“Cheers to a New Year and another chance for us to g et it right!” ~Oprah Winfrey
When the semester ended I said goodbye to my home in Jinan and traveled with two of my friends to Guangzhou for about a week. Leaving Jinan was very hard for me and my friends. In the short span of one semester we had really formed a family. We all left Jinan with tears in our eyes and the intention of one day returning.
Guangzhou is located in the south of china, in the Guangdong region where the local language is Cantonese (广东话). Traveling from Guangzhou to Jinan is like traveling from one country to another. The south of china is very different from the north, not only in the aspect of food but also in culture and language. (I guess China is like America in this aspect!)
The first shock between Jinan and Guangzhou was the weather! It was so hot in Guangzhou, it felt like spring. There were lush green plants everywhere! Also in Guangzhou, I didn’t have any negative experiences. The people were always kind and helpful a lot like in the Shandong province. I was often confused on whether I should speak English or mandarin Chinese to the people in Guangzhou. I did not want to appear rude, because their mother language is Cantonese, but they all can speak mandarin Chinese. I advise anyone traveling to Guangzhou to brush up on some Cantonese just to show respect.
Living Arrangements
While I was in Guangzhou I stayed in a hostel for the first time. I would recommend this to everyone traveling. The hostel was actually better than any hotel I have ever stayed in. Hotels are a nice luxury, but being surrounded by other travelers is a priceless experience. You can learn so much from the other guests. The hostel normally has important information about the city like where to go and how to get there. One day my friends and I wanted to go to Baiyun Shan (白云山) and the hostel had a folder of local tourist places and instructions on how to get there. The instructions were in Chinese, so if you can’t read Chinese that is a different problem! Our hostel even had wifi. I recommend that if you stay in a hostel to bring your own towels, and a lock for your locker. These are pictures of our hostel.
Food
The north of China is known for its bread, so in many restaurants and many street vendors sale various kinds of bread. I remember my first week in Jinan I really wanted rice but it was so hard to find! You have to ask for rice, but in the south of china many people prefer rice. They believe a meal is incomplete without rice. China has many famously known styles of food, and Guangdong is one of these well known styles. In the south the food tends to be sweeter and less salty than the north. I also felt that the food in the south has a lighter flavor compared to the north. The pictures below show some of the food that I tried in Guangzhou. In one of the pictures there is rice porridge which is eaten all throughout china. Rice porridge is similar to our oatmeal, except with rice. There is a picture of boiled chicken that I ate at one restaurant on New Years Eve night. The head of the chicken was put in the bowl with it. This may seem alarming to many American’s but in China it is very common. If the dish has the head of the chicken in it, it shows that this chicken was prepared fresh for you. I had a similar encounter in Jinan as well, but this dish had a lamb’s head in it. One tip to anyone traveling in China is to always wash your dishes at the restaurant. When you sit down at a restaurant there is a tea pot. You should use the tea to clean your chopsticks, cups, and plates. It is very common. The staff will even put a bowl on the table for you to put the used tea in.
Views of the City
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