Getting Acquainted with 厦门 － Xiamen‏

It's been a few weeks since I have arrived here in Xiamen now.   I haven't been able to access this blog since then, because of censorship, but I found a way around that (don't ask me how).  So now I can continue updating this. Yippee!

Since Xiamen University is just a school, and not really a tourist attraction (or so I thought -I'll explain in a moment), I have not taken any pictures of campus, but I will do that soon.

For now, here are some pictures of where I'm sitting as I write this.  This is 厦大西村。- Or, Xiamen University's West Gate Village.  It's a mall/market sort of area where many students come to shop, eat and hang out.  I have found myself coming here just about everyday for one of these things, if not just to check my emails.  Wifi is not to common around these parts.

I don't know if you are already aware, but we just had Chinese New Year!  By the Chinese Lunar Calendar, it is now the Year of the Dragon!  The thing to do to ring in the New Year is to watch the "Spring Festival Gala" on TV with your friends and family.  Therefore, just about our entire group of 15 people gathered in my room on New Years Eve and watched the festival on TV from 7:30pm all the way until it ended at 1:30am.  It was pretty spectacular with all the different performances, but not all of it made too much sense, considering that it the entire event was in Mandarin!  I still enjoyed it nonetheless.

The next day we went and watched the fire works that we being lit off by the beach!  We found a hillside to watch them from for the entire 40 minute presentation.  Did you know fireworks were invented in China?? That should give some clue to the quality of this show.  My camera did not do it justice.

Afterwards my friend Daniel and I walked back to the bus stop via the boardwalk lining the ocean.  From there I took these shots.