Classes are in the Run Run Shaw building and last from 8am until 12pm (four hours daily). From our accommodation (the international students’ building) it’s a 10 min walk to the other side of campus, or, for the more adventurous among us, a five min cycle. The first session focuses on a recap of the previous day, introduction of new words, and grammar points. The second session consistes of reinforcement of the new words, and the new words in sentences and ‘real life’ scenarios. Classes are not an easy feat – we learn pinyin and characters which we memorise in our spare time.
On Wednesday evening some of us went to Beijing city centre to join in the Olympic one year count down launch ceremony. Unbeknown to us, the actual celebration was invite only but we managed to get quite close and heard the faint rumbling of some fireworks. It was nice to see the Chinese community so enthusiastic about holding the event in 2008.
On Thursday we went to a Kung Fu performance at the Red Theatre. The performance lasted about an hour and a half and followed the story of Chun Yi – the legend of Kung Fu. We were all quite surprised at the quality of the performance, but unfortunately we were forbidden to take any photos!
