Living with the locals in Beijing by tjtjjenson
For those of you attempting your first trip to China or Beijing, my word of advice: don't go as a tourist but go and blend in yourself with the culture. The family who hosted me was more than amazing. I was there in early March (first timer in Asia). But everything the family did for me was warm enough to make me feel at home. I had my own room with a view and an ensuite bathroom. It was luxury accommodation actually. Fully furnished with a comfy couch and cool plasma TV. It was a 3-bedroom apartment and only two of the family members lived there so it didn't feel crowded or anything. The parents and brother live in another apartment about 15 mins away. Besides a place to stay, food was the other winning point for this homestay. I was fed so much Chinese and Western food I i think I must have put one quite a few pounds after the trip. The Peking duck dinner was lovely. The chefs came out with the whole duck and demonstrated how the meat was cut. Also, there was this hotpot dinner we had at home. Interesting dishes where we cooked our meat and vegs in the soup. The family did all they can to make sure I didn't go hungry and that I tasted all the food I could while in Beijing. On one of the evenings, the parents taught me how to make dumplings. I thought I was pretty good at it. Next, it was the sightseeing trips I was taken to. What I did was I told the family what I was interested in seeing and they came up with a rough plan and after taking in my feedback and input, we firmed up my trip itinerary. I got to see the Great Wall (at the less busy section), Chuan Di Xia village (courtyard houses), the Forbidden City, Red Snail Temple, Ming Tombs, The Sacred Path, a few local parks. And the whole time transport was in the family's super awesome and smooth SUV. What more can a girl ask for?:)
Other activities provided were Mandarin lessons in the evening by the daughter who also works as a part time Chinese teacher. Tea ceremony was cool too. We were drinking and learning Chinese simultaneously at one point. The uncle taught me some calligraphy but I was untrainable having flunked all my art classes in the past. He wrote my name in Chinese so that I could frame it and hang it next to my closet back home.
All in all, if you're looking for similar experience, I'd highly suggest doing a homestay and would recommend this very wonderful family. Write to them if you're interested. kent_a1977 at mail dot com or prettyw31 at yahoo dot com
