汉字 flash cards from one year of Cornell mandarin

The answer to yesterday's mystery about class is yes we had class but it wasn't a full class. We were only there for one hour where we received schedules, 3 textbooks, a mini-assessment test, and the instruction to learn the new characters for the lesson tomorrow because we will have a 听写 listening/ writing test.

I'm currently in the lower-Elementary class because I didn't do well on the placement test. The teacher told me I'm between levels: my speaking and listening is at a higher level than my reading and writing. Basically, my 汉字 characters are all over the place because it's been 2 years since my last mandarin class, meaning that I literally forgot how to read and write. Also I'm trying to transition from traditional characters (used in Hong Kong and what I used at Cornell) to simplified characters (what's used here in China). I looked through the textbook tonight discovered I've learned most of the grammar and characters so maybe I can to transfer to upper-Elementary tomorrow. Magnus is in a similar situation - he's studied Chinese in Sweden for several years but didn't test well on reading and writing either.

Magnus: "I ask the guy next to me in class how long he's studied chinese and he says two months. I've been studying for 2 years! Granted he's Korean but it's still a bit embarassing to be in this level."
Me: "At least you're Swedish. I'm actually Chinese and still in this level."

(An aside: poor Magnus keeps being mistaken for a girl in China because he has long hair - a swimming pool lifeguard shouted at him today when he entered the male changing room. And people keep asking if he plays guitar because he looks like a blond Axl Rose.)

The highlight of the day was the 4 o'clock orientation meeting for new foreign students. The head of the foreign students admissions office conducted the session but unfortunately her English was, how you say... awkward. Now BLCU not only teaches mandarin to foreigners but also teaches English to chinese students. So one presumes there are teachers who speak very good English on campus. But because this is China where 地位 status is important, the head of admissions spoke to us instead. I admit it takes balls to speak about rules and regulations in front of a couple hundred people in a foreign language so we tried very hard to overlook her many slips of tongue. A policeman was also there to speak on chinese law as it applies foreign students. His English was better but he still had memorable lines such as:

"If you lose your wallet, you should go back to where you lost it"

and

"if you overstay your visa in China, you will be penalized and executed." We think (hope) by executed he meant excluded. And by excluded, we think he means deported.

The policeman also prefaced everything he said with "I think" which gave the unfortunate impression that he was not sure what he was talking about, such as "I think if you overstay your visa, you will be executed".

Also, interesting laws about Beijing:

1) Foreigners cannot ride motorcycles - that is, no foreigner has ever been issued a motorcycle license. Mopeds, scooters, and electric bicycles however, are allowed.

2) A permit is needed to own a pet dog. Other animals are exempt from this requirement.

3) Don't openly practice religion.

4) Students from different countries are not allowed to organize in groups. Students from the same country are. This basically means we can have a Canadian Club but not a chess club. Unless it's a chess club for Canadians. Craig: "I think this law is meant to prevent us from forming the Democracy Club."

Lastly, don't even think about losing your passport. Because if you do, you have to inform and file paperwork with several police agencies and school offices before even getting in touch with your embassy. RED tape sure has meaning in communist China.