Chinese Acrobats!!

Tonight we attended a Chinese Acrobat show performed by the China National Acrobatic Troupe. It was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. The things these people could do was amazing. They had everything from a tight-rope walker, to people jumping through hoops about 15-20 feet in the air. It was incredible. We all just sat in awe for the entire show.

Anh practicing to audition for the acrobat show

My favorite part was the tight-rope walker. He was amazing. He not only walked along the rope, but he walked on his hands on it and rolled along it and swung it back and forth. It was just incredible. Also there was an act where these women rode bicycles and at one point they had about 20 people on the bicycle just wheeling around stage like it was nothing. I don't know how they do it Unfortunately they don't allow pictures so I wasn't able to take any. I guess its a good idea. We wouldn't want the flash to through them off and have twenty people on a bicycle come tumbling down. It was such cool show.

Zai jian!

Beijing Botanical Garden

This morning some of us visited the Beijing Botanical Garden. It was beautiful there, but the journey was not so beautiful. It was about an hour long bus ride and as I said before, Beijing public transport is VERY crowded. Not only was it extremely cramped, but today was definetly one of the hottest days we've experienced in Beijing. So we spent an hour on an overfilled, hot and sweaty bus. Besides that it was awesome!

The lake at the Botanical Garden

Manas, Alex, Anh, Laura and Katie relaxing in the garden

The gardens were amazing. There were a lot of different types of plants and flowers. There was also a lake and waterfall. It was very peaceful and serene. We ended up just sitting and relaxing for most of our visit. It was very nice to get out of the city and and enjoy fresh(ish) air and nature and not hear the cars zooming down the road and honking their horns. We had a very good and relaxing day.

Zai jian!

The Forbidden City

Today we visited the Forbidden City in the heart of Beijing! It was an awesome trip. Before we went I didn't understand why it is called a city but now I do; it is HUGE!! We spent about 5 hours walking around and we still didn't see the whole thing. It was beautiful to see the ancient halls and palaces where the emperor used to live and rule China. The thrones that they sat one were beautiful and so intricately decorated. I certainly wouldn't mind being an emperor of China in ancient times! There was a beautiful garden in the back of the Forbidden City as well. There were many old plants and trees. There was even a tree called the "Love Tree" that started growing as two trees and joined to form one tree. It was really cool.

One of the halls at the Forbidden City

We also visited the Gallery of Treasures which had all the ancient jewlery from the emperors and empresses as well as other artifacts from the ancient dynasties. After the city we explored Tiananmen Square which is right outside the Forbidden City. It is a huge plaza in the middle of the city. It was amazing. At the south entrance to the square is a huge gate that in ancient times was used for the defense of the city. It was a really good day and we saw a lot of amazing things.

The group in Tiananmen Square!

Zai jian!

The Tasly Group

We just returned from a two day field trip to The Tasly Group, a modern TCM pharmaceutical company, in Tianjin China. We had a really fun and interesting trip. We left Beijing on Tuesday morning and had about a 2.5 hour drive to Tianjin. When we got there we were brought to a conference room and given a brief introduction to the company. It was really interesting. They discussed how the company researches and implements the modernization of TCM through improving quality control and dosage strategies. They also discussed how a division of their company is dedicated to modern pharmaceutics and developing western medicine. It was a sharp contrast between western pharmaceutical companies where the sole focus is on western medicine. Tasly has a good balance between refining and modernizing TCM and also developing western medicines. Their strategy seems to be working because they are one of the most successful companies in China! We then had lunch with some of the executives of Tasly. It was a lot of fun to get to know them and to learn more about the company.

After this we went to visit Tianjin University of TCM. There we had a brief introduction to TUTCM. This is a very specialized university that solely focuses on the study of TCM. We had a tour of their campus and facilities. We saw training rooms where the students practice TCM techniques. There were machines with robotic arms so the students could practice reading a pulse (a very important diagnostic method in TCM). There was also a machine that takes a picture of a person's tongue so it can be used to diagnose a patient's disease state (another important TCM diagnostic tool). Some of us had our tongues read by the students. It was neat to see this specialized TCM school.

Katie learning how to check a pulse

Ana getting her tongue examined

That night we stayed in Tasly's company hotel. It was nice to escape our accommodations in Beijing for a night. Tasly also was a gracious enough to allow us the use of the Recreation Center. That was a lot of fun. There were a lot activities, such as a karaoke bar, a bowling alley, and ping-pong tables. We had a really good time.

The next day we had a tour of the Tasly factories and grounds. We saw where they process the herbs for the medicine and also where they package and store the finished products. To go into these areas we all had to dress up in white lab coats and wear hair nets and shoe envelopes. We looked pretty funny. We also explored the grounds. It was beautiful. There were many fountains and sculptures throughout the company land. There was also a beautiful, long carved stone wall that told a story of the development of TCM throughout China's history. It was a beautiful tour. The trip culminated with lunch and then we began our long drive back to Beijing. It was an amazing field trip and we are all so grateful for Tasly's hospitality.

The group dressed up to tour the factories

Zai jian!

Beijing Zoo and Aquarium

Today some of us went to the Beijing Zoo and Aquarium. It was a fun trip. It was really close to campus, only about a 20 Yuan taxi ride. The zoo was so crowded. It felt like all of China was there. There was hardly any room to walk and people were pushing and shoving all over the place. Aside from the crowds it was a lot of fun.

The zoo had a lot of different animals. We saw everything from zebras to tigers to a peacock. And of course a trip to the zoo in China would not be complete without seeing the giant pandas! That was really cool. We saw 4 different pandas and one was even climbing a tree. Some of the animals in the zoo seemed out of place. They had raccoons, squirrels and chickens in the zoo. They didn't seem like zoo animals to us.

The Giant Panda climbing a tree

After the zoo we went to the aquarium. It was probably the nicest aquarium I have been to. We got there just in time to watch a dolphin show. It was awesome. The dolphins did amazing tricks and were so fun to watch. They also had escalators that went right through the fish tanks. That was really neat. It was a really fun day.

Wenisa and Susan in front of a fish tank at the aquarium

Zai jian!

The Summer Palace!

Today we visited the Summer Palace. It was really beautiful. We left our dormitory at 8:30 in the morning. The Summer Palace is really close to PKU so it didn't take long to get there. Once we arrived we all split up into smaller groups and began to explore the grounds. It was an excellent day for this trip. The weather was beautiful; it wasn't too hot or too cold and there was a beautiful blue sky.

The Summer Palace is where the emperor would spend the summer in ancient times. There is a giant lake in the middle of the grounds surrounded by gardens and temples scattered throughout the area. We walked around the entire lake and saw a lot of temples and ancient buildings. There is also a marble boat! Ana's guide book sort of ruined the wonder of it by telling us it is made of wood and just painted to look like marble but it was still really cool.

Susan, Wenisa and I looking out at the lake at the Summer Palace

The lake is surrounded on all sides by very large hills. There was one point when we climbed to the top. It was beautiful. On one side we saw the view of the lake and the summer palace whith all the classic Chinese architecture and on the other side of the hill we saw the skyline of Beijing filled with bustling traffic and modern skyscrapers. It was a very interesting contrast showing China's rich cultural history and also their modern present and future. This was an awesome trip and definitely a must see for anyone who is visiting Beijing.

The view of Beijing from the top of the hill

Zai jian!

Visit to Beijing Shijitan Hospital!!

Today we had our last hospital visit. This time it was to Beijing Shijitan Hospital. It was a very interesting tour. We began with a short introduction presentation from the hospital director about the hospital. It was interesting to learn the history of the hospital. It began as a health care facility that was strictly for the workers of the Chinese Railway system and their families and slowly evolved into a more extensive hospital. It was then brought under control of the Beijing local government and it now serves as a public hospital in Beijing.

The hospital director and a doctor at Shijitan Hospital giving and introduction about the hospital

It was interesting to also learn a little bit about the hospital health care system in China. The director told us that most (about 95%) of the hospitals in China are public and funded and supported by the Chinese government. Also, every hospital in China is required to have a full TCM department within the hospital. Shijitan Hospital focuses mostly on western medicine, yet it still has a full TCM department and pharmacy.

After the discussion we took a tour of the hospital. We saw some of the modern facilities and departments and also the TCM departments within the hospital. We also took a tour of the TCM pharmacy and saw the pharmacists preparing TCM prescriptions. Some of us even tried some herbal medicine. The pharmacist gave us a very bitter herb. It was the most bitter thing I have ever tasted. The taste stayed in my mouth for hours! This was a really neat tour and very interesting to see yet another hospital in Beijing and also learn more about the Chinese hospital system.

The group with a nurse and the director of the hospital at a nurses station on our tour

Zai jian!