Did you know that in there are over 400 dialects spoken throughout China? Mandarin is the official dialect of China, even though many people do not speak it outside of large northern cities like Beijing. This poses a challenge when traveling to small towns and villages, where people do not have high levels of education, but it is still a challenge worth taking.
Did you know that the Chinese character representing their currency (元）means "round object?" The reason for this is because in the past, the Chinese yuan was a round coin made of silver. Although a lot of the money used here is paper money, China has carried this term over to the present.
Most students do not buy bottles of water. Instead, they travel everywhere with travel mugs or a thermos, usually loaded with tea leaves. On campus, there are water filtration machines that spew out hot water, perfect to replenish tea mugs and keep students caffeinated throughout the day.
The best meal that I had this week was a rack of ribs served on a shovel! It was a traditional Sichuanese meal, which included a radish and pork bone soup, stewed fish, sliced pork belly, and the restaurant's specialty - a type of steamed cake.
