Eric's Beijing Diary

I had dinner with some of the students in Langfang last night. On our way to the cafeteria, one young lady made everyone stop so I could tie my shoes. ("It's very dangerous!") Well, I wasn't the least bit terrified, but I thanked her profusely and went through the ritual anyway. Kids are so thoughtful.

Breakfast at the hotel this morning was pretty much the same as usual. I noticed they bought me a new jar of jam. But the bread was dripping wet, so I just broke it up and put it in the milk. It isn't milk, exactly; it has something else in it, but I have no idea what that might be. Still have no idea what in the world I'm supposed to do with the raw egg, so I just drank it.

I went to the English Corner at Renmin Daxue (People's University) tonight. Renda is one of the leading universities in China for humanities and social sciences. There were about 500 people there in the university square waiting to speak English with someone. It was dark, so I couldn't tell how many foreigners there were, but there must not have been very many, because I was immediately surrounded by a crowd of people wanting to speak English. Lots and lots of questions:

How do you like Beijing?
How long have you been in China?
How long are you going to stay here?
Is this your first visit to the English corner?
What do you think about Taiwan?
Do you support Chen Shui-bian?
Area you a Christian?
Where can I go in America to study landscape architecture?
Where are you from?
Do you like Chinese food?
Why is it so hard to get a visa?
What is your solution to the Taiwan problem?
Did you come here by bicycle?
How much did your bicycle cost?
Are you satisfied with your salary?
What do you think about the "Passion" movie?
Where do you teach?
Do you think there will be a war with Taiwan?
Do you teach International Relations?
How do you spell "Oracle?"
Do you like Chinese food?
Do you know any universities where I can study landscape architecture?
How long will you stay in China?
Do you like China?
Do you like spicy food?
Where are you from?
Can I study landscape architecture in Arizona?
Do you like Chinese food?
Why did you come to China?
Where is Arizona?

Once the questions started, I had pretty much resigned myself to staying for awhile, becuase I was completely surrounded. But people were polite, and I was able to satisfy the questions of most people until one lady had to leave and asked for my business card. Suddenly I had a dozen hands in my face. No getting around it, you can't please everyone. I think if I ever go there again, I will go later in the evening, because once you are there, you really can't leave. I tried to leave several times, and finally managed to get out of there at about 10:30. I felt sorry for those who had just arrived and wanted to talk, but I just couldn't get to all of them. I don't really think studying abroad is that important. When students complain about their trouble getting a visa, I don't have that much sympathy. I really don't think American universities are that special. But learning English is important. Very important. So I really do sympathize with students who are struggling with it. There are more English speaking people in Asia than there are in the United States. English is the global language of trade, and learning it is a must for students who want to be competitive in the new China. In my opinion, the value of studying abroad is highly overrated. But it is hard to overstate the value of learning English.