My 12 week experience in Beijing (at BLCU) Sep-Dec 2005

[artichoke]

My Background:

- Female, from Australia, never traveled alone overseas before

Arriving & Accommodation:

I called the Beijing Foreign Students Activities Center http://www.qmhjzx.com/toc.htm and booked a single room for 12 weeks before I left Australia. As for immunization I went to “the Travel Doctor” http://www.traveldoctor.com.au/

The first room I was shown at BJFSAC was dismal (but later got to see several others and they were all perfectly fine!!), so I ended up in one of the larger rooms with separate ‘kitchen’ and study area. It was great having all the extra space for 12 weeks. I paid 115 元 per night, and had to pay a minimum of two months lump sum to get that price. I also paid a 200元 key deposit, which I got back when I checked out.

In summer the aircon worked fine, but the heating in December was dismal. So, I was often cold in my room at night. During the day, the heating was adequate for study, but I still had to wear warm clothes.

Internet was 115元 per month and electricity I paid in 50元 lots when needed.

Whenever there were problems with the room – electricity ran out, needed water cooler refill, shower curtain rod fell down, internet stopped working, toilet blocked, washing machine was not working – it was very easy and fast to get a service person to assist and fix the problem. But I definitely needed to speak Chinese to get the most efficient service and correct the problem immediately.

If you’re staying longer than 12 weeks, I strongly recommend getting a rental property with a group of people. Decent to luxurious (imo) apartments with 2-3 bedrooms for about 6,000元 in Wudaokou. And liveable ones for half that amount!

As for BLCU on-campus dorms – I’ve seen some really good ones (one in building 7 with one toilet/shower) and another building. But building 9 was dismal (basically if you don’t get a room with toilet/shower the shared ones are someone smelly and depressing!). I think other’s in this forum know more from experience! And the new buildings outside West gate are really really lovely. But very expensive!!! So be warned.

BLCU:

On our first day we registered and took a brief test – one on one with a teacher – to test oral then reading skills to be placed in the right class. I was placed in A9. Had three teachers – general, spoken & listening comprehension. I found the spoken class most beneficial as the teacher was receptive to questions and along with following the text book, and reviewing characters, was very flexible. The listening class I found very boring (and often skipped!). The general class, the teacher would not allow us to ask any questions and followed the text book strictly (very very boring!!). We did little work on characters (only 2-3 dictation tests in the 12 weeks).

There was never much set homework, just self-study to keep up with class. But I often did my set homework (if any) and nothing else, and never had a problem keeping up with the class lessons.

I believe other classes had more tests throughout their course, and more emphasis on characters. It really depended on the teacher how good/bad the class was.

There were about 12-14 students in my class.

We got through 25 chapters in spoken class and 21 in general class. I couldn’t actually tell you how many chapters we got through in listening (I didn’t go often enough at towards the end).

Final exams were a breeze. One for each subject.

Next time I go to Beijing, I plan to try a couple of private schools (two hours each – 4 in total - at two different schools per day). I thought the intensive classes were fine. I had no problem with 6 hours a day. And frankly, if you didn’t feel like going, you had up to 80 hours of class in the 12 weeks you were allowed to miss, and still take the final exams.

I’m still very much up in the air about BLCU. Will need to see how alternatives go before I definitely say it’s too expensive and a waste, as others on this forum say, but I found many of the classes, because of the way they were taught, not suitable to my way of learning.

Buying vs bringing stuff:

I recommend bringing: (like I didn't!)

- towels if you like ones that actually absorb moisture. The ones in BJ are thin and pretty useless.

- clothes! Yes, it’s true if you are Chinese in size (like me) you can buy clothes readily and cheaply. Like I had to! But if you want something that is vaguely decent in quality and isn’t “Chinese fashion” (ie, you want to wear it back home and are a bit fussy about the clothes you wear) then bring stuff from home. I will travel with thermals, fleece and down jacket on my next winter trip to China. The quality stuff there was really expensive! But layering lots of cheaper clothes works too (if they fit!!)

- shoes – especially if you have ‘big’ feet!

Don’t bother bringing:

- ibuprofen or similar – it’s cheap and easy to find in Beijing

most medications can be bought in BJ really cheap, so unless you have a specific need for a brand etc, just buy when you need in China.

- linen – bed sheets, doonas/duvets/quilts, pillows etc are all easily available and okay priced (similar to what you’d pay in an Australian Kmart when not on sale)

- toothbrush, toothpaste, dental floss (they have floss at Walmart but I didn’t know the brand, it wasn’t Oral B or Colgate), sanitary stuff (although if you have a favourite tampon brand, bring those with you) and other toiletries (you can get most brands of makeup and beauty products – at Walmart and the expensive department stores stock brands like Lancome, Shiseido etc)

Bicycle:

- I bought a fold-up one. It was great fun!! And the drivers are used to cyclists being all over the place. So, as long as you show no fear, you’ll be fine. Some friends bought regular bikes for as little as 80元

Food:

- if you’re craving Western food there are lots of great places. I recommend you get hold of “Insider’s Guide to Beijing” – I think you can buy online at amazon, but lots of cafes and bookstores sell it. But the book totally caters to wealthy business expats, not poorer foreign students.

- Easy to find western packaged food – there’s a small shop in Wudaokou near HuaQingJiaYuan (I think that’s the name of the apartments!!??) and places like “Jenny Lou’s” in Chaoyang.

For a long term stay, I would consider the purchase of a bread maker – especially if you enjoy eating wholemeal or whole grain breads (buying the flour could be difficult, might need to send this from home too – heavy and expensive!)

Coffee is something that was difficult to find made well. Another thing to make at home for a longer stay.

Milk. I didn’t like the milk in China. I found it really heavy and creamy, being a skim or low-fat milk person. And 100% fruit juice is generally not 100% juice sadly.

Chocolate. Unless you like Dove, Cadbury’s or Kinder, M&Ms, getting other brands of chocolate (good quality dark chocolate) takes a bit more effort. And depending on what it is you’re after, can be pricey.

And if you love cooking baked food (roast, lasagna, cakes etc) good luck finding a place or a friend with an oven!!

Shopping:

- Wudaokou Shichang is excellent (don’t have to bargain too hard)

- Xidan Hutong (not actually a hutong, but a multistory market) is great, not so full of foreigners (will be now!?) and I got my prescription glasses very cheap

- Xidan bookstore is worth a look, but don’t forget the BLCU bookstore upstairs in the library

- Walmart is great for everyday items (I went to the huge one, one stop from Wudaokou – sorry temporarily forgotten the name!) and you can go to Chaoshifa next to BLCU campus too, and the imported good shops (“April Gourmet” or “Jenny Lous”)

Doctors

- An Australian girl went to a GP in Beijing (ended up only having a cold) and it cost her AUD$800 for the visit !!!!

Tutors

I had one tutor I paid 20元 per hour and had time with her anywhere from once to 3 times a week. She was fine, others had great tutors and some others had terrible tutors. If you have the time and money, I recommend two tutors to help you – it’s just a matter of personal learning style. Easily found – just looked on the notice boards outside the Frienship Store at the BLCU campus.

You can also approach your BLCU teacher and ask him/her to tutor you. Not sure what they charge though!!

Chinese Friends

I think by 6 weeks everyone had at least one Chinese friend (and in some cases girlfriend!) they were not paying (as you would a tutor). This could work well – more like language exchange. I have three lovely Chinese friends and we would get together to shop (I met them shopping!!) or eat and we’d chat in a mangled mash of English and Chinese together. I definitely learned new vocab and got to practice with them. So worth seeking out Chinese friends definitely!!

Travel

- travel in China is really easy. Trains you can only book 3 days before you leave, flights are easy to book too – but if you need a fluent English speaking travel agent can be more difficult to find.

I traveled to

- Chengdu – went to the Panda Research Center and hugged a 1year old panda for 800元 (expensive, but totally worth it)

- Xi’an – for the terracotta warriors and steles

- Chongqing – took a “cruise” down the Yangtze to see the 2nd gorge (first and third you miss because it’s nighttime) and took a tour to visit the 3 little gorges

- Shanghai

If you talk with classmates and others, you’ll find someone who wants to do the same travel as you, so you don’t have to go alone if you don’t want to. But travel alone (I did Chongqing and Shanghai travel alone) is quite safe and easy. But it definitely helped that I spoke some Chinese. Noone spoke English in Chongqing!

--- Mei Li美丽

[Shadowdh]

Fantastic write up and just at the right time for me... I am looking at BLCU as one of my options... but only for 4 weeks though... Thank you for sharing...

[amandagmu]

Fantastic write up I wish I had the opportunity to go for the whole semester!

I will tell you however this little tidbit -- like you, I was worried about my proficiency in the language upon return. I, at first, felt that BLCU didn't offer enough in terms of classes or immersion in Chinese - boy was I wrong! My first week back in Chinese class in the U.S. ( I skipped from level 100 to level 300 at the university after only 6 weeks), I was one of the few who actually understood the professor when she spoke!

I think what's key about BLCU, and what I've appreciated the most since returning, and basically what I would tell others to go are the following reasons:

- It's dirt cheap for the summer 6 week session.

- You can sign up very late and rather easily on your own. I did it without speaking hardly any Chinese at all. Oh, and there's no age requirement (I'm 25, but people in my class ranged from 17->50s). This is important for those who may not be students and only have limited time as well.

- Sure, there may be foreigners on campus and in class. But hell, the teachers aren't going to speak English to you unless you practically beg them - and actually, one of mine spoke it pretty poorly, my Chinese became better than her English by the end.

- Finally, I honestly believe that for people with SOME training (not none at all) and who are not yet ADVANCED learners, this is the best program out there. If you are somewhat like I was -- I had one year of beginner's 100 level classes -- and you want a kick in the butt for the summer, what I like to call Chinese boot camp, this is what will get you there.

I should also emphasize exactly what I think you did so well in more words -- taking all those classes, getting tutors, etc is not difficult. Any program you go to is what you want it to be: if you go to class or don't go to class, if you do homework or not, it is what you make of it. So many people in the world want a place to hand hold them through the process, but learning a language just isn't that. It's much easier to just get an "A" in a class than it is to actually learn a language!

Thanks for your highly information post. For bookstores: I would add the Wangfujing bookstore. I bought my mother some terrific cookbooks that were in both English and Chinese for making dumplings, 16 kuai a piece for paperbacks, with pics illustrating how to make them. Needless to say, she loves them!

Oh, and I should mention that another place around Beijing with many Western "important" products (ahem, dental floss, imported shampoos/conditionners, and Tampax) is the chain store Watson's, with several locations including a nice one in Oriental Plaza, not too far from the subay station escalator entrance.

~Amanda

[amandagmu]

I almost forgot to ask! How did the gym/running experience go? I had quite a few problems with the gym running out of aircon every day. I imagine if you went to Fusion the colder weather may have a been a welcomed relief!

~Amanda, who is now freezing cold in !@$%% Washington, D.C.

[roddy]

Thank you very much, Mei Li (American Beauty?)

Roddy

[HashiriKata]

Thank you very much, Mei Li (American Beauty?)

I think Mei Li means Australian Beauty (or maybe just Beauty?) Check your dictionary before starting, Roddy!

[Shadowdh]

Isnt 澳大利亚 (Aodaliya) Australia...? I always thought Mei was the US...

[nubix]

Informative and very useful... thank you.

[HashiriKata]

Isnt 澳大利亚 (Aodaliya) Australia...? I always thought Mei was the US...

You're right. But as Mei Li introduced herself as "female, from Australia", Mei Li is therefore an Australian beauty (and not "American beauty" as Roddy wrongly attributed.)

[Shadowdh]

Ahhh thanks for that...

[free1609]

Artichoke made the following comments in her posting on 8/1/06 under the heading " arriving & accommodation"

"As for BLCU on-campus dorms – I’ve seen some really good ones (one in building 7 with one toilet/shower) and another building. But building 9 was dismal (basically if you don’t get a room with toilet/shower the shared ones are someone smelly and depressing!). I think other’s in this forum know more from experience! And the new buildings outside West gate are really really lovely. But very expensive!!! So be warned."

I just want to make the following comments.

1. The new dorm outside of west gate is called xin jian liu xue sheng gong yu 17. It is nice but not very expensive.

2. Both dorm4 and 9 were closed for renovation ( could be for 6 months) in nov 2005.

2. I was living in dorm 4 paying 63RMB for a shared room until i moved to the new dorm 17in nov 2005. The new dorm rate for a shared room was infact lower at 53RMB per person and we actually got a refund. (i rate for those staying more than 6 weeks). Note the rate for those staying 6 weeks and under is different.

I have posted some information under free1609 re accommodation etc at blcu in dec 2005.

[feebie]

Hi pretty similar to my experience at BLCU except I live off campus which is totally fine.

I did the 4 week course. Then I had 2 weeks off and started a different course -- the 12 week course. (both doing 4 hours a day)

The 4 week course and the 12 week course are REALLY different.

4 week course

1 chapter per day. really intense. the level is more difficult

12 week course

2-3 chapters per week so you have time to learn stuff properly.

I was put in level B for the four week course.

I found it so hard and perhaps this was because the teachers were not good.

It went really fast. Now in hindsight I can see they didn't explain stuff very well. I have only studied Chinese part time for 1 year, my other classmates had been studying for 3+ years. So maybe this is why the class went so fast because they had all heard it before.

Also in this class no one every spoke English. Okay--I know this is a good thing - total emersion. but occassionally it would have been good to be sitting next to someone and said "what is that word?" but many did not speak English.

I tried to change on many occassions. My teacher said "mei guanxi" etc. but eventually

after 2 weeks (half way through the course) I changed. There were no seats in A+ so I went to A. This was a good level for me. Previously in Australia I only studied Chinese for 60 hours. So I don't know a lot. I have taught myself about 1000 characters but I don't know how to use them really. (this is why I get placed in B, because I can read).

Anyway the A class was very friendly and revised some really important foundations that I needed to know. before I had never learnt about 过 and many measure words.

So that was a great experience and I learnt heaps of stuff I could actually use.

In the B it was stuff about movie producers etc.

So 12 week course. I go to the exam, ask to be put in A+. I tell them that yes I may be able to read characters but I don't know much about grammar and I can't make sentences or understand them. So the old guy that tests me just said come back tomorrow. I get allocated a classroom and guess what! he put me in B+!!!!!!

how stressful. (i study chinese for the love of it not for the hsk). So i changed down to the B class.

Anyway the B class for the 12 week course is easy. I find it the same level as A in the 4 week course. We go over stuff very thoroughly. There is a brilliant teacher Wang Laoshi (female). Homework only takes me about 20 minutes. and just a quick glance over the words and remember them. Some days it is hard. and yeah i muck up.....but at least i can understand most of the stuff.

so the moral of the story

DONT DO THE 4 WEEK COURSE

or do an easier level than you think because it is intense.

although some people i spoke to had positive experiences in the 4 week course

CHANGE LEVELS QUICKLY at the beginning if you think it is not the right level for you

Yeah I also find BLCU boring. same old same old everyday. stuffing words into our heads. I think I listen most of the time. dont get much of a chance to speak.

my listening and reading skills are improving enormously. i remember more of the words than i expect to. but i am bad at constructing a sentence. i think when i finish this course will get a private tutor so i have ample speaking practise and can use the knowledge i have just acquired.

I can't imagine doing a year long course.

It is not like a normal university course where you go in depth or look at things from different perspectives --of courese. it is route memorization.

I think they could make it more interesting.

I was dreading going to BLCU because I thought how pathetic coming to China and being around westerners. I don't really mind now. Luckily I have lots of Chinese friends but I have gone out of my way to make them. Also I was teaching before this and feel like I have seen the 'real' China.

I was in China for 6 months before I started at BLCU and this makes this a lot easier. Just cultural stuff the teachers mention in class and all the places they mention I already know about.

Also another thing about BLCU I think the summer crowd and the winter crowd is different.

Summer seems to be party people. The autumn/winter students are more studious me thinks.