How to make the entire nation of China mad: Say that a Ninja beat-up on the Shaolin Monks. This would mean Japan>China in martial arts, which, I would point out, China invented. Check it out:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070831/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_china_ninja

Interestingly, I've heard none of this on the streets in Beijing. I suppose the entire nation might be an overstatement.

Today I bought some really cool chopsticks to carry with and use when I eat in a restaurant instead of their chopsticks with questionable sterility. This is perhaps known as being over-prepared, but I think it will work to my advantage. I didn't buy supremely expensive ones. They are simple and nice.

Also today I registered for my dorm room. I'm sharing a suite with another American. He seems nice enough, but perhaps a bit over-analytical. He speaks some Russian or something. We're just sharing a bathroom, though, so it should be ok. And he's American, so that's nice. I was vaguely hoping for someone from Spain, but America's cool, too.

Right now I'm rooming in a hostel in Beijing's Hutong district. I'm adding a link so you can Wikipedia this when I finish talking about it. The Hutong are alleyways that are all linked together. This essentially forms a really big block. These alleys are hard for taxis and other cars to navigate, so pedestrian traffic--along with bicycle/tricycle/rickshaws--is the most common here. Tonight I was walking through and noticed the sense of community this area provides. It was a little after dusk, and the people were eating their dinners outside their houses. They were squatting or sitting on steps in clusters of men or women. Neighbors, extended family, friends. I thought this was an interesting underscore to the understanding I already have of Chinese culture and social relations.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutong

Anyway, I'm doing well for now. I wish I knew what people were saying, but they seem nice so far. There are some issues accessing enough money to register for school. Has to do with ATM limits and stuff. Money is in the bank, I just can't get it out fast enough... C'est la vie.

T

Ni hao, world!

I'm in a quaint cafe in Beijing. And everything on this webpage (which is backed by Google) is in characters unknown to Westerners. I have never been in a completely different language-speaking area. Other travels have been a skate-by-on-English situation. Not here. You order in McDonalds in Chinese. Or by pointing, which is my preferred way at this point. All that said, I cannot say how glad I will be to start learning to communicate in Chinese. I want to know what's going on around me!

The smog is pretty intense here. And it's very dusty. But other than that, it's not bad. The temperature is probably 75 degrees Fahrenheit and it's bright if not blue outside.

I'm going to find my school, a cell phone, and some new chopsticks today. I'm feeling emboldened for no external reason.

Come on, China!

T

You found me. More when I get there.

T