[First published July 18, 2015] Okay, so for our summer vacation we flew to Xi'an, an inland city in Shaanxi province which was formerly the national capital for several ancient dynasties. In the heart of the city is a complete (but partially reconstructed) city wall and the streets are laid out in a grid pattern. It would be pretty hard to get lost, you might think, if your landmarks include a four-storey-high city wall with gates marked "South," "North," "East" and "West." Yet Ross and I kept getting ourselves turned around and confused about which way we walked to get to the Bell Tower and which way to the bus station. Even with two maps!

We were trying to be as independent as we could be in a strange city where we can't read most of the signs and can only speak a few dozen words and phrases. Out of stubborn pride I suppose -- well, not just pride (and boy, our conviction that we could hit the ground and find our way around took quite a beating,) but a desire for thrift. P.J. O'Rourke said that the mark of an advanced civilization is how quickly it can suck the money out of your wallet. Xi'an certainly passes this test.  So I thought I'd share some detail about what we experienced and learned. 

[First published July 15, 2015]  When this old world starts to getting me down..... 

For me, the highlight of the visit to the ancient city of Xi'an was our time spent up on the city walls. The Bell Tower and Drum Tower are beautiful and worth a visit, but riding a biycle around the city walls was a real pinch-me moment. Here we are, riding around the top of the city walls on a bicycle in the middle of China! How 'bout that!  We were proud too, of completing the 14 kilometer ride especially on such a hot day while many others were opting for a chauffered ride in the electric carts. Some of the Chinese tourists were cheering the old foreigners on, giving us the "thumbs up." 

First of course, there's stairs..... there are always stairs....

Which this bride used to great effect for her wedding portrait. She is wearing red, the color for celebrations in China.

 As you can see, it was a hazy day, unfortunately, but that's par for the course in China's cities. But if "bike riding on top of a wall" sounded like an unwise proposition, you can see for yourself how broad and level the top of the wall is...

[First published July 30, 2015]  Continuing my series of blogs with advice for the newcomer to China....

Here are some things it's valuable to know when you step off the plane:

Getting your tired, dazed, jet-lagged self, and all of your luggage, out of the airport: If you are staying at a hotel after arriving in Beijing, let's hope you've picked one that offers an airport shuttle service. We like the Citic Hotel Beijing Airport. Otherwise your first interaction with Chinese commerce will be an inflated taxi ride at the airport. Look for the taxi stand and don't go with the people lying in wait at the arrivals gate offering you a taxi. There is a rail service that connects with the subway service, for the adventurous. But I for one wouldn't take a large suitcase onto the Beijing subway system during rush hour. 

Tips -- speaking of tips -- in Beijing and Shanghai and in the most Western-oriented hotels, we tip the bellboy and the chambermaid just as we would at home. But the local taxi drivers  (here in a city in the middle of Shandong Province) are absolutely flummoxed when we try to tip them. And we do, especially if they have driven us out to our campus at night, because it's a long drive back into town with little prospect of picking up a fare.  We don't tip at restaurants or at budget hotels. I've never noticed a tip jar at a coffee bar, either. So, no need to tip outside the major metropolitan centers or major tourist places...

[First published July 9, 2015] Hi folks, long time no see, as my students enjoy saying. And no wonder, the Chinese (Mandarin) language doesn't use articles like "a'," "an" and "the", or verb tenses, so "long time no see" is a more literal translation of what a Chinese person might actually say, as opposed to, "It's been a long time since the last time we saw each other." 

I have all kinds of resolutions for blog posts in the summer months -- pictures! trenchant commentary! unsolicited opinions! jokes! reflections on teaching! insider scoops! but for now, please excuse me while I finish the last of the oral exams, mark the last tests, enter the last scores in the spreadsheet, and pack up another semester...