In certain areas, the staircases are actually quite dangerous. Only wide enough for single file hiking, iron chains stood as railings for the steepest sections. Some of the steps were only 6 inches wide, promising a quick fall to the bottom if someone up above slipped. The steepest sections felt more like climbing a ladder, [...]
Archive for the ‘Life’ Category
华山 – Mount Hua, Part 2
Posted: August 11, 2011 in Climbing, Life, TravelTags: China, Hiking, Travel, 华山
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My Chinese has been getting a lot of exercise. Coming to 西安, my speaking command of the language was somewhat adequate, though much could be improved with my reading and writing. Having to practice every second of the day has helped my fluency in Mandarin; hopefully it will be a noticeable difference to my Chinese [...]
My accessibility to reliable Internet has been on the fritz lately, I apologize. Rain has decided to make a timely appearance to Xi’an, and I cannot be more grateful. An overnight shower brought the daytime temperatures down by a full 15 degrees, making venturing outside a lot more bearable. Having made a lot of new [...]
Painting Legs on a Snake
Posted: July 29, 2011 in Life, TravelTags: China, Nightlife, Tang Dynasty, Travel
White chocolate cake sometimes come with cherries on top. But I certainly never expected cherry tomatoes. There are some things about China that I will never understand. The cake reminded me of something from my childhood. As kids, my brothers and I were told the story of 畫蛇添足, in English: painting legs on a snake. [...]
Gas and Electricty
Posted: July 27, 2011 in Life, TravelTags: China, cooking, Food, Travel, Utilities
I’m currently staying at an apartment of a friend while he is out of town, so I’ve had to figure out a lot of things on my own. The utilities were close to running out when I got here, it’s been quite an adventure to get things settled. Electricity is managed by the apartment complex, [...]
It would seem that the last great expansion of American railroads commenced on the driving of the Golden Spike at Promontory Point, in 1869. The East and West had been joined, and the nation could now be traversed by the all-mighty locomotive. Taking the train anywhere in the USA now has a nostalgic sense to [...]
I will be in China for six weeks. It’s important for anyone to learn how to fly. Some people learn to do this when very young, others figure it out in college. There are even those who spend their entire lives without even trying to spread their wings. But that moment, that moment when you [...]
This is what BioE Seniors do when graduation is imminent. Can’t wait to be done with school.
I just got a new video camera, a Sony HDR-CX110. Unfortunately, Windows Movie Maker doesn’t let you create videos in high-definition, even though the raw footage was recorded in 1080p. Any recommendations for an HD-compatible video editing software that’s relatively cheap and/or free would be greatly appreciated! More ground breaking footage is on the way!
I started this year with many expectations. I expected the upcoming climbing season to be a lot of fun, I expected to stay strong, I expected to graduate, and I expected to have a plan for the coming Fall. Expectations can be exciting, but they’re also very scary. What if I injured myself? Would that [...]
