Guide on Seeing the Sites and Living in Beijing, China - for students studying abroad and/or vacationers by William M. Flanagin is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Taking on an overdue vacation can be the most revitalizing time of your life. We go through bills, mortgages, taxes, jobs, children, and future investments, but when do we actually make time for ourselves? To take some time away from the hectic chores of our daily lives and venture off into the great unknown that is our world!

If some of you are traveling to Beijing, China for the upcoming 2008 Olympics, then you'll absolutely enjoy what I have written here for you -- it's a guide. I wrote this guide because I, too, thought that being in college, working long hours studying for exams, writing elaborate essays of philosophical reasoning, holding down a full-time job, and being away from my family for one year -- meant that I couldn't continue to put aside my dreams of going to China. Sad thing is, many people put aside their dreams until they're 30 or something (or even older), and realize that now it's too late. When they were young, they had the chance to travel to the country of their dreams, make friends with people who have different societal backgrounds, and perhaps -- for the romantic -- even meet the love of their life. Yep, you heard me, that's how I met my fiance. =) Therefore, if you have a dream to travel to some far off distant land, I recommend that you do it! The power of youth and its endless opportunities to explore whatever remaining beauty there is left in this world -- is an amazing thing not to be taken for granted. You'll make memories with people and places that will be with you until your death. It is truly an eye-opening experience.

So, in November of 2006, I made up my mind that it was now or never. I decided to embark on a 5,000 mile journey, to a land where I grew up hearing such amazing stories of martial arts, language, and history from my father. It wasn't easy at first because my parents were worrisome about my safety, but when they realized that this was my dream, they grew to accept it over time. I signed up for a one-year study abroad program in Beijing, China at my university's office, and that was it!

Study Abroad Programs

Study abroad programs can sometimes be expensive, but are necessary if you are going to a country that you know absolutely nothing about and really want to immerse yourself into that culture. Plus, you get financial aid and scholarships to pay for your trip! However, now that I think about it, I could have paid for all that out of my own pocket, because what my study abroad program (CIEE) offered wasn't really worth $10,000. That's why in the spring semester I decided not to use them. I bought my own apartment, enrolled into another university where my fiance was attending and explored China all on my own. The good thing, I guess, would be the friends I made. I did meet some amazing people. Up until now, we're still very close friends who talk to each other every once in awhile when we have free time.

Advice to those who are studying abroad

Enrolling directly into Peking University is cheaper than what your study abroad program may offer (in most cases). However, the lady who runs the foreign enrollment department is a real ... female dog, to say the least. My friends in the Foreign Language School at Peking University all had a distaste for her. Talk about being rude and condescending each time any of us tried to reason with her. Some of us (including me) couldn't enroll into the university due to the direct enrollment period having already passed. She blatantly lied, though, because all one needs to do is pay for the late penalty fee; but she was adamant on not accepting any more applications for the spring semester.

Apparently, she doesn't like foreigners all that much, and dislikes her job. Yes, in China, you meet people who are rude and not as open to foreigners, but you just brush off their curt manner and stand up for yourself; especially when you buy items on the streets or in popular locations. Majority of the time they will sell you fake or refurbished items which will only last a few weeks, and charge you 60% more than what you should pay. Careful. I once paid way too much for a digital camera. A lesson I will never forget next time I go to China.

1. Bargaining, and

2. Buying technological products and/or clothing

...will be posted later in this guide.

Expectations & Chinese/Foreigner Mindsets

Expect to encounter a lot of these types of circumstances. A common mindset among Chinese people is that foreigners have this belief that they are, in many ways, better than Chinese people themselves. I find this to be common among people who are in the business sector or are maids (fuwuyuan 服务员）. This is sometimes the fuel for hostility, where confrontations between foreigners and native Chinese take flight in bars and on the streets.

There is MUCH misunderstanding between what foreigners know about Chinese society and what Chinese people know about foreigners. Many individuals who are intellectually unaware of the common misconceptions that roam around the typical Chinese person's life, find it so difficult to make contact with other students and/or the older generation. Many of my CIEE friends couldn't make contact with anyone on the Peking University campus and/or outside of the campus -- yet they were surrounded by billions of Chinese students and people!

I, however, took it upon myself to ask around and be friendly with the local inhabitants. Every morning I road the bus to school and back; took the subway by myself to go shopping at popular locations, such as Wudan & Xidan; asked for guys and girls phone numbers on the buses (only as a means of making friends of course, haha); and interacted with students from other universities instead of just from Peking.

Remember, if you give off an honest smile and a sincere attitude, then you should have the tools you need to make friends. If anything, Chinese students are the ones who are most open to establishing friendships with foreigners. Think about it: one Chinese friend can introduce you to their Chinese friends, and then those friends will introduce you to their friends, and so and so on.

Instead of constantly associating myself with the people within my CIEE Study Abroad group, I went out everynight to meet with my Chinese friends. We went to bars, shopping, touring the city, and sometimes just sat outside looking up at the stars talking.

Break your comfort threshold. Get out there and make friends.Many people, students studying abroad and vacationers, in the beginning tell themselves that they'll make friends and have the time of their life, but once they arrive in Beijing, China or whatever their destination is, they suddenly lose that intially vitality to want to go out and explore.

The big city with its intricate subways and buses -- does at first seem a tad bit dautning and intimidating; and it also casts doubt over many tourists about their ability to navigate around Beijing safetly and to make it back home in one piece. But if you decide to take courses at the local university, or classes outside of the university sector, you are bound to see yourself associating with more and more Chinese people as time goes by. And once you've established your circle of friends, then the doors to China's most beautiful but hidden locations only known to locals, will all be available to you.