Of course, our weekly excursions are always fun. A pattern of hiking or sweating somehow on Saturday and then shopping on Sunday has emerged. My favorite trip has definitely been herb hiking along an untouched part of the great wall. It was exhausting and it was incredible. For the week long break ahead, I look forward to continuing the trend of hiking, as we are going to Tai Shan - a big mountain. With many, many stairs.

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1. China! It’s good to see that the posts have started flowing...
2. My experience in quarantine As soon as my flight landed in Beijing, government officials...

Before my trip began, I had heard stories of travelers being quarantined in China because a passenger on their plane had exhibited signs of a fever. My friends and family jokingly warned me not to appear sick when I arrived in Beijing. I even took some advil before we landed just in case… Unfortunately for me, and my fellow classmates on the same flight, there were three confirmed cases of swine flu on the plane.

We didn’t know this for two whole days, however, as we settled into our dorm rooms, explored the Tsinghua University campus, and began to meet our classmates. Two days later, we were tracked down, and whisked away in an ambulance to a hotel used solely for quarantine purposes.

It was an experience. The government officials running the operation always wore lab coats, face masks, and hair nets. Some, like our ambulance drivers, wore full body suits resembling something straight out of a bad sci-fi movie. Fortunately, my friends and I were not confined to our rooms, but we did have to wear masks when we ventured into public spaces. The staff, who were very polite, fed us three decent meals a day; we had access to television (too bad I couldn’t understand the Chinese channels), and Internet. Our temperatures were taken twice a day, to ensure that we had not contracted the virus. No one at the hotel was actually sick; otherwise they would have been taken directly to a hospital.

The other travelers being quarantined hailed from all over—Europe, Australia, USA, Tibet… Confined from the outside world, and with time to kill (five days, to be exact), it was easy to make friends and bond over this unique and ridiculous experience.

Although I was a bit upset that my stay in Beijing was cut shorter, I do think this experience has pushed me to make the most of the rest of my time here in China. Plus, it’s a hilarious story.

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1. China! It’s good to see that the posts have started flowing...
2. Beijing, Beijing No city in China offers a greater contrast of the...
3. Old Hutongs Amidst the New Beijing Traversing through the new Beijing last week, a few friends...

The last few weeks have been jam-packed. For one thing, four other NU students and I who flew from Newark got quarantined for almost a week. It ended up being an unforgettable experience. So, some background info:

Chinese policy dictates that everyone landing at a Chinese airport must have their temperatures checked. Anyone with a fever has to be sent to a hospital to undergo further examination. If it turns out that someone has contracted H1N1 (swing flu), everyone seated three rows in front and three rows in back of the H1N1 victim must be quarantined until one week after the date of arrival.

When our plane landed at Beijing Capital Airport, a group of Chinese medical officials covered from head to toe came on board and inspected us. What does that actually mean? Imagine a guy dressed in an astronaut outfit with thick goggles and latex gloves pointing a gun (temperature-taking device) at your head. Some people chattered about the rumors they heard about quarantine, others just sat silent and still as these strange men took their temperatures. I just laughed. I even asked one of them to take a picture with me. Click. Without a doubt, Facebook worthy.

A kid in our row had a fever, so they send him and his family to a local hospital for further inspection. Everything was okay. The five of us cheerfully got off the plane.

Fast forward two days. We’re cramped in the back of a mian bao che (面包车) style ambulance. A government official had phoned me earlier and declared that the five of us were to be quarantined until seven days after our arrival date. In all honesty, sitting in the back of that ambulance was scary experience. It was scary not because we were headed towards quarantine - that part we were okay with - but rather because the government driver was weaving in and out of Beijing traffic like an absolute madman.

Picture this: 5 people with our luggage, cramped in what probably was no bigger than a 5×8 ft space in the back of an ambulance that was jerking right and left, in and out of traffic. No seat belts, no airbags, NO AIR CONDITIONING. I counted at least four times in which we came within inches of hitting a pedestrian, a bicycle, or another car.

The quarantine itself wasn’t so bad. It was a good hotel - even by American standards. We met a few people who became great friends. Our five and a half days there were spent watching movies, playing cards, eating all-you-can-eat meals, and chatting together. All in all, it was an experience that I wouldn’t throw away even if I had the chance to go back and chance my seat on the plane.

Plus, how many of my friends back home can say that they’ve been quarantined by Chairman Mao?

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1. My experience in quarantine As soon as my flight landed in Beijing, government officials...
2. A Different China I’ve grown up in a Chinese family where I spoke...