Glasses and Classes

Language Tip of the Day: Our program director was telling us about "washing money" and we were very confused. Finally we figured out that she was talking about money laundering (read: laundry). In China, money laundering is 洗澡钱, which translated directly means "to wash money."

 

Fun fact of the day: Eyeglasses are all the rage in China right now. So popular, actually, that if you don't need prescription lenses, it is very hip to wear frames without any lenses in them. There are probably just as many people with lenses in their frames as there are people without any lenses.

 

Culture Shock Tip of the Week (Derived from Zuleika's famous Parenting Tip of the Week): Toilets are not always what you expect them to be, note the picture. It takes some time to get used to Chinese style toilets, deemed "a hole in the floor" by many Americans. Many people I know who have traveled in China often are very uncomfortable using them and some are even disgusted. Although I knew about Chinese toilets, I was still startled to see them yesterday the first time I walked into the bathrooms on the first floor of my dorm. Later, we learned in one of our orientation sessions that Chinese women are actually disgusted and appalled my Western-style toilets that you and I know so well. The idea of sitting on the seat after another woman has sat on the seat is extremely unsanitary for them and they also believe you can contract many diseases this way. As a result, squatting on the ground is the preferred method of use.

 

Today was our first day of classes and also the first day of our language pledge to only speak Mandarin Chinese from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. I'm really enjoying being committed to speak in Chinese all day and although it is a bit of a struggle to understand native Chinese speakers, my American friends and I are having fun speaking in Chinese together. My teachers are extremely kind but the work seems to be extremely challenging. I'm planning on having several hours of homework each night.

 

p.s. The other picture (not the toilets) is a big group of us at a Chinese restaurant eating dinner last night.