My First 春节 in China
billglover
January 03, 2008, 11:04 PM posted in General DiscussionIt's official, I got my visa from the Chinese Embassy this morning, I'm going to be in China for the Spring Festival. I can only get two weeks off work, but it's long enough to make it to China and back.
I'll admit that while standing in the freezing cold this morning waiting for the embassy to open I felt that first pang of excitement. I'm really looking forward to it. Between now and then, I've got a lot of Chinese to learn... I'd better get on with it.
bjnewer
February 26, 2008, 12:56 PMi saw horses in your blog~i love them soooooo much!!! thx for sharing..
billglover
January 04, 2008, 12:33 PMI'm not sure I'm going to be able to fit in any regular study between now and then (I generally leave home before 6:00 in the morning and arrive back in time to eat and pass out). It's going to be a case of grab any spare moments when I can to cram in some basic Chinese. Just discovered amazon S3 is blocked at work which makes using CPod a bid difficult.
lostinasia
January 04, 2008, 02:26 PMUm... incidentally, if the mainland's anything like Taiwan, don't expect much for the Spring Festival. Everyone's gone home and places are eerily quiet; I guess it'd be like wandering downtown on Christmas Day in North America. Lantern Festival, however (the first full moon), is a time when things get blown up real good. Real real good.
helenaoutloud
January 04, 2008, 04:28 PMWoW!! That's awesome...even my heart started beating fast when thinking about getting a Chinese Visa....Very exciting! 加油!!! ^_^
obitoddkenobi
January 04, 2008, 06:41 PMMy sentiments exactly Kerou85.
xiaohu
January 04, 2008, 07:59 AMHave fun...you're going to love it!
billglover
January 05, 2008, 11:54 PMThanks guys. Reading all your comments only seems to get me more excited. I'm know that I'm not really going to be able to concentrate at work between now and the 1st February. I can't wait. @LostInAsia: I can't say I've experienced a Christmas day in North America, but I'm guessing it's similar to here in the UK. Dead - unless of course you happen to wander into any home where you will find much eating and drinking. I'm going to be spending the Spring Festival with my girlfriend's family so I'm quite looking forward to seeing how it's all done. Unfortunately I have to be back at work before the Lantern Festival (February 21, 2008). I'll try and see if I can plan things a bit better for the festival next year (February 9, 2009). Thanks for the advice. @Christian: I will indeed be sharing all the details. Last time I just published the photos (this is my second trip), but this time I'm hoping to share a few stories, and maps as well as the photos. I'll post the URL if possible as soon as I get something online.
billglover
February 22, 2008, 07:29 PMI'm back in the UK and as promised, here is a link to my blog where you can find a "brief" overview of our trip as well as links to photos, maps and a couple of video clips.
I had an amazing time, ate way to much Sichuanese food, and somehow managed to stay sane throughout the relentless barrage of 鞭炮 (biānpào). And one thing is for sure, I'll definitely be back for another new year.
billglover
February 22, 2008, 07:30 PMMaybe I need to add the "www" to make the link work? http://www.billglover.co.uk/
azerdocmom
February 22, 2008, 07:45 PMHi, Bill Thanks for sharing those pix; they are terrific! The gal you're with is cute. The blog looks great; when I have some time, I will certainly read it.
sparechange
February 22, 2008, 08:14 PMI wanna go...
christian
January 05, 2008, 12:12 AMI hope you'll let us know how your trip goes, Bill. We'll be waiting for your stories and pictures :)
TaiPan
January 04, 2008, 06:05 AMCongrats, Bill! Practice Plan time!