My first full day in Beijing was focused around how much Mandorin I have forgotten. We had our language placement exams and I couldn't recall a lick of Chinese. Stopping for a year after taking it truly made me forget the language. I expect relearning the language will come quickly though since you are constantly being bombarded by it. Peking University is absolutely enormous--it's like our own private part of Beijing.
My roommate and I wondered out into the city this afternoon--it is astonishing how much it has grown even since the last time i was here 2 years ago. We walked through the local stores and you could tell people were wondering why we were in there. I'd occasionally try to speak the little Chinese I can recall to the workers but then they think I know more than I actually do and would instantly start speaking extremely fast making it impossible to communicate. I think the speed of the language is going to be the hardest part about trying to use it while I'm here.
Crossing traffic in the city is insane! Imagine trying to cross the street in New York or Chicago but add as much bike traffic as there is car traffic and then couple that with the fact that many of the drivers are recently from rural parts of China and have no regard to common traffic laws. It's intense and makes you feel like the frog in frogger-- you just have to go for it when you get an opening and cross little by little haha
I aim to start using my camera here once I get situated and will post pictures when I can.
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