March 15th...

I’ve been thinking a lot about how different these 4 months are going to be from most study abroad experiences in, say, Europe.  I don't really have the ability to travel all over the continent, taking wild weekend trips wherever I so choose. The main goal (not necessarily my MAIN goal, but a very big one) and necessity here is to learn the language.  I suppose it is possible to get around and navigate without it, but the pleasure is lessened if you aren’t able to share your experiences or interact with local Chinese (or if you literally can't find where you want to go because no one can understand you).

I find it quite hard to be patient. I know that I have to spend a lot of time studying and building up my vocabulary, but I just want so badly to be able to have a full conversation with the people I meet who don’t speak English.  Last weekend we all went out to see LDTX II perform.  I’m mainly working with the first company so this was my first encounter with these 16 dancers.  They are all college graduates, a few of Minzu Daxue, many of Beijing Dance Academy.  The reparatory was mixed with a few pieces choreographed by the 1^st company dancers.  From what the director, Willy Tsao, insinuated to me, I was expecting a sort of amateur performance from dancers fresh from the classic Chinese folk dance world.  What we received was anything but this.  The dancers held such emotional power on stage and were quite well versed in “contemporary vocabulary”.  There was a huge range of music, theme, and emotion presented, which created a very satisfying and well-rounded program.  My frustration arose when we attended the question and answer segment with Willy and the dancers after the program.  I could understand a few words here and there, but was not able to piece anything together coherently.  I know that I can’t expect to be able to understand, but it’s so hard not to. My wonderful ethnic dance teacher Liu Liu did some translating for me, but it’s impossible to expect someone to translate an entire conversation.  I know it takes patience,…and I am trying to slowly develop it. Slowly… J

I also went to a reggae show last week with a few friends at a great music venue called  愚公移山 （YuGong YiShan).  There is a lot of live music happening around here, it’s just a matter of finding it and translating the information! I thought of you, lovely roommate Ashley, because Peaches is coming to town in a few weeks. 

This weekend, LiuLiu took myself and 2 other girls to a performance at the Poly Theater.  It’s this incredibly grand theater downtown with a stage practically three times bigger than I have ever seen dance performed on.  It was the equivalent of a story ballet, but instead of ballet as the dance form, it was Chinese Folk Dance (Muslim based).  Because the arts (for the most part) are government controlled, the budget is gigantic.  You would not believe the elaborate costumes, set design, music, and lighting (cameras, unfortunately, prohibited).  The dancing was sort of a mix between Chinese Folk dancing and ballet inspired modern.  It was very Busby Berkeley-esque, with what seemed like hundreds of dancers creating mesmerizing patterns across the stage.  The dancers were very technically skilled, especially the principal male.  His movement seemed inspired by a mixture of ballet, acrobatics, martial arts, and Chinese folk dance.  He was incredibly strong and lithe, sprinting across the huge stage without making a sound.  The performance was full of drama and exaggerations, but was incredible to watch.  It reminded me of the value of the corps de ballet.  In my dancing I have been so focused on individual discovery and creating myself as a dancer, I often forget of the wonder that can be created in simplicity through symmetry and unison.  The performance ended with a long set of bows, directors in Chinese official soldier’s uniforms, and enormous bouquets of flowers lining the stage for photos and film opportunities.  It was quite a spectacle!

This coming weekend, we (the 5 other girls in my program and I) are all going to Xi’an!  We are leaving Thursday night, taking the 12 hour overnight train.  I think we arrive around 7am Friday Morning.  We haven’t made specific plans for Friday yet, but we might rent bikes and ride the wall surrounding the city (apparently a really beautiful ride). We’re staying in an international hostel Friday night (the equivelent of $7.50 US per night for a bed, free wi-fi, coffee in the morning and a beer a night), and will spend Saturday visiting the home of the Terracotta Warriors.  We will take the Saturday night train back to Beijing and arrive sometime early Sunday morning.  I’m sure the weekend will have all sorts of other exciting things to share later J

Ah yes, as far as dance developments…I still don’t have a set schedule and probably won’t for the next 4 months.  Whenever I feel that I can skip class, I head down to take class with LDTX (unfortunately not as often as I would like).  There are a few studios around that offer open classes so I’ve been trying to get a good schedule worked out with those locals (again, the language barrier is very difficult), and I have a studio at Minzu that is open to me a few days a week.  I’ve started to give myself class, which takes quite a bit if discipline…but it’s working out alright J.  Along with these open classes, next weekend, a new-ish company, Tao Body Theater, is beginning weekend workshops.  They are offering a set of 3 classes, 1 per weekend, rolling for the next few months.      

Here is a bit of their mission…

         Creation is one of humanity’s most basic abilities. In the face of boredom, creation shakes us; when we lose direction creation points out a new path. In the process of creating, we somehow overcome the barriers that contain us in everyday life, and we overcome ourselves.

         Tao Body Theater was founded in March, 2008, in Beijing and is currently composed of three independent artists. Although three individuals, we are brought together by a shared longing. Art is humanity’s creation! What we long for is to use “the body” to create. Each body has its unique secrets, and through rigorous, sincere, and exploratory corporal research, we hope to stretch the boundaries of the flesh, and in this process of excavation to discover the body’s unknown possibilities.

         This exploration of the body and its possibilities has, for us, a kind of sacredness, because in the process of using the body to create, we have found our own faith. In our pursuit of the corporeal, our spirit becomes free.

         Tao Body Theater has always devoted itself to the exploration of “body education.” Tao Body Theater has been invited to teach at the Central University of Nationalities, Beijing Language University, Shaanxi Normal University, Yan’an University, Henny Jurriens

Stichting, etc. Tao Dance Studio has also offered open classes and workshops at Beijing Nine Theaters, Fanxing Theater Village, Contemporary MOMA Art Center, etc.

Course Type

1: Concepts Class

         Participants: Participants of all ages and professions          welcome.

         Content: Through the use of games, we will open up and          excavate the possibilities of the body, allowing each          participant to experience freedom and creativity.

2: Theater/Performance Class

         Participants: All theater/performance hobbyists and          professionals with some physical creative ability and

         expressive ability are welcome to attend.

         Content: Liberation of natural instincts, voice and          body training, use of words to guide improvisation.

3: Body Technique Class

         Participants: Choreographers, performers and students          with a foundation in professional dance training.

         Content: Development of bodily technique in muscle and          joint movement fluidity.

And the best part about it? These classes are free! This group of dancers is really trying to create a community in Beijing of like-minded dancers. I am incredibly excited to become a part of it. And many thanks to Emily Wilcox for letting me know about this wonderful opportunity! She is a PHD candidate at UC Berkeley who spent last semester doing research at Minzu Daxue.  She happened to know Dan Smyer Yu (my program director) and Sarabeth Burman (the program directory of LDTX). What a small and wonderfully interconnected world.

I’m also going to start working on putting together a piece with LiuLiu (my ethnic dance teacher). She is trained in all the ethnic minority dances of China but is absolutely in love with modern dance.  She wants to create a sort of “East meets West” piece.  We are in the very beginning stages, but I’m sure I will have more to share soon!

If any of you happen to be in Shanhai for the World Expo, look me up! I will be there for 6 nights and performing on the 18^th and 19^th with Beijing Dance/LDTX. 

Take care all J

The dancing begins...

Hellooo friends. It’s Saturday, 4pm, and I am sitting in the internet café again. Our building has been in the dark ages all week, so I must resort to this smoky environment in which I can access the web (Actually, now, it’s really Sunday that I am posting this. The internet café failed me so I couldn’t actually post this online).

I had my first 2 days of rehearsal with LDTX this week.  As a result, I feel like someone just used me as a punching bag. Going 3 weeks without dance class then jumping into 6 hours of rehearsal is definitely not the smartest idea I’ve had. Nonetheless, I had a really great 2 days. On Thursday I left my apartment around 8:30am to brave the long commute to Shuangjing. It takes all of an hour to get down to the studios because of the 3 subway transfers I have to do. Luckily I have my Chinese lessons on CD so I can do some studying while I am packed like a sardine into the subway. Sarabeth met me at the station in Shuangjing and walked with me over to the studios to meet the dancers. She showed me around a bit, but had to get back to the offices (the new LDTX facility is under construction so they are rehearsing at Beijing Song and Dance Troupe right now). I took ballet class with everyone from 10-11:30, then we rehearsed from 11:45 to 5:30 with an hour lunch break.

I am working with the 1^st company right now, which has 13 dancers- 7 male and 6 female. I think there is one 22 year old and the rest are 25 to 40. I’m definitely the baby of the group! And, as expected, the tallest as well. Ah, such is life. When they took my measurements on Friday for costuming, I scanned all of the other female measurements, especially the height, inseam, shoulder width…Let’s just say it’s a good thing they are creating new costumes for this piece! This week we worked with 2 choreographers from Hong Kong on the piece we will present in Shanghai in June at the Expo. The kind of work we did was really familiar to me. Lots of improvisation, creating our own phrases, putting them with other phrases, etc. The only difference was that all communication happened in Mandarin. Just a small difference, really (I hope you noticed that was dripping with sarcasm). I definitely don’t speak Chinese. However, the combination of body language and my small vocabulary made for a surprising level of movement comprehension! Also, very luckily, the 2 choreographers speak English. Though they do speak, the company members don’t (a few can speak a bit, but no one actually uses the language). When the choreographers did translate for me, it was just a few words or sentences, not as eloquent as their descriptions in Chinese. But, despite that little barrier, I really was able to fit myself into the dancing and understand the directions we were all given.

While communication through dance is not incredibly difficult, socializing is quite a different story. Not only have I stepped into a world of an unfamiliar language, I have stepped into a professional company, a family already established. If my observations are correct, the 13 dancers in the main company have a very similar relationship to my dance family at LINES. We are all so close that adding a new body into the mix always calls for a bit of hesitation. Now just imagine not being able to verbally communicate…Mhmmmm, not so easy. Willy Tsao (the artistic director of LDTX, City Contemporary Dance Center in Hong Kong, and GuangDong Modern dance company) introduced me to everyone, but all they know is,

Zhe shi Rachael, ta shi Meiguo ren. Ta zai Minzu Daxue xuexi Hanyu…

(This is Rachael, she is from America and is studying Chinese at Minzu University…I couldn’t understand the rest of what he said).

I cannot expect to become “one of them”. At least not right now.  Maybe when the language barrier is thinner than a concrete wall.  It is really only difficult for social reasons.  If I didn’t care about having personal relationships with these people, it wouldn’t matter.  But that, fortunately, is not the case. 

Despite the tough stuff, I am incredibly impressed with the dancers. I can really see the age and experience in everyone (in a good way). It makes me understand why companies don’t want to work with dancers who haven’t had much professional experience. There is a level of confidence and assurance that these dancers have, and it is noticeable when they are dancing and even smoking outside (yes, all but 1 or 2 smoke in the alcove right outside of the studio. Definitely something to get used to. I have kind of come to terms with the fact that all of my clothing perpetually smells like cigarettes.) There is also a sort of level of natural professionalism that exists within the company. As I mentioned before, they all seem very close, so there is a lot of goofing around and laughter. But even with this, they are always 100% present in their dancing and choreographic task. The dancers are there because they want to dance, not because anyone is making them. I suppose these are all assumptions, but…that’s all I have to offer until I can actually talk to them :P. 

Thursday I went through moments of feeling quite defeated. I really just wanted to talk to the dancers, tell them why I was there, what I wanted to learn from them, what my experience was, etc, and I wanted to hear about them and what their experiences were.  Again, something I have to come to terms with right now- very limited verbal communication. I mostly felt this way during our breaks and lunchtime. I ended up just keeping to myself, writing in my journal, getting come coffee. It’s very easy to be shy when you can’t use your words to express yourself.  As most of you know, I always talk about the fact that words are my most valuable form of communication. Welllllll, too bad for me, I need to find a new way to communicate! No, I shouldn’t say it’s too bad for me; it is definitely a good thing. It’s just hard to adjust to, to not able to ask questions, tell people what I need, etc. BUT, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Friday was much better as far as socializing goes. One of the newer dancers, Li Heng, came and sat with me while I was scanning through my dictionary (pathetic, I know J). He literally doesn’t speak a word of English, but somehow, we had a small conversation. I managed to tell him how old I was and that I couldn’t come to class and rehearsals every day because I have language classes.  He then offered to be my “hanyu laoshi” (Chinese teacher) and I offered my services as his “yingwen laoshi” (English teacher). During our lunch break, he invited me to the cafeteria with some of the dancers and I ate with 4 of the company men and the 2 choreographers. Sigh of relief . It made me feel so much better that someone took an initiave to include me (especially since I couldn’t manage to do it myself).

Though my body is in serious pain, I had a great 2 days of dancing and all of the inescapable exposure to Chinese is really good for my language skills. I am pleased to be bruised and sore again, and feel really good about getting back into the studio. I’m also supposed to be working a bit with Liu Liu, my ethnic dance teacher, creating some sort of piece. Apparently, there is a “competition” between international students, so my program is putting together some sort of program of pieces- from classic Chinese dances to awful American pop culture dance, it should be embarrassingly entertaining.

And now, the evening calls. Take care all J

Update!

I will post some photos later. I just spent a long time setting them up and my webpage crashed. Poo. Enjoy :):)

Hello!

Ok! I've finally gotten access to blogspot. This censorship thing is definitely a challenge to get used to. After struggling to find a free proxy server or vpn (verified private network), I ended up paying $30 to have access to a VPN for 3 months. Basically, it allows me to access a private network based in San Francisco so I can surf the web freely. Thank goodness.

SO

I have been here for one week now. The flight here was incredibly long. 1.15 hr to Newark, then just short of 14 hrs to Beijing. Thank goodness for the in-flight entertainment of on demand movies and tv shows. It wasn't nearly as bad as I expected. I somehow made my way through the Beijing airport, past the disease inspection, visa checkpoint, baggage claim, and customs, and met my 6 fellow CIEE program members. We were all shipped off to drop our things at the dorm, then met Dan, our program director for dinner. I think we had some Tibeten food that first night, but to be honest, I'm not sure. Since, we've eaten out almost every meal. Last night, my dinner cost 2 US dollars. About 16 yuan. It's going to be a rude awakening when I return to the states and have to pay an arm and a leg for my food. Ah well.

We arrived just in time to close out the Chinese New Year and celebrate Tibetan New Year. The fireworks are neverending, and quite frankly, I am very sick of them. They have been set off every night since I've been here, usually right outside of my room until past midnight. In theory, you are only allowed to use them between 7pm and midnight, but no one enforces that. I think the stands are finally beginning to sell out, though. To celebrate the last day of Chinese New Year, we were invited to one of the professor's homes to make jiaozi (dumplings). We spent the evening attempting to communicate in our broken Chinese, learning a bit of Tibetan dance, watching magic tricks with American "bicycle" cards, and preparing the jiaozi. The family was incredibly hospitable and friendly. For Tibetan New Year, we went to another family's home to eat baozi (also dumplings). Delicious :)

We spent Wednesday evening through Sunday doing orientation activities. Registration, campus tours, paying fees, taking the Mandarin placement test. I definitely know MUCH less Mandarin than I thought I did. It's one thing to practice vocabulary words and use them in a sentence, but when a local Beijinger speaks to you, things are completely different. I'm beginning to get used to using the few words I know to communicate, but I am basically illiterate for the time being. Luckily we are all very eager to learn the language and have lots of tutoring and speaking opportunities (along with 4 hours of Mandarin class a day!).

The first weekend we traveled about 2 hours north of Beijing to a slightly quieter section of the Great Wall (Mutianyu). It was absolutely beautiful. The day was a bit hazy and chilly, but with the thousands of steps we climbed, the wind was very much appreciated. We spent about 5 hours hiking the wall, and returned to our tiny rural "hotel" where we slept on a marble slab. Literally. The 6 of us (all women) slept 6 abreast on a big flat piece of stone covered with a few old comforters. And yes, all that you hear about toilets being nothing but holes in the ground is quite true. We are lucky to have real toilets in our apartments, but at all public bathrooms and most local restaurants, you must squat. We also were so lucky to have a photo of a naked asian woman on our bathroom wall. Complimentary, of course.

Now, on to the FOOD. Apparently, people in China don't cook much. At least not students. Like I said before, dinner usually costs around 2 US dollars. For lunch today, I had 2 large servings of jiaozi and baozi for 4 yuan each. Less than 2 US dollars. I have been eating breakfast in my apartment, but we all find something fun for lunch and dinner. We are in a great location, with restaurants and grocery stores lining the streets. We are also just about a 10 minute walk from the subway, which is incredible efficient, clean, and easy. Everything was revamped for the Olympics in 2008 so it's easy for those who don't speak Mandarin to navigate.

Sunday night, I met with a friend from the states who took me around his area of the city. It was quite refreshing to spend time with people who are familiar with Beijing and are bilingual. I definitely would recommend studying some Chinese before moving here! It is possible to figure things out, but unless you are in an extremely touristy or student populated area, you will find very few people who understand any English.

Classes began on Monday, and are going very well so far. At Minzu Daxue (Minzu University), there is a huge school of international education, so all of the international students take Mandarin together. My class has students from the US, Nepal, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, and a few others. Our teacher speaks very little English so we must speak almost entirely in the little Mandarin that we know.

As for dance, I meet with Willy Tsao on Friday. He is the artistic director of LDTX, and we will try to figure out how my schedule will work with the company. Looking at things now, it seems impossible, but after speaking with Dan, we are determined to make things work. Thank goodness for the subway! I will write again once we have had our meeting.

OK, I'm going to cut it there for now. Things are going really well here in Beijing. I am so happy that I was able to make this trip work, and am so excited to spend the next 4 months here.

Again, send your addresses :)

Hey World!

Well folks, the day is finally here. I take off in a few hours, and to be honest, the sheer reality that I will be landing an a non-English speaking country in less than 24 hours has not hit me yet. My mom asked me tonight if I knew who was meeting me at the airport. I said that I assume someone from my program will be there holding a sign. But suppose they weren't? Suppose I find myself completely lost with no idea where to go. I do anticipate a few of these moments, but hopefully they will be few and far between!

I have managed to pack both of my bags under 50lbs and am ready to go! Let's hope customs lets me through. :) I'm also going to be crossing my fingers for as little precipitation as possible. Snow always has a way of mucking up my travel plans. Knock on wood.

Last, please send me your addresses (unless you have already). I will be writing lots of postcards:)


Rachael Elliott
CIEE Room 101, Building #8, College of International Education
The Minzu University of China
27 Zhong Guan Cun South Ave
Beijing 100081


Take care guys!

The Importance of Imagination...and 8 days until my departure!

Take the next 20 minutes to watch JK Rowling's 2008 Harvard commencement speech, The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination. It was first introduced to me by the most honest and passionate professor I have had the pleasure to experience, Gay Lynch. If you prefer, you can read the text here.

http://harvardmagazine.com/commencement/the-fringe-benefits-failure-the-importance-imagination

J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement from Harvard Magazine on Vimeo.

As my departure rapidly approaches, this ability to empathize, to forge human connection is ever-present in my thoughts. I have been living at home in Massachusetts for almost two months now, and though I do love spending time with my family, I feel quite disconnected from a community. I am so used to a constant barrage of opinions and messages from friends, peers, teachers, street dwellers, my elders, and co-workers, it has been peculiar to have such a long period of "calm". Though vacation is quite important in order to maintain sanity, I am entirely ready to reengage in a community and begin a new phase of my life.

Tonight, I sat at my computer screen for upwards of two hours, reading through months of an old teacher's blog posts. His son was afflicted with an undiagnosed chromosomal disorder, and after a long battle and almost daily hospital visits, he passed away at the age of 3 years 8 months. Reading the blog entries of this devoted father was both heartbreaking and joyous. The incredible amount of hope he, his wife, and older son sustained throughout Errol's short life was insurmountable. Along with each grim diagnosis shared on the blog, he posted a beautiful picture of his little boy with a face full of laughter and joy. One of the most wonderful parts of reading Errol's story was the emergence of an incredible amount community involvement. Neighbors and friends stepped in to help this small family in every way possible, which allowed them to savor the special moments together instead of worrying about the awful debt that was building up. Once again, the power of imagination and human empathy.

"Sometimes when I see Errol in pain, straining for breath, miserable, pulling at his tubes, suffering, I wonder if we are doing the right thing to work so hard to save him. I wonder if there is enough light in his life to outweigh the suffering. But if I step out of the PCICU tunnel and look at just one picture of Errol smiling, the wondering stops.

Before the last surgery, I thought we were going to lose Errol. I thought: this is the best person I've ever known (sorry Katie Couric), he's achieved enlightenment, he's spreads joy to all. What a huge pity to lose such a rare and blissful light.

The snow is starting to melt outside. It will be a long time here at the hospital but one day we will step out into the sunlight and Errol will look up to us and smile."




PS. I received the scholarship from the Foundation for Asia Pacific Education! An application of about 5 different essays puts you in line for $500-$1500 in scholarship, and I was awarded $1500! A wonderful bit of news that puts me a bit more at ease financially. Hopefully my credit card will stay at a balance of $0 :)

A look back...

Originally, my plans to study abroad in China blossomed from restlessness and dissatisfaction with my circumstances and environment. I desired change and a broader perspective in relation to my social contribution. I thought that traveling to China to be part of a social science based program would allow me to discover my strengths outside of dance and understand how I can effectively share my gifts with others. Learning Mandarin would also broaden the circle of my effectiveness. While I still am looking for a chance of pace and new information, my excitement for the experiences in the future through dancing in a new environment has grown and given me much new perspective on my social role.

I spent this weekend in New York City, visiting friends, auditioning and watching dance. Every moment of my weekend was jam-packed with socialization, most of which was motivated by my connection with the dance community. The dance scene in NYC is huge, and it feels like once you know one person, you know everyone. Every dancer that I met knew someone that I danced with, or worked with a choreographer I had, or went to elementary school with my childhood friend. It was incredible to be reminded of the tightly woven community that is the dance world. I had some truly incredible conversations with dancers this weekend-dancers I only interacted with for 30 minutes. It reminded me that dance is truly a language in itself-a universal language that allows bonds to be forged at an incredible pace. It also reminds me that dance can truly be an unselfish activity (something I have struggled with since last year) whether it is pursued as a recreational activity, art for, or source of physical and emotional joy. No matter a dancer's intention, a message will inevitably be portrayed--conversation will be stirred-someone will be influenced by the dance.

In China I will be entering into this conversation with an entirely new culture. I hope that it is as open and accepting as the ones I have been a part of thus far. With the inevitable culture shock, I know that things will take time to get used to, but I think that the universality of dance will allow me a smooth transition into Chinese culture (fingers crossed!!).