here.

Guys, I didn’t even have a mop to clean this up!

The next day is when culture shock began to sink in and living on my own (well, with a roommate) wasn’t so cool anymore. We had decided to go get some groceries like every adult is supposed to do so we could come back and fix dinner. After getting back, we realized that our refrigerator didn’t work! We tried plugging it in and waiting, in hopes that it would get cold, and after 4 hours—nothing. The milk and the “meat” we had bought were going bad so we had to use it. We cooked some pasta with this mystery meat and ate cereal so of course, we needed to be responsible and wash dishes. Unfortunately, as the water was draining, it leaked from the pipe and flooded our entire kitchen area. Can I just say at this point, I’ve had enough of this “adulting” idea, but it didn’t stop there. Olga and I heard a loud knock on our door and finally, it was our housekeeper to the rescue! Except he didn’t speak a lick of English so we were forced to explain our entire situation in Arabic. YIKES. My two years of Arabic did not prepare me for all of this so with our limited vocabulary, we were finally able to get the housekeeper to understand our problem and he fixed our problems! Or so we thought. The craziness continued. As we were waiting for our replacement refrigerator (that was supposed to be delivered to us in 30 minutes), we hear a knock on the door. In hopes of finally settling everything, we open it up and lo and behold, there is a man standing there with a suitcase full of perfumes. He also didn’t speak English very well so here we are, sitting in our small living room having a ton of perfumes sprayed all over us, in the hallways, in our bags, and even on his arms. We ended up having this sales pitch go on and on for over an hour and finally, we just bought this “designer” perfume. It was so strange because this man kept expecting me to translate what he was saying to Olga as if she couldn’t speak Arabic, but little did he know that she knew just as much as I did! It ended up being such a strange experience that all we could do was laugh at how random it was.

Only here will you find “The Top Quality” perfume!

The next day was our placement exams…. TALK ABOUT YIKES! I had absolutely no clue what to expect. I was so nervous because I haven’t practiced in so long, but somehow I managed to receive one of the highest scores! Because of that, I was placed into the highest level, which is level 6. If we’re being honest, before coming to this program, I had thought I would be at a level 2 or 3, but when I saw that I made it to 6, I truly couldn’t believe it. It was something I did not expect, especially since Arabic is something I’m not confident in. Not yet anyways.

And here’s why I was so amazed that there was a faucet for drinking water!

My first day of class was extremely intimidating. First, let me explain how my morning started out. I woke up and began to take a shower when suddenly, the water pressure only becomes drips of water. For a girl with longer and thicker hair, this is not okay. At one point, the water completely stopped. This was probably the first time in all my years of traveling that I ever experienced frustration because of a lack of a necessity. Usually, I’m okay with not having everything I need, but I this time was different for some reason. After about 30 minutes, I was able to finish my shower and head to class. It turns out,  I was with 4 other students who have all studied Arabic abroad for at least a year! And a couple of them for 3 years! This was such a shock to me since they all seem to be so much more advanced than me, yet I somehow was place in the same class. There were two guys from Russia who seemed SO intense. I kid you not, they were even correcting the professor. That definitely did NOT help my anxiety. The second day when one guy walked in, he shook everyone else’s hand but mine! I was so shocked! It finally settled in that he is from Russia and culturally, things might be different.

Overall, despite these series of events, I am still so excited to be here and am amazed with how much I’m growing. My Arabic class here at the University of Jordan is very challenging, but I know I will begin the acquire the language by being a part of this level. It’s very interesting because, as my professor put it, we are “playing with words” every day, meaning that we are always trying to figure out the meaning of a word and its function based on what we know. We’re also learning the exact meaning of the words we know and using them in a way that a native speaker would, not in the way we would if we based it on literal translation. It helps being introduced to the dialect in class because when people speak the colloquial language, I can get a better understanding of what they are saying and can build my vocabulary first in the class then in everyday interactions. I will admit, I’m still learning how to handle being one of the only people here from the United States because I’m WAY out of my comfort zone. I can’t even speak English like I normally would since most people here aren’t fluent, which can be frustrating at times when all the culture shock begins to pile up on me. It seems like everything I’ve known about living a life in another country has gone out the window and quite frankly, there are times where all I want to do is go home so I don’t have to keep trying to figure everything out. Every situation I come across tends to be one where I’m completely lost and need figure out an entirely new way to handle it whether it be with my apartment, interactions with people, or even sitting in class. I am now re-learning everything and although it is incredibly frustrating, I know that with time and prayer, I can and will overcome these small obstacles. Yalla! (or “let’s go”)

P.S.- Sorry for such a long post! I don’t always have internet so when I post, it will more than likely be a bit longer 🙂

July 7th – Second Week at SNU

I think one of the most challenging things about learning a language is getting used to different idioms and cultural nuances. Being bilingual comes with costs as well. I’d be trying to explain something in one language but I can only think of the specific phrase in the other language. After being around Korean speakers for a while, I definitely had gotten used to Korean sayings and phrases that only exist in the Korean language and would be hard to translate to English. For example, there is this one term “찌릿찌릿” and it loosely translates to “shooting pain”. This term is usually used to describe pains when you have a bodyache.

This Friday, we went to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and was able to go into the third infiltration tunnel, a tunnel built during the Korean War for the purpose of sending North Korean troops all the way to Seoul, the capital of South Korea. This tunnel was discovered in 1978 and the North Koreans were accused of violating the 1953 Armistice Agreement. This is the third of four known tunnels, but there could be up to 20 more. It was really eerie being inside this tunnel. The North Koreans disguised it as an abandoned coal mine by smearing the walls with coal dust. There were also many holes in the walls, which turned out to be dynamite holes, and they all faced the South. Additionally, as we went into the tunnel, the decline was pretty noticeable. This was so that any water in the tunnels would automatically drain out to North Korea. We also went to Dorasan Station which is the train station that used to connect North Korea and South Korea. The best part of this experience was going to the Dora Observatory, situated on Mount Dora, which is where one can see into the reclusive North Korea.

Peace bell near the Dora Observatory

Behind me is a sign that says “To Pyeongyang” which is the capital of North Korea

“End of separation, beginning of unification”

views from the observation deck (north korea)

“Dora Observatory”

Gay Pride in Paris!

For my final post of my SLA program, I am going to write about my experience attending Paris’ gay pride in late June. While it happened a little while ago, I thought it would be interesting to share what it was like on my blog. While it certainly had a similar feeling as previous American Pride Parades that I have been to, there was certainly a distinct feeling of Frenchness in the air. The parade was incredibly joyful and everyone who was marching in it seemed so empowered and happy to be there. However, as always, the parade had many political undertones. Specifically, there were many people marching in the parade with signs and floats that were in support of “le PMA” (Procréation Médicalement Assisteée, or Medically assisted procreation) for gay and lesbian couples. Under France’s current laws, no one outside of heterosexual relationships is allowed to engage in PMA. However, there are large segments of France’s population that are in support of these rights being extended to gays and lesbians. While I obviously understand this issue in an American context (which is not really an issue…), it was so interesting to use the Pride Parade as a way to learn about what rights are lacking in France for LGBTQ+ persons. As a Political Science student, it was very thought provoking to engage in a bit of comparative politics by seeing the progress that has been made in Europe as opposed to the US for these marginalized groups. Interestingly, I found the PMA to be to most prominent issue, while Trans rights are typically at the forefront of American pride parades.

In addition to getting an idea about LGBTQ+ culture in France, the parade was also a good exercise in French vocabulary. There were a plethora of signs at the event, and most contained funny or ironic slogans which were hard to decipher. I found myself using my phone’s french – english dictionary during the parade. While slightly embarrassing that this is what I was focused on, I will say that I certainly learned some new vocabulary that is LGBTQ+ specific, which was helpful considering that those things are not typically included in your average French book!

 

Below are some pictures of the Parade and of the things I saw. It was definitely one of the liveliest moments of my time here!

 

Here is a photo of one of the many groups advocating for PMA for all:

Another general photo of the parade:

This was the beginning point of the parade at La Place de la Concorde:

Week 5 — New class

My fifth week has been an interesting one, as I have begun my level C1 class at the Alliance Française. Contrary to what I had anticipated, it has been really great to switch up the dynamic of the class with another set of students and a new professor. Luckily, this professor is just as excited to correct us as the old one was, which again has continued to help my French.

Our professor has given us a lot of tips of the best places to visit in Paris, and she said that a must-do are the fireworks at Versailles each Saturday night of the summer. So, a group from my class decided to go this past Saturday. While I had visited Versailles before, I never got the chance to visit the gardens. When we arrived, we spent about an hour wandering through the maze of absolute stunning gardens and fountains. I had previously learned about the construction of the fountains in a class at Notre Dame, so it was so cool to finally get to see them up close, and let me tell you, they are impressive for technology from the 1600s-1700s…

After meandering through the gardens, we sat down and ate the dinner pic-nic that we had packed. I must say, eating a baguette and drinking a bottle of wine with friends was the most French I have felt yet…!

After our dinner, we took our seats and waited for the fireworks. While we waited, we watched flames be shot into the sky by little flame throwers that were timed to the beat of the music. It was incredible to watch, especially with a view of the castle in the background. After around a half an hour of waiting, the fireworks finally began. As expected, they were absolutely stunning. They lasted for nearly twenty minutes, and by the time they were finished, no one got up and moved, as we were all so mesmerized by what we had just seen.

It was certainly a night to remember, and one that I will always hold close to my heart! Below are some pictures of the night. Sadly, they don’t do it justice, but hopefully you will have an idea of what it was like!