american student | Anastasia Taber

The Chinese Millennials—How a Generation Views Its Country

Thursday the 15th of December 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

I am writing this post before I travel during the National Holiday. For those of you who don’t know what that is, the National Holiday is an annual government-sanctioned holiday that occurs every October. Usually the holiday lasts seven days, but the dates aren’t ever clear until about a month before, and this year the government surprised everyone by giving nine days off, not seven. The number of days off supposedly corresponds with how well…

This semester has changed my life

Sunday the 4th of December 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

This semester has changed my life. From a young age I have read books as a way to gather knowledge about the world. Both of my parents share an ardent love of books; my dad a passionate devotee to non-fiction, my mother with her perennial stack of bedside fiction that never seems to shrink despite constant reading. Growing up, my mother filled the house with movies and TV shows, and some of my fondest memories…

Tagged: american student / american writer in china / beijing / blog / censorship / china / chinese / chopsticks / communism / conclusions / georgetown student / study abroad / study abroad blog / study abroad china / writing

The Broken Bridge

Tuesday the 15th of November 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

Getting a cab back was tricky—we had to downgrade to a three-wheeler. It was probably the jankiest car I will ever travel in. It only had three wheels and the motor groaned when it tried traveling faster than 30 miles per hour. When you are in China, you usually want to avoid these “unofficial” taxis like the plague, but since I was with my Chinese friends I figured I was in safe hands. We arrived…

Tagged: american blogger / american in china / american student / american writer / blog / border of north korea / broken bridge / china / culture shock / dandong / georgetown student / national holiday / north korea / student blogger / united states

Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea

Monday the 14th of November 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

After visiting the Great Wall in Dandong, we took the bus back to town. The bus didn’t have any seats left, so we sat in the bus-equivalent of a trunk, behind the last row of seats. I’m not quite sure if that’s legal, or safe, but I chalk it up to a “when in Rome” sort of situation. Apparently the ticket taker asked my friends if I was American. Most of the people on the…

Tagged: american blogger / american in china / american student / american writer / blog / chestnuts / china / culture shock / dandong / georgetown student / memorial / national holiday / north korea / student blogger / united states / vendors

Chinese Millennials Reaction to Steve Jobs’ Death

Monday the 17th of October 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

I wrote in my journal one day, “Today is one of those days where I say, ‘Wow, all that really happened?’” That was the day I visited Dandong, a city on the border of North Korea and China. I was travelling with my Chinese roommate and her friends during the National Holiday period—basically a weeklong holiday that occurs every October and is meant to encourage Chinese people to travel and pump some spending money into…

Tagged: american student / american writer in china / blog / chinese reaction / dandong / georgetown student / living in china / national holiday / north korea / personal freedom / shenyang / steve jobs / steve jobs death / study abroad / study abroad china

This is China

Monday the 3rd of October 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

A man walks up to you and your friends, says “Hello,” looks away from you, but still stands right next to you. You quickly look around for his friend’s camera taking an opportunistic shot, but you can’t find it. The guy is standing next to you just for the hell of it. “This is weird,” your friend says. “No,” you reply. “This is China.” So many moments occur on a daily basis here that are…

Tagged: american student / american writer in china / blog / chinese food / culture shock / georgetown student / hutongs / living in china / peanut butter / study abroad / study abroad china / underground market

Day Nine Part Four: The Long Road

Wednesday the 7th of September 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

We finally arrived in Lanzhou around 5 or 6pm. A number of my friends decided that they didn’t really like Lanzhou. Perhaps it was the layout of the city, but I think it was mostly because of the people. The staring there was the worst, and after one day my black friend couldn’t stand it anymore. At least in other cities, a nice portion of the people don’t bother to stare at you (at least…

Tagged: american student / american writer in china / blog / china / chinese train / fried rice / georgetown student / hard sleepers / lanzhou / silk road / squat toilet / study abroad / study abroad blog / study abroad china / taiwanese food / trains in china

Day Nine Part Three: There is no right of way

Tuesday the 6th of September 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

(There are four blog posts to Day Nine…stay pumped) After my presentation, we clambered onto the bus and rolled out from Xia’he to Lanzhou. Of course we made a few pit stops on the way. We stopped for lunch at Linxia’s Languan Square. TBC likes to plop us in random towns and tell us “Okay, now go find food.” It makes for a interesting and real experience, no doubt. My friends and I went walking around and found…

Tagged: american student / american writer in china / beef noodles / blog / chinese muslims / culture shock / georgetown student / silk road / study abroad / study abroad china / women's rights / xichuan mosque

Day Nine Part One: Presentation

Tuesday the 6th of September 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

(There are four blog posts to Day Nine…get pumped) I woke up this morning, still cold from the previous night. I was feeling a little weak from being sick, and a little nervous for my presentation. I packed my stuff and went downstairs to eat a little breakfast, and mentally review my presentation one more time. Eventually all the students came down and gradually filled the spaces in the common area. I ate my fried…

Tagged: american student / chinese music / georgetown student / music in china / presentation / presentation tips / student blogger / study abroad / study abroad blog / tips on presenting

The Placement Test

Friday the 19th of August 2011 — Written by Anastasia Taber

我吃饱了。 I am so full. I feel like I have been eating food all day. This morning I woke up at 7am and ate three baozi (steamed bun with meat) while I waited an hour for my gmail to load. (I wish I was exaggerating.) After dealing with Internet issues, I wasn’t in the greatest of moods. I went back to my room and my roommate had looked up Chinese music that I could use…

Tagged: american student / beijing / blog / blogger / chinese / chinese culture / chinese food / chinese test / culture shock / georgetown student / Inception / MSG / placement test / study abroad / writer in China

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